Alrighty, guess I’m gonna take the risk and post this.

(Pls don’t get mad at me, y’all. I’m just stating an opinion & ranting about my frustrations, I don’t mean to sound rude.)

This is certainly gonna make people mad. If you disagree with me or are upset by this, that’s fine, I get that everyone has different opinions. Idc, just please leave me alone & don’t harass me over it.

I honestly have a lot of complaints similar to this, but then I saw this happen with my favorite song, and it just absolutely upset me, so yeah-

Can we PLEASE stop over-sexualizing Wait???

Yes, I know that at the end of the day, I’m always gonna have my asexual bias, but I swear that I have more complaints than just, “I’m a sex-repulsed ace who’s tired of everything being over-sexualized.”

I know that a lot of things are gonna vary depending on the production, but at least to me, that’s not what this song is supposed to be. I know the Broadway revival does the whole weird thing with his suspenders, idc what the Broadway revival does, this song is supposed to be a soft, sweet, and genuine moment. (This isn’t an insult to the Broadway revival, btw. I do still love that production despite it making some choices I disagree with.)

Let’s review the scene & context surrounding it:

Sweeney has been presented with the opportunity to off Beadle Bamford, but he’s impatient af and wants his revenge now. On top of that, he’s also stressing over how to get to Judge Turpin. Nellie basically tells him to chill out and be patient, but like, in a sweet and loving way. The whole song is her trying to help him calm down and feel less stressed, upset, and tense. She can see that he’s dealing with a lot, and she genuinely cares about him and wants to help him. By the end, he’s a lot more calm, even if he is still thinking about revenge deep down. You see the calming affect Nellie has on him, and she’s happy to see him okay again, even if it’s only for a moment. He even internalizes her words. During Epiphany, he says, “Why did I wait? You told me to wait!” Obviously he seems to have misunderstood her a little, but it shows he was at least paying attention.

At its very core, this scene is a man who’s gone through a lot and is stressed, a woman who cares about him and wants to comfort him, and him briefly being able to silence the noises in his head because he really does find comfort in her words and her presence.

This is supposed to be a calming type of song, sort of like a lullaby in a way. Maybe this really is just a me thing, but it was never meant to be sexy.

There’s a lot of things that annoy me about the over-sexualization of Nellie Lovett in general & this song in particular, but the main one is that it makes everything feel less sincere. Idc if you have your headcanons, or if you wanna talk about NSFW stuff regarding this show from time to time, but treating it like that’s the whole thing, especially regarding her, just… Idk.

Nellie truly loves Sweeney, and it’s always annoyed me when people say otherwise, and when people say that it was just lust. When people over-sexualize her & every moment between her and Sweeney, all that does is prove their point, and it makes her relationship with Sweeney feel a lot less genuine. When she’s not allowed to have genuine, emotional, and romantic moments without it either being sexualized or played for laughs (or both in some cases), it both erases her complexities as a character and cheapens the moment. (I have another rant regarding By the Sea too, but I’m specifically gonna focus on Wait here)

She truly cares about Sweeney and wants to help him, comfort him, and be there for him. When Wait is instead seen as just seduction, it makes her feelings for him seem a lot less genuine. I would think that none of us Nellie lovers or Sweenett fans would want that, and yet my fellow Sweenett shippers are the ones that are most guilty of this. Do you not also care about the emotional side of their relationship? The sweet side? The soft side? The romantic side? Their friendship? Does it only matter to you if it’s sexy? (I’m not saying this is all Sweenett shippers, or even the majority.)

Idk, I’m just tired of people trying to take away their actual adorable moments and make it all horny.

(Does it feel like nobody’s appreciating everything else about their relationship and is trying to make everything sexual, or am I just ace & losing it?)

Idc if you want to write smut about them, idc if you have differing opinions. I really don’t want to sound rude regarding people’s opinions & interpretations, and I don’t want to shame anyone. There are even people on here that I’m genuinely chill with & like that do this, and I don’t want it to sound like I’m mad at them or don’t like them or anything. I’m just so tired of it all.

Not everything has to be about sex, you guys.

(More stuff in the tags)

Sweeney Todd has the major advantage of having a landlady that’s madly in love with him.

