#also maybe aro for Drama

[birdy-bird27]

hey!! do you have any skills aspec headcanons? :3

Heyy!! This is a great question I had to think about it, I just sorta had to go with my aroace gut was telling me. To me empathy gives me ace vibes but a hopeless romantic type(all the Psche group gives me slight ace vibes ngl). Also claiming vis calc as my aroace king, no reason other than he’s underrated and I like him :)

[hypervoxel]

"Vox can't be ace/aspec because he's bisexual" well. So untrue about how sexuality and romantic attraction works and the labels people use to define themselves. But more importantly for my headcanons, don't you know about the bisexual "I don't have any preferences for what I find attractive, so... that means I'm bi?" to asexual "oh, so the equal amounts of attraction I was feeling towards all genders was none," identity label pipeline?? It's sooo real. But also he's sex favorable so that makes him identifying his attraction to the people he has sex with more complicated. To me, he was a, "Sexual attraction isn't a real thing," kinda guy, "and sexuality is only about who you'd have sex with, and gender isn't really a factor so. Bisexual." (He's aspec.)

[timeisacephalopod]

I've kinda seen some pushback to the idea of representation in media and I don't necessarily think it's bad to point out actual rights are more important than Disney's thousandth first gay character that's fine, but I've had a LOT of people comment on my works about asexual characters and tell me what I wrote changed their life-and it's always that phrase- because they now have the language to describe what they feel. I've had people who ARENT ace or aro comment that what I wrote finally made a concept they didn't understand make sense, or that the way I explained things was interesting and enlightening and I'm kind of a mediocre writer who hasn't written anything in ages.

Like idk, if reading something from a writer who is fucking around and only somewhat talented can genuinely impact someone because they've not seen anything like them reflected back at them in life or media I don't think pushing for representation in media is as "needless" as some people seem to think and caring about that doesn't mean you don't care about more "important" (although if you think seeing people like you in media ISNT important it's because you already have that representation or are privileged enough to not care if you do, in which case maybe pipe down) stuff. Hell, I even got a Facebook message ages ago from someone who found a comment I left in an ace group about QPR's and what they meant to me and how I perceived them and the person no joke said what I wrote two years before they even found it changed their life forever because they finally knew what kind of relationship they actually wanted.

So like sure, of course there's always bigger fish to fry them diversity in media (you know, like diversity in real life lol) but I don't think it's as frivolous as some people are beginning to act like it is. At least not if you're an aspec person it's not, I STILL don't see ace characters almost ever and I'll bet my whole everything if I asked a writer of a show why they'd tell me that EVERYONE has to be in a sexual relationship and characters that aren't won't sell and are boring- I say this because in film school I had a teacher TELL ME every character needed to basically be sex obsessed and when I pointed out a GREAT MANY CHARACTERS are not revolved around sex (Supernatural stars two brothers, I pointed out) and when she asked if I had love interests I was like ??? That doesn't matter- using my aforementioned supernatural example almost all their love interests die or get mind wiped because at the end of the day that's not what the story was about. So actually I think writers who act like that teacher need like 50 reality checks, and representation in stories isn't unimportant and also support indie writers you'll probably find more funky shit there then Disney anyway lmao.

And also even the asexual characters I DO see in media don't remind me at all of myself even if I appreciate the effort, but they never feel real or genuine and their sexuality doesn't get a lot of exploration so 🤷🏻‍♀️ I actually could use more media focused on characters that I can genuinely see my sexuality reflected in in a meaningful and narratively impactful way because I've got nothing.

[chryzuree]

on a lighter note. um. silver nitrate has childhood friends where the mc has a hopeless crush on her ex-soap opera star best friend and idk. maybe. something.

[existentialcrisis-24-7]

Just started watching Wednesday on Netflix and I checked tumblr bc why not

And I have opinions

[2001honda-civic]

two more of my friends just got into a relationship with each other. going to kill myself

[eggcats]

I'm fairly sure that in my Housewife Vox AU, Alastor knows he's asexual (and maybe aromantic) because there is NO WAY Vox isn't logged the fuck in and celebrating pride in hell (he's also the embodiment of corporate pride tbh, if he can use it to scam people out of money he WILL)

The second Vox learns what being bisexual is, he immediately did research on everything for both him and Alastor, since none of this information was available when he was alive and Alastor doesn't care enough to look it up for himself (he doesn't feel the need, he's fine with his afterlife and where he's at and his relationship)

However, they're both fucking idiots who will always be bad at communicating, so when Vox DOES learn about being ace/aro it causes a Category 5 Incident because, rather than TALKING with Alastor about any of that, he just ASSUMES that this means that (somehow) he's forced Alastor into their relationship together and that Alastor secretly hates having to kiss and have sex with him

And Vox, of fucking course, doesn't SAY any of this to Alastor, so he just stops initiating anything and any time Vox does want affection or intimacy and Alastor catches on, Vox shoves him away and avoids him

This, obviously, confuses and worries the FUCK out of Alastor because he has absolutely 0 idea what he even DID to make Vox mad at him (and doing his normal "get out of trouble" card of flirting with Vox and turning Vox on isn't working and seems to be making it worse????)

