#redhead vs. writing

[coldtomyflash]

I could have left a comment on Tumbling Together, but when I saw you were still active on this account I felt I needed to come gush personally. That. Was. Amazing. What a genuine exploration not only of their characters, but the struggles of a relationship, the compromises that would need to be made. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, the inevitable break up and angst, but instead you wrote what might be the healthiest relationship I've read in a long time. You wrote every character with such solid foundation, made me love everyone from Mick to Axel to Joe West at his most over protective by making everyone sound like a person. I need to take a day to just sit with this fic before reading anything else, because I don't know how anything could fill the shape it's created. 10/10, incredible work, further gushing.

Hiii!

Sorry I took a minute to respond, life got really busy / exciting this past week.

I'm so delighted that you enjoyed the fic so much! Tumbling Together was truly built on this idea of pure joy and love. I do like things to be emotionally grounded still, but the aim was always a feel good sort of story, and I'm glad that it's still able to deliver that so many years later (I can't believe how time has passed!)

Thanks for the lovely message :)

[coldtomyflash]

Got a Melancholic Temperament (that's what they said to me)

I am terrible at finding fics so I am once again asking you lovely people for help. not sure if I am just not searching hard enough or if this story was deleted. but anyway I think Len got de-aged somehow and the West-Allen household was taking care of him. Len of course was smitten with Barry. there was a lot of good back and forth but when they did finally have sex, the next morning Len was back to his normal age again. I think at one point Barry was afraid he was Len's first but Len assured him he wasn't.

[fozmeadows]

As someone who hasn't read the works of radical feminists like Simone de Beauvoir, could you explain what's wrong and what bothers you about biological essentialism? I'm curious about your opinion after reading your post on radfems (and I'd like a perspective that isn't so based on biological gender essentialism, which I honestly have a hard time moving away from because I don't understand other perspectives well). 👀

The problem with biological essentialism is that purports to answer the eternally unanswered question of nature vs nurture in a wholly one-dimensional way - ie, with biological sex as The Single Most Important Aspect Of Personhood, regardless of any other considerations - while simultaneously ignoring the fact that biological sex is not, in fact, a binary proposition. We've learned in recent decades, for instance, that intersex conditions are much more common and wide-ranging than previously thought, not because scientists have arbitrarily changed the definitions of what counts as an intersex condition, but because our understanding of hormones, chromosomes, karyotpying and other physical permutations has expanded sufficiently to merit the shift. So right away, the idea that humanity is composed of Biological Men and Biological Women with absolutely no ambiguities, overlap or middle ground simply isn't true. Inevitably, though, if you mention this, people with a vested interest in biological essentialism become immediately defensive. They'll start saying things like, oh, but that's only a tiny minority of the population, they're outliers, they don't count, as though their argument doesn't derive its claim to authority from a presumed universality. To use a well-worn example, redheads are also a tiny minority of the population, but that doesn't mean we exclude them when talking about the range of natural human hair colours. But the fact is, even if humans lacked chromosomal diversity beyond XX/XY; even if there were no cases of cis men with internal ovaries or cis women with internal testes or people with ambiguous genitalia - and let's be clear: all of these things exist - the fact is, our individual hormones are in flux throughout our lives.

There are standard ranges for estrogen and testosterone in men and women (which, again, vary according to age and some other factors), but two cis men of the same age and background could still have completely different T-counts, for instance - meaning, even the supposed universal gender factor isn't universal at all. More, while our hormones certainly play a major role in our moods and cognition, so do a ton of other genetic and bodily factors that have nothing to do with the sex we're assigned at birth - and on top of that, there's nurture: the cultural contexts in which we're raised, plus our more individual experiences of living in the world. One of the most common, everyday (and yet completely bullshit) permutations of biological essentialism comes when parents or would-be parents talk about their reasons for wanting a son or a daughter. Very often, there's a strong play to stereotypical assumptions about shared interests and personalities: I want a son to play football with me, for instance, or: I want a daughter to be my shopping buddy. But even within the most mainstream channels of cishet culture, it's understood that these hopes are not, in fact, grounded in any sort of biological certainty. The dad who wants a sporty son might be just as likely to end up with a bookworm, while the mother who wants a little princess might find herself with a tomboy. We know this, and our stories know this! For the entirety of human history - for as long as we've been writing about ourselves - we have records of parental disappointment in the failure of this child or that to embody what's expected of them, gender-wise. More than that: if biological essentialism was real - if men were only and ever One Type Of Man, and women were only and ever One Type Of Woman, with recent progressive moments the sole anonymous blip in an otherwise uniform historical standard - then why is there so much disparity and disagreement throughout human history as to what those roles are? The general conception of women espoused in medieval France is thoroughly different to that espoused in pre-colonial Malawi, for instance, and yet we're meant to believe that there's some innate Gender Template guiding all human beings to behave in accordance with a set, immutable biological binary? And that's before you factor in the broad and fascinating history of trans and nonbinary people throughout history - because despite what TERFs and conservative alarmists have to say on the matter, our records of trans people, and of societies in which various trans and nonbinary identities were widely understood (if not always accepted), are ancient. We know about trans priestesses from thousands of years before Christ; the Talmud has terms describing eight different genders, and those are just two examples. All over the world, all throughout history, different cultures have developed radically different concepts of femininity and masculinity, to say nothing of designations outside of, overlapping with or in between those categories - socially, legally, behaviourally, sexually - and yet we're meant to believe that biology is at all times nudging us towards a set, ideal gender template? There's a lot more I could say, but ultimately, the point is this: people are different. While some aspects of our personhood are inevitably influenced by genetics, hormones, chromosomes and other biological factors, we're also creatures of culture and change and interpersonal experience. The idea that men and women are fundamentally different, even diametrically opposed, at a biological level - that the major separator in terms of our personalities and interests isn't culture, upbringing and personal taste, but what's between our legs - is just... so reductive, and so inaccurate.

We can absolutely have common experiences on the basis of a shared gender, but gender is not the only possible axis of commonality between two people, let alone the most salient one at all times, and the idea that we're all born on one side of an immutable biological equation that cannot possibly be transcended makes me feel insane. According to modern biological essentialism, intersex, trans and nonbinary people are either monstrous, mistakes or imaginary; all men are fundamentally predisposed to violence, all women are designed for motherhood, and we're meant to just hew to our designated places - which, conveniently, tend to echo a very specific form of Christian ideology, but which in any case manifestly fail to account for how variedly gender has been presented throughout history. It's nuts.

[hahnspuppy]

Hahnspuppy: Favorite Fanfic List

My FanFiction Works are @transboyswitchytales and A03

Agatha x Rio x Reader

Butch in Westview (and part tw : Butch Out of Westview)

A dance with death (and her wife)

Cooties

It worked

Ours together

Corrupt Desire (Rio x Reader DARK)

Agatha x Reader

Make Me a Mommy

Passing Notes

Love & Liabilities

Love Beyond Memory

Agatha Harkness VS Salem: The Kittening

Chaconne

LandLady (DARK) @buttercandy16 (read all of their dark fics sooo good!)

Detective Agnes x Reader

I'm a good girl detective

Poking the bear

Long Dady, Huh?

