#of course. this is an issue for people like me. bc i deal with certain dissociative and general memory issues

[caroloftheshells]

long post re theory pedagogy again

the other thing about that vid (and another thing! lol) being that hierarchically a lot of the people doing the more interesting or out-there research and diversifying the field from a content perspective (and, tbh, demographically) are like grad students or early-career people who don’t even necessarily have any pedagogical flexibility & tend to be slotted in to teach lower-level theory courses-- whose outcomes are predetermined not only by general screwy nasm strictures but by whatever the professor down the line in the curriculum is teaching / expects people to know when they get there. and we get paid (much) less also than tenured professors. which is really a generic “thing about all academia” that doesn’t necessarily become a nefarious personal flaw on the part of said scholars and instead ought to be addressed at a structural level bc the scale of the issue exceeds individual instructors’ spheres of influence.

BUT music occupies such a fucked “totally separate from society” space in many ppl’s imaginations that it’s like oh man how dare it have the same issues as every other field of scholarship bc it shouldn’t “really” be a matter of scholarship in the first place. ie music is culturally rendered a “nothing matters just feel it” / “everything is ephemeral and there is only Innate Talent and nothing can be taught” sort of field such that any intellectualizing thereof &/or suggestion of learnabilty / non-innateness is deemed, like, boring & regressive by some people & i’d say especially people raised with a certain awareness of the “composer-genius” culture of wam education. like i’m completely on the “fuck partwriting parallel fifths are awesome” train as a matter of taste (for example) but that does not mean that learning what parallel fifths are-- and why some old european guys didn’t like them *bc they preferred it to sound like there was more than one voice and it’s easier to create that perceptually w/o an overtone effect* (eg)-- is going to like destroy your artistic Essence and make you a worse musician bc now you’re no longer an empty vessel put on this earth to channel brahms or whoever. & plus i think perpetuating the synonymizing of theory-as-field with wam harmonic rules not only is like factually misrepresentative of current research but also is sort of a self fulfilling prophesy such that ppl who would otherwise have completely fascinating things to say & questions to ask are discouraged from non-platitudinous & open-ended (theoretical) inquiry re the content and aims of their own rep & listening, and tacitly learn that composers’ ~~genius~~ descended from the heavens & you either get it or you don’t, you either “have talent” as a composer or you don’t, et cetera

[avocado-writing]

hey! first off, i love your writing so much.

secondly, i’d love to see an aziraphale x reader x crowley fic where the reader has some mental health issues (specifically like anxiety and depression) and they’re going through a really rough time at the moment (maybe they’re just in a really bad headspace or their meds aren’t working so they’re struggling really bad) and they just get support and comfort from aziracrow. (i’m ngl this is kind of a self indulgent ask bc i’m personally going through some bad mental health stuff rn -100/10 i do not recommend). anyways, there’s no rush at all i’m just a sucker for hurt/comfort and fluff.

hope you have an amazing day!

notes: finally getting around to clearing out my requests, sorry this took so long - I was sort of avoiding it for a while because I wasn’t in a great space either. I hope you’re doing better x

pairing: aziraphale x reader x crowley (could be read as platonic)

cw: depression/seasonal affective disorder

rating: T

It’s difficult. 

Some days it feels like the fog won’t lift. The dark months, they always get you and it’s awful - you just want to sleep for a long time and not wake up until you know it will be better. You need to get your meds adjusted, really, but the idea of going outside and dealing with people is just a little bit sickening. 

You can’t. You just can’t. 

The lethargy that can only be brought on with melancholia plagues your every waking moment. You know that you’d forget to take care of yourself if it wasn’t for the two of them. 

God knows they’re wonderful. 

Every morning you wake up to a check-in text from Crowley, gently encouraging you to shower because they’ll be over soon. You find the effort to drag yourself to the bathroom and stand under the powerful jet for long enough that you start to zone out, only leaving the enclosure of water and steam when you hear the two of them walk into your flat. 

You never gave them the key. They manage to get in anyway. 

They bring breakfast - well, Aziraphale brings breakfast, and he eats it with you to make sure that you eat at all. That can be something that you forget. Crowley watches you over the rim of his coffee cup until he’s certain you’ve had an adequate amount, and then a miracle takes care of the washing up. 

Then they’re around you for as much or as little as you want them to be, but never more than a phone call away. 

One day you find yourself crying into your fried eggs, and the two of them look aghast. In a flash they’re by your side, holding you, a hand running up and down your back in comfort. 

“My dear, what’s the matter?” Aziraphale asks, and you can hear him snap his jaw shut quickly because well, the depression is the matter. It’s so ridiculous you end up laughing through your sobs. 

“Sorry. Sorry, I’m being silly,” you manage, wiping your eyes on your sleeve. “I just… you’re so wonderful to me. I don’t deserve it.”

“None of that,” Crowley chastises you, gently, “‘course you ‘deserve it’.”

“It isn’t a burden to look after someone you care about, darling,” Aziraphale adds. 

And you can’t bring yourself to say anything more, so you just let yourself be held very tightly. 

tags: @angiestopit @foolishprincipalitee @smile-eywa @staygoldsquatchling02 @underratedboogeyman @specter-soltare @candlewitch-cryptic @cool-ontherun-world @emilynissangtr @willbedecided @bdffkierenwalker @cool-iguana @ilyatan @civil-groupie @willyoubethepookietomypookster @lxsm2 @clarina04 @wtfhasmy-lifecometo @mrgatotortuga @wereallbrokenangels @night-affiliate @silcosmoke @kimqueenofhell @chewbrry @bajablast23 @h3k3t @am-i-obsessed---maybe @bakerstreethound@a-mediocore-writer@darktealrat @chaospossum @belilwen @rex-ray @hunterispunk

[sophieinwonderland]

To a certain extent in syscourse, arguing semantics about what is and is not possible internally (something that can not be known in the scientific meaning of known, as there's no way to actually objectively measure these things) is incredibly pointless.

However more pressing imo is the confirmation bias running rampant. It doesn't matter what information someone is presented with, if they have decided what they think the truth is, they're going to see everything you give them through that lens. You can't magically make someone think a different way, think about it from your perspective. (Not YOU you, general you.)

So for every anti-endo who is presented with endogenic study will be seeing it through the lens that they beleive endos are fake. To them the study means nothing bc it's either ppl w did who don't know it or fakers, no in between. And on the flip side, proving a negitive (endos don't exist, for example) is completely pointless, again, because there's no actual objective measure of such.

Humans are very very predisposed to "weird" behaviour, even if they pretend not to be. The most normal person you can think of has thoughts and behaviors that may seem bizarre to you or me. There is no measure of "normal" that can be objectively quantified. There is only what harms an individual and their life, the people around them, etc, which is what needs treatment. Having alters itself is not a disorder, but it can cause disorder in life due to amnesia barriers, alters acting destructive or unlawfully, identity confusion causing various issues, etc etc. Which are all things that are addressed separately from them being alters. Wether treatment involved getting them therapy or fusing, convincing yourself they aren't real, or learning to live with them and address trauma and behavious caused by surviving trauma together.

