#like just because You dont say anything about the racism in the games you play

[mx-paint]

.

[cassandra-e-sandsmark]

Intro:

Hi! I'm Cassandra (Cassie, Cass, whatever) Elizabeth Sandsmark, I'm 15 (6/12/09), Bi and gender-fluid (they/she pronouns), I've been to a grand total of 5 schools already ( Holliday School for Girls, Brewer High School, Dennis Peterson High School, Gateway City High School, Saint Elias School for Girls) and none of those've worked out, so heres to hoping this goes better ig?

Room/dorm mates with:

@jaimereyesbug

Dating anybody?

Nope, but I’m open to the idea of it

currently taking:

World history

English

Algebra 2

Chem

ASL 1

Art history

Clubs:

Soccer (football for non-Americans)

Open to joining more I just don't know about them

Interests:

#1 Wonder Woman fan (fight me Jason Todd.)

Music stuff (Dazey and the scouts, Paramore, Green day, Hole, The Smashing Pumpkins)

I play a couple video games (Minecraft, Stardew Valley, Pokémon, Unpacking, Fnaf, Little Nightmares)

Star Wars (I stole that from the cannon)

I play drums sometimes, but not for a band or anything

I like going to party's ig

OOC:

Note for this: as of rn this takes place when Cassie isn’t publicly known as wonder girl (think like yj when she was still wearing that black wig) so keep that in mind

So she would be knew to the school but I think still knows a few people like the other core 4 of the young justice

boundries/DNI: racism, homophobia, transphobia, zionism, ableism, terf's, batcest

I'm dyslexic so theres probably going to be spelling/grammar mistakes here, if there are you don't need to point them out to me unless it's compleatly changing the meaning of what I'm saying

I run three other blogs (all Dc related) and feel free to come interact there (@notquiterobin, @not-a-robin, @dr-pamela-isley @zatannazatara-sorceresssupreme , @bludhavens-finest )

some of this might be a little ooc or very headcannon based because there isn't a lot to go off of for cassie, but I feel like she's very under appreciated

This is a high school au made by @jaimereyesbug

some other people in it that i know of are:

@maya-nobody-ducard, @corus-lim-w, @billybatsonz, @half-a-goat, @roboticguy, @jonno-kent, @totally-tim-drake, @barthallan, @dameswayne, @midrew, @luke-the-loogie, @mikael1256, @percieve-me-dont-forget-me, @j-nakamura, @j0k3r-jun10r, @maryjayden, @kon-el-konner-luther-kent

All asks are welcome and appreciated!!!

[traceofexistence]

The Q&A from last night with Sam, put Karlach in a lot of perspective.

age wise, because of what Karlach says about her sex life, Sam prefers to think of her as a young adult during being Gortash bodyguard +10 years in Avernus

so between 28~30+

I have personally estimated a 27~33, but I'm old so I preferred the older options in my headcanons lol

that being said Karlach is played to be a bit immature, especially when it comes to romance. which makes sense, since she was young when she was taken to avernus and there she stayed celibate by choice as she couldn't trust anyone.

we do have lines of her being very sexually frustrated, and burning her tent while masturbating, and getting too excited. Which means she even had to keep her self pleasure toned down, because of the damn engine.

the soul coin analysis is soo damn interesting and well written. it plays on Karlach's morality and character. (consuming soul coins is equal to war crimes, and they are also addictive like crack)

and she has consumed them, even though she knows that she condemns a soul by doing so, and she has a craving for them, and you have to speak her out of it, as tav, and she has to make the choice herself when you play origin.

we know from her back story, in game dialogue etc, she's been around the wrong crowds as a kid(especially after her parents died), and as Sam pointed out, she probably had made some very bad things as Gortash bodyguard, that she justified, as "being loyal" to the person who helped her.

So Karlach as we have seen in the game, she's very loyal, and she despises being tricked and betrayed. but if you show her care she will stay with you forever.

she's not above murdering people as long as she does it to protect herself and those she cares about.

if tav signs the contract with Raphael, she's very angry (understandably so) but she vows to go back to avernus for you, and break the contract for you, because you are worth it, she will go back to the place she hates the most, the place that she choices death over returning to, but she will do it for you, because you have treasured her, kept her as your companion, romanced her, fixed her engine, killed for her, even advocated for her when you barely knew her.

that's why it hurts her so deeply, when you betray her.

I also love how Sam poked on the fact that Karlach has done some very bad things, but when she escapes hell, she is adamant to start anew, and do good by choice

and I think that's the most important aspect of her character, she wants to do good by choice.

I also love Sam's opinion on Lae'zel

she rightfully criticizes the space racism that is going on, but also acknowledges that Lae is very young, and a product of her upbringing, therefore redeemable.

and let's be real here, contrary to some people's believes, Lae, does change dramatically throughout the game, even before she realizes that her whole world was a lie.

I bring up Lae in this Karlach post, because Sam mentioned her, and how Karlach just outright attacked the tieflings (her own kin) to save her, without a second thought, because Lae saved her from the nautiloid.

and back to Karlach

is she best girl?

ABSOLUTELY

nothing will change that

does it means she never done anything wrong in her life?

absolutely not.

sadly in recent years, fandoms suffer from what we call "purity politics"

if a character is not 1000% the purest of pures who has never done a wrong ever, then they are bad and we should be ashamed for liking them.

but purity politics is stupid, and do not belong in my reality.

like every companion, Karlach is beautifully flawed, and she's best girl because she sees the positive first, actively chooses to be good, and she finds the join in life, regardless of what fucked up situation she's in.

she's also fucking adorable so what's your argument really against her being defined best girl I dont understand.

remember friends

DON'T! POKE! THE KARLACH!

[fels-fantasy-hoard]

One of my friends and players just brought something up to me that I think is a discussion that should be had and that is:

Should white people make ocs that are poc in ttrpgs

She sent me two ticktocks here and here where two poc talk about how it makes them uncomfortable when white people play as poc in ttrpgs and she was freaking out because her oc from the last 3-4 years in our campaign is mix raced. My friend is also mix raced but white passing and she was afraid she was offending people.

