#if you think that someone's really socially unpopular because they don't understand what people actually mean by 'memories' then you can

[iniziare]

🔥 GO WILD

Prompt: Send me a “ 🔥 “ for an unpopular opinion. // Accepting. // @ccaptain

I don't think that there's a single thing that I feel as strongly about, as my opinions of the following two lines: 'Every portrayal is equal' and 'There are multiple interpretations of a character'. I think that they both play into harvesting and perpetuating the worst mentalities on Tumblr: insecurity and egos. I disliked the PSAs about the former back in 2013, I hated the transition of the former to the latter in 2015/2016, and I hate how the latter still seems to resonate around the RPC as if it's some sort of bible that does anyone any good. And before any potential 'but Sae, those are two different things', no, not really, they play into the same concept, it's simply the phrasing that changes to make it all the more mentally inclusive and sound more socially welcoming. But a bad message remains a bad message no matter how pretty its packaging is. It all plays into not wanting to hurt people's feelings, which I fully understand and it's even a noble cause at its basis, but coddling doesn't help people, it never has, and it has and will only continue to make people more sensitive (which is a topic for a different salt send-in), all the while demotivating and utterly frustrating others. I'm sorry folks, but not every portrayal is equal, there are people who will create a blog merely because a character is hot, or for social political reasons of 'look at me', or because they simply ache to write a fandom's popular ship, and they disappear as quickly as they come when the 'urge' has been fulfilled. Those, for instance, are not equal to people who put a lot of time into their portrayals, and I'm not saying that everyone needs to live up to the latter, but don't be telling me that everyone is equal on the mere premise that they all 'exist' and we should 'all support one another'. Not every portrayal is equal, not everyone's writing is equal, and people's understanding of a character will not always be equal. And these things aren't subjective, they are factual. There can be such clear differences between portrayals and ignoring them is actually doing an injustice to every single depiction out there. If you tell a blog that does minimal writing and seems to not have a great understanding of the character (yet?), or the worst one: seems to really not care— that they’re equal to everyone else, then you’re telling them, for starters, that they could have nothing to improve on. And trust me, I’ve seen it happen time and time again, people will not put in effort to improve if you tell them that there’s nothing to actually better. And of course simultaneously, you demotivate the ones that have stuck around for years and put much time into what they do on Tumblr. And that sucks pretty hardcore.

Now luckily, that first line has somewhat died out, but now in its stead, we're left with 'There are multiple interpretations of a character'. I don't know whether it's worse, better, or just equally as bad of a take. I vote for... worse, actually. — No, no one will ever convince me that if they wrote an OC, and then released them to the world, that they'd be okay if RPers anywhere would claim that one can read their OC multiple different ways. I've seen RPers on Tumblr blow up over much less. What I need people to realize and remember, is that all creators and writers alike, have an intent with their characters, and that isn't subjective. Just like personality traits aren't subjective. For instance, one can't look at Veritas Ratio and go 'he's confident' and have someone else state 'he's insecure', and say that both are factually true and that both takes are equal in 'value' if we look at accuracy, because they're not. They cannot both be true, and I'm not talking about minor details that can be considered to be 'exceptions', I'm talking about the rule. What I need people to admit to, more often than not, is that it seems to have become a common take to conflate what they want a character to be like with what they actually are. I sometimes can look at a character and objectively go 'I wish they had done this instead, focusing on this and this, or this part of their personality'. but if I then choose to portray the character like that instead, it doesn't mean that it's what the character that we ultimately see on screen is actually like. And admitting that it's not the case isn't a bad thing, being canon divergent isn't a bad thing, but it is entirely different from intending to write the character based on what we actually see.

[glorious-spoon]

8, 12 and 16 for the choose violence thingie? :>

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

Steve Harrington does not give a flying fuck if the kids swear.

Just, in general, the place he holds in their lives is that of a surrogate big brother and long-suffering babysitter; it is not remotely maternal. He'd die for any of them and he'll generally try to steer them out of suicidally dangerous monster-slaying plans, but he is not going to fuss about their grades or their language or their eating habits or their social lives. That's not what the relationship is like, and it's frankly much less interesting than canon, so I don't understand why so many people write it like that.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

Josh from 9-1-1. I know the whole fandom collectively hates him because he was mean to Eddie in Season 5, but I actually like him a lot. He's petty and brave and loyal to a fault, and I always kind of think it's fun to have someone who just doesn't really like one of the OTP characters; it introduces a lot of fun and interesting potential dynamics.

16. you can't understand why so many people like this thing

Modern, mundane, no-powers, no-supernatural AUs. There have been a few that I've enjoyed, but in general, setting is a big part of what I enjoy about a show, so stripping that away for the sake of a coffeeshop AU or whatever is just really uninteresting to me. If I'm going to read an AU with a different setting, I want one that'll introduce new and interesting elements to the story, not one that just turns them into ordinary modern-day college students. 

(choose violence asks)

[exilley]

1, 12, 22, 24 for rgu?

the character everyone gets wrong Saionji, in the sense that no one lends his character any room to breathe. People have a very "my way or the highway" attitude about interpreting his character and how he develops and it does a disservice to their overall understanding of RGU's core themes. He is as much of a raging misogynist as Touga and hurts those around him in pursuit of the Bride's power. He is also someone who was coded into that niche of violence by being given a glimpse of "eternity". As well, he feels uncomfortable being forced to embody that role. And etc. He has more multitudes than the audience tends to give him credit for.

the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them EASY. TSUWABUKI. His whole character is about the gendered and hierarchical socialization that young children experience in the process of being indoctrinated into indelible myths about the world around them. Aside from being intertwined with Nanami's character, the symbolism of him wielding two blades in the dueling arena, the way his Black Rose episode so poignantly illustrates the helplessness and frustration of being dismissed, ignored, and berated without being provided any explanations for the casual cruelty he witnesses is so satisfying to watch. Characters who are as young as Tsuwabuki are hardly ever written with such nuance and it's like a breath of fresh air every time he's on screen. I love him dearly and I love the conclusion for his overall arc, his relationship with Nanami having stabilized into something a lot healthier combined with the general ambiguity surrounding the show's final scenes... anyway. Long story short Tsuwabuki deserves more attention

your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores The final scene of Miki's Next Box, particularly the part where Kozue looks over her shoulder to deliver that one-liner before the ending card concludes the episode. That really terse exchange between them is probably one of my favorite bits of dialogue in the whole of Utena, actually.

topic that brings up the most rancid discourse I can't think of any discourse that could happen *in* this fandom, at least, of the unhealthy moralizing variant. Most people are generally well-adjusted about the show and its writing. That being said, there is a minority demographic who apparently hate the franchise's guts because of some unconscionable depictions of India in the show (giving the dialogue its due; it is perhaps the series' weakest point). There is a slightly more vocal minority who don't like Utena just because they're annoyed with the fanbase and are tired of constantly being recommended the show. I don't have anything deeper to say about these topics other than people are free to think what they want about Utena and I don't have any say in what they do/don't engage with. I'd rather spend my time on people who do care about its merits and discuss it in good faith.