Swan Queen

Dusk Til Dawn

Mine, Forever

Wicked Games

Something About Us

Shadow Haven

Melissa Schemmenti x Reader

Mia Anima Gemella (My Soulmate)

Comfort crowd

Tempting Fiery Redhead Devil

Poe x Finn

Step out into the sun

Miranda x Andy

More than just baggage

Midnight Clandestine Stories

After Dark

Smoke Break

One step forward (and two steps back)

Maya Mason x Reader

What do you know?

She's with the Director

Mine to Manage

Everything @ragnarockz writes for Maya (Read it all my friends)

What Happens in Vegas

You did what?… With who?

Governor Claire Debella x Reader

Whiskey and Wine

Newsflash!

___________________________________________________

Let me know if you read/enjoy any of them?!

Also swing by my fanfics and let me know if you like em?

@transboyswitchytales

ENJOY!

[thepeaklegendoffirstgen]

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

I'm honestly stumped by how many people are buying into this theory 💀💀 because let’s be real. If this actually happens, the entire story will go down the drain. All the hype around James vs Gun? Gone. Narratively, it won’t make sense. James, being Daniel’s foil won’t add up to anything. Gapryong dies, and then what? The rise of a 1st generation legend? Kitae could’ve easily been that legend, but PTJ clearly didn’t go down that route.

James is now freely roaming around, doing whatever he wants, breaking free from Charles Choi’s hold. Do you really think he wanted to be a K-pop idol? Be honest. Sure, it comes with money and fame, but the fragility of that lifestyle is very, very dangerous for someone like James. I’ve said this before. Being a K-pop idol puts him under constant risk and scrutiny. And given how smart and capable he is, he could’ve excelled at anything else.

Also, I think the Seongji vs James fight should’ve been the end of this theory, but nooo 😂😂

That cocky redhead was acting like he’s all-powerful, an attitude only a teenage boy would have. Now people say, “But Charles in a young body gets the thrill of youth and freedom!” Sure, great argument. But having a younger body doesn’t mean you will act like you are the strongest even though you are not.

So, in the same breath, Charles wouldn’t be acting as cocky and reckless as James. Killer Peter is a perfect example. SPOILERS : Peter having a younger body doesn’t make him cocky. His previous experience makes him more formidable and mature. That should’ve been the case with James, too. Instead, James acts exactly like a teen who grew up in violence and is still navigating adolescence.

The most common excuse I hear is, “But they were never in the same room.” Really? They were, in the Aru arc and even in Jake’s backstory. CH 310:

And guess who else is in that room? Eugene. This dude has had his eyes on both Charles and James the whole time. He always questioned why someone like James worked for Charles. He dug deep and found out it was because of Gapryong’s murder that James was stuck under Charles’s leash. Eugene is smart as hell. He would sniff out any shady second body business in minutes. If he could uncover James, who committed a murder and was being blackmailed for it, he’d definitely figure out if Charles had a second body, especially if it was standing right in front of him.

Also, focus on the panels:

The “you” I highlighted refers to James. So when Goo says those two have been planning something on the side, it’s crystal clear.

Now fans are jumping to wild conclusions like “James is Charles’s conscious body”? Like... how did you even arrive at that? That’s pure headcanon. There’s zero evidence. Just vibes.

Honestly, I can’t see, no, fail to see why people believe James is Charles’s second body. Sure, the question arises: How does James know about the two bodies in the first place? But the truth is, we don’t know yet. And I’m not going to speculate baselessly.

What really pushed me to write this was a theory video claiming James is Charles’s second body, and that’s why he wants to kill the people in the pictures in ch 556. That’s probably the second dumbest thing I’ve heard after the James = Charles theory. Like omg !!! it’s so obvious. Those people know about Gapryong’s murder. Of course, James wants to eliminate them. It’s not that deep. Duh!

And let’s not forget, James despises Charles. He’s never shown even a sliver of positive feelings toward him. The only time he’s ever genuinely nice was with Crystal. But when it comes to her father? Anytime Charles is mentioned, James dodges it, like, “No, I’m not close to the chairman,” or he is scheming his downfall.

Why would you plot your own downfall if you were literally the same person? Just because you’re perfect? By that logic, Crystal should’ve thrown her small body away, too. Makes no sense. So this “dislike for your own body” idea? Nah. I don’t buy it 😬😬

Also, neither James nor Kitae seems like the final boss. Kitae’s path is obvious: Jake is either going to save him or end him. As for James, we’ll eventually get his backstory, understand his motives, and see how Charles screwed him over. But the one who’s actually going to wreck James isn’t Gun or Daniel. Best believe it’ll be Charles. And maybe then we’ll find out Charles has a second body, but it sure as hell won’t be James.

Narratively and thematically, the characters mostly driving the plot are Gapryong, James, and Daniel. And the root of all their suffering? One man: Charles Choi. Even Jake and Kitae are somehow tied him. So yeah, it makes sense, in the most straightforward way possible, who will be the last villain.

So overall ,

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

It’s honestly painful seeing two amazing, layered characters being reduced to this theory. Fans digging their own grave with it. And let’s not forget, fan theories almost never come true 😁😁😆😆 So I think I’m safe saying this won’t likely happen 😄😄

This was just me ranting. If you feel James is Charles’s second body, that’s your prerogative. I’m not targeting anyone, I just had to get this off my chest 🫠 Feel free to discuss or disagree.

At the end of the day, it’s all in PTJ’s hands. We can only sit back and let the story unfold.

But remember:

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

JAMES IS NOT CHARLES 2ND BODY

My husband is not that shitty monster. He’s another type of monster, yes😭😭 but Charles? 🤢🤢

James is just toooooo precious to me 😭😭❤️❤️💗💗

[broadwaydivastournament]

Broadway Divas Tournament: Round 1D

This is a Titan vs. Titan fight and I apologize for nothing. I woke up and chose violence throughout this entire poll.

Seven-time Tony nominee, two-time winner Bernadette Peters (1948) has a sixty-plus year stage career of monumental proportions. Considered the foremost Sondheim interpreter, their collaborative works include Sunday in the Park with George (1984), Into the Woods (1987), Gypsy (2003), and Follies (2011). She has a thriving concert career, and was a co-founder of the beloved Broadway Barks event each year in Shubert Alley. She has an honorary third Tony (Isabelle Stevenson Award) for her outstanding advocacy and philanthropy.

Eight-time Tony nominee, three-time winner Patti LuPone (1949) has a staggering fifty-plus year stage career. Award-winning roles include Eva Peron in Evita (1979), Gypsy (2008), and Company (2022). She has toured the US with her wildly successful concert and cabaret acts, and will kill you on sight if she sees a cell phone in the theatre. Patti was NOT Norma Desmond on Broadway, and because of it, is the proud owner of the ALW Memorial Pool. She is no longer a member of Actors' Equity.

PROPAGANDA AND MEDIA UNDER CUT: ALL POLLS HERE

Pictured Annie Get Your Gun (Annie Oakley), Gypsy (Mama Rose), A Little Night Music (Desiree Armfeldt)

"Do I even need to write propaganda for these women? Do they not speak for themselves? Very well. Bernadette Peters in Cinderella (1997) was my very first, official, undisputed gay awakening. I was three, and enamored with the stepmother. This would prove to be a blueprint in my life, and well, here we are, twenty-some-odd years later, with a thing for stage actresses who play redheaded stepmothers in various Cinderella adaptations. It's a surprisingly common phenomenon."