So, I just wanna give my perspective from observing this same discussion in other writing communities - because it is essentially the same discussion of whether or not white people can write poc in novels, video game, movies, etc because it all comes down to aesthetic appropriation.

Now, if any poc would like to add their own thoughts and experiences with this please do, your voices are much more important than mine - a white person - so I'm going to put my thoughts under a cut. I'm basically going to talk about my own observations within the fantasy genre as a whole when it comes to ethnicity and race and the patterns I've seen and how that translates into the ttrpg medium. Cheers :D

So, the main problem I've seen brought up when white people try to be inclusive by adding poc in their stories is that their inclusion stops at aesthetics. A poc is still written with the mindset of a white person. Changing the ethnicity of a character changes nothing about them and - many times - their ethnicity isn't even clear. They are south Asian but of which country? Which region? South Asians are an incredibly diverse ethnic group just like Afrians or Central/South Americans. If you can swap the ethnicity of a character without changing anything about them, then you aren't actually making good representation, you are doing the bare minimum of preventing an all white cast. It's 2023, we should hold ourselves and each other to higher standards.

Now, when it comes to fantasy stories, there is a bit of a problem. The worlds within fantasy settings become so much smaller because humans often share the setting with nonhumans such as elves, dwarves, gnomes, etc. This means humans are often turned into a european monolith - or something very close to it - while other real world ethnicities are shoved onto fantasy lineages (often times still flavors of european).

I dont think I need to point out why this is a problem. Humans continue using the aesthetics of nonwhite ethnicities but completely divorced of their culture and context. This is the definition of appropriation. I can think of dozens of fantasy stories from various mediums where there would be no change if a poc was white because their ethnicity has no impact on their characterization - as seen with various video game characters who's skin becomes lighter and lighter through every installment or has dark skinned concept art and a light skinned final product.

You want your fantasy setting to be a mixing pot of cultures and ethnicities? Ok, look at the US and how all of these different cultures remain intact even after generations. Yes, there is a level of assimilation but even fourth gen Mexican immigrants are still influenced their culture. Mix raced people have their own unique struggles and cultural experiences. Every country in the world has their own unique mixing pot of cultures and ethnicities. No country is a monolith as that would require committing cultural and/or ethnic genocide to everyone who does not fit the predestined mold.

A setting can have a mixing pot of cultures without racism or prejudice. You can have a human civilization that isn't a monolith. Don't be afraid to research different cultures to represent them with respect. Not only will it make your setting feel more immersive, it will give you a deeper understanding and respect for people irl.

It's always boggled my mind when people say irl race doesn't matter in fantasy then immediately turn around with fantasy racism like... seriously? The beauty of humanity is how diverse our cultures are and yet you'd rather dismiss this beauty over using the violence of prejudice and racism as cheap conflict in your story.

If you actually want to be inclusive in your fantasy stories, do research. Talk to poc of the ethnicity you are trying to represent.

If you are a player wanting to make an oc that is a different ethnicity than you - consider why? Does the character's physical appearance actually matter to their story? Are you willing to put in the work to represent this character's culture and respect the irl culture and people you are drawing from? Is this even your story to tell? If your answer to any of these questions is no, then maybe you should rethink some things.

I don't have the answer on whether or not white people should be allowed to make their oc a person of color but I think this question is indicative of a much larger problem within the fantasy genre of aesthetic appropriation and surface level representation of poc. I don't have any answers - other than put more effort into representing different ethnicities and cultures which its whole own can of worms- but its a conversation that should be had.

I would love to hear other people's thoughts and feel free to correct me or add your own experiences with this. I want to learn so I can write better representation in my stories and understand different perspectives better. Cheers :D

[just-for-rp]

THE BLOG IS: OPEN!!

HI HI HI!!!!!!! im gummi! I have many ask blogs that include @stuck-with-protag @praying-with-angelica @planning-with-bok-su @overthinking-with-augustine and some others! But those aren't really the kind of rp im used to. I like doing one on one rp's with goofy ideas! So instead of confusing people on my ask accounts, I MADE A ACCOUNT JUST FOR 1 ON 1 RP! as you can tell im very happy about this lol. I do have a few rules tho! If youd like to do any of the rps im doing then dm me on tumbler pls, in the comments of the post, or ask in the ask thing and ill respond. I also will do multiple of one rp! Like i will do 2 roleplays of the same fandom if that makes sense

DISCLAIMER!!! the roleplays i do involve spoilers from the games their from, blood/gore description, angst, maybe nsfw, some other horror stuff like cannibalism and possession, and the worst of all... HEART FELT MOMENTS!! 🤮

But fr tho, if you dont like that stuff please proceed with caution if you roleplay with me because i love anything horror-

( rq, i will change my pfp to whatever character im playing and the au their from! i will also do multiple rp's at once so ask while the blog is open!! )

Rules:

( this is a must read if you wanna rp. )

1. I allowed certain subjects, so if you wanna do a touchy subject then ask me before you just do it.

2. Racism, homophobia, sexism, and just anything that can be really offensive is NOT ALLOWED!!! like at all. Don't do that shit.

3. Unless we rp for like a year or something, please do not ask me or tell me personal info. Ill be friends with people yea, but im not telling them where my neighborhood is- all i will say is im a minor and im genderfluid. Do what you want with that-

4. I will delete our chats if you do not reply for a week. UNLESS something happens and you have to be offline for it, ill do the same too if i need to

5. Any ships are allow, Any game from the sigverse is okay, and any au is alright! Just specify pls. And no ships are okay too btw!

