potofsoup

[potofsoup]

I was planning on having Sam say something about building community with kindness, but apparently he had other ideas.

So I guess this is instead, a cockroach moment. A "I'll be as queer and asian as I want, fuck you" moment. A "it's your turn to recognize my humanity" moment. A "I will keep asking uncomfortable questions and making you acknowledge what you're doing" moment.

TBH I almost didn't draw a comic this year, since I haven't consumed any Marvel content in over 4 years, and, well... ::gestures at everything::. But it turns out that my brain still wants to trot out these 3 dudes and make them talk about America, so I banged this out in 5 hours.

Yes, I've been doing this for 12 years. Here's the AO3 link if you want to see all 12: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1968099 (wow, look at baby me's opinions from the first Trump term!)

And here's the tumblr tag: https://potofsoup.tumblr.com/tagged/happy%20birthday%20steve/chrono

I promise the other years are a lot more hopeful.

[potofsoup]

Yay in celebration for finally finishing my fic (Independent Variable, if you wanna read), I decided to draw some post-reconciliation Batfam + Roombie funtimes! [previous Roombie art here]

Some more random Roombie headcanons:

Tim never adds anything that elevates Roombie above standard roomba height, so Roo and Tim are both Team Height-challenged. It's great.

Roombie (Tim usually calls him Roo, though Jason starts calling them Roombit, Roombers, Roomberton the First, etc) goes by whatever pronouns people want to assign them, as long as it's not "it".

Yes, Tim has programmed Roo to recognize Jason's voice commands, since Jason hangs out at the apartment so much. He only sometimes regrets it. (Especially when he has to add more voice recognition files every time Jason invents a new nickname)

Roo doesn't usually leave Tim's apartment. They're kind of like Tim's friend, but also Tim's butler, lol. The Batfam get to know Roo when they come to visit. (And they visit often)

Yes Tim totally uploads some cat-engagement features to Roombie so that he can play with Alfred

Tim's place probably has a lot of Roombie-specific markings and rfid tags and stuff, so that Roo knows where to go

Babs loves visiting Tim's place because it's soooo wheelchair friendly (because it's also roomba-friendly!) I can imagine her getting her own roomba tbh, though maybe with cooler Babs upgrades.

Roo totally has a "shovel" attachment for when they have to really sort Tim's clothes and floor clutter.

Roo has lots of different beeps and chirp sounds, but only Tim understands all of them, since he's the one who programmed them. He refuses to add any voice features to Roo, because he wants to maintain the R2D2 vibes.

He did add "Exterminate!" in Dalek voice, for the convention, so if you're a legit intruder, please imagine a roomba charging aggressively at you with a taser, chirping angrily and also sporadically saying "Exterminate!!!"

[potofsoup]

Edit to add: [more pix of Roombie and Batfam] [fic that spawned this]

Wow! Apparently folks enjoyed my silly roomba comic??

Responses:

Of course @reader-from-another-dimension! Maybe a quick link back to the original post would be nice? And please do @mention me so that I can see your art!

@iconuk01 omg!!!! clearly the answer is yes

I would say it's up to you, @arrowheadedbitch! Whatever makes it more fun and exciting!

That said, here are some personal headcanons:

Tim calls it "Roombie", like "roomie", so he feels like he has a roommate. He definitely says "hi" to it whenever he gets home.

He tried programming it to have a cat behavior set after his parents said no to having pets, but he didn't like the result, so instead Roombie just has a bunch of expressive beeps (inspired by R2D2, of course!).

It's also souped up so it can keep up with his skateboarding, and also serve as a portable projector. (Eventually he gets good enough at tech that Roombie can do 3d projections). It also serves as his general laptop enhancer/peripheral. Maybe it can also do some basic chemical analysis, too?

He also has a "guard mode" for Roombie. I'm just imagining someone sneaking into Drake Manor and there's just like, a really aggressive Roomba charging at them with loud angry beeping and a taser attachment. (Maybe there's also a "spy mode"?)

There was a period where tiny!Tim put googly eyes on Roombie. But then his parents got home and yelled at him so that stopped. :/ Tim makes sure that Roombie looks like a normal Roomba from the outside

When he's living in Wayne Manor, Roombie is kept with his box of important stuff, but not actually used (since Alfred manages the household and Tim doesn't want Roombie to interfere. Plus he's kind of embarrassed about Roombie. And maybe he has actual people to talk to now). But when Tim's worried about Damian's assassination attempts, he definitely sets up Roombie in "guard mode" for his room.

