#fanon is contributing to ruining these characters

[honestlynoisywitch]

I agree with you comics writing is so inconsistent like imagine my frustration when I can finally get a comic and it SUCKS. And I high-key HATE Tom Taylor. But (and this is just my opinion) I feel like fans not reading canon is what's contributing to it. I can't say they are the sole reason cause no there are some writers that are just so biased and horrible I don't even know how they got their job but not knowing anything about characters and writing them however you like is contributing to characters deviating from their original characterization. Take Dick Grayson for example, a guy who's known for his competence and being the best of the best and look at how he is written today (the whole butt Nightwing is just🤢). Newer fans genuinely believe he can never gat angry or he's too nice when he's known for being an asshole when he gets mad or saying that he's a womanizer when he literally admited that he can't sleep with anyone he doesn't love. Take a fan getting into Tim Drake and Jason Todd and wanting to write them as these perfect human beings who can do no wrong, which is fine I too like my favorite characters to be perfect, but it's taken to such extremes with the robins like one has to be the victim (mainly Tim Drake) and the others have to be so dumb and incompetent and bad brothers (mainly Dick Grayson, Jason IS a bad brother), they read a couple of fics that say dick treated him horribly and so their characterization of dick will be a horrible brother. (For some reason it's always Dick Grayson who gets the short end of the stick). All of this adds up to fans who have these new characterizations (I would go as far as saying it almost feels like they're writing about completely different characters they might as well be OCs) and DC wants to make money so they will of course make comics and retcons that follow what the newer fans want and disregard what these characters are originally like. WFA is also hugely responsible for this. I would love it if there were two separate DC fandoms one for canon and one for fanon but I honestly don't believe it would work cause we will circle back to the issue of fans not even being aware that what they're writing is not canon (i am sorry but from my experience a lot of fics ARE NOT tagged as fanon in any way). I think this happens in all fandoms but it's so extreme in DC and what makes it even worse is the bad attitude of these fans (I am not saying all of them are like that but these is based solely on my experience). Most canon readers I have followed or interacted with are genuinely not trying to gatekeep or prevent fanon readers from enjoying their time. They are trying to correct some misconceptions about certain characters which somehow angers fanon enjoyers? Or fic authors who like to follow canon getting blasted in the commenst cause how dare they mischaracterize the fanon version of their favorite characters?

if you've read hundreds or even thousands of comics stop worrying about whether you know enough to write fanfiction about it. somewhere out there the most annoying person you will encounter is writing another 24k abused tim drake joins the batfamily early fanfiction based on their reading history of six episodes of wayne family adventures and a tumblr textpost. you are fine

[goldenharmony]

Do you think it makes me a bad person that I very much loath and despise "ships" with Kana with someone that's not Aqua, specially Akane? I see that admiration and familial feelings in general on fandom eng spaces are always twisted into shipping and this kinda ruins my enjoyment of the show I do like their dynamics but it is only ship talk and this makes me confused because I don't see it and this is not bashing who ships it I just feel it is so forced and OOC I just don't think it is sensical?

We're all allowed to have ships that we don't like as long as we aren't bothering shippers who do enjoy them. But with hating ships, I think the one thing people should avoid doing is purposefully downplaying relationships just because they aren't their tastes from a romantic endgame POV or hate the girl involved in said dynamic. Like Kana is framed as Aqua's light and has the most healthy relationship with him, Akane is the one Aqua has opened up to the most regarding his revenge, while Ruby is the most important person in his Aqua's life.

On only seeing ship talk, I told my friend before OnK's anime started airing that this series might have a similarly intense waifu/ship war as Re:Zero and I was right lol. The relationships in OnK are important to the story, but they also hold more significance than "who dates who" since they contribute to the story's themes, the arc's plot, or the characters.

While I don't like Aquakane as an endgame ship, I can't say I would want OnK to not have had the ship in its story to begin with. I know people hate love triangles, but I think OnK is an example of where the love triangle does work in enhancing the story (although throwing Aquaruby into the mix just made a huge mess - should've just left it as 2 ships in the ship war). I always liked how Aquakana & Aquakane are opposites in their dynamics, mostly because of how Kana & Akane are written with opposite attributes.

With Kanakane, shipping rivals has always been common in fandom spaces. Plus, Kana is the only other character Akane significantly interacts with outside of Aqua. Tbh, I feel like Akane has simped for Kana more than she has shown overt romantic interest in Aqua which I think is hilarious. I do wish more people could talk about their dynamic in general, since the only discussions I ever see are either pitting the 2 girls against each other or wanting to ride them off in the sunset lol. Plus, we sadly haven't gotten much focus on their dynamic since Tokyo Blade. It mostly has just been small moments that could be interpreted as foe yay shipping fuel, especially Ch 149.

I am personally more of a canon shipper, so I get the frustration in wanting to see relationships analyzed more as how they are depicted in the story. But I'm also pretty sure that most shippers of fanon ships are usually aware that their depiction of the ship isn't 100% accurate to the canon version. Honestly, Kanakane should be the least of your worries when it comes to fandom discussions when this is the same fandom that won't stop writing essays on why Aqua is lying to himself about not wanting to date his twin sister.

[crusherthedoctor]

Silver T. Hedgehog?

The fandom is so mean smh: Despite my complete lack of interest in him, I can still recognize that the Silver presented in the comics and most fanon interpretations does not line up with the Silver presented in the games.

They can't even get his eyes right.

They sure do exist: Given how I feel about Shadow, it's unsurprising that I'm even less enthusiastic about a character who was made to replicate the former's popularity. "Think Trunks" wow, such imagination

Anyway, like Shadow, I don't think he's an awful character, but... well, I just don't care about him. His time travel schtick doesn't interest me, his introduction was not a flattering one, given Sonic had to be Worf'd in order to sell this guy as the new kid on the block, and also immediately trusted Mephistopheles the Beelzebub (don't give me that "if you lived your whole life in a ruined future, wouldn't YOU trust him???" tomfoolery, you need to draw a line between making something in-character while also making it not completely asinine), and his appearances since then haven't really done much for me either. Whether he's fighting Eggman Nega AKA Original Eggman Do Not Steal, or starring in comic storylines that get praised for being tryhard and edgy (Dark Enerjak in Archie, the zombot arc in IDW), there's not a whole lot to associate with his contributions that I can give two thumbs up to. And I still don't like his design: I get what they were going for, but sometimes, things just don't translate well into their execution.

His boss fight in Generations was cool. And his moment against Infinite in Forces was great. But that's about all I can say.

(And yes, Blaze being handcuffed to him at nearly all times gives me pain.)

