kattaloop - Tumblr blog

kattaloop · 5 years

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Lexa IS More Than A Symbol

I came to Tumblr for the Clexa GIFs and stayed for the very occasional long-form contribution. So I don’t know what’s being talked about and how, but a few friends asked me to comment on this. A week ago, @rivertalesien offered a lengthy reply to an anonymous question:

“Why is Lexa the one that people want to fight for but seems to be the only one kept dead? Not that ODAAT and WE had dead lesbians but they were cancelled and fan efforts brought them back like why is Lexa the only one who can't? She has to be more than a symbol though?“

I have my own thoughts on this issue, some of which I can’t publicly elaborate on. Let me just say that you’re right, Lexa absolutely is more than a symbol and should be treated as such. But what did River have to say about it all?

“First of all, the situations with ODAAT and WE are completely different: those involve complex negotiations with advertisers in order to cover the costs and where the show will be hosted. I know it’s fun to believe that fan campaigns had anything to do with it, but it is always, ultimately down to negotiations with advertisers and studios. It makes the producers and all look good to praise their audience for the “hard work” trying to save the series, but they all know better.“

It’s right to say that money is a driving force in any decisions the networks make. But you can’t isolate a show from the broader programing strategy, and, as far as I know, advertising deals are bundled. As with any business, money isn’t the only deciding factor, either. Power and prestige have important roles in this game of film and television, and personal preference absolutely exists. As for fan campaigns, they add a voice, one that may have, and has, in the past, convinced executives to revisit the issue in the first place. Would they have done the same thing without that little nudge from viewers? Maybe, but probably not.

“And Lexa is “kept dead” because, and this is only inference, but I think it’s a strong one: Jason Rothenberg lost a huge business/development deal as a result of the Lexa/Clexa fan drama.“

You did your research, I’ll give you that. But I’m unsure how well you understand the reality of this business. Considering that failed pilots are more common than green-lit ones. Considering that any pilot is a collaborative process with too many components in play than for an outsider to pinpoint exactly one reason as to why it failed. Considering that this industry, for all its rigid hierarchy and rules books, can also be one of the most unpredictable - one person leaves and the whole house of cards can crumble. Considering that you refuse to entertain the pros that would accompany Lexa’s return, pros that someone with Jason’s disposition might be equally interested in as in the more petty revenge fantasies.

“Jason Rothenberg spent the days, weeks and months after Lexa’s death cutting himself off from those fans who were hurt by his actions and no doubt working behind the scenes to make sure he didn’t lose his job over his unethical, unprofessional behavior. His supporters in the cast were openly derisive of Clexa fans who spoke out and a tone of trying to ignore or undermine the fan fallout was the given order. Showing real empathy and offering to work with the audience in order to heal the divide might have gone a long way for improving his image and the show’s. Rothenberg decided to hide instead.“

Yes to everything but the last sentence. You’re assuming - sorry, inferring. I happen to know that it was not his decision. Once again, isolating one aspect from its context and environment usually leads to wrong or, at least, incomplete conclusions.

“One very clear consequence of his queerbaiting is that Greg Berlanti, the very successful (and openly gay) producer of many DC shows including Supergirl, stepped out of a development deal for a new series tentatively titled The Searchers. The project was likely mostly Rothenberg’s, but without Berlanti’s backing, it was dropped. Story was that it was too “expensive” to produce, yet Berlanti went on to get a huge deal with the CW, producing Riverdale as well as the upcoming Batwoman. Would Berlanti want to be associated with Rothenberg after the Lexa debacle? Probably not and that’s probably closer to the real reason the deal went south.“

Except the queerbaiting isn’t even fully acknowledged, still. That’s a lot to base on “likely” and "probably.” Berlanti was already getting these deals. He also had his own issues to deal with. If the production was deemed too expensive, it doesn’t mean that there’s a conspiracy beyond the normal industry processes.

“Outside of The 100, he has no produced credits to his name and how he got the job of showrunner when he had no previous experience in any capacity in a writer’s room or on a production staff is certainly baffling. He very quickly proved he didn’t have the professionalism for the job and anyone else would have been dismissed.“

But he wasn’t dismissed, and that should tell you enough to not be baffled by the fact that they hired him, even without knowing the industry from within.

