#Idea validation meaning

[ideavalidationprogram]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ProtoBoostAi (@protoboostai)

Got an idea that’s burning in your brain? 🔥

You don’t need to face a panel of sharks to know if it’s worth building.

With ProtoBoost.ai, you can validate your idea with real users in minutes— ✅ Smart filters ✅ Real user feedback ✅ Zero guesswork

No pressure. Just progress. Pitch smarter. Build better.

[scribble-dee-vee]

Seeing a bunch of writing posts lately like “it’s okay if you only wrote a couple hundred words today :))”

As someone with a full time job, diverse hobbies, and a commitment to proper rest/self care, I would amend that. It’s okay if you don’t write anything at all on MOST DAYS OF YOUR LIFE. You’re still a writer if you’re passionate about creating stories and putting words on paper when time allows. Life is busy and full of possibility, and that’s beautiful, actually. Kill the hypercapitalist productivity demon in your head.

[wordpress-blaze-214324893]

Insider's Guide to Bachelorette Trips

Need To Know

Each of these destinations offers a different vibe. If you're into vineyard tastings and Michelin-starred restaurants, Napa is your go-to. If you prefer a late-night, lively music atmosphere, go to Nashville. Lastly, if you're looking for a luxurious and relaxing celebration, Cabo San Lucas is the perfect destination.

Whatever you're in the mood for, here are some tips for how to make the most of your trip from hotels, activities, and more.

Ideal Length of Stay

A 2–3 day getaway is perfect for short and sweet celebrations like spa treatments, yoga sessions, or a night out on the town. For those looking to unwind and bond even more, a 4–7 day trip allows for a mix of relaxation, adventure, and meaningful time together.

Planning Tips

Set the budget early

It's best to be fully transparent from the beginning. Include all activities, transportation, accommodations, and dining options. Communicate with the group to determine the best travel proposal so everyone is included and can plan accordingly in advance.

Designate A trip leader

Having one or two people take charge helps streamline decisions. Communications don't get overlooked or distorted when there is a designated person to handle the bookings, coordinate plans, and reservations.

Plan Ahead, but Stay Flexible

Most hotels offer group rates if booking more than 8 or so rooms, so be sure to get an early headcount. Choose a loose itinerary with must-do activities and built-in breaks. This ensures everyone can enjoy their experience without feeling overwhelmed or rushed.

Top 3 Bachelorette Destinations

Napa Valley

California

Napa Valley, California, is the perfect blend of elegance and fun. This beautiful region is known for its hillside vineyards and gourmet dining and offers a relaxing yet sophisticated escape. Whether you're sipping bubbly on a wine tour, indulging in gourmet meals, or unwinding with a group spa day, Napa sets the scene for a truly unforgettable celebration with your favorite people.

Before You Go

Reservations are a must at most wineries, especially on weekends. For safe measures, shuttle services or a wine tour will keep the trip stress-free. The weather can vary. Mornings are typically chilly, even in the summer, so it's suggested to bring layers.

Airport: San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Oakland International Airport (OAK)

Transportation: Private transfers, ridesharing and even shuttle services are all readily available. You can also rent a car.

Best Time To Visit

February to April is ideal due to its mild weather and fewer crowds September/October, if you want to enjoy the harvest season

Spa Day Ideas

Book midweek (Sun–Thu), and call directly for the best rates and availability.

Golden Haven Hot Springs – “Girlfriends Glow” & “Renew & Glow”

Designed for small groups (3–4 people in a shared treatment room).

Restful Glow (includes mud and mineral bath, wrap, and overnight stay.

Renew & Glow adds a full-body massage.

Includes hot springs pool access, bocce, bikes, and picnic areas.

Napa Valley Marriott – SpaWell Group Experiences

Customized group programs: private yoga, wellness lounges, plus full access to spa amenities like steam rooms, outdoor garden terrace, and relaxation lounges.

Ideal for groups wanting on-site services with flexibility.

Where to Stay

Stanly Ranch, Auberge Resorts Collection - ★★★★★

Ideal for groups seeking a design-forward retreat

Fora Reserve perks include a $100 hotel credit, welcome amenity, daily breakfast, an upgrade, and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

Andaz Napa - ★★★★

Ideal for groups seeking a trendy, boutique-style getaway on a budget

Fora’s Hyatt Privé partner perks include a hotel credit, welcome amenity, daily breakfast, an upgrade and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

Alila Napa Valley - ★★★★★

Ideal for groups seeking a stylish, relaxing wine country escape

Fora’s Hyatt Privé partner perks include a hotel credit, welcome amenity, daily breakfast, an upgrade, and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

Nashville

Tennessee

Nashville is a top pick for a lively and unforgettable bachelorette trip. With its energetic music scene, rooftop bars, trendy restaurants, and iconic honky-tonks, the city offers nonstop fun for the bride squad. Whether your style is to bar hop on a trolley ride, line dance on Broadway or take cute pics in front of colorful murals, Nashville is the perfect place to celebrate with style, sass, and Southern charm.

