#ppl in any way. what do & don't they ''deserve'' differently from others b/c of that.

[unproduciblesmackdown]

something abt The Family Unit as this bordered site potentially of a little system of authoritarianism being that it's really this example plenty of people have of how like, You Would Think "oh if the people In Charge realize the structural integrity of what they're in charge of & say they're Supporting is being degraded then surely on a practical basis they'd change course? compromise?" & like the compromises Are continually made to shore things up a little longer but it's a pyramid scheme & it's continuously crumbling. & the Logic of the authority is what's held on to no matter what, not whatever else is claimed to be the goal (e.g. having a Good Family, workplace, corporation, country...) & that means having all the power, which is never actually the case or possible so since that goal's never met it's really just about having More power (what's next, constant profit growth), & everything's oriented around That, such that yeah strategic fleeting compromises may be made but as this structure inevitably deteriorates further, i.e. the control as successfully applied power is being lost, it's not about compromising more & more until eventually things are egalitarian, it's more about lashing out & doubling & tripling & quadrupling down on the exact same measures always taken anyways, because of how the entire like belief is in being the authority, expressed by forever only following the logics of authority/hierarchy & control/abuse

that is to lead into how like, the Failure of [ostensible alternate practical goal: the cohesion of the perfect family(tm)] can happen in more obvious ways / on shorter timeframes than, say, the agenda of propping up an empire, & so there's like all this evidence of how even when the theoretically inviolate borders of The Family are ruptured there's like "wouldn't the relevant family members change their approach in the face of this undeniable failure. wouldn't they question themselves." b/c like, surely? how could you not? but the experience being overwhelmingly "absolutely they do not" with instead the doubling down, perhaps the strategic compromises that are then only used to wear away the targeted parties & then (perhaps after an incremental transition) be back at it once that defense is seemingly breached, but the same logic seems to "work" even in situations where whatever Unit is destroyed, partnership, family, friendship, acquaintanceship, b/c the sense of [i am entitled to More] is just like. undisturbed or "supported" by the ruptures & lack of access to whomever, the Denial of what they feel they're already entitled to. the dehumanization of others / No Need to ever have to consider & contend with those ppl's real feelings if you control their life enough anyways is all still at play & there's no room for even Now considering if you were wrong about how someone felt, so the logic might also default to things like "it's a total mystery but what matters is i was / am wronged" &/or "well things would've been great if i had my total authority like i should have & imagine i could have, so basically some Other enemy authority must be at fault (e.g. guess my child was converted by the gay agenda, the devil, the evil outside world, communist spies, anarchists, [the pc police the virtue signalers the woke dei agents the "almost forgot abt 'critical race theorists'"]" that it just so happens that agendas of Autonomy & Equality are ones that seem to inherently insidiously threaten & undermine their own. like yeah you're not wrong about that but in also true [every accusation a projection] form of course the belief must be that They are fostering bliss & freedom & the jealous evil agents of The Other are always trying to stop them :(

like "don't they realize this is counterproductive to the wellbeing of [what they're in charge of]" like compromises may be temporarily made along the way but not Really, no, & when push comes to shove it'll be about the priorizing of asserting & holding on to Controlling Lives vs anything that'd serve anything else. & that again, with families like you might see the decided Failure of that, e.g. very limited or completely absent relationship with an adult child, and you see that like. the Authority guardian/s who are the reason with it don't change their approach. any adjustments are strategic & meant to Ultimately restore the status quo; the people who managed to extricate themselves have to rely on their own ability to actually manifest their own choices to, say, be able to remove themself from the presence of this person if they want. and that like even with that lifelong experience of dealing with that Authority & the system under them it can be so difficult to believe like do they really not even question themself on all this despite the actual external consequences manifested? b/c the Logics are so different. the child made effectively Responsible for the actions of an adult or two / the supposed Wellbeing of the family is so much more used to having to consider others' Feelings & what might make them act xyz way, b/c of that impossible but evident tasking with being harmed if there's any Problems there, versus that the person "in charge of" the wellbeing of the family & individuals therein (& certainly the young children) being concerned with their own entitlement & whether everything seems to reinforce their authority, flexing it if not, disinterest in so much else, resentment for the physical needs of children as a begrudged investment in then lifelong entitlement to kids as property to give deference / whatever support you want. & when these "supported" children are never "grateful" enough, i.e. not noticeably thwarting efforts to access whatever a parent feels entitled to (with, exactly in line with all of this, pretty invariably Issues With (denial of) Any Boundaries, e.g. not allowed to close that bedroom door this is my house, not allowed to not want to be touched i made that body, not allowed to be unsupervised what are you hiding, not allowed to say no, not allowed to have feelings/moods/preferences/opinions not in harmony with mine...) like it's supposedly only an extreme, all the more sympathetic (to the authority parent) escalation of this Ingratitude to, if possible, escape the realm of said authority. can't believe they'd do this to me

