#especially if it’s such a big and complicated piece of media with lots to talk about

[goldensunset]

most insane thing ever to me is people saying like ‘i still can’t get over this media’ or ‘i know this is kinda old now but i can’t let go’ and it’s from literally two months after the thing’s release??? still prime hype time?? bestie that is a newborn…

[slugtranslation-hypmic]

I Think Hypmic's Portrayal of Gender Roles is Kinda Refreshing: An Essay A.K.A. I'm Procrastinating on a Weekend Deadline :)

Hypmic's talking points on gender are hamfisted, corny, and melodramatic. "Maybe...we shouldn't have a wage gap," is not the hottest of takes. However, like most things in Hypmic, the writers have a lot more to say about gender and gender roles in the framing of the story itself that's much more nuanced. And honestly? It's kinda refreshing.

It's also something that went way over my head when I first became a Hypmic fan. Sure, I read manga and played Japanese video games--usually translated into English first--but I didn't have enough exposure to hundreds or thousands of pieces of untranslated Japanese media. I'm going to guess that most Hypmic fans don't either, which is totally fine and normal. We all exist within our respective cultural communities wherein we're bombarded with messages constantly telling us how to act, think, and speak. We tend to absorb these messages on subconscious levels and reflect them in the art we create and stories we tell, either by reinforcing them or challenging them. Thus, our stories don't exist in a vacuum, and divorcing stories from their cultural backgrounds can suggest the artist is the original thinker of a larger concept or hide their specific point of criticism. That is, if I wrote a story about a man who chooses to not catch fish, drink beer, and drive a Dodge Ram pick-up truck, we should be aware that I'm not the person who conceptualized the stereotype of dudes who catch fish, drink beer, and drive pick-ups. I wouldn't deserve the credit for dreaming up that exact image, and at the same time, it would be incorrect to read that as me targeting those three things randomly. The choice to not drive a Dodge Ram pick-up is not a commentary on Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. It's a stand-in for the notion of masculinity.

Thing is, we're hit with messages about masculinity, femininity, and other gender-related concepts on a daily basis. No matter where you live or what language you speak, every person on Earth is inundated with messages saying, "This is what you are, and consequently, this is how you should act." Our relation to these messages is complicated, and this complexity is compounded by different cultural communities preaching different messages in their stories, marketing, and human interactions. For instance, the US's massive global cultural influence means that those outside the US can still easily recognize what I mean by catching fish, drinking beer, and driving enormous American pick-up trucks. But the location and cultural differences may add or subtract nuances. A person living in, say, Munich is unlikely to have Dodge pick-ups advertised to them the way a person in rural Texas would. Our fictional Munich person does not feel the same social pressures to buy a Dodge and represent their masculinity with a Dodge the way our imaginary Texan would. In turn, the Munich person likely sees a Dodge with an element of absurdity--who the hell needs such a big truck in a European city?--and foreign Americanness. The Texan wouldn't have that concern--why worry about navigating your enormous truck down narrow streets when you live in the countryside?--and sees Americanness as their local default, thus removing any element of foreignness.

That is to say, gendered messages aimed at people (especially women) who live in Japan don't affect me the same way as they impact those who do live in Japan. Like, it's not my dog in the fight, and there are plenty of people who are directly affected who write their own stories and commentaries on gender roles in Japan. Japanese women don't need a random guy in the US to stand up and say, "Damn, your gender roles are fucked!" 1) They already know. 2) They're already saying it. So I come at this from an angle of someone who already has deep, primary frustration with the gendered messaging in my culture and secondary frustrations when similar messages appear in other cultures. I don't have a bone to pick with Japanese media in particular. Plain and simple, reading and working on hundreds of pieces of Japanese media is what I do for a living. It's in my face constantly, and as a result, I am also perpetually bombarded by messages about gender roles in Japanese media.

It's not a hot take to say that Japanese media, like the media of every single other culture around the globe, has a lot to say about gender. There's a lot of slotting people into boxes and telling people what to do. It's chafing, as we see all across history in art produced in reaction to gender roles. In the past couple of decades, global shifts in gender roles have caused media to shift the messages they're pushing, but it's not controversial to say that Japan has lagged behind other countries like the US.

Many, many stories push arbitrary notions of how to be a girl or how to be a boy that don't necessarily come from the author themselves. The authors probably aren't even fully conscious that they're making these choices. If an author writes a story about a library and makes every female character a romance fan and every male character an action fan, it's likely a reflection of endless messaging that says action is for boys, romance is for girls. In turn, this story becomes yet another reinforcing message. If no fictional girls like action, and no fictional boys like romance, it becomes alienating for real girls and boys who don't follow these same rules. These rules are everywhere and have so much to say about gender that it's hard to know where to begin. Girls must like cute things. Boys can't like sweet food. Women must not express sexual desire. Men can't be shy. On and on and on.

Which is why, when there's a relative lack of this in Hypmic, it's kind of a breath of fresh air.

Wrong Ways to Be a Man

Actually, Hypmic does have a few moments where characters claim there are certain things men or women should do, but the writing always frames these messages as incorrect.

Take Samatoki, for instance. After Kuukou and Sasara leave MCD, Samatoki tells Ichirou, "Men shouldn't cry when they lose their friends. Men should only cry when they lose a family member."

(TDD chapter 10)

This line usually appears via Ichirou's perspective. In the stage play, it's told during a song Ichirou narrates, and as shown above in panel 3, the manga frames the line from the angle at which Ichirou sees it. In such moments, the audience is meant to read this as a cool line from a strong mentor figure to Ichirou. That's how Ichirou sees it, and he's a seventeen-year-old with too much on his shoulders who idolizes Samatoki. He is incapable of seeing how much pain Samatoki struggles with.

However, when the manga focuses on more intimate moments of Samatoki's life, we see that Samatoki does struggle quite a lot.

(BB/MTC+ chapter 6)

This isn't a cool, attractive figure meant to be idolized. While Samatoki's cigarette usage and aggressiveness are often framed as sexy or enticing, the juxtaposition with dirty laundry, overflowing ashtrays, and empty bottles make him a sympathetic and struggling figure. Therefore, we should understand that his notion that men don't cry is flawed. It's a means to distract himself from emotions he doesn't want to feel.

Later, as Samatoki begins to process his emotions and open up to his teammates, the unhealthy coping mechanisms recede. Samatoki is more confident, mature, and happier as a result of being more emotionally vulnerable.

We see a similar transformation with Kuukou. As a teen, Kuukou is reluctant to accept help or truly let anyone in. In a conversation with Hitoya, he says (and I am still completely unable to take this seriously), "A man's got to wipe his own ass."

(DH/BAT chapter 4)

However, over the course of his character arc, Kuukou learns that he cannot exist as a good leader or individual without the teamwork of his newfound "family." Only rejecting this classical and toxic notion of masculinity brings Kuukou joy.

In fact, most of the first-line characters have very similar arcs. At the start of the story, Ichirou is insistent on doing everything himself. He has to learn to be able to rely on other people (Kuukou, Samatoki, Ichirou and Jirou) to be happier and unlock his true strength. See below, his final attack and Ability use in the 2nd DRB, which is only possible when his brothers figuratively and literally support him through it.

(BB/MTC+ chapter 25)

Sasara struggles with emotional honesty and trust in favor of using humor to gloss over discomfort. It takes multiple heart-to-hearts with Roshou before he can let humor take a backseat and say how he really feels. Ramuda has difficulty trusting other people and being honest with his emotions when faced with stressful scenarios. Only through Fling Posse is he able to open up and ask for help instead of driving people away when the problems are too big for him to face alone. Jakurai struggles to connect with other people, work through and acknowledge his complicated feelings, and not place himself on a pedestal. Through Matenrou, Jakurai is able to ask for help, be more open, and ultimately be less hard on himself.

The second- and third-line characters follow similar arcs, and this repetition creates a core message for Hypmic: Trust and rely other people. Be open with your feelings. There's a wrong way to be a man, and that's to hurt yourself and other people.

Right Ways to Be a Man...Are Infinite!

But with that being said, there is a surprising lack of commentary on how else to be a man. Hypmic as a whole doesn't do much to constrain the male characters in terms of gender roles.

Sure, some characters do fit into more traditionally masculine roles--Ichirou, Samatoki, Riou, etc. The messaging makes it clear that it isn't wrong to play into masculinity provided it doesn't become toxic. (See above.)

Even then, however, these especially masculine characters are associated with less masculine traits that are either portrayed positively or not portrayed as a joke. Riou is an avid cook, but the joke is never that he wears an apron and knows his way around an outdoor kitchen (tee-hee, men don't cook!). It's that he cooks with horrifying ingredients. Samatoki is a fashionista, but the joke is framed as a counterpart to Ichirou's nerdiness.

(DoD chapter 1)

Here, it's funny that neither of them can shut up (the ペラペラ/blah blah SFX, the long bubbles filled with lots of text that's cut to indicate they kept going for longer), but the object of their attention--a model toy and a pair of jeans--are treated in the same neutral light. It's very common for stories to touch on, even defensively, the social taboo of men being into clothes. Hypmic doesn't even acknowledge that such a taboo could exist.

This is subtle but extraordinarily effective in giving characters the same consideration and weight. The more feminine characters are always treated just as sincerely (or, if there's a joke to be made, irreverently) as the more masculine characters. Take Ramuda, for instance. In Japanese media, a love of sweets is often characterized as feminine and will often be remarked upon, even in LGBT+ media, as atypical for men. Again, there's zero acknowledgement of such a thing in Hypmic. Whenever other characters talk about Ramuda's food intake, it's always framed as a concern about the lack of nutrition.

(FP/M chapter 11... I don't have the source lying around on my computer, so here's the old-ass scanlation lol)

It's also given the exact same weight as anyone else's junk food habits. Here, MCD goes out for burgers (a neutral to masculine-coded food due to the meat and high calorie count) while Ramuda opts to try a sugary Starbucks-esque drink. The parallelism in the comic's framing suggests that the two objects are functionally the same, and there is no comment that a sugary drink is feminine and therefore "inappropriate" for Ramuda. There's also no indication that MCD's preferences are in any way better. They simply happen to be the characters' personal preferences. The punchline is two groups splitting up, only to awkwardly run into each other again moments later.

(DoD volume 4 bonus comic)

Similarly, Ramuda's interest in clothes or fashion is never treated negatively--in fact, the discussions of clothes as a means to find identity and happiness make it a positive!

In ARB cards and promotional materials, Ramuda sometimes wears dresses. It's, again, portrayed in parallel to other characters wearing more masculine clothes and is never commented on as something "unusual." It's just who Ramuda is.

Hifumi is another interesting case. Like Ramuda, his playful personality often doesn't as stereotypically masculine. (To be clear, I read much of this as "gender neutral with a strong emphasis on youth" versus "feminine" in a way that I'm not sure has a good US equivalent...metrosexual/yuppie men's fashion, maybe? In the sense that it's a youth subculture that defies some masculine gender roles but is still focused mainly on men. I wish I was more well-versed in Japanese men's fashion and could give an exact term, but I'm what I'm thinking of is definitely an established thing--young, trendy dudes whose styles focus on poppiness vs. the rugged manly man or "idk, I'm just some guy" subcultures. It's a thing that pisses off old Japanese conservative men in the same fashion as people getting up in arms about "the gayz!!!1!" and their androgynous clothing lol.) Their personalities are often the butt of jokes, but only in the same way that Dice or Doppo are--that is, that they're exaggerated and over the top. There's no commentary on masculinity or lack thereof.

There are also moments when Hifumi, Gentarou, or other characters play feminine characters in roleplay moments, which is usually (but not always) not the sole joke. The audience is supposed to find it funny, but the humor is almost always centered on the absurdity of the scene as a whole. For instance, in a moment where Hifumi and Doppo are pretending to be two drunk karaoke-goers, the humor comes from the composite set-up of Hifumi's hair twirl, Doppo's untucked shirt and tie, Doppo and Hifumi's exaggeratedly flirtatious poses, the spotlights and sparkles, and the same font as used on classic karaoke machines.

(FP/M+ September 2022 oneshot)

Hifumi and Doppo do not perform traditional gender roles in their homelife, and while it's easy to see and often commented on in the English-speaking fanbase when it comes to Hifumi, I find it just as prevalent on Doppo. It's true that Hifumi is taking a feminine role by doing the majority of the household's cooking and cleaning, but if we were to assume Doppo has the masculine role in the household, he would have the breadwinner duty. However, he isn't the main source of income for their household, and he's just as unassertive in finding a (female) romantic partner as Hifumi is. Japanese men are bombarded with media messages stressing the importance of taking an active role in career and romance. That Doppo does not would, in many stories, make him the butt of a joke for not living up to masculine gender roles. But he isn't; instead, Hypmic portrays him as a sympathetic character. It's tough, Hypmic says, for people to get good jobs and maintain friendships/relationships as an adult.

Similarly, it's noteworthy that Hifumi's self-appointed term "Gigolo" is consistently portrayed as a good thing in Hypmic. The meaning of the English term aside, the Japanese word ジゴロ (jigoro) is almost always used as an insult for a man who is financially dependent on one or multiple women. In the strictest sense of the term, Hifumi is a jigoro in that his income derives from his female clients. However, there is never any shame associated with that, and as a whole, Hifumi's career as a host is shown to be a positive thing. I can't express enough how rare that is in any sort of semi-serious media. Certainly, Hypmic acknowledges that his job requires too much drinking (Doppo's verse in Hoodstar), but the overall portrayal is overwhelmingly positive. Hifumi and his coworkers are never treated as uneducated, boorish, or pathetic for "failing" to find other work that does not require flirting with and entertaining women. (This is partially due to the overlapping judgment with sex work.)

