#they all just have such compelling personalities and also I am a simple lesbian

[fayactually]

Dan Levy

I had a dream last night that I was dating Dan Levy. I'm a bisexual woman, and while I think Dan Levy is gay (not sure tbh) his Schitt's Creek character David Rose is bisexual.

This dream felt weeks long. Weeks-long to the point where I developed a budding romance with Levy, shared a sweet first kiss, did his makeup after going through his toiletry bag on our first weekend away, and met each other's families.

I actually woke up a little sad this morning. It felt like I lost a friend. Dreams are weird like that.

It did also make me think about the people (in real life this time) that I've been attracted to. Being bisexual myself means, like David Rose said in his famous wine metaphor, that I'm less attracted gender and more to the person. While bisexuality can be as varied as the people who identify that way, I have always found, that I tend to lean towards more "masculine" women, and more "femme" men.

I have used this pic as the stand in to where my attraction lies, whenever I've been asked.

Tall geeky boy, badass girl. ( This is River Song & the Doctor if you didn't know, and also omg please do watch them. I go weak-kneed for their relationship)

And I've wondered about this. In a world where I am told over and over again that muscular men, big and aggressive are the ideal, and what I should want....I just never really have? Sure, I get the appeal of Henry Cavill in The Witcher, in like, a for science kind of way, but the men that have always made me swoon have been a little bit, well, bent.

Either legitimately homosexual, or flamboyant, or weird in a way I found compelling. Usually also in a way that makes het men feel uncomfortable.

With women, it's simple. Strong women are hot. I like a person who is confident, and smart, and knows what they want out of life. And I guess that transfers to men too. You have to be pretty confident in who you are to rock guyliner, and brush off the usual trappings of masculinity.

I've had some suggest that I must be afraid of men. And by forming romantic attachments to gay men, that means they can't hurt me.

Personally, I think that's horeshit. Gay men are just men. And while, yes, generally they don't want to fuck me, that doesn't me I wont get "fucked" in other, usually worse ways.

The thing is though, I'm not attracted to the "gay". I'm attracted to men who don't see me as an object. Objectification is so talked about now, that it's its almost cliche to mention it, but that's because it happens ALL THE TIME. I literally have to remind men that I am a person. They already know it, ofcourse, in like, an abstract way, but in the daily course of things, I am often reduced to "cute face. tits". If they really like my face, I get upgraded to "maybe wife material". I want to be "milk-shakes and long drives, and maybe adopt too many dogs material". I get this more from gays and lesbians.

Attraction is weird and awesome, and I miss my fictional effete boyfriend.

#feminism #femme lesbian #bisexual #femme #dan levy #daniel levy #schitt's creek #dreams #masculinity #femininity #gay #lesbian

[cloudmancy]

you guys sent in SO MANY asks and I physically cannot respond to all of them so I’ll post (most) of them at once. I am like a little messaging service an anonymous ruehob confessions blog of a sort... you are welcome... discussion goes in the reblogs/comments

[ID: anon ask reading “ruehob isnt really a like concept of acutal partners to me its just an exploration of regency tropes and dynamics... like i dont understand making like fluff post-canon stuff for them because it feels like the relationship is intentionally pretty shallow because its more about the narrative tension than either of them as Real People in a Real Relationship. theyre here to check the boxes of a dramatic regency romance and that is very fun like i love it but its also not really ABOUT if theyre gonna have a good life after the show”]

[ID: anon ask reading “personally i like ruehob but its true its literally because people hate women and wuvvy deserves so so so much better... i was kinda sad that aabria didn't address wuvvy's side in the AP and just made it out to be like a "ooh fun and drama" thing but maybe it's bc she didn't want to dive deep into it yet and i REALLY hope wuvvy will like. get to make a statement to rue or smth because she deserves FAR better at this point. i know the wuvvy neglect from rue's side might be because the player's have way too many interactions to go through but LORD!!!!!!! its not even supporting womens wrongs at this point bc like wuvvy DESERVES to do at least that much if she's been treated like this :| anyway people will stay hating women and prioritising ~ romance ~ over all else its maddening to see”]

[ID: anon ask reading “could be my years of reading fanfiction but the miscommunication trope are the reason that ruehob are acting like middle schoolers with a crush who they have only talked to twice and saying "they love them" is why they feel like an unfulfilling ship”]

[ID: anon ask reading “not to join the crowd but thank you for putting words to my inarticulate dissatisfaction w ruehob 😭😭 it felt very sudden and maneuvered into place and narratively dissatisfying, like they were trying to hit tropes rather than craft a satisfying romance into the story. there was no buildup!! there was one scene that led to contrived drama for several episodes and now they love each other. it could have been a really fun narrative about an infatuation between two powerful fey and the hearts they trample on in the process, but it's not being framed like that (or, y'know, they could've given their characters a history together). you're right about wuvvy/binx though, i'm a simple lesbian ready to get deeply invested in this”]

[ID: anon ask reading “i gotta thank you homie, after scrolling through your blog it's helped me put my finger on why i'm not as about ruehobb as everyone else seems to be and also that wuvvy can destroy folks, as a treat tbh”]

[ID: anon ask reading “insane take maybe but the ruehob of it all isn't about the long-term relationship- it's about the experience of one person making you reconsider everything. rue and hob do fall fast and hard and their relationship is a catalyst for self-growth more than it is sustainable, which I kind of like tbh and find relevant to at least my queer experience. we don't know what hob (and rue to an extent) would actually be Like because he doesn't know that, because he's never given himself the chance. wuvvy is stable and confident in her identity in a way that rue and hob aren't, and so their dumpster fire mess of longing and repression looks insane and unappealing to her, but I do think it's compelling to watch from our perspective. the issue comes in when every fan acts like they are soulmates who are going to be together 4ever and it's like. we don't know! these people haven't been themselves ever, really, we don't know! I think in AP7 brennan said that he intentionally put a seed of growth in hob that he needed to confront his relationship with his court and duty, etc, and rue just happened to slot perfectly in. it's not about it being rue specifically, it's about the self-discovery of realizing you can be loved, that there is something deeper than orders, as he says. same goes for rue: it's not about the specifics of hob, it's about wanting something and Not putting cordiality and safety and appearances first”]

[ID: anon ask reading “remember when hob was like rue doesn’t actually love me i was just there at a good time. i was sitting here thinking man…i WISH, that’d be way more interesting. anyway to each their own but ruewuvvy rights”]

#asks #anon #acofaf

[notdrifting]

some quick notes on my portrayal of lady d and shipping under the cut - ah, also ? please be mindful and respectful that me sharing my own hcs and portrayal do not necessarily mean that i claim that other hcs and portrayals of other muns are wrong. everybody is entitled to their own hcs and understandings of characters, there’s literally no right or wrong there.

as i have mentioned before  i do not accept nor ship maidens/lady d, she wouldn’t fuck nor fall in love with her own food - with that being said, shipping with her is complicated.  and i feel compelled to express my firm stance against endorsing or engaging in any romantic plots or shipping involving lady d and the maidens under her employ. i see such relations as deeply problematic due to not only the inherent power imbalance in their dynamics and the exploitative nature of their relationship. as much as a queer icon as she is to us all, it is crucial to remember that alcina is and will always be ( except perhaps in aus, of course ) a cruel vampire who feasts on human flesh and effectively keeps these girls as pretty much prisoners/slaves, considering them far beneath her and her daughters in the food chain, depriving them of their autonomy and personhood. with that in mind, romanticising such a relationship could not only perpetuate harmful tropes, but also normalize abuse ( which is a big no no as you can see in my rules ), and i don’t want any of that here. alcina's callous disregard for the well-being of the maidens is an essential aspect of her character, and any attempt to force her into a romantic relationship with them would pretty much undermine her consistency as a character and the gravity of her actions. furthermore, this sort of relationship portrayal may lead to a faux idea that abusive dynamics can be redeemed through love, a notion that can be harmful and manipulative. i am always eager to explore alternative storylines that empower the maidens though, allowing them to break free from their oppressive situations, form supportive bonds, and assert their agency. so yes, i am steering clear of romanticizing these harmful relationships, however in case anyone wants to explore other dynamics i’m 100% here for it. lady d probably would never fall in love or be attracted to a human, that is a regular human, as she finds weakness ( and she deems all humans weak ) disgusting. to get her attention they need to be powerful but not enough to pose as a threat to her or her daughters.

i write her a sapphic demisexual demiromantic as, to me personally, it makes sense considering what i saw of her and the other hcs i have for her - although most hc ( and i say hc because it wasn’t formally confirmed nor denied by capcom itself and despite one of the writers giving his opinion on it in a rather jkr w/ albus fashion, as it is re8 is a collaborative work and in the end the decision to make something canon or not is capcom’s ) her as a lesbian and i have no issue with that,  as a fellow queer i do find the entire man-hating-lesbian trope to be rather harmful. my main issue with this trope is that it follows patriarchal, hetero-normative ideas that often refuse to acknowledge the idea that a relationship between two women can exist on its own without having anything to do with men  ( as most hcs that i have seen are deeply linked to her misandrist personality and the mindset that just because she hates men she is automatically a lesbian ), the trope is flawed, simple minded and rather disrespectful to the sapphic community ( the trope suggests same-sex relationships are rooted solely in disdain for men, trivializing and undermining genuine emotions and love within them ). now, does that mean you cant hc her as lesbian? of course you can! her being lesbian or not is not the issue, hcing her as a lesbian should have nothing to do with this bad trope and we are all free to hc whatever we want that makes sense and relates to us individually, but let us all be mindful of the sexist tropes the fandomTM and the media loves to apply to female characters. as it is, since no official announcement has been made by capcom regarding the character so far, i will write her within the aro/ace spectrum for my own comfort, which i will  explain best in the next section

although she is within the aro/ace spectrum i don’t necessarily belive her to be sex repulsed per se,  though it is worth noting she is nowhere near inclined on having flings or one night stands at all -  ever since day one that she called the attention of the re fandom and from all sort of people, sadly as it usually goes with attractive female characters in media, she was painfully fetishised to no end. that makes me severly uncomfortable and has driven me off from writing her in the past. my portrayal will not focus on her sex appeal to the point of objectifying her, if at all. i want to go beyond that and bring out  depth and authenticity, exploring more than just her appearance. lady d is a lot more than just “tall vampire mommy makes me go brrrr”  she's complex and fascinating, that's why i think it'd be awesome to showcase her forming deep emotional bonds before experiencing sexual or romantic attraction ( if any ). this adds a whole new layer to her identity, and while i'm totally down for some fun shipping, it will be handled it with care. i’m all about respect and creating inclusive fan content that celebrates her character and explores different aspects of her life and relationships.  so while her natural despite for men in general still remains and her usual cruelty to those women who serve her is also present, she'll be free to explore relationships within her demi orientation in case plotting happens. of course some lighthearted flirting might appear every once in a while, but they will be nothing but crack. for actual shipping severe plotting is necessary.

#ALCINA 「study」 #please remember that this blog is not a democracy and as such i am not obliged to follow the fandom's ideas #once we get an official confirmation - and by official i mean capcom's confirmation - i will more than gladly to retcon this one out #as it is - if you disagree or find it appalling my portrayal by all means hit the unfollow button and/or the block button for your own peace #it be me and lady d against sexist tropes #i still got traumas from jkr - too many writers/producers try to get pink money

[piduai]

Lol personally I like it a lot unlike Game of Thrones which I hate and I think it's better than the book is based on in many ways (even GRRM seems to think so). I especially like how they fleshed out Alicent and gave her and Rhaenyra a friends to enemies arc with deliberate lesbian subtext. I also don't think Rhaenyra is a feminist character, she's pretty entitled and flawed (a mix between Dany and Cersei). The story and characters are nowhere as good as ASOIAF's but it scratches the itch, yk.

oh no i didn't mean to imply that she's a "feminist" character. she was created by a man, and the show writers seem to be men, that's already antithetical to the idea of feminism lol like what's the point if there's no female voices there. i meant it in the uh, girlboss subversive way that is so popular in contemporary media. you know like Calling Out the problem directly, Calling Out the misogyny and addressing it as though it has a simple solution (make woman badass and stronk) instead of tackling the issue within the narrative. the lack of subtlety is the culprit here because, by giving the audience a Call Out, the story just refuses to put in the effort of showing why this or that is the issue.

idk there's just something insidious about men writing stories in which female characters have a complex about having been born female and being resentful about being treated differently than their male peers, it feels mocking when it comes from a place of privilege somehow? i mean first of all what do you know lol. i think i'm just tired of misogyny being used as a prop, same reason i don't really like gay media. not saying that these things shouldn't be created, i'm sure a lot of people enjoy stuff about Addressing The Issue and whatnot it's fine but i personally don't... why do all the Feminist Girlboss stories have to be about rape and oh it sucks so much that i was born a dreaded girl but it ok bc i learnt to cope with it. and all stories about gay people about homophobia and coming out and having no personality or interests or life outside of having sex. idk. can't we just be... normal people with good interesting compelling stories and good character writing who just happen to be female/gay/what have you without the Oppression being rubbed in our faces all the time? i mean sure fiction explores real life issues which as i said is FINE... but it's also escapism y'know. like i live as a woman and as a lesbian and i experience those sorrows in real life, why do i need to be constantly reminded how much it sucks to be xyz in this Society in my story about kicking ass and going on adventures and idk, dragons.