Pictured Annie Get Your Gun (Annie Oakley), Gypsy (Mama Rose), A Little Night Music (Desiree Armfeldt)

"This woman can breech the sound barrier. The reverberation she gets on that one note in her Anything Goes Tony performance physically rearranges every atom in my body every time I hear it. Patti is THE definition of a Broadway Diva, with more than just a little touch of star quality. Her 54 Below show was an absolute riot from start to finish."

-photo submitted by anon.

(Please note, dear voters, that the above quote is from a clickhole article, and Patti LuPone never actually said it, but it would be on-brand of her if she had.)

[jrooc]

🥂AO3 Wrapped🥳

Thanks @energievie @sgtmickeyslaughter and @sam-loves-seb for the taggsss

How many words have you written this year? *167,280 (aprox. minus collab work)

How many works did you publish this year? My masquerade will be lucky 13 (kinda on the line of 'this year lol)

What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)?

In My Veins Like Lightning

Infinite Runner

I was lost but your fool

Dear Gentle Gallavich Reader

New Personal Best

How many kudos in total did you get this year? 1,825

What work of yours has the most hits? In My Veins Like Lightning

What work of yours got more feedback than you expected?

In My Veins, A New Personal Best & I was lost but your fool

Favorite title you used? I was lost but your fool

If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most? Looollll I use a lot of song lyrics 😆 Maybe Bon Iver? Frank Ocean actually probably.

Pairing you wrote the most for this year? Ian/Mickey

Favorite pairing you wrote for this year? Ian/Mickey

What work was the quickest to write? I was lost but your fool

What work took you the longest to write? In My Veins

How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year? 2

What’s your longest work of the year? In My Veins

What’s your shortest work of the year? Wolverine vs. Gallagher

What WIP are you taking into next year with you? 0. I have to finish my stories or they'll eat me alive

What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag? Alternative Universe

Your favorite character to write this year? Evil Stripper Ian video game boss! I mean he fights from a stripper pole.. I'm still laughing at my own brain for that one! Also my OC Allie in IMV. The Irish mafia, Patrick, in IMV. Mickey in your fool. Infinite Runner dorky and passionate Ian. Cocky Mickey in A New Personal Best.

The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year? Struggled with time constraints so both Infinite Runner Ian and Mickey but loved how they came together.

What’s one pairing you want to explore next year? Ian/Mickey 😅

Which work of yours have you reread the most? I was lost but your fool - I basically wrote it for me so I feel less pressure when I reread it to wonder about how others see it.

Which work has the most comments? In My Veins Like Lightning by a margin 😂

Did you do any collaborative works this year? Yupp, 3

Did you write any gifts this year? 2! Infinite Runner and If You Can't Stand the Heat for @gallapiech and @grumble-fish

Did you receive any gifts this year? Memoriam from Arrow and gifts from Mandi, Comet, Rayray Molly, and Jessie. And a great little drabble from Keely!

What’s your most common category? M/M

What do you listen to while writing? must have music. Like my IMV playlist

Favorite work you wrote this year? In My Veins Like Lightning and I was lost but your fool and some moments in Infinite Runner.. and fuck it .. If You Can't Stand the Heat didn't get a lot of love but I loved it

Biggest surprise while writing this year? How much people loved my stories. I'm not far off 3K kudos total and I never expected anyone to read anything of mine in the first place. So grateful for the support and the amazing friends I've made along the way.

Favorite line/passage you wrote this year? This is wayyy too hard. I am proud of a lot of the dialogue I wrote but it'll be too long here.

"“I feel like I’ve known you my whole life, man. You feel like home. I want you to be mine.” He whispered into Ian’s skin.

It was quiet again and Mickey was sure the redhead had fallen asleep before he heard Ian speak like a secret into the silent room.

“You’re already mine.” " - I was lost but your fool

--

“No, you lose a ball or somethin’?” Case in point. “Like a shot-put ball. Or a Discus.” Ian explained, making it worse.

Mickey's eyebrows raised so high Ian thought they were going to levitate off his forehead. He snorted. “Oh, you’re a real smooth operator, ain’tcha, Budgie Smuggler?” - Read the full interactation at the bar in A New Personal Best

Tagging and sending a holiday cheers to 🥂:

@deedala only

Jk also @gallapiech

And then maybe for good measure @mmmichyyy @thepupperino @ian-galagher @lazystargazy @ms-moonlight-inn

@notherenewjersey @jessij1997 @suzy-queued @crossmydna @wehangout

@spoonfulstar @goodkwuestion @roryonic @blue-disco-lights @runninonemptyy

I'm missing ppl.. if you see this you’re tagged

[kings-highway]

Fanfic Writer Review

Thanks you the wonderful @mania-sama for tagging me for this and letting me inflict my thoughts upon all of you <3 love you asshole :)

Many, many words below the cut!

“How many works do you have on Ao3?”

Sitting pretty at 47! I have deleted a few fics in the past but I have never orphaned any or posted anonymously, so the count is accurate.

“Your top 5 stories by kudos/likes?”

In the Woods of Japan - 1,969 kudos

Should surprise nobody to find this one is my most beloved! Ironically this is also the second story I ever posted to Ao3 - writing it was like a fever dream, posting a chapter almost every day or every second day for a bit. I truly, truly think that writing this fic was one of the best decisions I ever made, if you all and the haikyuu community hadn’t shown me so much support, I have no idea what I’d be doing now - it broke me out of a 3-4 year dry spell where I hadn’t written anything at all, and has directly led to me not only writing regularly now but finishing original stories as well and truly even if it’s not my favourite piece in my library, I will never regret deciding to attack Daichi with a bear. Also shoutout to the only story I ever let Daichi be bisexual in. Finished writing this story and then stole his labels forever. Bitch never figured out his identity again.

All for the Love of an Energetic Redhead - 1,185 kudos

The success of this story is so funny to me. Sometimes I have an idea on whether or not a story will be well received, and other times the story is Energetic Redhead and you post it and are immediately flabbergasted by how many other people wanted Kags and Ushi to get blackout drunk and fly around the world. Ironically, the only reason this got written is because I don’t have the art skills/patience needed to make a comic I wanted to, based on the only two red-haired characters, but wanted to push my “two autistics vs. two energetic but VERY different redheads” agenda. It would have gone something like “several panels of Ushijima and Hinata standing side by side, Ushijima is distracted by something while Hinata motor-talks about all things volleyball. Ushijima suddenly interrupts him, realizing who he is and saying: You are not my usual redhead-” and the panel is interrupted, cutting to Kageyama trapped in a dark room with Tendou.”

Competitive Fake Dating - 1,061 kudos

Sometimes as a fanfiction writer, you have to remind yourself that you are a fanfiction writer. It’s all fun and games writing massive, sprawling stories with deep themes and complex character relations. But this is fanfiction, bitch, sometimes you have to make your blorbos kiss for points.

Imperfect Facial Symmetry - 916 kudos

Oh, what can I say. This one truly is special to me. 100% one of my favourite fics of all time, there are only very few things I would change about it, but most of those being wishing I could go back and add more, drag it out. I don’t like stories or headcanons that make Tendou out to be attractive or even “attractive in a weird way” I think his character is far more interesting if you allow him to be conventionally unattractive, and I think pairing it with a version of Ushijima obsessed with the limitations of his own self expression, to rewire the definition of “attractive” into “lively” and “expressive” is such a good representation of why I love this ship specifically. There are a lot of headcanons present in this story that I since used in pretty much every other. God I could talk about it / them / this story for fucking ever.

