#across the spiderverse pt 1

[across-the-web]

Into the Artie-verse (pt 1)

Getting to know Artemis before the Spider-Verse

• name is Artemis, has a twin brother named Artem, who (in some other universe) was meant to be his world's spider-man. But in the current universe their world is in, Artemis is bit by a spider on her fourteenth birthday, when her brother screamed at the site of the thin-legged spider that was on his paper-plate, flinging the spider onto Artie's cheek, where she was bit, before she smacked herself in the face, ultimately killing the spider. (Sad.)

• Artie was shocked - angry at her brother for flinging the spider her way (what a wuss), but mainly traumatized when she realised that there was a dead spider on her face. And yeah she killed it, but she didn't realise that because all she could think of was - spider guts - on my face - in my mouth (it wasnt) - EWEWEWewewewew!

• Artie barely noticed her powers that manifested - in truth, she did notice the difference in her horrible eyesight, but attributed it to hormones and, ugh, puberty.

• needless to say, she kind of liked puberty, if it meant getting abs overnight - she always liked to shove that in her twin's face, that she was stronger than him, but... her boasting only landed her in the labs getting her bloods drawn and tested for drugs - well, steroids, because surely, early-morning runs could NOT lead to the development of abs.

• it's safe to say that Artie's blood showed no levels of steroids taht could make her buff - though, the family doctor did note that her white blood cell count was high, which was indicative of an infection in the body, and having noted that the spider bite on her cheek had went down with little issue, the doctor only prescribed her a short course of antibiotics, and told her to come in for another blood test after a week. Artie, like so many people, didn't complete her course of antibiotics, and, feeling better than well, didn't end up going to to doctor. (She never saw the doctor again. Not because he died, no, but because she never needed to see a doctor - unlike her brother, who suffered from asthma, like her, but she didn't have an episode since... forever.)

• regardless, Artie only realised her strengths and powers when she tried to climb the bricked wall of the house her parents were in the process of buying when they were moving to Ireland. (First, Artie and her family moved to Ireland, that was around a week or two after she got bitten, because her dad's work placed him there. Then when Artie finished her schooling in Ireland, she moved back home, South Africa, for the holidays, before deciding she'd like to see the America's, and moved to Manhattan or Boston or wherever they offer some cool sciencey-pharmacological-ceutics university thingies. I'm not editing this. My brain is hectic.)

• during her stay in America, Artie found herself held at mig-point on more than one occasion. But hey, she was a South African, and she didn't really worry or frighten easily - how could she, when she could so easily kick a villain into the next soccer field? So, Artie, at the encouragement of her roommate (who had witnessed Artie easily kick the ass of the mugger into the next universe), told her and filled her head with fun ideals of becoming a superhero. And, also, it didn't help that Artie wanted a distraction from whatever she was studying... and not to mention, she needed a little something more engaging that watching Netflix when she wanted to Procrastinate. So, being a Superhero it is! Or was. But whatever, it was going to be fun.

• turns out, being a superhero was not fun - especially when she wanted to do the right thing, but there were both good, and corrupt police chasing her (and the criminal she was pursuing) down. So, instead of being a superhero, Artie decided to call herself a vigilante, and her room-mate (her name was Cas) was ecstatic because the whole vibes of a Vigilante being named Lady of the Night, was way better than the vibes of a Superhero having that name. (Artie only accepted and used that name because, keeled over with laughter, she said it made her sound like she was calling herself a whore in fancy terms. Her brother thought so too - but, he didn't know that she was the Lady of the Night.)

• life was fun, she supposed, when she didn't really try her best to be a hero, or a student, and instead did what felt like fun - like sitting on the roof of a police car while in a chase (She was the one they were chasing - the police car, but they didn't realize she was on their roof, and Artie shooting strings of web, here and there to buildings didn't help the poor police officers.)

• but Uni was beginning to wear her down, and her friend had gotten a little loose with her tongue at the various parties she attended, spilling bots about Artie's night life, here and there, leading to some complicated issues for Artie. (Of course, they didn't suspect Artie to be the actual vigilante that came alive only at night, but rather, they thought she was a slut- a whore, someone with little to no respect for herself. And so, they treated her that way. Which only led to Artie punching them square in their faces, or twisting their wrist and breaking their thumbs - because thumbs were important.)

• but that only led her to getting in trouble with the dean, which led to her getting expelled. Clearly, her good days were over, and her parents, who didn't know much about her university life, only the little that they learnt from her brother (that she was tired and woke up late and got into fights mostly with people on campus), were worried for her and told ehr to come home. (They thought she was on drugs, and while her father believed it would be a phase, her mother demanded that she come home and go speak to them - and if not them, then a therapist.)

• and Artie was a student who on a very, very tight pocket (because she mostly needed bandages and alcohol wipes for when she came back from a fight - and even spandex or latex or exercise tights, which, were expensive, by the way. But she tried to make them last, by patching up the stretches and holes with her web, which was organic and sturdy, so long as she was well-hydrated. But then too, groceries were expensive, and Artie, who usually forgot to eat unless her alarms or enemies reminded her - by kicking her ass when she fought them - found herself having to eat huge amounts of food in order for her powers to properly function.)

• so, going home sounded like a good idea - sleeping for free with a roof above her head, not having to worry about there being food on the table after a very, very long day at uni, and then a very long night ahead of crime fighting, and not to mention, being treated with care (and like a baby) while she went for therapy, which, she assumed, her parents would pay for? Well, Artie couldn't have asked for a better break.

• but it wasn't as good as it sounded. Her mother gave her chores. Her father sat on her head about what she wanted to do with her life - and the both of them? Well, they wanted her to actually go to therapy, not just give her the money for it. So life became hectic, and Artie found herself becoming depressed, because in all honesty, those people, with all their insults and rude insinuations, deserved way more than blackened eyes, broken noses or fractured thumbs - and she deserved way less than expulsion. Yeah, maybe a probation or suspension, but an expulsion? No way.

• so at the advice of her brother (Artem, who she rarely ever listened to, because they were twins), Artie went to therapy. And she held nothing back - especially, being a person over eighteen years old (she was around twenty two years old, in the last year of her studies), whatever she told the therapist could not be told to anyone, because breach of doctor-patient-confidentialoty would obviously cause issues for the doctor. And Artie... who told ehr therapist, Dr Zinkerman, that by day, she was a struggling university student, but by night, she was a vigilante who tried to do good.

• So Dr Zinkerman was pretty cool, even when Artie threatened him with harm if anyone found out her secret identity, and they worked well together, with Artie listening to his advice, and Dr Zinkerman listening to her problems. They become something sort of friends - comfortable, the two of them, because Artie hadn't told anyone, besides her roommate, what her secret identity was,not even her twin, and yet she ended up telling Dr Zinkerman in a moment of, "I just need to get this off of my chest and you're contractually bound not to open your mouth to anyone else, so..."