BUT I DIGRESS SO MUCH SORRY autism moment. it's not about the dragon show in particular bc i haven't watched it so idk what it really is about, just my personal gripes with politically charged media. tbh i haven't read the book either... mostly bc idgaf about the targaryens as a whole or about the asoiaf universe without the characters i'm already fond of. i'd rather he just continued the main story than release weird girlboss incest prequels but who am i to tell millionaires what to do... but i'm glad it works out for you and they're feeding you dragon-riding wooloowoos <3 hopefully they don't mess it up then 🙏

#anon

[gravity-lifts]

I saw you rb some art earlier so Leah and Abby!!

100000000000/10, absolutely incredible! I love them with all of my heart

#Asks!! #anon #they're just so cute together #also I may be in love with both of them separately as well lol #(honestly I'm love the simonverse girls) #they all just have such compelling personalities and also I am a simple lesbian #anyhow I have to say that I am the most in love with Cassie from the upside of unrequited tho #that got rambly #whoops?

[yurimother]

LGBTQ Comic Review - Amongst Us Book 1

A masterful combination of comedy, subtle romance, and incredible sensuality

I make no attempts to hide my complete admiration and infatuation with Shilin Huang's Yuri webcomic Amongst Us. The slice of life AU featuring reimagined versions of the lead characters from fantasy series Carciphona as a lesbian couple has held a special place in my heart for a long time. I named the series one of the best Yuri works of the past one-hundred years, can frequently be found lurking in the author's Twitch streams, and even have a wall in my office dedicated to the artwork of the main couple (or I did before my office became a remote classroom). So, when a Kickstarter by Shilin and Hiveworks Comics launched promising a print version of the work, I was eager to support it financially and promote it with my humble platform. The Kickstarter took place in March, and books were initially estimated for release in May of 2020. However, as you have probably realized by the dates alone, the world went very South around this time. A combination of disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic, a healthy amount of bad luck, and what I am inclined to believe, for various reasons, was some awful mismanagement by Hiveworks led to numerous delays. Indeed, by the time the book finally shipped, I had moved, so my copy arrived a little later as it had to be forwarded. But, at the end of this frustrating and anticipation-building event, I finally have the volume in my hands, and it was worth the wait. While I adore the webcomic, this gorgeous print volume completely enthralls me. The book is absolutely the preferred way to read this spectacular comic.

Before getting into the exquisite details of Amongst Us Book 1: Soulmates, I need to take a minute to praise how well this book is put together. The paperback binding is thick and features amazing spot glass that sparkles in the light. This feature only accentuates the fantastic and bright the cover illustration of main characters Veloce and Blackbird loving holding each other is. The back cover has a simpler but more imaginative illustration of the two flying through the sky, and the character's expressions tell you everything you need to know about this fantastic, odd couple. There are a few things you will notice upon opening the volume. The first is how well Amongst Us made the challenging transition from vertical webcomic to the page. The assembly and paneling are fantastic and clear, and chapters feature stylized illustrations and title cards. You will then see the inside cover, a powerful display that perfectly contrasts the front's glowing and tender love. Finally, there is Shilin's presents moving forward and dedication, where she lovingly dedicates the book to her partner, Kristen.

I assure you, as good as the book's presentation and assembly is, the contents within are even better. Amongst Us follows Veloce and Blackbird's bombastic relationship. The two women are eccentric and striking musicians in their early twenties, and I swear you will never forget them. The slice of life storylines are, per the genre's definition, mundane and include events like shopping at the mall, riding the train, and having lunch with a friend. The charming simplicity of the story serves well to the reactions of the characters. Shilin effortlessly transitions from adorable moments of affection to explosive and hilarious comedy and irresistible and delightful moments of sexual tension; Veloce's neck and jawline alone could topple a monarchy. Often, slice of life works can become dull or repetitive, but these stories and the frequent changes in tone help the reader stay engaged and excited.

Putting slice of life aside for a moment, it is also important to note that Amongst Us is also has an interesting place within the Yuri genre, or "Girl's Love/GL" as it is often called in webcomic circles (originally an analogous term of Boy's Love). Webcomics have often been a bit more adventurous with their storylines and styles than Japanese manga. While the genre rose to popularity in the space thanks to digital manhwa and manhua, some (not all) of the Yuri tropes did not carry over between the similar mediums. Many modern webcomics and webtoons take their inspiration more from manhwa and manhua GL, which has developed its own canon and tropes over the years. However, even for a webcomic, Shilin's work feels somewhat divorced from most other worlds of Yuri. This first volume exists mainly against the Yuri genre's expectations. However, the next book, which flashes back to the couple's origin, undoubtedly is more in line with convention, for better or worse. It feels like the author decided to screw the norms and write a work that she would enjoy, and I am so glad that she did. Veloce and Blackbird are young adults, out of school in an established relationship with no drama. This (sadly) unconventional setting is made all the more irregular because of just how distinctive, and unwonted Blackbird and Veloce are.

Blackbird and Veloce, originally from the fantasy world of Carciphona, take on a new life, literally, in this wonderful modern reimagining and homage. You do not need to be a fan of the original work to enjoy their bizarre and larger-than-life personalities. Indeed, when I read Amongst Us online for the first time, I had not ever even heard of Carciphona. Veloce is the quieter and more stoic of the two, although she is not afraid of showing a more relatable and human side as she reacts to Blackbirds wild antics. Veloce's (not)straight man approach is hilariously sobering. But, her best moments are in those when she lets loose a little bit, like when she is rendered drooling by the promise of her favorite smoothie or in her stoic yet alluring flirtations with Blackbird, only to get close enough to steal a healthy chomp of ice cream.

Blackbird, on her part, is completely insane. She continuously pulls of wild antics like jumping on Veloce to surprise her or singing an especially threatening song after a glorious battle over lunch. However, she is perfectly capable of showing her love and admiration for Veloce in her own cheeky way. However, true to form, each softer or more personal moment between the two is often immediately and perfectly juxtaposed with comedy, with the apparent exception of the book's touching and thoughtful finale. Veloce and Blackbird will both more than please readers individually, but you will fall in love with them as a couple. I must have read this at least a few dozen times between the webtoon and the book, and I am just as enchanted as ever by their loud and unapologetic love.

The ordinary misadventures of Blackbird and Veloce are accompanied by genuinely astounding artwork. No, that statement does not do Shilin's illustrations justice. Veloce and Blackbird lead from the page thanks to stunning, full-color illustrations that detail every moment of hilarity. Every movement from the slightest smirk to the over-the-top dramatizations of regular events thoughtfully and beautifully sprawl across the pages and invite you to stare for hours. Shilin is the only person possible who could make something as simple as someone softly singing Happy Birthday so epic and sultry. Speaking of which, my goddess of Yuri is this work titillating. No, there are no gratuitous scenes, but just the characters leaning over each other or touching the other's chin makes my hands shake. My only small complaint is that some early chapters show their age slightly with noticeably lower quality linework and flatter colors than the dazzling and dynamic work demonstrated towards the end. Still, even on its worst day, Amongst Us looks better than most of its peers and the entirety of its many inferiors.

Amongst Us is nearly the perfect work. It has a uniquely compelling and mirth-inducing way of displaying a young yet very unordinary couple's everyday life. Its characters, from design to personality, are instantly memorable and striking. Despite being ready to rip each other's heads off at the drop of a hat, or rather because of it, Blackbird and Veloce feel the perfect and natural couple we so rarely witness. Shilin's masterful combination of comedy, subtle romance, and incredible sensuality is astounding. This book is worth it for the outstanding and vibrant artwork alone, but its combination with excellent writing create a sonorous and majestic modern romance unlike any other. I believe that Shilin has created something genuinely special here, and I can confidently say that out of the hundreds of webcomics I have read, this one is the pinnacle of its kind and my absolute favorite.

You can purchase Amongst Us book 1: Soulmates exclusively on Shilin's online shop and read the webcomic now for free on Twitter, Webtoon and Tumblr​ @okolnir​.

Ratings: Story – 9 Characters – 10 Art – 10 LGBTQ – 8 Sexual Content – 5 Final – 10

#yuri #reviews #lgbt #lgbtq #lgbtq+ #queer #gay #anime #manga #amongst us #shilin #lesbian #gl #wlw #girls love #comics #comic #webtoon #webcomic #cute #funny #lol

[werevulvi]

I hope these show up in the right order. This kinda stuff is exactly what makes me feel lost about my transness. Like I was just trying to be nice and agreed with this person's post. I had no interest in being an asshole or arguing what bio sex, or even what butch, is. I was just declaring myself as a bio female because it felt relevant to the topic and how I relate to it. It amazes me how even the pro self-ID types are against self-ID when someone identifies in a way that doesn't suit their narrative, even when it's a trans person whose identity they deny.

They blocked me and I don't want anyone going after them, I just wanna rant. And not even about this specific post or person, but more so about trying to exist as a gender critical trans person in general. I've been thinking about that for days, weeks, perhaps months or even years already, so it's really not about this specific person. I guess it was just what triggered me to finally start writing.

I guess I feel like both most other trans people and most other gender critical people, view transness as incompatible with gender critical opinions, and like that makes me feel pulled in two opposing directions. But anyone of any ideology can be dysphoric and transition because it helps them cope. I don't think that my opinions, or my choice to hang out with radfems, means that I'm self-hating, or even that I'm going against the needs of my own trans demographic. My own trans demographic is just all too good at confusing wants with needs... generally speaking. I see sex and gender the way I do because it makes sense to me personally, and I don't even argue that it's necessarily the objective truth. I don't think there is such a thing. It's just my truth, my perception of the world.

That I can't make myself see myself as a man for real, despite my dysphoria and transition, doesn't mean that I think it's wrong to transition, or that my body is damaged by it, or that transitioning is useless. Because it's not. I love my transition and everything it has given me. I'm comfortable with my transitioned body. It deserves love, especially my love. And although I still struggle with some insecurities, I feel like I love my body. It's been... incredibly good to me. It's stayed very healthy, and even keeping up a strong immune system despite my smoking, self harm, careless sexual escapades, etc. I may still have a fraught relationship with being female, but as long as I transition, I seem to be managing it fairly well. Except then I have a more fraught relationship with society instead. Can't win, but that's life, innit?

I don't think either my transness or my political opinions are my real problem or ever was. I think it's society's constant fighting about trans people's genders, lives and choices, that makes me constantly cave in on myself. Can't handle the pressure.

It feels like it's only ever getting worse. Ten years ago my biggest concern was people not ever finding me attractive because I was turning myself into some kind of a freak, which luckily I was proven to be wrong about. Five years ago my biggest concern was nonbinary people trying to normalize asking people their pronouns, which made me fear that people would never leave me alone about my gender, unless I forced myself to be hyper-masculine, which I still worry about. Three years ago my biggest concern was having been stripped of my sex-based rights and dehumanized for how I had chosen to treat my dysphoria, which I still worry about as well, and now...

...my biggest concerns are being treated as a third gender, fetishistic predator who should be shoved away into gender neutral spaces, and I fear that one day medical transition will be taken away as an option to treat dysphoria if transness is continued to be rejected as a medical condition. My heart rate is ever increasing. Can I even realistically "just go on with my life" anymore? I feel compelled to do something, but I also feel like there isn't anything I can do. No matter how many people I try to "educate" about dysphoria and why transition is incredibly important, all the while being as humble as I can, I am seriously lacking behind the much faster spread of harmful misinformation.

Thing is, I do not blame gender critical people for spreading some of that misinformation. For example of trans women as fetishistic predators, which people apply to trans men when they still fail to understand that MtF is not the only kinda trans there is, or when we dare to be just a little bit feminine while passing as male. If anything, I blame the true sources of such harmful claims, which slowly increase my anxious heart rate, over years, turning into decades, of living as openly trans. I blame opportunistic men who pretend to be trans women for gaining access to women's spaces, be it prisons, spas, shelters, sports, what have you, when they cannot possibly be dysphoric judging by how happily they swing their dicks around women as if it's no big deal and make no attempt at transitioning, but also who cares if they are dysphoric, no one should behave that way either way. I blame the trans rights activists who say lesbians have to suck dick if it's attached to a trans woman, and those who say that gay men have to be into pussy and date trans men. I blame those who say that trans women are bio female by virtue of identifying as female, and claiming that they can get periods, by virtue of... bowel cramps?! I'd also blame those who try to change female specific language on behalf of shielding trans men from our own dysphoria, in the rare cases we'd end up getting pregnant or manage to drag our asses to the gyno office for a pap smear, which... most of us really don't, regardless of if you call us women or uterus-havers, sincerely, please stop. It makes people think trans women are trying to take over the term "woman" entirely for themselves, which of course they don't.

I could go on, but I won't, as this post is not about these things. It's more so about how estranged I feel from the people who spout these things, knowing that they think they're speaking for me and my supposed needs as a tranny. But I see no point in trying to educate them, as they won't listen any more to me than they would to a radfem, and again, I think this post in my screenshots shows just how unwilling they are to listen to me.

I guess living with my transition on constant display is what's hard, and I guess I just need to vent about that, as it's always judged one way or the other; as either me having made myself into a man, or that I'm a delusional woman who mutilated herself; and it's kinda hard to find a kind and sane middle ground, that perhaps I'm just a victim of circumstances, and trying to make the most of my own life, regardless of what the fuck I am. That social shit, on top of dealing with dysphoria, makes it really difficult to not hate myself, I guess. But I have tried to live stealth and that made it if possible even worse, as it felt like I was lying, keeping a huge secret that grew in me like a spreading virus.

