#i simply don’t like how women are treated in fandoms in general I fear

[persephoneflouwers]

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[gegengestalt]

Katerina Ivanovna Verkhotseva! (For the ask game thingy)

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

5. What's the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

14. Assign a fashion aesthetic to this character.

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

(You don’t have to answer all of these if you don’t want to, however I love your takes on her and am dying to hear you talk about her more.)

Oooh, finally! Someone sends me something related to the ask game! And about one of my favourite girls, too!

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

If I had to choose just one, it would be how explosive she can be. I love it so much when things don't go her way and she goes from being so doting to resorting to insults and almost throwing hands. This is not simply the rage of a young woman who shows her true colours when she doesn't have what she wants, she really, really seems to be convinced that things are going her way... And then reality hits her.

5. What's the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

Oh, Katya Ivanovna, you would have loved Me and My Husband by Mitski. Somehow I imagine the lyrics being about her and Mitya at first, but as the song goes on she's actually talking about Ivan.

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

I don't feel like Katya is talked about much in general, and I can say so confidently after navigating as much TBK related content on the internet as I could. So I don't really know what to say. When she gets attention, I specially love it when her God/saviour/martyr complex is adressed and appreciated. She is a little weird.

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Tough question, since there is a lot I dislike about how female characters are treated by readers in general (as well as narratives). I'm going to try to be original and say something I haven't said before. I don't really like it when the girls are pitted against each other, like you have to choose one of them or think one is better than the other. I think a lot of the animosity between her and Grusha come from struggles with themselves and their fears and insecurities, and I feel sympathetic towards both of them, both young women who want to feel some control over their lives. So it breaks my heart a little when other people who prefer Grusha put down Katya and viceversa.

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

This is half headcanon half character reading, but knowing that she lost her mother at a young age and that there is a theme of absent mothers throughout the book, I like to think that the loss of her mother impacted how she turned out and why she seems to take on some motherlike, overbearing tendencies herself.

14. Assign a fashion aesthetic to this character.

Hmmm, I don't know how I'm supposed to answer to this, but I associate her with elegant, long clothing in green, blue and white, sometimes with gold accessories. Combined with the light brown hair of my design, it gives her a springlike kind of look.

In The Sims, I gave her a preppy, simple look with light colours. Here she is, I don't know why she's loooking at squids on her phone.

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

Katya was a character who had to grow on me. On my first read, I didn't like her much, but I didn't dislike her either. She was, in fact, one of the harder characters to visualize. I had to make several sketches of her designs because all I could think of was "tall slender girl with dark eyes and a lot of hair". Only after processing what I had read for a longer time I started to pick apart everything she said and started to appreciate her more (and started to appreciate her relationship to Ivan as well). In retrospective, the buildup to her introduction was great. It's not as good as Nastasya's, but it's the work of a good writer. I love Katya, saviour complex and all.

[the-insomniac-emporium]

Wounded Love Pt. 2 (Lady Dimitrescu/F!Reader)

Fandom: Resident Evil: Village Rating: T? Maybe? Almost the exact opposite of the first one. Language, minor violence Genre: Fluff, mainly, with admittedly a little bit of humor? I blame my lack of sleep. And my adhd. Warnings: Implied cannibalism adjacent activities because guess what honey, this is a fucked up family, what do you expect of me??? Sure, they have breakfast in this, there's cute stuff, but c'mon, they don't eat flowers and oatmeal! Notes: Doubt it needs to be said, but this is a sequel to the good ending of part one. Also Cass has one line in this that might be OOC, or seem oddly placed, but admittedly this chapter is also loosely based on a dream I had, and I couldn't not include the few direct quotations I remembered, and she seemed the most likely to say the line. And yes, there will be a part 3, because I am weak and also kind of maybe made this one less plot-moving than intended.

{Wounded Love: The re-woundening}

Every step ached more than the last, even with Alcina supporting you. She had wanted to carry you down the stairs, of course, but you had insisted that you would be fine. Now you were just determined not to complain out loud. One yelp or cry and you’d be scooped up in her arms, surely to be carried for the rest of the day. As much as you appreciated your girlfriend’s assistance, you hated feeling useless, and hated putting a burden on others. So here you were, one arm wrapped around Alcina’s waist, limping ever-so-slowly towards the dining room.

Further ahead (unburdened by your injury) the three Dimitrescu daughters talk among themselves, voices hushed as they too headed for breakfast. It was odd to see them all awake, and socializing, as there was usually at least one who came to meals late. You couldn’t help but wonder if it had something to do with your condition… or the circumstances that had caused it.

Less than eighteen hours had passed since your fight with a stray lycan, and tension had been high since. While you hadn’t yet spoken to the sisters, you had spoken to Alcina, who had briefly mentioned their concern for you. Whether they actually cared about you as a person or just cared because you are dating their mother is unclear. Based on how they had acted while treating your wounds, though, you were inclined to think that they were fond of you. And seeing as Alcina had already vowed to get revenge on your behalf… well, you wouldn’t be surprised to learn that her daughters intended to assist.

“Careful on the last step, dear,” Alcina says, positioned as to catch you if you fell. It takes a little willpower to resist the urge to hop down the rest of the way. As long as you landed on your uninjured leg, it wouldn’t even be that bad. Still, irritating your girlfriend first thing in the morning felt like a pretty stupid thing to do. Instead you just nodded, slowing down even more, and took visible care not to trip. “Good girl.”

Well, you certainly couldn’t say that being careful didn’t have its rewards.

“I have my moments,” you replied, blush rising to your cheeks. Suddenly your pain didn’t feel so bad (at least until you took another step and winced). “Damn, who woulda thought that cutting a chunk out of my leg would make it hurt more?” The leg in question throbbed in pain, as if to prove your point, protesting the weight you put on it. Changing the angle at which you stood helped some, allowing the lower half of the limb to bear more of the burden.

“Dearest…” Alcina starts to say, looking like she was going to readdress her desire to carry you. For a moment you try to avoid her gaze, but she moves in front of you, making sure that you could still hold onto her for support. “I know how you feel, how you want, desperately, to be independent. When I was first… granted this gift, it took a long time to adjust. There was so much I had to relearn how to do, so much that I suddenly needed done for me.” A pause, a deep breath. At last you look up at your girlfriend, warmth in your heart, reaching out to hold her hand. “You have time, my dear, and plenty of it. More than that… this will not last forever. The more you push yourself, the longer your recovery will take. Now, please, allow me to assist. You have already proven how strong you are.”

“Oh, you drive a hard bargain… but if you insist, who am I to decline? Or, well, who am I to decline twice in a row?” You answer, somewhat begrudgingly. It wasn’t much farther to the dining room, you figured, so it wouldn’t be much of a loss to accept help. Or at least that was what you told yourself. Even with Alcina’s encouragement it was so hard for you to accept her help. After all, you were the one that worked for her. Never mind the fact that she was somewhat responsible for your injury- really, you were actively avoiding thinking about that.

It’s much easier to forget once Alcina carefully picks you up. One arm goes under your legs, the other under your chest, lifting you without any effort. You might as well have been a kitten or a child’s toy. The movement does, however, shift your injured leg in such a way that it aches. At this point you can hardly move the limb at all without it hurting, and even the slightest friction against the bandage makes your eyes water.

Apparently someone would be delivering some painkillers later in the day. You assumed it would be The Duke (whose name is apparently not Doug, as you had thought), seeing as he knew some special way to get to and fro without risking the same fate that had befallen you. Which, of course, made you feel a lot better. Getting someone else hurt would weigh on your mind forever.

Regardless, you were safe now, as was your strange, bloody little family. Before long you would even be enjoying a pleasant meal together. Certainly that would help get your mind off of your wound? For now, though, you were met with an unexpected impasse. The sort of impasse that really, really should have been expected.

“Why… is the doorway… so small?” You asked, jokingly, as you stare into the mildly embarrassed face of your girlfriend. It’s already hard enough for her to crouch through the gap normally. When she’s carrying you? Impossible. “Can we ask Mother Miranda for bigger doors? She gave you eternal life and also three kids, she’s gotta be capable of making bigger doors. Put me down, I’ll go call her and-”

“That won’t be necessary, dear,” Alcina cuts you off, not fully appreciating this part of your humor. Or maybe she had already asked for bigger doors, only to be told no?... Okay, yeah, it was probably the first option. With a sigh she sets you down, as gently as she can manage. Ready and raring to go, you start to hobble forward, only to find all three of the daughters waiting for you, just beyond the door. They’re grinning as they watch you, and Bela extended her arm to offer her help. “What appears to be the matter?” Alcina asks from behind you. Accepting your fate and Bela’s arm, you let the sisters guide you to the table, Cassandra holding your other side, and Daniela pulls your chair out for you. Honestly it’s pretty adorable. Evidently your girlfriend agrees, from the way she smiles as she follows.

“Thank you,” you say, more out of reflex than genuine gratitude. Again, you weren’t thrilled about needing this assistance. If the girls notice they’re at least polite enough not to mention it. They simply move to their own seats at the large table, eager to dig in. It feels… strange, to be here, on this side of things. Stranger still to realize you’re the only one intending to eat actual food. There’s wine in your glass, but it’s a much fainter red than those you’ve previously served to your girlfriend. Thank goodness, you think, after how raw my throat was yesterday, I really don’t need to taste any more blood.

Once Lady Dimitrescu sits down, the meal formally begins, with several maidens appearing from the kitchen. Several seem relieved to see you, although surprised, and one even gave you a brief smile. The smile did not last, however. It wasn’t unexpected, considering the nature of her job, the pressures that it put upon her. No one smiled at mealtimes. Well, no maidens, that is. They simply moved around, wordlessly, faces blank, doing exactly as instructed. Only a few days ago you had been among them, fear keeping you in line. Was it wrong of you to care for Alcina, knowing what she was capable of doing to others? Knowing what she might have, in another life, done to you?

A maiden places a plate of warm food, as well as a bowl of fresh fruit, in front of you. For a moment your eyes meet, but she looks away instinctively. Your heart threatens to break.

“This looks wonderful, thank you for your hard work, all of you,” you speak up, glancing at each of the women working so hard. There’s more you want to say that dries in your throat; you are valued, you are deserving, someday I will join your ranks again.

“You don’t need to thank them, they’re just doing their jobs,” Cassandra chimes from the other side of the table. Hearing her say that damn near makes you drop your fork. It’s not an uncommon settlement, particularly among older generations and the rich, but one that irks you nonetheless.

“They’re doing my job. They are taking on extra work, for no pay, because I am injured. Why would I be so cruel as to ignore them? Have I not toiled alongside them enough to call them my kin?” You ask, struggling to keep your voice even. Next to you Alcina is slowly cutting into her meat, watching the scene unfold out of the corner of her eyes, perhaps considering when to step in. On the other end of the table, Bela looks increasingly uncomfortable, as if silently willing her sister into silence. None of the maidens have reacted to what you said, likely too afraid of Cassandra to even consider speaking.

“Ooooh, this is much more fun than our usual breakfasts,” Daniela says, stifling a giggle. “Do you have any other thoughts you’d like to share? Preferably ones that aren’t about me.” At this, Alcina sets her utensils down, clearly intending to put an end to the discussion. Unfortunately for her, you were a bit… impulsive, especially considering the previous night’s activities had left your mind struggling to cope.

“Dead lycans smell terrible. Literally the worst thing I’ve ever smelled, easily, no question about it,” you answer, shrugging a little as you do. It’s such a simple thought that you almost don’t realize how the others at the table react. Until the clatter of silverware on the table catches your attention, that is. All three sisters are eying you with different expressions (Bela is confused, Cass is impressed, and Daniela looks shocked). But it’s Alcina’s wide-eyed stare that gets you to elaborate. “Should I have said ‘a dead lycan’? I only got one, so I guess I shouldn’t say they all smell bad. C’mon, though, they have to all smell bad, right?”

Suddenly Daniela shifts from shock to pure amusement, a fit of giggles overtaking her. You’re still confused, not sure what the matter was, so you just sip your wine and hope someone asks the right questions.

“You… killed the lycan that attacked you?” Bela finally says, after a few moments of her sister laughing, expression still incredulous. When you nod she sort of shakes her head, trying to clear her thoughts. “May I ask how you managed that?”

“Oh, you know, I just meh meh-” you mime a stabbing motion with your fork- “until the stupid thing stopped moving. I had to use a tree branch as a weapon, but then it broke after a few whacks, which actually helped because then I had two stabbing implements to, you know, stab with. That’s right around when it got my leg, and it tried to bite me. Thankfully it wasn’t very smart, so when it leapt at me I just hyah-” this time an upwards strike- “right into its neck. That didn’t kill it, but it was enough to slow it down, which allowed me to stab the other half of the branch into its skull. Made this horrible, horrible sound as it died. Seeing as we are eating, I will not imitate the sound. Not that I could, now that I think about it…”

Once again there’s silence. Even Daniela has quieted now, and is watching you with rapt interest, likely hoping that you’re hiding another story up your sleeves.

“So… did you guys actually think that I managed to run away from the lycan? Or were you under the impression that it simply got bored of me and left?” You ask, casually returning to your breakfast afterwards. No one says anything, at first, taking in your words as best as they can. A few moments later both Daniela and Bela resume their meal, as nonchalant as one could be in the current situation. Alcina, however, rests a gentle hand on your shoulder, meeting your gaze with a loving look.

“You will never cease to amaze me, my dear. But let us ensure you never have to… smell, or see, one of those wretched things again, yes?” She says, softly squeezing you as she does. You can’t help but agree, and nod eagerly, mouth too full of hashbrowns to speak. Still, there’s been a shift in the atmosphere of the room. It’s not that the family didn’t respect you before, as far as you can tell, but they evidently hadn’t expected you to prove as capable as you had. It brings a sense of pride to the forefront of your mind, making you completely forget about your injury for the remainder of the meal.

Unable to stop yourself, you insist on helping the other maidens clean up, and Alcina eventually agrees to let you wash a few dishes- as long as you stay sitting the entire time. The last thing you hear before you shuffle off to the kitchen is the start of a conversation between Cassandra and her mother.

“You picked quite a feisty one, didn’t you?”

“That I did, that I did…”

[xaibaugrove]

Everyone in the Krew is Problematic

I was inspired to go on this rant by someone who recently brought up a question in a server I’m in, asking why so many people in the fandom seem to hate Mako and Makorra and why. This wouldn’t be the first time I defend Mako and it most likely won’t be the last, but it might be the first time I tear him and everyone else in the Krew down in the process, only to bring them back up. Hear me out though.

I think I’ve totally accepted that a lot of people in this fandom will always hate Mako and that I will have to perpetually defend him, I understand that this is the relationship I’ve chosen with this world. But what I still will never understand are the reasons why people hate/dislike him because compared to how much they love other characters in the Krew who honestly aren’t that much better than him (in some cases, even worse!), it doesn’t make any sense.

Let me also preface this by saying, I love these characters with all my heart and soul, probably more than I should love fictional characters, but this is the life I live and with that being said, I am going to tear them apart just to prove a point. Okay, here we go.