6. CONSENT IS ALWAYS WANTED!! Basically ask for nsfw ( not immediately ofc )

7. If you cant then i understand, but please try and act like the characters. Its not needed but its appreciated

8. No trolling and no oc's

9. Last one! Ill mainly do sigverse rp's. But. Every once in a while i might put out like a tbhk rp or eddsworld rp for fun

TYSM FOR READING IF YOU DID!! IM LOOKING FORWARD TO RPING WITH SO MANY AMAZING PEOPLE

\ (> ♡ <) /

My rp style and what it means!

Talking < " "

Actions < [ ]

Thinking < { " " }

Out of rp ( )

Other characters talking < [ " " ]

I was gonna do 1st person pov but im probably not because im not used to it- sorry 😣

[peachiseas]

I'm also someone who didn't understand Baxter's hold on everyone. I get it, it's full of drama and angst. You've got an LI who can be your ex and you can play it up on his route. He's flirty, sweet, and smooth but deep down he's hurt and traumatized. These kinds of flavors appeal to a lot of people. Realistically, I could never go back or talk to someone who told me to fuck off and cut contact with me for 5 years. No matter what the reason was.

Derek suffers from being absent for 10 years, but dude at least bothers with phone calls and occasional visits (according to the in-betweens). I also get that his family get in the way a lot but they're endearing (Jorge being my favorite) and welcome you with open arms.

The other reason why some didn't enjoy the DLC much bc it starts at Step 2 where you're both 13 and that's probably not as exciting for them bc all you do is slight flirting and being all blushy and shy, unlike in Step 3 where you get to do more than that. That kind of reason though irritates me. I didn't hear anyone complaining when they flirted with Cove at 13 but Derek? nah that's boring. It's all about experiencing the joys of young love and being silly teens!

Tbh... I'm going to be honest, Baxter in game is literally word for word one of those love interests you would read about in a cheesy melodramatic korean romance webtoon. And you know those work well for that audience, but in Our Life? It really doesn't hold up especially when all of his issues stem from being "too rich" which gives off a woe is me attitude and "my parents are too controlling" which is more acceptable but it also gives off a woe is me issue especially because once again. His family is ultra wealthy. It sounded more of an inconvenience than it did a legitimate problem for him in step 3 because he easily had the finances to break away from that, or that could have been just shoddy writing. And then ofc you have the random shoehorned "my parents are super bigoted" line that boils my fucking skin cause it feels so fucking weird to just have that in there and then move on like nothing happened and you got to sit with the information that real world racism and homophobia exists in a game like OL still.

It's just so very weird and very mishandled, and I feel bad cause I like the idea of Baxter actually trying to struggle to get his independence, but we get. None of that.

Also, people who complain about Derek's dlc in that regard are usually extremely biased, and I do not take any of that criticism because it's not even genuine criticism. You could say, "I think i would have loved to spend more time with Derek solo," and that would be fine. But to say "I dont like his family because their boring" or "We dont get to make out with Derek or do anything of that sort in step 2" and dismiss his DLC cause of that? Yea, that's the bias showing. Which is funny too cause Derek's makeout scene is leagues better than all of Baxter's makeout scenes combined but whatever

[pinkyjulien]

Just want to say thank you for posting about that pose pack. Im still super new to the fandom (and even more so to trying to take good in game pics) and its honestly sometimes really hard to know how to spot gross crap like that on the surface, especially since I dont really know anyone that plays. Time to go uninstall some garbage and figure out some new poses...

Awe no worries! Glad I could help 💛

Homophobia (as well as racism and other similar type of hateful shit) doesn't fall into the "drama" category to me and I think it's important to point it out when we see it! Especially since the community and the game itself can be a place of comfort and a refuge for a lot of queer peeps, me included

It's also important to provide proof and potential source, to not blur any names in cases like this, because yes, venting can help, but public vague posting doesn't help anyone when it comes to actively warning others of who they're sharing their space with!

I know some people are able to detach "the art from the artist" (in this case, the mod from the modder?) but if you're like me, and prefer not to support/use anything that has do to with people like this, I'm glad to inform

As a final note, this goes without saying that the post is NOT a call to arm, nobody should go and harass anyone, from the judy/mv poster, to the modders or people who took pics for the page, simply block/filter/mute if needed, protect your space, and move on 🙏

[cause0fchaos]

I want some new fortnite friends/ teammates.

Just looking for some more people to okay with because sometimes my 2 husbands arent online and I grow bored playing by myself 😔

I'd say I'm pretty decent? In zero builds at least I'm absolute shit in anything related to building. I also dont ever use my mic unless I'm blasting my music.

But I'm super chill :)

Im also like never on however.. I have sports like 5 days a week so, and lots of homework. Fridays is when I'm usually on.

I wont do any other game modes that are pvp, like an absolute no to box fights and stuff like that, anything else is cool though.

I only request that you are over the age of 13 and have some respect. I will not be tolerating homophobia, transphobia, racism, and overly sexual behavior. But anyway that's about all ✌

(Stats btw I'd you're wondering, yes I'm low on levels and wins this season but like I said, I am SUPER busy and dont ever have time to play)

[karlnaping]

// ranboo situation

im gonna say this as as my opinion and lesbians feel free to drop your opinions bc im curious about what the rest of you think too

if you havent yet heard about ranboos apolgoy, he basically was apologizing for screenshots of his discord back in october when he joked about being a "lesbian himbo man" and generally being told that he dresses like a lesbian

now, as a lesbian i was originally very confused about why he was apologizing, and it's because that joke came from lesbians. same with the "cant believe tommys a lesbian" clip and people calling george a cottagecore lesbian with his mushroom house. it was a very popular joke among lesbians at the time, and obviously its almost impossible to know if a chat member or a dono is coming from a lesbian, but in the situation that it is or generally lesbians making the joke, i feel like its fair game for streamers to play along/repeat it, because for the most part lesbians arent uncomfortable abt it because they were the ones who started it

obviously, the issue is when non-lesbians start to make the joke. because i do get the "dont enforce lesbian stereotypes/use them as an aesthetic/make them the butt of jokes" when it comes to non-lesbians, which is the same for like,,, any sexuality really. (for any lesbians, tho, feel free to make the joke because you Are allowed to)

the issue is that mcyttwt and the fandom in general just keeps coming back to digging up old clips and screenshots over and over again even though we keep saying stop, and its always a minority that doesnt actually affect them. (90% sure the person who first brought up the screenshot wasnt even lesbian) this happened with the karl situation, despite it being obvious that he changed and obviously doesnt support any form of antisemitism/homophibia/racism. ranboos situation may seem a little bit different because it was only 6 months ago, but even still, ranboo caught himself and deleted the screenshots a While before they were brought up recently. he's been nothing but supportive to the entire lgbtq+ community, of course he's not going to be lesphobic. (personally i dont even consider the comments lesphobic, bc again, popular joke at the time, but to each their own) literally all youre achieving is reminding minorities that sometimes people suck.

