#The queer allegory was good

[imminent-danger-came]

I feel insane for thinking Nim//ona wasn't that good asdfasfd

[spooky-dice]

okay not to over analyze a lighthearted piece of dialogue from freshman year but when gorgug dies and wilma&digby are upset because they don't know how to connect with him in that feeling, it makes me think abt transracial adoptee gorgug and the experience of white parents who fundamentally do not understand their child of colour and cannot bridge the gap to sympathizing with things they do not relate to. i know wilma&digby love him and i think they're good parents, but the stance in fandom that they're perfect parents is very strange to me tbh. their house is too little for their son to exist.

[gayofthefae]

Thinking about allegory and how Bob hid from the monsters in a closet to keep himself safe and it worked. But he was in danger from the second he left because he was too loud about leaving.

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

:( :( :(

[ravousisfamous]

'michael sheen pretending to be david tennant pretending to be crowley pretending to be michael sheen pretending to be aziraphale pretending to be not gay' is the QUEER LIFESTYLE

[biceratops7]

Man, this line fucking BROKE me:

It’s the same reason so much of Our Flag Means Death did. How the hell is it we went from being gaslit into thinking the notion of intentional queer subtext is ridiculous… to not only having analysis of that subtext enthusiastically praised, but also somehow conveying it through deliberately queer characters??

Like fucking hell, SO much of what happens to Aziraphale and Crowley throughout the series as a direct result of their relationship and general “otherness” is IMMEDIATELY and VISCERALLY recognizable. We get to see the dangers that stalk us, the complexes, how painful, and confusing, and exhausting it can all get, done in a completely fantastical context. Which we’ve seen before, so many times… but always with straight couples, or “best friends (platonic)”, and always in a condescending “well whatever rocks your boat but I think you’re reading too far into it” way.

Cause he’s not saying this because of anything having to do with the human concept of queerness. I mean hell most immortal beings in this universe don’t even understand how straight sexuality works, or can really make meaningful distinctions between genders, let alone have hang ups about it. … But my fuck, I get it. We all do. I don’t think a single one of us doesn’t know exactly what this feels like.

[frobby]

Im back in the trenches defending another otokonoko from people claiming that they are a trans woman even though they are explicitly stated not to be

[brionysea]

art is dead, bo burnham

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

I know personally as someone who was in my mid-late teens when I watched su, it really mattered to me to get to see a show that said parent figures aren't just right because they said so, and you DO deserve an apology when they hurt you, but one that also had the nuance to show that while you deserve reconciliation and apologies for being hurt by them, they also act with their own reasons and not usually out of a callous disregard for you. Like yes it obviously doesn't flat apply to full on abusive parents, but to parents who were neglectful without really meaning to be or being unable to do anything about it (like, parents who needed to always be at work or who couldn't be there for you) it's actually very relatable and well calculated. Ngl I think some people just dont know what to do with media they don't directly relate to or immediately understand. I did also see a lot of su criticals who tried to claim the show was about forgiving abusers for this exact reason, but I think you only really get that interpretation out of it if you think all media should be about you specifically

In all honesty, the diamonds really did show three different types of parents who are incredibly toxic and damaging to their children without meaning to hurt them.

Yellow is a workaholic, and holds a very strict no-nonsense attitude. She didn’t make time for Pink or treat her problems as legitimate until it was too late, but she did still very clearly care about her. She didn’t let her emotions show to anyone, least of all to herself because she saw them as an obstacle to what needed to be done.

Blue is her polar opposite, she suffered greatly from a loss and (in this case, correctly) blamed herself for every part of it while never actually processing or overcoming her grief. By not taking care of herself, she lashes out at others and cannot move forward. Before Pink was shattered, Blue was indignant, disdainful, and quick to take out frustrations on Pink when she felt “embarrassed” by her not conforming to their expectations.

White was condescending and more dismissive than the other two. Quick to belittle and intimidate to get her way. She loved Pink, yes, but more in the way one might love a nice coat. She was a perfectionist and projected that need to be right and perfect (literally) on every other gem, the other diamonds most of all as they are implied to be of her own creation. Her ego and inability to accept being wrong (or by extension, those she created doing what she decides is wrong) cause her to force Pink to fall into a role that she was never really suited to. She saw Pink as one of her greatest failures and something she needed to either fix or hide away.

All three of them together formed a very deeply toxic and emotionally abusive relationship towards each other and to Pink most of all. A few people take issue with Steven “forgiving” them as they misconstrue it as a victim forgiving abusers, but at the end of the day Steven is not nor was he ever Pink Diamond. He was mistaken for her and felt some of what she experienced because of that, but he was not a long-term victim the way Pink was, in a lot of ways he was an outsider who had context of the situation and wanted to step in to keep them from hurting anyone else.

