#like. obviously Some Men In Comics will not be happy with any female characters that aren't background wives or daughters | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

queer-and-dear-books · 1 year

Photo

Title: I Think Our Son Is Gay

Author: Okura

Genre: Comics | Family | Friendship | LGBTQ+

Content Warnings: Slight Homophobia

Overall Rating: 10/10

Personal Opinion: A wholesome story about acceptance, unconditional love, and unrelenting support. Told from the perspective of a mother who thinks her teenage son is gay (and he definitely is), you will absolutely fall in love with how she learns about the best ways to support her son and unlearn certain behaviors and thoughts. I truly wish and hope that every queer kid has a parent like this mom.

Do I Own These Books? Yes! I own the first four volumes!

Spoilers Below For My Likes & Dislikes:

Likes:

- First of all, I think these comics are incredibly relatable. Personally, for me, Hiroki represents my queer experience growing up. I don’t care for male idols much but I adore female idols. I fall for more masculine-presenting people. And I have definitely looked up “muscle men” on the internet when I was thirteen. Not everything about Hiroki is relatable. Some things are exaggerated for comedic effect obviously, like when he gets super-focused on attractive masculine men. But even then, I feel like he’s representing my inner thoughts and I appreciate that.

- Obviously the best part of the manga is the mother’s undying love and support for her son. She wasn’t thrilled when she first found out he might be gay but she realized, if he wasn’t hurt or hurting others, then there’s nothing wrong with him being gay. She makes mistakes, she slips up, but above all else, her love for her son will prevail in the end and she will respect him and any choices that he may or may not make. That’s the ideal kind of parent to me.

- But the other best part is Yuri, the little brother. I adore him so much. Because he knows (or suspects) that Hiroki is gay as well and doesn’t care. But when someone tries to pry into Hiroki’s life, Yuri is there to defend him. There’s a scene where Hiroki’s dad is grilling him about something and Yuri gives Hiroki an out by saying Hiroki isn’t obligated to tell the dad anything. He’s such a smart and kind boy and I love that he and Hiroki have such a healthy relationship as siblings. I think that further shows that their mother did a great job raising the two of them.

- Hiroki’s obvious crush on Daigo is adorable. He sees Daigo as this cool and dependable person that is capable of doing anything he sets his mind to. But he doesn’t treat Daigo like a machine that will do anything for them like their classmates do. To him, Daigo is a friend first and foremost and he treats Daigo as such and it’s so wholesome. I love how he treasures gifts, photos, and words from Daigo because I would be the same.

- However, that being said, I love how Hiroki took a step back when Daigo got a girlfriend. He didn’t panic or cry or get angry about it. Throughout the series, he’s depicted as a very emotional person but he’s also very emotionally mature. He wants Daigo to hang out with his girlfriend and he wants Daigo to be happy even if that means not being together romantically. I find that so sweet.

- Toono-san! An actual, confirmed, explicitly stated gay man exists in this manga. He has a partner and he’s open about that if he’s asked about it. He has his past and his problems but he’s happy and that’s all I could want for a queer character. For them to be thriving. Best of all, he’s Hiroki’s mom’s co-worker and I find it so adorable how she comes to him when she needs advice about raising her son or a queer perspective on her son’s experiences. But she also learns through him that gay men aren’t a monolith, not all of them are going to act or react the same way in a situation as another. And I just love that.

- This manga series is so education for queers and non-queers alike and I think just about everyone should read it.

Dislikes:

- The older lady co-worker who said, “What a waste that he’s gay” about Tonoo-san. I hate those words. She also stereotyped him later on when she learned he was gay. But you know what, this story isn’t about her. It’s about what we can learn not to do from microaggressions like her’s.

- I’m not sure I’m a fan of Hiroki’s dad. I just have to hope that his love for his sons will overcome any judgment and prejudice he may hold against queer people. I also hope that his wife calls him out on his bullshit more. Overall, I do appreciate his character’s presence and what it adds to the narrative.

#booksbooksbooks #Book Rec #Book Review #Book Blog #Comics #Manga #Queer Comics #I Think Our Son Is Gay #Uchi no musuko wa tabun gei #Okura #LGBTQ #Queer Representation

40 notes · View notes

daughter-of-melpomene · 6 months

Note

For the if they were canon ask game: 🎬 + Genesis Welton, please??

@dancingsunflowers-ocs ✨💙✨

Always happy to answer asks about my babe Genesis! Thanks a bunch, Alexandra!! <3

HOW THEY'D BE INTRODUCED:

The really good thing about the original series, I think, is that it really sort of just drops us into the Star Trek universe and tells us to play catch-up with learning about the world and the characters. So I think Gen's introduction would just be a shot of her in the medical bay, filling out some forms on their holopad and trading banter with Bones, before Jim comes in needing something.

WHO THE FANDOM SHIPS THEM WITH:

Despite how closed off she is as a person, Gen is actually very shippable. Obviously a good portion of the fandom would ship them, Kirk, and Spock, but there would also be people shipping her with solely one or the other, as well as those who ship them with Uhura and Sulu. (There would also, of course, be those few wayward souls who would write fics about her and Bones, but those people are weird and we do not speak of them.)

WHY THE FANDOM LOVES THEM:

In addition to being a total badass, they'd be the first explicit representation of genderqueer people in media ever, as well as her relationship with Kirk and Spock being the first explicit representation of polyamorous relationships in media, and I think that would give hope to a lot of people.

WHY THE FANDOM HATES THEM:

I honestly feel like most of the hate around them would just be from hateful people - those who didn't want to see any queer representation or those who didn't want to see a female-presenting character being strong and powerful (though I will say anyone like that just shouldn't watch any Star Trek media at all). I also feel like a lot of people wouldn't like how distant and cold she can be at times, even after their past has been explained and the audience can understand why she is the way they are.

WHAT THE CAST RELATIONSHIP WOULD BE LIKE:

Bryce Dallas Howard is pretty awesome, so I can definitely see her getting along with the cast! She and William Shatner would definitely be good friends, and she would definitely be besties with George Takei.

WHAT WAS THEIR AUDITION SCENE:

Probably a scene of her and Kirk talking about their Starfleet days and just exchanging back-and-forth; it would be good for seeing how a prospective actor's chemistry with William Shatner would be, and for seeing how well they could deliver Gen's snappy dialogue.

DEPENDANT UPON THE FANDOM, WHO THEY'D BE AT A PRESS TOUR/AT COMIC CON WITH:

Probably William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley. I can definitely picture them all together in interviews and cons, laughing and sharing filming stories.

IF THEY SPOIL THINGS:

I can definitely picture Bryce spoiling a couple things purely by accident (😅). Nothing too major, though!

IF THE SHOW/MOVIE HAS ENDED, ARE THEY HAPPY WITH THEIR CHARACTER'S ENDING AND THE ENDING AT LARGE:

I mean, the story of Star Trek is never going to be fully over, I don't think, but I can definitely see Bryce being happy with Gen's ending from the original series and movies. They end it retired from Starfleet, married to the men she loves, and at peace for once in their life - what better ending than that could you ask for?

send me 🎬 + an oc!!

#asks about my ocs #oc: genesis welton #fic: all the stars

2 notes · View notes

bonbonbunny · 3 years

Note

Do u have any good lady's isekai falls-in-love-with-a-prince-from-a-novel type webcomic recommendation? I read 2 and now im hooked

Do I EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Most of these I find on Webtoon. If you join webtoon and read regularly, you'll see them suggesting more things you might like, and new stuff on the main page, and you'll discover more and more of them, too. 💖

Happily Ever Afterwards - The heroine is reborn AFTER the epilogue of her fave novel, after her favorite character has been exiled from the kingdom due to the story’s events (he’s a tragic, sympathetic character). She sets about traveling to the cold, difficult kingdom of his exile to try to convince him to marry her, so that she can give him the happiness he deserves to have after all of the sad events from the book! This comic is SOOOOO sweet, cute, and fluffy-fluff! ☁️

The First Night With the Duke - Starts out with a lot of comedy, but has gotten much more serious as the chapters have progressed, with some intense scenes that I haven’t been crazy about. The heroine completely derails the plot of the novel by being born as a random, unnamed side-character who accidentally seduces the male lead, and no romance between him and the actual female lead ever even has the chance to happen. 😅

The Matchmaking Baby Princess - The heroine is born as a tiny baby princess, who uses her super cute charm to influence the characters around her so that things turn out better for them than the way the novel goes. This one is still fairly new, so the episodes haven’t shown a whole lot about how she derails the story yet, but, it is REALLLY CUUUUUTE!! And has very beautiful scenes of palatial gardens and such. Also obviously the heroine herself is not the one that the romance happens to lol.

His Majesty's Proposal - This one is a bit similar to The First Night With the Duke, with a rando side character getting proposed to by the prince after spending a night with him. A fun twist with this one is that the heroine is reincarnated from a crotchety old woman in her previous life, so she uses all kinds of old person slang (like calling people “whippersnappers” and stuff like that lol) and is kind of rude and grumpy lol.

Every Rose Has a Death Flag - Pretty typical isekai where the heroine is reincarnated as the villainess and knows that all of her ends are bad ends, so she tries to remove herself from the attentions of the prince and the other main characters, but through the process ends up endearing herself to them instead. Good stuff without any weird quirks or gimmicks. 👌

Tricked into Becoming the Heroine's Stepmother - The protagonist is actually one of the AUTHORS of this novel, so she is familiar with exactly what will be happening to all of the characters! She is reincarnated as a rando townsperson though, and doesn’t have much influence, until she appeals to the prince and just spills the fact that she’s the author and knows everything that’s going to happen to the princess (his daughter) in the future lol?! And he believes her?? And employs her to his household in order to prevent any of the princess’ suffering??? Also did I mention that the princess is the most adorable little toddler ever, with fluffy hair like a chestnut? 😭😭

The Male Lead's Girl Friend - Again, the heroine is reborn as the villainess of the story, and attempts to distance herself from the male lead as much as she can (endearing herself to him in the process). Some of the interesting quirks here are that she ships the male and female lead SUPER HARD, and is trying everything she can to hook them up together, but they both only seem to fall for her harder with every attempt. 😄 There is also a cool school/academy setting to this one to set it apart from the others with similar plots, as well as BIG YURI VIBES between the protagonist and the female lead.

How to Survive a Romance Fantasy - This is the most comedy-intensive of everything on this list. In fact, it just kept getting sillier as its chapters went on, and I actually dropped it from my reading list because it wasn’t making me laugh as hard anymore as it was in the beginning.. 😅 In this one, three normal-world folks are reborn in the fantasy world, as the heroine, the prince, and the villainess, and ALL THREE of them hate it and want nothing to do with the plot, so they run away as far from the plot as they can, and are also keeping their identities as the main characters secret from one another. It is very, very silly.

Non-Webtoon Webcomics

These have not been officially picked up & translated. To read them in English, you will have to find them online where they are posted by fan translators.

The Villainess is a Marionette - This is for real probably my very favorite comic on this whole list, and can you believe how beautiful the art style is??? The tone of this one is totally different from any of the others here. The protagonist is reborn as a malicious villainess with particularly cruel endings in her future, and she sets about to avoid them by using her power, influence, and wiles to manipulate the royal intrigue happening around her. She’s... RELATIVELY kinder than the original villainess was in the story, and several characters that were her enemies in the original story are endeared to her now, but she’s still got her claws sunk into the royal family’s shady dealings. This is a “bad boss b*tch” kind of heroine lol, and it’s super satisfying to see her come out ahead of the other villains with her crazy 4D chess manipulations.

Sincerely: I Became a Duke's Maid - A super snuggly, sweet, and fluffy story where the protagonist is reborn as a maid during the tragic antihero’s childhood. He is afflicted with a painful curse, and the protagonist, knowing that only more pain is ahead for him, does her best to befriend him and make his youth a little bit lighter.

