#cold takes

[scrollwyrm]

WoF cold takes, anyone? Takes that nobody will really hate, but that people don’t tend to think about? Here’s mine: WREN IS VERY AROACE. I have spoken.

[tonyzaret]

[collapsedsquid]

However, in meetings with Vice President Harris and other administration officials, the publisher of The Times focused instead on a higher principle: That systematically avoiding interviews and questions from major news organizations doesn’t just undermine an important norm, it also establishes a dangerous precedent that future presidents can use to avoid scrutiny and accountability. That is why Mr. Sulzberger has repeatedly urged the White House to have the president sit down with The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, CNN and other major independent news organizations that millions of Americans rely on to understand their government.

I really fucking hate that this is the NYTimes meaning of "accountability"

[sokokoko]

When I say enemies to lovers, enemies means they both fight back against each other. Actively opposing one another. Actively fighting back, actively competing, one upping each other, swiping resources from under each other's noses, sabotaging one another, hitting back just as hard as the one who struck first. Tit for tat. An eye for an eye.

I like the phrase enemies to lovers more than rivals to lovers because rivals doesn't feel as serious to me. To be someone's enemy is a deeper thing imo.

To me, enemies to lovers is the one I hate who hates me just as much becomes bearable somehow. Hate eventually turns to love (there's usually a stage that looks somewhat like friendship in there).

Me liking enemies to lovers is about the transition from hate to love and exploring the thin line and how they slip over the line. And I like when they retain some of that competitive fire in the established relationship but there are ways in which the edges have softened.

Abuser x abused ≠ Enemies to lovers

That's something else entirely and doesn't sound fun. That sounds awful to try and portray as an actual romantic dynamic and not a commentary against/cautionary tale. This would hurt me to read.

Annoyance x the annoyed ≠ Enemies to lovers

Asshole x the one the asshole keeps bothering ≠ Enemies to lovers

Would potentially piss me off depending on how much the asshole doesn't respect the autonomy of the one they're pestering

Bully x bullied ≠ Enemies to lovers.

Not in the slightest. That is something else. These are all something else. I don't think bully x victim can be wholesome at all unless there's a helluva lot of repentance. Silent Voice style where the bully is filled with self loathing over their actions and works to better themselves. Even then, the weight of the bully's actions are still a raw wound.

Random rant I wanted to get out because I have a WIP where I want to tackle the enemies to lovers dynamic, but in the way that I consider to be enemies to lovers. The comments I see saying enemies to lovers is abusive annoy me. I feel like an enemy is respected, in some sense. If only for the danger that they pose or acknowledgement of their power and prowess.

Optimus Prime is Megatron's enemy, humans and the other Autobots are mere bugs and annoyances to him. An enemy must be on equal footing.

No power dynamics!!

Still exploring and working out kinks, but in my story, they're both college students in space and our earthling protag Killian accidentally insults Halite, an alien from a warrior/battle culture. She is the one to strike first and consider them enemies but Killian fights back. Enemies soften into rivals, tentative acknowledgment of their similarities, you're somewhat bearable to be around, to I feel like you understand me. They both have battlelust in their veins.

Edit: I should add my distinction between enemies and rivals.

A rival wants to be better than you. Is constantly trying to get ahead.

An enemy wants to be the agent of your downfall.

I think, in this way, an enemy can either be more sinister or serious than a rival would. Rivalry is fuelled by superiority/inferiority complexes/wanting to be better, the best.

Enemy(ship? hood?) Being enemies is about the emotion hatred. Hatred fuelled perhaps by the threat they pose or by one's enemy as a person. You and your enemy are like oil and water, unable to be mixed because you are so different.

But then you find out you're both liquids. You can both be poured. Both of you can be used to cook. Friends? Lovers?

And hatred has a lot of similarities to love. To the point where it would be called adjacent, while love's opposite is indifference. Because someone indifferent feels absolutely nothing for you, while love and hate are intense, passionate emotions.

[imbecominggayer]

Writing Advice On: Relatability

Hot Take: Make you characters relatable, not like that!

When people hear the world "relatable", a certain image comes to mind of the early to mid 2000s where the most important thing for a celebrity to be was "authentic" and "down to earth" in the most superfluous and superficial way possible.

Using this jumping off point, I will talk about what I hear when people advise to write "relatable characters" and what naysayers for relatability hear! Because it isn't the same thing.

When people read stories, they are looking for an immersive experience into the lives and emotions of others with the word "other" highlighted in order to make a point against relatability. Most naysayers of relability think that "relatable" means:

"has all of my superficial personality traits and life"

Obviously, the most popular characters in western media such as drug lord Walter White in Breaking Bad or disabled Ryan in Special aren't relatable to the majority of people.

