#or terrible because they do mean for these ships to be really romantic and for watchers to see them as working out in the future

[phantajam]

my hot take about descendants is that NONE of the core four were ready for a relationship until maybe like, the third movie (rant in tags)

[llycaons]

sometimes I feel like I've overcorrected on the unhealthy relationships in media thing because there is so much nauseating bullshit out there that people present as aspirational, which is kind of a shame because a lot of the most interesting fictional relationships are absolute nightmares and it's a real gift to see them appreciated by people who understand the nuances and the appeal

[nezz-cringe-crib]

growing up is realizing that dipcifica was actually a pretty damn good ship and holy shit i totally misjudged this pairing.

i never really liked dipcifica mainly because of how it got represented by the fandom, but looking back on it, it would've made a lot of sense and it would've been beneficial for both of them to date each other. and even in a completely platonic sense, their dynamic worked well enough that they could've done a lot more together.

dipper is a very nerdy awkward guy, clearly. he likes solving mysteries and sometimes he gets a little in over his head because of it. and his silly little awkward teenage love life reflects all of these things. that little shrimp was disney's #1 simp, it's actually insane. whenever he'd start to fall for a girl it'd end up going pretty terribly because he'd have no idea how to just act like himself and he'd also become a little bit of a jerk. (i'm not trying to like dog on dipper btw. he's just a kid and these are all understandable flaws, especially at his age and at the time period gravity falls took place in). however, with pacifica, a lot of these flaws are manageable solely because of how they're introduced to each other. dipper hates pacifica at first and wants nothing to do with her, but eventually they're forced to work together and realize "huh. we actually make a really good team." for dipper, this gradual building of a relationship is really beneficial to him. he wouldn't just go head-first into simping for some random girl and he'd also learn to respect her as a person and realize when he's being a little bit of a dick. being with pacifica, platonically or romantically (though personally i think romantically would strengthen their pros more but thats just my personal taste), would've helped dipper become a better person.

this goes for pacifica as well. pacifica's homelife is extremely controlling and it's what groomed her into becoming the mean girl that she's first presented as. as the show continues though, it's clear that she doesn't really want to be mean to anybody. she only acts spoiled because she doesn't know what else she can act like. she wants to connect to people but she's been so forced into this fake rich life that she has no idea how to be genuine with anybody. that's why her having a connection to dipper is so important. dipper is a little blunt, and he especially won't hide that from pacifica because he initially hates her and her family's lifestyle, so this'll eventually help pacifica realize "oh shit. i'm kind of a dick. my family are kind of huge dicks." and we do end up seeing this from her in "Northwest Mansion Mystery". she learns how to be herself, learns who "herself" even means, and learns to stand up for who she is when she figures that out. also pacifica's pretty damn smart???? especially socially???? she could absolutely help dipper do a lot of things when it comes to mystery solving, and with her status it'll most likely be things that dipper could never pull off and never even thought about because that's just what he's used to. they'd both end up learning a lot from each other because they'd be dragged into environments that they're not familiar with, but the other is. and their different perspectives/lifestyles would help the other view their environment in a new light.

not only is their relationship genuinely really beneficial to the both of them, but i also just know that their dialogue and scenes with each other would be so damn silly i can't not say yes to it anymore. i also just personally like headcanoning them both as bisexual so that's a plus for me.

anyways, tldr: i was wrong about dipcifica and its actually really good, i just think people should really analyze their relationship more since the way the fandom presents it (or how ive personally seen the fandom present it) is a little icky and shallow at least in my opinion. yay for dipcifica being silly little goobers :3

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

I saw this one post tagged under Aang deserved better and Katara deserved better. As someone who loves both characters. I hate how people mischaracterize them while saying they supposedly deserved better, when really they’re just salty about shipping when it comes down to it.

Here’s the post:

https://www.tumblr.com/empressofthesunslittlecorner/748486832898048000/a-rant-about-aang-and-byrke?source=share

"What does a 14-year-old want with a 12-year-old?" Same thing a 16-year-old wants with a 14-year-old, aka maybe a romantic relationship, maybe just a hook up, maybe just friendship, maybe nothing at all. You can't put people in a box like that. When I was 14 I wouldn't have cared if the person who had a crush on me was too years younger, two years older, or the exact same, all that would matter would be "Do I like them back or not?" Plenty of girls my age were the same, others would be caught dead with someone younger, and others thought that it was weird to date anyone older.

"It's just creepy, no matter the gender" *proceeds to ship Zutara, that has the same age gap, but the guy is older*

"It would have been better if they got together at like 22 and 20" Why? It's a two year agep gap, not twenty - why age them up to adulthood? 12-years-old is right around the time most people either start having crushes, or already have been having crushes for a while, it's not weird. And again, why it Zutara acceptable with Karata being fourteen, but Aang needs to be at least twenty for it to not be creepy, even though the only thing that changed was the gender of the younger character?

"I haven't read the comics" good for you, don't do it, they're terrible, every character was ruined and Yang should be as hated by the fandom as Shyamalan.

"But what I saw on tumblr" Ah yes, because you can always trust that people online are not biased, mistaken, or full on lying. Just ask the leader writer, Aaron Ehasz, about all the times he had to say "No, zutara was never going to be a thing, please stop sharing that fake interview in which people claim I said otherwise"

"Legend of Korra" Korra is also terrible, that's why the audience for it got so bad that Nick just dumped the final season online without a care.

"He kissed her TWICE, TWICE, without her consent and never said sorry for this" Nope, it was ONE poorly timed kiss that he immediately felt sorry for. Katara is seen blushing and thinking on that kiss during The Invasion because she enjoyed that kiss.

"He thinks he deserves her love because he is the Avatar (the hero) and that's how it be" He thinks the girl that got offended when he said he didn't want to kiss her, that has flirted with constantly, and has consensually kissed twice already is at the very least a potential girlfriend. When he is made to question if that's really the case, he full on ASKS HER if she only thinks of him as a brother and he simply misinterpreted her signs, to which she openly says THAT WAS NOT THE CASE. He explicitly mentions "After we kissed, I thought that meant we were together." He never, ever, ever said "I'm the Avatar, therefore you have to like me." Just because AN ACTOR in a play about THE AVATAR called her "the Avatar's girl" instead of "Aang's girl" doesn't mean he thinks his role means more than her feelings - again, he literally went to talk with her to clear things out. This is not how an entitled person behaves.

"He replaced the love for his people with Katara" No, he did not. The Guru explicitly said "Your love for them lives on the form of new love." When he saw Gyatso's dead body, Katara saying she and Sokka were his new family was what made Aang calm down. Yes, Aang is in love with her, but that moment was much more about general, familial love than romantic love. Honoring the people you lost by valluing your connection to the ones that are still in your life is not placing a burden on them, or being obsessed with them, or thinking that being loved by them will fix your trauma.

"He needed to let go of her" He did. Twice. First in Ba Sing Se, which led to him being killed and KATARA bringing back to life, then again in "The Awakening", in which he just up and leaves to focus on his mission and Katara is heartbroken because SHE DOES NOT WANT TO BE LET GO OF!

"Aang could still love Katara, he just needed to stop to put her on a pestal!" He never put her on a pedestal. He knew she was flawed and would openly disagree and even argue with her at times. Cherishing someone is not the same as idealizing them.

"Book three was... bad, and so was the finale" No, it wasn't. It had it's issues and it is the weakest season, but it is still good. Most of the problems were caused by poor pacing due to them sticking to three seasons instead of four. Aang's feelings for Katara were not a problem to be fixed, because the "entitlement" you complain about doesn't exist.

"Aang is a self-insert of Bryke" Bryan and Mike have repeatedly said that they're like Aang AND ZUKO, in the sense that one is goofy and the other is grumpy. By that logic, Zuko is also a self-insert, therefore shipping him with Katara would also be "bad."

"They act like Zuko is a bad boy instead of a dork" Zuko is a dork with social anxiety, who spent two and half seasons SUPPORTING GENOCIDE. "Bad boy" doesn't even BEGIN to describe him.

"No normal 14-year-old girl would date a 12-year-old and if she did call the police on her ass!" Go touch grass, you're insane, two children having feelings for each other is not pedophilia.

"Avatar was only amazing because of writers like Aaron Ehasz" Ehasz himself disagrees with you, and a lot of the "good changes" you made were decided by/along with Bryke.