just that tl;dr of like "but at this point [authority] is sabotaging themselves i.e. the longevity of any system where they even have that position of authority? surely they realize that & change their approach b/c they Have To?" & beyond "no, not necessarily" like it's so almost Necessarily that "they definitely will not & will just try to 'invest' in their perpetual authority (which is always trying to be Increased b/c it's also never total or unbroken) by upping the violence & lashing out & ignoring w/e they have to ignore b/c they do Not have any actual alternate way to address it" like no the parents lose the entire relationship with children & don't have Realizations abt it, don't question themselves, don't make a real change, don't stop feeling as, & increasingly, entitled

[soullessjack]

don't want to wade into discourse but do want to say i appreciate your takes on Jack's character. it's just really refreshing. a lot of fandom straight up does not want to engage with Jack's thematic core, aka 'young man is INCREDIBLY powerful & he has to struggle w/ his relationship to his powers / learning to use them for good' when that character idea is very compelling & also doesn't work if Jack has no agency/autonomy/makes no real choices/is a child. it is complicated, because Jack is a young adult (say, an 18-year-old and a 40-year-old are both adults, but their maturity level is VERY different) and didn't choose his power, but I don't understand why the fandom framing that Jack shouldn't have that power/responsibility/should be a child is more sympathetic than Jack learning how to use his powers & coming into his own. (which is how I read his story even if the writing was thin at times.)

hi, thank u!! 🫶🫶

I think most of the fandom’s refusal simply stems from the idea that he doesn’t deserve what he goes through/the burden he has to carry, and that’s all well and good, but it obviously starts to spiral into never seeing him as a complex autonomous person who can handle responsibility or experience trauma, which then gets grossly simplified into never seeing him as a person at all.

I honestly think it’s become kind of a cycle. People don’t want to acknowledge what he’s experiencing beyond “he doesn’t deserve this,” so -> ppl refuse to engage with him as a full complex adult character -> then don’t understand that autonomy is a fundamental part of him and his narrative -> so they make the decision to de-age him -> which hinges on the idea that he’s giving up his autonomy or never had it to begin with, and -> that becomes the most popular way to see his character, so -> they shut out anything that opposes it -> and they don’t see the problem with it because they don’t understand what they’re taking away because (see above).

I admit it sounds like pointless discourse from that perspective, but

A) this fandom has complained about far less for far longer, especially when it comes to their favorite characters being misunderstood and misrepresented

B) people have a right to be frustrated over their passions, especially when the problem is persistent and basically an open secret that nobody wants to change. this isn’t just about the autistic perspective on him. It’s general fandom, as well.

C) the added perspective of jack being autistic (which frankly goes beyond headcanon or simple interpretation, but that’s its own post) makes this more than petty discourse. fiction and reality go hand in hand with each other, especially in any issue concerning representation of a real group. that being said, when a marginalized community tells you that something is harmful, you listen.

sorry for the long reply lol. ofc it’s not directed at you, I’m just putting it out there in general. and thank u again! It’s nice to know that my silly ramblings are appreciated 🫶🫶

[delta-magnetic]

aight SO a little bit ago i asked if anybody wanted to see my longass ranking/ramble of dm albums

so here it is (with only part of it above the cut)! i should probably go back over the ones i didnt say much on but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ i wrote this like a week ago?

original template had from God Tier - Shit Tier but i couldnt bring myself to call any of these shit (or even give an F to)

(note: the order within the ranks is purely chronological)

S tier

Music for the Masses (1987)- obligatory "my favorite song of all time is on this album". the other songs on here are also incredible (notably Strangelove, Behind the Wheel, and Nothing). arguably my favorite bonus tracks of any of the albums. this album has the essential dark tones/vibes but probably in the most beautiful way of any of the albums. 9/10 (not 10 purely because i do not like I Want You Now. the breathing makes me v uncomfy jdknfbs)

