#nonglee asks

[tuiyla]

Wait what is GKM? I’m kinda curious now…

OKAY SO

I wasn't actually here for any of this, I just stumbled across the whole lore when going down the Glee fandom rabbit hole so anyone and everyone please feel free to correct me or add to this. I'm also so ready for people to start discussing this because of the morbid fascination I have with it lmao so don't be shy, anyone who knows what I'm talking about. Research it even just a bit and you'll see why it's a "morbid" fascination.

As far as I know, the story goes that very early on in Glee's run LiveJournal communities started to form. Remember LiveJournal? Yeah no one really does. But those who do will tell you that it was one of those pre-tumblr fandom spaces, before social media was what it is today. And very early on, the Glee Kink Meme started. It was essentially a series of threads where people, anonymously or not posted smut prompts, noting characters and, well, kinks, and others would fill those prompts. That sounded tame enough to me and I am a believer in people being allowed to write whatever they want because it's just fiction and just words, but oh boy looking at some of those threads sure was something.

This is a link to part one, a thread that has 7291 comments beginning November of 2009. Yep, like I said it started early. And then I guess it went up to 26 parts? Right until the end of the show, and in fact looking at it now a prompt was posted as recently as a year ago. I also found this pinboard that makes it much easier to search. Go down that rabbit hole at your own discretion, if you like reading smut then I'm sure you'll find good stuff but some descriptions were enough to scar me. I discovered GKM through a fill on AO3 that, no hate to the author, but was so vile I didn't feel like reading fics for a while after that. Morbid curiosity won out though. It's a fascinating piece of fandom history and I'm sure Glee wasn't the only piece of media with a community like this but it sure seems like it was the biggest one. I can only imagine that a lot of teenagers explored their sexuality through these prompts and fills and to that I say good for them, even if some of this did make me clutch my pearls as if I was a suburban Christian mom. Like, come on, it covered SO much that I'm sure everyone would find something in there they just cannot stomach.

I feel like issuing a warning again and maybe I'm just overselling it a tiny bit but, at the same time, you only need to read some of the headlines to see what I mean. It's... truly an anything-goes kind of thing.

[justgleekout]

Changes!

Guys I’ve been quite a bit sad lately, and tumblr hasn't been giving me the nice feeling it used to. It sounds silly but its stressful for me to maintain all my side-blogs. It doesn’t really feel like this blog represents me anymore. Before I reblog something I’m always asking myself “Does this post fit my theme?” “Would my followers be bothered by this content?” etc. I don’t want that anymore. I wanna start blogging for me. Yes, this means that my blog won't be exclusively glee anymore. No, this doesn’t mean I will stop posting glee content!! Glee is still my save haven and will always be that! I will just be posting other fandom stuff on here as well, for instance: Shadowhunters, Dan and Phil, Harry Potter, Marvel and other stuff. Not only other fandoms but just fun little posts about dogs, flowers, good people doing cute things. You know, the works. 

I will be tagging glee content like I do now (#glee#characters#ship) and everything that isn’t glee related as #nonglee as well as show/movie and characters. So you can blacklist anything you don’t care about or just don't wanna see. 

I will be leaving my side-blogs up for the time being. Don’t know what I wanna do with them cause I’ve put quite some effort in some of them. 

I’ve been thinking about this for a long time now and maybe it doesn’t seem like a big thing, but it is for me. Tumblr is supposed to be fun. I want that back. Thanks. It would be nice if you guys stuck around for the ride, but if you want to leave, I get that as well. 

Take care and love you lots!

[tuiyla]

why did you distance yourself from the fandom if you don't mind me asking? miss seeing you here

Hey Anon, that's sweet, thank you. I haven't been active on here at all so it's less distancing myself from any particular fandom as it is being a lot less online in general. The second half of this year in particular has been the craziest, most eventful of my life and so being on here just fell off my radar entirely. The plan was always to return, to answer asks I'm so, so guilty about never getting to, to make the gifsets I wanted to make, to write the essays I wanted to write. That's still the plan, in a way, but I have to be honest and say I have no idea when or if I'll return, certainly not in the capacity I used to be on here in.

