#representation is important kids

[rainswept]

alright FINE i guess i'll elaborate. (you better be asleep by the time i send this.)

dazai and kaz are so similar and yet so different in a fascinating way. aside from the obvious parallels—ambiguous morality, unsettling auras, and terrifying intelligence—there are a few notable differences. kaz is fuelled by a deep desire to avenge his brother and tear down his enemies 'brick by brick', while dazai strives to live a good life and fulfill oda's last wish. they both live for the memory of someone dear to them, but one memory pushes them to vengeance, while the other pushes them to solace.

this is only slightly related, but i said before that akutagawa is a person who inherently lacks purpose, and honestly i would argue dazai is the same. (i wonder if that is why dazai treats him the way he does... if he sees a kindred spirit in him... if he resents the way akutagawa clings to him so desperately, because he knows that will never achieve him true wholeness, so he refuses to give it to him.) before, he cared very little about whether he lived or died; he had no morality nor values of his own. he was just a blank slate, covered in shadows and bloodstains that did nothing to hide its barrenness.

HOWEVER prior to oda's death, before he became mafia traitor dazai osamu, he was the youngest mafia executive in history. that is the dazai that i associate that quote with. of course, his bloodied reputation isn't wiped clean so easily, and of course it lingers like a noose around his neck even when he is a part of the agency. but back then, it is so much more powerful when he is actively cultivating an image of a ruthless monster.

when everyone knows you’re a monster, you needn’t waste time doing every monstrous thing.

isn't that true? who knows if every atrocity tied to his name was even done by him, or some other creature that lurks in the dark. the only thing that truly matters is that people think of him as merciless, dangerous. his hands have brought so much destruction that he doesn't even have to kill someone to stop their heart, the suggestion is enough. for a creature that spills blood on a whim (he is very careful with who he kills; death is useful move, but he would be a fool to waste a pawn), whose empathy couldn't extend to another if he tried (his emotions are buried, but they are still there), what else would they expect?

what would a monster be, if not monstrous?

so. that's my elaboration. i feel like it is underwhelming, sorry. obligatory THIS IS ALL MY INTERPRETATION dazai is a very complex character but a lot of him is still a mystery in the story, and i am foaming at the mouth waiting for more of his past to be revealed.

ambiguous morality, unsettling auras, and terrifying intelligence

guys i think i have a type!!1111

this is only slightly related, but i said before that akutagawa is a person who inherently lacks purpose, and honestly i would argue dazai is the same.

aren’t we all? 🤨 what purpose does life have but what we give it? (and what purpose can be given by someone who has no desire to obtain one?)

if he resents the way akutagawa clings to him so desperately, because he knows that will never achieve him true wholeness, so he refuses to give it to him.)

GOD DAMN.

before, he cared very little about whether he lived or died; he had no morality nor values of his own. he was just a blank slate, covered in shadows and bloodstains that did nothing to hide its barrenness.

HELLO??/?/ poetr.y. killme neow

and of course it lingers like a noose around his neck even when he is a part of the agency.

noose. Dazai. oh my hod avery ur gonna be the dEATH OF MEEEEE

ok actually i need to stop quoting things because every single line in this was like a punch to the gut and i’d just end up screaming over every single one holy SHIT. pls tag me if u ever write a dazai fic (throws up)

(he is very careful with who he kills; death is useful move, but he would be a fool to waste a pawn), whose empathy couldn't extend to another if he tried (his emotions are buried, but they are still there)

ok i lied about stopping because GOOD GOD. AVERY??/?// IM GOIJGNTO DIE/ WHATTHHE HELL. THIS IS SOMGODO

UNDERWHELMING???? UNDERWHELMING????/?/ NUH UH. NUH UH. MASTERPIECE

[patheticblorbloscholar]

I think the headcanon that Remmick is queer is good actually. I think we need more nuanced characters who are queer. Who go against the status quo. Who break stereotypes. Remmick flirted with everyone. He had chemistry with all of them. Im here for it actually.

[chanelle-lize]

I used to have a really hard time bringing up the fact that I graduated from high school a year late without feeling the need to explain why and insisting that it wasn't my fault while simultaneously kicking myself for how much I sounded like I was just making excuses for something I should take responsibility for.

