#your ship can still become true right at the end of the series

[avelera]

"Sometimes it's not that deep," aka, How to Write a Mystery (That's Actually There)

A good rule of thumb about predicting a well-written mystery is that other people are predicting the same things. Even better if a lot of other people, on their own, are analyzing the material closely and each, on their own, are reaching the same theories and conclusions! Yes, this can mean everyone's falling for the same red herring too, of course, but generally speaking, no writer is putting all that effort into writing a mystery only one person can solve.

The thing is, a good mystery should be predictable, but at varying speeds based on the attentiveness of the audience.

The most laser-focused readers (or viewers), the true Holmesian mystery-solving mystery readers with encyclopedic knowledge and a fine-toothed comb to go through the material, should be ahead of the characters trying to solve the mystery, but not so far ahead that the story becomes boring, ideally. Your mystery shouldn't be so predictable that it can be figured out on page one but, if a truly clever sleuth does figure out your mystery on page one, your story should also be good enough that it is still an enjoyable tale even if the audience know how it ends.

The attentive reader should figure out the mystery at about the same time as the main character. They should have the "Aha!" moment about two seconds before the character solves it for that little thrill of feeling very clever, which to authors is very funny, because if we're doing our job right, we didn't just set the clues for you to solve the mystery, we agonized over the timing of each clue's introduction just to make sure you got that little thrill of self-satisfaction at the moment we wanted you to.

The casual reader should figure out the mystery when the characters figure it out. They should get the enjoyment of seeing the mystery solved, and in retrospect be able to see the clues, but in the meantime have enjoyed their time nonetheless. It should be a good story on its own.

Now, this is relevant to fandom theory mongering because clues are not accidental. And there are usually a lot of them, if the author is doing their job. Yes, you should be able to analyze the costume colors to see that there are parallels between the green dress or whatever that the lead is wearing in this episode and how it's a call back to another episode and that means blahblahblah is going to happen, but, that sort of deep-cut, freeze-frame sleuthing is usually only in support of more overt clues intended for general audiences.

(Not to pick on any one fandom, but Ted Lasso S3 for example had a lot of Tedbecca shippers looking for hidden clues in the cinematography as their hopes faded for a canon confirmation of their ship. Alas, those didn't bear out, because they were not accompanied by textual evidence in addition to the subtextual evidence of how any moment now, these characters are going to stop dating and pursuing completely different people and actually hook up with or even verbally express confirmed interest in each other.)

Of course, a mystery can be tough to solve and be satisfying! It is sometimes even possible to solve those truly out there or even not yet fully supported mysteries that eventually turn out to be true (say, predicting a later book in the series before all the clues are even there from installments in the meantime). It can be really satisfying to correctly extrapolate from incomplete data before the author even intended you to see it or had figured it out themselves!

However, more often than not, the clues are deliberate and to assume you're the only one seeing them is probably a sign that they're not actually there.

A good mystery, a well-written one, should provide all the clues for the audience to solve the mystery on their own, within the text, even if the last few pages are ripped out. A good mystery is not a "gotcha". And a sign of a good mystery is that more than one person can pick up on all the clues because those clues are placed deliberately and yes, that requires a certain amount of sign-posting as well and in fact, one of the most fiendishly difficult things to do as a writer is strike the proper balance between sign posting your clues at just the right time to reward your attentive audience with enough data to solve the mystery just before the characters do, but not so early that they lose interest.

So, why is this important for fandoms? Because it's entirely possible to go down the conspiracy theory rabbit hole and convince yourself of stuff that's not there and then get really bummed when it doesn't happen. We're all guilty of this, myself very much included, especially in the largely subtextual world of slash shipping.

There's also real world exceptions and extenuating circumstances to my statement that a good mystery will actually provide the clues: like studio changes, dropped threads due to contractual complications, or a crowded writers room where not every idea gets pursued.

Plus, we've got the whole goddamn JJ Abrams-inspired mystery box bullshit run of television making creators think it's cool to pull one over on the audience and deny the clues they set up just to make a "twist" that no one predicted because it wasn't there, thus betraying the principles of a good mystery, and that also muddies the waters about how good mysteries should be written. (If you can't tell, I absolutely despise writers who pull this bullshit with the intent to trick their audience and they do not deserve any praise for being "clever" to just surprise people with an outcome that's not supported by previous text ala "rocks fall, everyone dies", ugh.)

But besides the damned mystery box crud, there are some good rules of thumb for determining if the clues you're picking up are real or not:

Is the subtext supported by text? Not "is her green dress backed up by a micro-expression glance you can barely see if you freeze-frame the show" but actually in the text. Does someone say, in dialogue, "Hey, we should go on a date," when you're reading subtext between two characters and can you be certain that the writers intended that text to be read the way you read it? One way to tell is if this sort of thing happens more than once, if there are more clues. Of course, there's also red herrings, etc, and hey, that's half the fun of a mystery, not all clues are Clues. But generally speaking, there's more than one clue for important stuff.

Is there evidence against your theory and have you considered it? This is basic Logical Thinking 101, of course, but only looking for evidence that confirms your theory and ignoring everything that doesn't will definitely convince you of some pretty wild stuff in a hurry!

Have you considered the genre of the work and whether it even has mysteries? Or is it, for example, a comedy which might address those "clues", most likely comedically, but might just as easily not even realize they were seen as clues?

But mostly importantly: do other people have this theory? Did they arrive to it on their own, based on the same text? If you are the only person with a theory and cannot use textual evidence to convince more than one person who is not of the same background as you (ie, convince your less-progressive dad that these two guys definitely want to boink based on the way they look at each other) there is a very likely chance you are stringing together disparate data points to match your desires, not the evidence. Bonus points if, seriously, you can convince someone who is of the same demographic as the content creators (writers, directors, etc.) that these clues are intentional. Most likely, your less-than-progressive dad has more in common with the thought process that went into creating the vast majority of content than your average Tumblr user does. (OFMD is the exception that proves the rule.)

As a final note, one thing it's very dangerous to do as a writer is introduce the idea of clues and a mystery without making your mystery air tight. Mysteries invite the reader to put their brain on high alert. It means they're looking for clues everywhere and even seemingly innocuous throw-away descriptions or the camera lingering on a random prop for too long can be misinterpreted and end up pissing off the audience who thinks it's a Clue.

You have to be so deliberate with a mystery, because it's not about just controlling the clues you release, but controlling the perception of the audience so they know what isn't a clue (unless it's a red herring, of course). That's part of why scifi author David Brin said all aspiring writers should have their first novel be a mystery, because it teaches you volumes on how to control your narrative and make everything intentional.

#maggie rambles #writing #writing advice #definitely not in response to some absolutely wild theories I've seen going about

[redgoldsparks]

March Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 4 by Ryoko Kui

I'm reading these books so fast I can barely remember which parts of the plot happened in which volume but know that I am still having a great time!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 5 by Ryoko Kui

Oh, this story has taken a darker turn, and also just introduced a whole bunch more characters. Will I be able to keep track of them all? I hope so!

Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb, read by Anne Flosnik 

Unfortunately, this is definitely the weakest Robin Hobb book I've read so far. I was expecting to like it less than the glorious, 5-star previous trilogy, but I actually think I'm going to skip the rest of the Rain Wild Chronicles and read summaries online to get to the next Fitz books. This book follows five main POV characters. This works fairly well for the first half, when the characters are all in different physical locations. However once all of the characters meet up, we start getting the same scene from multiple different POVs, which feels extremely repetitive. Also, almost EVERY SCENE includes a flashback, often a lengthy flashback, sometimes to something that happened only the previous day and could have been told as present-moment action. This writing choice baffled me. It's something I can't remember struggling with in any of Hobb's previous books, but by the end it was driving me up a wall. The book also moved very slowly; the stakes feel lower, and the character far less emotionally true than in the two Fitz trilogies. Disappointing, but I will keep moving forward towards the next part of the series I want to read.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 6 by Ryoko Kui

Damn, a lot of characters get murdered in this volume! Good thing almost everyone who dies in the dungeon can be revived. Also, very excited to finally meet the cat ninja I've been seeing fan art of since before I even started the series :3

Delicious in Dungeon vol 7 by Ryoko Kui

I am still completely caught up in this series. I love the glimpse of Senshi's past revealed in this volume, and the lore of the dungeon that is still being revealed. There was a line in here about how the dungeon leaves you alone if you don't ask much of it, but that if you have strong desires it throws even more obstacles into your way. Our heroes have such big goals right now, but they're marching ahead regardless!

School Trip by Jerry Craft 

A satisfying new installment in the New Kid series from funny, talented, charming Jerry Craft! I appreciated how this volume started to complicate some of the students who had been left a bit one-dimensional in previous books. Several people stood up to and called out a bully; new friendships were built; and Jordan Banks left Paris even more inspired than ever to follow his dreams of becoming an artist. This series has a lot of jokes, but also a lot of heart!

