#autistic coded character

[batcowenraged]

the autistic coding of damian wayne fascinates me bc at least to me it's so obvious

he struggles with understanding tone and sarcasm, a lot of jokes go over his head in general except for the ones that fall under his particular sense of humor, black and white thinking and literal thinking (connected to the sarcasm thing but the black and white thinking is more how he thinks in extremes), it's really difficult for him to make "normal" friends (he has plenty of friends but he has not met any of them under normal social circumstances and he has been shown to struggle with interacting with his classmates in school), he has very specific interests (animals being the most obvious example), he's very monotone and the only exception is when he is going through extreme emotions, similar circumstances with facial expressions, he likes to do things for himself and have a sense of importance and control, there's literally a plot line where he hires an acting coach to see what it would be like to be "someone else" bc he recognizes that he isn't "normal"

these aren't really organized thoughts/analyses more just observations but still

[ur-fav-is-autistic]

Otacon from Metal Gear Solid please? :]

Otacon from Metal Gear Solid is Autistic!

[lilcinnamonbear]

Listen, if you’re looking for a new show to watch, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D has everything. Found family, including a mother and father figure? Comedy? Slow burn romances and also a bickering divorced couple who get back together? An insane amount of hurt/comfort? Characters who get superpowers? Plot twists? Action/adventure? Alternate universes and time travel? Strong platonic love? Characters with flaws? Fleshed out storylines? Autistic-coded characters? Characters dying and coming back to life? 136 episodes to watch the characters grow together and become a family? It’s the ultimate show

[doctaaaaaaaar]

Why everyone should watch Mashle. ooooo you wanna watch it so baddddd OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOo

thanks Melon for showing me this masterpiece

And these are for my rarepair that apparently no one else ships

and to close off:

[ghostscrown]

You don't understand how important the Ranpo's meltdown in the theater is to me. Especially when he says his speech.

“I don't get it. There's something everyone else gets but I don't. I don't get it, I'm scared. It's like the world is filled with monsters, monsters that only I don't understand. I'm all alone, living in a world of monsters”

This is after I said something very similar to a therapist that she guessed I was autistic. This speech is the literal reason I was diagnosed. Before that, I didn't have any clue I could be autistic, I just always felt that way without knowing why. I wasn't even in therapy for that in the first place. I just said something like that and the therapist started to ask more questions, I didn't understand at first that she was asking about autism traits, but then she told me I was probably autistic.

This exact feeling is the reason why I was diagnosed autistic and it hits so hard to hear a fictionnal character just phrase it in a way that is so similar of the way I did years ago. Especially since this dialogue is also the reason Fukuzawa understood Ranpo.

[canonically47]

i saw a post (that must be from a WHILE back) calling connor autistic and i just haven’t been able to stop thinking about it

in addition to what they’ve said, i also want to point out some other things he does that can be considered symptoms of autism:

repetitive, self-soothing movements.

connor rubs his hands together or plays with a coin if you leave him idle, or in cutscenes. it is a form of self-regulating through repetitive and familiar actions. i think fixing his tie as often as he does can also fit into this.

additionally, there is a deleted scene in which he grabs onto his collar for comfort when amanda tries to override his control in the final mission.

inability to fit in with own kind (deviants – parallel with neurodivergent peers) but also with others (humans – parallel with neurotypical peers).

as mentioned, connor struggles to relate to and bond with hank – “i think working with an officer with personal issues is an added challenge” – despite being programmed to fit into ‘any kind of group’ (desc. from his gallery). he has difficulties understanding him and voices this to amanda.

however, he also struggles to relate to fellow deviants, or androids in general, and is very different from them. this could be partly because he is a prototype, but so is markus, and he blends in well. connor, meanwhile, had a very skewed perception of both humans and deviants (see: him picking the most dumbass outfit and pose to infiltrate jericho) and struggles to interact with them, appearing hesitant at all times (see: telling markus he understands if he decides not to trust him, sounding somewhat uncertain when proposing his plan to markus or north, his whole relationships with hank and gavin etc.)

misunderstanding or total lack of understanding of social cues, norms, or common sayings.

he displays confusion when hank says “you know where you can stick your instructions?” (“no. where?”) – which could be irony, but i read it as genuine. he has trouble interacting with people ‘normally’ and cannot emote properly, one proper example being how weird he smiles (see: awkward smiles when he talks to hank at the station the night after the interrogation, weird smile given to gavin when he does not understand his humor).

speaking of not understanding humor, not only does he find gavin unfunny, he also does not get hank’s gruesome humor (see: frowning when hank jokes “they must have really had it in for him”).

moreover, he speaks over hank (see: speaking over him in his house, thanking him for his cooperation while hank is yelling at him) without seeing it as ‘bad’ – lacking a social cue.

clear, sole focus on one single thing.

this is, of course, his mission, regardless of what it is: catching deviants (machine) or helping jericho (deviant). he always is troubled and/or upset if he fails it, and he doubts himself, is confused or disappointed when he lets androids go, and, if he explains himself, he visibly struggles in doing so: “it’s my fault, i should’ve been faster”, “i don’t know why i did it”, “there was no reason to shoot that android” etc.

sticking to routine or to familiarity.