What I want is to just live my life, and for neither my bio sex, nor my transition, to stop me from doing that. I want to work through the worst of my autism, enough to be able to pursue a career in some low-paying labor, blue-collar job; get a car and driver's licence, find a suitable husband to have a child and cats with; I want my own garden, an art studio; I want to build muscle to become strong and even more independent (and perhaps strong enough to carry that husband, but at least to carry myself), and so on. When I picture myself in that potential future, it is with this male-like appearance I transitioned my body into, but it is also as a mother and wife.

And thinking about all of that makes me happy, it makes me smile and feel joy, meaningfulness, hope... While thinking about arguing online with some miserable fuck, who's deadset on arguing semantics and calling me a terf, when all I wanted was to show a little bit of kindness, that "hey, I agree with you, you make a good point here, and I'm not here to fight" only to be spat right back into my face... just makes me feel sad. Whatever happened to diversity of opinion? It's gone, it became labeled as bad, and left people like me with no place to be.

There is no point in arguing with such people, or even trying not to argue. There's no winning in that, there's no reward, no accomplishment. It's better to walk away.

I know I just have to get over this, this inner conflict of going against my transness with my gender critical opinions, and that I'm going against my womanhood with my transition - and be stronger than the political climate that's pulling me into pieces. But if it's peace that I want... I can just forget about it. There's no road there. But I have trouble letting go of that simple dream. The internet is constantly manipulating me into thinking I have an exciting social life, when in fact it's non-existent, and the lie is destructive. With internet vs real life, I'm living a double life. One of those lives has a future, the other one does not.

I'm glad I made this rant. It actually made me feel better, and reminded me that it's still worth it. Being trans, moving forward, focusing on what is good and what can become good in life. And it reminded me that the internet is merely an imitation of life, a substitute for human connection, and can... as with much else, be both good and bad.

#discourse #venting #tired of being pulled in opposing directions #because im not the right kinda trans #or the right kinda feminist #i have to live with myself and i dont know how #focusing back on what actually matters in life #just thoughts #gender politics #ok to rb

[artificialqueens]

Ms. California - Chapter One (Crygi/Jankie) - Mik

AN: Hey guys! This is my first attempt at writing fanfiction (or fiction in general). I absolutely love the idea of these two together, so hopefully you all enjoy it! If you guys like it, I’m definitely hoping to write at least six more chapters.

Summary: Crystal moves to Los Angeles from Missouri and meets GiGi Goode, captain of the varsity cheer squad. Queue the 1990s lesbian high school AU that absolutely nobody asked for.

The first time Crystal sees GiGi is on her first day of senior year at Fairfax High School. She’s just moved from a small town in Missouri to Los Angeles with her family and starting over is daunting. 

The second she enters the campus, she feels intimidated - it’s at least three times the size of her high school back home. She knows nobody; she is completely and utterly alone amongst her peers, who seem to be mostly chatting amongst themselves in groups. It’s Crystal’s senior year and she knows she should be looking forward to all of the so-called “high school experiences” that are surely to come this year, but all she can think of is how much she wishes it were all over. 

Crystal looks down at the somewhat crumpled piece of paper in her hands, examining her schedule. It’s going to be a pretty simple year, she decides, after realizing she only has five classes, one of which is advanced drawing and painting. Crystal is an art kid through and through. She looks the part - always wearing quirky combinations of bright colors and unconventional, wacky patterns - acts the part, and has the talent to match her aesthetic. 

Crystal begins looking for her first period classroom - art, thankfully. An easy way to start the day, she thinks to herself. Although she can see her class is supposedly held in room A12, she can’t find the building for the life of her on the huge campus. She’s sure that she looks impossibly lost and frazzled, and she starts to panic as she notices that the hands on her watch are slowly ticking closer to eight.

Apparently, someone else notices her alarmed expression too. “Are you lost?” a voice calls out from behind Crystal. 

“Um… yeah, I think I am,” Crystal replies, turning around. When she sees the person the voice belongs to, her nerves override her brain. The girl has shoulder length blonde hair and the most strikingly blue eyes she’s seen. She’s dressed like someone out of the magazines Crystal used to read; a short red dress clings to her long legs and Crystal can’t help but notice the pair of blush pink heels she’s chosen to accessorize the outfit with. Crystal thinks that she belongs on a runway or a movie set or at a photoshoot, not on a high school campus. She’s tall, she’s thin, she has full, pillowy lips, and a cute button nose; a girl that looked like that wouldn’t have made a point of reaching out to a stranger at her old high school. 

“What classroom are you looking for?” the girl asks, approaching Crystal. 

“A12,” Crystal chirps, sure she’s sounding as nervous as she looks. 

“Oh, you’re an art kid. Well, it’s right up that flight of stars,” the blonde motions to her right. “Are you new?” “Is it that obvious?” Crystal jokes, trying to hide how flustered she is. “Just a bit,” the other girl cracks a smile. “I’m GiGi.”

“Crystal.” “Well, maybe I’ll see you around, Crystal.”

GiGi walks off, leaving a stunned Crystal in her wake. As soon as she can calm her thoughts, she walks towards the flight of stairs.

She makes it to her first period class with five minutes to spare, and upon realizing she’s the first student to enter the spacious classroom, she makes her way to the front. Crystal elects to sit front and center, deciding that if nothing else, it will make her noticeable to other students and hopefully help her make some friends.

Students start trickling in one by one and filling out the classroom. Most choose to sit as far back as they can, probably to avoid being called on or so they can text without being noticed. Crystal silently prays for someone to sit next to her so she doesn’t look like the loner new kid. 

Her wish is granted when a girl with long, black hair wearing a pair of glasses with thick frames elects to sit next to her. 

Crystal, being somewhat extroverted - and desperate to make friends at her new school - introduces herself. 

“Hey, I’m Crystal!”

“Jackie,” the girl smiles. “Nice to meet you,” she says, extending a hand. 

Crystal suppresses a smirk at the formality of the gesture; it’s endearing. 

“Nice to meet you, too! How long have you been taking art?” Crystal asks,

Their conversation is interrupted by their teacher - who introduces herself as Ms. Velour - beginning the class. Crystal and Jackie both listen attentively to the bald woman with bold make-up as she reviews the course syllabus. 

Ms. Velour suddenly stops her lecturing and Crystal hears the door to the classroom open and close in succession. She twists around, partially out of curiosity to see who’s coming in so late, and partially because every other student is too. 

It’s GiGi. 

She makes a beeline for the only open desk in the back right corner. 

“Ms. Goode, thank you for joining us,” Ms. Velour says in a somewhat annoyed tone. 

GiGi doesn’t answer, and when Crystal tries making eye contact, GiGi ignores her. 

First period flies by, and even though Crystal would have loved to catch up to GiGi after class, GiGi seems to have sped out of the classroom. Crystal finds out she and Jackie both have second period - AP English - together anyways, so the two make their way to the classroom across campus. 

“So, that GiGi girl…” Crystal asks her potential new friend in a somewhat questioning tone. 

“GiGi? Well, there’s a lot I could say but I guess I’ll just stick with the super simplified version of it. She’s a junior and the head of the varsity cheer squad, she’s the resident “cool girl”, if you know what I mean. I’ve had art with her every year, and she likes to pretend she’s above it all.”

“Above it all?” Crystal questions - that definitely wasn’t the feeling she got from GiGi earlier. 

“Oh yeah, definitely. I mean, she probably thinks of all of the art kids as weird losers. But she’s one of us - she just won’t acknowledge it or you you, unless she’s hurling insults at you with her posse of cheer girls.” 

Crystal refrains from commenting about her interaction with GiGi before the class. “Well, that sounds like something out of a bad 1980s high school movie,” Crystal laughs. 

“It kind of is - welcome to LA, Crystal,” Jackie jokes as the two walk into their second class. 

~

Crystal’s first day goes well, overall. She and Jackie are on the route to becoming fast friends, and the dark haired girl even offers to give her a ride home after class, which Crystal appreciates.

The next morning, Jackie picks Crystal up and introduces her to her friend, Jan. The two seem a bit touchy; there are many fleeting glances and subtle touches between them.

The trio arrive to school ten minutes early, after picking up coffee. Jan is bright and bubbly and kind and Crystal immediately adores her; much like herself and Jackie, they hit it off instantaneously. 

Jan hugs Jackie goodbye, and plants a kiss on her cheek, eliciting Jackie to turn a shade of light pink. 

Crystal doesn’t question it. 

“Jan’s really cool,” Crystal says to Jackie as they make their way to first period together. 

“Yeah, isn’t she?” Jackie grins. “We’ve known each other since middle school.”

“Those kinds of friendships are always the best, I had a few friends like that back home in Missouri,” Crystal recalls. 

“Oh, well… I wouldn’t say we’re friends,” Jackie stutters. 

“You seemed pretty close,” Crystal says, perplexed. 

“Uh, yeah, we are,” Jackie says expectantly. 

The pair are silent for thirty seconds as Crystal tries to understand what Jackie is insinuating. 

“Okay, I don’t get it,” Crystal admits. 

“We’re like, girlfriends,” Jackie half-whispers. “But you can’t say anything. Please do not say anything.”

“Oh, yeah. I guess I should’ve picked up on that,” Crystal sighs internally at her own obliviousness. “And I won’t - your secret’s safe with me.”

“Thank you. I mean, it’s just a bit weird because Jan is on the cheer squad and if anyone finds out, she’ll basically become a pariah - both for being bisexual and for dating someone like me.”

“It’s Los Angeles and it’s 1994 - do people still really care about that here? And what do you mean, ‘someone like you’” Crystal asks, somewhat shocked. If there was one thing she was expecting to be different in Los Angeles, it was the sociocultural climate.

“Most of the kids at this school come from money - rich, white families. Republican families,” Jackie exhales. “Which also means they’re not too fond of me - an out-and-proud Persian lesbian.”

“That’s stupid,” Crystal states. 

“We can agree on that,” Jackie sighs. 

The pair sit down together, in the front of the classroom again, and talk about their art - what they like painting, their favorite painting music, their current works in progress.

Class starts and to Crystal’s dismay, she doesn’t see GiGi - until she hears the door quickly open and close fifteen minutes later.

GiGi arrives late again. This time there are no seats left in the back, and she’s forced to make her way to the front of the room. Crystal barely notices that someone is sitting beside her until the scent of Chanel perfume floods Crystal’s senses. 

Crystal is greeted with the same bright blue eyes she was previously entranced by. 

Disregarding a suspicious look from Jackie, Crystal smiles at GiGi.

“Hey! Thanks again for helping me get here the other day.”

GiGi, unlike the day before, gives her a tight-lipped smile. “No problem.”

“Your make-up looks really nice today!” Crystal continues on, admiring GiGi’s dark lips, sparkling magenta eyeshadow, and long eyelashes..

“Thanks.”

Crystal notices a difference in the GiGi she met and this GiGi - she knew it didn’t mean much because she’d barely interacted with the girl, but she feels strangely compelled to get to know her. There was something about her that was intoxicating. 

Before Crystal could continue talking, the teacher shoots her a look, effectively silencing her. 

~

Crystal is on her own after class; Jackie is meeting Jan to do god knows what. She decides to use Jackie’s lack of presence as an excuse to talk to GiGi again. 

Class ends and Crystal trails behind GiGi, who once again darts out of the door. 

“Hey, wait, GiGi!” Crystal yells, partially expecting the tall girl to continue walking quickly down the hill. 

She doesn’t. She spins around, and crosses her arms. “Yes?” “I need help finding my English classroom. Jackie showed me where it was yesterday, and I forgot.”

GiGi rolls her eyes; Crystal figures her feigned ignorance is fairly easy to see through. 

“You do? Again?” GiGi says in a monotone voice. 

“Okay, I’ll admit that was pretty lame,” Crystal tries to lighten the mood. “I don’t know, you seem really cool, and I guess I was wondering if you’d want to grab lunch today? I’m new, I don’t really have friends here yet.”

GiGi’s expression turns from annoyed to something resembling concern. Her eyes dart around before motioning for Crystal to follow her back up the hill, towards the secluded side of the art building. 

“I don’t know what Jackie told you about me, but I can’t be like that. Especially not with you.” 

Crystal arches an eyebrow. “I don’t get it.”

“Come on. Jan tells Jackie everything, don’t play dumb, please. Class starts in…” GiGi checks her pearl-colored watch, “five minutes and I don’t have time to spell it out for you, new girl.”

“I’m not,” Crystal shrugs. 

GiGi lets out a muffled groan. “Sure you’re not. Okay, well, why don’t you just ask Jackie about me, then?”

Crystal doesn’t want to admit that she already has. 

“Um… okay. So that’s a no for lunch then, I’m guessing?” Crystal asks. 

GiGi’s facial expression indicates that she, under her rock-hard exterior, genuinely does feel bad. She opens her mouth and pauses, as if she’s trying to figure out the right thing to say. 

“Not lunch… and not at school. What are you doing on Friday night?”

“Um, nothing probably. New kid syndrome,” Crystal jokes, trying to break the tension. 

“Ask Jackie for my number. If she doesn’t have it, Jan does.” 

GiGi is gone as soon as she finishes her sentence, and Crystal is confused. GiGi seems to have some connection to Jackie - Jackie hadn’t mentioned that in the slightest. Second, she seems to think that Crystal has some hidden motive, one completely unbeknownst to her. Crystal can’t even begin to fathom what’s going on in the blonde’s head. She just wants friends and GiGi seems nice - and she’s stunning. But that’s aside from the point. Crystal snaps out of her thoughts, realizing she needs to make it to AP English in less than three minutes.  