[boreal-sea]

Hi! Since you've done a lot of post abt how the patriarcy hurts and affects men too, and how being a men doesn't make you an inherent oppresor for a lot of reasons. I'd like to know what you could thing about this post? Mostly the last post and it's tags, but if you want to you can tackle the discourse abt Valerie Solanas and the SCUM manifesto!

https://www.tumblr.com/beatifiq/720946967341105152

First red flag is that I already have that blog blocked so I'm sure we're in for a doozy.

Let's get into this. Anything indented is quotes; they are from multiple different users, all of them self-identified radfems.

---

I have never read the SCUM Manifesto; I understand it's a very cathartic piece of work for some feminists but I have never found the idea of erradicating men from the face of the Earth to be cathartic or "utopian", it seems rather dystopian and eugenicist to me. I can see why radical feminists and terfs are fond of quoting it; I can see why any woman who has been traumatized by men would find it soul-healing.

It's not a piece of literature for me, and that's all I can really say about it.

I also do have to agree that dismissing it as a piece of literature beacause the author happens to have a mental illness is ableism.

Sure - being called a pussy etc doesn't make a man a woman. Being a woman makes someone a woman, and that includes trans women.

"Radical feminism doesn't make a distinction between different groups of male people…From a radical feminist perspective, trans women and amab nonbinaries are men."

- Yeah, that's what makes radfems horrible people.

"The reason why many radical feminists don’t want to be called TERFs is because it’s a misnomer. Radfem efforts include trans identified females."

- Puhlease. I cannot barf hard enough. Radfem efforts do not include me or support me in any way, shape or form. Radfems actively harm me every chance they get.

"Just my take here: the reason why we’re unpopular is because we resist female social conditioning to be accommodating and to placate others."

- You're unpopular because you're transphobes and a lot of you think a future without males is a "utopia" instead of a eugenicist hellscape.

"Trans identified males still benefit on the basis of their male biology. Hormones, clothing, and cosmetic procedures do not obfuscate this truth, it only speaks to salience and extent of that privilege."

- They don't actually, you're just fucking ignorant and don't listen when people who aren't you open their mouths.

So overall, it's run-of-the-mill transphobia and radical feminism. Nothing particularly groundbreaking here. A refusal to acknowledge intersectionalism, the lumping of all men and all "males" into a single category of "evil oppressor who doesn't deserve any compassion at all", and the lumping of all "females" into a category of "forever oppressed unless we murder all men tee hee".

[leohttbriar]

7, 12, 16, 18, 20 - that's a lot so take your pick, I just always like seeing your opinions

right back at you! was secretly hoping you would reblog the game :)

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

never really encountered this phenomena before cobra kai except for the vaguest hint of an aversion to samwise gamgee after everyone kept calling him the "real hero," but that aversion never took, and i'm ashamed to admit such weakness even now.

johnny lawrence was one of my favorite characters in cobra kai season one and then i logged onto tumblr and now i just Do Not Get It. a feeling i think from pre-season 3, even, when he was still a good and consistent character in the show. another character was robby. predictably, he was a bit babygirlified and he got soooo much more attention than sam and tory and even miguel and tbh, that made me pout massively. like. i don't care about him :(

i could be intellectual about this (and, okay, clearly the root of this petty hate is that particular sort of frustration that comes over a girl when all the boys in her fourth grade gym class get mad at her for being faster than them and then they refuse to let her play in their recess soccer game even though she's the best player--and it then sticks with her for the rest of her life) but in a vacuum i probably wouldn't feel the way i do. like, my ire is definitely in response to how other people feel about the bully character from 80's sports movie karate kid.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

you can bet that any female character that has ever been called annoying is at the top of this list. feels like girls like that are always popping up and torturing pop-culture consumers. the only one i can name right now is sam larusso, since that's the most recent model.

but also i read pride and prejudice in seventh grade. didn't get a single word of it, but i did understand that mrs. bennett was extremely annoying. then i read it again a few years later and have been her fierce defender ever since. female characters with high-pitched voices and anxiety: i adore. if you don't like those characters, in my head im thinking you're only as intelligent as me at 13.

16. you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

any sort of portrayal of spock as someone who is violent and angry and just holding it back constantly bc he hates being half human--i do Not Get It. any sort portrayal of an alien species on star trek in which the aliens learn to embrace their humanity, or something. like, i can't stand it.

i want spock to be super-duper logical and stoic. i want that to be a good thing. i want all alien characteristics to be embraced and explored. i want the weirdness. new trek just isn't doing weirdness enough! and if human morality and social structures are so universally important, stop being cowardly and explain whyyyyy.

this also applies to fanfic which is, in fact, disastrously worse on this subject. especially fanfic based on the 2009 star trek movie.

but okay it's like---the roswell conspiracy is really fun and stuff cause it is really just the government stoking some nonsense so the russians can't figure out all the special-stupid weapons and spy-equipment they're making. and then it means that everything in roswell, nm is alien themed: little green faces everywhere, three-fingered hands waving at you on billboards, "greetings earthlings," 50's era space-art, and so on. I am very into that aesthetic, especially in the middle of nowhere southwest desert with not a mountain or forest for hundred of miles. of course people were looking up and being like "there must be Something out there. look how big."

all good, yes, and silly. but people really believe it and they really believe that the aliens look the way they do! the way the "witnesses" described little looking men with big ol eyes in a big ol head and extra long arms. sweeties! that's a primate! that's an earth-creature! there's no imagination! there's no weirdness! what if the aliens didn't have a face. what if they didn't have eyes! what if they were made of a chalky substance that molted every few minutes to maintain a needed basic pH and their way of observing electromagnetic radiation was not light projected thru a lens but like little pores of mucous all over their body like the one's on sharks (ampullae of lorenzini) that absorb electromagnetic radiation and also give the creature poles which means they can block all visible light with special mind powers and maybe photosynthesize or something.

i realize that fanfiction is largely concerned with two attractive men going at it, but for all that people claim to be "monster fuckers," that really hasn't borne out in star trek fanfic. explore eroticism with the weird, with the actually alien. i want that. that'd be great. i know octavia butler and others already Did That but i want to see a star trek go boldly, you know what i mean. also, i want something more like eroticism for the sake of the erotic--not as metaphor about feminine subjugation or something (no offense ms. butler).

even if that doesn't happen, would love to read a fanfic or watch a tv show in which, for example, spock's journey is not about how oppressive being a vulcan is, or whatever.