More to the point, he doesn’t forgive any of them. He calls them out on their toxic behavior and tries to get the point across to each of them that the way they’ve been living isn’t healthy for anyone, and is actively traumatic not only to them but for everyone they hold power over. The end of the series sees him teaching them how to atone for some of what they’ve done and to help others heal, but he doesn’t stay with them, nor does he invite them to stay on earth despite extending that offer to just about every other gem he encountered. It’s established in the movie that he almost never visits any of them outside of his activism and subtly making sure they aren’t regressing into dangerous people again. In the epilogue series he is shown to be (rightfully) distrustful of Blue and Yellow as well as being openly afraid of White. He helped them feel closure for Pink and repaired the relationship the three of them had, and that was it. Even if he had been in that abusive environment for as long as Pink was, that isn’t an unreasonable response. Some victims of (unintentional!) emotional abuse do find catharsis in confronting their abuser once safely out of that situation and expressing the way that behavior harmed them. Some victims genuinely do want their abusers to become better and healthier people when the abusive traits stem from their own trauma or lack of emotional intelligence. There are other victims in the show who completely sever ties with their abusers and never interact with them again, so this wasn’t trying to push a narrative that victims MUST do that, it was giving people language and strategies to approach these conversations if that is something they want to attempt.

This was another of my famous rambles, but I suppose in conclusion I would say: whether SU crits liked it or not, the final arc of Steven Universe was absolutely helpful to people in toxic home environments. It also served as an allegory for queer children not being accepted by their parents for who they are, and how changing your perspective as a parent and accepting your child is legitimately a healthier option for everyone because to do otherwise just ensures you will lose them in every way that matters.

There’s just a lot of important takeaways from that arc, especially for children. I’m incredibly tired of seeing grown adults whining about it because they chose to take it literally. Well done on missing the point of a show for middle schoolers I suppose, but idk if you really just want to see all villains get killed for their villainy just go watch Breaking Bad or the lion king or something. There are plenty of shows where violence is the answer, there’s not any real point getting furious over one of the few that don’t use that as the ultimate conclusion.

[danmeichael]

both ad lib lovers and the summer hikaru died to something really interesting wherein they take typical genre conventions and set-ups of BL and place them into a genre other than romance, while still portraying the romantic undertones. where the summer hikaru died does this with horror, ad lib lovers does this with comedy.

as opposed to hikaru's focus on horror, in ad lib lovers, jealousy, desire, and a fear of inadequacy and loving someone more than they love you is portrayed through the lens of improv. this accurately depicts that having a crush on someone as an adult is humiliating.

[chuuphic]

just watched i saw the tv glow and sobbed hard after it ended like face soaked with tears my sheets have a wet patch from where i curled up and shoved my face into it i wasn't expecting to be hit so hard i didn't realize it would make me that emotional

[paarthursass]

love playing dragon age inquisition and hearing an NPC in redcliffe ask his mother (after admitting he’s had dreams that make him think he might be a mage) if she would still love him if he were a mage.  in the game that tries to “both sides” the issue of mages vs templars. 

[imminent-danger-came]

Nimoma has good emotional payoff and animation but nothing else to really write home about TBH

It's very SPOP in that way, where the arcs and scenes are solid when viewed outside of the media in gifset or clip form but don't work as well when actually watching what they're from

For sure! I think that's a problem she-ra and toh both share with Nimona—they struggle with setup but then go ham on the payoff, which leaves everything feeling somewhat unearned.

The end of the movie bugged me in particular—Ballister's 180 with calling Nimona a monster (something he KNOWS pushes her to the brink) after one conversation with his ex-boyfriend was...I think out of place?

Normally if you have a character make a wrong choice like that you, as the audience, would be questioning the whole movie if they had ever REALLY changed. Was Ballister's loyalty truly to Nimona or to the Institute/Goldenloin? But, by that point in the movie they had really sold me on Ballister's complete acceptance of Nimona and disregard of the institute, so....why would he turn on Nimona then? I'm surprised they didn't do this plot the other way, which would instead have only made it seem like Ballister betrayed Nimona, you know? Like they did in Tangled. That way you don't undo Ballister's movie long arc with one scene, but you can still have Nimona go berserk and make her way into the heart of the city.

There were also a couple of other things that felt kinda dropped by the end. Ballister being the first commoner to become a knight? The Queen's important role in this society? This kingdom's prejudice going SO deep that not even a child would give Nimona a chance after saving their life, yet blowing up the wall changed everyone's minds in the end?

There were a lot of good pieces, but they weren't quite put together in the right ways.

[bigassbowlingballhead]

Is this a safe space to say I can't stop imagining tzp as Wolverine? First his hair, then the script, and now he's HUGE??? I will not survive I fear

i can see it, but can he feel hugh jackmans huge shoes?

[hobbitunderthemountain]

I AM NOT IMMUNE TO CRYING AT THE END OF NIMONA EVERY TIME

[beldaroot]

revolutionary girl utena is kinda blowing my mind... like this shit needs to be taught in schools i'm so serious