Violator (1990)- the depeche mode album. there were "hits" on other albums, but literally every single one of their BIGGEST hits was on this album (Personal Jesus, Enjoy the Silence, and Policy of Truth). and those hits do a good job of showing you what depeche mode is about, and what violator is about, but listening to the whole thing is another experience. 10/10 whether you only passively care about dm or you're a huge fan you should absolutely give this one a listen

Songs of Faith and Devotion (1993)- notice how i didn't say the best album on violator? thats because this one is. hands fucking down. dave's best vocal performances are on this album, which even he himself has said (on Condemnation). following up violator was tough but i say this did so very well. it went in another, slightly bluesy direction, but was still undeniably dm. 11/10 holy fuck

Ultra (1997)- now i know i gave sofad an 11, but i still consider this one to be my favorite dm album. imo it combines the aspects of the previous two wonderfully, a similar groove to sofad but wouldn't be out of place on violator. being the first album after alan left, there is the slightest hint of "things are going to evolve once again", and that's completely okay. 10/10 ily ultra

A tier

Construction Time Again (1983)- i'd say this is the album where they finally hit their groove. very synthy, but it's not just bright and poppy now. this is also when they first really started sampling sounds, and they did well with it. a while ago richard spencer, known far-right bitch, called dm the "band of the alt-right" and dave famously told him to fuck off, and "has he even heard our music??". he cited some songs from music for the masses i think, but i'd say really this album is probably what dave was talking about with that statement. there is literally a song on here called The Landscape is Changing. anyways 10/10 there are sounds on this one that also make me a little uncomfy (namely the whispering in Told You So) but this album is just so good

Sounds of the Universe (2009)- so i said cta was when they hit their groove, i'd say sotu is when they hit it again after alan left (ultra was kinda like when you let go of a kid on a bike, and they're doing pretty good at first). dave actually contributes some songs on this album, and specifically Miles Away/The Truth Is is pretty great. has both the most hopeful dm song (Peace) and arguably the most up-frontly depressed dm song (Wrong). 9/10 it's a bit longer than the typical album but still a fantastic listen

Delta Machine (2013)- they went bluesy on sofad, and they REALLY did here. where sofad was more of a slow boil, this one goes in this direction with a bit more force. uhh tbh don't have much else on this one except i have yet to listen to Happens All The Time (a bonus song) w/o crying lol. 9/10 sound can get a teensy bit muddied at times but still very solid album

Spirit (2017)- most recent album! and oh boy if you thought they were disgruntled at the world during cta, they are pissed here. first album where theres swearing. some ppl think this was written in response to richard spencer but this existed before that, just happened to release pretty soon after which is still amazing. sound is beautiful here, dave's voice is still very strong (and even carried over some of that soul from delta machine), and i'd even say it's one of martins best performances. 10/10 this is modern dm and i love it

B tier

Black Celebration (1985)- this album is pure concentrated dm vibes. dark tones, industrial influence, synths. a bit too hyped up imo, but still very deserving of some hype. the best transitions of any dm album. dave and martins voices are great here, but especially when they're singing together (a really good example being Here is The House), some of the best harmonies between them on this album. 9/10 an essential dm album. literally if you somehow made it this far but stop reading here the one thing i ask of you is to listen to Stripped

Exciter (2001)- so that bike analogy about ultra? this is where the kid eventually falls over. definitely a different sound. like sofad and delta machine went in different directions than previous albums, but something about exciter's vibes were REALLY different without necessarily feeling like it was heading towards a different genre. BUT! this is still a super underrated album. this is a very good "i want some quieter dm vibes to listen to" album (ofc save for Dead of Night which is very loud lol). 8/10 not super up there for me but i do find myself listening to this album quite a bit

Playing the Angel (2005)- ok i didnt have much to say on delta machine but i like, really dont immediately here. first album in which dave contributes songs! and all of the ones he wrote (Suffer Well, I Want it All, Nothing's Impossible) are pretty solid. Macro is also an incredible song like holy shit. 8/10 sound (balance especially) is a little worse than delta machine's but oh MAN are there some good songs on here.

