#i can generally handle people disliking my blorbos. he is an exception

[clownprince]

anyway just to make my stance absolutely clear: this blog is 100% NOT a safe space for b22 riddler haters

[utilitycaster]

re that "he did all that shit and we love him for it post" I've been trying to come up with a generalized phrasing for this and I feel like I keep falling short without giving direct examples so can I just say the idea of all the, "well if the MIGHTY NEIN had had Bells Hells' plot/if CALEB were Imogen you'd like it" is such a bizarre ignorance of how stories work that you can't even really argue against it because it's like saying "well if you rode a dinosaur to work, my toast wouldn't be burnt!" Like this is clearly not following a logical pattern; you can only kind of go "...what?"

There are certainly characters who have traits I immediately find appealing, but it is extremely possible for a character I didn't originally like to grow on me through the narrative, based on, to get back to the jumping off point, the shit they did. It's also extremely possible for me to dislike characters I originally liked for that same reason. Characters are not, to me, a modular piece you can pull from the story unchanged (this is also why so many AUs leave me cold); they are a product of that story. They are defined by the decisions they make in the context of the story. They should also very much be a product of the world in which the story takes place (or if they aren't, that should also be explained); character should be inseparable from narrative and story. In other words, if the Mighty Nein were put into the narrative of Bells Hells, I expect that either they would take greater initiative and be more decisive and interested in the world around them and tell a story that I would like more than the version with Bells Hells, because they made choices I enjoyed more; or that they would fall into the same patterns Bells Hells did and I would take the same issue. It's not particularly groundbreaking to say characters (or people) at a point in time have some demonstrated personality traits but that those can change based on events in which they participate - that's the core of nature vs. nurture in real life, and again, pretty foundational to the concept of storytelling - and yet these arguments treat characters as isolated and immutable. The fact is, while I do think the narrative in which they were placed did Bells Hells no favors, I can't judge them on a more suited narrative that doesn't exist.

This also ties into another thing I see in fandom a lot which I can generalize a bit, the pushback against "he would not fucking say that." It is true that characters have much more range and flexibility than many people write them; we're all familiar with the reduction of characters to tropes and shapes and their favorite food and catchphrase. But there are limits. Sometimes the answer to "what would make him fucking say that" is "nothing short of mind control or otherwise totally gutting his personality; if you want to write a fic in which he says that in-character of his own volition, you should probably find a different character to write about."

And if I had to guess, a lot of this comes about because people do latch on to specific characters for whatever reason (which, again, fine; first impressions do in fact count and are valid) but then cannot handle other people disliking those characters (this is unequivocally bad not in a moral sense but in a get a fucking life and ability to leave other people alone sense) and so they try to set up a situation in which the fact that you like your blorbo and not theirs is either hypocrisy or bigotry, and the problem is that's virtually impossible to prove. What's I think wildest to me is just...I don't get how you have that bad an understanding of narrative. Like, to use another CR example, Vex and Vax are identical demographically except for gender, and have the same rough backstory. I personally prefer Vex by a long shot, and some people feel the same about Vax - and I don't think this is misogyny! I think it's that Vex has her personality and Vax has his, and I were to say "well if VEX made these choices would you prefer her" to someone who likes Vax, the answer would not only probably be "yes, because I'm interested in him because he has the personality of someone who would make these choices," but also I, personally, would be less interested in Vex because I like her now for her personality and the choices she makes in canon. This seems obvious, and yet people will make the same attempt at comparison towards characters who are far, far more dissimilar.

Anyway this is all just to say I think the fastest way to make it obvious you are not smart enough to participate in media analysis is to treat characters as inherent absolutes rather than a slightly irregular ball of clay that is further shaped by their story - some initial shapes might be more appealing to some, but the final shape cannot be separated from the process of story. If a character were in a different story they'd be a different character so yeah I probably would have different opinions; this is not a gotcha. What if the world were made of pudding.

[illusorysinger]

emoji oc ask game from @.brown-little-robin

filling this out for helvius this time because he's my rotating blorbo of the week i guess

cw for mentions of suicide

🌈 - Do you associate any colors with them?

honey color--anywhere from a rich amber to a thin yellow

👁️ - How do other people perceive this oc? How close do their first assumptions come to the truth?

as far as demons go, he comes across pretty chill. and he is, to the point of disaffected. he can look more cold and tough, and uses that, but he's literally just so chill.

💝 - How much effort do they put into appearances? Do they have a favorite article of clothing?

he's rather low-maintenance, except that he keeps getting new piercings. he likes jewelry more than clothing and it shows.

⚠️ - If this oc came with a warning sign, what would it be?