All the various harmless preferences and personality traits of the male characters are treated equally with no judgement over what's masculine or non-masculine. Within the broader context of Japanese media, this absence of judgment stands out and reinforces one of Hypmic's core themes: Differences make us better, not worse. In the end, Hypmic suggests, there's no one right way to be a man.

Right Ways to Be a Woman...Are Just as Infinite!

But what about women? This series is, after all, marketed mainly towards women, and while female audience members can no doubt extrapolate the lessons learned from the male characters, it's worth taking a look at the female characters too.

The female characters do receive much less screen time than the men and are not the focus in the series; I'd argue that's less an issue of overt sexism and more that they fall out of focus in the story the writers want to tell. (There's a broader discussion to be had about inherent sexism in the writers' focus which goes hand-in-hand with rap industries across the globe favoring men and rap being an example of exaggerated masculinity, but that's a topic for another day.)

Even so, the framing of the female characters is interesting in a couple key respects. The individual character arcs and motivations of the main female characters are, in my opinion, some of the weakest parts of Hypmic--many times, Otome and Ichijiku do things because the plot demands them to, making them look incompetent or needlessly cruel for characters we're supposed to sympathize with. Nemu's story seems to be handled with more care and takes an interesting twist, wherein she openly acknowledges that she's disenfranchised as a woman in modern Japan but rejects the notion that she needs to find strength on either Ichirou or Samatoki's (male) terms. By choosing to be strong in "her own way" (whatever that means...it's not well-defined), the authors are using Nemu to reject the notion that strength and power are inherently masculine.

What I find to be far more interesting is the character design for the Chuuouku women, both in what is said and what is not said.

To begin with, the characters and their portrayals run the gambit from highly sexualized to completely non-sexual. Some characters (especially Ichijku and Honobono) have conventionally attractive, curvy body types and are often drawn in ways that highlight their bodies.

(FP/M+ chapter 4)

(FP/M+ chapter 14)

In some cases, especially Honobono's, the enticing nature of the illustrations is framed as the character's choice; in the above, her words indicate that she wants to seduce the off-screen listeners. The images included above are largely representative of these characters' raps, regardless of illustrator.

But on the flip side, other characters with large breasts or hips are never drawn in a sexual fashion. By way of comparison, here are two shots of Nemu rapping.

(BB/MTC+ chapter 12)

Even in shots with dynamic poses, no attention is drawn to Nemu's figure in any sort of provocative sense. Nemu touches her chest, drawing the reader's eye there, but the artist does not emphasize the size of her chest--they're allowing a chest touch to be no more than an emphasis of the self. At the same time, Nemu's body isn't downplayed. We can see in panel 2 on page 2 that Nemu has a small waist and wider hips, but once again, she isn't being sexualized. The action lines draw the reader's eye to Samatoki and thus put the action first and foremost. This creates the idea that not only can characters portray themselves sexually, but they can just as easily choose not to.

We see similar with Otome, who does not wear any sort of revealing clothing and is never shown in a sexual fashion. However, Hypmic doesn't equate revealing clothing to sexual portrayals either! While I wouldn't call Tsumabira's outfit revealing, she does have more visible cleavage than most Chuuouku figures. However, her bare chest is never sexualized like Ichijiku's.

(BB/MTC+ chapter 4)

Compare the non-emphasis on the chest and the power stance to any of the many shots of Ichijuku where her breasts are front and center in the camera. Speaking of power stance, Tsumabira remains confident in her power stance without being sexy--that is, no stepping on the camera and showing her whole leg.

Which isn't to say that Tsumabira is a sexless character. She's drawn visibly turned on by the male characters in such a way that is cartoonish but not, in turn, overly sexual. Were this supposed to be titillating to the reader, I would have expected to see a larger close-up on her face and tongue. However, the artist (who is no stranger to focusing on tongues!) devotes the majority of the panel to Tsumabira's body language (which, again, doesn't absurdly exaggerate any of her proportions or focus on her chest) and covers part of the mouth with text bubbles. Tsumabira is drawn as engaging in sexual behavior without being sexualized for reader entertainment.

(FP/M+ chapter 4)

The juxtaposition of such different views with little to no judgement attached to any of them suggests that it's perfectly okay to want to be sexy or not, to wear revealing clothing or not, to be involved in sexual situations without being the object of sexual interest, or to simply exist with an attractive body type without sex ever coming into the equation. Just as some characters choose to tie bodies to sexiness, some don't whatsoever--and either is perfectly fine!

The former idea ("I can choose to be sexy") may not sound especially revolutionary to US audiences, where sexuality is thrust upon women willingly or otherwise, but I find it fascinating because it lets the main characters embrace this idea without associated slut shaming. So much of Japanese media insists that women should be sexy but are also wrong for wanting to indulge in their own sexuality. Therefore, having characters who run virtually every iteration of take on the topic (I want to engage in sexuality and be sexualized, I want to engage in sexuality without being sexualized, I don't want to engage in either) with multiple body types (ie, Tsumabira isn't automatically not sexualized because she has a smaller chest; Nemu isn't automatically sexualized because she has a bigger chest) and no judgement involved feels like another breath of fresh air to me.

As a whole, I find the diversity of the Chuuouku uniforms and character appearances quite interesting. They're undeniably all feminine and relatively militaristic, but different characters wear entirely different wardrobes. Skirts vs pants, blouses vs dresses, high heels vs boots... Since every character has her own take on the common theme, it once again feeds into the idea that each character is her own individual and perfectly valid for defining femininity in her own way.

Haircuts, too, range from longer and more feminine hairstyles to pixie cut-esque looks.

(BB/MTC+ chapter 16)

Again, nothing of the framing suggests this short-haired woman is in any way different from her longer-haired counterparts on the edges of this screenshot.

Finally, while most Chuuouku women are conventionally attractive, I find it extremely compelling that Haebaru is a stereotype of an unattractive Japanese woman. To be extremely clear, I do not think these stereotypes should have weight, but the combination of chubby and/or muscular build, freckles, rounded nose, and non-glossy hair is often used as a visual shorthand for unattractive or otherwise undesirable women.

Sure, it's not fantastic that Haebaru is a scheming, two-bit villain. However, so is virtually every other female character in the series, and in particular, Haebaru is (the conventionally attractive) Tsumabira's counterpart. Both are treated with the same respect or lack thereof, suggesting that one's appearance has nothing to do with your ability to be a no-good baddie. Ha ha ha.

It would be lovely if the female characters were fleshed out further and given intelligent choices and diversity outside of the realms of physical appearance. However, I do think the writers' choices are limited by virtue of all women automatically being antagonistic side characters (which, again, is another discussion altogether). What the writers can and have accomplished is further reinforcing a celebration of differences. Just as there's no one right way to be a man, there's an infinite number of ways to be a scheming snake of a woman HAHA.

Intersection with LGBT+ Topics

Unfortunately, this is a very binary look at gender and gender roles, which, while largely representative of the current state of Japanese media, can be disappointing.

Hypmic appears to want to steer shy of LGBT+ topics as a whole, which is a bit of a shame. In a story so focused on gender and acceptance of diversity, it seems the natural next step to explore the notion of those who experiences don't align with a strict gender binary. Such stories are growing in popularity in Japanese media but have yet to be anywhere near the mainstream acceptance in US media (which is still in a fledgling stage at best). I would imagine Hypmic's writers are unable or unwilling to take a definite stance on these topics in the work due to fears of financial or career backlash. If nothing else, the sexuality of the main characters needs to remain in a limbo in order to have plausible deniability for both self-shipping and shipping with other characters. (Some deniability may be more plausible than others.)

The few instances in which Hypmic does wander into this territory are usually clumsy. I am no fan of the handful of scenes where male/male attraction is supposed to be funny purely by virtue of being male/male.

The inclusion of Urumi, the one minor character explicitly LGBT+, is not stellar either. I am hesitant to apply any definite label to her, as the real-life people her stereotype portrays self-identify as everything from trans women to cis men--or refuse to use these English labels at all! Still, we know from her profession (proprietor of a bar heavily implied to be a gay bar by the neighborhood it's in), appearance (poofy permed hair, exaggerated make-up), and demeanor (feminine speech style, a bit flirtatious) that she's AMAB and choosing to present herself in a feminine fashion. By writing Jirou to ask, "Aren't you a man?" in an exasperated fashion, the writers have put her gender presentation in a boke role--suggesting she's over-the-top, exaggerated, comedic. It's not great. I completely understand why readers find it offensive (and it is) even while I don't think the writers intended it that way. Ultimately, it would have been great to see other explicitly LGBT+ characters portrayed without the joking angle.

With that said, I'm not entirely unhappy with her character. She is a stereotype, but the authors have chosen to take only the visual elements of the stereotype and leave the rest on the cutting room floor. In other works of fiction, characters like Urumi are often hypersexual to the point of being in-universe creepy, especially towards underage boys. Other times, characters like her may be eccentric or off-putting in other ways. However, that's not at all the case here. Urumi seems to play a helpful big sister/aunt role in Jirou's life, and he's clearly comfortable enough with her to spend the night at her bar.

(BB/MTC+ chapter 17. "Sorry, but can I shack up here again tonight?" "Of course you can.")

While she seems to engage in some sort of a bohemian lifestyle, as evidenced by the alcohol and smoking, it isn't anything outside of what many of the other characters do. Additionally, while she isn't drawn in a flattering fashion in scenes where she's playing up her persona (which is par for the course with any character in this series, regardless of gender), there are plenty of neutral shots of her being serious. Finally, the art is never outright rude--that is, she isn't drawn exaggeratedly masculine or flamboyantly...snakey? I don't know how to describe this to anyone who's lucky enough to have never seen this--clearly LGBT+ AMAB characters drawn with noodly limbs and huge, overblown lips winding around male characters.

Maybe because I see so much worse continuing to be produced in this day and age, I feel like Hypmic could have done a much, much worse job with this character. She overall plays a positive role and is treated with much the same care as other side characters. It's unfortunate, then, that the writers have chosen to make her gender presentation the subject of a joke.

In other frustrations, I heavily dislike the unnecessary gender divide in background characters. All punks and other background baddies are male, whereas all adoring fans are female. (But Rhyme Anima has done an interesting job of subverting this!) The vast majority of other background figures fall into strict gender roles, which is likewise disappointing. It appears that diversity may be an accepted trait for none but a lucky few that form the main Hypmic cast.

All in all, I don't think Hypmic's portrayal of gender roles is groundbreaking, nor do I think it's fair to suggest that all Japanese pop culture plays into strict gender roles. There are certainly many Japanese works, popular or otherwise, with much more interesting things to say about gender. However, when compared to the vast majority of the titles that cross my desk on a regular basis, I notice and appreciate the level of care put in to Hypmic's commentary on gender roles. The work consistently reinforces the notion that it's okay to be your own individual, no matter how that plays into your gender, and I find that freeing. That's a message we could all do to hear more often, regardless of culture and language.

TL;DR: Oh no, my rapidly approaching deadline. :)

[rockybloo]

Hi, feel free to ignore this ask, or point me wearily to the FAQ if i missed it, but can I asked what inspired the world of Lore? Specifically the holistic nature of it, where different tales live side by side. I am a…hopeful, one-day fairy and folk tale scholar, and in my studies I’ve seen this concept pop up in a lot of more modern retellings/reimaginings, and one of my projects has been to see if i could find a source. When i say inspiration/source, I don’t mean singular piece(s) of media that gave you the idea (if you have one id love to know it though!) i more mean sorta your own internal source, the emotional trigger that led you to grouping separate fairy tales into one larger world. I know theres a lot to be said for the simple concept of “because it fucks, thats why” (some of my favorite interpretations of tales spawn from similar concepts) but if you have the time or energy, id love it if you’d be willing to ponder deeper motivations.

Sorry for the long ask, im absolutely obsessed with your characters and the worlds you create by taking archetypical settings and twisting them into something new and intriguing. Thank you for sharing your art (in all senses of the word) with us!

Thank you! And I very much love overthinking fairy tales and their existence SO I SHALL DO EXACTLY THAT!

For me, the reason I just plopped down every fairy tale into the same world, aside from a simple "Because everyone else does it and it's my favorite type of fantasy world" is because it makes so much sense to me.

There's a ton of repeated themes and characters in fairy tales to the point they have a classification system to make folklorist's lives easier when categorizing them. There are so many different Cinderellas, and I don't mean just the European one, as it's a fable that has been found all around the world. There are very much big differences in each story but the literal age old tale is still noticeable.

I took a mythology and fairy tale class in high school where we talked about "The Hero's Journey" which is like a template nearly every story falls into regardless of where a story is from. And for me, it was wild seeing just how many shared tropes humanity has as a whole in our storytelling.

A character that pops multiple times, aside from Prince Charming, is the Big Bad Wolf. OF COURSE it's because wolves were (and still are somewhat) dangerous animals and so that is how they are characterized in fables such as Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs. But it's still noticeable that these stories overlap with each other so fitting them into a single world just makes a lot of sense.

Another gigantic reason is that we all live in reality. There's a general understanding of what can and cannot occur on Earth. We know we can't fly without some machine to aid us or talk to animals and have them speak our language back to us. And many mythical beings can potentially be traced back to specific interactions early humans had with rare instances in nature and a need to have a reason "why?".

In fairy tales, reality is fantastical. Numerous tales have talking animals, super natural beings, shapeshifting, characters defying death and recovering from "should have been" fatal injuries, and being able to live happily ever after with never ending love.

We humans don't really get that. Especially that last part with happy endings and love. Sure, we can live a peaceful life or try to but there's this level of joy in some tales that only exists in fairy tales. And love so so much more complicated than the typical "love at first sight that lasts forever without problems".