I was pecking away at a fic (as one does when one is in-between binge-reading of fics) when I was taken by the cracktastic idea of Tim Drake having a Roomba as a best friend growing up and then somehow my hand slipped

[potofsoup]

The other day I came up with this extremely derpy idea and chuckled to myself, so now it's an extremely derpy comic

[potofsoup]

I was pecking away at a fic (as one does when one is in-between binge-reading of fics) when I was taken by the cracktastic idea of Tim Drake having a Roomba as a best friend growing up and then somehow my hand slipped

Edit to add: [more pix of Roombie and Batfam] [fic that spawned this]

[potofsoup]

2am is when I have thoughts about voting, apparently.

States with reproductive rights on the ballot: https://reproductiverights.org/abortion-on-ballot-2024/

States/candidates that support LGBTQ+ rights: https://www.reckon.news/lgbtq/2024/10/your-pride-your-power-the-essential-lgbtq-voter-guide-for-2024.html

Ballotpedia has a rundown of the major ballot issues, sorted by type and by state: https://ballotpedia.org/2024_ballot_measures (do a search on page for your state name to find what's on your state's ballot!)

And here are the states that allow you to register and vote on the same day (double check your state's election website to confirm what you need to bring, and also whether you can do early register+vote)

[potofsoup]

Guess who's excited to get their ballot in the mail tomorrow? Me! So I slapped together a quick comic, as well as a map based off of this and this. A list of when same day registration is available is at the bottom of this article.

But also: wow, early voting stuff is so confusing! For example, I get my ballot in the mail tomorrow, and I can immediately mail it back. But if I want to drop it off in person, I need to either go to a special ballot drop box by city hall, or wait for early in-person voting sites to open, which isn't until Oct 22nd for my state.

Or like, early voting in Louisiana is apparently from Oct 16 to Oct 29th? And then there's a week of no voting, and then polls open again on Nov 5th? Or like how the only day you can register and then immediately vote is Oct 26th?

Anyway, best way to figure out the info for your area is to check your state and county's election website. I've found usvotefoundation.org to have clear fact sheets for each state (including ID requirements, polling location finders, as well as direct links to state election websites): https://www.usvotefoundation.org/state-voter-information . You can also jump to each state's election websites via usa.gov, or by searching directly, though some websites are more confusing than others.

Happy voting!

Oh, and here's the voter registration deadlines map from last time, in case you haven't registered and want to register. Oct 7th is the last day for a bunch of states!

[potofsoup]

Apparently I can't edit this post to swap in an updated map that notes which states have Election Day registration, so here it is on reblog. Basically if the date is in brackets, you can walk up to do register+vote on Nov 5th.

Oh look, it seems like there's a Republican-led movement to purge voter rolls in the lead-up to the election! It's almost as if your vote matters and they don't want you to vote! Anyway, I whipped up a quick map (based on this) that shows when the voter registration deadline is in each state. There are a few deadlines coming up in the next week or so.

If you live in a state that regularly purges voter rolls for infrequent voters (the orange ones in the first map), or if you moved recently, it's good to check if you're still registered to vote.

Vote.org makes it super easy to check your registration: https://www.vote.org/am-i-registered-to-vote/

Just put in your address and DOB and they'll tell you whether you're registered. (And they give you a quick link to register online if it turns out that you're not! Only the 9 states in white on my map don't have online registration, and for those they provide instructions on how to do it via mail or in person.)

So yeah, give yourself peace of mind -- do a quick check. :)

[potofsoup]

I got a bunch of responses to my post that I'll throw up here, although I endeavored to answer in-comment as well.

So firstly, "these people" were usually able to successfully register because at the time, they *were* eligible! But, people move or people die, and that's generally the official target for voter roll purges. And that makes sense!

Unfortunately, the "people who have moved away" category tends to also catch "people who moved in-state and forgot to tell the post office," "people who didn't check their mail in time", "people whose address was mis-entered somewhere in the process", and "people who didn't vote for 4 years". Those people then show up to vote and are told that they aren't on the voter records anymore, with no easy way of redress.