This is of course predicated on therapists and psychiatrists being able to set aside their predisposed notions of "normal" to help people on the individual level. Which is a whole other can of worms, and why many survivors of psychiatric abuse outright reject the medical systems that hurt them. This is a seprate issue from "fakers" and endos being somehow misrepresentitive of a disorder they do not claim to have. That's a societal and institutional problem that can't be won easily one on one.

Anti-endos and sysmedicalists may feel helpless to the whims of these institutions, and they very often are and there very often is not good enough care, and potentially even abuse. People who are subjected to feeling less than human by others often lash out in an attempt to feel like they have any control in their lives. Imo antis lashing out against endos, tulpas and other forms of non-disordered plurality are doing just that, seeking some way to control the narrative of their life that has continually made them feel like they aren't in control.

In the end, all this arguing does NOTHING to help anyone. You can not find peace in trying to tear others down.

Sorry for sending this in your inbox, Sophie, but I am far too unequipped to deal with potential lashback from people who miss my point, personally. We should be working together to find new understanding, instead of tearing eachother down.

.

[science-lings]

what’s some of your favorite loz/Lu fics of all time? :)

Most of my favorite LU fics are here

but what you guys may not know is that I'm also a big fan of botw and modern au Zelink fics, however, take heed, most of these get a little spicy

Like Real People Do by ScarlettStorm: one of the best post-botw fics out there, lots of pining, I absolutely adore how Link's experience with Gender is portrayed, how he and Zelda are both treated as equally traumatized, as sometimes it feels like there's always one troubled one and one caregiver and I can get that for shorter fics but this one is long and beautifully balanced in that aspect. It also gets real horny at the end and in my opinion, it's very tasteful.

Alone With You by @deiliamedlini: honestly this author has a bunch of bangers, I'm waiting for their pirate au to finish so I can binge it all and I reread their Zelink oneshot collection all the time, this one is their modern high school au where Link is kind of a bad boy who is secretly Fucked Up, and Zelda is a popular girl and surprise surprise, they both get along really well. Normally I hate anything that reminds me of high school but this is the only exception. I love how previous characters are included, like how Link knows ASL bc he's friends with Pipit who is deaf and how Revali is a bitch and I still want to strangle him. Also big sister Aryll is a treasure and this fic does such a good job portraying Link's mental struggles and PTSD and how Zelda is being neglected and I'm also a big fan of the overarching plot of medical issues and trauma.

The Calamity of Link's Cargo Shorts by @zeldaseyebrows: I don't understand how someone can make smut so funny and so focused on Zelda's own self-hatred. Seriously though, there's a lot to love with this fic and I adore Zelda's pov. Sometimes you have to have sex before opening up emotionally and that's okay. Also, it's a modern au too, I just realized how many of these are modern aus.

Strangers in the Night by @zeldaelmo: Another modern au, this time Zelda has a kid from a ons with Link and he doesn't know about it for a bit, I just love Link being a dad and how they both work for a museum and there's just something about the courtroom scene that makes me want to reread it over and over again. Sometimes it's hit or miss with family ocs but Tetra is my favorite zelink child ever. All the fics on this list are ones I reread a lot but this one is the one I'm currently rereading bc it's been a few months lol. I love the domestic but also a little dysfunctional vibes, it's definitely not the normal romcom type of thing but I think I like this more.

K.K. Love Song by @airplanned: Again, modern au, pandemic edition. This one in particular has a certain unexplainable soft vibe, like there's some long-distance, Animal Crossing online romance and idk why I like it so much, I guess I was one of the suckers that got pulled in by new horizons when it came out so there's some strange kind of covid nostalgia and it's nice to see how a functional government would deal with the pandemic. Also, Link's grandma is a treasure and there's something sweet about crown princess Zelda meeting some guy on animal crossing and accidentally making him a public figure by dating him. Honestly, this author has a lot of great fics that I reread a lot lmao.

Farore's Day and Windvane Lane by Jenseits_der_Sterne: modern thanksgiving au, Zelda is a quirky scientist single mom and Link is her neighbor. I love Link being a nerd and Zelda being a bit of a disaster. Like she accidentally almost blows up her kitchen and he's just looking on with heart-eyes, after helping her put out the fires of course.

tbh, I'm probably not the best person to go for fic recs as I just find a few really good ones and then reread them till the end of time and rely on other people to recommend me things to read lmao, I hope this was at least a little helpful anyway.

[darkpoisonouslove]

Oh my god I have to say that! I just adore your your answer to the "love question" between Griffin and Valtor! It's so it is so accurate and I can totally see it!

I love the way you discribe Valtor being head over heels with her and that he calls Griffin's defection to the enemy a "silly stubborn phase". Because he would totally do that!

And in general everything fits perfectly with both of them! Griffin would totally wait until she says it. Gosh and the fact that he was so confident in himself that he just knew she would never not love him back. That's so him. But also that he knew "their love will last forever". Idk it just touches something in my heart. Because besides his big ego it also means that he sees her as worthy enough, that he trusts her enough to keep her by his side forever. That he sees a future with her. That's just- wow.

I also like the last paragraph. The way Griffin feels kinda vindicated when he talks about what they had/about his feelings after she left. And btw does that mean that some of the CoL members denied that there were real feelings between them? Bc if yes then I would love that even more when that would mean that Valtor literally threw it in their faces.

Thank you so much! Considering how long it took me to figure this out, I'm glad you agree that it makes sense for them!

He just has to be a dick. She may hate him now but he's saving both their image (and maybe getting back at her a little for betraying him because he knows how much his behavior is pissing her off). She will be grateful to him once she comes back to her senses and rejoins him. It's better to go with this than admit that there's a serious rift between them and she might have some genuine reason to prefer working with the people who despise them both over staying with him.

His ego might be a bit too big for anyone's good, really, but he does absolutely include her into his sense of superiority. She is better than anyone else and the only one for him... so of course she'd see it that way too and stay with him forever. The opposite hasn't even crossed his mind. (*looks at camera like I'm on The Office*)

I think that some of the Company members (at first, it was pretty much all of them) cannot handle the implications of Griffin and Valtor's love being real so they prefer to deny/ignore it. Which is, of course, hard to do when Valtor so obviously treats her differently from anyone else but well, if that's the case, it was clearly because she was unhinged enough to match even him somehow. Unfortunately, after she joins them, it becomes clear that that was not the case so they all have to deal with the realizations that maaaaybe they were wrong and the love is real. But that's too much especially in the current circumstances so they (mainly Oritel and Hagen but everyone else also pointedly plays blind to certain things) prefer to not pay it any mind thus giving Valtor absolutely golden opportunities to mess with them. Everything would be so much easier if they just worked their way through their own issues but hey, it's war time. You can't blame them for trying to preserve their energy for the life-or-death stuff. And well, you also can't blame Valtor for being a petty bitch and a brilliant strategist and throwing it in their faces every chance he gets. Griffin certainly finds no fault with his actions.