She lets it go, and sets off to her next class, intending to tell Jackie everything. GiGi perplexes her.

~

“She wants to what?!” Jackie exclaims once class is over. “She wants to hang out, outside of school, with you?!”

“Yeah, I mean, I think so. It seemed like she wanted to spend time with me,” Crystal says. “She also kind of made a comment about you and Jan - she knows you’re close with her. Does she know about you two?”

“Yeah, well, it’s not like I’m all for outing people, but I guess if she’s going to be so bold - GiGi and I had a thing during her freshman year - my sophomore year. She’s the only one who knows about Jan - they keep each other’s secret.”

“Wow,” Crystal mused. “I don’t even know what to say.”

“It’s all very dramatic,” Jackie sighs. “I don’t like GiGi very much - not anymore at least. She’s changed a lot. I mean, she won’t be seen with me because I’m out, even though I’m dating her best friend, and she was clearly ignoring you in front of everyone because you’re gay,” Jackie rambles.

“Oh, I’m not - I mean, I’m supportive of all of that but I’m like, I’m not gay,” Crystal says, turning bright red. 

“Oh,” Jackie looks confused. “But you’re going on Friday?”

“Yeah?” Crystal says inquisitively. 

“I mean, I don’t want to speak for GiGi, but if you asked her to get lunch, she probably thought you were trying to flirt. And I think suggesting Friday was her way of showing she is interested,” Jackie explains. 

Crystal realizes she’s a little bit oblivious; she’s embarrassed. Growing up in a small town in Missouri rendered her unable to read the situation; it’s not like gay people ever tried to secretly date there. She didn’t even know if gay people lived in Missouri.  

“Well, shit,” Crystal inhales deeply. 

“Are you gonna go?”

“Yeah, I mean… Maybe we can be friends, or something,” Crystal hopes aloud. “Oh, and on that note, I need GiGi’s number - she told me to ask you for it.”

#rpdr fanfiction #gigi goode #crystal methyd #jackie cox #jan sport #crygi #jankie #high school au #lesbian au #ms california #mik #concrit welcome #submission #s12

[sonofsallyjackson]

Heroes of Olympus should have been in first-person.

@jo-march-is-a-lesbian​ wrote a really wonderful post about how “Percy Jackson and the Olympians is better than Heroes of Olympus…because it understood simplicity and character development.”  It highlights some reasons I also found HoO less rewarding namely that it was an overcomplicated story with limited character growth, lacked a common thesis, and was super jarring when it switched perspectives.  

And with that my little brain went: I can fix this.  Which frankly is ridiculous.  I can’t come up with a compelling thesis like “The idea that we should place our hope in our loved ones, our friends and our family, and if we do that, we won’t be tempted to give up hope again.”   But I can imagine a simple change that would have solved some of the issues and also played to Rick’s strengths as a writer:  Each book should have been written in first person and narrated by a different character.

With so many people on the quest, I often felt like I was watching a bunch of one-dimensional characters fight for their right to be the main character.  I didn’t know who to focus on but I was also dissatisfied.  There were all these new wonderful characters in front of me who I wanted to love, but I didn’t feel like I actually knew them.  I mean I don’t feel like I know the Stoll Brothers either, but I’m not concerned about that fact because they are side characters.  When everyone is painted as the main character,  I have certain expectations for growth, personality, and voice.  The story would have been better served if the characters took turns narrating the action, allowing us to settle into their perspective, see their growth, and better understand their personality.

Plus Rick kills first-person.  While I’m not particularly a fan of Trials of Apollo, it’s not because I don’t know the characters.  Apollo is so very different than Percy. Their voices, even though they can both be jokesters at times, reflect their different life-experiences, thought processes and provide massive insight into their characters.   If the Seven (and Nico and Reyna) got the same treatment, I would be absolutely giddy.  

I recognize that rewriting the HoO series in first-person is something a talented fanfiction writer with a lot of time on their hands could actually do.  But I am not talented like that and I certainly don’t have the discipline to actually write that much fic, especially if I was trying to keep the events vaguely the same just with different narration and pacing.  So instead I’ve included who I think should have narrated each book below the cut.  I’d love to hear any opinions people have regarding this idea, especially who they would have wanted to see to narrate each book.

In addition to picking the narrator, I’ve highlighted what should be the “quest” so to speak of each story.  Personally, MoA, HoH and BoO are kind of a blur to me despite reading them all recently.  It’s hard to distinguish what happens in each book because it’s all one massive quest with a whole bunch of mini-quests.    While the different narrators would obviously make the books more distinctive, splitting the series into seven books would also help simplify each book’s individual goal.  Eight books would have allowed for better integration of the plot to find the physician’s cure, but with the prophecy of seven, it seemed like seven books was the best option, if I was going to be doing something as blasphemous as splitting books.   

As a note, I ran out of steam as I went so not all opinions are fully fleshed out. 

Book 1:  The Lost Hero The Quest: Rescue Hera/Juno Narrator:  Jason 

Why this would be cool: 

He is literally Juno’s chosen sent on a quest to rescue her.  It’s poetic enough to give him the book.

Jason’s journey is just as much about rediscovering himself as it is about saving Juno.   Of the new characters, I feel like I understand Jason the least. Mainly because I felt like I was missing the entire first half of his story.  Jason, like Percy and Annabeth, is a hero of the Titan War. I know some of his accomplishments, but I don’t have any bearing on what his life was like or how he felt about it.   He doesn’t seem like the type to relish Praetor-ship since he doesn’t have the same intense need to get back to his camp as Percy.  Was he just hoisted on his comrades’ shields after killing the Titan without any real choice in the matter? Give me Jason’s memories coming back slowly over the course of the quest (with potentially a fractured memory of a mistake he made in the Roman’s final Titan battle that makes him doubt their ability to both rescue Piper’s dad and save Hero but he makes the decision to anyway because he can’t just hurt his friend like that.   Let me understand how Jason is the person he is today.  Give me glances of the Roman Camp with emphasis on the heavy expectations that have always followed him as the son of Jupiter and foreshadow why he eventually chooses to design all the shrines for the minor gods so he can have his own place in the world as a figure between the two camps.

Let’s dive into those feelings of anger/guilt/resentment when people at camp are disappointed with him for not being Percy or in Chiron’s case are nervous about what his presence means. 

I want to dig deeper regarding Jason’s feelings about reconnecting with Thalia.  He knows that if the gods hadn’t been determined to keep the two camps completely separate, he could have grown up with his sister. 

What does telling the narrative like this sacrifice:  

We miss some of the internal turmoil regarding the fact that Piper’s Dad has been captured and she must betray her friends. 

We also don’t feel the tensions of Piper’s relationship with Aphrodite. I don’t see Piper bringing up the conversation with her mom saying that her mist memories were so strong because she automatically sensed the potential of a romantic relationship with Jason.  

We don’t have any of Leo’s conflicted feelings regarding rescuing Hera or his fear of being made an outcast for his fire abilities.  Jason has to go with Leo to discover Bunker 9 and Festus.  

Leo doesn’t actively save the day with the Cyclops. 

We don’t know how Piper feels about her charm-speak or see her defeat Madea (as the boys are in their weird trance thing). 

Knowledge about Gaea’s involvement in wrecking Leo’s life will come later.  

Book 2: The Son of Neptune The Quest: Free Thantos Narrator:  Hazel

Why this would be cool: 

The stakes are so incredibly high. Hazel is literally risking her second chance at life by agreeing to go on this chance.  She’s going to the place she died to fight the monster she created. She also has to deal with the trauma of knowing she may have bought the world time with her first sacrifice but it now means nothing if she can’t succeed again.  

We get to see Camp Jupiter from the view of someone who loves it but doesn’t really fit in.  Hazel joined Camp Jupiter just after the final battle.  She enters a community that has learned to fight as a well-oiled machine but that has lost people.  Dakota or the others may remark to her about how things were before or the people who are missing.  Hazel sees a community that she’s not quite a part of both because she didn’t fight in the war and because she’s in the fifth cohort with a feared godly parent.

It would explore her relationship with Nico more (because I love their dynamic and I want more).   She knows she can’t replace his real sister, but she feels comfortable and happy at the opportunity to have a brother, especially one who is out of time like she is.   

What does telling the narrative like this sacrifice:  

Frankly, the largest pushback would be from the fans who expected this to be Percy’s book since we just watched Jason rediscover who he is.

Percy’s phone call to his mom doesn’t have the same intensity.  

Frank’s relationship with Mars and how desperate he was to be claimed but now he doesn’t think he can live up to his father’s expectations.  

Frank and his grandmother.  We aren’t in Frank’s head as he changes shape till later.  

Book 3: Mark of Athena The Quest: Close the Divide Between The Two Camps by finding Athena’s statue and Rescue Nico Narrator(s):  Annabeth and Leo

Why Annabeth: 

So I can have all the emotions at the reunion with Percy.  

Annabeth’s relationship with her Mom has never been great, but imagine beginning the book with Annabeth being given the Mark of Athena. They haven’t left for New Rome yet and her nerves are already all over the place.  Then Athena/Minerva comes, gives her an impossible quest, and breaks her hat.   Annabeth wants to prove to her mother that she’s worthy because despite everything she still values her mother’s opinions.  Also her fatal flaw of hubris makes her believe she will succeed where everyone else failed.

Much of the book already follows her in third person limited so we just get things with a little extra emotion.  

Why Leo:  

Leo has to grapple with the fact he started this war by being the one to fire the cannon even if he didn’t have any control.  He is motivated to fix it

If we’re going to include the Sammy plot, we need to do it now.   Leo doesn’t like being the odd one out on the ship but he certainly doesn’t like the feeling of being notable because of his grandfather.  

We still need to get into those feelings of abandonment and anger at Gaea for killing his mom.  

Nemesis 

Leo comes into his own with the discovery of the Archimedes sphere and the decision to value people over objects.  

What does telling the narrative like this sacrifice:

The aquarium shenanigans 

The fight between Jason and Percy in Kansas needs to happen differently so that the others are present and try to stop it.  

Neither of them went ashore to meet Hercules.  

I think we might need to move up the Calypso meeting to this book, but that also kills some of the suspense since Frank will have the fireproof coating prior to his adventures in Venice when he gains faith in his abilities.  It also might mean Leo opens the fortune cookie from Nemesis unless for some odd reason he doesn’t have it.  There’s a lot more narrative weight for it coming later, but in order to get in as many book events as we can in, it might need to come earlier. 

Book 4:  House of Hades Pt. 1

The Quest: Survive Tartarus Narrator(s): Annabeth and Percy

The first time I read House of Hades, I read it out of order (reading all the Percy and Annabeth chapters until they were on the elevator out of Tartarus before going back and reading the others), because I couldn’t handle the back and forth.  I felt like the tension would build, I’d be invested in this plot and then we’d switch to the other plot. Plus I was very concerned for my children.  So I feel fully justified in saying that there is more than enough material to give the two of them their own book.

I just feel like all the feelings would be magnified.  

Percy’s commentary slowly losing its humor because he can’t anymore.

Annabeth’s guilt at having pulled him in being extra loud.  

Downsides beyond adding an entire book: Just imagine all the outrage at two cliffhangers in a row, because you know the book would end with them in the elevator remembering Bob’s words about the stars.   

Book 5:  House of Hades Pt. 2

The Quest:  Close the Doors of Death Narrator(s): Frank and Hazel

Frank and Hazel experience the most growth on the quest to close the doors so this book is all theirs.  Hazel learns to control the mist.  Frank experiments with his transformations.  I want nothing but them growing into themselves and their abilities.  

The good thing about turning the two warring storylines from House of Hades into separate books is that we lose very little plot.  

Book 6:  House of Hades Pt. 3/Blood of Olympus Pt 1 (Personally I would call this one Ambassador of Pluto)

The Quest:  Unite the Gods’ Personalities. Narrator: Nico

To clarify what I mean by HoH 3, I just mean anything done with the intention of trying to cross paths with Reyna, including the adventure with Cupid, in addition to the existing Nico&Reyna plotline in BoO.  

Nico dealing with all the emotions and his most recent near-death experience.

He kept the secret of the camps so the world wouldn’t end in chaos, but now that the world is in chaos he will be the one to fix it.  

In the short time he’s on the Argo 2, Nico realizes that even though this wasn’t his quest; this is his family and he needs to protect them.  

The reader has a pretty good idea Nico is gay, even if the word isn’t explicitly said from the descriptions (his guilty Percy thoughts - he let down the man he loves even if he won’t admit it.) This means that Cupid’s forceful outing is potentially less surprising so the reader can be properly outraged at Cupid.  

Downside: Reyna definitely has adventures when Nico is passed out, especially the whole waking up with the Hunters, but I think it’s excusable for a whole book from Nico’s perspective.  

Also, the battle between the camps and gifting of the statue needs to happen in this book, but we shouldn’t find out if the gods have regained control of their forms yet.  We alleviate some tensions because Camp Half-blood is likely to be overrun with Octavian’s monsters instead of the Roman armies and Gaea could awaken any second, but there’s an odd moment of calm and an uneasy truce.  (Octavian is potentially taken under custody to be held for trial only to escape in the next book.) 

Book 7:  Blood of Olympus Pt 2 (and the aftermath)

The Quest:  Like The Last Olympian, the final book’s focus is entirely on defeating the series’ big bad, in this case, Gaea.  Leo’s quest for the Physician’s cure parallels Percy’s River Styx visit.  

