#but I love seeing everyone’s interpretations of it

[spicy-apple-pie]

I was talking about this in the Damijon discord server but I kinda want to share it here.

Damian and Jon being caught by the paparazzi while on a date and Jon trying to cope with being in the public eye.

Jon always knew that Damian was protective of their relationship. If someone weren’t familiar with Damian, it could be interpreted as shame. But Jon knew him for long enough to know better. They’re in the park and they think it’s secluded enough to share a quick kiss. Until they hear a click of a camera. Before Jon could react, Damian is pulling him away, ducking his head down. Jon tries to look back, but Damian forces him to face forward.

They head back to the manor, and Jon can tell that Damian is a little shaken. So they spend the night just playing video games and chilling out.

Jon stays the night and wakes up to his phone vibrating non stop. That’s weird, he was sure that he texted his parents that he was staying the night. He can’t think of anyone else that would be texting him that much.

It’s all Twitter notifications.

Everyone is tagging him in this picture that a gossip magazine posted of him and Damian kissing. Lots of DMs and people commenting on his posts.

“I’m sorry.”

Jon looks over to see Damian looking at him. His glare is a ridiculous contrast to his bed head. So cute.

“What?”

“It’s not going to stop.” Damian said. “It’ll slow down, but never stop.”

“What? The tweets?” Jon asked. Damian nodded.

“I understand if it’s too much for you.”

“Damian, I’ve almost been killed several times. A little bit of gossip isn’t going to stop me from loving you.”

And they kiss :)

[flightlessangelwings]

Since we’re in Latino heritage month now I want to bring something up again that’s worth talking about when it comes to reader insert fic:

Can we as writers please be aware that latine people are present in fandom and not make the assumption that the reader does not speak Spanish?

Especially when writing for Latino characters, latine people look to them for representation and it feels very exclusionary to assume the reader doesn’t know Spanish. Latine representation is hugely important for us. Actors like Pedro Pascal, Oscar Isaac, Diego Luna, Gabriel Luna, and more are so important for that representation and they all understand that importance. With the lack of latine and poc characters, it’s always very meaningful when we are represented. And it’s very hurtful that people can assume that their audience is only white.

Some ways to work around and be inclusive: You could use italics to indicate Spanish, say “you didn’t hear” instead of “you didn’t understand” so that way it’s more open to interpretation, provide an immediate translation in or out of the context and let readers decide for themselves if they understood it or not. Very simple things make a huge difference in inclusivity and don’t change your story at all!

And another note too: please be respectful when writing Latino characters and actively work to avoid getting into fetishization territory. Be aware of harmful tropes and stereotypes that exist while writing Latino characters. I.e. the Latin lover trope, the whole papi thing, “spicy Latino” etc. The characters aren’t real but the impact it can have does affect real people and it can make latine people uncomfortable to see it in fic.

Remember that inclusivity is a kindness and people of all walks of life read fics to let’s work to make everyone feel welcome and loved and seen in our reader insert fic!

[godly-mistake]

okay I'm like halfway through wottg but I gotta say something

I love annabeth, anyone who follows me knows this, and one of the things I liked most about her was how, in the first pjo series, she wasn't reduced to the mom friend

she was allowed to be messy, silly, irrational, emotional - allowed to act like a teenager

she was an important and beloved part of the trio, but percy and grover could still function fine without her, she wasn't expected by others to solve everyone's problems and when something like that did happen in text - ex hermes blaming her for luke - it wasn't painted as something right or good

and one of the things that's annoyed me the most with each subsequent series past pjo is rick leaning more and more into these bad fanon interpretations including annabeth mothering others

it's just, so frustrating to keep seeing characters I love diminished in such a way and I see people talk about the reduction of percy's character, which is so fair and is tied in with rick and the fandoms abelism, but I also see people complain that he's propping up annabeth too much and he's really not he's just leaning into sexist stereotypes and flattening her character as well - this shit goes hand in hand

[deathricedrawn]

girl peri if u even gaf (more stuff below)

This piece was made for personal use as an icon!!! for me!!! if u want to use it tho go ahead!

I love Women and i love Peri from fopanw so i made peri from fopanw into a girl and I LOVE HERRRR SHES SO CUTE. This is my interpretation of her!!!!! shes kind of like an oc to me

This isnt like a genderbent au where like, everyones gender is swapped. Only peri and irep turn into Girls and everyone stays the same👍 That being said I'm kind of projecting my gender identity onto girl peri and she's actually genderfluid instead of being a Binary Girl. Sometimes she feels very comfortable being feminine and a Girl but sometimes she also feels masculine and like a guy, just with feminine presentation. Shes like the "how i look with he/him pronouns in my bio" meme. On that same topic, i like to think she goes by she/him pronouns (though i refer to her with she/her so people dont get her confused with Canon Peri🤘)

Heres a doodle i did when figuring out her design. Her hair is VERY soft and i ended up going with a lighter shade of purple for her hair than depicted here to give her a softer/more whimsical feel.

I like girl peri because her vibe is basically like... charismatic woman who comes across as very confident and as if she has everything together and Is A Normal Person, but shes just Not. Shes quick to unravel when faced with the Tons Of Demands from her godkid Dev and her ex.

Speaking of her ex...

BUTCHFEMME PERIEP🗣🗣🗣!!!!!!!! I made this doodle very quickly so its kinda ass but idgaf

I havent thought about him much yet but Irep is a he/him butch (i might slap she/her onto that too, so him and peri are matching but like flipped. so he/her and she/him solidarity🤝). Peri and Irep are both lesbians!!!! YAY!!!!!!

Okay i hope you guys enjoyed my rambles idk what im doing YAYYY Lmk if u wanna see more of girl peri and butch irep. Ill see what i can do🫶

[flutterbyoz]

It's 2024 and still the Rick/Jessie discourse is still making an appearance 🙄

It's something that seems to pop up every now and again and just becomes another excuse for people to voice their dislike for Michonne and Richonne. I get everyone has their own opinion, though many of these opinions have little to no evidence to back them up, but let's just make one thing clear, Rick loves Michonne. He loved her when he met Jessie, he loved her when Jessie cut his hair, he loved her when he and Jessie shared that awkward garage kiss and when he chopped off Jessie's hand. He loved Michonne then and he loves her now, more than life itself. Had Jessie lived he still would have fallen in love and married Michonne.

Some people like to invalidate Richonne anyway they can, even grasping onto crumbs like Jessie, but in the end none of it matters because Jessie was never supposed to be anything more than a plot device, all she did was delay the inevitable. The believability of Rick having feelings for her was dashed pretty quickly given the heart eyes he gave Michonne every time he saw her and I'm sorry but no one can compete against Andy and Danai in the chemistry department.

If you can't see the electric chemistry between Rick and Michonne/Andy and Danai then I do feel a little for you because you're missing out on experiencing what I believe is the best love story to have ever graced the screen.

I do sometimes wonder if I'm watching the same show because the way some people interpret storylines and character interactions can be so polar opposite that it makes me think that they must just be purposefully ignoring the facts just to make it fit their opinion. I'm all for differing opinions but when the facts go completely against those opinions and clearly prove them wrong then it's not so much someone giving an opinion as them just saying whatever just to arouse a response. And yes I know I'm feeding into that with this post but I just needed to say it and sadly I think we all know the reason for most of this dislike and hate towards Michonne and Richonne.