With all these elements that land fairy tales in a different realm of reality than us, I thought it made sense to actually make a realm (or rather a planet) that explains why things in the world of fairy tales are so much more different than us and even somewhat explain why our reality doesn't have magic in it.

It basically traces back to that age old human urge to explain the unexplainable with some story.

[signedmio]

haii!! im really interested in matchups and im currently sorta fixated on hazbin hotel so i was just wondering who i would get sorted with!! (could be platonic or romantic idm)

i'm a bisexual girl but unsure of what my pref is... hhh go wild

abt me!!

personality wise; i can be distant often, not the one who starts convos or tries too hard to keep them going, often clinging to people im already familiar with and not engaging myself with those im not, im better assigned with people that can speak for me and can do well in public <33

around people im more comfortable around and feel like i can be myself i just say whatever atp

im either too loud or too quiet no inbetween ??

"very eccentric (in a good way)" when i asked my fg to describe me

i can be extremely passionate and ramble and talk ab my insane lil theories on and on thats about stuff i actually enjoy and i feel like i'd need someone that could withstand that and endure my entire essays of whatever i'm interested in at the moment!!

extremely sarcastic and doesnt take most stuff seriously

im often immature and can be viewed as not the smartest at times, my humor is also questionable, someone who could joke with me or just laugh with me overall

style & appearance

i dont think i have a specific style, big baggy clothing/pants, sweaters, streetwear inspo, i have a lot of jewelry stashed up too ^_^

i'm 5’2.., middle eastern and for a short description have short dark brown hair and brown eyes

love languages

im not sure what my love language is?? maybe words of affirmation or quality time i love receiving those two too

the rest that idk what to name !!

i like to draw from time to time, play video games, make up theories about pieces of media i like, most types of competition, cooking/baking often

i like

dark chocolate, warm colors, oversized stuff, taking photos, instruments, fighting games (even though they bring the worst out of me and i constantly rage), lava lamps or anything else thats incredibly cool to look at, cartoons, anything chocolate (cake, ice cream, donuts, etc)

i dislike

tomatoes, warm fruit/vegetables, over complicated stuff, hot weather, bugs, sudden loud noises, academics

yayay thats all tyy!!

okay i’mma be real here, i couldn’t think of a romantic matchup for you, but i decided on a platonic one!! and that is…

Angel !! (Platonic)

No matter what social event you may be at, Angel is one of the best people to cling to imo, he’s chill - but also not boring - he has enough energy to keep shit moving, he’ll push you to go out of your comfort zone socially but he won’t force you to.

Angel’s humor is very…questionable at times as well, so honestly, he gets you. And he probably thinks your hilarious, let’s be real. I can see your humor meshing very well with his, especially if you’re also considered immature haha

Despite Angel passing away in the late 1940’s, he has grown quite accustomed to modern technology in Hell, so he’ll happily play fighting games with you, and he’ll not so happily rage when he dies… :’)

[bookshelfdreams]

Thoughts on ofmd, I've seen you talk about it a lot (I haven't gotten ar to watching it yet!) and he's wanted your opinion on it! Also hope you're having a nice day! 💖

OKAY well, that's complicated since you haven't seen it (do u need links?) but

hmmm

I think I want to talk about historical accuracy a bit. ofmd's complete refusal to adhere to the general aesthetic of modern vaguely historical/fantasy media is probably one of the most refreshing things about it, and something that immediately stood out to me.

This show isn't historically accurate, doesn't claim and doesn't want to be. Oluwande wears crocks; Stede reads the crew a book that won't be written for another 150 years or so; if you're stabbed through the stomach and it's on the left, you're fine because there's no important organs in there. This show uses every opportunity to say fuck reality, we do what we want, and it's so freeing?

Because. Look the thing is, every piece of media does this. Everything. Even things that claim to be historically accurate. Historical aesthetics, especially early modern or premodern look weird to us. It takes some getting used to, and the aesthetics being just a little "off" to your eyes don't make you more likely to watch something if you're undecided about it. Producers play it safe; I get it.

But the problem is that visual media usually doesn't own this inaccuracy the way ofmd does. Some even brag about accuracy when they're anything but, and it all leads to the general public having a completely wrong impression of what the past was like. It's a self-perpetuating cycle: Someone does something cool, everyone copies it, adds their own little twist, updates it to be pleasing to modern audience's eyes, unusual enough to be interesting but not so much to be jarring, cool but never weird, and before you know it, people actually think that all vikings looked like they were in a biker gang and had the same shitty undercut.

ofmd doesn't really fight this, it goes in the complete opposite direction. It uses the historic precedent as a backdrop to tell the story it wants to be and it doesn't really care about being truthful. Which is fine; we know so little about the actual historical figures, to tell any story at all requires massive amounts of interpretation. In a way, that is being more honest with the audience; ofmd doesn't pretend to tell the objective truth.

This is anything but extraordinary. But because it also refuses to adhere to the kinds of aesthetic (and I don't just mean visual, but also in terms of plot and characterization) that we have come to expect from the genre of vaguely historical/fantasy, it seems like it is uniquely unconcerned. It is not; it's just colourful and open minded, kind-hearted in a way these type of movies/tv shows usually are not, even when they are comedies (have you seen Norsemen? Take the Vikings aesthetic & make it a comedy, every time I think of this show I want to soak my brain in bleach). It's just that it refuses to be gory for gore's sake, bleak and miserable and pass this off as "just the way things are were!".

At it's core, I believe, ofmd is about decolonization. It's about breaking free from oppression, finding and being your authentic self. It's about finding community and healing in others, about being unapologetically weird and strange.

And you know what? I think that's way more truthful. In real life, we love and cherish each other, we accept each other's idiosyncrasies, we are friends with each other, even if we are a little weird. In real life, you don't need to be the coolest, most competent badass to get others to respect you. In real life, you will be loved for all the ways in which you are unusual, and in real life, being unusual isn't even that big of a deal.

Yeah, that's not what clothes looked like in 1717. Yeah, phrenology wasn't invented yet. Yeah, the historical Stede Bonnet was an asshole, and so was the historical Blackbeard. But in the end, does that really matter? ofmd doesn't pretend to tell the real events that happened; all it wants to be is a queer romcom with pirates.

There's something so lovely about stories that are unashamedly themselves, isn't there.

[peachyblkdemonslayer]

The more that I sit here and think about the whole DC / Warner Brothers situation the more I think about how much they're fumbling the bag. Because we obviously know like the video I've shared on my account that they're trying to " focus on their primary" which is basically cis het white men, excluding anyone who isn't part of that group. Which basically includes women, disabled people, neurodivergent people,BIPOC etc etc. And yes one of the biggest reasons they probably are targeting white straight men is because they have the most disposable income. But it seems like DC and Warner Brothers and you can even say the whole Western comic book mainstream are underestimating one big thing. The internet

Cuz let's think about it this way one piece one of the biggest not only mangas that come from Japan but just biggest comic books in the world has already all out sold both Spider-Man and batman. One Piece has only existed for about 25 years and it's already out so Spider-Man who was created 60 years ago. And Batman who was created 83 years ago, these two most recognizable characters have been outsold by something that has not even existed for a quarter of their lifetimes. And given enough time it might even outsell Superman at some point in its future. And that's only amongst one piece who was part of the big three from the early 2000s we're not even talking about the numbers that new Gen shonen manga have been doing. Demon Slayer which time it was being serialized from 2016 to 2020 has already sold 150 million copies, jjk which has only been being serialized since 2017 has already sold 60 million copies. Along with that Tokyo Revengers which has also only been around since 2017 has already sold 50 million copies since then to now. All these manga series have only existed within the 5 to 4-year Mark and they've already sold extraordinarily well.

And in the case of Demon Slayer at literally pulled out is publisher from bankruptcy. And one of the biggest reasons that the series sell so well is one because people enjoy these. And two because they're easy to get into unlike their Western counterparts. When it comes to the big two which is DC and Marvel is very hard for anyone to get into these Comics because a lot of these characters have a very long and complicated history. A lot of these characters have been passed hand to hand when it comes to both writers and artists, which makes it difficult to see which stuff is canon in which stuff isn't Canon. Now obviously some stuff has stayed with these characters since they're creation but other times a lot of stuff gets lost over the years because of people wanting to do a lot of different and new things with these characters. And when we have characters that are new to the comic book scenes they either maybe have a short comic book run or they might be featured in a mainstream characters book but we either never see them again or to get very little time on the panels. And this is just us talking about the traditional media of published books were not even talking about what online Comics have to offer.

In the last few years especially since the pandemic hit a lot of people have been spending more time online more than ever. And in doing so we have seen a huge boom of webcomics becoming very successful for example Lore Olympus from webtoons. Some of these Comics have even gotten animated counterparts even DC as of recently has had four different Comics published on the platform, which has shown to be a huge success. And that's just on these bigger platforms the amount of times I have seen independent comic creators be able to fund the publish the physical copies of their books and record time is amazing.

And I feel as though this along with some other stuff such as business choices from the CEOs of these companies goes to show how out of touch some people are when it comes to the modern world consumption of comics. That's why I feel at this point since DC is clearly regressing when it comes to what they're willing to push and publish is better for most people if they went the Indie route for comics. Since in the comics also have the same benefits of manga since these characters also have not existed for as long as some of the DC and Marvel characters have. But that's just a few thoughts for me about the situation.

[irish-urn]

Hi! Different anon here. So I've personally never seen Gilmore Girls but it's so interesting to hear your analysis. I love looking at tropes and parallels to compare pieces of media.

Also can we talk about your sentence that flaws make characters more interesting? Because YES. I hate that some people in fandoms are now on a crusade to point out every potential flaw a character has and try and make them evil for it. Human beings/characters are complex and imperfect but that's what makes them have depth and !

Personally, I tend to be a bit critical of G&N's parenting, but families are complicated and lwd shows that. Talking about G&N's relationship with their kids, especially before when the show starts, is so important in order to see why we get the character dynamics we do.

Also I love Grow As We Go so much.

Anyways, as you can see, I have lots of THOUGHTS.

Ben Platt is an amazing artist and I've been enjoying his albums SO MUCH. Does his first album give me Dasey vibes? Yes. Especially Bad Habit ("hate to say that i love you / hate to say that i need you / hate to say that i want you / but i do"), Temporary Love ("we don't have to hide our love away"), and Honest Man ("but i see every part of you / and i can tell you see me too / by the way that you say my name"). There's a part of me that's always unsure if I'm, I dunno, permitted to attribute the struggles of queer relationships to Dasey, but there's something about the secret relationship, the uncertainty of acceptance, the insecurity and doubt that my brain makes connections with? And if I've offended anyone by saying that, I genuinely and sincerely mean none.

Anyways, character flaws are what make people interesting in both reality and fiction. Some flaws are too big, too much, and some flaws are acceptable. Sometimes how much flaw is acceptable is dependent on how many/much positive traits they have, or how much you love them. I think one of the main things, for me, that determines whether a person is "good" or not is if they're working on their flaws, or at least are aware of them. Life, I think, is all about continuous growth, and even though you've got flaws or make mistakes or stumble in your journey, it's the getting up and trying to do better that determines your character.

THAT BEING SAID, flaws are a part of life. I've been watching Critical Roll and the Exandria Unlimited: Calamity, and they were talking about how they developed their characters and how important it was for all of them to have significant character flaws — and how that set up and created a significant portion of the conflict of the mini-campaign, and... It's just brilliant.

So, yes, be critical of G&N's parenting. I raise my eyebrows at it all the time. But it wouldn't be right to not recognize their positive traits too and accept that they're a combination of both and so much messier than first glance because humans are humans.

[talenlee]

Bob Ross' Basilisk

Bob Ross' Basilisk

I’m glad I didn’t rush into this conversation.

This is about generative art, using predictive models, which you might hear lumped together as ‘AI art’ these days. I don’t want to use that term for it (though, you know, no promises I don’t mess up and do that), and I don’t want to fall into the trap of that, of treating it like ‘an artificial intelligence.’ It’s not. The term I use for it is Generative Art, which media you can feed into a machine, and then make that machine spit out results based on composing those pieces.

There are two big reasons to use this term instead of ‘AI art.’ The first is that it’s just not AI. AI implies an intelligence, which this absolutely is not and cannot be. There cannot be intention behind the accumulated behaviour of a statistical average. Calling it AI is a cloak thrown over a system – a very clever system! – that’s able to divine fuzzy trends in how people sort and categorise things. The other thing is that calling it generative art connects it to previously generative art – institutions of technological systems designed to make artistic forms in a way that complicates the intention of the artist. This is a tradition that reaches back a long way, and sure, it includes things like these generative art systems, but also random graphical output demos on disks back in the 90s, noise generators in Photoshop, messy blurs, picrews, and even things like tie-die art, and when you can put them in that context, you’re going to be able to extract it from a lot of hype about it, both positively and negatively.

Let’s talk about it, then.

‘sad alex jones in a forest, in the style of bob ross’

There are two basic ‘problems’ presented by generative art, both for and against. The problem of generative art that talks about how great and perfect it is, is that it’s so good, it will replace the job of artists, because someone will instead use this system to pump out artwork for things, at a high standard of skill, destroying the livelihood of artists that are already existing in tenuous spaces. The other side of it, which points out how terrible this art is, is that this art is very easy to make and floods the marketplace and now we’re going to have to wade through generative art that is, itself, heavily influenced by other generative art. Both of these problems can be spiralled into a heavily apocalyptic form and whichever side of that you fall on, but neither of them are, inherently, wrong or not problems.