It only gets resolved when (OBVIOUSLY) Rosie forces these idiots to talk to each other, and it comes out that Vox thinks he's somehow manipulated Alastor into their relationship and forces him to do things he doesn't want to do

Vox: I mean, I tell you to kiss me, and when I want to have sex and intimacy, so clearly I'm forcing you to do it!

Alastor, eye twitching, trying not to strangle his picture box: Darling, I've told you since your first year here that I enjoy doing those things With You Specifically, and that I both need AND want you to tell me when you want so I can DO THEM since I don't have the desire to on my own

Vox, sheepish: Oh, right....

Alastor, being forced into doing breathing exercises by Rosie: Did you think you also, somehow, forced me to go into rut?

Vox, hiding his face: I GET IT OKAY

(Rosie smacks Vox for all this because, for once, it's not even Alastor's fault for not communicating, it's HIS. How they're both still so bad at this after years together, she'll never know).

After all that drama, Alastor does (eventually) learn about asexuality and aromanticism, but it took a while because Vox just read the baseline definition and Spiraled instead of talking with Alastor first. If Alastor could have banned the internet after this, he would have.

[radskull-69]

Vent? I guess?? More like talking about this INSANE guy omg

This guy has got to be the worst person I have ever fucking met omg

they never respect boundaries, even SIMPLE ones, like: kissing ppl on the cheek without consent, name calling, trauma dumping, touching

and this guy isn’t even confirmed he has autism, which is fine normally. Because neither am I, and so are most people.

but this mother fucker has gone to TWO offical autistic tests and BOTH said he didn’t have it, but the iNtErNeT quiz said he did so I guess he has it-

said I probably have adhd because I have daddy issues???

has kissed me and my bsf on the cheek without asking and when we confronted him he said he has ‘memory issues’ and doesn’t remember it (it happened only hours prior). Then had a panic attack since we ‘cornered him’ (I texted him on discord)

he CONSTANTLY trauma dumps, like he’d just walk up to me and without even saying hello he’d rant about his ‘broken foot’ or how ‘he hasn’t slept for three weeks straight’

and he so obviously fakes every mental illness and disability ever, it’s annoying bruhhhh. He’s half blind, half death, has scoliosis, schizophrenia, Tourette’s, autism, pregnancy? And so much more I can’t even name (none of these are officially confirmed either, and he only ‘uses’ or has the disability randomly on a blue moon when no one is talking to him)

once when I was getting kicked in the legs and being called useless by a shitty friend he laughed along and agreed I was useless, so in our next class we shared I refused to partner with him and just sat down at my desk. I was his only friend in that class but I didn’t care.

he slammed his chair into the desk, cried and ran out the room. When the teacher asked what’s wrong he went on a rant how ‘no body likes him and how he hates the school’, The teacher offered to be his partner but he said no and just ran outside..

then behind my back to my REAL friends he said I was being a cold asshole to him for no reason?

this mother fucker has faked a pregnancy for two years straight.

when I was dating this guy he sent me his kink list and said ‘I’m fucked if he gets horny’. We’re both minors, just started dating, and he knows I’m asexual.

AND THATS NOT EVEN ALL

once we were making some spicy butter chicken at school, and he was in charge of crushing and adding the spice.

when I ate my butter chicken it was really spicy to me, and I know I’m very sensitive to foods and people like to tease me about it. Which is funny and I can laugh along with it.

but this guy just kept and kept on making fun of me nonstop, calling me a pussy for not handling the spice and how I was ‘so white’ for how i was acting.

so I said- ‘maybe since I’m autistic I take it differently then most others?’ And I thought he’d sympathise since he’s also ‘autistic’.

nope.

motherfucker said ‘erm- well- my autistic level is higher then yours so-👆🤓’

WHAT

what does that got to do with ANYTHING!?? And you don’t even have a confirmed ‘autistic level’, neither do I?? What even is that!??