I'm hoping to chiller start to 2024 but I think it'd be a shift to put myself back in those fandom shoes and mindset. Don't get me wrong, I still sometimes randomly remember how much I love Santana and how frustrating Glee is when it doesn't live up to its potential. But yeah I've been way too preoccupied with Life to truly get back to that. Mostly in a good way, no one has to worry about me or anything. They say if someone disappears off Tumblr they're either doing really well or really badly. I've had both, but mostly been doing well and making the most of life.

It's crazy to think back on how many hours I used to pour into this blog, into the fandom. I genuinely did love answering asks with elaborate theories and making gifsets, I found that process to be really creatively fulfilling but it took up a lot of my time. The simplest I can put it is that I got a life, haha, and that's not shade at people who are still active. If anything, it's shade directed at myself for being such a full send or no send person who either lives on here or doesn't find the time at all.

I really appreciate everyone on here, people who are still active, people who reach out, people who shout out my old stuff. It's sweet and makes me feel good about the time and effort spent on contributing to the fandom. We'll see what 2024 brings, I am very much deluding myself into thinking I will one day reply to all unanswered asks and such. Hopefully it's not just a delusion.

Thanks for reaching out Anon, and to all who've enjoyed my stuff and presence on here, thank you. Happy holidays to all, and to emphasize this isn't goodbye haha, this is me checking in and letting y'all know I'm still kinda around and hope to be more active at some point.

[tuiyla]

You should listen to the And that's what you missed episode on I kissed a girl, it's interesting

Omg they're on IKAG already? Geez. I know it's been a while since I listened to the pod but geeez.

So, as you all know I have very strong feelings on the episode and even now, at some distance from the fandom those strong feelings are easily ignited. Could someone be a doll and briefly summarize what Kevin and Jenna said on the episode? I do wonder how critical or not they were of it.

[tuiyla]

With every passing day I am convinced that Ryan Murphy did not like his own cast 😭😭

I really, really don't think that's true. We've got to start distinguishing between "did and wrote crappy things" and actual dislike of his employees.

Idk the podcast episodes with RM have shown him in a different light to me. He's even acknowledging some of the mistakes which is great. He was still responsible for some shitty things, but why on earth would he actively dislike his cast. I get that he wasn't the greatest at conveying appreciation through his writing and the way he handled things, but he clearly did not dislike the Glee cast. The fandom as a whole has got to stop being conspiracy theorist about Ryan Murphy, he's just some guy who happens to have a lot of power, yeah, but I don't think he's AS vindictive as people believe.

[tuiyla]

Don't know if you saw this

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0Piv7UPLa_/?igshid=NTYzOWQzNmJjMA==

Heather's Instagram announcing that Snixxmas is coming

Aww that's sweet. I'll be sure to follow Snixxmas this year as well to some capacity at least. Can't believe it's the fourth one!

[tuiyla]

And people like to say lea and naya were never friends or the cast never liked her, there's tons of personal pictures of them with lea

With the disclaimer that I largely avoid commenting on irl events and cast bts... yeah. Naya herself said in her book that they did get along once, kale chips on couches and all. And also that the feud was blown out of proportions, but of course tabloid shit always focuses on the drama. Bugs me when people completely buy into tabloid shit and feel entitled to real people's lives.

Again I don't like being a hypocrite and diving into irl events, but if you ask me it's just a damn shame that all people will remember the Lea and Naya dynamic for is "the feud". Idk if they ever would have been actual friends again but it's clear they didn't wish each other ill and it's just so tragic to think that was that - things always are tragic when it comes to Naya's untimely death.