“The 100 went from 16 episodes to 13 because the order for renewal had already been given and the WB/CW put out feelers in the form of polls asking the audience directly: will Lexa’s death affect if you watch the show? Who does that unless they are seeking to reassure the advertisers that Lexa’s death wouldn’t be a big issue for long and spoil their investment?”

In conjunction with a noticeable drop in ratings and other measurable factors, this is probably a reasonable conclusion. They were hoping for a surge and were slammed, instead. There were a lot of whispers, but nothing I’d consider to be confirmed. What does this have to do with why they wouldn’t bring Lexa back? If anything, it suggests they know of her value.

“Fans are capable of all sorts of interpretations of a text (oh boy are we), but one thing that I think is generally considered across the board is that with season 4, the tone toward Lexa was more than a little OTT and a tad spiteful.”

I’m glad you acknowledge that much of this is based on interpretation. In summary, the praise Lexa received in S4 felt unauthentic, the Flame and Lexa were used as an emotional device, and Clarke’s actions were problematic. How’s that any different than post-307, when nobody seemed too bothered about losing their beloved Heda, when the Flame and Lexa were used as an emotional device, and when Clarke had sex as a coping mechanism and even questioned Lexa’s humanity? The latter were all written before the backlash. It mostly speaks to the show’s persistent issues with continuity, character development, and representation.

“This is just my interpretation, but with fans crying out for her return, pleading for a spin-off and so on, and generally being the most out-spoken fandom for LGBTQ rights and better representation in media (and a never-ending drag of Rothenberg’s name), is it likely that a production that never did anything to try and make amends ever going to give in to such pleas?”

As likely as any other production, to be honest. Allow me to go back to your earlier assessment. “They don’t care about fans’ pleas.” Would they bring Lexa back for the fans? Doubtful. “They care about their own benefit.” Would they bring Lexa back if it benefited them? Now we’re talking.

But they can’t just do it any odd way. As you also said previously, they know better. They may ignore us, but they watch us. They would’ve assessed the different scenarios. From a business point of view, they’d want to avoid another backlash. Then you have a diva showrunner to consider, and a guest star who is in work and, hopefully, wouldn’t return for a guest stint if it didn’t benefit her and Lexa. It’s a tricky balance, made even more difficult by a fandom that likes to tear itself apart over conflicting opinions every 3 months or so.

Considering all of those circumstances, I can’t think of a reasonable way to bring Lexa back other than at the very end. Which would benefit the production, but more importantly, a large number of fans, the tiny matter of representation, and ADC - if done right, which I give her enough credit to make sure before agreeing to anything. I’m not saying that it will happen or that it won’t happen. I’m saying that there’s a strong case for it happen, to balance out your rather one-dimensional approach.

“There is a cruelty to this because almost any other kind of story of this kind would involve a moment of catharsis, but that moment is constantly suspended, always dangled, but never in touch.”

Personally, I’d agree with that, but I can also think of writers who’d be into it. We’ve already established that Jason and his immediate team are lacking awareness and empathy. It makes little sense, therefore, to expect them to act differently, especially if they’re leading up to another shock twist. My guess is as good as yours on whether that’s something good or bad.

“They know what fans want and it’s arguable too that Rothenberg has twisted what the fans want for his own benefit: a spin-off of The 100, but one entirely about something decidedly unrelated to Lexa. Showing online fan interest might be one way of telling advertisers: see, there’s a demand for his work.”

No offense, but this makes no sense and it’s probably the most contradicting and subjective thing you’ve said thus far. If they know what fans want, then there’s nothing to twist. It’s actually part of the reason why the Lexa spinoff campaign started while the show’s still on air: to get the word out, to make sure they know exactly what and who we want, and what and who we don’t want. Jason started talking about a spinoff before 307, so there’s literally no ground for this argument, which also has no bearing on the question. So why bring it up?

“Unless advertisers demand it, is it likely that this unprofessional queerbaiting producer would do anything except the most spiteful of nods? That’s all he’s done at this point and the story this season looks more and more like they are going to finally close the book on any Lexa mentions ever again.”

