#and it IS okay to say as a transgender person in the us with strong understanding of how genocide is perpetuated and set up i CAN in fact

[howldean]

welcome to single-issue voting you’ve come to understand what single-issue voting is

[funhouse-mirror-barbie]

My problem with Sallie May—a discussion of representation:

There’s been some discourse around Sallie May lately that’s gotten me thinking more about her. Not really as a character, but what her purpose is in the narrative and how she’s treated by the fandom and the show’s creators.

Sallie May is an interesting case study in representation without depth, and I wanted to talk a little more about what that means.

OPINION DISCLAIMER—I’m gonna be talking about how I personally view lgbtq+ and queer representation and what I consider to be well-rounded representation vs. empty or shallow representation.

Also. I am only one member of the queer community—I don’t speak for all lgbtq+ people, and I am DEFINITELY NOT trying to talk over other’s experiences. My opinions are my own, and if you agree with me, cool! And if you don’t agree with me, that’s great too!!

Also also. I don’t think I should have to say this but, this is NOT a personal attack on ANYONE involved w/i the production and creation of Helluva Boss. This is my own analysis, b/c I like to talk about media and the ways we interact with and interpret it.

So, with all of that out of the way, if you’re interested in my analysis, let’s talk about Sallie May!! (TLDR @ end of post)

First do want to make it clear that my issue is not actually with her like…existing. Or with her general characterization. Mostly because, even with Hell’s Belles, she still doesn’t really have a very strong characterization to begin with, and isn’t a fully-fleshed out character.

In her initial appearance she was a bit-character, bordering on just being a straight up background character. She had three lines in her debut (and to date, ONLY) appearance in the show proper.

Until Hell’s Belles we knew next to nothing about her other than that she likes violence and also that she has a neighborhood body count? Which. I don’t know if they were trying to imply that she’s a serial killer, I doubt that was the intent. Or maybe they were. I can’t know.

Regardless, I honestly believe they didn’t really think the implications of that writing decision through at all. There’s a very real and very harmful “trans serial killer/murderer” trope in media, and while the impact is definitely lessened by the vast majority of HB characters being violent murderers—it still feels weird having the only trans character we’ve seen at this point be literally INTRODUCED to the audience by the fact that she’s a murderer, and to then be given NO further information on her.

Luckily, we DID get more information about Sallie, even if it was still very little and surface level. In Hell’s Belles we learn that Sallie May and Millie used to be a lot closer, and that Sallie May felt left behind when Millie moved to the big city.

In the short, Sallie May expresses her frustration with having to pick up the slack around their family’s ranch, and that she’s been lonely without Millie there. Millie and Sally have a little heart to heart and are able to make up, and the short ends.

This is a nice little piece of backstory, and does give us slightly more insight into Sallie May and what her life is like, but because the episode is a short, we still really don’t get to know her as a person.

Like Millie, Sallie May doesn’t have any real depth. We only know starter information about her, like that she cares about her family, and that she’s violent.

But unlike Millie, Sallie May is a minor character. She has (at the time of my writing this) appeared in ONE episode of the actual show, and one short. She is a minor character, and the ONLY transgender character in the show with a name and lines.

So. Okay. Why does literally any of that matter??? Who cares if Sallie May is an under-developed minor background character??

Well, in my opinion, it matters because the show-runners frame and treat Sallie May as if she is a main character, without actually writing her—or any trans character for that matter—as a main character.

This really rubs me the wrong way, because it comes across as tokenism.

In my opinion since she was introduced, Sallie May has become a token transgender character—an excuse for the HB writers to not write or develop more transgender, nonbinary, and gender diverse characters and stories, because they already have one.

I worry that, if anyone rightfully points out that HB is severely lacking in gender-diverse characters and storylines, the creators and fandom will point to Sallie May as “proof” that they do have representation.

If HB is as radically queer and LGBTQ+ friendly as it claims to be, why do we only have ONE named trans character in the show’s 5 years of existence?

Due to all of the above, I find I can’t agree with people who praise the show for its representation, because of how stunted it is. I just don’t think I, or anyone, should have to read sources outside of the narrative to learn important parts of a character’s identity.

I feel this very deeply as a lesbian and nonbinary person—I understand that most of the women characters in Helluva Boss are sapphic, but I ONLY know that because of the HB Pride Print that came out just this year. I have not actually gotten to SEE any of these character’s sexualities fully represented, and it’s because of this that I struggle to see myself represented in HB in any way.

I do need to clarify that what I am NOT SAYING is that no one can feel represented by Sallie May, or that if they do, they’ve been tricked somehow by writers into thinking they got more representation than they actually did.

Sallie May is a very popular character, and because of that I honestly would like to see more of her. I want to see more of her because she’s the only trans character on the show, and I want her to be properly developed.

I talked previously about how I enjoyed Hell’s Belles, but wished we had gotten to see more of Sallie and Millie’s relationship in the actual show. Their relationship has a lot of potential to show the unique ways in which siblings interact and navigate conflict, but we only got to see a few seconds of them interacting in Sallie’s debut. The short gives us an idea of what Sallie’s personality is like, but it’s so brief that I still don’t feel like we really KNOW her on a deeper level.

To me, three lines + one short with a brief backstory doesn’t feel like the sort of amazing representation that fans of the show laud Helluva Boss for.

As a series that often boasts about its queer and trans rep and inclusivity, I can’t help but feel like Sallie May should either have been a main character from the very beginning, or that she shouldn’t have been trotted out like some sort of bastion of trans representation, when the only indication she is trans is her horns/white roots.

And yes. As a genderqueer gay I KNOW that it can be extremely tiring to have all of our stories revolve around our struggles and ONLY be about being LGBTQ+. I also want to see a variety of stories about queer people like me going on adventures and getting to do things that don’t revolve around our struggles. But I also want to still actually see myself represented.

Not just know outside the story that, “oh that character is nonbinary, but it will not be mentioned in the narrative in any way and will not ever be important in the context of this character I’m supposed to see myself in.”

Madeline Maye talked about this specifically in her critique of Helluva Boss, and her pointing this out was kind of what made me realize that, yeah. Anyone watching Helluva Boss for the first time would probably have NO IDEA that Sallie Mae is a transgender woman.

It also made me realize that the only reason I knew that Sallie May was trans was because her VA, Morgana Ignis, who is also a trans woman, tweeted about it, and the official Helluva Boss Twitter retweeted it.

The original tweet is hidden now (Ignis has since left Twitter—idk why, I genuinely hope it wasn’t due to harassment—that’s never okay) but I was able to confirm that this was the case based on the HB wiki, and the official HB’s retweet still being up:

The only confirmation we’ve ever had that Sallie May is transgender has been outside of the show—either from social media Q&As and the show’s wiki or merch—

Sallie May has a LOT of merch. Like a lot, this isn’t even all of it. And yes, SOME of the merch is from the recently released “Hell’s Belles” short, but the vast majority of it is from the 3 years since her initial introduction.

The vast majority of it is also highly sexualized, and highlights Sallie’s penis through her swimsuit. Now, I’m aware that Morgana Ignis requested this, and I honestly don’t have too much of an opinion on it. I’m not a trans woman, and I’ve seen multiple opinions from trans women on this design choice for Sally’s merch. I’ve seen some trans women say that they liked and felt represented by this choice, and some say that they felt objectified and that it made them dysphoric. This is one of those situations where I don’t think everyone can be pleased—like I said at the beginning of this post, LGBTQ+ people are as diverse in their opinions as we are in our identities and self-expression, and I think everyone’s feelings regarding Sallie’s portrayals in the merch are valid.

I bring it up because, other than the wiki explaining that Sallie May has “male horns”, this is the only other way to confirm that Sally is trans, as it is never acknowledged in the story. I bring it up because I don’t think merch should be the only way an LGBTQ character’s identity is validated.

I assume that all of Sallie Mae’s merch is because of her popularity, but I also can’t help but wonder if this has contributed to the impression that Sallie is a main character, when, in the narrative so far, she is still a minor one.

I don’t believe that when she was originally created to be a “token trans” character, but since her introduction, there have not been any main characters that are transgender, nonbinary, or genderqueer.