Michonne is not Rick's second choice, she's not his third choice, she's not someone he got with just for the physical side of a relationship or because Jessie and Lori died. Michonne is his first, last and forever choice, the love of his life, the mother of his children, the woman he'd kill and die for, she is his entire world. This has been confirmed multiple times throughout TWD and TOWL, there are no ifs or buts about it, all of this is canon and fact and ignoring it doesn't make it any less true. I always have this thought that if you mentioned Jessie to Rick now it would take him a moment to remember who she was.

This ended up being longer than I thought but when I began writing I just kept going! People will always find a way to disrespect and invalidate Rick and Michonne's relationship, no matter what canon tells them but their negativity changes nothing. They can have as many opinions as they wish but Rick and Michonne will still be married, living happily with their children and being more in love than ever and if we are lucky enough to see them again then that will be shown over and over again.

Forever and always it will be Rick and Michonne

[mermaidsirennikita]

Sadly, the Wuthering Heights furor has also led to people (many of whom, let us be real, simply dislike the book or otherwise only think of it when it's brought up) to discourse about the content of the novel versus the wrongness of Emerald Fennell's choices with regards to the movie, which of course, has opened up the classic "IT'S NOT A ROMANCE! IT'S NOT A LOVE STORY! BAD PEOPLE! HATE STORY!"

... Which is... also a bad take.

First off, to be very clear, "Romance" is not inherently "genre romance", which is the thing I blog a lot about that was solidified in the latter half of the twentieth century (and which, no doubt, was influenced on some level by WH as much as Jane Eyre, Austen novels and so on). Wuthering Heights is a romance, it's just not a genre romance/romance novel. And indisputably, Wuthering Heights is a love story.

It may not be a love story you like. It may not be a love story with a happily ever after (though I will say—this is one of the few books where I think it's pretty debatable, as "wandering the moors as ghosts", if that is what happened, is kind of... what Cathy and Heathcliff would've wanted... and their ultimate desire was to be TOGETHER, regardless of whether or not it damned them, so is it an HEA in their freaky minds? Maybe so lol). It may ALSO be an abuse story in which the lovers act horribly to each other.... though, I gotta say, MUCH WORSE to literally everyone else in their lives than they do to each other...

But it's a love story. That is one of several things it happens to be. The entire novel is driven by this central love story between Heathcliff and Cathy—a love that is, contrary to what a surface-level reading or reading by word of mouth would imply... very much mutual. I've already gone on about how Cathy Earnshaw is not Heathcliff's victim the way Isabella Linton is, and how Cathy is very much as involved in the love affair as he is. But truly, while their individual internal struggles are the framework and what keeps them apart in many ways—Heathcliff being a man of color and subject to racist abuse, Cathy conforming to society and classist pressures when her natural temperament is very much not of society—what propels the story is this romance.

Because they are supposed to be read as extremely similar, and as two people who do not truly identify with anyone but one another. They're supposed to be read as like minds. They're supposed to be read as thwarted. Some of the things those two say about each other and to each other are legitimately some of the most romantic lines I've ever read.

I mean, are they also kind of sick and wrong? Sure! But I do find it kind of rich to see people who are totally fine with reading dark romance wring their hands over the public at large interpreting Heathcliff and Cathy's relationship as an epic romance. I don't have an issue with anyone enjoying either! But. Let us be real. Part of why y'all are even enjoying work like that is the standard that books like WH set, and the fact that WH does speak to the lure of the dark and the tragedy of people who are super imperfect... and also super in love... continuously fucking up their own lives (and the lives of basically everyone around them) in this push-pull of denial and desire.

When people say "HOW COULD ANYONE EVER INTERPRET THIS AS ROMANTIC?" I just have to question... did you read the book? Because even if it's not for YOU, if it's not romantic TO YOU, surely you can see why other people (me and mine lol) read lines like these and go, "Wow, romantic":

“Catherine Earnshaw, may you not rest as long as I am living. You said I killed you--haunt me then. The murdered do haunt their murderers. I believe--I know that ghosts have wandered the earth. Be with me always--take any form--drive me mad. Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you! Oh, God! It is unutterable! I cannot live without my life! I cannot live without my soul!”

(fun fact: I do have a part of the above quote tattooed on my body and I'm very happy about it)

"My great miseries in this world have been Heathcliff's miseries, and I watched and felt each from the beginning: my great thought in living is himself. If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger: I should not seem a part of it."

"Hush, my darling! Hush, hush, Catherine! I'll stay. If he shot me so, I'd expire with a blessing on my lips."

[said when her damn husband is almost at the door lol]

"I’m not wishing you greater torment than I have, Heathcliff. I only wish us never to be parted: and should a word of mine distress you hereafter, think I feel the same distress underground, and for my own sake, forgive me!"

"'Heathcliff, dear! you should not be sullen now. Do come to me, Heathcliff.’

In her eagerness she rose and supported herself on the arm of the chair. At that earnest appeal he turned to her, looking absolutely desperate. His eyes, wide and wet, at last flashed fiercely on her; his breast heaved convulsively. An instant they held asunder, and then how they met I hardly saw, but Catherine made a spring, and he caught her, and they were locked in an embrace from which I thought my mistress would never be released alive..."

"Kiss me again; and don’t let me see your eyes! I forgive what you have done to me. I love my murderer—but yours! How can I?"

[Read: she is the murderer he is talking about. He's saying she doomed herself to death a long time ago, and he hates her for it. While also crying and kissing her lmao]

They're sickos! Nobody can argue otherwise. But that does not mean they're not in love, and it doesn't mean this isn't a love story, and wagging your fingers at people who read this as the obviously destructive love story this is and find it romantic... doesn't change that.

And the thing is that the book makes it pretttyyyy clear that even if Heathcliff and Cathy has assholery programed into their personalities, WITHOUT the contexts of how they were raised and the society that expects them both to conform to prescribed roles, they would probably just... be together. Like, they victimize people, especially Heathcliff. But they are also victims. The book isn't about a critique of two people Emily Bronte dreamed up; it's a critique of the CIRCUMSTANCES by way of Gothic, subversive melodrama. At the end of the day, their feelings, however passionate they are, are not inherently subversive. Their feelings are NATURAL. But they're twisted and contorted into something ugly through circumstance and the characters' responses to those circumstances.

For Heathcliff, A LOT of those circumstances that did twist him are in fact out of his control. Which is why we hate that casting, right?

But all that said, a love story being dirtybadwrong and about Bad People doesn't mean it isn't a love story, lol. Again—we don't even expect genre romance to be about good people.

Like. Yeah. We know Heathcliff and Cathy are assholes. You're not breaking new ground with that take. The book is still, in many ways, about those assholes being in love.

[chaggiehearts]

I'm gonna be brutally honest: I think it'd be far more satisfying to watch Lute redeeming herself than dying as a villain.

I know a large part of the fandom hates her (although thankfully most people here on Tumblr don't) and I'm not gonna act like I don't understand why. She's a sadistic genocidal woman who won't hesitate to hurt everyone that goes against her corrupted morality. Even outside the series, her words and beliefs might remind a lot of viewers of extremist Christians, and since a lot of us are LGBT we might be reminded of ugly things we've been told in the past (I'll admit that even though I don't interpret that scene as her being homophobic, the "Their love is vile and blasphemous" comment might hurt me if I watch that scene when I'm feeling too sensitive). Lute is clearly not a good person and the series doesn't try to hide this fact at all, specially given her fixation with hurting/mutilating/killing Vaggie. Even though she's my 3rd fave character, I admit that she kinda sucks as a person.

