#the character's gender doesn't matter

[biggest-gaudiest-patronuses]

main take aways from Halloween (1978) rewatch:

michael myers is canonically 21??? this bitch should be at the club

*sees tiddies* ***MURDEROUS RAMPAGE NOISES***

that's it that's the movie

outside of the fact that everyone who has sex is murdered by the narrative, this is a surprisingly chill portrayal of female sexuality? these teen girls are horny and actively enjoying Getting It On with their boytoys. no pushy boyfriends sneaking in through their bedroom windows--these ladies are taking the initiative to sneak out and GET SOME. one of them gets laid and then immediately orders her boyfriend to get her a beer. (yes she gets Slashered soon afterward, but so does the boyfriend so honestly, gender equality.) yes the Final Girl is the only one not having sex, but she's not bullied for that, nor are her friends slut shamed except possibly by being murdered by the narrative

actually the only character who is shown being morally condemned on-screen is michael myers. specifically FOR his violent overreaction to other people's sex lives. (people he is spying on). metaphorically, the villain is American Puritanism sticking its judgy nose into other people's business.

aka Michael Myers Is A Republican

but actually the real villain is the doctor. guy's a judgemental, shaming, pathologizing asshole. and he's been in charge of michael's care since he was SIX YEARS OLD? kid never had a chance. i'd go on a killing spree too

also the parents. where are the parents? it's halloween night and all the teenage girls are home babysitting their younger siblings? come to think of it, michael's first victim was his own older sister, whom he killed while she was babysitting him. teen girls are really shouldering a labour burden here. maybe parentification is the true villain

side note: mike commits his first murder wearing a clown costume...which is never referenced again? his 'iconic' costume is a generic mask and wig and jumpsuit, when we coulda had a Killer Clown Michael Myers??? travesty

i like how the Final Girl and her friend casually smoke weed in her car. yeah she's an honor student and her friend is the sheriff's daughter. yeah they smoke weed. so what it's 1978

(to reiterate, mike is 21 and should be at the club. im not saying he shouldn't be rampaging, im saying it's sad that he broke out, tasted freedom for the first time in his life, and immediately snuck back into his childhood home to go rampaging. let's have a remake where he goes to a nightclub and has a few beers. maybe some slutty dancing. then rampage)

oh no he's hot

[cheschesterpossum]

rogue!y/n is a bastard

They're a tramp, they're a scoundrel, they're a rounder, they're a cad- they have way too many exes

A tomato is thrown at the senior citizen with every note

[ulteri0rm0tives]

It's every iteration.

It's every iteration of V that will always find Johnny. Every iteration of V that Johnny grows to care about. It's every iteration of each other, in every universe, that will always find each other. They'll always become inseparable, tied together in unfathomable ways. Ways they could never truly unravel from each other in the end, no matter the end.

They'll always be destined for one another. No matter what face is worn. No matter what universe. No matter what, they're always meant to be. No matter what, the stars will always align for them, just to come crashing down from the sky.

[infinitelystrangemachinex]

Veilguard vaguing:

It's not automatically a good thing, actually, that the game de-emphasizes or even outright removes racism against elves, and bigotry against other groups, from the story

[bayetea]

so you’ve mentioned before the trouble with frazel raising a child. BUT, what stuck in mind was you said they’d have conflicts with having a son and not a daughter.

what do you think would happen if frazel had a son?

what do you think would happen if frazel had a daughter?

so this is informed by my own analyses of frank's canon material and upbringing, but at the end of the day this is my own interpretation, so you don't have to take this as like a fact or anything!