[genericpuff]

Hi, you would have more knowledge in this bc I’ve seen people say the color changes in LO are a result of the books being printed in CMYK and Rachel is trying to avoid the misprint colors in later editions, but that can’t be right, right? that feels like giving her more credit that she’s actually due. Bc the books are now post the colors changing to the current neon and they still look bad in print. Is there any actual reason for the colors getting this way, or is it really just laziness?

potential bonus question: what art tips would you give to achieve that early LO look, with the texture and lights and all that? Love Lore Rekindled btw <3

Honestly, I really don't think it has to do with the books. I think some of it does have to do with the TV show deal (like they're trying to give it a cleaner 'animated' look) but when it comes to the books, most of its issues is less of the color expression and more just the composition of panels. I mean, it's kind of a given considering how big of a pain in the ass it is to turn a vertical webtoon into a print book (which is why it's kind of bitter irony now that Webtoons is turning back on their whole "phone format is the future" mantra from way back when when they realized they weren't making any money off that LOL) but man you can tell they're struggling to just make the books work.

When it comes to the actual oversaturation of colors over the course of the series, I feel like it comes down to several other things that aren't related to the books:

1.) Rachel's stated in interviews that she got criticism (pointless criticism from non-fans I'll add) about how the colors were 'too bright' back in LO, so she went "nah make them BRIGHTER" as a way to get back at those critics. Which is just absurd because it's resulted in her shooting herself in the foot with uglier art that's turning off even the fans.

2.) She and her assistants aren't unified across software. Some panels are drawn in Clip Studio, some are drawn in Procreate, some in Photoshop, it's a mess. And the real kicker is that all of these software have different color bitrates so some of them literally don't have as many colors as others (ex. Clip Studio is able to express about 16 million different colors, vs. Photoshop which can express up to 281 trillion, which is obv WAY better for print, but meanwhile Rachel can be seen working in both Procreate and Clip Studio).

3.) Rachel doesn't have her assistants using a shared color palette. They're literally just eyedropping colors. You may as well be playing a game of telephone at that point, where the original message gets more and more twisted as its passed down the line, but in this case, it's with colors (which is especially problematic when you're eyedropping panels that haver texture overlays which will automatically distort the colors, AND when you're using multiple different software which come with different color bitrates). That one definitely falls under laziness IMO.

All of this is VERY silly to me btw because Rachel started off with Photoshop, like I'm fairly certain most of her work prior to LO was done with Photoshop. Clip Studio is the generally recommended software for people making webcomics as it comes with way more support for them (such as panel rulers and speech bubble pens) but it doesn't have the same color expression that Photoshop does which I feel would be way more beneficial for LO, it's not like it's working with the same color palettes that most traditional webtoons using CSP are using.

But a lot of it is also Rachel just shooting herself in the foot by not maintaining any sort of consistency between herself and her teammates. Which is even MORE absurd because Clip Studio LITERALLY comes with teamwork support, I use it with Banshriek on Rekindled where we can literally share files, with the addition of a Google Drive folder we can both access that has files for color palettes, references, model sheets, etc. and with none of the incompatibility issues of working between two different software because we both use CSP and know how to use it.

To answer your bonus question as simply as I can, the biggest thing I've found with trying to replicate that old LO style is just... not caring, if that makes sense LOL like I've recreated multiple of Rachel's old panels just for the sake of research and I've learned that she REALLY didn't know what she was doing back then, there's NEVER been consistency in LO but back in S1 it was obvious she actually still cared. So when it comes to recreating that style, it's sort of difficult to pin it down to any one "method" because she really has none, she just treats every panel as its own individual painting (esp back in S1).

So get loose, don't be too strict on yourself (like I am, sigh) and mess around with gouache brushes, they're definitely her go-to. Prioritize lineart in places where shadows would cast (such as under the neck, limb bends, etc.) and then in post-production, slap a canvas texture on top.

I can definitely give a more in-depth tutorial at some point, but again, it's REALLY difficult to perfectly mimic her 'style' because it relied on her winging it every time without any real standardization LOL Which makes it tricky because I'm someone who REALLY relies on that standardization, so even I still look at Rekindled art and go "yeah, it's nice, but it's not LO" because I'm following too many 'rules'. People seem to like it anyways tho, so I'm not gonna go feeling bad over it LOL

[speedytimemachineblizzard]

Putting Myself FIRST

Before My Spiritual Awakening, I was just living like everyone else, I suppose, I like to joke around NOW, and refer to THAT way of living as “living on autopilot”. My mind was always full of self doubt, worry, fear of the unknown, unsure of who I was or why I was even here, even though I felt like I was missing something, but could never quite place my finger on it. I put up with a lot of people’s bad behavior, I allowed disrespect and simply put, I let everyone walk all over me, doing my absolute best to avoid conflict and would keep the peace at ANY cost, until I realized the cost was actually MY peace.

Oh, the lengths, we as empaths, will go to make sure everyone ELSE is happy and everyone else’s needs are met, thinking we’re actually one step ahead and at peace, not even realizing the resentment building deep inside our soul from not receiving to the same in return from the ones we try so hard to put before our own needs and wants. Over giving, taking on more responsibility than I could handle, and accepting behavior that I would NEVER again in my life imagine of allowing left me in a constant state of feelings defeated, not feeling good enough, unappreciated, taken advantage of, depressed, full of anxiety always worrying about failing or falling short..just plain, flat out unhappy and lacking what I know cherish most, my peace. Living that way my whole adult life eventually caught up with, as it ultimately will with everyone, and I suffered a huge emotional breakdown my last day at work back, which is also the day I quit. The workplace I was employed at affected me so greatly, and even after being advised from family, friends and even former co-workers to just leave, I stayed. I stayed because I felt comfortable, I knew what to expect every single day, including the disrespectful and sny remarks from co workers. I stayed because it fit my schedule as a single mother, having certain times I could work and in the field I was in at the time, the hours I HAD were unheard of and not many people were lucky Enough to receive such a flexible work schedule. So I traded my dignity, worth and emotional/mental health and overall well being for those hours, looking back.