Who Made Me A Princess - Yet again, a tragic end awaits this princess that the protagonist is reborn as in her childhood, so she uses her cute charm to change the king’s attitude toward her (he was neglectful in the original story). Some interesting original-plot-derails happen in this one, where her innate magic power is much stronger than it’s supposed to be, and she needs the help of a magical pet creature and a very handsome wizard to sustain her life in this world.

Seduce the Villain's Father - This one wins the award for having the most hilarious title in this list. 😆 It’s much cuter and lighter than it sounds!! This protagonist derails the original plot by allowing herself to be kidnapped by the villain’s kingdom instead of the intended character (her sister). She is reborn among characters the generation before the events of the novel, so the villain himself isn’t here yet - but his handsome dad is! And if she can convince him not to marry the woman that would become the villain’s mother, then the storyline is saved! Probably!

Special mention:

My Next Life as a Villainess: All Roads Lead to Doom! - This anime is probably the main “reincarnated as the villainess” isekai that introduced most of us to this concept. 😅 I’ve linked to where you can watch the anime for free on Crunchyroll, but there is also a manga if you’d prefer to read it! While there are many, many comics that use this plot hook, this is the only one that made it to anime form, so it’s like, required watching!

To close this long list up, all of these recs are JUST ISEKAI!!!! If I were recommending my favorite webcomics in general, there could also be Cursed Princess Club, The Remarried Empress, The Princess’ Jewels, and Men of the Harem in this list...

There are so, so many comics with beautiful art styles featuring gorgeous princesses, it’s crazy!! 😭😭 I could for real spend my whole life reading them probably?? 👌👌 Those millions of women that read romance novels about dukes falling in love with noble women are suddenly extremely relatable.

#asks #isekai #webcomics #webcomic #long post

72 notes · View notes

rjshepherd · 3 years

Note

Hi! What do u think the lords' sexualities are? 👀

hI DONT MIND ME IMA GO FERAL FOR A MOMENT. ok so i KNOW i mentioned in my big ass head canon posts for donna and karl that i dont hold a particular sexuality for them because that means i can write them as freely as possible but lik i kinda do. i know im sorry, sometimes you cant help such things. people give you VIBES and these guys are NO different so here are some of my thoughts.

5 Lords Sexualities headcanons

Miranda - straight...ish.

So i don't really write for miranda, nor do i intend to . as such i feel like she's the ONLY lord i can honestly say i don't hold a sexuality hc for. Obviously at one point in her existence she was attracted to men, or at least enough to have a child with one. But that was a long time ago and sexuality can be a fluid thing that changes or adapts over time. I would say she's mostly straight but given her other issues i genuinely don't see her caring too much about the gender of her partner. If she likes you, she'll let you know, if she doesn't like you, she'll use you as experiment fodder. easy as. Mother "my sexuality is science" Miranda lmao.

Alcina- Lesbian

I mean i think as a collective we've all decided she's a lesbian, which is fine, i can see that and i can get behind that. I think maybe when she was younger and outside the village she was kind of a Bambi lesbian but now she's older and more confident in herself, she's hella proud of her interest in women. Castle dimitrescu is filled with female centric art, a lot of it by queer artists. Her library is filled with Sappho's collected works , Charlotte bronte and Alison Bechdel comics for her girls. I don't think she has any sexual interest in men but i can still see her dominating them or maybe doing something with them before eating them like a black widow spider. Its not about the sex but more about the power.

Donna- asexual- bi/pan demiromantic

So i said that donna has big Ace vibes and i stand by that. however i think she might be Bi/Pan romantic or Demi-Bi/Pan romantic. i usually dislike the overt sexualiszation of child like characters but i also dislike the overt desexualisation of characters with autistic or neurodivergent traits, like theyre too uwu innocent to have such thoughts. I canon donna as ace bc she reminds me of me, not just because of who she is as a character. She can fuck if she wants, she'd just usually prefer not to. She seems like the kind of open sort who literally wouldnt care about your gender one way or the other, as long as you loved her bc thats what she really wants.

Salvatore- Gay

i have no idea why this was the first thought that entered my head when i asked myself "who does sal like?" i guess as a human i have this mental image of him being a sophisticated old queen with a new york accent, giving out sage advice to all the young lgbtqia+ folks in the village. Unfortunately, hes not a sophisticated fellow but a scraggly gross fishman with the mind of a neglected child. Because of that i have a hard time imagining him in sexual situations. again, maybe when he was human, maybe in his teenage years before miranda mutated him, he liked men and was shunned as a result. maybe that made him an easy target for miranda ? this is all speculation so feel free to ( politely) disagree with me on all of this.

Karl - Bi/pan demisexual/demiromantic

Karl has big "why is everyone so hot" vibes to go with donnas "global warming" vibes. Karl is the only one i could look at and go "you know this man would have squishes over crushes". i know in the fandom we have this thing about making him really sexual, wanting to fuck and fuck hard at every given opportunity but my personal headcanon is that he really doesnt care that much about sex. If you were his partner he'd do what you wanted to make you happy; he's a sex favorable ace and can have a libido to match yours. but he just doesnt feel that much sexual attraction to you, regardless of how much he loves you in other ways. He's a pretty shameless flirt with anyone he finds aesthetically pleasing but the moment someone reciprocates or starts flirting with him he just forgets how to talk. Remarks about his attractiveness fly over his head and he really doesnt get alicna's obsession with having titty art all over the place. hes one to talk: not a single soldat is wearing a shirt

thank you for letting me ramble nonnie!

#Karl heisenberg #alcina dimitrescu #donna beneviento #salvatore moreau #mother miranda #resident evil #resident evil village #resident evil 8 #re8 #headcanons #my headcanons #karl heisenberg headcanons #my stuff #my writing #asks

153 notes · View notes

uhlikzsuzsanna · 3 years

Link

SPOILER WARNING: Do not read if you haven’t seen all of Season 1 of “Loki,” currently streaming on Disney Plus.

Ever since “Loki” first premiered in June, Kate Herron, who directed all six episodes of the Marvel Studios series, has had to pretend like she knew far less than she really does. For one, she couldn’t acknowledge that the homages to sci-fi classics like “Blade Runner” and “Brazil” that she’d baked into the elaborate sets for the Time Variance Authority — the cosmic bureaucracy tasked with maintaining the sacred timeline — were “meant to be sinister” rather than just “playful and quirky.”

For another, Herron was delighted to see fans theorizing after the very first episode that Kang the Conqueror — a character already set to appear in the Marvel Studios feature “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” as played by Jonathan Majors — was really pulling the strings of the TVA. But until the finale streamed last Wednesday, she couldn’t even hint that those fans were only half right: Majors does play the mastermind of the TVA, but he’s a variant of Kang referred to as He Who Remains. It’s only after He Who Remains encounters Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and his female variant counterpart Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), and Sylvie plunges a blade into his heart, that the multiverse is reborn, creating the possibility for Kang the Conqueror to emerge.

Again, though: Herron couldn’t acknowledge any of that, even to those closest to her.

“Nothing has prepared me better for working with Marvel than playing tabletop games with my friends,” she says with a laugh. “It definitely taught me how to have a good poker face. You have to hide your hand — and sometimes lie.”

Now, thankfully, all of that is behind her — as is “Loki” itself. Despite receiving widespread acclaim for her assured, ambitious, and visually sumptuous work directing the show, Herron says she has decided not to return for Season 2 of the series.

“I gave it everything — in my soul, in my heart, everything,” she says. “I feel so proud of the work we’ve done. And yeah, I’ll be enjoying Season 2 as a fan.”

She’s quick to sing the praises of everyone she worked with at Marvel, and she says she’s “sure” she’ll work again with the studio. For now, however, she’s ready to take a holiday, and then turn to a project she’s writing herself “that’s really close to my heart that I really want to make.”

“It’s my own decision, but I just feel like my part with ‘Loki’ is finished now and I’m just excited to see where his story goes,” she says.

Before she parts ways for good, however, Herron spoke with Variety about bringing Jonathan Majors into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, what she thought of the shocking revelation about infinity stones and what she would like to see happen in Season 2.

She always knew “Loki” would introduce Kang and the Multiverse…

From the very start, Herron says, she and head writer Michael Waldron knew that their six-episode run of “Loki” would always end with Loki and Sylvie meeting He Who Remains at his citadel, the result of which would cause the creation of the multiverse.

As Episode 6 makes clear, both of these events were massive turning points for the future of the MCU — and Herron still can’t quite believe she got to be the one to make them a reality.

“We were just, like, waiting to be told, ‘Actually, guys, we’ve had a change [of heart],'” Herron says. Instead, Herron says she and “Quantumania” director Peyton Reed participated in casting Majors in the role.

“I was just like, pinch me,” she says. “I can’t believe I was at the table for that, because I know it was such a big decision for them all.”

Herron also decided to have Majors provide the voices for all three “Timekeepers” who are supposedly at the head of the TVA, but are revealed by Sylvie to be nothing more than “mindless androids.”

“We didn’t have someone cast for those voices,” she says. “I remember thinking, well, ‘Wizard of Oz’ is clearly a reference for us. We should have the wizard. It’d be great if it’s Jonathan. So we sent him all the art of the timekeepers. And he just kind of came up with these incredible voices for each of them.”

…but not with a cliffhanger.

The most significant decision of the season, though, may be that it ends with a giant cliffhanger, when Loki discovers he’s in a brand new reality for the TVA in which Mobius (Owen Wilson) and Hunter B-15 (Wunmi Mosaku) don’t even recognize him. But while Herron knew how this season of “Loki” would end, at first, she did not know that there would be any more seasons after it.

“When I started, there wasn’t a discussion of Season 2, exactly,” she says. “It was just that season of ‘Loki.’ As we got deeper into production, everyone was very happy, and obviously there’s so much to explore with Loki. It felt like we should continue the story. So I think the cliffhanger ending came in later in the process.”

Herron says she sprinkled in some hints to viewers that Loki is in a new timeline, like redressing sets to look slightly off, and recasting Eugene Cordero’s TVA receptionist Casey as a hunter headed to the armory in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment. But her favorite bit is that the final line — said by Mobius to Loki — is the same as the first line spoken in the show, by a woman in the Gobi desert, also to Loki: “Who are you?”

“That was kind of the question of the whole first season,” Herron says.

She was just as shocked about the Infinity Stones as everyone else.

In the first episode, Loki discovers to his horror that not only does his magic not work inside the TVA, but Infinity Stones — heretofore believed to be the most powerful objects in the known universe — are just inert rocks there. The revelation sent shockwaves across the Marvel fandom; Herron was right there with them.

“That was in Michael’s script when I first got it to pitch [for the directing job],” she says. “I remember being like, ‘WHAT?! You put me through so much!’ But then I thought, ‘Oh, it’s kind of genius, because it shows how powerful the TVA are. Who are these people? What is this place?'”

Herron especially appreciated how her shock — and the audience’s — mirrored Loki’s own as the rug gets pulled out from under him. “I was quite excited by it,” she says. “It really shows you that there’s a new power in the MCU — and it’s not what we we spent the last decade dedicating our lives to.”

She told Kevin Feige she wanted gender parity among her crew.

Prior to “Loki,” Herron’s most high profile job was directing the second half of the first season of the Netflix dramedy “Sex Education.” She got the “Loki” job thanks to a 60-page pitch memo that filled out just about every detail of the world of the show. After hiring her, she says Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige asked her, “What are your terms?”

“This was the first time I was gonna get to hire my heads of department on a television show I worked on,” she says. “I was like, I’d really love [the crew] to be 50/50 across gender.”