[tuiyla]

Dianna looked really unhealthy lately

idk what urged you to send this in an ask to a stranger but first, once again, I largely don't talk about the cast's personal lives, second, I've seen the Acidman promos on Insta and I think she's as radiant as ever

[tuiyla]

I don't know how much you know about the fandom from the time when glee was still on air. Naya and Heather were always loved, brittana was always loved, but Heather never really talked about brittana and she was getting shit from the fans for that. Naya on the other hand talked about Santana's gay journey constantly and about brittana a lot too. It'd always just seemed like Heather didn't find it as important as Naya had. There are rumours it was because of some bts stuff between Naya and Heather and then there was Heather's longtime on and off boyfriend who then became her baby daddy and husband and so with all that Heather didn't seem too interested in fawning over brittana. But that's all rumours, the point is, after Naya passed away Heather realized real fast that this is her responsibility now, that this is her part in keeping naya's memory alive, and she really didn't have to take on that responsibility but she did and I think we should be grateful. She's all we have left now.

(btw those podcasts episodes are far in the future now but I'd imagine Heather will be invited to some important ones, wedding, maybe IKAG, maybe rumours, since the podcast will definitely be Naya heavy in the way the previous podcast wasn't and Heather is the only one who was really there in those majorly important scenes. We're going to be emotional messes) (btw again aside from the perfection that was Heya on showmance i thought Heather recently on the new pod was her best appearance on the pod yet and IMHO she should become a semi permanent third host)

Okay Anon, I realize you're trying to be helpful by providing this summary and I'm appreciative of the intent, but I just take such issue with hearsay and the sense of entitlement fandoms often feel towards cast members. And I'm not trying to put all that on you by explaining this under your ask, but I just have to clarify a few things.

Neither Naya nor Heather ever owed the fans anything. I love actors who champion queer ships as much as the next bitch but it's not their responsibility. It never was and never should be. Naya was an angel for what she did for Santana's story, on-screen and off, and I for one feel like the community is forever in her debt for how she pushed for things and then spoke out about it. The GLAAD tribute was what she deserved. I find it appalling that Brittana fans would give Heather shit. No, I wasn't around the Glee fandom as it was airing, but friends I've made in the fandom were and I've chatted a lot about things like Heather's treatment during the Bram debacle and in general. Particularly in light of her ATWYRM episode where she talks about the spotlight not having been something she actually wanted and feeling uncomfortable with the expectations, I think we should know better than to put that on her.

And I know you say she didn't have to take on the responsibility of captaining the ship after Naya's passing, but everything you describe earlier says that she did. "Heather realized real fast that this is her responsibility"? I mean wow that does not sit well with me. And again I'm not saying all this against you, it's going out to the portion of the fandom who do feel entitled to Hemo taking that on. No. Simply just no. If she had zero responsibility before she sure does have none now, having lost a friend. We lost a performer in Naya, Heather and others lost a friend they loved. So if Heather never wanted to publicly talk about Brittana again, that'd be totally understandable. She did decide to pick up the mantle, to a degree, and that's commendable but that's her choice. Not something that ever should have been expected, something that's treated as second best now that Naya's gone, or something she finally did.

I'd also just like to note that "Heather didn't find it as important as Naya had" just feels wrong on many levels. Not because it's not true, idk about that and to my previous point, we're not entitled to knowing whether that's true. It feels wrong because assuming anything about these actors feels wrong, and it also feels wrong because the meat of the storyline and indeed the PoV has always been put on Santana. So if we were to expect one of them to be vocal about it, not that we should, then Naya is the logical choice. As for hearsay about BTS, the only "rumour has it" I'm willing to acknowledge is the banging mashup.

I very much doubt Heather would guest near IKAG and honestly, maybe it's best she doesn't, but I do hope she appears often as the three of them are a joy to listen to. Just wanted to note that as well at the end here. I realize all this may sound harsh and I don't mean to be harsh towards you; again, I acknowledge that this is summary is meant to be helpful. I'm just grateful every day that I wasn't part of the Glee fandom while the show was airing because even fans nowadays are acting so poorly and entitled so I truly wouldn't have been able to cope with the height of it. It just feels wrong.