However, I think that all the arguments on why she's irredeemable fail to be convincing once you take something into account: Lute is the Vaggie that never left her Exorcist position.

Their characters are clearly parallels and meant to be narrative foils. Vaggie is what Lute could turn out to be if she admitted she's wrong. Vaggie is my favorite character but I can't deny that before her fall she was despicable too. We know that at the very least she killed 2,000 sinners (going by the "thousandS of Sinners" comment) and I highly doubt the actual amount is that low given the number of Sinners killed by Lute during last Extermination. My personal headcanon is that it's around 10,000-15,000, but we don't know, at least not yet. Vaggie WASN'T a good person, even if she had doubts from the very beginning (which we don't even know if it's true, let's be real here) she still did horrible things. She took part in the Exterminations and, according to Adam, she was one of the most efficient Exorcists (perhaps second only to Lute herself). This is why I adore the dynamic between them, because the mutual hatred comes from the rejection of certain ideals: Vaggie hates what she used to be in the past, which is represented by Lute, a perfect reflection of who she used to be, and Lute hates the idea that Exterminations might be wrong, that she might be wrong, that her entire worldview might be flawed, which is represented by Vaggie.

If Vaggie was able to redeem herself, if we can collectively agree that she regretted her actions and improved as a person, if we can understand that Hazbin's concept is that EVERYONE can be redeemed, even the worst villains, even the nastiest individuals, if we can see that the structure of the Exorcists greatly resembles a sect (I will analyze this better another day, but they're literally a patriarchal sect in which one has to adhere to all of their leader's beliefs and not doing so will result in abandonment, punishment and isolation from your entire circle), isn't it logical to think that Lute might reach the same conclusions as Vaggie one day? Why would Vaggie deserve compassion and forgiveness and a new life and not someone who's overall very similar to her? As I said before, yes, I do understand why people hate Lute more than Vaggie, specially given what she did to her, one of the protagonists, but they're not that different at all. The issue is that we've only seen evil Lute and good Vaggie so far, but the series might explore other aspects of their characters. Hazbin Hotel criticizes the black-and-white mentality of Heaven, Lute's very mentality that has led to what she is right now. Putting Vaggie in one end of a morality scale and Lute in the other is imho a flawed interpretation. They're both in a gray place, they're both complex people.

Lute is going to do horrible things in the future and, if I'm allowed to speculate, I heavily believe she's going to be worse than what Adam ever had the chance to be, way worse than Vaggie ever was. After losing Adam, revenge will probably make her go from evil to downright monster. And honestly, I want to see that fall, that corruption arc (does it count as a corruption arc when the character was already corrupted from the beginning?). I want Lute to metaphorically fall into the darkest pits of Hell. And you know what? I want her to get up after that, start a new life just like what Vaggie did. I think Lute searching for redemption would be a great test on Charlie's ideals, because she probably wouldn't be too enthusiastic about this idea (since her body language in Episode 8 clearly shows that she knows about what Lute did to Vaggie, her role in Vaggie's fall). I think something beautiful might come out of something like this happening. Charlie realizing that she doesn't have to personally empathize with someone to help them become a better person (and the whole concept of redemption being proven right because if someone like Lute can do it then literally anyone can), Lute seeing the error of her ways, growing and searching for the light she lost in the shadows and Vaggie empathizing with one of the residents in a deeper level. Even though Lute doesn't deserve Vaggie's forgiveness, I'd love to see Vaggie extending that forgiveness to her and seeing her past self in Lute, but this time not the merciless Exorcist Vaggie that she hates, but the hurt, lost and scared Vaggie that had just arrived in Hell after her worldview had been flipped entirely. If these two made amends, I think we would be able to see a very sweet new side of Vaggie, because even though she'd love to help Angel Dust, Husk, Cherri Bomb... She'll never fully get how they ended up down there. But she would get Lute, she'd understand how addictive bad actions can be for an Exorcist, the search for purpose and acknowledgement from Adam, the self-righteousness. If there's anyone in that hotel that would know what it's like to be an Exorcist that regrets her actions, that's Vaggie.

In the end, the only thing I'm sure of at the moment is that Lute's story is far from over. Things could go either way and redemption is a viable path for her. Who knows, maybe she'll do something so extremely evil in the future that I lose my faith in her ability to change after that, but for now I'm still holding onto that hope :)

[ghouldtime]

*slides into the DMS*

S O. What does social anxiety for König look like through your fantastic characterization then? 👀

(Love your Alone operator series btw. Got me on the edge of my seat with each chapter!!)

(Thank you!! 💚💚💚 I'm so glad you're enjoying :D you all have been so so sweet with it and Im over the MOON so many people have liked it)

To answer this question I'm going to have to be a biiig yapper and explain why I think of him the way I do

Going to say this to start, but I'm going with the true fact that König is indeed diagnosed with social anxiety - anything else I'm saying is based off of my personal interpretation of how he acts in game as a disclaimer

I'm also going to state that personally, the König I write is in his lower to mid 40's. Sorry not sorry, I don't see him as a young dude. Especially not when it's pretty much agreed upon that he's a colonel. So he's had a SIGNIFICANT amount of life experience, and a significant amount of time to work on himself and have introspection.

To me, it makes the most sense that he was diagnosed with social anxiety earlier on in his childhood since it was significantly more obvious when he was younger. Something that severe wasn't unnoticed by those around him because some of them did care about him. It's also stated he's suffered from severe social anxiety throughout his life so that's how I took it.

I personally go with he grew up in a more rural town in his homeland of Austria, which meant there weren't exactly others around during the first few years. "Go play with the neighbors kids" didn't really work when there weren't neighbors around. It was mainly him and his parents and an occasional relative over.

What could be brushed off as initial shyness clearly couldn't be anymore when he finally was enrolled in school.

Even on the first day when it's "introduce yourself to everyone", he fucked that up so monumentally it'll be engraved forever in his hall of shameful memories that he thinks about late at night. School was an utter nightmare, quite frankly, from moment one. The whole situation was too much, too stressful, and too different from the life he had at home. He flat out refused to get up and present in front of the class and wouldn't talk in group projects just for the fear of embarrassing himself. At that time, he was hitting all the indicators for social anxiety like they're the targets he shoots at today.

He missed out on a lot of interaction with other kids initially because of how awkward he was - and having any form of anxiety never helps in social situations. Talking to others wasn't something that came naturally and his own panic amplified it tenfold. Most times, he'd either pretend he didn't hear them, avoid them, or stray as far to the edge of the group as possible to avoid it. Unfortunately this made him an easy target because kids are RUTHLESS and turned him into even more outcast as well which only worsened it.

School always sucked for him due to that, despite the fact that he was a smart kid. No amount of smarts could save you from social persecution when you had nearly no social skills to boot. [ side note but I'm dying on the hill that he's incredibly intelligent and has a bachelors degree (at the very least)].

His parents kept him in therapy to help him manage because without it, he'd be back at square one refusing to go to school and faking a cold just to get out of it. And of course, therapy is a very important tool when it comes to healing, coping, and managing severe mental disorders. The whole reason why he doesn't show such bad anxiety anymore is because he kept the skills he learned and applies them so much that it becomes his second nature.

He's had at least 35 years of this, he's good enough to mask and to keep up his facade.

Another part of why he doesn't show it nearly as much is because he joined the military and was thrown through the wringer with it. Being bullied for so long was a major motivator for joining in the first place, as he needed something to get away from the peers who tormented him so and he needed a new life where he wasn't known as target #1. But he ALSO wanted to gain actual confidence and more certainty in himself.