MAKO

Most of his detractors list the usual criticisms, which are valid when isolated. He cheated on Asami, he lied to Korra, he was a terrible boyfriend and essentially he treated the women he claimed to love or care about horribly. Gee, it’s almost like the man was a teenager with no experience in having long-lasting, healthy relationships and was raised in the streets by gangmembers while doing anything to survive and provide for his younger sibling after seeing his parents killed right in front of him and suddenly being orphaned…

I think Mako has been torn down enough, so I won’t get too deep into the tearing down part for him. It really does baffle me how someone can claim to be woke and not comprehend how someone coming from poverty could possibly be a product of their environment. Like, does everyone think that poor people automatically have hearts of gold and turn out like Little Orphan Annie? Why are people surprised that when someone has a shitty life, they might do shitty things?

Also, sooo many people love Zuko, who actively tried to cause harm to Aang, Katara and Sokka numerous times, and sympathize with his troubled past. But like, sure Zuko had an abusive father and his mother peaced out of his life for whatever reasons but at least he had his uncle. Mako had his parents for maybe 8 years before they were murdered in front of him and then had...no one for the next 10 years? Except for Bolin, sure, but no other parental figure in his life. Dude literally had to become him and his brother’s own parent and joined a gang to survive, and after all that, the worst he does is acts as a bad boyfriend toward Korra and Asami and he is instantly thrown to the wolves. Something doesn’t add up. It’s just...I don’t get it.

Yes, the way he treated people was bad, but people can grow? That’s a thing humans can do. And he was a teenager, my god. No, we cannot allow our past to be an excuse for how we treat others, but we have to be aware that there is a growth process to being human. And being human in and of itself, isn’t pretty. You think Mako is problematic? Don’t get me started on your fave.

KORRA

Ok, I love this woman to death but she is ridiculously problematic. She pursued someone in a relationship and essentially forced Mako to cheat on Asami by kissing him against his will, that’s already pretty awful and shows a lack of empathy on her part, also kissing people without their consent is no bueno. But also I just have to say it for the people who might not know this. One of the fundamental reasons why Makorra didn’t work was because KORRA WAS ABUSIVE. Okay? It wasn’t just that Mako was inadequate at relationships and didn’t know how to people, it wasn’t that she was secretly confused and wanting Asami the entire time (biphobia at it’s best) one of the main problems in the pairing was that Korra was crazy abusive towards Mako. Seriously, why don’t I see this more often in those discussions??

If we need examples, I have dozens. Honestly, it’s really easy to see how terrible Korra was to Mako, I’d actually argue that she treated him worse than he treated her. I mean, they were both terrible to one another, but in Korra’s case she went through the motions of being completely infatuated with your first teenage crush, getting with said crush, then crashing and burning once you realize that you have no idea how to treat a romantic partner so after the butterflies wear off you subject them to all the wonderful aspects of your anger issues. Not only did she scream at Mako during every argument they had, she also threatened him with bodily harm if she got really angry. Remember how their relationship crashed and burned in Book 2? Here are the things that Korra did during that time. Let me reiterate, this was not okay.

Mako is visibly shaken by this!

This woman burst into her boyfriend’s place of work and violently kicked his desk out from in front of him with all his coworkers present. That is not normal behavior. That is a red flag. And after she came back, had amnesia or whatever and forgot they broke up after that scene, let’s not forget that Mako was legitimately Afraid to break up with her again. Korra made her partner frightened that they might suffer bodily harm if they upset her. Again, and I can’t stress this enough, this is not okay!

The little scene in Book 3 when Korra is lifting Mako like 100 feet off the ground with airbending while he’s screaming in fear just to make Asami laugh is cute, right? I’ll admit, I loved that little moment too, it’s one of the only instances of Korrasami development that we got, but also, there were sooo many things wrong with that scene lol. Not only does Korra terrify Mako for literally no reason, it’s also sort of just her continuing to exercise some degree of power over him for her own amusement. Almost like a subtle reminder to him saying, “I am stronger than you in every way and I can break your femur like a twig if I wanted to… but I won’t, so look how much fun we’re having!”

Now of course, there are reasons why Korra acts like this. She was isolated for almost her entire life and never learned how to treat people and be around people. The Avatar is human because they must live amongst the people they protect and that helps them develop empathy and cherish life. The White Lotus deprived her of that fundamental aspect of her duty as the Avatar and it showed throughout the beginning of the series. Clearly, she was young, didn’t see how her actions could negatively affect others and hurt the feelings of not just her partner but also friends and family (she was really awful towards a lot of people in her life!). But as the series went on, we see her having less outbursts and learning to control her temper more.

One can only assume that she does not have the same behavior with Asami because for one, I don’t think Asami would play that shit, she seems like she would electrocute a bitch in a heartbeat and not hesitate if needed, but also Korra is not the same shitty partner she used to be as a teenager. Again, kids do stupid things. Adults do stupid things. And we learn and we grow. Korra will probably make some more mistakes in her relationship with Asami. I don't think anyone can have one bad relationship and suddenly learn all the lessons they can from it and have a perfect one the next go around. I can totally picture Korra losing her temper and raising her voice at Asami if she gets frustrated and forgets who she’s dealing with. Managing anger issues is hard, I know this from experience, and it doesn’t magically get easier. Of course, if Korra does pop off, Asami would definitely put her in her place because she’s a bad bitch who doesn’t take anyone’s shit, next character.

ASAMI

You know her, you love her, you fantasize about her and you probably have her on your list of fictional characters you would totally bang if you had the chance (I know I do), yes, even your best girl is problematic. It’s interesting to me that a lot of people sympathize with Asami and very few openly criticize her (so few that I’ve never seen anyone say a bad thing about her). What’s there to criticize though? The poor girl was cheated on by Mako, had her feelings disregarded by Korra, who claimed to be her friend but pursued her then-boyfriend behind her back and then made up for it by simping for her for the rest of her life? Also her mom was murdered when she was just 6 years old, her father threatened to kill her once and physically abused her, then died right after they started repairing their relationship, essentially making her an orphan at the ripe age of 22. Suffice it to say, Asami has been through it.

So, how could she be problematic, you ask? Why, of course, through the classic Bryke technique of romance progression in storylines called Kissing People Without Their Consent

To be honest, I did gloss over this with Korra, simply because there were sooo many other issues with that woman and I just couldn’t go through every single one in as much detail but that doesn’t negate how serious this whole sneak attack kissing thing is. Sure, Asami is very emotional and lonely and sort of desperate too, (it's a little sad, really) but Mako is clearly uncomfortable and completely caught off guard by the kiss. This is also the second time this happens to him in the series! There are a couple factors that might contribute to why Asami does this and acts this way, maybe Korra’s general awfulness rubbed off on her (don’t make a dirty joke) but this is still wrong.

AND that’s...pretty much it. Kissing people without their permission is a big no no, though. Not wanting to gloss over that, but Asami really is a good person who just did a not-so-great thing. Getting burned by Mako twice probably made her a little less inclined to be as forward with anyone though, and it looks like she now takes her time and is patient in her relationship with Korra. It even seems like Asami is the only person Korra is afraid to upset, as Korra does seem more gentle and calm when around her. And who knows? Maybe Asami living a life where a majority of the time she got whatever she wanted when she wanted it might have also influenced her to be more assertive or even imposing within her relationships.

If anything, those three fools getting into relationships with each other just showed how not ready they were to be in relationships in the first place and also how not okay they were.

BOLIN

Originally I titled this as “Everyone in the Krew is problematic (except Bolin)” but then I remembered that Bolin totally kissed a woman without her consent so I deleted the shit out of that!

This asshole looks genuinely pleased with himself after essentially assaulting Ginger. Not a good look.

Sure, Bolin is baby. He will always be baby to me. But that does not erase the fact that he also actively supported a fascist dictator. Not only was the kissing without consent thing bad, but there’s also that. No matter how many times people around him warned him about the fact that he was on the wrong side of things, that he was helping someone who was putting people into concentration camps...Bolin wanted to believe the best of Kuvira. He ignored obvious signs that the woman was a dictator committing human rights violations like crazy and you know, there’s gotta be a reason for that too.

Maybe Bolin wanted to feel like he was doing something good for once. When you think about it, with his role as the comic relief in the Krew, and sort of constantly being infantilized by his older brother, I wouldn’t be surprised if the man developed some insecurity in his ability to do anything good or useful for anyone without screwing it up in some way. In Kuvira’s army, it seemed like he was actually taken seriously, he felt like he was doing something that mattered. Korra had being the Avatar, Asami had her business and mindblowing philanthropy (honestly, her ability to be as charitable as she is profitable is insane) and Mako had his police work (ACAB, tho). Bolin had...the role of being a joke. A superficial actor. A former pro-bending meathead.

Bolin lived his entire life following after his brother that once they were adults and Mako finally decided to live his own life for once, it left Bolin completely lost. And lost young men are perfect recruits for fascists.

So, in conclusion, my whole reasoning behind destroying the integrity of my favorite characters is to prove a huge point. All of these characters are problematic. They have flaws, some bigger than others (looking at you, Korra. Just...wow), but ultimately, even if your fave is problematic... that’s okay. A lot of people, mostly younger people it seems, are really obsessed with being right about everything that they do and stan. And that’s a wonderful thing, so much change has come about by the younger generations calling out people who do fucked up shit, don’t want or try to improve, and get away with it. But it’s also caused a lot of people to be unforgiving and completely unwilling to acknowledge when people do improve and try to be better.

Personally, I love my problematic Krew because having issues that you’re constantly working on internally is human. It’s human to make mistakes, it’s human to grow from those mistakes. And it’s inspiring to me, who is wholly imperfect, to see myself reflected in fictional characters who aren’t perpetuating unrealistic ideals of human nature, characters who are messy, crazy and ultimately human.

As one of my favorite manga artists and queen of impeccable character creation Rumiko Takahashi once said:

“I think that perfect people are not very interesting.”

And I will always wholeheartedly agree.

[madam-melon-meow]

Bisexual Kyoshi is something that can be so personal, actually

Panel edit by @flagellasturbation

[image I.D. : An edit of a comic panel of avatar Kyoshi. On the left in the image is a close-up of Kyoshi from the torso up, contained within an upside-down trapezoid shape. She wears her full battle uniform of olive and emerald robes, dark gloves and bracers, and a golden headpiece in a fan-like shape. Her eyes are the same emerald shade as her robes, she has black hair billowing to the left edge of the image, and her black eyebrows have been dramatically lengthened by black face paint. Her face and neck are artificially whitened with chalky makeup, she has black winged eyeliner, red eyeshadow that sweeps upwards to her temples and down the sides of her nose, and red lipstick outlined in black. This is the classic Kyoshi makeup. Her arms are crossed, the left arm behind her head pointing a golden fan away from the viewer, the right arm extended in front of her face, another golden fan pointed towards the viewer. She appears to be looking upwards and towards the right of the image. Above Kyoshi’s eye level and in the top right of the image is a comic text box. It reads in all caps: “even avatar Kyoshi- who by all accounts loved men and women- was unable to effect any kind of real progress.” The background art and color has been replaced with the Bisexual Flag, a thick horizontal line of pink on top, stopping at Kyoshi’s cheek level, then a thinner line of purple ending at her shoulders, and a thick line of blue that extends to the bottom of the image. End I.D.]

(If someone does not find my image I.D. sufficient, please let me know. This is my first time trying to make such a thing, as i am a lurker, not a poster)

Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee, page 99 (text copy / pasted from the b&n ebook version)

““Are those . . . fire lilies?” he said, a wide, knowing grin spreading across his face.

Kyoshi flushed beet red. “Stop it,” she said.

“That’s right,” Yun said. “The Ember Island tourism minister brought a bunch when he visited two weeks ago. I can’t believe you simply shred the flowers once they dry out. I guess nothing goes to waste in this house.”

“Knock it off,” Kyoshi snapped. But it was too hard keeping the corners of her lips from curling upward.

“Knock what off?” he said, enjoying her reaction. “I’m just commenting on a fragrance I’ve come to particularly enjoy.”

It was an inside reference that only the two of them shared. Rangi didn’t know. She hadn’t been there in the gifting room eight months ago while Kyoshi arranged a vast quantity of fire lilies sent by an admiral in the Fire Navy, one of Hei-Ran’s friends.

Yun had spent the afternoon watching Kyoshi work. Against every scrap of her better judgment, she’d allowed him to lie down on the floor and rest his head in her lap while she plucked deformed leaves and trimmed stems to the right length. Had anyone caught the two of them like that, there would have been a scandal that not even the Avatar could have recovered from.

That day, entranced by Yun’s upside-down features dappled with the flower petals she’d teasingly sprinkled over his face, she’d almost leaned down and kissed him. And he knew it. Because he’d almost reached up and kissed her.

They never spoke of it afterward, the shared impulse that had nearly crashed both of their carriages. It was too . . . well, they each had their duties was a good way to put it. That moment did not fit anywhere among their responsibilities.

But since then, whenever the two of them were in the presence of fire lilies, Yun’s eyes would dart toward the flowers repeatedly until he was sure Kyoshi noticed. She would try unsuccessfully to keep a straight face, the heat coloring her neck, and he’d sigh as if to mourn what could have been.

Today was no different. With a wistful blush on his own cheeks, Yun stared her down until her defenses broke and she let out a giggle through her nose.

“There’s that beautiful smile,” he said. He pressed his heels into the floor, sliding up against the wall, and straightened his rumpled shirt. “Kyoshi, trust me when I say this: If it turns out not to be me, I’ll be glad it’s you.”

~~~~~~~~~

Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee, page 210 (text copy / pasted from the b&n ebook version)

“You think you don’t deserve peace and happiness and good things, but you do!” Rangi yelled. “You, Kyoshi! Not the Avatar, but you!”

She closed the distance and wrapped her arms around Kyoshi’s waist. The embrace was a clever way to hide her face.

“Do you have any idea how painful it’s been for me to follow you on this journey where you’re so determined to punish yourself?” she said. “Watching you treat yourself like an empty vessel for revenge, when I’ve known you since you were a servant girl who couldn’t bend a pebble? The Avatar can be reborn. But you can’t, Kyoshi. I don’t want to give you up to the next generation. I couldn’t bear to lose you.”

Kyoshi realized she’d had it all wrong. Rangi was a true believer. But her greatest faith had been for her friends, not her assignment. She pulled Rangi in closer. She thought she heard a slight, contented sigh come from the other girl.

“I wish I could give you your due,” Rangi muttered after some time had passed. “The wisest teachers. Armies to defend you. A palace to live in.”

Kyoshi raised an eyebrow. “The Avatar gets a palace?”

“No, but you deserve one.”

“I don’t need it,” Kyoshi said. She smiled into Rangi’s hair, the soft strands caressing her lips. “And I don’t need an army. I have you.”

Psh,” Rangi scoffed. “A lot of good I’ve been so far. If I were better at my job you would never feel scared. Only loved. Adored by all.”

Kyoshi gently nudged Rangi’s chin upward. She could no more prevent herself from doing this than she could keep from breathing, living, fearing.

“I do feel loved,” she declared.

Rangi’s beautiful face shone in reflection. Kyoshi leaned in and kissed her.

A warm glow mapped Kyoshi’s veins. Eternity distilled in a single brush of skin. She thought she would never be more alive than now.

And then—

The shock of hands pushing her away. Kyoshi snapped out of her trance, aghast.

Rangi had flinched at the contact. Repelled her. Viscerally, reflexively.

Oh no. Oh no.

This couldn’t—not after everything they’d been through—this couldn’t be how it—

Kyoshi shut her eyes until they hurt. She wanted to shrink until she vanished within the cracks of the earth. She wanted to become dust and blow away in the wind.

But the sound of laughter pulled her back. Rangi was coughing, drowning herself with her own tears and mirth. She caught her breath and retook Kyoshi by the hips, turning to the side, offering up the smooth, unblemished skin of her throat.

“That side of my face is busted up, stupid,” she whispered in the darkness. “Kiss me where I’m not hurt.”