Work wasn’t my only dilemma, of course. I had also personal problems, dealing with a very unhappy family (not my own children): Siblings and as great as my parents have been and ARE, them as well. My parents unintentionally treated me that way of course. I had also recently left a very abusive relationship where I dealt with not only physical abuse, but also verbal, emotional, financial and spiritual abuse and Was trying my best to move on as quickly as possible. Dealing with drinking, trying to numb out some of the pain, I was dealing with just a massive amount responsibility as a single mom taking care of her kids, living in fear of my life bc of my ex, taking on the emotional responsibility of my mother and sister, etc. On top of dealing with my own health issues and mental health. Depression , Anxiety, OCD to name a few. It wasn’t until one day (Yes, one VERY random day) I said : Enough is enough. It hasn’t occured to me, as silly as it sounds, until then, my mid 30’s, that you know what? THIS is not any way for anyone to live. I was like, “What about ME?” I MATTER too! I need love and support TOO! I need a break TOO! I need someone to listen to me as I cry TOO! I deserve to have my needs and wants met TOO! I deserve respect TOO! I deserve to be put first TOO! I remember the day and it was like a tsunami of emotions flooding the gate, it was overwhelming and all consuming. I remember, as well, having random flashbacks from my very blurry childhood that I didn’t realize at the time, were so far suppressed within me. I was angry. Appalled. I was FURIOUS and I felt like my life was a lie. And how could I have not even known? That’s crazy right? No. I know now that it was my body’s way of protecting myself. I had a lot of unresolved issues that NEEDED to be brought to light. Easy right? No. I had no idea I’d spend the next yr or so In isolation, due partly to depression, but also due to my anger and resentment I had developed after all the years towards very special people in my life.

THIS IS WHERE things got even more chaotic. This is where my whole entire way of thinking and view in life changed. I knew LIFE had to be more…

[dear-taka-chan]

random takashi mitsuya headcanons

...because why not?

cw: none.

note: these are just random things i think fit mitsuya. this isn't an x reader specifically, though you are free to picture yourself in certain circumstances if you want. also you can agree or disagree with me, that's fine and i'd love to hear your thoughts on these or even any new ones you have but don't start an argument with me or anyone else please. (yes this is a repost bc Tumblr apparently has some grudge with me?)

• mitsuya is an emotional person who is very good at rationally dealing with his emotions. he is genuinely a smart guy, he can acknowledge and accept his emotions and still only use logic while dealing with his personal feelings.

• ever since he was a kid he has been burdened with responsibilities most children his age don't even properly understand. so that has got to have some effect on him. he has learned to suppress and disregard his emotions. he also criticizes and scolds himself for being affected/hurt/excited about stuff that is less significant in comparison to other emotions often times.

• but when it comes to other's emotions and feelings, he is very sensitive and understanding. no matter how minimal they seem, he would never mock them for it. in fact he is always ready to help however way he can.

• mitsuya is definitely very very good at reading and understanding body language, unspoken words, clues and hints, the atmosphere and the room. he knows when to shut up, he knows when to speak, what to speak and how to deliver it. tone, time and place, he understands it well.

• speaking of which, mitsuya speaks very less. only when needed. it stems both from the fact that 1) he HATES being vulnerable in front of anyone. like it's a big no no for him. as someone who has been burdened with so many responsibilities and has been demanded to show more maturity than his age demands, he feels like he is the one who is supposed to be the sacrificer. he is supposed to be the mediator and the adult of the group. he often blames himself when something goes wrong which he thinks he could have handled. 2) he doesn't really have many people with whom he could talk? his sisters are younger than him, so of course he wouldn't dare burden them with his problems. he is a firm believer in "children should act and be treated like children." his mom is busy almost all the time and the rare times when she does get a day off, he wants her to rest and not deal with her son's issues. draken is probably the only one he goes to for advice if he really needs it, only because he sees him as the only reliable and smart enough person. hakkai is his man when he wants to rant though. hakkai is a very good listener, i believe.

• this boys plans EVERYTHING OUT. like he has a whole list of what all has to be done in a day and he WILL finish it off before transcending into slumber land. a very diligent worker. (mitsuya please take care of yourself and don't become a workaholic bb)

• he makes playlists as a hobby and a rejuvenative activity. he has playlist for every mood. he also has playlists for all his favourite genre of books because he likes reading books. not the biggest book lover in the world but he does enjoy reading a good book once in a while. going to be honest, a well written romance is right up mitsuya's alley.

• when mitsuya has a crush on someone, he draws them in some of his favourite dresses, just to see how they'd look. only out of curiosity, of course. just wanting to know how they would look in his creations. he might also use them as a reference/muse time and time again for his new works, whenever it's possible. now if his crush knows that or not, depends upon how close they are.

• fashion designing isn't just a passion of his without any reason. it's his way of unleashing his ideas and thoughts through his work. this is also a form of art. he speaks and connects through his art. almost all his works have an element of mitsuya in them. sure the tag is the biggest proof who it's creator is, but there are certain details in them that give the dress the Takashi Mitsuya mark.

• you can't tell me he didn't get into fashion when he saw fashionable clothes and was like woahhh i wanna wear them and asked his mother one day and poor boy got his heartbroken because they were so damn expensive. sooooo he decided to do something about it and used his old clothes and thrift shopped clothes and turned into DIY fashionable ones. and that's how he learned how to measure, stitch, sew, and all those things. and when he got so much positive feedback from literally everyone around him it turned into a passion. look at our boy now, he had his first ever fashion show.

• he is a delinquent. he is one of the captains in a gang. he has been doing this for so long and has been around gang members for so long but he still highly, highly values education. it's very important and meaningful to him. he also wants to set a good example for his sisters since they look up to him and copy him so much. but also, he actually, genuinely tries in school because he knows he can and he wants to. he definitely comes a little above an average student and if he put even a little bit more effort and time than he does rather than running around and dealing with gangs he would surely come in the top ten students of his class.

• women feel safe around him. he radiates this vibe or energy where women don't feel on guard and tense around him. same is the case with draken despite his intimidating looking and tall and muscular stature. no matter your gender, he is a very respectful and non-judgmental dude.

• he isn't the best with animals. he is quite a bit scared of them too. but birds do come up to him. every morning he changes the water for the birds from the bird bath and definitely adds bird grains before going to school because every evening when he comes back home, it's empty. this is one of the things that make him genuinely happy.

• he also likes going on walks alone or with hakkai most of the time. it helps him clear his head when home, school, gang and his dumb friends doing dumb things become too much for him. our guy gets angry or at least irritated a little quickly for his good but as i mentioned before, he can handle himself.

• draken has accompanied him once or twice too but they were discussing some toman related things then. draken doesn't really have much free time but we'll talk about it in the draken headcanons. this is about mitsuya.

• right so when he goes on walks he prefers going to the parks where there are fish ponds. he absolutely loves when the fish come near the walls and surround his hand. a grin creeps up his lips and he might look the cutest person when he is genuinely happy and excited. he gets giddy and his cheeks turn slight pink. he loves feeding the fishes. there is always fish food kept there for visitors like him who like feeding the different kinds of fishes in the pond.