Joining the military really means you're not left with such things as many choices when it comes to anxiety in social situations. You're forced into quarters with others, have to work side-by-side, do nearly everything together, so on and so forth. He knew that going in but at that point for him it was like extreme exposure therapy, the last step he needed to really put everything he learned in therapy to work.

That doesn't mean he didn't suffer or loved it. No, it was terrible, intense, and nerve-wracking. But he wouldn't have done it otherwise if he didn't want that. Being in the military didn't give him the leeway to avoid what made him anxious, it taught him to face it head on and fight.

Now that he's up there in age and has considerable more experience (and leeway with having a higher rank), the ways he expresses it [look at me finally answering the question] are more subtle.

On the field, you're likely not going to notice it. Because that's him turning the little auto pilot switch in his mind to on when he has a job. The job is his focus and everything has been so engrained in his mind that it's muscle memory. He's, quite frankly, focused on not dying and getting any job done over himself. The joking you often hear him do and taunting alike is part of how he's expressing the confidence he feels when he's in his element, when he KNOWS what he is doing.

If you look closely or approach him off the field, however, it's another story. He usually tenses or straightens himself out when people approach and will hold that until they leave (unless they're someone who he truly knows). Many assume that's a taught habit of the military, but that's only half-true. He did that before then.

Unlike when he's working, he doesn't have a guide or things he knows he has to do in a specific order to best ensure survival - no matter how much talking to other people feels like the heat of the battle, you can't (legally) solve it with a gun or throw a frag and book it out of there. There's no true guide to social interactions and that stresses him out. There's no manual, no field guide, no ten step card on how to successfully navigate them.

He knows things that are normal to say, he knows sometimes what he should say - it's just a matter of finding the phrasing and how to say them. Yet it seems like whenever someone doesn't follow his pre-programmed line of thought when it comes to their talking, his mind can shut down and go blank as he stares, trying to figure out where to go or what to say (spoiler: it usually doesn't end well).

He's usually awkward to talk to because he's running over everything in his head as he tries to think of what best to say to avoid further interactions or ones that could be more targeting to him. And, as mentioned, he lacks the average set of social skills that plenty learn in childhood because he didn't have that proper socialization. He's also still not the best at talking itself and can be blunt and to-the-point, which also doesn't usually go down well.

Not to mention, he's bad at small talk and has a terrible, sarcastic sense of humor that many can't read and it quickly turns things uncomfortable very fast because everyone takes him seriously. It never helps he usually doesn't explain himself all too well, usually leaving it as is as he secretly wishes he didn't talk at all when mortification sets in. Hurrying away with an excuse of some paperwork or something else to busy himself is his go-to after those.

When possible, he'll avoid small-talk and greatly prefers gestures instead. Someone who can appreciate his greater need for silence and a lack of talking is someone who he will greatly appreciate in turn. He's a firm believer that not all silences are uncomfortable and sometimes, it IS best not to say anything at all.

Due to his childhood too, he's not really fond of being around many people and will do his best to avoid it. Unless he has to grin and bare it, he won't. He finds his mind calmest when he can just be himself without having to worry about saying the right things to appease others or to be friendly. That way he can focus on what he wants, think how he wants, and feels how he wants without second guessing himself or having to worry about existing.

He's going to avoid most public settings when possible. Though he can now suitably manage his anxiety, they're something he passes up on. Grocery store trips are something he does maybe once a week or two, if that - stock piling so he has to go to the store less is his usual strategy. Anything he can do himself, he WILL do himself, if he doesn't have a trusted person who can do it better or can help.

Notably, he also doesn't have many friends. He's like talking to a brick wall and unless you're considerably persistent and understanding of his need for space, you won't get far. A lot of people don't have the time nor patience for it, but if you do get close to him, he does come out of his shell. He appreciates anyone who cares enough to actually get close to him and get to know him despite how awkward he can be, and will be loyal to the end because of that.

Another side effect is that he doesn't sleep well. Between the massive amounts of trauma from his job and the trauma from his childhood, he doesn't sleep well as is. But the social anxiety aspect comes into play because many nights, his mind is rerunning all the interactions he's had as he chronically overthinks them. He always wonders what he could've done, how he could've improved, and what they're thinking of him (even if they're someone he may never run into again). Its very hard for him to shut his mind off and doing such usually requires him drowning everything else and making himself not think about that, or anything, any more.

[Another side note: He's an avid reader. Reading gives him new things to think about and can help put him to sleep, especially before bed. It's a good way for him to stop thinking about whatever was nagging him and shifts his mind into thinking about other things he enjoys instead)

Basically, IN SHORT this isn't my full in-depth detailed characterization of exactly who I think he is - the reason he's not presenting it as an anxious ball of pure energy who is so uwu shy and soft is because he is incredibly well-managed with his severe social anxiety at his age and that's uh, just not him. Social anxiety doesn't mean he's a blubbering mess or will cry at the slightest inconvenience and reducing him to that or treating anyone with social anxiety like they're a child because of it does not help at alllll.

He's had extensive therapy for this, he's got his methods, he can mask very well. He's a WHOLE GROWN MAN who is responsible for not only his actions but how he manages his emotions and he knows it. But if you know him and know what to look for, you'll be able to pick it up.

(Also the sheer amount of scenarios I've seen where people think he just would... cry if you took his mask off??? Him???? HIM???? König, "I can make you talk, where are they?" the skilled PMC operator? That one? That guy? Yeah no, anyone dumb enough to do that better have signed their will prior or hopefully has an intensive love for scrubbing all the floors with a single old toothbrush. He won't tolerate people harassing or hustling him or pressing on his nerves. Sure, it reminds him of his childhood bullies, but quite frankly that behavior as grown adults trying that is RIDICULOUS, it pisses him off and immediately lowers his opinion on them.)

To whoever made it this far, I hope this made sense, I took melatonin before I got the ask so I'm in another realm right now LMAO. König is one of my favorites and was the first character I realllly really loved and I just hate seeing him done so dirty. Especially as someone with severe social anxiety myself, it irritates me when it's portrayed just so... wrong and quite frankly, in a lazy, offensive manner lacking any nuance especially in relation to the character who has it. Like just making him stutter and cry isn't all social anxiety is and there's SO much depth and things to work with despite the... actual substance as far as his bio goes

[ceasarslegion]

I am aware of the irony of soap boxing about this but it's entirely possible to soap box too much, and lean into buzzkill territory where it becomes very hard to talk to you and therefore very hard to want to talk to you at all. I saw this happen a few times when I went to a con recently, which turned me off of wanting to go up and ask for the exhibitors tumblr URLs to see if they wanted to hang out more.

Specifically, I went to an anime trivia panel that included a bunch of classics like Cardcaptor Sakura, Ouran High School, Berserk, etc. Whenever one of these shows were mentioned the exhibitors went off on weird tangents to make absolutely sure everybody in the room knew how problematic they thought they were and how they don't support anything that the shows obviously (/s) did, in case you were wondering. They also made weird comments about a lovely artist who had a sign saying she had an nsfw flipbook and had no real limits for commission orders because "what if the kids here saw that??" I was thinking of going to anime karaoke until they said they were hosting that one, and I decided not to because I was put off by the possibility that they would take some kind of moral issue with whatever anime op I tried to sing.

Another one I went to, someone shared that the nanowrimo website had tons of worldbuilding and character resources and one of them INTERRUPTED HER to lean into the mic and make sure everyone in the room knew they didn't support nanowrimo and thought they were really bad and awful and that no one should use them, and the whole room felt really awkward because we were like dude??