I first went down this rabbit hole of thought a few years ago. My updated version is that Nellie doesn’t make him pay rent. She just doesn’t care. She already wants him to live with her, so why make him pay?

Back when I first thought of this tho, my joke was that they’re both extremely broke, so she maybe tries to get him to pay rent a little bit, but he’s got, like, no money, so he’s just like, “Sorry, can’t.” And she just lets it slide, ‘cause what is she gonna do, evict the love of her life?

He gets away with this all the time.

The other joke I made is that he very easily could use this whole thing to his advantage. Not in a “toying with her feelings” way, just in a “my landlady’s in love with me, what’s she gonna do” way. One day, he just buys her flowers and is like, “Do you except barters?” And of course she accepts because she loves flowers and she loves him, and even if it was to get out of paying rent, she thinks it’s sweet, and they both know deep down that she was never going to make him pay anyway.

(Idk if this needs a warning or anything, but I’m gonna be venting about my sex-repulsion, and I also briefly mention panic attacks, so yeah.)

(Any assholery will not be tolerated! DNI if you’re queerphobic!)

I have a love-hate relationship with tumblr as a sex-repulsed ace.

I have a love-hate relationship with fandom spaces & the internet as a whole as a sex-repulsed ace.

Especially as someone who’s also a hopeless romantic & likes to ship. It feels like people really only care about the sexual aspect and talk about that so much. I just wanna see cute content of my favorite pairs, and I constantly get bombarded with horniness instead.

I really don’t mean to shame anyone. At the end of the day, you do you. I really don’t care about other people’s opinions and interpretations, I’ll be respectful to others, I just ask for respect in return regarding mine.

I rarely even use tumblr because it feels like I’m always bombarded, and then I end up having severe panic attacks over it ‘cause my sex-repulsion tends to manifest as anxiety. I really don’t like the physical response it gives me, it’s very uncomfortable. I really hope this doesn’t sound like I’m blaming anyone, I’m not. It’s no one’s fault. Not even mine, although sometimes I feel like it’s my fault for even being on the internet at all. What else should I expect?

And it feels weird having to explain that yes, I ship this couple. No, I don’t want them to have sex & I don’t want to think about it. That probably wouldn’t make sense to most people, but it makes perfect sense to me. As someone who’s so severely sex-repulsed, that kind of thing being involved in anything ruins it. (This is just a personal thing, not shaming anyone else. I don’t think I have to caveat this a gazillion times, but I really wanna make it clear. This is a me thing, I’m not trying to blame or shame anyone. I’m just ranting about my own problems.)

I also tend to headcanon pretty much all of my favs as ace, even if it technically “doesn’t make sense.” I obviously wouldn’t force that onto anyone, and I’d hope no one tries to force their interpretations on me. Idk, it can just feel lonely sometimes, being this way within fandom spaces.

I don’t ask for people to change themselves & specifically cater to me. I don’t ask for any of that. I just wish I could be understood.

Not to self promote yet again (sorry y’all), but I’m really excited to share my fic now that it’s actually finished!

This is the first fanfic (not including one shots) I’ve completed rather than giving up on it after getting writer’s block, so it’s a huge deal to me, and I’m actually decently proud of it!

It’s an AU in which Nellie Lovett raises Johanna instead of Judge Turpin, so she grows up with her and actually gets to meet her father.

Sweenett headcanons, ‘cause I love these two & I have a problem

(Disclaimer: Feel how you want about this ship, but disrespect and general rudeness will not be tolerated)

• Dancing has become a regular thing for Sweeney and Nellie. It's rare for them to go longer than a day without dancing at least once.

• For a while, Sweeney struggled with expressing his feelings out loud, so he'd express them by writing love letters to Nellie.

Even after getting better at expressing those emotions out loud, he still likes to write her letters.

• Sweeney and Nellie always hang out after work.

• Sweeney likes to play with Nellie's hair, especially when it's curly.

• Nellie likes to play with Sweeney's suspenders.

Sometimes she'll pull on them when she wants to pull him close.

(She also likes to play with his hair too.)

• They have a very similar sense of humor, as well as a ton of inside jokes, and always find ways to make each other laugh.

• Nellie fell in love first, but when Sweeney fell, he fell hard.