• he is the eldest daughter in an asian family for his mother since luna is still small. (poor luna, hope you don't have to become your mother's therapist when you grow up)

• listen up okay? he watches soap operas with his mother. he gets sooo into it sometimes. he and his mom rant about how stupid the characters are or how they would handle certain situations much better. and when it becomes too sad, he might sniffle his tears back but mom knows everything 🎶

• definitely has a job to support his family too. add it to the list of things takashi mitsuya has to deal with. (here take all my love and support, pretty boy. i hear you, love♡)

[moodr1ng]

lengthy discussion of ed treatment/management under the cut but nothing triggering or specific

i think its funny that im like.. (i believe) very good at giving advice regarding eating disorders to other people.. like, i will often give detailed, multi-paragraph, nuanced advice and information on dealing with eds and give people lists of ways they can reach for help, advice on managing disordered eating behaviors as best as possible, reassurance that yes, what theyre describing is a real ed, yes they deserve help, no they dont need to get any sicker to get help, ill frequently ask people who are down on themselves or ashamed bc of eating disorders to let me have faith in them on their behalf/let them know that im proud of them even if they arent/reassure them that they are never alone with this even in the worst part of an ed when it feels like youre the only person this fucked up on the planet/celebrate their wins and improvements if they have no one to be proud of them/etc. and none of this im saying to congratulate myself like.. i am somewhat educated on this topic, i like being able to use that to help out people, im not doing anything extraordinary or praiseworthy, i just have a certain level of skill/knowledge in handling eds and so i feel its sort of a responsibility i want to take on to put that to use.

but the point is.. i can do all this for other people but when it comes to myself? i dont follow any of my advice. my relationship to food is terrible and so is that to my body. i know all this stuff, i have all these nice things to say to other people - and i can't apply any of it to myself.

and though i always encourage people to reach out to medical professionals, to nutritionists, to therapists specializing in ed, to hotlines, to ed clinics.. i have been let down by every single one of those. my nutritionist told me my eating problems are a psychiatric issue and therefore she simply couldnt help me in any way. my psychiatrist listened to me describe my ed and had no advice bc he doesnt specialize in this and cant help me. the ed clinic in my city wouldnt offer me treatment bc they only take extremely underweight patients. a nutrition/ed support clinic a friend recommended wont take me either bc im not overweight enough. i contacted an ed hotline, set up a phone appointment with the hotline worker, and got ghosted. every avenue of help i have found has said "i cant help you" or "i wont help you". and yet here i am, still telling people to seek professional support and hoping they have better luck than me..

idk. sometimes i just feel phony, yknow? like, here i am giving people all this reassuring, in-depth, affirming advice that sounds like.. wise or like i know my shit right, and then you go look at my post history on the same account and theres my post about my relapse and how profoundly i hate myself and am disgusted with myself. it makes me feel like.. me still being in the deep of the ed devalues my advice. you peek under the curtain, and the guy who talks like he has it all figured out and can help you is just as lost, scared, ashamed and miserable as you.

not sure what im trying to say. just. think about this regularly ig. i wonder how i wouldve fared in a world where i didnt get rejected from returning to the psychology course, in a world where i become someones therapist - would i have too felt like an absolute phony, a poser, if i had become a therapist while being this mentally unwell? idk. maybe. it doesnt matter now, anyway.

[uefb]

Hi

I hope you don’t mind me asking, but as you know I really enjoy reading some of your fanfic and love the way Newt’s family are written in your universe. I love how Newt’s parents are supportive, especially his dad. I think his dad and Theseus are my favourites.

Anyway I wanted to ask, in your world how would Helious and Rowan react to Newt’s expulsion from Hogwarts? What happened when Newt came home? Or when they were called in after the incident?

Did they treat him with kid gloves? Like go about it delicately like they did with the incident with his uncle in the ministry? Or maybe this time he’s gone too far (as far as they know), so they’re more disappointed and bit more firmer? He’s not a kid anymore so how would that go? Now that’s something interesting I think to explore.

Hello! Good to hear from you! I’m answering this from bed half asleep so forgive me for not going into a ton of detail. But if I put it off I’ll just never reply. Very happy you like how I write the Scamander family

And great question — because their reaction is different from how they treat him after the situation with Hesiod in “The Riot Act”. While still cognitively immature, there’s still a big difference between barely 11 and 16/17…. ‘Kid gloves’ are appropriate when dealing with certain issues at certain ages, but realistic conversation would probably be a better fit for the expulsion at 16.

That being said..

So I actually I have a few versions of their reaction to Newt’s expulsion I’ve been playing around with. But all of them involve Newt going back to live with Rowan eventually, but spending the first month avoiding home, living solely with his dad in London. I write him specifically requesting his father be contacted to pick him up, after which he informs his mother himself, while at Helios’. Newt knows she’ll be disappointed. And he ultimately chooses to figure the first few weeks after expulsion out with Helios precisely because Rowan is struggling to be supportive (and he likely feels ashamed). Rowan, meanwhile, feels she’s tried everything and still she’s ended up with her youngest son, expelled from school, just come of age with absolutely nothing going for him. She’s worried, and frustrated, and angry, and that can be hard for someone like Newt to figure out how to handle, especially bc I don’t headcanon he tells his parents about the entire Leta situation. Which makes him come across as far less sympathetic.

By this point, I write their dad as being somewhat “checked out”. He’s largely given up on parenting by now (I mean, Theseus is well into adulthood, but newt’s still young), as he’s been rather burned out by his own life and some particularly poor coping mechanisms. You can imagine the unspoken strain that puts on a family unit. Helios is of course upset with the situation but he’s not disappointed in Newt in the same way as Rowan (probably for obvious reasons, as he and Newt share a lot of personality traits in addition to some overlapping neurodivergence), so his reaction is pretty tempered. So it’s easier for Newt to hide there, with his dad.

Luckily for both Rowan & Helios, though, Newt immediately gets work at DRCMC and an apothecary in Diagon Alley, so he keeps himself busy, and largely out of trouble. He strikes me as the kind of person who does much better—in many ways—in the world than he does in school (I say, heavily projecting), so I imagine over the course of a few months, he and his mum come back around to understanding one another better. There’s a point at which one just has to accept that (a) this is the unfortunate way of the world and it’s necessary to survival to sometimes just accept it [Newt], and (b) this is just the way some people are — you can cry and scream about it but good luck trying to change something that perhaps just can’t be changed [Rowan]. Neither of them is entirely in the right, and I think they both probably know it, a little bit.

I do headcanon the expulsion as one of the first real cracks in N & T’s relationship, though. Theseus doesn’t abandon him and remains an anchor in an otherwise somewhat unstable family during this time period, but he doesn’t understand him, and it starts to get messy.

One of the reasons I love writing about Theseus and Newt is because neither of them is perfect. They both have canon flaws in how they deal with commitment and conflict. And I’m trying to figure out how to write the expulsion reaction for all of them, so I’ve just been poking at it for a few months, and waiting for it to shape itself out.

So that’s some rambling. Certainly it’s not all my thoughts because I’m in bed but. Would love to know your thoughts too.

[isnt-it-pretty]

Hi! I’m sorry this is pretty random but I don’t really know where else to talk about this and since I’ve seen you talk about disabilities a lot I thought I could ask for your opinion as well

Now, I’m not exactly disabled in the traditional sense for many I think.