C tier

Speak and Spell (1981)- alright now we're lower down the list. i know i cant/shouldnt be too mean to the very first album, so i won't. but man is this as poppy as synthpop gets (which i know can be mostly attributed to vince, who then left after this album). i have not listened this album very much because of that, but i do listen to a good number of the songs off of it on the regular. 7/10 vocals are kinda drowned out at times, but cant hate baby dave and the lads too much. it's very sugary sweet, but in a fun way

Some Great Reward (1984)- i really don't listen to this one as much as i should tbh. this album i actually like almost all the songs off if it even! but i just don't listen to the whole thing together often. i'd put more eloquent thoughts and feelings on this one but i'm writing this shortly after having taken a zquil sO my brain has kinda run out of steam now lol sorry. In Your Memory and Set Me Free (Remotivate Me) are very good tho omg. 8/10 if there was a letter between C and D i'd have put this in that spot

aaaand finally, D tier

A Broken Frame (1982)- i did these as S-D and not S-F because i couldnt be that mean ndjkfsb but im srry something had to be at the bottom still. actually had this and Speak and Spell switched at first but then i realized I liked more songs off of the sas. (again would put more but zquil REALLY tryna take me down now, think i'll actually attempt sleep now). 6/10 just not one i super vibe with. the sound here is REALLY off balance a lot but hey this was mart kinda on his own and he gave it his bestest shot

[hirakdesherrani]

I was going through your blog, and you seem to criticize Shivaay a lot. But you don't seem to criticize Om as much who is no good either. I know Om started out good but after his character was butchered, there is no difference. At least Shivaay has shown a great character progression, and as of now he is the better man and husband. Not to attack you, 'cos I know everyone has their favs, but Omkara has flaws too.

Okay, so this ask has been licking dust in my inbox for weeks now. At the cost of seeming rude, I didn’t answer it ‘cos I just didn’t know what to reply, and tbh, didn’t feel like replying either.

Anyways, I’ll try now.

First things first anon, this is the first time someone has implied that Omkara is a fav of mine, which is farthest from the truth. Most of the times, I’m accused of hating on him ‘cos I’m blind Gauri stan, who’s white-knighting on her behalf (or so ppl believe). Secondly, LMAO anon, if only you had bothered to go back to posts I made last year, you would’ve seen how much I’ve criticized Om, much more than Shivaay, believe me.

Coming to your statements, lets see.

(Disclaimer: I’m in no way comparing abuse and saying who’s the worst among the two. Both are pathetic and don’t deserve the blessed presence of ‘any’ female in their lives, AniRi toh bahut dur ki baat hai.)

For the Shivaay v/s Omkara thing you mentioned:

As a husband, Shivaay >>>> Omkara. No explanations needed. (Post-their resolution of conflicts)

As a man, Omkara >>>> Shivaay, for the simple reason, that when Gauri told Omkara to GTFO, he accepted her decision and left. Unlike Shivaay, who took it upon himself to decide Gauri’s fate, because he thinks that he knows what’s better for Gauri than Gauri herself, which is damn patronizing. That Gauri chose to forgive Om is her prerogative, Shivaay orchestrating the kidnap was wrong. What if Gauri did not want to return to the Oberoi hellhole, then? Would he have kept her in the Oberoi mansion against her will, just to make his brother happy? I found the whole thing hard to digest, it was funny no doubt, but the underlying message was problematic.

As for character progression, well of course Shivaay has shown greater progression, because in the beginning of the show he’s a damn sociopath. Shivaay starts out as this Lucius Malfoy kinda character, who has rules about blood and lineage, who is proud about his ‘Naam, khoonn, khaandaan’ (just like pureblood nonsense) and calls Annika “road trash” (‘Mudbloods’?). Shivaay starts out from the very bottom, so obviously his growth will be greater. Omkara has his flaws, but as a character he was always better than Shivaay. Even in DBO when he was at the very worst of his graph, he still intervened to save a girl’s life, who he judged and hated, because that was the right thing to do. 

Both Shivaay and Omkara were put in the same situation re: Tia and Gauri. Both of them suspected that Tia and Gauri are lying about the pregnancy, and both had just cause to suspect. However, Shivaay never took any interest in Tia’s pregnancy, which made sense, because Tia was trapping him and he knew the child wasn’t his. It was Annika, in fact, who saved Tia from a miscarriage and actually cared for the baby indirectly, when she had all the reason to hate Tia and the child, because Annika is a kind soul.