but the crux of my thoughts on this subject boils down to this: frank didn't grow up with any male role models that we know of, positive or negative. his household has always been highly matriarchal, especially after emily went to war and he was left in the care of grandma zhang, who is stern and unforgiving and absolutely impossible for frank to relate to at all. in an ideal world "male" and "female" role models wouldn't be a significant distinction at all and positive role models of any gender would be equally accessible for all children - but realistically kids often prefer people that resemble them in some way (gender, race, ethnicity, etc) as such, and frank appears to have had no men to help him develop and navigate his masculine identity. we can also note that in western pop culture asian men are most dominantly represented in two forms: martial arts action movie heroes or... brainiac nerds. frank is neither. like I'm not gonna get into this much (because it's a big topic) but like we know how asian men are stereotyped as and deemed less than for being """less masculine""" in the west so I think that might be a thing to keep in mind when considering frank's feelings, i.e. why he might care more than others about his own masculine self-image

anyways, there's this one line from grandma zhang in son of neptune that I've always found very poignant, and honestly kind of chilling:

Men do not cry. Especially Zhang men. You will endure, Fai.

it isn't made 100% clear when exactly she said this in the books but I believe the implication was that she said this to frank during emily's funeral - which is fucking crazy lol. his mom just died and his grandma is pulling a "boys don't cry" on him. I can see that she just wanted him to be strong but the complete lack of tenderness during the worst time of his life and emphasis put on his expression of sadness as a detriment to his masculinity would make any young man feel like shit. we aren't given any insight as to how frank felt about this line specifically in this chapter but we do know that frank almost never pushes back against the things his grandmother says, because emily zhang is quoted as once saying to frank:

There is no arguing with Grandmother. It'll only make you suffer worse.

now the line "especially zhang men" was probably quite meaningless to frank in the moment because he did not care even a little bit about his family name or his chinese ancestry - and he certainly doesn't see himself upholding his grandmother's notions of what a zhang man is supposed to be, but a man in general? what's a young boy to think when he has no men, no male role models in his life and his grandmother is telling him that men don't cry? he has no grounds to push back against that. and I think this teaching is exacerbated heavily by frank going to camp jupiter, which appears to uphold the same general principle that showing weakness is unacceptable - not for men specifically (as far as we know), but validating that idea at all is just. not what I think frank needed to be hearing

funnily the first positive male role model that we know frank to have had is percy, who is slightly older than him - and frank immediately attaches himself to percy and likes and admires and respects him so so much. and although percy is put through the freaking wringer in son of neptune, frank doesn't ever actually see percy shed tears (percy does cry/almost sheds tears/gets emotional to the point of his voice breaking about twice in son, but both instances occur in front of hazel, not frank). the only time he really sees percy showing emotional weakness is the scene where he gets so freaked out by evil centaurs that he gets triggered and can't move - and that wasn't even a voluntary moment of vulnerability, he was legit triggered and got physically sick over it. I'm not gonna go so far as to claim that percy becomes frank's image of what an ideal man should be, but ehhhhh from the way frank talks about percy throughout hoo and especially son I don't think that would be the biggest reach either

and there are several bits and pieces throughout the books where frank expresses a desire to assume a role of conventionally masculine importance. I'm not gonna go to the trouble of singling out like all of them but here are three instances that I consider most noteworthy:

frank in son:

Whenever [Hazel] wanted something, he had the irrational urge to provide it. He wanted to be the old-fashioned knight riding to her rescue, which was stupid, as she was way more capable at everything than he was.

frank in son:

If he admitted how weak he was, that his whole life depended on a half-burned stick... Hazel would never see him as a hero. He'd never be her knight in armor.

frank in hoh:

Frank was so pleased to be holding [Hazel's] hand, [...] He felt needed--useful. Not that Hazel required his protection. [...] Still, Frank liked being next to her, imagining he was her bodyguard.

all these of these instances are specifically related to hazel, which I find significant - because they say something about how frank thinks he needs to be for a female romantic partner. like the first quote literally has him wanting to be a provider for her and the second has him fearful that if he appears weak (think about the "men don't cry" line) then he won't be good enough for her, so I don't think it's wrong to assume that frank still has some not great ideas in his head about the specific ways in which he needs to be a man. do you guys know those jokes about "the masculine urge to bleed out in the snow" or however it goes. frank retweets the shit out of that post every time he sees it and piper is in his dms like "are you okay???" /lh