• so they became friends, and Dr Zinkerman knew some people at the university that she went to, and because they were friends, and Dr Zinkerman had no kids, he decided to make Artie his nepo baby, and managed to get her a place in the university. Of course, there were strings attached, what with Artie having to get a certain grade in all of her modules (which honestly made Artie want to die), among other things, but Artie was grateful, especially since it meant going back to America, where the crime was rife, and Artie found much purpose in her alter-ego.

• her therapy sessions still continued, even when she reached the age of twenty five, and she completed her degree, and decided to work as a locum in a pharmacist (or I can't remember what she studied but she studied something nice where she could choose her working hours), which was perfect, because that meant she had enough time of the day to herself, and enough time of the night to kick ass.

• but the good stuff didn't take that long to last... because Artie found herself competing for a job that offered better pay and privileges, against her old roommate. Safe to say, Artie didn't get the job, and she had a feeling it was because her roommate brought up her old Uni records of punching a couple of guys and then getting expelled. Artie was not pleased. And she was partly Irish, so she declared war on her roommate... (and by war, I mean, Artie threatened her not so subtly, which led to more issues.)

• her roommate exposed who she was - Artie whatever her last name was, was actually the troublesome vigilante, the Lady of the Night.

• shit hit the fan, and Artie managed to get another law-fighting superhero to take on her case, when no one wanted to, because, well, Artie wasn't sure... maybe it had to do with the fact that the last time she fought some bad guys, she accidently caused more harm than good, when a tanker of acid or toxins fell in and poisoned a body of water. Yeah, Artie hated herself for a good while after that, and gave up fighting crime... before she spoke about it in therapy, and when Dr Zinkerman had her come up with a list of Pro's and Con's of being a superhero-slash-vigilante, she was asked if it was better to be the only person to help someone in need, or was it better to be among the people who turned a blind eye to a person in need.

• and while Artie didn't quite like people in general, she had a soft spot for people in need... so, she decided to say fuck off to her old roommate... and she went to court.

• but then her brother pitched up in court on the day she was meant to present herself - wearing her... suit? Which confused her greatly, until he started speaking in a very effeminate voice. He (somehow knew her identity? And while he was pissed off at her, afterwards, for having kept it from him, he) saved her life that day, proving that she was, in fact, NOT the slinging lady of the night, and was 9n fact, just your regular Boston/New Yorm/American citizen. (Of course, her brother got arrested, and was taken to the county prison, but he was broken out by some friends of his from Hell's Kitchen - or, well, rather than being broken out, he was actually kidnapped. Which led to Artie having to save him.)

• she had a somewhat good life after that, learning what it meant to be a superhero, and what it meant to NOT be a vigilante, even though she was more inclined to being a lawless person, she found that there was something sweeter to being called a superhero... while there was something equally spicy in being called a vigilante. (Her brother actually told her that if she was both, which she was, then that would make her an anti-hero, but she ignored him on that, as she did most things.)

• her being a vigilante/anti-hero didn't save her from the heart ache that came from being a superhero. She lost some friends (her asshole roommate was someone she did not count among them), and lost some mentors (the nice police officer who she was so sure knew her identity, but didn't tell anyone, only giving her hints and tips regarding... well, crime-fighting and er - life? - in general) and, afraid she was going to lose some family too, Artie kept them all at arm's length.

• but her brother listened to her only as much as she listened to him, which led him to nearly losing his life on plenty occasions, before the most recent one, where he was being choked by a thing piece of iron, led to him losing his voice, and uh, nearly his head.

• Artem ended up helping Artie from the shadows, then, making her a smart-watch with neat tracking/map apps that he create, because he was one of those nerdy, tech-ish genius characters, who like, hacked into NASA for fun. (Except, he didn't hack into NASA, that was a little too scary for him - but, he did hack into the police department and managed to listen into each of their calls, whenever he could, notifying Artie as fast as he could using the watch he made her.)

• the two of them decided it was okay like that - rarely ever meeting in person in the day, or at night, only ever conversing through video calls, because Artem himself had beef with the gangs from the poorer parts of wherever they lived. (Something about... Artem accidently stealing drugs or money from them? And not being able to pay it back because he used it all up? But apparently, it wasn't Artem, and was some other guy who looked - or, well, was dressed eerily like him.)

• now anyways, clearly, the losses that Artie faced in life (turns out her roommate wasn't one of her friends who died... she just fell out of grace with her, which was, sad, that she wasn't dead, and still alive, unlike a few close friends of Artie's), had an impact on her relationship with people. She became afraid of becoming too close to people - forming attachments, because any more losses of the ones she was attached to, would have sent her over the edge. And she was nearly sent over the edge every time the officer she was friendly-ish with, nearly die, from like, a gun-shot wound, or getting driven over, or getting pushed off a bridge for some fucked up reason.

• so Artie ended up a little lonely, only getting a cat and a bird, (an African grey, because they could speak), who got into the worst of fights, which made Artie a somewhat expert in breaking them up... I say somewhat because she mostly ended up covered in pecked skin and scratch marks and some patches of where hair used to sit on her head -

• (the African grey actually once clawed at her eye, missing it narrowly, but drawing enough blood that she was taken to the emergency room by her angry neighbour, because cats and birds were NOT allowed, which led to her getting stitched across her brow and brow-bone. Artie was sad, because she used to cover only half of her face with a mask, but now, the scar would give the police a better idea of who she was... so she either had to cover the top half of her face, or the entire thing... which Artie wasn't too keen on doing, so she just changed her mind and made a bunch of different type of face masks to match her mood for the day.)

• the most common types of criminals that Artie took to dealing with were the petty criminals (at the start of her career), but then, it escalated to bank/heists, and then kidnappings, where people were held for ransom. She decimated them, always, which was probably why the police didn't like her very much - but the people she helped... they liked her, enough that they made a donation box in her name - donation for what, to where? She wasn't sure, never daring to go near it in case it was a trap by... someone else.

• but still, Artie felt nice that there were some people who liked her, strangers, who wouldn't get hurt if she let herself get attached to them from afar.

• the other types of criminals she dealt with weren't necessarily - well, they weren't people who she'd call her main enemies. Rather, they were enemies of other heroes, who, when hearing they were in a scuffle or a fight (mostly in the early hours of the morning, when Artie wanted to get some extra hours of sleep, but couldn't because of all of that unholy noise), she decided to enter it and silence them both. (She didn't kill them, but just hurt the both of them enough so that they could shut up, before telling them resume their fight in the waking hours.)

• of course, that didn't always work out well for her, because there were certain bad guys that didn't take to getting beaten up very easily... especially by a mouthy girl like her - so, she often decided to actually team up with other heroes (or vigilantes, because they did some illegal stuff too), to bring the bad guys down. Most of the time it worked. And when it didn't work, Artie mostly found taht she'd have to drag her bloodied, tired, war-torn body, along with a whole other one, away from the fight and to safer grounds, where they could rest, and heal - and where the other battered hero/vigilante could convince Artie to help bring down the bad guy, when she moved to leave.