It's hard to estimate how many people that is. Looking at the numbers from Texas, it seems like half of those purged are definitely dead, and the other half are people who were put on a "haven't heard from them in 4 years" list. (And the method of checking is "didn't vote in 2020 and 2022" and "our mailer got bounced back".) That article had the Texas voter roll purge at ~1 million, but it's currently approaching 2 million. Let's say 10% of the people purged were purged erroneously -- that's still ~200,000 votes, which, in a tight election, matters quite a bit.

At the end of the day, voter roll purges end up making it harder for certain types of voters to vote: people who move a lot, and people who might be "once-in-a-while" voters. Sure, the rhetoric tends to be about stopping non-citizens from voting, but the cases of that actually happening is minuscule. As in, ~100 cases in the last major election. This, compared to a potential 200,000 actual legitimate voters being purged, seems ... well, not worth the effort.

I got an email notif for this but couldn't find it on the actual post for some reason? But yeah -- vote.org is a 3rd party website. I find their interface much easier to navigate than the vote.gov website, and their info seems pretty well-researched and up-to-date. At the end of the day, your local state or county voter registration website will be the most reliable.

Ack! You're right! That's what I get for doing this at midnight last night. Basically, there are some states where normal voter registration closes 1-2 weeks before election day, BUT there's also same-day voter registration on Election Day, where you show up with your ID, etc, and you can register and then vote.

For example, here's what it says on the NH website:

(which, I personally find much more clearly articulated on this vote.org webpage)

Anyway, the same-day registration seems to be pretty complicated -- different states allow it for different ranges of dates, often aligned with early voting (you can see a chart when you scroll down this page). New York, for some reason, has one magic day of same-day register+vote that's Oct 26. I'll have to think about how I can update the map -- maybe I'll put a symbol for the states that have election day registration, and then have a separate map that has the more granular info of what ID is needed, and the registration date ranges... clearly a midnight project for tonight. :P

Anyway, thanks for all the comments!

[potofsoup]

Oh look, it seems like there's a Republican-led movement to purge voter rolls in the lead-up to the election! It's almost as if your vote matters and they don't want you to vote! Anyway, I whipped up a quick map (based on this) that shows when the voter registration deadline is in each state. There are a few deadlines coming up in the next week or so.

If you live in a state that regularly purges voter rolls for infrequent voters (the orange ones in the first map), or if you moved recently, it's good to check if you're still registered to vote.

Vote.org makes it super easy to check your registration: https://www.vote.org/am-i-registered-to-vote/

Just put in your address and DOB and they'll tell you whether you're registered. (And they give you a quick link to register online if it turns out that you're not! Only the 9 states in white on my map don't have online registration, and for those they provide instructions on how to do it via mail or in person.) If you want an extra verification, find your state's election website and double-check there.

So yeah, give yourself peace of mind -- do a quick check. :)

[potofsoup]

i love your fourth of july comics every year but this years feels extremely optimistic about biden’s abilities in the face of him letting roe get overturned and funding a gen*cide at worst or letting it happen at best by taking the bare minimum of regulatory action… i mean can he really be trusted at all anymore to do the right thing or act in line with the people’s demands? and how do we know the people behind project 2025 won’t just rig the election again to get in under false pretenses?

Hihi! Thank you for reading and enjoying my July 4th comics every year! I am in a non-US airport en route to a month-long trip in a place with sketchy internet, so sorry in advance for sloppiness in my response (and potentially going radio silent).

But:

I don't think he "let" Roe get overturned, since that was the Supreme Court's overwhelming conservative majority, which really started with Mitch McConnell refusing to approve Obama's appointee and forcing it into a 2016 election issue. The fact that Trump got to appoint 3 Supreme Court Justices is what got us here.

Re: Biden and the Israel/Hamas war ... on the one hand, there's definitely more that he could have done, but on the other hand, they are a whole other country over there. It's Hamas that initiated the Oct 7 attacks and took the hostages. It's Netanyahu and his right-wing government who decided to retaliate to such extreme extent. Biden can talk about how he would really like Netanyahu to stop fighting and step down, but at the end of the day that's not his call, any more than he can stop the Sudan fighting that is near-genocidal either.

So, to come to your question #1: "Can he really be trusted at all anymore to do the right thing or act in line with the people’s demands"?