We’ve only had one other trans character with a speaking role—this imp:

Who is FTM. He seems to know Blitz from a while back, and talks Blitz into staying at the party. Then he watches him drunkenly make out with random people with another (I assume) trans imp who is probably MTF:

(Also—as an aside, this scene kinda bothers me?? I don’t THINK this was the intention at all, but having a VERY CLEARLY drunk off of his ass Blitz, who can’t meaningfully consent at this time, being watched, and almost like…leered at by two of the only visibly trans characters in the show…it feels gross. Like why are two of the only other confirmed trans characters voyeuristically watching a drunk man who can’t consent making out? It would be one thing if we had a story full of different trans characters who acted in all sorts of different ways, but at this time these two are 2/3rds of the show’s ENTIRE trans rep. With the other 1/3rd being introduced to us as a serial killer. Like. Guys. What is it that you’re trying to say?)

Apparently Sallie May’s VA has stated the below on Social Media, and stated that there’s a lot more coming for Sallie May in the future. And that’s great!!! I really really want to believe that.

But I look at the above and can’t help but wonder…if this is the case, why did it take three years for her to get another appearance? In just a short? Why wasn’t she given more focus and importance from the very beginning, in her introductory episode? If her original appearance wasn’t representative of her and Millie’s relationship then why did they even write it that way???

I want to believe all of the above—that Sallie May actually WILL get to become a main character. But I look at the way she’s been barely portrayed, and the way that she’s basically been used to just sell merch, and it makes me sad.

I would love to see more of her, more of any trans characters that aren’t 2 second background characters, but I honestly have a hard time believing we ever will when the episodes take as long as the do to come out, and the when the episodes focus so heavily on shipping pre-existing pairings.

As a lesbian, I would love to see Sallie May get a girlfriend, but given Spindlehorse’s track record with lackluster sapphic pairings and representation, I don’t have much hope of seeing that either.

I just. If you managed to get all the way through this heinously long post, thank you for reading. If you didn’t, that’s very fair (lol) and I’ve got the tldr for you here—

TLDR:

—My issue with Sallie May is not actually with Sallie May at all. It’s with the fact that we don’t get enough of Sallie May, or any trans characters, for that matter.

—You can, of course, feel represented by any character, but I think it’s important to ask yourself how you are being represented, and if you are actually being represented.

—Not every queer/trans/lgbt story has to explicitly be about being queer. The stories in which we are represented should be as diverse and vibrant as all the members of our community. But, I still want to actually be able to tell and to see that the characters are lgbtq+. If a character is a lesbian or sapphic, I want to see her show an interest in other women. If a character is transgender I want to see that acknowledged by the narrative, whether it’s the character mentioning their transition or just saying they’re trans. I want to SEE myself and other queer identities. Not just know that they’re there.

[ultramori]

VOICEACTOR VOLUNTEER FRIENDS WANTED!!!!

Um, hey guys, it's Ultra again LMAO

I have a handful of projects that I need voiceactors for, but for now I'm focusing on one; Orange Analog, an animated analog horror(?????) series on my Youtube channel that I've already started writing the script for. A coworker of mine a while back said that I should always plan ahead when hiring volunteers even way before I'm done with the story, so I guess there's no harm in doing so? As the big text at the top reads, it's exactly as it says on the tin, but just having people to talk to about my series in general would be nice, too!

Below are the roles I'll be needing:

A calm, casual man with a deep voice. Expect verbalizing a lot of curiosity

Basically just Brendon from Home Movies. He just sounds like him. But it's important to be capable of getting really angry and generally upset

An old man with a lot of spirit and joy, his voice brimming with personality. Also a puppeteer who voiceacts on his own, giving his character a deeper but sillier voice. I'd really prefer if the voiceactor for the puppet and the puppeteer were the same person

Basically the first one again but African American I guess I dunno. It can't be the same voice that'd be confusing but honestly the two characters have similar speech patterns and stuff so

A young transgender woman who's responsible but even happier to be here, very enthusiastic and silly

A quiet man with a deep, monotone voice

And here are the requirements to join:

At least 15 years old. Please.

NOT A JERK!!!!

Has a Discord account (I'll make a Discord server for us :])

Has previous experience voiceacting

Be capable of showing strong emotions in your voice and sound very natural! Very important! Like, Smiling Friends level of natural voiceacting if possible?? Okay probably not possible but you get the example I'm generally trying to give

And that's all she wrote! Please keep in mind this is not only unpaid work, but also my first time hiring buddies to help me with a project, so we're all here to have fun and not worry about me unintentionally making little mistakes cuz that's just me jahshd,,, I'm looking forward to my future team!! If you're interested, please fill out the form below and I'll hire you if you meet all the requirements :)

[boghermit]

I could write pages about what BG3 means to me, and I probably will at some point. But let me share a "few" of my thoughts right now, largely unedited.

Under cut for being way too damn long. I will be talking about transgender representation, OCD, and abuse.

The transformative (pun intended) power of representation.

This is the first game where I've been able to play a transgender character, without mods, in any way that faintly resembles what I hope to some day look like. At no point in the game am I made to feel like a freak for my gender identity. Compare this to lesser RPGs like DAI where being trans is treated as an anomaly and the character you play as can be a total dick to a transgender character with no repercussions. Being transgender is entirely normalized in BG3. You are not a punchline. You are not an anomaly. You are a normal, respected, and valued part of the world.

In the grand scheme of life, this is a very small thing, to be respected and appreciated by fictional characters in a piece of media. But I can say without a shadow of a doubt that it made me hate my body less. I still have strong gender dysphoria, but I don't want to punch the mirror every time I see my own reflection anymore. I think "well, you don't look like you should, but that's just the way it is right now, and that's okay."

It also must be said that the BG3 fandom has also been a VERY large catalyst for this new confidence in my own body. It has brought me so much indescribable joy to see peoples' art of their transgender characters and to see trans identities and bodies celebrated to such an extent. I entered 2023 hating my body, and as 2023 draws to a close, I find myself more and more comfortable in it.

Resisting the Urge.

Disturbing intrusive thoughts are a hallmark symptom of OCD -a symptom that most people with OCD, including myself, are reluctant to talk about. For those unfamiliar with OCD, intrusive thoughts are unwanted thoughts, often violent, sexual, inappropriate, or otherwise viscerally upsetting in nature, that many people with OCD experience. Intrusive thoughts can turn into obsessions, and obsessions can fuel a person's desire to engage in compulsions in an attempt to regulate intrusive thoughts. Due to their disturbing nature, our intrusive thoughts can become a strong source of shame and self-hatred, and prompt us to believe that there is something morally wrong with us, when in fact we are just suffering the unfortunate symptoms of an unfortunate disorder.

The Dark Urge experiences thoughts and "Urges" like these throughout the entirety of the game. They can "fester" in the Urges, or they can resist them. They can also admit to the main companions that they are having these horribly violent thoughts.

And it is here, in the first few hours of my first playthrough, that I knew the writing of BG3 was going to be something incredibly special.

The companions do not berate the Dark Urge for having horrible thoughts. They do not react with disgust. Most of them will express sympathy, and reassure them that so long as their thoughts don't become actions, they're alright. This mirrors talking points in actual real life therapy for people with OCD. I was wholly expecting the companions to just totally shit on my character for having demented thoughts. There are other modern RPGs where companions will berate you for doing something as innocuous as stealing a pencil. In BG3, you can describe your thoughts of extreme and horrible violence, and your companions will encourage you not to hate yourself for it.

There's also the scene with Isobel, which I almost forgot to talk about. This is, in my opinion, one of the most powerful scenes in the game. It made me cry. You can tell Isobel that your Urges are demanding that you kill her. She tells you that you don't have the eyes of a killer, and if you resist your murderous Urge, you can apologize to her for your "spells of madness." She gently forgives you, but not before saying one of my favorite lines in the game.

Ultimately, the Dark Urge has much worse than OCD going on, but it was still very refreshing and meaningful to see such a sympathetic take on intrusive thoughts.

You are not your thoughts - you are your actions.

Trauma, catharsis, and healing.

Abuse is, in my opinion, one of the biggest themes of BG3. You can see it in the way Mystra regards Gale. You can see it with the Dark Urge and Bhaal. And most notably, you can see it with Astarion and Cazador. I didn't go into BG3 expecting to confront themes of abuse. It made me realize some very very unfortunate things. (Thank god, I've never been through anything as severe as, say, Astarion, but I have been in no small amount of toxic and emotionally abusive relationships.)