Unless advertisers become involved in the creative process, this argument is also invalid. Thankfully, there are regulations in place to avoid that. And unless you know what motivates a person, you can’t speak to what they will or won’t do. Even if you did, you can’t be certain. Once again, this is a collaborative process even under the worst of circumstances. Things could go either way.

“Fight for Lexa, there is nothing wrong with her being a “symbol” of a fight for better representation.”

It feels wrong when you reduce her to a symbol, when you put her in the past, when you tell others to seek out other representation, when you dismiss her implied humanity. Our emotions in relation to Lexa are real, and that makes her real in all the ways that matter. What happened to “she’s more than just a character?” Well, she’s also more than a movement. Let’s not use their excuses when they kill of one LGBT character and put another on their place against ourselves.

“Keep using her light, but never forget where it really comes from, something Rothenberg will never understand: it comes from you.”

Now see, this is a great statement. I, too, believe that Lexa is a part of us. Her light guided me out of the complete darkness I had lost myself in, and it became part of my own light. I’ve never come across a character like that, or person, for that matter. A sentiment that still reverberates through the fandom and beyond. I believe that her light can help so many more people whom she wasn’t able to reach in the short time she was given. And so, part of my fight for better representation, better storytelling, will always be to let Lexa’s light shine again. She deserves to live. She deserves to have her story told!

#lexa #jason rothenberg #lexaspinoff #lexa spinoff #the 100 #lgbt #representation #unbury your gays

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kattaloop · 5 years

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Lexa IS special, irreplaceable, forever. Lexa just IS, and don’t let anyone tell you any different. Death is not the end.

Ai throu daun gon Heda!

To think that Lexa’s always been Clarke’s most fervent supporter. Her most devoted champion - her sword and shield (both literally and figuratively) and the only one who understood Clarke wholeheartedly, who gave without asking anything in return.

The only one who placed Clarke first, who had faith in her judgement but wisely challenged her decisions. The only one who encouraged Clarke to flourish and was proud of her every step of the way. The only one who didn’t try to diminish Clarke but constantly elevated her: in thoughts, words and actions. And Lexa did that selflessly, unrelentingly and devotedly.

It kills me how Lexa is so viciously gentle with Clarke, so attuned to her very heart. Lexa IS the embodiment of LOVE at its purest and strongest, despite being taught to be ruthless and cold, despite her very culture demanding she become the deadliest weapon used to conquer and submit. Instead, she forged herself into one that safeguards and defends.

Lexa is peace in a lifetime of war. She’s a summer that no winter can vanquish. She’s comfort in a perpetual state of anguish. Lexa’s the haven of a besieged fortress whose walls stand tall, even as constantly under threat by those who would see her sacked and plundered. She’s a balm that soothes, comforts and heals.

And Clarke got be on the receiving end of all that Lexa was and stood for.

The only cure for that? Just more. More Lexa. Always more Lexa. There’s no going back. Once you felt love in all its greatness you could never settle for anything else, could never do with less.

Lexa has no before and after. She has no beginning and no end. Lexa just IS

#lexa #commander lexa #clexa #the 100 #march 3 #death is not the end #leksa kom trikru #lexa spinoff #we miss you heda #may we meet again

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kattaloop · 5 years

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Incoming message: Lexa matters! When found, please return to Clarke and then kindly leave them to make up for lost time. I mean, even if you still still watch this mess, you gotta admit that the #The100Season6 poster that @cwthe100 tweeted out looks all kinds of awful. So I made it prettier!

What do you think? @the100writers @kimshum

#lexa #commander lexa #clexa #clexa is endgame #the100 #the 100 season 6 #death is not the end #lexa still deserves better #fix it

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kattaloop · 5 years

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CLEXA BOOM IN

Lexa matters. Clexa is still relevant, dear haters. And yes, we could even see her back alive, with Clarke, canon-compliant -- if it were something they wanted to do, and I’m not saying they do. This is just me having a play with a few scenarios which could reunite Clexa in the series -- in theory, all chill.

It should be relatively trigger-free, but as my intention was to disprove the nay-sayers who can’t look past Rothenberg’s ego, I didn’t change the story so far, except using a loop hole here and there -- and three scenarios play along with Lexa’s death. To make it a little more interesting, two scenarios see Lexa survive the stray bullet, one leaves both Lexa and Clarke’s fate ambiguous, none use dark magic to resurrect dead bodies, and all could still happen going forward.