For me, it's a resounding YES. Guyz, he has passed so much good domestic policies. My spouse works in green energy and the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act halved his anxiety and gave him legitimate hope. The tumblr post I linked to in my comic has links to many of the other great things that Biden has done. Tbh I voted for him in 2020 because "a moldy onion is still better than Trump", and I've been pleasantly surprised. Like how he tried to cancel student loans, the Supreme Court overturned it, and then he came back 6 months later with a different way to do it that didn't lead to a court challenge.

Is he perfect? Hell no. There's tons of stuff that I wish he did more about, or he went further on, but also he's just one guy heading one branch of government who is heading into an election year. (Just like FDR promising not joining WWII, while behind the scenes doing all the Lend-Lease Act stuff). And "the people" have lots of demands, many of them conflicting.

I'd also like to push at the unspoken part of your question... "Can he really be trusted to do the right thing..." compared to whom? Because right now the answer is "compared to Trump." And compared to Trump... I don't even trust Trump to respect the results of a legitimate election. Heck, he might just take his favorite state secrets, sell them to the highest bidder (or just show them off to someone for funzies), and then claim Presidential immunity. A decent Democrat who got stuff done vs someone who probably wants to pardon himself and all his friends and do Project 2025 stuff is not even on the same level. (Do I wish that there was a viable Democratic alternative to Biden? Sure! But who?) Heck, at this point -- imagine if it's Kamala Harris vs. Trump. Who would you vote for?

As for your question #2: "How do we know the people behind project 2025 won’t just rig the election again to get in under false pretenses?"

We don't. But also what can we do besides showing up to vote?

Actually, I need bullet points for this:

The 2022 midterm elections brought in fewer-than-expected election-deniers into crucial electoral offices at the state level, which means that hopefully most state electoral boards will continue to have integrity

Yes, voting is harder but at least we can still vote. So it's about getting out there and getting your vote counted. For some states, it involves waiting in 8 hour lines. For some states, it involves bringing 2 forms of ID. Document. Track. Make sure it's dropped off in a real ballot box and not a fake one. Don't believe messaging that the voting is happening on a different day or location, etc.

A 50.1% majority is easily challenged. A 55% majority, less so. Which means getting people out to vote.

The more people know about and think about the reality of a second Trump term (versus being disappointed by a Biden term), the more they will be motivated to vote against Trump.

Finally, let's be real here: I'm braced for a 2nd Trump term. That said:

I'm still going to go and vote for Biden, because the only way to prevent a 2nd Trump term is to vote.

A Trump term where either the House or Senate is controlled by the Democrats will be *very* different from a clean Republican sweep.

Even with a clean Republican sweep on the federal level, States have so much more power now, and voting the state level stuff will help shore up Democratic goals for the future. States get to draw voting districts however they want. States get to decide on abortion policies. If you live in a deep Red state, there still might be things to vote for that make it easier to live in now, and turn it purple a few elections down the line.

So at the end of the day, it's "Vote AND". Vote and keep living your best life. Vote and tell others about Project 2025. Vote and have hope. Even if Trump wins, at least you'll have voted against him. Vote and stay to build up a progressive wave for the next election.

[potofsoup]

Happy July 4th, everyone, and good luck to the UK voters out there!

Wow it's Year 11 of doing these!! Here's the AO3 link to the past 10 years, and here's the tumblr link.

Reminder that this is a long game -- some of the judges making decisions were appointed back in the 80s. Many of the cases that were decided this round were from Trump's term. So it's going to take long-term, consistent voting over a decade to start tipping things in the other direction. (Which I talked about in 2018 re: Trump shenanigans and 2022 re: Dobbs).

A lot has been done by the Biden administration (I'm assuming most folks have seen this post by boreal-sea with their very helpful sources), and much of that will be overturned by Trump, especially if he gets the Senate, and especially now that he would have a blank check for anything "official". So let's make sure that doesn't happen.

And even if Trump does get elected, your decisions down-ballot might effect control of the House or Senate, or might make it easier to vote next time, plus the whole plethora of state and local issues. It's Republican state attorney generals who are challenging climate regulations, for example.

Plus, when you really get down to it, only one of the candidates plans on pardoning himself and all his friends if he wins, and attacking the government if he loses. Maybe that guy shouldn't be the President.

If you're new to voting, remember to check voter registration deadlines! I'm a permanent vote-by-mail voter and it's so nice. :)

Transcript under the readmore

Page 1: Sam and Bucky meet up with Steve for a picnic. Steve: Thought you guys were still in Sudan? Bucky: I’m forcing Sam to take a break.