Herron says she wasn’t out to fill any jobs on the film with a specific gender. But, she says, “There aren’t enough women in these roles. They’re out there. It’s a lack of opportunity. It’s not a lack of interest.”

She did end up hiring two women for critical roles that are still rarely occupied by women: cinematographer Autumn Durald (“The Sun Is Also a Star”) and composer Natalie Holt (History’s “Knightfall”).

“I felt like she was inside my mind,” Herron says of Durald. “We have the same taste. And I love the way that she talks about light as a character.”

Herron hired Holt unusually early for a composer, after she’d completed editing the first episode during the pandemic shutdown. She knew that the particular sci-fi film noir look of the show that she was developing with Durald needed similarly unique music, and she liked that part of Holt’s pitch was focusing on Loki’s identity as a character.

“Her music then started to inspire how I wanted to shoot other scenes,” Herron says. She’s especially enamored of Holt’s vision for her dynamic and foreboding theme for the TVA.

“She was like, ‘Oh, let’s have that theme be Kang’s’ — well, He Who Remains, I guess, in our show. But I hope that will go on to be Kang’s theme. That was the real fun of it is that you feel like he’s really played a hand now across the whole show, because you realize that music is his music.”

Herron, Durald, and Holt all deliver distinctive and superlative work that’s nothing like the MCU has quite seen before — and nothing quite like anything previously in their careers, either. And that’s entirely the point.

“I think for us, it was about just showing people what we could do and that we could do it at this level,” Herron says.

The episode in which Loki comes out as bisexual was inspired by Alfonso Cuarón and Richard Linklater.

Every episode of “Loki” features multiple extended scenes of two characters just talking to one another, a rarity in a comic book production. Herron says that cutting Episode 1 together during the pandemic lockdown and seeing the scenes between Loki and Mobius (Owen Wilson) play out so well “definitely gave us confidence” to continue that rhythm for the rest of the show.

That was especially true for Episode 3. Written by Bisha K. Ali (who went on to create the upcoming Marvel Studios series “Ms. Marvel”), the episode is essentially an extended meet-cute between Loki and Sylvie as they get to know each other on a planet doomed for total annihilation.

“Bisha’s reference was ‘Before Sunrise’ and ‘Children of Men,'” says Herron. “And it lit my brain on fire. It was kind of weird. It was almost like a bottle episode in the sense that we’re just with the two characters, but obviously, it’s Marvel, right? So they’re bonding in this Apocalypse, which also feels very Loki at the same time.”

That episode is best known for making Marvel Studios history, when Loki casually mentions that he’s had dalliances with both men and women. Herron says that when she first interviewed for the job, she asked if the show was going to acknowledge Loki’s sexuality, which had long been established in the comics as bisexual or pansexual.

“I think everyone wanted to acknowledge it,” she says. “It was just really about giving a care and consideration and doing it in the right way. I think everyone knew it was gonna be quite a big moment. So it was just really about doing it in a way that felt respectful. And honoring it.”

Herron also confirms what many fans had suspected, that she deliberately made the lighting scheme for the scene evoke the blue, purple and red of the bisexual flag. “We knew what we were doing with that scene,” she says with a smile.

She has a lot of ideas for what she’d like to see in Season 2.

Since Herron will be watching Season 2 of “Loki” only “as a fan,” she is also free to wildly speculate as to what she’d most like to see happen — like how, wherever Loki story leads, “we’ve opened the door” for the character to explore his sexuality with men as well as women.

Otherwise? She says she wants to know where Judge Ravonna Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) goes to when she leaves the TVA in search, she tells Mobius, of “free will.”

“I love her,” Herron says. “Gugu used to always call her an indoor girl, which made me laugh, but she is. She’s in the office, but she used to be this kick-ass Hunter. So I’m like, Okay, well, where’s her path going?”

Herron is also keen to learn more about Hunter B-15’s backstory — since she deliberately decided to hide it in the scene in Episode 4 when Sylvie shows B-15 her repressed memories as a variant.

“I was like, we shouldn’t see her memories,” Herron says. “It’s a character that thought they had power and realizes they have no power. It felt really powerful to at least give her some power in that scenario. The memories are private. They’re hers.” She pauses. “Also as a fan, I’m like, ‘Oh my God, who is she?!'”

“And obviously, you know, Loki and Sylvie?” Herron continues, on a roll. “He’s in a completely different reality. What’s going to happen to him? How will he get back? Or will he get back? And where’s Sylvie? She’s still in the Citadel? And the multiverse of it all. What the hell is going to happen?!”

Herron chuckles at her own excitement. “So I think there’s so many questions to be answered, and so much more road to travel with all our characters,” she says. “You know, I’m really proud that I got to set up Loki’s story here. But there’s so many different aspects of his identity and personality that’s yet to be explored. I’m excited to see where it goes.”

#Loki #Loki series #Tom Hiddleston #Kate Herron #Jonathan Majors #variety interview #2021.07.17

41 notes · View notes

amindofstone · 3 years

Text

Match up, No. 8

@hoppingheart said:

Hey c: I would like to ask for a Match up!!

I am female, have green/yellow eyes and brown, long locks.

I am a very calm and balanced person. I love to gain new knowledge and I am a chemist. In general, I am very interested in science, medicine and psychology and our universe. (idk I just want to understand how all that stuff work!)

I'm not interested in a person's appearance, I want to explore and love the inside.

But what belongs to me is a person with whom I can communicate well and it should also be a very calm person I guess, because loud people annoy me. I don't like being around people in general...

I also like reading books and comics and I like to write down my thoughts a lot. (:

It would be nice if a get a male match up and I am 24 years old.

Thanks a lot and have a wonderful day ❤️

a/n: Hey there! I hope that you had a good week. Thank you for requesting and my apologies for making you wait so long. I had a lot to do and hadn´t the time and peace to write honestly. But I managed to work on your request in a few nights. And I really hope you will like with what I came up with. If not and if there is anything that bothers you please tell me so I can work on that and give you what you imagined. Other than that enjoy the little work I came up with. Happy reading, dear!

Match up rules can be HERE.

Warning(s): Maybe grammatical or spelling mistakes since English is my third language and I´m still improving in every aspect (Please have mercy on that.)

!!! Please do not steal my idea or work. Credit me if this is shared or published in any other platform or any other way. Please respect me as the writer and my work. Picture is not mine. Credits to: @mgmgmgdo (Twitter)!!!

· I decided to pair you up with my absolute favorite character. A character that got me curious from the first minute he appeared. The character I am talking about is Trafalgar D. Water Law (Not gonna lie. He gets me screaming whenever he says “room”. Like damn that man has way too much power over me! AnYwAyS….)

· I really think that you match so well. You have so many traits in you that not only resemble his but also traits he would love in a s/o

· Law is a pretty modest and chill person. A man that might be always alone and on his own but a man that holds power and intelligence

· You were in the library of the island that was your home. Your place of birth. An island filled by memories and times of joy and sadness. It was a pretty wealthy island who’s king always tried his best. A island, a kingdom supported and watched over by the revolutionary army since 15 years ago when the previous king used his power to torture his people and only take care of his own good life

· You were the daughter of a pretty well known doctor that not only had the position of the health minister of the kingdom but also was the head of the biggest hospital on the island

· You as his youngest and dearest daughter were having a good relationship. He loved you and always looked at you with pride. His daughter after all took the same path as he and worked in the medical industry. You were a psychologist that was aiming to also become a gynecologist just like your mother. Any person in the island knew and respected you for your intelligence and wisdom. So when it came that you told your father that you wanted to leave your dearly loved island and home he was confused and more so shocked when you said that you wanted to leave with a pirate.

· “I think something happened in the library today? Are you fine my dear?”, it took you some time to convince your parents to let you go and let you grow in your own way but after some time. You managed to do so.

· They let you go but didn´t understood what or how it happened that you wanted to leave with some pirates. Criminals. Murders. Scum’s. When told that there are many more ways to grow you smiled at them and shook your head. “Of course it is possible to grow in other ways but I want to grow in the same way he did. I want to be independent and strong just like him. He amazes me. And I am sure that he can teach me so much more. More than any other person here could.”

· How you meet Trafalgar Law you wonder? Let me tell you that.

· On a warm and sunny spring morning you were in the library looking for a book for your latest studies about the concept of punishment and reward in the process of teaching a child (I could talk hours about this since I had a course in college about it. It´s so interesting!)

· After getting everything you wanted you made your way to your favorite spot in the forest that was close to a cliff with a beautiful view to the more crowed areas of the island and it´s harbor

· You were taking notes when something weird caught your eyes.

· “A.. submarine…? I´m not dreaming.. am I? What is a submarine doing here? Wait does it belong to the marine?! Wait no. It has a black jolly roger so it must belong to a pirate”

· You were thinking whether you should go tell the sheriff of the island or go find a guard to make sure the king knows about this but you absolutely had no motivation to leave your books behind and search for someone. So you kept sitting there while ignoring the pirates that docked at the island

· And you managed to do that. You forgot about the pirates and got back to your studies until a bear asked for the way. A BEAR ASKED FOR THE WAY?!?!?

· “OH mY gOd!! You can speak!? How can you speak?!”, you looked at the big standing bear in front of you with widen eyes. You were scared but also fascinated so you pulled yourself together and apologized for your behavior. “I didn´t mean to hurt you with my words. How can I help?”, you smiled at the bear and assured him that he didn´t have to feel bad for scaring her and introduced yourself and lead him and two other man back to the city.

· When you reached the down town you told them that you will be going back and wished them the best. You were about to leave when one of them, who introduced himself as Sashi, asked you if you could help them get everything they needed since they didn´t knew the place and had to go back to the submarine quickly. You wondered why they were in a hurry but didn´t asked and helped them.

· Although they had you as a guide it still took you some time until they had everything. But nevertheless you had everything you needed and made your way back to the submarine. You had a good time with the people and actually forgot that they were pirates since they seemed to be so nice and respectful.

· At the submarine you helped them get everything inside and got plenty of thank you´s from the crew on board. After everything was on board you wished them the best and said your last goodbyes when a grumpy and annoyed looking man approached you from the forest.

· “Captain? What happened? Why did you leave the ship?”, asked the bear with worry in his eyes. You were confused and looked at the tall man who had a sword in his hand. “We have a problem. The pharmacies here won´t sell me any medical products without a permission paper of the health ministry or a doctor.”, you had a small smile on your lips and wondered what he needed that they didn´t sell him. As far as you knew basic medicines were always sell without a problem. “But did you tell them that you were a surgeon?”, the man looked at the bear with pure annoyance and frustration because of the situation he was in. He talked to him and some other people of his crew and tried to find a solution. You on the other hand were surprised that the captain of these pirates was a surgeon. You wanted to ask him were and who taught him to be a surgeon when the gaze of the man fell upon you.

· “Who are you and what are you doing on my submarine?”, the sudden shift of his voice from annoyance to anger surprised you and left you overwhelmed. “I´m no one special. I just helped your men to get the needed supplies and I will leave now. My apologizes for disturbing Sir.”, you were about to leave when the captain spoke up again. “You are a civilian of this island. Tell me why the pharmacies have such strict rules?”, you stopped in your tracks and turned around. “It´s a long story but as much as I can tell you and you need to know is that without permission you can´t be helped. But what do you exactly need? Usually they sell basic medicines without a problem.”, you asked worried to say something inappropriate and anger the pirate. “I´m a surgeon and I not only need basic supplies but also supplies for surgeries.”