[7grandmel]

Rip of the week: 06/01/2025

Light Plane (Krabby Mix)

Season 1 No Album Release (Read More) Light Plane (Vocal Mix) - Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Ripped by Philiponbread

Wow, man, can you believe it? This week, we've officially hit nine whole years since the beginning of SiIvaGunner. I've spent so much time and so many words abstracting this channel's history into categorizable seasons – like the festivities of Season 4 Episode 2 found in rips like snow halation but it shreds, or the sense of momentum and tension of the ongoing storyline felt throughout several Season 2 rips like ULTRA S+G – but it's a different thing entirely to acknowledge that those seasons have all been taking place over what's soon to be an entire decade's worth of time. That legacy is something the team is quite fond of celebrating, with tons of Season 1 rips in particular like Stickerbrush Queen or Live and Ooooooooooooooh going on to basically become running jokes on the channel in their own right; yet on the opposite end of that coin, there are so many Season 1 rips that I somehow forget about despite how foundational they were to my experience with the channel as a whole at that time - which is where Light Plane (Krabby Mix) comes into play.

What most defines that first year of the channel's life as I've repeated many times before on posts like Battle Theme - Zeno Blade Chronicle X, is its feeling of complete, barely-controlled chaos; without a clear bar for quality set, and with the channel's novelty still fresh in everyone's mind, it was a time when anyone was able to contribute anything that sounded moderately funny. Today, there's a frequently-updated Wiki, a Discord server for fans and rippers to interact with one another, a steady list of contributors that have been around for years and truly mastered their own niches on the channel, but back in 2016 it was a wild west in every sense of the term. A neat consequence of this novelty the channel has since lost by virtue of the passage of time is that Season 1 in particular saw a lot of surprisingly notable people contribute only one or three rips to the channel as a way to throw their hat into the ring whilst the ring was still open.

There the notable ones of course; Triple-Q left an unmistakable impression on the channel not just through solid rips like RNR (Rip No Riffs) but through his championing of Snow Halation, only to mostly leave the channel behind after the end of Season 1; meanwhile, other quite notable people in the mashup/soundclown scene would also make their own contributions just for the hell of it like BotanicSage with rips like Thwomp Ruins - Mario Kart 8. But among these figures sits Philiponbread; a somewhat-notable figure in the Team Fortress 2 scene. One of many SFM-animators using the game's characters, he's perhaps best known for SEPTEMBER FIRST and the earlier-made OKTOBER FIRST, equally leveraging SFM animation and YTPMVs of the characters' voice clips – far from the first or most notable instance of the game's YTPMVers gaining attention, like I covered back on D-VA DISCO, yet still indisputably feels like a duo of videos core to the TF2 fanon.

That unexpected significance to Philiponbread only makes this contribution to SiIvaGunner all the more novel; emphasized, of course, by just how iconic it still feels in my mind. Light Plane (Krabby Mix), uploaded toward the back half of the channel's first-season life, still sits in my mind as a go-to Season 1 rip right alongside rips like the great seaweed; as such a perfect demonstration of how much fun SiIvaGunner as a concept is. SpongeBob as a franchise is iconic in more ways than can be counted, yet is simultaneously as inseperable from YTPMV as the infamous CDi games; for it to be leveraged for the channel all about celebrating weird internet arranges and remixes feels like a complete inevitability, and yet in my mind it wasn't until Light Plane (Krabby Mix) that my brain truly made the connection of how perfect of a match it would be; three years before Mr. Krabs entered the King For A Day Tournament in Season 4 Episode 1, and eight years before Season 8's dedicated SpongeBob event would finally come to pass, Philiponbread was showing me and countless others just how much potential the show's endless quotability had.

Because really, it is that sense of quotability that tends to inspire the greatest YTPMVs out there; it was Medic's "OKTOBERFEST!" taunt that led Philiponbread toward creating his biggest videos to begin with. It's just the same as how the undeniable memorability of of "CRAWLING IN MY SKIN" as a lyric drove no more nuzzles in my skin toward completion, the same way that one sole hhgregg ad campaign imprinted a voice into the brains of the masses that led to rips like Everything Circus becoming so funny; that collective consciousness that's spread to make memorable lines so funny to twist and contort into something new. That, indeed, is what we hear with Light Plane (Krabby Mix); as soon as the announcement is made during the percussion-driven buildup to the chorus, that it is "TIME FOR THE MOMENT WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR", thousands of listeners collectively clocked exactly what the joke would be, and yet the joke lands just as well even with the punchline effectively spoiled. As in the episode the soundbyte originates from, the narrator performs an amusing all-vocal fanfare of "dum dah dum dum dahs"'s for the Krabby Patty; here in the rip instead substituting the similarly performed vocals of the titular "vocal mix". Since the original remix of Light Plane never featured legible lyrics, with the pitch-shifting Philiponbread employs it's made to appear as if the original female-led vocal performance was merely substituted with the iconic SpongeBob voice.

I believe it's the way in which the joke just makes perfect sense conceptually, despite using a joke not otherwise featured much on the channel, is exactly what makes the rip feel so iconic; it's the kind of thing you, if you're the kind of brainrotted internet user to have found and followed SiIvaGunner as early as this, would have absolutely imagined in your head, which makes its excellent realization on the channel all the more satisfying to play out. It's that toonlink magic found in rips like Dr. Soulja throughout Season 1, and it's genuinely so fascinating to see it appear with such a strong effect by a contributor otherwise completely content in not engaging further with the SiIvaGunner channel; back when internet users of all kinds of notability were all drawn to the channel by virtue of its novelty alone. Light Plane (Krabby Mix) hasn't been referenced or honored quite as much as some other Season 1 classics, and its view count of 400K views still feels surprisingly modest to me given just how closely I associate it with the channel's original run. And yet having left such a strong impression on me tells me that it was a rip that did something right; a rip that understood the channel's assignment and pulled it all off pretty damn well. It's easy to forget how far we've come; yet easier to forget that, even with all that the SiIvaGunner team has learned, even with rippers growing yet more and more confident in their craft with every year, it can be damn difficult to top good ass rips from their fundamental appeal alone.

[sukimas]

I've been thinking more about Yukari's yonic imagery. I saw some people comment that her gap's are horizontal crescent shapes, looking at the Touhou wiki this seems to be variable thing. The main game portraits have this shape often, but many others are used in the manga, fanworks etc, some of which are more yonic. Another thing I thought of about the yonic gaps is that is vagina is itself a "gap" between the inside and outside of the body. The vagina as the birth canal in placental mammals (generally) could also be thought of as a "gap" or gateway into the world of the living. As a side note, I think it could make sense for a portal to the realm of the dead to have a yonic shape since it's complimentary. The End of Evangelion did something similar with the Doors of Guf.