Sam collapses onto the picnic blanket. Sam: Oof, it just never stops, does it? Steve: Nope.

Bucky hands Sam an orange popsicle. Bucky: Eat and relax for a bit, Sam. Sam: Thanks.

Page 2: Bucky asks Steve: How are things state-side? Steve responds: HORRIBLE. Bucky: I thought you’ve been tentatively hopeful about what Biden has been able to achieve? Steve: I was! Student loans, child care, climate regulations, infrastructure, labor, trans rights … he’s quietly done a lot through regulatory improvements and congress bills. But now all people will talk about is how he’s OLD. And then there’s the Supreme Court’s decisions … Chevron and immunity… Steve puts his head in his hands, while Sam and Bucky look on with some concern.

Page 3: Bucky hands Steve a blue/raspberry popsicle: Steve, take a deep breath, and a popsicle. Sam: Sounds like we missed a lot. What’s going on? How bad is it? Steve: Pretty bad. The Supreme Court has made some decisions that give the Court and the President A LOT of discretionary power. Sam: Yikes, that doesn’t sound good. Steve: Well, the Chevron thing means that judges with life-term appointments can override policies made by government agencies. And now it’ll be harder to hold a President accountable because he will have immunity for any “official” actions.

Page 4: Sam: So if the President tries to, say, overturn a democratic election result, he’ll be allowed to as long as it’s in his job description? Steve: I don’t think threatening state electors is “official” business, but that will be decided by federal judges. Who get their jobs by approval from both the President and the Senate. Bucky: Yeesh. No wonder you’re stressed. Any good news? Steve: Well, thanks the Biden and the razor-thin Senate majority, the newer bills don’t rely on the Chevron deference. Still not great but not catastrophic. Sam, squirting ketchup on his hot dog: So what I’m hearing is that it’s now more important than ever to have a President and a Senate who you can trust to appoint fair judges, pass bills, and not commit crimes.

Page 5: Steve: Plus all of the state level offices, now that more and more deciding power has been thrown back to the states — abortion, LGBTQ rights, voting access… Bucky: Hey, at least this is a big election year so we can actually do something! Steve, with his arms crossed, looking surly: Except that all people want to talk about is how Biden is “too old” and “not doing enough,” as if that is on par with Trump’s desire to dismantle basic rights! As if the candidate who doesn’t embody ALL their ideals is not worth voting for! Bucky interrupts with a smart and a loud “PFFT.”

Page 6: Bucky: Um, Steve. YOU were like that in 1940. Sam, nudging Bucky: “Oh, this I gotta hear. Spill, Barnes.” In sepia, Steve is pacing around their apartment while Bucky is sitting and reading a newspaper. Steve: I can’t believe he’s running for a 3rd term! we need a fresh candidate to vote for! This is hardly a choice at all! AND he refuses to engage in Europe! All of Europe under fascist control and we’re just twiddling our thumbs? He’s letting millions die through his inaction! Bucky: Most people don’t want another war, Steve. If he came out for it, he would lose. Steve, indignant: But Buck, it’s your Polish relative who are in danger! Bucky, closing his newspaper and looking at Steve: Yeah, and between FDR and Willkes, I trust FDR to help if he could.

Page 7: Steve, in sepia, looking away: Should he be encouraged to do more? Maybe I should vote for Browder. The Communists have historically be Anti-Fascist.

Sam interrupts off-screen: Waitaminute! STEVE was going to PROTEST-VOTE? Steve: We were in a Blue State, Sam! Sam: But what about the down ballot races?! Steve: RELAX, I did my due diligence down-ballot. I wanted a senate that’s more progressive than the President.Voted LaGuardia for Mayor, too. Steve hesitates: Then, when I got to the President… I realized that the Best case scenario would be that my vote did nothing, versus if it actually spoiled the election. And when I asked myself who I could trust to work with my Senator… well, FDR had a good record with Labor. (sepia shot of young Steve voting) Bucky interrupts: Hold on, Steve.

Page 8: Bucky, eating a cookie, arching an eyebrow: You didn’t vote for Browder? Why didn’t you tell me? Steve: And have you say “I told you so” for the next century? Bucky: Heh.