~~~~~

I include both these quotes because i've seen a few posts about the “gigantic lesbian” avatar, and although i am glad my sapphic sisters feel connected to Kyoshi (as well they should!), that doesn't mean i wish to simply be quiet on the matter of her textual bisexuality. I understand that not everyone has read her novels, nor has everyone read legend of Korra comics, but Kyoshi is *textually* bisexual.

Kyoshi had a loving romantic relationship with her firebending friend Rangi, but this does not erase her feelings for her earthbending friend Yun, even if neither of them were able to properly express it due to their respective “status”. (For context if you haven’t read, the masters believed that Yun was the avatar, and though he was bodyguarded by Rangi, and though Kyoshi was his servent, the three of them were simiar ages and thus close friends until the discovery of Kyoshi’s true ability destroyed their former lives). Hell, Kyoshi and Rangi do not become intimate until after fleeing their former lives. Who is to say what would have happened, had Yun not been captured by father glowworm ?

I know that there is a chance you will scoff at this, will write this off as comphet, accuse me of disproportionately weighting an almost-kiss with a true relationship, but these above quotes (as well as the comic panel from “the legend of korra: turf wars- part 1”) serve as proof that Kyoshi, “by all accounts loved men and women” (see panel directly below)

[image I.D. : the same comic panel as the edit above, this one without the bisexual flag edited in. Directly behind Kyoshi, within the upside-down trapezoid shape, is an olive to lime gradient, darker around her head and lighter near the bottom. Around and to the right in the image, outside of the trapezoid, is an aerial shot of buildings within an Earth Kingdom city, and what appears to be the lines of troops on the ground far below. the text box in the image is the same, but I have underlined the word “men” in blue, the word “and” in purple, and the word “women” in pink, to reflect the bisexual flag. End I.D.]

I am making such a big deal over this because Kyoshi is a massive figure, her long shadow cast over Aang’s life alongside Roku’s, and even before her novels came out there were often jokes about her “bloodthirsty” nature. I implore you to read the novels and see why Kyoshi believed in deadly justice at times, but also so you can see what a dynamic, loving, and beautiful character she is.

Some members of fandom have taken a “step on me” attitude towards Kyoshi, who has, even if the 7 feet tall thing is more fanon than canon, been explicitly described as “exceptionally tall���, and “towering” over others. This “strong woman who will break me and I thank them” attitude is one that butch &/or physically imposing sapphics, as well as trans women with similar statures to Kyoshi have expressed discomfort when applied to themselves and characters like them. I would love for more people to acknowledge her flaws and multi-faceted nature, that she is more than a “warrior goddess”, just as Aang is more than a living relic. Flattening her out to the easily-fetishable parts erases the depth of her character and the complexity of circumstances that led to the instances of deadly force.

There are very few bisexual characters in media, especially women, and especially in children’s media. Bisexual women have often been caricatured as loose, promiscuous, good for a threesome and not much else. (This is mot to say that i think any lesser of my fellow bisexuals who are proudly promiscious, nor can an actual live bisexual person be considered a stereotype for living their life, but media’s portayal of us as obsessed with desire is incredibly harmful). Knowing that a strong, beautiful, and important character in the avatar universe is a bisexual woman is amazing, even more so to have her first lady-love described in the novels with such care. F. C. Yee, the author of these novels, has my eternal gratitude. I sincerely hope that the new generation of fans, whether they are drawn to the cartoon or even the hypothetical live action show, will pick up these novels and discover the kind of bisexual character that I wish existed in my early days as a reader, and if a small fraction of them resonate with Kyoshi’s reciprocal on Yun and love for Rangi, then the world becomes a little bit brighter for it.

I mentioned her importance for the simple reason that Kyoshi IS important with the text of ATLA. As one of the avatars, she is one of the most historically important figures in that universe, one of the few avatars that Aang knows by name, and one of the only avatars to speak through his body. The fact that she has two whole novels to herself testifies to that effect, making her bisexual representation all the more important than a simple background character might be. 

If or when the ATLA live action tv show occurs, we can expect some mention of Kyoshi. After all, there is a whole episode dedicated to exploring one of her missions, and the way that the descendants of her enemy have recolored history. It is my sincere desire that enough discussion is made about her canon bisexuality , that fandom trumphets it from the roof with as much force as crackshipping zukka, that when she does make it to the screen, there is some subtle nod in her bisexuality’s direction, even if it is something as meta as casting a bisexual actress for her. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

edit by @flagellasturbation​

[image I.D. : An edit of a comic panel of avatar Kyoshi. This is like the first image, Kyoshi and the text box of the comic panel untouched, the background color and art replaced with the bisexual flag. However, this version has the words “by all accounts” blown up large and placed diagonally in the image, directly under Kyoshi’s face and stretching from one side of the image to the other. The bottom third of the image is similarly obscured, the words  “men” , “and” , “women” blown up large enough to fill the panel and cover most of Kyoshi’s torso, as well as the purple and blue areas of the background flag. End I.D.]

[itsclydebitches]

RWBY has weird gender politics. Ruby, Cinder, and Winter should be diverse characters. But they all rebel against a more powerful man (Ozpin, Watts and Ironwood), rage against him, take what he offers (magic/wisdom, plan/tech, trust/training) and then 'defeat' him. (Ruby's now leading Ozpin.) Salem exemplifies this, Robyn is a parody. But these men are never wrong, and these women lose their individuality as they become the same character with the same character beats. RT has just one plot idea.

Discussing gender in RWBY is definitely... complicated. Especially because (unlike many other stories) what the authors intended to create, what was actually put on the screen, and what the audience interpreted are often three very different things. I don’t think it’s any stretch of the imagination to say that RT wanted to write a “girl power” show (intention), yet they often fail to exemplify that in pretty basic ways (what we see on screen), which leaves a growing part of the audience reading the characters “incorrectly” (what we get out of it). Even if we remove the fact that these three pieces don’t fit well together, Volume 8 struck me as a season that really failed to grasp what it means to put women at the center of your narrative  — because it’s not just putting their names in the title and calling it a day. Salem is the Big Bad of our series... but Ironwood is the one who gets a majority of the attention as the antagonist. Ruby is our central protagonist with a seven season relationship with Penny... but Jaune is the one who is given the important scene of killing her. Ren and Nora are of equal importance when it comes to being minor characters... but Nora spends the majority of the volume unconscious while Ren learns (“learns”) to be a better friend/upgrade his semblance. The Ace Ops team has two main women on it... but it’s Marrow who we follow in terms of learning to be one of the good guys. Weiss is one of our MCs who grew up in this kingdom, grew up in this family, has an abusive upbringing to grapple with and a desire to help her people... but it’s Whitley who helps Nora, Whitley who thinks to use the airships, Whitley who has the blueprints to show Ambrosius. Ruby (again) is our protagonist... but Oscar and Ozpin are the ones who take on Salem while she sits in a mansion thinking that she might do something soon. Maybe. Our title team is made up of four women... but it’s the quickly made team featuring Ren, Jaune, Oscar, and Hazel that take on the majority of the action. Yang gets to toss a quick insult at Salem and Emerald escapes with them. That’s the extent of their contribution. 

Obviously this list is disingenuous to the series as a whole. I am just speaking about Volume 8 here and even then, we can point to plenty of counter examples (like Penny being the Maiden, or Cinder developing more than she has since Volume 3), but looking back at the volume as a whole, those gender dynamics  — based on what RT presumably wants to accomplish; based on how the show is marketed and how it’s been written in the past  — feel skewed to me. It’s so easy to look at the number of women in the show, the fact that four of them make up the title, and say that’s enough. But if the story is really about them, why is the fandom back to being frustrated that Jaune is given such a significant moment? Why are the characters with the most lore and magical power both men? Why are the five guys (Jaune, Ren, Hazel, Ozpin, Oscar) engaging in the most action against the antagonist while our title girls sit drinking tea? Why, when the show needs a generic character to do small plot things, do we introduce Pietro and just have Maria tag along? Why create Robyn leading a team of women fighters and then almost immediately separate her from that group, pairing her with men who have been around for seasons and, thus, inevitably steal the spotlight: first Ironwood, then Qrow? I don’t mean, don’t want, and absolutely don’t intend to make so conclusive (and damaging) a claim like, “RWBY Volume 8 is sexist” because it’s way more complicated than that. And, as said, we can list just as many counters too: Ruby killed the Hound, Winter gets the Maiden powers, Neo controls the Lamp, etc. But alongside that issue of how we’re “supposed” to read the story when intention/execution/interpretation are so muddled, and alongside the long-held feeling that the men aren’t afforded the same emotional sympathy as the women are (Ozpin and Ironwood in particular), I can’t help but also feel like the show is periodically falling into the (unconscious) assumption that it’s enough to just put lots of women on screen. Then it’s woke, it’s feminist, it’s progressive, however we want to phrase it... never-mind what the women are doing, or how they’re treated, or how their importance within the narrative compares to the men around them. I keep thinking about the choices here, the big ones listed above, and the smaller ones too: Ironwood doesn’t care about Robyn’s escape, only Qrow’s; Klein and Whitley do the most to help at the mansion (with some tech sleuthing from Willow), Hazel gets the heroic sacrifice while Oscar faces off against Salem, etc. The problem isn’t simply that our main characters were so passive this volume  — though that’s problem enough  — but rather that RWBY is built around, well, being RWBY. Being the show about how these four awesome, active, independent, powerful women run off to save the world. The show is built on that gendered reading (among others), so when that is significantly toned down  — when Ironwood takes centerstage, when Qrow and Clover’s tragedy ends the last season, when Oscar is the hero who defeats Salem, when Hazel’s turn is given the most attention, when Ren’s growth occurs on screen rather than in a coma, when Marrow is the emotional center of the Ace Ops, Jaune steals the spotlight in the finale — it feels like we’ve lost something crucial about RWBY, not just about any show that might be struggling to balance a large cast. I’ve said for years that I want more development for Oscar and for Ozpin to come back, but my personal interest in them as characters isn’t an excuse for introducing so many central women, building your story around their importance... and then having them sit around in a whale, in a mansion, in a jail cell while we focus a great deal on the guys. Obviously the women did a lot in Volume 8 too, it just doesn’t feel like they did as much as they should have given the show RWBY tries to present itself as. Is RWBY the (assumed to be) progressive show about four women like its title suggests, or is it just another large cast looking for a shonen-esque protagonist in the form of Special Boy With Magic or Special Man With Sword and No Fear? Obviously RWBY doesn’t intend to be the latter, but when Oscar feels more like the hero of this story and Jaune feels more like the emotional center of our finale (to say nothing of how Yang and Ren hype up how great he is, just like how Blake hyped Ruby), you have to wonder what went wrong... 

[aces-to-apples]

Your Reputation Precedes You

A response to “On Fandom Racism (and That Conlang People Are Talking About)” because lmao that cowardly bitch just hates getting feedback from people that she can’t then harass into oblivion

i.e. God I Wish I Could Use The Tag Fandom Wank Without The Titty Police Nerfing My Post

-

To be frank, I'm not here because I think you or any of your little cronies are going to change your minds. If the 'name' wasn't a giveaway, your group of ~likeminded individuals~ have quite the reputation for espousing ableist, antisemitic, and, yes, racist views under wafer-thin the veneer of "calling out racism." I think we both know that what you're actually doing is using the relative anonymity of the internet and progressive language to abuse, harass, and bully fans that you personally disagree with. You and your group are toxic, hateful, and utterly pathetic, using many peoples' genuine desire to avoid accidentally causing harm and twisting it into this horrid parade of submissiveness to You, The One And Only Arbiter Of Truth And Justice In Fandom. Never mind that you have derided autistic people as lacking compassion and empathy, that you've used racist colonizer dogwhistles to describe a fictional culture based heavily on real live Maori culture, that you've mocked the idea of characters having PTSD, or that vital mental health services are anything more than "talking about your feelings with friends uwu." Let's just ignore that you have ridiculed the idea of adults in positions of power exerting that power over children in harmful and abusive ways, that creating transformative fan-content that doesn't adhere to the spirit of canon or wishes of the original author garners derision and hatefulness from you, and that you've used classic abuser tactics in order to gaslight people in your orbit into behaving more submissively towards you in order to avoid more verbal abuse.

Let's toss all of that crucial context aside in favor of only what you've written here.

What you've written here is nearly 3,000 entire words based on, at best—though, admittedly, based on your previous behavior, I am actually not willing to extend to you an iota of good faith—fallacious reasoning. You posit that a constructed language, to be used by a fictional religious group located in an entirely different galaxy than our own, is othering, racist in general, and anti-Asian specifically. This appears based in several suppositions, the first being that a language unknown by the reader will, by nature, cause the reader to feel alienated from the characters and therefore less sympathetic, empathetic, and caring towards the characters. That idea is patently ridiculous and, I believe, says far more about your ability to connect to a character speaking an unfamiliar language than any kind of overarching truth about media and the human condition. New things are interesting; new things are fun; the human brain is wired from birth to be fascinated with new things, to want to take them apart, find out how they work, and enjoy both the process and the results.

The second supposition this fallacy is based upon appears to be that to move away from the blatant Orientalism of Star Wars is inherently anti-Asian. While I find it... frankly, a little bit sad that you cling so viciously to the Orientalist, appropriative roots of Star Wars as some form of genuine representation, that's really none of my business. If you feel that a Muslim-coded character bombing a temple and becoming a terrorist and a Sith, a white woman wearing Mongolian wedding garb, a species of decadent slug-like gangsters smoking out of hookahs and keeping attractive young women chained at their feet (as it were), a species of greedy money-grubbers with exaggerated features and offensively stereotypical "Asian" accents, and an indigenous people wearing modesty garb based on the Bedu people and treated by most characters as well as the narrative as mindless animals deserving of murder and genocide are appropriate representation of the many, varied, and beautiful cultures around the world upon which they were "based," then that is very much your business. Until you pull shit like this. Until you accuse other fans, who wish to move away from such offensive coding and stereotypes, of erasing Asian culture from Star Wars. Then it becomes everyone's business, especially when you are targeting a loving and enthusiastic group of fans who are pouring their hearts and souls into creating an inventive and non-appropriative alternative to canon.