Compare this to Omkara, who though acted as the judge, jury and executioner and decided that Gauri was not fit to mother that child (asshole!), but still actively cared for the unborn child who he suspected was not his own. We, as an audience, knew that Shivaay is right in his place, and Omkara is wrong in accusing Gauri. But as characters both Shivaay and Omkara were at the same situation, that is, they were unaware of what the other party had in mind.

Another reason why Shivaay’s character progression or redemption, has better sketched out, is because he is acutely aware of all the wrongs he perpetrated against Annika. Each and every instance, from suspecting Annika of selling the video to the media to the Daksh fiasco, every single misunderstanding has been cleared. But Omkara is not even aware of all the wrongs he committed against Gauri. Till date Omkara does not know the whole truth about Kali Thakur. He still only has a vague idea that he misjudged Gauri, that maybe she was forced into the wedding. The fact that Gauri was kept in chains, she was about to be married to three grooms, they were planning to make her their common sex slave for life, all this is still unknown to him. Even the buamaa truth, that Gauri was not lying when Kali captured Buamaa or even the fact that Gauri was not attempting to drown Buamaa in the swimming pool (for which he called the cops); all this is STILL unknown to him. How can he make reparations for everything he did in DBO, when he doesn’t even know the extent of all his sins in DBO?

And again, at the cost of repeating myself, even at his worst, Omkara did not derive any diabolic pleasure in ruining Gauri’s life. Unlike Shivaay, who put Annika in jail just because she refused to apologize for his arrogance. Annika would still be rotting in prison, if Dadi hadn’t bailed her out and Omkara hadn’t knocked some sense into Shivaay. Shivaay repeatedly fucked with Annika’s life and tried to make her miserable only for his ego. Annika was always at Shivaay’s mercy because Shivaay always used his power to abuse Annika.Contrast this to Omkara, Gauri was never at his mercy. Gauri was held hostage by the situation and had to return to the Oberoi mansion to save his dumb ass, but she was never at Omkara’s mercy. He did not make it a hobby to make her life difficult because that gives him sadistic pleasure. Omkara just wanted to get rid of Gauri and throw her out of his life. Which still makes him an asshole, but in all ways better than Shivaay. It’s just that Shivaay appears better than Omkara during DBO and after, because Shivaay was at the highest point in his character arc that time, while Omkara was at the lowest.

Coming to the last thing you mentioned about character flaws in Omkara. Sure, Omkara has a LOT of character flaws, you’re absolutely right there, anon. And those flaws are there even in IB 2016, its just that the audience puts him on a pedestal without analyzing his character properly, which is why the fall in DBO seems much more evident.

His biggest flaw is that he is STUPID. Like all the other problems and minor flaws emerge because of his sheer stupidity. Okay, that came out wrong. Omkara in the beginning of IB, is a Kalidas kind of character, who cuts the branch on which he is sitting. Unfortunately, stupidity is not seen as a character flaw, so most of the audience let it go. No wonder Om gets conned all the time, by Roop bua, Ishaana, Riddhima, Ranveer, etc. 

Because he is stupid, Omkara cannot understand the nuances of human beings. All his associated flaws, be it seeing things in black and white, or truth and lies, is because he cannot see the ‘grey’ or the ‘in-between’. To see and understand the grey, one needs brains and that Omkara does not possess.

Another thing is that most of the fandom thought that Om is more gender-equal than his brothers. But he has always been pretty misogynist from the beginning. 

Omkara put women in boxes. One was the good but victimized women (Box A): Jahnvi, Annika, even Pinky to an extent, who tolerated a lot of BS from their partners. And the other were women like Riddhima, Ishaana, Tia, who lied or used men for their own benefits (Box B). Of course, the worst was Svetty who was the ‘home breaker’ in his eyes. The first time he was confronted with this issue he chose to break up with Riddhima and Shivaay had to intervene and explain him that people are not good or bad, there is also the grey. The funny thing is that Om, who judged women harshly, never held Shivaay to the same standards. If he judged Shivaay in the same way, then he would have to put him in the category of bad people, which he refused to do. Hypocrisy much?

The second time when Omkara faces a similar choice, is when Mallika ran away from her wedding. Omkara categorically says that what Mallika did was wrong, even though he understands what compelled her. Again in that situation its Annika who makes Shivaay see sense, because Annika is an empathetic person. 