· You had so many questions but help back and just nodded. Without thinking twice you asked for a pen and paper and told them that you will help them. With a simple nod the captain gave a permission that made one of his crew mates to go get you what you wanted. With a pen and a notebook in your hands you stared to write down whatever they needed. The list of supplies was accompanied by a letter by you and a signature of yours. The pirates were confused but didn´t asked what exactly you were doing until the captain took the writing and read the letter. With a raised brow and a smirk he told you that this was faking a document when you simply nodded and told him that this was going to help them. You took the paper back and mad him follow you and let you take care of the supplies. He wasn´t really opposed of the help of someone and clearly made you feel and hear it but there was nothing he could do. He needed all of the things and he absolutely had cero time and patience for waiting for a paper of the ministry. So he obeyed and did anything that was needed.

· “Thank you for helping. Is there a way I can pay you back?”, the words that left the dark haired mans lips made you think about a question that lingered on your mind since a while. “How did you become a surgeon? You´re obviously a pirate. Where did you gained all of the knowledge. And on top of that you seem pretty young for a surgeon. I´m really curious.”, you thought that you crossed a line when he looked you in the eyes with a emotionless expression. “I´m pretty young for a surgeon you say? What about you? You can´t be older than me. And the woman working there called you doctor too, didn´t she?”, with a smile on his lips he approached you and took the huge box out of your hands just to hand you his sword. “Take care of it for me. It´s precious, would you?”

· You were dumfounded and just blinked confused and followed him. Is a sword always that heavy? You wondered while you followed the man that walked past you. And it´s so big? The blade must be long. You were inspecting the sword in your hands while trying to remember your grandfathers knowledge of swords. He told me something about a number of really well known swords. I wonder if this one’s also part of it. You were lost in your thoughts when the voice of the over tattooed man took you by surprise and made you stumble over a none existing stone.

· “It´s just a sword. No more or less. Anyways don´t you wanna tell me what exactly your profession is?”, a bit dumfounded you looked at him then the sword for a few times until your brain realized that he asked you a question. “Well... yeah sure! I am a psychologist. My focus until now is on kids and teenager but I might also get into the studies for adults in the future. At the moment I am doing basis studies for gynecology out of interest but also because my best friend recently got pregnant. But honestly it is so interesting….”,

· You were talking like it was the most normal thing ever. As if it wasn´t something special that would make anyone see a genius in you. A beautiful genius with beautiful warm green- yellow eyes. Law was looking at you with awe but tried his best to keep a monotone look on. He once in a while hummed or nodded to make sure you don´t feel like you are talking to yourself. He was amazed by your passion and was full of joy that he found someone with a mind that was similar to his.

· “…. Although I really found interest in gynecology I honestly wouldn´t stop my work as a psychologist since it´s something I always wanted to do. I just want kids to be seen as an equally competent and smart living being as a adult…. Oh. Look we´re back. Hey Bepo!”

· Disappointment. Law was disappointed in the fact how short the way back to the submarine was. He wanted to hear you talk more about yourself. The wish to hear you do so made him do something that wasn´t like his usual self. “Guys, let´s stay here for today. We will set sail tomorrow. The island seems save and the people are nice. And your bodies need some sunlight. Bepo and the girls are way too sensitive lately.”, the girls of his crew instantly went into a fighting mode and were ready to throw hands if it weren´t for the boys who held them back. The sight of the mad girls and the worried looks of the boys really amused you and made you chuckle.

· “Do you mind having lunch with me? I would like to hear more about your researches.”, he asked while avoiding looking in your eyes. With a bright smile you nodded and asked him if he could tell you something about himself too, what he agreed on.

· Out of just one night it turned into a week the heart pirates stayed what was pretty unusual but didn´t seem to bother the captain a lot. In fact it was him who forgot that they had a plan to follow and reach Sabaody but that was long forgotten.

· With a lot of time and patience the man who kept talking with you managed to get you to join his crew and become a part time pirate how you liked to call it. He didn´t mind that and in fact liked it and called it cute

· It didn´t took you long to get used to your new environment and home. You had a good time and the heart pirates enjoyed your accompany. More so their actual captain that tried to be around you as much as possible. Even when you didn´t talk to each other and had a calm and peaceful silence fill the room you were in, he was happy. He liked and enjoyed it to the fullest. Quiet study sessions were a routine for the two of you. Every two days you would meet up in his bedroom (that was the only quiet place in the whole submarine because the crew is so damn loud and lively. Like basically the opposite of their captain) and have those little study sessions.

· With you being part of the heart pirates a lot of things changed for Law. As the captain who was also in charge for the health of his crew of 20 people he always had a lot to do. But since you came he had it way easier. From the day you put a feet on the submarine you asked for permission to take over the health quarter and the medical files of the crew. Without even having to start a discussion he gave them to you and let you take care of them.

· Law was grateful for you and your decision to join him in his journey. He appreciated and respected you so much that he would sometimes just stare at you when you worked while a tiny smile would lay on his lips. “Captain. Do you like y/n? Cuz you’re staring at her for more than an hour now. Like every day. Are you ok?”, would Penguin say and get a death glare from his captain.

· With months passing Law found out that he indeed liked you. He knew that he was more than just happy when you came to him for his opinion on something. He liked how you would leave his cabin without a word just to come back with a tray of coffee and water. He knew that his heart would start beating faster whenever you would stand at his back and give him a head massage. He knew that the slight pain that would grow in his heart whenever you would give Shashi or Penguin a head massage was because he wanted to be in their position. He knew that he didn´t like how you took care of the guys in his crew because you would touch them and give them a hug after every check up. He would feel sad whenever he would find you sitting between Bepos legs with some of his crew members around you when you told them stories about the universe and gave them astrology lessons they gladly and always took when they were free. You amazed them and taught them so many things.

· He knew and understood all of his emotions but never called them love until he was spending a night on deck of the submarine with you.

· He didn´t sleep for night’s again. He couldn´t sleep for nights but his body told him to do so. It screamed at him to lay down and close his eyes but his mind held him back like any other time too. His mind that told him that he needed to be awake and take care of his people. His mind that showed him the scariest and saddest scenarios whenever he wanted to sleep. His mind that would show him a picture of you whenever he wanted to sleep. His mind that would get his heart to start racing and being the cause of his heavy breathing.

· “Law you should sleep.”, you said walking up to him. You put a hand on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. “Law?”, “I should sleep. I know that but my mind is telling me not because it is the only way I can keep my crew save.”, you said nothing. You kept quiet and listened to him. But your silence made him feel like he said the dumbest thing ever. “I´m sorry. I probably sound ridic…”, “No you don´t. I can understand you. Having these thoughts as a captain is accurate and understandable. There are people looking up to you. People who think that their captain will save them and take care of them no matter what will happen.”, Laws gaze that was fixed on the horizon was now drifting down to the water below them. “It´s okay to have these fears but you need to take care of yourself. Your body needs to rest. If you don´t want to do that for yourself then please do it for me and the rest of your crew. Because obviously I am the only one that can´t fight and needs protection.”

· A little smile grew on Laws lips that made him look at your hand that was laying on his. Your small hand that seemed so fragile like fine china. “There is nothing to worry about. I´ll protect you with my life y/n.”

· “I know you will but therefore you need to sleep and rest.”, Law stood on the spot without moving. His gaze now laying on your hand that was softly put on his made him realize how close you were standing next to him. So close. So damn close. He could feel the warmth that radiated from your body. He could feel you. But at the same time it wasn´t close enough. His brain was shut off and his mind was blank.

· Neither he nor did you know how it happened but one thing was clear. You were hugging each other and liking it. Law pulled you close to his body with absolutely nothing being able to fit between you two. The only thing that was separating you was your clothes. “Y/n….”, he was saying your name like he was about to start a sentence. A sentence that couldn´t leave his lips. He was frustrated. He was mad and he hated himself. He hid his face on your shoulder and breathed in your smell while a sentence left his lips you only could dream of.

· “Don´t leave me if you don´t wanna break my heart.”

50 notes · View notes

stillness-in-green · 2 years

Note

they don’t see the Japanese fan talking about her hopes for the end of the series riding on her perception of Horikoshi as being relatively progressive and sensitive.

what kind of end is she hoping for?

She had observed that HeroAca had been good about delving into societal issues thus far, and she enjoyed seeing male and female characters getting along, so she hoped that the series wouldn’t have a forced hetero-romance ending–what I think Western fandom tends to call things like “timeskip marriage endings.”

This is something shonen-oriented properties (and not just them; we have ‘em here, too) have been doing for a long time, but discussion about it has been growing in Japan, along with the expected pushback from people accusing those who complain about it of being gross fujoshi(1)/strident feminists trying to force their BL pairings/radical views about women onto this innocent dude author just trying to write his story.

There are, of course, lots of reasons why someone might not want to see HeroAca end with timeskip romances. Sure, some might have BL pairings they prefer, but for myself, at least, I don’t want to see it because I don’t want to see any author who thinks relationship drama is too boring to bother giving it any screentime jam in relationships at the end anyway. That sort of thing treats women as little more than rewards for men to get at the end of the story, or like settling down is what you do after all the interesting parts of your life are over, and it’s regressive tripe. It seems women in Japan are getting more comfortable expressing that sentiment openly as well.

There are actually quite a few elements I’ve heard of Japanese people (fans and haters alike) pointing to as indicative of Horikoshi being relatively forward-thinking. Hit the jump for some brief, generalized musings.

So there are, of course, the obvious/big things, like that the series borrows elements from Western superhero comics (disliked by the hardcore nationalist types, who think it’s pandering to the U.S.), or that the Japan it portrays is a brightly colored dystopia with lagging regard for human rights (generally seen as a good portrayal of a bad thing).

Then there are the smaller things. For example, many Western fans point to Magne and Tiger as Bad Trans Representation because they’re seen as regressive stereotypes or jokes, and Magne is the series’s first named character death, in a much more gruesome display than the manga had tended to portray up to that point.

Conversely, some Japanese readers point to Magne and Tiger as Trans Visibility, and feel the manga is portraying trans characters in a positive light. After all, Tiger is a hero, and Magne’s embrace of her identity is something the manga goes out of its way to see her praised and even envied for. Horikoshi may have some outdated ideas of what trans people look like, but it does not seem to be the case that those designs are coming from a place of malice.(2)

Another thing I’ve heard is the matter of Jirou’s parents–specifically, the husband taking his wife’s name, rather than the other way around. The law in Japan states that married couples must have a single family name, but doesn’t specify that it must be the wife who takes the husband’s. Obviously, it’s by far the most common choice (96%!), but every so often, you do see the opposite–and because it’s so uncommon, it remains somewhat controversial.

My general impression of the Japanese fan response to HeroAca is that it’s much easier for them to see the broader societal scope of the work. While it’s obvious from the numbers that the hero kids are wildly more popular with, at least, the voting readership, you still get those discussions of the ways that e.g. while the villains are too extreme in their actions, they still have legitimate complaints that have to be reconciled(3) in order for the series and its world to reach a happy conclusion. Even the people involved in the work say similar things, like Uraraka’s voice actress talking about the upcoming events of the anime changing from being about justice versus evil into being a clash between two different ideas of justice, or Horikoshi himself talking about how Shigaraki will be the greatest challenge to Deku’s drive to save.

Meanwhile, here in the U.S., we’re still stuck with Hero Stans baldly misquoting a three and a half year old interview to say that Horikoshi himself says Shigaraki is too far gone to be saved while Villain Stans talk about the blatant, obvious injustices in the series as if they’ve unearthed some great mystery the author himself put in completely unintentionally.(4)

Anyway, disclaimer that I don’t read Japanese fluently, nor do I hang around in Japanese fan spaces on the regular, so take these viewpoints with a grain of salt; they are, after all, isolated opinions plucked with the randomness of what Twitter spits out in response to search terms, and there’s no guarantee that they represent a larger fan consensus. And Horikoshi is still a product of his culture, with all of the problems it very definitely has, particularly where rampant sexism is concerned, and of course people are allowed to talk about that, and be uncomfortable with it.