I recognized myself in Gale's blind desire to please a goddess who thinks he should kill himself, and I hated it. I recognized myself in the Dark Urge's desperation to please his god, only to have his heart stopped because "Bhaal will accept the world from him, and nothing less," and I hated it. I recognized myself in Astarion's prickly survivalist prey animal behavior, his lack of self worth, and his fear of trusting people, and I hated it. No one wants to be confronted with the fact, however true it is, that they're in pain. No one wants to be confronted by the fact that their painful experiences have warped them so much that they struggle to find themselves beneath the nest of thorns and barbed wire they've built.

And no one wants to confront the reality that they deserve better.

Thankfully, catharsis and healing are also major themes of BG3. You never really get the feeling that these characters will ever be completely "cured" of their pain. There are multiple scenes where characters openly weep, or talk about how empty they feel, even after they've started on the path to healing from their traumas. Which is unfortunately, true to life. Healing doesn't happen over night. But you are given the feeling that the characters are beginning to heal. BG3 tells you that healing is not out of reach. BG3 tells you that hope isn't an impossibility.

BG3 tells you in many many ways that you are not alone, sometimes verbatim, and that there is hope, and I think that is why it has resounded so strongly with so many people, including myself.

That's all the infodumping I have for now. Maybe one day I'll organize these thoughts into a more coherent article or maybe even a video.

[saintadeline]

Ohhh I am trying so hard not to get mad at people online you have to believe me but that post about bloodborne liking women is driving me a little bit crazy not gonna lie. We can all so clearly see and point out misogyny in ds (um. Im hoping at least) so why can't we ever do it in bloodborne? Even though its the same people? What about bloodborne makes you think theyre feminists all of a sudden. Because it talks about women? Okay, but that's not how that works, a work that disregards women is misogynistic, that much everyone knows, but a work that does talk about women but portray them in a weird light can also very much be. Also whenever people say bloodborne is about women or femininity, a huge chunk of the time what they mean is bloodborne is about motherhood and pregnancy. Which is true, but thats... Not what womanhood is thats not what women are about you can't just reduce women as a concept to birth. And motherhood. And being caretakers. Almost every woman in bloodborne has less agency than their men counterparts, most of them are more strongly abused, shown as complacent and weak and only exist to serve. Even maria has no agency and is constantly driven back to the fact she was gman's apprentice and following he and laurence's orders. She has little identity outside of them in written down ingame lore and the one time she did something outside of them, is the one time she became a caretaker (because all women are it seems). The fact the og lady maria npc even exists is even worse on that part. I'm using her as an example because shes the one people most often take as an example of bb being good about women (look theres a strong female character!) but it's obviously much more than just her, just look at arianna and adella for more than one second. The only npcs i can think of that i would consider Actually Good And Normal About Women are eileen and fauxsefka. And i mean actual npcs im not counting bosses that we dont know much about on a personal level (like rom and amelia)

What I'm trying to say is, i think it's awesome when people have feminist interpretations of bloodborne and i think its a good thing to take those female characters for yourself and its a good thing to make the game as transgender and gay as you want it to be, and its perfect soil for that too, i do it all the time and find many many themes in it by myself, but we can't keep lying to ourselves that it was any good at it on its own. It's soulsborne for fuck's sake it has Always been Really Weird about women and minorities just look at ds look at firekeepers and gwyndolin and many other examples. Bloodborne isnt exempt from that just because men are writing about pregnancy as horror.

[who-do-i-know-this-man]

Anti-propaganda for Tedd (their name is misspelled in the poll) Verres because I am ASTONISHED more people on this very transgender website have not heard of El Goonish Shive (the webcomic from which Tedd hails).

For simplicity's sake, since Tedd is gender-fluid and prefers different pronouns in different situations, I'm just going to use they/them.

Note: I am pulling all this lore from the top of my brain so it may not be completely accurate. Reader beware

okay FIRST of all. Tedd starts out as a pervert. El Goonish Shive was started by a highschooler in 2002, and the author, Dan Shive, has matured greatly since then. Tedd is also a highly capable scientist (despite being a junior in highschool), and with the help of some alien technology (long story short, Tedd's dad works for a secret government agency dealing with magic and has been in contact with alien lifeforms), they craft the Transformation Gun (TF gun for short). This gun, well, transforms people. There are multiple forms that people can be transformed into, all of which are based off of their original bodily form. The Female Variant 5 form (the form that transforms anyone into a quite attractive lady) is the one that gets the most use. Of course. El Goonish Shive has been described as "the most perverted squeaky-clean comic on the internet".

Thing is, Tedd has been bullied. A lot. They are very androgynous, even in their natural state, and they get mocked for it a lot. They're not very comfortable in their own skin, so they like to exert control over their environment by way of the TF gun. Eventually, as their friend circle widens and their support system grows, they mellow out considerably (though they were never terribly vindictive in the first place) and become more confident in who they are.

As of the most recent comic, Tedd is at dinner with their father the government agent, the alien woman who is his secretary, and their girlfriend (for lack of a better term) Grace, a shapeshifting alien-human-squirrel hybrid.

I highly highly HIGHLY recommend EGS, even if there's a solid chunk of early installment weirdness while Dan was growing into his own as an author/artist. The characters are all very well-developed and have strong personalities, the magic system is convoluted but fascinating, there's all sorts of weird beings and cool spells and secret identity forms that may or may not change your personality, and it's funny as heck. Also, there are a ton of queer characters of all kinds.

Two notes, though:

One: Dan Shive relates very strongly to being neurodivergent (something he discovers over time; read the end notes on each comic!), and as such, the comic is VERY thorough. Arcs may take a while to pan out, and there are plot points from over twenty years ago that are still popping up today!

Two: EGS is a weird comic. I think the perfect exemplar of EGS's weirdness is the following line (note that this panel is from 2003; the art has improved considerably since then):

Having read both, I would not hesitate to say that EGS is definitely less weird and less convoluted than is Homestuck. It's still weird and convoluted, though. But that's part of its charm, in my opinion.

I would happily add more information, but, in the words of the great Mr. Verres:

^

[hasufin]

Progress and Regress

I've been reluctant to say this, but... well, republicans actually just plain want to make the world a worse place.

I've tended to buy that their leadership wants to live in a feudal society; and that their followers want a hierarchical society as well, but they think it would be better than what we have now. And that they legitimately believe the world would be better if we didn't offer so much compassion to those in need, if we didn't protect the weak from the strong, &c.

But I think the Trump shooting proves otherwise. I hate to say it, but there it is.

Okay, first: yes, it was timed such that it would give attention back to a particularly needy narcissist. However, the idea that it's a conspiracy just doesn't hold water. All the evidence so far suggests that the shooter was, well, the archetype of a shooter in America: a young white man, emotionally disturbed but not actually victimized, who had access to weapons of war and decided to make his life notable by ending the lives of many other people. According to the FBI he was considering going after Harris or Biden, and it just so happened that Trump was more available. In spite of the rightwing jumping immediately to blame him on leftist communist woke transgender activists, he was a registered republican and he didn't leave any particular manifesto. The only salient thing about him seems to be, he had the ability to do this and probably shouldn't.

Now, if this were Democrats - if the shoe were on the other foot - this would be a significant moment of reckoning. If, for example, a hitter for a Colombian Cartel tried to take out Kamala Harris, Democrats would be having a serious conversation about tightening border controls. Even though the actual motive would indicate she was doing a good job, it would make Democrats rethink their policies a little: "Hey, the stuff I'm doing is actually make us less safe, maybe there's another way we can do this?"

But not republicans. That is not their way. As one commenter noted: when Trump gets shot, they wear a bandage on their ear to show solidarity with Trump; when schoolkids get shot, they wear an AR-15 pin to show solidarity with the gun.

So you'd think they'd maybe care, right? In spite of never giving a single solitary fuck about little kids getting killed, in spite of mostly being motivated by a primal urge to hurt the Other... you'd think they'd at least care when there's a direct demonstration that their policies tangibly put their own guy at risk. This isn't even a case where you need empathy or compassion. One doesn't even need imagination. It's a thing that happened: young man had ready access to powerful weapons, young man used one of those weapons to try and kill the rightwing leader. It's very direct and simple.