Before You Go

Nashville can get expensive if you're bar hopping all day, but it doesn't have to be. It is a beautiful city with much to explore, especially for a country music lover. However, be aware that parking downtown is expensive. Plan ahead if you want to visit downtown on multiple days.

Airport: Nashville International Airport (BNA)

Transportation: Rideshare and private transfers; bicycle and scooter rentals

Best Time To Visit

March to May is ideal for outdoor events and moderate weather

Nashville Bars Owned By Famous Singers

Justin Timberlake - Twelve Thirty Club - 550 Broadway

Alan Jackson - Good Time Bar - 421 Broadway

Hank Williams Jr - Bourbon Street Blues and Boogie Bar - 220 Printers Alley

Lainey Wilson - Bell Bottoms Up - 120 3rd Ave S

Morgan Wallen - This Bar & Tennessee Kitchen - 107 4th Ave N

Miranda Lambert - Casa Rosa - 308 Broadway

Jelly Roll - Goodnight Nashville - 209 Broadway

Garth Brooks - Friends In Low Places Bar & Honky-Tonk - 411 Broadway

Eric Church's - Chiefs - 200 Broadway

Blake Shelton - Ole Red - 300 Broadway

Where To Stay

1 Hotel Nashville - ★★★★★

Ideal for groups seeking easy access to the city's best nightlife and live music

Fora Perks include a $100 food and beverage credit, daily breakfast, an upgrade and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

Thompson Nashville - ★★★★★

Ideal for groups seeking a trendy, stylish stay

Fora’s Hyatt Privé partner perks include a hotel credit, welcome amenity, daily breakfast, an upgrade and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

Graduate Nashville - ★★★★

ideal for groups seeking a fun, budget-friendly getaway

Cabo San Lucas

Baja California, Mexico

Cabo San Lucas is a sun-soaked paradise that’s perfect for a bachelorette trip filled with beach vibes and unforgettable memories. From lounging at luxury resorts and sipping margaritas poolside to sunset cruises, spa days, and dancing the night away at oceanfront clubs, Cabo blends relaxation and celebration effortlessly.

Before You Go

All non-Mexican citizens need a valid passport to travel to Cabo San Lucas. Credit cards are accepted at most locations. However, you might need some cash on hand for small vendors and tipping. While the US Dollar is often accepted, it's best to have Mexican Pesos (MXN) readily available. English is a widely spoken language throughout Cabo; however, it's best to learn some key phrases before visiting that might make your trip easier.

Airport: Los Cabos International Airport (SJD)

Transportation: Many resorts offer private and shared transfers from the airport. They can also help arrange transportation if you’re looking to see the city.

Best Time To Visit

March to May is one of the best times to visit for fewer crowds, warm weather and sunny skies.

Tequila Tastings

Small Group City Tour Los Cabos w/Lunch Tequila Candy Free Photos

Tequilera Santos Destilados - great for small groups; highly rated for its 'authentic experience' Agave Elite Experience - great for small groups; known for weeknight specials Espiritu De Agave - great for a deeper exploration; private 90-mintute tastings

Where To Stay

Esperanza, Auberge Resorts Collection - ★★★★★

ideal for groups seeking a luxurious escape with a private beach

Fora Reserve perks include a $100 hotel credit, daily breakfast, an upgrade and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

The Cape, A Thompson Hotel - ★★★★★

ideal for groups seeking a fun, elevated beachfront getaway

Fora’s Hyatt Privé partner perks include a hotel credit, welcome amenity, daily breakfast, an upgrade and extended check-in/out whenever possible.

Paradisus Los Cabos (adults only-all inclusive) - ★★★★★

Ideal for groups seeking a budget-friendly escape

Source: Insider's Guide to Bachelorette Trips

[exastriscass]

Re: people being confused/upset about Vi becoming an enforcer (even though that has always been a main point of the show - how a kid from the lanes becomes an enforcer)

I saw someone say something along the lines of “Ekko is the character y’all think Vi is” and I think that hit the nail right on the head.

Ekko has been fighting for his home for years. He has a strong sense of justice and ideals for a better Zaun. I’m actually really excited to see him interacting more with Heimerdinger because I think their conversations will be interesting.

Vi on the other hand is a horribly broken character. She went from having a home and a family - a place of belonging - to experiencing a huge trauma and loss. Then right as the loss happened he was kidnapped and sent to a prison where she was isolated. By the time she is freed she no longer recognizes her home, her friends, or her own sister. And as she tries to re-find her place in her old life she realizes that that place doesn’t exist anymore. So of course she is going to follow the path of the person that cared about her (Caitlyn healing her) and made space for her (Caitlyn standing up for her to her family and to the council).