The thing is, whenever Om clashes with a ‘bad’ woman a/c to his judgments, he reacts badly. He was about to hit/get violent with both Ishana and Riddhima when he came to know of their betrayal. In both the cases, his brothers intervened and stopped him. Similarly he manhandles Svetty, after the whole engagement fiasco. 

The audience never held him accountable that time, because these women were wrong/used him. But the point is that even if these women were wrong, Omkara was also wrong in misbehaving with them. Manhandling or threatening assault to any woman is never right. 

This flaw comes in sharp focus only when Omkara meets Gauri, because unlike the other women before her Gauri is blameless. 

You mentioned the butchering anon. I know we all talk about how Omkara did a 360 degree in personality in DBO, even I say that. But in all honesty, he wasn’t butchered in DBO. His dark side which was suppressed in IB, came out in DBO. Like I explained before, Omkara was always violent with women who fell in category B. That coupled with his stupidity, which is why everyone cons him, spelled disaster for his equation with Gauri. 

If I have to be critical, Omkara was butchered badly only four times in the show (IB+DBO). When he throws money at Gauri’s face and crashes his car into her shop, when he leaves her to die at Kali Thakur’s hands after Chulbul reveal (which undid the very fact that he saved her from the villagers in similar situations the first time), when he shows complete lack of regret/guilt after Gauri leaves him post-inspiration argument and when he was drinking hot chocolate and going off to sleep after returning from Bareilly (instead of properly angstying and expressing regret in solitude) 

Coming back to the misogynist flaw, Omkara by the end of DBO did not know in which box to put Gauri in: due to all the lies and what he saw in Bareilly, he wanted to put her in Box B, but Gauri also put her life at stake multiple times to save his ass which confused him. On top of that, Gauri is not like Jahnvi or Annika who will stay with him despite all the shit he pulled. Gauri leaves immediately after the inspiration fuck up, which puzzled Omkara because Jahnvi never left despite the shit Tej did or Annika did not leave despite how Shivaay continued to insult her after their forced wedding. Annika in fact asked Omkara and Rudy to forgive Shivaay for the forced wedding BS that he did. [One reason why Omkara and Rudy misbehaved with Gauri, Soumya and Bhavya was because they internalized Shivaay’s behavior, ‘cos they saw that Annika forgave him despite everything, so they never expected these girls to dump their ass.]

I know a lot of people felt Omkara was OOC in many scenes in DBO. But actually on second thoughts he was like that in IB too, its just that in Ishana’s or Riddhima’s cases it was a one-off incident, but Gauri was forced to continue living in his presence to save him from Svetty and Buamaa, which made Om even more suspicious and thus, even more violent/verbally abusive. 

Baar haal, when you say character progression, sure Shivaay has progressed a lot from where he began. Omkara by comparison, had character flaws which he overcame post-break up with Gauri, when he realizes how wrong his stereotyping has been all this while, and how messed up his ideologies are. He learnt his lesson, and tried to implement that too, when he himself resorted to lies (as Dilpreet) to win back Gauri’s forgiveness. Character progression is more marked in Shivaay’s case because he started as a villain and went on to become a decent human being, whereas Omkara was in general a decent guy, with faulty judgments and anger management issues, which he sorta overcame. Of course, his stupidity cannot be cured. If one is stupid, then when is stupid, iska koi iilaaj nahi hai. Which is why he has a smart brother and wife to take care of him. 

I know you were not ‘attacking’ me for my choices, anon, but I thought to make it clear anyways. And hopefully, after this longass reply, nobody sends me an ask about the Obros, because writing about them just shoots my blood pressure.

[musicallisto]

Hi there :) for the ship thing: The Freshman (ugh I know), ES, and TC&TF pls! I'm 5'3", black, and gay as hell. I love dressing up, I love Disney esp Disney princesses, am sarcastic 24/7, and love to annoy my friends :P, but can be shy with ppl I don't know and can come off as mean sometimes. I'm on track to become a lawyer, but my real dream is to be on Broadway + act. I like listening to kpop and learning the dances, especially for girl groups. My 2018 resolution is to finally get a gf 😂 thx!

Here it is Anon, hope you like it and happy new year to everyone!

I Ship You With…

B E C C A    D A V E N P O R T

(faceclaim: Scarlett Leithold)• I think you two would have met in a classic way at Hartfeld, maybe because you shared classes or something, and would have clicked off instantly, leading to a proper first date only a few days later. It was a snowy, December day on which you didn’t have any classes, so you went to the zoo and spent the entire day on your own, only with the majestic and adorable creatures.