Narrator(s):  Leo and Piper

Leo has his death hanging over his head.  He has decided that he will be the one to die not any of his friends.  He got the cloth from Calypso so the “fire” portion of the prophecy applies to him and not Frank.  (Yes I know you can’t control prophecies, but do you think that’s going to stop Leo.)  

It’s the ultimate revenge for killing his mom.  We can have memories of both the happy times with Esperanza and the fear he felt for thinking he caused the fire. 

Piper’s perspective is necessary as we need to be with her during the fight with the giants.   

This series began with Piper, Leo, and Jason.  It ends that way too with the three of them killing Gaea and the two of them narrating.  

Downsides: 

The Percabeth I love you-the feud is over scene remains in Piper’s perspective.  

Since we’re not following Reyna’s delivery of the statue concurrently we don’t know when to anticipate the healed gods appearing in the battle with the giants.  

The book can still get away with not showing us Percy’s reunion with Sally or forcing Leo to tell the others he’s alive so they’re all grieving. 

#pjo meta #pjo fandom #pjo/hoo #hoo #riordanverse #heroes of olympus #my meta #percy jackon and the olympians #the seven #jason grace #hazel levesque #leo valdez #piper mclean #percy jackson #annabeth chase #frank zhang #the fandom once again improving hoo

[chainsmokespens]

Orchard, 21.03.21: Vitamin Z

Vitamin Z

This week I was reminded of why I started this course of changes. I don’t know how appropriate it is to refer to someone as your muse today, but I knew regardless. It’s like an adrenaline shot to the heart, one of those cinematic, dramatic ones that snaps you out of the in-and-out, humdrum, mundane world around you and pulls you, heart-first, back into why you started what you were doing.

I probably won’t meet her again. I’m sure that ship is at a nicer dock perched on a virtuous coastline and carved out of six-pack abs. But, I’m grateful.

It’s easy to find the flaws in someone who rejected you. In her case, I couldn’t find any. She was just right to turn me down.

I missed her. I miss her. But there’s wonderful women everywhere. And I’ll take to heart the changes I need to make so that I don’t miss the next her that crosses my path.

 Budget

In the spirit of that, I sat down to figure out my budget for the next year. And it’s looking surprisingly optimistic.

My goal is to move up to Syracuse. With my financials figured out, I just need to not lose my job and I should be able to make it my next June.

Needless to say, I was happy to learn that.

 Facebook Writers

What I wasn’t so happy about is the series of Facebook groups I’ve joined. As you can tell, writing personal things isn’t really my strong suit. Certainly not in situations like this, where I’m making myself do it. But, considering that I am one writer out of hundreds of millions in the world, I imagined it be nice to acquaint myself with some people. Marketing for writers isn’t easy, after all. Especially when you’re not named.

But the communities are all pretty…vitriolic.

A man asked which of two covers worked better for his book. Being a group of writers, he received dozens of detailed responses. Answers wherein the speaker was more interested in showing off their understanding of literary and publishing nuances than actually answering the questions.

My response: “Number 1.”

A woman made a detailed list of the stereotypes applied when male writers write sexually active males against how they write sexually active females. Of course, the problem was these were stereotypes in writing. “Men who sleep around are great! But women who sleep around are sluts!” “Men who aren’t interested in sex are focused, driven by success in life! Women who aren’t interested in sex are lesbians!”

She applied this long list of writing faux pas on the shoulders of male writers. And this led to more arguing.

People post clips of their book as they’re writing it. A commenter tells them to use more commas and write shorter sentences. A poster volunteers themselves to give out their opinion, making sure to note that they’ve run a blog for the last ten years, so you know their word has value.

A Facebook certified “Conversation Starter” describes The Face by Dean Koontz as “tiresome, tedious, ostentatious” with “florid prose and so many extended metaphors”. This followed by a flood of comments about how much Dean Koontz sucks and questions of how he got so popular.

I’ve never read Dean Koontz, but I’ve heard of him. I don’t recognize any of these people by face or name.

Crabs in a barrel. There’s no success too small for these people to put down. There’s no templar too noble for them to not shit on. There’s a million complex, pretentious, “it depends”, pseudointellectual answers to simple questions like, “Does the blue cover or black cover look better?”

I’m happy I didn’t go to college to write. I can’t imagine what it’d be like to some out this exhausting.

It feels like people don’t understand that there’s success to be had for everybody when it comes to writing. There’s not always fame and critical success. Or an interview tour or a movie deal. Or a place in a high school text book or pop mythology. Or billions of dollars in the bank and vacations to hunt sharks with a shotgun.

But success is available to everyone. Appearance may vary.

I don’t know if I’ll stay in these groups. Or if a non-collegiate writer like me would be expunged. But I take peace in the knowledge that if I ever want to know what type of writer I don’t want to be I can just open up Facebook, click on the group, scroll half a page down, and find some example of how not to pursue this career.

 In the Name of Love for Shaman King

I should also make it clear that I’m going to forego the Shaman King breakdown I intended to write. I have enough distractions from what it is I need to do.

I’m disappointed twice over. First, I don’t have the ability to pick up a new discipline and edit a video together. Maybe if I were more patient or observant, but I’m just not there yet. Secondly, I let the new viewers, the ones who get legitimately excited to experience something I used to love, who craft theories and breakdown themes, get to me.

My love of Shaman King inspired me as an artist and a writer. And while I put down my colored pencils nearly a decade ago now, I still write. And I still carry those themes of spirituality and optimism into the stories I craft.

And that’s the best way for me to present my love. Through my actual work. Through what actually inspires me. Through patience. And not a six-hour list of things I love about the series.

And that wasn’t a jab at legitimate reviewers. That was the plan.

 Mom

Also, I was given a mattress by my mom this week.

Family’s a weird point for me. I don’t know if I’m ready to get into that, but I feel that I need to do a better job as someone who owes his existence to other people. I forgot who it was, but someone once said that there are two types of parents. You can be a role model or you can be a cautionary tale.

 Coworkers

I’m in a good place with my coworkers, too.

The front-of-house is mostly college-aged—closer to my age than most of back-of-house—and their optimistic look on life keeps me grounded in positivity as well.

I didn’t work in too many kitchens after culinary school, but they could definitely get rough. It’s nice to be able to enjoy your work.

 Commitment to Making Flash Fiction as Flash Fiction

I needed to reassure myself in my commitment to writing flash fiction.

I made an assurance to edit one of the stories when I posted it to Reddit a few days ago. It didn’t take me long to realize I shouldn’t have done that. Flash fiction is the nice decompressing poop that you take in the morning before you begin the stuff you legitimately work on. And if it’s nice enough you may even be compelled to mold that poop into a decent short.

I got myself caught up. I was afraid that, having posted many of these low-quality poops online, people would begin to judge me as nothing more than a poop writer. And when it came time to actually try to get people to read my web serial, they’d be like, “I don’t care if it’s free. You’re a poop writer. I can’t waste my time with you.”

Yahtzee Croshaw does a series called “Dev Diary” on YouTube, where he breaks down the process of making indie video games. In one of them he talked about how perfectionism sinks in. How it’s tempting to keep your work to yourself, to keep it from being judged so that others may not, by extension, judge you. He said he had to remember that he was not his work.

And I suppose I have to do the same. I’m not a hobbyist with a single story that I’m convinced will put my name on the map. I’m a writer with dozens of different ideas and could get excited about a dozen new ones in the next week.

Boxing matches are won by throwing many small punches, not throwing one with all of your bodyweight and hoping it’s a hit.

 A Non-Racist Uber Driver

I had a race-related discussion with an Uber driver.

It was nice.

 Pre-College Memories

I reflected on my lackadaisical approach when it came to applying for college. I was short tempered and impatient and ignorant.

It’s thanks to Vitamin Z that I realized I don’t have to actually go back to school to do what I need to do.

But the effort I need to put forward will be monumental nonetheless.

I told you I’d come back more positive.

#blog #love #Shaman King #writing #flashfiction

[notjanine]

2020 in books!

the only kind of new year’s resolution i made as a naive baby last january was to try to read 40 books for the year. (i read 37 in 2019, for context.) well, with all of my commuting time eliminated and an increased need for immersive escapism, i ended up surpassing that goal three times over lmao (thanks library ebooks!)

idk how to summarize my year in books in a way that makes sense but

(f) = fiction, (nf) = nonfiction, (p) = poetry.

books that rewired my fucking brain:

braiding sweetgrass by robin wall kimmerer (nf)- GOD?!?!?! good. dr. k is right. ostensibly a book about plants, but actually a book about shut up and go outside. consumerism and capitalism are doing their damnedest to fuck you up, but you can just choose to value different things. take care of yourself by taking care of your environment. etc etc.

wasp by richard jones (nf)- lissen. when i got this book, my wasp-phobia was so severe that i had to put it away face down on a high shelf because there are wasps on the cover and i couldn’t bear to RISK even GLIMPSING them. now i am like... a wasp evangelist. (also due to the bugs 101 course on coursera it’s so good.)

wag by zazie todd (nf)- i have a dog, but i am NOT a Dog Person (i.e. i love my dog, but please keep yours away from me, thanks.) this book helped me understand my little guy better, plus it gives actionable tasks and activities to do with and for your pup! plus, y’know, learning about things you’re scared of helps to lessen that fear. i’d recommend this to anyone who has, wants, or regularly interacts with a dog.

a closed and common orbit by becky chambers (f)- is this series complete fluff? absolutely. am i fundamentally different after reading this one? maybe.

the best we could do by thi bui (nf)- this is so far outside of my personal experience but somehow still made me come to peace with my relationship with my mom?? and it’s barely even about that?? idk. this is probably objectively the best book i’ve read this year.

books that were just fun as hell:

mexican gothic by silvia moreno-garcia (f)- this book made me YELL out loud

death on the nile by agatha christie (f)- i grew up on agatha christie shows, but never actually read her before this year! she really was That Bitch. read this before the movie comes out

cosmoknights by hannah templer (f)- i read this in one sitting through the worst headache i’ve had in years. it is a goddamn DELIGHT. this book has everything: spaceships. mech suits. fighting the patriarchy. a perfect otp. fun art in bright colors with clean lines. onomatopoetic WAPs from before the song gave that hilarious context. 800 lesbians. this is an antidepressant in graphic novel form.

stiff by mary roach (nf)- ms. roach is like the 4th most represented author on my bookshelf because she 1. stays writing about shit i’m interested in and 2. manages to talk about gross and ridiculous things without resorting to sensationalism. it takes skill to write a hilarious book about corpses.

black sun by rebecca roanhorse (f)- excellent sexual tension between a horny siren pirate and a hot doomed... monk, kinda? set in the pre-columbian gulf of mexico with magic and shit.

cuisine chinoise by zao dao (? n/f)- this graphic novel about chinese food history/mythology is BEAUTIFUL.

the color of magic by terry pratchett (f)- you’d think a hardcore douglas adams stan would have gotten to this sooner, but no, i had to date a nerdy white boy to get here. it’s fun though! i’m not gonna read them all, but this one was good. bonus: contains one (1) great himbo.

gideon the ninth by tamsyn muir (f)- like 500 pages of action and mystery and jokes and space necromancy. harrow the ninth gets a special mention bc it has a meme reference that took me out so hard i had to close the book, lie down, and groan for an entire minute before continuing.

other minds by peter godfrey-smith (nf)- i love octopuses. on one tma bonus ep, jonny sims says that if a creature can choose to do evil, then it’s a Person. octopuses are People. but anyway frfr this has an explanation of the evolution of consciousness that is cool af. (this one is much better than the other recent popsci octo book which i will not name out of politeness.)

the perfect predator by steffanie strathdee and thomas patterson (nf)- i read this bc my microbiology prof recommended it and it’s cool as heck! it’s got adventure, drama, mystery, Science-with-a-capital-S. i’m biased bc i’m a bit of a microbes nerd, but i had a blast with this. (but only bc we know going in that everything works out okay; if i hadn’t known that, i would have been TOO stressed!)

books that were a little less fun but still very readable:

my sister, the serial killer by oyinkan braithwaite (f)- i couldn’t find this as funny as other people bc i, too, have a beautiful sister who’s an insufferable narcissist, so it hits a little too close to home, but. it is a wild ride.

piranesi by susanna clarke (f)- idek what to say! i went into this one blind just bc it had a cool cover and title, so i guess i’d recommend that for other people too.

the sixth world series by rebecca roanhorse (f)- monster hunting! a post-apocalyptic take that doesn’t feel tired.

the shades of magic trilogy by v.e. schwab (f)- easy escapism. some ideas feel a little first draft-y, but idk, it’s also a pretty simple premise (which isn’t a bad thing). it’s a decent urban fantasy set in ~georgian?-era london. very actiony. suffers from a bit of i’m-not-like-other-girls disease, but i didn’t even notice until book two or three, so.

the only good indians by stephen graham jones (f)- starts off a little ??? (and reeks of being Written By A Man) but picks up. the pacing’s great and there’s just a super fucking cool monster.

robopocalypse by daniel h. wilson (f)- this reads like a tv miniseries so much that i can’t believe it isn’t one yet.

confessions of the fox by jordy rosenberg (f)- not my usual cup of tea, fiction-wise, but still compelling. a fresh take on the white-male-english-professor-self-insert? but not insufferable. gets weird!

spinning silver by naomi novik (f)- rumplestilstkin, but make it interesting! a great, richly-told fairy tale, but like, large scale. good to read on a cold day while you’re wrapped up in a blanket with some hot tea.

interior chinatown by charles yu (f)- compulsively readable. a couple things bugged me, but not enough to make me dislike it. a fun companion piece to how to live safely in a science fictional universe. i like this guy’s style.