• and, well, that was who she was - a person who started fights, took part in fights, ended fights. A person who sadly knew the reality of being a hero, and what it meant to save and lose someone. She wasn't a villain, she wasn't a hero. But she was (a villain/a hero) when she eneded to be. And Artie was alright with that. If it made the world a better, safer place, then she was alright with that. She could live with it. She had to, because if she had powers - actual powers - and didn't use it to change her life (or another person's), then what was the use of being given it at all?

[creatingblackcharacters]

"It takes HOW LONG?" Black Hair is an Art (pt.2)

(This is part two of the hair lessons, focusing on writing/narratives. If you want to know how the styles LOOK, refer to part 1 and its addendum)

Now that you know what our hair actually looks like, we’re going to discuss incorporating that into your writing (original fic, fanfic, webcomics, anything with a narrative). You don’t HAVE to give us a dissertation on "how you studied 'The Black People’s Hair'" in your story. That’s not what I’m asking you to do. I’m just asking you to CONSIDER the effort and existence of it. The same way you put effort into discussing nonblack hair textures? Should be the sort of tenderness and care you put into discussing ours. It does not stand to reason that I have read thousands of stories describing "the silky, black/blonde tresses/waves that fell down their pale back as their lover ran their fingers through them", but Black readers have nothing of the sort to compare to without seeking our own authors out. Our hair deserves some loving and adoration too!

This is a very long post describing hairstyles and how they can correspond to your character's design and decisions, so I'll put a read more here. The sections are organized into 'Twist Out', 'Afros', 'Locs', 'Braids', 'Black Men', and 'Straight Hair' if you Ctrl F. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take your time to read all of this at some point though, as I put a lot of resources and explanation into this. I'm trusting you!

The History

As I discussed in the last lesson, our hair is incredibly important to us, and part of that includes the vulnerability and trust that comes along with access to it. This is due to a long history of oppression. There’s a racist history of making Black women hide our hair, as if it would ‘tempt white men’ away, regardless of it were due to actual attraction or the (more likely) rape of Black women. There’s a racist history of touching our hair, as though we are animals or zoo exhibits. We aren’t just going to let anyone touch our heads, so DON'T write that, unless you are doing so to show that it is a microaggression towards your character. Even now, cultural appropriation is rampant. If I were to wear cornrows with hoops, it'd be seen as 'ghetto' or 'gang-like'. Meanwhile, it is a fashion statement for white women. When Miles G Morales showed up in Across the Spiderverse, animators specifically chose cornrows for him, but many people mistakenly took it to me that he was 'rougher and tougher' than the original Miles. This was a racist perception! Hearing the Fade get hyped up in the news as the 'Travis Kelce', when Black men and especially NFL players have been wearing it for DECADES to crickets... it hurts lmao. Point is, you can describe and respect Black hair without being racist about it. Okay? Okay.

Vulnerability

YOUR CHARACTERS NEED TO BE CLOSE BEFORE ALLOWING THEM TO TOUCH THEIR HAIR!!!

It needs to be someone they TRUST wholeheartedly. Again, do NOT let a stranger touch their hair unless it’s meant to be an uncomfortable situation!

Consider CONSENT! Consent is ALWAYS beautiful! Have your other characters (Black or not) ASK to touch your Black characters’ hair! And not in the ‘Oh can I touch it?’ way. But if they’re really close friends or dating, have them ask to help do their braids, or wash their hair, or even just to stroke their hair and face! Or if your Black character is injured with a head wound, and they have to tend to them, have them ask! The asking shows a level of care and respect for your Black character and their body! At any point the consent may be revoked, and that needs to be respected! If they let them tend their head wound, but then smack their hand away after, that’s not ‘rude’- they’re allowed to do that, especially to signify that they aren’t at that level of trust yet. That's still angsty!

One great example of love from a Black character is doing their partner’s hair, or allowing their partner to do their hair. The ‘Hair-washing’ fic is a common thing in fanfiction; we all understand how that shows the depth of the trust in the relationship between the characters. How would you write about that trust with a Black character, if you don’t know what goes into taking care of their hair? If you don’t even know what their hair looks or feels like? The lack of awareness will show, and what should be a beautiful, deep moment will fall flat for Black readers. I wrote one once for my character with locs, and it honestly made me tear up because I realized that I’d never seen one, at least not in the majority white spaces that the fandoms I was in were.

Think about it- how often have you read a hair-washing fic with a Black character? Was it accurate? Would you know if it was accurate? Have you spoken to or heard anyone Black in your fandom space talk about it? Do you know anyone Black in your fandom space to ask? It’s things like this that we have to consider!

If you have a character that is nonblack in a relationship with your Black character, that honestly reveals even more trust because there’s a long history (again) behind that NOT happening! In life, we can’t go to the same places. I can’t go to a white hair salon or barbershop. They won’t know what to do! People are allowed to go through hair school without learning how to work with different, thicker textures. It’s not right nor fair, but it’s a part of the casual, systemic racism in our lives.

My feelings on what Lestat symbolizes aside, the scene where he plays with Louis’ curls in AMC's IWTV was an intelligent way to show that closeness, and how a nonblack character would affectionately play with a Black character’s hair! How he works with the curl in his fingers, rather than trying to pet Louis or run his fingers through- it was an intelligent move on Sam and Jacob’s part as actors to understand that THAT’S how that would go down!

If you have a character that wants to show a violation of your Black characters’ space, touching/harming our hair is cruelty on a very personal level that will generate an extreme reaction.

Think About Your Character!

When thinking about your Black character’s hairstyle, you need to think about your character themselves! What do they do every day? What are their hobbies? Are they Type A, Type B personality? Do they have a lot of time? Are they always in a rush? Are they noncommittal? Are they self-conscious? Artsy? Serious? Are they in a time period where the means to care for their hair are limited?

People make jokes and comments about how Black women don’t like getting our hair wet and dismiss our concerns. But it’s not out of ‘silliness’ or vanity. What you consider ‘just hair’ may have taken days of planning in advance and HOURS of our time! We put a lot of thought and effort into our hair, and it will easily shatter the illusion for your Black readers if you describe our hair poorly or create an unlikely scenario with it. It’s not a joke!

Some Terms:

Protective styles- a style that allows our hair to ‘rest’ with minimal manipulation

‘Tender-headed’- some people’s scalps are more sensitive to the tightness of styles, so it’ll hurt a little bit more and require some more gentleness (Regardless it’s still going to hurt for a bit after a fresh style)

Bonnets- a silk/satin cap of varying lengths that we wear at night to protect our hair and keep the moisture in

Loc Sock- same idea, but for locs

Durag- keeps short haircuts protected; can even help create the wave pattern that many Black men enjoy

Scarf- same idea as the bonnets, except scarfs can be used specifically for straight hairstyles to wrap them up to keep it straight and neat

(It'll seem real legit if you include your Black characters wearing their headcoverings at night! I remember laughing while reading Twilight because I knew that if Edward snuck into my room at night, he'd see me in my scarf or bonnet lmao.)

