voidnoidoid - Tumblr blog

[voidnoidoid]

[voidnoidoid]

hey guys long time no Tumblr I took an extended break and im in uni now. might write some weak hero stuff if I have the time! mostly gonna be Eugene-centered stuff cos he's my blorbo.

[voidnoidoid]

One Piece Does Anti-Racism Surprisingly Well: Fishman Island (ft. My Hero Academia and Black Panther 2018)

So, this is not the usual posts I make, but I really wanted to get these thoughts out of my head. I could write a huge essay about it but I will try to keep it short here. (This is in reaction to chapters 370-372 of MHA.)

TL;DR: The way One Piece deals with anti-racism is surprisingly good (despite the series not being perfectly leftist (indicated by the big presence of fairytale monarchies) when using chapters 370 to 372 of My Hero Academia and Black Panther (2018) as comparison, two other mainstream pieces of media that discuss racism and it consequences within the oppressed group.

The messaging of Fishman Island Arc can be interpreted as: we shouldn't let our intergenerational trauma fester into hate against our oppressors. If we pass this hate to our children, they will grow up hateful and hurt their own people in the end, which makes community healing very difficult (a similar conclusion to Black Panther 2018, which is *the* bar for talking about racism and intergenerational trauma in mainstream media). This is much better than: we shouldn't let our intergenerational trauma turn into hate against our oppressors, because our oppressors will now have legitimate reasons to oppress us.

To elaborate:

• One Piece and Black Panther (2018) frame violence and hate caused by intergenerational trauma as a community problem. The opinions of outsiders are pushed aside, if not entirely absent from the discussion. This is a good way to present anti-racist action, because it puts the spotlight to the marginalized group and avoids the white saviour trope (though the Joyboy thing can be seen as a white saviour trope? Again, Fishman Island is not perfect, it's just surprisingly good compared to the rest of mainstream media. Especially the scene where the Strawhats explicitly say that they will let the fishman decide if these pirates are villains or good guys).

• MHA (chapters 370 to 372) falls flat on its face when it comes to anti-racism. Basically, it tries to say that the oppressed shouldn't express their grievances and frustrations through violence, because their children will suffer the now "justified" anger of the oppressor. This COMPLETLY ignores the fact that the oppressed were still being mistreated when they were peaceful. The messaging is simply maintaining the status quo of violent systemic discrimination. Oppressive peace is not true social justice.

• Furthermore, MHA uses the "one of the good ones" trope heavy-handidly (using the supporting "good guys"), which is an extremely racist concept. You can argue that Fishman Island arc uses that trope (Queen Otohime and Shirahoshi as examples), but it's much less obvious and doesn't have the explicit message of: actually, we shouldn't riot because it'll make us look bad in front of humans. Again, it's a lot more: we shouldn't let hate grow because our fishmen children will become hateful people too, and that doesn't create a healthy community.

• Stopping hate against racist oppressors is not about being liked by the oppressors, it's about putting that energy into loving and healing our own community. Black Panther (2018) tackles that topic through Killmonger: he is a tragic figure so blinded by hate against his oppressors that he forgets to love his own community and black heritage. Hody Jones is also somewhat tragic: his hate against humans is the consequences of anger turned into hate. He has no pride or love for his fellow fishmen. Because of that, Hody Jones divides his own community and endangers them all. This is especially important for anti-racism, since internalized racism is a huge obstacle to anti-racism and community healing.

On the topic of violent reactions to systemic racism and other forms of oppression:

• Violence and riots are a natural reaction to the systemic violence marginalized groups live everyday (yet mainstream media always tries to frame riots as completely unjustifiable and use them to discredit civil rights movements). Marginalized groups (like black children) have been known to show signs of PTSD. There's no denying that systemic oppression is very violent yet we are brainwashed into thinking that it's not true violence.

