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Bit of a random question:

Examples of role reversal:

Optimus as the top/dominant partner

Optimus as the pursuer/instigator of the relationship

Dark/dubious romance where Optimus is the one in charge

Basically anything that puts Optimus in a position of power over Megatron as a normal part of their dynamic and not as a one-off scene.

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This thing is scary. If you're in the US, please contact your representatives and signal boost it to your friends.

🚨KOSA is back and being pushed heavily in congress right now

I really hate to do this, but KOSA, the bill that is a mass censorship and surveillance bill that will specifically censor all LGBT content online to "protect kids", is back.

KOSA advocates have brought in support from Elon Musk (I wish I was making this up) and are trying to get him to get Donald Trump to speak out in support of it. (And they lie and tell us it's not an anti-queer bill 🙄). The reason so is because the holdouts that are stopping this from passing are...republicans. It's GOP House leaders Steve Scalise and Mike Johnson. If they succeed and put this in an end of year spending bill, it will be near impossible to get it out and it will most likely be passed. Pro-KOSA advocates were on the hill today pushing hard to pass it. They have a lot of support behind them. There is only two weeks left in congress, so if they don't succeed, it's over.

The ONLY way this bill has stalled so much so far is because of calls driven to congress. It has worked and can still work. Please, spread this as much as you can and call House leadership and spread the word! You don't have to be from their district. You can pretend to be GOP. It doesn't matter, just call and voice your opposition. Trump and Musk clearly have a lot of sway over these people and I'm really scared they will succeed at the last minute!!

Here are their numbers: Scalise: 202-225-3015 Johnson: 202-225-2777

If you don't know what to say, use either call script! It takes less than a minute, I swear.

SOURCE: https://x.com/omaseddiq/status/1866621865793314845?t=9pJm-QRdqJg30E_rVuhINw&s=19

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🚨KOSA is back and being pushed heavily in congress right now

I really hate to do this, but KOSA, the bill that is a mass censorship and surveillance bill that will specifically censor all LGBT content online to "protect kids", is back.

KOSA advocates have brought in support from Elon Musk (I wish I was making this up) and are trying to get him to get Donald Trump to speak out in support of it. (And they lie and tell us it's not an anti-queer bill 🙄). The reason so is because the holdouts that are stopping this from passing are...republicans. It's GOP House leaders Steve Scalise and Mike Johnson. If they succeed and put this in an end of year spending bill, it will be near impossible to get it out and it will most likely be passed. Pro-KOSA advocates were on the hill today pushing hard to pass it. They have a lot of support behind them. There is only two weeks left in congress, so if they don't succeed, it's over.

The ONLY way this bill has stalled so much so far is because of calls driven to congress. It has worked and can still work. Please, spread this as much as you can and call House leadership and spread the word! You don't have to be from their district. You can pretend to be GOP. It doesn't matter, just call and voice your opposition. Trump and Musk clearly have a lot of sway over these people and I'm really scared they will succeed at the last minute!!

Here are their numbers: Scalise: 202-225-3015 Johnson: 202-225-2777

If you don't know what to say, use either call script! It takes less than a minute, I swear.

SOURCE: https://x.com/omaseddiq/status/1866621865793314845?t=9pJm-QRdqJg30E_rVuhINw&s=19

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Oof. This is such a mood right now, I could have written parts of it myself. Everything feels so big and overwhelming right now, it's hard to focus on much of anything, including the projects that Past Me decided to take on this year because she thought current me would be able to handle it. In fairness, Past Me did not realize how insane the world was about to get, but I'm still wishing I could go back in time and have a word with her. Gah.

Not necessarily looking for advice (though it would not be turned down), I've been having so much trouble getting myself to make the art i want to make. Im in an amazing, supportive, active fan community that blossoming even More with this excursion to Bluesky, and im constantly having ideas that make me want to start bouncing off walls and climbing ceilings -- but as soon as i sit down to draw or write, i just. Deflate like a balloon. Ive been promising new art and new chapters for almost a year now, and have next to nothing to show for it. It's just a hobby ik ik, but i catch myself wondering if i should even bother calling it *that* when all i ever Really do most days is daydream. There's extenuating factors of real life, both wider international/national issues and personal life stuff (currently preparing to move, minor medical issues), and I know I'm not alone in feeling kind of like a husk of a person rn bc of it all -- but there's still this part of me that keeps nagging me and telling me im "falling behind", or that I should step away deliberately since i havent been able to chat and josh around with my friends in the community the way i used to. I can feel myself backsliding into unheathly, antisocial habits and I'm struggling to find ways to keep trying to combat it when it just feels like its getting harder and harder. I hate it when self-perpetuating cycles self-perpetuate man, this shit blows 💔💀

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I voted G1 cartoon, but in actuality, I started writing fanfic specifically because I didn't like the way the Decepticons were handled in any of the canon I was aware of at the time, and from what I hear, it doesn't seem like that has changed. Sometimes ya gotta DIY that shit. 😎

Hang on, I wanna see something.