General Hair Care:

While I don’t completely agree with some of the advertising in this first one (it’s the internet. Can’t go nowhere without someone trying to hawk something) it’s cool in general to explain how our hair looks the way it does.

If you have Black children OCs, it’s important to consider that their parents have to do their hair, and how that will be its own experience! (It can be very stressful for Black children to get their hair done, as it takes a long time and can be physically uncomfortable. There are plenty of stories of burnt ears and tugged tangles and not very nice old women. Children are children! Keep in mind how they may behave while getting the style of your choice.

Moisturizing to keep healthy

Twist Outs

Cute twist out styles

Twist outs are a style that takes overnight to hold, or maybe even a few days! The cool thing is that the twists themselves can be the style! So the tighter you want their curls to be, the longer they’ll wear the twists in. If you want to describe your character with tighter curls, there needs to be a section of time where their hair remains in the twists! If your character has an event, and they want twists… this needs to be done in advance. Your character will NOT untwist them the day of, unless they want weak, limp curls (or you want the scene to compose of them having weak curls).

How long they'll last depends on the activity of your character! If all they do is work a desk job, or they don’t sweat very much, the twists can last some time! But if they sweat, or wear hats or caps, it’s not going to last long. Maybe a week.

Pros: Very versatile! If you have a character that loves trying new looks and enjoy being spontaneous, twist outs are for them! Easy! If your Black character is younger, or haven’t done their hair before, this is a great way for them to start working with their hair! Doesn’t take long (to do)! If your character is in a rush, and they do their twists, they can go just about anywhere. If they’re not self-conscious, this will be just fine.

Cons: It cannot get wet again, or the style will puff up back into your natural texture. It does not last long enough to say “oh my character went on a two year long fantasy adventure with this style.” If you want your character to have a twist out the whole time, they’re going to have to take time to do it. It would be cool if you incorporate a scene where they’re working on their hair, maybe in the background while everyone’s discussing plans or something. Just a reminder that their hair isn’t just staying magically twisted (unless they have the magic to do that).

Afros

Afro Style Guide, Style Guide for Men (works for any gender though)

Wash & Gos are just that- wash it (or really, condition it, you don’t have to shampoo it every time) dry with a t-shirt (to prevent breakage), put some oil and a light crème on it, fluff it up and you’re good to go! Maybe an hour at max and can be done while getting dressed in the morning!

Pros: Easy! If they’re doing a full, combed out afro, it’s not as simple, it will take more time. And at night it has to be plaited so that it maintains its length, otherwise it will tangle. But other than that, that’s still not all that hard. They can show off their curls! Black characters can and should have pride in their hair. It’s beautiful. This is the opportunity that you as an author can describe the pure texture of their hair, how it shines in the light, how the coils look, how soft it is! Romanticize Black hair the same way you do anyone else’s!

Cons: None really! Afros are wonderful! Just make sure that your character has a way to keep their hair from getting tangled. Just because it’s easy doesn’t mean there’s no maintenance! A pick, a bonnet, oil and water go a long way!

Locs

Five stages of locs

A person who does locs is a loctician.

Can be palm-rolled or interlocked/crocheted

I cannot emphasize enough that you do not want just anyone doing their locs! They can really mess up someone’s hair if they don’t know what they’re doing. I say that to say, for your character, if they don’t trust the person doing their hair… they should. They should not be walking into anyone’s place to get their hair locked; they’d do research first.

The time it takes locs to ‘bud’ (that is, to actually form the loc) depends on the texture of their hair. But it can take up to 3 months to even a year for them to actually ‘loc up’. So if your character just got locs, they’re not going to look neat. They’re going to be frizzy.

As long as they’re washing their hair, keeping it moisturized, and not using wax products (DO NOT HAVE ANY BLACK CHARACTER USE WAX PRODUCTS IT IS BAD FOR BLACK HAIR) it’ll last forever! Locs are incredibly strong, especially the thicker they get! It is recommended that locs are retwisted every six weeks, but if your character has freeform locs, doesn’t have the money or time right now, or they just aren’t that pressed, they can grow indefinitely.

Something cute to write in your stories: sometimes locs do just… fall out. Not the whole thing! But the same way thin hair gets everywhere… sometimes the ends of thin locs just… fall off! You’ll find little buds on the ground. This happens especially in the budding stage.

Pros: Very low daily maintenance! At most they’ll need a bonnet or loc sock, and oil/water mix to spritz and massage in. Strong style that can hold any look- buns, curls, etc. They can be dyed, though it will take a long time to do so. I say that to say, if you want your character to have bright green locs, go for it!!

Cons: Low daily, but HIGH wash day maintenance! So if your character has a fancy date or something to go on, they should not be getting their hair retwisted the same day, or at least not so close to. It’s going to be shiny, oily, and tight, which can cause discomfort. Give them the day to let the hair settle!

Locs are PERMANENT!! This isn’t a bad thing, as much as it is a ‘KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING BEFORE YOU DO IT’ thing. Technically they can be combed out, but that would take a very long time and very precise effort, and most people aren’t going through all that. They’re just going to cut them off and start fresh. If you have a character that would balk at such a choice, locs aren’t for them. If you have a character that’s picky and choosy, that likes versatility, that can’t make up their mind, do NOT give them locs unless they’re making the conscious choice to commit. (Again, this is subjective! Maybe they have locs because their mother died and it reminds them of her! Okay! That works!) If you have a character that’s vain, or at least doesn’t like looking awkward… unless they’re going to style up the awkward stage, they’re not going to want locs. (Awkward stage: the first two stages get considered awkward because the locs look messy. This is because they’re turning from curls to locs!)

Braids

Styles

How long braids can take depend on the style. Box braids can take 10-12 hours to do! Microbraids? You HAVE to have multiple people or you'll be there for damn near a day (and that's assuming you have a masterful braider!)

How long they last depend on your character! If they're like me as a kid, I didn't care how I looked, so my mom got me cheap braids and let me run free for two summer months. So if your Black character is a carefree child! Go for it. But if they're a teen or adult (or are very concerned about how they look) a month to six weeks is about how long braids can stay in before your new growth shows. A character that is usually trimmed and proper having loads of new growth over their braids may symbolize that they don’t have it all together anymore.

Pros: Protective style! Great way to let your character have minimal daily maintenance; oil and water and something to cover it. SOME braided styles allow for high activity and even rain without changing. It depends on the hair that’s been braided in, as well as the style. Incredibly versatile! They can have multi-colored braids, long braids, short braids, beads, trinkets… if your character is creative and bubbly and likes to experiment, the sky is the limit! That can symbolize their artistic expression, just by describing what they look like! So long as they have the time, they can have any look and style they want. No need to commit too long.

If your character is capable of doing their own braids (and locs, btw), they’re amazing. Like… that’s mad respect for them. If you describe your character being able to do their own braids, they’ve got amazing arm strength, patience, and skill. That skilled dexterity can be revealed as a trait of theirs through that alone.