Conclusions: It's nice to see a hugely popular manga tackle racism in a way that isn't complete liberal/centrist messaging

[voidnoidoid]

Luffy’s tendency to self-sacrifice and the way he responds to loss are both incredibly telling aspects of his character. They show his level of love and dedication to other people, but most importantly they show his selflessness. Now, selflessness isn't necessarily a bad thing, but due to the level of selflessness that Luffy displays, it reveals a major character flaw.

Now, I’m not criticizing Luffy’s character, but what I am doing is pointing out something that I’d categorize as a negative character trait. And one that I find particularly fascinating.

Luffy may seem like the typical shonen protagonist on the surface (flawless, stupid, and selfless to a tee). However, if you take a look past surface level then you will find that Luffy is an incredibly complex character. Because while he is incredibly stupid, he possesses a certain multidimensionality that sets him apart from other typical shonen protags.

In regards to that multidimensionality, I’ve noticed that Luffy measures his own self worth exclusively through other people. By his value in the eyes of others. How he can serve them and how much worth he holds in their lives.

Okay but... what the fuck does this mean.

First of all I’d like to discuss Luffy���s tendency to self-sacrifice. Have you ever stopped to notice that every single one of Luffy’s specialized gears has a negative side effect of some kind? Second Gear puts so much strain on his heart that it is said to shorten his lifespan the more often he uses it. Third Gear makes his body shrink. Fourth Gear exhausts his Haki so terribly that he becomes immobile for ten minutes. And I feel like Fifth Gear speaks for itself...

Clearly Luffy has no qualms about sacrificing his body, but why is that? The answer, at least in my interpretation, is that Luffy’s self-sacrifice has entirely to do with the value he places on himself. The catch is that he doesn’t place any value on his own life. Luffy has proven on multiple occasions that he is more than willing to throw his own life away for the sake of others.

We see this in Udon prison, when Luffy was actively poisoning himself to death to make a point, even though it’s difficult to notice how close he was to getting himself killed because Toei decided that if Luffy was dying he was going to look Hot while doing it

We see this again when Luffy climbed the mountain in Chopper’s Arc, destroying his fingers and risking freezing to death all to save Nami and Sanji.

We see this when Luffy fought Magellan in Impel Down, which was the closest Luffy came to killing himself for the cause.

Then again on Whole Cake Island when he tried to let Sanji kick him to death to prove a point. And when he tried to starve himself to death to prove a point. And when he tried to rip his own arms off–

And of course we can’t forget about Thriller Bark. The entire point of Zoro taking Luffy’s pain was to show just how far Luffy was hurting himself in order to protect the crew. There was an entire conversation between the Straw Hats about how unhealthy that behavior was, and how they needed to protect Luffy from himself by getting stronger.

These are all shining examples of Luffy taking selflessness just a little too far. And while placing high value on the lives of others isn’t a negative quality, doing so to this degree isn’t exactly healthy. I say that Luffy holds no value in his own life because he cares this much about other people. He cares more about other people than he does about himself, and is more than willing to die in the process of protecting/saving his loved ones.

I came to this conclusion by looking at the way Luffy handles loss.

And the simple answer is that... Luffy doesn't handle loss. (The entirety of Whole Cake Island was just Luffy outright refusing to lose another loved one)

And when he does... he doesn’t.

Which is exactly what I’m talking about. Whenever Luffy loses people that he deeply cares about he immediately flips his lid. Water Seven and Thriller Bark seemed like all fun and games after watching Luffy grieve the loss of his crew on Sabaody. Seeing him break down like that was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to watch... You can feel just how much this loss has impacted Luffy, and it hurts.

Amazon Lily was largely comedic, which served as a well needed break in between Sabody and all the Horrors of the Summit War. Because of this, the delivery of Luffy’s behavior after the events on Sabody is easy to brush off as a gag joke... but you can’t deny the fact that he overdosed on poisonous mushrooms. And while, yes, Luffy is a fucking idiot, not moments beforehand he was digging through the forest and talking about how many species of mushrooms he knew and all the wacky side effects of eating them. So clearly Luffy knows his stuff, and I think it’s just a little too convenient that he “accidentally almost died of a drug overdose shortly after losing everyone he held dear” after Oda explicitly stated that he knew his shit when it came to eating plants in the woods.