"A lot of writer wanted also Zutara to happen and not Kataang" Ah, I see you DID read that fake interview. The writers were all on board with Kataang, even though some of them did like Zutara AS WELL. They're not mutually exclusive, you know?

"If I remember right season 3 was so rushed and lacking because the movie-who-shall-not-be-named was in production" You're remembering made up bullshit just right. Fans keep repeating that, and even I once wrongfully believed that in the past, but it's not true. The movie was going to happen regardless of when the show ended, and Bryke genuinely only wanted three seasons instead of four. Bad idea? Yes, but nothing to do with Shyamalan.

"Aang would find other airbenders" If that's true, I'm glad it was scrapped, THE LAST AIRBENDER needs to be THE LAST AIRBENDER for the show's premise and name to make any sense. Korra was also heavily criticized for a later seasons plot point of random people just magically becoming airbenders because it cheapens the gravity of the genocide by going "Lol, fooled ya! They're still running around!"

"Broodmare to repopulate" Three children is not exactly repopulating a nation, you should have paid more attention in math class.

"I'm a big fan of the theoretical season four" You being a fan of a thing that doesn't exist is surely on brand for a zutarian.

"Also, people who make fun of their own fans because they ship a pairing themselves not like are the worst!" Scream the zutarian that is doing exactly that. If you can complain about ships and call people creeps for it, you can take people pointing out your ship is just a figment of your imagination. Either suck it up or change your behavior so you're no longer a hypocrite.

[swashbucklery]

Out of curiosity why do you ship sabine and shin ?

Okay anon so I am trying to figure out how to approach this ask because I know that this fandom has a real problem with bad-faith actors looking to troll Wolfwren shippers and I do not have the patience to deal with that, but also I do want to talk about them because they're lovely.

So. If you are asking because you're a troll, the answer is that I'm a big mean lesbian who likes ruining Star Wars and gets off on making innocent fanboys cry, #sorrynotsorry, it's part of my Terrible Queer Ruining Agenda and I am going to be doing it every second Tuesday until society as you know it has crumbled into gay dust.

If you're not a troll: because they hit this very particular combination of Trope Buttons that makes me ever so happy, anon!

Because it's about - like, there are ships that I love because they are a type of loving partnership that entrances me, where I see myself or see the type of love that speaks to my soul and want to enjoy the process of rolling around in it like a cat in nip. Then there are ships that I love because I'm attached to a particular character where like - this blorbo deserves the world and that includes a healing love, a warm love, a love that cultivates a space for them to rest after the harsh world around them has bruised them ever so.

THEN there are ships where - the dynamic fascinates me and I want to dig deeper into it. Where it's not about cultivating love as much as it is taking what's on screen to its gayest and most extreme possible endpoint, and that's where Sabine/Shin really gets me.

It's about the deep obsession of nemeses and the way that can feel inherently queer. It's about the ways that they are both mirrors and opposites. The way that Sabine carries so much anger and self-loathing and shame and guilt in her little heart and constantly pretends that she doesn't. The way that limits her throughout the series is riveting to me.

It's the idea of Shin, who in may ways is a more successful Jedi but in other ways is a sad, lonely little weirdo who has no community except for this weird old man and pretends that she's fine with it but can't be.

The way that they are both successes and failures in ways that mirror each other, the way that they orbit each other as nemeses and fight constantly but in their darkest moments have a weird little glimmer of - not love, but the beginnings of compassion.

And I have seen lots of writers and artists who look at that glimmer and see it as the beginning of a 200k slowburn story where they bicker and argue and slowly tenderize each other into being people who can be vulnerable, who learn to soften their prickly edges to fit around each other. And that's wonderful, and that's a beautiful way to ship Sabine & Shin.

For me, it's more about digging into that weird, fucked up little place of what if they didn't. What if they stayed fucked up and didn't soften but those orbits got closer and closer together. What if it wasn't toweringly romantic what if the orbit was the path of a comet colliding with a moon. What if that was somehow what each of them needed even though they both hated needing it. What does it feel like to confront the fact that sometimes our desires and what we want our desires to be don't align? What would it be like to envelop that in the complex ten-dimensional web of denial that both of them embody; desiring but pretending not to desire, indulging but pretending not to indulge. How far could that go before it hit a crisis point? What would that crisis point be?

There are so many stories there and that's fascinating and a thing that I find fun to explore in fiction, anon. If that's not for you, that's totally alright but there might be other dimensions that I described above where they ping with your interests more.

Or, they might just not be for you, and that's also okay.

[kitthepurplepotato]

Deal, you brat!

Ship: Aizawa x Reader / minor Shinsou x Kaminari

Warning! MHA season 6 spoilers!

Basic info & Summary:

Summary: You’re asked into the office for the hundredth time by Aizawa; your niece Megumi absolutely loves to get in trouble and to be honest, you don’t really mind seeing her grumpy teacher twice every month.

The problems start when Megumi decides to make an embarrassing deal with the teacher and turn your whole world upside down…

Genre: Romantic comedy with a deep backstory…? Does that count as a genre?! It’s also a mature story (but not for the sexual content - if that’s what you are looking for I’m sorry, there is none.)

Estimated chapters: 5 or 6 chapters!

About the reader: Reader is 29 years old who’s been taking care of her neglected niece since she was 6 years old. (She’s around 14 now, 1 year younger than Kaminari and the gang). She’s really childish in some ways and really serious in others so she’s quite a good match for the grumpy teacher.

Other info: Aizawa officially adopted Eri and Shinsou Hitoshi in this AU!

General warnings: Swear words, talking about child neglect and one mention of child abuse. A lot of parenting-talk. Might get a bit suggestive by the end.

16+, younger people might find the theme boring. :D

Enjoy my nonsense.

Also, English is not my first language so don’t be too mean, I’m a sensitive potato. 🥔

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Chapter 1 - A deal with the sensei!

“What did she do this time?” You sigh, sitting in the comfortable chair in Aizawa-Sensei’s office.

“The usual. One of the kids tried to bully her. Again.” Aizawa sighs, clearly uncomfortable. “I really wanted to sack that guy, but apparently we need as many heroes as we can train, so I couldn’t.”

You are way too familiar with this whole situation already, so none of you really try to sugarcoat it anymore. It’s tiring, but at the same time… well… Aizawa-sensei is an interesting guy and also not bad to look at, even with one eye and half of his leg missing. Do you have a crush on your niece’s teacher? Probably. Certainly. Fuck, you are a terrible parent.

“Megumi-chan can defend herself. You worry too much.” You grin at the hero, clearly missing the point of this meeting.

“I would prefer her not to set fire to his bully’s hair though. This is why we are here. Again. I feel like I see you more than I see my friends.” Aizawa sighs again, the dark circles under his eyes even more prominent than the last time. “Where are her parents, Y/N?”

“They don’t care.” You retort curtly.

It’s true. Megumi might have both of her parents, but they certainly ain’t doing their job.

Megumi’s mother is your older sister. After seeing the young girl being neglected at home, you decided to take her in and cut your ties with your whole family afterwards; you’ve always been the black sheep of the family anyway, neglected then abandoned after your 18th birthday. You were an accident and they did treat you as one through your whole life. Your “perfect” older sister has asked you to babysit her child three times a week, giving you enough money to keep yourself alive but after seeing the damage in the young girl’s eyes and the lack of love an affection in the family you couldn’t do it anymore; one day, when your sister came home drunk, almost hitting the 6 year old child for crying you decided to take the girl with you and start a new life with her. You got a proper job and an apartment with a second bedroom for her. She’s now 14, almost 15, beautiful but dangerous; you did your best to teach her how to defend herself and to never let anyone talk shit about her because she’s amazing; she’s the most precious thing in your life. It was really hard at the beginning, especially as you could never get enough money or have the right circumstances to actually adopt her so technically you are not even her guardian and you could barely make it until the end of the month in the first few years, but things are looking better now; hopefully, as her 15th birthday present you can ask her to sigh the last piece of paperwork so she can finally be free from her stupid “mother” who probably doesn’t even know or care where her child is living but still manages to make her mad once a year on her birthday, calling her just to tell her what a disappointment she is.

Ahh, it’s a long story. Let’s not even think about it.

“Are you her closest family member, blood or not?” Aizawa asks, sensing the tension in the air.

“Yes.”

“Then I won’t ask this question again.” He ends the topic without saying anything else and you are so fucking grateful you want to kiss his face.