🤔... "he doesn't care about you!!!" *proceeds to ignore the sign*

🌨️ - If this oc had a day free from all their responsibilities, how would they spend it?

loitering in public places with his friends, smoking and people-watching

💙 - Describe their bedroom! Is it personalized, unchanged? Messy, neat?

run-down apartment. he keeps it clean, but there's only so much you can do when like the paint is peeling etc. It doesn't look like much but it's his. (*i haven't decided if he has roommates yet.) he knows exactly where everything is and will notice if anything is moved.

👖 - Coffee shop or high school AU, your choice: tell me their role.

high school delinquent would be the easiest choice, since it's so close to what he is already.

☕ - What is their preferred beverage(s)?

black coffee, absinthe, fernet-and-coke. the bitterer, the betterer.

🧁 - When is their birthday? How do they celebrate it, if at all?

i spent so much time rn trying to reverse engineer a birthday out of the signs i wanted him to have and then remembered he's born under a different fucking sky. His birthday's April 21st but he lies about when it is if it's convenient for him. (♉☀️♉🌙♑⬆️, by the way, if you care.)

🧠 - What is their stress response: fight, flight, freeze, or fawn?

freeze for chronic stress, fight for acute.

💭 - How is their mental health? Do they struggle with guilt or shame?

💔 - Does forgiveness come easily or with difficulty to this oc? Can they forgive others? What about themselves?

he considers himself blameless in pretty much all things, but is pretty chill about blame in general. if someone really wrongs him, he'll just cut them off. simple as.

❗- What are the highest priorities to this oc (at a point in their life of your choosing)?

he's a hedonist first and foremost. at the point he's met in the story, he's bored and aimless, just going with it, and apparently (he told me this just now) flirting with suicidal ideation.

⚔️ - How does this oc handle conflict?

he's stubborn as fuck, though not intensely passionate, so it's definitely a "wait 'til you realize you're wrong" kind of thing.

🌍 - What are this oc’s religious views?

he's a demon. ok real answer: he's pretty firmly anti-religion on the basis of being anti-authority.

🌊 - Does this oc have a secret or repressed desire?

apparently he low-key wants to kill himself. he's not talking about it to me though. he's the one who brought it up but NOW he doesn't want to talk about it!

✨ - Tell something that makes this oc feel happy!

drugs lmao. he's a heavy smoker and drinker and more than that he's well-connected to a network of substance providers.

🧶 - Do they do any arts, crafts, or creative hobbies?

yeah he draws. he likes pencil, charcoal, or monochrome pen on paper. he was asked to be in a band once but didn't play any instruments and wasn't interested in singing.

🍪 - What are their favorite scents?

tobacco smoke, weed smoke, wood smoke, charcoal, meat, liquor, blood. can't stand the candy ass vape scents though.

☔ - How does this oc feel about rain?

dislikes it. it doesn't help that demon world rains tend to be more dangerous than just water.

🌲 - Do they have a favorite location to hang out in?

he's a mall goth lmao

⚡ - Does this oc have any unusual or “irrational” fears?

not that he's telling

🗡️ - Does this oc have a signature object, accessory, or weapon?

✨piercings✨

💛 - Are they ‘good with children’, or more awkward?

oh my god no

🧡 - Physical touch: good or bad for this oc?

he doesn't seek it out often but he appreciates it. he doesn't consciously realize when he's being touchy.

👁️‍🗨️ - Eye contact: good or bad for this oc?

he's like

👁️👁️

🐺 - How does this oc deal with solitude?

i feel like i need more context for this one. like being on his own in a situation? he's fine. he's tough and level headed. being shifted to the backrooms alone? he'll figure it out. being shifted to the backrooms with his friends, who then disappear? he'll start tearing down walls.

🔅 - How does this oc deal with physical pain?

he's tough. doesn't think about it. he'll straight up black out trying to ignore pain. self medication!

🌱 - Share one of this oc’s early memories.

i'm not sure if demons have childhoods the way we do. he does remember the great fires of chicago, london, aaaaand rome.

🐰 - How huggable is this oc?

quite but he will not let you

🍁 - What is this oc’s favorite season?

he doesn't have one. i'm beginning to think he might be high-key depressed with his lack of investment in anything and substance abuse problems. WONDER WHERE THAT COMES FROM

🌕 - If this oc was an animal, what kind would they be?

reptilian i have yet to narrow down

🦷 - Would this oc ever bite someone?

hehe yeeaaaaa

🐉 - Very serious question… are they more like a dragon, or a unicorn?

dragon, but he doesn't have wings

🐸 - What’s this oc’s sense of humor like?

mean. haven't really developed it yet i'm working on it

🚷 - Tell one difference between yourself and this oc!

i think the only thing we have in common is the substance abuse/depression

📓 - Do you associate any quotes or lyrics with this oc?

*blasting sub urban songs at max volume* no