furthermore we see frank really taking pride in himself as a son of mars towards the end of son when he's mouthing off against alcyoneus - and I think his godly parentage plays a role in this. mars is a highly "virile" god and considered the second most important deity in cj's roman pantheon. he's a highly significant figure in the roman mythos because he is considered the pater (father) of the romans, the father of romulus and remus from whom all romans are descended - aka the father of rome itself. so there's something inherently paternalistic about frank, the son of mars, assuming the role of co-praetor at camp jupiter. it's the ultimate fulfillment of his repeatedly expressed desire to be able to perform his masculinity in the specific way that he really wants to

and alllll of that is basically just to evidence that I don't think frank would be the sort of father who's going to parent his kids the exact same way regardless of gender. I think I see frank being tougher on his son (if he has a son) in the future than his daughter as a result. not to such an extreme that he would say terrible harsh things like "zhang men don't cry" to his own boy (I don't think he ever wants to make his kids feel the way his grandma made him feel) but just in little ways that build up over time

whereas if frank had a daughter, I think he's more likely to spoil and be lenient and extremely protective her. not necessarily to the point of sheltering her excessively or refusing to let her fight (i.e. I think he'd be happy if his daughter joined the legion or ever became a praetor herself) but just in the way of not having the same kind of, say, rigid masculine expectations that he might have of his own son

and like. I'm worried that my saying this might incur frank hate or whatever but I want to say clearly that I think he'd still be a good dad? good enough anyway. obviously it would be great if frank could unlearn some of this and care less about gender norms but the books kind of just... put all of this stuff on the table and don't resolve/address it meaningfully so I'm just working with what we've got. hilariously despite being from the 1930s I think hazel would be more evenhanded towards their kids regardless of gender so I can totally see this being a thing that they clash over in the future. not in a relationship-ruining way but just as an add-on to the issues they'd have as parents that I mentioned in my other ridiculously long post on frazel child-rearing lol

(and if their kid is neither a girl nor a boy then I think frank would be a little confused lol but still highly supportive and willing to learn)

[airenyah]

listen!! i really need love and dunk to play siblings, twins or something like that

[yaoiadderall]

♡⊹˚₊ favorite character tag ₊˚⊹♡

thank u @thedarknesseater for tagging me!!! i am genuinely so happy we are in the jjk fandom at the same time and are both publicly obsessed w these cursed weirdos on tumblr, [teacher writing report card comments voice] it's a pleasure having u as my mutual <333

choosing just five characters is so haaaaarrrdddd i get attached to SO MANY little guys!! this list is def subject to change in the future but as of rn:

i. really hate that only one of these characters is a woman actually. hm. i think i need to become more insane about female characters. get into more yuribait media. that would surely fix me (<- lie, it will make me worse)

zero pressure tags: @nagitokomaedas-girl @fizzyhedgehog @toxic-luck @drarry @dearmassacre @renmackree @buckybarnesss @eevylynn @fuji09 @dyke-of-death and whoever else wants to do this ig!!!

[prettyboykatsuki-moved]

can you please elaborate more on why gojo being a man is important cus I actually didn't get it 😅

sure!!! though i am limited in braincells after wasting away on this paper.

the best way i can describe is that gojo is like... the pinnacle of power. and the jjk world isn't exempt from wordly misogyny, it exists in it and maki experiences it as part of her story etc. so in that sense i think gojo being a prodigal son is necessary.

but the way im talking about it is more in the idea of what it means to be a man by social expectations and how men engage with each other. a lot of characters in anime don't actually have their gender contribute to them in anyway - because doing that takes a kind of awareness about those roles that a lot of shounens just outright lack. or the ways they do matter don't really contribute to who they are. its a little complicated but like. bluelock is a shounen that rlly needs the cast to be boys and bnha imo is not.