• Sweeney is extremely protective of Nellie. Not in a possessive way, he just doesn't want her to get hurt, and has an intense fear of losing her.

• After finally saving up enough money, they took a trip to the seaside.

Nellie drew a heart with their initials into the sand.

• Sweeney is actually really strong, and he tends to carry Nellie a lot. He often lifts her and spins her around, and sometimes he'll carry her bridal style.

• After the years they spent alone, Sweeney and Nellie are both extremely lonely and touch starved. They hold hands and cuddle up to each other as much as they can.

For a while, Sweeney tried to keep himself from doing this because he still missed Lucy and also felt guilty for being like this with someone else, but he couldn't help but really like Nellie's affection, and he also quite liked the deep connection he had with her.

• Nellie absolutely loves cuddles. Any chance she gets, she'll cling tightly to Sweeney. She loves holding him, and she loves being held. They often snuggle on the sofa and talk for hours.

• One time, Nellie fell asleep on the sofa while she was sitting next to Sweeney. He didn't want to wake her, so he fell asleep next to her. Since then, she would try to purposefully fall asleep on the sofa so she wouldn’t have to leave him. They eventually began to share a room once they started dating, but every now and then, she still tries to fall asleep on the sofa with him, as if it still is her only chance to fall asleep and wake up in his arms.

• Nellie plays the piano often, and she had started to make up little songs and sing them while playing. Sweeney always found it quite endearing. One day, she started singing and playing love songs for him, which he especially thought was adorable.

• Even when Sweeney was more indifferent towards Nellie's affection, he couldn't help but still find it endearing deep down. He tried to pretend he didn't care, but he couldn't help but want tenderness and love.

• When Sweeney first started to fall for Nellie, he tried desperately to push it away. When that failed, he tried to deny it. Eventually though, he couldn't help but love her, and he didn't want to stop himself anymore.

• Despite Nellie having loved him longer, Sweeney was actually the one who first asked her to be his official partner.

• Even after they began to use each other's first names, Nellie would still call Sweeney "Mr. T."

As an adorable retaliation, Sweeney would occasionally call her "Mrs. L," as well as "The future Mrs. T."

• Nellie was the one who helped Sweeney be able to finally start letting his guard down a little.

After they started dating, he became way more affectionate, and less afraid to show his love.

• A stranger in town once mistakenly assumed that they were married, and referred to Nellie as Mrs. Todd. She quite liked the sound of it, and was so happy that she didn't think to correct them. Sweeney couldn't deny that he also quite liked the sound of it, and decided that he wouldn't correct anyone if they made that mistake.

• Sweeney's first love confession was entirely accidental. Nellie had said "I love you" to him in passing, and he casually responded, "I love you too." He was shocked once he realized what he had said, since he was still nervous about admitting his feelings, and Nellie was quite shocked too, but happy nonetheless.

• They absolutely love using pet names for each other. Nellie's personal favorite is "my love." It's very sweet, and also gets to the point- He's her love, and she loves it whenever he calls her his love. "My love" is also a favorite of Sweeney's, but he also likes to be dramatic with it and use several at once. Examples: "My dearest love," "My dear, sweet Nellie," "My dear, sweet love," "My sweetest love."

• Nellie loves to lean her head on Sweeney. Usually on his shoulder, though she also likes to lie her head on his chest and listen to his heartbeat.

Sweeney also likes to lean his head on her every now and then. He loves listening to her heartbeat and closing his eyes as she pets his head and runs her fingers through his hair. He finds it very calming.

• Sweeney doesn't particularly like to admit to being soft and loving, but he's always very soft with Nellie.

Earlier on in their relationship, he'd try to deny being soft at all, though it would quickly be pointed out to him how sweet and loving he was being towards her.

• Sometimes, in an attempt to be cute and affectionate, Sweeney will bring up incredibly morbid stuff. Usually it's him mentioning death in some way or another, like him saying that he hopes they die in each other's arms and are buried beside each other, and that he hopes to spend his life after death with her as well. Nellie will tell him that this is sweet in a way, but also they'll cross that bridge when they get to it, and to maybe not focus on that right now.

He also tends to threaten to kill anyone who dares to hurt her. (Not to their faces, just something he mentions to her.) Nellie feels a little bad for finding it endearing, but she really does love how protective he is of the people he cares about, not to mention she ends up remembering that she's already helping him commit crimes, so it's not really any worse if she finds it cute that he'd kill for her.