And recently I stopped talking to one of my coworkers because he takes some kind of moral issue in every little thing I show him. I told him to watch Madoka Magica and he made it all the way to the op before slamming me about how he thought it was pedophilic and a slippery slope and "how could you watch something like that???" and refused to hear anything about how not all nudity is sexual and human bodies are just human bodies sometimes.

This makes you so freaking hard to talk to man, sometimes I think people should stop being so obsessed with if other people will think they support the worst possible interpretation of something and just chill the fuck out. It's not that deep if someone has fond memories of Ouran High School, it's just an anime. It's not that deep if someone remembers a place to get resources, it's just a website. It's not that deep if a show shows actual human bodies in non-sexual settings. Calm the fuck down.

[l0stfoster]

Question ; who do you base the cursed characters off of ?? Like , ik two-bit is based off of daryl tofa but what abt everyone else ??

Hope I’m wording this right since it makes sense in my head but might be difficult to write down. I’m gonna be honest, only Two-Bit’s look is the only one really set in stone and based off an actual actor or person.

When I draw the gang, I use the designs I’ve made and sketched out in the past (save for Pony, who I keep changing when drawing tbh lmao) but pretty much every character can be up to a persons own interpretation! The only character who needs to abide by the design I personally draw is Two-Bit, since his character is written around Daryl Tofa’s portrayal and his heritage.

The writers usually go based on my personal designs for the characters from what I can tell, but fan art can vary. I think really good examples of people’s own interpretations of the Cursed designs are @nexternalknowsthingz ’s Ponyboy, @mister-mickey ‘s Shepards, and @bins0 ‘s Pony & Johnny! They’re arguably some of my favorites, I love seeing how other people visualize them.

[itz-pandora]

Guys watch this before clicking read more

I have so many thoughts

THE PARALLEL BETWEEN MARIA'S WOUND AND THE DESTROYED MOON?!!! OH MY GOD!!!! OH MY. MY GOD. That's the entire reason I started writing my thoughts down because that's way past important. Where's that post about the symbolism and correlation between Maria's name and the moon because that's all I can think about

AND I LOVE how they're choosing to portray Maria recently, excited and eager for everything, even though it hurts her. Also how fascinated she is with earth makes me happy. I love the idea she'll just endlessly ramble to Shadow about Earth. Also her VA does a good job at letting you know how out of breath she is and how she's still all upbeat even tho she's literally about to pass out

Also ?!!! I AM GOING A BIT CRAZY AT SHADOWS PORTRAYAL!! I'm so hyped to see how he's interpreted in Generations. He seems so confused, and like each time period he's in impacts his personality heavily, like he's still with them on the ARK. He wants to save everyone even though he knows he can't and I'm SCRATCHING AT THE WALLS because of it. I think the way that they'll try to portray him going into the past is with him being only half-aware of everything, OR, HE'S TRYING TO LIVE A LIE TO MAKE HIMSELF FEEL BETTER. Ohmygod the second one makes me feel ill because he just wants to be happy, he wants to keep his little family together and safe, but he knows that the fate is inevitable, just wondering if he could've stopped it. It's haunting to him. The feeling of not being in control is present throughout the entire episode, where he's constantly dragged through each event, each one being more exhausting than the last. Everything is happening to him, he's not the driving force, and that's the sad part, he had an entire game about defining his identity, and still, he's always been a puppet to someone else, bent to their will.

I'M SO CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT THEY'RE PLANNING WITH GERALD BECAUSE ITS DEFINITELY SOMETHING. SHADOW WHAT DID HE DO TO YOU??? Shadow had to PHYSICALLY CLASP HIS HEAD BECAUSE OF THIS. I NEED TO KNOW.

Dude is this supposed to be Shadow's second traumatic flashback regarding the ARK, since in the hero story of SHTH, there's an entire level about the ARK where he plays with Maria as his sidekick, and it was triggered by hearing the sirens of the ARK (which I LOVE btw. Of COURSE he'd associate the noise with events since it's been drilled into his psyche before the amnesia)

I LOVE how scared he is at the end. He's sooooo panicked. I love how they give him the sparks when he's overwhelmed, it makes me feel so happy.

Who is HE?! It can't be Shadow before his memory loss, that guy did NOT SURVIVE. Also idk if they're going to return to the "pre and post amnesia Shadow are different people" thing they implied, because I think it'd be best to have it be like his memories are fragmented, and it's all about remembering, and THEN WE GET A NEW INTERPRETATION OF SHADOW?? Pls? Like not new but somewhere in between SA2 and after that, but with more little brother energy because MARIA IS HERE!!!!

GUYS WHAT ARE THOSE FLOWERS AT THE END AND WHAT DO THEY MEAN. PLEASE TELL ME SINCE THEY PROBABLY HAVE SYMBOLISM

This is so disorganized sorry I'm not normal at all

And ofc Eggman's piss was still on the moon. We love continuity

[hasello]

Hi, Hey wanted to talk about that other post about rise leo being a good leader, and my opinion I think that's a total lie. I barely finished the show and through all of it I haven't see him as a leader but as a total amateur. He isn't the leader in this version, only in the movie, not even there he did any good desicion, he only threw himself in the flames. I more of 2012 version, and you can totally compare him. 2012 leo learn from his mistakes and knows how to work with his team, he worries about his brothers; while the rise leo doesn't care if he puts them in danger, never works in team, and rather worries in having fun.

But all said, I want to hear more from you, your opinion, and to know who you think is best. I noticed that you have way more knowledge about the TMNT.

Stay hydrated ❤

Hi! Your opinion is totally valid, since everyone interprets things in their own way. I mostly disagree, tho.

First of all, like you said - Leo wasn’t the leader in the Rise show, nor was he the oldest. So of course it didn’t feel like it, that’s totally fair. ALTHOUGH: Once he did become the leader, I do agree he wasn’t the best at it… but then that’s kind of the whole point! It’s to show he’s not really ready and has A LOT to learn. Don’t know about you, but I love that idea. It brings depth to the whole „leader” plot. I think a lot of it is caused by the fact that he’s the only Leonardo who isn’t the oldest. The show lets him be more carefree and not really understand some morbid things, that oldest siblings keep in mind. Other Leos are the oldest and keep in mind the team’s safety, which sometimes makes them seen as „boring” by their siblings. Rise Leo is the complete opposite of „boring”. That’s Raph’s job in rise. On top of that other Leos were leaders for much longer and gathered experience. So I think comparing Rise Leo to other shows is a little unfair anyway, because their situations are way different.

Although apart from all that - Leo is VERY good at planning and his personality lets him be sneaky and manipulative, which also helps in a lot of circumstances. When the gang needs to get information, they send Leo. When they need some encouragement, Leo steps in. When they lost Raph in the sewers? Leo was the only one taking it seriously. When they got upset at losing the paper thieves? Leo did a nice speech, at least trying to keep the team in high spirits (which also showed how observant he is, as he knew what to say to each brother). When his brothers blindly believed Big Mama? He saved the day, knowing better from the start. (He was the only one being cautious, thinking of their safety).

You can see the little hints of potential in a lot of episodes. Personally I believe he’s a natural leader, he just needs to sort his priorities and learn about responsibility (which already happened in the movie, bro learned the hard way lmao).