And then, of course, we have Luffy’s breakdown after Ace’s death. Which was even more difficult to watch than Sabody had been.

Are we beginning to see a trend? Luffy will try his damndest not to lose the people he cares about, but it’s impossible to save everyone. On the rare chance that he does lose someone he cares about, he immediately has a suicidal breakdown and gets extremely violent towards himself.

I’m certain that we can all agree that trying to kill yourself as a result of grief is NOT a healthy coping mechanism. Luffy is a completely happy-go-lucky character, with a suspicious tendency to over-sacrifice, yes, but the moment he fails/loses his friends he has a psychotic break. Without other people around him, Luffy suddenly loses all sense of self worth. Because he is nothing without his nakama... right?

It’s so easy to miss this detail about Luffy’s character, and it’s because he’s so good at concealing his negative emotions. Luffy puts on a brave face for the people he cares about, and he doesn’t want people to see him as anything less than a ray of sunshine and a symbol of joy and freedom. His conversation with Jimbei after Marineford was about how he needed to bury his grief for Ace even though it was unhealthy, because Luffy needed to remain strong.

Clearly he’s taken this to heart, because he hasn’t talked about how Ace’s death has impacted him even once. Luffy refuses to show emotional weakness in front of his crew, he is doing all in his power to be strong and support them while asking for nothing in return. Even now Luffy can’t hear Ace’s name without tearing up.

Luffy puts on a strong facade, and it is what makes his self-sacrifice seem so heroic, and what makes it so easy to miss how unhealthy it is. Luffy always saves people at the expense of his own life. He takes his battles incredibly too far, always ending up horrifically injured and using abilities that are detrimental to his body and his health. But he always recovers so easily, so quickly, and it is easy for the viewer/reader to move past Luffy’s self-sacrifice because he moves past it easily.

But why is he so nonchalant about nearly killing himself in almost every battle he places himself in? Simple, it is because he is not afraid of dying. Because in his eyes, he has no worth as a person unless he gives his EVERYTHING to the people he cares about.

Hence, Luffy measures his self worth entirely through other people, and therefore will stop at nothing to protect and fight for others. Because otherwise he is nothing.

I like to think that he developed this mindset as a result of his early childhood. Dragon didn’t want him. Garp didn’t want him. Dadan didn’t want him. Ace didn’t want him. Luffy was only accepted and cared for by others once he proved his worth to Ace and Sabo. Remember? They only started caring about Luffy and accepted him into their group after he got beaten violently for hours to protect their treasure stash. An act of violent self-sacrifice. It earned Luffy two brothers, but it also instilled the idea of his worthlessness unless he serves other people.

Remember when Luffy asked Ace to promise him not to die? I like to read between the lines a little. (Don’t leave me behind, Ace.) (I’m nothing without you, Ace.)

Luffy is a clingy person. He cares so much about other people, and will go to incredible lengths to keep them close. He can be happy, but only with other people. Because he needs other people in order to value his own life. He doesn’t care about himself, he only cares about others.

That is a very unhealthy mindset in this context, and is a major character flaw because of the impact it has on Luffy’s mental health.

But it also shows an incredible duality.

Selflessness is a highly valued characteristic. But in Luffy’s case, he brings it to an extreme. What could be considered his greatest strength is also his greatest flaw.

Luffy is a very admirable character because of this, and I love him a totally normal amount

[voidnoidoid]

baby 5 & sanji- the role of gender

I’m definitely not the first person to say this but Sanji’s women obsession is very similar to Baby 5’s need to please and I wanted to expand on it more bc the thoughts keep bouncing around in my brain 

Sanji and Baby 5 have the same core need to find love and it effects their actions- especially in matters with romance/the opposite sex. While both of their fixations are often treated as jokes, they still reflect underlaying issues tied to their backstories.