The first one looks to me like artists are economically unsafe. The second looks to me like the internet is undermoderated, which is two problems I already considered a thing. Then there’s this whole argument about copyright, which gets to exist with a bunch of astersisks on it, where people who do not like or believe in current modern copyright law are still against Generative Art systems because they are violating copyright law, probably or kinda or maybe. Like almost by definition, this is transformative artwork based on engaging with the existing artwork. This is a bit thornier than it looks, because on the one hand they’re kind of not, but on the other hand, we do know that these systems aggressively sought to circumvent anti-copying methods. One of the first things these softwares were taught to do was to remove watermarks from existing images, because they wanted to train on things like Getty Images and not be confused by the watermarks on those image archives, and like, Getty thing it’s okay for you to use their images if you use the versions with the watermarks.

So they used the version they were allowed to use, then used that version to make it look like the version they weren’t allowed to use, and like, honestly, the fact that the rules there get stupid is kind of one of those things about how copyright law, as it functions is, itself, broken… especially when you know Getty watermark images that are public domain and not theirs to exclusively distribute because you know, they’re allowed to use public domain images for what they like, and they decide to add their watermark and distribute them as now, their images, which is to say, this is a great example of a shithead fighting a shithead.

But also also: once this tech for removing watermarks is in place, anyone who isn’t operating at Getty’s scale is now impacted by this toolset available and artist who were already dealing with the art theft on the mass scale of the internet were already in a losing arms race with shitheads at large. I dislike this and it’s one of the reasons why I think of the problems in this system as being primarily about ethical corpuses.

For a lot of these systems, hypothetically, you can dump nothing but public domain art into them, then, with guidance from the right people enough, it will generate in evolutionary models, art that’s close enough to the other corpuses to start generating the stuff that looks indistinguishable from the unethical corpus. And that’s… awkward too, because at that point the only difference between this entirely hypothetical model and the current disrespectful models is a bit of lead time. That’s a problem.

‘the interior of the enterprise, in the style of bob ross’

There are other, more specific problems which seem to me to be kind of uh, extensions of existing problems. For example, it’s possible to use generative art to mimic the style of other, well-known, famous artists, and you could even claim that that art was made by that artist. And while that may feel icky – because this tool sure feels icky and people are scared of it – it’s an existing crime. It’s called counterfeiting. Falsifying the provenance of an artwork is known as a problem, and hiring artists to copy an art style – assuming you don’t claim otherwise – is a known business choice. Heck, it’s important to entire industries – Disney’s entire model of movie making starts with someone drawing artwork and then getting an entire order of people to mimic that art style in subtly different artwork… and those people aren’t paid enough or respected enough and their entire industry gets farmed out now to countries with lax labor laws and that sucks too, but that’s not a new problem.

Were you already able to know the provenance of art you see attributed? I love Rumiko Takahashi’s art in Ranma 1/2 but she had assistants and I don’t know how much of the art in that series is hers and how much is the assistant’s. The idea that I know the provenance of any given Ranma 1/2 page is itself running up to a black box where credit is already improperly distributed. Not saying it’s not a problem to fail to credit, and we can fix that problem, but we already accept a lot of people being inadequately credited for their art and inadequately compensated for it.

What I think is that this is a technological development where my resistance is literally no impact. I don’t comission art of my OCs, even when I try to, but I know my position is a little odd. I would like to have a large supply of low-effort art that I could use for game prototypes and concept work, so the idea of it is desireable. On the other hand, talking about it in public would result in people being irritating. And I am being asked to teach a class, about these tools and how to use them and how to get the best out of them. One major component of this class is the importance of provenance; of making it clear when what you were doing was generated this way, whether with generative visual art or generative text media. So I’m being paid to understand these things and impart a good use case for these tools on an audience of students, which doesn’t give me a strong looking philosophical position to argue for or against these tools. I’m kind of alright either way.

I have played with these tools. I say play, specifically. I think they’re good toys. I think they’re really interesting for creative forms of media. I have a longstanding model that all things that get made out of either horny or spite; either they satisfy a want in you or someone did a bad version and you want to do something better. I find generative art gives me something to argue with, something to complain about, no, you fucked up, you did a bad job, you can improve this image or this text with this and that point of resistance is useful, for me, to be creative.

This kind of thing is a toolset that to me just looks like another method for generating artwork that people are going to develop as a skillset, and be able to get distinct, meaningfully interesting results out of… as well as a lot of crap. There are a lot of bad artists out there. There’s a lot of free bad art out there. Have you ever browsed the public domain or free art resource websites? There’s tons of garbage out there, really just shocking amounts. Right now if I want to avoid generative art because it’s a bother to get into arguments about it then I actually cut myself off from a lot of art assets that are meant to be available for poor indie developers because I can’t be sure they’re not generated art.

‘godzilla in a waterfall, in the style of bob ross’

There are however three things around this movement that I think are worth holding on to, things that I think of as ‘positive developments.’

The first is, if you’re a tenuous industry which involves artists, like, say, board game developers or TTRPG developers with the money to do so, take a stand on paying current, conventional artists for their work. This is a good principle in general at the best of times. Businesses that pivot wholesale to generative art are doing a disservice to an existing group of workers, and it’s harmful. Even if you don’t have a philosophical position against generative art, you should be treating the conventional artists you cultivated like they’re your actual workers and make sure that they’re getting paid. Honestly, generative art looks like a useful tool for conventional artists to generated poses for reference and general blocking or framing for possible scenes, in much the same way photobashing is a great skillset with a particular style. In the TTRPG space, which is a small pool, seeing big movers say ‘no, we’re not using generative art for final products’ is a good thing.

Second, playing around with generative art should not be seen as a moral failing or as participation in a dreadful sin. These are interesting digital tools and toys, and particularly, if you were interested in generating artwork of (say) your OCs, you’re going to run into limits of generative art, like places where you can’t get the artwork to do specifics you want, convey specific vibes. The generator may get you a lot closer than you ever imagined, it might even get you to imagine things you never would have considered without it, and that’s good, but if you want the next step, an artist is probably going to be your best bet, and being able to show them ‘this is the kind of thing I want, BUT,’ is really valuable, and it’s really valuable if they can look at what you’ve generated without going ‘ew’ or making you feel ashamed.

Third, this is making people pay attention to and get involved in provenance more. Sourcing where you get artworks from, including being able to say ‘hey, I generated this from <this generator> and here are my prompts’ is a really interesting form of provenance, and the willingness to do that is, itself, part of a push towards sourcing and recognising origin points. I grew up on an internet where you linked people to just images and part of that was because they’d often be on things that loaded slowly, so just the image was often faster for getting people to see what you were talking about. But over time I’ve realised that linking to artists tumblrs and twitters for the embeds is just a better way to do things… and if we’re going to be seeing more of this middle-of-the-road generative model media, being able to and willing to point to it – just like with shutterstock model and video content – is a good thing.

Pay workers, support artists, recognise the value of these tools, and if someone out there is working on a machine which does have an entirely public domain corpus, I would love to see it, if nothing else, out of sheer curiosity.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#Media #Politics

[pop-punklouis]

Honestly, I get really confused when Larries always say H hates being sexualized. If you look at it from an objective point of view, it is very clear that H and his team are using a "sex sells" marketing strategy. He's not uncomfortable being sexualized because that it literally part of their promo plan. Sex attracts attention. Hshq is using sex in their marketing to create an effective and memorable campaign and it's working. He literally advertised the album as being about being sad & sex. 1/2

“He did nude photoshoots. His music videos for lights up and WS obviously rely on the sex angle. If he built his whole image on sex appeal, then why blame harries for sexualizing him? They are doing exactly what hshq wants them to do. Them thirsting over him makes them keep streaming and giving him views. People are hardwired to notice sexually relevant information so it’s smart of his team to use that to their advantage to keep him relevant. Everyone else can see it except for larries. 2/2 + Harry never said he was uncomfortable being sexualized. He doesn’t care because it helps his career and he loves the attention. He said he was uncomfortable thinking about being seen as a sex symbol because it’s a weird thing to think about yourself but he didn't say anything about being sexualized. Anyway, actions speak louder than words, and his PR is all about catering to to people’s sexual fantasies so I think he's more than okay with it”

I’m choosing to answer this because there is.... a lot to unpack here. To start, i’m incredibly sick of seeing people pretending that “sexuality,” and “sex appeal” are the same thing as “sexualization” especially when it refers to hypersexualization. it’s not and it never has been. you can find someone attractive and have that person perform sexuality, at any level, and still not display sexualization of this person. it’s not a complicated concept. there are many facets of harry’s life that has been built to fit a lothario image that does drive off the hyper-sexualization of him as an image and a person, but it goes beyond just his team using it for fan? engagement? the media has perpetuated it as well since he was 16 years old (a child). past “girlfriends” have perpetuated it when their relationships end. talk show hosts like ellen and james corden would consistently push this angle regardless of whether or not they were friends. red carpet reporters have asked these questions directly to his face. past models who have worked with him in any capacity have helped this narrative along by moaning his name and sexualizing him. ben winston has no problem feeding into it. there’s branches that split from the whole that has fed into this goliath image that has been sexualized for ten years of his life.

and you think...... he’s comfortable with that? you think he likes that he can stand next to any woman and be plagued with stories about fucking them? you think he thrives off the fact that every part of who he is and what his body looks like is constantly on parade when tied to this image? you think he doesn’t care that much of the GP and those in the industry think he’s incredibly easy and will sleep with anyone and anything so long as he gives them a smile? you think he thought it was funny when he was visibly uncomfortable having howard stern ask if he wanted to fuck his therapist because she was a woman? you think he enjoys the fact that he has to watch out who he’s around or even nice to because so many have gone to papers or online and fabricated stories about sex or relationships for clout attached to his name? you think it makes him laugh when people talk about his sex life and publications like GQ pushed him to tell them how many people he’s slept with as a 19 yr old? you don’t think he cares that he’s lost a lot of his youth and control of his image due to sexualizing tycoons?

you also confuse me with the points you made about him playing into a hypersexualized image. you use examples that are so highly misconstrued it feels detached in every way. he didn’t do nude photo shoots. he did one photoshoot that featured a nude and the nude was not in any way put on display as an act of sexual fodder. it was sensual. it was fragile. it was soft. it was a piece of art and seeing as how you didn’t see it that way only falls more on you than it does anyone else. you can be nude and do that without inviting in ideas of sexualization. nothing about that photo screams sex appeal. regarding the music videos..... congratulations, you missed the entire point again. the Lights Up music video was meant to depict his experience with fame and sexualization. those pulling at him from all angles represents everyone wanting a piece of him as he just wants to exist. how his career and life since he was 16 was built off never being his own— he’s always been “on display” for everyone else. he not once touched any of the models, and he ended up riding away from it all at the end of the video finally free. even when talking to radio hosts about the video he touched on how personal that song was to him. yet the media and fans alike drew it differently and labeled it a sex orgy lmao. and with WS..... it’s the media that first drew the hyped up sexual energy tied to that song. the blatant headlines about oral sex which then hyped up fans. yes, they used the video to display oral sex but nothing about that video was sexualized in a way that would’ve been expected. the ones that have a right to be upset about the WS video are wlw because of how it could go about sexualizing the WOMEN not harry.

so again, stop pretending like sexuality and sex appeal is anything like sexualization. it isn’t, and just because something or someone portrays him in a “sexy” light doesn’t mean it’s okay or even appropriate to sexualize or objectify him based on that. olympic swimmers can be pictured as sexy because of the tight clothing, built bodies, and athleticism but that doesn’t green light sexualization of them. antoni porowski can show off his body and pose sensually (even sexually) and that doesn’t mean it gives you the okay to objectify him and his body. i theorize a big reason why harry is often seen in baggier clothes now, beyond his fashion sense, is because without showing any discernible part of his body, it stops those from sexualizing him on his off time. so, has HSHQ used his already laden image and sexuality to push further into this sexualization? yes. has fans been conditioned to think of him sexually because of this ingrained narrative? of course. but does that mean we’re all lab rats being fed what they want and we have no say or conscious decision in the matter? no.

many artists use sexuality and sex appeal in their art and images. men, women, non-binary folk etc., etc. but that doesn’t mean they love being sexualized or have no qualms about it. take for example, halsey. she’s never been shy or against showing her sexuality and sensuality in her work, music, and persona. does that make it okay to objectify and sexualize her just because she does that? of course not. do you hear how you sound when you say these things? it’s very concerning. i’m sick of people wanting justifications for sexualizing artists— especially harry. if this was a woman, this argument for or against sexualization wouldn’t even exist. but since it’s harry it’s okay? i’m so tired of it.

[itsclydebitches]

so ironwood was confirmed to be dead by Miles in a $42 cameo session, where the person who bought it had asked for "comforting words to soothe our anguished souls" bc she was an ironwood fan and wanted a pick-me-up after that devastating finale. miles' response was to essentially mock his fans (it really sounded like that, especially since he ended with "thank you jimmy, may you rest in pieces, crushed beneath the weight of the kingdom you tried so hard to hold up above your head."

apparently the VA, jason rose, confirmed it in DMs w the same fan who sent in the cameo ask. so like, quite apart from how rude and disrespectful it was of miles to make a mockery of james in a cameo where he'd been specifically asked for comforting words regarding the character, ngl but i think that if you have to confirm a MAJOR CHARACTER is dead outside of canon bc you failed to actually show it on screen.....you've failed as a writer. and also that kind of thing shouldn't be confirmed in an expensive and exclusive interview lmao like how hard would it have been to just talk about good aspects to james' character instead of calling him a dickbag and saying 'don't do a genocide, guys!!'

it reeks of unprofessionalism and also it just makes everything surrounding ironwood's character arc even worse since apparently 'his fate was sealed' from the moment he was introduced to the show.