I hate this guy so muchhhh, the ONLY reason I keep him around in the friend group is because I’m worried he’ll victim blame himself again and make me look bad. Also because as cruel as it sounds, the drama he brings is so entertaining.

luckily my friend group agrees this guy is toxic as fuck and annoying, I’m planning on cutting him from the group the next time he does something fucked up to me again so I can call him out.

because dear GOD is he so annoying..

Idk why I even dated him bruh.. I think he’s what made me aro-ace and that not all relationships are just ‘friendships with extra hand holding’

[aro-bird]

I've been thinking about how to phrase this post for months but honestly it's been a bit of a struggle but I'll try anyway.

Considering I made a post before about shipping aroace characters and how allos tend to use the lived experiences of aros and aces in order to justify shipping a (typically repulsed or uninterested) non-partnering aspec character I do think this discourse genuinely has way more nuance especially considering other aspecs and shipping and a wider discussion about the community.

As much as I do want to agree here that some aroaces do use media to explore their sexualities and romantic orientation and they often project it on to established or widely regarded aspec characters, as well as non-partnering aspecs have a right to feel upset when a non-partnering character gets partnered in media, it feels like there's a defensiveness from both sides about the issue and it definitely reflects a larger discussion on romance and sexuality in the community.

It's true, for example, that we don't get much aroace representation in media and the ones we get are often limited or very stereotypically non-partnering romance-repulsed ace characters, but even with these stereotypes there are very much real aroaces who fit them who shouldn't have to beg people to have a character's identity be respected especially from other members of the aspec.

It's also true that non-partnering romance-repulsed characters in media do need to be seen and respected as these characters often have an impact and helping the aspec community be recognized without being treated as some strange other, but being treated as some strange other is also something that other aspecs have to deal with especially if people have a very narrow view of what aromanticism and asexuality could be.

People seem extremely defensive on both sides and honestly it's not surprising. A lot of the people in the community deal with erasure, not just in media but even in their own social circles and it could be exhausting trying to prove your existence to other people, especially in spaces where you would expect to be more respected than others like a fandom that has a prominent aspec character for example. It doesn't seem to be just silly fandom drama at times but an extension of the other issues in the community too.

How we treat romance and sexuality for example as a topic reflects that with aroaces discoursing on whether or not we should discuss more of these topics with the amount of posts either saying that "aspecs can do [insert romantic/sexual activity] too and should not be infantilized or treated as all repulsed about this thing besides being a narrow view of aromanticism/asexuality which can invalidate and hurt other members of the community" or "we should be more careful with discussing sexual/romantic discussions because it feels like a lot of them are veering into shaming repulsed people territory which is what this community was trying to set out not to do like other communities had done to hurt us in the past". There's definitely a nuance there that should be recognized when diving deep into this and especially with regards to the effect of allonormativity and amatonormativity that often gets ignored in some of these discussions.

I don't know where I'm going with this but I guess I understand why some aroaces may want to ship the (typically repulsed or uninterested) non-partnering aroace character and I also get why others are defensive about shipping them.

I do feel like the solution isn't gonna be that simple except maybe stop harassing each other over this but otherwise the discourse will continue even if we get more aspec characters in the future from what I'm seeing. We genuinely have a lot more aspec characters than we ever did before and a lot more queer characters in general, and the discourse is still there as it was ten years ago.

[our-arospec-experience]

My middle school aro experience is so fucked up and funny, that it could be a comedy story

TLDR: I was stupid

So first of all, up to 13-14 yo I believed that romantic attraction isn't real. I thought that people just watch/read too much fiction and want drama in their lifes, so they CHOOSE to be in love. But I enjoyed shipping and loved being little shit to my friends, so whenever they had a crush I would be obnoxiously shipping them, till they are red and annoyed (which was good by romcom anime standarts). I thought that I was playing by the rules of this social game. Until one of my friends told me "I like this guy now. Please ship me with him" and I was "Wait! You aren't supposed to enjoy it!". And then it somehow made me realize that maybe romantic attraction is real and not a huge play pretend

But before I came to this conclusion, I decided that I needed an experience in this romance game to write cool romantic fanfic. I somehow decided that romantic attraction is a reflex(???), so it can be trained like in Pavlov dogs. So I chose classmate to "crush" on. I decided that I have to think how cool he is at least once a day, if i did I would think or do something good to myself and if I missed I would punish myself. But on summer break I totally forgot about all of this and came to conclusion that I can't train myself to have romantic attraction

Don't ask me what was going on in my head, i don't know either. I was stressing a lot about it back then, but it's so funny now 😅. Also I'm really sorry for everyone who had to interact with me in middle school

I’m glad you’ve figured yourself out lol :)

[changanomaly]

total drama characters who i hc as aromantic (and maybe aroace) with little ramblings under all of them because I believe the world needs to know