And the thing about Vi is that she isn’t idealistic in the way Ekko and even Caitlyn is. She has never indicated she wants things to be different for the better - only that she wants things to go back to how they were. She doesn’t want Jinx, she wants Powder. She doesn’t want the Zaun Silco has made, but she talks about how it was better under Vander (which still wasn’t ideal). She doesn’t have an idea for the future because she’s still stuck trying to regain the past - that is the broken aspect of her character and at the end of S1 she fully realizes there is no going back. That it is all truly gone. The one thing she has left to fall back on is her role of protector, which Caitlyn now needs.

What is going to be interesting in S2 is more the reactions to Vi’s involvement as an enforcer - from all sides. But they have done a great job of setting everything up and if it’s coming as a surprise to you then maybe you’ve been idealizing Vi as a character she’s not. Ekko is right there, is fucking phenomenal, and will never join the enforcers.

[anghraine]

It's interesting (if often frustrating) to see the renewed Orc Discourse after the last few episodes of ROP. I've seen arguments that orcs have to be personifications of evil rather than people as such or else the ethics of our heroes' approach to them becomes much more fraught. Tolkien's work, as written, seems an odd choice to me for not wrangling with difficult questions, and of course, more diehard fans are going to immediately bring up Shagrat and Gorbag.

If you haven't read LOTR recently, Shagrat and Gorbag are two orcs who briefly have a conversation about how they're being screwed over by Sauron but have no other real options, about their opinions of mistakes that have been made, that they think Sauron himself has made one, but it's not safe to discuss because Sauron has spies in their own ranks. They reminisce about better times when they had more freedom and fantasize about a future when they can go elsewhere and set up a small-scale banditry operation rather than being involved in this huge-scale war. Eventually, however, they end up turning on each other.

Basically any time that someone brings up the "humanity" of this conversation, someone else will point out that they're still bad people. They're not at all guilty about what they're part of. They just resent the dangers to themselves, the pressure from above, failures of competence, the surveillance they're under, and their lack of realistic alternative options. The dream of another life mentioned in the conversation is still one of preying on innocent people, just on a much smaller and more immediate scale, etc.

I think this misses the reason it keeps getting brought up, though. The point is not that Shagrat and Gorbag are good people. The point is that they are people.

There's something very normal and recognizable about their resentment of their superiors, their fears of reprisal and betrayal that ultimately are realized, their dislike of this kind of industrial war machine that erases their individual work and contributions, the tinge of wistfulness in their hope of escape into a different kind of life. Their dialect is deliberately "common"—and there's a lot more to say about that and the fact that it's another commoner, Sam, who outwits them—but one of the main effects is to make them sound familiar and ordinary. And it's interesting that one of the points they specifically raise is that they're not going to get better treatment from "the good guys" so they can't defect, either.

This is self-interested, yes, but it's not the self-interest of some mystical being or spirit or whatnot, but of people.

Tolkien's later remarks tend to back this up. He said that female orcs do exist, but are rarely seen in the story because the characters only interact with the all-male warrior class of orcs. Whatever female orcs "do," it isn't going to war. Maybe they do a lot of the agricultural work that is apparently happening in distant parts of Mordor, maybe they are chiefly responsible for young orcs, maybe both and/or something else, we don't know. But we know they're out there and we know that they reproduce sexually and we know that they're not part of the orcish warrior class.

Regardless of all the problems with this, the idea that orcs have a gender-restricted warrior class at all and we're just not seeing any of their other classes because of where the story is set doesn't sound like automatons of evil. It sounds like an actual culture of people that we only see along the fringes.

And this whole matter of "but if they're people, we have to think about ethics, so they can't be people" is a weird circular argument that cannot account for what's in LOTR or for much of what Tolkien said afterwards. Yes, he struggled with The Problem of Orcs and how to reconcile it with his world building and his ethical system, but "maybe they're not people" is ultimately not a workable solution as far as LOTR goes and can't even account for much of the later evolution of his ideas, including explicit statements in his letters.

And in the end, the real response that comes to mind to that circular argument is "maybe you should think about ethics more."

[wolfsong-the-bloody-beast]

Not to focus overly on my Rookanis feels, but I love the dialogue cutscene where Lucanis and Davrin are drinking together, sharing stories, and invite Rook to sit with them, for so many reasons.

I mean, I love the dialogue cutscene in general and both the guys in it. The mood is great. The dialogue is just so damn funny. It's a friendly dick measuring contest between our favourite boys. After the initial antagonism and tension, they've become friends. There are bizarre lore drops. The stories are entertaining and frankly wtf? A big writhing ball of angry nugs? Created through blood magic? The stuff of nightmares! I wish I could see Lucanis deal with that. I wish I could see Davrin figure out the big heap of tentacles. I love the way the guys are just a little tipsy in a cute way. Lucanis talks a little too loud in comparison with what we're used to. Davrin is starting to have trouble articulating. The "Of course we're getting along. We're PROFESSIONALS," as Lucanis raises his cup a little towards Davrin always cracks me up. Also, Lucanis, are you drinking wine from a coffee cup? The way they both invite Rook to stay and participate. The prospect of slightly drunk cooking and snacking and sharing stories. All in all, it's a beautiful scene that makes me smile every time.