at the same time though, people change, which is why bringing up screenshots and clips that dont reflect who ccs are anymore is just ridiculous at this point imo

i also think its different sexuality-wise compared to jokes about race or religion because unlike race which you can see right away, or typical religious indicators, sexuality isnt something that can exactly be defined unless verbally being told. like a lot of people say, youre white before youre anything else. thats not something that you can hide. (again, saying this as a white lesbian, so lmk if im out of line for this. also not trying to say that lgbtq+ oppression isnt real, relevant, or severe)

i will say, although i personally believe the apology was unnecessary and just kind of annoying that mcyttwt does this like once a month (i say as a member of mcyttwt), im glad he owned up to something and told people to both not say he did anything wrong because he Did make a mistake, telling people its ok and understandable if they dont support him anymore/he wont be mad, as well as turn off chat and ask people to not accept the apology if theyre not lesbian, as well as make multiple tweets about it. i think going forward in the event that a cc DOES make that kind of mistake and its ACTUALLY recent and not an old screensh, if they choose to address it on stream this should be the standard

and thats not to say that its not valid if it did make you uncomfortable if you are lesbian because no lesbian is the same nor have the same experiences. so however you choose to take the situation/his apology is up to you.

tl;dr i personally accept ranboo's apology as a lesbian even though i think it wasn't rly necessary bc he was just repeating a joke that lesbians had already made (as well as one i personally do not find offensive) and we should once again stop bringing up old screenshots and clips from ccs if they dont reflect their opinions anymore, ESPECIALLY if its a minority group youre not in because its not actually helping anyone. i do think his apology was well executed tho for being on stream and should be the standard for the future.

at the end of the day, watch who you wanna watch, support who you wanna support, just dont speak over minority groups, bring up old stuff thats not relevant to any minority group youre in, or accept apolgies if youre not apart of the affected minority group

feel free to yell at me, this is just my opinion. lesbians lmk y'alls takes

[daughter-of-sapph0]

not some fucking idiot telling a jewish woman that SHES in the wrong for telling people not to play a game that literally depicts jewish people as new-age goblins deeply rooted in antisemitism even tho the game literally puts you in danger by dog whistling to alt right fascists about how jewish folk shouldnt be trusted and they want to take over the world

seriously you cant make this shit up, that pissed me off more than anything else this week and ive had a BAD fucking week and to say that its okay to play the game because trans youth dont deserve rights, actually, is such a bigoted thing to say plus spreading the myth that puberty blockers are big bad evil scary things when really the only potential damage they can typically cause is by being on them for too long which doctors Wont Let patients do bc they literally arent allowed to

im so fucking anrgy about this, imagine talking over jewish and trans folks about why you shouldnt support a terrible human being while also actively ignoring her long history of racism, homophobia, and even misogyny despite her claims to be a feminist

i cant with this shit im seeing red every second i think about it the more disgusting things i can think of that shes done and to say that her harmful acts have been "overexaggerated" just makes me want to beat the shit out of something, this woman wrote a whole book series about how being a nazi is bad, then allowed for the nazis to get REDEMPTION ARCS, andddd filled the books with nazi ideology

the harry potter series should just be called alt right dogwhistling for dummies

exactly! at this point, saying you like hairy potty is an antisemitic and anti-trans dogwhistle

[paenling]

i just saw the wildest post and the notes were even wilder so i have some Thoughts. 

i don’t want to antagonize anybody -- but listen y’all ,,, it’s not a moral failing to enjoy and be intrigued by a flawed character. it’s not a moral failing to explore things that are “problematic” from the safety of fiction. that’s kind of the whole point!

continued ramblings below the cut -->

yes, it’s important to be critical of harmful narratives, but acknowledging a character’s flaws and essentializing them are two different things. (and not just silly little quirks, like real, serious flaws with consequences)

in regards to Daniil Dankovsky’s Canonical Racism, it’s indisputably horrible. he’s wrong and he should absolutely face consequences for being a racist prick, but a significant part of the narrative of pathologic is about dealing with racism. pretty much every character, including other fan-favorites like Lara, are racist. like. at least a little bit. a huge chunk of Artemy’s arc is about confronting his own relationship with race. he can ALSO be horrifically racist to the Kin on purpose in order to take advantage of his ability to pass as white. but we like soft stories, so we disregard these timelines in favor of Big Dad Energy and heart-of-gold shenanigans. 

to definitively fill that role and prey on those doubts, Daniil ends up serving a narrative purpose. he’s a deliberate foil character who challenges Artemy’s values and mirrors his insecurities, and what’s more he’s a crucial figure for a lot of people’s experiences with the story of the game, especially for those who played patho 1 first. from Daniil’s perspective, and indeed from the player’s perspective when entering with the Bachelor’s route, the way he acts is completely reasonable. this weird creepy town is full of backwards liars who wanna waste your time until you die. the whole point of the game is for you to play as Danko, agree with his feelings, and then spend the Haruspex route feeling shame and laughing at how much of a fucking idiot he is. that’s the point. you’re supposed to laugh.

condemning anyone who likes him, even in a cheeky little “haha look at this fail doctor he is endeared to me but only because he’s an idiot” sort of way, is just... not fair? especially when taking into account that most of the relevant fan content (at least as far as i’ve seen) ends up directly confronting his bigotry as The pivot-point of conflict between him and Artemy, and the thing that must be corrected and compensated for before their relation can continue platonically or romantically. like. bruh. i would understand if this was something that people kept trying to minimize or act like it was alright, but literally zero people are doing that. everyone agrees that he’s a shithead. nobody’s making excuses for it or saying it’s OK.