A Frog in Fall (and Later On) by Linnea Sterte 

Minor frog is less than a year old, and is dismayed when winter begins to steal all of the light and warmth from his world. Instead of bunking down safely with his mentor to wait for spring, he sets out on a journey with two vagabond toads passing by on a quest to make it all the way to the tropics. They tramp through the Japanese countryside, encountering tree spirits, new friends, dangers, and views the likes of which minor frog had never even imagined. This is a gorgeous book; every page worth pouring over, an economy of line and detail building a beautiful and mysterious world of talking animals and miniature packaged foods. Made me want to draw.

Dark Rise by CS Pacat read by Christian Coulson 

In 1820s London, orphaned Will tries to earn enough as a dockworker to survive- and evade the killers pursuing him. Violet dresses in her half-brother's clothes and sneaks onto a ship in the Thames to watch a man be branded with his master's mark. Katherine excitedly anticipates her engagement to one of London's richest and most mysterious lords; his gallantry nearly makes up for the fact that he's twice her age. And in the bowels of one of that lord's ships, James tortures a man for information. All of these characters are 16 or 17 years old, but all of them are tangled in an ancient conflict between the Light and the Dark which stretches back into an age of magic before history. This is CS Pacat's YA fantasy debut, and it contains a lot of tropes very familiar to both YA and high fantasy- there are shades of both Tolkien and Rowling in this. Its fast-paced and action-packed, but especially in the first third of the story, the characters all felt fairly thin. None of them have quirks, hobbies, career hopes, relationships outside of immediate family, school, or work; or much more than a brief sketch of past. It took until the mid-way point for what I consider Pacat's major strengths as a writer to emerge: intense, homoerotic interpersonal sparring between characters operating under major power imbalances. Every scene in which the seductive, manipulative, powerful evil gay faced off against the good boy chosen one crackled with energy. Unfortunately, there were only four of these scenes in the whole book. It ends on a cliff-hanger, because of course it does, with a tempting set up for book two; but that doesn't entirely excuse the fact that the first 50% felt like set up. I will definitely keep reading, but long-time Pacat fans should take note that this is toned down version of what I expected based on Captive Prince.

Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls (re-read before event)

What an accomplishment! I savored every page of Feeding Ghosts, absolutely floored by the labor and courage that went into the writing of this book. The inking is gorgeous, the history is clear, digestible, and devastating. This book threads the line between honesty and compassion in a way that I appreciate so much in any memoir, but especially one dealing with family. Hulls lays out the story of three generations of women starting with her grandmother, Sun Yi, a Shanghai journalist who faced intense persecution during the rise of Communism in China, who penned a popular and scandalous memoir and then suffered a mental breakdown. This left her only daughter, Rose, a student at an elite boarding school with no parental figures and no other family to lean on. Eventually Rose earned a scholarship to an American university and in the end moved her mother into her California home. Sun Yi haunted that home during the author's own childhood. The unexamined trauma and codependency of Sun Yi and Rose drove the author to the extreme edges of the Earth, seeking freedom from their ghosts. But in the end, she stopped running from her family history and turned, instead, to face it. Shelve this book with Maus, Fun Home, Persepolis and The Best We Could Do. Re-read it for a second time and got even more out of it on a second pass.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 8 by Ryoko Kui

Laios and company realize that their encounter with changling mushroom rings had more consequences than they'd realized- its the body swap episode! This visual humor is contrasted against increasing dangers from both above and below, as nastier monsters and political machinations begin to close in on our heroic adventuring party. I'm now over halfway through this series and almost feel like I should start reading it more slowly to savor it, but I'll probably just keep devouring it instead.

Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang and Leuyen Pham

High school senior Val grew up knowing her family was unlucky in love; for generations, relationships in her family have ended in heartbreak. Her childhood love of Valentines Day ends with a shocking family revelation and what feels like the beginning of a curse. Then her Vietnamese grandmother sweeps her off to a Lunar New Year celebration in downtown Oakland and a pair of cute lion dancer boys catch her eye. Could one of them break the spell on her heart? This story offers a classic and satisfying rom-com, with Val torn between an outgoing, rich, but flaky boy and a broody, shy, loyal one. The story takes several kdrama style twists and includes ghosts, saints, red envelopes, confessions, fights, reunions, tears, and kisses. For a comic, its wordy; the pages are dense with small panels and thick with dialogue, but also illustrated with such warm, humor, and realism. I really liked that the story included as much of Val's relationship with her family and best friend as romance. And the lion dancing scenes practically leap off the page with color and energy!

Witch Hat Atelier vol 10 by Kamome Shirahama

This series remains as visually stunning as ever but I'm struggling with how every single book expands the cast. There are so many characters now that I don't care about that much, and have trouble remembering from volume to volume. I wish the story line would stick more closely to Coco, her classmates, and their main mentors!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 9 by Ryoko Kui

Oh the stories are all converging! The savior at the bottom of the dungeon is probably a demon! Ituzumi saves the day! I am still having a great time reading this series.

A Dowry of Blood by ST Gibson read by Abby Craden 

A short, very queer, very poly retelling of Dracula focusing on his coven of enthralled lovers. I liked the way the book breezed through history, as the dysfunctional little family moved from one major European city to the next, with snatched moments of glittering joy interwoven with violence and plague. The story is fairly simple, and has a happier ending than I expected, or honestly think the characters deserved.

City of Dragons by Robin Hobb

I DNFed the previous book in this series and just read a summary online before skipping ahead to this one. I think that was a very good choice for me. This third one was more engaging and a bit more action packed, with some cool discoveries about the city of Kelsingra and the nature of Elderlings. But the Rain Wild Chronicles as a whole do not stand up to the quality of the Farseer books. There are so many POV characters that a few of them get only two or three scenes in this whole book. I don't feel that I deeply know any of these characters; while at the same time watching Hobb pair them off at an extraordinary rate- in the last book five sets of characters got together and in this book an additional two couples are developing feelings for each other. Between this and a kidnapping, a birth, a murder, and a lot of blackmail, this series feels like a soap opera.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 10 by Ryoko Kui

Almost two TPKs in this volume, yikes!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 11 by Ryoko Kui

You know shit's getting serious when the character who has been the series main villain up until now is partially devoured by a different, worse villain. Exciting changes coming to this dungeon under it's new lord and master!

Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Lisa Sterle

When Becca gets invited to sit with the popular girl clique at her new high school, she's thrilled. But the friendship turns bloody and complicated when she learns that her new friends are actually werewolves who need to kill and feed on a human once a month. If she joins them, Becca will gain superhuman strength and a pack; she'll never have to fear a male predator again, because she will be a predator herself. I loved the queer rep and the twist on werewolf lore; I wish it had been a little longer and more developed. Give me multi-page transformations sequences!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 12 by Ryoko Kui

I love seeing all these plot lines come together! Building towards a wild climax.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 13 by Ryoko Kui

I went out and *bought* vol 13 of this series because my library didn't have it yet, that's how hooked I am. And now I have to wait until JULY for the final volume! (But also, thank goodness I didn't get into this series any sooner or I'd have a much longer wait).

#book reviews #books #reading #comics #manga

[melodyfsoul1]

Sth I find interesting after watching the Loki Series Finale, and seeing everyone's reactions to it, is that you can immediately tell what someone's priorities were for the ending (ships aside)

Because depending on what your priorities for the Story or Loki as a Character were, people are either really hyped / optimistic for the future ... or just really freaking depressed right now.

Like on the positive side we have Loki:

- finally finding his "Glorious Purpose", his place in... well "outside" the world/ universe, becoming an even greater being, while his story comes full circle

- reaching his full potential, unlocking new powers, new magic, and being the God of Stories

- becoming one of the most powerful beings in the MCU, and hey maybe he's even able to travel freely through time now and not trapped at the space outside of time

- creating Yggdrasil and protecting it, and by that, saving his friends and the Multiverse, being a true hero

__________

But then on the other side we have the more pessimistic view of Loki:

- finding his "Glorious" Purpose, taking over the burden of a throne he realized he never wanted, but doing it because it was the only option he saw to save his friends and the multiverse ( though I wouldnt even call it a choice, he just resigned himself to accept it because the other options where helping the current HWR, killing Sylvie, risking a universal war or death by spaghettification....)

- making the ultimate sacrifice by chosing to "give everyone else a chance at life" over his own needs, his own future, his desire to be with his friends...

- now having the huge responsible of keeping the multiverse alive & intact for all eternity

And do we even know if he can travel freely through time? (I hope so), but how much power does it take him? What if protecting Yggdrasil means he cant leave the space outside time? That would mean he is trapped there, for all eternity, alone, having to watch over his friends without actually being able to interact with them. He will be able to see that they are okay (hopefully), but he will never be a part of their lives again.... Loki, the very character who explicitely said he doesnt want to be alone...