American Summer - 882 kudos

Sequel to #1, In the Woods. What can I say, you go for a bear, you escalate to an American named Adam. I did NOT want this story to be the way this story ended up. Earlier drafts of the story included stargazing on the top of a rented motorhome, losing your virginity in the back of a car, getting into a fight with a couple of 22 year olds outside of a bar, visiting national parks, overcoming jealousy for your boyfriends’ trauma-bonded found family, and slowly beginning to let go of that trauma. INSTEAD after writing a couple chapters I remembered you can’t legally rent a car at 18/19 in California and I had to rapidly adjust, and apparently instead of a coming-of-age vacation my only other idea was serial killer so. Uh.

“Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?”

So-so. I WANT to reply to every comment, but I have a really severe kind of social anxiety, so I don’t reply most of the time. I’m too afraid of looking really conceited and egotistical, if I reply to a comment about the things they like about the fic with the things I liked about the fic or just agreeing with them, I’m just hyping myself up as if I wasn’t the author and keeping all the attention on me, if I just thank them and nothing else, I feel like I’m not appreciating it enough and they’ll be offended by my shorter response, if I make a joke or be funny, 90% of the time I don’t get a reply back, and then I sit there with a stomach ache of anxiety wondering if they were annoyed by me trying to be silly. So. I really, really, try my best to reply to comments, especially at the last chapter of a longer fic, or if there’s a direct question I’ll always answer those, but otherwise I get nervous and can’t bring myself to hit enter on the responses. But I love all the comments I receive so much and I really am trying to get better at engaging with people.

“What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?”

Has to be Astrophilia. I don’t enjoy angsty endings most of the time, I don’t think the world needs more stories about people failing to be happy, or suffering needlessly with no reprise. Astrophilia was originally going to be a hardcore angst ending with them definitively dying in space/losing the ability to communicate with Earth, but as per the previous reason given, I just didn’t see any value in that story, and wanted to give it more of my usual spin. (No hate to people who do like angst, I just don’t.) Most of my angst is found in the middle of my fics, where it belongs :P (the catharsis of recovery is important to me!)

“What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?”

All of them? I think ignoring the one-shots that exist only to be fluffy, and thinking about what really qualifies a happy ending, I would have to go with Soulmake Adventures. Sure, there’s no fairytale happy ending to it (which is the point of that story) but in that I think that’s the happiest ending. Each character is explicitly given long, healthy lives filled with new experiences and growth and change, and are not bound to static one-note love stories. Their happy endings are not defined by the satisfaction of the romance story that was contained in Soulmake Adventures, but each of them achieving a level of self-actualization that allows them to take control of the choices they make and live for themselves first.

“Do you write crossovers?”

In theory? Yes. I just don’t have a reason to :)

I would LOVE to do a SK8 + Haikyuu crossover though. I think Langa and Kageyama need to be locked in a room together.

“Have you ever received hate on a fic?”

Not really. One comment comes to mind but I also don’t feel like giving enough description that would allow someone to track it down, feels mean to put a spotlight on someone, especially because I've never received hate, with such a strong word. Just… disappointment or confusion.

Oh, except for this one time this crazy person told me I’d stolen the plot of Sharkboy and Lavagirl. smh.

“Do you write smut? If so, what kind?”

Yes? No? I think sex and physical intimacy is one of the most interesting ways to explore relationship dynamics and emotions, so I tend to use sex a lot in my stories, but as most would know I rarely, rarely write graphic sex. “Smut” I think has the connotation of sex that’s meant to be hot, which I’ve never done. If you see characters fucking in my stories, there’s a purpose to it. BUT that being said never say never. Sex is just sex, if I think of a good story idea that uses it, then it will be.

“Have you ever had a fic stolen?”

I think? I had a ton of my stories being hosted on one of those data scam sites or whatever. I truly just. Whatever.

“Have you ever had a fic translated?”

I think so! I’ve had many people approach and ask me permission to, but I can’t say for certain if they ever got completed. I think so.

“Have you ever co-written a fic before?”

No! I do love the idea of collaborating on a fic, but I hate the idea of co-writing. There would have to be a premise that lets us write our own halves (dual perspective, maybe?) that’s relatively separate. Otherwise, the actual process of two “writers” on a fic sounds absolutely terrible. What, gonna share a google doc and take turns writing lines? I would go crazy with control-freak energy. BUT the idea of collaborating on a story in other ways and sharing credit for ideas and working together to make it good would be awesome.

“What’s your all-time favourite ship?”

*glances at my Haikyuu themed fanfiction blog and Ao3 account*

S… Sculder… (Mulder/Scully - X-Files)

It’s really really hard to decide, “all-time favourite” comes with a huge weight to it. Amy/Rory from Doctor Who is also really fucking high on that list, as is Ten/Rose to be fair. But then I think about where I am currently, and in terms of energy/thought put into a ship, that shit has to be DaiSuga, right? In terms of favourite, clearly… but… if we’re going with Haikyuu, a relatively recent love of mine, I think UshiTen is more compelling…

BUT if we’re talking about ships that take up my brainpower, ships that live rent-free forever in my head, it’s going to be my original characters, always. I have a handful of personal characters from original stories that never leave my thoughts. The real answer would probably be two of my OCs. If you know you know.

But that’s a stupid answer so I’m gonna go with Sculder because they are perfect.

“What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?”

There are SO many WIPS that’ll never get finished, but I think the answer that serves this question the best is a WIP in my scrap folder called “The London Reconnection,” which follows Suga about 5 years post leaving Japan to study English Lit in London, and is working towards his masters. He had effectively lost a lot of his cultural roots and really enjoys the lifestyle of London, especially the teas, and although he had always planned on eventually going back to Japan after getting his masters, as he gets closer to that, he’s started considering staying in London and staying forever. Which, at the time, doesn’t hurt so bad - he hasn’t spoken to anyone back home in three years, and the last time he went for Christmas, he didn’t even bother checking in with his friends… though a wrench gets thrown into his confidence for what he wants and his plans for the future when, literally out of nowhere, Daichi shows up in the library he works at with his little sister, having come to support her while she receives an experimental treatment for a rare disorder, and they’re expecting to stay, possibly indefinitely. Suga hadn’t spoken to Daichi in quite a few years, but had always considered him “the one that got away” (though they had never officially dated.) So suddenly, his perfectly curated London lifestyle is tipped on its side due to the dropped-in presence of an old, familiar face and one that can barely speak a lick of English, let alone blend into the London culture. Cue English lessons, lots of metaphors about teas, identity, and falling in love with someone you used to know intimately, but don’t really know at all anymore. I think about it like 3 times a week but more than likely will never write more than the 4k or so I put down for the first chapter…

“What are your writing strengths?”

Fuck if I know, my man. I think dialogue? I get a lot of compliments regarding how natural my characters feel, how much they seem like real people, so I think that has to be one of the strongest points of my writing. I also think I’m very funny. Humour is 100% subjective so this doesn’t really count, but I love some of my own jokes in my writing. Write to make yourself laugh, friends, that’s the key.

