#people just … refusing to engage at all

[imogenkol]

I mean this in the nicest way possible, but why do so many people think that criticizing the Jedi is bad? The Jedi are and were never perfect. They can never be a perfect order who does everything right and never makes mistakes. Frankly, I can write an entire essay on their flaws.

It is okay that they were flawed. That doesn’t mean you can’t root for them. I root for them. I deeply love them and their lore. The Great Jedi Purge was a tragedy that they didn’t deserve. But acting like they’re an untouchable institution is not only just straight up wrong, but also just really boring?? The imperfections of the Order and those involved give the Jedi nuance and make them feel incredibly real and interesting. Things are not black and white in Star Wars. Let yourself feel conflicted about the Jedi and wish for them to succeed anyway. It’s more exciting that way, I promise.

#Star Wars #jedi order #the acolyte #kicking a beehive with this post I know #but seeing so many people refuse to give acolyte a chance because it might be ‘Jedi critical’ is just ???? #how do y’all enjoy watching anything genuinely #much less Star Wars as a whole #if you’re not willing to engage in nuance and criticism within a piece of media #that is where all the fun is gang #no one is telling you you can’t love and root for the Jedi at any point #but they 100% without a doubt had some issues

[meteorherd]

mentioned one of THE most famous linguistic psychologists ever in my GRADUATE LEVEL psych class during discussion and everyone looked at me like i was crazy, asked me who the fuck that was, and proceeded to start talking about tiktok and taylor swift. girl it’s so fucking over

#வார்த்தைகள் #NO ONE KNEW WHO CHOMSKY IS LIKE YOU HAVE ALL TAKEN FOUR YEARS OF PSYCHOLOGY…. #it’s actually like. terrifying how people in my field are just refusing to engage with it. #psych is just like. social media and celebrities and making fun of the mentally ill for them. #like genuinely no one gives a shit about using their research to help people it’s so bleak. #also this class just sucks. we’ve had fucking ‘debates’ about the barbie movie and girl math and girl dinner before. 😐

[villainihavedonethymotheronao3]

vox machina: half of a coed secret society currently facing university crackdown due to excessive rowdiness and flagpole scaling get a sizable townhouse; there they handle lizard escapes, child support requests, police scrutiny, many villainous professors, and members who won't stop getting engaged to each other.

the mighty nein: paranoid houseboat owners renting the absolutely cheapest moorings at a marina in a midsized european canal city band together against judgemental neighbors/local boat safety inspections/the concept of decay/ecosystem degradation in their waterways/their own dark pasts/two art-student ass cults; against all odds succeed at everything.

bell’s hells: posters on a queer housing page in toronto pack 6-11 people (depending on the day) into a two bedroom; ping-pong between icily polite spy warfare and cloying codependence, all while ostensibly working together to save a critically endangered species of salamander—end up involved in years old industrial drama opposing their friend’s shady mining corporation mom.

#critical role #vox machina WOULD be a frat but they’re too British #so instead they’re a nightclimbers ripoff somewhere on the US east coast #half of them have engagement rings by the end of senior year #an overlapping half go on to be respected leaders #this is why you always argue down the drunk and disorderly charges #the mighty nein are a minor municipal terror in cluj-napoca or split #maybe Amsterdam? #at least one of them has a fake passport and they all refuse to talk to cops #alarming collective knowledge of extradition laws that doubles when they adopt Essen #despite beau (or perhaps because) beau works at a respected human rights ngo #and bells hells have subdivided their living room with plywood sheets and once got visited by csis #fortunately Orym’s security clearance is lapsed unfortunately they’re never going to give him one again #they have vague aspirations of retiring to the middle of nowhere one day but can’t imagine living apart #they have and will let people they just met tonight crash on their floor (the couch is taken)

[wortsandall]

criticism is possible while still enjoying the media

for example: i want to throttle bruce wayne with my bare hands but i also have a batman tattoo

people contain multitudes

#basically #im just saying that i will forever live dc comics #and the characters within #in all the ways thats possible #so i will criticize and be angry about how dynamics are written #while also engaging with those exact tropes i was just complaining about #because none of these people are real #and theres multiple ways to percieve and enjoy media #and i refuse to let anyone say otherwise #dc #dc comics #batman #batfamily