The way they act on this romantic drive is somewhat different, as they both assume the traditionally expected roles in accordance with their gender. They’re putting on a performance, behaving over-the-top in effort to please, while still varying in how they portray their love-sickness to remain a model man/woman. these differences set them apart, and I feel in Sanji’s case it can result in his behavior being brushed off as simply a weird quirk (unlike Baby 5, who’s actions remain lighthearted but are recognized as a trauma response).

They both have the same reaction to potential interest/attention, but remain strictly on the opposite ends of the spectrum of Man vs Woman in a conventional relationship. 

Baby 5 maintains a caretaking, flattering-focused obsession of the opposite sex rather than transforming into having pervy gags. She wants to be needed but she also enjoys (and sometimes imagines) being swooned over.

Looking at Sanji in the beginning, before the annoying nosebleed/creep gags became more prominent, he was also rather romance driven rather than motivated by lust. He, similar to Baby 5, saw many as potential suitors; a hopeless romantic at heart. While Baby 5 strikes at the first sign of interest from a man, Sanji equally treats every woman as someone he needs to look after . 

Baby 5 jumps into the role of a caring wife. She blushes like a schoolgirl and assumes that every man who is kind is showing interest in her. Meanwhile Sanji, filling the role of a traditional man in the relationship, seeks to provide. He wants to aid women in any way possible- whether thats with cooking or actual physical protection. His pervy gags could also be read as a way to fit this norm- as a man it’s more societally acceptable to be lust driven- (and in some cases, lust/sex is a way to “prove” ones manhood).  This is especially prominent after his time apart from the crew surrounded by people that challenged his notions of gender.

Overall their use of these traditional gender roles are safe; an easy way to get attention. People in real life often use romantic attention as means of fulfillment, and I read their actions as the same.

Baby 5 and Sanji are both people pleasers. Baby 5 is named as such, noting she can’t deny anyone anything because she longs to be needed. Sanji’s lack of self-worth causes him to always put others first, even at the cost of his own wellbeing. They see themselves as existing to fulfill a needed role, bidding their time until the moment arises. 

Other people have noted how similar Baby 5 and Sanji are in this way, joking that it’s good Sanji and Baby 5 never met because they’d get married instantly. I think it would actually be very interesting if they had met. Two people pleasers in a relationship is a recipe for disaster, especially with people as passionate as Baby 5 and Sanji. Their way of dealing with conflict would be to.. not. Neither would ever want to say the other is at fault. Their approach towards romance is seeking a sense of fulfillment, which would create an interesting dynamic with their exaggerated swooning. 

Now there are some people who truly are greatly motivated to pursue relationships, but with Sanji and Baby 5’s backstories revolving around a lack of love,  it’s safe to assume that it’s a bit more of an inorganic reaction for them. Especially when looking at the situations their love gets them into, such as when Baby 5 fell head over heels for a man because he was kind to her once despite not showing any prior attraction. 

Sanji is on the opposite side of the spectrum, finding /every/ woman beautiful and himself unworthy. Where Baby 5 aims to prove her worth from any one person and seeks a reason for her receiving kindness, Sanji places himself below all the women he meets and grovels in attempt to please as they stand on their pedestals. 

Sanji was raised by Zeff- someone who had a strong influence in how Sanji perceives and treats women. Sanji’s hunger for love was enhanced by the teaching of strict gender roles and emphasis on chivalry. While Baby 5 longs to be the helpful wife, Sanji becomes the pursuer- acting like a white knight as he sought women’s attention. That’s not to say his attraction isn’t real, but his extreme reactions to women reflect his desperation to please. 

Sanji also has the added factor of the men vs women in his life prior to Zeff, with only his mother and sister showing him kindness. Women were safer; and Zeff furthered this belief through his teachings.  