Then I watched Dimension 20's "The Seven" and suddenly I could simply say that I was a super senior.

The first time I heard the phrase "super senior" was in reference to Antiope Jones, a Black girl who had been held back a year after getting kidnapped and imprisoned by members of a fundamentalist cult, and like, girl, same.

So, since then, instead of anxiously spinning out any time I tried to tell a personal high school anecdote, I could just say I was a super senior, and then my brain would auto complete that statement with "like Antiope Jones" and I'd feel good about myself because Antiope Jones Is That Bitch.

That's what the problem had been the whole time. I wasn't worried about how other people would perceive me; I had been struggling with how I perceived myself.

Thanks, Aabria.

[gayofthefae]

[disclaimer: I am very confident that Will is not going to die, that is not what this post is about]

Thinking about how everyone who doesn't run and hide (except for El - who represents the fight trauma response) dies: Barb couldn't hide, Bob stopped running, Billy didn't run, Eddie refused to hide then stopped running.

And I'm thinking about how Will was the first to learn this and who we learned it through. "He's good at hiding" - Jonathan. He was the only survivor in season 1- not Barb, not the anonymous hunters. Because he ran and he hid.

He hid in the crawl space, he ran around the house, he hid in Castle Byers. There was one time he had a very close call that we know of and he escaped it by choosing to not fight his way through the wall and instead continue to run.

In season 2, he confirmed this knowledge: which is that when he did not run, when he "stood up to" the monsters, he lost. He failed. He became more in danger. (The value of Stranger Things communicating "do not stand up for yourself if it will endanger you, moral superiority is not worth your life" has and will SAVE LIVES, I will never be grateful enough for them bashing that 'staying safe is cowardly' bullshit).

So he knows more than anyone that running and hiding is the best possible option. It saved him where others died, it endangered him where he could have been safe, not doing so killed his loved ones.

Which brings us to this. He urges his loved ones to run because he knows it is the only way to survive.

But he isn't running.

He knows what happens when you don't run - better than anyone. He has experienced both sides of it himself. He has vivid memory and lingering sensation in the years since of the psychological and physical trauma he experienced the last time he didn't run.

And now, faced with what he is faced with, knowing what he knows.

He isn't running.

Is he attempting to sacrifice himself? Has he learned that it needs him alive? Is he the danger?

[motherhenna]

Going through my old Hunger Games art and proud to say that I've been drawing POC Katniss since 2010! How was 13-year-old me better at reading character descriptions than the grown-ass adults who made the films??

[platypusundercover]

You know what? Krem as a character helped me navigate my gender journey and figure myself out. Not even kidding, he has been essential. I was feeling so deeply connected to him, and he's just so important.

And now Dragon Age gives us Taash. Which is exactly me at the time I was starting to figure things out. "I'd look stupid in a dress" "Nobody likes being a woman" "I can't even be a woman right" etc etc. Verbatim things I've said in the past.

So I am very glad we could in-game be their support. Help them figure things out. Like Krem helped me (indirectly but still!!). Now that I'm comfortable in my identity, helping Taash closes the circle. I had someone helping out and now I am helping someone else. Yeah yeah I know it's just fictional characters but I think it matters nonetheless. The feeling and thoughts this elicited are real. and I will cherish them dearly.

sigh I wish Krem and Taash could meet. I'd love to see those two interact!

[rangersoup]

Ranger Soup and Mrs. Soup love being parents 😌 and love having all of their little souplings running around 😌 and they have absolutely zero regrets whatsoever 😌 and this is very important to me.

[dollhair]

steven universe is a pretty good show but an absolutely phenomenal program for children. it strikes me with the current US administration how necessary it is for kids with conservative parents to see immigrants and fat people and lesbians portrayed in a way that’s both positive but also FUN.

[mettatonic]

milo has at least 3 canon gay characters and i have seen him kiss 0 men on screen... something doesn't add up here ‼️🏳️‍🌈✨

[bucket-barnes]

Happy Hanukkah! Thinking about my favorite Jewish boy today

Best Jewish representation I’ve seen in a while

[mint-mumbles]

Gonna make a list of queer characters that don’t outright state their queerness because a certain group of people complaining about the handling of a certain character’s arc from a certain game is pissing me off

“They didn’t make her say she was trans so that means that they’re giving us a ‘fuck you’/we need confirmation or it isn’t valid and transphobes will be transphobic/they’re queerbaiting!”