[xpennytrickx]

(Not og anon) I agree with separating the art from the artist and pirating music but it seems like you still buy merch/go to shows/like these people genuinely?

well msi has been dead for years so i’m never gonna get to go to one of their shows anyway but i think pete could bring a loaded ak-47 into an all-girls catholic school and go to town and i’d still suck him fat and dirty so when it comes to faII out boy specifically i have to admit that it’s a bit of a moral failing on my part

#no fr i don’t think that pete is currently a genuinely bad person. i think he’s done horrible nasty shit in the past #but i do think he’s not still currently engaged in that lifestyle that he used to thrive in #yeah i joke here. we all joke here. but i do think that pete is not currently a sex abuser and a lot of what he did was informed by #horrible addiction and a refusal to get treatment #if you feel safe in drug abuse and fetishizing your own sadness you will do bad things #he did shitty awful things. i don’t think he’s still doing shitty awful things #and i want him to have a little walking around money #also i don’t think that any of the people i currently listen to are like. Insane #really i’m not married to a lot of artists lol i fucking love the front bottoms and aIex g but they’re good guys #i just listen to a lot of random shit #i did stop listening to swmrs when the Allegations came out mostly just because i was like. too sad #bunnyaskz

[girl-of-ink]

Posts about gaylor by non gaylors and especially non swifties are honestly so funny. They're like "STOP listening to Taylor Swift and critically analyzing her writing 😡😡😡" like. No???

#especially love the comments on one post just now that included someone asking “queer subtext?? WHAT queer subtext???” #and “i genuinely don't know how gaylors can think she's gay” #like obviously! you actively dislike taylor and as such refuse to critically engage with her work #often in a misogynistic manner where you claim there ARE no layers of subtext or deeper meanings to her songs #(bc she's a woman you don't like and therefore she's incapable of nuanced and important art) #anyway. #just basically it's funny when people say they don't understand why people think taylor's music has gay subtext #while refusing outright to engage with her art on a critical level at all #morgan rambles #my ramblings #taylor swift #gaylor #gaylor swift

[gilligould]

like i really don’t wanna go into specifics because i do enjoy this person’s friendship but. it kinda hurts when you text me about a movie you’ve just seen and i make a note to check it out (and then do). but you refuse to like, even consider the new show i suggest because it “doesn’t really seem like something you’d like” based on the four tiktok clips you’ve seen. or because you think the lead actor’s ugly. etc etc

#please tell me if i’m overreacting #i think it’s just the outright dismissal that makes me feel like you really don’t care at all about any of my interests or opinions #and like. if you had a legitimate reason for refusing to engage it would be different #triggers and such. problematic people involved. etc #or even if you watched the first twenty minutes and decided it wasn’t for you #but i literally got a text this morning that was like. i will never watch [show you like] because i saw a tiktok and that guy’s ugly #and they were being serious. i know because it’s happened before #k.txt

[cartoonchaos]

“gee i wonder why there’s still so much more fanfiction about male characters” “we need more morally complex female characters” “i love relationships that are doomed by the narrative” “more stories need to treat mentally ill characters with compassion and respect” “all his problems could’ve been fixed if he only went to therapy” you fuckers can’t even handle the ending of fionna and cake

#i’m not one to go online and complain fruitlessly about how media literacy is in the toilet but jesus christ #it’s actually devastating seeing so many people actively reject a brilliant and emotionally challenging show #all because they refuse to examine anything about themselves #if you’re genuinely pissed petrigrof wasn’t endgame and the show couldn’t quote unquote let them be happy #if you’re seriously mad your favorite doomed yuri was in fact doomed by the narrative #if you can’t enjoy petrigrof anymore because you now know it’s quote unquote problematic or toxic and not a perfect tragedy #please i beg of you watch it again #this show beat you over the head with a children’s book and then you misunderstood it somehow and then whined about your headache #and if you for realsies believe this show is pushing an unhealthy message with how it handled simon’s depression #this show that showed him so much compassion and understanding and gave him closure and let him move on and grow and seek help #if you think betty was too harsh on him #the betty that sentenced the man who doomed her to life #to live a happy and healthy life #to seek help and grow and become an individual not defined by his grief #if you think that’s seriously equivalent to telling a depressed person to just cheer up #then you are legitimately anti-recovery #i really hope you guys learn how to engage healthily with complex media #one would’ve thought steven universe taught us all a lesson #but i guess a million casper and nova level stories won’t be enough for some of you #here’s hoping you don’t just kin simon but actually follow his example #get therapy #loony rambles #fionna and cake #simon petrikov #betty grof #petrigrof #adventure time