Cons: They take a LONG TIME. Your character is not going anywhere. If they’re getting braids… they’re not going anywhere. If you write your character doing anything fancy the day of, depending on the type of braids, Black readers are not going to believe you. Even if it did get finished, it would be very tight. I currently have a poll going on, and so far, a good majority of the 10+ answers are braids! It cost MONEY. It is NOT CHEAP to get braids done! If your character is poor as a church mouse, they will be doing those braids with their friend in front of youtube. Because it can be in the hundreds of dollars. (Don’t get me started on hair culture right now; BACK IN MY DAY IT COST-)

Hairstyles on Black Men

I want to specifically give space and applause to these hairstyles on Black men, because we REALLY don’t give Black men enough credit for all the creativity they show with their hair! And again, with The Killmonger being the choice style in all these damn vidya games despite almost no Black man I know choosing it as a look… PLEASE LOOK! WE HAVE OPTIONS! Try describing how gorgeous these looks can be on your Black men characters! It would be very nice.

Straight Hair

Well, I was going to explain, but ol ‘Guest Writer’ here pretty much lays it all out! So just go ahead and read this article lol.

Just to re-emphasize, straight hair is NOT something that just grows out of our head that way! It takes effort! So if you have a character that doesn’t feel like maintaining straight hair, they shouldn’t have it! If your character has natural hair and lives in a rainy or humid city, they’re going to be fighting that weather to keep it straight- make sure that’s consistent with their personality!

My best friend used to wash and flatiron her hair every day. Like, laser focused on looking that good, Type A shit (she’s a top money banker now, so I guess it worked out). If you have a character like that, it’s fine! If they’re lazy any other time of the day, they’re not suddenly going to be waking up at 5am to flat iron their hair. It’s not consistent.

Conclusion

That’s pretty much what I have! I’m not the guru on all things Black hair, and I obviously cannot encompass every potential scenario you may have for your characters. Really, my intention here is to get you to think about how our hair reflects our character and personalities, and how when you write and/or draw a Black character, you have that ability! And when you’re able to incorporate that naturally, it makes your Black readers feel seen, like you actually cared about that character enough to give them just as much description as your nonblack characters. You don’t have to be a master at it! Just… occasionally the little things that we can go ‘oh, yeah!’ at would be nice. An equivalent effort would be nice.

Remember, it’s the thought that counts, but the action that delivers!

[lovelybrooke]

Masterlist

Masterlist 2

Here is the masterlist of all my works. Please enjoy.

Ni No Kuni, Wrath of the White Witch:

Marcassin Headcanons

More Marcassin Headcanons

Even more Marcassin Headcanons

Childhood friends to lovers with Marcassin

(Aged up) Oliver Headcanons

Cassiopeia Headcanons

Swaine Headcanons

(Platonic) Esther and Oliver Headcanons

One Piece:

Where Am I? (Part 1 Link)

Where Am I? (Part 2 Link)

Where Am I? (Part 3 Link)

Yandere Strawhats x readers

How you met the yandere Strawhats

Yandere Strawhats x Isekai reader

Strange technology

Average Day with the Yandere Strawhats

Strawhats with a distrusting reader

We'll always protect you

I refuse

Platonic Yandere Strawhats with FTM reader

House of the Dragon/Game of Thrones

Platonic yandere house of the dragon x maid reader

Platonic Yandere House Stark

The Last of Us (Tv series)

Platonic Yandere Joel and Ellie Headcanons

Time for School (platonic yandere Joel and Ellie x reader)

I’m your sister (platonic yandere Joel and Ellie x reader)

Stars (platonic yandere Joel and Ellie x reader)

Life Before (platonic yandere Joel and Ellie x reader)

platonic yandere Joel and Ellie with a sick reader (requested)

The wrath of a family pt. 1 (requested)

The wrath of a family pt. 2 (requested)

Regret (requested)

Regret pt.2 (requested)

You're going to be okay

This is home (requested)

Growing up

Arcane

Platonic yandere Viktor and Jayce

We could be a family (platonic yandere silco and jinx)

Home Sweet Home

Platonic Yandere Silco and Jinx

Platonic Yandere Vander

Persona 5

Platonic Yandere Phantom Thieves x reader

Platonic Yandere Goro Akechi

Yandere Haru x reader

Jujutsu Kaisen

Platonic Yandere Gojo Satoru

Platonic Yandere Yuji Itadori

Gojo with a high cure energy reader

An exception

Platonic Megumi with his childhood friend

Platonic Sukuna with Yuji's Childhood friend

I can only hope

Yandere Gojo and Getou x reader

Avatar the way of water

Home

Platonic yandere sully family

Family Sacrifice

Family sacrifice pt 2

Human Sully Meeting the metkayina Tribe

Tsireya and Aonung after family sacrifice

Ouran High School Host Club

How they knew

Yandere Ouran High School Host Club concept

Pretty Please?

Reader leaving for College

Demon Slayer

Yandere Demon Slayer Concept pt. 1

Yandere Demon Slayer Concept pt.2

Platonic Yandere Inosuke with polar opposite reader

The way things were before

The way things were before pt.2

Welcome home

Platonic Yandere Zenitsu headcanons

Demon Slayers with a foreign reader

Spiderman Across the Spiderverse

Yandere Spiderman Across the Spiderverse Concept

Hanging out With Them

Makeover

Be Careful

Watching Over You

Hobie with an Autistic reader (Platonic)

How they react to you getting into university

For the Multiverse

Platonic Yandere Miles Morales Headcanons

Reader having a secret partner

Hobie with a reader who suffers Auditory and Visual hallucinations (platonic)

Right were you belong

Death Note

L with an Aroace reader

Best Friends Forever

Aren't you excited

Twisted Wonderland

first years reaction to reader wanting to leave

second years reaction to reader wanting to leave

third years reaction to reader wanting to leave

Pokemon

Yandere Kieran x reader

Hazbin Hotel

Yandere Hazbin Hotel Concept Pt 1

Yandere Hazbin Hotel Concept Pt 2

Yandere Angels x immortal reader

Yandere Overlords x immortal reader

Elden Ring

Yandere Elden Ring Concept

[gay-dorito-dust]

Masterlist 2.0

Klaus, cut the bullshit (tua) (closed)

Sandman (closed)

House of the dragon (closed)

Stranger things (closed)

Marvel:

Werewolf by night (closed)

Druig (eternals) 1 2 3

Disastrous life of saiki k

Saiki kusuo 1 2 3 4 5

Is this stalking? Potentially/hypothetically from a certain standpoint, yes. Yet it is. (Requested)

The legend of vox machina (closed)

Percival de rolo 1 2 3 4

Vox machina 1 2 3 4 5

Deadweight

Deadweight pt 2

Deadweight pt3

Deadweight pt4

Deadweight pt5

Deadweight pt6

Deadweight pt7

Deadweight pt 8

Comfort after disaster

How vox machina dealt with reader coming back from the dead (revival) (requested)

Prompt 29: actions that make them happy (requested)

Vax’ildan

Vax’s gn s/o takes a bit for him and Pike heals them (requested) (tw; blood, gore, Achilles heel slashing, throat slitting, a whole ass gash taking up reader’s torso.)