Still, I wish the tumblr fandom were a bit more willing to research and weigh cultural contexts outside of their own when talking about BNHA, rather than falling all over each other to judge the work and its author without even thinking about the lenses they themselves are bringing to the table--be it the most extreme of the Hero Stans' normalized views of state-funded police violence or the most extreme of the Villain Stains' dogmatic tumblr ethics that are still steeped in black and white moralism about who it's okay to bully/oppress/kill.

----

(1) You know, just in case you thought that fujoshi was an outdated smear word in Japan or think that people who try to explain to Western fans the word’s origins as a reclaimed insult are lying. No, it’s still in active use by the kinds of fandom 2channers who came up with it to begin with. The new one in their lexicon, which came up in the responses in question here, is fuemi (腐ェミ), a mashup of fujoshi and feminist, for double the derogatory scorn!

(2) Given that the trans community has been arguing against having to Perform Gender to an outsider’s specification in order to be accepted, I think Magne’s relatively butch presentation is just fine, but of course, I have my doubts that Horikoshi is all that up to date on gender presentation discourse. Still, her lips are the only thing I would change about her design, because they call to mind visual stereotypes about “gonk” characters who can certainly be noble or sympathetic, but can also be cheap comic relief–and as often much worse. On the other hand, Sato from Class 1-A has them, too, and the worst coding that commonality suggests is “underdeveloped,” so again, I don’t see maliciousness being a factor there.

(3) I wrote that Why Deku’s Ultimatum To Overhaul Is Bad post a while back? I’m pleased to note that I did have brought to my attention some similarly worded feelings from a Japanese fan: that Deku being unwilling to face Overhaul’s feelings while still demanding that Overhaul change them is not a good or heroic way to go about facing villains. A sentiment from a One Piece antagonist was referenced: “Justice doesn’t win; justice is whoever wins.” In other words, Deku was exhibiting a “might makes right” mentality, not at all in line with his desire to save. Likewise, there was another person who thought that trying to force Overhaul to change his feelings before letting him see his Pops was unlikely to work, and therefore just impractical. So, you know, it’s not just about saving the “villain trio” and calling it a day–even when the villain Deku’s facing is someone as loathsome to his sensibilities as Overhaul.

(4) I’m not immune to this, I’m sure–indeed, I hope I can look back on the series and see that some of my more extreme fears are/were unfounded and that my rants about Overhaul and the PLF mass arrests were premature. Still, I like to think I’m at least doing better than e.g. the people who think My Hero Academia demonizes the mentally ill because it portrays Twice as a criminal, without ever stopping to think about the likelihood that the circumstances of Jin’s turn to villainy are an intentionally portrayed flaw of Hero Society.

#stillness answers #bnha #bnha culture gap

8 notes · View notes

henshengs · 3 years

Text

About Rule 63 fanworks

I was asked yesterday to elaborate on my genderbend opinions, as a trans person, which I’m happy to do, and I’ve thought about it a bit today to make sure I’m not saying something off the cuff and not thought through. Still, this is a sensitive, complicated topic, and I’m open to discussion on it.

This also got long, so I’m putting it under a cut.

So, obviously I can’t speak for all trans people. No minority group is a monolith in our opinions and this is particularly the case for the transgender community because our experiences are so very diverse and individual.

I am very rarely hurt or offended by genderbends/genderswaps/rule 63 fanworks. I know people for whom this is not the case, and I believe the pain involved is very real. The thing is... living in this world is inherently kinda painful when you’re trans. This world’s not built for us. All kinds of random things can cause me pain throughout my day. Store mannequins. My own reflection. Lesbian poetry. Pictures of other trans people. When something triggers my dysphoria or feelings of alienation, I have to stop, acknowledge the feeling, and then consider whether the thing is, outside of hurting me, contributing to the ignorance of and hatred of people like me by its very existence.

I don’t think the basic act of asking, “What if this character who is a cis man, was a cis woman instead?” does that. I think if anything, it opens the door to then ask “what if he was a trans man? Or a trans woman? Or nonbinary?”

Asking “what if this story was about a cis woman” lets cis women talk about their experiences and see themselves in stories, something I think is valuable! and also can lead to stories exploring sexism and misogyny, things which affect all trans people too!

In the rest of this post I’m going to use the terms “rule 63″ and “genderswap” to refer to the act of creating a fanwork changing a cis/presumed cis man to a cis or not-specified-to-be-trans woman, because this is the vast majority of the work under that label, because most fictional heroes and iconic characters are cis men, and because people who create cis man->trans woman or cis woman->trans man content, in my experience, usually use terms like “trans headcanon” instead.

(A lot of rule 63 fanworks don’t explicitly specify that the now-female character is cis. We can presume that most artists aren’t even thinking about the possibility of the character being trans, but we can presume that for 99.99% of all art, anywhere. It’s not a unique evil of rule 63.)

The claims that rule 63 is inherently transphobic, rather than just something where it’s good to be extra careful to avoid transphobia, as far as I’ve seen, use two arguments: A) that making the character a cis woman is wasting an opportunity to make them a trans person, and this is transphobic, and B) that rule 63 fan art is gender essentialist and cissexist, because it ties gender to physical characteristics.

Argument A doesn’t hold up for me,

because couldn’t one then say that reimagining an abled white cis character as an abled white trans woman is racist and ableist? that reimagining them as an abled trans woman of color is ableist? No transformative reimagining can cover every identity. We say “write what you know” and talk about Own Voices, and that includes cis women who want to write about the experience they know.

It’s also not fair to tell trans people that we must always think about trans experiences, even in our fiction. A lot of the time we don’t want to have to write or think about dysphoria and discrimination and we want to live in the heads of cis characters or even just characters whose AGAB is not mentioned!

And it is also, imo, not a great idea to pressure people who may not be educated about trans experiences to write about trans characters just because they want to explore sexism or write about lesbians.

many, many trans people first begin exploring their gender identity through creating cis rule 63 content, because it’s ‘safer’ than directly engaging with trans content.

With argument B, I agree that a lot of rule 63 art looks like this

and this sucks. To me, though, it’s important that it’s not the genderswap aspect that makes it suck. Artists who do this are also designing original characters with sexist, gender essentialist designs. Artists who don’t draw sexist art in general, also don’t draw sexist rule 63.

(yes, I know She-Hulk is not a rule 63 of regular Hulk. But you guys know the kind of art I’m talking about.)

I’ve also noticed a genre of fanfic that’s like, “if these characters were girls, they’d be sensible and conflict avoidant and none of the plot would happen!” or “what if these violent, tragic male characters were Soft Lesbians who braided each others’ hair” and again, I assume these authors write canonical women the same way. The genderswap part isn’t the bad part, the sexism is.

Non-sexist rule 63 actually, in my opinion, fights gender essentialism and cissexism. When a character is exactly the same except for the ways a gender essentialist world has shaped and pressured them based on their AGAB, that’s a strong statement on the constructed nature of gender!

But the argument that making /any/ change is gender essentialist, is... I understand where it’s coming from. I am a trans person who presents androgynously and I am a hypervisible freak because of it. I would love to live in a society where visible gender markers weren’t a thing! Unfortunately, we don’t live in that society. We live in one where we are constantly under pressure to conform to one of two profiles. There are almost no gender non conforming male characters in popular media. And changing a gender conforming cis man into a gender conforming cis woman seems to me to be a neutral action at worst. Not to mention characters from historical canons, who would be under a ton of pressure to conform.

For physical body type characteristics... 65% of all speaking roles in Hollywood are cis and male. It’s harder to get statistics on other forms of media, but it’s undeniable that overall, most stories are told about cis men who do not have breasts or wide hips. Changing the story to be about a cis woman who has those features is introducing more diversity!

I typed “rule 63″ and “genderswap” into the tumblr search bar today, and I saw a lot of art of women with a variety of aesthetics and body shapes and characteristics, who looked like people I’d see out at the mall.

Again, I sure do wish we lived in a post gender society. But we don’t, and in our society, everyone, myself included, looks at a picture of a person and gender categorizes them based on appearance. It is not wrong for someone to draw “Geralt the Witcher as a hot butch woman” and give her some physical markers generally agreed upon to denote ‘butch woman’ rather than ‘gender conforming man’ to tell the viewer that that is what they have drawn. Just as it is not wrong to draw “my OC who is a hot butch woman who fights monsters” and give her those markers.

Finally, both arguments against genderswaps are, in my opinion, flawed because they implicitly posit the act of creating fanworks of the original, cis male gender conforming character design, as neutral. I think this is incorrect. I think that if you’re going to argue that drawing a cis male character as a cis woman is transphobic, you have to also argue that drawing the character as a cis man is transphobic. But I’ve only seen people do this when a trans headcanon becomes extremely popular in a fandom.

Again, I’m just one person. I’m also biased, because firstly, as I mentioned, rule 63 doesn’t usually trigger my dysphoria; secondly, I almost always come down on the side of “don’t limit what people can explore in fiction; ask them to explore it more sensitively or with more content warnings instead.”

I definitely encourage creators to seek out and listen to a variety of trans opinions. But this is mine: I love rule 63, I make a lot of it myself, and I think if no one created it we’d lose something awesome.

At the end of the day, what I really want is more trans content*, but I’d rather have cis rule 63 than just stories about cis men.

Also: I personally have nothing against the terms genderswap or genderbend. I don’t think it reinforces the gender binary to acknowledge its existence by saying you’re ‘swapping’ the character from being cis with one AGAB to being cis with the other. But I can definitely see the argument against it, so I don’t blame anyone for going with rule 63 instead.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading; I hope you have a nice day, and have fun creating and consuming the fanworks your heart desires. I’ll end by linking this comic, which is just eternally relevant.

(*by which I mean: trans content created by other trans people, that matches my hyperspecific headcanons, likes and dislikes, and doesn’t set off any of my often changing dysphoria triggers. See what I said at the start, about transgender existence being constantly mildly painful. There are many awesome aspects to being trans! This is one of the less awesome.)

#rule 63

61 notes · View notes

tortoisenottortoise · 3 years

Text

Am I the only one who likes seeing muscular women in media more than muscular men?

Alright so, this one will probably end up much shorter and a little more ranty than I'd like, but this is kind of personal so be fairly warned.

Recently I've seen a few complaints about the new He-Man show and honestly, I fully understand and empathize with them. Whilst I haven't fully seen the show, from what I've viewed I can personally speaking agree (or at the very least understand) where most criticisms come from. I think it's incredibly shitty that the writer basically lied to his audience about how the show would run. Now normally I'd be fine with a twist such as He-man dying, but he's an important part of the show and the way the marketing & merchandising for it was running kind of comes across as him basically using He-Man's name to get people into the show. I also feel like it's fine to view Teela as obnoxious and annoying, nothing about her personality-wise seems likable to me. I also heard a few complaints about Orko's (I think that's his name, don't crucify me) backstory and how his character was handled.Yet as the title suggests one that didn't stick with me was the criticism of Teela and a general trend towards the criticism of women in media as being "masculine".

I've heard over and over that Hollywood representing strong women by giving them masculine traits is a bad thing and yet... I kind of don't get it? It feels odd to say, almost like I'm the dumbest man alive for admitting something which most people on the internet seem to be so sure about, yet I just don't understand where this is coming from. I've seen this thrown at She-hulk, Wonder Woman, Abby, and many other characters, yet when inquired it usually loops back around to, "Yeah they have muscles", and that's about it. This type of criticism in specific seems to overly focus on the appearance of said characters. It's the one critique I just can't get behind and it feels like at best it's a shallow criticism that fails to get its point across, and at worst it's actively demeaning to women who desire to or show masculine traits. But first, let me break this down into sections.