Me, who received the first Moderna shot yesterday (🎉 🎉 🎉 ): Ugh I feel too crappy to answer asks today

Me, upon hearing this news: You know, I have suddenly found an untapped source of energy

Okay, all joking aside, I watched the vid and it’s definitely a lot. I don’t have any information about the request itself except for what Miles mentions in the recording, so I can’t speak to what the fan may have been looking for outside of that, but some highlights include: 

“This is for the filth in my degenerate discord server” - Yeah, that’s how a lot of us (fans) talk about ourselves. It sounds like someone who really enjoys Ironwood and makes joking, self-deprecating comments about their love of a character. That’s familiar to me and speaks to the expectation that they hoped for something other than what they got. At least, if I’d sent in a request like that I wouldn’t be happy with the vid, but that’s obviously my own perspective and not this fan’s. I’d be very curious to know their own thoughts though... 

“Sometimes a character we like doesn’t make it, does something we don’t agree with... or both!” - That is indeed how characters work! The real question is whether their death/actions make sense within the story, which is not addressed here. Many fans who enjoyed Ironwood don’t have a problem with him dying or turning into a villain  — I’ve been honest about my acceptance of either/both, regardless of personal preference, provided it was written well  — and that was always the issue. Not what happened to Ironwood, but how it happened. 

“James Ironwood’s fate was sealed the moment his character was conceived many years ago.” - Personally, I don’t believe this. RT makes a lot of grand, sweeping statements about what’s been planned “for years” or “since the beginning” and too often we’re faced with writing that directly contradicts that. Though it’s unlikely we’ll ever know the truth, neither option paints the writing team in a good light. Either they’re straight up lying about what’s been planned (or twisting tossed out possibilities into assurances after the fact. For example, someone once suggested Ironwood might become a villain somehow at some point and now that’s presented as, ‘We’ve deliberately been working towards this specific ending for years’), or they’re being truthful and just... can’t write what they want to write. It doesn’t sound good when a writer says, ‘I’ve planned this the whole time’ and a good chunk of the fandom responds, ‘Then why couldn’t we see that planning this whole time?’ 

“When James was introduced we intentionally made him look like kind of a big dickbag, but then we realized that dickbag had a heart and was also half metal, and that was pretty cool!” - I don’t even know what to make of this. I’ve deconstructed his introduction before, but to summarize here, he’s presented as no more of a “dickbag” than Ozpin who may not be doing enough to protect the people, Winter who allowed herself to get taunted into a fight on campus, or Qrow who deliberately started that fight while drunk. Glynda is the only one who is arguably innocent here. The implication seems to be that obviously Ironwood became a villain because “we intentionally made him look like kind of a big dickbag” but then... does that mean Qrow will become a villain too someday?? 

The comments about them realizing he had a heart and was half metal just speak to that lack of planning. No, you obviously didn’t plan this downfall from the start if you “realized” something as basic as him caring for others partway through writing him and then allowed that care to drive his character for so long that the decent into villainy read as OOC, rather than inevitable. You obviously weren’t writing him with a backstory that influenced his character  — of which his semblance is a major part  — if you “realized” he was half-metal... whenever that happened. The fact that we never saw that backstory, or the semblance on screen, or returned to his half-metal nature outside of a ‘That’s coding for evilness’ theme again speaks to the fact that either a) none of this was actually planned or b) the execution is seriously lacking here. 

“Let us all take a moment to thank General James Ironwood for his service to the Kingdom of Atlas, but... at the end of the day, don’t do a genocide [laughs]” - I’m having trouble articulating why I dislike this. I’m really too tired to be unpacking this right now (lol), but it has something to do with  — as you say, anon  — that mocking tone. Something else to do with the surge of purity culture in recent years. The tone feels like it’s tied up in an unsaid, ‘You like the character who tried to commit genocide?’ accusation when, you know, he’s a fictional character. People can like characters who do bad things. More significantly, he’s a fictional character Miles wrote. There’s something particularly distasteful about writers who feel like they’re laughing at fans for liking something when they created the thing with the intent that we would like it. And many did. So they gave attention, time, money, passion, etc. to the work and then when that part of the work finished, the creator appears to make light of that investment? Idk, I’m speaking about more than just this one line  — the tone of the vid as a whole, really — but it feels much less like “You enjoy Ironwood! 😄” and more “You enjoy Ironwood...  😬” Like yeah, fans enjoyed the character that you wanted them to enjoy who you wrote to have a heart and then suddenly commit genocide instead. There’s definitely nothing complicated in all that. 

“Thank you, Jimmy. May you rest in pieces crushed beneath the weight of the kingdom you tried so hard to hold above your head. Amen.” - All of the above x2 with the added issue that this was never shown on screen. Miles presents Ironwood’s arc like this seven year long plan when in fact they couldn’t even manage the basic move of telling the audience what happened to the character in his final hour. The fact that a fan had to pay to find out whether Ironwood is dead is not a gold star for the writing. 

Every time the RWBY crew speaks about the story in supplementary material the canon itself gets worse. Hyping Clover/Qrow on social media pushes the canon closer to queerbaiting. We’re way closer to that with them hyping Blake/Yang. Long ago comments about Ozpin’s cane suddenly make Volume 8 a retcon. A Q&A about Ironwood’s semblance makes his arc a thousand times more confusing about how we’re supposed to read his character  — to name just a few. Now this. When a friend first told me this info had dropped I thought, “Thank god. He’s not coming back then. I don’t want them writing Ironwood’s character anymore,” but really... can we believe anything the crew says? “Crushed beneath the weight of his kingdom” doesn’t mean Ironwood won’t show up in Volume 9 if it’s a spirit world type adventure. It doesn’t mean he won’t show up three years from now with even more metal in his body and a, “We said he was crushed, not that he was dead ;)” explanation. Hell, it doesn’t even mean he won’t show up with no explanation at all because, as established, what’s said in supplementary works and what happens on screen are two entirely separate things. Iffy as the vid may come across to those who did like Ironwood, I was initially happy that it at least gave us some closure... but now I’m not even sure about that. 

[mskatesharma]

Hey sorry to bother you but I wanted to ask if you could rec some good sources on learning more about Indian Culture/history/customs. Movies books anything really. I have looked online but well, I always take things on the internet with several grains of salt. And considering I know very little on it, I can't say how reliable the information is. I would like to incorporate elements of Kate being Indian when writing about Kate (and Kate and Anthony) going forward and I want to do it in as respectful and accurate a way as I can. For example, I had a thought of Anthony seeing Kate and her fam celebrate Holi and falling in love with how happy and carefree she is and brushing some paint off her cheek before she dunks some pigment onto him or something 1/2

But considering I've never celebrated Holi or seen it celebrated before I don't think I'd do a good job to write it... I know I get annoyed when people get the basic customs and traditions of my culture wrong. Anyway sorry for rambling TLDR: I would like to learn more about Indian culture and idk where to begin so I would be grateful for any direction you can point me at 2/2

so this has taken me a while to answer because i needed to find time to sit down, think about it and answer it properly. it might seem like a somewhat simple question, but to me, at least, it’s complicated? (i’m probably going to be going over stuff you probably already know, but i’m trying to answer in a complete way.)

i need to start off by saying that my family is from north india (gujarat specifically), and because of that, i have a certain level of privilege, including how north indians and north indian culture is portrayed in the media (obviously including bollywood). i mention this because simone ashley is south indian, specifically tamil, and there is so much prejudice against south indians in general, and this obviously extends to how they are depicted and how their culture is shown in various forms of media; colourism (which simone has spoken out about) is just the start of it. (also, as someone who is north indian, i’m not the best placed person to talk about the prejudice and discrimination faced by south indians.)  

a big part of why desi fans are so excited about simone’s casting as kate is because she a dark-skinned woc, and typically, dark-skinned women aren’t cast as romantic leads, and they’re not cast in shows anyway, especially when compared to light-skinned woc. so the fact that she’s going to be a lead in one of the biggest shows on netflix is a big.fucking.deal. in addition, they changed her character’s surname from ‘sheffield’ to ‘sharma’, which on the surface seems like a great idea, but if you look a little deeper, there are so many problems to be found.

(this got long so continues below)

sharma is not a generic indian surname; it’s specifically a north indian hindu name, which throws up questions. is kate going to be a hindu on the show? does this mean her family is from north india?  are they going to talk about caste on the show because sharma is a brahmin surname? how are they going to explain kate being in england, and being out in society with the upper crust of the british aristocracy? (because of the time that bridgerton is set, and with them specifically setting up kate as indian, i honestly don’t know how they’re going to explain kate’s presence) i honestly think that the show didn’t think too deeply about it and they chose the name sharma because it starts with ‘sh’ and ~sounds indian. however, it’s thrown up so many questions that they can’t ignore, especially because they tried to explain race in the first season. 

i talk about all this because you ask about holi, and incorporating elements of kate being indian when writing. and i’m not trying to be mean, but i would maybe hold off altogether? i need to point out that holi is a hindu festival, and is not specifically tied to being indian. i know i mentioned that sharma is a hindu surname, but we don’t even know if kate is going to be hindu, she may be a christian, or another religion or an atheist. also, because simone is tamil, they may decide to have kate be south indian despite the north indian origins of sharma, if they chose to address it at all. and depending on where in india you are from, and your religion, you will celebrate different festivals. even indians of the same religion celebrate different festivals, and some celebrate occasions at different times (e.g. gujaratis celebrate hindu new year the day after diwali. this isn’t the case for most other hindus. if we take holi, i know that it tends to be celebrated more in north india, and the image you describe isn’t necessarily universal). 

there has been a lot in the tags regarding clothing, and seeing kate and her family wearing indian clothing, and while i get it, it makes me nervous. personally, i cannot wait to see kate in the same style of dresses that everyone else wore in season one. why? because seeing an indian woman in that period of dress is something i have been longing for. i don’t want to see an indian woman wearing a lengha or a sari or sabyasachi in that time period, i want to see her in a bonnet and empire waistline, because that is something we haven’t seen much of. 

also, talking about seeing kate and her family wearing indian clothing has the potential to ‘other’ her, and tbh, can come across sometimes as fetishy, especially when you consider the time the story takes place in, and all the implications of colonialism. (there’s also the fact that unless the show has hired indian costume designers, it would be kinda gross for them to use any kind of indian clothing, and that includes adding elements to the era-typical dress that i’m hoping for.) 

i’m going to be honest, i’ve seen pieces of fanart with kate wearing a sari and other indian clothing, while anthony has been in typical regency dress, and it makes me uncomfortable. it gives off coloniser vibes, and that’s a dynamic i have absolutely no interest in. there’s also the fact that i’ve seen art where simone as kate has been shown as light-skinned, to the point where she appears to be the same colour as anthony, and i mean, hello?!

full disclosure, i’ve made some posts regarding headcanons and music that i should have thought twice about. i’ve reblogged stuff that i should have thought more about before i did so. why? because they had overtones of north indian privilege, and/or orientalism. being indian (wherever in india that is) is part of someone’s identity, it’s not a gimmick to sprinkle onto things, and it’s not something to festishise, and i think, at least from what i’ve seen, that is the concern a lot of desi fans have, even if that’s not the intention of the original posters.   

i realise i’ve gone on a seemingly massive tangent, but what i’m trying to say is, i don’t think there is a need to specifically reference kate being indian, especially when when writing canon-era fic, even more so when you consider we don’t know how the show is going to address it. now, i’m not saying i have faith in the show when it comes to kate and her ~indian surname, just that until we know how the show addresses it, i don’t see why it needs to be referred to? i understand why one might want to, but i just think there are waaay too many potential pitfalls, and the risk of coming across as orientalist/patronising/fetishy too high. some fans have fears when it comes to kate sharma and how she is presented, and for good reason.

sorry for not answering how you expected, and not giving you the resources you asked for (which, tbh, i’m not sure i would know where to start). i get what you were trying to ask, and i thank you for asking in the first place, but the question felt a little unfair tbh. but, i would encourage to read up on orientalism, also about the privilege that north indian hindus have, and honestly, the british colonisation of india.

ETA: i put this in the reblog but im going to add it here as well

also, something i forgot to add, even though i talk about north indians/north india and south indians/south india, it is obviously more complicated than that. there are many different states in india, and even then, different regions within those states will have different customs to each other. and then you have to factor in religion. likewise, there’s no one language that everyone in india speaks. basically, it’s not one universal culture that can be ‘boiled down to the essentials’.

[gotham--fc]

You Win My Love - A Lindsey Horan Imagine

A/N: The second installment in my Shania Twain series! Based off “You Win My Love”

Lindsey, Sonnett, Rose, Mal, and Sam stepped out of the van and looked around.

 “Who’s supposed to be meeting us here?” Sam asked.

 “One of the execs, I think. I’ve never met him, so I don’t know what he looks like,” Mal answered. Just then a tall man in a suit appeared in front of them.

 “Hello, ladies! We’re so glad you could make it,” He shook each of their hands, “I’m Jack Bolton, I trust you’re all aware of what is going to happen today?”

 “You’re giving us a tour and introducing us to some drivers and then we’re watching the race, all while the media crew films us so that they can post a video that’s going to bring everyone publicity,” Lindsey said.

 “Yes, exactly,” Jack said, “It’s all rather exploitative, I know, but sponsors, CEOs, you know the deal. They say jump and I say yes sir.” Lindsey grinned a little. She was already enjoying herself.

 Jack led them through the clubhouse and showed them the common areas and the specific sections for each crew. He led them outside to the racetrack, where some drivers were practicing for the upcoming race.