Ella's in denial about being aro- it's her internalized amatonormativity. She obviously looks up to fairy tales with happy endings where the girl gets the guy and lives happily ever after. I think she turned to "liking" Dave for a bit because of that, because he fulfilled this role of being her “prince”, not because she actually liked him all that much. Typical hopeless romantic turning out to be aro situation (or maybe I’m projecting). Maybe an explanation as to why her liking Dave feels so forced to me, or maybe I want to justify Pahkitew’s bad writing

DEEJ. DJ. I think he’s been sure of this for a while now. He doesn’t show romantic attraction towards anyone in the show at all, and in instances when it's insinuated by his peers he seems repulsed at the idea (this post here just sums it up so much better than I could). He's super content with how things are for him and long accepted that he’s aro. He’d probably still want to be in a QPR though imo!

OKAY. Realizing now that Ella’s really the only one I have any interesting reasons for hcing as aro because I can’t say much about Kitty BUT SHE’S SO ARO TO ME. Like you know when you’re aro and have that hindsight towards everyone else’s romantic relationships and also give killer love advice because of said hindsight. THAT IS HER.

[the-splorts-eye]

Do you love detective stories but hate cops?

Do you love gay detective stories and hate capitalism?

Like disabled main characters who's disability actually comes up?

Like characters of color but not in the mood for stories on racism?

Tempted by the thought of romance at ages of 30+?

Does the idea of stories so queer you'll hesitate before calling any character a "man" or a "woman" make you think "Ah, yes pronoun shenanigans, just like my discord used to make"

And you into an abundance of strong, diverse female and nonbinary characters?

Do you fight for women's wrongs?

I know rep-only recommendations can be annoying, but I'm trying to grab your attention to promote some indie media. Luckily, though, this post isn't rep-only!

To read my full recommendation and review of Three of Hearts, click below. ♦️♥️♣️♠️

And if you aren't in the mood for a new thing right now, consider reblogging! Maybe even ping a friend who might be into this! You love supporting queer indie creators, right?

The story

♠️♣️♥️♦️Three of Hearts♦️♥️♣️♠️ centers on two paragovernmental agents in a fantasy, post-war, queernormative 1950s.

Roughly 20 years before the opening, a set of heroes purged magic from the world to turn the tide of the war. But scraps of this thaumaturgic energy still remain. S.U.I.T.S (securing unpredictable injurious thaumaturgic situations) is an agency founded to deal with everything left behind.

When two of the longest standing employees at S.U.I.T.S, Agent Vellum and Agent Felspar, are called onto a new case involving stone crops and a missing person, Felspar isn't surprised (Though Vellum, who's injury had him doing desk work most of his career, is). Things devolve quickly when the Agents realize this case comes from Felspar's home town of Cloven heart, an idyllic magical village that prefers to handle justice on it's own.

Answers yield only more questions, as the Agents realize almost everyone in town has something to hide, and Felspar isn't the only one whose past keeps catching up to him:

How much magic is still around? What's Vellum got sloshing around in there that people think is so juicy? What is Diamond, elven pop star and queer icon, doing in such a small town? Just how big is this case, and how can the Agents balance their legal responsibility, with promises they've made to Cloven Heart?

WHEN. WILL. THEY. JUST. KISS?

(if you're skeptical about central romances, I get it! See notes on aro/aceness and platonic relationships in the rep section for more info)

The combination of magic and newfangled war tech — think telegrams and radios — is somehow just as charming as a rotating cast of characters who will each stake their claim on your heart, but betrayal is imminent and mistrust is rife. The story strikes a wonderful balance between slice of life goodness, and edge-of-your-seat high drama, culminating In a show I highly recommend.

But are they just reskinned cops: my answer has got to be no. While they are technically law enforcement, the main two are entering a commune-like space, where that isn't so welcome. It's a situation they treat with caution and respect. The classic cop-plot of "Should I make myself judge, jury, and executioner because The Bad Guy™ deserves punishment" just isn't a problem. The justice system isn't perfect, in our world or the show's, and the story acknowledges that. But in a social, cultural way, they don't act like cops. They DO act like detectives. But the rules they choose to break and the ones they choose to follow will hopefully satisfy my fellow cop-haters who crave a good mystery

mid post note: I am not involved with the making of the show or the game space Kings. I just really like this podcast. Also, if you are seeing this text you are looking at a copy of the original posted on an unused sideblog so that I can keep the notes separate from my naturally spreading original without looking like a bot, and not get blaze notification spam.the references to "look in the notes for more" won't work for you. Yes, I spent my own money on this.