LIFE ALWAYS FINDS A WAY

The stray bullet hits Lexa. Convinced she’ll die, she says goodbye to Clarke. She looses consciousness, Titus removes the Flame. We see the Flame, still active. It should have deactivated the second Lexa died. Titus does not share this information with Clarke, instead rushes Lexa out of the room to bring her to the Elders, a secret group serving the line of Commanders.

Lexa is stabilized and taken out of Polis, out west to the Cheyenne Mountain Complex. Like Mount Weather, people here survived the apocalypse. Unlike Mount Weather, they had Becca’s nightblood serum and ventured outside soon after. Here, Lexa survives Praimfaya. Along with other Nightbloods, she finds pockets of life that were spared from the firewall, similar to Eden. And just like the Ark thought that the apocalypse had wiped out all life on Earth and the planet would not be inhabitable for another 100 years, Monty overlooked the slow reestablishing of life on Earth. Three years after Eden was destroyed, Clarke returns to Earth, having been thrown back in time after traveling through a wormhole.

ALTERNATIVELY: Time on the new planet works and affects the human body differently. Clarke travels back to Earth. Clexa reunites. BOOM. OUT.

ELIGIUS LABS

Unbeknownst to Clarke, Lexa survives the stray bullet. Titus rushes an unconscious Lexa to the Elders, a secret group loyal only to the line of Commanders. Foreseeing Praimfaya’s destruction, they take her to an undisclosed Eligius facility, set up as a contingency plan for Eligius III. A lab, not unlike Becca’s on her island, fully equipped and running, but part of an elaborate underground system, able to sustain about one hundred people through another cataclysmic event. Because why not?! We see cryo pods, vials with the nightblood serum, screens showing DNA sequences -- and a glass door, prominently featuring an infinity symbol. It leads to a small chamber, holding a single workstation, it’s main purpose to back up the data from ALIE 2.0. Because what kind of genius would design a device to store data without a backup solution? To help Lexa’s body and mind to heal, they place her in a cryo pod that connects to the workstation. When Clarke returns to Earth, Lexa is busy rebuilding a sustainable society.

ALTERNATIVELY: Lexa could follow Clarke to the Eligius planet. There could even be portals. No matter what, Clexa reunites. BOOM. OUT.

BACK TO THE BEGINNING

Lexa dies, her body is burnt, Earth is destroyed -- what were they thinking?! But space is a wondrous thing and opens up many possibilities. Life on the new planet isn’t what the brochures advertised and Clarke finds herself back in space yet again. She passes through a wormhole, only to end up back in Earth’s orbit. To Clarke’s immense surprise, the planet she sees through the looking glass looks healthy, greens and blues, satisfying her artistic eye. Longing to go home, she packs up and takes a drop ship down to Earth. Nothing could have prepared her for what she sees when she steps off the metal ramp -- a Grounders welcoming committee, with a few familiar faces: Anya, Lincoln, and, yes, Lexa. Clexa reunites. Together, they find a way to save their people. BOOM. OUT.

ALL THE COMMANDERS

Lexa dies, her body is burnt, Earth is destroyed -- Jason still sucks! But Lexa’s spirit lives on the Flame, she’s real, and Eligius III is big on cloning. Becca’s work in biotechnology had been instrumental in establishing the thriving colony. When its leaders learn about the existence of the Flame, they use the DNA information also stored by ALIE 2.0 to recreate the bodies of the previous Commanders, embedding their spirits -- think Altered Carbon, if not more organic.

ALTERNATIVELY: The planet is home to an alien life form that manifests itself as people’s loved ones, feeding off memories and emotions. Holy shit! Clexa reunites. BOOM. OUT.

PARALLELS

Lexa dies, her body is burnt, Earth is destroyed -- what a shitty world! But luckily, it’s not the only world available to us in this science fiction universe. What Monty did not realize is that the Eligius III coordinates take them to a parallel universe. Imagine Clarke’s shock when she runs into her parallel self. Imagine her delight when she eventually runs into a very alive Lexa. And you’ll be pleased to hear that, in this parallel reality, Gustus has kicked Titus’ useless ass off a cliff a long time ago, although Anya will insist that he couldn’t have done it without her. Clexa reunites. Long live Clexa. BOOM. OUT.

