#you just missed it

[nat20critfail]

I really wanted to like the new doctor who, but, boy. Is it a mess.

For full awareness, I want to say that I didn't watch much of Jodie Whittaker's seasons. Or, I stopped somewhere near the end I think. I got incredibly pissed off at the "giving the master to the Nazis" episode and couldn't forgive all the plot transgressions anymore. (Nothing worse than people saying the seasons were bad because she's a woman btw. Her acting was fine, I was excited for a female doctor, the writing was just not great).

But this new season...

First of all, I know that doctor who has always been cheesy. The first episode of nine's season has Mickey being eaten by a sentient alien garbage can. The garbage can takes him somewhere I guess, and then spits out the infamous plastic copy that rose doesn't think twice about. There's a certain suspension of disbelief that goes into watching the show.

But wtf are goblins? They look kinda like elves, they're wearing Santa hats, okay, cool, I get the play. And they're flying in the sky in a wooden space ship. Okay...interesting. and the ship is run with ...knots. rope knots. It's not magic though! It's just coincidence-based science that the doctor doesn't understand yet. I mean, up until two seconds ago he knew approximately everything about the goblins and was teaching Ruby about how they eat people and are drawn to coincidences. Or just want to eat babies that have been...involved in coincidences? It makes it tastier? The Doctor I know would care that they eat babies, maybe argue with them a bit about it, make more of a deal about keeping the baby safe rather than looking at it and going "cool" because the goblins are just singing so well.

And the song. The song is about 50% of the worst part and it's so immersion breaking. The immersion breaking is doubled once the Doctor and Ruby join in. Maybe it's supposed to tie into the maestro being the big bad or something?

Okay, actually. I think it was written by AI. The background was good honestly, that's the part written by Gold, but as soon as the vocals hit I was so immediately immersion breaking. I just looked it up and it says Davies wrote it but I'm not sure I believe it. Like the rhymes are so simple, and it's sort of just a list. And why would they be saying that the goblin king isn't a myth?? Either they know they're singing to an audience or it was never looked at after being written once. Also it's so clearly filmed for a music video it's embarrassing.

AND 60 MINUTES????? FOR WHAT???? the actual action is so fast paced, the monster of the week is explained in a few bullet points at the end, and yet the filler is all over the place, and it lasts so long. The woman that the doctor "saves" from a falling snowman head, who's really just doing her shopping...what's the point of that? Why are they sitting there arguing about whether or not Ruby's mom is suspicious about what's going on? They're acting like it's an emergency one minute and forget about it the next. WHY ARE WE SUPPOSED TO CARE THAT GRANDMA HASN'T GOTTEN A CUPPA?! Things are repeated so often (and so plainly) it makes me feel like I'm watching a show made for children, and hey, maybe I am.

And this is just the first episode! Or, I guess, the Christmas episode. I didn't watch it when it first came out so I thought I was watching the first one. But still! I honestly think they (kind of) get progressively better. But I'm not even that sure.

Another thing, the fact that they seem to kill all of the goblins entirely, and they don't even try diplomacy, really bothers me, if not all the more for the second episode! I think I'm going to have to come back to talk about the second since this is already so long but...yeah.

[endusviolence]

Rowling isn't denying holocaust. She just pointed out that burning of transgender health books is a lie as that form of cosmetic surgery didn't exist. But of course you knew that already, didn't you?

I was thinking I'd probably see one of you! You're wrong :) Let's review the history a bit, shall we?

In this case, what we're talking about is the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft, or in English, The Institute of Sexology. This Institute was founded and headed by a gay Jewish sexologist named Magnus Hirschfeld. It was founded in July of 1919 as the first sexology research clinic in the world, and was run as a private, non-profit clinic. Hirschfeld and the researchers who worked there would give out consultations, medical advice, and even treatments for free to their poorer clientele, as well as give thousands of lectures and build a unique library full of books on gender, sexuality, and eroticism. Of course, being a gay man, Hirschfeld focused a lot on the gay community and proving that homosexuality was natural and could not be "cured".