[gromellette]

what's your thought crime Opinions

how nice of you to ask!

as a disclaimer, this is less about the commonly discussed concepts of mental illness & harmless sexual/romantic fantasies seen under the original post and more about the less than normal kinds of thoughts that can be harder to talk about in a neutral way for a lot of people. proceed with caution, i suppose.

i don't have anything to say about thought crime that hasn't already been said, i think. but i do hold, from my experience, controversial & unpopular opinions surrounding thoughts, desires, attractions, urges, and feelings vs. actions where it relates to violence and sexuality.

i don't immediately reign judgement on people who experience some or all of the above surrounding the likes of incest, pedophilia, necrophilia, bestiality, non/dubious consent/rape, mutilation/murder, etc. these things would be undoubtedly unethical and, to most, detestable to act on, but simply experiencing those feelings & thinking those thoughts & having those urges or desires is not something i'm interested in demonizing someone for. human beings are incapable of controlling their thoughts/feelings/attractions. if we weren't, we would never feel anxiety or grief or anger, people with OCD & intrusive thoughts would eliminate them before they appeared, queer people in conservative spaces and/or grappling with internalized homophobia would simply choose to not be queer. we know this isn't how it works, so why would it be any different for the unsavory ones, the socially unacceptable?

this isn't to say it's just chill that some people sit around having fantasies about certain things; i do think destigmatizing needs to also come with unpacking and rehabilitation where appropriate and measures to prevent violent acts, but the cultural obsession with morality is probably my biggest gripe with the conversation surrounding violent thoughts and violence in general; how morality is the highest priority, the means by which we must categorize the world in terms of "good" people and "bad" people, the end all be all to understanding and solving the issue of violence and, therefore, the only thing that really matters when observing these categorically "bad" people². all this, despite the fact that morality is entirely subjective and does nothing to actually prevent or treat violence because one's perception of right and wrong varies widely from person to person depending on endless variables. contrary to popular belief, the world cannot be broken down into such simple parts; good and bad, right and wrong, just and unjust. the world is nuanced, gray, and not altogether easy to understand.

i'm as passionate as i am about this (and about protecting freedom of speech and expression in fictional media where this topic is concerned too, another conversation altogether) because the shame and dehumanizing that happens in response to someone expressing violent thoughts or compulsions is what ultimately leads to real life harm¹. i believe it's important to foster an environment where people can feel comfortable talking about these things because with that comes feeling comfortable asking for help and preventing violence from the start, which is ultimately what we want, right? to listen to, show compassion for, and aid people with "immoral" thoughts (and predators, while we're at it) is to participate in creating a safe community for everyone³.

punishment begets more violence, not less, and it's troubling how popular the opposite sentiment seems to be. i'm frankly tired of seeing people make black and white moral judgements that are not at all black and white (i.e. thinking about something one has never acted on). it's okay to feel a way about things but, as far as i'm concerned, a person's actions are far more important than what goes on inside their head, or what they choose to write, draw, read, or watch for that matter (unless it's legitimate pornography involving real life parties right like obviously that is very bad because it results in and perpetuates real life harm, lets be reasonable here BUT even in these cases, the answer is not to demonize. there could be cases in which a person might very well be incapable of change or remorse (debatable) and in those cases, sure, but i believe the majority of the time such violence can be not only treated, but prevented by recognizing their humanity and doing what we can to foster it. the ultimate goal being, of course, to prevent violence. but i digress, that is another conversation also lol)

¹ James Gilligan has talked extensively on this topic, the correlation between shame & violence, and how treatable and preventable it really is if we could dispel the notion that predators are inhuman, some sort of separate evil species incapable of treatment and understanding and "deserving" of punishment. His book, Preventing Violence, is a great place to start, or this interview if you can't access it (highly recommend, it is a fascinating read). ² See also James Gilligan. Morality is the Problem, where he talks about morality as a means to justify violence on both sides of the coin.

³ i also feel it necessary to make clear that it's not anyone's, and particularly any victim's, responsibility to bear the burden of showing compassion to or otherwise protecting someone who has harmed or wanted to harm others. i just hope to highlight the importance of recognizing and considering the humanity in those individuals because the most effective way of changing someone for the better is allowing them the space to do so, should they be receptive to it. because monsters don't exist, human beings who do unforgivable things do. and, yes, even those human beings need compassion from others.

[autistic-beshelar]

1, 12, 20

the character everyone gets wrong

oh you fucking KNOW i'm gonna say mollymauk. EVERYONE gets him wrong.

the people that like him woobify him and act as though he's just a teeny baby who has never done anything wrong ever (these are also often widomauk shippers who sexualise/romanticise the 'socially casually shove him against the wall' scene).

and the people who hate him are often straight up fucking vile. one breed of these people are the youtube ableists who also hate taliesin for crimes of stuttering or taking a minute to find abilities. there's also people who have called him a terrorist sympathiser???

and generally people think he's just a complete asshole, manipulative bastard, and refuse to acknowledge that 1 - he was 2 fucking years old and raised in a circus by a man who planned to feed him to a lizard and 2. ALL of the mighty nein were assholes in the beginning!!! molly had some fucked up morals, but he made an attempt at having them, for the most part. caleb murdered his family. beau tried to strangle a six year old. fjord wanted to unleash an ancient evil god to get a cantrip. they were all fucked up in the beginning, the entire point of their campaign was that they gradually became better people, and molly's death, their grief for him and their memory of him was a major catalyst for that, particularly for beau.

it really irritates me when people say 'molly had too much of an influence on the rest of the campaign' bc like. that was the point. that was the whole story. they knew someone who was bright and shining and tried very hard to be and to bring joy - and he died. and he was also fucked up, and petty and bitchy and mean and they loved him. the mighty nein campaign is about grief and growth. you don't have to like molly, but it's so disingenuous to act as though his character and his death weren't important, when they defined so so much of the campaign, and of the characters' development.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

so you're actively willingly making me return to my hunter x hunter bullshit?

[pensive emoji] illumi zoldyck. my beloved who i have not thought about in so long

he's just so FASCINATING. because hxh is so much from killua's perspective, of course we're going to see illumi at first for, well, exactly what he is - an abuser, a manipulator, a villain.

but then you meet his family and they're all like that. illumi to me is so much a representation of cycles of abuse - an abused child who then went on to abuse his younger siblings - and cult upbringings. illumi knows NOTHING ELSE outside of what his family has taught him, he has no experience or understanding of the outside world unless it relates to his family's work.

he's also very different to the rest of his family in terms of his behaviour - while the rest of his family are also assassins, he's the only one that reads so clearly as Off, and to me reads clearly as neurodivergent - the flat affect that's so contrasted with his animated voice, the tendency to ramble to himself, the unstable emotions, the unusual posture. and there's also so much to unpack about the fact that illumi isn't the heir, despite the fact that he's (certainly in the beginning of the series) a thousand times more powerful than killua, upholds his family's values, excellent at his job, and actually WANTS to be an assassin.

man. he's just so fascinating. it's such a great look at how the situations people are in affect how 'good' or 'bad' we are able to be. illumi is a bad person - but how could he ever have been anything else?