I’ve had eye problems for years, only recently did I find out that it’s actually cornea dystrophy, a genetic disease not exactly treatable except it gets bad enough to need a cornea transplant (which usually only happens in older ages) My doctor said I don’t need that

My case however is also still a bit severe, I have to take eye drops mornings and evenings and even those don’t always help and I simply have to hope that I don’t wake up to pain. In cornea dystrophy your cornea doesn’t get lubricated enough and easily rips apart. This mostly happens in the morning… oh and how it happens… it’s an absolute nightmare at least thrice a week I’m ripped out of sleep by sudden severe pain in one of my eyes (it switches it’s always one or the other) it feels like someone is nonstop pouring acid in your eye and I always scramble to take pain killers, eye drops (which burn like hell on a fresh rip) and water, all in hurry because no one wants to understand how agonising it is and my boss also won’t understand that I WILL have days where I’m partially blind on one eye (everytime after an “attack” that eye usually sees completely blurry for a day or more depending on the severity of the rip and pain) sometimes the pain spreads over the entire side of my skull and my eye is crying non stop and my nose is also running bc of the sensation in my eye.

But no one around me wants to understand because my doctor simply said “just use eye drops frequently”. I do.. I use eyedrops, eye gel and eye patches everyday and still have frequent “attacks” and everyone treats them like they’re nuisances for THEM.

I’m hesitant to call this a disability, it does affect me and takes me out of commission before I scramble to lessen the impact in the morning yet I can still function “normally”.

I honestly don’t know where I wanted to go with this anymore…. I think I just want someone to know what I’m dealing with because neither family nor work are showing any understanding

Please feel free to ignore this and if you read this far thank you… You don’t have to reply or anything I think at this point I’m just venting and I’m so sorry to bother you with this

Please don't feel bad messaging me! I'm not a doctor of course, nor am I an expert in disability, but I don't mind having these conversations. Although fair warning, my answer will probably be just as rambly as you're worried yours was.

There's a lot to beeak down here including shitty doctors but first and foremost, I would absolutely call your condition disability, and I would even say that a lot of disabled people would agree.

Disability is a term that has many definitions depending on who is using it. Doctors, sociologists, government, and different aspects of the disabled community will all define it differently, but this is the dictionary definition:

a physical, mental, cognitive, or developmental condition that impairs, interferes with, or limits a person's ability to engage in certain tasks or actions or participate in typical daily activities and interactions

I'd certainly say that your condition certainly qualifies. Inability to see through one eye, even episodically, the need to rely on medications, pain that wakes you up or results in an inability to function. All of those are disabling. To say it isn't is like saying diabetes isn't a disability because all they need to do is take insulin, nevermind all of the other issues that come along with it. That lower-limb amputee? They aren't disabled, all they need to do is strap on a prosthetic leg! But it doesn't work like that. A disability is still a disability even with treatment or accessability.

Having good days, or even being "fine" a few hours after an episode, doesn't negate its impact on your life. It's an invisble disability, which is probably where a lot of people's shitty opinions come from. Other people can't see the problem, so, therefore, it must not exist. You must just be overreacting or faking or using it as an excuse to get out of work because otherwise they would see it. Unfortunately, it's easier for people to pretend disability simply doesn't exist. People around you not trying to understand or accomodate is ableism. It's also a willful and fundimental misunderstanding of disability. Just because some days I have the energy to clean, or you can see through both eyes, or a dementia patient remembers their daughter's name, doesn't magically make the condition go away, or make it impact your life any less when it does happen.

Your doctor being unconcerned(which is probably the wrong word. Uncaring? Unsympathetic?) is another problem but that one is deeply rooted in ableism within the medical community, and the common view of disability by medical professionals. Just because you don't need a cornea transplant doesn't mean you aren't deserving of care and sympathy from those around you. Even if they can't do anything to help, you still deserve that respect, and it's shitty that you don't have that.

The entire situation just sucks. The people are you suck. I'm sure they're lovely otherwise but this is obviously a part where they're lacking, and I'm sorry they're unwilling to accept that your conditon impacts you.

Edit: also feel free to DM me if you'd ever like to chat, or send me another ask

[septembersghost]

What do you think about Harry as a bf? I am sure he is a nice guy and strives to have good friendship post breakup. However, he seems very flaky unemotional type of boyfriend. Like, I thought Olivia was his really serious relationship. We don't know what happened but what bothers me is that he looks unaffected. It is very jarring for me. It is the reason I never took haylor seriously. He just doesn't seem emotionally invested. At that time, I thought he was not that serious about Taylor but now with Olivia too after 2 years???

i don't think we have enough information on this to make any kind of real judgment, in all honesty. the issues with taylor i feel are fairly clear in both of their music - to quote a friend, "they loved each other, they just didn't love each other right." they were never on the same page with when they wanted to fully commit, so it became that back and forth situationship, and they were VERY young, harry was still figuring things out, and taylor was struggling quite a bit and keeping it hidden or suppressed, and when she wanted him to stay, he didn't, and when he was ready to be serious, it was too late. (he skewers the idea of flaky, unemotional boyfriends on the very song entitled that, i think he's aware of making those mistakes. "to boyfriends everywhere, f**k you" certainly said it. and i think sometimes he can even be overly sensitive, which also shows up repeatedly in his lyricism.) as she said: miscommunications. you're not sure and i don't know. also, the outside pressure had to have been horrible for two young people who just wanted to work out how to be in love without the media's judgment, the cameras following their every move, and the endless harassment from certain sections of fans...it wasn't only about them, it was also the band, it was also the already weighty feeling of hugeness that came along with being taylor swift™ that she now depicts as the monster on the hill. they could never fully be only themselves, so instead they had all that shaky ground and uncertainty and running through the woods. there was never a chance for them to be solid enough to flourish, so it's always a what-if.

in regards to olivia, tbf i just think it ran its course? like prolonged getaway car. that sounds too mean, but the circumstances that brought them together weren't great, and they're at very different life stages (NOT because she's older, which i don't think is a big deal at all. but she does have her children to consider, and she seems to be passionate about her directing career, and that does require more stability and probably a lot more time in LA, and being on a world tour then makes figuring out how to even see one another difficult). they have different priorities. i also feel...that the over-the-top vitriol of the dwd press was extremely stressful and a fracture point. that was distressing to me as a relatively impartial observer, i cannot fathom what it would be like to have to try and exist as the focus of it. that had to have been too much. it would be too much for anyone unless you're absolutely rock solid and plan to be together for life.

what he wrote musically following the taylor breakup feels heartbroken to me. with olivia right now, if he seems unaffected, it's probably a mix of things. he's a performer, he turns "on" that upbeat attitude onstage (and it's an instant serotonin boost, part of what makes performing both wonderful and sometimes damaging/dangerous for people), he's not going to mope about his breakup in front of stadiums, but also, it may be that he realizes this was for the better. and sometimes, even if it's lousy and sad, if something ends for the better, you can feel a sense of lightness. sometimes very passionate things that are short (or crash and burn) can be more painful than something long-term that fades out gradually.