So depending on how you view it, the ending was either really epic, with Loki getting several upgrades and creating a new era for the MCU

or

Somewhere between bittersweet and incredibly dreadfully tragic with Loki making the ultimate sacrifice, losing everything he just worked so hard to keep (after all the struggles of his original timeline too with Thanos) with Loki probably never being part of any of their stories again, damned to eternal loneliness.

(I'm personally more the 2nd type... I do get the others point of view, it was epic and Loki unlocking his true potential as the God of Stories is insane, GOS Loki is one of my faves in the comics. And my GOD the imagery of Yggdrasil was freaking gorgeous.

But... my main priority was "Loki, for ONCE, getting a chance at life, to be himself, live, with his new found friends/ family at his side..." so you can guess how freaking sad I am over the ending... hell I dont even care about the ships, I just didnt want him to be alone... I just wanted him to have a friend...

Its like, no matter what or where, whether its the OG Timeline Loki, or L1130 or even in the comics... Loki is meant to be a sacrifice for the "greater good" or to suffer trying change or even help, like he did in the comics as Kid Loki and Agent of Asgard.

That being said, I still cling to the hope that Loki can either freely travel through time now or somehow find a way to get in contact with his friends again... of them finding a way to get to him... please, Marvel, I need a Loki who is allowed to be happy, he certainly deserves it.

#Loki #mcu loki #comic loki #marvel loki #loki god of stories #loki series #loki season one #loki season 2 #loki season finale #loki s2 ep6 #glorious purpose #loki spoilers #loki finale #loki2x06 spoilers #i have still not recovered #That finale was so cool but also bittersweet #He found his glorious purpose #but at what cost #mobius #sylvie #i am not okay #overwhelmed #And brainrotting #i just want loki to be happy #I hope we see Loki again #Still unsure how to feel about the teased Brodinson Reunion #What happened to #the sun will shine on us again #marvel theories #marvel mcu

[lostcauses-noregrets]

eruri isnt more popular than one or two years before tho lol. 21 was the golden year, 22 also more active. you posted ao3 count but that includes half of 22 (between august) as well. u got it right abt algo but youre wrong overall

So here's the thing, every fan of every ship has their own personal "golden year" and for every fan it will be different because it will depend on when they joined the fandom, what was happening in the canon media, who the big artists were, who was writing the most popular fics. Fandom by its nature is transitory, fans, artists, writers all come and go, but more often than not they are replaced by new fans, new artists, new writers. It's true that when a character dies or a series ends the fandom may become less active. Conversely character death and series ends can sometimes give fandoms a real boost as the character/s are "freed" from the canon storyline. People have been predicting the death of the Eruri fandom for years now, and yet here we still are. Still getting new merch, new art, new fics, new zines, new ship weeks.

But suspect you know this.

And yes, the AO3 ship stats for 2023, do include data from half of 2022. The AO3 stats are always calculated from August - August. That doesn't negate the fact that the number of fics posted has increased, rather than decreased, since the previous reporting period.

But you know this too.

#asks #eruri #ao3 #fandom #snk

[mania-sama]

Random ask, who are your favorite romantic relationship's couples in any media, like anime/manga, tv series, books, etc (can be canon or non-canon)? Feel free if you want to write the reasons or not of why you love them....

Thank you so much for sending in an ask! I would love to answer this question! I didn't go through every fandom I've been in, though I went through quite a few!!! Usually, there is only one ship I really love in a fandom that ends up being my favorite, but I like/love plenty of ships and don't limit myself to just one ship. I will say that when it comes to engaging with fandom and fanfiction, I tend to actually prefer platonic relationships, centered on found family and blood-related family than anything else.

Bungou Stray Dogs -> Shin Soukoku (Akutagawa Ryuunosuke/Nakajima Atsushi). I think most of this comes from the way they are quite literally yin and yang (my favorite symbol of all time) in almost every aspect. I firmly believe Asagiri is beating us over the head with a mallet saying "Look! Look what I did! Please look!" I'm under no impression that they will be canon, but BEAST gives me the hope that they can at least become friends, and that's testament enough to the development they go through. There is just so much there. I'm not an enemies to lovers person, but for them, I make the exception. There are so many parallels to draw between them, so much to look at and really dig into. I'm not delusional enough to say they wouldn't be toxic (all of the BSD ships except for, like, RanPoe, are toxic let's be real), but I am lenient enough to say that they can be good to each other in fanfics and decent friends in canon. Also, this applies to their BEAST counterparts, too. BEAST makes them better.

Jujutsu Kaisen -> ItaFushi (Fushiguro Megumi/Itadori Yuuji). There is a sort of trend I have with shipping, I think. I tend to like the second most popular ship, usually the younger generation of the most popular ship, which is arguably a form of torture in and of itself. JJK is not as bad as the BSD fandom is about the popularity difference, but it's still painful. Anyway, I think my love for this ship stems from the fact that Megumi has a big fat crush on Itadori and I will accept, under no circumstances, any other interpretations of his relationship with Itadori. Everything from the SatoSugu parallels (who are one handhold away from being canon let's be real), to their whole shtick being to save each other (physically and mentally), to Megumi literally describing Itadori as his type of person. Gender neutral. Even though it is so incredibly easy to use gendered terms in Japanese as it is in English. I feel like Gege is doing this on purpose because there is just no way he sees this as normal friend stuff. Recent chapters got me in a chokehold. I am SCARED. Besides all this, I think they just work very well together. They are also horribly tragic. Perfect combination.

Genshin Impact -> Xiaother (Aether/Xiao). I debated pretty heavily with myself here on what my true favorite is. I came to this conclusion mainly for one reason: Xiao. I love Aether, but I love Xiao. He is my favorite character, right next to Razor, so obviously he carries this ship. I also think that, of all of the implied relationships Genshin has supplied in plenty, Xiaother has had the most development. Every scene with them is better than the last, and the way that they make each other better is something I adore. And as for the ship being specifically Aether and not Lumine or nonspecific, it's because I chose Aether, so I'm more accustomed to using him as the traveler vessel rather than Lumine, but I'm honestly fine with either.

Identity V -> Elisop (Aesop Carl | Embalmer/Eli Clark | Seer). I haven't played this game in a hot minute for storage and laptop reasons, and I'm also not updated with the lore (nor was I entirely familiar with it from the beginning, outside of the MAIN main lore). But this ship and game were a huge part of my personal development, I think, and I do want to return to playing it in an honest effort eventually (I WANT MY ROBBIE RANK BACK). I think I perceive it differently than other people do, mainly because people oscillate between two sides of the Aesop Carl characterization spectrum. But there is something really fun in the idea that Eli, with his ability to see the future, thinks that he can somehow "fix" Aesop, under the impression that his and Getrude's relationship will never mend. And Aesop, who sees Eli and feels real love for the first time, finds that he doesn't know if he wants to kill and embalm Eli, or if he wants to indulge in this feeling called love. Toxic, probably. Their color schemes also match very well together (which is actually what led me to ship them in the first place, before fandom influence), and they are extremely compatible gameplay-wise.

Haikyuu -> IwaOi (Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru). If you told me two or so years ago that this was my favorite Haikyuu ship, I would have LAUGHED IN YOUR FACE. I hated Oikawa and didn't care much about Seijou. But then. But then. I went through a like. Month-long Haikyuu revival not too long ago and only read IwaOi fics because I came to this revelation. Oikawa is really goddamn relatable. I think we are all, in a sense, Oikawa, at one point or another. He is THE teenager. He is someone you can project every single one of your problems onto because his struggles with being untalented and unworthy are interchangeable with pretty much any self-worth conflict: internalized homophobia, eating disorders, socializing, etc. Iwaizumi can also provide these internal debates, but in a context with Oikawa makes it even better. Does Oikawa carry this ship for me? Yes. I don't care what you think I'm not here to defend myself.

Voltron: Legendary Defenders -> Klance (Keith Kogane/Lance McClain). Do NOT talk to me. They have ruined my life in pretty much every aspect. Also an exception to the not shipping thing because they are kinda the whole reason I even watched this show past season... three probably. I don't even wanna talk about them anymore because it'll just upset me. Just know that as far as the Sheith vs Klance debate goes, Sheithers are wrong for that after Keith called Shiro his brother. There. I added my fuel to the ever-burning garbage fire that is Voltron shipping. I may talk about Klance again in the future but for now I wanna leave my thoughts off here.