Which leads into the third supposition, that a patently racist, misogynistic white man in the 1970s, and then again in the 1990s, intended his universe to be an accurate and respectful portrayal of the various cultures he stole from. I understand that for your group of toxic bullies, the term "Death of the Author" holds no real meaning, but the simple fact of the matter is that George Lucas based his white-centered space adventure on Samurai movies while removing the cultural context that gave them any meaning, because he liked the idea of swords and noble warriors in space. He based the Force and the Jedi Order on belief systems such as Taoism and Buddhism, but only on the surface, without putting any real effort into into portraying them earnestly or accurately. He consistently disrespected both characters of color and characters coded to be a certain race, ethnicity, culture, or religion, and likewise disrespected and stole from the cultures upon which he based them. He was, and continues to be, a racist white man who wrote a racist story. His universe has Orientalism baked into its every facet, and the idea that fans who wish to move away from this and interrogate and transform the text into something better than what it is are racist is not only laughable, but incredibly disingenuous and insidious.

As I said, I am not writing this to change your mind, because I truly believe that you already know that "cOnLaNgS aRe RaCiSt" is a ridiculous statement. The way you've comported yourself in fandom spaces thus far has shown to me that you are nothing more than a bully who knows that the anti-racist movement in fandom can be co-opted for your benefit. If you tout your Asian heritage and use the right language, make the "right" accusations and take advantage of white guilt and white ignorance, you can have dozens of people falling at your feet, begging for forgiveness, for absolution. And I think that gives you a thrill. So, no, none of this will change your mind because none of this is genuinely about racism—it's about power, it's about control, it's about fandom being the only space where you have some.

So I'm writing this for the creators of this wonderful conlang, which has been crafted by multiple people including people of color, who don't deserve this nonsensical vitriol, and for the fans reading this manipulative hate-fest, wondering if they really are Evil Racists because they don't participate in fandom the way you think they should.

Here it is: fandom has a lot of racism, antisemitism, misogyny, queerphobia, ableism, etc. baked into it. Unfortunately, such is the nature of living and growing up in societies and cultures that have the same. The important thing is to independently educate yourself on those issues and think critically about them—not "think critically" as in "to criticize" them, but to analyze, evaluate, pick apart, examine, and reconstruct them again in order to come to a well thought-out conclusion. Read this well-articulated attack on a group of fans who have always welcomed feedback and participation, are open about their backgrounds, their strengths and weaknesses, and wonder who is actually being genuine.

Is it the open and enthusiastic group who ask for the participation of others in this labor of love? Or is it the ringleader of a group of well-known bullies who have manipulated, gaslit, and then subsequently love-bomb people who did not simply roll over at the slightest hint of dominance? The ones who spent hours upon hours tearing apart, mocking, deriding, and falsely accusing authors of fanworks and metatextual works of various bigotries and -isms, knowing that those evaluations were spurious and meant only to cause harm, not genuine examinations of the works themselves or even presumed authorial intent. The ones who made their own, quote-unquote, community so negative and toxic that even after the departure of a large portion of them, including this author in particular, that community still has a reputation for being hateful, toxic, and full of mean-spirited harassers who will never look critically about their own behavior but only ever point fingers at others. The ones who are so very determined to cause misery wherever they go that as soon as their usual victims are no longer immediately available, they will turn on each other at the slightest hint of weakness.

This entire piece of (fan)work is misinformed at the most generous, disingenuous at the most objective, and downright spiteful when we get right into it. The creators of Dai Bendu, along with various other works, series, and fan events that these people personally dislike, have been targeted because it is so much easier to harass, bully, and use progressive language as a weapon against them, than it is to put any effort into making fandom spaces more informed, more positive, more respectful.

As someone rather eloquently put it, community is not a fucking spectator sport. You want a better community, you gotta work at it. And conversely, what you put into your community is what you'll get out of it. This author and their friends have put a lot of hate into their communities, and now they're toxic cesspools that people stay well away from, for fear of contracting some terrible form of harassment poisoning.

Congrats, Ri, you've gotten just what you wanted: adoring crowds listening to you spout your absolutely heinous personal views purely to live out some kind of power fantasy, and the rest of us staying well away, because fuck knows nothing kind, helpful, or in good faith has ever come from Virdant or her echo-chamber of petty, spiteful assholes.

No love, bad night.

P.S. Everyone actually in the Dai Bendu server knows your ass got kicked because you didn’t say shit for a full thirty days and ignored the announcement that inactive members would be culled. You ain’t cute pretending like it’s because you were ~*~Silenced~*~ after ~*~Valiantly~*~ attempting to call out racism. We see you.

[selfshipinfo]

Getting Started

So you wanna get started in the self ship community? That’s awesome! I totally get that it can be intimidating to jump into a new community, so here’s some ways to get started, and some important things to remember. The important notes are bolded, so if needed, skim for the bolded pieces for a TL;DR!!

Things You’ll Need

A blog! Many people in the community aren’t comfortable interacting with general fandom accounts as a result of harassment from the larger communities outside of self ship. You can totally self ship on a side account! Just keep in mind that you may have to message people in the community telling them your ship blog name, as many people block non-self ship accounts that follow them.

F/O list!! It’s pretty important to tell people who your F/Os are, or at least how you refer to your F/Os. Having mystery F/Os is okay, though there are some people who might not interact with you in fear of possibly sharing F/Os with you. It’s nothing against you! It’s simply for their own comfort.

Speaking of, please say whether you’re comfortable sharing F/Os! It’s perfectly okay not to enjoy sharing. But it is important for people to know, since this topic is so personal. If you have certain F/Os you are comfortable sharing and others you aren’t, perhaps note this on your F/O list and label the F/Os you don’t wish to share.

Do not interact/before you follow. A DNI can be really helpful when people use it properly. If you want to tell others in the community what kind of people you’re comfortable interacting with, lay out one of these bad boys! A BYF, on the other hand, is often used to warn potential followers of content you might be posting or preferences of what might lead you to not following someone back. 

An about you! You don’t have to go too in depth if you don’t want to. Basically, the bare minimum I would say is your preferred name, your pronouns, and whether you’re a minor or an adult. Just things so people can interact with you comfortably for both of you! Plus, many adults prefer not to follow minors and many minors prefer not to follow adults. Making it clear whether you’re a minor or not can help other shippers feel comfortable following you or can warn people off that might not be comfy interacting with you.

Triggers! Fictional worlds can deal with some heavy topics, many of them triggering. That doesn’t mean that you can’t befriend people that post these things! If you’re comfortable doing so, it can be helpful to list your triggers somewhere accessible for mutuals to refer to when posting. Most shippers are happy to tag any triggers you need, just reach out and let them know what you would like tagged, and see if they’ll do so!

Interacting with Other Shippers

Ask/Reblog karma is important! By that I mean, one of the most popular methods of interaction in the community is ask games. These are games where someone posts a list of questions or prompts and then labels each one with an emoji, number, or something else to tell them apart, often themed! When you reblog one of these posts, this is a prompt for other shippers to send in prompts they want you to answer. Ask or reblog karma is the act of sending an ask to the person you’re reblogging the game from. This is the respectful and polite way to reblog a game, and is also a great way to begin interacting with more blogs!

Check pronouns! This is a good idea for interacting with anyone, but there have been some serious issues in the community with misgendering others. It isn’t hard to check someone’s profile for pronouns before referring to them. In a community with a majority cis women, it’s important that we ensure that men and non-binary shippers are heard and respected.

Read (and respect) everyone’s DNIs! DNIs are written for a reason. Self shipping is a safe space for many people, and they have the right to decide who does and doesn’t interact with their content. Don’t be an asshole, please. 

If someone tags something as “don’t reblog” or something of the like, DON’T REBLOG IT. Personal posts are just that: personal. Self ship in itself is very personal, so please be sure to check people’s tags on posts. Personal posts are often frowned upon to reblog, as are vents. Be courteous.

Understand that interaction goes both ways. In order for people to see and interact with your content, it’s important that you interact with and get involved in other people’s ships as well. If you don’t care about interaction, that’s fine! But if you want other people to take an interest in your ships, then it’s expected that you get invested in their ships, too. It’s like with reblog karma - relationships are a give and take. Reblog other shipper’s content, send them asks, tell them you love their ships, anything like that!

If you get anonymous hate that is labeled with someone’s URL, chances are 100 times out of 100, it’s not that person. This has happened many times before, where assholes try to frame other shippers by impersonating them in someone’s ask box. If someone is sending you hate on anon, they aren’t going to sign off with their URL. I promise you that.

Cringe culture is dead. Treat it as such. By that I mean, respect other people’s F/Os. Some people have F/Os that you might consider “strange” or “cringy.” Keep it to yourself. Let them love that character. The same goes for if you think someone’s F/O is unattractive. Don’t say anything to that shipper about it. F/Os mean a lot to people, so please respect them.

[rametarin]

We deal with this, “fiction is reality” shit EVERY. GENERATION.

And I mean it comes back among authoritarians playing to sheep EVERY fucking generation on different pretenses.

It always boils down to a bunch of people that are insecure about the effects of culture and media on other people, and as a flimsy pretense/pretext to restrict access to things to other people “in society” for their own safety and sense of security.

And when it comes to, “obscene literature” or illustrations, the source is always jealousy, insecurity and an attempt to reduce other people down to a demographic statistic. Whether it’s reducing black people to a caricature and acting like hip-hop just turns the kids into violent, drug abusing, psychotic felons, or imagining pornography is what turns people into horny fucking do-nothings, it’s always about control.

And we’ve put it off for so long. We’ve put off the conversation about just what demographic these people play to in order to get traction and followers and staying power and warm bodies for their movements. They’re the demographic that makes antis- work, the demographic that screams for censorship because illustrations “hurt them personally,” or “cause men to hurt them.”

I’m talking about women. Particularly, cis women, as trans women are not in numbers enough to affect anything, and it is EXPLICITLY IMPORTANT that the source of the offense and complaint come from the population that are the gateway through which the next generation is born and brought up.

Individual men may be so clueless as to assume the way degeneration works is a person is left improperly or negligently nurtured, and so just make bad decisions because, “they were never taught better.” They embrace the idea that people only do bad shit because, “the society,” isn’t paying attention, or that individual people are just blank slates beholden to the righteousness and morality of the cultural hivemind of said society. That Society is an objective effect, and if bad people exist, it’s proof to them that there’s something wrong with said society.

But individual men know that the bad actions of other men are not caused solely by “male culture,” or the absence of it, or shitty “role models.” They see the shitty natural inborn attitudes of other men, and despite being raised in shitty conditions, naturally develop a good head on their shoulders, and despise actions like that. As men you can’t HELP but grow up watching boys around you make shitty decisions based on shitty impulse control and, no matter how often they’re punished, how much they’re loved, how much they’re compassionately talked to, STILL act the fool and wind up as terrible, stealing, violent adults. As men you can’t do anything BUT reconcile that some people are just fucking shitheads, and the idea as a man YOU should be punished or treated like the “association” of men itself is at fault, smacks of sexism. The same sort of sexism women’s lib supposedly is against- at least, when it happens to women.

Women, however, are not men, are not privy to the thoughts and feelings of men. Men are abstracts to these women, many of whom are so solipsistic or gynocentrist that they just see men as a class of monsters in a videogame. Just a pattern of individuals that surely must all get their code and culture from “society.” Clearly, when there’s bad men about, it’s proof this “society” isn’t doing everything it can to mollify and gentrify those horrible beastly men to make them safe and not dangerous and productive.

These women that see men like living aggregates for society, imagine that in order to “keep men working properly,” they need to not have “bad moral influences,” treating pornography and access to drugs and literature like a cleaning lady treats dirt on linen. They imagine that the only reason rape or murder or theft by men occurs is because “there’s a problem with men, thinking that is okay.” Like the only reason your average man isn’t running around violently raping people or killing them is because they sang enough hymns at church- by force. Or because they were prevented from, “getting deranged by wrongthink.”

So with this in mind, how do they imagine porn affects men, male minds, and this big abstract-turned-monolithic-concept called, “society?”

Well, they imagine fiction is reality. That if “people of lesser intellect” read a thing, then they’ll inherently believe it, because, “it presents itself as factual and reality.” When.. no. That’s not how it works. They believe, absolutely, that without some mechanism there to go, “BUT WE’RE JUST PRETENDING THO, IT’S NOT REAL!” that will inherently make people, whom all have tenuous and toddler-like grasps of reality and object permanence, think a thing in fiction is real and applies to reality.

And naturally, they see men as people of lesser intellect. So they reason, those dangerous statistical anomalies are just men that haven’t been browbeaten, and whom are subject to any given negative influence or writing or opinion or culture that preaches values and ideas incongruent with their preferences, as women. Therefore, they conclude, fiction that does not preach their “good values” is in fact advocating bad ones, bad habits, bad moral character, bad mental health- call it whatever you want based on your generation. It’s ALL THE SAME SHIT. All the same knee-jerk moralism based on justifying societal and institutional use of force to restrict and arbitrate and judiciously enforce and justify dictating censorship and good-think. It’s just a question of where that basis comes from.

And theres’ ultimately no reasoning with that culture of women when they grasp hold of a thing that appeals to them, flatters and justifies their prejudices and biases. You can sit there colorfully or dryly explaining the ways in which this shitty point of view is wrong, much as you can try to walk back a persons beliefs in their homophobia that they base on religious purism or use the purism to validate their homophobia, but you cannot just get them individually to give up those nice, comfortable beliefs.

And when grouped together for mutual support and validation, it becomes this negative-thought, field of fucking SHEEP braying “Nuuuh-uuuh!” and arguing for restriction of content and sanitation and disbarrment from certain subject matter to be in consumable porn or literature or even just art. The only thing keeping them in check being the consequences for vandalism, and the ability for a community or institution to police out the bias usurpers that would seek to enter their foundations and run them on behalf of the values of these easily upset, insecure sheep.

every FUCKING generation, it manifests in some manner. Be they from church ladies, to radical feminists, to intersectional feminists. If you capture the imaginations, insecurities, jealousies, foster and sanction them, interpret them, get young women believing them, participating in the romance that tells them the way to change the bad things or take the edge off the bad men is to foster and enable authoritarianism (be it regional social, regional institutional, or federal institutional) then you have this neverending avalanche of unending support for it. Be it from dictators, or just from pure ideology from a doctrine. They’ll do it. And stubbornly and obstinately believe in whatever compliments their biases, to the contradiction of everything.

And while you can remove a man and his influences on the next gen from the home, from the social radius of the next generation to be a significant source of culture and how they relate to young people, removing women from the equation, from whom the next generation comes from, is virtually impossible. So a male zealot, already susceptible to scrutiny and punishment for being so wild and zealous with their beliefs, can be retaliated against, muted, beaten and removed from relevance until they censor themselves or change their tune.

But you cannot do that to a female human, or women/mothers as a sex, without both women AND men taking it as an attack on humanity at their most prime and kernel. It has to be done with disproportionate authoritarian state power that does not fear mass dissent and violent retaliation, or it isn’t done at all.