“What are your writing weaknesses?”

The fact that if a scene bores me I’ll just straight skip it. I tend to rush scenes that would be realistic simply because I don’t care about them, certain characters or plot lines getting abandoned because writing the necessary scenes for them to really work just sounds boring. Even if I think the scenes or characters are good and important and very interesting, if it bores me I just… can’t force myself to do it. I also really struggle with combat and action sequences, anything that requires “choreography” of any kind, I think I tend to under-explain each scene in an effort to avoid over-explaining an action sequence, which results in muddied and confusing character motions with little context.

“What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?”

I don’t think I have any thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? I’m sure this is related to some kind of fan-debate about this, but… I’m not sure what the camps are. If I write Dialogue in another language in a fic, and the perspective character doesn’t speak that language, I italicize it but otherwise write it like normal dialogue. If the character does speak that language, I italicize it but write it in English and make a note in the dialogue tag that it was in whichever language. I think, though don’t hold me to this, spoken dialogue should always be written in a way that the reader can “hear” which would unfortunately have to include the phonetic anglicization of languages that don’t use the latin alphabet IF you’re writing in English (or converting it to whatever language you’re writing in.) This is due to the enjoyment of the reader being able to “hear” the story or keep the immersion. If I’m reading a story, and it presents to me, in dialogue, a string of sanskrit, just skipping over that without hesitation. No idea. Character may as well not have spoken, can’t hear it. BUT if it’s in the text of the book, describing the writing they’re reading, signage, or anything else, then it should stay in its original written form, perhaps translated elsewhere in the story if needed. I don’t think authors are required to translate spoken dialogue if the perspective character can’t understand it. HOWEVER that is also my opinion for, like, original fiction stories. Because fanfiction is supposed to be for sharing, I can understand wanting/expecting a translation of whatever cute or funny quip the characters are making in the language. I, personally, have never provided translations for any of the languages I use in my fics. Sorry.

“What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?”

I have no interest in writing fanfiction for other fandoms. As mentioned above, if I had to pick one I might go with SK8, but I’m not really a “fanfiction writer” in the sense that when I read/watch media I get overwhelmed with the urge to write stories for them. I don’t even really read fanfiction. Haikyuu is special in that, these little fucks satisfy my creative urges and that’s all they have to do, it’s not really about any hyperfixation on the media or interest in writing fanfiction as a whole, y’know. Besides, if I started writing for other fandoms, that would give Daichi a break from me and I can’t allow that.

That being said, ships I haven’t ever written for… I have a SemiShira WIP in progress that hopefully will be finished Kogagoshi as well I’m a fan of, if you can believe that. FukaTora, too. Honestly I have a dozen AsaNoya WIPS, and considering they’re one of my favourites the fact that they’ve never been more than a background ship/side pairing is a SHAME. Same with AranKita.

“What’s your favourite fic you’ve written?”

Time Enough to Risk it All has to be my favourite, just because it’s, well… it’s what it is. I think it’s tight and well contained, it doesn’t suffer from my usual rambling, missed plotlines or dropped ideas that I scrapped after I started posting. It feels cohesive and tightly knit and it ends the same way. Not too many things going on. However, I will say, Imperfect Facial Symmetry is really high up there as well, as is The Stoplight Demon even though it was not everyone else’s favourite. I do think if I can finish “This is Not the End” the way I want to, and have it be what I hope it’ll be, it will become my favourite. But I still have time to ruin it, so we’ll see if Time Enough keeps its title :)

Tagging: victims!

@harumin24 @vvalllerie @reviiely

[coldtomyflash]

I’m still sad Mighty Fine Predicament never was finished but I loved the chapter we did get! I read it hours after it was posted! Is it abandoned or just indefinitely paused for now?

great question!

so, Back In the Day, when i started this fic, i started writing and assumed the story would start to fall into place the same way all my other stories sort of did, once i got going.

and it did, sort of, but only in my head. because... i didn't like the direction it went?

by which i mean, i liked the direction it went, in a sort of messed up id-tastic way, but it wasn't necessarily the story i wanted to write for others to read, and wasn't what i wanted for this fic and setup. and even some of the story elements themselves that weren't id-fic fun were ones i wanted to get away from and smooth over, except i was overly on how i'd set up the case in my mind and couldn't figure out a better way forward.

so i got a bit stuck (on that and on the csi-style details haha, got immediately bogged down in trying to learn some forensics. whoops.)

but someone commented on this fic this month, maybe that was even you(?), and i started daydreaming up a different version of it! one that i would actually maybe write! one that is more what i'd hoped to craft in the first place!

i honestly have no idea if i'll ever get back to it, i'm off writing supernatural fic still, but coldflash will always have my heart and now that i can picture a slightly different version of this story, it's no longer impossible :)

[secondtolastrow]

just finished reading havok & wolverine: meltdown. I really was not sold on a lot of the plot/writing but my god did it have all the hits (Alex vs mind control. Alex hurting someone he cares about with his powers. Alex falling in love with a dubious redhead). also the art was fucking GORGEOUS

Yes!!!

My feelings about meltdown are so similar (and with a side of like. Wow I feel weird about the attempt to connect this to the Chernobyl disaster it feels kinda disrespectful) but it’s so pretty and I love Alex just getting fucked up in the desert

Like it’s hilarious sort of when you look at the aftermath for Alex and it’s just like. Well that didn’t work. He’s even worse now

[rei-ismyname]

X-Comics Weekly Roundup

May Week 2

Some X-books certainly came out this week including the last (for now) cancelled ongoing of the launch books - X-Factor. As we come up on a year of From The Ashes no ongoings have been announced to replace them, and that's probably a good thing. The vibe I get from comic shop folks is that having a lot of average books dulls interest. I did say I'd never write about X-Factor but I really want to dunk on it, plus Warren experiencing public hate for being a bootlicker gives me life. To me, my X-books!

winged garbage ❤️

X-Factor #10

None of X-Factor made much sense and it was a total flop, totally deserved to get cancelled. It felt doomed from the start as a half-baked mashup of previous interpretations. X-Statix fully committed to satire and farce whereas this felt like it was considering it but couldn't decide. It led to attempts at emotional stakes right next to cynical and pointless character death. The best issue was probably the Chuck Hunt crossover and only because Beast was there ridiculing the premise. Worst of all there was a much better plot happening off screen - the Mutant Underground. I love Polaris and I guess she wouldn't even appear in this book if Havok wasn't angsting over her, so yay? I like that she dumped his ass for working with the US military and that despite him deciding it was a stupid mistake she's still like 'I love you but I don't want to be with you.'

Why TF would winged garbage join X-Factor in the first place? He owns 8% of it but how do they make money? I guess it doesn't matter now. Scott and Hank are chilling in Alaska and they're his boys. He's already incredibly wealthy and the US military tried to genocide mutants very recently. Dude quit at the end of the book, but I wouldn't be surprised if people don't trust him moving forward. I mean, assuming the events of X-Factor are taken seriously. 'Winged garbage' is probably the only thing I'll remember from this run, it's just funny. I'm glad that Frenzy, Cecilia Reyes and Pyro are still around, but they didn't get to do much. A lot of favourites are now unaligned and free to appear in other books - I hope Warren joins the X-Men and NYX/X-Factor's leftovers are smooshed together into a Mutant Underground/Morlocks book. Both are unlikely but I can dream.