Steve, with hand on his chin: What’s weird was that, despite everything, I still felt HORRIBLE when I ticked that box. Sam: Sounds like you built up the meaning of that vote far too much in your head. Logically, we know that a single box can’t represent all of the complexity of a whole system, but the desperately WANT it to. Just look at how people have built up so much around the term “Zionis” that it’s made productive conversations difficult.

Page 9: Sam and Steve speak in the background while Bucky reaches into the cooler and pulls out a box. Steve: Sigh. And that’s something that goes beyond the election. Sam: Which is why we need to vote, AND do other things. Bucky, looking at Steve and Sam: Like how Steve works to push organizations on the local level? Or like all the work you do as Captain America? Sam: Exactly. Vote AND.

Sam looks at Bucky fondly: Like how you vote AND make me and Steve take breaks. Bucky, looking stern because he can’t handle compliments: Shush, Sam.

Bucky holds up a cake that has the number “107” on it: It’s time for cake. Happy Birthday, Steve.

[potofsoup]

So.... I kind of accidentally fell into a Batfam fic hole for the past 3+ months and ... ::checks:: read >1000 fics??? Ooops?

Anyway, a fic rec list below the cut -- don't think anything is particularly surprising for anyone who is actually in the batfam fandom, since I stuck to the greatest hits, but in case you're like "Soup, how did you fall into a hole this deep for this long", under the cut are ~20 fics, organized by length. Mostly Tim-centric hurt/comfort because I'm basic like that. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

- Hot Cat on a Tin Roof by Arsenic (4k) This one is super cute -- basically Tim is an omega who has been hiding his heats because his parents were shit and never taught him otherwise, but then Jason finds out and of course mother-hens aggressively.

- phantom pain by envysparkler (5k) A great entry in the category of "Jason finds out that Tim's home life is miserable" -- in this case, he finds out that Tim's dad beats him through an accidental pain transference spell. Tim's dad gets his comeuppance.

- transaction by envysparkler (7k) The one where kid!Tim is touch-starved and goes to pay prostitute!Jason for hugs.

- The Second Stage by nightwalker (8k) Short and full of feels: basically Tim is touch-starved and determined not to bleed on anyone. Unfortunately his family finds out and he gets lots of cuddles.

- Brother Wanted by Vamillepudding (11k) Hilarious one where Tim puts out an ad for a brother and Jason accidentally answers. I love the little!Tim characterization here.

- 1-800-ROBIN by spqr (12k) A great entry in the "Jason Todd finds out and forcibly adopts Tim into the Batfam" category, all told through a series of phone calls. Great Jason Todd voice.

- Our Bodies & Other Fine Machines by SilverSkiesAtMidnight (13k) Tim's parents remain horrible! In this one, they make Tim food-insecure by cutting his food-buying budget and Tim, of course, tries to solve the problem himself. Eventually people figure it out and Tim ends up in a much better place.

- Tell Me I Am by potofrogs (15k) Basically trans!Tim gets kidnapped by Ras and made his "queen", saves himself and comes back to Gotham, and ... manages to recover, confront the Bats and stake out his own life in a generally healthy manner?!! I like that in this one, he doesn't immediately fall back into the Batfam gravity well and instead figures out what he actually wants.

- A Meditation on Railroading by eggmacguffin (25k) Wow this is an amazing fic about gaslighting. It's about Tim being abandoned in Atlanta by his shitty dad and deciding to train-hop his way home. I feel like I understand gaslighting better now.

- The Lone Ranger Never Had to Deal with Bruce Wayne by theskeptileptic (25k) This is a fic where Tim plans to fake his own death and run away to Canada to start a new life. Features hilarious little!Tim logic -- I love how his plans are both very smart but also very stupid at the same time, because he's 11.

- Missed Calls by nightwalker (26k) 5 times that Tim's dad didn't pick up the phone and one time he did. A particularly good rendition of the "Tim's parents are neglectful" trope. A good 5+1 really explores the range of the premise, and this fic delivers.

- His Head is Bloody, but Unbowed by gunpowder_and_pearls (26k) A great Jason POV fic! I love the way this fic captures what Jason's life would be like if he didn't end up getting adopted by Bruce -- the precariousness of trying to hold down two jobs as a 16-year-old and also dealing with a not-healthy home life. (It's okay, he befriends Nightwing and Robin)

- exception by cassiopeia721 (27k) A good character piece where Tim is taught that he's the "exception" -- exceptionally bright and mature, and therefore "kid" rules don't apply to him. Which doesn't do well for his emotional development, of course, as he deals with family neglect and also getting beaten up by Jason Todd.