The format

♠️♣️♥️♦️Three of Hearts♦️♥️♣️♠️ is an Indie actual play — this is not DnD, hear me out — podcast in the game Space Kings. All the tension of dice rolls, without drawn out combat or clunkiness, it's a breeze of story-forward listening, even if you've never listened to actually play podcasts before!

If you've tried dnd actual plays, and haven't like the flow of them, I would recommend trying this. A few encounters that may feel random (though they're not) get the story kicked off at a fast pace, but it quickly settles into a story with a tight plot, great pacing, and impactful character development.

The use of a playing card deck to see the outcomes of risky actions means that no matter what happens, success or failure, the tension keeps rising, because there are only so many successes in the deck before you shuffle. The hosts do a wonderful job of explaining mechanics in the show, so it never interrupts the listening experience.

Actual-play connessuires who want to primarily see people playing a game might not be satisfied, as bonuses are given liberally, and I would describe the podcast as more story focused than game focused, But the risks are ALWAYS real, sometimes (often) with thrilling, shocking outcomes.

Also concerned AP listeners should know there's some chaos magic involved! I was surprised when it first came up, and doubtful about how it might affect the story, but it ended up weaving into the rest of the plot really well, and I feel neither like it had no affect, nor like it shook up everything the party was building in an unsatisfying way. Personally I would have preferred to go in knowing it was there, but I also don't think it's major enough to belong in the main synopsis. Now you know, though!

The hosts make a real effort to blend stats and story, and I think the pull it off wonderfully without spending too much time on mechanics. If you want to see that though, session 0 and other crunchy details are on the Patreon (where you get the same content no matter how much you pay, at a minimum of a dollar a month).

The pod has all the lighthearted fun and banter of a "friends around the table" show, but never once have I had that "oh my god, I'm not a part of your inside joke, shut up and play!" Feeling.

EDIT: i did not know "friends around the table" was the name of another podcast. no hate to them I'm sure they're lovely, this was just the use of a phrase.

I think it's a delight for AP and non-AP fans alike.

The episodes: roughly 45- 75 minutes long, with a midtro and some post-end music scenes, so listen through the end music, or check that there isn't extra content by seeing how close the play head is when the end music starts. It's not too long and quite pleasant in my opinion! The midtros always come at a nice moment to step back from the story, and are not too long and not irritating. I enjoyed listening to them! At some point, a midtro starts getting reused, and I was slightly disappointed I wasn't hearing new jokes every episode, but it's a small thing. I skip the repetitive ones with my 30 seconds forward button, and while I haven't timed the Intro, that's worked really well for me. I don't have to fiddle with my play head to make sure I don't skip forward too far. Super convenient.

Trigger warnings: the show is pretty lighthearted! Listeners sensitive non-graphic mentions of needles, blood, and/or guns might want to skip on this one, but most episodes don't get heavy. The few that do have pre-episode notes that warn you things get dark, how they get dark, and how to skip the darkest bits. Personally, I listened through them and enjoyed those parts a lot! But if that's not your thing, I agree with the warning that they're very skippable, and I think trigger-sensitive listeners will be pleased. As an indie pod, there are no fan made, super specific lists of triggers.

I'm trying to emphasize the balance between lightheartedness and drama, but if your mental health is sensitive to grim & dark media, i think this one is pretty safe. Please always exercise caution! But I'd describe 3o♥️s as emotionally restful.

Transcripts: transcripts are in the works, but do not currently exist except for episodes 1 and 2. Three of Hearts is a non-scripted show, so those are also unavailable. Some of the money given to the show will be used to hire a queer disabled transcriptionist! So if you listen and love it, consider sending cash their way. All transcripts are on patreon for free.

The rep

Don't you hate when someone raves about rep and you go in expecting something good and get like. One dog-boy described as having "chocolate colored skin"? Or when people make a "watch for rep" post and then mention like. Gay and maybe trans people and that's it, even when shows DO have disability and POC rep? Yeah that's not me. Here's the spoiler free rundown, race is at the bottom because I get into more detail with it, not because it isn't important:

Edit: For more on some of these topics from a hosts perspective, see the reblogged addition by @/citrusandsalt

MLM characters: Main characters, one confirmed bi the other unknown

Wlw characters: Reoccurring side characters (present or mentioned in every episode I think) Married. Orientation unspecified.

Enby love: LOTS. It's actually hard to really categorize mlm and wlw stuff because almost every character is nonbinary. Anyways— it's VERY queer

Women: I...I don't know exactly which characters are women 😂. But there are many feminine characters, and they're badass as fuck. Some are compassionate, some are cold, some are chaotic, most are a mix! The two main characters are...masculine...(I say with much hesitation) but you will not feel robbed for your woman-ly content.