And they are unfazed. It's horrible that Trump got shot, but wow how fast they switch to the passive voice on that. He wasn't shot by a person with a knowable motive, there wasn't anything that could have been done to keep it from happening. The shooter just spawned on that rooftop, the Secret Service failed to stop him, and that's it.

In fact, if anything I'd say the republican response has been one of glee. Their guy got a chance to look strong and be a martyr! They can fling blame around like a monkey with poo! Zero introspection, just blatantly exploiting a tragedy to claw onto more power. Even when the target was their own guy.

The truth is, they don't mind. They want the world to be a more violent, crueler, harsher place. They want people to suffer more. Themselves included. So long as they can have more power, they are perfectly pleased with this - even when it hurts them, just so long as The Other Guy is suffering more.

[13docwriting]

So I'll start with the fact that I am, indeed, a fan of Chibnall's era. I am an even bigger fan of the 13th Doctor. I'll also start with the fact that I quite literally grew up with RTD's writing and loved Ten with all my heart. But now I am an adult and some of RTD's writing has left me a bit scared. Here's my "live streaming" review on The Star Beast. SPOILERS BELOW!

I'm going in order of how I processed things, so it's gonna be chaotic. My first essay is this: You know why this post is so long? It's because we're not livestreaming things anymore. I'm not immediately with other fans in real time, typing out our little posts. I'm quite literally doing this at my leisure. I'll miss watching DW live. Now then, in order! 1. The music? Ten out of ten. I have always loved Gold's compositions and he did not let us down. And this opinion is only being generated from the new(er) theme song. Which leads me to...

2. Look at the B U D G E T. Even the opening credits has a budget that you can just FEEL. Those stars/galaxies? Very nice... And then I have to chuckle over the low level lighting / 2000s era effects of David Tennant's full profile voiceover of Donna and his story.

3. Him taking the boxes, seeing Donna's face, and slowly putting the boxes back is an RTD special and I LOVE that kind of comedy. It just makes me chuckle. And then him having a full blown panic over hearing Donna shout "Rose!" which... 4. Having these little call back moments feels rather bitter since we're calling this a reboot of the show. UNLESS the reboot is when Nucti starts up? But the fact that I'm confused just shows how bitter I should be. Again, my Chibnall love is showing. I don't believe in yet another reboot for DW, but that's a marketing thing over anything else... I hope. 5. I'm glad the 2000s Rose/Doctor shipping era lives strong through the name Rose. I know those fans are going to be happy and they deserve it. 6. NOW... Donna having a family. Okay. I'll have a separate post but... Does anyone else think that Donna having a husband just doesn't fit for her? Especially with her memories erased? Idk, I just never envisioned Donna getting married after the whole Lance thing. BUT I'm glad she's happy and the husband seems so nice. 7. Donna giving up that lottery money? Also strange considering she lost her memories. The first time we meet Donna we get this feeling that she's a bit shallow, which makes sense because she has to develop as a character. That was her character development so here KEEPING the money would have made more sense here. Which...

8. Rose. That's all. She's great!

9. Hey, can't help but notice, but when did the 14th Doctor have time to make a new screwdriver, huh? What gives? AND - AND there's not a single hint of 13's sonic on there. HMM. What the heck!

10. FORGOT SOMETHING. Whatever the line was "that says mistress" "Oh, catch up, will you?" I don't know how to take in this scene quite yet, but it's making me pause. It felt... Off kilter. Maybe cause I love 13 so much, I don't know. There's always callbacks to other faces when the Doctor first regenerations, but this felt... Wrong? Also, TEE HEE my mind went to Missy IMMEDIATELY and I love that little connection my fic writing brain is going wild.

11. WHY DOES UNIT HAVE SO MUCH MONEY???? Look at this uniforms, holy cow! I almost don't like it? Like, they're an underground agency. WE JUST SAW THEM GET DESTROYED BY CYBERMEN IN THE POWER OF THE DOCTOR. Are we just ignore that entire episode or...?

12. Donna not being able to keep a job? Yeah, THAT one I believe haha.

13. "I will burn down the world for you, darling" says Donna Noble to her transgender kid. WHICH IS AMAZING, WHICH MADE ME SMILE SO WIDE I WAS HAVING A PARTY IN MY BRAIN. There's my Donna! 14. "Gramps used to talk about flying saucers" oh god my heart. I teared up a little, not going to lie. Wilf, I think about you every single day. You made the Doctor the person he is today.

15. MEEP IS SO CUTE. OH WOW. I know "evil" is coming but SO CUTE RIGHT NOW.

16. To go from some excellent animatronics from the Meep to whatever those alien, fly things are was HILARIOUS. What, we'd run out of money for those costume's? Were they meant to look like a typical RTD alien back in the 2000s? How does that work?

17. WHAT THE ACTUAL FLYING FUCK WAS THE SONIC DOING. Wait, did Disney give the sonic some magical powers? Why are we suddenly writing in the air? How are we getting readouts of the ship from the sonic like that? Could it do that before? Why would we not do that before? I'm dying that's so funny.

18. Shirley seems cool!!! I hope we get more of her! And I love the nod to PROPER representation. Chibs did a good job of that as well. Edit: REAL representation! Good on RTD. The scene with the stairs and she says "don't make me the problem"... I am not a wheelchair user but I do hope that was properly done. 19. "I absolutely love her [Donna]" LOOK AT 14 HAVING FEELINGS! Aww, I hope 15 follows through with the feelings! 11, 12, and 13 have been so locked up, so scared to love... Having a Doctor that's ready to loudly embrace their love for things would be such a good character development. (My fear would be RTD ripping that away in the most tragic way possible, but that's a future problem I suppose).

20. I'm at the scene where Rose is talking to the Meep in the shed, and just, again, THE MUSIC. We did have some good musical moments in 13's era but, even I have to admit, nothing as pretty as this. It really is something, round of applause once again.

21. LISTEN. L I S T E N. I don't condone slapping the Doctor. I don't. In fact, it's wrong. It's very wrong. And you can't slap 13, can you? So slapping 14 shouldn't make sense. It's the definition of sexist. It's just not something you should do. BUT. B U T. Jackie's "stitch this, mate" is always in my head and now THIS "here we go again" after Sylvia gives the Doctor a good slap... I laughed, okay? It was funny! But really, in the good year of 2023, there shouldn't be comedy like that. That joke should have died. BUT I LAUGHED. So I'm to blame as well.

22. "Never mind about the ferret from mars." I LOVE the mars callback from Donna, thank you very much.

23. Kate looking after Wilf damn near brought tears to my eyes. Kate, you are the real hero of the DW universe. Thank you.

24. This is... This is gonna be another post. But. Okay. So. The whole "you're assuming he as a pronoun". Right. Okay. I know groups of people that talk like that. Both online and in person. Personal life spoiler, I work(ed) in musical theater. I've seen it all. I, personally, do not like this whole... "Let's be really obvious about it" thing. And also highly believe in someone else first telling me, when it fits, what their pronouns are. Having someone pull the defensive "YOU ASSUMED" crap doesn't work because humans don't think like that. It's a whole other rant, but yeah. This felt forced and I hate when shows do that. Representation is important but FORCING that representation doesn't help.

25. what's the. what's the sonic doing. what. how'd it. we got lines in the air. we got unbelievable shield. we. he waved it like a wand and now. what the. how'd. (Yo, not me head cannoning that this is 13 banging around in 14's head demanding that they have a better way to protect their friends. Love it). I WILL HAVE A LOT MORE THOUGHTS ON THIS.

26. DW has money now. That will continue to blow my mind.

27. "This is a sonic screwdriver and if it's good at one thing, it's resonating concrete". Oh yeah, Doctor? I'd like to bring forth you, never once, being able to do it. Not once! (And now it's good at creating magical shields and complex, alien holograms, but that's point #25)

28. Where'd in hell's name did he get that wig and how soon can Donna throw it out a window?

29. MEEP YOU - YOU UTTER AHOLE. Man, it was SO CUTE

30. O k a y. I take back, holy crap what point am I on? I take back point #7. So there's some of the Doctor left in her, eh? That's why! I dig that. I really, really dig that. Sorry for being a downer, that was my mistake.

31. I too can come up with technobabble bullcrap that means nothing. I sometimes think that's RTD's biggest failing, his incessant need to over describe things. EDIT. JEEZ, a good five minutes later as we're STILL talking gibberish.