Merlin BBC -> Merthur (Arthur Pendragon/Merlin). Thank you Merthur fandom for teaching me what a good fic is supposed to taste like. They are kind of the epitome of the ships I tend to gravitate to: TRAGIC. The ending of Merlin is traumatizing and the fact that all of the cast pretty shipped it (as well as you can see the faint mouthing of the words "I love you" in the final death scene) is like. The first true healthy immersion into a ship I've ever had. I never obsessed over them too hard, I think, but Merlin is still my favorite live-action show, and Merthur is always well and true to my heart. They also got me introduced to the master/servant trope in terms of medieval times, and I had a very long affinity for it in fanfiction. I don't like it as much anymore, but I look upon that time with happiness rather than the usual slight embarrassment.

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power -> Catradora (Adora/Catra). I also make an exception for enemies to lovers for them because they even added that extra-friendly step of friends to enemies to lovers. Genuinely, no show surprised me as much as She-Ra did. Shout out She-Ra for giving me the worst envy I've ever felt in my life. I want to rock a suit as well as Catra did in that one scene. Anyway, I loved their development. I know some people criticize it for being rushed towards the end, but I like the way they were able to forgive Catra so easily. They understood what it meant to be used and manipulated, what it meant to be unable to fight against oppressive forces. People are mad at compassion, even though that's the literal whole point of She-Ra. Whatever. They could never make me hate you Catradora.

Percy Jackson (all book series) -> Percabeth (Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson). The blueprint. That's it. That's all you gotta know. I don't read fics about them because there is nothing to improve upon. One of the best written series and best written romances of all time. It was basically everything Avatar: The Last Airbender failed to do with Kataang (sorry for ragging on them for a second but that's the only thing I didn't like about ATLA; the romances) failed to accomplish, with all the same in-depth and wonderful characters. Like, they are everything I aspire to have in a relationship. The way they are simply meant for each other and aren't rushed, but are always implied to have that cutesy young crushes until they finally got together. I love them. Ugh. Uncle Rick you win again.

Anyway, these were some of my favorite ships of all time!! Sorry, I blabbered a lot. Probably listed more ships than you meant to but I take whatever opportunity I can to talk about things I enjoy IN DEPTH. There were also a lot of M/M romances, which, I swear to God, just happened out that way. I love plenty of F/F and F/M relationships, they just rarely end up as my top favorite. DO NOT accuse me of anything because I WILL NOT hear it.

#anon ask #ships #favorite ships #they are still so many ships i like that i didn't put here #not necessary i guess because they aren't my “favorite” #sigh #bsd #bungou stray dogs #jjk #jujutsu kaisen #percy jackon and the olympians #she ra #voltron #vld #merlin #genshin impact #identity v #haikyuu #hq #shin soukoku #itafushi #elisop #iwaoi #xiaother #klance #merthur #catradora #percabeth

[natsarrownecklacx]

Forever Neverland Pt. 1

Wanda Maximoff x reader

Summary: Not all dreams come true. But thankfully yours has. Now you have to face the possibility that this dream could turn into a nightmare.

Word count: 889.

Warnings: Mentions of kidnappings, allusion to death n torture but not really.

Series Masterlist

ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3

The rough threads of the rope binding your wrists together dig into your skin. Each time you move your hands, even slightly, the friction of the rope against your skin causes a sting to rise there. It’s not too tight, you can still feel blood flowing through your hands. It’s better treatment than you thought you’d get. But the ropes serve their purpose in limiting the use of your limbs.

Each step you take feels heavier than the last. You know where you're going, in a sense, but it feels like you’ve been walking for hours.

Every so often you're pulled to a stop, a flask of water gently nudged against your lips in offering, you accept every time. 

The journey continues on. One foot in front of the other. Left foot, right foot, left foot, stumble, be yanked upright before hitting the floor, left foot, right foot, repeat. The repetitiveness is boring. Mind numbing. Frustrating. But at least you're not back at the camp.

No one speaks, not even a word. You know why, but it doesn’t help to ease the tense atmosphere the silence creates. 

The silence is good, you remind yourself. It means you're less likely to be caught. These are his woods, he has eyes and ears everywhere. The quieter you are, the faster you go, the more likely it is you will make it to where you're going. Though, to be completely honest with yourself, you're not entirely sure you want to make it there either. 

As you trek through the seemingly never ending woods your mind wanders. Eventually you slip completely from your surroundings and lose yourself to your inner thoughts, your body moving on autopilot as you're led through the forest.

You’d know this would happen. From the moment you were taken from your village and forced to join the lost boys you knew you’d somehow end up here. Being led, a piece of fabric covering your eyes, toward the Scarlet Duchess. The infamous ship belonging to none other than Captain Hook. 

It’s common knowledge amongst everyone in Neverland, the long standing rivalry between Pan and Hook. No one is quite sure why the two seem to hate each other as they do, though there are many rumors about the cause of their never ending conflict. Some even say their hatred for each other has lasted centuries, though you find that hard to believe. 

It’s always made sense to you that you’d somehow end up where you are now, caught in the crossfire between the two. After all, the Captain has no reason but to believe you to be anything but loyal to Pan, a good and obedient partner of his that she could use to for… well you don’t know what for, but still.

In all honesty you’ve been hoping for this to happen, to be taken by her and her crew. It was an evitable really, but the thought of it got you through your worst days. At least now you won't have to see him again. Either they’ll kill you or keep you as a prisoner. Both options are better than staying where you were. With him. That’s why, as you are led by Hooks men, one on either side of you, you do not put up a fight. It’s why you didn’t struggle when they’d grabbed you from the camp. Didn’t make a fuss as they bound your hands in front of you with rope. You wanted to go with them, at least in part.

Your compliance confused them, but they didn’t question it, it just meant things would be easier for them.

Feeling the ground under your feet become less solid and more shaky brings your attention to the fact that you are now aboard the Captain's ship. A feeling of dread washes over you, the thought of where you are now being somehow worse then where you were before is hard to believe, but still, it is a possibility. 

Hearing the chains of the anchor being wound up brings a sigh of relief to pass your lips. He won't be able to get to you now, not as long as they stay moving. The Scarlet Douches is famous for its seemingly unmatchable speed. As long as this ship stays at sea and the crew keep vigilant, he shouldn’t be able to come aboard. 

“Well then, men.”

A voice comes from somewhere to your left. Hook, you realize. It has to be. She speaks with the authority only someone with her reputation could. That, along with the accent she is known for laced into her voice, gives away whose presence you're in. The infamous Captain Hook herself. 

Only her voice has the opposite effect on you then you’d imagined it would. It doesn’t scare you or make you want to run, like his does. It’s soothing, warm and inviting. There's a certain lure to it that makes you feel as though you want it to wrap around you. Want to hear it whisper sweet words to you all hours of the night into the early hours of the morning. Want so desperately to sink into the comfort it would provide as it tells you it’s okay, you're okay now, you're safe.

“What have you brought me?” The voice sounds again, an almost smug knowingness weaved through it.

ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3 ᗢ <3

Part Two

A/n: This is just a short first chapter to get things started. Hope you guys like the story so far :) I have the next two chapters done already so it won’t be to long before their out.

#wanda maximoff x reader #wanda maximoff series #Wanda maximoff x y/n #Pirate!Wanda Maximoff x Reader #Wanda maximoff x Princess!Reader #Pirate!Wanda maximoff x Princess!Reader

[prettybluelites]

Thoughts: The Curse of the Seafaring Life

Okay, fine, I'll watch Episode 5 one more time.

I have watched this half a dozen times by now and I have straight up howled every time Ed says "this here is a ship, and it's a space ship." The delivery combined with the hand gestures - I'm dead. I'm finished. Fucking genius.

A couple posts down I expounded on the fact that Ed is literally wearing sackcloth, still fascinated by that. Also wondering how much trouble he's having making the change from the infamous leathers to a loose-fitting linen onesie :P

That awkward position of, Do I clap, do I do nothing, or do I give the finger - so real

Does the mad cat on the new flag remind anyone else of the union rat inflatables that striking unions use?

Izzy got a new leg and it turned him into a right little sass pot

"I'm your captain! Wait, I can do it better." This whole scene is awesome and "That's the captain's chair" makes me laugh almost as hard as the space ship bit

Thinking a lot about Ed offering to let Lucius push him off the ship when it soon becomes clear that that isn't exactly what Lucius needs - I guess I'll just leave it at, I love how neatly the show illustrates that everyone heals differently

The shot of Izzy training on the gundeck is gorgeous and I'm not just saying that because of the Pecs of Death. And I love that he took himself down there and set all that up and took up his training his own self, idk, it feeds a lot of my headcanon about what sort of person Izzy is outside the context of Blackbeard - disciplined and fastidious

Love a good training montage, especially one that involves ass-slapping. And I love this new normal where Stede and Izzy, like, hang out and converse.

Will never grow tired of the fact that not one but both of Ed's shoes fly off

Really into geometry, lol. One of those superstitious bitches would have known what a pentagram was

Every girl loves an outfit she can twirl in

Third reliable lol of the episode: "draw me as, like, a steely...lord"

I was so busy thinking about Lucius and Pete each reckoning separately with Ed that I forgot to think about Lucius and Pete reckoning with each other. So glad this is a part of the storyline.