But let me also yap about Lucanis for a moment. (Of course you will let me. It's not like you can stop me. No one can stop me. Not even me.) I want to focus on how Lucanis interacts with Rook in this scene.

It's obvious he's let himself relax a little. He's a bit intoxicated. Clearly he's having fun. He smiles easily and flutters his eyelashes at Rook. When you choose the dialogue option that mentions ruining Solas' ritual, Lucanis insists that Rook tells the story. "[Neve and Harding] don't tell it the way you would," he says, encouraging Rook to talk about something, from what he says, he seems to have already heard, because he wants to hear them tell it.

Then he decides he'll cook something while they chat, but he emphasizes that he will only do so "if Rook's staying," nudging them further. It couldn't be more clear that he wants them there and that he enjoys their company.

I feel like I don't see enough people feral about it, because come on, he's so sweet in this scene. He obviously wants Rook around and their presence makes him happy.

And, yeah, I know this scene also happens with "just" friendly Rook. The thing is, I don't give a fuck. I don't think it diminishes the interaction in any way. The context matters. It's sweet with friendly Rook and even sweeter when they're more. Also, I played Lucanis' romance first, and I did not know that. What I saw in this scene during that first playthrough was the man absolutely delighted by Rook's company, repeatedly and enthusiastically asking them to stay and spend time with him, and it made my day. Still does.

When I keep babbling about how much I love Lucanis' romance, it's not just about all the hearts I get to click to see where they lead or the beautiful post-Tearstone love scene, it's also interactions like this where you see how much he wants Rook to be there, all the more or less subtle signs of affection (and yes, also friendship, because that goes hand in hand) that happen throughout the whole game.

[justaz]

Yeowch jumping from foot to foot as I throw a hot pan in the air then catch it again as my hands burn

Arthur knowing about Daegal’s importance and significance to Merlin as he watches Merlin cradle the boy’s head and cry silently when he dies protecting Arthur. Merlin insists that he will be the one to put Daegal to rest but it won’t be in Camelot, not under a Pendragon crest which is like a stab in the heart to Arthur’s already heavy guilt at someone dying for him, someone Merlin deeply cared for. But he understands. (Not really - can’t remember if the boy was a Druid or not but I’m gonna say he was because that makes the most sense bc Merlin was referring to the fact that he didn’t want to put another Druid to rest in a kingdom where so many of their kind has been hunted and slaughtered. Arthur thinks Merlin blames him. He doesn’t. Maybe a little but not really.)

Anyways, Merlin sets off into the woods to bury Daegal outside of Camelot, on the border of the kingdoms so he doesn’t belong to any one nation where his people have been killed. He thinks he goes it alone. Arthur follows far behind. Merlin puts Daegal to rest then kneels by his grave long into the night when magic grows stronger and Daegal’s spirit visits him before departing to the Otherworld. He thanks Merlin for giving him something he had not realized he needed - kindness, compassion, love. He thanks him for putting him to rest and says he is back with his mother now, so he’ll be alright. Merlin watches him go and spends the rest on the night still kneeling beside his grave.

When morning finally comes and he gets up to leave, he finds a horse a few yards down the path with a figure waiting for him. Its Arthur. He looks like he hasn’t slept a wink all night. Merlin slowly shuffles over and watches him for a moment before calling out his name. Arthur turns and takes in Merlin’s bedraggled appearance which Arthur mirrors, miserable and guilty - Arthur blaming himself, Merlin blaming himself, Arthur thinking Merlin blames him, Merlin tired from losing people.

Merlin stares for a moment before asking quietly, “You’ve been here all night?”

And Arthur just stares back and whispers, “I didn’t want you to feel that you were alone.”

[asexualbuthorny]

you know what i hate?

when bitches wobify Mu Qing and make him into a twink and i especially despise it when they do it for a ship with Feng Xin.

and okay he's not as muscular and more lean (hence being describes as looking scholarly) but do y'all fucking forget the man is a martial god in his own right? by no means is that man a damsel in distress that needs Feng Xin to constantly save him. he's smart, he's cunning and yeah he had a few vulnerable moments but by no means is he a poor wet meow meow he would kick your ass and laugh at you for being a failure. and yeah he's more lithe, especially when he's constantly next to Feng Xin who is kind of hypermasculine in fandom portrayals and impo (general "gigantic masculinity" anyone?) and those two are THE SAME FUCKING HEIGHT so why is Mu Qing always drawn to be much shorter than Feng Xin. and also maybe let's factor in the fact that Mu Qing was poor when growing and likely had to go without food so the lack of proper food while growing probably had an effect on his development(this just a hc btw but still it tracks). also this whole thing kind of smells really bad when people take Mu Qing, who is described as scholarly, and feminise him. it's really giving "EUGH!!! school is for girls!! only boys play sports!! academics=lame, feminine girly, war=cool, MASCULINE, done by REAL MEN URGH!!!"

y'all saw a man who is a war good who doesn't conform to your idea of a "war god" and went "no❤️that one is a femboi catboi twink who gets bent over by that one who DOES conform to my basic, no nuance idea of a war god"

get bent xoxo

[the-judicial-assistants-notebook]

not enough discussion about the gavins' complicated relationship with feminine-coded/beauty products, i don't think.