I think that if the show didn’t end so soon, it would have been a lot more fleshed out and showed better. It’s pretty obvious it was their plan from the start to turn him into a leader at some point. Although like I said, opinions are just opinions.

You too stay hydrated! Take care, love 😚

[retroaria]

ur the first person i see to agree with my virgin (lowkey loverboy) kaiser propaganda YIPPIEEEE

OMG HELLO? i didn’t know there were others 🥹

most of my headcanons are very up in the air and I like leaving fictional characters up for interpretation but I am so dead set on him having lover boy energy.

I don’t think kaiser is meant to be as cold as everyone thinks he is. I also doubt that he’s as self centered as he is within the bounds of his career. I always saw him as someone with the capacity to be an incredible giver, but only if the right opportunity presented itself. If he were to truly feel loved by someone that sees him for who he is he would bend over backwards for them and spoil them to the ends of time.

AND yes he’s a virgin. bro is not getting bitches IM SORRY (not lol). He lowkey would save himself for the right person but also he just isn’t emotionally mature enough to have an experience like that with someone and he’s self aware of that. he would still mess around in the meantime, I’m sure he’s got hot german fan girls that would happily step up for that.

*sigh* now i gotta write more simpy kaiser.

[skeleton-mischief]

What types of gifts would the boys give? And/Or what gifts would they like to receive?

Ooooo I love this question! Okay, so I'm going to go over a list for each of the skeletons and descriptions for what they would like. Sanses like Error, Fresh, and Ink will also be included, but I generally have an inclination to think that most if not all the "Outcodes" variety are on the Aroace spectrum! So, you can interpret these as either romantic, platonic, or even a mix for QPR's(Queer Platonic Relationships) if you'd like. Enjoy :-)))

Vanilla: He usually gives more lighthearted gifts that have to do with inside jokes than anything. He likes to also give gifts to people he really loves more thoughtful gifts of course, but those are extremely rare and/or for birthdays exclusively. For what he likes to receive, he expects gifts that have to do with inside jokes as well since to him that means you also find it funny or remembered this joke. He also loves anything really, his not picky. He'll only lose it and find himself jokefully crying about any tomato based items like tomato chips, bottles of ketchup, and clamato juice

Cyperus: He loves to remember gifts based on what people like, usually having to do with their interests specifically. He won't give random based gifts to throw out there either, in fact he makes items himself if he can since he's so handy. He loves gifts based on his interests as well, even if that gift wasn't expensive or bought to begin with but made instead

Red: Like Vanilla, he loves jokingly giving gifts based on inside jokes or based on what that person hates. An example would be one time giving Pitch a mug of dogs instead of cats, grinning at the look of disappointment in him. If you hated these pair of socks at the store? Bam, gift time. Still, on important holidays, he actually can pull through. He will know they expect to get gifts they hate from him, but he'll have a hidden second gift as well. When giving Pitch the dog mug, it was Giftmas, so he pulled the actual gift from his pocket, a cat collar wrapping around a cat mug of higher quality. He doesn't care what gifts you give him, as long as it reminds you of him. He doesn't like expensive gifts though, since money being spent on him is already something he's picky about

Pitch: Always expect gifts of quality over quantity with him. He'll take you on store splurges and let you pick your favorite outfits or items at a store, but only rarely when he also wants new clothes. On holidays like your birthday or on Giftmas, however, he won't let you know at ALL what he plans for you. He always has a list of things you like and always tries to remember ways to combine that. You like the color blue and your favorite animal is a cat? Bam, a cat statue with blue accents. Perfumes you wear? He'll take note and find new ones you will like. In return, he won't expect you to buy him something super expensive since not everyone has money for that. He will always appreciate you taking note of what he likes, especially if it's based on red or black things, and if he can keep this gift for a long time for memories sake

Powder: He will give you gifts when he has to be at work for a long time, ways of reminding you of him while he's away. I don't think he'd work in any police force due to my own opinions, but he does have an active jobs that allows him to be creative and helpful to his communities like community service. Sometimes events have to take days or weeks, so he's going to make sure you don't miss him for too long. Gifts he loves to receive is ones that prove you thought of him or remembered something about him that he let slip once or twice before. That in itself is enough for him

Stretch: He LOVES it when he can give someone gifts, since he always remembers what they like. Tokens of appreciation and things that for example, you and him both like. Video games for you to play alone or with him, tickets to that movie you wanted to see, etc. He rarely likes gifts due to not wanting people to spend money on him, but he always tries to carry the gifts around when he can. If he really wanted this video game he'll always try to see if you can play it together or take turns with it as well, or hug you when you give him this manga or comic he really wanted. He'll only slightly scold you though

Saint: He rarely gives gifts, and when he does expect him to have thought of what to give you for a while or just random little charms and knickknacks since he's just odd to begin with. Small stones, random items he (stole) got, or even just odd items he finds in the woods. Otherwise, he tried to make gifts instead of buying them since he's more worried about the significance over the value it costs. He learned how to sew when he was underground, so when he first decided to participate in Giftmas with the rest of the "family", he sewed a fabric blanket together for you. He knows that it gets cold in winter, and maybe you'll like it? He ended up looking at you with a blown out eyelight when he saw you smile and decided to give you more gifts like that. Stuffed animals sewn together, scarfs, etc. He rarely finds gifts for himself a little pointless since that money can go to something useful so food is always a good gift for him or ones that mean so damn much to him that can last a long time for him to carry around or clothes he can wear like a beanie hat you gave him for winter

Lunar: It's not often he'll give others gifts, but when he does it's baked goods or handmade items like with Saint. He makes items made together like this pretty wind chime he made for your birthday made of pieces of glass that reflect in the light when the sun hits it just right. They're funky, a little odd, but always sweet. He doesn't ever really like people giving him gifts since he wants those things to go into things like taking care of yourself or the house, but handmade gifts always make him sentimental. He still has the very first gift he received when above ground from you, which was this new, unique scarf you got for him. He carries it around and wears it everywhere, using the remains of his old scarf to give to Saint and remake in the later made fabric blanket he helped make

Carmine: He will always always ALWAYS find ways to get things for you. He'll pamper you in ways you can't even complain about if you try to scold him for spending so much money, such as getting useful items that you need for work, for the house, etc. He prides himself in providing for you, always knowing what you need when going out like chapstick or a jacket, since he works hard to remember what you like and need. (He read a book about humans and what they need so flexing in his knowledge also makes him preen) He can provide for himself, so he prefers affection through helping him around or physical touch. He's actually the most prideful in receiving gifts unless there practical, so for Giftmas he always prefers if people just spend time with him when looking at Giftmas lights or help him prepare for the holidays. On his birthday, the family knew he was picky about things like that so they either got things to celebrate a surprise party or items he needed for cleaning. Practicality and all that. When you got him a very pretty necklace for his first birthday with you, however, he just stared at you and said nothing at first. It was gold with a carmine colored gem in the center. He tries to scold you for it, but his voice is a little shaky as he asks you why you got it. Then, he put it on and he practically never took it off, still doesn't unless he's taking a shower. He told you never to do it again though

Rus: If you really want something but can't get it for whatever reason, there are rare times he'll get it for you. He never wants you to pay him back, and he always is willing to pamper you. Most of the time his gift giving consists of paying for takeout, so these moments are few and far between. Still, he considers what you really really want and takes note of these things, only rarely needing to go based on what you like if you're really secretive in what you want. He doesn't need gifts to feel loved, but the times you do get him something that he can have to be reminded of you, he values it and takes extremely good care of it to remember that he's loved by you. The physical proof that you do at least. He's always willing to accept these things, but you don't have to do it constantly and he'll scold you otherwise