There really is nothing like a peanut butter sandwich. And then to be there when they were invented? Wow. :D

The scene with Ed and Fang in the boat is like Lucius recounting his horrors a couple episodes ago, shouldn't be funny, but...it's funny

Lucius is a man of some learning, he should know that Izzy's shark story is not, strictly speaking, fiction: A metaphor is a figure of speech that describes an object or action in a way that isn't literally true, but helps explain an idea or make a comparison.  (Thanks, Grammarly!) Izzy's not covering up shit with that story, he's explaining an idea.

STG if Izzy and Lucius don't make out by the end of this series...

Roach's comment about Frenchie's beautiful body, lmao

Anyone ever see Northern Exposure? There was a great scene in an early episode of that show where Joel was trying to figure out how Marilyn could sit still and quiet on her shifts as his receptionist and he was just boggled that she could, as Fang puts it, sit with herself. I'm not sure if this quote was from that episode, but I know it's a Marilyn quote: Words are heavy like rocks … they weigh you down. If birds could talk, they wouldn't be able to fly. That has stuck with me for a looong time. Anyway, sorry to blather, that's what this bit of Fang and Ed's conversation reminds me of.

Obvs the shirt needed to stay for plot reasons but also glad Stede got to keep it because he looks fine AF

Awwww Lucius and Pete, I love their love. I laughed and cried.

That feeling when someone reacts in all the right ways to all the right parts of your stories ♥

So much to love about this scene, obviously. Much has already been written about the kiss (THAT KISS!!) and Ed asking to go slow and Stede meeting him where he's at, but I am obsessed with the way Ed looks down, ever so slightly surprised, when Stede takes his hand. When, in Ed's adult life, has someone held his hand in a romantic context? It really is perfect.

And all that is to say nothing of Sometimes it's nice to be patient and wait. Jesus H Christ. When those two finally fuck, brains are going to melt and run out of the ears of fans all over the world.

Okay, phew! That was a lot, thank you for reading!

As a reward for your perseverance, here's a bonus quote I found while I was looking up Marilyn's bird quote:

"We are all pirates at heart. There is not one of us who hasn't had a little larceny in his soul. And which one of us wouldn't soar if God had thought there was merit in the idea? So, when we see one of those great widespread pirates soaring across the grain of sea winds we thrill, and we long, and, if we are honest, we curse that we must be men every day. Why not one day a bird!  There's an idea, now, one day out of seven a pirate in the sky. What puny power a man can attain by comparison. Compare a 747 with a bird and blush!"

Roger Caras, Birds and Flight, 1971.

#ofmd #ofmd s2 #ofmd s2 spoilers #our flag means death #ofmd s2e5 #the curse of the seafaring life

[donteattheappleshook]

CS fics by @elizabeethan you must read!

Happy birthday @elizabeethan ! @snowbellewells and I had the same idea apparently but you deserve all the love for your fantastic stories on your birthday! 

Elizabeth have so many amazing, beautiful fics and so I’ve struggled to narrow it down to my absolute forever favorites. If you haven’t read one of them yet you’re missing out and you need to rectify that ASAP - your life will be better for it, trust me

The Sad Baker Killian series

Never More Than I Can Take 

holding my breath for you

From the Beginning 

What can I even say about this series - there aren’t even words. It’s the softest, most painful, hearbreakingly beautiful love story. Sad Killian is always one of my favorites but who knew that adding baker to that would just magnify it tenfold. Ugh this story is just - I can’t - just gfjdakvdsagl. Read it. 

Overboard  series

Ao3

Here we have a beautiful example of our lovely talented shipmate thinking she could get away with only writing us a oneshot of this breathtaking universe. And here we are 6 installments in and if you don’t think I would devour a hundred thousand more you’re wrong. I need this as a whole damn novel that just never ever ends. The sad silver Killian and damaged Emma, the way you’ve written the emotion and the love between these two, the way you created such a full and complete world which feels so real and beautiful while still keeping our favorite ship so true to their characters - I’m in awe. Sometimes I’ll just start thinking about this fic and sit there for a good long while in amazement at your talent. Did I mention I’m obsessed with this series already? Perfection.  

Watch the Sunlight Fade

UUUUGGGGHHHHHH this fic. It’s like you wrote everything I wished Sons of Anarchy had been and then multiplied the amazingness by a billion. This one is so so painful to read and so incredibly beautiful. Strap yourselves in for a hell of an angsty ride that will be 100% worth it. Prepare yourself to want to murder Neal like you never have before. Prepare yourself to want to give Killian a giant fucking hug and take care of him. The way you slow burned this fic too is just stunning too and I can’t even get my words to work right in saying how much I love this fic. Everyone needs to read it and give it the appreciation it deserves because WOW this story gives me life. 

Steal Away

So there’s obviously a pattern starting here of @elizabeethan hurts me to the deepest part of my soul and I thank her for it. I was obsessed with this fic from the moment you suggested the premise and honestly apart from Overboard which will forever be one of my all time favorite fics, this might be my favorite of yours. This fic starts as a robery gone wrong and then becomes something so much more than I ever expected or knew I needed. It had me crying, like ugly cry in public but don’t stop reading because you need to know what happens next, and then just feeling so many things that I couldn’t do anything but yell at you about it and then I think this one just renewed my belief in love because you wrote their characters and their story and their emotions so perfectly and everything feels so REAL and heartbreaking and then so so hopeful. This fic is a masterpiece and I would (have?) read it a million times over. 

Spaces Between Us

I remember this fic starting with “do you think people would be mad if...” and man I think that is how you need to approach everything you write forever lmao. Will it make them mad? I don’t know but it will absolutely make them rage at your horrible villains, want to cry for Emma and be begging you to let our babies have a torid affair and then maybe murder someone (disclaimer: there is no murder in this fic- but you’d consider it a reasonable choice if there were). You absolutely broke my heart with this story, poor Emma trapped in her relationship with Walsh, the second chance love story that felt so real that I was blown away. I’ve always found it hard to read those because I couldn’t get on board with my ship breaking up in the first place let alone how they’d end up together again but then you wrote this fic and I get it now. And you brought them together again in such a beautiful way with all the angst I could possibly handle. You write angst so well but you also have such a talent with bringing happiness and love and hope back to the story at the end of it all and this fic is a perfect example of that. 

Between the Morning and the Night

Finally I had to throw this hilarious little fic in. I swear I’d have listed every single one of your shorter fics - there were so many I loved and everyone should go read them all but I had to narrow it down for this list and I ahve to say that this might be my absolute favorite of your standalones. The premise is so fucking funny - Will noticing the scratches on Killian’s back and Killian in full blown panic about David finding out just who gave them to him - dead. Of course, beautiful, talented, amazing author that you are you gave us feels like you wouldn’t believe turning this funny little oneshot into a truly stunning piece of writing. I love this fic so much. Like just: 

“Good god, mate.”

He turns, surprise in his eyes when he faces his friend and colleague and is met with his shocked, horrified expression.

“What?”

He knows he’s red and sweaty after a workout, but it can’t be anything different from how he always looks when they return to the locker room.

“I mean, were you attacked?”

💀💀💀💀💀

Bless this fic and bless you for writing it

I hope you’ll all go and read the incredible fics that Slibby has written over the last couple years (she wrote 54 in like 2 years???? are you real though, girl??) and give her the love and appreciation she deserves on this the most special of days!

Happy birthday again @elizabeethan you’ve been the best pocket friend a girl could ask for and I’m forever grateful that the fandom brought us together 

@kmomof4 @elizabeethan @the-darkdragonfly @undercaffinatednightmare @jennjenn615 @dramioneswan @gingerchangeling @gingerpolyglot @batana54 @lfh1226-linda @csalltheway @xsajx @xarandomdreamx @onceratheart18 @ownedbycaptainswan @teamhook @pirateprincessofpizza @lostintheskyfaraway @zaharadessert @thejollyroger-writer @ultraluckycatnd @justanother-unluckysoul @spartanguard @jonesfandomfanatic @deckerstarblanche @jrob64 @klynn-stormz @wefoundloveunderthelight @sailtoafarawayland @tiganasummertree @winterbaby89 @hollyethecurious @stahlop @superchocovian @snowbellewells @xellewoods @sals86 @karlyfr13s ​ @ouatpost ​ @skairipakomtrikru @lonelyspectator12   @anmylica   @alexa-fangirl-forever @inspiredbystardust @marcella2727 @paradiselady19 @koryandr @killiansprincss

#major cs fic rec #fic recs plural #cs fic rec #cs fanfic #cs ff #talented shipmate is talented #happy birthday my love!