I think Yukari's clothes might also contribute to this. She has a sort of nobility vibe to me with her parasol (commonly used by the rich in some times and places) and bits of purple on her clothes. Nobility generally define beauty standards in history, which make her represent a sort of feminine ideal, particularly when you consider that anime-esque art styles portray people idealistically. I am also reminded of the triple goddess maiden mother crone archetype in some spiritual traditions. Yukari might represent the crone due to her superhuman age, or possibly the mother of the Hakurei Shrine maiden(s), or a low possibility of the maiden due to her eternal youth. The number of possibilities makes this paragraph seem not relevant, to be honest.

You asked me where I think the eyes and hand fit into this. I think the eyes could be staring back at leering glances that were thought to go unnoticed. One stares at Yukari, lost in her beauty, not noticing that she is staring right back, watching, understanding everything that was thought to be hidden. Another possibility is that the eyes are meant to resemble vagina dentata. This would only work if you blur the eyes so it's only the white parts that are visible. The fact that these are eyes calls this into question, as does the fact that the themes of vagina dentata fit many touhou characters as they are all prettily dressed and very deadly. However, it is complimentary to the more common view that her gaps have mouth symbolism. The eyes might also have some relation to how some people can feel stage fright during carnal acts.

As for the hands, I initially forgot about them. Since hands do almost everything it's hard to conclude a solid meaning. My initial thought is that they might be reaching out for a connection, though they aren't drawn doing such. Are they meant to grab a lover? Then they would be in the same position as reaching out, though the picture I have seen of the hands shows them grabbing the sides of the gap, as if to crawl it. Maybe fitting, maybe not. I don't know.

Also I noticed that one of your posts shortly after my initial ask was that most of the Touhou fandom doesn't not understand why Yukari is sexy and make her generically hot ruining her appeal. Out of curiosity, am I meant to fit into this somehow or was it simply a coincidence? You also asked how my brain works: The answer is that it doesn't, at least not well or very normally.

[capricornyc]

how did you get here? - I watched both JackSepticEye and Markiplier play FNAF Security Breach and the boys just caught my attention.

why these characters in particular? what was the hook for you? - Honestly? I'm not sure, but I think it's the fact that there's so little canon content that we can mold them however we like, aka there's basically no 'wrong' characterization.

how long have you been here? - Since about 2 months after the game came out, so around 2.5 years

have you actually played fnaf sb? - Sadly no, my laptop is far too weak, and I haven't had the money to buy it for the switch yet. (plus I'm terrible at video games so I doubt I'll play it much once I do get it lol)

if you make content, what's your favorite piece you've contributed? - Probably the first fic I wrote (for this fandom), Violence begets Rage, begets Vengeance. I desperately wanna write the second chapter, but have been lacking inspiration.

what's your favorite sort of art or fic? what genre/flavor/style? - I mean... the main content I consume is all spicy, so I guess as long as the characters bone at least a little bit, I'm in XD

what's your favorite au? - Ooooh, that's a tough one. I genuinely don't think I have a fave, but Mafia is definitely up there, same with Mers, Nagas, and A/B/O.

do you have any ocs, or have any ocs you're fond of? - I do! My baby Star is definitely my favorite, though Nightshade is also fun.

what do you think of the dca's canon appearance? Scary? Cute? Something else? - They're a little creepy and their proportions are completely ridiculous, but I still love them.

what keeps you in this fandom despite the very small amount of canon content the dca had? - All the fan content, plus the Sun and Moon Show constantly putting out new stuff. I've definitely shifted more towards TSAMS and away from classic DCA, mostly because there's always new content.

be honest: if you had to pick only one, sun or moon? - Moon. Without hesitation. I adore Sun, but Moon is and always has been my favorite.

thoughts on eclipse? - I love him. Both the canon and fanon versions. In Ruin he's absolutely precious and I'd love to see more of him.

thoughts on pre-glitch sun? - Because we're given so little info on the boys, I can't really give a specific answer. I love all the different possible versions; anxious and neglected, sweet, soft and well adjusted, rude and overbearing, etc.

thoughts on pre-glitch moon? - Same thing for Moon. I've seen such a wide variety of ways he might have acted, and I love all of them. Gremlin, soft and sweet, calm, angry, reclusive, popular, etc.

do you interpret sun and moon as two sides of the same person, or truly two separate beings in one body? does it matter? - I've always seen them as two separate people, rather than like, different personalities of the same person. Just makes more sense to me.

what's something in the fandom you'd like to see more of? - A/B/O. There's a very small amount of it and I'm feral for more.

what's something in the fandom you'd like to see less of? Human designs/AUs. I think some people are really creative and make beautiful designs, but I personally just can't see them as Sun and Moon if they're human.

anything you're looking forward to? - More fics, and continuations of the fics I'm reading!

do you think you'd actually get along with the dca if you met them irl? - Maybe? I like to hope so lol.

free space! talk about whatever's on your mind! - I desperately want to make more content for this fandom and I'm really hoping I'll be able to. Artblock/writers block have just been a major issue for me, but hopefully I can push past them.

alright dca fandom, here's some questions bc i'm curious. the funky jesters make our brains go brr, but why? treat it as an ask game or answer in the tags if you feel like it! :)

how did you get here?

why these characters in particular? what was the hook for you?

how long have you been here?

have you actually played fnaf sb?

if you make content, what's your favorite piece you've contributed?

what's your favorite sort of art or fic? what genre/flavor/style?

what's your favorite au?

do you have any ocs, or have any ocs you're fond of?

what do you think of the dca's canon appearance? Scary? Cute? Something else?

what keeps you in this fandom despite the very small amount of canon content the dca had?

be honest: if you had to pick only one, sun or moon?

thoughts on eclipse?

thoughts on pre-glitch sun?

thoughts on pre-glitch moon?

do you interpret sun and moon as two sides of the same person, or truly two separate beings in one body? does it matter?

what's something in the fandom you'd like to see more of?

what's something in the fandom you'd like to see less of?

anything you're looking forward to?

do you think you'd actually get along with the dca if you met them irl?

free space! talk about whatever's on your mind!

[darkacademiaarchivist]

Why does a man seek to destroy the world?

TIME FOR DOING EMBROIDERY AND LOSING MY MIND OVER MAG 160; THE EYE OPENS (oh god oh no oh god)

(i think the first time i was listening to this i was makind dinner and i was just. losing. my. shit. Obviously)

(teasing) Anyways, don’t tell me the phonebox down there doesn’t appeal to your retro aesthetic.

can we talk about how Jon REMEMBERED a small thing Martin said ONCE while he still kinda hated him?