- a Robin by any other name by redrobin1989 (33k) I love me some identity porn, and in this one, Tim still becomes Robin but refuses to tell Batman who he is. It really does some fun stuff with the "Batman and Tim!Robin is just a professional relationship" premise. (They figure it out in the end)

- Red Letter Day by silverwhittlingknife (41k, 9/? chapters) This is a wip, but deffo worth reading! Basically Dick is trying to be single-parent to Damian and barely keeping all the balls in the air. There's a mysterious calendar date that's marked as super important but he can't remember what it is. He thinks it's for Damian (but it's pretty clear by chapter 2 that it's for Tim). It's got an interesting Dick & Tim dynamic in that they hang out and obviously care about each other, but also there's too many things left unsaid (but Dick is really trying his best!)

- Banshee In A Well by liverobinreaction (bugbee) (43k) In this one, Tim keeps dying and coming back to life. It doesn't leave any emotional trauma around self-worth at all, no sirree. Nor does it feed into Tim's self-sacrifice tendencies at all, either, of course not.

- Dead Boys Don't Scream by Year_of_Summer (49k, 15/26 chapters) Wow I love this fic. Tim feeling neglected by Batfam? check. Tim running off and trying to solve problems himself with an overly-convoluted plan and zero survival instinct? check. Tim making friends despite himself? check. Super cool siren/merpeople mythology? check. All the angst upon Tim's return? check. This fic hasn't hit the comfort part of hurt/comfort, but it's expertly written and I definitely trust the author to deliver! Definitely worth a subscribe.

- The Return by lurkinglurkerwholurks (52k) So lots of fics have this arc of "Tim feels shut out from the Batfam and eventually does something so drastic that the Batfam is forced confront their issues." Which I love! But sometimes I want the Batfam to notice earlier, for them to try to fix things but it's hard and rocky because they're different people with different traumas and hangups. This fic delivers beautifully.

- buy back the secrets by sundiscus (71k, 5/6 chapters) I love the characterizations in this one, particularly Kon! It's a super cute Tim/Kon fic where Kon doesn't know that Tim is Red Robin. Great plotting, too! It only has 1 more chapter to go, so you know things are going to be resolved and okay :)

- Northern Attitude (I Was Raised on Little Light) by theskeptileptic (79k, 16/18 chapters) I absolutely love this writer. Tim is, of course, miserable in this fic (because he wants to be part of the Batfam but his parents basically blackmailed Tim into staying with them and continuing all the child abuse), but everything eventually works out! Tim is a great self-rescuing princess, and my heart of hearts goes out to the AMAZING Jason POV in chapter 20 (which works as a standalone, though it slightly spoils a bit of the plot), where you really FEEL how much Jason loves literature and uses that to guide his life.

[and two bonus super long ones:]

- Liminal Space by Calamityjim (77k) Oh man this fic series has such great comics-style plot! There's inter-dimensional travel, time travel, an utterly manic!Tim who comes up with the best/worst plans. I also ~love~ the YJ!Bart from a dystopian future who uses "crash" and "mode". Oh, and Tim is deeply flawed (and should not be allowed to do dimensional travel), but he still finds a loving, supportive family. (Warning: if you do go further in this fic series, the last fic of the series, "Collapse", is aggressively NOT kind to Clark Kent.)

- Finding the Line by Miss_Lazy_Tuesday (130k) In this one, Dick actually catches Damian trying to kill Tim, and as a result, actually gets Damian and Tim to reconcile before Tim runs off. Then the Batkids basically work together to bring Bruce back, find a magical macguffin, defeat the League of Assassins, and stop a complete re-write of reality. Great characterization and a fun comic plot.

[potofsoup]

potofsoup discord server

Hi everyone,

Seems like things are being a bit wonky at tumblr recently. Also I miss posting ad hoc things but I'm too busy to properly engage with tumblr. So: I've set up a discord server where I'll post random stuff of what I'm currently working on, both fannish and not-fannish.

Don't know if it's something of interest, but here's the Discord invite link: https://discord.gg/fK3Sca8eZT

Also, in case tumblr spontaneously combusts, reminder that I do post all my fan stuff to AO3 under "potofsoup" and my original stuff to AO3 under "sushux", so you can always follow me that way.