20. part of canon you found tedious or boring

stares at dragon age inquisition

tedious doesn't BEGIN to cover my fucking issues with inquisition but it's certainly part of the problem. there's just... so much wandering around doing fetch quests and it's so unnecessary. they created this BIG OPEN WORLD!!! and it just felt so... empty?? like dragon age 2 had three dungeons and a dodgy back alley but somehow there was so much more life in that game.

i never finished inquisition, partly bc i fucking despised what they did with hawke (the OOC ness, not the leaving them in the fade), as well as the anti-mage pro-templar propaganda, and the fucking. dont get me started on cullen. but also the game was just boring tbh. whereas origins i have played like 7 times and will undoubtedly play again

[cosmidomics]

need to gaslight a bitch into believing memories aren’t real

[alpine-forget-me-nots]

Ah! I'm so happy that someone is not a fan with Dialuc ship. I thought I'm the only one or in the unpopular side of this argument.

I get why people ship these two. But to me their dynamic doesn't sit well to me. So as He and Barbatos.

It's hard to ship Diavolo with anyone because what his character does to others. The only ship I can see that could work is Him and Solomon, but that is a crack ship (Also I don't ship characters to other characters without them actually having romantic chemistry or the canon pair plus who scary people tend with shipping in general)

I wish the Dev's isn't afraid of making an arc for Diavolo where they acknowledge of his controlling nature, even though his this prince placing people in situation where they can't say no isn't how to making friends or make deep connection to others.

Sorry for this rant, I just want to chat with this topic.

I definitely agree!

It isn’t just Lucifer people take issue with, it’s literally anyone he has power over. He used his dying sister to make him his servant. Messed up. Then there was that whole thing was Barbatos and threatening to abandon the thrown if he didn’t stay with him. Although the way Diavolo talks about it, I got the impression he was much younger. Lucifer and Barbatos seem to hold Diavolo in high regard but the nature of their relationship makes me feel icky for shipping them. And to be fair to the DiaLuc shippers out there I don’t think they deny these issues.

The devs were pretty close in acknowledging his controlling nature in S3 with Belphie but they were too afraid to call him out. They ended up making Belphie just get over it.

“You saved my life guess I gotta do what you say!”

In these type of discussions, Belphie is usually left out but I know the ship has a niche following. Given everything that’s happened in entirety of their relationship, the refusal to compromise, lack of understanding and especially the inability to accept no means no. Diavolo was really gonna force Belphie to wear a hat, because he wanted him to. Then he guilts MC into trying to get Belphie to wear the stupid hat! Mc could’ve easily said no themselves, but Belphie already did!

The healthiest relationship he has atm is with Levi but with his complete disrespect for boundaries and Levi’s social anxiety, I’m a bit worried. I hope this is the relationship they address his control issues. It would be good for both of them! Levi gaining self respect and boundaries and Diavolo learning to respect said boundaries!

And this always goes without saying, but ship them if you want! If you ship Lucifer and Diavolo, great! If you ship Lucifer, Barbatos and Diavolo as a poly couple, more power to ya! It doesn’t make you an awful person, you just interpret their relationship differently then I do. Which is completely valid!

I love talking about ObeyMe! Nowadays it seems all I do is rant about it, but rants are cathartic! So I was really happy when I saw your ask!

[beth-march]

hey! maybe this is bad timing but it could be a nice distraction too... i've been meaning to ask you what's your opinion on mike and dustin not going to lucas' game and all that. mostly because i've so many people take sides and be so black and white about it when to me both lucas and mike & dustin had their points and it was really just a matter of friends having different priorities and no one being forced to miss out on something they care about (and that doesn't mean i didn't feel bad for lucas bc i did, i just don't think mike and dustin missing eddie's campaign - bc he was NOT postponing it - and ending up on his shitlist would be any more fair than lucas missing the game)

Hi! I agree with you, completely.

People are so quick to take sides and choose villains in this, which is an oversimplification, for one thing, and just a total misreading of the situation, for another. All of those boys adore each other!

Lucas has a chance to escape being bullied and Mike and Dustin don’t, but they’ve found someone in Eddie who empowers them not to care about being unpopular. Losing that would be difficult for them and I understand why they’re prioritising holding onto their new safe place. I also think it bears mentioning that they attended his other games, continuously, despite him always being benched. They’re undeniably good friends, and how were they to know that Lucas would actually be playing in the championship game?

But, yes, it’s very sad that they missed out on Lucas’s game, and that Lucas didn’t have anyone he loved in the crowd (other than Steve) to celebrate his success. I’m sad for him that such a great memory will be tinged with the absence of his loved ones, but we all know those kids will never miss another game - provided that there’s still a Hawkins High for him to play in by the end of the season.

If you really want to go there and blame someone, it’s Eddie! The Hellfire Club is small and full of nerds with low social lives, like he could’ve easily rescheduled the last campaign.

[cosmictulips]

🔥 🔥 🔥 unpopular opinion astrology edition pls lmao

*cracks knuckles*

I'm so sorry lol

🔥 I hate most if not all astro observation posts. No offense -no there's full offense to this- it's VERY biased and based on .. ?? what observations LOL what y'all study? there's no way to honestly prove observations because you can't just look out and know every persons chart that you interact with on a daily basis. there's a lot of guess work unless you're stupidly good at guessing peoples rising signs or sun signs.

I mean I guess it could be based off research that you do through books and other medias but that's not the case with 99 percent of the posts here on tumblr. and quite frankly I'm annoyed by almost all of it.

Use actual psychology and state it. it's more accurate, and fun. but not everyone is into studying body language. I know. and I know people state it's their personal opinions but listen, we all got opinions. doesn't make shit true and people REPEAT what others say!

🔥 Leos are annoying and I have such a hard time with them. that's just it. EVERY Leo I know --and let's make this clear I know they're leos based on fb info and they tell me. they always gotta tell me LOL -- loves to talk about themselves. but not in the way you might think. and that's where I both love and hate them.

I love hearing people talk about themselves and they do just that LOL. I get a lot of fun stories from leos and I get some cool knowledge from them.

but MAN y'all be some big ass hypocrites. there's one leo who "preaches" peace and tolerance but then will go post some weird ass shit that directly contradicts it. Like, I get talking just to talk but you can't be that oblivious can you?

But I think that can be said for most ... fixed signs. as a fixed sign, I think we just... do that lol.

🔥 I hate what social media has done to astrology LOL. I never liked the "uwu I'm a scorpio so I'm a bitch" thing. not when it was a meme, not ironically, not now especially. astrology is the LITERAL story of the stars and we've taken it and thrown it around and it makes people who do this shit professionally seem like children.

No Linda, you have NO basic understanding of what it means to be a libra and you telling me that "you're all about fairness and peace" just proves to me that you REALLY don't know much about being a libra and you need to actually study the chart and not listen to tik toks.

I literally can't fucking stand it.

And like, just in general! I really hate how social media has just squashed the whole idea of astrology. and people think it's this basic ass thing and ME OVER HERE okay and others who have been doing this for YEARS ARE JUST MOCKED BUT YOU TELL ME SUSAN IF YOU CAN LOOK IN THE NIGHT SKY AND NAVIGATE IT AND READ SOMEONE TO FILTH.