[spkyart]

2 demons

[jackattack20writes]

So having spent a couple days thinking about it and also before I get into it I do just wanna acknowledge how it’s entirely reasonable to take issue with how Lalah was presented in the latest episode of Gquuuuuux. But I do think that with the context of Gquuuuuux Lalah staying in the brothel is incredibly important for what Gquuuuuux is trying to say. So a common thread for all the OYW/Gundam 79 vets shown in Gquuuuuux is that they’re stuck in the war. They haven’t been able to move past it, Challia’s still searching for char, Gihren and Kycilia are both still in the wartime fear of assassination and weapons development emphasised by Xavier saying they haven’t even met since the OYW and Lalah has stuck herself in the brothel waiting for char to come save her.

And topping it off the assumedly char character seems to still be trying to kill the Zabi’s and they’ve all been searching for the rose of Sharon this entire time. But all of them have made this choice and I believe that Lalah in this episode, similarly to how Zeon and the brothel have been used, is intended to emphasise this point further.

Like Kycilia and Gihren have chosen to continue on researching new weapons of war and preparing for a civil war by choice, sure it’s the prisoner’s dilemma but it’s still their choice. Similarly Challia rather than trying to actually do something to kill the Zabi’s like he and char planned has spent the last decade and a half searching for Char. Same with Lalah, rather than escaping either with Machu or any time before that she’s waiting for Char to come save her. And this is important because so much of Nyaan, Shuji and Machu’s story has been about finding a place for themselves. And just like how Anqi and Xavier and Deux are the worst possibilities for them, Anqi a jaded woman who trusts no one and is willing to sell people out once they lose their usefulness, Xavier a soldier whose sold his ideals and personhood for alleged safety, and Deux a girl who sacrificied everything in the name of experiencing the Kira Kira, the veterans are similarly advisory tales.

Challia is the man who gives up everything he cares about in the fruitless search for someone he’s centred his whole life around, Gihren and Kycilia show the downfalls of plunging into the war machine for a purpose no matter how noble you think it is, and Lalah is similarly to Challia the consequence of tying your worth to someone else. All of which are possible ends at current for really only Nyaan and Machu but still relevant to my point. These are all people showing potential end points for the protagonists and yet also advisory stories about why they shouldn’t end up like that

Like last ep Xavier basically was just making a case to Nyaan about why she doesn’t want to stay with Zeon and would rather go back to her friends just like how in this ep Lalah while also being a big exposition dump was showing Machu that she was right in taking grasp of her destiny when she did with the Gundam. Because otherwise she’d be stuck suffering waiting for someone else to save her.

This sort of thing is also why I am extremely confident Nyaan and Machu aren’t being set up to be Charmuro 2.0, the show is putting so much effort into showing how badly these people have suffered because of their inability to find good places for themselves where they truly thrive I A. Don’t see the show saying that yes the place for NyaChu is the exact same place that two other adults that suffered greatly from the same generation inhabited 40 years ago and B. I think it’s far too bleak an answer for a show that I think is at its core one of positivity. Like firstly it’s kind of insane to make a show at least partially aimed at teens and say their place in life is to die in a toxic Yuri explosion but also I think that with the subtle parts of it’s portrayals for Nyaan and Machu the show is giving a lot of grace to the idea that teenagers are smart enough to figure it out if they’re given the space to figure it out. And so I doubt the ending at its core character-wise for Nyaan and Machu at the very least will be not much more complicated than the two of them finding the space to figure out who they are and moving beyond the failings of Zeon and the Federation.

Likely together and depending on Shuji’s state at the end with or without him, as a very direct contrast to Charmuro they’ll either move past the loss without blaming each other and just accepting that he’s gone and filling the space he’s left with each other. Or they’ll, like in ep 7, show that Shuji isn’t something that’ll come between them, their bond is ultimately stronger than both of them having feelings for the same boy (likely because they have the same feelings for each tier too.)

Although I do also have to say at the end of this that with only three episodes left it’s entirely possible that they just completely fail to actually deliver on tany of this and instead it devolves into some multiverse bullshit but I do think I’m at least accurate with my read on Lalah. Because while I’m only part way through Utena from what I’ve heard and read about it the victimising inherent to certain roles that’s discussed in that anime is very similar to what’s going on with Lalah in Gquuuuuux and that by seeing the visions of char and Amuro and the OYW she’s relegated herself to this role as someone to be saved and taken away her own agency and this is supposed to be a bad thing for her to do. Similarly to how Challia has lost himself in the search for the red comet and failed to achieve anything that he and char talked about doing.