[idliketobeatree]

a gentle reminder to myself: slow down when you're met with someone else's creation. just because it's not in a museum, doesn't mean it's not worth your time. you can skim through your life all you want, you can jump over the annoying cracks and never look back, but when someone presents you (in the most literal meaning of this word – as a gift) with their art you should sit down and pay back with attention. people need creativity that is shared and appreciated, and it needs your focus and care to bloom properly. briefness kills both the idea and the community around it. so, slow down.

#idk how to tag this #art #writing #artists on tumblr #writers on tumblr #i refuse to use this website as another mindless scrolling machine when there are a hundred different ways to engage with people #and it's so sad we've allowed to separate the art from the artist. to the point where you put the creator on a pedestal #and their art on an unreachable wall #behind some kind of a glass covering. the word “content” makes me physically sick #when it should be: stories shared in warmth and laughter by a fireplace. arm in arm. sharing notes and comments like friends. #or. drawings seen by your friends in all stages of creation. bonus points if your sketching game is horrible and the initial colors suck #i can mourn the artists who's works i adore because i'll never get to tell them how much they mean to me #but i can tell the ones alive just how much they've impacted me and i think it counts. like. so much. #marcela talks

[vickyvicarious]

Frankenstein annotators vs Dracula annotators FIGHT (this Ask brought to you by the Frankenstein weekly annotator takes)

For real, there do seem to be some blisteringly cold takes going on in academic circles.

I think Frankenstein suffers more with people tending to identify harder with either Creature or Victor, and thus skewing everything the other one does in order to demonize them. They get plenty of material to work with either way, because both are extremely flawed individuals. Both are self-absorbed, make bad choices, cause harm to those around them. Both also are extremely depressed/self-hating, do not want to hurt anyone until they're well caught up in a self-perpetuating cycle of hatred, feel trapped and victimized by the other. I think a lot of the power of the book comes from being able to sympathize with both of them and spot so many moments of "if only-" while still feeling that the way things turned out was somehow inevitable. It's just ingredients of a great tragedy!

With Dracula, it feels more like people are trying to distance themselves from the characters. By reducing them to plot points, archetypes, and the like, these people stop engaging with them as characters. And as such, they try to force in negative nuance where it wasn't intended in the original, or view them only as a stereotypical Frigid Victorian Male (Jonathan) or say "this side character didn't do a lot so maybe they were secretly evil" (Quincey), or just get... super, super into horny symbolism everywhere in a way that actually saps away a lot of what makes the characters themselves. In doing so, they miss the heart of the story, which despite being a horror novel actually has some really uplifting stuff.

I haven't read tons and tons of academic takes on both books, but based on what I have read, I think those are the trends that seem to bring about some of the really weird or hostile takeaways. Getting too attached to a particular character in Frankenstein, and trying too hard not to care about the characters in Dracula. Opposite in a way, but both ending up missing a lot of heart/nuance that I think you can find in the original works.

I feel there also is an element of a kind of feedback loop in both cases. Each book has had a major impact on pop culture, but in ways which tend to diverge significantly from book canon. I do feel that some of the simplifications and reversals start out as either derivative of (Dracula must have a sympathetic backstory) or defiant to (actually, Frankenstein is the real monster) the film/pop culture versions. This as well as responding to so many other established lines of criticism and types of takes that have become almost a "standard" and which are somewhat removed from the actual canon of the page.