Non-traditional family structures: All of the families in the story, pretty much, are non-traditional. Adoption is super common. (You want some wlw who just KEEP adopting kids? You got em) Found family is a MASSIVE force in the story. Also, It's a post-war story.........which is to say almost everyone's parents are dead.

Edit: an MC had poly parents, which may not be obvious but is true!

Polyamory: to my knowledge so far, there are polyam characters, and it is definitely present in the world! But no poly relationships in the forefront. I am about 2/3 through the current episodes, so there may be a present polyamorous relationship later, but also if I confirmed it that would be a spoiler. This may be that "playing it by ear" thing that happens with ttrpgs. I wouldn't listen for the hope of polyamory alone, but I don't tell you it's not there/won't happen.

Trans characters: almost all of them. Might think "oh there are only a few!" And you are wrong. You are so wrong.

Neopronoun users: yup! To my knowledge, minor characters. A handful who use at least he/she/they or they/them and may also use neos in a manner im forgetting

Plurality: no system characters yet, but the creators are friendly, I asked ;)

Aro/ace characters: none confirmed yet to my knowledge. Romance is very central, sex is joked about on occasion but it isn't at the forefront of the story at all. There are many, single characters who are thriving.

Edit: Actually! There is one character who discusses demiromanticism in cannon that I forgot, and another confirmed out of cannon character who is ace. Both are non-main major characters!

Platonic relationships: YES. As an aro person who hates so many romance tropes this one gets my stamp of approval. There's no real jealousy drama, exes who communicate and are supportive, and romance doesn't kill friendships. There's a central sibling relationship and non-familial platonic ones that have conflict, drama, resolutions, and a deeply satisfying significance in the story. If you don't like romance at all, this one might not be for you. If you just don't like stories exclusively about romance, I think you'll enjoy this. Genre wise, I'd definitely describe three of hearts as a mystery primarily with a strong romantic subplot, not a romance itself, and that comes through in player and character's additives and priorities.

Age diversity: the youngest characters in the show are older to middling teens, and the oldest are in their 400s. Okay but the oldest in human terms are roughly 60-70. The most common age range, and the ones the central characters are in, is 30-40. The second most common is that 60-70, then some ~40-50 folks here and there, with people in their 20s being probably the rarest (no named ones off the top of my head?) And there are a small number of teens. This is not a story about youth and youthful beauty. Generally, the older a character becomes the most bad ass/spooky powerful they are, and older characters are very involved in the plot.

Mental illness and neurodivergency: to my knowledge so far no characters are in cannon confirmed to have a specific mental illness or ND, though I wouldn't be surprised if it was part of a character or the main characters, and just hadn't come up. Listeners with cluster b or "scary" disorders, or with conditions that may cause them to lash out, will find satisfaction with how compassionately the narrative treats werefolk. To say more encounters spoilers. I would also say that depression, while the word isn't used and it is not central to the story, is present as a narrative force, and also treated wisely and with compassion. Still, as is usually for a good story, all of these bitches need therapy.

Disability: LOTS. There's a lot of "different, not broken" themes that disabled listeners are likely to love, but both of the main characters are disabled! One is a cane user, the other experiences migraines. These have a genuine, pressing, mechanical impact on the story. It's COMES UP. It's a real joy. For a magical world, there is no magical healing! Or there is, but it isn't a perfect solution, which in my opinion is just a magical version of real healing, though yours may differ! Also, there is a minor, reoccurring character who's a wheelchair user, and I think he's really fun.

Disfigurement: Excuse me if I am not prepared with the most sensitive way to speak about this, but I'm doing my best! There is a character with no eyes or nose, who is central and lovely. To my knowledge, there are no amputee characters or characters with limb differences (of the wheelchair user I'm not sure if it's specified whether or not he has legs). There is a character of questionable morality who has significant facial and bodily disfigurement. In as few spoilers as possible: this was not injury or genetic related. The disfigurement is treated with a firm compassion, and does not exist as a "this character is evil" signal. It's a long arc, but I imagine people who relate will be satisfied, though I cannot speak for anyone.

Characters of color: many! The main two are Hispanic and Asian. Terms like "dark skinned" are used for characters, but in the fantasy world race doesn't exactly translate, and I wouldn't call it "important" in this story. Read more about race below:

Fantasy racism: sort of! The word "race" is used to mean "humanoid species" and I know some folks don't like that? None of these fantasy races are oppressed, but specific people (Magic versus non-magic people) have conflict about that aspect of their identity, and policing is a related concern. I would place the allegory more in the space of transness and disability/neurodivergency if pressed to choose, but it doesn't feel like it's trying to tell a story about real-world oppression, primarily. I have more complicated thoughts on exactly what I'm trying to communicate here, but they involved some spoilers. DM me for more info!