(I'm hoping that tumblr won't combust. If it does, though, please tell me where you're going so that I can join the exodus.)

[potofsoup]

OMG 2 weeks after Supreme Court struck down student loan forgiveness, Biden administration is figuring out other ways:

https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/14/politics/student-loan-relief-biden-administration/index.html

The Biden administration announced Friday that 804,000 borrowers will have their student debt wiped away, totaling $39 billion worth of debt, in the coming weeks due to fixes that more accurately count qualified monthly payments under existing income-driven repayment plans.  [...]

While not part of today’s actions, the Department of Education is also moving ahead with a separate and significant change to the federal student loan system that will enable Americans to enroll in a new income-driven repayment plan.  Some parts of the plan, which Biden is calling SAVE (Saving on a Valuable Education), will be implemented this summer and be fully phased in next year now that it has gone through the formal rulemaking process at the Department of Education. ... Once the plan is fully implemented, people will see their monthly bills cut in half and remaining debt canceled after making at least 10 years of payments.  

Basically they’re strengthening and expanding their income-driven repayment plans!  These basically say “pay a reasonable amount (given your income and family size) for x years and then the rest is canceled.”  The x has traditionally been 20-25 years, but now they’re adding a new 10-year repayment plan option!  The immediate $39 billion is for people who are currently in these repayment plans, where they’ve gone back and re-adjusted how they count payments so that those people can now stop paying. 

It makes me so happy to see all the EFFORT that has been going on behind the scenes, and that the Supreme Court decision isn’t an end to those efforts.  Go meetings go!

Happy 10th year of me doing this dorky comic! Hope people don’t mind the fact that I haven’t really dabbled in Cap stuff for a few years, except for my weird yearly July 4th ritual. On AO3 here, and tumblr tag here. (2022 was about Dobbs, 2020 was about seeing the stars, 2019 was about building new systems, 2018 was about voting, 2017 was about immigration.)

@histrionic-dragon tagged me yesterday and posted a bunch of cool links of ways to help: https://histrionic-dragon.tumblr.com/post/721837010124488704/almost-captain-americas-birthday

Rail workers paid sick leave: https://www.ibew.org/media-center/Articles/23Daily/2306/230620_IBEWandPaid

Lots of posts out there on the 2023 Minnesota legislative session, but here’s the OG tumblr roundup post.

California is trying to divest its two largest pension funds from fossil fuels, but apparently today they decided to table it until next year. :/ I guess more meetings are needed! (productive ones, not ones that could have been an email.)

[potofsoup]

WOW I’M BLOWN AWAY, THANK YOU!!! <3 <3 <3  All the Stucky and Ask!WS Bucky zines are gone, so what’s left are Lady Friends and To the Little Guys. You guys rock!  And thanks to all the people who tossed in a sticker or a print, too! <3 <3 <3 

Heyhey, here are some fanzines that I made in the Cap heyday of 2014-2016 that I don't want to keep in stock anymore. (Whenever I put them up at a con, people are like "awww, Stucky! I was so into that when I was 12!" and I'm like "eh heh yes the good old days" and internally feel like a desiccated corpse.)

Anyway, I'm selling the fanzines for $1 + shipping on my storenvy: https://potofsoup.storenvy.com/collections/2007395-clearance . The Stucky one there's only 3 copies left, the others are ~10 copies left. More info on the individual zines in each product description.

Probably by Aug 1 I'll recycle the rest?

Anyway, grab them now if you want them, I guess?

(sorry that shipping remains pricey as fuck ($3 US, $6 international))

[potofsoup]

Heyhey, here are some fanzines that I made in the Cap heyday of 2014-2016 that I don't want to keep in stock anymore. (Whenever I put them up at a con, people are like "awww, Stucky! I was so into that when I was 12!" and I'm like "eh heh yes the good old days" and internally feel like a desiccated corpse.)

Anyway, I'm selling the fanzines for $1 + shipping on my storenvy: https://potofsoup.storenvy.com/collections/2007395-clearance . The Stucky one there's only 3 copies left, the others are ~10 copies left. More info on the individual zines in each product description.

Probably by Aug 1 I'll recycle the rest?

Anyway, grab them now if you want them, I guess?

(sorry that shipping remains pricey as fuck ($3 US, $6 international))