Beast Era isn't listed because the Predacons are literally different characters.

Shattered Glass isn't listed because I'm talking to the villain fans.

Rescue Bots isn't listed because there were no Decepticons (that I'm aware of).

Almost every piece of media in the Aligned universe is a different experience. Hence, the cartoons are separated.

Technically the same is true of the Unicron Trilogy, but if I just listed Armada, fans of TF Cybertron would have wondered where their show was (Energon was not going to be on the list. It gets a new lease on life).

G1 cartoon and Marvel comic are also different experiences. I went with the cartoon because the only people I've seen talk about the comic are Autobot fans.

In addition to all of the above points, I ran out of room. Sacrifices had to be made. Apologies if your favorite Decepticon appearance isn't on here.

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I hated the US Marvel comic so, so much. From the art to the writing to... everything about it, really! (Except for the letters section. That became my main reason for picking it up, because I 'met' most of my TF penpals that way.) However, reading this conversation has made me realize that I probably hated it because I'm a Decepticon fan, and a Starscream fan in particular, and that an Autobot fan reading it would probably have had a very different, far more positive, experience. Which is kind of instructive. We may all be reading/watching the same stuff, but we're not all (necessarily) having the same experience. "Same planet, different worlds," as they say. (Apropos to nothing by the way, just something that struck me.)

i like the ship, but jzzprwl really invented this version of ''jazz'' that is like a weird fusion of blaster and vortex ''hehe extremely extroverted chaotic lazy gremlin nymphomaniac who is secretly edgy and hyperviolent assassin manipulator'' like who the fuck is that guy??! and it baffles me bcs if it was one or two ppl doing it i wouldn't care much, but 90% of things involving him is this fanon version who is whole other guy, and i just see jazz being the only who suffers this extreme mischaracterization en masse, i swear i dont see other other tf character who ppl mischaracterize on the same lvl as him... and all done by jazz ''fans'' then i wish he was more unpopular and hated then 💀if all things involving him will be this ''jazz'' who is a whole diff guy, who not satisfied to put borderline racist tropes on a obviously black coded char, they write his dialogue like a racist guy exaggerating aave to make it more thug, then its better to not use him at all 😭sorry for the rant

My reaction when I'm seeing more people expressing the same sentiments I have before:

The last time I talked about this in-depth, JazzProwl was still the most popular ship in the fandom and it's not anymore, now it's MegOp. So a ship that people make a lot of weird OOC racist and bio-essentialist stuff with has been dethroned by another ship that people also do that with... but at least Jazz isn't part of it...? Sadly, the fandom in general on here and AO3 can be scarily racist, I know I've seen some truly horrid Jazz/Soundwave fic for example, like ones where Jazz becomes happy to become Soundwave's slave, or ones (that are supposedly G1-based, not Shattered Glass) where Jazz is portrayed as a scary torturer/assassin and Soundwave as a naïve Woobie who just wants to protect his children (the cassettes).

I agree with everything you said, I think it's really concerning that like, I had somebody tell me they realized the kind of character they wanted was Vortex and not Jazz?! Something is very wrong with the fandom if it's misleading people into thinking that Jazz is like that. I've mentioned before that I really wouldn't know what the most effective ways to try and improve things would be in this situation, but I do have some ideas that could help. There's been an influx of new people to this side of the TF fandom recently, and that gives everybody an opportunity to try and make sure they don't get misled.

Let's help new fans who want to know more about this popular transformer, Jazz, find good canon media that focuses on him

Posting things like GIFs, screenshots, or fanart of Jazz moments from canon sources will also help show people what he's like and get them interested in the real character (or realize they're not actually interested in the character which is also okay)

Similarly, we can show people who might've become interested in JazzProwl what the actual dynamic between those characters used to be like which will help them know what is and isn't fanon

Naming the issues that have been present in fanwork will also help people become alerted to the fact that the racist fanon isn't related to anything canon and will help them identify problematic themes

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starscream the man you are

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Hmm, tracking a spider down and getting more than bargained for...?