32. Hey, I see you "glass wall between Donna and the Doctor" and raise you "glass wall between Wilf and the Doctor". OW. I demand emotional compensation!

33. Listen, I just got over 13 keeping every. single. emotion inside of her. She never raised her voice, she never really cried, she never had a chance to just scream and yell and be angry at the universe. The fact that there's 14 RIGHT HERE, screaming, because to save Donna, he has to lose her YET AGAIN. Just angry and devastated and grieving... It's a stunning scene, it's a scene that makes sense, but my 13 loving little heart says that this is 13's moment to be angry and it was taken from her.

34. Also, ha, I know Disney bought DW, but did we just "Winter Soldier" Donna Noble. We gave her trigger words to keep her memories at bay? Really?

35. "Hold on a minute," said in Ten's/Fourteenth's voice... Was that.. Was that ELVEN'S theme music while Donna was being, well, Time Lady Donna? Because that was... That was GOLDEN. How amazing is that? What a great idea!

36. You MONSTER, RTD, making Fourteen hold Donna the same way he held the Master? What the hell is that about?

37. The.. The nonbinary, but binary. I... It's... Something! Okay, I'll get there. I'll have a post about it. Maybe. But. Yeah, it's something!

38. DOES UNIT HAVE AVENGERS *cough* sorry it's been a while for Marvel me *cough* STARK TOWER. WAS THAT STARK TOWER? Damn, Disney, you really did bring us back to superwholock Avenger's "Clint in the vents" era, huh?

39. "It's a shame you're not a woman anymore, because she would have understood... Something a male presenting Time Lord will never understand." You can't... You can't do the whole "nonbinary" thing and that just immediately point out gender like that. What. The defeats the entire purpose. The whole point you're trying to make is that gender DOESN'T matter, and yet... And the Doctor has always, always been nonbinary. I refer to the Doctor as "they" when speaking as a collective whole, and many of us have done that. I use pronouns when talking about specific Doctors because humans have always used pronouns. Again, 11 and 13 have made mention that gender has NEVER mattered to them. I just... You can't be poking a bear and then expecting the bear to not to come after you if you've changed the poking object from a stick to a teaser.

40. I gotta laugh that Rose and Donna had the most peaceful "regeneration" we've ever seen. Somewhere in there, a Doctor or two is screaming lol.

41. Oh... The TARDIS is ugly. DON'T HIT ME. STOP HITTING ME. I MEAN It. Not, for real though, Oh my god, what. Why. The colors. Or lack of colors, really. What the fuck. Where's the... Where's the personality? Where's the sass? I've loved every single TARDIS change but THIS... This is a hard one to swallow.

42. The TARDIS having an shit fit over Donna spilling coffee on her is WONDERFUL. That's so funny to me. With everything she's been through with 13, that was just the best way for her to get her revenge! All in all, strange episode, yeah? I mean, what WAS that plot? It was really more of setup for the next episode, and double really meant to reunite ten and Donna, which was well done, but also... Why? It just felt a bit all over the place but very much cushioned by nostalgia. I'm done now. My fingers HURT. As always, and as I say in all my fics, I'm here if you want to chat. Reblog this, PM me, tag me in stuff!

[thebeardedsir]

WRT the pronoun question post, (also I’m not getting mad at you or trying to say you’re a bad person, I’m just trying to explain it bc you asked) :

Firstly not all trans people feel the same about being asked their pronouns. For most of us it’s okay/something we’re used to, but we aren’t a monolith; we each feel differently about issues facing our community.

The situation this post is describing is this: a cis person sees you, and thinks you look like you might be transgender but they’re not sure. They are very interested in finding out if your AGAB is what they think it is, but want to maintain a veneer of liberal/lefty politics. They ask you for your pronouns, and they will derive background information from your answer. If you are petite and don’t have a beard but say he/him they’re going to assume you’re assigned female at birth. If your very tall and and have a strong jawline they’ll assume you’re assigned male at birth. They’re not asking because the care about gendering you correctly, they’re asking for the same reason people ask what’s in your pants when your trans; and what’s worse is they know they shouldn’t do that so they’re trying to dress it up in inclusive language.

Asking people for their pronouns is not inherently good or bad. It depends on the context. If I meet someone and am unsure of their pronouns, I can ask them in private. If I meet them in the context of an inclusive social group or LGBT space I can ask them fairly openly. If I’m say, at my job or school, it’s best not to ask because it puts them in the awkward position of potentially having to put themselves, or lie and make you misgender them. Having been in that position before, it’s fucking awful.

Most of the time when I meet other trans people I don’t have to ask; in a social context I usually hear someone else use their pronouns first, or they’ll gender themselves in other ways to signal what their pronouns are. If I’m unsure but can’t ask for whatever reason, I’ll just avoid gendering them, or depending on context (ie. is it safe to be trans where we are) gender them in a way that reflects their presentation rather than whatever I may assume their AGAB is.

There’s a lot of subtlety at play here that’s probably difficult to grasp as a cis person. This post was kind of meant to be an intra-community thing. We’re not saying no one should ever ask pronouns, we’re discussing a specific micro aggression that a lot of us have experienced.

As a cis person, the just try your best to be kind, be mindful of peoples safety/comfort when asking for pronouns, and apologise briefly (don’t make a big deal out of it) if you make a mistake. You don’t need to understand the nuances of the trans experience, you just need to listen and be respectful. I can just about promise you that no trans person is going to throw it back in your face if you ask them their pronouns irl.

I don’t think I should have to explain why lying about “asking everyone” their pronouns to cover the fact that you’re socially inept around trans people is kind of a dick move.

The answer is sometimes people step on each other’s toes and feelings get hurt. All we can do is try our best to treat each other with respect.

I'd definitely prefer people come off anon to have this kind of discussion, but you're taking me in good faith and you've said a lot to help me understand the context which I appreciate.

"This post was kind of meant to be an intra-community thing."

I think that is where I made my biggest mistake. When I see something on social media I don't always take into account what the intended context is, because so much of the time these things will inevitably break containment and be misconstrued in the worst possible ways (perhaps present example included).

As a cis person I got to thinking about the kind of interactions I've had where asking for pronouns felt like the best possible way to start a social interaction. With my own anxieties, having that starting point can definitely feel like some solid ground to getting to know people in a way that I've been told is good and relatively safe. Living in a pretty lefty area, I hadn't thought about the more volatile repercussions of having these kinds of conversations in a public setting.

And yeah, obviously lying about the way you're choosing to interact with someone is fucked. I never meant to assert otherwise.

[dm-clockwork-dragon]

All due respect, but you’re pretty wrong about a few things.

1. That’s not what death of the author means. It’s a common misconception, but death of the author is a literary analysis technique in opposition to “word of god”. An example of death of the author would be “word of god from JRR Tolkien says lord of the rings wasn’t inspired by his time at war, but analysis of events and his life shows a lot of similarities and influences on it, and interpreting the series as about his time in the war is a valid approach despite what he says”. It’s not ignoring things about the author or deciding the author has no involvement or influence.

2. JK Rowling does actually continue to make royalties off of Harry Potter stuff.

3. Buying the game is funding her, and she uses the money to fund transphobic politics that has done real harm to transgender people in at least the UK, and funding efforts to keep Scotland and Ireland colonized.

4. Reclaiming queer and fag and dyke isn’t the same as continuing to fund JK Rowling. You can’t “reclaim” a franchise. Queer, fag, dyke, etc don’t make anyone money. They’re words being weaponized emotionally, and their impact is as strong as we let it be. Harry Potter is a brand and a franchise with PR and accountants and corporations at the helm. It’s not something that can be “reclaimed” and to say so indicates a fundamental misunderstanding of what reclaiming is at all. Harry Potter itself has some cruel caricatures in it, yes, but the real problem is the actual funding of JK Rowling and those she works with that agree with her, or just care about money more than the people she’s hurting.

I understand your intentions here, and why people get defensive about enjoying HP. But I hope you’ll genuinely listen to me and think about what I’ve said, because you really have said a lot of incorrect things here. JK Rowling has and will continue to do genuine, tangible harm to our community.