Razz: He takes note of things you want, is willing to pamper you at times, and even if he's smart with his money he doesn't mind getting these things. He thinks that buying expensive gifts is cheap in the face of other forms of affection, but he is willing to do it on special occasions. When it comes to receiving gifts however, it's something a little different. He doesn't need expensive gifts or anything that he just really really wanted, since he's similar to Carmine when it comes to spending money on him. But, also just like Carmine, he doesn't expect to receive gifts at all since out of all monsters, you got something for him? You put thought into it, and he feels deeply loved for that since he always encourages you to show him love in different ways for many reasons. He treasures it and wears it if he can, or else he'll make sure his gift can be proudly shown since he will brag about how much you love him as a result

Cash: Surprise surprise, the frugal skeleton actually really loves to pamper you! More than his brother, actually, and he makes sure to get you things you can wear since he can let others know he pampers you and are his loved one. He will put thought into gifts, but most of it consists of him being able to catch wind or outright hear you say you want something. He wasn't able to get a lot of things underground unless he swindled someone or stole it, so he pushes being able to provide gifts. And ah yes, the greedy bastard loves gifts. He loves that you're willing to think of him when buying him something, a bit more materialistic that way. But truly? Secretly even? He really really loves when you cook him something or get him something that you put your whole heart and soul into. The value of this gift means more than any type of gift otherwise, and he'll show it off to others and brag about your love for him. He'll wear it, take care of it, and he appreciates that you love him enough to get it for him

Wine: The most notorious for gift giving even in comparison to Carmine and Cash? Yes. He's going to get you such high quality gifts just because he knows what you like, and he's not afraid to do it. He likes to pamper you as much as he pampers Coffee, to the point that if you even try to argue he's just going to refuse arguing with you. It's almost evil. Now, for receiving gifts? Don't sweat it, he can buy himself whatever he wants! Like Carmine and Razz, the three struggle accepting anything. However, he won't scold you for getting him something, but rather ask why you felt the need to. He'll wear what you give him once he sees the sentimental value of it, even if you're worried it's not up to "his standard." The value of emotional weight is far more worthy to him and anything else pales in comparison. He loves any gifts in wine red, gold, or blacks too. If you manage to find out about his favorite dessert or chocolate though and get it for him, it'll be one of the few moments you catch him blushing as he thanks you with a slight crack to his voice. Rarely anyone can figure that stuff out, so he's impressed and slightly embarrassed along with his flattered opinion of you being raised

Coffee: Despite the wealth he and his brother has, he prefers to give and receive gifts of sentimental value. He'll draw for you, buy you sweets, and he's a soft romantic so you can expect flowers from him as well. If you buy him things he loves to eat, video games he wants, etc, he'll get sentimental that you remember what he likes since he's also pretty secretive on that stuff unless it's video games. If it's a two player he'll insist to not play it without you. When you found his secret love for sanrio and Hello Kitty specifically, he practically sobbed when you got him a hoodie. He hugged you, kissed your cheeks and didn't let you go until you or someone else pried him off.

Killer: Gift giving is odd for him. He's of course someone that wouldn't do it often, but he'd give you something based off what you both mutually like or based on something you hate in order to get a laugh. He's the type to give you odd things to see if you'll accept them, but not things that are gory or gross by any means. When receiving gifts, he would appreciate things such as knives, cat based gifts, and he wouldn't appreciate or like gifts based on the color Yellow or based on ketchup. Don't try to get him something worth of emotional or financial value though, because the amount of items he's lost overtime is insane to be honest. Chocolate or energy drinks is a good go-to

Dust: He rarely gets emotionally attached to others to begin with, so if you got a gift from him they would start small. Things like a weird rock, a flower, food he picked up sometime. He'll take pictures since he loves photography, giving you a photo of random or pretty things. He'd move to give you things of value the more intimate you are, like jewelry or trinkets. He's weird when it comes to accepting gifts, but he values them a lot more than he lets on. He'll wear what you give him, love what you cook, etc. He also appreciates books he hasn't read before since he had read all the books from underground years ago

Error: He would give you a plushie he handmade of yourself or of him, something that he'd be willing to give you since he would think of you highly as a result of it. He's very sensitive to touch, so a plushie of him would be a way to allow you to 'hug him' for example. He also maked bracelets woven together or with beads he collets, something he'd gift him you. He would knit you blankets, scarves, etc. infused with his magic so that you can feel the intent sewn in with it whenever you're upset or want to feel happy. He also tends to give you these things to prevent others like Ink from messing with you, as if he's staking a "claim" that you're with him. He'll love chocolate of course, but different types of yarn would also make him excited or maybe a book with different animals, monsters, etc would get him excited as well. He likes those types of things because it shows you're aware of his interests. And also, something a bit more sentimental to him, would be things based on space or cats generally

Ink: He can get a bit creative with his gifts? Drawings, paintings, carvings, little handmade knickknacks! He would create things for you to not only get you to smile and hang up, but he also would create little charms like keychains to help identify you since he has a bad memory and gets confused a lot due to timelines and multiple AU's. He also does this as a way to also "stake a claim" on you, similar to Error. If you somehow got involved with both, the two would constantly layer you with different gifts to try and prove to the other that you're their best friend or "captive". He's not hard to please either, he will accept any drawings, art supplies, charms like necklaces or bracelets. Anything handmade from you is wonderful

Fresh: Now he's the most erratic with gift giving. This bastard can provide pins, stickers, figurines, necklaces, bracelets, charms, knickknacks, small CD players to share music tastes, candy, and more! He's fun with gift giving and he would love to make sure you even have a fanny pack or bag so that you can carry around everything he gives you. In return he's the same way, as long as you found it cool as well and thought of him. He also really loves sweets and TMNT, so those two things are a great go-to if you're unsure what to get him or song recommendations

Thank you for reading!!! :-))

[welcometothejianghu]

Welcome to another round of W2 Tells You What You Should See, where W2 (me) tries to sell you (you) on something you should be watching. Today's choice: 彩香ちゃんは弘子先輩に恋してる / Ayaka-chan wa Hiroko-senpai ni Koishiteru / Ayaka is in Love with Hiroko!

Ayaka is in Love with Hiroko! is a 2024 eight-episode Japanese comedy of errors about what happens when two adorable lesbians continually get in the way of their own relationship.

I think the poster gives a somewhat wrong impression: Hiroko (in black) is not a straight girl horrified that she is being hugged by a lesbian; she is a lesbian horrified that she is being hugged by her crush, whom she perceives to be an oblivious straight girl. But as the title of the show would suggest, Ayaka (in pink) is very much not a straight girl, and is instead a determined young woman with sapphic designs on the hot older woman at her job.

And they are both so, so stupid about it.

The whole wacky, wonderful series will take up a mere three hours and twelve minutes of your life, so here, as was the case with Otoko Meshi, is a correspondingly quick list of five reasons to watch it.

1. Clueless Lesbian 4 Clueless Lesbian

Have you ever seen someone have a crush and proceed to be normal about it? Well, you won't find that here. Ayaka is going to con this beautiful, competent woman into topping her if she has to kill everyone in this office to do it.

Hiroko refuses to believe that Ayaka might actually mean what she's saying, choosing instead to believe that Ayaka's actions are pure platonic displays of admiration, even when Ayaka outright says what she's after. Meanwhile, Ayaka simply cannot imagine why her very targeted overtures are always being rebuffed, interpreting Hiroko's continued resistance as a sign that Ayaka is simply not doing a good enough job of seducing her. She's got to up her game, dammit!