• Sweeney and Nellie are both prone to nightmares, though Sweeney has them a lot more often. Any time that either of them has one, the other always comforts them.

Sweeney frequently has nightmares about his time in prison, and also ones about losing Nellie (or anything bad happening to her). Whenever he wakes up from said nightmares, he immediately pulls Nellie close and holds her as tightly as he can, extremely grateful that she's still there.

• Sometimes Nellie gets really emotional when it comes to their relationship, specifically because she had spent so long loving him, and so long dreaming and pining from a distance. She gets really emotional (in a happy way) whenever she's reminded that it's all real now, that they're really together and he really loves her.

Usually this results in her holding him tightly while crying and saying "I love you so much" a whole bunch. Sweeney can't help but find it adorable.

Yes! This!

I have a very strong connection with this show, I’ve loved it for a while now. I have very strong opinions on the story and the characters, and I have very specific interpretations, but you don’t see me being hateful towards people with different opinions, or acting like I know more & am better because of my own opinions. (This isn’t me trying to pat myself on the back for not being a jerk, just saying.)

I’ve never seen the Broadway revival live, but based on the soundtrack and what I know about it, I love it! I do have a couple of criticisms, there are some things that the revival does that I’m not into, but overall, I love it & I love the cast! You don’t have to like the revival, and you can have your criticisms, but don’t be a jerk or a gatekeeper about it.

I’m always afraid to admit it because I’m terrified of all the backlash, but I first got into Sweeney Todd when I was 13 & watched the movie version on Netflix after school. I’ve been a huge fan of the musical ever since, and this musical is actually what got me into theatre in the first place. I know the movie is a mixed bag within the theatre community. In fact, many of you hate it. I was always so scared to admit that I liked it, and even more scared to reveal that it was the first version of the musical I ever saw, because I didn’t want to be accused of being a “fake fan.” “Just some young person who doesn’t REALLY care about Sondheim or musical theatre.” I felt like I had to prove myself to the older fans, that I was just as dedicated and knew just as much about the musical as them. I did as much research on the show as I possibly could (though that wasn’t only to make myself feel less like a fraud, I’m also just neurodivergent and this is a special interest of mine, lol). I’m tired of people being gatekeepers, acting like only the version they like is the valid one and that everyone else is wrong and a fake. Trust me, I have criticisms regarding the movie too, but I still like it, and I’m tired of pretending I don’t. (My little joke with myself is that the movie is “Sweeney Todd abridged,” lol)

And regarding the shipping- Just leave people alone! I know that Sweenett isn’t for everyone and that’s perfectly fine, but you don’t have to harass people who like it! Let me have my silly little fun & wholesome headcanons and one shots and such without getting um actually’d about how it ends and how Lovett lied to Sweeney and so on and so on. I get it, I know.

I love Sweenett. I think they’ve got a very interesting dynamic. They’re two lonely and broken people who find friendship and connection with each other. They’re incredibly messed up and flawed, but they do clearly care for each other and enjoy each other’s company (depending on the portrayal, a lot of things about this show tends to vary, but still). I know they’re both criminals and I know their story ends in tragedy, and yet I love to think & write about them being adorable. I like to think that had things gone differently, they could’ve been happy together. This is another thing I’ve always feared sharing, especially in general theatre spaces, because I didn’t want to get harassed and bombarded by people telling me how much they hate it and all the reasons it’s bad and how I’m dumb for liking it. (Just leave me and my silly little Victorian crime duo alone, okay?)

I love Nellie Lovett as a character. I think she’s far more complex than people give her credit for.

I love the 1982 pro-shot, the og Broadway cast recording, the movie, the Broadway revival, and the clips I’ve seen of the off Broadway revival from a few years ago. (There are many productions I have yet to learn about, I just love this show in general)

I have many other strong opinions about this show and these characters, which I won’t get into right now, and I’d like to be able to express them without being harassed or treated like a fake.

I think any way that gets someone into this show is valid & worth-while, whether it’s the movie, the pro-shot, the Broadway revival, one of the many cast recordings, etc.