And this isn’t in the body of your post, but it’s something I’d like to add. This game isn’t the Harry Potter you grew up with. While Harry Potter itself had aspects of antisemitic caricatures, it wasn’t the main focus. This game is made of and about blood libel. I adored the books when I was a kid. This game is nothing like them. If you remove it from the discourse about JKR, you can still recognize that it’s a game using the setting and name of Harry Potter to sell a story about oppressing Jewish-coded slaves, but it’s okay, because they’re EVIL slaves. It has the superficial trappings of Harry Potter, but it will not have what you loved about the books.

Have a good day.

So I do very much appreciate you trying to be civil about this, and I will certainly give some consideration to your points, But could you provide me with some sources for the information here? I don't mean this to come off as dismissive, but I'm not keen to take the word of an anonymous person on the internet over my own education in literature, finance and economics. Or to reverse my views on cancel culture and the spread of undeserved hate towards people who are just trying to enjoy a nostalgic part of their childhood, just because a very opinionated person online has ignored my examples of how other creators have had their IP’s reclaimed by fans. Especially when your argument to the contrary would suggest that the queen community has not battled lawmakers, lawyers, PR and accountants for years in reclaiming much of the language we use today, let alone all of the other times we have fought against systematic abuse and won. I don’t feel like “its hard” makes for a very valid argument for why we should not only avoid trying, but demonize any of our own who do. And again... I actually have no love for the books? I grew out of them, and looking back, very much recognize that they are hot trash, and not something I care about. I'm also not defending this game, and have no intention of buying or supporting it. I just... really don't like seeing communities start wars within themselves when there are real, actively malicious enemies waiting at the doorstep. Witchhunts and the persecution of heretics are something the 15th century catholic church was known for. I’d rather not see the trend continue

[crowsblogs]

I feel like my story with accepting I'm a lesbian is a tricky one, and it only took until mid/late last year to truely accept. I came out at the age of 10 or 11, telling my mom I liked both girls and boys, but she told me I was too young to *choose* that. I came out about two more times over the next year or so, and when I was 12 or 13 I came out to her as transgender (male), and she automatically didn't fully accept it. She told me I was too young and I didn't really KNOW. Well, I wrote her a letter about it and she talked to my uncle's (married, who are gay) for advice, but they really couldn't give any. She accepted it, but it was hard for her. She didn't really use he/him pronouns and also didn't really try using my preferred name, but did make attempts.

When I was 15 I told my therapist that I was being abused by my father, and my mom had been told as it had to be reported. She then thought the only reason I wanted to be a boy was because of the abuse, but it took another year and seeing a doctor to get onto testosterone to tell her otherwise. Around that time I had been friends with/dating a guy that we were not compatible at all with, we were horrible for each other and nothing would've worked out, so my mental health was at a bad low. I identified as gay to bisexual, I think I was too scared of coming to say I only liked girls because that person had also been transmale, and I didn't want him to assume I saw him as female, which I never did. A part of me was also too scared to admit it because, my mom didnt really see me as male, and I didn't want to let her further down by saying I only liked girls. It was hard, I felt as if, even if I didn't identify as male, I still had to like guys.

At 16 I started testosterone hrt. At 18, my mom died. A lot of shit happened and I couldn't handle life basically. I continued to say I was bisexual to gay and then identify then as transmasculine non-binary around 18 as well. Again, I was too ashamed to admit I like only females, also because I absolutely loved male fictional characters (so that had to make me gay mlm, right?)

Then in 2022 I realized I'm not transmale, and that's okay, it's how I thought I identified and that's valid, but I did identify as masc nonbinary. Then I tried to accept that I loved only girls, but I was ashamed because I didn't want to let anyone down by liking them, so I went and said I was bisexual so it'd seem "better." (I also do not care what's in their pants, as long as they identify as female. So yes ily nb and transfems <3 I prefer personality and actions more than anything.)

Something happened late 2023, I'm not sure what, but I set in the fact I'm a lesbian (and also genderfluid). I felt shame, but I have amazing friends who keep me solid, and also joked about being a lesbian. I never had such a strong friend support system before, and they all mean the world to me. I still feel like I'm letting people down by not liking men, but I'm happy now. My little genderfluid and lesbian self can't be happier.

It took a LONG time, but I'm glad.

Thank you for coming to my book reading lol.

[sophieinwonderland]

you don't need to post this but I just want to rant

people assuming you can't use the word tranny because you identify as cis in headspace even though you've had transphobic comments towards you (i recall at least one) and yall collectively count as gender fluid... like how is that not inherently trans?

ofc i understand not wanting to use it since it's quite a heavy word (being a slur and all) but also... idk seeing so many people saying you can't say it is so weird. like are they trying to respect your inner cis identity? (which wouldn't make sense for all of them especially with that one user claiming we're all cis on the inside, even tho thats untrue and weird to say)

idk it's... makes me sad. like i know some of it ws before you came out and directly confirmed that you are afab in headspace but the body is amab and gender fluid, but.. also....

Yeah, this discourse is weird to me too.

Personally, it's not a term I feel comfortable reclaiming. Not only do I not identify as transgender, while I have had transphobic comments sent my way and been intentionally misgendered multiple times to hurt me, I've never been called that slur and neither has anyone else in my system.

For that reason, I stand by my apology and regret what I said.

(Although, for the record, I did reference considering the body being genderfluid at least as early as August. Obviously, not everyone on here is going to read and remember every post I make so I don't blame them for missing it, but I do want it on the record that I already identified the body as such. Also, pretty much every post where I identified as a cis woman mentioned in that the body was AMAB so there's no way they missed that.)

But... there's also an acknowledgement I need to make that many systems will be out publicly. That cis headmates may dress in ways that don't conform to gender standards and be called this particular slur because transphobes don't care whether you identify on the internally as "trans."

It seems wrong to me to say victims of transphobia who have been called this slur shouldn't be allowed to reclaim it.

Not only that, many transgender headmates share systems with cisgendered ones. So where is the line then? Does who has a right to reclaim a slur depend on the individual headmate? Should you not be allowed to reclaim a slur that's been used against other headmates in your system?

And if the inner-identity is more important than the body, where does this leave racial slurs in systems who are bodily that race, but individual headmates identify as different races?

I can't remember if it was an ask I deleted or in a reblog, but shortly after I made that post from before, someone asked rhetorically if it would be okay for a white person to say the N-word. And obviously, the answer to that is a strong no.

But there ARE systems with headmates who identify as other races, separate from the body. I remember reading an article written by a black-bodied system made up of many white-identifying headmates on the inside with only one black-identifying headmate. So would we say that the white-identifying headmates don't have a right to reclaim the N-word unless they explicitly identify as the race of the body first? Even if they've been called that slur themselves? Even if it was used to oppress them and their ancestors?

This, to me, feels like the logical conclusion of this line of discourse. And it feels wrong.

In my opinion, if the body is a certain thing, it seems that's what should determine if you can reclaim a slur.

I, personally, don't feel comfortable reclaiming the T-slur based on my life experience, and so I regret using it.

But I also don't want to support a hardline view that says "no cis-identifying headmates with different genders from their AGAB, even if they or their headmates have personally been called this slur and have been victims of transphobia, have the right to reclaim it."

[pa-pa-plasma]

okay, I didn't see this until now (& op turned reblogs off apparently) but I'll address some stuff under a readmore just to clear stuff up.

"one piece has multiple queer characters" One Piece literally has a gay club that hands out free transitions to transgender people. I am not making this shit up. Also, Luffy is asexual & aromantic. "multiple" doesn't really do it justice

"the whole "tumblr crossing the picket line" thing in promoting it (i think? i've heard people talking about it at least)" tumblr didn't cross a picket line. tumblr is allowed to advertise, as they (as in the website & the people who run it) are not planning to be part of the writer or actor unions. this is just regular advertising that other movies & shows have done & are doing.

"the strangeness of what things tumblr decides to promote and in what intensities they do for which things" again, tumblr was paid to promote One Piece. yes, there are problems with what tumblr pushes & what it hides, but it was paid to do this. it isn't favouring One Piece for no reason. it is favouring One Piece because it was paid to. if Our Flag Means Death wanted to advertise on tumblr, they could.