TELL ME SUSAN CAN YOU DO THAT? CAN YOU TELL ME HOW MY VIRGO ASS MOON PSYCHOANALYZES MY EVERY MOVEMENT OR ARE YOU JUST GONNA FIST PUMP THE MOONS ASS AND BE LIKE HAHA YOURE SUCH A TAURUS.

🔥 CUSPS. I CAN"T STAND WHEN SOMEONE TELLS ME THEY'RE ON A CUSP. FIGURE IT OUT SWEET PEA. YOU ARE NOT TWO SIGNS. IF YOU DO YOUR ASTRO CHART AND IT SAYS ZERO DEGREES LEO THEN GUESS WHAT HONEY BUTT? YOU'RE A LEO.

you can feel like you belong to the other signs but that can be explained! and learned! and you can learn how to feel more of your sign! so stop saying astrology is fake because you can't take FIVE FUCKING MINUTES AND GOOGLE SOMETHING.

the only person who has bedazzled me is my friend. she's a full on leo with a sag moon and I swear to the gods she's a cancer. YOU CANNOT TELL ME OTHERWISE. she has NO cancer energy but being around her you're just like "how da fuck are you not a cancer". but that's a different conversation.

Idk why I used Leo in that example. I get it mostly with pisces cusps and gemini cusps people.

[durotoswrites]

For the character breakdown, I'd love to hear your thoughts on Carter the priest

Thank you so much for your patience! I'm excited to write about Carter because he is definitely one of my favorite NPCs! <3

Character Breakdown Ask Game - Still Accepting! ;)

How I feel about this character

I find Carter absolutely delightful. As soon as we meet him, he admits that he is not even sure what he preaches anymore, and he's a pretty unorthodox pastor. He has some very interesting quirks, such as giving questionable sermons (recycling classic fairy tales? lol) and running very hot and cold when you make confession. I still have a theory that Carter is much more forgiving when you become better friends with him, but I haven't recorded his earlier responses. I do know that in the remake, I have his friendship maxed out and I can't remember the last time he scolded me. The things you can confess for can be kind of silly sometimes, and I love just seeing what his response will be, haha.

Despite being quirky, he's really kind and can be very gentle, especially to people who are vulnerable and need a place to clear their minds. I find it really sweet that Carter knows a bit about Cliff's situation right at the beginning of the game even though Cliff hasn't told anyone else. He's also great with the kids – both Stu and May really enjoy his company and I headcanon that he is their teacher of sorts, as they spend a lot of time at the church during the afternoon.

Carter isn't without his faults. He's very interested in the lives of those who come to seek his counsel, to the point of oversharing personal details to the player character. For example, he's very open about Cliff having social anxiety and going through some hard times, but on top of that, he tells the player that Cliff goes to the confessional daily! I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to share that, buddy. (Carter and Manna would get along famously, by the way, haha.)

In short, I feel like Carter is a really amusing character with some interesting quirks that can make him a bit divisive. I personally love him!

All the people I ship romantically with this character

I honestly don't recall there being any lines in the game where Carter says he has to take a vow of celibacy. That being said, I wish he was marriageable in game. I think the heart events with him could be pretty interesting as we learn more about him before he moved to Mineral Town. I can imagine a heart event with helping teach the kids, and also have a date in his secret courtyard behind the church or the Goddess Spring.

But honestly, I really ship Carter with Doctor. Both of them are confirmed friends in game, saying that they spend some evenings having friendly debates over a bottle of wine. I mentioned this back in my Doctor ask, but I could see these turning into dates. Their duties to take care of the people's secrets in town mean that they both have similar burdens that they can relate to one another.

My non-romantic OTP for this character:

Carter/Cliff – I really think that it's sweet that Carter is a mentor for Cliff, and I like to think that they see each other as friends outside of church. I've mentioned in my Cliff ask that I picture them spending time in an apartment I head canon Carter having at the church.

My unpopular opinion about this character

I don't despise Carter's new design. It's actually growing on me a bit. That being said, I do still prefer the simpler design in the original. He looks a lot like a Catholic priest in the original, and I can understand the creators' choice to go with a more unique design to reflect a follower of the Harvest Goddess, taking some inspiration from Nathan's design in Island of Happiness/Sunshine Islands. I wish that Carter's design was simpler like Nathan's. The ornate cloak and hat kind of make Carter look like a bishop or someone of higher rank. He also is giving me Dragon Quest IV vibes – I'm looking at you, Cristo!

Maybe not an unpopular opinion, but I'm not sure where else to put this silly tidbit. In the GBA version, I always thought Carter was carrying around a felt derby hat, so I head canon him wearing the hat outside if it's rainy or snowy. It took me forever to realize he was holding a book, haha.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

Well, besides the obvious “I wish he was a secret bachelor”, I do wish that his stories and sermons were more varied. If I remember correctly, they change with the seasons. I think it would be neat to have a few he cycles through per season.

Please let him have a place to lie his head! I wish he had a little rectory or clergy house of some sort, even if it was just a door that led to a little apartment for him to live in. It would be especially cute for him to have visitors there, like Cliff or Trent – it would be such a great way of showing that he's more than just a pastor to some of the characters.

I also think it would be really neat to have more characters attend service regularly. I'm thinking of SNES HM where the whole town was practically in there (haha, I remember sitting by a snoozing Ann in the back, sneaking her flowers to flirt during church). But it would be neat if there was a day he held service and had various advice on being kind to others, etc with his regulars all there at the same time – Cliff (include Duke and Manna after he's employed), Popuri, and Jeff. Service wouldn't have to last long – a few hours a week. It would probably be easiest to sneak it in on Saturdays, as Popuri could easily head over to the church, and Sasha or Karen could run the register instead of Jeff (which would make for some interesting additional dialogue). That way, the winery shop wouldn't have to shut down an extra day, as it's already tricky to get in there the whole two hours they're open anyway, lol. I feel like doing this would also help the town feel more connected. I could see the kids at the church during service, too – maybe Popuri is sitting with them.

Thank you so much for the ask! I really think Carter is a fun character, and I love his gentle kindness and chaotic energy he brings to the games.

Character Breakdown Ask Game - Still Accepting! ;)

[hirazuki]

I don't know anything about ffxiv but I think you should tell me about your ffxiv blorbos, meow meows, etc anyway :3

Omfg, you know not what you do. Don’t enable me like this XD

I will include explanations for context for your benefit!