MARTIN: I mean, they’ve finished all the interviews? Apparently they’re calling it a “terror attack.” ARCHIVIST: Doesn’t surprise me. (heh) Appropriate, in a way.

..... (imagine the news tho if it got out that legit paranormal stuff was happening)

ARCHIVIST: Let me know if you see any good cows MARTIN: Obviously I’m going to tell you if I see any good cows.

isnt it funny how nothing after this moment ever happened :'))) (i swear EVERY TIME i see cows i go "omg good cows / is that a tma reference??"

Hello Jon. Apologies for the deception, but I wanted to make sure you started reading, so I thought it best not to announce myself.

NO GOD PLEASE NO

[The Archivist makes a pained couple of sounds out-of-statement-character, as if he’s trying to tear himself away from the statement and physically cannot.] [When he picks the statement back up, the words sound like they’re being torn from his lips.]

CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW FANTASTIC JONNYS VOICE ACTING IS HERE???? he even sounds like Elias...... help

Why does a man seek to destroy the world?

because you're a stupid bitch man jonah, hope this helps <3

It’s a simple enough answer: for immortality and power. Uninspired, perhaps...

"why is it always immortality, why does no one ever want anything more interesting?" (jonah magnus is a basic bitch)

All this talk about the freedom of being evil and destroying the world... i mean i guess but you could also.... not do this?! have you considered the joy of making the world a tiny bit better. he's a coward.

I am to be a king of a ruined world, and I shall never die.

WAIT HE ACTUALLY SAID THAT?? i thought that was one of that fanon quotes

Jonah / Elias' backstory is so interesting and i wanna punch him i HATE that his plan worked. i'm 100% convinced tho that the web was always pulling some strings, Jonah is giving himself waaaay too much credit

Gertrude would HATE knowing that she contributed to him figuring out his ritual...

How is Martin, by the way? He looks well. You will keep an eye on him when all this is over, won’t you? He’s earned that.

ELIAS I WILL STAB YOU WITH MY NEEDLE!!! (i know we say Elias is gay AND homophobic but he said gay rights here)

i gotta saw the summoning, for lack of a better word, is a absolute BANGER; it's so powerful

I – OPEN – THE DOOR!

CLOSE THE DOOR JONATHAN

MARTIN (frantic) Wake up. Wake up. Wait, John, John, John, WAKE UP! [He slaps the Archivist; the Archivist immediately shudders awake with a disoriented yell.]

😭😭😭

No. No, it’s everywhere. They’re all here now. (voice shaking – but in awe?) I can feel all of it.

wouldn't it be funny tho if the apocalypse was just contained to the UK? if they hadn't left the EU it would be the EU too but the fears respect their decisions.

Look at the sky, Martin. Look at the sky. It’s looking back.

this quote HAUNTS me TO THIS DAY!!!!

@a-mag-a-day

[curator-on-ao3]

agree with you about picard! same goes with strange new worlds.

i see some people being pissed that "snw spock doesn't feel like tos spock, he is too human", "snw chapel is too different from tos chapel, she is too cool", and so on.

but i prefer to think of it all this way: these series are the realities existing in the different continuity.

this way we can stop policing how canon accurate these new stories are, we can stop being afraid that the new installments are going to ruin our beloved established canon for us, and this way we can be more open-minded in allowing the new series about old characters to be flexible.

I totally agree with you, anon! 💕

I think there are a few points to unpack here:

First, fanon has compressed some characters and sometimes people expect canon to accommodate fanon. (Or vice-versa in the case of the AOS films.)

Second, not all canon is good. I have big issues with the 1960s vision of Pike getting sent away to a life of fantasy as a happy ending for him. Let disabled people contribute to society or, at minimum, be included and respected in reality (the way Pike was and did when he voted Spock guilty of mutiny for trying to send Pike away). So some canon can go fuck itself and I’m fine with it being overwritten (see also Janice Lester).

Third, I do think this is somewhat of a problem of Trek bringing back legacy characters instead of creating new ones. Established characterizations are valid. But, on the flip side, to gain more context (and modernized standards) for underutilized characters is a joy.

Fourth and finally, as you said, looking at each series as its own reality within a multiverse of possibility is just easier. Trek canon has gotten too big and sprawling (and, at times, outdated or offensive) to be constrained into a coherent whole. So many writers and so many episodes and even little things like whether Klingons can cry even though they don’t have tear ducts can become rabbit holes unless we remember that these stories are about people and people have always been open to interpretation and renewal and rebirth.

So, yes, anon, so, so, so much yes to what you said. 💕

[fancyfade]

I know you’re not the biggest fan of Tim, but I hope you’ll agree that there’s a lot of interesting things you could do with him that fanon kinda ruins. I think that the there’s a weird obsession in the fandom with giving him a traumatic backstory like Dick, Jason, and Damian when part of the reason I like him so much and find his character really sad is that he had a pretty normal upbringing, but his life kinda went to shit and he lost so much all because he wanted to help people. I think people are too focused on trying to make his sad because of a made up backstory involving abusive parents and instead should focus on the fact he lost his parents and most of his friends in a pretty short time period.

asdl;j i actually do like tim i just don't like boring fanon tim. i like tim as he appears in comics.

lots of characters who i like as they appear in comics, but i don't like the rhetoric around them compared to other characters (either by the writers, editorial, or the fandom at large) get negative posts on my tumblr. like when i was reading NTT and got to dicks more annoying era that i found handled in a narratively unsatisfactory manner there were way more dick grayson negative posts on my tumblr :P

WRT Tim's backstory I agree with you. I think that people who want to give him a super traumatic backstory miss the point of his character. LIke he was very much introduced as an audience avatar and someone who is supposed to be relatable and that contributed hugely to his popularity.

for why he ost people I think it is interesting to note that even if tim wasn't robin his parents would probably have died (just both at once) bc they were both kidnapped and bruce was looking for them bc he was in tim's life now.

I do think it would be interesting to see Tim take stock of his life and how much he has negatively been affected by what he thought was an idealistic yet temporary job. b/c he intitially wasn't even intending on being robin - he just wanted there to be A robin. then, after that, he was intending on being robin but only for a stint (as seen in Nightwing). Then in YJ we see him say that he would gladly quit robin... IF there was an improbable situation where there was no reason for robin to exist (IIRC he says no crime). So he slowly becomes more and more yeah thats what i'm gonna do....

i think there could be a very interesting story in like just after red robin era tim talking to cissie (arrowette) about how superheroing has affected her since she retired from superheroing when she nearly killed someone. and they could have some interesting parallels and contrasts with her having had no choice but to do arrowette stuff and its an obligation from her mom but tim definitely choosing to get involved in robin stuff....