"the fact that what little i know about the original one piece is sexism" the series started in the 90's in Japan, so yes, there is a lot that isn't great, but for a lot of us it was our first experience of seeing openly queer characters & women who can beat the shit out of you. for the bad stuff (basically just out of date shit) the live action series does fix this, but I think it would be good to consider that it was 90's Japan when Oda wrote it with queer & strong (as in, power level type shit) women in mind. this isn't fucking Harry Potter we're talking about, where all the bad shit is a fundamental part of the creator's worldview & personality. this is like, some old shit that didn't age good like everything else that exists ever. his art style is kinda fucky & I won't defend it but like. we're talking about the live action which negates all that. also, as someone else pointed out, the women are drawn sexy, but so are the men. have you seen Zoro's massive tits?

"and the fact that netflix remakes in the past usually aren't well received." the One Piece Live Action series not only has fans involved, but the creator of the original series working on it. they also made the physical sets (most of which are ships on the water) & only used CGI when they literally couldn't use practical FX (Luffy stretching, for instance). if you looked into it at all, you would've seen that this is not the same as, say, The Lion King. people tend to forget that it isn't the "live action" itself that is bad, but the execution. One Piece Live Action was executed very, very well with what it had to work with, & we could see this ahead of time, not just when the show came out. I literally teared up at parts because I felt like I was watching One Piece again for the first time. All the important scenes were 1:1 with the original, & they even played the original theme song We Are (instrumental version). That is how good it is. It was made with love & you can clearly see it.

I appreciate the apology, but the fact that you didn't know anything about it (you're allowed to look stuff up) before putting this post in the main tags is like. why. people (not just the op in the screenshots, as I've seen this multiple times in different fandoms) need to learn that if you hate something, block the tag, don't go into tag complaining about what you think the series is. this is how you ruin the experience for fans--& yourself. you are doing the exact thing you are complaining about tumblr doing, except worse, because you're just ignorantly shitting on it, & not even in a funny way.

anyway, go experience some childlike wonder & watch OPLA, or don't. I literally don't care.

[bess3714]

Gotham Knights Season One, Episode One: Pilot

Air date: March 14, 2023

I'm sorry, but Turner Hayes sounds like the name of a genderbent version of Taylor Swift.

(He's grumpy because I said that.)

Anyway, read on for my review of the first episode of Gotham Knights! Not that you're really missing much, but spoilers below the cut!

Synopsis

Harper, Cullen, and Duela break into Wayne Tower because they've been hired to steal something. They get there, realize they've been set up and Bruce Wayne has been murdered, pushed out a window, and revealed as Batman. Yikes. So they run and manage to escape. Harvey Dent tells Turner Hayes his adopted dad is dead, Turner is sad he's dead and mad Bruce didn't tell him he was Batman, yadda yadda. The cops go after Harper, Cullen, and Duela, arrest them, and question them. Turner wants to find out who hired them, so he gets Stephanie to use the Batcomputer to hack into the bank records to see who paid him. Turns out, the money came from his account! So about this time, the cops have figured that out and come arrest Turner and throw him into jail with Harper, Cullen, and Duela. The four get put in a transport van and head to prison, but before they get there, they escape. The cops who were moving them were dirty, though, and so they're about to kill the kids to clean up the whole Bruce-Wayne-murder mess when Robin swoops in to save them. Then they all head back to the Batcave where Duela tells them the creepy Court of Owls poem. Yay!

Characters

Turner Hayes: Dead parents (twice). Sad Bruce died, kinda

Stephanie Brown: Computer whiz. Has sex.

Harper Row: Will sacrifice herself for her brother.

Cullen Row: Is transgender. Can pick locks. Has successfully impersonated two (2) cops.

Duela: Hates her father. Hates authority. Is fluent in violence.

Carrie Kelly: Is Robin. Exists. That's about it.

Review

Now, I don't really know much about the comic versions of these characters, except for Stephanie and my knowledge of her is limited to her appearances in stories focused on other characters, so I'll be reviewing them completely divorced from their source material. (Except for Turner, because he doesn't have source material. He has been immaculately conceived specifically for this show.)

Okay, so maybe I would have cared about Turner Hayes a little more if we had actually gotten to see him interact at all with Bruce Wayne, but we only get to see Bruce when he's splattered on the pavement so, uh, there's no emotional pull at my heartstrings to feel bad for this kid. It's like he's trying to be a self-insert character and yet he's failing sooo miserably because he's kind of bland. I really hate criticizing an actor's performance, but I wasn't impressed by Oscar Morgan. His acting just felt really dull and restrained to me, but then this show felt kind of dull, so that might have just been the director? I don't know. I'm an expert in talking about things I know nothing about, not an expert in filmology or whatever. I'm hoping that it's just first episode woes and next episode we'll see better from him and his character.

What to say about Stephanie Brown? She's friends with Turner and she's an expert hacker. That's about it, to be honest. She does have slightly more personality than Turner, but she got less screen time. She's basically just a generic cutout copy of every other teen girl character that's on TV. She was trying to have sex on Turner's couch, so bold move her, I guess. I like her friendship with Turner, and as long as they don't try to turn it into an awkward "I'm a boy youre a girl let's kiss" kind of romantic situation, I think their friendship could be a strong point in this show.

I don't think Cullen actually did anything interesting the entire episode besides using walkie-talkies to send the cops to a different stairwell and telling Harvey Dent to shove it with his performative allyship (which was an absolutely correct thing to assume and good for Cullen for not falling for the good-cop routine).

Harper was kind of the leader of her, Duela, and Cullen. I say kind of because Duela pretty much does whatever she wants, but it seemed like when there was a decision to be made, Harper was the one making it. She was protective of Cullen but didn't seem to particularly care for Duela, which, understandable, since Duela was the one who got them the job that ended up framing them for Bruce Wayne's murder. I'm hoping we see Harper in more of a leadership position in the group because if Turner is the leader they're screwed.

Now, my favorite character was Duela, because she was the only one who was actually entertaining! She was by far the most violent of all the kids, consistently starting fights (and winning them), she was smart, as evidenced by her asking for a lawyer when she got arrested, and then talking Harvey and the cop guy in circles. She's noticeable, which was pretty important in this bland milquetoast show.

Carrie Kelly is Robin and she has trig with Turner and that's about it for her. I'm really hoping for more of her in the next episode. I'm really hoping for more of anything, at this point.

Last but not least, Harvey Dent! Misha Collins himself! He's kind of weak sauce! (Harvey, not Misha). He's upset because Bruce died. He says that he's basically Turner's uncle. He could have shown a little more emotion over Bruce's death if he was close enough to Bruce to basically call him his brother, but nope! There was no emotion there. I think this show might be allergic to emotion, honestly.

Somehow it felt like the episode was rushed yet nothing happened. Everything felt unimportant. Every plot point felt like a box that was being checked or an ingredient added that would hopefully add up to a very delicious cake. Unfortunately, the cake did not turn out well. The literal Batman died and the show was just like, oh well :)

Anyway, I'm gonna watch the next episode because I have a feeling this show is like an airplane crash on top of a train wreck and I just can't wait for what happens next! My standards are pretty low when it comes to shows; my most important criteria is Be Entertaining. If you can't hold my interest because watching paint dry would be a more fun way to spend my time, then I'm going to move on. I'm enough of a Batfam stan to keep watching, but it had better get a move on before I get bored and move on to something else (like the nine hundred other shows I have on my watchlist. And yes, I did have fun cutting out the images).

[dumpygrimbos]

A Lot Can Change In A Year Chapter One

A trans My Hero Academia fanfic about Bakugou’s journey to accepting herself and overcoming her past self.

Sample:

Sleep wouldn’t come though as Kacchan wittled away the hours, trying to will the rampant thoughts to stop. One in particular kept bubbling to the surface and triggering a tug-of-war between this will only make this nerd hate me even more, and there’s no way this nerd could hate me more.

In the end, the latter won out and Kacchan decided to let this thought out. It was deep into the night at this point, and Deku’s soft breathing could barely be heard.

Kacchan’s voice was barely a whisper as it rang into the room, “Hey Deku, you still awake?”

“Yeah,” came a groggy reply.

“Look I’m not good at this sappy shit or anything, but I figured I should get this off my chest. I feel like it’s gonna eat a fucking hole into me if I don’t.”

Deku gulped.

Shit, was this a mistake? What if Deku is grossed out, or has me kicked out?

After a moment though Deku said, “Um. Okay I guess.”