 “This is where the pit crew stays during the race when they’re not needed at the pit stops,” Jack gestured to an area a little ways back from the track, “During a race, they’re monitoring their driver and making sure there’s no problems with their cars or their tires, and when a driver enters the pit, they’re responsible for changing the tires, filling up gas, fixing any engine problems, and making sure the driver is okay and good to continue.”

 “You’re boring them, Jack,” A voice came from behind them. Jack turned around and grinned.

 “Do you want to take over, Y/N?” Jack asked. Y/N laughed and shook her head.

 “Nah, gotta get ready for tonight.”

 “Ladies, this is Y/N Y/L/N, one of our best racers.”

 “One of?” Y/N asked, “What is this? Jack, I’m the best racer, or do you need to see all my trophies again?” Jack laughed and shook his head before he introduced the group.

 “Ah, soccer players,” Y/N said, “Pleased to meet you all.”

 “You’re the best?” Rose asked.

 “Yeah, for sure. Especially tonight. This race is full of rookies and oldsters, I’m pretty much guaranteed a win.”

 “So why are you bothering to race? Why aren’t you at the… Indy 500?” Lindsey asked. Y/N laughed.

 “Because that’s not for a couple weeks,” Y/N said, “I’m just here because Jack asked me to, I don’t normally come to these races, but apparently big racers bring more viewers and… honestly I’m just looking for some practice before I take on the real competition.”

 “We’ll see about the competition,” Lindsey said. Y/N laughed before she said goodbye and left the group with Jack.

 “Now, if you’ll come this way, ladies…”

 ***

 “Looks like I won after all.”

 Lindsey turned around and saw Y/N heading toward her, trophy in her hand. Lindsey crossed her arms.

 “You got lucky,” Lindsey said, “That other guy was totally gonna win if he didn’t hit the wall in the last lap.” Y/N laughed.

 “While that may be true, I did still win,” Y/N held the trophy out, “Wanna hold it? Maybe get a picture for your Instagram or something?” Lindsey agreed, trading her phone for the trophy and letting Y/N take a few pictures.

 “You live in Portland, right?” Y/N asked after she handed Lindsey’s phone back. “You play for the Thorns, I mean.”

 “Yeah, I live there during the season, but I live in Denver during the offseason. If I have one.”

 Y/N laughed. “I feel that. I live in Portland too. I’m supposed to live in Portland, but I travel so much it feels like it’s just another stop on the road.”

 “It’s hard to settle down in a city when you’re constantly being taken somewhere else,” Lindsey said.

 “I know, right? Man, one thing I’m looking forward to when I retire is just staying in one place for longer than two weeks.”

 Y/N and Lindsey kept talking, about Portland, about traveling, about their careers, families, everything. Lindsey wasn’t expecting to like the seemingly cocky racer, but Y/N, up close, away from the cameras and the fans, was genuine and down to earth and clammed up when Lindsey brought up her prolific career. Lindsey thought she might actually… like Y/N, maybe.

 “Yo, Linessi!” Sonnett yelled, “We gotta go! Quit flirting!” Lindsey blushed furiously.

 “I’m so sorry about her, she’s an idiot,” Lindsey said.

 “No worries, we all have friends like that,” Y/N said, “It was nice to meet you Lindsey,” Y/N touched Lindsey’s arm lightly, sending tingles up Lindsey’s arm, “I hope I get to see you again.”

 “Let me know the next time you’re in Portland,” Lindsey said.

 “Will do.”

 ***

 Lindsey posted the photo as soon as she got back to the hotel. She didn’t tag Y/N, but she did tag Jack and the racetrack. A few minutes later, Lindsey heard her phone ding. She looked at it and saw that Y/N DM’ed her on Instagram.

 yourusername: What? No tag? You do know who’s trophy you’re holding

 Lindsey laughed before she replied.

 lindseyhoran10: didn’t want it to go to your head

also its been what? 5 minutes? eager to talk to me again or something

 yourusername: Something like that

what are you doing next week? I’m in Portland for a couple of days

 lindseyhoran10: I might be free

have to check my schedule

 yourusername: Great! It’s a date

 ***

 Next week, Lindsey was sitting in her apartment, waiting for Y/N to come pick her up. She didn’t know what to expect. Y/N told her to dress casual, but other than that, Y/N hadn’t told her anything about what they were doing. So, Lindsey was wearing jeans and a tank top, with a jacket on top. Y/N had said it was a date, but Lindsey wasn’t sure if she was joking or not. She didn’t have time to overthink before there was a knock at her door. She quickly opened it to reveal Y/N, wearing jeans and a leather jacket.

 “Hey there,” Y/N said, “You ready?” Lindsey nodded, following Y/N outside and to her car. Lindsey snorted when she saw what Y/N was driving.

 “What?” Y/N asked.

 “You’re a big fancy race car driver and you’re driving a pickup truck.”

 “Well, yeah. Sorry we don’t all drive BMWs like you soccer players,” Y/N said, “If you don’t like it, I can switch to another car. I’ve got a Ferrari sitting in my garage collecting dust.”

 “You have a Ferrari and you’re driving this piece of junk?”

 “It’s not a piece of junk! It has character!” Y/N insisted, “Look, I put on new hubcaps, a new bumper, I really spiced up the engine and the stereo in this baby is like nothing you’ll find in those BMWs, trust me,” Y/N looked up at Lindsey who was still looking unimpressed. “Fine, I’ll go get the Ferrari. But if I’m driving her, I’m gonna show you some tricks,” Y/N grinned.

 Lindsey didn’t know what Y/N meant by “tricks”, but she wasn’t expecting Y/N to turn into an empty, gated, dark parking lot after they switched to one of Y/N’s fancier cars. Y/N was quick to unlock the gate and drive them in. Lindsey looked around suspiciously, not sure what she had gotten herself into.

 “Okay, hold tight, I’ll be right back,” With a flash, Y/N was out of the car and running across to a small shed. Soon, the parking lot was flooded with light, Y/N gave Lindsey a thumbs up and then ran back.

 “I was thinking you brought me here to kill me,” Lindsey said when Y/N was back in the car.

 “Nah, just wanna show off for you,” Y/N said, “It’s illegal to do tricks on public roads, so that’s why we had to come here.”

 “Isn’t this trespassing?”

 “It’s not trespassing when you own it,” Y/N grinned, “Now hold tight.”

 Lindsey didn’t have a chance to ask what Y/N meant, before Y/N was speeding off in the parking lot, doing donuts and other high-speed maneuvers. Lindsey was gripping the handle above her door as tight as she could, but Y/N was laughing, seamlessly transitioning from one trick to the next and soon, Lindsey’s grip relaxed and she started laughing too. Finally, Y/N slowed to a stop.

 “How was that? Did you have fun?” Y/N eyes shone as she looked at Lindsey.

 “Maybe we should’ve just driven the truck,” Lindsey said.

 “Oh, come on, admit it, that was fun!”

 Lindsey rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine. It was fun, once I realized we weren’t gonna die.”

 “Then come on, hop out and I’ll teach you some,” Y/N said.

 “What? No, Y/N, I–” Lindsey tried to protest was Y/N was already out of the car and holding the keys for Lindsey to take. “Look, I really don’t think I should do this, I’m really not that good of a driver,” Lindsey said as she got behind the wheel.

 “It’ll be fine, I promise. I’ll tell you what to do, okay?” Y/N said, “Nothing bad is gonna happen, trust me, I’m a professional. We’ll start off on the easy ones, just follow my instructions.”

 Lindsey, as she expected, was not a very good driver. She was fine driving like a normal person on city streets, but this was something else. For some reason, even the simple instructions Y/N was giving felt like the most complicated thing in the world. Lindsey wanted to give up when Y/N convinced her to give it one more try. Lindsey felt a surge of adrenaline as she made (almost) one full donut. She stopped and looked at Y/N, who was grinning as much as she was.

 “I did it!”

 “You did it!” Y/N high-fived Lindsey. “You wanna try any more?” Suddenly, the keys were out of the ignition and thrown on Y/N’s lap and Lindsey was at the passenger side door waiting for Y/N to get back in the drivers seat. Y/N laughed as she moved over.

 “Okay, that’s a no.”

 ***

 “Linds, why are you dragging us into the middle of redneck country? I don’t wanna get hit on by some sexist jerk,” Rose complained as she followed Lindsey through the entrance.

 “It’s not that bad, Rose,” Lindsey said, “NASCAR is cool, it’s not just rednecks anymore.” Rose grimaced as a drunk man wearing an American flag tank top ran by, screaming.

 “Right, not just rednecks,” Rose muttered.

 “Oh, come on Linds, we all know you’re here for that hot racer chick you’ve been flirting with,” Sonnett said.

 “It’s not just for her,” Lindsey said defensively, “And we’re not flirting.”

 “Don’t lie to us Linds, we know you and that hottie–”

 “Look! Our seats are this way!” Lindsey said loudly as she pushes through the crowd.

 “Is this supposed to be interesting?” Rose whispered to Sonnett as they watched the cars circle the track.

 “I don’t know,” Sonnett whispered back, “I don’t even know which one Y/N is.”

 “Whichever one Lindsey’s staring at,” Rose mumbled, watching as Lindsey leaned closer to the edge as one car drove by, “That one.”

 “Why couldn’t she have just invited her to a game rather than drag us down here?”

 “I can hear you two,” Lindsey said.

 “So why did you bring us here?”

 “I’m not sitting in the middle of redneck country by myself.”

 “I told you it was redneck country!” Rose said, “I told you!”

 “Whatever Rose, I– Look! She’s about to win! Go! Yes!” Lindsey jumped to her feet as Y/N’s car crossed the finish line before the others.

 “Great, she won, can we go now?” Rose asked.

 “We have to go meet up with her and say congrats, come on,” Lindsey grabbed Sonnett’s arm and pulled her out of her seat, and Sonnett grabbed Rose’s arm so she would be pulled along too.

 Lindsey pulled the two through the crowds, pushing everyone out of her way. Sonnett and Rose stumbled behind her, apologizing to everyone Lindsey pushed over. Finally, Lindsey stopped in front of a security guard, and Sonnett and Rose doubled over behind her, trying to catch their breath. Lindsey flashed a VIP pass to the guard and Sonnett and Rose were being pulled again.

 “Hey!” Y/N said as the three came into her sights.

 “Hey,” Lindsey said, blushing.

 “Congrats on the win,” Sonnett said.

 “Thanks!” Y/N said, “I’m glad you guys could make it.”

 “Oh yeah, real glad,” Rose muttered.

 “Hey,” Y/N turned to Lindsey, “I won.”

 “You did.”

 “Does that mean I can get whatever I want?” Y/N raised her eyebrows.

 “That depends on what it is,” Lindsey said.

 “I think I should, I won so I should get a reward,” Y/N said, “You wanna hear what I want?” Lindsey nodded. “I want you to be my girlfriend.” Lindsey grinned.

 “I guess it’s only fair, I mean you did win, so I guess I can be your girlfriend,” Lindsey said.

 “You seriously dragged us all the way here in the heat and the humidity and… Southerners, just to pick up a girl? You owe me big time Lindsey Horan! You owe me!”

[inosukeslefttoe]

SO i just finished wonder egg priority and i think that with confidence i can say it has been one of my favorite animes like... ever ?? and not even from hyperfixation or obsession over it just... its so fucking real yet so simple in a way that i havent rlly seen shown in any other shows you feel ??

but first i wanna talk about how sexy the art and animation is real quick... HOMIE ITS SO GOOD LIKE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT JUST... serotonin... the characters are all so unique and iconic and fun but not over the top in their designs yknow ??? they seem like regular every day girls but they stand out and theyre all sO CUTE !!!! also i love how the style is like this soft bubbly slice of life lookin stuff with bright happy colors and the most beautiful scenes you could find but they also have the SICKEST fight scenes complete with whimsical animal helpers and terrifying villains and crazy weapons unique to each character. and the animation. god DAMN shawty i am obsessed with everything in this show. i might make a post solely about the art later lol bc i wanna get into the other stuff.

so the themes in the show right ?? it starts just as this cute lil magical girl kinda deal but within the first episode we see that like.. oh damn... thats kinda heavy... tbh i was a little shocked and thought about stopping bc yknow bad mental health BUT i was so intrigued that i had to keep going and i am SO GLAD that i did. because this show just so beautifully discusses all these heavy topics in such an eloquent and artistically expressive way. and also like, , the juxtaposition of the charming childlike vibe with bright colors and 14 yr old girl protagonists against the dark themes of suicide and so much else,, i think is just perfect. bc a lot of heavy animes are more of the seinen genre and have some middle aged dude as a protag or make the entire color palette dim or offer little relief to the pain of these heavy themes right ?? but NO not wonder egg bitches B) because these problems arent just things that ppl face later in life or just problems that need to be talked about among adults or the edgy seinen watching squad,, these are REAL problems that face people of every age, gender etc and i think its awesome that wonder egg addresses that. some may cringe at the thought of their high schooler watching animes that discuss sexual harassment, suicide, abuse, self harm, eating disorders etc,, but in reality it is the most comforting thing i have ever come across and is basically jsut free anime therapy. because not only does wonder egg present these themes to the viewers as something real that happens to all kinds of people (making said people feel heard in a way that maybe they hadnt before), but it also makes sure to vanquish all of these forms of trauma. and the way the trauma is vanquished isnt always beautiful and it isnt always just magically gone with a poof. the struggles of overcoming or living with that sort of thing are shown in such a real and relatable way that addresses every hardship trauma survivors have to go through. and i just. god i cry bro. 