… that was an inappropriate thought, wasn’t it?

“I’ll sit down with her today. I might find these stories hilarious but I do know this needs to stop. Thank you for your concern. Also, thank you for your time.” You are just about to leave when Aizawa-sensei cleans his throat to get your attention.

“I actually thought it will be a great idea to sit down with her together.” He mumbles and looks at the door. “Come in, you menace!”

There is giggle coming from the other side of the door then it opens; Megumi dances in and sits in your chair, her brand new nose piercing still red around the jewellery. Aizawa doesn’t comment on it; you already had a chat about that last week. You pull another chair next to her, ready to be told off for the 15th time since Megumi has enrolled in UA.

“Aizawa-sensei, you look as fresh as always, I can’t believe you are SINGLE.” Megumi grins at her homeroom teacher while she empathizes the last word. This fucking kid…

“Megumi, you can’t say shit like that to your teacher!” You yell, but your words are met with nothing but giggles. Fuck’s sake.

“Language, Auntie!” Megumi grins again, and you can hear an almost silent snort coming from the other side; Aizawa quickly schools his expression, looking as bored as always, but you did hear it; he fucking laughed at you! How embarrassing!

“Okay, let’s calm down.” Megumi and you go silent at the same time while you stare at the teacher like you are about to get sentenced to death; Megumi is chill as always, knowing she’ll get away with anything. You really have no idea how did she end up like this but you are a little bit jealous. “So us asking you to behave is clearly not working. Your poor Auntie had to come in 15 times already, and I’m quite sure she’s already bored of seeing me so much.”

“I’m really not.” You mumble out loud, slapping your palm on your mouth. Can the ground open up now? Please?

“She’s really not.” Megumi speaks at the same time, making the situation even worse. Okay, now you are ready to be swallowed by the ground for real.

“… okay. Thank you for enjoying my company.” Aizawa says with a straight face but there is a slight blush decorating his face… GODDAMNIT THIS ISN’T THE RIGHT TIME FOR THE BUTTERFLIES! This is your niece’s teacher! “So what can we do for you to stop acting like this? New class, maybe? You are one of the best students in the school, I might even be able to get you into 2A, if that’s something you want. I can ask Bakugou-kun to help you get ready for the exams.”

Wow, you knew Megumi is the top of her class, but hearing this from her sensei really makes you proud.

“Please, anything but Blasty!” For your surprise, Megumi actually looks terrified; you can’t help but giggle at that.

“Megumi, Bakugou is one of the greatest up-and-coming heroes the word has ever seen, please refrain from calling him ‘Blasty’.”

“Yes, I know, I should respect him as he is the savior of the broken, the beaten and the damned.” Megumi rolls her eyes so you give her a friendly slap on the head.

“Stop quoting My Chemical Romance in my office.” Aizawa sighs, clearly done with this conversation already. “And yes, I know the band. So how can we help you?” Aizawa repeats, faking nonchalance but you can see the slight twitch in his one eye.

“Hm.” Megumi makes a thinking face, her black nails slowly tapping on her thighs. “I want you to take my Auntie out for a date and then I can stop doing random shit to get her in here.”

You almost choke on your saliva. She didn’t just say that, did she?!

“What the actual fuck, Megumi?!” You yell with your face red as a ripe tomato.

“Language.” Aizawa mumbles but you can’t even be bothered to say sorry right now.

“What, you are almost 30 years old and you haven’t had a single boyfriend since you took me from my shitty family! I’m just trying to help!”

“Megumi, I love you, but that’s none of your business and it’s also inappropriate!”

“Y/N is right, it is really inappropriate. But if I can stop having these awkward conversations two times a month, I’m more than happy to spend an afternoon with your Auntie in a friendly manner.” Aizawa mumbles, looking at Megumi with a serious face. “But if I do and you don’t stop being a menace, I will make sure no hero takes you under their wings and you’ll be the looser cleaning the classrooms while your classmates are out in the wild learning to fight actual criminals. And when they bully you for that, I won’t do shit about it. Deal?”

What about you?! No one wants to ask you if you are okay with this?! Is it that obvious that you are?!

Ahh, it’s probably obvious, isn’t it. Goddamnit.

“Deal.” Megumi grins in pure victory while you try your best to hide your flaming face with your arms. Megumi stands up and leaves, not even waiting to be dismissed while you stare at the hero with an incredulous look on your face.

“One coffee. I know what I’m doing.” Aizawa says, a little bit offended. “We will send her a selfie and we won’t need to see each other until next semester. I think it’s a bargain.” He finishes his sentence calmly, like this is a normal thing. What’s wrong with everyone around you? “Let’s meet tomorrow at 10 in front of UA. You are dismissed.”

This is ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous.

“Okay.” You say anyway and leave as quick as you can; you can’t wait to be at home and give Megumi the talk of her fucking life after this.

You are going on a fucking date with your niece’s absolutely gorgeous home teacher tomorrow. It’s probably not an actual date but that doesn’t mean you don’t feel like a high school girl going on her first date; and honestly, it has been more than 10 years that you’ve actually been on one so it’s not even that far from the truth.

You really want to throw up right now.

…Next Chapter!

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Potato ramble:

- Well, hello there and welcome in this super fluffy story about Aizawa falling in love. I’m not sure how often I’ll post but as I have the full thing written down except the last chapter, it will probably be frequent enough for it to not be annoying.

- In the next chapter, we go on a date with the grumpy teacher and we meet Eri and Hitoshi! It’s my personal favorite chapter, I can’t wait to post it! The next chapters will be longer than this!

- So technically the reader shouldn’t be allowed to act as a guardian without the right paperwork or to have Megumi live with her, but let’s ignore that bit. Every country has their own laws and in my head, the MHA world is quite open to circumstances like this. This is a fanfiction anyway, I don’t know why am I so stressed about small details like this but I am. 😂

- Want to be on the taglist? Just send me a comment, a message or an ask!

[billerak]

Bumble that Bee or something idk

I recently finished RWBY (catching up after years leaving it aside) and I have thoughts and feelings and, as I am me, a lot of those are about the canonical WLW couple (sans the secondary wives in V6). So I put my thoughts into a rant. It's not as negative as the word 'rant' would have you believe but I don't wanna call it an essay or whatever. It's still pretty negative tho, so be warned. Anyways on with it:

RWBY is a mess.

Sometimes, it's a wonderful mess. Others, it's a terrible one.

I could spend a few paragraphs explaining what I mean, but I think anyone who watches RWBY with a critical eye knows what I'm getting at. Love RWBY, hate RWBY, just don't try to tell me it's good.

So, once that's established, let's get to the meat of this rant: Bumblebee.

Or should I say Fumblebee? Eh? EH?

Alright you can stop reading, have a good day.

Let me start by making a sharing something about myself: I'm Agender and Bi/Pan. I make a living out of writing yuri/gl/wlw or however you wanna call it. I watch entire seasonal fucking anime on the off chance it may be yuri and most of the time I hate myself for it by the end because they never fucking deliver.

All of this is to say, I like the concept of Bumblebee, the problem is it was treated like shit.

In this rant or whatever the fuck I should call it, I'm just going to talk about the things this ship makes me feel. As established I make a living out of writing romances like the one this show tried to depict—and in case you're wondering, I have written slowburns so slow the first romantic interactions between characters didn't happen until 300k words into a fic. I did it twice, fyi—so I believe I have fair grounds to judge this.

So let's tackle this from the beginning. Was it planned from the start?

No, I don't take the writers word for it. It's painfully apparent it's not the case. I'm fairly certain BlackSun was gonna be a thing until they decided to write him out of the story in V6. Or perhaps they decided on Bumblebee and so they wrote him out of the story. Either way, everything prior to V6 I call into question.

Sure, Blake and Yang have their moments. But it's important to point out they're not romantically coded. RWBY isn't subtle about romance, and it starts pulling the same sort of obvious romantic tropes as all the het stuff going on in the show for Bumblebee going into V7. Prior to that? Nothing. Not a single blush or any explicit show of romantic attraction.

And before any disingenuous bastard tries to say something like "oh but blushes aren't always romantic" or "no you don't need blushes to show romantic attraction" allow me to say you are fucking wrong. Blushing is the universal language for embarrassment or love related things. And RWBY uses this shit all the time. INCLUDING Bumblebee past V7.