Hosts/creator identity: out of three hosts, two are white, one is not! They are very queer, and disability is also...a thing! These are real life people, so I'm not going to get into detail, but check out their twitters plugged in the show for more on how they self-identify.

Edit: One of the hosts, Essay (@/citrusandsalts) discussed more on hosts identities in a reblog! If this concerns you, and you want less of me walking on eggshells about other people's identities, read her addition too!

Edit 2: Jordan, the GM also has commented additions!

Okay but are they racist: Real talk! As a black person who thinks I keep my ears sharp, I would say no! Not at all! This is one of those situations where I was like "YOU'RE WHITE?" And shocked about it, (if you listened to TSCOSI, same vibe) which is a very good thing in my books. The hosts are open and sensitive, and I have no complaints, however, this is just one perspective! This isn't coincidental, race is an active consideration in how the story is told — just not a central theme.

Minor but worth mentioning: A minor character has a name with what I believe is the Nahuatl "tl" sound in it, which is not pronounced correctly. It's a really hard sound! And I, op, can't really do it! But if that really irritates you this might not be the podcast for you.

[panlight]

Re: New Moon and the race to stop Edward’s suicide. I get that it’s Bella’s story and she needs to be in the action, but logically there were other options than flying her to Italy. Castle Volterra has a secretary; surely Carlisle could have called the castle and name dropped himself in a message for Aro. “Detain Ed until I can get there” and fly himself to Italy. Edward only does the sunlight thing to provoke them after they refuse to kill him. If they just arrested him, he wouldn’t be able to fight his way past every guard member.

 Alice says “You can lie with your thoughts and Bella in-person is the only proof that will work on Edward” but surely Alice could have taken a digital/early model camera phone pic with Bella in her kitchen holding a newspaper for the date and Carlisle could use it as proof (or cause enough doubt) to get Edward to come home. For the law, Carlisle has success in changing other humans to vampires and can make the promise to change Bella. It makes more sense for Aro to let the Cullens off bc Carlisle is his friend, and Alice isn’t there as the prize he wants. If he wants Alice later, he has to let everyone go home now.

 But then we don’t get to meet the villains until the next book and even then the ones in charge don’t roll in until the last book. Bella doesn’t get another “special me” moment by shaking hands with Aro for him to be impressed. It is better storytelling and drama for Bella to be in Italy and get the dire reunion with Edward, but the plot definitely could have been tightened up. As you’ve pointed out before, why was Rose never informed that Bella wasn’t dead after all when Alice stayed at the Swan house for two days? Maybe Rose still calls Edward but to say, “It’s pointless to stay away now bc Alice is there. She saw Bella jump off a cliff-“ and then Edward stops listening, spiraling in misunderstanding. That seems more in-character than Alice not keeping her family in the loop.

The whole climax of New Moon feels, to me, like she wanted to do an homage to Romeo and Juliet with the whole “he thinks she’s dead” miscommunication thing. I think she also had this very clear vision of Bella running through the plaza to get to Edward. As someone who dabbles in fiction writing, I get that. 

But it’s just a lot harder to pull off a miscommunication of this scale in 2006 with CELL PHONES than it was back in Ye Olde Verona. So it ends up feeling SO contrived. 

Harry dies so there can be a misunderstanding about a funeral and Jacob picks up the phone at Bella’s house?!? Who does that?!? 

Alice doesn’t bother telling anyone for several days that Bella is in fact, alive, so that Rosalie finally gets through to Edward to tells him Bella’s dead? 

Carlisle and Esme are away hunting, apparently, and also don’t have cell phones or at least no service?

I mean I get that in 2006 cell phones weren’t AS common as they are today, but the Cullens are stupid rich and like, import the latest models of TVs and expensive cars, I’m supposed to believe they don’t also have the coolest new phones? 

All of this involves characters acting in ways real people just . . . don’t. And like I get they are vampires but Jacob picking up the phone at Bella’s house is always going to be weird. Alice being in Forks for like two days before Rosalie finally gets ahold of Edward makes literally zero sense. And if all that STILL happens, then yeah, Carlisle calling Volterra as soon as he’s made aware of what’s going on and then flying there himself is the most logical thing to do and the easiest solution. No one has to convince him Bella’s alive if Aro just ‘arrests’ him and has Alec sedate him until Carlisle gets there or whatever. 

But Bella doesn’t get to run through the plaza and Alice doesn’t get to steal a Porsche so we’re not doing THAT. 