[bluiela]

SJM doesn't care her fandom's reaction to MC's of her uncoming book

I don't think the e/riels realize that SJM does not care if people would be upset about the characters of the upcoming book, hence, she doesn't need to or isn't "soft launching" anything to "calm the fandom" or "ease" whatever.

Nesta was hated by 90% of the fandom, literally many people were upset that the book wasn't Feyre/elain's, but SJM did not care. She announced and released the book as she did her others.

Literally Chaol was such a hated character and AFTER THE EMOTIONAL TURMOIL that EOS was, she did not gaf her fandom's reaction would be for not getting further story and a book about a disliked character. She launched her book as she did others.

New readers might expect online hints, but we all know SJM =/= Taylor swift, she doesn't interact with her fandom and hence trying to find hints outside the book is simply futile.

SJM knows her fandom and that is why she left it; she knows that ANYTHING about acotar is psychoanalyzed and even after that you think her company or her would make other companies "soft launch" and lose their chance to do marketing and cash grabbing then well that's on you.

[smartzelda]

Sorry guys I gotta speak my truth on this one

I'm not kidding when I say that I think that blaming shit media literacy from fans on shipping/shippers avoids the actual root of the problem to throw people you can easily throw under the bus (simply because it's not unpopular to consider people who post about ships or ship characters in media as having lesser or derivative tastes by default)

And here's why.

I think when you blame people who are "shippers" or "consume media through shipping lenses", the true root of it all is a mindset problem.

In actually, putting on shipping lenses can be helpful when trying to analyze a piece of media. When analyzing media you're supposed to approach it through a number of mindsets and put on different lenses (both to deepen your personal understanding of the media, and to pick it apart and see what you can find there (whether intentional or not on the author's part)), and different ships can be some of those lenses

When it comes to ships between main characters (for those who are genuinely willing to see what the narrative is showing with their relationship and what it's doing), there are times when analyzing it from a shipping lens may be helpful. As someone from KH fandom, I have seen people come to deeper understandings and pick canon apart in the process of analyzing a relationship that is genuinely integral to the story (platonic or not). I've also seen people get into rarepairs of characters who barely interact or who just suffer little screen time, and I've seen them come to better understandings of those side characters and how they potentially fit into the world of the media simply because people are now focusing on these characters and how they fit into the narrative.

Frankly, I resent the idea that the only way to truly objectively analyze a piece of media is by turning off the part of your brain that gets excited over relationships and individual characters. Don't get me wrong, that is a way to approach a piece of media and a valid one at that, but the truth is that we cannot be free of bias.

For instance, I was watching House MD with my parents circa last year. At some point I started heavily tuning into what was going on with House and Wilson's relationship. My parents, on the other hand, were largely watching casually. They're not thinking of character relationships or getting heavily invested in most characters, they're watching because they like watching. One of them in particular did try to analyze things that were happening in the show as they happened. However, when it came to the scene late in the series where House threw out Dominika's letter approving her American citizenship, my parents could understand that he was doing that because he didn't want her to leave, but not much beyond that. I ended up explaining to them that House's fake marriage for Dominika was an explicit parallel to when Wilson was living with House in the early seasons. Both situations started with House being none too happy about it but ultimately letting them stay, spending a considerable amount of effort getting them to leave/getting this situation to be finally over so he didn't have to deal with it anymore, and then by the time a piece of news comes through that would mean the person in question actually leaves, House hides this news as long as he can. Because he doesn't actually want them to leave and has grown attached. And by doing this he became a self fulfilling prophecy. By reacting to the truth of Wilson and Dominika leaving him the way he does, he seals his fate and they ultimately leave anyways. Maybe I ship Hilson, but becoming open to how their relationship was handled allowed me to transition to doing character studies and recognizing patterns/parallels that I wouldn't have noticed if I didn't particularly care about the characters or their relationship.

Likewise, I've seen mutuals complain about how people who don't like or don't care about certain characters often overlook these characters (what they're actually like and their place in the narrative), while the mutuals in question (by default) are able to come to deeper understanding of what the writers/story is trying to do because they care about this funky guy

You can't eradicate bias when you're engaging in media analysis, but you can consciously put on a range of lenses and observe the media through different povs with the goal of understanding the media better or bolstering your reading of it. And those lenses/povs can include focusing on specific relationships or the perpective of certain characters

And this is why I say it's actually a mindset problem. Shippers and people who have this one blorbo they like a lot aren't inherently terrible "fandom brained individuals" who are the root of media analysis problems. The problem only arises when people's readings/analysis of a piece of media are inherently restrictive/narrow and self centered. Your problem is with people who view a piece of media through a ship they like but don't keep an open mind about it, and whose "media analysis"/views on canon cannot be split from fanon and their comfortability levels. These are the people whose "media analysis" starts and ends with justifying their fanon as canon, whose views on media revolve around sorting characters and relationships into categories they personally enjoy rather than trying to understand what's going on.