So yeah, while the writers probably did draw from previous material—and I think the VA's shipped them since the start?—I do not believe this ship was planned from the beginning.

But that's ok! I don't think it's a huge issue, really. Sure I'd have liked to see actual development but I don't need it to work retroactively if it makes sense from the moment they decide to go for it. So, 3 volumes and a half of development. Lots of time to put in the work, add the details, and-

Oh, no. Wait. They spend most of V8 separated. Hmm. K' so, 2 volumes and a half-

Wait. Oh. Oh they… they really have that little screentime together in V6, huh. Wow. Just. Huh.

Ok, the Adam fight is good. It's a strong setup! After fighting and making up for what Blake did after the Fall of Beacon, they finally come together to beat the demon that drew them apart in the first place. They hold each other close after beating him and it's good and I'm gonna say this is when they both actually fall for each other. We can argue about budding feelings or whatever, but I mean this is the moment they become aware of it one way or another.

So Volume 7 has them kinda being together? Honestly, they act like a new couple. Which is weird in retrospect. I think revealing they'd started dating after V6 would have made more sense than, uh... pretending this was a slowburn? Through V7 they stick to each other and fight in perfect synch and blush and all of that romantic stuff. It feels like… well, like they're kind of already an item but the show has other shit to worry about atm.

Then v8 is amazing really. Split the characters over an honestly kind of nonsensical ideological split, keep them apart most of the season, make Yang to be kiiind of an asshole in that one conversation with Kyle (<- my name for the post-v7 Generic McGenericus haircut Jaune. Yes this unironical, the friend I ranted to about this while watching the show can confirm).

To add insult to injury, the split doesn't even accomplish anything for the ship. The only two characters that get development out of being apart are Ren and Nora. These characters were CLEARLY in love last season why are they not having appropriate amounts of angst over this? Like, at this point we're not arguing whether they were planning on making Bumblebee canon or not, the point is asking why it feels like they weren't trying.

And then, Volume 9. For some context, I like V9. I think I'm in a minority, at least in the places I frequent about this stuff. Always comes with the caveat of 'it's still RWBY', of course, but I appreciate it. After the initial whiplash, I think making a fairy-tale season for a show that was born out of the concept of "what if Red Riding Hood had a sick scythe and used it to mow down hundreds of bad wolves" is actually a really fucking good idea.

That being said, the way they do Bumblebee is really strange.

They're basically back to their V7 selves. It feels like they're either already dating or on the verge of dating. I need to stress just how comfortable they seem to be around each other with the sole exception of that one time Blake didn't grab Yang's hand, but it didn't feel particularly awkward.

Then BOOM mind storm thing and while Ruby, Weiss and Jaune talk about like, actual issues, Jaune implies Blake and Yang had 'something more important to deal with'. And that something is RWBY's version of the room you can't leave unless you have sex.

Sans the sex I guess.

In the void, I think the scene(s?) is good. It's nice, the music is evocative, it's well framed and paced. In another story, it would really have been a perfect climax for a budding relationship.

The problem is this is not another story. These two have NOT seemed like two people awkwardly in love too scared to tell it to each other. In fact, it kinda felt like the exact opposite. If they kissed at the end of any episode for any reason, at this point, it would've felt correct. A simple quiet stare while sitting close and them just finally leaning in to take that final step would've been just as good if not better.

The bridge thing? It's the climax to an arc that didn't happen. Relationships don't need to be slowburns for me to like them, but if you're gonna pretend you were making a slowburn, at least do it right. Why did they need the bridge thing to finally get together? Come on! There was plenty of opportunity during V9 prior to this episode to at least make a show of them being awkward. Make it clear they were finally on the verge but were holding back on the final step. Make it actually cause some conflict, preferably between them as their fear grows into uncertainty and doubts.

Then the bridge would've felt cathartic. Force them to resolve said conflict, and the only way to do it is through admitting their feelings. Sure, it would've still been few episodes, but fuck man I'm sure they could've scraped a few minutes here and there to make it somewhat competent.

I like Bumblebee as a concept. I think the avid fans of this ship look at the concept, not at what the show did, and say "this is canon" and run with it. I don't blame anyone who is a big fan of this ship but… I just can't like it in its current state. I'm sure there's fanfics that fix it, I may give some a read.

Hell, just compare Bumblebee's development to Renora. Those guys have been kind of obviously in love from second one and Nora's entire character being focused on Ren was made into an actual plot point by the end.

Anyways that's about it for bumblebee. Here's some extra thoughts on shipping in RWBY in general.

If we look at the earlier seasons, I honestly think you'd have a stronger argument to make for White Rose being a couple. If we look at the later seasons, Nuts n' Dolts has a stronger impact. I already mentioned it but Blake/Sun had obviously a thing going on that didn't pan out. I hope chameleon girl whose name I don't remember gets a gf at some point tho.

I pray to fucking god they're not building up fucking Oscar and Ruby cuz they had a few awkward scenes here and there and they make me feel wrong in all sorts of ways.

Given how little interaction Ruby and Weiss have had despite how much time they've supposedly spent together, I think the writers are making an active effort to discourage White Rose. I'm not gonna get into the author's self insert being a love interest for Weiss at one point but let's just say the writers seem invested in making extra-sure Weiss stays het. I've made my peace with that. And Penny is fucking dead again so Nuts n' Dolts is a no go (canonically I mean I may read a fanfic or two about them they're very cute).

If they're gonna give Ruby a relationship by the end (which I kinda hope they don't at this point), I think it should be Kyle. They've had nice moments together and seriously shipping Oscar with Ruby just feels fucking weird. Like I assume Ozma's gonna be fucking gone from Oscar's body by the end of this story but even then idk that guy had a centuries old man is his head, it's fucked up.

Anyways that's enough. Why did you read to the end? Thanks for reading anyways.

[uranometrias]

Heyyyy!! I just read your “goodbye love you flew right by” it was absolutely AMAZING!! It was so heartbreaking and wonderful!!! I am an avid hater of that Jeid scene where she confesses her “love” because to it was so lazy on the writers end and a pretty stupid secret to me because nothing can be done and it’s just so silly for her to come up w that especially when we’ve seen how much she loves Will and the boys, but your fic made it sooo yummy and angsty and romantic !!

Loved the triangle aspect of them dating and JJ being their best friend. I also loved the argument outside afterwards 💋🤌🏻 it was so incredibly well written! chefs kiss 10/10

if you are writing a part 2 for this i can NOT WAIT 😍🫶

hi… first of all thank you so much! 😭🤭 would you believe i got inspired for that fic while i was sleep deprived … i have never been a jeid shipper… when i was younger (aka a 17 year old with an unhealthy attachment to spencer reid lol) i despised them so terribly, but i think now (especially during my latest rewatch) i have grown to appreciate jeid . i don’t ship them, but i do think they made a point to have jj be an anchor for spencer in certain ways && i think in certain instances he was an anchor for jj as well.

all that to say… I do not think they should’ve made it a plot line one season shy of the end of the show… it felt very out of place… at least to me. i read this character analysis that basically said the storyline fit better for hotchniss rather than jeid && i agree, but ofc with so many of the originals being displaced by that point in the series... it sort of made sense that they'd go that route when they had no one else to turn to... but that doesn't mean it wasn't such a lazy left field sort of thing. i feel like the writers overestimated themselves & what they'd established for jj & spencer. jj definitely COULD have become attracted / grown to love spencer... but i would never say she felt that he was her "first love"... it just- agh anyways.

i also think casey's reaction validates your feelings. that secret was not all that lol. it didn't have any real pushback or point because the only people that really knew were jj & spencer... it didn't do much narratively, it didn't change their motivations... it didn't strengthen their bond or anything of the sort... it mostly just gave matthew + aj the room to be able to flirt with one another (which is fine lol) but i agree it's always been a pet peeve of mine...

i think what was most important with writing that piece was that i wanted to move away from the narrative that jj was some monster... it was a really stupid thing to say LOL, but she's not some horrible woman, because she fell for her best friend. which was why she was so clearly guilty... i don't care much for the villanization of her .

all that to say.... i honestly felt like that was a weak plot... it became so overdone (writing the jeid confession with spencer in a relationship) but i have been so excited + relieved to see all the love and people that enjoy the route that i went. this message is so incredibly sweet & i am so appreciative of you taking the time to check out my work !! i am definitely planning a part 2 , i can't wait to share it with you all.