#anonymous #replies #frankenstein weekly #dracula daily #i know i personally have been guilty of going 'frankenstein was the real monster' all blase after not having read the novel in over a decad #and feeling in the moment like i knew better than most people who hadn't read the book. so i am at least partly speaking from experience #as well as observation #(once i actually read the book again it was very clear that this is not and was not meant to be a one-sided good vs bad story. #whereas dracula at its core IS. to a certain extent refusing to recognize the different goals here #feels like not being willing to engage honestly with the text on its level. like that joke about getting too opinionated on like #a marxist reading of green eggs & ham. it can obviously be interesting but you also have to be willing to consider #what the book was meant to be and consider it in that light. you know?) #dracula daily spoilers #just for the super vague quincey mention really

[suddencolds]

~

#not snz #more musings 📝 / mini vent: #not sure why my social battery is so limited 😭 and also so inconsistent #i feel like i can't sustain the amount of... like continued/consistent enthusiasm i see others giving esp in group settings #i just don't know how to engage in that way without burning out #over the past few weeks i've been stuck in like #a strange state where i can't muster the energy to properly respond to even the people i'm most excited to reply to #which is strange?? #(and if that is you i am sorry 😭 i love you and i will get back to you) #i think i can't even like manage to get myself into the mindset of enjoying something for myself (eg. a conversation with a friend) #i think a part of it is the stress from work leeching into my personal life #i feel like i've been working so hard and for such long hours but its the kind of work where the progress i've made is very hard to track?? #:( i just want to be off of ******* work so i can work on ******* work again #i also want to get ahead enough on everything in my life so that i write y+v D: #i feel like i haven't had a properly restful day in weeks... even over the weekend i was busy attending to others' needs #i just want a break from it all... but i dont have enough time to take off... but i dont know how much more of this i can take #i remember also feeling during uni like i was drowning #like there were simply not enough hours in a day to deliver everything i promised. it's such an awful feeling #i just feel defeated. like i've felt exhausted for weeks and weeks on end and like i spend every waking hour working on something or other #but ofc there is nothing to do but to keep at it 😭 other people can handle all of this and more #there are so many people i refuse to let down

[secretlythatsme]

i really love dc x dp tbh but i hate how so many fics end up making the batfam dumb as shit. and i don't mean in a "loveable goof" kind of way but in a genuine "these people don't have the skills or intelligence to be heroes" kind of way. which is just antithetical to their entire thing

sometimes it's because the writer just genuinely doesn't know anything about the batfam or what they've been through so they come across as idiots. and other times it's because the writer is writing op ghost king danny or just generally op danny and they genuinely think he could outsmart or beat them. more often than not, it's a combination of the two.

it's just so sad. like not only is it disrespectul to the batfam, essentially getting rid of all the skills and experience they have just to prop up danny, but it also makes things a lot more boring imo. don't get me wrong, i don't mind the occasional "main character is super op" kind of story, but it's boring when like 70% of fics are like that and there's no real challenge or obstacle for him. part of why the show danny phantom was so fun was that it was exciting and chair gripping to see danny have to deal with his new ghost powers, figuring out how to deal with ghost attacks or vlad, and dealing with school and his parents on top of that.

but often, dc x dp fics just,, get rid of any challenge for him. sure batman is a skilled detective but danny will always be able to trick him! sure cass has been trained since birth to read people's body language but this random ghost teen knows how to conceal and control everything!! yeah damian has also been trained since birth to fight and kill but this random guy from the midwest who just started fighting in his teens is so much better!!! like, alright. it's fun every now and then but it sucks when so much of the dc x dp content is just people acting like the batfam are the worst vigilantes/detectives in the world.

and honestly i still feel this way even with the ghost king danny fics because how? he's never had to deal with people obsessively reading his body language or reading between the lines. he's had to deal with hiding stuff sure but his parents aren't the most observant people - their whole deal was being neglectful. even as a ghost king, why would he know how to outsmart, take advantage of, or beat the batfam in any capacity when he would still mostly deal with ghosts. it's a completely different skill set here - one that he likely wouldn't be prepared for. it'd be fine if they at least attempted to explain why danny would have those skills (like league danny aus) but most of them don't.

and i'm not saying danny couldn't do it at all, especially if it's a ghost king au, but i'm just tired of seeing the batfam constantly downplayed in these fics Just to make danny look better, smarter, stronger, etc. ik most people in the fandom are just danny fans but it really shows with how they treat, characterize, and shit on the dc characters just to prop danny up. it also serves to occasionally make danny look like an asshole when he intentionally messes with them and basically commits psychological torture for a goof.