GODZILLA VS THE X-MEN

Chuck empathising with Godzilla is hilarious as a concept though it makes sense in context. If you like Jim Lee X-Men taking on Godzilla in a mech, this might interest you. I'm averse to nostalgia bait crossovers on principle, and while it's an interesting angle on paper it's not really doing anything amazing. Marvel has the rights to The X-Files now and plans to do crossovers so I fully expect something like this in the future. Pretty much every monster of the week could be a mutant and Logan would have a new redhead to creep on. Scully might shoot him, though Mulder doesn't have much to do in a world where aliens openly work at the FBI. Godzilla looks a little embarrassed to be involved with this book tbh, and yes - I'm being cynical, but I know we can do better.

WOLVERINE #9

I really don't care about Logan but this scene is pretty funny. It's trite and not exactly cutting edge deconstruction but it'll probably piss off the grifters it's dunking on. That brings me some amusement. Logan does some stuff, snikt, bub, best at what he does etc. Actually, that's not true. He doesn't do much at all and the one fight he gets into he uses fists instead of claws. He DOES say bub, though, obviously. Can you imagine if he didn't? Uatu the Watcher would probably show up. Anyway, Department H are keeping an eye on him for unexplained reasons I'm not spending energy speculating about. If you're a Logan fan you're probably reading it already and if not, you're not missing much.

Phoenix #1 1

Slim Summers becoming Swole Summers

If you had 'Sara Grey is a mutant and has been alive all this time in space' on your 2025 bingo card, nice work. I appreciate that the issue isn't even pretending it's not a trick or something, instead it's the start of some time-breaking thing. Cable senses time fuckery and timeslides to issue #12, so I guess we'll find out then. I really enjoyed issue #1 of this book but I haven't discussed it since, and my wariness has been sadly accurate so far. Phoenix stories have been overused and mangled, though at least it's not a 'Phoenix comes to Earth for the third time this year and ruins everyone's day' story. Those were awful, like Phoenix Endsong.

Kieron Gillen actually managed to weld all the nonsense into a coherent narrative in Immortal X-Men/X-Men Forever/RotPoX. I didn't think it was possible, yet he pulled it off in a clever way to salvage some optimism from the end of the First Krakoan Age. I remain super impressed. That's going to be hard to follow at the best of times, but Jean and Phoenix finally worked out their problems and defeated the uber end boss super God. All the Phoenix visits and personality weirdness were explained with a closed time loop and a bow on top.

Where do you go from there, stakes-wise and narratively? What does The Phoenix do after it's done what it was made to do with Jean? Hang out with Scott Summers for a few months then go have space adventures, apparently. The thesis of the book is Jean exploring wielding this kind of power responsibly - helping people. They have done just that except it keeps backfiring and everyone is terrified. Thanos and the Dark Gods were underwhelming antagonists and Adani felt like a lackluster deuteragonist. Jean and Phoenix got a cool space hero crew together yet they mostly cheerlead (and thirst in Nova's case.) It's great to see problems solved with compassion in general, Jean doing good works the hard way, but failure hasn't really felt like a possibility to me.

The long distance psychic relationship is my favourite bit. Also, weird Krakoa mention!

The biggest danger with Phoenix in general (besides overexposure) has always been control. That thread has been absent and they're more powerful than ever, but it feels like an inevitability. Writers for solo books need to have an end point in mind, especially right now with the constant danger of cancellation. That probably means putting the bird on the shelf for a while and I don't want to lose Jean with it. Ideally, Jean and Phoenix would take some time apart, except they're 'now and forever.' It's pretty much a given she's not returning to Earth fully powered and she can't stay in space forever. Crossing over with Imperial or even leading into it with Phoenix as a cosmic wild card makes a lot of sense. In fact it would be odd if Phoenix wasn't a factor as the last we saw of galactic politics Phoenix was all they cared about. Solicits haven't given any clues there so I guess we'll see. Fingers crossed for Jean staying alive even if I don't know where she'd fit.

The actual issue is mostly setup for whatever trickery is afoot. Sara Grey is alive and a mutant living in a space mutant society, except it's not her and the consequences are so bad they prompt Cable to stop beating up future gang members. He declares he's going to see his step-mother, which is either distasteful phrasing or a hilarious way to talk about The Phoenix. New Krakoa gets a mention as something Jean 'doesn't want to disturb.' They're in the White Hot Room which has always had loose rules, so it's a valid concern. I really want to see it, tbh, and if it's harmed in any way I riot. I don't really have a recommendation for Phoenix 🐦‍🔥. If you're a mega Jean fan you're probably already reading it, and if you're not it might be a bit unfocused for you. Then again, that's true of X-Comics in general right now IMO.

Hellverine #whatever

I loved Akihiro/Daken/Fang's Krakoan arc, especially the relationship with Aurora. It was fun forward movement that earned its happy moments without sanding off the edges. Then he died in Sabertooth War, and instead of coming back with everyone else through The Five a demon grabbed him. Or something. So Daken is around doing stuff but he's basically Ghost Rider and isn't involved with mutant characters at all. Fuck that and this, for that reason. Maybe I'm letting what could have been stop me enjoying what is, but I feel like I've read enough Ben Percy for a lifetime. Hellverine is barely an X-book and I'm petty enough to write it off based on backtracking that growth and the relationships built.

Ultimate X-Men #15

Gorgeous, high concept, slow AF

I don't really count this as an X-book as it's a completely different genre and unconnected to the others. It's an Ultimate book, and Peach Momoko is happily doing her thing as ever but it's also the least connected to the rest of the world. No idea if it's meant to link up with the other 'save the world' books when the Maker returns. If it is it's really taking its time and is going to feel disjointed crashing a Japanese high school book into super future evil Reed Richards. Worth a mention though. There's a lot to like just don't expect fireworks.

Ultimate Black Panther #16

This definitely isn't an X-book, like at all, but Ororo is in it! It stands on its own merits and seems to be moving faster than UXM. UBP is pointedly staying in Africa dealing with African issues and I'm enjoying the loopy living Vibranium stuff. The character work is fun too, but mainly I just wanted to check in on Ultimate Ororo telling this guy to fuck off.

Probably the most exciting X-Men/mutant action this week didn't directly involve mutants at all. One World Under DOOM #4 had the titular ruler of Earth struggling vs Dormammu's invasion. @pedrocomicreviews has an excellent, maybe even definitive, analysis of the event and issue - I'm just here for mutant stuff. Turns out DOOM wrote some new spells, one of which is called 'Optic Blast!' That's right, Doctor DOOM optic blasts Dormammu then follows it up with 'snikt.' It's fantastic.

Thanks for reading folks! ❤️

[whereispearlescentmoon]

To the anon who asked me why I ship Nuts and Dolts and not GemPearl when they are “basically the same”.

First, I did not mean to delete your ask, tumblr mobile froze and did a weird screen thing when I tried to save it as a draft and I accidentally deleted it

Second this is the actual response I was writing:

I almost didn’t answer this because I try to keep shipping discourse off my blog but I felt like this ask was worded in a way that was genuinely curious and not malicious (I find that GemPearl shippers are frankly rarely malicious and generally respect my not shipping them), so here’s my answer.