• After visiting the zoo, you would sneakily throw a snowball at Becca, and she would playfully reply with another one; it would escalate into a massive snowball fight, and eventually into your first kiss.

• You were surprised by Becca’s romantic and affectionate side; you didn’t expect the strong-willed sorority sister to be so tender and sweet behind closed doors, but there was something about you, something she couldn’t quite decipher and something she simply was infatuated with.

• I headcanon Becca as tall, maybe 5'8", so the height difference between the two of you would be her favorite subject of teasing and mockery. She would often ask you what’s the weather like down there, or if you need help reaching the top shelf. However, she loves it when you’re slowdancing alone in your dorm and your head is buried in the crook of her neck while she lightly traces abstract shapes on the fabric of your shirt.

• You two would fall asleep facing each other, after talking for hours, discussing the latest gossip or debating whether this certain character from that certain TV show deserves redemption. Since you two seem very stubborn, no one would want to back down - rather dead than defeated! - and those debates would quickly degenerate. When things start to get out of hand, you hold out your hand for her to shake it, offering a truce; she eyes it for a long time, then sighs and agrees - “Truce”.Q U I N N    K E L L Y

(faceclaim: Molly C. Quinn)• The way Quinn confessed her feelings for you was unusual, or at least unexpected: she sent you a love letter. You had been friends for a long time until one day you found the sweetest love letter in your locker. Quinn admitted she was head over heels for you, that you were the one who helped her go on and be strong in spite of her illness, and that she dearly hoped you reciprocated her feelings. Luckily for her, you did.

• You would get her into Kpop in like 39 seconds. She would INSTANTLY fall into the deep, black abyss of the KPop fandoms, and you two would BLAST Kpop songs literally everywhere (which annoys the crap out of the entire college but who cares)

• Randomly breaking into Blackpink or Red Velvet dance routines in the middle of the campus because even if you are only two, you know the dances by heart and Madison would join anyway (because she’s KPop trash you can’t convince me otherwise)

• Adding “going to Korea together” to your bucket list, and you cling onto that dream because you’re determined to make it happen.

• And you do. After you graduate, the first thing you do is going on vacation to Japan and Korea and you couldn’t wish for a better person to be with, or a better place to be in.

• And when you come back to America, you would go to Disney World in Florida, because you’re ALSO Disney trash (sorry I don’t make the rules) and having the best time of your life, traveling around the world with your girl!

V A L E N T I N A   G R E A V E S

(faceclaim: Christian Serratos)• I believe that since you two are very sarcastic and cynic, the two of you being together would be AN AVALANCHE OF SASS.

• And by that I mean you’re either the couple that’s trashing each other 25/8, or the couple that’s trashing literally anyone else 25/8. You love the latter the most because talking shit and annoying people with Val is one of the most fun experiences of your life. You knew Val was, hum, how could I say, acerbic, but you didn’t think it would be so pleasing to destroy literally anyone who crosses your path with her.

• After HOURS of negociation and fruitless threats, you would FINALLY persuade her to dress up for Kenna’s birthday party; you wouldn’t have missed the sight of Val in a dress for anything the world. She looked so out of place it was touching, with her hair carefully curled by Annelyse, her bright jewels hanging from her neck and her crimson red.

• Actually, the argument that had concinced Val was that you had promised if she wore that dress, you would be more than glad to tear it to pieces when the festivities are over.

• Your favorite thing to do apart from trash-talking the rest of the court would be to set traps and pull pranks on them. Hearing them scream in terror/shock and then running away before they could catch you was one of the funniest and most rewarding experiences you had lived in Stormholt.

ships are closed, but you can still request anything else!

[kendrixtermina]

Hi, I've thought for the longest time that I was an enneagram 4w3/5 but then I revised the core fears again and realized that my fear of being unloved or unwanted is so much bigger than my fear of not having an identity/inviduality. I still identify with the "I'm unique" "nobody understands me" of 4. If this means that I'm a 2w3-somethingw4- I'd have to choose 5 because I identify more with this than 6, but I don't have "cold detachment" of 5s. Is it because it's not my core? What do you think?