I have a major passion for this show and these characters. I know many of you do too. We can all have our own opinions, our own interpretations, our own personal favorite versions & actors. But please, don’t gatekeep. Don’t be rude to people. We’re obviously not all going to agree. I’ve seen many takes that I disagree with, I’ve seen many that I outright dislike, but I’m not going to be rude about it. I’m going to leave those people be. I think we’d all be a lot happier if we just focused on the things we like, and weren’t constantly attacking each other & focusing on what we don’t like.

Let’s just enjoy this amazing show, okay?

i’m not a fan of the possessive, self righteous i-know-the-show-better-you’re-a-fake-fan energy up in here i see sometimes. we’re all here because we adore this show. that is a beautiful thing!!!! we love something SO MUCH collectively that we have a little community to be crazy about it together. so why bring in all that gross dividing energy? sweeney todd is a piece of art and a very complicated one at that. we are allowed to interpret it a certain way and still respect different interpretations. let us have our messed up ships. let us have our stupid headcannons. let us have our favorite actors/actresses. no one’s changing the objective story or manipulating characters beyond recognition. we are watching and analyzing and learning new things about these characters and this story we all love so much. i understand the deep passion and appreciation for the original story and production of sweeney todd. i share that. i also love geeking out about sweenett and josh groban and annaleigh ashford. two things can be true at once. i think a lot of this division comes from differing feelings about the revival. first of all, can we be happy this incredible musical is THRIVING on broadway and getting thousands of new fans? so many people have been pulled into this delicious, dark rabbit hole only because of the revival, myself included. of course some things in the show were adjusted for modern audiences. mrs. lovett reads sexier and sweeney a bit softer because people like that shit (also modern audiences are dense and cannot pick up very subtle messages.) i believe the original production intended that dynamic between sweeney and lovett as well. stephen sondheim The Creator has indicated such himself. this one is just more upfront with it so audiences can understand explicitly and get the most out of the show. people love dark, sad romances and evil hot girls. and the show is doing AMAZING. you can have your harsh criticisms on the current production and actors. you can be boring and hold a hateful grudge against the revival. fine!! you’re missing out!!! but don’t make it the problem of people who love it and are having fun. please stop ostracizing people and giving yourself a medal for having a closed mind.

happy new year xoxo

I don’t mean to only use tumblr to promote my ao3, but I wrote a Sweeney Todd holiday one shot inspired by A Christmas Carol, if you’d like to read it!

(This is by far the longest one shot I’ve ever written, lol)

Yes, I’m a sex repulsed asexual.

Yes, I love Rocky Horror.

We exist.

In honor of ace week, I am once again posting about my Sweenett three-parter with ace Nellie.

It’s a short & sweet fic about acceptance, love, and giving this long-suffering crime duo a goddamn break and letting them just be adorable together.

(Nellie Lovett is one of my favorite characters of all time, and she means a lot to me, so I get really self indulgent with the headcanons, lol.)

(I also get really self indulgent with writing about being loved and accepted no matter what as an ace person. Wish fulfillment? Never heard of it./s)

Anyway, it would mean a lot if y’all were to check it out!

This ace week, I’m gonna be like Enjolras from Les Mis, but with a giant ace flag.

Happy ace week to my fellow aces & acespecs!

I hope y’all have an amazing (or should I say amACEing) week!

I’ve been trying to write a fic with this concept for a while now, and finally it’s been posted!

Sorry for the self promo again, but if you’re interested in checking out my short Sweenett story with ace Nellie, it would mean a lot!

Yawning is so contagious that I made myself yawn from writing about a character yawning.

I’m excited to post my very self indulgent, self projecting fic in which I ace-ify one of my favorite characters, but while I’m in the editing process, here’s another one I’m decently proud of.

It’s Sweenett, so if you don’t like that pairing, I wouldn’t recommend reading it. If you do like them tho, it’d mean a lot if you checked it out! You don’t have to, obviously.

(Sorry, I’m so awkward when it comes to promoting my work.)

Apparently this is the kind of writer I am.

In my Mrs. Lovett era

(By which I mean I have a huge crush on my friend, who very much doesn’t like me back)

(Bonus points for still having hope regardless)

I know this isn’t what I normally post about, but I just think it’s really cool that Patrick Page has the Barnabas Collins cane