[tuiyla]

Have you ever listened to Dianna Agron's podcast series Narcissa? Maybe you should give it a try! It only has 8 episodes, features a sapphic love story between Dianna’s character and the other female lead (who I can’t really describe because she’s a walking spoiler) and the sci-fi thriller storyline is also really interesting and eventually converges with the queer romance plot. I also recommend it for Dianna’s beautiful and soothing voice and the podcast’s amazing sound effects. I'd love to read your thoughts on it if you do decide to listen to it. :)

(A few downsides, though: 1) not every loose end was tied up, but I assume it's because there might be a second season; 2) content warning: there’s one disturbing scene of SA).

I haven't! I assumed it'd be an older project but turns out it's from last summer, interesting. I do love Dianna's voice and can only assume things about the plot based on the title but sounds intriguing, I'll check it out. I've been meaning to check out more of Dianna's stuff for ages haha and I thought that'd be Shiva Baby and other movies but sure I can give the podcast a go.

Thank you for the rec and the warning, appreciate the heads up.

[tuiyla]

What are the best goes podcasts?

Glee podcasts? 😀

I only actively listen to (other than Showmance and ATWYRM) Recovering Gleek but I can recommend that one. The two hosts are fun and have a good dynamic, they dive deep into the episodes and only talk about the episodes at hand instead of bringing in later plotlines. They're currently on 5x07 so there's a big catalog to listen to.

I've only ever heard one or two episodes from other podcasts. The one I listened to the most is ig Gleek of the Week, but it's... not for me. They have good guests on like actual Glee cast and crew and Glee Project peeps but ngl I find the hosts sort of irritating. Oops I'm usually nicer than that.

Any other recommendations from peeps? The only one I can recommend is Recovering Gleek but curious if others have more they listen to.

[tuiyla]

I just watched the glee documentary trailer and I wanna barf. Why can’t they talk about the good impact it had on fans? How it’s become a comfort show and a “safe place”? How it was ahead of its time for 2009? Anything other than “the glee curse”

They want the most clicks, the most profitable, easiest topics to exploit. I find it naive that back when it was announced people thought it stood any chance of being an actual docu on the good and the bad. Equally misguided were people who, for some reason, thought the docu was coming for Lea Michele's career.

At least the trailer makes it abundantly clear that all they care about is reopening old wounds and getting as much cash out of three tragedies as possible. The Glee "curse" even as a concept is so fucking disrespectful to cast and crew and insensitive about three very, very different events and lives that came to an early end. But the docu doesn't care what's respectful or not. They see dollar signs painted on the Glee brand and in particular the tragedies.

How shocking! Isn't it strange? So tragic. Yet so intriguing! - those are the only phrases they care about. I can guarantee that the people behind this (so-called) docu give zero shits about the safe space the show was for many, for its milestones in representation, even the cultural juggernaut it was. They only care about the death and tragedy of it all because that sells much more than a wholesome tale, or even one that acknowledges the problems and tragedies but doesn't make them focal. They want the spectacle of death. I mean, fuck, someone needs to watch Nope (2022) with them.

But for that reason I think the best thing we can do is not indulge this disrespectful garbage. I won't be watching, and I doubt I'll be posting about it again.

[tuiyla]

so you mentioned in your gorgeous Naya gifset that she had 60 charting Glee songs, which made me curious about how many charting Glee songs the other main cast members had... Do you have that information and, if so, could you please share it with us?

Ohh being reminded of that set so close to her death's anniversary is bittersweet but I'm reeaaaaaally proud of it 💖

Unfortunately I don't have that info on hand, HOWEVER, you just say the word Anon and I can update my handy database and give you all the stats on who charted when what how. Until then, I rewatched my wip video to jog my own memory and turns out, all I did was copy and paste the table available on the Santana character wikipedia into sheets so I can count it easier. I'm not sure what other ch pages have but I can work some database magic, like I said. Don't know when exactly, but if that's something you'd like you just let me know and we'll see what we can do!