i had a message about this that i didn't answer bc i didn't feel right digging into it, but idk a lot about his other romantic history except camille, and from interviews/comments given around the fine line release, he was quite wounded by that one too. i think he was actually more serious/invested there than maybe she even was. sadness suffuses that album, and some self-reflection/criticism too.

it feels unfair (not you! just in general!) to judge or say he's not affected or not trying. it's different obviously because sexism plays a role in the nasty hatred and negative public treatment that taylor got for years for her breakups, but even so, i hesitate to do that to anyone else, regardless of gender. sometimes things don't work! and you try and they can't be fixed. it's just life, and people. love for people who aren't splashed all over magazines and having invasive questions posed by strangers and selling out stadiums is complicated! fame has to impact that many times over.

the thing for me, is, i don't believe that every comment (outside his romantic endeavors) made about him as a human being could be untrue, and all of them (and there are MANY) are consistent, and describe his thoughtfulness and basic nature in the same way, that kindness doesn't come across as fake. i think about the story of him cleaning up broken glass on the dance floor, it's an anecdote, but it's one of many that are all the same. it's also like...i see "weird" used in a derogatory way towards him a lot, and i don't love that! because being weird/quirky/esoteric doesn't make you not a good person! (not to mention the inane qbaiting debate and negation of his mspec identity which i cannot begin to get into rn. the internet is unnecessarily mean.) the fact that he does continue to be nice/respectful and try to maintain those friendships says a lot as well.

basically, i think it's complex, and humans are multifaceted, and relationships not working out is sometimes simply a part of life. harry just hasn't found whoever the right person is yet. and he's still young, he's only 28. he probably has some growing up left to do. there's plenty of time.

[dulcewrites]

okay but the way in which the public/fans fit into the fmo djats au is Super interesting to me. i can imagine alys and aemond both choosing not to go public with their relationship till the divorce is finalized out of consideration for reader, guilt and maybe just to take it slow and figure themselves out but then a few months down the line someone leaks out to the press photos of them kissing and acting all coupley (yknow those that feel like love literally seeps out of them, aemond cupping alys' face and looking down at her tenderly type beat) and all hell breaks lose. the general public is feeling very '?????' because up to this point everyone thought reader and aemond were still together/maybe just having a rough patch and she herself feels like her heart is breaking all over again because now she has to deal with it with eyes of the entire world on her. the band is forced to issue a statement (something along the lines of 'reader and aemond are separated and undergoing a divorce and alys and aemond are happily together and would like that people respected their privacy') and since the au takes place in the 90s/00s i could see a whole lot of misogynistc bullshit falling upon the girls, them being pit against each other, maybe a portion of the fans saying things like 'figures. a & a always looked way more suitable for each other' (not to say that reader doesn't have her own shooters being the it girl that she is, i would even say some people end up dropping the band because of the entire situation) and all of it taking a heavy toll on reader :( her feeling super conflicted, still being super pissed at both As but maybe a small part of her also feeling sorry for how alys' name is being dragged through the mud (the cheating Could have gone past only being emotional but didn't after all, she reasons)... aemond on the other hand, just like real life men from that time, probably gets out of it mostly unscathed public opinion-wise, that fucking bastard (i do like the idea of him getting thrown drinks at his head during some shows and having to hear people scream 'that's for reader' though)

also omg this universe's version of retrospective f&b verses being gossip magazine articles???👀

I love this!!! And it’s exactly how I think a story like fmo would be so interesting in a modern setting. Mainly bc the idea of an unreliable narrator never goes away. Not to sound fake deep or anything, but the rise of blogs and paparazzi and the shift in celebrity culture/social media is basically an unreliable narrator in of itself.

So as the band is taking off, I can imagine certain fans not liking reader. The fawn over Aemond, and daella by extension when people realize he has a kid guys I was watching old nirvana interviews and the ones with Francis bean are so :((.. not even caring daella is half of reader too. I can see people thinking that they wouldn’t be compatible. But the gag with them is that though their aesthetics may different but who do these fans think he was doing ecstasy with the night they got nominated for a mtv video award. Lmao jk.. but not really

as soon as alys enters the picture, it gets worse. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be married to a person, have their child but have the entire world telling your husband has more chemistry with a singer in his band. I’d turn into thanos. That’s basically what happens when alys joins the band. If this happened in the last five years, people would make fan edits of the two them. It would be bad for reader 😭

But we know how the general public flips on people 💀. So as soon as the divorce news leaks, people start to put the dots together. Now reader becomes the feted ex, the cherished mother done wrong. Now of course this narrative switch comes at the expense of alys. Who basically becomes the bad girl (slut shaming galore) who slept her way into the group and broke up a family. Aemond, like you said, comes out relatively unscathed. I think reader would feel bad if alys was getting dragged through the mud but she’d also be like 🤷🏽‍♀️ y’all made your bed..

He’s probably be one of those musicians that people look back on and are like “… hmm was he like… that” lmao

[fruity-boy-bruno]

Have u done Wayne headcanons?

I have not done a post of him yet hehehe

This took me awhile bc I have so many things..

Personally I think Wayne and Decres are two separate people (but loovvee seeing hcs where they're the same person) and I think Wayne uses he/they pronouns and is trans masc.

I could and probably will make a separate post about the Waynes as a species at some point but I'll dive into it some here. To me I think that they're kinda scorpion like, and that the tips on old Wayne's tail are the stingers! They don't start out with the stingers and grow them over time... Wayne doesn't have any yet. Wayne also has the chest legs left over from his larva stage as well as a tail, but I also think he has hoves of some kind (bc of Herdingflowers, they're also the one I got gorma ideas from!! I finally checked lol) I can't let that man have people feet that'd be wrong!! He also has boobs because I said so idc if that makes sense or not (he doesn't have nipples though) he's also fuzzy like a bug, but he's got thicker hairs in some areas :)

Biggest one is his ass is from the moon. The Waynes were a moon species and they got displaced to hylicworld after it blew up! Which is why Wayne's living with them in the second game. Why's Wayne away from the rest from them in the first game? Banished from the moon of course! Why's he banished from the moon? He's Gibby's ex-husband and a former "co-ruler" (just in title Gibby didn't let him do jack shit) Why did they get divorced? That was part of the being banished for treason! He did treason? Yes, he did, he tried to orchestrate an overthrowing but got snitched on by someone in his group!