So these zealous Karens that embrace wholly these ideas enabling authoritarianism under a banner they approve of, are allowed to propagate unchallenged, and even if challenged, cannot be subdued or subverted. Their own little cliques and echo chambers and lack of desire to even consider their positions are wrong. Any attempt to point the fingers at this very real, disproportionate and characteristic, objective power female humans have just on the basis of their sex and how that relates among them socially, can and will be trash binned arbitrarily as, “sexism.” Despite the fact, it’s absolutely true.

So long as women that believe “society” is an objective, monolithic thing from which, “that other sex” and other women get their marching orders on how to BE what they are, and don’t see them as billions of individuals with their own ambitions, instincts, inborn personality and character flaws, independent of “society’s failures,” believing those people can be saved or corrected IF ONLY WE CENSOR EVERYTHING or make all media “good thing,” we’re just going to have people with illiberal beliefs asserting their dominance and insisting it’s for the soul of the species, society and the planet.

I mean yeah there are male antis and shit, but honestly. Tell me honestly. How many fucking deranged fandom people that are doing shit like mailing cookies with sewing needles backed into them are male gendered or male sexed, either? As uncomfortable as it may be to acknowledge or consider this might have a sexual grounding, I’m sorry. Not acknowledging it is simply rejecting reality.

[dercolaris]

The Joke

Fandom: Batman (BTAS)

Characters: Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn

Relationship: Poison Ivy & Harley Quinn (Friendship)

Genre: Hurt and Comfort, Friendship

Word length: 1832

Warnings: Abuse, light gore

Status: Complete

Short summary: Follow-Up story to the BTAS episode Mad Love. Ivy picks Harley up after her fall and take the poor girl home.

Song: https://youtu.be/7tQg06_M1w8

“And again Joker spreads fear and chaos in Gotham with his radical actions against society. How much damage was done on the weekend is still unknown, but estimates put it in the millions. The population of our beloved city wonders: Where was Batman? Why didn't he prevent this crime? The Dark Knight wa...”At the mention of the Superhero, Ivy quickly turned off the car radio. She snorted contemptuously, tapped the steering wheel impatiently. The Botanist looked up to the old building and chewed her lips nervously. Her friend should have come out of the sawmill a long time ago. Ivy was desperately looking for her smartphone, when a loud noise burst the deceptive silence around her. The Bioterrorist flinched a bit and looked back to the sawmill. As if in slow motion, the red-haired woman saw a body fall down from the top floor. It hit the cold concrete, then lay almost motionless on the side walk. Ivy cursed under her breath and rushed out of the car, hurried to her friend. Harley had closed her eyes, but was whimpering in probably huge waves of pain. After such a fall, the Botanist would at least have expected a deep faint for some minutes. The horrible make-up on the beautiful face on the ground slowly ran down the reddened cheeks, tainted the costume that she liked to wear for her Puddin. A tasteless piece of cloth. Created by a sexist man for submissive woman. The red-haired villain shook her head slightly while examining the Harlequin for worse injuries. Much of the left side was at least badly bruised, if not broken into pieces. The older woman's lips formed a thin line as she applied her special anti-pain pheromones to the young girl. With that, Harleen would at least arrive at her apartment relatively painlessly. Hopefully. Ivy gently stroked the dirty blond hair and mumbled softly: "At some point you will not survive all the abuse, Harl." The addressed grunted something, but a gush of blood out of her mouth made her answer incomprehensible. She slowly sat up, coughed out more red liquid. Harley held her arching head and replied with a dry throat: "I didn't get the joke right this time. I'm so stupid sometimes."

These words made the blood boil in the Botanist's veins. Nevertheless, she propped her friend up in a wobbly, upright gait. Luckily, not all bones seemed to be smashed into dust. Ivy placed the Clown carefully in the passenger seat and secured her with some vines. The Harlequin immediately dropped into the soft cushions, closing her tired-looking blue eyes again. Ivy got back in the driver's seat and drove into the night with screeching tires. After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence, the older woman spoke worriedly: “Just because you don't understand a joke – which is always the case with your boyfriend in my opinion – doesn't mean that he is allowed to treat you that way. I can't always be on call if something goes wrong again and you have to be rescued.” “I don't need to be rescued, Red!”, snapped the younger one with tears in her eyes, “I'm fine with Puddin. He can also be completely different. Actually, he's a gentleman and a super sweet sweetheart.” The Bioterrorist had to suppress a sarcastic laugh. Fortunately, the streets were empty at this time. Otherwise they would probably have been stopped by the police long ago. Ivy shifted into higher gear and replied dryly: “Shall we count how many times I've patched you up this year? Or just think of all the visits to Jervis and Jonathan. Harley, now at least listen to me for once in your life, girl. This psychopath will kill you sooner or later if you are of no use to him any more. You can already see how he treats you and simply accepts all damages on your body. I don't want to start with the wounds on your soul. This is not love, no; what you really have is a perfidious game between your crazy, totally out of control obsession with him and his impulsive actions.” The Botanist bit her lower lip slightly. She almost got the word abuse out of her mouth. Hearing the truth has always been a painful experience for the sensitive Harlequin. In these rare moments of clarity, even more tears ran from her eyes, now completely blurring the white make-up. Her lips trembled when she whispered softly: “He can be different. Really. I'm honest this time. I swear, Red.” The person addressed stepped suddenly on the break, brought the car to stop with a strong jerk. She turned to the broken girl, just looked at her in pure disbelief for a moment.

Only then did the older woman answered angrily: “God, Harl, are you serious? When is he caring for once? Even when you were in bed with a fever of over forty degrees, he didn't give a damn about you. You would have died if Jonathan hadn't happened to be there. And do you still remember the last fall from the roof of the Wayne Tower? If Batman hadn't collected you on the way down, you wouldn't be here any more. You have to look at it soberly. We are all concerned about you and only want your best. Do you know that even Oswald is already making plans to free you from the clutches of Joker?” Harley looked carefully into the otherwise sharp green eyes of her best friend. In her opals, however, there was only worry, no anger or hatred. The Botanist finally turned her attention back to the street. She came to a stop in front of her new or better first hiding place in Gotham. They both got out, with Harley leaning weakly on the side of the car. Ivy hurried with the grey tarpaulin, making the vehicle almost invisible to outsiders. The red-haired woman stepped to her friend's side and helped her up the many steps into the small apartment. There she locked all the locks behind her, then heaved the blonde onto the comfortable sofa in the living room. The Harlequin literally fell on the soft pillows and groaned loudly. The Botanist smiled a little, but turned to one of her favourite plants first. A Venus flytrap. In fact, her first creation after her wonderful transformation. The older woman scratched the plant under the jaw for a moment, then let go of it and looked in the bathroom for necessary utensils. She was just about to check for some bandages in a long forgotten cabin when a loud scream rang out from the living room. The Bioterrorist stepped back into the spacious room and immediately recognized the seriousness of the situation. One of her more dangerous creations had wrapped itself around the barely recognizable Harlequin under all the vines, ready to squeeze the body to mush when commanded. Ivy shook her head slightly and patted the plant's slippery skin. Immediately this withdrew. "Thank you, Red," the young woman mumbled on her sofa. She wasn't scared to death any more by this kind of accidents.

The Botanist did not answer, just sat down silently with the bandages next to the Clown. The two women exchanged glances briefly. Both knew what kind of procedure would follow. "This will hurt, Harl. I'm sorry in advance," the red-haired beauty whispered as she drew up a syringe of sedative. Harley just nodded at this statement, sat up carefully, and raised her arms to the point where it became too painful to go further. The Bioterrorist licked her lips and thought for a second, then looked in the small suitcase for scissors. Slowly she cut the material off the battered body. Dressed only in a bra and underpants, the Harlequin trembled in front of the herbalist's watchful eyes. She placed the cannula on the velvety soft skin and slowly pressed the tip into the vein. Harleen squealed softly, shaking her head slightly and grumbling loudly: "I hate syringes!" The older woman smiled at this complain, let the metal slide out of her skin again. She said, slightly amused: After all your injuries, this should be a piece of cake." Ivy didn't wait for an answer, but tended to a variety of minor cuts. There was also a larger wound on Harleys hip. The red-haired woman sewed these with skilful fingers and rubbed the area generously with iodine. To her amazement, the blonde-haired woman hadn't even uttered a sound or flinched. A scrutinizing look at the Harlequin's relaxed face revealed what had happened. Her light breath came through her half open mouth. Apparently the sedative was too strong for the poor girl. The Botanist smiled gently and got up, then waved a few tendrils over. They carefully wrapped themselves around the young woman's limbs and slowly lifted her into the air. Ivy entered the bedroom, followed by the tendrils. In the middle of the room was a living bed of roots and lots of soft leaves. There the gigantic plant let the Harlequin down and caressed the delicate face once more with a few rustling leaves. Immediately the bed began to pulsate slightly, giving off enough warmth to keep the damaged body warm. The older woman sat on the edge and put her hand back into her friend's blonde hair. How did she deserve such a boyfriend? A deranged psychopath with no compassion. And yet the woman practically ran after the self-proclaimed Clown Prince of Gotham. Only more tragic was the fact that Harleen still followed him again and again when he called her by his side.

This call could take a very long time, but one message was enough to rekindle the deadly obsession. Ivy sighed softly and motioned the warm roots to move closer over the Harlequin's body. The Botanist chuckled softly at the sight. She always called it the caterpillar in her cocoon from which a beautiful butterfly would rise. It was the same every time the wounds had healed and their typical coexistence began. It wouldn't be any different this time either. Until the Clown called. A slight nausea overcame the red-haired beauty as she imagined what sexual intercourse with a pathological psychopath must be like. Probably one of his greatest charms for the crazy men and women of Gotham who were running after him for false affection. Ivy let the thought go and lay down next to her broken and defenceless friend. As if by itself, the roots loosened around the pale body, allowing Ivy to softly hug her. The older women's fingertips played with the Harlequin's long, blond hair, feeling slowly up the nape of the neck. Harleen loved to be petted there. An effective trick against stress and strong anxiety. The Bioterrorist closed her eyes, tried to enjoy the surprisingly pleasant closeness to the younger woman beside her. Time past. They lay snuggled close together under the faint moonlight of the night, safe – at least for this evening.

[badgalsasuke]

Yaoi annoys the shit out of me

I’m terrible at writing my thoughts but here are some things that I think about how much Yaoi annoys me and how damaging (I believe) it is for authors whose stories revolve around a gay main character/couple.

We all know that yaoi is nothing but anime gay porn for straight women who fetishize gay men. Written by women for women. This has created different issues within the anime community, one of them being people simply deciding to distance themselves from any kind of story where the main characters are two men that are (or might be) in a romantic relationship and/or have romantic feelings towards each other .

Obviously there are two types of people who do these: the homophobic ones (I won’t talk abt them here) and the rest who simply don’t like the oversexualized content yaoi provides. This then, creates another problem where when someone, especially women, read/watch certain story and they realize that the two male characters might (or straight up) have feelings for each other, they’re often called fujoshis, annoying, “ruining the fandom”, “ruining the series”, “wanting to make everything gay”. I.e. Naruto

But there are also other series where it’s already confirmed that the characters are together but because of this same thing, people refuse to watch the show even if it’s not yaoi at all. Like Yuri on Ice or Banana fish, the characters like each other, kiss, and other stuff, but the story doesn’t revolve around their relationship at all bc that’s not what the series is even about but people will never know bc they assume it’s yaoi and then they see actual fujoshis who don’t care abt the plot at all, acting like usual: oversexualizing the characters so obviously the general audience never gives these series a chance.

There’s also this manhwa that fujoshis didn’t even get the plot (or they looked past it) called “killing stalking”, it’s a horror manhwa, with explicit scenes of torture, murder, rape, emotional abuse, manipulation, etc. but because these scenes happen between men, fujoshis decide to ship the heck out of them, even when the author herself explained that they’re not meant to be shipped, that she wanted to write a horror manhwa (a really good one, I must say) and should be treated as such, but once again the yaoi prejudices people have and the lack of reading comprehension skills of fujoshis ruined what the author wanted to achieve.

And then it’s finally the actual romantic stories between two men. They’re love stories like any other, but with two men, like Here U are or Doukyuusei. Or also stories that combine the romantic plotline with another dramatic plotline that doesn’t have to do with love at all, like “King’s maker”, where we see the relationship develop but we also see how they have to fight to keep the kingdom working. They’re beautiful stories that treat their characters like people rather than objects to make weirdos horny. I’m not saying that sexual acts between gay people shouldn’t be portrayed (sex is normal after all), what I’m saying is that:

1. is painfully obvious when a series is putting sex scenes for the female audience pleasure (it’s cringe to me, ngl). Like the characters met two hours ago and are already fucking like there’s no tomorrow and the lack of plot, like why, WHYYYYYYYY

2. These stories are the ones with the most “abuse=love” tropes in them.

I think that as a community, we can demand for both healthy representation of gay characters in different scenarios and understanding that not because authors are using two men in fucked up sotylines,they’re romanticizing it (i.e. killing stalking). 

We coul also kill the prejudices towards gay anime, manga, manhwa and manhua that the yaoi industry has created. I believe this way we can also help authors write outside their comfort zone and explore their creativity without fear that their story will be completely misunderstood.

[writings-of-a-hufflepuff]

I Don’t Care Where I Go When I Die

Pairing: Kassandra x Brasidas

Fandom: Assassin’s Creed; Odyssey

Summary: “Do you ever wonder where you will go…” Brasidas is contemplative, head leaned back, face turned towards the ceiling of his home, the one she has invaded each night since her return to Sparta despite her mother’s questioning, despite the looks from Alexios and the furrow of Nikoloas’ brow.

Rating: T

Archiveofourown

“Do you ever wonder where you will go…” Brasidas is contemplative, head leaned back, face turned towards the ceiling of his home, the one she has invaded each night since her return to Sparta despite her mother’s questioning, despite the looks from Alexios and the furrow of Nikoloas’ brow. Despite the whispers that Brasidas is of marrying age, that he should find himself a wife, the unspoken question as to whether she would be that wife. 

Kassandra is lying next to him, chin propped up against his chest, fingers twisting patterns across tanned scarred skin and dark chest hair. It is a common occurrence for them to lie there in placid stillness after making love as the sweat cools on their skin and ask questions, sometimes philosophical, sometimes silly or ridiculous, but always taken seriously by the other. It is part of what she loves so much about him that he can speak freely to her and vice versa, whether he wishes to curse the polis he loves so much, the home that raised him, but would gladly see him die, or whether she were asking what was possibly going through the mind of half the women who bedded Zeus in his many forms. 

“Where we go when we…?” She thinks she knows, thinks she can tell which melancholy, sad road his mind has turned down, but knows she must clarify, to fully answer him as is their way. She will take every question he poses to her seriously, she will take every feeling and thought he holds and respect it, treat it carefully, because there is trust there. Trust that she will, trust that they can bare their souls to the other without ridicule, something neither is used to. She holds that trust sacred. 