i find that queer manga (and by extension jjk) do a better job at making even a cishet characters and gender relevant. you get the feeling that the role they play and exist in, the problems they face or their character is shaped by that identity. i think satoru exists in the same way. the way he leads mimics fatherhood (in the sense that he is distanced but still trying to be there for his students), and even his submission is rooted in a sense of masculine social expectation. strong and tough and enduring, even though he is outwardly frivlous. even that jokester caricature is bred from being silly and ridiculous like the class clown boys you go to school with. the weight of the burden he carries, the extent in which he isolates, the idea of being the strongest. he also has a naturally born audaciousness that feels uniquely like a man lmaooo

im not saying a woman like satoru can't exist ofc! but the way satoru internalizes his responsibilities and how he approaches his vulnerabilities feels reflective of men and socialization for men in that sense. he is a man to me, of the nuanced variety. its part of what makes his relationship to toji interesting as well - because toji is a man fully realized but gojo is not. he never stops being a boy, never really grows into a man but still carries the burden of manhood along side him. it's so interlocked with his position and role in life, and also a part of the reason i don't perceive him as very feminine. whiny and noisy? yes, but strangely still distinctly masculine.

this is also why i think the idea of a transmasc satoru makes sense, though i typically hc him as cis. i think transmasculinity and the internal pressure to behave as a man, to endure as a man, adds a lot to his story - a layer of complexity that's interesting to explore. it would also mirror a transfem suguru that i also have a lot of personal theory for.

this is so incoherent im sorry but my point is basically that the way gojo handles power and is expected to handle power, has innate remnant of masculinity that i think was p innate to him. gojo being a man is like... an important element of how he carries himself

[dgoul]

"gender bent au" what if I hit you with a metal chair.

"gender bent mag" what if I take your internet away and make you think. for once

I see people headcanoning Tim as trans femme. I'm in the crowd cheering for them screeming at the top of my lungs. someone yells GENDER BEND AU? i approach from behind, crouched down.

EDIT I'm not sorry for going insane in the tags. enjoy the rant because I think it's important. 🏳️‍⚧️

[pickaropoprocks]

Fighting battles that have ABSOLUTELY been seen before (wanting to restart my Animal Crossing New Leaf town so I can begin the game from scratch and as myself as I am now vs. not wanting to restart my town because nostalgia and I'd miss my villagers)

[kisakis-boyfriend]

Since we were talking about it the other day; what are y'all's transmasc headcanons?? :3

[toastysol]

I don't get why everyone's surprised that the brotherhood use the correct pronouns with Dane. I think people have forgotten a major aspect of the fallout environment. The bombs falling destroyed conventional societal norms. This includes any political agenda to erase trans people from history and the future. Also this is fiction. The brotherhood of steel are not a conservative christian political party. They care about what they dub "abuse of technology", this includes the biproducts thereof. The only people who fit that category are synths and mutants who they view as abominations that need to be exterminated. If trans people even counted as abuse of technology (which they don't and shouldn't, as the technology used for transition is helpful and not hurtful), they would be so far down the list the brotherhood wouldn't care. Why would they care. It's really not a big deal imo. It's a big deal in OUR world, but not theirs. Not by a long shot.

[thetisming]

i am feeling transgender about & Juliet currently

[tae-shimura-is-my-wife]

When Korra fell in love with Mako then dated him later on fell for Asami and dated her, and i saw there's ppl still denying her bisexuality is when i accepted that bisexual characters identity will never be respected exactly like in irl yay

[yusuke-of-valla]

I just. Am having thoughts

[pinkbugtype]

The thing is "forced diversity" only became a real thing after people online got called out for only ever having like white ocs or just Never making women [ESPECIALLY TRANS WOMEN] and now sometimes I see a character lineup and its like Oh I can like actively see the diversity checklist you were crossing off in your head specifically to try and get tumblr woke points because you are being so fucking Weird about this. Like in an effort to be like LOOK LOOK AT HOW DIVERSE MY CAST IS I AM ADVERTISING THIS BY JUST TELLING YOU ABOUT HOW DIVERSE EVERYONE IS YOU DON'T NEED TO KNOW GENRE OR THEMES they make it so clear that making characters of color or women or disabled characters etc has to be a Conscious Choice instead of just. Something that comes naturally because that reflects our real world.