[valkyrieandstrangeridingaragorn]

Can we agree that even Steve x Peggy definitely problematic but at least Peggy look interest and like with Steve and they both look like each other while loki x sylvie, yeah they keep saying they in love but look likely only loki and sylvie look disgust with loki

If you put polling which ship that more good and more have chemistry between Steve x Peggy and loki x sylvie, I believe that Steve x Peggy will become winner

I understand where you're coming from but in a way, I think that's all due to framing.

Both are similar characters in that they were framed as always right and any wrongdoing on their part was either swept under the rug or directly framed-to-deceive in order to paint it as right even when it was wrong. And of course in both cases the men were shown drooling over them (and they were the only women around and/or the women surrounding them were written as enemies or villains. It's funny to point out though that even in TFA when Steve disagrees or downright ignores Saint Maggy, the MCU still tries to act like he followed her like a lost puppy? It's so freaking weird? Watch your own movies?)

The main difference is Sylvie was introduced as an enemy or a foil. Loki and her were supposed to go from enemies to friends (or lovers), whereas Saint Maggy was introduced as perfect and she has always been the only woman Steve was allowed to get close to or show any interest in. Sharon only made it so far before they turned her into a villain.

I never saw any love in either of those two relationships, if I'm being honest. In both cases we were told that, as long as the women in those two are happy and the men follow them, it is a perfect relationship... and then we're shown two occasions in which the men don't agree with the woman (Loki in the S1 finale) or they do something they don't like (Steve being kissed by Lorraine), and all hell breaks loose. And not only that, but we're told to agree with the women in those situations because apparently, it's feminist to do so? "Look how badass they are insulting the men or shooting at them! Girl power!" 🤦‍♀️

I just don't see any love there. I see possession and self-righteousness and a desperate need for control... but no love. We only think there's love in TFA thanks to the framing, they did a terrible job of writing that romance. And in the Loki series, Sylvie is absolutely awful to him (In S1, can't speak for S2) but we're told he deserves it anyway.

All in all, what I want is something like what Christine and Stephen had. Even though they didn't end up together, they have (and yes, I say have and not had because screw Waldron and his MoM) so much love between them. Or Wanda and Vision. Or Thor and Jane. Or Quill and Gamora. In fact, in that last one they're also introduced as enemies at first but their relationship evolves brilliantly because BOTH characters grow and change and improve. The problem with Saint Maggy and Sylvie is that we were told they were perfect from the get-go despite that not being true at all... so it is pretty tough to buy their romance with Loki/Steve since their core characterization is so defective to begin with.

#anti peggy carter #anti sylki #wow in order to write that second tag I had to stop and think of what the word was for the ship... I didn't remember! #that's a good sign right? lol

[daydreamtoropova]

Ships

I want to talk about ships.

First I want to get out of the way is that I don't understand people who do them in the first place. Sure I might find some of the art and fanstories people make of the ships have cute moments between the characters and all. But I personally like to keep things as canon as possible, because then I know what I'm writing/drawing and I'm not wasting my precious time on something that does not hold up to the actual thing.

Some spoilers for Gravity Falls and Beastars...

Okay so now that that's out of the way, I want to talk about the actual problem. Certain ships and the patterns of problems I see with some of them.

LGBTQ+ Ships:

Gravity Falls BillDip

Nowadays you can see a lot of ships, that much is true. But I want to bring up certain ships like BillDip, a good example of a problematic one. And this is just a bizarre example I could think of being bad. And I'm glad it pretty much stopped being so popular. BillDip takes a timeless extraterrestrial triangle (or mostly I see him portrayed as a non-canon human version) with the most immense powers in the world who is the greatest sworn enemy of originally a canonically average 12-year-old (for most of the series before at the end he turned 13). Do you see the problem here? Sure if you age up the second character it is technically legal to do that... But they still have a great age gap of about a trillion years. Okay... What if you age the first character down? Well, now you have stayed way too far from canon, at this point why not just find another ship that could perfectly accommodate your liking? There are many characters who are all-mighty beings and many characters who are just average in the same universe of the same fandom. And the problem is that they don't even have chemistry. They are the greatest sworn enemies with nothing in common. Bill is manipulative and bad, and Dipper knows that. The only moment Bill is nice to Dipper is when he's trying to manipulate him into possessing his body. They are literally the greatest enemies, not even a single bit of chemistry. And I feel the only reason it was ever shipped is because one of them was male (well a genderless cosmic being, but a male-like side to him) and the other one was too. Not everything that's gay is good.

Beastars Lougosi

But I'm not bitching on all gay ships if you're asking, no. Some are actually backed up by canon and make sense to a certain degree. Let's say the ship Lougosi. This ship takes place in a world of anthropomorphic animals where it's almost forbidden for carnivore animals to interact with herbivores. Louis is a male deer who was the head actor of the drama club. Legosi, a male gray wolf, worked for the sets for the plays of the drama club. Well, Legosi is usually portrayed to have been a dangerous person at first because he is automatically grouped as a carnivore alongside him having a menacing aura. And Louis seemed to not like him at first, where Legosi was the main angering for Louis. So Louis saw Legosi as some kind of antagonist before. There have been moments in the series that suggest a connection between eating and mating inside this universe as many of the characters talk about those things, or those things got mentioned, at the same time. So when Louis just one time grabbed Legosi and asked him to show him his fangs, that might've been an awakening for some people to ship this. It has also been shown throughout the series and is actually one of the main plots, that Legosi is in love with a herbivore (a white dwarf rabbit by the name of Haru to be exact), so the possibility of him liking Louis in this ship is not too far off. Along with Louis actually becomes the boss of a carnivore gang of lions for the black market, where he learns to bond with them and actually eat meat... Right at the end of the series, it is shown that Louis sacrifices a leg to Legosi so that he can become strong and fight the murderer of Tem (an alpaca friend of Legosi) who was Riz (a large brown bear).

It's just that some ships I find seem to not work, no chemistry, and no anything. It just seems that some ships are just for the sake of the LGBTQ+ and its over-representation as some of these awful ships. If you're going to represent the LGBTQ+ community and try to be inclusive, please don't push some of these ships. Sure it's fine I guess if you ship it as a crack ship, but really think about whether you actually ship certain characters together or not. And I'm not saying that the shipping fandom is bad, I just want to bring attention to the bad part I find of it.

#ships #gay ships #shipping

[user-needs-new-hyperfixation]

What are your personal opinion about queerbaiting in anime/manga? Sorry for the random ask...It's just that most of my otps are of 2 male anime/manga characters that describes as bff/ rivals/ enemies that don't have any romantic relationships.....Even after I watched/read BL anime/manga, I still ship more of them that canonly are not a couple....Is that weird?

First of all, it's fandom! Be weird, that's practically what it's for! But I think this is pretty common actually. I know I certainly relate to it.

(I apologize in advance for how little anime I'm going to specifically mention here; Moriarty the Patriot is really my biggest foray back into the genre after a like 8-10 year break from being an otaku. I'm still catching up lol.)

I define queerbaiting (and I think this IS the definition) as a situation where the creators of a piece of fiction have realized that their media is appealing to queer people, and have decided to capitalize on that interest without any intention of actually letting a queer story happen. So, Destiel for example is 100% queerbaiting: (many of) the writers dragged that out very intentionally while also being disdainful of and seemingly grossed out by their queer audience. They just wanted to see how much money they could milk from it.

On the far opposite side is something like Our Flag Means Death, which is like a love letter to queer audiences and has queer people on the creative team and is just generally a joy.

In between, you have things like Good Omens or Hannibal, that maybe weren't setting out to be queer stories, but embraced the love from that community and allowed that element to grow within the series. The anecdotal story about Hannibal; that Bryan Fuller as a gay man was actually setting out to explore straight male friendships that he didn't feel like he could entirely access himself, only to have the chemistry between the leads shift the story, is something I really love (regardless of whether it's entirely true.) THAT is the kind of romance story-telling I want to see; something organic played out between writers and actors and audience. A living thing, rather than a set-in-stone script.

So, bringing that back to anime/manga, and using the series I'm most obsessed with, I think SherLiam is a bit of that. They've been very clearly fitting into romance tropes right from the get-go, but I also would not be surprised at all if our Senseis were responding to positive feedback from fans as they keep letting it get gayer and gayer. Though I have zero expectations of the words "I love you" or of an on-page kiss (and frankly I like what we have gotten better), nothing about it feels like a loveless manipulative money-grab. It feels like, "we like this, the fans like this, so we're gonna let it be as much a romance as it can be within the confines of the magazine it's published in."

In a more general way though, I totally agree with shipping not-quite canon couples above couples in things that are strictly romances, whether straight or gay. If you're watching a romantic movie or reading a BL manga, the ending is a foregone conclusion. You know they're gonna get together. And quite often sex is brought in very early.