FTR I am so down to read the hell outta this, whenever you have time to write it!!!

You know what. While I consider TaraProwl canon (one-sided or otherwise), Tarantulas is just so freaking obsessed with Prowl that I've never given much thought to them as a pairing (except one SotW-inspired story outline where they're dragons, but I digress). But the monsterfucker in me still wants to see Prowl webbed up and shagged by the spider.

Well. EarthSpark Tarantulas is very different from IDW Tarantulas. And Prowl is supposed to be coming to EarthSpark. And I don't care what relationship they have or whether they even appear in the same episode, as soon as Season 2 comes out, I'm getting Prowl laid.

(Why do I have to wait? Because I need to know what EarthSpark Prowl is actually like before I can write him. And also because I feed on canon like a starving animal picking bones clean).

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Ooo, Prowl defense attorney! That sounds amazing - I love me a good courtroom drama.

Ooo I really like your concept. I love a good story like that 😆. Slowburn is a favorite trope of mine, so I'm excited for you to get to write something like that. Ill be keeping an eye out hehe.

I too have a specific type of Prowl I like that many fics I saw of them dont have, though I still enjoy reading them. So I'm excited to see what your version is like, even if we end up having different Prowls!

Thanks! I have like, 5 other fics that I need to work on right now, so that one is sadly on the backburner, but hopefully I can get back to it before too long.

I'm curious what your favorite type of Prowl is, if you want to share! I find a lot of fics tend to treat him as like... Really cold and mean? I'm trying not to go on a rant, lol. But I'm so tired of fics where most of the Autobots are sympathetic to some Decepticon's plight, and then there's Prowl on the sidelines acting like said Decepticon's continued existence is a personal affront.

Also, a lot of people compare him to Soundwave (probably because he's perceived as cold and emotionless). My preferred take on Prowl is more like the Autobot Starscream, though - he's not trying to take over, but he pushes back on Optimus' plans if he doesn't like their odds of success, resists following orders if he considers them the wrong course of action, and is willing to do his own thing if he's not being listened to (I also inadvertently gave him a host of disorders by leaning into the thing in his G1 tech specs about how he doesn't handle the unexpected well, lol. The autism and processor crashes were deliberate, the social anxiety, generalized anxiety, temperature regulation issues, and absence seizures weren't. Turns out that if you sit down to explain why unexpected events lead to crashes, there's a ton of comorbidities and contributing factors).

So yeah, my Prowl is a bit of a mess, psychologically. And has an unhealthy relationship with morality (and Optimus) because he has low empathy and according to some people, that makes you a bad person. So even though he wants the best outcome possible for as many people as possible and is against causing harm when it doesn't accomplish anything, he struggles to feel like a good person and is susceptible to manipulation through moral attacks (this is totally not me expressing my frustration with the way both canon and fandom like to paint him as a villain for having perfectly reasonable concerns about his enemies).

Also, making the bot who turns into a police car an actual law enforcer was the most boring thing canon could have done with his prewar career. My Prowl was a defense attorney (if IDW Prowl, who was himself an enforcer, could look at his peers and see a corrupt system, then mine can be an advocate for criminal justice reform).

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I felt this so hard when I joined my first fandom Discord. I have clued in to *some* of the lingo at this point, but it really did feel like a whole new language.

It's strange and kind of funny being old in years but new to fandom. Sometimes it takes me several seconds to work out that the comment I received was indeed a compliment (though sometimes I still have no idea what it actually means). Sometimes it makes me feel so young looking around this fandom I'm in and having no idea how I'm supposed to interact. I don't speak tumblr, basically. And I'm not familiar enough with the culture. It's...it's definitely a learning curve

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Authentic awkwardness ftw! Sex that doesn't go quite as planned can be so much fun and sweet and character-revealing. We definitely need more of these.

With all this talk of unnecessary consent manifestos in fics... It is weird that I have a consent kink? Like, I really enjoy characters talking about their boundaries and negotiating stuff, and enjoy when the porn goes wrong or they need to abruptly stop. (I'm writing now a oneshot where a cnc scene devolves into a comedic disaster, idk I just like those sprinkles of authentic awkwardness).