“When we meet our end, when the fates decide our time is done. Will we be remembered and rewarded in Elysium, tormented in Tartarus for wicked deeds, or forgotten by the living, left to wander aimlessly through Hades?” She watches the shake of his body, the swallow in his throat, the bobbing of his Adam's apple that reveals his feelings when he speaks of Tartarus. Kassandra knows that Brasidas wonders if he is wicked, if his deeds for Sparta are truly good or if the Gods will punish him. She thinks a wicked man would not worry about being wicked, a wicked man would know his wickedness and revel in it, enjoy it, take pride in it. His fear is what keeps her belief in his goodness so solid, a good man would not regret his actions, reflect and hurt at the thought of them. A wicked man would not strive to be so good.

She thinks on his question even though she knows her answer, because he would wish her to, because it is part of her dedication to seriousness with him. He tilts his chin down, beard brushing the top of his chest as brown eyes look for her own, taking in the furrow of her brow, the contemplative twist to her lips. Her fingers continue their aimless circles on his skin, a thoughtless action. His own are trailing up and down her back, every now and again they stop and focus on a raised scar. 

“I don’t really care where I go when I die.” She finally hums, seeing the surprised flicker across his face at the prospect that she cares little for her afterlife, her eternity. It is a general rule in Hellas that no matter whether devout or questioning, people believe in the possibility of an eternity, good or bad, that death leads to something more, that you should be concerned about your afterlife. Kassandra believes. She believes in the Gods, she believes in the myths, the legends, the stories, she believes in Hades, in Elysium and Tartarus, but she has found their hold on her weakening with time. 

She doesn’t care, Kassandra once might have. She once might have agonised over her eternity, over the torment or pleasures she would be given for her works in her mortal life. Brasidas had been the spark for the change, the person that made her fear dissipate, made her desire for an eternity of reward mellow. Whether Tartarus or Elysium, Kassandra cared little for she’d found her paradise amongst the living. She’d found her happiness with the family she’d put back together and the Spartan she’d fallen in love with. 

“How can you not care, phílos?” Brasidas worries over the legacy he will leave, worries over the things he will regret doing or failing to do, the things he will miss. He worries over his potential eternal punishment, a deep part of him scared of the possibility that he was a wicked man, that his deeds for his home, for his Sparta were unjust. He finds himself sitting himself up and pulling her with him, arms wrapping around her strong back, eyes searching her honeyed ones for an answer, for it to make sense. 

“Because I have found my Elysium here, with you, emós xíphos. If I go to Tartarus then I go. If I go to Elysium then you must be there for it to compare. If I wander Hades forgotten then so be it. I care little so long as you are beside me.”

“And if I am not? If we find ourselves parted by death?”

Kassandra lifts a hand to his cheek, thumb brushing over the scar that has been there for as long as she has known him. Eyes hard, brow furrowed at the thought of being separated from him after everything they both had done, after every year apart, every near death, every struggle. “Then I shall storm through Hades, Tartarus and Elysium until I find you and not Hades, Persephone, Charon nor Cerberus shall stop me.”  

She says it with such surety, such strength, the sort he has seen from her on the battlefield time after time. It is that strength behind her words that makes him believe it. Kassandra would tell him off for thinking of her as anything but a mortal, as anything but Kassandra, but in truth she was a Goddess of her own making. A force to be reckoned with and it eases his worry knowing that the Gods would have to go through her to separate them and that if he was to suffer in the afterlife she would be beside him, sharing in her strength. 

Brasidas lifts a hand to the loose waves of her hair, battle worn fingers parting the sea of strands and twisting them around his wrist, before cupping the back of her head and pressing his forehead to hers. It is something he does often she has noticed, a kiss of a different sort that feels more intimate to her than any pressing of lips that they have ever done.

His nose brushes against hers, his breath fans across her skin and she closes her eyes at the feeling of closeness, the ache of a good sort in her chest at having him here, like this. There were many moments in their journey where she thought her friend, as he had been simply her friend back then, would be sent to Hades. There were many moments where the thought that they both had any sort of future alone or together had seemed so impossibly distant. To know they had made it, that each day they woke beside each other to a sunrise and each night they fell asleep in each other's arms, that was the greatest gift the Gods had ever given her. 

“If you are to storm Hades, then I shall be by your side when you do it, misthios…”, Her eyes flutter open to catch the peak of teeth beneath his lips as they curl upwards in that infuriatingly self assured smirk of his, to catch his own eyes staring into her soul as they had done from the moment they met. 

“There is no one i’d rather dance beside, you know that, General.” Because it was always a dance between them, from that very first in a burning warehouse. Their bodies had always been intune, insync, they fought together as if they had trained side by side from childhood, as if he and her had fought together, stolen food together, shared a phoinikis together to ward off the cold. Everything had always come so naturally with Brasidas that she sometimes forgot how unnatural it was, it wasn’t until others, her brother, her mother, her father, would point out that their intuneness was unusual and then she would think again. 

Those comments were less now. They had fought together many times, travelled together, broken fast together, laid together. To others it seemed now that they had grown insync through years of companionship, through lust and love and blood and battle, but they both knew the truth. That they had always been like this, that they had always fought together with ease, that they understood each other in a way that seemed so natural and yet so bizarre at the same time. 

“We do dance rather well together, emós phyláttȯ.” It is punctuated with a twist as his calf wraps behind her knee, arms behind her back and he wrestles her to her back, resting over her, arms either side of her head. His shoulder is weaker these days, heavy scaring reminding her of what had nearly come to pass, but they are still strong and defined as she trails her fingers over them. 

“Do you...do you think of that warehouse in Korinth as much as I?” She finds herself wandering back so often. The heat of the flames on her back, the heat in her blood from battle, and the heat in her eyes as they watched him meet her movements with ease. He had seemed everything a Spartan should be. It had made her proud. He was compassionate but strong, skilled, a better soldier than any she had ever come across. She had wanted many people in her time, briefly and without much thought, but Brasidas had been the first to capture her body and soul without effort, without a word. She had wanted him from that first dance, she had wanted to impress him, listen to him, so she listened as he asked for the Monger to die quietly, she listened to every plan, every thought that crossed his beautiful capable mind. She was lucky he was as formidable as he was, or else she might have made poor decisions thanks to the meddling of Eros, Pothos or Anteros. She wondered if every God of love and passion had sat together and agreed to meddle, to place Brasidas in her path. Perhaps they had hoped for tragedy, more human pain to feed their entertainment or perhaps they had known that she would finally be content, perhaps he had been her reward. 

His eyes burn like they did back then and she knows without a word his answer, yes more than I’d care to admit, he would say. But, he doesn’t say a word, just lifts the corner of his mouth into a smirk before lowering his lips to hers. It is still there burning beneath their skin, still there as her hands claw at his back and his beard burns her skin, that unspoken fire that they have shared since their first meeting, that connects them. It is that fire that makes her certain that she will not be separated from him after they have left this mortal coil, it is that bond that gives her the strength to know she would fight the Gods themselves to stay by his side. It is that same bond that has her almost certain the Gods put them together for a reason, that they had no intention of separating them. He was a gift to her and she hopes she is a gift to him and not a curse. 

-----------

Translations: emós xíphos - My sword emós phyláttȯ - Literally my guard, roughly my shield phílos - Beloved, Darling Phoinikis - the red cape given to boys in the agoge

[fymagnificentwomcn]

Women of Ottoman make me so sad especially when people hate on them. Those women lived horrible lives. Most of them were kidnapped, sold, thrown under a psycho Padisah. How can you wait for them to care for your kingdom? Of course they were going to survive for themselves and for their children. None of them deserves the hate they get. I hope God put all of them in peace. No human should go through such terrible things.

Totally agree Anon.

Women from Ottoman Empire cannot be for example compared with women from the West – first and foremost, they were slaves that at the very beginning lost their families, homes and even had to change their name and religion to have any chance at making a new life. Some lost their families very early, and often it also affected them emotionally when they grew up without having familial bonds. Even as consorts, they were one of many, and they had no legal status outside their children, Even mothers of princes other than hasekis were referred to as “Mother of Prince X” in records, and mothers of daughters were even more invisible. They had a very limited access to outside world, there was no way a woman could ascend the throne as a ruler in her own reign, other than as regent. Not to mention all matters connected with fratricide and kafes, it was living in constant fear. It’s hard to compare them to European queens, who had more stable and safe position even if they also had to face misogyny and oppression .

It was no fairytale, even in the show that didn’t show a lot of atrocities involved in slave trade and focused on those women who still somewhat “succeeded”.

I will use this opportunity to discuss some double standards about those who succeeded vs. those who didn’t pertaining to the TV show, but will later come to the crux, I promise.

The faux feminism in this fandom is astounding to me,including the glaring obvious double standards depending on who fan favourite is - and fan favourite is often who is simply “the coolest”, “most victorious”, “most stylish”, “most lucky”, generally young, beautiful, badass, and successful, not sad or depressed. We all know reactions to Hürrem and Mahidevran doing the same things back in original MY - when Mahidevran did awful things to Hürrem, she was just pathetic jealous woman, but when Hürrem did multiple times the same or worse things to other women it was “yass queen” and she ‘fights for her love, so touching, so strong, so great, self defence”. Suddenly Hürrem is allowed to do so because she”s “not like other girls, so not like these pathetic dumb losers”. Hürrem was strong, cunning, and smart, but she also had one clear advantage over all her “enemies” - the love of the most powerful man in Ottoman history. She made multiple mistakes too, but could always count on Suleiman turning a blind eye or forgiving her - something that Mahidevran or others could never count on.

Frankly, even Hürrem vs. Mustafa was often treated more as Hürrem vs. all this “pathetic” women that fought for Mustafa’s case aka Mahidevran or Suleiman’s sisters in fandom. Suddenly Mustafa cannot even defend his own mother because he immediately had it coming for “choosing the wrong side”. Even if you disapprove of him defending/not abandoning his mother, e.g. choosing to poison him sounds a little disproportionate, don’t you think? I said it and I will repeat it again – Hürrem is a character very similar to Cersei – yes, she suffered a lot because of a system devaluing women and yes she’s a survivor and a strong woman who managed to make life for herself in that system – but she’s not a feminist character because she actually only uses the system to her own advantage (and often perpetuates it), and actually displays a lot of traits of internalised misogyny, voicing multiple times how she is different from other girls and this is why she must be the only one by Suleiman’s side, while other women aren’t even entitled to dream about such things. She condemns Mahidevran for wanting to be the only one and being jealous, but then when Suleiman is with other woman she’s all “I’m not like pathetic Mahidevran, I must be the only one”. Same with multiple comments that she often makes… Hürrem was sassy &sarcastic, and had many good comebacks, but it makes me sad how people often cheered on and applauded those worst ones that again display internalised misogyny, like her mocking Mahidevran why she cares about her appearance so much when she doesn’t have a man to share a bed with? Or her again being all “I will give birth to many boys, and you won’t even give birth to a girl”. Again, that whole society was misogynistic and other women also were influenced by it, like they all wanted to give birth to a boy mostly…but often it is about status and wanting to raise/maintain rank, while Hürrem boasts the fact that she gives birth to many boys as again a trait to show how special&strong she is, even part of her reaction to Mihrimah’s birth is her unable to accept the fact that she could give birth to a girl and being disgusted by the fact.. yes, she accepts her later on and her reaction does also stem from being aware of how misogynist the system is, but it shows precisely that – yes, she is influenced by the system and suffered because of it, but at the same time she begins to display same behaviour that she suffered from, tries to cut herself from others in disadvantaged position. And yes, not all characters had similar reactions to giving births to daughters, and mind you Hürrem already had a son&became sultana, plus was Suleiman’s clear fave that could hope for more children. She wasn’t in the worst situation, even Hafsa and Suleiman were very happy at birth of a girl and nobody criticised her for it. Conversely, in MYK Kösem states multiple times that she wants to give Ahmed both sons and daughters, and when she’s pregnant with her second child, she says she wants a girl now for a change. Even when Ayşe hopes for a boy so that Murad’s anger may be melted, she’s happy about Kaya’s birth&clearly loves the baby from the start & is distraught when she is taken from her. Hürrem was never intended to be viewed as feminist, always justified heroine.. this is why instead of making her first bad deed be a revenge on Mahidevran, who had treated her horribly and unfairly, she attacked the person who was most kind to her of them all and who recently went through the same exact shit. Some people hate Gülnihal, but then say Hürrem wasn’t a homewrecker because she had the right to make life for herself in harem.. true, but so did Gülnihal, and it’s not like she could refuse to go to Suleiman’s chambers pls. It wasn’t to be seen as right, it was clearly shown that Hürrem can be both the oppressed and oppressor at the same time from the start. If they had wanted to make her character only all about revenge, they would have again made her gone after Mahi, not innocent Gülnihal, her “best friend”. And people going how Mahi is irredeemable, but with Hürrem it’s so okay because she’s cool while she slays..eh. I admit I never liked Hürrem because personally she never appealed to me, but I totally get why people stan her because she’s an interesting, three-dimensional character (and yes she does have a softer side too), I’m just bothered by some making her some empowered heroine who is excused for everything by the fact that she was a slave and suffered a lot because of it – because you know she is not the only one who went through the same shit – the harem is full of such women, for start. Even statesmen like Ibrahim or Rüstem are slaves (of course as men they have more opportunities for a career etc.), eunuchs attending ladies are slaves… This whole system is based on slavery, yet she often behaves & talks like she’s the only one who lost her family, was kidnapped & mistreated.

And even Nurbanu becoming her successor was accidental because she actually wanted her dead later, though of course Nurbanu was still clearly inspired by her. She never intended for anyone to follow her example and to make her elevation become a permanent element of Ottoman system, and it’s symbolised by her decision to bury the “ring of power” (lol) with her (though of course what Nurbanu did with taking it anyway was plain disgusting).

I think that trying to examine why this character behaves like that is more interesting than simply go YASSS QUEEN.

Thus said, I hate these reductive“takes” calling these women “bitches” because yes there are complex reasons why some of them have become pretty cruel, so while there are no excuses for some of the behaviour, the simple word “bitch” does not cut it at all.

/Yes, I discussed Hürrem here because out of all MY/K characters she seems to be the least hated among major female characters & biggest fan favourite,/

Anyway, the point is that neither Hürrem nor Mahidevran are the villains of the story. The show makes it clear in its last episodes that Suleiman is the true villain – he was the most powerful man at that time, when the padisah’s position was truly strong, as Gülfem put it in the finale “even leaf cannot fall without your approval”. He’s not as dumb or passive as it may seem at first glance -of course he needs to pretend to be objective and just, but he has his own agenda just as everyone else. Moreover, he pretended to be the one trying to ease conflicts… yet he was often the one enhancing them. Even from the start when he gave the ring he had promised Mahidevran to Hürrem&and in many ways humiliated her… then he did the same with giving Isabella necklace he had promised Hürrem. Bah, it was clear he often enjoyed making Hürrem jealous because it flattered his ego. He ultimately even enhanced the conflict between Selim and Bayezid to get rid of the latter, who was “the more dangerous son”. He was always pulling the strings.. he allowed Selim to buy Bayezid from Tahmasp by the way he conducted negotiations because he knew Bayezid would get rid of his brother on the road. It’s practically what Gülfem says to him in last episode again. He knew what backlash was directed at him following Mustafa’s death and he didn’t want another son killed in front of him. As Mahidevran said in the final episode to Mihrimah “It was your father who chose the lives we lived for all of us”. He was the one that determined the fate for everyone. And even if Mihrimah did not want to admit it in any way in front of her mother’s enemy, she pretty much understood then that Selim was also her father’s puppet in a way and it’s my guess why she ultimately decides to leave the palace instead of plotting revenge for Bayezid (and we know she would eventually be back). It was Suleiman who was pulling strings all along throughout the whole show, even sometimes by choosing to refrain from acting.