Here's another example.

Here we have a fictional ship we'll call uhhhh...Blanebin. this fictional ship I made up on the spot for characters that don't exist named Blane and Corbin

Person A is super into Blanebin. They're part of the main cast of characters and canonically childhood best friends, so person A (as much as they enjoy fanart and fic) is also enjoying analyzing how narratively important to each other they are. Recently, Corbin started dating another character in canon, but Person A is enjoying watching how Blane is reacting to this. "Is this potentially a tell that Blane is jealous or is having complicated feelings about this? What if he was, how would that contextualize his behavior this season? Here's what I think based on how Blane dealt with explicit jealousy last season in a different situation". It's not impossible that person A is still missing further understanding due to their obsession with Blanebin, but at the end of the day this obsession has allowed them to start picking through the characters both in and outside this relationship. It has allowed them to see potential subtext and theorize on what might happen next with these characters' relationship. Not to mention that with addition of Corbin dating someone else, instead of trying to erase this fact or state that Corbin canonically isn't into that person, Person A is trying to factor in how Corbin's current dating life affects his relationship with Blane (irregardless on personal views on the nature of Corbin's relationship with the person he's dating).

Person B is also super into Blanebin. They really enjoy fanart and fic of the characters, love obsessing over their moments together, and just feel like there's really something between the characters. To person B, every moment between them is just further proof that the writers are ship teasing them. But Corbin getting together with someone else this season? Oh that pissed person B off. They cannot believe that even though Corbin and Blane are CLEARLY gay for each other the writers had Corbin get with someone else this season. Perhaps, they think, it was even a decision specifically made to spite fans. How evil of the writers to tease a perfectly good ship and then have them not get together first? They must have been just doing those teases to get views from Blanebin shippers those scoundrels. To Person B, since Corbin started dating someone when he obviously has some chemistry with Blane (even though the series is far from over) means that Blanebin can never get together now and Corbin x person he's dating is ruining Blanebin by existing. In fact, they think, this is terrible writing for Corbin to be dating someone else because they don't like that relationship and don't see the point. Obviously if the writers were good then Corbin would have started dating Blane instead because this was supposed to be the Blanebin show.

Person C despises Blanebin. Don't get them wrong, they've always enjoyed the character's childhood friendship, but they actually have always thought Blane would have been better off with Victoria. They have a lot of moments too! But they're tired of seeing people ship Blanebin. Corbin just got together with someone else, so obviously that's not gonna work out. Plus Corbin and Blane totally has always given person C bro vibes. In fact, person C thinks, sure Corbin and Blane have a close friendship, but people shouldn't be shipping them. Person C likes Blanetoria and Blanetoria can't be canon if Corbin is in the way of it. So Person C likes to read Blanebin as siblings anyways. Sure they're canonically friends, but obviously their friendship turned into brotherhood. This means that nothing can be in the way of Blanetoria and Corbin can keep dating the person he's already canonically dating. Actually, now Blanebin just straight up makes Person C uncomfortable. Don't the pesky shippers understand that Blanebin are sibling coded because they're childhood best friends and that they're important to each other because they're brothers? It's obvious to anyone with eyes.

Sure, ships are involved here, but is the root of this problem shipping? Character A isn't as knowledgeable of other characters in the plot due to this lens they're using, but at the end of the day they're dedicated to analysis. Their love of the characters is pushing them beyond what they like or dislike to try to understand what might be happening through their lens. Not perfect, but they are slowly broadening their horizons. But Person B and C's problems here are their restrictiveness. What is or should be canon to them is tantamount to what they personally like or find comfortable. Is person C actually analyzing the this fake show when they decide to "read" Blanebin as basically canonically siblings (and this all of their moments are totally a bro thing) just because they don't like Blanebin and the idea of them getting together over Blanetoria makes them uncomfortable? Is person B actually analyzing this fake show when their "analysis" of Blanebin goes only as far as asserting it's being ship teased and deciding anything short of canonizing Blanebin is a targeted attack or "bad writing" because it's not what they wanted personally to happen?

This is what I'm talking about. This is the mindset. Shipping isn't the problem. The problem is when people marry fanon and canon to the point where they have a vested interest in superimposing their fanon over canon as "a reading" and trying to make "collective decisions" on what is canon (or what canon is trying to say) based on what does or doesn't make them uncomfortable. The problem is people being restrictive and centering their own likes and dislikes in the conversation, so they can only interact with canon "analysis" wise by deciding what is canon or should be canon "as obviously agreed on by everyone". You can't simply claim you like media analysis. To be able to analyze media and bolster your views on any given canon, you must be open to looking at it through multiple povs, to studying characters without trying to pretend things you don't like don't exist or do like do exist. There is a balance that must be kept between trying to keep objectivity and putting on specific focus/bias based upon the lenses you're putting on. You have to be willing to try to figure out what a media is doing or saying, not saying you're trying to figure out what it's saying while in actuality trying to define the narrative around what people believe it's saying in ways that suit you.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk.