The first is that in general, I don’t do a ton of shipping in fandom (I tend to focus on characters rather than shipping) and when I do, I’m A) A multishipper because again I’m focused on the characters not the ships and B) I don’t do it on this blog. I’ve written shipping stuff before, I even tagged one of my fics on AO3 as like “You could technically read this as GemPearl if you wanted but it’s not intended that way”. I just don’t do it here.

The second thing is that GemPearl, especially Life Series GemPearl, is literally nothing like Nuts and Dolts dynamic wise.

Despite the obvious visual similarities (One has darker hair and wears a red cloak, though Ruby’s hair is black and red and Pearl’s brown, and the other is a redhead who wears green), I don’t think there’s really any similarities between Nuts and Dolts and GemPearl. The only ones I can really think of are that Gem keeps dying before Pearl and they are best friends (though not really in the Life Series which is the only time the visual similarities are even occurring).

Pearl is, personality wise, not very much like Ruby at all, especially in the Life Series. Ruby is a very strong leader type, she’s characterized largely by her optimism, her hope, her high energy, and her unrelenting dedication to the good even in the face of overwhelming evil. Meanwhile, Life Series Pearl is more often characterized by the struggle for personal control, her desperation for friendship, and her tendency to self isolate despite that. I cannot see Life Series Pearl doing something like not succumb to the Apathy by sheer hope and will alone. I can’t see Ruby Rose going crazy after being left by her soulmate.

The biggest similarities are that both are unrelentingly loyal and both keep watching the people they love die. They also both struggle with how other people perceive them vs how they perceive themselves, but with Pearl it’s because other people expect to her to be violent or scary and with Ruby it’s because people expect to always be the optimistic leader. You could argue that Ruby does isolate herself in Volume 9, but that was her trying to persevere and put on a brave face, not out of fear of getting hurt or being overwhelmed in a large group like Pearl. They also both have a dog, I guess? But Zwei and Tilly obviously don’t fill the same rolls.

As for Penny and Gem, I truly don’t see any similarities between the two of them. Like at all. They are both… energetic. Both of them have peppy voices? They keep dying without closure? But other wise there’s really nothing. Penny is a naive, sweet, bubbly girl who just wants to keep everyone safe and happy, including to her own detriment. Life Series Gem is a survivalist first, she will do anything to keep herself safe. She is strategic and sometimes, and I say this as a Life Series Gem fan, Gem can be mean. Especially to Pearl. Penny would never in a million years call Ruby pathetic. She would never goad her to get more violent.

Overall, GemPearl, at least Life Series GemPearl, is toxic yuri (which I do appreciate, don’t get me wrong, this particular instance is simply not for me), while Nuts and Dolts is pretty fluffy best friends to lovers with a tragic ending.

None of this is to say I don’t see some of the appeal of GemPearl or that it’s worse than Nuts and Dolts, this is just my personal explanation of why I don’t really think that they’re similar at all.

[bayetea]

3 and 4 for the ask thing? 👀

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

the most recent one I've seen was a luke fan who genuinely thinks thalia should have joined him in ttc and called her cruel and heartless and a bitch for what she did on mount tam 💀 see I consider myself a Luke Understander™ but I have such distaste for the two extremes of the fandom that are So Bad at nuanced interpretations of his character (basically the dichotomy of "luke did nothing wrong" vs. "luke was truly deeply evil and also gross towards children"). like I really appreciate what luke adds to the story and I think he's one of rick's best written characters but my god luke fans who hate on thalia gross me out :| why would thalia join him after he endangered annabeth. why would she slay the ophiotaurus when she's aware that she can't handle the power. why would she join luke and inevitably doom herself to being the vessel for kronos in his place???? anyways...

4. what was the last straw that made you finally block that annoying person?

I blocked one of the bigger valgrace posters because I'm sooo over their calypso hate. there's such a misogynistic undertone to the way they talk about her + the way they engage with the lost trio. in general I kinda think that side of the fandom has an unexamined misogyny problem - the usual fandom thing of sidelining women and girls in favor of men and m/m dynamics, and/or having higher behavioral/character writing standards for girls than they do for boys

(note: this shouldn't need to be clarified but I don't hate valgrace lol and this is not the only corner of the fandom that I think has a distinct misogyny problem. pls do not extrapolate meanings from this post that are not present, i.e. "so liking mlm is sexist?" "so you're saying ALL valgrace fans are misogynists?" because that's a very very silly takeaway from what I said and I'm not gonna argue with you 🙏)

this is sadly one of the reasons why you don't see me doing too much tlh trio posting on my own time (even though I adore them as a unit and as individuals) because I just hesitate to engage with that :/ same goes for other popular characters or ships or dynamics that I enjoy i.e. my ao3 is full of percabeth but I don't like engaging with the fandom much 💀 it's too big and so there's naturally just a higher proportion of people who are Weird and/or Annoying. the person I blocked before this was a loud percabeth stan + rachel hater because girl if you don't leave that wonderful redhead alone I stg

in general tho I tend to block people for posting a lot of character/ship hate regardless of whether or not I like/dislike said characters or ships (and I do mean hate, not evenhanded crit). everyone has their right to do whatever they want on their own blog but it's just exhausting for me to see so much negativity. I would definitely never follow someone that posts a lot of hate like that. especially woman haters 😐 because people don't know how to talk about their dislike of a woman (fictional or otherwise) without falling back on gross misogynistic language smh

(from this ask meme - feel free to ask/reblog!)

[ladykakata]

Someome come talk Gallavich with me

I still haven't seen the complete series and the bits I HAVE see - along with some genuinely insightful comments - have made me wonder a couple of things.

Apparantly a lot of people take Mickey's side in Ian vs. Mickey debates, and Mickey's clear devotion to Ian doesn't help Ian's case. The addage "Ian fell first, but Mickey fell harder", feels true yes, but I feel that undersells how equally obsessed Ian is with Mickey and vice-versa. Mickey's attraction to redheads is well known, they both like violent and aggressive men, and Ian can't stop his smitten smiles whenever Mickey threatens him or threatens other people.

I want to write more but typing on mobile is hard. My primary thought is that Mickey, to Ian, represents a weird form of STABILITY. Ian thrives when given dicipline and something to focus his mind and energy on. In his chaotic, confusion, unstable and violent homelife (his paternity, Franks constant schemes, Monica's appearing and disappearing, Liam suddenly showing up), Mickey is a constant and proved that during the bipolar era.

What are yohr thoughts? What brings Ian to Mickey just as much as Mickey to Ian?

[fangxin-guoshi]

Banana fish re-review ~

I did a rewatch of banana fish and oh my God I forgot how good this series was. Considering the original manga came out in the 80's in JAPAN, it was SO ahead of its time. One of the best depictions of gay characters I've ever seen in Japanese media, even by today's standards.

Some more silly thoughts:

Like yoshida just casually dropped a manga with an insanely progressive take on the bl genre by showing a complex queer interracial relationship with incredibly well-written characters. Honestly the fact that ash and eiji's relationship wasn't explicitly defined as romantic is a plus imo. Not being able to rely on obvious romantic gestures like kissing, hand-holding, romantic confessions, etc. actually forces the writer to develop their relationship without that crutch to lean on. That's why ash and eiji's relationship is so good, because it doesn't rely on surface-level romance to get across the fact that they love each other and instead use subtlety and little nuances in their interactions. It's obvious from the subtext and how much they're shown to care for each other.