No turning back, even if this ruins everything and I end up back on the fucking street. After a deep, shuttering break, Kacchan spoke, “I think… I think something was wrong with me. When I was born I mean. Ever since puberty hit, it’s like I can’t feel comfortable in my own damn skin anymore. Every day it’s like my body swells a little in the wrong places and warps more and more into my own personal shitty-ass prison. It’s like I don’t even recognize myself in the mirror anymore. When I look at the girls in our class, I’m always so goddamn jealous of them. They look so pretty, and happy, and their skirts are cute, and just once I’d like to be able to hang out with a group of girls without everyone in the class hooting like it something illicit. And the one time I said any of this stuff to my friends they looked at me like I’d grown a second fucking head. So I go online and try to read up on it, right? Because surely I can’t be the only one who feels like this, right? Well, I found a lot of stuff that made me feel like I was a fuckin’ pervert, a lot of stuff that was for perverts, and then finally some useful information. Listen Deku, if you say one goddamn thing about this to anyone we know I will explode your fucking nuts off. I think I’m transgender. I want to be a girl. I think I was always supposed to be one, I mean.”

Having finished her scattershot explanation, Kacchan sunk further under the sheets as she awaited Deku’s response. She would never admit it, even to herself, but she was genuinely afraid of what he might say. After a few seconds that felt like years Kacchan spoke up again, probably louder than she intended to, “You probably think I’m pathetic right? Someone as strong as me can’t possibly have this stupid of a fucking weakness, huh? You better not be looking down on me, you shitty goddamn bullshit fucking Deku!”

“Not at all, Kacchan, I think that’s really brave. It takes a lot of strength to admit that to yourself, and even more to talk to someone else about it. I don’t really understand a lot of this stuff, but I’m gonna do some reading on it in the morning, okay?” Deku’s voice was soft and comforting, but started to shake with the fear of a man about to step on a landmine as he continued, “Is this why your mom kicked you out?”

“Yeah,” Kacchan whispered hoarsely, “Or maybe it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. After she saw me get my ass kicked by that villain on national television, she hit me and grounded me for a week.”

Deku stared at her intently. She’d already told him and Inko about this, why did he seem so concerned?

She shrugged, “Its not that weird, jeez. She hits me for a lot of stuff. It’s supposed to straighten me out and make me tough. She used to tell me that with a scary-ass quirk like mine, I’d end up a villain otherwise.”

Deku shook his head, “That’s not…”

Kacchan continued, headless to his ongoing muttering, “And while I was stuck in my room with nothing to do, I started researching. I don’t know what it was, but after that villain nearly killed me this all felt a lot more urgent. Like, was I willing to die still feeling like this? I found out about all this trans shit and realized I’m probably a part of it. And found out a lot of people don’t fucking like it. But I thought my own damn mother wouldn’t be like that. So, I told her. Then she screamed a lot, disowned me, and threw me out onto the streets.”

“That’s so awful…”

“Yeah no fucking kidding, shitty Deku. Some mother that bitch turned out to be,” A moment of silence passed between them before she quietly added, “Between the ‘wanting to be a girl’ thing, the way I pushed you away and how my parents looked at me… I feel like I’ve always dreaded the future.”

“…Do you need a hug?” Izuku offered.

“Fuck no, I don’t need a hug! Don’t fucking look down on me for this, Deku!” Kacchan hissed.

“Okay. I just know that must hurt a lot. Well, the offer is still open. Do you want to talk to my mom about it?”

That, of all things, made Kacchan visibly tense up under the sheets, “Not yet. I know I need to talk to her about it sometime, but I don’t think I’m ready yet. As much as it fucking sucks, can you still talk to me like a guy around Aunty?” Full version can be found here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/42990357/chapters/108016305

[emrobinson03]

My Book - CANT Ban US!

CANT Ban US! Is the idea I came up with because I did a drag story time at 3 Auckland libraries for children. I got lots of backlash emails spammed from haters both uni and personal emails, Messenger, Facebook, Instagram etc and now they are investigating into all the hate and backlash n might cancel all the events in future years. I also got the idea because drag in many states in the US are passing bills to ban all drag queen performers. They also are passing bills to ban transgender people.

(Finn Gerring, Miss Carprise)

this image was taken as a joke before I performed. My friends were being annoying so I took a photo oh my make up. This make up was done in 30 minutes when my make up takes a long time to do originally. I didnt think I would use this image but Emil liked it and I had a look at it and I started to like it a lot.

I talked about this image in my last post but I just wanted to say That I also think the colours and the background comes together in the photo. I really like my make up.

(fields, cody coochie)

the image of fields after their shower with their hair up in a shirt dancing the first photo to start off all the other drag performers. I took the photo in the moment and it was a slay photo.

I took a photo of fields in the shower in their drag. The image was over exposed but I edited it on photoshop. Its not my favourite photo of them but it was the best one out of all that I got on my camera. If I had time i would have shot it again and done better lighting and thought of positions and areas for photos

Reign Bowman

Reign Bowman is on of my favourites I love their shirt in this photo its really good going with the title of the book. I also would reshoot this photo as its not in a good place as where I would want it. The black background. I also would change the lighting and position of them in my second photo

AURA ENVY

Aura envy is a drag super star used to be known as Feta their drag has changed a lot over the years with make up skills dancing creative ideas etc I wanted to capture them in thwir performance because they are a non binary drag performer which I am too. They are really photogenic normally on stage but I don't think I got the right angles for them on stage because I dont like the photos as much as I do of others I did a big shoot with them on the 3 sd cards I lost but thats okay I still got to put them in my book which I wanted. I would definitely reshoot these photos if I could. I love the reaction and pure happiness on kitas face.

Lady Armilade

Lady Armilade is a really cool person and performer and I got to capture there ultimate crazy energy they bring to the stage at first I didnt think I would be able to get any good photos because they had too much energy on stage and was running arounf basically but I got a few really goood ones. I like how bright their wig is in the photos and the colour pop from the outfits just fit together so well.

Twinkubus

Twinkubus is an amazing performer I met them twice recently and got to photograph them at our most recent show we were apart of at ding dong. Their make up was soo cool and so was their costume I just couldnt not photograph it I saw them on the pole dancing and I just asked them for photos I was going to use the photos of thsm on the pole but It just didnt look right in the book so I decided to do the one where hes posing on the ground and the close up of thwir face and hands holding the pole. I really like the way the background is really dark compared to their make up and clothes

Kita Mean/Anita Wiglit

I photographed Kita mean and Anita wiglit talking to eachother and looking at one another its a really cute photo of how strong their bond really is. Both kita and anita were on Rupauls Drag Race Down under Kita Mean is the true winner of season 1 they both hosted a tv show 2 seasons of house of drag basically Auckland vs Wellington queens and kings it was great. I really like the single photo of kita mean they like it too. They ended up posting it to all social media accounts they have and tagged me in all it was just fabulous I gained so many followers and supporters of my photography n art. I wanted to choose a single of Anita too but there wasnt one in focus which really sucked. This would have to be the best people I shot in this whole photoshoot. They appreciated all the photos and helped me grow as an artist

Flor

Florr is a amazing Latina Drag Queen that I love so much Ive seen her grow her drag over the years and she gives me so much love and confidence. I liked photographing them but the lighting wasnt what I hoped it was too bright and their wasnt much led lights where I photographed at Vesbar. I would like to definitely shoot them again in better lighting. I really like their concept of make up wig costume etc in these series of images but in front of Leds it would have looked so much cooler because the wig was glow in the dark and her green eyelinger was UV reacting.

Kourtney

Kourtney is amazing their drag has improved so much because they are so confident in drag its crazy. I have known them for a few years now because they are my drag mums sister so my drag aunty and they've seen me go through the worst and the best make up of my drag journey. I loved capturing kourtney in the middle of talking to harry it was just so real becausr they werent posing and they didnt notice me taking rhe photos and they ended up loving them. I liked how I took the image of thwir wig and not their face its just something different which I loved. I also didnt have the best lighting there not much leds but it worked and i got some images. I also really liked how their dress sparkled in the image.

Trinity

Trinity is a transwoman and a drag queen. Trinity has been arounf the auckland scene for so many years and has been an inspiration to many other transwomen and drag performers. I dont know trinity that well but she is really kind but she can be very sassy. I wish I could have gotten some more photos of them in much better lighting but it just didnt happen. Trinitys outfit also glowed in the dark same as her wig so it would have been cool to get some photos outside when it was dark but I didnt think of that or had the idea at the time which I wish I did because they could have been really cool ideas.