[spaceorphan18]

The Lady Whistledown Papers : 1x2 - Shock and Delight (Part 2)

Hi! Welcome back to The Lady Whistledown Papers, where I’m taking an in-depth look at Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton’s character arcs and romance within the show Bridgerton!

For previous issues, follow tag : The Lady Whistledown Papers

In Part Two I will be doing a deep dive analysis on the structural arc of Daphne and Simon's Courtship No, I'm kidding, but unfortunately, I won't be talking about a whole lot of Pen or Colin either.... At least lack of screen time gets us to better things quicker ;)

Cake

Okay, so we pick up with Penelope bringing Marina a few treats - because Marina is staying home due to her 'condition'. And here's my thing... Penelope is so happy to be coming to see Marina. Even after Colin has been courting her a little, Penelope is fine with Marina. And this is the one unfortunate side effect of this whole plot line, because I think Penelope and Marina could have been friends.

Marina is generally nice to Penelope -- I'm assuming that she hasn't made fun of Penelope, hasn't made snide little comments, and has noticed Pen as an actual person, and it seems as no one other than Eloise and Colin has done this for Penelope. Plus, she's someone new and someone who isn't seemingly a terrible person, so of course Pen is excited to sneak up to see her.

Plus -- all of the pregnancy stuff is terrible exciting for her. Not because of the Lady Whistledown, gossip of it all -- no, because stuff like this doesn't happen in her world. And she's incredibly curious about all of it. She wants to know to understand her world better. And Marina offers her a view of the outside world that she never gets to see.

So, we learn that Marina will be sticking around and Penelope takes a moment to inquire how the pregnancy happened - since clearly she and Eloise still haven't found anyone to give them answers. (I wonder why they didn't go find a servant and ask them, anyway, I digress...)

Marina, amused, answers that cake is the reason for her condition.

And I love how Penelope is so confused... and hesitant about eating the piece of cake in her hand. But I mean, girl... my dear, sweet, summer child Penelope, listen up because cake is gonna be how you end up pregnant, too ;)

*ah-hem* I'm sorry, what was I saying? Oh, right back to Season 1...

So we get a really long boring explanation that Marina fell in love with a dude named George Crane and they fucked around and found out and then George Crane went to fight in the army and Marina was shipped off to be with her unimaginably mean spirited cousins.

And, look, I may not be into this story but Penelope totally is. Because it's a love story. It's about two people just finding their way, and doing sweet, little things for each other, and just falling in love with each other. And Penelope is eating this right up. This girl has the biggest, most romantic soul, and it's endearing to her on every level.

Marina reveals that she and George have been writing, and Penelope is both scandalized and titillated. And I mean, unmarried men and women who were not related to each other weren't really supposed to be writing letters -- let alone love letters -- to each other. This is a BIG FUCKING DEAL, and Penelope just loves it. But I mean, it also speaks to her -- it speaks to her as a writer, and a romantic, and this idea that two people fall in more in love through writing is just... something that's going to be a part of her own story, so this is a very meaningful thing, here.

The last beat of this is a little funny to me, because even though Pen is so invested in this love story, Marina is still being vague, so Pen asks straight up -- how did you get pregnant? And Marina just simply replies... love. And I mean, it's an incredibly sweet moment -- and I love that it's punctuated by Penelope holding a letter -- because, again, the written word will be so powerful in her story but also...

She's just dumbfounded because -- love? Love got you pregnant? Thanks, Marina, I was hoping for a mechanical break down of how that works, because no one will actually give me details on that, but I suppose a metaphor will work...

Meanwhile...

Wondering what Colin is up to? Not a whole lot, hanging out with his mother and brother, being very good at not really being in this scene. BUT I'M TRYING TO BE THOROUGH!

Picnic

No, okay, but here's my thing. We have this whole picnic thing going on the Bridgertons and the Featheringtons are around. And the Bridgerton siblings are all kind of playing around, and honestly, I love this little moment of them all playing this hoop game. I mean, Anthony is there, sure. But I think it's important showing Colin fooling around with Gregory and Hyacinth in this game -- it kind of a nice visual reminder of how young Colin is. And a nice complement to the next scene where Pen asks if she can go 'play' with Eloise.

And, I mean, I love this moment. Penelope and Eloise have been 'playing' for a long time, and it's another reminder that Penelope is also incredibly young here. She may have been pushed out into the world sooner than she wanted to, but she is still childish at heart, too.

And, as an aside I should note -- Nicola Coughlan was 32 when she filmed this. 32!! And she makes Penelope seem so, so, so young. Coughlan also has talked about how she used a much higher voice when doing Season 1 Penelope to help give the illusion that Penelope is still a young girl. It's such a cool acting choice. I'm glad Coughlan is really beginning to get the recognition she deserves.

Penelope fills Eloise in on the gossip that 'love' was what got Marina pregnant, and they are both still confused. I kind of love that Penelope is more so confused because her own mother had three children and clearly that didn't happen because her parents' loved each other. I mean, it's wise of Penelope to acknowledge that, but also kind of sad, too. It's one reason she gravitates towards the Bridgertons so hard - their family love is something she doesn't have.

Eloise wants to know if the 'maid' is frightened, but Penelope lights up because she is caught up in the love story of it all. Marina has told her she's going to run away to the country side and get married. To Penelope, this is the best possible outcome -- a woman finding love and starting her family based out of that love. I'm sure it's happened in the books she loves to read, and getting a front seat to it all is even more exciting.

Eloise, of course, does not share her view, and we get another instance of the two of them not being on the same page. Eloise exclaims that it's terrible and frightening that this is all happening -- because marriage is the worst option. It means succumbing to the will of man and society yet again, and Eloise just cannot have it.

There's a little moment towards the end where Eloise is slightly forceful with Penelope -- in a way where Eloise is trying to shake the silly love story out of Penelope's head and remind her what's actually at stake -- the poor 'maid's freedom. And I can only imagine that Eloise has spent a good amount of time reminding Penelope that she shouldn't want to be married and that the two of them are going to go off being great, single dames with many adventures.

(But also - as an aside - one reason Eloise is so afraid is that she still remembers her mother going into labor after her father died, and that has made a profound impact on her. She doesn't want to go through that nightmare herself. It's just something I wanted to note, because Eloise is a pretty complex and interesting character, even if I'm only tangentially hitting on her character in these posts.)

Back at the Bridgerton camp, Lord Berbrooke is causing a stir as he's trying to stake a claim on Daphne.

And I mean, the thing about Colin in the background is that he's taking this all very seriously. Berbrooke is scandalizing his sister and making a mockery of the Bridgerton name and Colin really isn't about to let anyone do either of those things. But, this isn't his story, and Anthony is handling it so he's just on guard and waiting...

I also think it's kind of funny that Lady Whistledown was named checked during this scene. Whatever would happen if she knew what was going on?? Meanwhile, Lady Whistledown is busy asking her mother if she could go play with her bff and trying to figure out how babies are made. The fact that LW carries so much weight already and yet, Penelope really doesn't know what power she has yet.

Gossip

The next sequence I actually really like. It's been hammered into us these first couple of episodes how little power that women have. So, since they can't go duel people, they can do what they do best -- talk. And talk they do. And the gossip is spread about how Berbrooke got a maid pregnant and sent her off to the country side and the rumors start to swirl.

It's very intentional that they showed a clip of Varley, Portia's hand maid (and right hand man) getting the news. Because this is undoubtedly how Penelope finds out about it.

But here's the thing. Here's the thing I really, really, really want to stress. You know what saves Daphne from having to marry this asshat? You know what stops Anthony from having to punch the dude or Simon from taking measures into his hands or something much worse happening? Lady Whistledown. Lady. Fucking. Whistledown.

Penelope, when it comes down to it, always protects the Bridgertons. Always. She may make some questionable choices at times, and may not always be kind to them in her writing, but she will always protect them when she can. She may not know or fully understand her full power, but it's no doubt that the Queen will eventually think it's a Bridgerton writing it -- because they are always, ultimately, shielded in column.

And I mean, look at the look in her eyes as she watches her mother gossip with other women. Look at her pretending to read what she, herself, has written. She knows the gossip is working. And she delights that her own handiwork is at play.

It's a great little moment in an otherwise brilliant sequence.