oh m y GOD and the lgbtq+ rep in this show ?? like shawty... as soon as i saw episode one i was picking up on some gay/lesbian themes but then again im sapphic and project that a lot so i tend to see that sort of stuff like... everywhere... but NE WAYS... episode ten made me FUKCING CRY BRO LIke i cant believe there was a whole trans character with a whole trans pride hoodie like LKGHKDGH my heart is just so.. so fucking full thinking about him. bc like yeah i know there are trans characters in anime but i feel like theyre always very ambiguous about actually being trans or not or erased or portrayed as a harmful stereotype or theyre constantly misgendered and still refered to as their assigned gender at birth and i hate it. HOWEVEr... Kaoru.. *chefs kiss* it was so amazing to see a character straight up say “yeah im trans” in such a casual yet powerful way bc i personally have never seen that before. and i love love loved how he went into his backstory and talked to momoe about gender bc i think thats what she rlly needed and that it helped her find herself and it makes me so happy oh my god,, and the way they talked about it never seemed forced or like it was the focal point of his existence yknow ?? like yeah he existed to help momoe overcome some of her trauma but he also just existed to be HIM yknow ?? also... personally, i headcanon momoe as a trans girl even though i dont remember it being explicitly stated plus the school scenes of her and stuff would seem like they suggest otherwise ??but,,, SHAWTY THE AMOUNT OF SUBTEXT and her complicated relationship w gender is... something i feel like a cis girl would not go through so harshly yknow ?? with all of the questioning and feeling detached from femininity or feeling like ppl dont see her as an actual girl and only like her as a guy or for her masculine traits,,, but dont take my word on this bc i myself am a cis girl but that was just my take on it as someone in the lgbtq+ community trying to educate myself on the transgender community :) either way,, wonder eggs portrayal of momoe and kaoru and the way that momoe becomes so passionate about expressing herself the way she wants to as a girl is just... good lord im gonna cry its so perfect,,,.so ... i just love this show way too much. i also am honestly super lost about the relationship btwn acca and ura-acca ?? bc i was gonna mention ura-acca as a canonically gay guy bc when i was watching i interpreted ep 11 as him being in love with acca and being jealous of Azusa (bc i mean,, they lived together (i swear to god there was only one bed in that apartment) and had a daughter together and def loved each other and also when Frill said they were husbands and then when ura-acca said he wasnt attracted to azusa but he was def jealous of their relationship ??) but then i saw somewhere that theyre brothers ?? which would make sense ig since they look kinda similar and accas daughter called ura-acca “uncle”.. but at the same time its ANIME SO THEY ALL LOOK SIMILAR and referring to gay couples as siblings is an EXTREMELY common euphemism soooo... IM JUST LOST HERE... but yeah i tried doing research and found different things so i cant say anything for sure >:( however,,, if they are canonically a lil fruity for each other... when frill refered to acca as ura-accas husband i imploded dude you never hear that sort of wording in anime.. but if theyre related i am so sorry. 

god this is so much longer than i planned it to be oops but i also love the theme about like.. relying on friends to help carry your weight but at the same time not becoming completely dependent on those friends and using their support to learn how to love yourself and rely on yourself yknow ?? bc that is exactly what healthy friendships look like. bc i think ai sort of had a codependency thing goin on with koito maybe ?? but now she has a whole squad of funky friends that are so so different but all struggle with different kinds of trauma and although they fight over it, they always get through it with each other together. and they push each other no matter what to be the best versions of themselves and they teach other that getting hurt is okay because theyre always gonna be there to pick up the pieces no matter what happens. they can give each other space when they need and adapt to meet each others needs but theyre always able to balance it out with their own needs and thats such a beautiful thing in friendships especially at their age like damn i wish i had that maturity when i was 14 but no all i had was depression. another thing is that through these friendships you get to see all the different sides of each girl; you get to see them being strong or a shining light to their friends when theyre hurting but you also get to see them being hurt and weak and allowing themselves to be on the receiving end of the comfort. their friendships allows them to have weaknesses but it also allows them to highlight their strengths and thrive off of each others. I LOVE FRIENDSHIP DUDE

next i wanna briefly mention some of the themes connected to suicide that ive noticed. a big one is the survivors guilt that ai feels once koito is dead. several times she screams that she wishes she couldve gone with koito and she dreams of a “perfect world” where they committed a double suicide. one of the main reasons for her troubles is that she blames herself for koitos death and feels like it should be her thats dead... but at the same time she feels like too much of a coward to do anything now that koito is gone. she just has all these complex and contradicting feelings that wear away at her in ways that ppl that havent gone through the suicide of a loved one could never imagine. a lot of the times when things like this are portrayed in media i feel like its more in a way thats meant to guilt trip those that have taken their own lives and paint suicide as this selfish sin thats unforgivable but... not only does wonder egg reject that idea and instead portray it as a heartbreaking tragedy with,,, so so many terrible reasons, but it focuses on the feelings of ai separate from koito without blaming her in any way. not once did i feel like the show antagonized koito or that ai blamed koito for doing any of this, but they simply mourned her loss and touched on ais reaction towards the event but separate from koito herself if that makes sense. and i think that discussing survivors guilt without painting koito as the bad guy is something so beautifully done in wonder egg that can really resonate with those that have lost a loved one to suicide and have struggled with these same things.

okay i think this is the last thing ill mention,,, but HOMIE THE PARALLEL UNIVERSE BIT AT THE END. I AM. OBSESSED. i am such a whore for anything about the multiverse okay n e ways...,, not only did this make a super epic trippy ending of season one and add a little bit more magical girl whimsy to the show,, but it had such a powerful message. from the perspective of og ai,, finding out that you killed yourself in another world is... i mean its definitely not a surprise but at the same time it rlly makes you think how close og ai herself couldve been to that point and what decisions led her out of that dark place in her life. if i were in her shoes i would be terrified and id cry bc the thought of going back to such a dark place and actually going through with something like that is my worst fear and probably something that ai fears too. but at the same time,,, think from the perspective of ai two !!! like yeah its true that theres this awful terrible version of ai that dies but theres also a whole version of ai that is a superhero magical girl fighting off monsters to save countless ppls lives !! and she has a badass lizard and a gang of awesome friends !!! at first i was worried that ai two would be jealous of og ai and compare herself to her and feel inferior but like.. THEYRE LITERALLY THE SAME PERSON AND CAPABLE OF THE SAME THINGS !!! and ai two realized that !! just within the span of one episode, she went from the version of ai who took her life,, to the version of ai jumping in front of a friend to take a bullet for them and save their life. and that just inspired THE SHIT OUT OF ME. i think that ai was sent another version of herself to sort of beat her own worst enemy yknow ?? those doubts and fears that shes no good or that shes that same bystander from episode one and that she hasnt changed at all. but getting to interact with her parallel self and see her grow was just what she needed to realize that while yeah sometimes the worst thing can happen and things can be terrible but on the other hand sometimes the most wonderful thing imaginable can happen because she has the power to do either. 

so im gonna go ahead and stop rambling bc i got all my thoughts out that i wanted to for this post :D but yeah lol i might make another if i feel like it sometime. long story short: this show is perfect and it is going on my favorite of all times.

[docholligay]

Please rant/rave (well, we already know which one it will be here) about Harry Potter!

GEE I HOPE THIS WAS WORTH WAITING FOR

OH MY GOD. The level of hatred I have for Harry Fucking Goddamn Potter, the culture around Harry Fucking Potter, extending its poisonous tentacles even to the concept of young adult fiction, fantasy, and the United Kingdom as a country and people. 

When you being on this, you may think, “Oh, Doc will explain that Harry Potter sucks because JKR hates trans women” and I will say, oh no, dear reader, that is a fantastic reason to hate the author, and I really suggest we all continue to hate her, and perhaps not purchase the QUEEN’S TONNES of officially licensed merchandise and movies and theme parks that give her stupid little fucking hands all that cash, but no, that is not why I hate the work. There are a number of great works done by terrible people, and the further out the lens of history gets the truer this is. 

I hate Harry Potter because it fucking sucks, and mentally stifled an entire fucking generation. 

“Well, Doc, Harry Potter was really there for me when--” Oh my god I could not fucking care LESS about your personal emotion connection to “orphan wizard boy turns out to be a rich aristocrat yet somehow less woke than Cinderella though” I have personally emotional connections to hot fucking garbage pails of media properties, and if someone came barreling through talking about the myriad ways in which they were horrible, I would be like, “Oh, you aren’t fucking wrong, pal” 

Harry Potter gained wild ass popularity in part due to its magnificent sorting system of Smart, Brave, Evil, and Other, because there’s nothing liberals like more than being able to put everyone’s personality into an easily labeled box, which is why astrology is so popular, or for the intellectuals, Myers-Briggs, which is just as fake but with the veneer of science. This allowed people to give into the tribalism they so desperately liked to pretend they did not possess, and also allow them to write thinkpieces about “The misunderstood Hufflepuff” or “Slytherins aren’t all bad!” or really anything that allows them to write a very real piece about their very imagined oppression for being a part of a totally fake house in a children’s book. Excellent use of your sociology degree, Kai, I thought the addition of phrases like, ‘Content of socialization” and “axes of oppression” really spoke to the struggles you face when wearing a green and silver scarf. 

The other reason it became popular is that it’s essentially wallpaper paste formed into characters. I have read all of the books, and I could not tell you even remotely what Harry’s defining personality traits are other than “protagonist”. In American, at least, a large part of it was the fascination with all things British, with the idea of boarding school and prefects and uniforms that aren’t inexplicably chinos and polo shirts for nine year olds. It allowed children to project onto something so bland that it could be anything. And for children, THAT’S FINE. There is a great deal of bland media made for children, but what I’m speaking to is the fandom, which is largely well over the age of 18. 

Because if we look at the books, are they...actually good? Was it good, or did I experience it as a child? I mean, honestly, on a literary level, are they, or was it just like we all watched Friends, we did it because everyone else was doing it, because I have a distinct memory of a series that involves such greats as “magical geegaws with poorly defined rules that are quickly forgotten despite being able to solve later problems quickly” or “Everyone loves Harry or is a bad guy, or secretly loved Harry all along” 

Oh, speaking of, man, if this was an actual well-written book, wouldn’t it have been wild to have Snape’s whole thing be to teach us that sometimes people do good things for the wrong reasons? Instead of naming your fucking child after the guy who ‘protected you’ because he still wanted to bone your mom? “After all this time” “Always.” 

While all this could have been explained, we have Quidditch added into the mix instead because 20 pages of the goddamn Puppy Bowl is exactly what I was looking for while I was waiting for JK to move the goddamn ball on literally any of these actual magical concepts. 

Harry Potter is a fucking trust fund baby, star quarterback, who grows up to be a cop and marries his high school sweetheart. (Speaking of, why were we shocked that JKR turned out to be a piece of shit when this was and always has been the conclusion of Harry Potter? Why are liberals so fucking into this series that upholds structures like it ain’t no one’s business? It’s a series that opines that those beneath us “Muggles” should be kept in the dark from us) Literally, he finds out he is a wizard and has a dragon-guarded fucking VAULT OF CASH. At 11. It’s such a series for little tyrants, you are special from birth and need do nothing to prove it, here is a letter certifying as such. Oh, not only are you rich and the greatest seeker and have excellent quips, but also your parents were not only rebels, but the best of rebels, and so deeply involved that your parents were killed by the big bad personally, again, because you are so special. His mother’s love literally saves his ass over and over again, because he was SO SPECIAL. He fought Voldemort FROM THE BEGINNING, and WON.  It’s literally the most privilege baby fantasy in the world. 

“But Doooooooooooc, it’s for chiiiiiiiiiiiiiiildren” 

A) Yeah, and you’re 32, you’re making my fucking point about Harry Potter setting an entire generation up for intellectual failure to launch. 

B) Okay, and? I can think of a bunch of kids’ books off the top of my head that in no way require specialness to be given by birth so as to roll out the red carpet for master protagonist. The Hunger Games. Watership Down. A Series of Unfortunate Events. The Chronicles of FUCKING NARNIA, about which I have only a small handful of particularly kind things to say. I’ve never read Percy Jackson, but it’s my understanding that despite his being a literal demigod, the attitudes of the supporting cast are allowed to fall between the extremes of “Appreciates Percy” and “naughty or will learn” Harry does nothing to improve himself even after knowing that he is HUNTED BY THE BIG BAD! “I won’t do this because I don’t like Snape”. So There” which, again, if this series were written with the slightest bit of care or know-how, could be a humbling fucking plot point! BUT NO THAT WOULD BE NAUGHTY. 

But the real reason I hate Harry Potter so much has everything to do with the fandom surrounding it, and how it intellectually stunted a generation of adults. The promise of Harry Potter was that it was supposed to make a new generation of readers, and so the popularity of them was pushed, and so there was discussion of teaching them in schools, but I tell you fucking what, I know a whole lot more folks who grew up reading Harry Potter that never advanced beyond reading YA, or even just rereading the entire series every year and that’s pretty much them done and dusted. 

In the attempt to recapture whatever it was about Harry Potter that attracted children (A lot of it was your peers doing it. I read them all as they came out, and it was literally the equivalent of watching the game so you could talk at the water cooler. That was never going to be recaptured) people, who by this time were likely in their teens, kept getting recommended stuff at the same and same level. No one ever felt pushed to read things that are challenging, to read things that have some of the concepts or themes of Harry Potter but maybe complicate. I know FAR more adults who read adult books that aren’t into Harry Potter, even if they were as children, than the reverse. 