[bitter-sweet-coffee]

wait i have more to say about shadow actually-

he's a static character. like, he basically never changes, he is COMPETELY the same idk why they even try to fit him into anything. I GET IT, I get that he's popular and cool and edgy and he's got that sad boy tragedy and ptsd and stuff but he contributes nothing.

he is angry, he is edgy, he does not like sonic. that is...about it. that is his entire character summarised.

also I'm pretty sure that writers cant even change him at all bc of sum bs rules set in place by sega or whtvr??? so. whats the point.

the only reason, THE ONLY REASON that he has anything interesting about him is because fanon and the sth fandom has turned his stupid, static, never-changing, forever-the-same-character bs into something workable and actually in-depth.

TLDR; Shadow the Hedgehog would not be even remotely as popular in the sth fandom if it was not for the work that FANON does to make his character up and give him a more rounded and working personality and story. canon has done nothing but work his character into the ground.

BASED.

yeah. the fandom simultaneously ruined and built shadow’s character. they destroyed his original purpose, projected their own oc onto him, and then hate sega for not writing their version of the character

shadow isn’t even always angry or aggressive or hating sonic LMAO he’s literally just dark sonic. like, antihero sonic. lawful neutral as opposed to chaotic good. he’s just a foil: that’s NOT enough to build an entire character off of. but we try anyways

[silenthillmutual]

What's the fic 👀

ugh. i'm not going to namedrop the fic on anon. but i can tell you some gripes i had with it that lead to me not liking it:

the characters mention the central twist of the game in conversation, which i think is a fascinating angle to take a fic in. unfortunately they just bring it up the once and it is literally never addressed again despite this fic including character death as a major aspect of it. and i would think that knowing that none of this is real and you're dolls in a sandbox would change how you view things like death.

the characters have anal sex without lube. okay, not all that strange for a fanfic, except that immediately after the sex scene one of them mentions having lube with them. so what was the fucking point of them having sex without lube? either don't bring up the lube or edit your sex scene so they use it. that's just fucking asinine.

not sure if this kickstarted the herb bride!daniil thing or not, but considering its age it probably contributed to its popularity and there are, you know, issues with taking a sacred indigenous role and plopping it onto the (racist) white dude love interest. not to mention that's not how the role of herb bride works in canon and several people just outright get this wrong in their fics.

speaking of things breaking canon: it breaks the extremely well-established and explicitly stated canon that the polyhedron does not work on adults. which, even if i'd liked the fic, would have completely ruined it for me. i don't expect everyone to have every detail of the game memorized and there are going to be times when people forget bits and pieces of canon or ignore them because they don't like them, but the happy ending hinged on something that is, like, central to daniil's route.

there's a recap chapter.

i didn't think the characterization was all that good. it was another one of those fics where artemy just seems to kind of exist to be daniil's love interest, despite the story predominantly being (from what i can remember, and granted it has been about a year since i read it) from his perspective. this is a problem with a lot of fic, people are just sort of fascinated with daniil and seem to decide to use artemy as a lens through which to view him. but i've read fic more recently which is a, much more up front about doing this and b, still gives artemy his own characterization through which he interacts with daniil (and others). but there's a point in this fic where artemy is getting ready to destroy the entire town just to keep daniil alive. which is just such a disservice to his character, imo, especially if you're not even going to bring up the fact that artemy's ending was about saving the town. and i didn't really feel a connection or relationship between the two that the author clearly wanted us to feel.

there's also a weird thing toward the end of the fic where artemy hatemarries a character for no apparent reason and has a kid with her and he hates this kid but also this kid reminds him of daniil? it's just. bizarre.

my problem overall with this fic isn't necessarily that it's not good. i wasn't nearly as impressed with it as everyone else seems to be. some of the prose here and there was nice, but overall it was just kind of mediocre. my problem is that people treat this fic like the notre dame of the fanbase, giving it a level of reverence it doesn't deserve. and then this adoration of this fic bleeds into how people treat both source material and fanon. which is why i am just begging people to read better fanfic. like we have obt and alaiw and more recently this fic are all much better than what i just described. like i'm not going to say i 100% agree with everything every author of every fic i rec writes, but they're just. much more enjoyable imo.

anyway rant over lol. this message will self-destruct in the morning<3

[gothellewoods]

1, 2, 4, 5, !

1) Who’s your favorite superhero?

I’m gonna narrow this down to Cassandra Cain, Tim drake, and Kon-el for DC. Venom (Eddie Brock) and Elektra for marvel. Don’t ask for more, I can’t choose lmao.

2) Whose your least favorite superhero?

Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers. I don’t particularly vibe with her, I never really did. She’s a little too military for me, and I don’t usually enjoy the military characters. It’s the same reason I could never get super into Batwoman (I still like Kate a hell of a lot more than carol, tho). I think Civil War II kinda ruined her for me. She’s so authoritarian there, and I know it’s a bad comic and totally OOC, but I just haven’t really bothered to give her much thought after I read it. I tried a little, but nothing left enough of a good impression after that. I hate the MCU take on her, too. She’s so bland and boring and just blatant military propaganda, beyond the usual for the MCU, to the point that I just felt uncomfortable the whole time I was watching her movie

4) Favorite Costume

Again I can’t pick one, so you get a few. I love Kon’s 2019 young justice costume. It’s back to his classic look, but with added edgy studs. He looks like his old self, but a little rougher around the edges? Tbh it reminds me a lot of the way I dress, which is like. Cropped jacket in that style, those round sunglasses, and the studded belt. The look is what drew me to kon in the first place lmao.

My other favorite is Cass’s batgirl suit. The original with the black lenses. I don’t usually like minimalist type things, but I love simple superhero costume design. Cass in all black with only the bat symbol for contrast feels appropriate, as it emphasizes her value of the bat symbol above all else, and her dedication to what the symbol represents. (Also I love it when she’s drawn with the spiked shoulders on her cape and big ears. )

Number three is Elektra as Daredevil in Chip Zdarsky’s run. I’m doing a cosplay of that costume, I love it so much. She looks badass, and it’s a nice change from how insanely sexualized she usually is.

Honorable mentions to nightwing’ s finger stripes and to Spider-punk, because those costumes fuck. Spider-Punk’s got great vibes all around (and everyone should be reading his mini rn)

5) Favorite Power

I love Cass’s ability to read body language. It contributes so much to her character early on. Fanon uses her skill to sometimes make her like, a family therapist who understands everything perfectly, when that was never the case with her. She might know how a person is feeling, but that doesn’t mean she knows why, or that she’s know how to help if someone is upset. I wish we had more content from her early days, some no dialogue, un-narrated issues from her perspective, allowing us to see how she perceives people

Ask game

[spacetwiga]

leave c!phil out of bullshit 2k21 -- a not so tiny post by a new enthusiast

As someone who finds both common fanon and actual canon to be quite fun, I really think the general DSMP fandom would benefit greatly from a few things in general: the greatest, in my opinion, is learning to accept that popular fanon won’t usually be the canon you receive. Another, of course, is that POVs are golden, but with these two things being flimsy in being accepted, they are the major flaws that cause about 90% of the absolute messy takes that gain traction, oftentimes poisoning a canon character's ability to exist in the story.