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most):

Zenos - basically Lotor, if the abuse had rendered him completely apathetic to life and incapable of feeling things and the only joy he ever found was in brief moments during combat with equally matched opponents

Emet Selch - grumpy theatrical grandfather (he’s actually a great-grandfather) who is honestly responsible for A Lot Of Things of the imperial, genocidal, etc. variety (actually accurately labeled for once!), but in addition to being a very compelling character, his personality and morality are such that, well, I personally can’t really condemn him for anything; I’d be a hypocrite :P

Aymeric - literal fantasy elf prince, precious, reluctant leader, is trapped in his office running his state most of the time, needs to be let out for walks/adventures; extremely competent fighter but also needs to be bubble-wrapped 

Estinien - initially presents as the typically reserved, efficient, deadly, quiet-type, but is actually an awkward social cryptid who has no clue how the real world works

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped): 

ZENOS - he’s so earnest and honest and open and his face is So Soft T__T

Vrtra - millennia-old dragon whose baby brother energy hasn’t dissipated at all, to the point that mortals can’t help but adopt him <3

Moogles in general - they’re just so round and soft and aggravating, they drive me to violence

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave): 

Sidurgu - basically a dark knight/vigilante type lizard boy, Prickly but Soft™, lots of angst, only appears in the questline for one of the classes you can play 

Foulques - dark elf rival type character, also appears only in a class-specific questline, done dirty (primarily by virtue of his race...) both in the story and by the story and therefore adopted by yours truly

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week): 

Hraesvelgr - reclusive dragon with dog features, tragic past, need I say more? XD 

Magnai & Sadu - loud, combat-happy lizard folks who also happen to be hilariously at each other’s throats all the time to the point that it’s a running gag now <3 Both are precious and fun, and I will happily take any amount of screen time with them, either alone or in conjunction with each other

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave): 

Zenos - I’m sure you’ve seen me ranting on the bird app, so I won’t go off completely here (just a little, because I can’t help it) but like. UGH. He’s obviously “problematic” with the fandom due to being an antagonist, morally grey, blah blah, the usual, but also his character is so subtly written that -- while I absolutely adore that and eat it up like crazy -- it leads to Disk Horse between people who can actually read his character for what it is and people who just take him at face value as someone who is one dimensional and only “I’m evil, murder good, I like to fight” brainless brawn type of stuff, which is frustrating. Additionally, in terms of context, he doesn’t even really do anything all that bad in comparison to so many other antagonists/villains that get either a free pass or at least some basic understanding/empathy from both characters in-story/the writers and the fandom, but he’s routinely excluded from receiving the same. He’s also a scapegoat a lot of the time, in the sense that things that other characters have done or are responsible for initiating/seeing through, end up getting pinned on him, even though he was either not around at the time they were occurring or he was like... 6 years old lmao. The game mechanics are such that your player character extends a sympathetic ear to literally everyone else, even characters you haven’t known for as long or as well, but the dialogue options presented for Zenos are consistently straight up mean (with two exceptions; one which doesn’t really makes sense to have at that point in the story, given how the story develops? and the other one, comes too late); you don’t even get a chance to treat him neutrally. Your character gets to experience other antagonists’ backstories in-game, but players only know of Zenos’ backstory from extra material outside the game, and he is also routinely excluded from the player character having the chance to actually learn anything about him. There’s such a huge disconnect between what the player character knows vs. what the player knows, and how he is treated by the writing vs. how literally everyone else is treated, and it really tastes like Ye Olde VeeElDee :/ I also see him as the poster kid for abused childhood and ND representation, so on the one hand I guess I should have expected as much, but on the other hand it’s even more like ://////////, especially when the rest of the whole fucking game is written so well. So yeah, lots of controversy here. You’d love it [sarcasm].

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason):

G’raha (nerdy cat boy), Alphinaud & Alisaie (teenage elf twins), Estinien - torment would be harmless and out of fondness, they’re just all very easy to tease 

Lyse (I just can’t give a non-biased description of her, I tried, so you can wiki her if you want lmao) - torment would be real and violent, I can’t stand her

Fandaniel - torment would also be real but of a less severe nature than for Lyse, and not out of hatred but just because I think his buttons would be fun to press :)

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell): 

Ywain (guildmaster of the Lancer’s guild, Foulques’ former instructor), Alberic (Estinien’s mentor/adoptive father of sorts), Thordan (Aymeric’s father), Countess Ystride (Rielle’s (Sidurgu’s protege) mother), Varis (Zenos’ father) - abusive parental/mentor figures ahahaha XDD

Lyse - no real reason that I utterly hate her other than she annoys me  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ lmao

[missnight0wl]

What do you think of Rowan, Ben, Penny and Merula's Patronus? Though I don't like Merula very much, I still think she is able to conjure one.

I’m putting it under the cut because it turned out a bit lengthy.

Rowan

I used to think of an Owl for Rowan because, y’know, it's “a symbol of wisdom” and all. But when I got this ask, I remembered that I found the site on Irish Astrology just days earlier – the same Rowling was using for birthdates and wand wood of the Golden Trio. Interestingly, each sign has assigned an animal there, and since the rowan tree is one of them, I decided to check it to find out that it’s a crane or a green dragon. A dragon makes me think of Charlie, but I did a little bit of digging on another option, and I have to say – I think I’m gonna stick with a Crane Patronus for Rowan.

This is what I found on the Crane symbolism:

Throughout Asia, the crane is considered as a bird of happiness and prosperity. The Japanese, Chinese, and Korean traditions relate it to longevity and fidelity.

Aristotle wrote about this bird that it always held a stone in its mouth so that if it fell asleep and the stone would fall down, the bird would wake. Thus crane symbolism came to be linked with vigilance.

I also checked Indian symbolism since Rowan is part Indian, and I found this:

[The Sarus crane] is also known as the eternal symbol of unconditional love and devotion and good fortune.

Interestingly, cranes are monogamous and they mate for life. That’s actually why in Japan, they’re often incorporated in wedding décor!

Overall, we have pretty positive symbolism. The parts about devotion and unconditional love sum Rowan up as a friend pretty well. We also have a part about vigilance which again is pretty fitting for Rowan who was probably the most aware from all of our friends that MC is indeed in constant danger – and that’s why they were suspicious of Ben (not because they simply didn’t like Ben – let’s remember that Rowan and Ben were friends at the end of a day).

Admittedly, “in some cultures, the meanings of crane birds can be negative: they represent deception, a harbinger of death, and even the symbol of the devil.” However, it’s actually a bit meta, considering all the people suspecting Rowan of being a traitor.

Ben

I really like the idea of a Lion Patronus for Ben. A Patronus form is not only about representing one’s personality, but also “the Patronus represents that which is hidden, unknown but necessary within the personality” - and it fits Ben’s bravery so nicely. I talk here mostly about Old Ben, but that’s also a pretty old idea of mine. I mean, Ben was always super brave when his friends needed it, he just couldn’t really accept it himself. I also find it kind of heart-warming to imagine Old Ben being intimidated by his own Patronus at first, only to become more and more comfortable around it with time.

Another thing, I remember reading once someone else’s point that it could be a funny reference to the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz – which, now that I think about it, Ben would be probably familiar with as a Muggleborn!

Now, as for New Ben… Well, honestly, I don’t think that Ben would be able to cast Patronus Charm at this very moment. He probably still feels too much guilt for Rowan’s death and whatnot. Still, I remembered a discussion I had with my friend after Rakepick’s Patronus was finally revealed, and she pointed out then that male lions tend to kill little cubs if they defeat a previous male lion and take over his pack. Y’know, to eliminate wrong genes. And you know what? It’s kind of what Ben did with his old self. Before the end of Y5, Ben had a pretty good understanding of bravery. There was that very sweet moment in the O.W.L.s TLSQ, for example:

But then, the end of Y5 happened, and Ben was like: “Nope. I know no fear and THAT’S bravery”.