However... that's all we get in this episode. Stay tuned for Episode 3 where... even less happens! :D Thanks for reading! :)

[queen-rhaenyras]

Rating Bg3 Ships with the origin companions

Warning: Opinions that may differ from your own. I rated the companions, now it's time to rate the ships.

#1 Lae'Zel/Shadowheart: I'm not into enemies to lovers that much, but I make exceptions for women. Love this ship so much. Also both realizing their goddesses are terrible ad helping each other through that. I love them. They are my fav bg3 ship. Like my lesbian heart can't handle how much I adore them.

#2 Shadowheart/Gale: I love this ship so much it hurts. I played Gale's origin to romance Shadowheart and it was beautiful. (Also the nerd and the goth girl? Adorable). They are perfect together in so many ways. I saw someone else say if Shadowheart was a man, people would love this ship because they compliment each other so well. They are everything people think Astarion/Gale are. Also they both have issues with their goddesses and can never really escape them. Only they can understand that and it would bring them so much closer. Also their cozy good endings in the epilogue! I can see them fitting in perfectly with each other's good ending.

#3 Wyll/Astarion: True foils. Monster/Monster hunter. I'm obsessed with this pairing. If Wyll was a white man, this would be the most popular m/m ship in bg3. Please repeat that last sentence slowly, because I can't say it enough. I don't even like Astarion as a character all that much, but I love this ship a lot. Also Astarion has a crush on Wyll. Why are we denying him his crush? Let's be so for real about this one.

#4 Wyll/Karlach: The fact that Wyll can go with Karlach in the end? Their return in the epilogue and how they speak of each other? It's so cute. I love them together. Another example of enemies to lovers that I actually enjoy because they don't hate each other. As soon as Wyll realizes she's not who he thought she was, they develop a mutual respect for each other. I love that dynamic so much.

#5 Shadowheart/Karlach: Shadowheart's comment about Karlach picking her up and carrying her over her shoulder to safety sold this ship for me. It's cute and f/f so you know I love it.

#6 Gale/Lae'Zel: Also have shared goddess issues. Gale learns Lae'Zel's language if you play his origin to romance her. I haven't done it yet, but omg that's so cute. He also calls her a term of endearment in her language? I'm going to have to play as Gale to romance her asap. Obsessed with the idea of these two together.

#7 Karlach/Astarion: This is a pretty popular ship and It's a popular ship I can get behind. I do like these two together and I think they compliment each other well.

#8 Lae'Zel/Karlach: I mean. It's f/f so I'm a little biased, but I can see the potential. I don't hate it at all. I saw someone who romanced them with each other and they said it was surprisingly sweet.

#9 Gale/Karlach: I can see how it's cute, but I just don't see them together romantically. I do love the idea of them being besties. Karlach's reaction if Orin takes Gale!? When she says, "MY wizard." and the way she wants to cheer him up after Elminster tells him about Mystra's plan for him is precious. So I understand if someone ships them. Maybe if I romance one of them with the other I'll change my mind.

#10 Shadowheart/Wyll: I do not see any chemistry, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. I don't mind this ship. It doesn't bother me at all and if there is anyone out there that ships it, good for you. Hope it brings you joy. It's definitely an unproblematic ship.

#11 Gale/Wyll: This is boring I'm sorry. I love both of these men so much, but together? Not so much. But I don't HATE it. It's just not my cup of tea. If you enjoy it though, that's perfectly fine. Like the above ship, it's unproblematic and I understand why someone would like it.

#12 Wyll/Lae'Zel, Lae'Zel/Astarion, Shadowheart/Astarion: Meh. I don't hate them, but I don't love them. I don't really have an opinion about them to be honest which is why I threw them all together.

#13 Gale/Astarion: My most controversial opinion yet because this is such a popular ship. But these two feel so FORCED. If they weren't two white men, they wouldn't be as popular. Let these two dislike each other for the sake of disliking each other. Astarion's dislike of Gale is not cute and it's not enemies to lovers. Also Astarion's reaction when Gale is taken by Orin gives me the ick. He's awful to him. I don't want him touching my favorite wizard with a ten foot pole. Gale deserves way better. Also I relate to Gale more than any other character, and Astarion irritates me as a character and I low-key feel like Astarion would irritate Gale too. In fact, I'm pretty sure he does. I had Gale kick Astarion out of camp after he tried to bite him during my Gale origin run and it was so on brand for Gale. It just felt right. Sorry if you ship this. This is not me saying people shouldn't ship it. Ship what you want if it brings you joy. But I wish people would stop acting like these two are MADE for each other, because that is such a red flag to me.

[mischiefprincess]

Being on lokius tt was fun for some time

So, when Loki s2 came out I was hanging out w some lokius shippers bc I thought some of them had some cool analysis about the show and about Loki as a character, however as time passes I realize they're getting more and more lost in their own interpretations and their own headcanons that they consider to be canon at this point, I'm being honest, I have nothing against lokius but let's face reality: they're just not happening, it'll never be canon and that's okay, the timing for Loki to find a romantic partner is gone, if it was going to happen it had to be on his show bc I don't think marvel will use their avengers movies to focus on any romance between any characters, let alone lokius that it's not even a thing in canon lol

But the thing is, they seem really convinced that not only lokius is already canon (yeah, some of them are just like that) but they also think their reunion is a big thing that marvel is building up to, and i'm not saying Loki and Mobius will never see each other again but if they do it won't be this big thing they're expecting it to be, the brodinsons reunion is way more expected and I'm not even sure we'll get it lol

And i'm really not trying to be mean to lokius shippers but I feel they're going down the same path the sylkis went after s1, they got what they wanted from their ship (lokius not so much but still) and then they started to get more and more deep into their analysis and hcs and started to forget what's canon and what's not, when the next movies drop and Mobius doesn't show up in it and when Loki shows up and has a plot that has nothing to do with romance they'll lose it, they'll act just like the sylkis did with s2 and they'll say marvel ruined the greatest love story they ever made (lol), they'll say they don't care about Loki and Mobius separately and they just want them back if they get together in the end, they'll say marvel did a MASSIVE build up after s2 just to throw it all away as if it was nothing simply bc they are just too deep into their hcs and can't separate canon from fanon anymore and they'll say marvel ruined their lives and also ruined their only source of happiness ever, they're developing a toxic dependance on their ship and when things don't go the way they want they'll freak out and hell will break lose on their side of twitter

I really wish people would just interact normally with the stuff they consume, but it seems like everyone who likes a ship suddenly loses all senses and can only see things from the perspective of the ship and every little interaction between the two characters is read through the shipping lenses, it goes to a point where if Mobius doesn't lie to Loki about timeslipping being terrible is not because Mobius as a character just has no reason to lie to his friend at that point, not to mention he was trying to calm Loki down from his anxiety attack, ofc he wouldn't just say right to Loki's face how bad timeslipping really was at first, but no, Mobius didn't lie because they're on a point in their relationship where they simply can't lie to each other anymore bc their love is so strong and pure (lmao), it may sound like i'm nitpicking but really, it starts with these little things and slowly they start to live in their own bubble where everything must be analysed with the shipping glasses on and then the characters are reduced to being half of a ship and nothing more

Not to mention how they're placing all their bets on a tva spin-off that probably is just the comic they announced last week or so, again, I'm not trying to be mean but who the hell would watch a show about the tva and only the tva????????? What else is there to tell about them? They're going to show them working in their little cubicles and eating pie in the automat? If Kang was still the big bad I could see them expanding more on the tva but with him gone I don't think there's that much to explore about the tva anymore, I don't see them having that much protagonism in this saga and if they appear it will just be something small and in the background like Deadpool and Wolverine, watching them recruit heroes to fight the multiversal war seems pointless now that there won't be one (I know Doom will be a threat but I don't see him inheriting the multiversal saga plot from Kang, they'll give him his own thing imo) anyway, I think the tva is likely to stay irrelevant in this saga (and that doesn't mean that Loki will be irrelevant, some people think that somehow Loki depends on the tva to stay relevant but lol, just no) and if they appear it will just be something small but they're getting their hopes so high for this hipotetical spin-off that I fear how their reactions will be when they realize it's just not happening (but idk, marvel could announce it in d23 and surprise everyone, still, I doubt it)

All this to say that it really seems like shippers can't enjoy things normally, they have to make everything be about their ship (hipotetical or not) and they slowly loose grip on what's canon and what's fanon, they isolate themselves in their bubbles where they only get positive reinforcement thanks to their delusions and sooner than they realize they have a whole made up version of the characters and the show in their heads that doesn't align with what the show was in the first place, sadly the tendence is for them to only get worse and I really wish that wasn't the case but now they even seem to think that everyone involved in the making of s2 including Tom Hiddleston himself is a lokius shipper (???????????????????) And that lokius was confirmed canon in what they call the og s2 ep5 that was scrapped early in filming or so, the fact that they stalked the crew and their likes when s2 was airing only made them more certain of it, if Rafael Casal likes a post talking about Brad it's not bc he's happy they're talking about his character, no, is bc he endorses their view on the show and he's validating them and their interpretations, same thing as Eric Martin or some random editor that liked what people were talking about the episode he worked in, to them a like equals validation bc they desperately want to cling to any crumbs they can get of it

I'm not making this post to say people should stop shipping lokius or anything, I just wish the shippers could separate canon from fanon and that they would stop reducing a show that had so many themes to being a love story that didn't even happen in the first place, I still enjoy lokius and read fics of them every once in a while, I'm not here to police what people ship or not, I just wanted to write this bc some of these thoughts have been stuck in my chest for months now and I really needed to let them out.