My biggest beef regarding this comes from how y’all treat c!Phil, so here I am, being annoying on main side! 

TL;DR... Just because someone acted like like a guidance to others, doesn’t always mean that they'll want to be the father figure role for everyone that breathes. Similarly, pinning down a character on a single trope is wack, so don't be surprised if they grow away from it.

Baby’s first little dsmp rambling below!

(Warning: it's long as hell)

The Dream SMP plotline is not written out like most popular media. With so many moving parts in the form of daily streams and the wonderful tool of live improvisation, it makes perfect sense that such a giant cast would not always be on the same page. Adding onto that, it also makes more sense that a vast majority of the cast will be placed into supporting roles, as the story needs to have characters that serve as narrative anchors and others that function as the links in a chain, all weathering the storm that is the plot.

Screentime, of course, plays a major factor into canon exposure -- in terms of the Dream SMP, POV matters equally, if not more, too. 

It’s a pretty neat way of showing things, but in the end, the fanbase has a lovely (read: godawful /lh) way of analysing characters, particularly when it relates to how they interact with others from their fave character’s POV. The tendency to analyse things from a single character's POV is fine, but not when attempting to critique the greater whole of a conflict. Both sides, no matter how wrong they may seem to be, matter.

Adding onto the fact that everything is live, there are things that will spiral out of control, casual words being skewed and thus having the potential of a single line seemingly contradicting the entire ‘story’ that the fanbase has made. If it directly affects a fave's POV in particular, one is more likely to take offense, as bias immediately bars one from trying to see the other person's side of things.

POV is important. 

Which brings me to c!Phil, and how critics tend to ignore his perspective to prop up another character, or justify the tearing down of another.

Improvisation is both a blessing and a curse; the fanbase, however, loves to test out the latter. With it, the fanbase starts crafting tales to justify it...And so begins the mess that is c!Phil discourse.

Say it with me, folks: c!Phil is not supposed to be your fave’s fluffy father figure... unless you’re c!Wilbur!!!

😃☝🏾Dadza is good...👉🏾😎👉🏾 But fandom wants the excessive, idealized version.

-- birb 2k21

Family dynamics are generally loved for their potential for comfort, particularly those of a found family nature. Fandom in general tends to lean into them wholeheartedly, with most major bases having at least one prominent group present; SBI, of course, is no different. From fanart to popular fanfiction, it's arguably the biggest group dynamic alongside the Dream Team, and for that, a precedence was set. 

c!Phil, if he ever joined, would fix everything! All of the ‘kids’ would turn to their new mentor and everything would turn out fine! This all knowing, morally just character will chuckle at their antics and wacky hijinks will follow! Fun times, right? /s

The hope for it, however, has long since been shattered, and frankly, good for him!

To go a little ooc, cc!Phil has stated multiple times that, while he was friendly with a lot of the cast as c!Phil, his only paternal link (at least biologically) lies with c!Wilbur. Simple, right? It should be -- there are multiple clips of him saying this -- but fans choose to ignore it in their critiques, generally citing favouritism or downright neglect for the character’s flaws. From 'favoring' Techno (who, in canon, holds the highest link in friendship outside of c!Wilbur's familal link) to 'neglecting' to visit Tommy (who he barely knew, and also assumed, like many others, that he was fine), these critiques weigh heavily on the scale that judges Phil’s so called father figure trope. 

The story, however, has only leaned into (and persisted with) that for c!Wilbur alone, and adding onto it, there is an established acknowledgement from both ccs. That confirmation should hold the most weight, especially since both Phil and Wilbur seem alright with it. Even so, that familial has yet to be explored much for both characters, particularly regarding c!Phil, who has his debut (at least narratively) in a scene that feels opposite to the classic fatherly role.

c!Wilbur denounced accepting that helping hand to fall entirely into his explosive end, setting a precedence unlike most fatherly types arriving to save their kid. Usually, fandom narrative would love a close save, father and son uniting to heal and build up what was broken, but c!Phil’s entrance inks his story in failure. Angsty, right? We love angst!

And yet, as the story ticks on, the bad takes pile up.

Why? Well, I’l used to think that it is a “funny haha” type thing; a way to grieve for a character that was lost, as Alivebur was genuinely a great character. However, with the plot slowly progressing c!Phil’s story to evolve away from the ‘mentor the kids’ trope , I should have seen a storm on the horizon.

It should have been seen from the moment he stabbed c!Wilbur in the chest, but optimism is one hell of a smokescreen.

Built up fanon, however, is probably the greatest fog to ever exist.

There are lines before the button room confrontation that paint a picture of Wilbur seeking out the approval of his father (who seemed distant, at least from his POV), as well as hints to the SBI dynamic, but with the countless dismissals/retcons from CCs involved, as well as little to no consistent canon acknowledgement of this team dad role...Why base an entire hate piece of c!Phil just because popular fanon isn’t real? 

Why, for the sake of building up a well rounded character, would one place the title of a communal parental figure on a grieving father who has little attachment to the community involved, especially when most of them are too busy delving into their own issues?

Furthermore, why go for Mr. Philza Minecraft: Angel of Death, CEO of KEKW, Functioning Immortal????

It’s madness, luv, and frankly, antis cannot let c!Phil process any of his grief (or flesh out his character) without his contributions being fatherly. His role has been idealized to the point where he is not a character on his own, but an accessory to the happiness of other characters. That is not how the world works, and in a conflict riddled server like the dsmp, arguing that it should be like that is counterproductive.

c!Phil had his own shit to deal with, and as he slowly uncovers how fucked up the server actually was, he merely adapts to it. He learns to play the game by his own rules, and people become mad that he’s succeeding in his own way. It's as simple as that, particularly when referencing his initial exposure to the world he now inhabits.

c!Phil is a man who used to hear of his son’s success from the letters he received, words spinning tales of won revolutions and newfound friendships. To a father, those letters are more than enough to assume that all is well, and with it, he had no reason to check on his son, who was already old enough to be carving his path alone. For him to arrive and see just how broken his son actually was, and then, in front of faces he only vaguely knows, kill said son... There's a lot to take in.

He shouldn't have had to care about L'Manberg in those moments, not when he had his son in his arms, dead by his own goddamn weapon; his son who, to his knowledge, was doing pretty well up until he caught wind of his plot. Yet, he does.