Either way, I do hope that Ben will eventually return on his path of a healthy balance between his old and new self, and I have a feeling that a Lion would still be a pretty good match then.

Penny

Probably an unpopular opinion, but I always thought that Penny’s Patronus should be some kind of a predator. I once even proposed a Black Panther, but I didn’t have a lot of reasoning behind it, to be honest. Now, I think I’m gonna change it anyway, and I’ll say that Penny would have a Fox Patronus. This is information I found on it:

The fox is a natural trickster, and brilliantly charismatic. Those with this Patronus are often more reserved, but do have the social capability to speak to just about anyone. They are strongly ambitious and observant of the behaviour of others, watching key points in what others do and storing them for further reference, when they may need them. They are good talkers, meaning they can convince people to do what they want and make them think it was their idea in the first place.

Foxes are quick, intelligent and strongly ambitious. Although they are known for their cunning nature, they are very charismatic and easy to love. If your Patronus is a fox, you have an ability to think outside of the box and act quickly during emergency situations.

Penny is insanely ambitious about her Potions-making. She said on more than one occasion that she couldn’t pass the opportunity to brew more advanced Potion. She’s also obviously charismatic, and the part I might like the most is about “making others do what they want and even make them think it was their idea”. Because when you really think about it… it’s exactly Penny.

Like, making MC steal the ingredients for the Forgetfulness Potion and very similar situation again with the Draught of Peace (each time not even telling MC what it’s about until the very end). Making MC impersonate a Professor or a Prefect. All those situations could get us in pretty serious trouble. Yet, the best example in all of that is the Animagus TLSQ, in my opinion. 

The quest started with the rumours that Talbott is planning to become an Animagus, and so MC got intrigued and decided to help Talbott get ingredients, hoping that Penny could make an extra Potion for them. But then, it turned out that Penny doesn’t make the Potion for Talbott at all, and she wanted MC to take it instead. Moreover, Talbott was already an Animagus, so the whole story didn’t really make much sense from the very beginning. Now, it might be the case of Jam City screwing up badly in writing, but it doesn’t change the fact that this is basically what happened: Penny wanted to brew the Animagus Potion, so she sent Talbott to get MC intrigued in the whole thing, so MC thought it was their idea while Penny could brew her Potion. Now, tell me she’s not a Fox – especially that again it could’ve been pretty dangerous for MC if anything went wrong.

There’s also a part about thinking outside of the box and acting quickly during the emergency, and funnily enough, it’s also kind of true for Penny. The thing is that she doesn’t act well in those situations – but that’s a separate problem.

Also, I don’t know if you can tell it by now, but I totally believe that Penny should’ve been a Slytherin, and I will die on that hill. Just a digression.

Merula

Hm, how about a Mole? Or a Rat? :D Just kidding, of course. Mostly…

Seriously though, I had a bit of a problem with Merula. I thought of a Skunk or a Frilled-neck lizard at first, y’know, because they try to look more threatening as a self-defence mechanism. I considered a Yorkshire Terrier as well because they’re always yapping at bigger dogs. And while they kind of fit Merula, they’re definitely not perfect matches. Merula has no dog qualities whatsoever, and even though her aggression is probably caused by a lot of insecurities, skunks and frilled-neck lizards don’t really harm whatever threatens them. Merula does harm, whether physically or emotionally, and she’s pretty calculated in that.

So, I kept thinking about something else, and there was one option I was coming back to. And even though I didn’t fully like it at first, I think I’ll stick to it, and I’ll say that Merula would have a Black Mamba Patronus.

Here’s some information about Black Mambas:

Cloaked in the color of death and measuring over 14 feet in length, the Black Mamba is regarded as one of the most vicious snakes in the world. It’s also one of the most venomous. (…) Unlike many animals, which simply have an anger problem, Black Mambas are driven by an extreme form of fear-based aggression. Being exceedingly nervous, the slightest sense that the snake’s escape route is compromised may unleash an attack of unparalleled ferocity.

There’s also an interesting quote from the discussion on whether or not they chase humans:

No, they absolutely don’t chase humans. No snakes chase humans. However black mambas are so high-strung they’re practically hysterical the moment something makes them nervous, and they’re really not very intelligent. As a result, these snakes are extremely prone to absolute panic. If you corner a mamba, its fight/flight reflex is triggered, and it will freak out and try to fight you to escape. This involves wildly throwing itself around and biting you like 60 times in a row, if you don’t get the blazes out of the way. (…) And they’re not very good at evaluating the level of danger they’re in. Or… much of anything.

… and that’s basically Merula. She’s in a constant state of panic that people are better than her. Especially in earlier years, she constantly felt threatened by MC’s mere existence, even when MC was clear they just don’t care about her – so she was attacking. All. The. Freaking. Time.

Moreover, snakes in general are often associated with deceit, so there’s that.

Of course, there’s also much more positive symbolism around snakes, like a rebirth, transformation, or heling. And while I have no doubts that Jam City won’t give Merula a proper redemption arc (because they're too lazy about it), she clearly is a character who’s supposed to be all about redemption. So, I guess that’s another reason why a Black Mamba would fit nicely, even though it seems a bit stereotypical for a Slytherin (then again, Merula totally should’ve been a Gryffindor, but that’s a topic for a different discussion).

[fumiko-matsubara]

Chiba Ryuunosuke ー The calm type of social butterfly?

So yesterday, Zaina and I had a fairly long talk about how Chiba is a lot more social and friendly than he appeared to be despite being a supposed introvert.

And no, I am not just talking about him being comfortable in his own friend group, which is a very normal thing among introverted people. In fact, if you actually read the manga and some of the extra materials Matsui had released post-AssClass, most of the students you see him interacting with the most are the ones who are outside of his friend group... well, that is if you consider his friend group being him and the art trio even though there are hardly any scenes of them actually interacting in canon but ahehe.

Zaina pointed out to me, or rather stated an unpopular opinion about how Group 2 is like the kids have their seperate group of friends instead of them being a whole friend group, which is a popular take in the fandom, and I completely agree with her. Because think about it, we have the Art trio (Sugaya, Mimura, and Okajima), Hayami is friends with Touka and possibly even Hinano as well, Fuwa has Ritsu and Hara initially, and Nakamura just goes to whatever friend group she sees and dives right in.

As for Chiba (take this with a grain of salt as this is purely based from how I generally understood his character in the manga), I believe that he has almost the same case as Nakamura whereas instead of forcing himself into random friend groups like she does, he gets pulled into different friend groups because he had gained the trust of the rather many people he had interacted with before.

I'm basing this assumption from some of the kids I've seen him interacting with in the mangaー Hinano, Maehara, Sugino, Okano, Isogai, Kimura, Okajima, and Karma to name a few. As for the extra materials like the albums and the novel parts of the lesson books (korotan and korosuu), there was Nakamura, Nagisa, and Takebayashi as far as I still vaguely remember.