[caliburn-not-calculator]

This is your sign to talk about the blorbos. Pop off

Okay I was yapping about mechanite gender today so imma transfer some of those yaps here to inflict on tumblr

So to me mechanites don’t have any cultural understanding of gender beyond what has been picked up from societies existing around them. Like a mechanite raised in a non mechanite society will probably have more typical “binary” view on it but someone from a more classical Mechanus society is more like, we just Exist and present as we please, no more to it than that. Machines don’t have a gender, they have no biological reasons to have conceptual ideas of sex or hence gender differences based of norms around that. They just exist and likely have demographics based off other factors for different things.

Canon Maxim is agender to me for this reason, if I’m picking a label for it. I feel like Maxim would have used neutral pronouns all through living in Mechanus but get he/himed upon going to the material plane because he presents in a typically masculine way through sheer coincidence, and going, yeah sure that works. He doesn’t really care enough to say otherwise and it fits fine for him. It’s nice and clear and doesn’t cause any confusion. Efficient, which is all that matters. Like, does a machine sit there and worry about what it presents to the world as? Does it care for gender? Does the unflinching and unified power of Mechanus ascribe to such ideas? No. Hence, neither does he. He doesn’t have much of a concept of gender for himself, it is a thing that exists outside of him I think

Also, despite physically and vocally sounding masculine Maxim’s clothing choice a teeny bit less stereotypically masc. In aus I’m like, yeah that guy lives in a suit probably, but in canon I physically cannot see him wearing that. Pants? No. Exists exclusively in long heavy mage robes. Which is indeed all he’s ever described to wear in canon (unlike VR-LA but we’ll get to that). It’s not like a dress but it’s a very neutral sort sort of garb by your stereotypical standards.

Then, onto VR-LA, who I have some fun thoughts about. Having been from Candlekeep has a more human/oid like view on gender. Not to say they were strict on having a binary but like, they actually have concepts of male and female unlike a purely mechanite society. He goes with being a guy because he was raised in that sort of slot, and that way he doesn’t have to overthink it. Like sure he doesn’t have any complaints and this is a role he can fit into just fine. But there’s a vague disconnect there that he’s not really acknowledging. He probably has that view of himself shaken up by spending more time around mechanites and yes this is my way to give the robot a mild identity crisis.

I will make that robot gender queer you can’t stop me

He pointedly ignore the little sparky feeling of euphoria he gets from long swishy wizard robes,. He doesn’t have a problem with masc clothes but he’s never really explored beyond it and is finding out hey, I like this?? Which is also one thing to note which is very minor but VR-LA like. Wears pants, which idk to me feels weird for a robot but it’s clearly a fashion/comfort choice he’s made. Even when wearing wizard robes he did his time showing thigh in season one and now they’re gone lol. He just leans a little into that more stereotypically masc look.

Anyway yeah I think VR-LA should get to experiment with gender presentation a little, as a treat <3

I also have thoughts about the other mechanites (Mainly E-DN being more gender neutral, AS-TR is she/they to me and very femme, Astro on discord pointed out C-RA being most strongly aligned to her gender in being feminine and yes I agree I love that). But anyway I have shit to do that I’m seriously procrastinating so that’s for another time

[kingofmyborrowedheart]

Halsey frequently making alterations to the setlist for the For My Last Trick tour is such a neat idea. One of the main themes of The Great Impersonator is change, whether it be for survival or experimentation; it’s so heavily present on the album. Change is also something she sings about a lot throughout her discography in general and her appearance changing is something that fans have come to expect and love. So incorporating this theme that’s a constant in their career into a tour that pulls on a magic show (something that plays directly with the idea of change through illusions and tricks) is both a lot of fun and makes total sense.

[camera-ghost]

No offense but why do people like Tsukasa?/gen

[sadlynotthevoid]

So, do you remember when in your cartoons a circus themed villain appeared? And that was like, one of the most bizarre villains of the whole show?

Well, funny thing, like two or three years ago (2023?? 2024?? Maybe 2022. Idk) there happened to be a rash of burglaries in my neighbourhood which coincided with the time when a circus stayed at the green space near the mall of my neighbourhood.

And you may say "but Sorby, correlation does not imply causation" and normally I'd say "yes, you're right" and think nothing of it. But I can't think of any normal thief who would climb up to the higher floors of the flats from outside.

I remember it because I live in the flats in front of those flats and we all could hear my neighbour yell at the people (they were two, if I remember well) holding from the window's bars.

Also, the people from that circus weren't very nice. Very shitty, actually. They beat up a dad who went to ask them to lower the music because it was making his child cry— and they beat him up.

Anyways, if you're writing a fic or something and want to make a circus themed villain— yes, they're realistic, even without powers.