cannibalism by bill schutt (nf)- COOL. mostly covers the animal kingdom (fun), spends too much time on the donner party (less fun), ends with a SPICY take on prions that i cannot get out of my head!!!

buzz, sting, bite by anne sverdrup-thygeson (nf)- BUGS! broad but not overwhelming, neither dumbed down nor overly scientific, short enough to finish in a day or two. recommend this to literally everyone.

books that made me want to read everything else in the author’s ouevre:

the time invariance of snow by e. lily yu (f)- this FUCKS but it’s too short!!!

an unkindness of ghosts by rivers solomon (f)- okay this book is SO good and so well-written and interesting and blah blah blah all the good things, but... the whole time, i was just like?? why???? why is this what you’re choosing to write about??? (i did also read the deep and blood is another word for hunger after this one, and i did like them both, especially the latter, but i think they can do better! like i think they could write a perfect book and i am gonna be *eyes emoji* until then.)

the space between worlds by micaiah johnson (f)- a fine debut novel, but i want to see her do something a little more... idk, refined? i think she overreaches here, like it’s a little... idk looper? this is how you lose the time war? there’s a better comparison, but i can’t think of it, but you get the idea. and then halfway through it shifts gears to mad max. there’s something weird about one of the central relationships, like it’s not complex enough to take as long to resolve as it does. idk idk. there are just a lot of little nitpicky things. it’s not bad! but i think she can do better and i look forward to finding out.

postcolonial love poem by natalie diaz (p)- thinky! like i tried to read this before bed, but it’s not the sort of thing to parse out while you’re falling asleep, it requires more attention than that.

books that Learned Me Somethin:

smoke gets in your eyes by caitlin doughty (nf)- i am a self-professed death obsessed weirdo, fascinated by death and mourning, but i didn’t know all that much about what happens to a body between the dying and the funeral! this book isn’t big, but it covers a lot and doughty’s writing style is engaging and honest. it’s very memorable.

queer by meg-john barker and julia scheele (nf)- i’m gonna be totally honest and say Queer Theory is above my intellectual pay grade, but this book takes you by the hand and explains the basics.

vitamania by catherine price (nf)- LMAO my fellow americans, never take a supplement. this book is great and well-researched, but normal folks don’t need to read it, just listen to season two of the dream podcast, which definitely cribbed from this.

vegetable kingdom by bryant terry (nf)- this is a fine cookbook, my favorite of his that i’ve read so far. gets a special mention bc i had a religious experience just reading one of his kohlrabi recipes. absolutely gutted that i didn’t have an opportunity to try it this year, since the pandemic put the kibosh on all family bbqs.

the best american food writing 2020 edited by j. kenji lopez-alt (nf)- this really is just a great collection.

are prisons obsolete? by angela y. davis (nf)- yes.

i moved to los angeles to work in animation by natalie nourigat (nf)- before reading this, i had basically zero knowledge of how the animation industry works. now i know like three things.

the secret lives of bats by merlin tuttle (nf)- BATS! okay this book is more about the adventures of being a bat scientist than it actually is about bats, but there are bats in there. insectivorous bats basically shit glitter, you should know this.

books from valuable perspectives:

hood feminism by mikki kendall (nf)- a breakdown of who’s getting left out of feminist spaces, why that’s happening, and why it shouldn’t be happening.

all you can ever know by nicole chung (nf)- a (transracial) adoptee’s take on adoption and learning more about her birth family. the personal storytelling of this one really stuck with me.

motherhood so white by nefertiti austin (nf)- a single-mom-by-choice’s take on the foster system/adoption process. walks you through some things i always wondered about and some things i wouldn’t even have thought about.

this place by kateri akiwenzie-damm et al (? n/f)- i, like a lot of non- native americans, only know that history in broad strokes. getting this many highly specific stories in one dense and beautiful book felt like a lucky find. and taking that perspective into the future in the context of that history is v good.

empty by susan burton (nf)- eating disorder stories are important to me bc i care about food so much. this one is so relatable- not in its specificity, but rather its generality. it’s easy to empathize with her perspective because it’s like, Oh, i don’t have that exact problem, but i struggle with different problems in a very similar way. (feels like the opposite of roxane gay’s hunger, in a way.)

obit by victoria chang (p)- this exploration of grief is... woof.

short story collections are hard to evaluate bc you’ll never read one where every single story hits but i generally enjoyed these:

a thousand beginnings and endings edited by ellen oh and elsie chapman (f)

how long til black future month? by n.k. jemisin (f)

her body and other parties by carmen maria machado (f)

books i revisited:

the broken earth trilogy by n.k. jemisin (f)- i read the series backwards this time and like... i can’t really find any faults in these books, man. they’re just the best.

everyone’s a aliebn when ur a aliebn too by jomny sun (f... but is it really?)- half of this book’s sales are from me buying it for other people bc it’s the only way i know how to say i love you. i reread it every time just to make sure it still feels right and it always does.

other honorable mentions:

white is for witching by helen oyeyemi (f)- not to pit two bad bitches against each other, but this book does what akwaeke emezi’s freshwater was trying to do. it’s a little weird, a little haunted, a little of a lot of things. read this only in the dead of winter. (and with stephen rennicks’ score for the little stranger playing in the background.)

homie by danez smith (p)- there’s a lot going on here, but this just made me crack a smile a couple times in a way that no other book of poetry has ever done.

the murder of roger ackroyd and murder in mesopotamia by agatha christie (f)- That Bitch!

blues by nikki giovanni (p)- she sure has some Things To Say

the three-body problem by cixin liu (f)- interesting concepts, but... idk something’s missing? felt weirdly soulless to me. i’m probably not gonna read the sequels. but it did make some points!

the sisters of the winter wood by rena rossner (f)- i’m a slut for shapeshifting, okay. but this is a good fairy tale, it works!

parable of the sower by octavia butler (f)- i read this in march, when the pandemic was just kicking off and boy that was not the right time. def my least favorite of hers so far, but an octavia butler i don’t love is still better than a hell of a lot of other books. no idea when or if i’ll get to a good enough headspace for the sequel.

faves:

saturnino herrán by adriana zapett tapia (nf)- i got to learn new things about my mans and see some of his paintings i’ve never even seen online! GOSH.

on food and cooking by harold mcgee (nf)- yeah yeah, i’ve already mentioned this book half a dozen times on here this year, but i don’t care. this book lives off the shelf in my home bc i reference it like every other fucking day. this book is a part of me now.

#long post #final total for the year will be 120 by the end of the day! #and i had a pretty good hit rate. would probably recommend at least half #and only outright hated four

[afaimsarrowverse]

Ten Favorite Ships from the four main Arrowverse Shows:

Rules: For this list Crossover Pairings were excluded if one partner is confined to their own show. However if the character changes show later he or she is on the list. This is my blog, this is my list, it is in no way objective, everyone is entiled to their own opinion, so please don’t reblog or answer just to tell me how much you disagree with me. You can’t quantify love, well except with stupid lists like this, just because a ship is not on this list does not mean I don’t like it - except when it does - so…. yeah, here we go

  10 besten Ships „Arrow“:

 10. Merlance (Tommy Merlyn/Laurel Lance)

 I always liked the unlikely story of Tommy Merlyn actually conquering Laurel Lances heart.

 9. Overarcher (KaraX/Oliver QueenX)

 While I don’t think our Kara would ever really give Oliver a shot, this one was undoubtly True Love, well at least for Oliver X, Kara X did love him, yes, but she was much more in line with duty than he ever was. Which is what actually makes this dynamic this interesting.

 8.      GreenAtom (Oliver Queen/Ray Palmer)

 A very underapprecaited Ship that I love dearly. Ray und Oliver together have so much potential.

 7. SmoakDetective (Donna Smoak/Quentin Lance)

 Quentin needs love, and while Donna is not the first person you would think of when you would think of a potential partner for him, she is the best fit for the role. She challenges him and makes his day brighter. And he treats her well.

 6.      Olivarry (Oliver Queen/Barry Allen)

 As unlucky as Olivers Love Live is, maybe that’s the case because the actual love of his live happens to be a man which he is not willing to admit to himself.

 5.      Raylicity (Ray Palmer/Felicity Smoak)

 Cute and entertraining those two are actually a much better fit than Oliver and Felcitiy, maybe only a little bit too simelar as Oliver has pointed out.

 4.      Nysara (Nyssa al Ghul/Sara Lance)

 We love Sara and we love Nyssa, why shouldn’t we love them together?

 3.      Throy (Thea Queen/Roy Harper)

 This is the one ship that everyone agreed on was to be endgame.

 2.      Lauriver (Laurel Lance/Oliver Queen)

 This was supposed to be endgame, and the fact that it wasn’t is frankly just an insult to anyone who knows anything about Green Arrow in the comics.

 1.      Cannarow (Sara Lance/Oliver Queen)

 So here it is my Arrow OTP.

 Die 10 besten Ships „The Flash“:

 10    Elongsue (Ralp Dibnyh/Sue) Dearborn

 This was supposed to be an epic love story with endgame potential.

 9.      Eobarry (Eobard Thawne/Barry Allen)

 Fanboy Eobard might have come to hate Barry, but a part of him never stopped loving the scarlet speedster as we all know.

 8.      Elongflash (Ralph Dibny/Barry Allen)

 I frankly never understood why people did not ship them more and there are so little fanfics about those two, I mean it’s a classic love story really.

 7.      Allenbert (Barry Allen/Julian Albert)

 For a long time I thought that that would be the reveal about Julians problem with Barry. Appearantly so did the actors.

 6.      Jocile (Joe West/Cecile Horton)

 They are cute and sexy together, have a mature realtionship that presents new obstacles the navigate around together, and it’s an eternal shame that their planned Season 5 sub-plot was cut short

 5.      Coldflash (Leoanrd Snart/Barry Allen)

 Leonard flirts with everything that moves, but Barry has a special place in his heart.

 4. Westhawne (Iris West/Eddie Thawne)

 And he was ready to fight destiny itself. For Iris. And she did love him. A lot.

 3.      Thallen (Eddie Thawne/Barry Allen)

 Barry und Eddie were crushing hard on each other, there is no denying that.

 2.      Westallen (Iris West/Barry Allen)

 Westallen ist destiny in every timeline, in every universe, it’s a as simple as that.

 1.      Westhallen (Iris West/Eddie Thawne/Barry Allen)

 This is how you solve a love triangle, that does not need to be one, when all three parties have certain feelings for all the other members of the triangle.

 Die 10 besten Ships „Supergirl“:

 10.  Lanvers (Alex Danvers/Maxwell Lord)

 Yes, I know Alex is lesbian, but this ship ist just too yummy.

 8.      Killiam (Kara Danvers/William Dey)

 Frozen burn realtionship that deserves to pick up speed. Kara deserves a love life, please!

  9.      Karolsen (Kara Danvers/James Olsen)

 Back in Season 1 of Supergirl I actually shipped this.  I loved Kara and genuinly wanted her to get the guy of her dreams. I mean she got heart eyes, ever time James walked in the room, but she also was adult enough to stettle for „just friends“.

 7.      Dolsen (Alex Danvers/Kelly Olsen)

 Kelly is a much better fit for Alex than Maggie ever was, because she is less selfcentered and much more willing to compromise and they are more simelar. And in the end all the obstacles those two faced they were willing to overcome together.

 6.      Overarcher (KaraX/Oliver QueenX)

 While I don’t think our Kara would ever really give Oliver a shot, this one was undoubtly True Love, well at least for Oliver X, Kara X did love him, yes, but she was much more in line with duty than he ever was. Which is what actually makes this dynamic this interesting.

 5.Brainia (Brainiac-5/Nia Nal)

 Brainy and Nia and their relationship were the only genuine good things about the first half of Season 4.

 4.Winniac-5 (Winn Schott/Brainiac-5)

 I am one out of two persons in the world who ships this, but I ship it hard.

 3.      Clois (Clark Kent/Lois Lane)

 Clois has been done very compelling by many other actors before, but the Arrowverse-Version still managed to get their own spin on it and to come across super sweet.

 2.      Sanvers (Maggie Sawyer/Alex Danvers)

 Ah, Sanvers, they took the world in storm and didn’t we love them.

 1.      Karamel (Kara Danvers/Mon-El)

 Their chemistry jumped from the screen right into our hearts.

Die 10 besten Ships „Legends of Tomorrow“:

 10.  Saramaya (Sara Lance/Amaya Jiwe)

 I really don’t know why everyone is going on about Kendra and Sara, when they could be going on about this ship were there is actual tension and actual chemistry there.

 11.  Coldray (Leo SnartX/Ray Terrill)

 Those two are just two cute and sadly were wiped out of existence by Crisis, but I still love them.

 8.      Atomsteelwavevixen (Ray Palmer/Nate Heywood/Mick Roey/Amaya Jiwe)

 I prefere Steelatom and Vixenwave as bros, but as a foursome those four rock the libido and the Waverider.

 7.      Captains3 (Sara Lance/Rip Hunter/Leonard Snart)

 Given that Sara and Rip, Sara and Leonard und Leonard and Rip would not last together, my solution to this would be to get together as a threesome.

 6.      Constangreen (John Constantine/Gary Green)

 We love Gary, and Gary loves John, and John does actually love Gary.

 5.Avalance (Ava Sharpe/Sara Lance)

 At this point Avalance is cleary planned to be endgame and rightly so.