I also love that this attitude is like “i dont like that people ship our beloved ~tyoma~ with a stinky little weenie rat man whom i hate” when there are CANON continuities in which Artemy is a straight-up psychopathic child-murdering organ trafficker. like. chill. he’s not our golden boy, he’s an entire adult who can decide what kind of dandy-ass manlet he wants to start a beautiful life with or whatever. there are worlds in which they are shitty enough to deserve each other, and there are worlds where both of them are working together to be better.

it’s 1000% alright and fair to not like the ship and not want anything to do with it, but to assign a blanket moral judgement and condescend to anyone who thinks differently is profoundly immature imo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[quitetheketch-moved]

so I’ve been seeing bad taste in youtubers, not like in my mutuals or anything but in general but it made me want to make a like, recommended list of youtubers i like who are pretty chill if not full on comrades so here we are - not prompted by anything specific but an itch I got here some of the channels I like:

Cooking:

BORE.D - Fun cooking channel with a stylish presentation 

Chinese Cooking Demystified - Like it says on the tin, informative authentic Chinese dishes from all over the country. 

David Seymour - started with buzzfeed taste tests but now covers most big cooking channels seeing if he can recreate them and how they are

Maangchi - Plz cook for me, like i’m begging feed me it all looks amazing 

My Name Is Andong - fun cooking videos from all over, especially the ones about Russian food.

Simply Sara Kitchen  - good home style cooking 

Souped Up Recipes - Traditional Chinese cooking

Movies/Tv:

Accented Cinema - a video essay channel with a focus on Asian cinema

Folding Ideas - Not strictly about film but I tend to watch a lot of essayists who fall into multiple things and I kinda just have to lean into their main aesthetic but Dan is a gif so check him out.

Jack Saint  - Jack and Joel have a lot of similar style of content but Jack leans into media stuff more so i’m moving him over here. (although i’ve been working on this post for over an hour going through my alphabetical yt sub list and i’m starting to regret trying to categorize them)

PushingUpRoses  - a must watch if you love old tv especially Murder She Wrote

Renegade Cut - Does games too, and frankly they are some of their best work, but quality media analysis.

Ryan Hollinger - Horror movie analysis

Scaredy Cats  - More horror movie analysis but my favorite channel of this kind

Gaming Essays:

Adam Millard - video essays about video games - really recommend the video on Frog Fractions and the Longing

Curio - I’m putting them here because theres been a big focus on games lately and they recently started twitch streaming which is fun but really it’s all media essay. Just please check out their four part Witcher series adfkj it’s the most recent so easy to find.

Errant Signal - I dont have much to add other than please check out Errant Signal, they dont post much but I am in love with this channel.

Game Maker's Toolkit  - in depth essays about elements of game design

Jim Sterling  - Okay not essays but gaming news - if you dont check out anyone else here you should still check out Jim. Especially if you care about the rights of workers in the gaming industry. 

Gaming Play:

Biffa Plays Indie Games - mostly does Cities Skylines but sometimes other, great videos to relax to.

GaLm - GaLm deserves so much much than he gets, Love him been watching him for forever and honestly he’s enough of a workaholic that there’s so much content you WILL find something you like. All complete with critical analysis.

GrayStillPlays - one of the few like, non overtly left-os here but listen, if you want some slightly silly slightly more edgy style of video game videos to kinda turn off your brain and just enjoy you cant get much better than grey. He’s chaos but chaos that doesn’t rely on racism. Maybe one too many jokes about addiction but they aren’t usually punching down so???

John Wolfe - chill horror youtuber - not much to say but one of my favorites.

KatherineOfSky - want the most soothing voice ever to gently play hardcore logistic games at you? Well holy fuzzy cats, you’re home.

Many A True Nerd - Partner to Claire in the category below, known for his fallout but plays just about anything. Also loves grand strategy and paradox games. Good playlist management too do easy to find what you need.

Wanderbots - A just, massive amount of indie game content.

Commentary/Other:

Claire Rousseau - Books youtuber who is just a delight, I dont know how else to describe her but even tho I dont read anymore i’d still die for her.

Courtreezy -  just the queen of being bubbly and fun (some of these I dont have good sales pitches for just *shoves them at you* give em a shot)

D'Angelo Wallace and dangelowallace - Main and second channel, both the same kind of content but the formats are different. Dont always agree with all his opinions but man, theres no fault in the way he presents and researches them - solid essayist but also just oozes charisma and good times.

Drawfee Show - one of the bigger channels here save D’Angelo above so you may already be familiar with them but just a fun weekly drawing show. Good times.

Foo the Flowerhorn  - Watch fish be fed bits of blanched vegetables, like that either sells you or not but it’s Good.

Jarvis Johnson and Jarvis Johnson! GOLD - primary and secondary channels, pure commentary channel on a wide range of topics - i recommend the videos on 5 min crafts and the bachelor.

Life in Jars? - Eco-spheres and terrariums oh me :0

MacDoesIt - Gay chaotic energy, just chock full of Moods and fun times.

Sarah Z - Unofficial tumblr historian

Politics:

Big Joel - kinda variety content, plenty of media analysis but through a strongly leftist lens. Torn between here and commentary but the balance is slightly more overtly political than just media commentary through a political lens so here we go.