#man... #i Do like this crossover but i completely understand why so many dc fans hate it #the oocness the fanon the constantly making these skilled trained characters fumble around and get outsmarted by Some Guy #ghost king danny isn't even canon to dp! which isnt a bad thing by any means ik the dp fandom goes crazy for fanon #and generally speaking the fanon Is a lot more fun and engaging than dp's canon #but as a dc fan its insane to watch #i want to engage more with dc x dp content so badly like this crossover is really interesting to me #but so much of it is just 'the bat.fam are actually fucking useless and my blorbo is so much better :)))' #it's almost like they dont even like the bat.fam!!! they keep saying they just dont know/understand them #but it fully feels like they straight up dont like the dc characters #it definitely comes across as 'hey this is a fun world to put danny in lets do that while also shitting on it and all of the characters' #'lol bruce is so stupid this random teen can outsmart him and he can lie to cass and he can beat dick in a physical fight lol' #there's a point where it stops feeling like indulgent op blorbo and more like insulting anyone who isn't danny #<thats actually exactly what it is and its insane to me like why even like crossovers if you dont want to engage with anyone but danny #how can you say you like them when you outright refuse to know them or respect them? #and obviously im using 'you' in a vague way im not specifically calling anyone out #ik there are people in the fandom who are genuinely fans of both and Do know and respect the dc characters #but so far its very few and far between which is just such a fandom culture shock for me #like in most fandoms im able to read a lot of fics and only occasionally think 'thats not right' #but with this one its the other way around - im constantly going 'they wouldnt say/do that at all why does the op think that?' #like 9 out of 10 fics im like 'oh yeah this person has never read a comic in their life' #i can immediately tell when someone has only read the webtoon its extremely obvious unfortunately #maybe i should make a dc masterlist for dp fans... like here you can write about them again After you do your homework ajdhgl

[atopvisenyashill]

“the white hart scene was showing us rhaenyra is divinely chosen to sit on the iron throne for a shitty girlboss moment”

idk how people come to this conclusion beyond the fact that a lot of people wanted the show to flesh out and empathize with the characters the way f&b doesn’t, but are mad the show decided to flesh out rhaenyra even though she’s one of the main characters, bc they’re too dedicated to her as The Born Evil Queen bc that’s how she’s been treated by fandom since the princess and the queen came out.

it’s not just “she sees the white hart and it means she’s divinely chosen” that’s such a basic, surface level reading. for her part, the point is not just that she sees the white hart, but that she recognizes it’s personhood, it’s beauty, and it’s uniqueness, and spares it’s life in empathy. the point is that she slaughters the boar in self defense and brings it home to her people but is scorned for the messy way she did it. it’s not just that she’s “divinely chosen” it is that she can recognize the fear and humanity (so to speak) in another being and can empathize with it enough to let it live even though killing it may make her look really good in front of the lords. she does the moral thing because she is capable of empathy despite what the lords may say, a clear hint to the last episode where she attempts to do the right thing by avoiding war despite pushback from the black council.

on the other hand, she kills the boar - she is just as capable as any man of great violence when she feels threatened, and equally capable of a vindictive sort of violence that all the men of her house (and many of the other houses) are capable of. she brings them an animal she killed by her own hand and they are disgusted; the greens will strike first at every opportunity never realizing that she is capable of much greater violence bc a woman being capable of being violent is not something that would ever occur to them. they gladly named her princess of dragonstone to stop daemon from being heir but they are disgusted by her independent mind despite it being the exact reason they named her heir.

but just as important is viserys’ killing of the red hart. the white hart ran from his woods while the red hart is held down by his advisors for him to kill without viserys doing any of the work; still, he has to try twice to kill it, and only with the hand rotting from contact with the throne is he capable of taking its life. like robb’s messy execution of lord karstark being the definitive sign that he’s utterly lost control of the war, viserys having to be coached step by step and handed this “win” on a silver platter only to bungle it anyway is a definitive sign that he’s lost control of his court and of the politics in westeros. and as robb’s dark, shadowy parallel, viserys too will not live to see the bloody climax of a war he helped kick off.