Not to mention the great depiction of black characters (I know portraying black characters non-offensively is like, the bare minimum, but may I remind you this is the EIGHTIES in JAPAN, and there are so many CURRENT animes that have an issue with it).

I mean yea does it have its flaws? Sure. Ash's admittedly very lame "lynx" title that comes with many wildcat metaphors, eiji being a bit passive in the first half, sort of cringe portrayal of America, etc. but my God the way she handles the trauma and character dynamics is incredible.

Ok so I did have a uh... Not really a criticism but something that I noticed that got me thinking. I feel like some shows use dark subject matter as a bit of an easy way to evoke an emotional reaction from the audience. Sometimes authors give characters horrible backstories as a way to make the audience THINK the character is complex and interesting but in reality it's a bit of a lazy writing tactic. Low effort high reward kind of thing. Banana fish obviously does have brutal subject matter and ash is really put through the ringer, but I love that yoshida doesn't let that become the axis of his character. He has trauma that greatly impacts him, but he's also super developed on his own apart from that. When I think about Ash's character, I don't immediately think about the traumatic backstory parts. The balance between how significantly the trauma affects him vs making sure that's not the ONLY part of his character is extremely well-executed.

Scenes that stuck out to me (not including asheiji ones bc it goes without saying theyre all amazing)

- the interrogator playing Ash's tapes after being arrested ("later, movie star" was the most brutal line ever omg)

- max burning the photos of ash (underrated moment this was SO good),

- any and all interactions between sing and blanca (they're such an unlikely duo peak comedy right there)

- the convo between sing and yut lung in the last episode

- ash stabbing the guy in the dick with a fork

- callback to ^^^, ash stabbing the banana with a fork

- Ash's breakdown in front of dino (ep 19 I believe)

- the entirety of ash escaping from the "mental hospital" and then having to go rescue ibe and max lmaooo

- ash brutally murdering Abraham(?, the redhead guy) by blowing abt a thousand holes in him w a machine gun as payback for shorter

- ash shooting shorter

- running joke of max being Ash's dad

- everyone constantly manhandling yut lung by yanking on his hair (dude get a haircut)

- ash immediately going to shoot himself no hesitation after yut lung told him he wouldn't hurt eiji if he did so (technically asheiji but I'm keeping it since this was a yut lung and ash scene)

- "what does this picture look like?" "Your wife"

- eiji's cute stupid little outfit he wore when he went to go find shorter in Chinatown

I also have a confession:

I LOVE yut lung. Him being paralleled with ash, but instead of finding love he let hate consume him because he had no one unlike ash who had eiji was just devastating but in a good way.

So yea those are my messy thoughts after finishing it. I'd argue that it was probably one of the best pieces of queer media to exist at the time. In the world. And one of my personal favorite pieces of queer media ever.

[eden-writes-stuff]

Febuwhump Day 2 - Pick who dies

context: Doctor Who, 11th Doctor, Doctor vs. Master tags: they/them for Master, fucking hell this is darker than I anticipated lol, doctor is kinda ooc bc have you ever tried to write the doctor in character?!, also for some reason I fancast Andrew Scott as the Master (he would slay), I also think it's pretty easy to read out my favourite companions xD

"It's your choice, Doc." The Master grinned their mad grin, walking around him, weapon ready to shoot.

His friends were all there, right in front of him. All lined and tied up, none of them able to talk, but still every one of them was yelling. He couldn't look at their faces. They were calling to him, counting on him to get them out of this. He had let all of them down before

"Which of your little pets do you like best?" The other Timelord started walking down the lineup.

"Your girlfriend?" They played with Rose's hair.

"The other doctor?" They tilted Martha's chin up.

"Your bff?" Donna spat at them before they could touch her. But they just laughed and wiped it off on her dress.

"Your mother-in-law?" Amy almost managed to get a kick in.

"Your father-in-law?" They patted Rory's cheek, earning a growl from Amy

"Your wife?" One look from River was enough for them to keep their hands to themselves.

"Or your newest conquest?" They turned Clara's face in every direction, inspecting her.

The Doctor didn't answer. He could barely get a single word out. Most of the people in front of him weren't even alive anymore. Or they were unreachable to him. Yet somehow- somehow this sick bastard had gotten a hold of them. All just to pay him back.

"It's up to you. One I'll let go, the others..." They laughed softly, lifting the gun. "Well, you can imagine what'll happen to the others."

"Why are you doi-" "NO!", The Master snapped, pointing the gun at him. "None of your little mind games. You choose or they all die."

He shook his head, leaning toward the weapon. He was tired. "Kill me. As long as you don't hurt them. My lifes for their." Obviously disappointed the Master clicked their tongue. 

"Oh, doctor. I don't want to kill you. You're my favourite." Laughing, the Master sat on the armrest of the chair, leaning into him. He could feel their lips on his ear and it took everything he had not to pull away. "But the question is, who is your favourite?"

"If I'm your favourite- If you really care about me, why do you make me do this?!", he turned his head toward theirs. Slender fingers traced along his jawline. "I just want to make you see the consequences of your little obsession with humans." The way they said it sounded sweet, almost kind, but the words stung.

"I can always save them." "Can you though?"

One simple motion later Martha's body sacked forward, only held up by the ropes. Her hair fell into her face, hiding the expression of terror and fear.

The Doctor lunged forward, making the Master jump up from the chair and laugh. The ropes tightened around his wrists, pulling him back against the solid wood.

"That was me being nice. One less to choose from. Oh, I know what we'll do." They walked toward the controls on the other side of the room. "Shall we hear what your friends have to say after this?"

There was a click and suddenly he heard River's voice full of suppressed fear and anger. "Doctor! Doctor, you need to think. I know you're angry, but right now you can't afford that. You've beaten him before, but you need to keep a clear-" The clicking sounded again and cut her off. "Boring!" The Master faked a yawn.

"What about the redhead?" Donna let out a row of very creative curses directed toward the Master. She and Martha had known each other, they had been friends. Martha had a sister. And parents.

Jackie would kill him if he let Rose die. Amy and Rory probably wouldn't even have the chance to hate him if River didn't survive. River would kill him - again - if she lost her parents - again.

"I can't choose. I can't. Please!"

The Master stepped back, raising an eyebrow. "Begging already, are we? But remember, if you don't choose, I will kill them all." 

He couldn't do it. He couldn't choose. All of them had saved him so many times in so many ways. And there was nothing he could do to save them now.

"Where should I start? Left to right? Right to left? Based on height? Based on age? So many choices... Then again..." The next one out was Clara. She didn't even have time to look terrified. "I never liked her. Too much flirting. And I'm pretty sure this one isn't your favourite either." Amy and River started silently screaming before the blast hit Rory's chest.

"Shame. He actually was nice. He was also good for you, really told you what you needed to hear. You know who also did that?" They took a few steps toward Donna.

"STOP!"

Smiling, the Master turned toward him, looking at him expectantly. He couldn't stop the tears anymore. "Stop it. Please! Please, I'll do anything to save them. You want a planet to rule? A species to oppress?" In the background, all remaining four shook their heads, yelling at him, but he couldn't hear a word.

"Whatever it is, we'll make it happen as long as you let them go! I'll give you the entire fucking universe!"

The master let the weapon sink slowly.