He gives them the benefIt of the doubt, even ignoring the one person he has shown to have deep history with (c!Techno) to assist the nation in defeating the withers and rebuilding what was lost.

c!Phil stays in a nation that has seemingly brought his son right into his demise, holding in that grief to help people who he assumes have the chance to rebuild, to reform. For a moment, he trusts that the system can turn into something positive, offering to hunker down and do what he can to help. That’s the start of a fatherly type role for most -- with many expectations rising from fans to ‘fix’ all these traumatized characters.

In another plot, perhaps critics could have gotten the tropes they want from c!Phil, but to blame the character for reacting negatively to a world he barely knew, right after seeing it ruin his son and target a friend...Maybe the need for a "father figure" only stems from making their faves happy.

Characters that don't directly support your fave are not inherently awful characters. Critique based on that alone is...flimsy, really, but honestly, you can use to to show how they process things.

Which brings me to the events leading up to Doomsday, and with it, the steady rise of c!Phil’s defining traits.

Say it with me, folks: c!Phil is one of the most loyal members on the server, but loyalty doesn’t mean he's blindly following along!

😃☝🏾Butcher Army take this L👉🏾😎👉🏾 Found it in the L’Mancrater

-- birb 2k21

The butcher army arc, while nestled among the mainline story of Tommy’s exile (which I will not even mention, because those dadza takes about visiting may deserve a post on their own), allows for c!Phil to see into the minds of those who had once been with (or even against) his son’s plans. Sure, he may be witnessing them after the eve of their newfound traumas, but this is an important observation to make when comparing how easy it was to denounce his affiliation to them and side with c!Technoblade.

Unlike the new Administration, slowly dipping deeper and deeper into their own form of power hunger, c!Technoblade’s base desires had never wavered. His trust in others, however, had, still nursing the sting of a betrayal, but with no conflict in sight. He is reforming, finding comfort in his solitude, and still maintaining contact with those he trusts.

Techno's Compass, for one, is a major example of their mutual trust. Despite being on opposing territories, they are civil enough to trust each other, just like old friends.

Thus, when you take two old friends who are more than used to conflict -- one grieving and one betrayed, but both seeking neutrality -- it shouldn’t have surprised the antis that c!Phil would place c!Techno’s whereabouts (and life, mind you) over some government he barely knew. 

And yet, above all else, c!Phil starts off as a neutral party for everyone's sake, forgoing potential conquest for peace.

To c!Phil and c!Techno, it’s like fighting back to back, knowing that one can always trust the other to fend off those just waiting to take advantage of your blindspot, while also quelling the need to imagine your partner turning around and doing the same. That sort of friendship is forged through many, many hardships.

They betray what little trust he had built in them. That’s on them.

c!Phil is aware how untrusting c!Techno is, and while c!Techno feels safe enough to give his all for c!Phil, he never exploits it to get ahead, which is something L'Manbergians felt okay with doing.

They take a book out of the playbook used on c!Techno, for c!Techno.

They went after yet another person who was close to him, using their power and influence to hold an execution under the guise of seeking justice. If c!Wilbur, at least pre-corruption arc, sent letters to his father, one would at least expect some of his old ideals of freedom and fairness to leak through into his friends, right? To see those c!Phil assumed would hold similar ideals immediately skew towards a darker, brutal side, particularly in threatening others to get what they wanted...Well, shit hit the fan.

c!Phil does not have that strong relationship with any former L’Manbergians, and despite there being potential for such, it didn't work out that way; instead, however, those characters manage to mistake his kindness for weakness. They take his preferred neutrality as a way to exploit him, to gain in such a way that he lost agency...

No more Mister Nice Dadza, and honestly, he’s justified in that notion.

They’ve lost his trust, time too short to have gained that strong link like c!Techno’s or c!Wilbur’s, and with it, came the inevitable association with Doomsday.

c!Phil knew c!Techno’s intentions from the beginning -- which had only wavered into dormancy because he had grown tired of fighting, understanding that the cycle he wishes to break is not worth his efforts -- so the agreement in participating is effortless. 

c!Dream was there too, of course, but in their mutual quest for eradication, it’s made canon that c!Techno and c!Phil hid away most of their arsenal, despite seeming overprepared. They have no loyalty to c!Dream; they’re smart enough to play along, however. He was a means to an end.

There’s no lies present in their relationship; c!Phil needed someone who didn’t try and pull wool over his eyes, and c!Techno let him see.

c!Techno needed someone who wouldn't stab him in the back, and c!Phil stayed true as his hidden sword.

Which is why, as the two joined forces, ideals aligning and power synergized, they didn’t think twice about nuking the nation to bedrock. Mutually agreeing that the system needs to die, they did what they could, and they succeeded.

How cool of them, tbh LMAO.

New L’Manberg tugged too hard at the sleeping tiger’s tail; they shouldn’t have expected it to roll over.

Their openness to each other was known.

There was no need for underhanded plays, for hidden betrayals, for undisclosed words.

Their loyalties were strong.

They were in sync.

In conclusion (maybe, maybe not...this shit is long holy heck)

😃☝🏾 I may hate this analysis in 30 minutes👉🏾😎👉🏾 Or I may make a part 2. Fuck it!

-- birb 2k21

And that’s what makes c!Phil an interesting character: He tends to be critiqued in reference to chatacters who have very well wronged him, have no affiliation to him or get associated to him through popular fanon. There's a lot to cover that I haven't (from Ghostbur to the whole Tommy 'dilemna') but overall I'm digging what I have now and if I ever get more energy, I'll continue!

c!Phil enthusiasts, I hope I did you proud LMAO. It's my first forray into this side of tumblr 👉🏾👈🏾 I'm a lurker.

c!Phil antis, you can either act respectful or go argue with a wall. I got experience dealing with antis on Tumblr; I am immune to BS.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed. Signing off!

- BIRB.

[bbq-hawks-wings]

I think at this point it's worth spelling out a previously unspoken rule on my blog and that's that I don't like to talk badly about specific people. I am fine voicing negative opinions about behavior, tropes, fanon, canon, etc.

I am NOT okay with voicing negative opinions about specific fans, the author, actors, directors, translators, or any actual real-life person because the internet can no longer seem to separate what's just a single, even justifiable criticism or disagreement in perspective from a call for character assassination and de-platforming.

People's lives can be ruined from the internet taking a small negative thing said about someone and through the grapevine blowing it up into completely false allegations that still have long-lasting consequences even if those allegations don't have any merit. I would much rather remain positive or neutral towards real, identifiable people and not contribute to the ongoing souring of the internet.