LOVE WINS

Lexa dies, her body is burnt, Earth is destroyed -- imagine how much stupid that takes! But space is still largely undiscovered, allowing us to get a little inventive. For whatever reason, Clarke finds herself back in space again and is sucked into a black hole, or similar. In a nod to Interstellar, love is the 5th dimension and the strongest power in any universe. In this dimension, we see Lexa waiting for her, smiling. Clarke takes off running into Lexa’s open arms. That could lead us to any kind of Clexa scenario, on Earth, or elsewhere. Is it real? Are they alive or dead? We might never know, but they are together.

ALTERNATIVELY: Clarke dies and finds herself on some metaphysical plane or other. More importantly, Lexa is waiting for her, smiling. Not the someday she imagined but she finally reunites with her love, her soulmate. The ultimate endgame. BOOM. OUT.

In conclusion, whoever claims that it’s impossible to narratively bring Lexa back, other than by using flashbacks or through the Flame, lacks imagination and/or simply chooses to be ignorant about Rothenberg’s proneness to plot holes and retroactive continuity. The concepts above are my own and a byproduct of too many sleepless nights of cursing you know who. Thanks for reading.

#clexa #lexa #commander lexa #heda leksa #the100 #death is not the end #science fiction #creative writing #use your imagination #clexa is endgame

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kattaloop · 6 years

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L E X A L I V E S O N

A few Lexa GIFs I made for the 2-year anniversary trend for some friends, but I thought I’d share them with everyone. Just getting back into basic editing so nothing too fancy, and yes, they’re definitely on the larger side as I tried to make them high quality. Free motion graphics template by Mango Street 🤙

Lexa lives on in everything we do; let’s keep fighting for her!

#lexa #clexa #commander lexa #lexa lives on #may we meet again #heda #two years without lexa #lexa edit #gifs #alycia debnam carey #lexaspinoff

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kattaloop · 6 years

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Why Lexa? Because It’s Lexa!

Stories have the power to change the world. As Dustin Lance-Black so eloquently put, “telling stories is one of the most potent skills in changing culture, because it starts with changing hearts.” It does not matter if those stories are real or fictional. Good storytelling will draw you in and make you feel. You won’t have to look very far for writers who will attest to ugly sobbing or feeling elated while writing a story, even. We are supposed to feel, and the more empathetic you are, the more you become emotionally attached. It is not unusual or even abnormal to feel a real connection with fictional characters. Can you fall in love with a fictional character? Of course you can. Just like you can fall in love with the idea (or rather an ideal) of an actual person, a common problem in many relationships. Can you grieve and mourn a fictional character? Absolutely yes, and there is nothing wrong with it or wrong with you.

The 100 is like any other story, in that it has the potential to change hearts and minds, for better or for worse. That is part of the responsibility of every creator, and they are fools if they claim otherwise. It may not reach millions and millions of people, but the hundreds of thousands it does will take away a message and, unfortunately for those of us who are progressive and part of a minority, that message has turned from a positive to a negative in its third season. I will, without a doubt, take another look at its fall from grace another time, but as someone who instantly connected with Lexa, it was bad news all around.

From the moment Lexa first appeared on screen, as the timid servant girl transformed into the powerful Commander of the 12 Clans, I was spellbound. With little screen time or initial purpose, the writers perhaps unknowingly gave Alycia Debnam-Carey just enough good material to work with to make this minor character larger and compelling than anything else on the show. She became, as show creator Jason Rothenberg put it, “an internet sensation.” I watched her reveal layer after layer, nuance after nuance, dark secrets and stories yet to be unveiled, emotions boiling underneath a stoic surface - and then the kiss between Lexa and Clarke happened and I swear I have never seen anything more beautiful on screen. I had been questioning my sexuality for a while, but in that moment I knew that I identified, in fact, LGBT.