Black Red Guard - A black leftist commentary/essay channel focused on black issues and self described as a “New Afrikan Maoist”, this is fairly new channel I found so I’m not as good at describing his content def not better than he does but solid stuff through a perspective I wouldn’t normally get.

hbomberguy - Just watch his video on Pathologic please. Or like, watch 20 mins then go play Pathologic then come back after you’ve beaten it and Pathologic 2 and finish the video.

Innuendo Studios  - Frankly I had no idea where to put this one, because it’s a little of everything but mostly media analysis but also please watch the alt-right playbook if you like, want to understand more about how radicalization happens.

KAR - Black anarchist channel, solid political videos but shorter than most of the ones here so better for consuming when you dont have much time.

Leslie Exp - Videos about disability

Luna oi! and NonCompete  - frankly best agitprop communist duo. A good place to start learning about mutual aid and what anarchism is, beginner friendly videos on leftist theory.

Philosophy Tube - Videos are super polished and well made essays about philosophy, super theatrical and flashy. Honestly cannot stress enough how fun the production value of these are.

Professor Flowers - Nuanced important discussions about race, media, and the political landscape.

Some More News - Like it says on the tin, news but told to you by a disheveled fed up leftist (I joke because i’m running out of things to say in the comment for each but really, Cody and his entire team deserve a lot of credit for their well researched videos on current events)

Thought Slime  - Agitprop but make it a little silly because tbh we all need some jokes rn

Honorable mentions of some slightly bigger channels you may already know but I enjoy: UpIsNotJump , Steve1989MREInfo , SmallishBeans , RTGame , Primitive Survival Tool  , Mumbo Jumbo ,  emmymadeinjapan ,  Kurtis Conner ,  Danny Gonzalez , Drew Gooden  , How To Cook That , JunsKitchen , Defunctland 

[baldinggoat]

I hope you don't mind me adding on. If you fear this message will gain you too much backlash, you can delete it, no hard feelings. As a very tired queer person of color, I think that Astarion still benefits from being a white guy. I imagine if his role and say, Wyll's role are switched, the latter would get even more backlash. I already see Wyll being criticized and distrusted by many people already, sometimes the same people who will excuse Astarion's actions. I literally just read a thread where a person said that Astarion enjoying killing the tieflings is not wrong because the tieflings, including the children, are untrustworthy anyway. You know, the refugees who just survived massacre after massacre, having their loved ones being taken away from them. Somehow they're less worthy than their white boy. Also, the problem with Astarion is he's a queer person written for non-queer people. I can see more porportion of m/f fanart between Astarion and female player than otherwise. Astarion is bisexual, but his bisexuality is muddled enough like the other companions, almost like they're written so your average cishets can understand them. The only queer thing came out of his mouth is tied to his evil actions or his tragic past where another queer person (Cazador) tortures him. So as much as I want to like Astarion, I also avoid anything about him in the fanbase like a plague, whether it is the people who hate him or love him. You're probably the only person who I follow right now in the entire community, because you're the only one making me feel comfortable enough to do so.

i don’t mind posting this, I do hope people understand I am okay with criticizing videogames, i just hope i dont end up getting harassed and i hope other people dont get harassed off of tumblr because we point out homophobia/transphobia/racism in the game! i’ve seen it before

and like i 100% agree with you! I know astarion is the most popular because he’s a pretty white boy. I’ve been trying to keep that in mind a lot. I also noticed wyll’s lines aren’t triggering at all for me, or it seems like he doesn’t have that much content in the game itself. I tried so hard to romance him with bezeer, but just, couldnt, and i thought it was odd. I also saw some people say you have to do pretty specific things that seemed kinda unnecessary imo for his stuff to trigger. i hope by the time bards are playable wyll’s dialogue is more established, and easier to trigger because i do really like him so far. 

And as for how astarion is written, and how all the romances are written so far, I actually have a fallout blog where i’ve talked about playersexuality a LOT. it’s a situation that bethesda has been known for using for...ever. i describe it like Schrodinger's bisexuality, these characters are only bisexual when you “romance” them as the same gender, but outside of that they never talk about same gender attraction. They are not written to be bisexual because a straight player can play the game and not realize they are bisexual. Aka, they are simultaneously bisexual but also not bi, but in a romance they either are or not, depending entirely on your characters gender. Because, like...these characters never talk about same-gender attraction, and the character doesn’t even acknowledge they are in a same-gender relationship. So you could play a woman and romance gale and it would feel like he’s straight. or you could romance him as a man and then it feels bi. But gale himself never acknowledges he is bi, inside or outside a "romance".

It has nothing to do with the character themselves, like you say, these aren’t bi/q characters written by other bi/q people for bi/q people, but more like a weird ploys to be “inclusive” without actually including. and like...i can go on about this for a very long time, i just...will cut this ask off here for now lol

[bigskydreaming]

Thinking today about how often people point to criticism of fic or specific fics even for problematic content as being rude or unwelcome because of the effort the author put into making that work and because that merits respect.

Okay.

Sure.

Let’s go with the idea that effort merits respect and this should be weighed when examining criticism of content for its depiction and how those depictions make people feel about their own lives and intersections with the stuff being spotlighted in a story.

But problem is you know what else requires a lot of effort?

Living lives that are impacted by racism, transphobia, rape, pedophilia, abuse, etc.

So while people are busy holding up the singular efforts of fic writers in creating a work of fiction as sacrosanct and insisting their feelings and comfort should be centered and prioritized in all examinations of that work and the things they said.....

They’re simultaneously not giving a shit about the efforts of people living real lives impacted by all this stuff in actuality, which directly relates to.....how a fic’s depiction of these things made them feel and their comfort.

And why is that not centered? Why does that effort it takes to LIVE in spaces where these kinds of issues are not set pieces for a drama meant solely to entertain, why is that not being held up as being as important in terms of comfort and respect as the comfort and respect of the writer who made the choice to not only depict these things in this way, but to center this type of content at all, especially if done so in the name of entertainment specifically. 