Jjba

Anasui

Weather report

Castlevania (closed)

Alucard tepes 1 2

Dracula 1 2 3

Trevor Belmont 1 2

Wednesday (closed.)

Wednesday Addams 1

Like a date date? (Requested)

Make a move (requested)

Part 2 (requested)

Part 3 (requested)

Sucker for the baked goods (requested)

Black dahlia lovers (requested)

Part 2 (requested)

Black cat and golden retriever (requested)

Truths and lies (requested) angst/happy ending. Tw: blood, hurt, gashes.

The day Wednesday Addams understood what sound a shattered heart makes. (Requested) angst/ one sided love

Part 2; it takes two to mend a shattered heart (Requested)

Change of heart (requested)

Wednesday missing reader (not click bait) (requested)

Someone’s (Enid) is a little butt hurt (requested)

Alive (requested)

Companion of darkness (platonic Wednesday imagine request)

A nightshade always protects (requested)

Precognitions aren’t to be taken seriously when processed without the necessary context aka Wednesday learns how to cry (requested)

Mad dog of Nevermore (requested)

1068 days isn’t nearly a long enough time to keep me from you. (Requested)

Dragon of Nevermore (requested)

Rich reader spoils enid and Wednesday (requested)

The king of curses (requested)

Chaos witch (requested)

Chaos witch pt 2 (requested)

Chaos witch part 3 (requested)

Enid Sinclair 1

Liking you romantically (requested)

Sucker for the baked goods (requested)

Tomorrow’s another day (requested)

Because we work (requested)

Rich reader spoils enid and Wednesday (requested)

Xavier Thorpe

Hypothetically

Sucker for the baked goods (requested)

Finger friends (requested)

Xavier and Ajax’s no good, very bad day (requested)

Ear piercings are a bitch to heal. (Requested)

Xavier and reader’s children go to Nevermore (Requested)

Our rivalry became more because of a misdemeanour. (Requested)

Sketch your way into my heart (Requested)

Nasty bitch goblin mother fucker (requested) (may/may not include unrealistic selections of the usage/effects of marijuana otherwise known as weed)

AIB (alice in borderlands)

Chishiya

See you on the other side

On the other side (part 2 to fic above) (requested)

Name a star after me

Final Fantasy 7

Sephiroth

Cuddling headcannons (requested)

Trigun stampede

Vash the stampede

Some Vash stuff

Nicholas D. Wolfwood

Reader flusters Nicholas (requested)

Lockwood and Co

Fic page here.

Shazam

Fic list here

Resident evil 4 remake

Fic list here

Spider-man: across the Spiderverse

Fic list here

Mortal Kombat 1

Fic list here

[my-heart-beat-for-anime]

MASTERLIST☜(ﾟヮﾟ☜)

DUNE

Feyd-rautha Harkonenn

the true peace feyd-rautha x reader x paul atreides

Feyd-rautha x Atreides reader headcanons Pt.1, Pt.2, Pt.3

he loved her feyd-rautha x wife reader

Paul Atreides

the true peace feyd-rautha x reader x paul atreides

GRAN TURISMO

Jack Salter

imagine jack salter x reader

Jann Mardenborough

jann mardenborough x medic reader, Pt.2, Pt.3, Pt.4, Pt.5

Nick Capa

nick capa x mardenborough reader

SPIDERMAN ACROSS THE SPIDERVERSE

Miguel O´hara

Love in another universe, Pt.2

THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES

Coriolanus Snow

the snowflake young president coriolanus snow x first lady reader

Treech

his belladona, Pt.2, Pt.3 treech x mentor reader

Reaper Ash

lovers reaper ash x oc

[love15things]

(little) Details Across the Spiderverse that didn’t make sense Pt 1: Spiderman

In the scene where Spot is acknowledging Spiderman in Mumbattan Why is there a confusion about who he is referring to?

I could understand if it was between Pavitr and Miles but why does Gwen think he is talking to her?

When she introduced herself in the first movie she called herself Spiderwoman

When the manhunt is on, her father and J. Jonah Jameson calls her Spiderwoman 

Note: I’m not bashing the movie, it’s just there are times that I spot (haha) little detail that have me questioning things for the rest of the movie. A horrible habit that i wish would go away.

[saewokhrisz]

hiii!! 3 things..

1) for your mask expression art where goro's mask is confused, you said you took inspiration from atsv? what is that, if i can ask?

2) in persona 4 arena , theres a shadow suppression unit named labrys and she essentially only wears yasogami's highschool uniform so if you look at labrys and aigis, the idea of shadow suppression unit goro works very well because his school uniform is nice enough that he can hide his princely (& maybe later darker?) outfit and appear more human when theyre in public (excluding ears of course.. those can be passed off as headphones however).. i just thought thatd be something you would find interesting

3) in norse mythology there's the myth of loki killing baldr, so skadi traps him below the earth with chains made of what's holding his 1st child fenrir down as well, and poison from a creature (i cant remember the exact creature unfortunately) but he stays there until the ragnarok (the end of the world) and his wife, sigyn, who puts up with all his mischief and the fact that 4/6 (or 4/5, depending on what iteration you look at) of loki's kids are not sigyn's at all (hel, the horse he gave birth to, fenrir, and jormungandr are the ones not sigyn's.. nardi and vali slash just nardi is sigyn's) . but anyway sigyn holds a bowl and catches the poison so loki doesnt suffer, and every once in awhile the bowl fills with poison so she has to go outside to dump it out, and loki withers in pain because while she is gone the poison drips down his head and it causes earthquakes.. but anyway. this all reminds me of engine room (being trapped & in pain, etc) and its also.. loki. so sigyn as akira and loki as akechi art would be super duper cool.. i encourage you to look into both loki and robinhood's myths because robinhood era-myths also include the mention of mordred, the incestous son of king arthur who kills his way to the top yet his revenge fails (reason unspecified, it can be assumed he was killed himself or robinhood took his revenge for him) and his outfit is suspiciously similar to that of the black mask's, from the horns to the black getup.. mordred is akechi, akira is robinhood, and robinhood's merry band of thieves are the PTs.

ty for listening to my rambling :D no one really mentions mordred and i think him and akechi's symbolism is so important.. also! What You've Already Buried by malevolentmango on ao3 touches on a lot of loki's myths and such if youd like to learn about it that way :D

sorry the face i made seeing how long this ask is AHSJGF took me a min to answer

1)ATSV is Across the the spiderverse ! that movie inspired quite a few things about my art style, that also just happen to work really well with p5s visual motifs since the comic book inspiration and heavy use of colour blocks and halftones, as well as they make the spiderman masks eyes emote, since they have them on for a big portion of the film, and its the cutest thing ever