Does Lexa mean so much to me because she is gay? Nope. And sorry, not sorry if that does not correlate with anyone’s limited view of the world. Lexa is gay, yes, and that means something, a lot, and I’ll come to that in a moment, but Lexa is so much more. Which, in my opinion, is the reason why she had and continues to have such a tremendous impact on people, why she crossed the boundaries into mainstream media and attention so effortlessly, why she became so incredibly important both as a character and as a symbol. Because, oh boy, did she become a symbol after her death.

Viewers from all walks of life connected with Lexa on different levels. All of her layers, which we have not even seen half of, in my opinion, offer points of connection, of attachment. Heck, even the haters cannot get enough of her, blindly latching on to her flaws, to the point of demonizing her, which becomes an issue because that truly is not her and skims along a damaging stereotype as the writers only continue to give more fodder to, rather than contradict those problematic viewpoints. Either way, Lexa calls to your emotions like hardly any other character I have seen, and you are still asking, why Lexa?

If you consider yourself part of the LGBT community, you quickly learn that you are part of a minority. But just like with any other minority, circumstances differ for everyone. I had to learn that myself as I dipped my toe in for the first time. I never talked to my parents about my sexuality in any capacity, and they never cared either way. I guess I can count myself lucky in that regard, because I have since learned that too many LGBT, male or female or fluent, feel the need to continue to hide their true selves from their families even throughout adulthood or worse, fear and suffer the consequences of loving someone they do not approve of and in turn will reject their own. Imagine living in fear of your own father’s reaction to who you are and who you love, only to see Lexa’s father figure being the one to shoot her because she allowed herself to love again, to love Clarke. It is not poetic, Jason, it is just cruel and disgusting.

Finding representation at all, never mind good representation, on screen for LGBT is not easy. We cannot just switch the channel to see another Commander Lexa or a loving relationship between two female leaders. Much of the representation is flawed, if not harmful, as it is riddled with stereotypes, or sidelined, or a plot device, or the bait to draw in LGBT viewers. Lexa and Clarke, for a while, were amazing representation. They were groundbreaking and truly could have been a game-changer, if not for Rothenberg’s ignorance. Or was it arrogance? Something more nefarious? I will let you be the judge of that.

Why is representation so important? Remember, it is the story that can change the hearts and minds of people, which in turn can change our culture, our society, our world. As long as we continue to see POCs executed reminiscent of the slavery era, women propping up men for their redemption arc while sacrificing their own character development, bisexual females more often than not ending up with the male hero, and lesbians killed within the context of love is weakness, being undeserving of love and not having any chance at being happy whatsoever - as long as that is the message viewers see on screen, prejudice and fear will continue to reign over love and compassion.

Why does it have to be Lexa, why won’t I move on to another lesbian character? Because it was never about the lesbian character. It is about Lexa, who also, gloriously (which apparently corresponds with fatally), happens to be gay. The world is not black and white. Lexa is not either this or that. She is special, a fantastically complex and multilayered character we do not see very often, if at all. My heart bleeds at the thought that we might never see her full potential because of one ignorant creator, lacking both creative skills and any sense of responsibility.

If I ever were to blame Alycia (which I am not) for anything, it would be that she is too damn good at what she does. She made us fall in love with this outstanding character, she gave her depth and emotions that far surpassed anything written on the page, and gave her the humanity to make her utterly real. Unfortunately, Lexa and Alycia both were at the mercy of Rothenberg who, as far as I can tell, has no empathy or awareness or an ounce of compassion and no creative vision past his admittedly humongous ego. But none of that, no time or financial constrictions could excuse his decision to kill off this one in a million character with a homophobic trope, without giving everyone, himself included, the chance to have her back at some point.

Lexa means the world to me and to so many others, she is as real as she is fictional, and that’s that. Her story has the power to change hearts, and that is why she is worth more alive than dead. As she is, indeed, a fictional character, there are multitudes of ways to rewrite her fate, to bring her back to us, if Alycia is willing. Because it should be crystal clear by now that Alycia gave us Lexa, not Rothenberg.

Ai gonplei nou ste odon!

#lexa #clexa #commander lexa #the100 #may we meet again #lexaspinoff #alycia debnam carey #jason rothenberg #lgbt #representation matters #reflection #i might turn this into an article #i miss lexa

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