We can be mad about kinds of fans who act a certain way, but I never want to talk badly about specific individuals regardless if I personally like them or not.

[2-point-5]

my essay on why gamzee is good, actually.

@daughterofapollo123

tw for drug addiction, bullying, murder, and general spoilers for homestuck

Gamzee Makara is a joke character from the hit webcomic Homestuck. His entire purpose was to be a meme, to make foolish decisions, and to drag the plot along if necessary. “Then why do you care, Alyn? He’s a joke, a hint of comedy, an easy villain. Why would you use your entire lunch break on an essay for a literal clown?” That, my dear reader is a good question with a simple answer. Gamzee deserved better. He was a good character, ruined by both canon and fanon, and could've been an incredible contribution to the cast, if he hadn’t been brushed off, ignored, and dismissed by his own creator, as well as the readers.

Let’s start with his character. Gamzee Makara is a young troll from the planet Alternia, around 13 years old in human years. Although addicted to some very heavy drugs, and a firm believer in a bizarre cult of juggalo gods, he remains a loyal friend, even when the others dismiss and ridicule him, and telling him that he was a waste of space. His best friend, Karkat, clearly didn’t care about him much at all, something which Gamzee was morbidly aware of. He was brushed aside, not just by the narrative and his friends, but society. He lived completely alone, after his lusus, or guardian, having left him years before. He raised himself, his only contact with anyone being his online friends, few of which showed him any compassion. When SBURB, a universe ending video game, began, he was roped in with his friends, showing himself to be a surprisingly formidable fighter. When they reach the meteor and are forced to wait for the human players to reach them, he is mostly removed from the narrative, allowing Karkat and a few others to become the stars of the show. The next we see of him is his downfall.

After messaging Dave, one of the humans, to chat, he discovers that Dave has already spoken to him, at another point in time. Dave sends him a link to Insane Clown Posse’s “Miracles” music video. Gamzee is outraged by the blasphemy, and goes “Hero Mode” a short lived joke, with little to no effect on the story. Next though, he starts to unravel. He’d mentioned in his conversation with Dave that he hadn’t had a pie- a drug pie that is- in a while, so he was likely going through withdrawal. His mind was perfect for Lil’ Cal, the malevolent puppet, to access his mind. He realizes that he is the mirthful messiahs he had worshiped his whole life, and he takes it upon himself to cleanse the world of impurity. He proceeds to kill Equius, one of the people who had been cruel to him, along with Equius’ platonic partner, Nepeta, who witnessed the murder. From then on, he stayed in the vents of the facility, rarely coming out. At some point, he came across the young cherubs, Calliope and Caliborn, the very embodiments of good and evil.

He stayed on the edge of canon for a while, occasionally helping further the plot, but had little to no further meaning until the retconned timeline. He had previously been taken control of by Aranea to help further her nefarious plans. He and Terezi, one of his former friends, had a fight, resulting in her death, but there was a very vibrant moment where the layers of mid control from Cal, as well as Aranea Serket fade off, and he comes to for the first time in around three years, and realizes what he’d become, immediately before being stabbed by Terezi and chainsawed in half by Kanaya. Unfortunately, this timeline was removed from canon, meaning he never canonically regained consciousness after his initial sobering. He spends the rest of the comic being irrelevant again.

So, now that we’ve gone over his character, let’s discuss his fanon treatment. Most of the fandom took him as a joke, reducing him to a haha funny stoner clown who kills when he goes sober. Most people either hate him or don’t care, making me somewhat dubious that anyone will read this essay. However, if you did, and you got this far, I would like to offer up this:

Gamzee was mistreated his entire life. Suddenly, his whole world falls apart, his drugs, his religion, his friendship, and then he is taken over by the embodiment of evil itself. He was a thirteen year old boy, with mental health issues. He was a nice person, who cared about his friends, so naturally, the canon had to destroy him.

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter - Monday, January 24

JOYCE: I, I love what you've, um, neglected to do with the place. SPIKE: Just don't break anything. (goes to turn on the TV) And don't make a lot of noise. Passions is coming on. JOYCE: (comes forward) Passions? Oh, do you think Timmy's really d*ad? SPIKE: Oh! (gestures to his armchair. He and Joyce each sit on one arm) No, no, she can just sew him back together. He's a doll, for god's sake. JOYCE: Uh, what about the wedding? I mean, there's no way they're gonna go through with that.

~~Checkpoint~~

The Sunnydale Herald is looking for a couple of new editors! Contributing to the Herald is a great way to get your Buffy on! Find out more here.

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

A Romni Story (Jenny/Giles, E) by Misha (Mishamcm)

A Squirrel's Tale (Willow, Giles, G) by Misha (Mishamcm)

Falling Through The Cracks (Angelus/Cordelia, E) by Anonymous

mine, mine, mine (Spike/Reader, M) by loudlyspoken

The Modern Prometheus (Joyce, Not rated) by Vidicon666

Break It All (Build Something New) (Xander, T) by madimpossibledreamer

[Chaptered Fiction]

Damn You, Autoreply! Chapter 3 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by abitca

I Almost Do Chapter 5 (Buffy/Spike, R) by artemisthestargazer

The Fairytale Chapter 6 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by Dusty

Landed Chapter 19 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by Holly

[Reviews & Recaps]

When I Look Into The Future, All I See Is You (I Only Have Eyes For You) by herinsectreflection

[Fandom Discussions]

Buffy/Spike headcanon by house-monster-fucker

the thing I loved most about BtVS fandom by lierdumoa

[Characters interactions that should have been on screen] by herinsectreflection

Buffyverse fanon discontinuity continued by Tribel

Season 3 Episode 1 - Anne..continuity error? by 1BoiledCabbage

Who should have been the leader in “Empty places”? by Excellent-Durian-509

Giles is not as careful as he should be with his notes by lolaaaksjdhf

comics by litrallyarat

Most unexpected/best heel turn in the Buffyverse? by Dull_Drawer_9080

Alternate ending to "The Gift"(Spider-Man: No Way Home Spoilers!) by JacobBlah

3x18 episode, double or nothing thoughts by inertiacreeps1

Buffy Rewatch: Relationships by TigerJean

Your all-time favorite Buffy and Giles moments? by jdpm1991

Did Marti Noxon "ruin Buffy" as her Twitter bio says? by InfiniteMehdiLove

If it wasn't Anya by Dull_Drawer_9080

Favorite Buffy Holiday Episode? by rednax2009

Yee Godz Faith has a rough month after getting out of prison. by Dull_Drawer_9080

once more, with feeling by litrallyarat

Anyone else love The Pack? by jdpm1991

What was the point of Cordelia’s death? by payscottg

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

PUBLICATION: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Introduces a New Chosen One by CBR

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