If you like the type of business where it takes multiple dates for two women to figure out they are in fact girlfriends, this is for you. Every oblivious lesbian trope in the book is on display here. It's a war of attrition between a woman who feels obligated to say no because she doesn't believe the person asking understands what she's asking for, and a woman who won't take "no" for an answer because she's certain that as soon as she figures out how to ask the question correctly, the answer will be "yes."

And will it be? Well, of course it will, because you know how this genre works. But not before some adorable wlw wackiness ensues!

2. Harold, they're (actually) lesbians

Often in both BL and GL properties, characters are presented as mostly straight with only plot-related same-sex leanings, usually having moments of going, I can't believe I'm falling for a wo|man!

The main lady-loving characters in this show have no trouble believing they're falling for women, because one's been out to herself as a lesbian since she was in middle school, one's just coming to terms with her desire for women but has acknowledged that it probably indicates she's a lesbian, and one honestly just never stopped to consider that being a woman desperately in love with another woman is pretty gosh darn lesbian behavior.

And I like that, you know? As much as I love a good Gay For You plot, I appreciate one that acknowledges that there's a whole very real community out there of people who feel the same way! You are not the only girl in the world who wants to kiss other girls! Lesbians have their own networks, hangouts, stereotypes, relationships, and even aesthetics that are distinctly lesbian. You can find them in real life, and I like it when you can find them in fiction too.

These aren't just straight relationships with incidentally matching genitals. There aren't even any strict butch/femme dynamics or demands that lesbianism equal gender-nonconformity. Sure, Hiroko is slightly more toward the masculine side of the gender slider than most of the other women in the show, but she's definitely not outright masc. While she's real into Ayaka's girly looks, as we see from flashbacks, Hiroko's not what you'd call picky about the gender presentation of her female partners.

They even go to a lesbian bar! The world's tiniest, most brightly lit lesbian bar! A magical place where you can always meet a beautiful red-clad femme, a cute little tomboy, and...

3. That hot bartender

It's like a good fairy granted a lion one wish, and the lion said it wanted to be turned into a beautiful Japanese lesbian, and the good fairy was like, wow, that's such a good wish, I'm going to make sure it turns out really great for you.

We are all the big-titty lesbian in red here.

4. Ayaka's outfits!

A major conceit of the show is that Ayaka, in response to her crush on Hiroko, has given herself a complete makeover, choosing outfits and hairstyles that (accurately) reflect Hiroko's tastes.

Even if you don't like her outfits -- and let's be real, some of them are a bit much for me -- they're still very cute and a lot of fun to see worn.

I do want to note that this isn't just a story about Girl Changes Entire Personality For Boy Girl She Likes. Ayaka's pre-transformation self is severe and almost robotic, and ... well, it doesn't seem to make her particularly happy to be like that. It seems less like her older persona is her "real" personality, and more like it's one that she'd just settled on because she'd been told it's what being an adult means.

There, that's what she used to dress like.

When she decides to change her style, she initially steers way too hard in the other direction, to the point where it feels like she went home and binge-watched fifty romcoms to learn how to be a person. (I'm just saying, if you wanted, you could choose to read Ayaka as an interesting flavor of autistic.) Over the course of the show, though, she gently settles into her new mode, which winds up suiting her so much better! So it's less about the nerdy girl having to leave her nerdy self behind to earn the attention of her crush, and more about how having a crush gives a girl the incentive to stop dressing the same way her parents dressed her in the second grade.

Also very cute: Some elements of her wardrobe get reused! She doesn't just magically wear several whole new things every episode! We see her apartment, and it's not large. She doesn't have room for a million different complete outfits, so she has to mix and match.

So yeah, if you, like Hiroko, like to see a cute girl wearing cute things, this show has just what the lesbian doctor ordered. (It's me, I'm the lesbian doctor.) (No, seriously, I am.)

5. A weirdly thoughtful take on the complexities of queer workplace relationships!

The show knows it can't keep up the absolute lesbian obliviousness the whole time, so feelings start to become clear about halfway through -- at which point the conflict that fuels the drama stops being about mistakenly thinking people are straight, and becomes more about why a lesbian office romance might not be the smartest career move for either of them.

After all, by the time you're in your mid-thirties and you've been working in the same place for over a decade, you're pretty well-established in your position -- but not so much that your job is completely safe from gossip or disapproving looks from your higher-ups. Meanwhile, when you're in your early twenties and just getting started, it won't do you any good to have everyone suspecting any future success is just a result of your sleeping with the (girl)boss.

So the goofy lesbian misunderstandings are fun and funny, but their worries about how dating will affect their jobs are real.

You find out eventually why Hiroko is particularly touchy about workplace relationships, and it's a very good reason! But at the same time the show explains this very good reason, it also points out that Japanese culture is slowly becoming more accepting of out gay people. Ten years can make a pretty big difference! Older generations might still be regressive about open queerness, but there's growing support from the youth.

Like these supportive coworkers! Aren't they precious?

I will admit, I am not the biggest fan of boss/underling romance dynamics. However, that never bothered me in this series, because Hiroko never feels quite like Ayaka's boss. She's Ayaka's sempai, sure, but she feels more like a senior colleague than an actual supervisor -- and Ayaka is 100% the one pursuing her, not the other way around. Still, if the idea of any hierarchy-crossing workplace relationship is an absolute dealbreaker for you ... well, you probably stopped reading this rec several paragraphs ago, so I'm not going to worry about it!

Anyway, don't get me wrong and assume this is something deep and serious about how perceptions of queerness can hinder professional success, because it's not. It's a goofy little comedy with cute outfits and dumb lesbians. But it's also a goofy little comedy that also occasionally makes some smart observations, and I like that about it.

bonus: Of course there's an adorable manga!

And you can read it here! It's a bit wackier and it makes some choices that wouldn't have worked in a live-action drama, but they're quite entertaining on the page. Here's the MangaDex summary:

Soft and bubbly office lady Ayaka is madly in love with her senior at work, Hiroko! Two lovestruck coworkers who both think the other is straight totally crush on each other… popular Twitter artist Sal Jiang’s latest office rom-com!

If anything, it handles Ayaka's transformation better than the show does, because it makes clearer that even after the makeover, she's still as intense and tough to crack as she was before -- around everyone but Hiroko. It even says in so many words that sometimes Ayaka's smiling demeanor is just masking.

The manga also knows a lot better what their job actually is, while the drama is more along the lines of, we work in an office! we do events! we have meetings! we create things for clients! It's basically the same Generic Company, LLC that every character in a modern AU fanfic does endless paperwork at.

Beside that, the series is a pretty darn faithful adaptation of the manga! Three volumes and eight episodes seem to be enough to carry about the same amount of story.

Want to watch the cute lesbians?

Sure you do! And the most reliable place to get them appears to be GagaOOLala, though I've found the whole series uploaded by various people on Dailymotion (here's episode 1 from one account, though you can find others).

It's a laugh-out-loud romp smart enough to know to get in there, tell a cute little bite of a story, and get out before the joke gets old. If you believe in the truth and goodness of lesbian love, treat yourself with this cheerful little romance that's only a slight exaggeration of how oblivious real-life lesbians can be.

Attagirl.

[doodle-birdo]

RW OSTober

Gosh, this track is so pretty… it’s so angelic.

Plus, this one connects on with the previous one. :)