In MYK, the situation is different that we deal with incompetent, weak or even tyrannical sultans, who are also sometimes danger to ordinary people or break the Imperial law. Kösem acts here like the protector of sultanate and again we see different standards. Can you imagine how criticised Kösem would be if she had used similar methods to Murad’s or even once had gone to on “night spree” and executed people for banning all these dumb prohibitions? Yet for many Murad is the “cool guy” and “poor misunderstood Murad”. Calling Kösem a tyrant.. please you have an actual tyrant here. Look how much criticism she gets for saying “I’m the state”, while Murad calls himself “shadow of God on Earth” , “sole owner of the Ottoman Empire”, “I’m the justice” , “true death” etc. all the time and he’s “badass”. Or how she’s criticised because she dared to try to influence the Divan to convince Murad to change punishment for his prohibitions. She’s an “usurper”, not the guy who enacts unjust law and oppresses his subjects.

And here we come to crux – look at how Suleiman is treated in MY, everyone is flattering him, he’s the one who for most time isn’t blamed for what is happening, everyone strives to be in his good graces, his sons step on their toes around him and idealise him even when he behaves like a total asshat. Even when he dies people try to remember him for his “magnificence”

Now look at Kösem, a female ruler, who was turned by scapegoat by people when something went bad and she had far less freedom to make choices and yet far more criticism, blame shifting and insults thrown her way. Suleiman is credited “for making sacrifices for the Empire”… but he really didn’t have to execute all the people he decided to kill, and his decisions truly affected everyone badly and led to further mess, starting from Ibrahim’s.. It was especially visible in case of Mustafa – he was obviously innocent and didn’t intend to rebel, but after what happened rebellions did begin.Conversely, each difficult decision that Kösem made led to stabilisation in Empire and prevented unrest, yet what she does is interpreted by some as “wanting power for sake of power” because woman cannot act in favour of state nation or dynasty – there’s only personal interest or power hunger. Her life is clearly framed as tragedy both by the “curse” of her witnessing the death of everyone she loved and her death being a parallel scene to her capture - because she was never truly free.

Interestingly, IMO Suleiman for all his talent and his achievements, fucked up the succession issue – succession by combat truly began to run its course during that period & no longer even fulfilled functions for which it was practiced – to put on the throne “the strongest” contender, one with the biggest support, also most successful military commander – while it’s true that era of conquest was naturally over and Empire had to become more sedentary, it still doesn’t make Selim the strongest or best suited candidate for the throne after Suleiman – his not going on campaigns etc. and being more of palace sultan had nothing to do with him recognising the transformation, but simply lack of interest in state matters and preferring to have fun than to rule. He wasn’t some demon, but he was terribly passive & lazy. And him not being a warrior was the least of his problems. Suleiman had extreme power and authority, he introduced first law reform after Mehmed the Conqueror – the fact that he allowed such contest (and well his sons didn’t even wait for his death to start a civil war) was a bad decision when it came to long-term planning. Some may say maybe he would have done something concerning move to seniority if one of Hürrem’s sons had been the eldest… maybe, but we will never know. Contrary, while all Ahmed’s sons died during Kösem’s lifetime, we know her legacy connected with anti-fratricide law lived on – after her death fratricide was a rare occurrence with only a few special exceptions in specific circumstances.

Of course there’s also the matter that Suleiman’s era and Kösem’s era were totally different – here it was even a success to manage to stabilise Empire. And here we need to stress how important context is – I always stress how important it is to assess historical figures in context – for me it’s hard to even compare, let’s say Kösem and Hürrem, because they lived in different ages and fulfilled different roles, let alone comparisons between historical figures from other parts of the world, perhaps even from different age. I can’t understand e.g. why Peirce compared Kösem and Turhan to Elizabeth I and Mary Stuart in Empress of the East – both situations were completely different, the only thing they had in common was that there was a power struggle between two powerful women, which ended with one of them executing the other (and we don’t even have 100% confirmation of Turhan ordering Kosem’s execution because such thing wasn’t officially in her power). I appreciate Peirce a lot, but TBH this comparison was just dumb for a professional historian.

Kösem’s case really shows how loss of innocence may be used as weapon against you – very early on, she gets the lesson even with Ahmed – the moment she first became involved with scheming following the death of her father, he got mad at her for the duration of her whole pregnancy – he didn’t ask why she had done it or any other details – she wasn’t his “ideal fantasy” from the portrait anymore and this was what mattered – and only then changed his mind when after so many futile attempts made by Kösem to talk to him, she finally forced him to listen to her explanations & motivations, and subsequently he became all “I will make everyone pay for every tear of yours & for making us endure pain of separation”. Ah okay, but don’t forget about yourself ;) And once Kösem stopped being “şehzade’s dream” with death of Ahmed and was truly her own political leader, she became to be more and more exposed to this with the passing of time and once she acquainted more and more power.

And don’t forget some male historians praising Turhan for “giving the power back to the rightful hands aka men”… it tells you all, and it’s false anyway, since it didn’t mean Turhan losing interest in state affairs and only caring about the harem (and honestly, “Köprülü was “her man”, she didn’t choose someone she had no influence upon). That was what she decided the Empire needed at that particular moment, not because she realised that politically involved women sucked lmao.

- Joanna

[halfpint55]

So today we’re swinging fists about fandom’s treatment of Katara...

That’s right it’s time to drink your respect Katara juice. And to be quite honest this is probably going to be a part 1 because there’s too much to unpack here.

In writing my essay-length post about Kataang I “researched” by reading the comments of kataang and zutara posts (yes I did this to myself I know) but something I read in the comments of a post made me so angry I’m gonna deal with it by writing (although I realise this is not necessarily a new take, I’m just mad).

Today’s particular rant is about, and I cannot believe this is something I need to write about, but it’s the RECURRING comment that by having Katara end up with Aang she was “reduced to JUST a love interest FOR him”, and this has me ready to throw hands, because it wasn’t just one person I saw say this. Whether or not you ship Kataang I don’t fucking care - but the claim that it was sexist for the two of them to end up together is just so wrong I can’t even begin to tell you... 

oh wait yeah I can... and I will.

In general I am so angry at how a large portion of this goddamn fandom views, and treats Katara. It shows that you have a baby brain and just do not get her and the depth and complexity of her character, or it shows that you’re a misogynist, and either way, I don’t like you.

As a side note: Every single character in that show is so fucking complex that there is not a single character (with the exception of Ozai the Asshole and his asshole forefathers) on that show who does not possess SOME redeemable qualities, even if just for the majority of them it’s because they’re fucking KIDS (looking specifically at Azula and Jet).

But excuse me. “Just” a love interest? “Just”??! How dare you. How fucking dare you.

First of all - simply because a woman, any woman, is shown to have an on screen relationship that does not relegate her to be “just” anything, and you pigeonholing any female character and viewing them as “just” a romantic interest for that reason alone shows what you think of women and you gross me out. Tell me why you chose to view the female counterpart of the relationship as “just the love interest” FOR(??!) the male character and not the reverse. Why is Aang not “just the love interest” for Katara? What’s that? Nothing to say? Okay. Just say you’re sexist and go.

Now, does a lot of media introduce female characters as clearly intended love interests FOR someone? Sure. 

However, you can have female characters in media be intended to end up romantically involved another specific character. AND IT NOT BE SEXIST. It’s called fucking story planning moron. you think writers of massive productions just wing it like that, and don’t know where the relationships are headed? fuck no.

What’s wrong with a lot of media is the framing of it. And some of it is in language. It’s this business of “for”. Like what the fuck? “for”? No human is created “for” anyone else. And the same goes for these characters. They’re two sweethearts with massive crushes on each other. They each come to the romantic relationship as equal humans with love and respect for each other like what the fuck is this “for” busniess - no one is “for” anyone they’re cuties in love u fuckin arsehole. Once again, you saying that you view female characters in relationships as being there “for” the male counterpart and UR GROSS. STOP IT.

Overall the sexism of female characters being love interests comes in only when that is the ONLY role of the female character. And Avatar is not one of those pieces of media.To say that it is, is you placing your own real life sexist views on the characters, ya GRONK.

Here’s why:

Katara is an emotionally complex, three dimensional, character with fears, hopes, goals and ambitions, meaningful friend and familial relationships. She has arcs, and character development. She has flaws, and troubles. Only a mere fraction of her story has to do with her romantic feelings for Aang (do the math on the screentime spent talking about, or dealing with, their romantic relationship - i bet you it’ll come up with 0-point-something %. bitch). 

To ignore all of that and STILL look at Katara and label her as “just” a love interest says more about what YOU think of her...

you misogynistic fuck trumpet.

Just look at her: 

What the hell is wrong in your sexist pea brain that you think that this girl:

This PRODIGIOUS waterbending master:

..Is anything less than an incredibly powerful, talented, BADASS FIGHTER in her own right? What part of your monkey brain- actually that’s not fair to monkeys smooth ass brain watches these moments and still decides to reduce her worth as a character and a person in such a sexist way??? I want to know

Aang is not the Avatar when he looks at this legend, he is simply Aang in Love. 

Aang is humbled by her, Aang respects and defers to her (she’s his motherfucking waterbending master and he knows it), Aang is so often awed by Katara. 

Why don’t you try viewing Katara the way Aang does for a bit and maybe your sexism will calm down:

I’m going to pause the rant here but honestly, I’m so tired of people ignoring what a fantastic character Katara is, and that’s because it’s rooted in something insidious. BUT THAT’S FOR PART TWO! (Oh yeah no... I’m not done but for now I must quote my favourite John; “we don’t have time to upack all that”).

So for now just know that no, you don’t need to suddenly make her your favourite character, but if you thought less of Katara as a character because she ended up with Aang because that - to you - reduced her to “just a love interest for Aang”, that is sexist. So I want u to read this, and then read it again. Then I want you to carefully- I said CAREFULLY damn it - examine the way you perceive female characters, and how you perceive the very real women in your life.

I cannot Suki-style asswhoop the sexism out of you physically but believe me when I say I will try to do it with words. Learn something. 

(look I know it got a little heated there, but if this is an opinion you hold I do actually want for you to learn something from this and if this opens the door for u to shift your thinking then u are my new favourite person okay? okay??? ok).

[seyaryminamoto]

I recently saw a heavy criticism of The Beach saying "it's the single least realistic portrayal of teenagers on television: spoiled, rich kids don't actively shun Zuko for having a disfiguring scar on his face, no one tries to start shit with Azula over the volleyball game, teenagers referring to themselves as teenagers, a teen boy tells people not to make a mess, a bunch of 14-16 year-olds sit in a circle and psychoanalyze each other, everything else about the campfire scene." Your thoughts?

:’) that someone looks at the Beach and dismisses it for being “unrealistic” by whatever their cultural standards are is probably enough of a sign of the irrelevance of said person’s opinion. I mean, obviously they’re free to think what they will, but...

Fire Nation society is not American society. I’m going blind here, maybe this person isn’t American at all, but somehow I mostly see such kinds of narrow-minded criticism from first-worlders who are seldom exposed to lifestyles outside their particular, contemporary bubble of experiences. 

Now then, let’s get into the actual debate: Fire Nation society values violence quite a lot. Fire Nation society is full of people who saw Zuko’s literal Agni Kai burning scene, and didn’t look away: the only character who does is Iroh, a very obvious hint by the writers that Iroh has discarded the cruel moral values the rest of the Fire Nation upholds.

With this in mind, a boy with a scarred face might earn all sorts of “ews” from our societies, damn right. From Fire Nation society, though? If even watching how the burn is inflicted didn’t bother most of them, why would the result be a problem? If anything, I wouldn’t be surprised if people with burn scars are even seen more attractive because it implies they were caught in violent scuffles with fire and still survived? Of course, the argument might go that Zuko’s burn is meant to be a mark of shame... but it’s a mark of shame for PRINCE Zuko. For that mysterious boy with the emo haircut in Ember Island, whose real identity is a mystery? It is shown, instead, to result in this reaction:

Now then, we could say that this is meant to be a jab by the creators and writers at Zuko’s hordes of fangirls, because frankly, Book 3 has several instances of groups of girls swooning over Zuko and it might be what they were going for. In this case, though, they’re swooning over him WITHOUT knowing who he is, as opposed to the fangirls in Nightmares and Daydreams. So, while it absolutely can be inspired on the many Zuko fangirls the staff knew about, this actually ends up serving to characterize a society, a culture: they don’t think his scar makes him unattractive. It’s blatantly stated that their reaction is the opposite. So, instead of thinking “oh god that’s so unrealistic”, how about we actually stop trying to measure everything by our standards and consider that this could be an element of WORLDBUILDING...? :’)

(Also, I’m pretty sure there’s a fair share of privileged young women in our current society who think Kylo Ren was hot as hell with a huge scar across his face... are those people not real, by any chance? :’D If anything, they’re living proof that girls swooning over a scarred boy in ATLA are absolutely feasible, no matter if not everyone shares their opinion)

Continues under the cut becasue this got long....

Now then, Azula is shown to take the Kuai ball game too far. She outright causes the ball, in the final kick, to burst into flames and burns the net. Going by Chan and Ruon Jian, these kids are privileged idiots, why lie... but are these privileged idiots stupid enough to see a girl flying three feet into the air, kicking a firebent ball and then giving a foreboding speech, and say “OKAY WE’RE GONNA PICK A FIGHT WITH YOU FOR BEING SO COMPETITIVE!”???? I mean... honestly. Why would anyone do this? Azula turned an inoffensive Kuai ball game into a battlefield singlehandedly: THIS, as well, is meant to be a display of characterization. That people don’t take the game so seriously, that they wouldn’t pick a fight with her because she’s dangerous or because they just don’t care as much as she does... it’s characterizing Fire Nation people every bit as much as it characterizes Azula.

Azula and Zuko are both shown reacting in ridiculous ways to casual things in this episode: Azula takes the game too far, potentially stages the burning down of a house in retaliation for being rejected by a boy, Zuko is hysterical and jealous and snaps at Mai over stupid things... it’s, again, a matter of showing how poorly adjusted these characters are. They’re not normal kids. They DON’T behave like normal kids. Normal, privileged kids in the Fire Nation, are kids like Chan and Ruon Jian. The episode literally gives you the chance to see Fire Nation society for what it is, in a way no other episode does... and because it’s not like our societies, it’s somehow wrong?