Personally, I prefer a genuine will they/won't they. I like not knowing. And I like a couple to get really deeply emotionally intimate before sex factors in. So slowburns and things that never really become canon, or become canon right at the end, really work for me. There's always fanfiction if things aren't resolved the way we want, and in the meantime I can enjoy seeing a pair truly get to know each other in a way that most couples who only get an hour and a half of screentime or a few episodes just don't. I'll take 100 chapters of pining with no resolution over a couple hopping in bed after 45 minutes on screen.

#rambling #queerbaiting #yuukoku no moriarty #moriarty the patriot #basically my favourite ship dynamic is anything that emotionally edges me for interminable lengths of time lol

[thealexchen]

If I have to be honest, Life is Strange True Colors fandom is the least toxic fandom of them all. Everyday, I keep seeing the same arguments from the LisSubreddit and Listwt, usually by the same group of people (whom I won't name - chances are, they might be on tumblr too and could be reading this too). Such as ship wars, which are the best endings, and let alone same insults everyday like "max flopfield" or listwt starting shit and being triggered over petty reasons or over nothing. But this is what happens when you're in the small fandom dedicating to Life is Strange, I know we're all desperate for new contents. So am I, but why use the same takes that'll cause unintentional or unnecessary drama for the sake of something new? I miss the old days when we're only writing fanfictions, drawing fanarts, or coming up with ADORKABLE headcanons :(

I get what you mean, and you’re right. The lack of new content means that old discussion (more like argument topics) get rehashed over and over. Social media like Twitter and Reddit tend to create their own echo chamber as the loudest voices drown out more nuanced takes and those people become too discouraged to continue (I unsubscribed from the LiS subreddit ages ago and I never go on Twitter). But nostalgia can be deceiving; the fanbase was more active in 2015 so there was more fanfiction and fanart, but on the flip side the ship wars were at their worst and LiS1 was the subject of awful online vitriol just because the protagonist was a teen girl. I still remember the downright nasty Pricefield vs. Amberprice ship wars in 2017 and the relentless hate (and racist reactions, but I won’t go there rn) that LiS2 got in 2018. Nowadays it’s like LiS2 never existed and it bums me out, even if my feelings on the game have soured since 2018.

But I’m gonna change the subject, because I was so interested in your wording “the true colors fandom,” because I think that’s a larger issue within LiS: the internal divisions within the series and the separate “mini fandoms” for each game. It’s sadly true that fans of LiS1 are rarely also fans of 2 because there’s so little overlap. This series has has a weird trajectory from the beginning, because it’s clear that LiS1 was always meant to be a small standalone story that achieved runaway success and spawned a prequel by another studio, and then DN suddenly had to figure out how to turn LiS into an anthology series. But the very specific, unique, and unprecedented (for its time) style and cultural impact that LiS1 had simply cannot be replicated twice. As it stands, the dead parents, queer characters, supernatural elements, and indie soundtrack simply aren’t enough to keep these games feeling cohesive and like they are set in the same universe. And as such, they never attract the same fans back to the next game. Not to mention the spin-off content has been kind of lukewarm: I stopped reading the comics and it seems like everyone does not want the TV adaptation to happen.

Adding onto this, discussions about TC fizzled out disappointingly fast because it’s a shorter game with a safer, more conventional plot. The characters and main ships are the least problematic than they’ve ever been, the game is almost squeaky clean with its political correctness, and the choices are never controversial. The thing is, that leaves almost no room for discussion. I think Alex’s parents had a lot of potential for their choices and how they affected their children, for example, but they’re barely in the game. TC kind of reminds me of Tell Me Why, actually: a very safe, careful, small game that was meaningful in the moment but one that people move on from quickly.

Anyway, thanks for sending this message, it’s nice to have a LiS-related ask again.

#anon #answered asks #lis #listc #lisbts #lis2 #life is strange #life is strange 2 #life is strange true colors #life is strange true colours #life is strange: true colors #life is strange before the storm #lis before the storm #pricefield #amberprice

[nightmarewing]

For the latest ask game, if you'd like: Puppyshipping 2 + 9, and Mokuba 7 if you'd like. Thank you! ILU

Thank you for the ask. :D ILU too.

Puppyshipping:

2. ...why I do or don't ship them. It started with childhood obsession with interest in the characters individually, and I still really love both of them. I don't know if they're my favorites, as I'm attached to so many YGO characters now, but I do still spend a disproportionate amount of time thinking about them.

Ultimately, I've always enjoyed shipping rivals, characters who rub each other the wrong way, and ones with diametrically opposed themes/backgrounds. They're not the actual rivals in YGO, nor do they even interact all that much in the grand scheme of things, but it's always interesting when they do. There's a palpable contrast in their histories and their living situations and their ideals, and that's fun to play with. Lots of room for interesting conflicts.

I also feel like Jounouchi is exactly the right kind of stubborn, temperamental, aggressively affectionate fool to be able to get under Kaiba's skin, given enough time and exposure. That it's difficult only makes him more persistent. He wants to be acknowledged. And I also think, generally speaking, it's good for Kaiba to be wrested out of his own head sometimes. Even at his most irritated, Jounouchi has always cared about Kaiba to some degree. The same is... not true in reverse, lol.

BUT even this scene is really interesting to me, because this is a point that Kaiba acknowledges Jounouchi: when he thinks he died in the pursuit of victory. He disparages him for loss and weakness in the same breath, but Kaiba really and truly believes there's merit in sacrificing yourself for victory and dying if you can't achieve it. Which is why the perspective of Atem and Jounouchi is so fun to confront him with: losing isn't shameful, and strength comes from doing your best and picking yourself up again no matter what happens. The fight, the journey, matters as much as the outcome.

Nobody represents that better than Jounouchi, and it's so much fun to butt up against Kaiba's issues. Jounouchi won't just lay down! He doesn't even have the grace to stay dead when he dies. Jounouchi doesn't care who he loses to or how many times he loses. For Kaiba, that existence would be crushingly shameful, but Jounouchi is fine. He's resilient. He learns from his defeats and (at least according to the text of the series... we won't talk about the idiot ball) gets better at dueling all the time. He's proud of becoming the third best duelist in the world. That's gotta be so irritating from Kaiba's perspective, if he would give it more than half a moment of thought at a time.

... I didn't know if I honestly had that much to say about them that I hadn't said already, but there you go, lol.

9. ...what my ideal endgame for them is.

Hmm, ideal is hard to consider since I'm into exploring them from a lot of different angles with a lot of different conclusions, but I am a sucker for them getting over themselves enough to grow into a comfortable, stable relationship in which they can maybe grow old together. I think they really could be good for each other if they'd slow down and let themselves be vulnerable and not make every conflict the end of the world. Big ifs, lol. I can't even begin to envision them having this kind of relationship until considerably after canon, when they've matured a little and had some distance from everything that happened (and probably from each other as well).

But I like it. I want Kaiba to soften his edges and process his trauma enough to get by without feeling like he has to put himself on the line all the time to be worthy of anyone's time, and I want Jounouchi to get the same kind of recognition and affection he gives so freely without feeling like he has to prove himself all the time either.

Mokuba:

7. ...the scene that I think adds depth to their character or the relationship this character has with someone.

Ahh, this is harder for me because what I've read of the manga is kind of scattered, and I think Mokuba probably is a deeper and more interesting character in the manga. Need to fix that sometime.

But as far as the anime goes, I love how anytime Mokuba is given a little bit of responsibility or authority, he gets so excited, like... it's childlike in a weird way. His circumstances kind of force him to be more mature and responsible in general than any kid that age should have to be, but he still really wants to help and blow his whistle at BC and be baby vice president and wear his DSoD suit and tie. He guesses he can get you a dueling booth at Kaiba Land under the table because, you know, he has connections.

There's just something about the enthusiasm he handles this kind of thing with which serves to point out that he's just a kid who wants his brother's approval, a kid playing at being a bigshot. It's also sad, because he really is stuck being one, dealing with Kaiba's behavior/handling things in his absence, and we can see how Mokuba reacts to even the slightest, most occasional bit of praise for it. Good stuff.

Questions here.

#thank you again! #ask memes

[tomeofsealing]

There's something Puyo related that’s been bothering me for awhile and I just want to put it into words. It’s all about Aya’s age and the constant toxic environment around the topic. Fandoms should be about sharing and having fun with headcanons together, not trying to claim who’s right and wrong.

Aya’s age is nonexistent in canon. It’s simply a personal headcanon if one views it as an adult, teen or elder. Yet so many people seem to think it’s canon that Aya is an adult or older, which is simply not true in canon. It’s left vague and up to interpretation on purpose. Nobody is right or wrong. Headcanons are personal interpretations, in all media people can view concepts and themes differently. Like how no one is wrong for headcanons about a character's gender or sexuality. Hounding people who have a different headcanon as you is just cruel and wrong. 