That's why he is alone and away from other people in the first game, he's got serious trust issues and is hesitant to be close to and rely on anyone (other than his beloved horse ofc) the spell of madness being his last straw in why he decided to go and beat Gibbys ass. (I think that if you also follow Gloopdimension you can see how many of my ideas started from them lol)

Also his ass it a pot head, look at that man and tell me he's drug free? I also think he's majorly depressed (for obvious reasons) and he's inclined to kill himself and just go to the afterlife rather than deal with certain inconveniences if he isn't with other people. Just grabs his horns and twists his head like a squeezable apple sauce. Got a little bit of a cold coming on? Kills himself. Surrounded by tyros? Kills himself. You get it. And he's like "I'll literally come back it doesn't matter"

I almost absolutely sure I can come up with more but I think this is enough for one post hehehe

[castielcommunism]

i feel like what’s hilarious about spn is that the question has been answered multiple times already. no not every monster is bad and a threat to you/the community at large. yes some need to be taken out in self-defense bc they’re actively murderous (most vampires; the leviathan). like i think implicitly this is the case on the show but then bc dean is such a center of it and he’s so reactive it seems like that isn’t the case. like he killed amy who was a vegan essentially. bad! and i would argue it’s framed as bad! they don’t kill garth and co bc he’s not hurting anybody. they frequently don’t kill demons. idk what the fuck was going on in atomic monsters with that vampire kid THAT shit was bleak. the bleakest. that felt like a break in monster treatment continuity to me personally. 2x16 heart all over again but unnecessary?? anyway. dean and sam have to be isolated and have no community engagement their like. always hunted unless they hunt shtick is exacerbated regardless of the reality of how monsters are dealt with (variably). as for jack i don’t think it was ooc at all and it wasn’t actually that unreasonable for dean to think jack was clever enough to play wide eyed and cute and then either lose control catastrophically or do a complete 180. it’s tough bc he’s stuck in a world where that shit happens to him and he has to deal. like if EYE got a nephilim dropped off on my door and my husband seemed to be brainwashed and then died i’d be scared as fuck. i’d raise them as well as possible but for that first year minimum i’d be half doing it for my own and the community’s survival bc… like i feel like the issue was weirdly framed as bioessentialism when no. jack is literally not like them 😭 it literally is not the same as sam ingesting demon blood. it doesn’t matter tho u should lead with kindness anyway and err on not killing preemptively as much as possible

I would argue that those exceptions (garth, etc) prove the rule! the starting point is “all monsters are evil”, and then you make an individual determination on whether or not that rule applies in those instances. but the unquestioned default is still “all else being equal, monsters are bad people”, and then the second order default, which is “sam and dean (and hunters in general) are adequate moral authorities on whether or not this rule applies to a given circumstance.”

However I do also agree with you to a certain extent, because this show ran for 15 years and went through a number of large writing shifts. Supernatural is not a conscious ideological project that pushes bio-essentialism; it just swims in those waters and occasionally breaks the surface to keep things feeling complex and nuanced. Like imo kripke era was where the show was the most aware of this (and where this foundation was built), and because season 1-5 were the blueprint for every season that followed after, the show never fully broke away from it, even if individual writers or showrunners wanted to do something different.

And to your point about dean always living in a world where so much bad shit happens that it’s reasonable for him to be suspicious of a newborn kid - that’s part of the show’s politics too! Like the show does a good job of justifying why dean’s behaviour is reasonable, but those justifications are also bound up in bio-essentialist categories of good and bad. Jack IS potentially evil because of his parentage, and there’s no way getting around that. Even if the show tries to justify this rationally, what it’s justifying is still “some people are evil because of who their parents are.”

The text is infinitely mutable, it can be whatever the writers want it to be. Setting up the circumstances where Dean’s behaviour is a rational course of action is itself a decision about the show’s themes and politics. And Jack’s arc about whether he’s good or bad persists basically to the end of the show, where his “goodness” is finally fully proven because he becomes incredibly useful (ie replacing god), not because tfw accepts him as a person who is inherently worthy of dignity and respect.

So like to go back to the original point. The way the show defines the word monster is that it’s synonymous with bad/dangerous/evil, and it never really examines why certain people are labelled monster, or if their response to monsters is appropriate. Human monsters (vampires, werewolves, rugarou, witches, etc) are lumped in with non-human monsters (leviathan, demons), and that’s also never questioned! In fact that helps to dehumanise monsters by putting them all in the same category. I’ve seen other monster hunting media actively engage in a critique of this by emphasising that “monster” is a political category with political consequences. Whoever falls under the banner of monster loses their humanity, and so the category of “monster” becomes a state and corporate interest.

I’m not asking for spn to do this or be this show. It’s fine that it’s not. Like I recognise that this is a middling cable TV show lol. I’m just trying to give counter examples to say that you don’t need to accept the framework it lays out for how modern fantasy media should look or function. The things it takes for granted AND the things it questions are both political decisions, and those decisions produce the politics of the show.

[dumbasswhatever]

imagining a future where scientists invent a way to switch bodies and body switching becomes an accepted albeit somewhat uncommon part of life (comparable to buying a house, for instance) and this introduces an entire new kind of lawsuit as people begin suing each other for not disclosing certain things about their bodies before switching bodies with someone and the very first judge to take on this lawsuit is forced to make the decision "will i force the defendant to switch back with the plaintiff, establishing a precedent that will probably be followed for the rest of time?" and then several other judges have to decide other things like whether a person is at fault for giving someone a body with a genetic condition and not disclosing the fact that they have a few relatives with that condition even though they displaying any symptoms at the time they switched bodies or whether a person should have warned the person they switched bodies with that they have an angry ex-spouse in another part of the country or whether someone could be charged in any way for distributing nude photos of themselves after switching bodies with someone or whether there should be any limits to people switching bodies with someone who is of a much different age (which people worry could easily become a way for people to continuously bribe younger people to switch bodies so that they remain young forever) and then of course that opens up a new gateway of debates about whether people should be allowed to switch bodies regardless of gender or race or sexuality or financial status. and of course there are so many people using body swapping to scam people like some people do just outright make false promises to get someone elses body but then other people are offering things like "switch bodies with me for two months and i will get your body fit and healthy and then swap back" and they just use that opportunity to steal so much information about the person to scam them with later. and it all also opens new issues with security, since theres so many things that require a thumbprint or a retina scan or a blood test, and soon some places that dont have the manpower to update their databases with all the new information for every single person who has swapped bodies begin to make a rule that they won't employ or do business with someone who has swapped bodies, and then people accuse them of discrimination and that becomes a whole big court dealing on its own. some people begin suggesting that they should be allowed to swap bodies with someone who is in prison bc they "deserve" a "better" body and the people in prison do not. and this introduces a whole wave of threats to prisoners bodily autonomy as well as creating a whole system to decide the quality of someones body based on several different factors, which are never disclosed publically but its very clear that there are several biases at work and so theye company behind the system gets sued by several people claiming that they could have made a bunch of money switching bodies with someone if the company just didnt rank them so unjustly low, most people saying that they are perfectly healthy and they should have gotten a perfect ranking, and all the while disability activists are begging people to remember that disabled peoples lives are not worth any less and bodies shouldnt be judged based on health either, and then theres also people pointing out that we shouldnt be submitting so much information about ourselves to a company just so they can put us in a database which lead other people to wonder if we should be giving all that information to just a single person we're switching with. and so then people are issuing nda's to other people about their ex-body but then people have to break those nda's to talk to doctors about their new health issues. very quickly body swap lawyers become a very profitable market and if apollo justice was a body swap lawyer he would be called swapollo justice