... Also, teenagers referring to themselves as teenagers is somehow unrealistic? I mean... is it nowadays? I don’t think any teenagers had a problem with saying they were teens in my youth :’DDD literally remember MCR released a song called Teenagers and a lot of us loved it to pieces. What exactly is so outrageous about it? Might be that this worked better in the mid-00′s, but I hardly think this makes no sense? Aang refers to himself as a kid earlier in the show, is that unrealistic too and worth rebuking a whole episode over? Are all teenagers supposed to be pretending to be grown-ups, like so many 16-year-olds on Tumblr who always talk like they’ve figured out the world and try to impose rules on fully-grown adults upon whom they have absolutely no power? :’DDDDD Yeah, I think this particular point is a stupid thing to make a fuss over. Honestly, it is.

Chan tells people not to make a mess = unrealistic. Ha. Did this person ignore his reactions at the chaos Azula, Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee caused in his house? “YOU BROKE MY NANA’S VASE!!!”, anyone? Like... I’m sorry, but this IS characterization, yet again! This shows Chan is a spoiled brat who wants to stay in his family’s good graces. The party isn’t at all as crazy and wild as you’d expect from, again, an American teenage party... and why? Because, for one thing, Chan is clearly afraid of the consequences of too much chaos in the beach house: this implies fear of authority, of his parents, perhaps even his grandparents. 

For another, again, FIRE NATION SOCIETY: what does this clever critic know, by any chance, of Nazi Germany’s Hitler Youth? I’ve watched a few documentaries about it, and basically if you were a boy and you weren’t in Hitler Youth, you were no one. You were worthless. And what happened in Hitler Youth? Conditioning to the extreme. These kids were taught all the alt-right ideology that Tumblr despises, and they were made to believe it was an undeniable reality. Were there cases of kids who didn’t like it, kids who didn’t approve of it? Surely. But the general idea of Hitler Youth was to educate every kid to behave in the way Hitler considered appropriate, to the point where “the notion "Germany must live" even if they (members of the HJ) had to die was "hammered" into them.”

This is, of course, an extreme example and I’m sure Fire Nation education wasn’t that extreme because we saw it for ourselves, it’s not. But a slightly milder version of it? That’s absolutely feasible and consistent with what we see in The Headband. Therefore, kids getting high and drunk at a party? Maybe that kind of thing simply DOESN’T happen in a Fire Nation party? :’) Maybe they’re taught that those kinds of things are off-limits to anyone under a certain age (or outright forbidden, might be the case with drugs), and as they live in a tyrannical society that priorizes the Fire Lord and his decrees above all else, where his word is treated as that of a god, even mischievous teenagers refuse to act out? :’D oh, what an implausible concept, this just can’t possibly make any sense! Hitler Youth is unrealistic too!

Lastly, that a bunch of kids would sit in a circle psychoanalyzing each other seems implausible to this person is actually laughable for me. Not only have I constantly found myself, from my early teenage years to current days, serving as some sort of unofficial therapist for many of my friends, who share their woes and ask me for advice (whether they’ll heed it or not), most importantly, I once had an experience with a friend, back in high school, much like what happens with these kids in The Beach, after I’d spent years doing a lot of post-depression introspection. I shared a lot of stuff I didn’t often talk about, and beats me WHY I felt completely comfortable sharing it with my friend that day, but I did. She understood me, listened, offered her opinion, and we talked about her problems too. This happened when I was 15-16. If this person has never experienced such situation... why, that’s not anyone’s business. But it’s certainly not their business to determine this just DOESN’T happen, to anyone, ever. I can safely say it does, to people who do have problems and who sometimes just need a friendly shoulder to rely on. Maybe this critic’s life is just so perfect they’ve never had to share their woes with anyone else :’) I’m afraid that doesn’t invalidate those of us who are different, and it doesn’t invalidate the possibility that those four could talk, as they did, without breaking characterization, in the scene of the fireplace at the beach.

ANYWAYS...

Saying that a show about a group of kids who save the world and then effectively become leaders of such world, facing very little opposition in the process, is unrealistic because “teenagers aren’t like that becuase I wasn’t like that as a teenager” may be one of the most ridiculous and shortsighted things I’ve seen in this fandom, AND I’VE SEEN A LOT OF RIDICULOUS AND SHORTSIGHTED THINGS. A person’s experiences are NOT universal, regardless of how widespread their culture may be. More importantly, fiction does NOT have to abide by rules established by our current society’s state and cultural values. ATLA, as it is, is a completely different world from our own, regardless of its inspiration in many Asian cultures.

I, personally, find it a lot more unrealistic that Fire Lord Zuko can become Fire Lord without much in the way of visible protesting or boycotting when he was a banished prince who didn’t even win in his Agni Kai against Azula since it’s Katara who ends up defeating her and, as far as the rules go, Azula technically won even if not in the most dignified of ways. I find it even more unrealistic that LOK tells us Zuko was Fire Lord successfully for 70+ years and the Fire Nation has been fully reformed into a non-warmongering country despite the 100+ years of indoctrination started by Sozin’s rule. That this gets swept under a rug, not only in the neatly wrapped finale that leaves a thousand unanswered questions, but in the sequel show that merely confirms Zuko succeeded and shows NOTHING of how he managed to reform such a fucked up society...? That is a thousand times more important to me than “privileged kids aren’t acting like privileged kids OMG!”. Honestly, you want privileged kids abusing all their privileges in our society? Go watch Gossip Girl, I genuinely recommend it. You want something that proposes a completely different possibility and a glance at what a society guided by a tyrannical dictator looks like? Feel free to watch The Beach again with a completely different focus and MAYBE you’ll understand what the writers were going for.

If this person happens to see my answer, I hope they learn that worldbuilding, for a storyteller, entails CREATING a world that isn’t necessarily like the one we’re familiar with. There are multiple layers to such a world, and society and culture are some of them. Not all cultures and societies work the same way, which is part of why sometimes you’ll find behaviors from people who belong to wholly different cultures and wind up perplexed because whatever they’re doing is completely unfamiliar for you. Are there any universal behaviors in humans? Maybe! But in a work of FICTION, even the most universal of behaviors can be changed, deleted, altered however the writer sees fit! :’D it’s not a novel concept, and as far as logical fallacies are concerned, this show features a whole slew of those that have nothing to do with this peculiar sense of “realism”, fallacies that absolutely can and should be called out. Namely, things that contradict the internal logic of the show, rather than things that are incompatible with OUR world. Portraying a world that’s very different from ours, on virtually every level you can think of? That’s called creativity, not lack of realism. Please learn the difference.

[malereader-inserts]

Emperor’s New Clothes

Fandom: Gotham Pairing: General & Male!Reader Summary: Done your time and served your sentence, dressed up and watch Gotham die. If it feels good, taste good, it has to be yours. Word Count: 1,655 A/n: I just binge-watched the first three seasons of Gotham and I just had to write more psychopathicish reader. So, Gotham request is open and I will accept: Oswald Cobblepot, Ed Nygma, Victor Zsasz, Jervis Tetch, Jim Gordon, Jerome Valeska (not Jeremiah yet because I haven’t encountered him yet - just started season four)

“Didn’t you hear?”

Nathanial Barnes looked up from Jim’s old desk, he had been hearing whispers and gossips around the station and had wondered what had gotten people in such a wary state. He looked at Jim, who had been wandering in and out of the station, who shrugged his shoulder before the two looked over to Hervey, his feet on the desk and leaning back on his chair.

“(Y/n) (L/n) is back in town,” Harvey spoke, as the two men looked confused, “(Y/n) is part of a very influential and powerful family in Gotham. Rumours about him are quick to be spread around.”

“I’m guessing that’s what everyone is talking about,” Captain Barnes huffed, almost a growl escaped his lips.

“Pin on the murder of his family,” Harvey mentions standing up and handing over a file of you, “Some says he’s killed more than three dozens people, therefore making him the most dangerous person as of now due to having the most murders in Gotham. He’s the only one who could inflict so much fear within Gotham in a space of an hour.”

“Then we arrest him.”

“No can do,” A voice appeared behind Harvey.

Harvey jumped as he turns around, Jim and Captain Barnes looking up from your criminal file. Captain Barnes locks his jaw as Hervey widens his eyes and shuffle back a bit.

There you stood, young and devilishly handsome. Unlike, Penguin, you dress down. A man in his twenties rather not flaunt around in suits or three pieces. If you were to murder someone you couldn’t risk staining a ten gran suit with a speck of blood.

You were far more modest.

Calculating eyes, your hair all nice up as stand against the stair railing. Your arms crossed over your chest and your right leg crossed over your left, your toe against the hard wooden floor. A smug smile had appeared on your face, charming.

“How do you know that?” Barnes challenged, his eyes hardening but you didn’t falter.

“Mr Cobblepot is still running around, in fact, he’s running for mayor - correct?” You spoke, slow and rough. Your chest heaved up as you heavily inhale then exhale, “He’s one of the most notorious criminals and yet he’s running around as a free man, certainly you have no evidence against me and any of my rumours to put me in Arkham.”

“We’ll be putting you where you belong.”

“Gotham is my city, gentlemen, see I haven’t been home for a few years and things have changed. My family has always put their opinions in the wellbeing of this fine city, I aim to take back what once was mine.”

“You mean your family, your crime family,” Jim spoke, your lips thinned before you stood up straight a smile returning on your face.

“We could stick it to your way, Gordon, but I’ve done some digging on the way here. And let me tell you, James Gordon, Captain Barnes, you’re not as innocent as you seem. Gotham runs on villains, murderers, psychopaths, freaks, monsters.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Jim threatened.

You looked around your surroundings, your eyes flickering up and down the building, a simple gesture of silence wouldn’t be so threatening but there was something about you was uneasy.

“You’re not a cop anymore, James,” you drawled out as his stares at you, “I may be young, but I know my stuff and I know it well. Before you know it, Oswald Cobblepot won’t be a threat to you.”

“I’m sensing that’s a promise.”

You grinned at the men before you.

“In every moment a choice exists. We can cling to the past or embrace the inevitability of change and allow a brighter future to unfold before us. Such an uncertain future may call for even more uncertain allies. Either way, a new day is coming whether we like it or not. The question is will you control it, or will it control you?”

“What do you mean (Y/n) is back?” Oswald growled in his seat, his eyes piercing into Butch. 

Ed looking lost, your name was familiar, but he tended to keep to his little bubble while working with GCPD. Butch shrugged his shoulders, sitting across Ed but staring at Oswald, who had his hand to his lips deep in thought.

“I don’t know boss, with Falcone out in retirement and Fish not being here. He’s back for revenge.”

“The man killed his family,” Oswald gnarred out, as if it was the answer to everything, “How could anyone follow him? He’s a psychopath!”

“Perhaps that’s why they’re following him,” Ed spoke, suddenly finding a voice in the matter, “People tend to follow out of fear, whoever (y/n) is, must be bad news.”

“Of course it’s bad news, the last of the (L/n) crime family, he has spies all over Gotham, men who would do anything at his feet.” Oswald takes a harsh sip out of his wine.

Ed flickered his eyes between Butch and Oswald, who was freaking out. Edward had sensed a new villain had returned to Gotham, someone who was unpredictable, mad, psychotic. Oswald lets out a shaky breath, by Ed’s judgement, Oswald was very afraid.

Oswald had a vague idea of what you wanted. The last time he had seen you, you had blood around your hands and on your pretty white shirt. You hadn’t falter to the look of Fish before you send her a wicked smile. You were merely eighteen years old at the time, you had been in Arkham before - the youngest yet. Now, you’re twenty-three years old, with a thirst of vengeance and Arkham wrapped around your pinky.

Oswald wasn’t like you, you had been brought up in the nature of crimes whilst he was simply introduced to it. Madness is in your blood, you were far more intelligent than he was with the crime. You know of sacrifices to need to make, games and plans to think out. 

Your dangerous trait was you were patient. 

You like to draw things out because you could, and that’s what truly terrified Oswald.

“What should we do, boss?”

Ed was excited to meet you if you could cause fear just by returning, what hell would you unleash? He’s a rookie murderer, but he could certainly look up inspiration.

“Find him, tell him we come for peace, take Zsasz with you too. That guy has a weird bond with (Y/n) and we need to be friends with him.”

“Should I invite him for dinner?”

“Yes, Butch!” Oswald snaps almost to say if it was that obvious.

Ed smiles, this year is going to get better.

The Sirens was packed with people, you stand in the back of the club with a glass of whiskey and a curious stare. Barbara Kean, Tabitha Galavan and Jervis Tetch in one little place, your eyes flickered to the hypnotist, who locks eyes with you, you send him a smile - inviting yet cold.

He was instantly drawn to you, there was darkness in you. Jervis was a man of mind control, he could feel anger, fear, regret within you but it wasn’t yours. Instead, you’re motivated by the three emotions to your biddings of crime. Jervis found you fascinating, someone he certainly wanted to know.

“Who’s he?” Barbara asked, whispering to Tabitha, staring at you.

Barbara looked over her shoulder to see who Jervis was staring at, found you watching the show. Tabitha looks over to you as well, shrugging her shoulder, to her you seem innocent and just out for a good time.

“Someone who you don’t want to mess around.”

An unexpected voice had caught the two women off guard as they turn to see Butch. He seemed nervous, unguarded as his eyes scan the venue, stopping momentarily to watch the show that was happening before meeting an angry gaze of his girl, Tabitha.

“What are you doing here, Butch?” Tabitha had scowled at the big man.

“I was looking for (Y/n), I heard enough rumours to know that he would like to find a crowd,” Butch looks over to you and see you greeting Victor Zsasz, “He’s dangerous, killed more than thirty-six people including his family. His family was one of the most powerful crime family there was, the (L/n)?”

“I was expecting more,” Barbara looked dissatisfied with the result of your name as she heard Jervis coming down the stage, “Great show again, Mr Tetch.”

He sends a grateful smile, “Is that someone important?” 

The four of them looked over to where you were standing, your hand in your pocket as you down that of your drink. You looked over to the group, locking their gaze as you tilt your head ever so slightly, a charming smile graced your lips as you blinked slowly and send them a polite wave, two fingers and a thumb before engaging your attention to the assassin in front of you.

Tabitha feels threaten with your innocent facade as she turns to look at the hypnotist.

“Important? Dangerous? Take your pick Mr Tetch, this is Gotham after all.”

You looked at Victor, who was almost a kid like Christmas when he heard you were back, as you smile at him.

“What do you plan to do first?”

“Make Gotham suffer, show who is really in power. I want them to fear me,” You responded, Victor started to laugh when your eyes darken - oh how much he missed you, “Want to help?”

“Obviously,” Victor stopped laughing, his drawl caused you to turn away and lock eyes with Butch.

“But, first I need you to fill in what I missed.”

Victor lets a peal of laughter pass his nose as he nods. He looks at you, satisfied there was someone who would actually treat him more human. Despite Falcone’s niceness, you were a tad more humane to interact with him.

“Come, Vic, tonight we shall make Gotham remember me.”