 4.Hellcanary (John Constantine/Sara Lance)

 Two broken souls, two players who played which each other and found solace in each others arms – two bi-sexual icons together

 3.Vixensteel (Amaya Jiwe/Nate Heywood)

  I loved the star crossed romance between Nate and Amaya, and the fact that they defied history and was heart broken when they gave up after all.

 2.      Timecanary (Rip Hunter/Sara Lance)

 Out of all her many suitors Rip is the one I would want to see her ending up with.

 1.      Atomwave (Ray Palmer/Mick Rory)

 This is my Legends-OTP and I am still not over the fact that Ray is out of the show and so is this ship!

#Blog #Arrowverse #Favorite Ships #Arrow #The Flash #Supergirl #Legends of Tomorrow #everyone is entitled to their opinion #please respect mine #and don't hate on my because of it

[teddy-stonehill]

I was tagged by @comradegrantaire to talk about 5 of my favorite male characters. It took me a while to put together the list and not have them all be Discworld characters lol

Sam Vimes

Vimes (from the Discworld guards books) is a very important character to me for several reasons.

1) He EXPLICITLY hates rich people and nobility and he’s so strongly anti-monarchy that MULTIPLE people in the series outright refuse to pursue possible claims they have to the empty throne of Ankh-Morpork because they know Vimes wouldn’t want them to lmao.

You may have heard of the “Vimes’ boots theory of socioeconomic unfairness,” where he talks about how the rich can spend less money than the poor by buying higher quality goods.

It’s just so rare to have such an openly working class hero in a fantasy series. That contributed to shaping my politics at an early age.

2) Sam Vimes as a character shows that you don’t have to be HAPPY to be GOOD.

In a culture that’s obsessed with positivity as a sort of virtue signaling, I think it’s so important to show that you can be a deeply depressed, cynical person and still have a strong moral center.

I grew up in a family where we all have various mental health problems, and general optimism and positivity is something that’s always been beyond all of us really. But Sam Vimes was important to me as a kid because he proved that you can be a cynic AND be kind, and that being depressed isn’t a moral failure.

I could write forever about why I love Vimes so much but I’ll end with a quote instead:

He hated games they made the world look too simple. Chess, in particular, had always annoyed him. It was the dumb way the pawns went off and slaughtered their fellow pawns while the king lounged about doing nothing. If only the pawns would've united ... the whole board could've been a republic in about a dozen moves. —Thud! By Terry Pratchett

Laius Thorden

Laius Thorden from Dungeon Meshi is weird. He doesn’t fit in with the standard values of his society, and he’s deeply interested in things other people find off putting.

But the things that make him weird are also the things that make him a hero. It’s because of his deep love of monsters that he has a chance of saving the dungeon and becoming its new master.

And he’s really confident in his weirdness, too. He doesn’t let not fitting in make him feel at all worse about himself. He doesn’t care whag society thinks of him.

In my opinion, he definitely seems autistic coded, and I think it’s really cool to see a character like him get to be a hero without needing to change or give up whag makes him unique. He’s in the right, and the world should change around him, not the other way around.

James Flint

Captain Flint is the angry gay pirate seeking revenge on all of civilation that we all want and need.

For real, though, Flint’s character is such a good lense for exploring themes of how dominant society uses shame and the concept of monsters to keep people in line and punish those who step out of it. And no matter how much the world is against him, Flint refuses to back down or apologize for having loved another man.

He’s willing to give his all to wage a war against England, an impossibly powerful empire, for a chance to make a better world for people on the margins, people made into monsters by a racist, homophobic, sexist, classist society.

Black Sails is so good you guys.

Booster Gold

Booster Good will always be my favorite comic book character even though comics are bad and DC keeps fucking up his character. The heart of his story (during his best run) is just so compelling to me.

He starts out as a shallow glory hound who wants to be a hero for the fame and fortune. He’s a disgraced football star in the 25th century who steals a time machine and travels back to our day to become a hero.

But after suffering a major loss (the death of his best friend (*cough* lover *cough*) Ted Kord), he pivots to becoming a true hero and defender of the timeline. But because his enemies are time travelers, he specifically can’t let anyone know he’s a genuine hero or they’d travel through time to prevent his birth.

So the shallow glory hound persona becomes a SECONDARY SECRET IDENTITY. In order to become a true hero he has to give up on the chance of ever becoming famous or even respected. He has to make sure history will remember him as a loser.

That’s the good shit imo.

Thane Krios

Thane Krios is the only character I still refer to as my husband since I came out as a lesbian lmao

Listen, he’s a deadly assassin trying to atone for a life of killing before he dies of a chronic illness. He’s a sad widower who wants to reconcile with his son. He’s really devoted to his minority religion. He’s a weird lizard alien. How am I supposed to resist all of that???

I just love characters who are sad. You may have picked up on that.

—

That’s it! I’m not tagging anyone but you can do it if you want to. Might do something similar with female characters just for fun but we’ll see if I have the energy because this took up a lot of my day lol

[d3uteragonist]

Review of Queen Of Theives

I’ll give a short review of each route and give it over all first season a score of 1-7! This is about as spoiler free as I can make it! This is mostly personal opinion though so take this with a grain of salt

Overall: I REALLY like queen of thieves, it’s quickly climbing my list of favorites, much to my shock and delight. I was skeptical of a new series after the disappointment sweet enchantments turned out to be (I was SO excited u guys ;-;) and even more so when I found out the thief series had a Latina MC, but once I got to actually reading it, I didn’t mind so much. It was actually pretty nice being able to see myself in this MC despite my early suspicions and complaints. I really respect the lack of predictablity these routes have. They’re MUCH less inclined to stick to a status quo as Lovestruck loves to do, every character (havent read Leon yet) has a different pace of progression, some developing faster or slower than others and I really enjoy that. It’s less “it’s episode 10 so now we kiss” and more “the events leading up to this scenario lead to this specific level of intimacy to maybe we’ll kiss right now or maybe we’re not even close to that” which if you’ve read my post about Lovestruck’s element of surprise, you’ll KNOW how absolutely relieved I am about it. This series is a much needed breath of fresh air and I’m here for it.

Nikolai: ohhh Boy,,, my favorite one 😔 Nikolai Stirling is a pan criminal mastermind who stole my WHOLE HEART. If you’ve read or at least heard of Lucien’s route you’ll know he takes the “Cold unfeeling man” trope a little too far, being just plain direspectful and rude. Nikolai is the opposite. Yes he does cater to this trope but unlike Lucien he is given likable characteristics early on and has a very charming and intriguing character dynamic with MC, which is the highlight of the route. There’s also this constant level of sexual tension that’s very exciting 😳 The plot itself is pretty thrilling and fun, if a little surprisingly simple. 7/7

Vivienne: What a woman! Vivienne Tang is a striking lesbian falling under the “sultry seductress” trope. Before Zoe was revealed I was hesitant about a seductress character, since Vivienne was the first woman we knew about. However, when I started reading I found I didn’t mind one bit, although mostly for..... biased reasons. I personally really enjoyed the level of sexual tension Vivienne’s route had to offer, although I’ve heard from some that it feels one sided to them. Her strength tricking people using her sexuality (even though the actual heist has little to do with that) so I’d argue that it’s good writing if even the reader is left feeling flustered and confused. Personally I love the heist itself and it’s got some fun twists. 7/7

Remy: Geez! This route is just plain fun. Remy Chevalier, is a bisexual French conman. He’s flowery, dramatic and romantic which is always a good time. Although I won’t spoil anything, he does show surprising moments of possessiveness and if the MC wasn’t so quick to assert her own independence I’d be a little worried. Nonetheless his character is very intriguing and likable. The highlight of this route is actually the heist and developing MC’s skills. I loved the thrill and sense of accomplishment this season had to offer, although it has nothing to do with MC’s actual talents in art which left me feeling somewhat confused. I also didn’t feel like Remy felt particular feelings for MC until the end of the season which felt a little worrying watching MC fall head over heels in love with him. I still very much enjoyed this season tho 6/7

Zoe: Oof. This route is somewhat of an enigma in comparison to most of the entire app. Zoe Banks is a cool lesbian hacker. She has an aloof persona and MC’s personality sort of shifts to foil it. MC is much more hyper, borderline manic in this route. She almost feels like a different person, but that’s not what’s odd about this route. It’s the surprising lack of romance/romantic tension especially compared to everything else we’ve seen within the series. It’s pretty risky to have a route be THIS slowburn but Zoe and MC’s friendship is still definitely delevoped the most, but many readers might not find it satisfying enough. The plot and heist is still pretty enjoyable and I liked it a decent amount. I also found myself really liking getting to know Zoe, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little disappointed in the lack of romance. 5/7

Jett: Jesus christmas. This route is wild. You know how so many routes are advertised as hot and cold, adventurous and passionate, but turn out to be kinda normal??? Yea no this one’s for real. Jett Slater, a bisexual daredevil with an appreciation for art, would not disappoint if you’re looking for excitement. This is the sort of “Let’s blow something up and make out” kinda route.  Every route advances differently in terms of physical and romantic affection and if there was a scale, Zoe would be on one side with Jett on the other. There’s little romantic developments, which is made up for with physical development which doesn’t happen very often with Lovestruck. Jett also has the most upfront character flaws which, although add nuance to his character, can lead the reader to be a bit frustrated with him. A couple times he comes across as a jerk but at the very least, MC doesn’t let herself get pushed around.  He’s also got the best mini cg’s lol. In terms of personal taste I didn’t like this route that much, but I think that’s more of a Me thing than anything else. 5/7

Leon: ohh geez. Oh shit oh fuc my heart. Leon is the token het and normally I think making ANY character het for no reason is a little obnoxious, I’ll let this one slide bc he’s the driver he has to b straight. Anyways I LOVE Leon. He’s as sweet, gentle and as old fashioned as I expected. He’s a surprisingly very compelling character. The things that make him jaded and mysterious aren’t necessarily different or unique compared to some of Lovestruck’s other characters, but learning about him through MC’s eyes feels impactful. She’s not more naive or childish which is a big relief. I also really enjoyed the heist, it was equal parts exciting and romantic. And oof that ending!! That’s all I’m saying. 7/7

#oh my god i tried to keep this shorter but theres SO MUCH i wanna talk about #queen of thieves #nikolai stirling #vivienne tang #remy chevalier #zoe banks #qot #lovestruck voltage #long post #jett slater #leon kwan

[auroral-melody]

Why do you ship Lucifer/Dream ? I'm just curious.

NONNY I LOVE YOU FOR GIVING ME AN OPPORTUNITY TO JUST YELL ABOUT THEM

As with most of the convoluted, context-less things I post (e.g., the full-on rewritten characterization of Beelzebub in Good Omens), it started with a simple conversation between myself, @procrastinatingbookworm​, and @aqueeraphale​…and ended up in a hence unwritten fanfic that maybe we’ll get around to eventually.

Put it this way: self-written fanfiction is the answer to why I ship them. I need to actually write it on a page for y’all. I’m not really going to go into ~Oh, My Ship Is Canon~ because it’s clearly not. I’ll point out a few things in canon I want to talk about, but this isn’t a “I ship them because [] and [] in canon” it’s a “I ship them because I HAVE FEELINGS ABOUT STORIES I WROTE/MY FRIENDS WROTE”.

So how did this happen?

I’m pretty sure it started with something along the lines of generally agreeing Dream being bi, on the basis of Lucifer Pretty. Which evolved into an, “oh, that’s fun! let’s write it” RP, along with some doodles (back in May 2018. My art has improved since, and my character design thoughts, but)

Which turned into the concept that basically goes as follows

- Morpheus lonely and depressed- Death essentially brings him to Lux, to definitely set him up with Luci bc hey obvs they’re both bi disasters. Maybe see what happens- Morpheus voice I don’t dance- Death voice Okay I’m lesbian but he’s being nice and offering so I’ll dance with Luci instead- Morpheus voice [shocked pikachu meme]

Basically, it boils down to the fact that Morpheus was a very…lonely and sad person and tends to make enemies easily. Lucifer clearly doesn’t hate him, or Dream would probably be dead in a ditch, but he’s obviously engaged in their relationship as friendly rivals. Lucifer has just left Hell, and is kinda not knowing what to do with himself. He’s looking for something new and different.

They’re both incredibly touchstarved/affection-starved. Morpheus intentionally isolates himself from his friends and family, not seeking out friends, while Lucifer has spent the last billions of years completely alone in Hell.

So the setup here works pretty well. Death wants to help her brother, Lucifer is like, the one person who isn’t pissed at him, Morpheus Sad.

From then on is essentially just what we’ve written. They end up…somewhat dependent on one another for comfort because they just aren’t good at investing in any other relationships. And Death and Lucifer become more friendly.

Morpheus and Luci’s relationship is…tumultuous at best. They care for each other, but they cling so much to the One Thing they like at the moment. It’s not exactly the best thing. So the fact that Dream transformed into Daniel was pretty awful for everyone involved.

This AU fits in with the Lucifer continuity mostly based on Lucifer taking place shortly after Sandman ends. Dream is not often brought up, but allow me to go through some places where he is, and how I interpret them in context of the AU.

Obviously, this will have some spoilers. Also light NSFW art.

Lucifer (2000), issue #8.