I find it so interesting that despite the little screen time he had even in the manga, he still managed to be seen interacting and maybe even becoming friends with at least one member from each group, the most being in Group 1 (5 out of 7 members) which is also the group that has most of the class extroverts.

This pretty much supports my headcanon about how Chiba finds it easier to get along with people who are more talkative than he is instead of people who are quieter than him, because he doesn't feel pressured to hard carry a conversation, which is something he understandably struggles with for someone whose only source of social interaction growing up was with his family, as I have previously talked about in here.

This also explains why he struggled to get along with Hayami outside of school even though they worked so well together whenever they get paired up for training and such.

And no, I am not saying that Chiba is an extrovert. He still is not despite what I have said, not even an ambivert actually. He's just a very social introvert. Not exactly loud nor very talkative, but he finds it easy to approach anyone who is willing to look past his supposed unapproachable appearance and just talk to him without prejudice. He's not the type to unnecessarily bring attention to himself when in a group, definitely not lol. But he's the kind of social introvert who prefers to be in a friend group with extroverted people and would already be contented with just watching his loud friends having fun.

How do I say this? He likes the commotion without wanting to cause said commotion lol.

Chiba is also canonically empathetic, observant, and quietly looks after people. This was evidently shown in the Takaoka arc when he asked Hinano regarding her feelings about the situation despite the very welcoming front Takaoka had firstly shown to the class on his first day, which shows that despite Hinano's fixation towards Karasuma being considered as mere fangirling that can be brushed off, Chiba still pays attention enough that he'd consider her feelings for something as supposedly simple as substitute teaching. (The anime adaptation completely omitted this scene by the way, hence why it may be unfamiliar to some of you).

What really hit me in this panel (It's seriously just one panel lol), was that Chiba was so casual when he asked Hinano about it. As in, you could tell he probably doesn't want this to be made a big deal of, let alone accidentally bring unnecessary attention to Hinano. Because I assure you, if he instead pulled her in and whispered to her, people around them will find it suspicious at how they are huddling together and will make a big deal out of it then (reminder: more than half of Class E are ridiculously nosy).

Chiba clearly knows that and definitely doesn't want that to happen to Hinano, of all people. Especially considering what happened later in the chapter or, what nearly happened to Hinano only because she decided to be loud about it. Yikes.

I know a lot of people like to use what Chiba had subtly done for Karma in the finals arc as a popular example, since it's also one of the only scenes that had made it to the anime adaptation. But I decided to give more light to what he had done for Hinano because it fully showcases how observant and caring he is and at the same time, taking more of his surroundings into consideration.

Zaina also added how while he's the type to quietly enjoy the commotion his extroverted friends do whenever they have fun, whenever he feels that someone is likely feeling left out, he'd be also the type to try including them in and making sure that they feel belonged. Because I don't know about y'all, but unless they deserved it, I strongly believe Chiba wouldn't want people to go through what he did growing up.

Now the question is, how does Chiba get along so well with plenty of people?

Honestly, if you looked past his appearance, which inadvertently does make him seem very quiet and gloomy, Chiba has always been a friendly and happy kid. The independent, mature, and serious side of him is mostly showcased whenever he's in "work mode", which is pretty telling that he clearly knows when to take things seriously and when to have fun. Chiba is known to be very calm and gentle among the class, which is definitely the big part of his personality that drew non-judgemental people towards him (this was stated in the korosuu, @clownao please confirm this unless I'm remembering it wrong T-T).

Unless you're one of the many people who stubbornly refuses to approach him due to his appearance, Chiba's personality is what makes him naturally likeable, especially with his classmates. Like who wouldn't want to be friends with someone who's just as unconditionally kind as he is?

And to think that he still managed to turn out like this despite the social bullying he had went through growing up 💔

Just so you know, I am completely basing this from the screen time he had in the series (anime, manga, and the extra materials), as in what was shown canonically. For all we know, he's probably friends with everyone in the class and that Matsui just didn't bother showcasing them all since Chiba is just a side character who doesn't have to have many screen time.

People just either avoids him, don't bother talking to him, or straight up just wants to be his friend.

There are no other options outside of the given three :D

[suckishima]

Sorry it's late but Hinata for the ask!

Hiii <3!! No worries! A few people asked for Hinata so it all works out haha. And @ the anon who also asked for Kageyama, I've gotten lots of asks for him too and I'll do him next!

First impression: fun! reckless and positive! doesn't always understand what's going on, but has the spirit! i loved him right away, i just did not yet know how much i would love him even more lol

Impression now: it is the east, and hinata is the sun. sjkdalsd but seriously i love hinata so so much. my impression hasn't really even changed except that i now think he's even more fun and even more reckless than i used to lol. his work ethic and drive are endlessly scary and inspiring to me. he's the soul of the story and he carries it beautifully. i root for him, i cry with him, i cry for him at times, and i'm proud of him too. also! he's got the fuckin highest EQ of anyone in the entire series and i love to see it, the dude is so emotionally observant and it's really fucking cool to see it once you know it's there! he may not be school smart, but he can connect (lmao) with anyone and everyone, and he DOES. it's part of what makes him so formidable as a teammate and opponent and i think that's so fucking genius as a trait for the MC of a volleyball series, like wow.

Favorite moment: i.. i don't think i can choose. i could list a million things tbh. i actually think most of my favorite moments of his aren't even the moments themselves, it's how he reacts to those things that i really love. like him crashing the miyagi first years camp is insanity, but i love all of the little moments after that, his realizations that he needs to shift his entire mentality, how he genuinely struggles with that, and how he dedicates himself to it nonetheless because he cares, and because he loves volleyball. that's so much of who hinata is to me—someone who adapts to every single tough situation that's thrown at him, and he adapts beautifully. on top of that, those adaptations from the previous weaknesses later become his strengths, and it happens over and over in the series on varying scales. those moments of him just incrementally pushing himself are the moments where he shines most to me.

Idea for a story: i'd be interested in a third years centered fic with hinata i think. so much is about to change for him and everyone else in his year during that time and i'd really enjoy exploring how they all feel about each other's decisions n stuff, hinata especially.

Unpopular opinion: probably just that i don't like when he's being portrayed as being socially unaware. i already mentioned his high EQ and i honestly think it's pretty prevalent in canon so i don't really like when he's played off as not understanding people emotionally

Favorite relationship: kageyama. easily his most interesting narrative relationship in the series to me. from the moment they meet they revolve around each other and they have this rivalry/partnership thing that really borders on indescribable, and the way it unfolds is so so so well done that i actually can't believe it sometimes lol. i really like how a big part of hinata's journey is like finding out how good he can be because of kageyama, but then learning how can he be good without kageyama too. it isn't just about working together, it's about working to beat each other. they need each other as both teammates and opponents/rivals in order to grow.

Favorite headcanon: he carries grandpa ukai's advice about "always be touching a volleyball" with him for the rest of his life! is often seen like in the supermarket with a vb tucked under his arm

send me a hq!! character 🏐💖