Like no group is a monolith, there will always be intracommunity issues in terms of some people impacted by a work disagreeing with how the writer chose to approach things even when they’re all working off of their own respective lived experiences and have just as much right to their own take on things, like, no take is one size fits all and what’s right for one perspective can be wrong for another even while both perspectives have validity......but its disingenuous to pretend like this is even USUALLY the case in a lot of these discourses. 

The bigger issue has always been the lack of respect from people who want to play with certain depictions of reality as though they can be divorced from reality and just live on the TV sets in peoples’ brains while reading and writing fic with no other consequences whatsoever, towards people who can not ever be truly divorced from the consequences of the reality of these things as they play into their own lives, regardless of how they’re depicted in fic. With the additional issue of those fictional depictions often being extremely formative and influential in how people whose lives aren’t already directly impacted by various issues perceive and interact with these issues.

Less talk about the imaginary specter of censorship in this specific venue and what this has always actually been about.....the equally-frightening-to-some-people specter of creative responsibility. Where creative choices people make are weighed by a creator not just for their potential ENTERTAINMENT value for audiences, but equally for their potential harmful impact on audiences. As words, fiction, storytelling, MESSAGES....are nothing more than tools that can be utilized to more than one purpose, and as such can harm or help in equal measure. Like not to be a blunt instrument, but you can feed your family with a hoe and a yard, but you can also bash someone’s skull in with that hoe and bury them in that yard. *Shrugs* Just saying.

Like what if you viewed people criticizing your work not as an attack on you and your efforts, but simply an expression of “I dont like how your words made me feel.” What if it wasn’t about your ‘rights’ as an author to do whatever the hell you want, and more your impact as a person, and what actually is it you’re trying to do?

If someone says your story hurt, and not in a good, catharctic way but in an invalidating or exploited way, and your concern is less about your not-actually-in-question rights or ability to impact others however you want to, and more about what that impact actually IS....what happens then if you look at that criticism as a person sharing their vulnerability with you and saying “this is why what you said hurts”....and if your reason for writing is truly to ENTERTAIN, and they’re no less a person deserving of entertainment as any other reader, why not take advantage of that voluntary admittance or expression of vulnerability and harm to learn how NOT to do that with your next story.....and voila, by doing something differently next time due to having just listened to what didn’t work for someone, you’ve.....actively enhanced the entertainment you create for people overall?

And like I said, no group is a monolith, people don’t actually all need the same things or respond in the same ways to the same things, and you’re never going to be able to please everyone but the real question is are you even TRYING or are you happy to just rest on the comfort of like-minded individuals and circle the wagons at even the hint of someone challenging you to broaden your mind, your circle, open it up to more people, more feedback, more viewpoints, more PERSPECTIVE?

What if instead of people saying “this hurts” in response to something you write, you don’t take that as an attack, as someone saying you’re a terrible person for hurting me and you will never be anything but that so draw weapons and let’s engage in combat, its the only choice.....

What if instead you view it as a challenge, as someone saying “okay but is there a way you can tell your story and entertain not just the people you were already entertaining, but MORE people, by finding different story routes in the future that still include all the entertainment value you sought out initially but avoiding pitfalls of potential harm now that your eyes have been focused on where more of those pitfalls might be lurking, that you didn’t notice on your previous go-round”?

Like, one approach tells you to hunker down in your bunker, draw on already existing fortifications to bolster yourself, and not move from where you already are and now feel under siege. Just less, same, still.

The other approach encourages you to level up, step up your game, engage with people more, make your stories more accessible and more enjoyable to more people in general. Just more, more, more.

But I mean, hey, you pick.

[stinkysidebitch]

U.A. Teachers As Youtubers

U.A. teachers as youtubers HC!

-Principal Nezu

Unproblematic tea channel 💅😌

Covers any topic unbiased but is socially and politically correct☝️😁

ACAB

No but seriously fuck 12 (he fully believes that)

Also rates youtuber apologies and uses his perspective as someone who was tortured by humans to relate to victims of racism (because youtubers CANNOT seem to help but be racist) 🤷🏻‍♂️

If he's wrong about anything

ANYTHING

INSTANT apology video, explanation of why he was wrong, turns it into a teachable moment and takes FULL accountability (even though hes pretty much never wrong and he only ever has to apologize for very minor things like missing one of the receipts)

-All Might

Daily vlogger

I would personally describe his channel as cute dad content 🥰

He basically just goes on runs and shares tips on how to stay motivated.

His vlogs are super genuine, and if he records himself going to the store or something he makes sure they're okay with it and records in an aisle without any other customers so he doesn't bother anyone 😁

No, but his vlogs are super cute, you should subscribe

Not lacking moral integrity so there's no trashy clickbait to be seen 😌

It's just like 'Daily Vlog: 110'

Sometimes 'Ft. Young Midoriya' if we're lucky

Strangely wholesome and never boring.

Generally calm vibe ✌

-Aizawa

He's an interesting one because he hates notoriety... so I'd have to say he's a true crime youtuber..

This dude talks about serial killers 🔪🔪

Usually ones that arent very famous OR ones that are unsolved

Always leaves resources to contact officials if you have any information 🤔

He also covers missing persons cases

Has the BEST and most logical theories on where these people could be hiding or what really happened 🧐🧐

Aizawa doesnt jump very far though, and usually goes with popular theories with evidence that he personally agrees with, so don't worry about him putting on a tin foil hat or something..

Even his job of trying to help people leaks into his youtube life 🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️

-Present Mic

Okay so this one was easy...

Mic is literally a commentator by nature so he's obviously a gamer 🖐😩

"WOAHHHH DID YOU SEE THAT-AHHHH!!!!"

He's ALWAYS yelling, like even if it's not scary...

Could literally be playing animal crossing and purchase a new item and he will scream like that so..

Dont wear earbuds when you watch his videos, your ears will bleed.