Section 1: Muscles =/= Masculinity (In my opinion at least)

Oh boy, I feel like this is a section that might rustle some feathers, but I'm going to try and explain myself best as possible. I simply do not view muscularity as a feature that is inherent to or should be inherent to men. I'm not going to pretend as if muscular men aren't more saturated in media and art, nor as if they're societally treated as masculine, but one of the reasons I fail to understand this criticism is that I see muscles beyond the horizons as being just a masculine trait.

I believe that muscles should instead be seen as a sign of hard work and determination. As someone who's currently trying (and struggling) to stay healthy and fit, it's much harder than a lot of media portrays it to be. It's a test where you push yourself to the limits, not just for the sake of doing it, but so you can improve as a person. Whenever I go to the gym and see a muscular gal or guy walk by, my immediate thought isn't, "how masculine" or anything like that my thought is, "wow! They worked hard to get like that, I should work hard as well!".

This interpretation tends to feel like it's just simply taking a piss on people who actively work hard to achieve higher levels of strength. Especially when society places and enforces these unrealistic standards onto people. If you don't have a six-quintillion pack nor can bench press a fucking house then you're worthless, of course, that is unless you actually attempt to pursue said standards which in that case you're automatically dismissed as cheating your way to gaining your muscles instead of putting any work in. And that's just for men who often don't have to deal with traditional idiots who are stuck in the year 1950 where I can't walk on the same street as them. My skin crawls when reading tweets from older men talking about how weightlifting women are "ruining their fertility" and I absolutely hate it when people in my life treat these women as if they're mythical creatures from a fairy tale, or when females who have trained to such a degree are simply dismissed as being inferior.

Obviously, I don't think the people who say this are like that, but whenever I hear this type of critique I can't help but think of the culmination of all these experiences I've gone through. But then again, this might honestly just be because I'm personally attracted to muscular women.

Section 2: Body type diversity

Another reason that I tend to like muscular women in media over muscular men is simply due to the sheer oversaturation of muscular men. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem if anybody likes muscular men. I totally get wanting to shove your face in between some man titties or get inspired by their physiques. In all honesty, almost everything I said earlier can directly apply to men, but one of the reasons I bring up body type diversity is that there tend to be much less muscular women than men. I

f anything, I'd have to say that muscular men are almost treated as the default when it comes to things like superhero comics, movies, video games, anime, etc. In a similar vein, the default for women tends to be slim and curvaceous, you get the drill. Whenever someone who doesn't fit into either body type shows up and isn't treated like a joke/gag or a character to rip on, I can't help but be happy about it. As much as I have no clue wtf is going on with TLOU2, I can appreciate that Abby's portrayal doesn't seem to exist solely as a joke meant to demean women for working out. I'm excited when an anime protagonist is a fat character who can go beyond just being a "fat guy" and is treated the same way a normal person would be.

Regardless of what you think about whatever trait you're criticizing, there's probably someone out there who fits it. If you're not into it or dislike it, then that's fine, but I'd rather have that expressed than it being actively made out as a harmful trope as opposed to just literally another body type that some women have.

Section 3: Muscular women inspire me more

Ok so, we've now blown into a full-on personal experience, buckle up boys, girls, NBs, anything in between, and I feel like I'm forgetting someone so apologies! But yeah, muscular women in media tend to be a lot more inspiring than people seem to give them credit for. This comes down to a mix of both the qualities I outlined earlier in what makes the characters inspiring but also plays into the idea of body diversity.

One of the traits that make amazons seem more inspiring is their inherent rarity/lack of screentime. As I stated earlier, whilst I do enjoy my fair share of man-titties, it kind of gets to a point where it's more depressing than inspiring when all you see is just super-models shoved in your face whenever you walk into a theater. If for every Goku I could find ten other guys who were on the chubbier side then I'd be able to take more from when I see Goku and other characters with his body type, yet it's so saturated that it no longer becomes something to aspire to, but simply the norm. It's not that you can work to become muscular or skinny with hard work and effort, you have to be muscular or skinny unless you want to be deemed a failure. Being chubby often isn't presented as a starting point but just treated as a defect. As someone who spent years battling with my own self-perception, that's just not a good message to get across.

Now, this obviously isn't to say that people can never make muscular characters. After all, it's their story so they can put whatever they want in it. The aim of the game isn't to stop people from making a specific type of character, but to encourage a diverse set of people to make a diverse set of characters. This is the reason why I view muscular women as so inspiring. Instead of coming across as just "the norm" or "the standard" they stand out from the crowd and despite knowing what they have to deal with, are still ready and willing to work out and improve their bodies. They had a goal in mind and set time aside to achieve said goal, that's something I can get behind.

Conclusion:

This will be another short section, but I just wanted to mention it because it caps off my thoughts on this post in general. What originally started as me just not getting the reason why people disliked Teela's design somehow turned into a passionate rant and I'm A) not sure if it fits on this particular subsection of the community, B) scared I'm going to get ripped to pieces, and C) somewhat unsatisfied with all that I said. At the end of the day, this probably won't be seen by too many people, but to those who do see it, I hope you have a wonderful day. I just wanted to talk about something that was near and dear to my heart and hoped that I made it clear why I view things the way I do.

P.S: Can we stop having this double standard where we act like women whose arms show the slightest hint of definition are "unrealistic" whilst men can look like tree trunks and be considered normal and healthy? please and thank you!

#rant post #character rant #please help I'm new to tumblr and a boomer when it comes to tags #tropes #trope discussion

7 notes · View notes

krokonoko · 3 years

Note

I’m so glad you love kataang- I love them too! And I’m glad you’re posting content of them and stuff. But I just saw your post about your issues with them and how you’re not gonna let those issues stop you from loving them and you’re right but...a lot of those weren’t issues.

Aang wasn’t possessive of Katara with Jet or anything well because, he thought Jet was a good guy, and she hadn’t shown a massive display of romantic interest in Aang by then. Like they hadn’t even kissed yet. Why should he be jealous? Not sure if you mentioned her liking Haru, but if you did, she never liked him.

Aang wasn’t possessive at EIP, he was insecure about what he was seeing on stage, because he knew he and Katara had something (Katara doesn’t even deny this she knows they have something, it was the timing and the war and fear of losing him that led her to being confused, it wasn’t confusion about her feelings), now what’s possessive is this: Zuko throwing a man across the room into a vase just for talking to Mai.

And I’m pretty sure you called Aang feminine...if you didn’t ignore this but that’s another thing that made him insecure seeing him being portrayed as a female on stage. Just because a guy has a soft gentle personality doesn’t mean they’re ‘feminine’, that’s today’s problem- people are still labelling what is determined masculine or feminine.

You also mentioned the last time they saw each other was when they fought. Now that’s only on screen. Their kiss takes place months after Aang defeats Ozai, so they obviously talked by then. But who says they can’t have a fight or disagreement with miscommunication? That happens in any- nearly every relationship. And Aang wasn’t ooc in that episode- he was under pressure and stress and he lashed out when his friends weren’t understanding the position he was in. They weren’t even trying to (Katara was probably most understanding though) It’s completely understandable. Just because he’s mostly sweet all the time doesn’t mean he’s ooc when he has different emotions.

Also about the EIP kiss, Aang was completely wrong for that. If you wanted I could send you a whole fantastic meta that explains well about that whole scene. I’ll just say this briefly (and this isn’t defending Aang for that kiss it’s explaining why he did it) 1- He was confused like Katara because she didn’t give a yes or no answer. 2- He kissed her on the day of black sun, and she kissed back, he knew she had feelings for him, he thought “why would this time be different maybe she’ll kiss me back?” Now again I’ll say it- it doesn’t justify it or make it right. He made a mistake with completely bad timing and misunderstanding. But remember he was 12, just mocked in the play, tensions were running high with him having to face Ozai, he was confused and made a bad decision. But it’s not like he didn’t feel remorse for it. He physically and verbally abused himself for it. He immediately backed off when Katara pulled away. He made not one more romantic gesture or saying to Katara after that, the agency of the state of their relationship was completely in her hands, hence why she initiated their final kiss. And I bet he apologised off screen for it too. He learned from it, in the comics he asks if he can kiss her. Katara was able to forgive him for a small mistake, why can’t we?

I hope I didn’t sound rude I’m just trying to explain it better because some of your takes were just stretched and some of the situations weren’t bad lol. Anyways love your content<3

hey there anon! thanks a lot for the compliments! and don't worry, I'll be a Kataang shipper 'til the day I die 🥰 but the grievances I raised I've had ever since the show ended.

you took issue with a lot of phrasings that I didn't use. I chose my words very carefully. for example, I didn't call Aang feminine in my post. but I also personally I don't think there's anything wrong with men being feminine, or being called feminine. (would be p weird of me cuz I'm a hella feminine guy myself lmao)

you're also coming from a very textual level here, arguing that Aang was under stress, that he probably apologized off screen, etc. and I bet there are good explanations for his behavior. but my issue is with the writing, with the way these characters have been presented by the narrative. and in that vein, showing your main couple squabbling as the last verbal exchange they ever have on screen is. not a smart move imho.

but I don't even wanna argue against you. if the finale worked for you, and if you're able to headcanon the bumpy writing away, that's cool! I'm not being sarcastic here, I'm honestly happy for you if that's the case!

but for me it doesn't work, just like the comics and the old gaang in LOK don't work for me, and I think that should be legitimate too. personally, I think it's alright to have criticisms of the characters and relationships you like a lot while still enjoying them thoroughly.

#kroko speaks #atla #kataang #anon #ask

11 notes · View notes

qqueenofhades · 4 years

Text

randomlibran replied to your post “hilary listen the old guards slayed me. I mean the plot the pacing the...”

The pharmacy scene for me was not a filler. I can't remember who wrote the post but this was such an important observation. The female solidarity in that pharmacy where the pharmacist asks if she needs help after she observes her looking around helplessly, her jerk at the police sirens, a weary look made me think about women who face abuse on a daily basis and then has to go about their lives, it's just that small moment when someone else recognises their pain and offers kindness or help. This help sometimes is a beacon for many of them. These small moments are insignificant yet are so very important to be highlighted. That's why I too like it mildly and not looking forward to the sequel which needs to happen soon-ish.

Oh no, you are absolutely 1000% correct. I didn’t mean it was “unnecessary” in that “this scene serves no purpose,” but “oh my god I can’t believe they actually wrote it this way, I FEEL GAY JESUS IN THIS CHILI’S TONIGHT.”

Because there are are SO many tropes that they could have gone for there instead, and they didn’t. Obviously the scene is important in that Andy has lost her immortality, isn’t healing her wound automatically like she normally does, and needs to go find human medicine, something that she has no idea how to work with because she hasn’t needed it in so long. But the usual trope for a Strong Female Character (tm) would be, of course, that she’s strong, that she doesn’t need anyone to do it for her. She could just rip off the shirt and try to take care of it herself, try to hide it and just push on, and the narrative could frame it as that being the more “admirable” choice, because of course a woman who’s Strong doesn’t feel Emotions. She kicks ass, that’s a personality trait. Etc etc every male writer of female characters in action movies ever. But instead they show us Andy, the tough-as-nails leader of the team, wandering around the pharmacy, lost and confused, and that’s okay. She’s scared, and that’s okay too. She doesn’t know what’s happening to her. This is not held against her in any way or punished in the narrative.

Or they could have gone the Unnecessary Heterosexuality route and had a Heroic male character step in to help this poor woman who has been hurt and doesn’t know what to do, look at this gentleman, #NotAllMen, etc. I sorely need to rewatch this film, because I was holding my breath the whole time for something cringeworthy to happen, especially after I was otherwise really enjoying it. There wasn’t a moment until almost the end when I had the distinct and very clear feeling of “oh my god I love this.” I was SO prepared for Andy to die because that’s what happens: the female character dies, gets fridged, sacrifices herself for the men’s emotional development, etc. And when then she DIDN’T die, I was like “wow I wonder what it says about all the media out there that has made me SO conditioned to expect that she would, and she doesn’t get a story after saving the world, she’s only good as a tool and then she’s dead and she doesn’t get a happy-ever-after.”