Hirschfeld was unique in his time because he believed that nobody's gender was either one or the other. Rather, he contended that everyone is a mixture of both male and female, with every individual having their own unique mix of traits.

This leads into the Institute's work with transgender patients. Hirschfeld was actually the one to coin the term "transsexual" in 1923, though this word didn't become popular phrasing until 30 years later when Harry Benjamin began expanding his research (I'll just be shortening it to trans for this brief overview.) For the Institute, their revolutionary work with gay men eventually began to attract other members of the LGBTA+, including of course trans people.

Contrary to what Anon says, sex reassignment surgery was first tested in 1912. It'd already being used on humans throughout Europe during the 1920's by the time a doctor at the Institute named Ludwig Levy-Lenz began performing it on patients in 1931. Hirschfeld was at first opposed, but he came around quickly because it lowered the rate of suicide among their trans patients. Not only was reassignment performed at the Institute, but both facial feminization and facial masculization surgery were also done.

The Institute employed some of these patients, gave them therapy to help with other issues, even gave some of the mentioned surgeries for free to this who could not afford it! They spoke out on their behalf to the public, even getting Berlin police to help them create "transvestite passes" to allow people to dress however they wanted without the threat of being arrested. They worked together to fight the law, including trying to strike down Paragraph 175, which made it illegal to be homosexual. The picture below is from their holiday party, Magnus Hirschfeld being the gentleman on the right with the fabulous mustache. Many of the other people in this photo are transgender.

[Image ID: A black and white photo of a group of people. Some are smiling at the camera, others have serious expressions. Either way, they all seem to be happy. On the right side, an older gentleman in glasses- Magnus Hirschfeld- is sitting. He has short hair and a bushy mustache. He is resting one hand on the shoulder of the person in front of him. His other hand is being held by a person to his left. Another person to his right is holding his shoulder.]

There was always push back against the Institute, especially from conservatives who saw all of this as a bad thing. But conservatism can't stop progress without destroying it. They weren't willing to go that far for a good while. It all ended in March of 1933, when a new Chancellor was elected. The Nazis did not like homosexuals for several reasons. Chief among them, we break the boundaries of "normal" society. Shortly after the election, on May 6th, the book burnings began. The Jewish, gay, and obviously liberal Magnus Hirschfeld and his library of boundary-breaking literature was one of the very first targets. Thankfully, Hirschfeld was spared by virtue of being in Paris at the time (he would die in 1935, before the Nazis were able to invade France). His library wasn't so lucky.

This famous picture of the book burnings was taken after the Institute of Sexology had been raided. That's their books. Literature on so much about sexuality, eroticism, and gender, yes including their new work on trans people. This is the trans community's Alexandria. We're incredibly lucky that enough of it survived for Harry Benjamin and everyone who came after him was able to build on the Institute's work.

[Image ID: A black and white photo of the May Nazi book burning of the Institute of Sexology's library. A soldier, back facing the camera, is throwing a stack of books into the fire. In the background of the right side, a crowd is watching.]

As the Holocaust went on, the homosexuals of Germany became a targeted group. This did include transgender people, no matter what you say. To deny this reality is Holocaust denial. JK Rowling and everyone else who tries to pretend like this isn't reality is participating in that evil. You're agreeing with the Nazis.

But of course, you knew that already, didn't you?

Edit: Added image IDs. I apologize to those using screen readers for forgetting them. Please reblog this version instead.

[stil-lindigo]

lead balloon (the tumblr post that saved me)

if this comic resonated with you, it would mean the world to me if you donated to this palestinian family's escape fund.

--

no creative notes because this isn't that kind of comic.