[tuiyla]

I found the one million notes thing!

https://www.tumblr.com/dudewithabow/67621329343/only-90s-kids-can-reblog-this

Now technically these million notes may not all be glee fans they may just be like laughing at the joke without knowing the show but Tbf most of the reblogs explicitly say glee or cc or dc’s name so,,,

Either way one million notes is batshit insane, gleeks must have ruled this website

Yeah granted that is a typical meme type post that would spread like wildfire on tumblr, where I think about a third of the userbase was born in the 90s. But the point does stand.

I guess Gleeks did rule the website but it's a yes and no. Particularly interesting is that the other fandoms that co-ruled, mainly Superwholock and Harry Potter, have all had their cringe reckoning and so did Glee. Now I'm not a big fan of people cringing whenever Glee is mentioned and my gifsets that break containment often gets rude tags about the show itself, and I think being embarrassed about what you liked as a teen is far more embarrassing than the thing itself. Anyway, different topic. But also Sherlock ended a shitshow and traumatized its fandom, Supernatural is... Supernatural, and the only thing that saved Doctor Who is its ever-renewing nature, but many look back on the 10th and 11th Doctors eras and cringe. And Harry Potter is rightfully getting denounced left right and center mainly because of the horrible nasty TERF that you know who is. And isn't that interesting? How the biggest fandoms also fall the hardest? Go forward in time and look at Game of Thrones. It almost feels inevitable when a piece of media flies this close to the sun and eclipses all else, only to crash and burn in one way or another.

Anyway. That's just me rambling. Gleeks did in fact run tumblr and tbh a part of the internet as a whole for a while. Look up ch and ship polls from back in the day, not even bots voted like Gleeks did. The only thing is that it's always been a fandom divided, more a collection of subfandoms of ships and chs than a united entity. Traumatized many, from what I've heard. And that's not even getting into the relics that you can stumble upon, like old fandom lore of the GKM (Glee Kink Meme) that I found out about a while back and have developed a morbid fascination with. Like... if any Glee fandom veterans wanna talk to me about that please do lmaooo that is just next level stuff.

[tuiyla]

Have you seen the glee doc trailer

Omfg I hate even the thumbnail, gulp let's go

Okay first of all I take issue with the implication that Naya was among the people whose TV debut was Glee when bitch was acting on shows like The Royal Family at FOUR years old so jot that down

Second of all I take no joy in going I told you so, but I told y'all so. I'm glad even the comment section is calling it out. The best thing we can do is not give this the attention it so clearly craves.

[tuiyla]

Have you listened to Heather on the pod?

Yes I have! I haven't posted about it before but this is the perfect opportunity to.

I thought it was a very candid and heartfelt conversation between friends. It's clear how much Jenna, Kevin and Hemo all care for each other and how comfortable they are sharing. Heather's recalling of her ED and how Naya reached out was such a brave thing to share, both because it helps us understand who Naya was and because it's such a hard but commendable thing to talk about. I know Heather's been known to put her foot in her mouth every now and then but I think once again we heard how well-meaning she is. I also really appreciate the pod continuing to touch on more difficult subjects and have those conversations on mental health and speaking up for yourself. Kevin and Jenna really are discussing what they said they would, and like with the Chris or Ryan episodes they are acknowledging the bad and the could have been better aspects of production. It was illuminating to hear Heather's perspective.

And also them chatting about drag and Heather's Masked Dancer win were fun. And Heather sharing her journey to Glee (her literal journey to Paramount with the accident too lmao) was another refreshing tale to hear. Like, it is important to talk about things like her having felt like she continuously needed to earn her place and struggling with what fame really meant. It was a good conversation to listen to and I hope they have her on again at some point in the future. I'm sure they will.

Also am I the only one who feels like finding out who the guest is going to be on Thursdays is half the fun? Lol it's so exciting to check spotify and see who it's gonna be. Part of me hopes they get Kristin Chenoweth on next week. I'm currently listening to her Showmance episode - in a Kristin mood since I started watching Pushing Daisies.