2) Ive seen Labrys' design! she always reminds me of miku if im completely honest BWAHA but yesss he could possibly hide it very well, also the fact that he always wears gloves could hide his fingers too :D

3) havent touched too much into norse myth besides the surface level knowledge of it that i obtained thru osmosis, mostly from friends who were into it. also i loveeeee binge reading wikis and link hopping (did it with gnosticism -> ended up inspired and made the ophiomorphos piece hehe) but its such a spontanious thing for me, i shall keep it in mind tho :D i did wanna at some point read up on hereward more specifically, since out of his 3 personas him is the one i have not a single clue about but i....forgot...i really dont give a lot of love to hereward sobs

[bidamonalbarn]

ty @noraincsl for the tag!!!

my top nine films of 2023 in no particular order

this was so hard I only picked films I saw for the first time in 2023 to ease the pain

Stars At Noon (2022)

i'm thinking of ending things (2020)

All Of Us Strangers (2023)

Shut Up And Sing (2006)

Boy Erased (2018)

Run Lola Run (1998)

Spiderman: Across The Spiderverse Pt 1 (2023)

Un Prophète (2009)

Flee (2021)

tagging (no pressure!): @naomismcpherson @surrowndedbylights @alltheliars @anxiouspunk @kitsebastianconnor @thebadwitch @thelastattempt and anyone else who wants to!!

[artsyaech]

2023 cartoons: best of what i watched

[PT: 2023 cartoons: best of what i watched]

2023 was a weird year for cartoons, but here’s a list of stuff i was able to enjoy this year!

1. across the spiderverse

this one’s a given. it was creative, fun and so nice to look at (when it wasn’t overstimulating that is) don’t see this movie if you have issues with flashing lights!

2. nimona

also a given. i love nimona more than i love myself! it mixes scifi with fantasy and is almost flawless. super rewatchable, too.

that’s it for memorable movies, sadly.

3. the amazing digital circus

cool indie project that i probably don’t need to tell you about.

4. strange planet

i dunno why i loved this show as much as i did. it’s just so dumb and fun. i found the book at a thrift shop, and i’ve been in love ever since.

5. frog and toad

cute show with nice vibes. definitely worth a watch if you like chill shows like bluey, for example

6. lackadaisy

another indie project i really enjoyed and you should check out.

that’s all that stood out in my mind, honestly.

[polyamships]

July 2023 Polyam Shipping Day Roundup

In July we had 15 entries across 13 fandoms. All are linked below:

Stranger Things: Snowed In (fanfic) by @pterawaters (polycule: stranger things)

Castlevania: Family Supper (fanfic) by @alpaca-clouds (alucard x greta x sypha belnades x trevor belmont)

Pokemon: Arven's Addition (fanfic) by @vwritesawholelothm (aoi x botan x nemo x pepper)

Pokemon: happy frenchflagshipping day! (fanart) by @insecateur (diantha x lysandre x profesor sycamore)

Pokemon: Débat matinal (fanfic) by @insecateur (diantha x lysandre x profesor sycamore)

Sense8: just set the table for me, please (fanfic) by @heavensenthale (kala dandekar x rajan rasal x wolfgang bogdanow)

Corpse Bride x American Mcgee's Alice x The Smiler: Valicer Not-Incorrect Quotes, Food Edition (headcanons) by @victorluvsalice (alice liddell x original character x victor van dort)

Twin Peaks: Green Stuff with Almonds (fanfic) by tildytwo on DW (albert rosenfield x dale cooper x harry truman)

Original Work: A Recipe for Disquiet, pt. 1 (fiction) by wallwaker on DW (original characters)

Amphibia: Peach Tree (fanfic) by @quailfence (anne boonchuy x marcy wu x sasha waybright)

The Owl House: Sharing a meal (fanfic) by AutisticWriter on AO3 (camila noceda x eda clawthorne x raine whispers)

Spiderman: Spiderverse: Leftovers (fanfic) by @gender-snatched (gwen stacy x hobie brown x miles morales x pavitr prabhakar)

Ever After High: Feeding Cats and Dogs by @hodgepodgeoffandoms (cerise hood x ginger breadhouse x kitty cheshire)

Kira Kira Pretty Cute a la Mode: food (graphics) by @merryfortune (arisugawa himari x tategami aoi x usami ichika)

The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: The Third Bowl (fanfic) by @xnicowritesx (liu qingge x luo binghe x shen qingqiu)

Thanks to everyone who took part this month!

Gentle reminder that if you want your fanwork to be included in the roundup it needs to either be submitted/@ us on tumblr or in the official ao3 collection, and if not uploaded on the day in question let us know what prompt it’s for. And if we’ve missed any items please send us a note and let us know.

[sunsetsandsunshine]

🄷🄴🄻🄻🄾! 🅃🄷🄰🄽🄺🅂 🄵🄾🅁 🅂🅃🄾🄿🄿🄸🄽🄶 🄱🅈!

This is just an introduction to me and my blog! Click “keep reading” if you’re interested!

Last updated: 4/6/2024

Writing requests are: OPEEENN‼️‼️‼️ (Ik— it’s a surprise to me too…) Feel free to drop in writing requests in my inbox 🫶🏾

INTRODUCCION: (っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ ♥ Greetings fellow people of the internet! My name is Orchid/Emery (I’m okay with either one). I’m a black 15 years old, who is a Switch, a fanfiction writer and an artist (°.__.). But let’s get a couple things out of the way first…if you are the following please DNI: ~ A Kink blog/NSFW ~ Racist ~ MAP/Pedophile ~ Homophibic ~ Albiest

Little more detail about me and my boundaries: 

~ My pronouns are she/her ~ My DM’s are always open. And I mean ALWAYS OPEN. I’m all eyes and ears, I love to get messages from people! Just don’t be weird… ~ I like sending/receiving tickle teases and stuff but ONLY ME AND MY FRIENDS DO THAT. I AM NOT SOMEONES “LER” OR “LEE” PLZ AND THX!!! ~ I also do tickle roleplay (BUT AGAIN— ONLY WITH MY CLOSE FRIENDS!!!) ~ I have AuDHD (ADHD + Autism) so if I ramble or not answer you for a while just plz be paitent :>

NAVIGATION Masterlist ~

ROTTMNT:

Ticklish hands (Lee!Raph, Ler!April)

Leadership (Lee!Leo, Ler!Raph) Ticklish Twins (Switch!Donnie, Switch!Leo) Just say you’re sorry (Lee!Leo, Lee!Mikey and Ler!Raph and Ler!Donnie) Sonic the Hedgehog Movies 1/2: Some Father-son bonding (Lee!Sonic, Ler!Tom) TMNT 2012

You can always ask (Lee!Leo, Ler!Mikey)