I know I don’t owe any of you anything but I still felt compelled to write about my long term absence. And I feel far enough away from the dangerous spot I was in to be able to make this comic. I have a therapist now, and she agreed that making this could be a very cathartic gesture, and the start of properly leaving these thoughts behind me. I am still, at seemingly random times, blindsided by fleeting desires to kill myself. They’re always passing urges, but it’s disarming, and uncomfortable. I worry sometimes that my brain’s spent so long thinking only about suicide that it’s forgotten how to think about anything else. Like, now that I've opened that door for myself, I'll never be able to fully shut it again. But I’m trying my best to encourage my mind in other directions. We'll see how that goes.

I am still donating all proceeds from my store to Palestinian causes. So far, I've donated over $15K, not including donations coming from my own pocket or the fundraising streams which jointly raised around $10K. In the time since I made my initial post about where this money would be going, the focus has shifted from aid organisations to directly donating to escape funds.

If you'd like to do the same, you can look at Operation Olive Branch, which hosts hundreds of Palestinian escape funds or donate to Safebow, which has helped facilitate the safe crossing and securing of important medical procedures for over 150 at-risk palestinians since the beginning of the genocide.

[yourangle-yuordevil]

That time in ancient Greece when Aziraphale needed a speedy horse and accidentally invented the pegasus

VS.

Whatever Crowley had going on in medieval times

[butchmartyr]

a lot of older norms for internet and site etiquette are shit but you know what was good that we need to bring back? lurking. you need to lurk moar

[anna-scribbles]

resolutions

[notbrucewayne48]

"aphobia doesn't exist"

bitch literally not that long ago an aroace youtuber animator was insulted by almost half of its community for being it

[trashmakerarticle]

Everyone thinks that dick was the golden child when in reality it was Jason.

Clark: Bruce who was your favourite robin?

Dick: obviously it’s me?

Tim: it’s dick

Damian: I am superior robin, it will be me.

Bruce: it’s Jason

Everyone: WHAT?!?!???

Bruce: why are you so surprised? He didn’t jump on too my chandeliers which I had to replace each week

*everyone looks at dick*

Bruce: he didn’t drop out of school

*everyone looks at tim*

Bruce: I didn’t have to stop him from killing everyone who annoyed him

*everyone looks at Damian*

Bruce: in fact, he enjoyed school and handed all his homework in on time, we would spend hours in the library reading his favourite classics. He even helped Alfred with most of the cooking, He was my little boy

Jason: stop spreading lies, I hate you go away

Bruce: my precious little boy

[aarchimedes]

for context: I read the hobbit first over the course of two years when I was like 13, but I'm only now starting to read lotr. having a blast tho!

anyways, reblog if you feel like it 🙌🏻

[chloesimaginationthings]

The secret good ending for FNAF ruin,,

[cata613]

Someone: Why do you keep showing me clips from Star Trek TOS all the time?

Me:

[thedreadvampy]

people seriously pretending EEAAO is overrated suddenly bc it swept awards? it swept awards largely because it is very very very good. I cried like someone who's just had a religious revelation BOTH times I watched it bc it touched something raw and real and beautiful but it was also just very, very funny. everyone's performance kills and the concept is creative and interesting and doesn't distract from the emotional core. you guys are just contrarian.

[stil-lindigo]

mumbattan's one and only pavitr prabhakar!!

prints

[nipuni]

Silence in the library

A speedpaint video of this will be available at my Patreon on february 1st!

[dkettchen]

cursed construction core hi vis bra that came to me in a dream

In the dream I saw it in the window display of a hardware/DIY/trade shop, implying it was meant to be a practical garment designed for actual female constructions workers in a Female Armour level missed-the-brief attempt at gender inclusion

The practical support from the visible underwire combined with the hi vis implying it’s not meant to be worn as an undergarment, I just-

I blame my binge-reading ND Stevenson’s gender comics talking abt masculinity and femininity incl the one abt Victoria’s Secret lingerie yesterday for this monstrosity x’D