But like, it is really hard to find good fics with those elements? Usually, it feels like the authors copied and pasted a safe bdsm article in the dialogue of one of the characters... and don't let me start with the anachronistic stuff, the whiplash of seeing a dude from pseudo-medieval europe talk about "scenes" or "safewords"...

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Like most kinks I don't especially care about, it's still hot and fun to read if a reasonably skilled author who is into it writes it. I'm willing to believe that at least a few of the PSAs are just due to shitty writing skills, but most of them... yeah...

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It’s actually incredibly freeing to just go with what I actually want to write about. Like damn. DAMN. No one else’s opinion fucking matters!! I can write whatever I want! Holy shit I feel genuinely liberated to stop fucking caring about other people’s opinions of my work. I am excited to write all the weird unpopular out of pocket cliche trope slop I fucking love. I can’t wait.

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Hot take: I suspect a fanfic that did portray G1 Op the way he actually behaves in G1 would be viewed as OOC by most of the fandom. Possibly even labeled as 'character-bashing.'

This is, after all, the guy who:

- Casually refers to Decepticons as 'unfeeling machines' (very peace-loving to dehumanize one's enemies like that).

- Lied to his sister about the fact they're related, presumably so that she'll go on being his girlfriend. Or, at least, that seems to be the implication, and it's clear that he finds it funny.

- Handwaves mind-control tactics so long as it's 'for a good cause' - one that benefits the Autobots, natch - despite high-minded rhetoric about freedom being the birthright of sentient beings. (I guess some sentient beings count more than others, lol)

- Jokes about domestic abuse/violence on more than one occasion.

- Endlessly walks into traps and makes other remarkably stupid decisions that do not mesh well with his reputation as a Great Leader.

- I could go on.

If you're getting the sense that I don't like the guy, you would be correct. But I do think he's fascinating. He strikes me as a cult leader who has bought into the notion that he is divine and infallible, and he'd be an amazing villain - if only the fandom was willing to go there.

But folks are pretty much used to the soft, squishy cinnamon roll, overflowing with kindness, compassion and fatherly wisdom - to the point where it has supplanted Op's actual show personality. I know that's just a thing that happens in fandom, but I do wish it wasn't quite so... uniform? 😅

Some room for variation would be nice.

Minor rant, but what's a person gotta do for a more canon-typical depiction of G1 Optimus? I swear in every fic I read, he's overflowing with self-doubt and guilt, and is so determined to sacrifice himself for everyone else's happiness that sometimes he can't even lay down healthy boundaries with people.

G1 Optimus is one of the most confident, self-assured characters in the show. He has a strong, commanding presence, gives orders easily and firmly, and stands his ground on the rare occasion those orders are called into question. I understand wanting to give a character flaws, but of all the flaws to give him, why the one that tears down his entire character?

Like. I get that people can present themselves as strong even when they feel weak, and it makes sense for a leader to do so. But this is a mech who often comes across as fairly laid back, and even playful - he experiments with slang, he plays basketball, he trash-talks his enemies in the middle of combat. If he's haunted by the guilt of a war gone on far too long, he's doing an amazing job of hiding it.

And it's not like he doesn't have canon flaws people could play with, because he's confident to the point where his strengths actually loop back into flaws. He doesn't take criticism very well. He's constantly running off on his own into traps and other dangerous situations. He rarely admits to, much less apologizes for mistakes. Frankly, he can be a jerk.

I just. I get adding depth and nuance to flat characters. I get taking characters who were never developed beyond one or two key traits and fleshing them out properly. I even get dropping or reworking bits of canon characterization, because when you have so many episodes written by so many different people, it's inevitable that you'll get bits that don't work (especially when a character is put in a role that was clearly written for another character. God Gambit, I'm looking at you).

What I don't get is taking one of the most established characters in the show and inverting his entire personality. If it's for an AU or something, sure, do what you want. But how does an entire fandom look at G1 Optimus and go, "I love him. Let's change everything about him"? How does one of the strongest characters in the show get consistently written as a doormat? (Don't get me started on MegOp. I've seen Optimus reduced to Megatron's submissive wife so many times that if they aren't literally fighting for dominance, I don't want it).

Grumbling aside, it's honestly kind of funny that every new Optimus gets compared to G1, but even the fans don't write him like G1 did.

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在りし日

[grayseeker]

SkyStar sparkling! I call him Comet, he's a shuttle :)