💕🥸😎My Tickle Headcanons😎🥸💕

~ Tmnt 2012 Tickle Headcanons

(pt.1) (pt.2) Casey Jones

FANDOM LIST‼️‼️‼️ 🤩 = Hyperfixation 🥳 = Watched 🥸 = Haven’t finished watching 😎 = Please do not request— haven’t finished watching ROTTMNT 🤩 TMNT 2003 🤩

TMNT 2012 🤩 HAIKYUU 🥳

MUTANT MAYHEM 🤩 INTO THE SPIDERVERSE/ACROSS THE SPIDERVERSE 🥳 DUCKTALES 😎 AMPHIBIA 😎 TMNT 2012 🤩 AVATAR THE LAST AIRBENDER 🥳 NINJAGO 🤩 THE OWL HOUSE 😎

More details later…

[fierrochase-falafel]

Thoughts on Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse and being different (Pt. 1: Miles Morales)

Just watched Across the Spiderverse and I think regardless of the argument of Gwen being trans or not (and yes, I will get to Gwen), there's something to be said about this movie's handling of the experience of being Spiderman as an allegory for outcasthood (and yes, this includes queerness pretty heavily), especially through the character arc of Miles Morales. This discusses both Spiderverse movies, so do note: SPOILERS ABOUND!

[I will add a quick disclaimer here to say that obviously my opinions only come from what I have learnt from other people or experienced in person. I cannot claim experience for everything I may mention, and even though certain minorities I mention may apply to me, I can't claim to know everyone else's experiences either, so this is just my take. In the end, I'm just some guy saying stuff on Tumblr.]

Spiderman has always been easy to read as a queer allegory because of, y'know: the hiding in plain sight, the lying, the exhaustion, often risk/danger if you're queer in an unsupportive environment, the suffering of not just the Spiderman themself but the people they love / who love them too. In Across the Spiderverse particularly though, carrying on from Into the Spiderverse, I really love the continuation of a really similar problem Miles had in the first movie. In the first movie, Miles was seen as weak and an outcast, even as he joined a new school where he didn't really fit in. He was someone who was not *really* Spiderman until the end where he was finally able to control his powers, proving himself to the other dimension Spider-people. It was a great arc, yet just when Miles thought his fellow Spider-people were on the same level as him, it was revealed to him that he's been the outsider all this time AGAIN. It turns out they were lying to him and the reason Miguel gives to him is that he is an anomaly, that he shouldn't exist. There's something in that which really hurts if you understand the feeling of thinking you're atleast somewhat understood and respected by people you thought you were equal to, only to have the rug pulled out from under you. I mean, I'd say it's a part of my own experience, moving to different schools / environments in different countries and being made fun of for not knowing things without me even realising until afterwards, and I looked like a downright idiot for not knowing things. It's like when everyone picks up on a joke you don't and you're being pulled along on a string like a puppet to entertain the people around you, just when you thought they saw you as one of them.

Even after Miles proves he is smart and can pull off being Spiderman, it's not enough for the majority of Spider-people to respect him, and he has to reckon with the fact that he will never stop being questioned and belittled for who he is. Doesn't that sound familiar? We see it in ethnic minorities being treated like outsiders regardless of where they are from, women being perceived as less smart, neurodiverse people being perceieved as less capable, trans people being seen as too naive to know what they're doing when it comes to transitioning. For Miles, it's finally at this point he lets go of the image of being Spiderman the way the others are- if he won't be accepted as Spiderman because he has not been through supposed 'canon events' and is disrupting them then so be it. As long as he identifies himself as Spiderman, as someone who protects the people as Spiderman, then who the hell is anyone to tell him he isn't! This is the epitome of reclaiming your own identity- his suffering doesn't define him as Spiderman but his passion and will do, and nobody is allowed to dictate to him who he is or how is story is supposed to go. I really love this: I feel especially many minority communities have people who say you can't really be said minority unless you have suffered enough in x ways, or unless you have gone through y things, but this is a really toxic outlook on people's identities and experiences. It's within debates with transmedicalists (I think that's what they're called?) who say people can't be trans unless they have a certain amount of crippling gender dysphoria, or when people say you need to have undergone a certain set of experiences to really be so-and-so nationality or even race. Miles rejects the suffering he (or other Spider-people, for that matter) is supposed to experience as a 'canon event' (from a queer lens, things like being ostracised from your family for your identity come to mind) and also accepts he is an anomaly, ceasing trying to blend in with the rest of the Spider-people as he knows it is pointless to try- without that, all he can rely on is 'doing his own thing', so he goes ahead to do just that.

It's meant to hurt to watch how much Miles wants to see his friends again with hints throughout the film- his A in AP Physics and future ambition to traverse the multiverse, his sketchbook, everything he does to try and not be alone in his experiences- only to find out the others really could have visited him. He wants to speak to the few people who understand his dilemma as Spiderman, and wants to be worthy enough to be one of them until he realises in this film that his own intuition is more valuable than Spider Society could ever be. And even if it hurts to feel like he's alone in this intuition and that everyone thinks he's crazy, it's still more reliable and worthy than the rules anyone else is trying to place over him...

This is my intepretation of the events from my perspective on how the Spiderverse speaks to people who feel different or incompatible with society- while I add nothing to the plot , I think points like mine are really well analysed in terms of the actual Spiderverse by Sage's Rain on Youtube ("Who deserves to be Spider Man?") which I really love seeing and I'd recommend checking out his video!

~ End of Part 1 ~

[danvers--carol]

Shuffle your “on repeat” playlist on spotify & post the first 10 songs and tag 10 people, tagged by @inloif and @mbjw!! Thank you besties ❤️🥺

Sooo:

1- Francesca by Hozier

2- Something to hide by grandson

3- Ausländer by Rammstein

4- Kill V. Maim by Grimes ('written from the perspective of Al Pacino in The Godfather Pt II. Except he’s a vampire who can switch gender and travel through space' still funny 🤣)

5- Chemical by Post Malone

6- Plastic Heart by Nostalghia

7- Mark Chapman by Måneskin

8- Strangers by The Rose

9- Annihilate by Metro Boomin, Swae Lee, Offset and Lil Wayne (best track from Across the Spiderverse tbh)

10- Parasite Eve by Bring Me the Horizon

Hmmm idk who to tag so if you see it and want to play then consider yourself tagged ❤️

[love15things]

(little) Details Across the Spiderverse that didn’t make sense Pt 2: Gayatri Singh

Watching the movie we were introduce to Pavitr Prabhakar (2nd best boy) girlfriend: GAYATRI, an extremely classy teenager (cute).

She is supposed to be his dimensional version of Gwen Stacy. 

a little obvious because

1:  Her initials G.S., like Gwen Stacy.

2: Her father is a police officer.

But while re-watching I noticed this on the billboard that Miles was thrown into.

Look familiar?

This doesn’t make sense since the only love interest of Spiderman, from my knowledge, who was a model was Mary Jane (MJ). Not to mention that the company that is using her image in their advertisement is from a multinational company in India, not a small business.

So why did they do this? I mean the writers, not the company.