At least in this system, 2 and 4 are genuinely impossible to have ‘both’because they represent ways o dealing with the same emotions - if you feel bad, do you try to ‘make up for it’ or do you go thinking into wether it’s a bug or a feature? the 4 pov views your attributes as a lot more static which can be a limiter sometimes whereas the 2 sees things more dynamically sometimes too much in a catholic like “faith & good works” approach. There may be trouble comprehending a a good, well, intentioned action can still be unwanted. 

You might consider that maybe some part of it comes from another component, (maybe the ‘uniqueness’ part comes from being, say, a high Fi user in the mbti, or a bit of the Self-Confident, Inventive or Ideosyncratic traits in the oldham system)

Nominally there’s also the possibility of mistaking a 9 fix for a 2 one, 9 is also afraid of “displeasing” ppl and losing relationships - thought it’s more about finding the state of chaos stressful than feeling personally rejected but it could interact with the 4 - this one is easy for you personally to judge, prove or disprove, because a 9 fix might cause you to stay chill when something goes wrong, whereas a 2 fix is openly expressive and emotionally dynamic, sorta Phlegmatic vs. 

Another thing to consider is your instinctual variant - are you sx first? Sx 5 can be somewhat unlike your classic stereotype of 5, a lot more ‘dreamy’ & not strictly ‘academic’, especially if it’s not your primary fix. - those can be mistaken for 4 especially if you’re F mbti wise. (basically social orietented more than task oriented if you’re not familiar with the term)

In any case you can generally ‘smell’ a 5 fix or wing if a person often shares ‘funfacts’ as a bonding activity (”Hey buddy a while ago I read this super cool thing...”) or takes an opportunity to explain something when it arises. This too might interact with a 2 fix like being self-conscious of comming off as a smartass but also - & for all their differences both are uncomfortable with others spontaneously doing tasks for them, the 2 might feel guilty that it’s an ‘indulgence’ & that they should be helping instead while the 5 doesn’t like the implication of not being able to do it on their own - of course you could have neither of these problems if you’re relatively well-adjusted. 

Instinctual variant in general may be helpful b/c 2 and 4 are amongs the ones that vary somewhat, especially 2.

sp 2: Sorta childlike in presentation likes to be spoiled, will present adorable & refreshing to seem loveable (more via your attributes than actions)

sp 4: Can sorta appear somewhat more sunny (by still quirky, ‘unique’ & negativistic ie - “This day was so hard I deserve chocolate”), a person with a more tough demeanor (in some cases enough to be mistaken for 8 or 6) or a mixture of both - in any case there’s an idea of beiring suffering  by May fantasize abut doing extreme things, puts significance in favorite belongings

sx 2: 2 classic, focussed on building & pleasing personal relationships, very expressive & relationship pocussed, probably always has to have a best friend and/or romantic partner

sx 4: ‘intense artsy person’ / 4 classic, can have tempestuous moods, very romantic but can fall prey to overly high expectations & quickly grow disillusioned, feels *personally* slighted by the world

soc 2: The mom friend or charity worker sort, very adult in presentation, attracted to important positions where they can do a lot of help. Focus on being needed by others in general

soc 4: ‘Social critic’/ ‘subculture’ sort of person. Defines self as standing apart from mainsteam culture or feels they don’t fit into it. Can have a lot of social avoidance or negatively compare self to others sometimes, probably somewhat self-conscious of social interactions, not as ‘tempestuous’ as the others

There’s also a difference in communication style - 4s may narrate their current pursuits or misfortunes & comiserate if someone else chimes in, (unless they think the other person is a boring tool then they might get critical & judgy, like “You think you have problems?”) - This isn’t necessarily or at least not consciously attention grabby just their way of talking & they’d liste to another person if they talked similarly but there’s probably a lowkey wish that someone would validate you & if that happens it feels nice. 

2 by contrast is one of the more positivistic types & focusses on feelgoodsy stuff in conversation, they wouldn’t spit out a personal misfortune unless they felt safe & saw the other person emphasizes. The communication style is different - If someone complains of misfortune they won’t so much sit back & listen but try to comfort or advise the person, like actually try to get them un-sad asap, with the expectation that next time they’re sad the other person will comfort them though they’ll expect it more than explicitly ask for it. 

They might for example get pissed if a loved one doesn’t comfort them in a hard moment, like “ahh i went through this nasty breakup &my friend didn’t support me enough” etc.