#rhaenyra targaryen #viserys targaryen #viserys the peaceful #‘it’s such basic girlboss symbolism’ or maybe you are not engaging with the plot bc you refuse to entertain the idea #that rhaenyra is a complex character capable of both great kindness and great violence. #me shit talking people in the tags #getting on my soap box #house of the dragon #like can we use our brains. ‘you don’t want the hightowers fleshed out bc you hate them’ yeah and we can say the same for people mad that #rhaenyra has been ‘softened.’ both sides are responsible for escalating the conflict. this is NOT just on rhaenyra #the same way the wo5k is not *just* on cersei’s affair or cat taking tyrion or jaime attacking ned. it is all these actions at once!!!!

[xhanisai]

My days, the ML fandom has the most conceited individuals in the fandom compared to all the other ones I’ve been in.

We have a huge fanbase full of people from all over the country because Miraculous Ladybug is an international successful cartoon- not the other way around.

Yes, this fandom is full of amazing talent and skills and we have so much fanworks of all kinds to enjoy.

BUT

We are not the only aspect that’s making the show thrive so get off your high horses sheeeeesh.

Also, warning. Don’t ever comment on my work saying shit like “omg so much better than canon” I will fucking give you a tight slap in the ass.

#ml fandom salt #again i hate talking about any kind of salt on social media because it's just a headache #and here i thought sonic fans were conceited af whenever a new fangame is released and the squabbling chickens there are like #'hurr durr they are SO MUCH better than SEGA ex deeeeee' #but nah dare i say it #the salters in the ML fandom are so much worse #you can't drown them out because they're everywhere #they are so ignorant and refuse to do basic research on how animation industries work and how many years it takes to write and create a show #and it fucking shows #imo #the salters are KILLING the fandom #compare us to 2015/2016 era #see how much livelier we used to be! #but now most people prefer to lurk and not engage with ML fan stuff because of fucking dumbasses like the salters #i AM a professional in the industry I KNOW HOW IT WORKS #IN TERMS OF ANIMATION AND ALL THAT JAZZ

[vithederg]

least favorite phenomenon:

everyone loves this sweet, new, legitimately amazing video game, and oh boy you can't wait for everyone to shut the fuck up about it

#baulders gate 3 #undertale #lethal company #ultrakill #titanfall 2 #etc #i've actually played and love many of these #and not all of them are necessarily new #nor do i dislike any of them #but i've definitely felt the phenomenon with them #and oh boy do i want people to shut the fuck up about them #being completely serious i might refuse to engage with baulders gate 3 in any way just because of how talked about it has become

[blujayonthewing]

more dnd and adjacent media should be run and written by people who think dwarves and elves are boring but care very sincerely about halflings and gnomes

#me it's me they should put me in charge #welcome to my campaign. all of the halfling and gnome NPCs are richly developed and well-rounded. maybe sometimes a dwarf will exist #actually I almost left elves out of this post because imho they're more interesting than anyone ever bothers to remember or implement #and I don't think they're boring and I would give them loving and meaningful worldbuilding-- but I DO think most people run them boring #'oh they're like humans but better. they're like beautiful humans who are old' that's IT?? I am ASLEEP!!! #anyway why do people just flatly refuse to engage with the small races at all!! #are they boring or are you just writing them off for no reason!! #I have one(1) dnd friend and DM who Gets It-- oh no sorry I forgot Justin is also my DM and dnd friend dfkjhgdfj. TWO DMs who get it #so halfling and especially gnome NPCs actually get to 1) fucking exist at all and 2) feel like real people but also distinct from humans #I think people just don't know what to do with them. which is a bummer and also boring. #I dunno like. as a reasonably intelligent and fully realized adult who is also playful and silly #I have pretty strong feelings actually about gnomes getting to be real people and ALSO culturally value goofiness and whimsy #and very strong feelings about how hard that is for most people to understand or believe (: #about me #gnome stuff #worldbuilding