But Doc, why is reading only books meant for 14 year olds a problem??? I mean I suppose I can’t convince you that comfort is not the job of literature or of life, it is the job of an easy chair, because Americans especially are decadent as fuck about being comfy cozy all the time and if anything causes them distress or pain it should be immediately avoided. But Maybe I can convince you that you’re fucking up these books for actual ass children who deserve to have their own writing section without adults bringing their fucking asses into it. They deserve their own spaces. There’s a number of YA editors who have talked about the difficult space YA now occupies because since Potter’s blowup, it’s no longer a niche category, but basically “adult easy reads” and so they have been buying books that are more about the tastes of adult buyers than of literal 14 year olds. 

Is that not...sad? To anyone else? Honestly, and this is not part of the essay because it’s a broader reaching problem, but CHILDREN’S MEDIA IS NOT FOR US. CHILDREN’S MEDIA IS NOT FOR US. CHILDREN’S MEDIA IS FOR FUCKING CHILDREN. The fucking 40-23 set really needs to get their shit together and grow up a little bit and engage in some fucking adult media, and maybe, if we support what we’re actually looking for FOR ADULTS, it will come to us. No one is saying you can’t read Harry Potter or watch some Cartoon Network show, but like, search your heart and come the fuck on. Engage in something more complex. If not for yourselves, for the kids getting shoved into simplified adult stories. It should not be about us. 

ANYWAY, my larger point is that it was Harry Potter, a badly written series about a magical boy who was chosen and magic and also rich and also a favorite of the headmaster and also more clever than most adults and also spoke the same magical snake language as the big bad and was also star quarterback, but at least there was a system in which you could buy a scarf in block colors and feel like you belonged to a team. 

(But not a sports team! lol handegg! I’m cool I don’t get into sports! Except Quidditch.) 

[intheseautumnhands]

An excuse to roll dice! Excellent! D100 asks: 2, 50, 86, 30, 56, 64

2. What kind of emotions do the stars evoke for you, if any? The ocean, the sky, the moon?

I have complicated feelings about the ocean, because I actively love actually being in water, but everything around it where you have to like... get used to the water, get out and get clean again, probably be on the beach with sand to get there, be in a bathing suit, all of that, I do not. So the ocean brings on strong feelings of want followed by feelings of ...but no. XD No, generally, though, the ocean is calming. Smelling it, seeing it, being near it. The one thing I do kind of miss about Florida is catching sight and scent of the water so often. And literally nothing else.

Stars/moon make me feel rooted, and kind of nostalgic. I worked with Artemis a lot when I was a pre-teen, and I miss that. The sky depends a lot on what the sky looks like. Stormy skies make me feel calm and tired. XD

50. What qualities do you find charming?

I feel like this one’s hard to answer? Charming is a weird word to define and I don’t know if I’d say charmed is a reaction I have often. XD The first thing to come to mind is -- people who are clearly super into what they’re doing and who wants to draw others in, but very respectful of boundaries? Like, someone at an outdoor music event or a drum circle who’s encouraging people to dance with them, but not pushing them if they get waved off. Or someone in full costume at an event playing off people in-character, but not dragging out the bit with people who don’t react.

Seeing people be really into a thing is always great, but when they don’t seem to have as much of a sense of when others don’t want to play along, it gets kind of nerve-wracking -- I just want to sit on the sidelines and watch you, I don’t want to risk being pulled in! But that enthusiasm and enjoyment paired with that display of social skills is a balance that really draws me in.

86. What could you talk about for hours?

So many things. Pretty much anything if I’m feeding off someone else’s interest in it. I can talk for so long about Tarot. Or about witchcraft, or Paganism/Wicca. Musical theater, hoo boy, for so long, or for most pieces of media I’ve been interested in. Fandom as a general topic. Queerness. Mental illness and mental health stuff, also physical illness and disability stuff. Tabletop RPGs, especially if you get me talking about weird indie stuff I know exists and want to try. Also just recommending stuff generally, really, get me reccing and I can just keep going. Personality taxonomy systems. Organizational systems. Like, I talk too much, up until I realize I’m talking too much and abruptly get quiet, so if you got me talking about something I was invested enough in to override the “oops I’m talking a lot”... there are many things. XD

30. If you don't have tattoos, and had to get one, what would you get tattooed on you? Is getting tattooed a big deal to you? If you are tattooed, do you regret any?

I have made multiple lists of things I would get tattooed on me! Mostly quotes/lyrics. I’m not so much a visual person as a words person, so the things that are that important to me are mostly quotes, though I would consider something media-derived for properties that were either majorly lifechanging for me or that I’ve loved for long enough. If I had to get one right this second... don’t be proud, be well is a strong contender. So is tomorrow is coming, & tomorrow needs sponges (as a short form of the full quote, which finishes with: & god, what a fucking miracle it is, the way that we go on). devour the monsters and you can call any place home.

I would probably have tattoos, but I am scared of needles and a baby about pain. XD Also, perpetually broke, but mostly the needles.

56. What (or who) do you daydream about?

Most of the time it’s either stories I want to be writing, or playing out things I’ve watched/listened to in my head. I tend to daydream less about things actually happening to me; if I zone out thinking about non-fiction, I’m probably composing an argument in my head to feel better about something I’m not going to respond to. XD

64. Do you feel like you know yourself very well?

Hahahaha no. Self-identity is a really muddled, confusing thing, and I find it really hard to say much about who I really am at the core. Without getting too deep or too serious, it’s just something I find to be a mess. This is part of why I like labels, personality taxonomy, and finding out how other people think of me. They feel like something to hold onto when the rest of it feels unsure.

( 100 questions game )

[comfy-whumpee]

Whumping Safely 101

Many people in this community have mental health problems, face various types of discrimination, and have complicated relationships with some parts or types of whump. In particular, I aim this at people who care about the experience of survivors and others with triggers – partially because I am an abuse survivor who often flirts with triggering content as part of my love of whump.

Keeping your blog safe is difficult, takes effort, and is never a perfect process. But as the community grows and grows, it’s really important that we hold ourselves to a high standard. I would argue that this is a responsibility of all content creators, but especially those of us in the messy playground of whump.

I’ve got three sections in here: content warnings, writing with care, and community interaction. I’ve tried to make it navigable. It’s about 1.8k words. Shorter than a lot of drabbles! I welcome good-faith criticism on this topic and further questions on my own views.

Content Warnings

The biggest responsibility, in my opinion, is empowering your reader to make their own decision on whether they want to expose themselves to your writing. This also happens to be by far the easiest way to help people whump safely.

What to warn

This is a big and ever-changing topic. Some things you should warn for as a rule of thumb are anything NSFW, pet whump and box boy whump, drugs and alcohol, medical and hospital content, graphic gore, intimate partner violence, and animal harm. It can be tricky to draw the line of what counts – what needs a warning? If you’re in doubt, just warn it anyway. It doesn’t hurt.

If someone requests a trigger be warned for, even if it’s something that feels obscure or tame, show compassion and agree to the request. This is someone who cares enough about being able to read your writing that they wrote in! They want to be able to read it and enjoy it. You’re being complimented.

Otherwise, look at what other blogs tag for. You’ll see some variation in styles and levels of detail, but it’s a good way to gauge what people think is warn-worthy, when we’re often writing stuff that would already be R-rated in mainstream media.

Read Mores

The easiest way to make sure people don’t see your triggering content is to use a cut. Tumblr is not a very functional website and likes to delete cuts, but a cursory check of your posted content will usually tell you whether it’s worked. With asks, cuts are very spotty, so don’t be afraid to post an ask response separately with a screengrab of the original question. People often then respond to the ask itself with a link to the post, especially if it’s a whole drabble. Tumblr is weird and bad so just do your best.

Content notices

I.e., a quick summary before the drabble, usually in bold, to state what will be coming. I like to distinguish between using content notes (CN) and trigger warnings (TW) to indicate severity. Others might use the old phrase ‘dead dove do not eat’ to indicate this is a heavy piece, and often you will see qualifiers like ‘intense’, ‘mild’, ‘mention’, ‘referenced’ (i.e. it is discussed but not actively happening), and ‘implied’ (as the opposite of ‘explicit’). I’ve also seen a couple of people use ‘vibes’, which is a really nice way of demonstrating that it’s there, but not the focus. A quick paragraph like this, or just a line, lets people make a quick risk assessment on their reading.

This is also important if you’re sending in asks or requests to people. If you want to ask about something triggering, send an inquiry first about whether the blog is okay to hear it.

Tagging

Tagging is a chore, but it’s your primary way of warning people about your content. The main benefit of tagging is that you can be as detailed as you want, because can be tagging for content in general, not just triggers.

In a best case scenario, you’d tag the kind of whump you’re doing, tag triggers, tag characters, and even your ‘verses, because tagging is your index for your blog. If you tag reliably, you help your future self and your readers find stuff, and you also make your blog really dang safe. People who have unusual triggers can blacklist tags, and will pick up on your content tags to help them.

Don’t just tag your own writing. Tag your reblogs, tag your prompts, tag your asks. Yes, edit your asks to add the tags. Tag your images and gifs. Tag your images as images and your gifs as gifs.

If you aren’t up for detailed tagging for whatever reason, just tag for triggering content, and add stuff to that list if you’re asked to. My usual technique is to make a mental note of tags while I’m formatting and editing before posting.

Be aware that your first five tags will be used in search results. If you’re using tags that are associated with kink too, such as ‘shibari’, you might want to rethink your tag order if you don’t want interaction from those blogs. Also think about what tags might come up in non-whump contexts, such as ‘collar’ or ‘PTSD’. Some tactics for getting around this I’ve seen are adding ‘whump’ after the content or writing the tags in past tense (i.e., ‘collared’).

It is also a good idea to watch out for when you might be reblogging something whumpy that is intended as kink / porn / fetish, especially in images. Tagging these as spicy / nsfw / kink is a sensible move.

Writing with Care

Okay, now for the harder stuff.

I mean here to lay out some guidelines for how to write in a way that helps your reader build good faith. This is a much more nuanced topic, and it’s different for everyone. There will always be differing opinions on what should and shouldn’t be written about, what a good depiction of a sensitive topic is, and how to discuss that topic. I tried to strip this back into absolute basics that I hope we can all agree on.

Maybe your whump involves abuse. Maybe it’s gaslighting. Maybe it’s severe mental health problems, or addiction, or slavery, or you write about or analogise real-world issues. Whump deals with the dark stuff, and that’s a big part of its appeal. But don’t ever forget you’re writing the dark stuff.

(Try to) Know what you’re doing

Some of us play fast and loose with plots, medical accuracy, worldbuilding, and other things that get in the way of the pain we crave. This is all well and good, but when we start using whump that speaks true to people’s lived experiences, we shouldn’t be careless with it. I’m particularly talking about things that get represented poorly in mainstream media, such as abusive relationships, issues around marginalisation, mental illness and disability.

Be critical of media that you’ve consumed. Think about how its depicted things that you want to depict in turn. Look for opinions on fictional representations of those issues. Be aware that you might be more ignorant of things than you realise.

Look at how others are writing these issues, particularly if they’re writing from a perspective different to yours. If you haven’t personally experienced what you’re writing about, e.g., if you don’t have PTSD and you want to depict a character who does, seek out stuff written from or with experience. Listen to the experts.

If you’re looking for stuff about representation specifically, I recommend this collection of posts about ‘Braving Diversity’ cultivated by Writing With Colour, who are in themselves a fantastic resource for this topic, and have recommendations for other blogs that deal with intersecting issues.

Listen to others

Missteps are inevitable. Nobody is perfect. If constructive criticism is offered, that’s also a compliment to your writing. Someone read your work and thought about it, and thought you’d care about improving it. They’re offering themselves as a resource for helping you see your work in a new light.

Criticism is hard and sometimes hurtful, but even if we don’t think it’s accurate, there’s often a grain of truth in it. If someone tells you that your writing is harmful, think about why they’ve said that, not whether or not they’re correct. This is an opinion! Opinions are subjective! But what drove someone to send that in?

You don’t have to respond to all your criticism and definitely don’t respond straight away. Being respectful to those who are trying to help you means taking the time to consider it properly. Sometimes, they don’t need a response. Others, you might want to learn more about what they think before deciding. You might have already discussed the topic, in which case, you might just want to reblog your previous posts.

If it’s sent in bad faith or is outright hateful, you’re well within your rights to just delete it and move on. You might get the same criticism over and over again, and that’s exhausting, and you don’t have to retrace your steps for everyone.

But if it’s new, even if it puts your hackles up, you can always stop and wonder why someone felt that strongly about your work.

Take a step back

One of my better-known characters is a pet whumper who conditioned his victim to adore and depend on him. It’s not always easy to represent how deeply messed up that is within the text – though I think that’s part of the challenge – but in meta-commentary, I am always describing him as a creeptastic bastard lacking compassion and self-reflection. I hope to always give the reader the confidence that I know just how wrong it is.

This is a really simple thing you can do just to give readers good faith in you. Show that you know what you’re writing is dark and messed up. Show your understanding for the issues you’re handling and that they’re complicated. It might seem self-evident, but when you’re writing the really dark stuff, or unhealthy relationships, or institutionalised whump, you can inadvertently create the impression that you just think it’s fun. The fact that it’s fiction does not automatically absolve you. Show that you care about doing it right.

Community Interaction

I’m going to keep this one short and sweet because I will almost entirely be preaching to the choir here.

Be polite to others. Imagine saying what you’re saying to their face.

Don’t send anon hate. Just don’t. If you can send criticism off anon, do so.

Nobody is obligated to interact with you.

Nobody is obligated to monitor their own reader base.

If someone says do not interact, do not interact.

If someone says do not interact, why they’ve said that is none of your business.

You don’t need to spread the word about someone’s bad politics.

Ask yourself if your input is needed, or if what you’ve said has already been said.

You don’t have to take a side.

Take care of yourself. Take breaks. Remind yourself that whump is a small part of the world.

That’s all from me, folks. Stay safe.