They’re both self-sacrificial to a dangerous degree. To them, their lives are indispensable; meaning if someone needs to die for the greater good then that’s the role they feel they were made for. Their life IS other people.

This is also interesting to consider in the perspective of non-heterosexual relationships. Sanji has a complicated past with gender/sexuality, so his aggressive actions towards men reflect what he feels a “real man” should be. Feminine attention is good, acceptable to enjoy, but male attention is something to scorn.

For Baby 5, we don’t really see her react to the kindness of a woman. She grew up around predominantly men and men appear to be the ones who most often take advantage of her. It’s curious to consider if meeting another woman with good intentions would allow her to be more sincere. 

I guess in conclusion I often see Baby 5’s actions being recognized as a response to her past, but I don’t often see Sanji’s explained similarly. Personally I think Sanji’s behavior is greatly effected by his starve for love, and he throws himself into it just like Baby 5. However, the way theyre perceived is greatly effected by their gender and their according behavior to fit the norms. Regardlessly, he and Baby 5 both rely on other people to find their worth- and the quickest way to do that is to turn to romantic love. 

[voidnoidoid]

Kizaru is a very fascinating character and I love seeing this example of this type of person.

In the beginning of this arc, he also admitted that he's just a tool of the government and the celestial dragons. It's like, he's fully aware of what he is to the government and to people. He's fully aware of all the atrocities they commit and he commits in their name. He's fully aware that most of what they, and he, do and stand for is wrong and awful. He just doesn't care. Or at least just doesn't care enough to do anything or even think for himself. He's lazy. (Yeah that's the whole thing with his character). Dangerously lazy. It seems like he does have feelings on what the government does, like he doesn't like/want it, he cares about these people who he considers friends, he's sad to see them get hurt. But he chooses to be "a cog in the machine" and never stand up for anyone or fight back.

He's knowledgeable of all the horrible shit the government does, doesn't even like it himself, but does nothing. Actually he does worse than nothing, he does whatever they want him to without complaint, and because it's easier I guess? Easier than fighting back? Easier to just do what you're told than fight for people's lives.

[voidnoidoid]

year of the dragon am i right fellas

[voidnoidoid]

Shout out to the day i killed the queen via AO3, legendary (name of the fanfic is jigens sick adventure, yes it is a sickfic)

[voidnoidoid]

Boost!! Please don't forget about the Palestinians outside of Palestine who are facing discrimination as well. Also, the airline responsible for upholding this discrimination is Delta Airlines. Do with that information what you will. :)

[voidnoidoid]

that love is like a star 🌟

-

(click for quality)

[voidnoidoid]

ralsayy ralsii i LOVE rwalsy

[voidnoidoid]

been in a creative LUL this week, sorry guys

[voidnoidoid]

crazy how im getting started on my uni journey months ahead of my friends ill miss them so much.

[voidnoidoid]

you haven't seen a true epic gamer moment until you watched the kakyoin vs d'arby fight

[voidnoidoid]

You know I think that spider factoid was actually supposed to be about spiders ACCIDENTALLY eaten. People ACCIDENTALLY eat an average of three spiders per year.

Spiders Georg, who lives in cave & eats over 10,000 each day, is clearly intentionally eating the spiders. I would go say far as to say that he has never accidentally eaten a spider- every spider that comes within twenty feet of him is intentionally eaten. Spiders Georg accidentally eats ZERO spiders per year.

That means the rest of us are all accidentally eating slightly more than three spiders per year, on average.

[voidnoidoid]

A long-time Free Palestine mural in Montreal, which was belonged to an NGO, was vandalized by zionists this week. December 16th 2023.

- Hussein

[voidnoidoid]

my family and i became refugees overnight.

im a young black woman trying to restart my life in the UAE with my family and we can use all the help we can get.

please consider helping a sudanese family that lost everything in the war.

thank you <3