I haven’t read the comics, so I don’t know how Andy’s story progresses (or if they’ll change/adapt it for TV) but I love the thought that this badass Amazon warrior now has to learn how to live as a.... human. She’s still relatively young, physically speaking, so she has time to face a life and what that would look like rather than just fighting all the time. And of course Quynh is back and my gay heart loves the Drama and wants them to see each other and for there to be feelings and then get married and ride off into the sunset shh.

But in light of all that, we have the woman watching Andy in the drugstore, you think there’s going to be some tedious manufactured conflict where she doesn’t trust her or thinks she’s stealing, and instead Andy comes up with her basket, clearly at her wit’s end, and the clerk asks if she needs help. Then we get this very romantically shot, lowlit scene with the woman gently patching up Andy’s wounds, their faces together, the clear UST (and of course just the f/f solidarity and Women! Helping! Women!!!!) and not even asking what happened to her, just there to help because she needs it, and for that to be a choice visually celebrated by the narrative and added to Andy’s character and....

I just have a lot of feelings, okay.

#randomlibran #replies #andromache of scythia #the old guard #the old guard meta

134 notes · View notes

miraculouscontent · 3 years

Text

Askplosion #12 3/4:

.:Asks Referring to Previous non-Miraculous Posts:.

Anonymous said:

Hi! I saw you mention that you have Asperger’s syndrome in an earlier post. I’m just wondering, how did you find out? I’ve always thought I was neurodivergent (adhd and maybe asperger’s), but I’m not quite sure how to go about finding out, and my parents never had me screened as a kid. Feel free to ignore if this is too personal!

(the post this anon is referring to)

It’s not too personal, don’t worry!

Though, I would really say that it’s something to look up more than for someone to tell you. I know that’s not a satisfying answer but I think it’s different depending on where you live and what specialists you have near you.

Anonymous said:

Remarried Empress Anon Again, a whole post? What an honor! I burnt my food and this made me so happy.

(the post this anon is referring to)

You deserve it! Thanks a bunch!

Anonymous said:

Remarried Empress Anon Again, thank you for answering my asks and for reading Remarried Empress! I honestly didn’t expect much to come of it but the fact you read the comic and saw what I was talking and came to your own conclusions was amazing! I’m sorry if I’m bothering you by bombarding you with asks, and will try to stop doing so. Heck, this doesn’t have to be answered! Just know you are a fun creator and thank you for making my day a little better with your amazing responses!

You weren’t bothering me at all! I’m glad I brightened your day!

asexual-individual said:

I don't know how big the trend of "Magical Girls are made to suffer" is, but after watching Madoka Magica I did notice a few Magical Girl shows where the creators obviously went "Hey, this anime where the Magical Girls suffer and it's all angsty made Shaft a lot of money, let's do our own", and "subversive=money". (Even though many have pointed out that MM isn't actually subversive, since older MG shows have dealt with dark themes plenty of times.)

Yeah, it’s probably one of those inevitable things. People immediately jump on wherever the money’s going.

Madoka Magica probably got so much attention specifically because of the episode three shock value.and all the twisted imagery, plus things like Kyubey with bullet holes all over him made it seem like, “WHOA, DARK.”

Anonymous said:

Remember when I told you about the teenage-bashing in the Star Vs. Fandom? Well, rewatching the show, I'm beginning to think that most of the time, when people in a certain fandom have these opinions, more often than not, the show backs it up for whatever reason. Like, there's one scene where Eclipsa is put on trial and is asked if she's ever eaten any babies(which is just a rumor), and she says no but that she has eaten a few teenagers but, psychologically, they always deserved it.

And in another episode, Star says that teenagers are great at causing problems, which I at first laughed off as a joke, but then in another, Tom and Star were talking about how they broke up, and Star said "Of course we broke up! That's what people do! That's what teenagers do! Teenagers are dumb!" And Tom was just like "Yeah, I know, I know"; there are a lot more examples but I don't care to revisit them. I'm just saying that the teen-hating in the fandom would have to have come from somewhere.

omg I don’t remember that stuff at all; I guess it just blew right past me when I was initially watching it.

I don’t understand the trend of being like, “teenagers are dumb and that’s what they do,” and then either over-punishing or not punishing at all. Are we supposed to believe that all teenagers are just going to “be teenagers” and so we shouldn’t do anything, or that they’re all idiots who don’t understand their own feelings but we should also punish them for it?

I don’t get it.

Anonymous said:

I'm the "tomboys in anime" anon, and yes, I totally agree! It especially irks me(as a girly girl who has a lot to say) when the shortcut to making a girl tomboyish is simply by making her loud/tough/like gaming or machinery, or when a female character is told she isn't enough of a girl because she's like that, but otherwise doesn't look or even act all that "boyish". Even TV Tropes does it, as if the second a girl shows any proactivity or is tough she's a "tomboy".

It really annoys me and almost makes me want to erase the term "tomboy" altogether since it leads to an idea of "I'm not like other girls, I'm better 'cause I do boy stuff"(which I know not every tomboy thinks, but some do). The only reason I don't is because I very proudly embrace the term "girly girl" and terms are meaningless without an opposite(not that you can't like both girly and tomboyish things). So I think the key to fixing this problem is that we shouldn't label people unless they want to be labeled that way.

And I know fictional characters can't speak for themselves, so just to figure out if a female character is a tomboy, I just say that if her only "tomboyish" traits are "proactive" qualities or liking something that's for guys, just don't call them a tomboy because it looks ridiculous and acts like women are inherently passive and weak, so for a girl not to be like that is acting like a man.

I would love to see a tomboy character who likes those things but is actually shy/a wallflower. That avoids the stereotype of "aggressive, hard-hitting tomboy, weak-willed, shallow girly girl" and challenges audiences expectations that "but but but she's a tomboy so she should be loud and strong because strength is for MEN". I also hate when tomboy characters are given no curves because the writers know they're doing something wrong, tomboys can have natural curves too. It's like they think tomboys just don't want to be girls. So, yeah. So over the "tomboy in-name-only" stereotype.

"it makes me feel weird saying that when I’m all for girl power shows with an all female cast, but in this show’s logic, it’s a different ball game". Oh, phew! That's good. Because, like I said before, I'm working on my own magical girl show in which most of the female characters are(black) girls and only girls can use magic in this world, and someone I know keeps telling me that it's not fair that the guys don't get to have magic, so it's good to know that there's someone out there who doesn't think it's "sexist" that magical girls tend to only let girls have powers(unless it's for fanservice or like in Madoka Magica because ick). Because guys get to be in the forefront all too often, so why is it so bad when girls get to be in the spotlight? I know I can't change everyone's opinions but it's good to know someone gets it.

(the post this anon is referring to)

Honestly, I feel like the fact that there’s a label at all is the issue, like you suggested? It might just be a “we have to get ride of the label ‘tomboy’ and ‘girly girl’ altogether” thing, because it’s not like we do the same thing with guys?

Oh wait, we do; guys who do “girly” things are called “sissies.”

I hate this planet. :P

Point being, having to say “tomboy” inherently implies something, which might be a problem all on its own, y’know?

(the below ask is incomplete but the asker clarified after I asked them, so clarification is below:)

Anonymous said:

I just thought back to our little "tomboys in anime" argument and about how you can't really think of any tomboys. So I looked up "tomboys in anime" on Google and clicked on the first link, and literally the first character on the list was a girl with...a flower in her hair and a bikini. The reason she was a "tomboy" according to the list? Was because she is "aggressive" and "competitive". In fact, most of the examples on the list were "she's tough/a good fighter/challenges male supremacy".

(part of this ask is missing and clarified below)

girly girls, while the girly girls always have to be the weak and shy ones(not that shy=weak but you get the idea). But while I may not know most of the characters on the list, and some of them DID look pretty tomboyish, I'm very bothered by the idea that it's their strength and ambition and excellent fighting skills that are branded as masculine. And you know what? I'd actually be offended if someone called me a tomboy, especially if it was based of these reasonings. Because it sounds like they think being a tomboy is the only way to be strong and vice versa. Like I should take it as a compliment that I need to be separated from my femininity in order to be respected. Like, if you're a tomboy, cool! But it shouldn't be used for just any girl who isn't a weak-willed crybaby doormat. I actually don't know why people seem to think being a tomboy or "masculine" for a girl is some sort of badge of honor to wear with pride for rejecting your femininity and being "cooler" than other girls.

the clarification:

Anonymous said:

The missing part was talking about the various tropes having to do with contrasting masculinity/femininity, either in two different characters, with one being masculine and one being feminine(ex. Tomboy and Girly Girl, Sensitive Guy and Manly Man, Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy, Masculine-Feminine Gay Couple), or one character who has traits of both(ex. Girly Girl With a Tomboy Streak, Tomboy With a Girly Streak, Real Men Wear Pink), and how TV Tropes always talks about them as if the "girly" character(or girly side of the character) is weaker or inferior(like how for Tomboy and Girly Girl they might say that the former is tough, competitive, and can fight, while the latter is vain, a priss, and a Damsel in Distress.

Or for Tomboy With a Girly Streak, they might say that the tomboy dresses in a masculine way with their "girly" streak being that they're a doormat or dream of being a housewife. Not that it's wrong to be a housewife.).

To be fair, they don't always do this: For the pages on Magical Girl they talk about how those shows can appeal to multiple demographics, and almost all the quotes on them, they talk about how they're empowered through their femininity and are just as much legitimate threats to their opponents as other heroes. Still, they fall in this trap even then, as on the LoliRock Awesome page, they say "You gotta admit, for a Magical Girl show, LoliRock does have its awesome moments", which ignores that Magical Girl is SUPPOSED to have awesome moments, it's literally an action subgenre! Just because it's frilly and pink and girly doesn't mean it doesn't--or shouldn't--still have badass fight scenes. Just look at PreCure. Shonen should take notes from those shows. But no, whoever wrote that clearly dismissed it as just frivolous and was SURPRISED that the fight scenes were good, just because it's girly!

It’s 2021 and people are still struggling with this concept that girliness isn’t bad and it’s not embarrassing to watch such a show.because GIRLS.

It’s so tiring. I watched Dragonball Z, Inuyasha, and played Pokemon; got a few looks about it at times but people ultimately were like, “okay I guess” (I did get bullied for the Pokemon one but that was more for the “it’s for babies” kind of deal, not a “you can’t like that because you’re a girl,” thing). I can’t really relate to the world of girls who get looked down upon for being “girly” but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand that it must be awful for them.

Don’t even get me started on “Tomboy Lesbian,” I will scream about it and it won’t be happy screaming.

#other: ask and answer #other: non ml talk

13 notes · View notes

cooliocoulson · 3 years

Note

Fandom ask game: Marvel

SEND ME A FANDOM

Ahh thank you!!! I adore getting asks they make my heart ASDFGHJ *Cracks knuckles* ohohohoho Marvel, the OG, here we go bbys....For those of you who know me, you know I was reading the comics before any of the movies came out, but to cover an immense fandom, I’m gonna limit it to Marvel movies, and Avenger-movieverse (I’d have to make a whole separate one for X-Men lmaoo)

The first character I first fell in love with: Bruce Banner. I’m an absolute simp and there are multiple things in him that I see in myself. And Tony, obviously.