Shut the fuck up

The fact that we’re even at this point is a miracle in itself and needing every character to explicitly say their orientation and/or gender identity shows how ignorant you are, not just regarding media literacy, but also on queer history

By your myopic lens you’re discrediting a lot of queer characters that didn’t and/or couldn’t outright say that they’re queer

Characters shouldn’t have to outright say their orientation and/or gender identity for you to consider them “good rep”

That perspective is ridiculously narrow minded and downplays the importance of previous queer characters that helped pave the way to where we are now

Update: Here it is!

[idon-twannabeperceived]

Btw seeing gringos trying to dance tango or salsa is so 🫥🫥

Like I don't mind at all bro go off but like put some flavor in there I AM BEGGING i swear u won't die WHERE IS YOUR SOUL DO YOU NOT HAVE A HEART

[menlove]

like actually and genuinely I do think fried green tomatoes had a deep impact on my queerness as a child. I watched it when I was about 7 and at that age I was OBSESSED with male characters that acted like idgie: devoted, head over heels for a girl, the Big Hero with a little snark, the underdog. and it was the first time I saw a female character acting like that and towards another woman no less. I didn't really understand that they were gay yet, but I knew that I saw myself in idgie and that movie became so so special to me. and now as an adult and a butch... it's just always so comforting to rewatch

[lemonynuggets]

is that representation really bad or do you just not relate to it?

[one-blaze-of--glory]

you'd think cats the musical paid to Caroline in the city to be featured so prominently but honestly the real backstory is so much funnier (one of the creators was walking in new york one day and saw a bunch of cats actors in full costume on their smoke break and thought it was the funniest thing ever & it HAS to be Annie's job)

[maaaxx]

Heartstopper Season 2 Spoilers

Heartstopper season 2 was perfect, and Alice Oseman is a cinematic and literature genius but I would like to take a few moments to draw some attention to.....

This boy right here.

(look how sweet he is omg)

I can't get over Isaacs arch in heartstopper, especially in season 2.

Ace representation is so few and far between as it is, and good representation is even more scarce, but having that sort of representation at the forefront of a show? And having it accurately depicted, and not infantilized? Showing the complexities of it? Basically unheard of. But Holy Fuck did Alice Oseman deliver.

At the end of season 2 he is just finding out what aro/asexuality is and reading up on it. He knows it exists and he knows that it applies to him. And he faced some of the difficulties of being aro/ace with James and with the isolation and feeling like he's not interesting unless he has a romantic interest, these are all very real and not commonly talked about things that people have experienced.

And oh my god was it euphoric to see on screen.

Growing up and watching all your friends have crushes and get into relationships and fawn over people and never experiencing that same thing is so isolating. Even in accepting environments and in good friend groups (as seen on the show) it always feels like your an odd one out, and outsider, etc.

So the scene where Isaac goes "I think their might be something wrong with me.", that hits home to so many people who grew up not understanding why they were different.

I've talked about on here before why labels are so important to people, and this is a perfect example of it. You can learn to accept yourself and love yourself and be completely self confident but if there's something fundamentally different about you, there's always going to be a voice in the back of your head reminding you of that. Learning a label, or a word, that represents something that you might have already accepted as something that's a character flaw, there's no word to describe it, it's so relieving. It means there are people like you who have lived to create that label, it means your not alone with it, it means you have a community.

And having this shown on tv, especially at a time like now where people are trying to cover up anything that reminds people that LGBT people exist, is going to tell so many kids that there is nothing wrong with them, and they're not defected, and they're not broken.

And Isaacs whole arch (even thought it's not completed) handled this perfectly. Because there were moments that shows that Isaac is in some ways separate from the group. They love him, but he's different, they care about him, but he doesn't have a romantic interest, so his presence isn't as acknowledged.

And I think that in Season 3 (assuming theres going to be a season 3) we're going to get to see this expanded on. We might get to see Isaac coming out to the rest of the group, and learning how to cope with not having access to something that a lot of people say is what makes people human.

Heartstopper is such an amazing show and Alice Oseman is incredible. The cast is incredible. Everything about everything about that production is incredible.

(now for another picture of my son)