#it’s flanderization.

[bestworstcase]

I think your point about fanon Salem and Grimm interpretations only really reinforces just how easily people will swallow propagandistic thinking and rhetoric if they think it sounds right, and never give prior information any serious thought.

uh. no

fanon tends toward superficial and simplified readings because fandom at its core is about transformative rather than analytical engagement with the text and fandom culture is often actively hostile to the idea that the text matters. which is something i’ve discussed at length before so i won’t belabor the point but to use an example:

salem describes humanity as “strong, wise, and resourceful,” as having “passion and ingenuity,” as being capable of surviving and thriving in an “unforgiving world.” the ability to draw strength from hope is “undoubtedly mankind’s greatest asset” and “when banded together, unified by a common enemy, they are a noticeable threat.” these are all things that we have heard her directly state in soliloquies, a narrative device for conveying the internal thoughts and beliefs of a character. the story opens with salem waxing poetic about humanity’s virtues.

and yet if you suggest that salem thinks highly of humans, that she admires their passion and wisdom and ingenuity and her destructive war is undergirded by absolute faith that humanity will survive it, people get confused. because the fandom is largely uninterested in what salem actually believes—something that, again, the story has not only explicitly conveyed to us but led with—and has instead constructed an alternate characterization out of stock tropes (e.g. ‘evil cannot comprehend good’) and anti-themes (e.g. a major narrative theme is the importance of moving forward despite grief, and salem is the villain, therefore salem refuses to move on and is obsessed with getting ozma back)

likewise the story doesn’t say grimm are mindless: the characters describe them as “manifestations of anonymity,” lacking a soul, that “not every grimm is mindless,” that “although the creatures of grimm appear mindless, more delicate observation has proven contradictory,” that younger grimm “tend to be more reckless” while older grimm “learn from their experience” and “exercise caution”—all of this in combination with grimm behaving in ways that suggest intelligence and social cooperation.

the text itself is not unclear or remotely subtle about what it’s doing. the problem is that fandom is—by nature of being a community oriented around transformative engagement—not interested in the text except as raw material to mine and ‘refine’ and thus quite a lot of textual material gets dumped as slag. that’s not “propagandistic thinking,” that’s just what happens when you get a lot of people picking over a story for creative inspiration.

there IS a degree of Christian Behavior TM involved in shaping the fanon vis-a-vis salem and the grimm, but even that largely follows from the huge influence christianity has had on the development of western storytelling; this is very evident in the fanon treatment of the brothers both prior to V9 (with light cast as the benevolent God and dark as his malevolent inferior) and after (with the blacksmith cast as the benevolent God and the brothers as corrupt pretenders) but it does also play a role in the resistance to the ideas that grimm are not mindlessly evil hordes or salem is capable of genuine love and compassion.

which again is not “propagandistic thinking,” it’s people interacting with a story through a culturally christian lens because they are culturally christian.

[charlesoberonn]

Chocolate-coated marshmallow treat: *exists*

Literally every country:

[excitementshewrote]

[leocadra]

Bruges | West Flanders | Belgium.

[quix5gg]

inkhomer 2024 part 2

[simpsorama]

[illustratus]

Portrait of Baudouin de Lannoy (detail) by Jan van Eyck

[kristo-flowers]

A summer evening in Bourgoyen, Ghent, Belgium

[livesunique]

Tilleghem Castle , Sint-Michiels, West Flanders, Belgium,

Bᴏʀɪꜱ Fɪʟᴄʜɪᴋᴏᴠ Photography

[city-of-ladies]

Read the original study here

"In total, the Ypres city accounts for 1488–1489 record 38 named women and numerous anonymous ones engaged in intelligence activities. Some, like Josine Hellebout, were highly active, receiving payments for up to eleven separate missions. Others appear only once but often undertook significant and risky journeys—on foot, unarmed, and often alone or in pairs.

A key advantage women had was their invisibility. Because they were not suspected of military or political activity, they could pass through city gates, enemy lines, and military encampments with less scrutiny than men. This phenomenon, Demets argues, was both practical and tactical: “Women could more easily move in and out of cities or around military camps, acting as trustworthy intermediaries between opposing sides.”

But these were not simply passive messengers. Many women were paid not just to carry letters, but to “to find out about the enemies’” or “ascertain the situation” in enemy-held territory. During the Siege of Ghent and subsequent campaigns in 1488, for instance, Tuenine Spepers was sent to Damme and Aardenburg to “gather news about the King of the Romans [Maximilian of Austria]” and to Diksmuide to report on the local situation. Other women, such as Crispine Sroys and Beatrice Cambiers, carried out missions directly to military commanders or towns under threat, often accompanied by unnamed female companions, possibly locals or other camp followers.

The growing professionalization of this network became particularly evident in 1489, when the war intensified. “By 1489, women increasingly emerged as professionals within the medieval intelligence service in Ypres, as records show that the same individuals were repeatedly paid a ‘salary’,” Demets explains."

[thenewgirl76]

Taking advantage of Constantine's tendency to zone out during debriefings, Danny sneaks up on him from behind while invisible and goes eldritch abomination before becoming visible.

Danny: JOHN CONSTANTINE! I'VE COME FOR YOUR PITIFUL SOUL!

Constantine: BLOODY HELL!

*magic blasts Danny, knocking him to the floor and causing him to revert to his normal ghost form*

Constantine: You miserable little brat! I told you to cut that shite out!

*lying on the floor wheezing in both pain and laughter*

Danny: I regret nothing

The rest of the JL and JLD members either snicker in amusement or shake their head in disappointment.

[annyankers]

while i do enjoy spike being a bit of a loser i get really annoyed when people lean too into it because like.... this motherfucker killed two slayers almost killed 2 more, knew enough occultism to pick the best spot for dru's wellness and where to find a cure, and found the gem of amara which is some truly indiana jones level illegal archeology. the man is a menace and a simp but he is not stupid nor is he incompetent. if you let him cook he can take out a city block with a car bomb.

[galaxymagitech]

The fanonization of Tim Drake is completely unsurprising and actually a core function of his character. Fanonization is often facilitated by particularly relatable or flexibly-characterized characters, often termed “blorbos,” who inspire the audience’s sympathy, recognition, and/or imagination. Considered in historical comics context, the character of Tim Drake—including his hobbies, relationships, and personality—was constructed to be perfectly relatable to contemporary audiences. Over the next few decades, Tim Drake was propped up as a vessel for both readers’ and authors’ projection. It is no surprise, then, that Tim Drake’s fandom takes advantage of this built-in “blorbo” and interprets his character in wildly different, often extreme, ways, ranging from “poor wet cat” to “cold blooded killer” to “the most competent neglected seven-year-old in existence.” In this essay, I will—

[razmerry]

modern gambit has two concerns and those are 1.) wife and 2.) cats. I love it

[leocadra]

Bruges | West Flanders | Belgium.

[quix5gg]

cover art for my upcoming simpsons illustration fanbook :]