connor does not get rid of his android uniform, nor LED, after deviating, as markus and kara do straight away. you can argue the other two do it out of need to blend in, but it is also something that frees them; connor does not take after them in this.

noticing small patterns or details other don’t

this is literally part of his programming LISTEN TO MEEEEEEE

while i don’t think all androids are neurodivergent, deviancy, in connor’s case, can be read as an allegory for neurodivergency, specifically autism.

connor always displays symptoms of deviancy regardless of your playthrough – he lies to hank in the stratford tower in ALL routes, this being a canon, non-choosable cutscene, and another solid example is fear. he expresses fear through gestures (see: flinching away from the stratford tower roof if he died from falling in the hostage chapter – fear of heights) or dialogue (see: discussing death with hank on the bridge: “nothing. there would be nothing”; being conflicted when amanda tells him he may replace him.)

machine connor is, thus, connor masking. he always has some humanity in him, but he shoves it away deep down when taking the path of a machine. he still gets frustrated (example: after his rifle stops working when he attempts to kill markus; swearing if the bomb is detonated following the deviants’ loss of the war), troubled/conflicted (example: “what’s going to happen to me?” and his little reactions when amanda presents him with rk900), and even appears sad (example: his reaction to hank’s suicide, his LED turning red, it appears as though he forces it back to blue.)

while i don’t think this is the intention of the writers, autistic connor is canon to me. he is android autistic. thank you

[bitchytwinkcore]

theyre so mecore

[deadtiredghost]

I have this ongoing theory:

(I like the angst potential)

[temporaerthaervaerk]

I just realised that all the media I adore has some level of autistic/neurodivergent coding and it's been that way since I was a child.

And like, oftentimes their different way of perceiving and being in the world is the driving force of the story/and or a crucial element in it.

There’s the canon example of the entire Camp Halfblood (ADHD), where the ADHD is literally what keeps the characters alive.

There's Dean Winchester (ADHD) whose hyperfixations are typically masculine (as well as geeky) and who never sits still, with the added bonus of Castiel (Autism), who Dean just... accepts, in a way I rarely see.

Then there’s the infamous Will Graham (Autism) whose hyperempathy is litterally the focal point of the entire narrative.

We have Haru from Free! (Autism), whose special interest (swimming) is the motivating factor for several other characters.

Reki and Langa from Sk8 the infinity (Autism), who share a special interest and grow a special bond because of it.

There's Sai from Hikaru No Go (Autism), who trancedented time and space to play Go (special interest) and whose special interest sets the story into motion.

We have any version of Sherlock Holmes (AuDHD), who's brilliance I attribute to a mixture of hyperfixations and special interest in crime solving. His conflicts with society and disregard of social norms are a central theme as well.

There's Anne with an E (Autism), who loves words and stories and speaks before she thinks (where all major problems arise due to her lack of understanding for social norms)

We have Pat and Pran from Bad Buddy (ADHD + Autism), like I dunno, I just really felt that vibe.

There's Beth Harmon from Queen's Gambit (Autism) with her special interest in Chess.

And like, the list goes on: Daryl Dixon, Jon Snow, Kotaro from Kotaro Lives Alone, Will Treaty from the Ranger's apprentice, Hal from the same author, Katniss Everdeen, Si-eun from Weak Hero Class 1, etc.

Don't get me wrong I've consumed plenty of stories without characters coded this way, but all the stories that truly resonated with me? Neurodivergent, all of them.

It's probably because the focus on social norms/hierarchy always seemed foreign to me. Eg. I like Skam but it's like a view into a completely foreign world where people function differently.

[soullessjack]

not only should any autistic character who’s ever been infantilized by their fanbase kill and maim more people, but they should also fuck as nasty as possible too. as a treat

[jayke0]

Steven doesn't mask a lot. Although i bet he worries about certain social interactions, that man wears his heart on his sleeve and is happy to just stim with/info dump on anyone who will let him (it's me, I'm anyone.)

Marc, on the other hand, is constantly masking. He's always worried about how he comes off in situations and if he was too rude or blunt, he probably even rehearses conversations and thinks about what he did wrong when he gets home.

[captainpricespuppyboyfriend]

Fun fact: I have something in common with my favorite Ghostbusters characters

That thing being autism

[ur-fav-is-autistic]

could you do ranpo from bsd? hes so autism coded its insane (sorry if you already did him) /nf

Ranpo Edogawa from Bungo Stray Dogs is Autistic!

[dee-morris]

Happy Hands

I love watching Aziraphale's hands. How they flex and dance when he's happy, they wiggle excitedly when he's about to do something amazing, how they twist and wrap around each other when he's stressed. I think he knows how expressive they are, bc when we see him reporting to heaven in episode one he's got them tucked behind his back. I'm not actively lying, he says, but I'm keeping some of my thoughts to myself for right now.

Imagine going from a blank white boring space to a world alive with color and noise and people. It's got to be so overwhelming. But you've got this neat body that you can use to comfort yourself and seek sensory pleasures like food and soft clothing, and these cool little digits are great for working off stress.

[autisticzenitsu]

Inosuke and Zenitsu are just two very different iterations of "never masked before in their lives".

Meanwhile Tanjiro is FREQUENTLY masking.

[colombinna]