[ineffectualdemon]

My friend sometimes tells me about relationship drama in her friend group and I'm always so confused and I'm never sure if it's because I'm aro or because I basically never really dated anyone

I got married when I was 20 and we didn't really date at all because different countries in the early 2000s so it was very different and also he's as not into romance as I am and we're still married now

and my previous attempts at dating were two 16 year old fails at being with guys and the girl I didn't know I dated until we had apparently already broken up and she'd moved away (yes we had fooled around. Yes I am that dumb)

So when my current friend is like "yeah my friend is in an awful relationship" I'm just like "can't he just dump the bitch?" And I don't understand why it's not that simple

Another thing I don't get is when people are pissed at their ex for like getting engaged and not informing them first or privately or whatever

And I'm not talking about "he broke up with me last week and is now engaged" the two people I knew who were pissed about this had been broken up with said person for a good amount of time

They knew he had a new partner!

So I don't understand why they got their feelings hurt when they got engaged?

Now tbf both of these people we are talking about are not the most stable and that's coming from my BPD/CPTSD/Autistic ass

But like people around them both were like "well maybe they took it too far but I understand why they were upset"

WHY

It makes no sense to me

And again maybe that's because my only ex's were when I was a teenager and either didn't even last a month or I didn't know I was dating them until a year after we "broke up"

So maybe it's inexperience? Or maybe it's just that I'm Aro idk

But damn Alloromantic people seem to lead exhausting lives

Also just found out that for allo people they think physical attraction equals romantic attraction which is why they develop romantic crushes on actually terrible people?

Because yeah I found objectively terrible people hot but I would rather stick my hand in a fire than date the loser

Fuck them? If I can steal from them afterwards maybe

Date them? Absolutely no unless I am stealing more shit in a larger con

Allo people your life confuses me

[aces-to-apples]

I will say, in a companion piece to the ace post that routinely decimates my activity feed to the tune of +37k notes, that it's also weird being an aro who loves romance in fiction but is by turns baffled and utterly repulsed by it irl. Like I love soulmates AUs in fiction but if someone calls their real-life partner their soulmate part of me genuinely wants to register it as a mild form of mental illness. I love romances and love stories but every time someone I know has dating drama I wonder if maybe they're a little bit stupid. I'll take a romantic relationship over a platonic one in fiction every day and I go out of my way to avoid reading genfic but the assumption of my coworkers that my partner and I are Capital Allo Dating(TM) makes me stop mentioning her for weeks at a time because it's deeply unpleasant.

[therealvinelle]

Do you have a fic that you've written (or betaed with Muffin) that you feel best encapsulates the Aro/Carlisle dynamic? Maybe a better way to phrase it would be; do you have a favorite among them? Personally, I really like Leech in the Rain for the ridiculous drama between them. The whole "just friends but we have sex, are committed to each other, and live in the same house" thing was so funny and perfectly dramatic for them. Plus Carlisle's jealously is rare thing to see in fanfic. XD

The trouble with me is, I like when things are terrible between characters.

Based on that, Bleach on the Brain where Carlisle has to say, "Yes, he's an awful person and I'd be happy to spend my life never hearing his name again. I will also give up everything to defend his reputation" while Aro decides to himself, "You know, Carlisle is overrated, clearly not the person I thought he was and my infatuation has gone on long enough. It's over" and Marcus is left to stare at these two people who are somehow both the scorned lover, is golden. Leech in the Rain, where Carlisle gets what he wanted (Aro no longer interested) and cries because he can't handle it, is sugar on top. It's doubly funny because that sequel was supposed to be very serious, it was the sequel to a deeply serious fic after all, but then Aro and Carlisle just stole the show with their drama and break up so many times that they end the fic by breaking up one last time, this time by accident.

At least, Bleach and Leech were my favourites to write. Something about a 23k chapter of Aro being a scorned lover fills me with utter joy.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to London and A Little Night Music (both cowritten with @theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin, so is Leech) are going to be spectacular too, in the sense that things will be awful. Can't wait.

In terms of favourite dynamic while they're together, The Less Than Immaculate Conception (also cowritten with Muffin) actually gets a chance to show it, they are best friends and on perfect wavelength even before they get back together, and I imagine more along the lines of what you're asking for.

Nebuchadnezzar's Dream also gets a shoutout, in that it actually focuses on them, and so does Painting Red Madonnas by @theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin, in that they're completely platonic the entire time, just friends who were once something more, and then we get shit like Carlisle holding Aro's hand and looking him in the eye for the entirety of his phone call with Edward. Just friends being normal about each other.