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now: Loki, Thor, Coulson (obviously by my name lmaooo), Dr. Strange (okay who are we kidding I knew I was gonna love him)...I think I wasn’t completely sold on Thor at the begging of the Marvelverse, but holy smokes he grew on me. I think I saw him as a basic character, but I think throughout all the movies he has shown some of the greatest character development. OH also Natasha/ Black Widow. Can’t wait to see the movie, but I was also very hesitant at first because I was afraid she was the token female but holy smokes I’m so glad they mentioned the Red Room and gave her some great development.

The character everyone else loves that I don’t: I really hesitate to say this b/c I think it’s gonna get a lot of hate, but I’m not a huge Captain Marvel fan. I really don’t hold anything against her, and while her movie was done well, I think the rest of the movies have used her as the “all-saving backup.” IDK, maybe she just needs more time.

The character I love that everyone else hates: Hawkeye. I really enjoy that he’s kinda the “normal dude thrown into everything,” although I wish they had maintained that he uses ASL. I really love his platonic relationship with Natasha, and just think he’s kinda underrated in general--talented, sassy family man.

The character I used to love but don’t any longer: Uhhhhh none.

The character I would totally smooch: Literally all of them, but I would like to give Spidey a singular smooch on the forehead....and maybe Dr. Strange bc Benadryl Cumberbund is a personal fave

The character I’d want to be like: God so hard to choose....overall probably Tony, but with slightly less narcissism, lol. Maybe Rhodey for the patience to actually put up with Tony. And definitely Banner’s brain yet generally mild-mannered persona.

The character I’d slap: Thanos. Also probably Loki, but softly, just for causing so much trouble.

A pairing that I love: All of them+ a happy ending... also a lil science bros, but platonically.

A pairing that I despise: Steve/Tony (I just....don’t), Peter/Tony (I’ve seen it...come on guys), Loki/Thor (also super confused about why that’s even a thing)....oh and I HATE BRUCE/NATASHA that was just not well done and came out of nowhere.

Thank you for the ask and I hope it didn’t disappoint!! 🥺

#marvel #ask #personal #inbox #bruce banner #tony stark #black widow #hawkeye #avengers #hylianengineer

3 notes · View notes

bunnylouisegrimes · 4 years

Text

Episode 7 Review (BACK AT IT AGAIN WITH LOW KEY FUCKING UP CHARLIE’S BACKSTORY)

Spoilers, so be ready. Also, this one might be a little longer than my other ones, so just be aware.

This episode was both good and bad, at least for me. Let’s start off with all the bad and get that out of the way:

For starters, Bing’s sudden “I’m so high and moral, I’m so above Charlie, boo hoo he used me” narrative I swear... he’s so annoying. Gtfo with that shit Bing. You’re a rapist literal motherfucker. Charlie uses assholes like you for his benefit and kid’s benefit, then you die in the end, it’s what you deserve. I did love the nod to Dewey Hansom from the book and comic in this episode tho. Dewey was a rapist himself and if I remember correctly, he did stuff to kids, and Charlie made sure he got his in the end too. I guess this attitude Bing had did lead to his eventual downfall, but still... doesn’t mean it isn’t annoying lol.

A question I had, a friend on here had, and I’m sure we all had was: did Charlie get raped by Bing or... what? I mean, at the time, it was implied, based on what Bing said to him which was extremely creepy, but we didn’t know because his body got dragged away like nothing ever happened. Plus, it cut to what happened to him in his childhood around this time (my opinions on his childhood in a moment). The answer is: No, Charlie was not raped by Bing. He was about to be raped by him, but was not. Here is the screenshot from my friend who asked the writer of the episode:

So no, Charlie was not! Thank God... Of course, hitting him was not good, and what happened to him as a child was not good at all, but this would’ve made things a lot worse both writing wise and in regards to Charlie. Credit to @welcometochristmasland for asking the writer, thank you so much for clarifying this for everyone!

I’m especially relieved by this not just because I’m a Charlie fan girl, but this reason: Charlie getting raped AGAIN in his life, and especially by that fucker, would be so unneeded and stupid. There would be no point to that other than shock value filler. Not to mention, wouldn’t it make things extremely awkward between Vic and Charlie? Despite what’s happening with Wayne, I mean, she was almost raped by Bing herself, and if Charlie actually were in this scenario... that would be pretty awkward between the two, right? I know if I were Vic and I found out about that, I would feel pretty awkward, even if he had my kid, because rape is way too strong a punishment over this. We already know Bing is worse than Charlie, you wouldn’t have to show it through this, and thank God the show did not. I was gonna be real angry over that... of course, there is one thing that unexpectedly made me angry at this episode...

I don’t know what the writers’ problem is with Charlie’s backstory and the women in his life hurting him. They don’t make them saints, but they make them out to be like, “Oh, look at us, we love you and we point out your flaws, and you hurt us.” You know what Charlie’s mother and wife said to him all those years ago according to the comic book that reveals his backstory? They told him how much he drained them of their happiness and youth. No shit Charlie has such a distrust in women! He’s been told by his own mother and first wife, who he broke an arm and a leg for how much just to support the family, that he’s worthless. This leads him to snap! His mom wouldn’t have cared he was raped. She hated him. She told him, when he was forced to sleep in a coffin in the back of the inn and mortuary they lived in, that he belonged in one, so it served him right to sleep in one. Real loving mother of the year, am I right? Again, she still wasn’t a saint in the show, but Charlie going off at her like that was just... WHAT??? NO. And making Charlie groom other kids uknowingly while he’s groomed himself? I really don’t like this, and it’s even worse that Charlie gets more mad at his mom and not so much himself in this situation. He blames himself, but moreso blames his mom. Just... why?

In the comic, the guy who hurt Charlie as a kid was a random guy. He was kicked out of the inn and mortuary for hurting his mom while he was her customer. She points out that maybe a woman doesn’t satisfy him, and boy, is she right, because the fucker follows Charlie as he’s walking up a hill to play with his sled, and rapes Charlie. Charlie gets away, his abilities start to unlock just a bit once his head hits a tree, he kills the rapist, goes back into town, kills his mom, and kills one of the owners of the inn and mortuary (probably because he was trying to stop Charlie, and little boy Charlie has snapped). After this, Charlie leaves and ends up in Kansas. He has little no memory of this.

Now, did the episode show us his mom’s neglectful behavior by leaving her son midway through a little show he was doing to sleep around? Yes. Did they show his abilities unlock after his rape and him killing her? Yes. Did they show him get raped in the first place, and is it still horrible? Yes to both. And I think it was a good change in the show to make the man someone Charlie trusted instead of a random guy (its both equal in how horrible and wrong it is, but the fact it was someone he trusted is even more shocking, I think, but the good kind of shocking, not some cheap useless bullshit).

But similar to Charlie’s backstory with Cassie, the writers seemed to have skimmed through the comic and not understand the point: Not only does sexual assault as a child fuel Charlie’s trauma and pain, but so does the feelings of uselessness he felt from his mother hurting him and his wife hurting him. I get it, you want to make Charlie out to be the big bad, but he already is with the questionable ways he saves kids. His backstory is meant to be the place where you see his softer side, not see more of his bad. You see his softness, but then the show turns around and says, “ReMeMbEr, hE’s StIlL tHe BaD gUy.” We get it, writers! Now can you please stop making him unsympathetic? There is that side of him that people need to understand! That’s what makes his character so genius!

Slightly off topic, but I thought of something briefly: I can’t help but feel the show is maybe doing this not only because they really want to make it out like “Charlie’s so evil and if you like his sad backstory and understand him, you’re just wrong UWU), but maybe it’s also because they don’t want to talk about a male victim of abuse story. Of course, yes, they did it with him being raped as a child, and I’m glad that they still covered the topic of a male victim of sexual abuse, especially sexual child abuse. Showing how awful that is is important, and I think they handled that aspect well. However, Charlie is also a child abuse victim with his mother, and a domestic violence victim with his wife. Why wouldn’t they want to show a child abuse victim, and a domestic violence survivor (and a male one at that!) in a way that is important and well handled too? They didn’t make a PSA out of it, no, and they wouldn’t make PSAs out of the other things either, that’s not what I’m saying. But by showing these things in media, it’s important. It raises awareness of these issues that happen in our world, and who knows, it could help somebody find something to relate to. Think of the movie Kill Bill: the movie brings up people, especially women, getting raped in comas. It’s a problem, it happens to people, and Tarantino brought that up. It wasn’t in a PSA fashion, but he still showed you that something as awful as that could happen and does happen in our world. So what’s the problem, writers? Why couldn’t you explore these things with Charlie? Is it because he is a man, so exploring women hurting men is “wrong?”

Because let me tell you all: If Charles were Charlotte, and she were abused by her father and husband the same way as Charles was in the comic and book, I think the writers would praise this concept. “She has a distrust for men because of how much they hurt her in life! She’s a genius villain!” And don’t get me wrong: Charlotte would be. And men abusing women happens way more often than the other way around, it’s still absolutely wrong, and I would fully support Charlotte as a villain. I wouldn’t like her in that way as I do Charles because I’m straight, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t enjoy Charlotte Manx as a character and love her genius writing. But here comes Charles, a man abused by women... oh no! We can’t discuss that! Why not? What’s this double standard crap?

I’d like to reiterate that this is only a possible theory for why the writers made these choices, not an official reason. I’m not trying to accuse them of pulling a double standard, I’m just throwing that idea out there as a general, “is this why, because you’re not really giving a reason why.” And before anyone twists my words: Abuse of any kind, regardless of sexes involved, is wrong. I think female abuse stories should be told, and I think male abuse stories should be told, both in real life and in the fictional realm. I am a bit disappointed they did not do the full potential and exploration of Charlie’s very tragic backstory that they had in regards to his relationship with his mother and wife.

Now that I’ve let out my ranting, the positives of this episode:

Bing getting bird shit in his mouth in the beginning was hilarious. What happens to him in the end was fabulous. Charlie’s final words to him and how he left him to rot... oh how wonderful it was! And Charlie’s words to Bing throughout this whole episode were just... excellent. Obviously it was hard to watch him get beaten, but he had quite the guts to still try to trick him. His truthful words to Bing that made him stop when he was about to rape him, and his words to Bing after stabbing him were just... I think the best lines Charlie has said out of the whole series so far. His bad assery shines in this episode.

I find it fascinating how Charlie’s fears are outside of Christmasland and locked in that house. Despite all the nonsense with Cassie’s character I’ve discussed before and how she is not the abuser she is in the book and comic, and how important it is to discuss it and portray it, I do like Millie exploring herself. I suppose her mother does kinda have to be involved to help Millie explore herself, so I guess there is something good coming out of this, even if the take away is an aspect of Charlie being ruined and made less sympathetic when it should be.

Wayne and Craig’s interaction is really sweet, I’m glad he’s here and helping him. The comparison between Millie and her mom and Wayne and his dad is really good, I do like that. And Wayne saving Charlie, I was like HELL YES!!!! You’re doing good and you don’t even realize it, kid!

All in all: there was a part I was about to hate in this episode that was confirmed to not be there by the writer of it (Thank God), there was something I actually do hate about this episode, and then there are a few things I love about this episode. It was definitely interesting. You feel horrible for Charlie, you hate Bing even more, you feel glad he gets what he deserves, and the exploration with Millie and Wayne is good. If you’re like me and you really want Charlie’s backstory to be as it was in book form in regards to his relationship with his mother (and with his wife, quite a few episodes before) because it makes more sense, allows better exploration of concepts in our real world, and allows you to understand Charlie better, you won’t like his backstory entirely even as he was a kid. But if you can look past all that, there’s really no sour taste that will be left in your mouth, except for pity for Charlie (but most of us, if not all of us, feel that for him, that’s obvious, it’s horrible what happened to him).

Sorry this one was very long, thank you for reading till the end if you have! I hope you enjoyed it!

#charlie manx #nos4a2 charlie #nos4a2 #charles manx

37 notes · View notes