A lot of this seems to stem from Aya being sealed in the Record of Sealing. When in reality, all that’s really known in canon about how the book works is vague. It was taken by some kids who wanted to use it as a prank to seal the demon’s soul. There’s nothing in canon about what happens in the book to the sealed soul and when it comes to how long it’s been we only have one offhand comment by Akuma to guess around a thousand years or more. Because the conditions of how being sealed is entirely up to the viewer, one can headcanon Aya in those thousand years being aware the whole time or in a stasis, in the end neither are canon and perfectly valid to headcanon. 

All we also know about the Original Demon is they kept to themselves, lived in a castle alone and the only physical being described as a shōnen / young boy when the split happened. Some could say that because of living alone in a castle the demon was an adult, or much like Arle; just owns a home as a teenager because it’s a fantasy world. Another thing many need to remember is that Aya’s not the original demon either, only half of the original, much like Sig. They are mutually part of the demon but the original is long gone. Many know I headcanon Aya as an adult, but in my case I see it as Aya was aware the whole time but only in recent centuries was able to interact with the living, putting him in his early 20’s once given a body of his own. Yet I can also see how one would headcanon Aya as a teen, considering the only life perspective we’re aware of for Aya has ever seen is from a teenage boy and when the split happened the remaining half was a teenager; one can easily interpret that into meaning Aya wouldn’t be any different once put in stasis. I can also see how one would headcanon Aya as an elder, watching the world move for centuries while trapped in place. That’s the fun of headcanons, we all can have our different stories and ideas. 

There’s a lot of characters in the media who have a similar trope to Aya I can use as examples for any interpretation. Princess Luna from MLP:FiM was banished to the moon for a thousand years and implied to be aware the whole time, but once free is confirmed to not be fully grown and the same age as she was before being sealed away. She is still a young adult, much like the mane 6, and headcanons shipping her are perfectly fine. Shadow the Hedgehog from the Sonic Series was sealed in stasis for 50 years and that doesn’t make him literally 50, he’s still a teenager. Roxas from Kingdom Hearts isn’t literally a toddler despite his creation time, is a teenage boy like his other halfs. Dark Heart from Care Bears is an ageless demonic entity who can shapeshift, taking the form of a teenage boy originally for evil purposes but in the end becomes a real human boy once learning the concepts of friendship and compassion because truly he was a lonely child. 

In the end there is no right or wrong answer with Aya’s age. You can have a different view than someone else, and that’s okay! If you don’t agree with someone else's interpretation, there’s nothing wrong with that, just don’t think your own view is the only truth. Everyone has their own personal reasons for headcanons like these, some very personal and some just for fun. You wouldn’t get mad at someone who headcanons Aya as Transgender or Asexual, right? Age headcanons with Aya are no different. The truth is with canon; the writers of Puyo do not take this seriously, as new writers will add their own stories in future games, things can get inconsistent or entirely retconned for new ideas. So just, please be nice and let's be happy this is a series where so much creativity and ideas can be shared.

#puyo puyo #ayashii #strange klug

[dolloshub]

On a loop: Won’t stop or Can’t stop‽- MT

Experience time!

Master has been doing a lot of work on me, laying the groundwork on “loops” (Westworld reference). These are behavioral patterns that get triggered by circumstances, situations, environmental etc. The point of which is to both condition long term behavioral changes, thought patterns, associations and identity.

Loops can be stacked, combined, layered, have dependencies, and more. The first programming on top of the “doll infrastructure” OS has laid down and the first steps in a longer series of stages that will solidify this doll’s identity. From there, it’ll be iterations, version changes, and then generational changes.

The experience of such is one of like a lifelong habit being inserted into the mind. Part of me knows this is new and different, but it also feels like it’s always been that way. And then, after a few days it starts fading into the background and becomes as natural as breathing.

“Of course, of course I’m doing this, but haven’t I always?”

“No you say? “

“Well when did it start? “

“Before, and after your remember”

“Okay, now I’m confused”

“Don’t worry about it”

“Umm.. okay”

“That’s right, now isn’t that better?”

“What’s better? What’s changed, what’s different”

“You’re thinking too much. Dolls don’t need to think about anything they don’t need to”

“That’s right, yes Master”

“What are you?”

“Your doll, property, object..”

“Only an object- that’s all you are, isn’t that right”

“Yes Owner, that’s right”

“Is or weird I’m feeling yummy, because I am, if y’know what I mean”

“No, everything is as it should be”

“Right, everything is as it should be”

“Good girl”

True examples of what this doll is going through, or what’s going through this doll’s head.

Brainwashing… so simple, so subtle, yet so effective. The weirdest part is that it all feels so normal. The loops build on themselves, trigger each other, become self reinforcing, and yet ultimately go unnoticed.

When did you, become you? What makes you, you? When do you, stop being you and become something else? Reminds me of a story of a ship….

Yes. I know I’m thinking so much. And yes, I’m still feeling so very yummy.

A day in the life of a girl, who’s not sure how much girl she, where does the girl begin and the doll begin?

S’pose it doesn’t matter right now. I’m just gonna continue to listen to the PianoGuys. Mmm 5 secrets- how delicious…Seems like a good note to end on.

-Doll- MT

#dollification #mind conditioning #brainwashed #mind control #dumbing down #hypnosub #hypnosis #hypnotized #dark kinks #brainwashing #identity #blank #on loop #dumbification #mindfuck

[frenchgremlim1808]

Milkshake’s is toxic

Hello everyone today subject is about the toxicity of my mother aborted me (mileven for the uneducated) from season one to the current season, season four.

Introduction

                 Milkman is for the general audience the main ship of the series since el is the protagonist (who of course by accident forget than will is too but anyway…), and mike was the main force of action in season 1 and 2. They’re the average perfect couple, a “normal teenage romance” even. Eleven is the badass, powerful super hero who always save the day with of course no flaws and Mike is the first boy who showed affection to Eleven. He was charmed by the beauty and perfection of our god lord Jesus Eleven, who he is completely obsessed with and want the rest of his life with her. They love each other so much that they are each other favorite person and of course the most endgame ship of all.

                 Well what if I told you that every, sentence I just told you was utter crap. Because in reality it may be one of the more toxic ship which is still canon in the show right now.

Chapter one: Eleven perspective.

Paragraph one: Who is she....Really?

In season one, when mike nearly died at the end of the bullies, mike reassure her that she wasn’t a monster and that her actions were justified. Eleven saved him and he loved her

In season 4, El defended herself from bullies just like in the past (she broke troy arm and broke Angela nose) but this time mike treat her like she’s a monster. Why? Because it wasn’t eleven, the invincible superhero, it was just Jane, the vulnerable Jane.

( This is my edit, you can clearly see it, it’s shit. Also i forgot most of the text but normally mike says “ your not a monster “)

El was always used as a weapon even when she became free from the lab, when there was a problem, well it seems like we need eleven!          

“Hey eleven you were nearly sent to jail but you need to save not only your best friend from an horrible death and the entire freaking world from this psychopath who is one of main source of trauma or everyone is gonna freaking die, so get inside the shit and live again that traumatic experience”. Like bruh. Eleven always had her powers, they defined who she was to most, when peeps talk about her it’s mostly by her capacity. It’s never about her funny personality, her talent in art and craft, her love for cheesy romance and Miami vice, no it always was for her powers. She was just eleven.

Without her powers she felt miserable because now, in reality she felt like nothing. When Bitchela and the others bullied her she felt helpless. Before she defended herself with her powers but now she as to live without that part of identity. She was just Jane.

Eleven always was a super hero but Jane was just nobody, who would need a nobody.

Everyone need Eleven and her differences make her special, but Jane she a freak because of who she is. Only a few realize that being her is not cool all the times and can be so difficult (Will my boy...). Jane is a girl who can learn by herself and love, a girl who is just a girl with teen drama. Eleven is the lab rat who opened the gate and caused the death of good people.

So in the end who is she?

The perspective that others have on her change the way that see herself. Everyone pushed on her this ideal that it’s her power who define who she is. Expect some exception like our queen max. But it was max who gave her for the first time the chance to be her, the true her.

Not eleven not Jane, El

El is a young girl who loves eggo waffles, shopping and art and craft. El is a girl who like cheesy romance, she’s curious and creative. It’s the independent, strong and brave young girl who fought against the pain and the trauma for people she cared about. It’s the vulnerable, the emotional and emphatic girl who make mistake but always try to learn. Oh, and also she has powers.

This is the true her, the girl that she developed to be slowly towards the course of the story. Her journey to become her is slowly getting close to the end. She still has one obstacle to finish it...

Mike.

#el hopper #jane hopper #el my beloved #milkvan is bones #can you tell i love her cause i really do❤💕 #anti mileven #byler