And with that last paragraph, I have already pointed out a problem in "relatability is pointless". Walter White and Ryan are relatable.

Walter White is the story of corruption as his lust for power drives him further away from the man he once was. While this isn't the trajectory most follow, many can relate to being or knowing someone who went down a bad path paved with good intentions.

Ryan is the relatable "coming of age" story of a gay man with cerebral palsy who decides to go after the happier life he has always wanted. Ryan is the relatable protagonist who is awkwardly going after what he wants which is something that all of us have either tried or wanted to do.

These characters are relatable, not because of their specificity, but universality which is a made-up word probably.

"Sympathy Is Caused By Relatability And Understanding"

We sympathize with people not because we always relate to the individual circumstances but because we relate to stories about personal suffering which is universal.

It the belief that characters are only relatable when they have superficial traits that are similar to our own superficial traits that has prevented minorities such as Ryan O'Connell and Walter Jr. from taking the spotlight!

It comes from the belief that being a white cishet neurotypical abled-bodied man is the default and everything else diverse should be marketed toward a specific member of the populus.

Women protagonist = Woman story

Disabled protagonist = Disabled story

Etc. Etc.

But because people are learning simultaneously that "universal relatability is important" and "human stories are human stories which are universally relatable" which has allowed movies such as Barbie and shows such as Special to be such hits.

Obviously, Barbie is steeped in the existence of womanhood and Special is dedicated to representing disable existence BUT this doesn't remove their non-disabled and non-female audiences.

TL;DR: Relatability is important in the sense that relatability is not the "stories of people who look and act exactly like me" but instead "stories of people who live, thrive, and struggle just like me"

[godsprincess444]

SO MANY FREEZING COLD TAKES OF MINE:

1. i wish this “thought daughter” shit would stop

2. i hate summer

3. DONT WEAR A DAMN CROSS IF YOU ARENT CHRISTIAN IDC

4. stop blaming ur religious trama on the religion itself please 😍

5. little kids should NOT be watching youtube no matter what they’re watching

6. sex grosses me out

7. i hate when people talk about special needs children

8. i DISPISE tiktok vocabulary like u don’t even know what ur talking about

[sucka99]

[dudethatsmyundeaduncle]

Haven't seen dune 2 but I think it's one of those movies that change white people's lives for the worse.

[silly-goobr]

I hate hostile architecture so much it’s ugly and it’s mean and my god is it ugly I want people to have safe spots to sleep and I want birds everywhere no matter how “unattractive” you think they are

[polyhymniasbooks]

New at Cold Takes, a new feature, The Adventures of the Broke Cineaste, a look at similar films largely available on YT, Archive, and Tubi. The first bunch of flicks are a shaken not stirred flight of of Eurospy cocktails.

[iryght]

Don't know if this is a hot or cold take but: casual touches/affection are far more interesting than any kiss and make the story way more fun.

I don't care if their hands are on their partner's waist/neck while their kiss. Give me the longing looks as their partner does something stupid, give me a reassuring hand on their lover's shoulder or a tentative hand hold where one reaches out and the other slowly threads their fingers together. The growing casual intimacy after they get together, too! That's way more interesting than if they are a top or a bottom. Tell me which one brews the coffee every morning while waiting for the night owl to wake up.

[alive-pancake]

A complaint on the Yuu in TW is I feel like they're kinda just there. They were still chosen by the mirror so they should be able to do more. I know this is not a hot take for record. This take is freezing cold. But the most they ever do I feel is maybe a quick quip here and there. I haven't completely main story yet so maybe this will improve in late ones idk.

[ill-say-anything-i-hafta]

Sorry, Remus, I love you, but I think that making kids expose their greatest fears in front of their classmates is bad pedagogy!

[cromwelll]

I’m so tired of shitty posts like this:

“How can you be upset about X why Y is so much worse!?” is such a tired, overplayed, no-nuanced take.

Fun fact: I can be upset about two things at the same time.

Another fun fact: Upsetting things are not in competition with each other.

Bonus fun fact: I can triage upsetting things in my head and talk about them in the same sentence.

Extreme fun fact: Talking about X doesn’t mean I don’t care about Y.

[barblaz-arts]

Ok last one for today. I just really wanted to draw Vaggie.

[camillustheunwise]

My opinions nobody cares about episode number #320183589328.(3)

The type of people I hate the most are people who believe they have rights to force their will upon other or gatekeep others from something, like are they aware that the same can happen them?