He had to start putting warnings on his videos for that ngl 😳😳

He plays pretty much anything, sports games, horror games, action games and his reactions are the BEST

Step aside Pewdiepie 😏

Does podcasts on the side ✌😌

He likes to play smash with Aizawa through discord (Aizawa doesnt want to record in the same room because he doesn't want to lose his hearing AND patience)

He'd just be like 🤬 if he went in person so...

Alrighty, I think that's all of the main ones ✌😌

[cursedfodlantexts]

I think culturally the Kingdom is homophobic even outside of Ingrid being well Ingrid if you look at all the queer characters from the kingdom either explicit or implied all of them are referred to as not fitting into the society, on the explicit side you have Mercedes who was born in the empire and only adopted by a kingdom merchant when she was older, and you have Yuri who turns his back on the kingdom to live underground on the implicit side you have Catherine who says she no longer fits (1)

this really isnt a conversation meant for the inbox, but okay anon, I’ll bite. dont know what inspired you to send this to me (at least, right now and not like. when i talked about homophobic ingrid way back when) but I’ll bite. 

Hope ya like reading! :)

the FIRST thing i want to tackle before i respond to this as a whole:

“ingrid says he caused a scandal at ten by hitting on a man.” 

this.. caught me by surprise. why hadn’t i heard about this before? like i heard about dorothea and edelgard’s romantic undertones in the japanese version, i heard about ferdinand and hubert’s ending being romantic in the japanese version, but i didnt hear about canonical bi sylvain? so i asked some friends for the source and maybe you should do a little research on things yourself before you trust second hand information like this, especially if its coming from Ingrid of all characters. 

In the english version, she says he hit on a scarecrow. the direct translation she says he hit on a man in a dress. now let’s take a second here to discuss how this does not make sylvain “q*eer”... 

going off how common this trope is (at least in western media), when a guy is caught hitting on a “cross dresser” its because he only saw them from behind. no “feminine” features to be seen other than a dress and long hair. this is not a man hitting on another man, this is a man hitting on someone he mistook as a woman. and, for all we know, the “man” ingrid mentions wasn’t a cross dresser but actually a trans woman. this entire thing is one giant transphobic joke! transphobic ingrid for the win!!!!

SOURCE 

and now onto how i feel about the other lions being “implied” gay or bi or trans. 

disclaimer: everyones allowed their headcanons, but going so far as to say intelligent systems intentionally put the implication in is a big stretch and thats what im talking about specifically when i discuss them being “explicitly or implied” lgbt 

look at all the q*eer characters from the kingdom either explicit or implied

well first you didnt mention annette or ashe 🤔 they dont fit in as much as the others do but okay. hapi is from faerghus too but we’re not gonna discuss what happened to her either? and im not even gonna say a WORD about the “explicitly q*eer” part because i dont count mercedes being a bi option as an explicit bisexual character to begin with. I’ll talk more about her in a minute. 

ive talked about ingrid being canonically homophobic before. I’ll link that here so i can make this post slightly shorter. 

Felix being out of place, in general, is derived from Glenn’s death. He, understandably, despises his father for how he treated the death of a beloved son and brother. He despises that Glenn’s death forced him into a role he did not want. He doesn’t want to be like Glenn, so he does things his own way, and his way is being incredibly blunt with people and being a rude little bitch just in general. as for his behavior around sylvain, he just hates how noisy and nosy he is and that he doesnt work as diligently as himself. thats not because sylvain is bi.

Dimitri and Dedue.. where do i even begin with your supposed gay implications? You’re right, it has a lot to do with xenophobia and racism. in fact, thats literally all it is! the people of Faerghus talk shit about Dimitri because he thinks the people of Duscur were innocent, because he doesn’t resent them for the death of the king and his father. the people of Faerghus hate that a Duscurian is within 5 feet of their crown prince at all times. because what if hes secretly evil? what if he kills our prince when we’re not looking? is our prince crazy for letting his father’s murderer so close to him? as for Dimitri’s behavior around sylvain, he has concerns that his playboy lifestyle will cause issues for the Gautier name. literally what else would happen when your a noble openly playing with half the hearts of an entire nation. 

also.. dimitri/dedue? really? their relationship is solely one large White Savior Trope. that shit ain’t healthy. Dedue feels obliged to serve Dimitri because he’s kept him safe from the kingdom’s hateful gaze. Dimitri may want Dedue to stop being so formal, but Dedue is fucking afraid to do anything else because if he acts too out of line with the crown prince, the people of Faerghus will call for his head (even more). 

Mercedes has a lot going on that makes her out of place. firstly, she was born in adrestia. When her father died, her mother remarried to Barron Bartels and had Emil, which was now bad news for the two because Bartels wanted a child with a crest. so now with Emil in the picture, these two were expendable. it can be assumed their life was a living hell because what else would it be for women in medieval times. after she and her mother left Bartels behind, presumably to hide from him, she was a noble raised as a commoner in Faerghus. her adoptive father wanted nothing but the best for her, so she enrolled in teh magic academy and then garreg mach. With the free DLC that adds Jeritza, we learn that Bartels wanted another child with a crest and decided that Mercedes would be the mother. he had deliberately sought her out and found the church she was hiding at (though, jeritza does kill him before he can even reach her). 

as for Yuri, i don’t know enough about the Ashen Wolves to go into detail about this but im pretty sure his being out of place comes from the fact hes a criminal? also isn’t his mother listed a prostitute in the game? i’m pretty sure thats what makes him out of place, just sayin’.  

All in all it just suggests that the Kingdom is not down with the lgbt

first, thanks for the extremely hilarious round about way of saying homophobic lmao

second, I just spent like an hour debunking that blue lions is implied as q*eer, but with how racist and xenophobic Faerghus is, I would not be surprised if they were homophobic too! but I guess we’ll never know because we have no explicitly gay characters in Three Houses. None of the characters talk about how they feel disconnected from family or society because of sexuality, only because of the statuses they were born with. a bi option means shit in the face of representation when none of them talk about being bisexual.