[Image Description: Four panels of the Lucifer comic. The first is a backdrop, with Lucifer’s text saying, “But to Dream of the Endless, I imagine it would look like poaching, pure and simple. And since he’s the gamewarden he wouldn’t like that at all.” The second panel shows him holding a sword over a goddess’s son. The goddess, Izanami-no-Mikoto, looks on. She is made of stone. He says, “He’ll do it. I won’t even need to compel him. If I speak his name, he’ll come, and see what you’ve made here. So it’s your call, Queen of Death. Heads I win, and tails -- tails it all comes down.” The third panel shows the goddess holding up a hand to stop him. The fourth, the kneeling son says, “She offers atonement, Lucifer Morningstar. She offers your wings.” End description.]

In the AU, it makes a lot of sense that Lucifer would be able to easily summon Dream of the Endless with a single word. “He’ll do it. I won’t even need to compel him” is an interesting phrase. The absolute certainty in Dream’s actions – even if this is after Morpheus’s transformation (which I’m not sure of), Lucifer characterizes Dream as though he knows him well.

Oof. Lucifer: Nirvana.

[Image description: A watercolor cream and purple comic panel. In the distance, there is a boat. From the boat, Dream of the Endless says, “Bearing in mind our previous meetings, Lucifer Morningstar, might I suggest a bargain? I will ask no favors if you will offer me no gifts.” End description.]

This is the only conversation I recall in Lucifer or Sandman in which Daniel!Dream and Lucifer speak to one another. Yet Dream says,

“Bearing in mind our previous meetings, Lucifer Morningstar, might I suggest a bargain? I will ask no favors if you offer me no gifts.”

In the AU, their relationship soon after Dream becomes this version is tentative. Hostile at worst. They might be trying to figure out what comes next.

[@procrastinatingbookworm​ and I did write a fic on this! Find it here!]

Either way, they’ve talked before.

[Image description: A close picture, misty, cream and purple, watercolor, of a small boat, silhouetted. Dream’s silhouette is on the right, along with a small bird perched on the end of the boat. Lucifer is sitting, lounging on the left side of the boat. Lucifer says, “The situation isn’t likely to call for either. Your predecessor preferred a corkscrew to a stiletto. What’s your position?” End description.]

How did they end up on a boat in the middle of nowhere? Lucifer looks supremely comfortable, lounging, completely trusting that Dream offers him no harm. They’re standing, very awkwardly, on opposite sides of the boat.

Lucifer is making a metaphor here, regarding how Morpheus was not very to-the-point. He knew how Morpheus worked, how he thought. He’s asking in an almost affronting way: “What’s your position?” that could be interpreted as curious or as a thinly veiled hostility.

[Image description: A watercolor of Dream’s profile, somewhat silhouetted. He has white hair. He says, ‘By all means let us be direct. Someone has used human dreamers to stage an assault on you. I assure you, this someone has attracted my attention, too. The matter will be dealt with.” End description.] 

Dream is taking this matter very seriously. It just seems that Morpheus may not have put as much attention into random attacks, but Dream is very involved. In the AU, this is kind of because Dream is keeping an eye out for Lucifer.

This conversation just hints, to me, of much more backstory between them.

They’ve been trying to bargain, offering favors or gifts to one another – something they don’t really have a good reason to do in the comics, except maybe to secure an alliance, but that feels…?? Well, considering the rest of the conversation…

[Image description: two panels, watercolor. The left is Lucifer’s face, and he says, “Actually I intend to deal with it myself. It would be unfortunate if our investigations hampered each other.” The right panel is of Dream, with a hand on his waist, looking down. He says, “I am interpreting that statement as a threat. Very well. This touches profoundly on my interests, but you are the injured party. Your rights are paramount.” End description.]

Lucifer is certainly difficult to make an alliance with. (Tangent, but I love this issue’s art style.) Dream still seems surprised – “Very well.” He is respecting Lucifer’s somewhat “bugger off” statement.

[Image description: A watercolor landscape shot of Lucifer on the left, with black wings spread, and Dream on the right, turned away from both the camera and Lucifer. Dream is saying, “I will conduct my own inquiries, along avenues that will not intersect with your own. Whatever I discover I will pass on to you. Via an intermediary, of course.” Lucifer replies, “As you like. But somewhere discreet. No white ravens.” He is referencing the bird also present but off-panel. End description.]

At this point, Dream turns mostly away from him. In my eyes, I see this as hurt/deflecting, supported by the fact that he says he will pass information via an intermediary – unnecessary, it feels, considering they’ve been talking, they’ve had multiple conversations before...it’s very sudden. Feels like it was based off of what Lucifer said. Which was a threat, but still, Dream knows how to not cross boundaries and get himself killed from a threat.

Lucifer doesn’t seem to have a strong opinion on this, or rather, he says, “As you like.” Letting Dream do whatever.

I don’t really have much to say on that part. It’s just a really fascinating conversation.

The Sandman (1989) Issue 72:

[Image description: Mazikeen and Lucifer sitting on what looks like a bench or stone beside one another. Mazikeen is to the left. She has an arm around Lucifer’s shoulders. Lucifer has his hands steepled in front of his face and his expression is unreadable, eyebrows furrowed and lips pursed. Mazikeen is almost leaning on him. She is wearing a red dress with no sleeves. Lucifer is wearing a blue suit. Both have curled hair, and Mazikeen is not wearing a mask. Overlaid, there is text from Matthew the raven, talking about Morpheus’s death. Matthew says, “I mean, Despair may be the thing that comes after hope, but there’s still hope. Right? When there’s no hope you might as well be dead. What’s in my heart?” End description.]

I find this significant in the AU because, firstly, it’s a point where Mazikeen shows affection to Lucifer. She has her arm around him. It feels...comforting, to me. Secondly, it’s the one panel of Lucifer I can find in the Wake -- and it’s when Matthew is talking about how he cares about Dream, and he’s figuring out his relationship with this new Dream.

Overall, Lucifer clearly respects Dream as just...another individual. He attends his funeral. He speaks with him multiple times.

In our AU, he and Dream are happily married, and their relationship post-Morpheus is settled, loving, happy. Because I love happy endings!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope you enjoyed reading!! Feel free to shoot me a question about my thoughts on this AU. Because I have a LOT.

#Anonymous #my posts #asks #answers #dream / lucifer #i also ship john and lucifer ama #constantine i mean #listen at this point it's luci/dream/maze and maze/death and maze/beatrice and maze/constantine/luci #i have a lot of ships

[yurimother]

LGBTQ Game Review - A Summer’s End – Hong Kong 1986

Before diving into the meat of Oracle and Bone’s A Summer’s End, I want to talk about the women behind this game Tida Kietsungden, and Charissa So. So and Kietsungden have done nothing but impress me since the announcement of A Summer’s End. They have repeatedly demonstrated their immense effort and dedication to creating a beautiful and thoughtful experience. Through conversations with the studio and reading their blog entries, I gained a remarkable understanding of how this game is both a tribute to classic cinema and a love letter to the Yuri and LGBT community. Through careful research and thoughtful expression, the two women navigate and acknowledge complicated issues, including Asian LGBTQ history and Hong Kong’s delicate political situation with grace and maturity. I am in complete awe of both women and their work. However, regardless of my profound respect for these creators, I still endeavor to offer my unfiltered thoughts on the visual novel, giving praise and criticism where appropriate.

A Summer’s End – Hong Kong 1986 is a Yuri visual novel set, as you may have figured out, in Hong Kong in the year 1986. The game follows a young office worker, Michelle (Fong Ha) Cheung, who has a chance encounter with a free-spirited woman named Sam (Ka Yan) Wong. Both women feel drawn to each other, and the game explores this mutual attraction and the budding relationship which emerges from it.

This plot follows the standard girl meets girl story that has permeated the Yuri genre for the past several decades. Like most Yuri stories, the older and more experienced woman, Sam, is rebellious and beautiful, with long dark hair and a dominating persona. Michelle, although far more naive in the ways of love, breaks the trend of this trope by being the more sullen of the two. I would have liked to see the game diverge a bit more from the standard story of the genre. Fortunately, A Summer’s End is a romance story between adults who do not work together, setting it apart from the norms. It even includes a coming out section that creates a more robust LGBT identity than any tale of temporary schoolgirl love.

The story is well put together and well presented. The story is told primarily from Michelle’s perspective. It mostly takes place over a few days, during which Michelle engages in a whirlwind romance with Sam. This story features the struggle between her feelings and passion and her devotion to tradition and her mother. The progression of her affection is unrealistically fast. The story feels a bit rushed, and many of the societal and personal quagmires the game stumbles upon are not sufficiently developed or confronted. Had the game indulged in a more prolonged and tumultuous struggle for Michelle, conclusions would have felt much sweeter, and the story would have gone from good to great.

Even with this massive missed opportunity, there are plenty of exemplary moments and aspects of the narrative. The game pulls no punches addressing Michelle’s slightly overbearing mother and the conflict between the two. It would have been incredibly simple to take the easy route on this one. Still, the developers stuck to their guns and manage to explore a challenging situation satisfyingly, all while keeping the characters realistic and sympathetic. In fact, every scene relating to LGBT rights and history is flawlessly executed.

There are also some fantastic chapters, including a thrilling but refreshing bike ride and a flashback scene that recontextualizes certain events from another perspective. The many references and allusions to classic cinema including some older lesbian films and plenty of Asian works, are particularly noteworthy. However, the best part of A Summer’s End by far is the setting.

The location and time period is intrinsic to Sam and Michelle’s tale, as it is shaped by and reflects contemporary culture and LGBTQ rights. Oracle and Bone create a vibrant and lively world, a jaw-dropping depiction of Hong Kong in the 1980s. Everything helps feed into the creation of this world, including a fantastic and retro UI, small touches such as a Cantonese subway announcement, and objects encountered like a disposable camera help convey a strong sense of the period. However, the soundtrack sells it more than any other element, save perhaps the artwork, transporting the player to the era. While a few tracks are the standard easy listening affairs one expects from visual novels, there are tons of excellent city pop and disco beats, complete with plenty of synths and confidence! Finally, a visual novel soundtrack that contributes more than just background noise!

Sadly, the game’s dialogue choice system and branching paths are far more of a hindrance than a help. I can honestly say that the game would play better and be way more enjoyable as a kinetic novel. Most choices feel inconsequential, changing nothing of the story and resulting in almost the exact same response from other characters yet, they have a hidden points system. If you do not earn enough points, parts of the optional adult content will be unplayable until one goes back to find the right choice. I spent several hours replaying, and eventually skipping through, the game to unlock all the scenes, and finally gave up with one CG left unseen. The only choice with any actual effect is painfully evident in its consequences. One option leads to the bad ending, which is well written, but no reasonable player would go down that path unless they just wanted to see the whole game. The second unveils the true good ending, which no player in their right mind would not pursue, as again, the choice is obvious and adds nothing to the game. There is no reason to put in an alternative ending or tedious dialogue choice.

The characters in A Summer’s End are well constructed. Sam is adventurous without being obnoxious and has a mature though appropriately unrefined demeanor. Michelle is extremely curt and somewhat distant, although she displays a sharp wit and more timid nature on occasion. Both women participate in engaging, deep, and thoughtful discussions, often with each other, although sometimes internally, and thus feel well developed and complex. Unfortunately, their chemistry, while not absent, is not enough to sell the whirlwind romance. There is insufficient expression of their feelings and attractions, both internally or through dialogue and actions, so their inevitable closeness feels unearned.

However, even in the short game, both characters change with each other, especially Michelle, as she becomes more affectionate, confident, and caring. She begins to embody some of Sam’s warmness while never losing herself. Some of my favorite dialogue and interaction came from her towards the end of the game, although I will not spoil it. Additionally, side characters have a strong presence thanks to their firmly established characteristics and a profound effect on the narrative. Each has their own sprite and mannerisms, helping cement them as fixtures in A Summer’s End rather than tacked on assets.

The visual novel contains optional adult content, which is installed in an extra patch and can be toggled on and off. I played through the game with and without it and can happily report that the story is just as fulfilling and complete without it. Although the unlockable nature of these scenes is aggravating, they are very well written and sensual without being exploitative. There were moments I did not care for as much, such as Sam getting carried away at one point, but it felt very realistic and incredibly sensual. The artwork in these sexual encounters is some of the best in the game, embracing darker colors and showcasing intense desire.

Speaking of the artwork, it is stupendous. The game is bright and striking, with amazing backgrounds complete with luminous neon signs, glaring televisions, and life and activity oozing from every corner. The backgrounds are so beautiful and detailed they could effectively serve in place of CG art, although there is plenty of that asides. The character models and designs are similarly excellent, with expressive poses and faces. The various outfits, of which the game has many, embody iconic 80’s fashion. Artist Tida Kietsungden draws both the characters and CGs with a distinctive hand-drawn style, which allows them to play well off each other and add to the beautiful presentation. The detail and care that went into the aesthetics are enormous and elevate the game at every moment. 

A Summer’s End – Hong Kong 1986 is a vibrant and intimate experience. The fantastic setting and flawless artwork surround a compelling and thoughtful story about lesbian love and desire, societal expectations, and the bonds between family and lovers. It is rough around the edges, with a slightly rushed story that leaves little time to wallow in complexity and an awful dialogue system. However, it will win players over with its striking presentation and sophisticated subject matter. I look forward to more from this studio and highly recommend you check this game out!

Ratings: Story – 7 Characters – 6 Art – 10 Music – 8 LGBTQ – 8 Sexual Content – 3 (8 with patch) Final – 7

Purchase A Summer’s End on Steam and itch.io, available April 23

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#Yuri #lgbt #lgbtq #lgbtq+ #queer #gay #reivew #a summer's end #hong kong #girls love #gl #wlw #lesbian #visual novel #games #video games #gaming #manga #anime #reviews