At the end of the day I wish the Loki fandom in twitter wasn't split between those two ships and was more focused on Loki himself but unfortunately that's not the case, I can only hope that when Loki shows up again they don't find a way to reduce him to being part of a ship bc he always was and always will be so much more than that.

[wc-confessions]

the discourse about people shipping Darkstripe and Tigerstar is so stupid.

anons before me have made big long eloquent posts about how so much of the fandom is too strict about shipping, and this ship in particular comes up as an example pretty frequently.

i just want to add some thought to this conversation about this ship specifically —

in general, yes the fandom needs to unclench a bit and realize the family tree is irreparably messed up and sometimes things get a bit muddy. but if two characters aren’t explicitly mentioning their familial ties in the text, don’t seem to acknowledge them whatsoever, and have potential, and aren’t in a weird power dynamic (ex. mentor/apprentice), then for gods sake just let people have fun and ship whoever they want. have some sense of whimsy and mind your own business.

obviously, Darkstripe and Tigerstar are related according to the family tree - but it is never once acknowledged by them or any character in the books a single time - so for the sake of the point i’m leading up to, let’s extend our imagination a bit and consider them unrelated.

well, this ship is still problematic you might say because of their mentor/apprentice relationship, and the “abuse” Tigerstar puts Darkstripe through. there is an age gap, an imbalanced power dynamic, and unhealthy behavior aside from that. so clearly, this ship wouldn’t be healthy, family ties or not.

but, hear me out, a healthy relationship is not the point of this ship. i honestly don’t ship them, but in my mind it’s basically canon that Darkstripe is obsessed with and in love with Tigerstar. do i condone that? no. do i enjoy it? also NO. but the point of the ship isn’t romance or healthy love or enjoyment!!!!

they are evil and toxic and would be a terrible couple!!!! but that doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to ship it or headcanon it in some way!!!

if anything, IT MAKES SENSE. like - yes they would be toxic and abusive, but they are also murderers??? they are absolute freaks????? they are evil monsters condemned to hell???? of course they’re relationship wouldn’t be healthy - power dynamics and incest or not?????

Darkstripe developing a ROMANTIC and unhealthy obsession only makes sense though - Tigerstar groomed him CANONICALLY to be the perfect henchman and to put his wants and needs before his own always. Darkstripe thrived on Tigerstar’s approval and praise and it was his main motivator even after death. CANONICALLY.

I don’t think it’s far fetched to add a romantic attraction on Darkstripe’s part. that very often occurs with grooming victims. it’s not implausible.

just because it’s bad and weird and toxic, doesn’t mean it’s not possible or not okay to headcanon.

just because something is “bad” and you headcanon it anyway or it’s just how you interpret the text, doesn’t mean you’re condoning the “bad” thing.

i really think a lot of the fandom needs to learn to think more deeply and more critically, and not immediately villainize anyone who says they headcanon something that isn’t “safe” or “correct”.

i rambled a lot i hope this makes sense.

.

[lostsoul1217]

You want to know the one thing that keeps pissing me off in the Hazbin Hotel Fandom? The fact people disrespect the fact Alastor is AROACE

I'n case you don't know what that is here's some very simple explanations:

Aromantic means that you feel little to no romanic love. You basically don't really care about dating, you don't feel romantic love. You can still love people but not in a romantic way like you would with your Boyfriend/Girlfriend or Husband/Wife.

Asexual means that you feel little to no sexual attraction. You do not feel sexually attracted to people or you just don't like it!

Yes, while some people who are Aro or Ace can still feel these attractions, it does not mean you can use that as an excuse to live out your fantasies.

I've seen so many people use bullshit excuses to sexualize Alastor or to shove him into a romantic relationship it's unreal. JUST LET HIM BE SINGLE! These fuckers are always like: "Oh but he hasn't found the right person" or "He just doesn't have good experience with it"

Seriously??? You're mad because a hot guy won't date or fuck you, that's all this is about. You can't let one fucking character not be in a relationship or be sexualized?

It's appealing.

Oh by the way for the people who go: "Well Viv is a terrible person and we don't have to take what she says as Cannon as we're removing the art from the artist!" IT STILL DOESN'T GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO INVALIDATE SOMEONES SEXUALLY!

Just let him be.

I've had someone come to me and say that "Al is just uncomfortable with sex because he's been through a lot of trauma. It's my personal Headcannon." Literally so they can ship him with Lucifer.

The fact people can't accept that one character is AroAce to the point they completely erase it from his identity is actually terrifying and really uncomfortable. Is this how you would treat actual people? Like, you would treat actual people like this? I had a friend who made me physically uncomfortable because of how much he didn't care about Alastor's sexuality. He didn't care, even after being told he just didn't care and got upset when no one would be horny with him!

For a long time I've questioned if I was AroAce because I don't feel sexual attraction, I very rarely feel sexually attracted to anyone, but because of what I keep seeing happen to fictional characters who are Cannonly AroAce and even to an actual person called Jaiden Animations I'm scared to even have that label.

I just don't understand why no one can respect that a person doesn't want to be in a relationship or like anything sexual. Why? I genuinely don't understand. It makes me so mad and upset, scared even. Just let him be. It's not as if it's a popular Headcannon, it's been confirmed in and outside the show! He's even shown that he's uncomfortable with it in show.

If I've made any spelling errors I apologize. I'm just upset atm.

[mrs-monaghan]

Hi, it's KY here :)

How is everyone feeling about the Taennie news? Knetz have fully accepted the truth and moved on, I suggest I-fans need to do the same. (Jennie is known for having dating news come out regularly, so it's not a big deal for BP fans. For Armys, the sane ones, we've known for a while now haven't we? It's not a shock anymore.)

I read the comments on my previous ask and don't worry! I will not be sharing anything sensitive whatsoever. I find it funny when other shippers say things like "How is it possible that K-fans can keep things to themselves?" I don't think I've seen anyone else address this yet so let me tell you why.

K-Jikookers are mostly queer. Yes, you read that right. Unlike other shippers, who are straight women that self-insert as one of the members (like they do with TK) we support them as a couple. This means that we don't want to date either of them, and we don't self-imagine as their partner - we know that they're unavailable because they're exclusive to each other. You get me? And we know first hand how terrible it is to be queer in a conservative society. There are actually very few real romantic shippers in Korea, (again, KM is the only romantic ship that has a substantial fanbase) simply because it is so hard to accept two men dating. This is why you will see K-Jikookers on Twitter all being close friends/meeting up in person, because they are kindred spirits. I think it might be hard for westerners to really understand. How do I emphasize this more? The older generation in Korea, anyone older than 30+, is deeply homophobic, to the point where they see anything LGBT as western influence and pervasion. Being American, I know it's hard to grasp that level of homophobia - it's not hate comments about your sexuality or people refusing to sell you a cake for a gay wedding. It's social death, rejection, parents disowning their children, getting fired from your job. I'm not kidding. Do you think us, as queer fans who love and support KM, will willingly out them?

We would never, ever, ever do that, because we know the repercussions. Some Jikookers like to fantasize about their coming out, and I want you to understand: the K-side is terrified of that day. Yes, we all think it will happen in due time, but we are very very scared. You think the hate that JM is getting now is bad? You think people sending food to JK's apartment is bad? Nope. You haven't seen anything yet. You understand what I mean, right? Their coming out will not be a cute post. It will be a carefully orchestrated move complete with a legal and PR team. If/when they are out, their lives will be in immediate danger. I truly believe they will leave the country for a bit, maybe even months, maybe a year. There will not be any public sightings, fan meets, concerts. KM know this very well too. I'm sure there's already a plan in place for it.

And anyone searching for KM evidence on K-Jikookers social media, I would say don't bother. It's almost impossible. The white day photo leak was a massive mistake, and I know exactly who leaked it because they were removed from all group chats immediately. K-Jikookers were very very angry with them (and also cussing out foreigners...please, we all need to keep our mouths shut and keep stuff within our own circles.)

-KY

KY has spoken. We appreciate your services and await your next drop in.

I too, the Jikookers that I know, I have never seen them self insert themselves. Those are y/n idiots who do this shit. Not even in private spaces do I see this happening. We support them as a couple, despite how hot we may find them. We understand and believe they only have eyes for eo.

We appreciate the commercial break KY. Now back to the headline

TAENNIE IS REAL!!!!!

[user-needs-new-hyperfixation]

Trying to start a giant-ass meta on why I ship Mycroft/Albert and what there is to see of it and right off the bat I'm like...I want people to look at every single panel of their interactions.

No, it's not Sherliam levels. And BIG OLD DISCLAIMER: very little of what I'm going to present here is like "We were clearly intended to read it this way." I'll always argue that Sherliam is meant to be romantic: it hits so many well-established notes and tropes it's almost impossible to think otherwise. MycAl is a bit different. I do think it's definitely like...we're welcome and even invited to see it. But a LOT of my shipping it comes from the way I personally read and interpret things. So this is about explaining what I'm seeing that makes me ship it, rather than trying to be like "This is canon and you should agree with me." Anyway, for reference, I'll be using the official translation as far as it goes and then swapping to teawaffles' wonderful translation for the rest!

So...like right off the bat throughout the entirety of their Chapter 4 interactions their body language and expressions and ways of talking are so flirty? (Also, I still find it funny that in the manga Mycroft is introduced before Sherlock and thus Mycal is introduced before Sherliam. Older bros first lol.)

Maybe it's just that 2 decades on the internet have skewed me towards reading suggestiveness into everything, but the way Mycroft addresses Albert feels so flirtatious even if he's literally just being normal. "And what would an Indian Army official such as yourself want from an intelligence official such as myself this late in the evening?" Like...am I crazy? Does that not kinda sound like a porn intro? 😂 (This could also be Sherliam Side-effects. The way they call each other Professor and Detective in That One Scene is like...almost undeniably foreplay. Now every time anyone calls each other by title/profession/rank is this series I assume they're hitting on each other.)

But also Albert is just so...handsy throughout that scene. He's touching Mycroft's knickknacks, and just sort of limp-wristing all over the place. And I mean, I think that's just one of Albert's public-facing personas (customer service peeps, you know what's up) but it definitely lends itself to the existence of Vibes.

Anyway, there's this parallel of "You have my attention. What do you want?" that I think is kinda neat. (But look how comparatively sad Mycroft looks in the second version!!!)

Chapter 4:

Chapter 23:

Btw, in Scandal in the British Empire...why does Mycroft introduce himself to the Queen? Never mind, not why we're here. Again, my weird innuendo sensors perk up in Chapter 17 at "I did not drag you out of bed this early for nothing." Maybe it's because my perception of Victorian niceties, whether it's factual or not, is that there was this sense of avoiding talk of physical realities. We don't speak of pregnancy, we speak of "her condition" and "confinement." We don't "go to bed," we "retire." And so on. So conversely, it feels almost suggestive to even acknowledge that someone was in bed. In whatever state of undress the might imply. *Kellen Goff Sasaki voice:* OOOH how sCanDaLOus. (Mind you I DON'T believe there is anything of authorial intent in this, again, just trying to explain the factors that make me read things a certain way.)

The little mind games: Albert immediately recognizing that he's being tested, and Mycroft well aware that something is off, that he and Albert are using each other to their own ends. All juicy ship ingredients.

Then there's this...I can't articulate why it's important. But it is. Something about mouths and thoughts. If I wasn't terribly lazy, I'd go digging for examples in various manga series and I have a pretty firm suspicion that I could prove that, often, Mouth-Focus Thinking Panel + Name = Ship.

Jumping forward to the start of The Riot in New Scotland Yard (Chapter 29), Mycroft's demeanour has really changed. During the meeting at the British Museum he's radiating "I'm not angry I'm just disappointed" energy. He's tense, he's not sure if the Moriartys are enemies and when he understands their plan he seems understandably sad about it even as he accepts it. But now, he's radiating an almost Sherlock-like excitement. He's just gotten to see a miniature version of The Plan in action during the Jack the Ripper case, and it worked. He says he's just visiting Albert as an acquaintance (read: friend in Mycroftian), and that's what it feels like. They're chummy. It's cute. Also Albert teasing Mycroft over his squabbles with Sherlock when he leaves? When did Albert find out about that, hmm? (I mean, could be spying of course. But I like to think it just suggests they've talked more than we've seen.)

Annnnnd....cutting this part off here because I'm bored of it for now and it's long. I'll do the rest when the mood strikes. 😂

[phoenixkaptain]

I totally get what people mean about Splinter of the Mind’s Eye and it’s weirdly offputting tone, but at the same exact time it reads to me as old-timey fanfiction because like- it’s just. Comparing Luke and Leia. Their similarities and differences. They walk differently. They think about things differently. But they also have a strain of sameness to them. A strain of logic or way of thinking that they both follow. It’s so…

Like it’s trying really hard to be like romantic or something, the whole book is, but instead they just act like. Obi-Wan and Anakin.

The best proof I can give of this is two scenes in the first chapter. And I’ll explain the context because honestly the context is fucking hilarious. They both just crash landed on the moon right before the moon they were aiming for. They’re in separate ships. They got separated (they find each other within the same chapter). Luke is with Artoo and Leia is with Threepio (Leia is talking to Threepio in the quote).

“No rock is as soft as water and no water so soft as a swamp, he reflected, trying to cheer himself.”

““Relax. There can’t be anything out there,” she nodded toward the densest growth, “that would find you digestible.””

Just. Luke Optimism crashing into a swamp and being like “well, at least it isn’t a bunch of rocks.” Leia Realism over there comforting Threepio. But also, more proof withing the first chapter:

“There was a loud crashing, off to her right this time. Swinging around in the seat she instinctively fired off a burst through the cracked port and was rewarded with the odor of burnt, wet vegetable matter. The muzzle of the pistol remained focused on the carbonized spot. Hopefully, she’d hit the thing. Fortunately, she hadn’t.

“It’s me!” a voice shouted, sounding more than a little shaky. She’d barely missed him.”

Yes, Leia just shot at Luke. Yes, Leia feels pretty bad because first she made them both crashland into a swamp and second she just tried to murder him.

“Briskly scrambling over the side, she let herself drop to the ground, planted her feet, took two steps in the direction of the distant beacon… and began to sink…”

“Covered from the ribs down in a packing of green-gray mud and pieces of what looked like dried straw, the Princess appeared decidedly unregal. She pushed futilely at the mud, which was drying rapidly to the consistency of thin concrete. She said nothing, and Luke knew anything he might venture would not be terribly well-received.”

They are so cute.

“Once she spotted him peering hard at a dank copse. “Nervous?” It was part question, part challenge.

“You bet I’m nervous,” he shot back. “I’m nervous and frightened and I wish to hell we were on Circarpous right now. Anywhere on Circarpous, instead of trudging through this swamp on foot.”

Turning serious, the Princess told him, “One learns to accept whatsver events life has in store with the best possible spirits.” She stared straight ahead.

“That just what I’m doing,” Luke confessed, “accepting them in the best possible spirits—nervousness and fear.”

“Well, you needn’t look at me as if this is all my fault.”

“Did I imply that? Did I say that?” Luke countered, a touch more tightly than he intended. She glanced sharply at him and he cursed his inability to conceal his feelings. He would have been, he decided, a rotten card-player. Or politician.

“No, but you as much as…” she began hotly.”

Don’t look at me like this situation that I have already admitted to myself is my fault is my fault - Leia

They are. Obi-Wan and Anakin. Wow.