This was a highly politicized trial that seemed to blow up due to a collective effort on the right to raise it into a political and a culture war issue. When a bunch of people are suddenly getting very angry about one particular thing online, it always raises a lot of alarm bells for me. And indeed, far-right news outlets spent tens of thousands of dollars pushing ads on this trial. Outrage sells. Which means that if someone or some group of someones is trying to get you to be very angry on the internet, especially at one person in particular, its always important to take a step back and ask why does this person want me to be so angry? I don’t want to get into the specifics of the trial itself. The media circus around it was horrid. I couldn’t follow it very closely. I’m a survivor, and I’ve been cross-examined on the stand trying to get a restraining order, and let me tell you that was one of the least fun fucking things I’ve ever had to do. If someone had decided to turn that into a meme, god I don’t think I would have made it. I’ve also worked in the domestic violence field, and now I work in politics and boy did those two things come together here in a very bad way. This, like recent cultural blowups and panics about various forms of abuse (LGBT hate disguised as anti-grooming discourse, QAnon, etc) are an immense distraction and do an immense disservice to the people actually working to stop abuse. Anti-domestic violence work is inextricable from antipoverty work. Wealthy people are victims of domestic violence, and it's awful when it happens to anyone. But domestic violence is at its most dangerous when people have no other options, and the people needing emergency shelter and resources are not usually like Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. They're often struggling with homelessness, poverty, mental health, addiction, various forms of discrimination, and practically every institutional barrier you could imagine. They often don't have a family or social network that is able to help them. If a survivor has children, that makes leaving even more difficult and expensive. Domestic violence shelters and housing programs are often underfunded, and staff face burnout and secondhand trauma from the work they do all while making basically no money. I knew a girl who worked at an emergency shelter that had a scabies outbreak, and she was so terrified for weeks that she was going to get scabies. She did not make enough money to deal with the ramifications of having to take off work because she got scabies. Domestic shelters in the U.S. (I can’t speak to other countries, but it wouldn’t surprise me if this were also the case) often compete against homeless shelters for funding. So it creates this weird toxic competitiveness that is very detrimental in the long run, all these service agencies pitted against each other for scraps. This is not the first time domestic violence has become a culture war topic to the detriment of progress on the issue. Domestic violence as a point of culture war started with the Father’s Rights groups that formed in the 1970s as a response to feminism, changes in family law, and the burgeoning anti-domestic violence movement itself. And the language around this trial has a lot of the same right-wing, misogynist undertones employed by these groups 50 years ago. Yes, men face domestic violence and this should absolutely be recognized and better addressed, but having the far-right lead out on conversations about gender and domestic violence does nothing but set us back. The policy solutions proposed by Father’s Rights groups never were actually about addressing domestic violence, and generally would have make things harder for survivors of any gender. Turning domestic violence into a culture war topic always sets us back. It ends up obfuscating and misinforming people of the actual issues underpinning domestic violence, which is that we live in a country that makes it hard for people to leave. And the timing here sure does feel ominous. It’s especially alarming to me that this has all blown up on the eve of Roe being overturned, which will be a disaster for people facing domestic violence. Overturning Roe will make this worse. Continuing to gut social services to line the pockets of the wealthy will make this worse. An overly punitive criminal justice system makes it worse. The threat of deportation for undocumented immigrants makes it worse. The threat of defamation suits and the politicization of domestic violence makes it worse. Nothing about the way this trial was covered raised any sort of awareness about this all in a real or productive way. Domestic violence agencies have been fighting for recognition and awareness for decades, and it makes me so disheartened to see tiktok accounts amass millions of views around this trial treating it like some sort of spectacle. We need a conversation around domestic violence that doesn’t involve fancams. If, in following this trial, you have decided that this is an issue you care about, that’s great. But please be aware of the political motivations of certain coverage of the trial. Get involved and support people actually doing anti-domestic violence work. If you are based in the U.S., find your local domestic violence program here and donate, if you can: https://www.womenslaw.org/find-help/advocates-and-shelters Or, donate to NNEDV if you want to support anti-domestic violence policy work on the national level: https://nnedv.org/donate-now/

Idk there’s also something to be said for the absolute distaste and hatred of lesbian headcanons in general in fandom spaces. Like never mind that these ppl can’t fathom how a woman would ever exist without being into men, they can’t even not get mad when someone says they think a fictional one doesn’t like men. Like you have such a hatred of lesbians you can’t handle someone else saying they think a fictional woman doesn’t fuck men. Like holy fuck

It feels less like you want to address a real life problem to characters, but more like you want to have another of your characters you constantly baby and want others to fangirl over.

TW: Rape, SA, Racism, Stereotyping, Homophobia, Acephobia, Arophobia.

The representations of topics in media DOES affect real people.

Fiction can affect reality.

Let's start easy, Jaws. This goes back to Hazbin I promise.

"Since the release of Jaws in 1975, the world has witnessed a staggering decline of 71% in shark and ray populations, and around 100 million sharks are killed each year." (including multiple practices of mass hunting sharks in competition)

Both Steven Spielberg and the original writer Peter Benchley regret the movie and book. It's a big reason of the shark treatment, when it started by old fishermen worrying about shark biting people in the beaches they made money of.

Even if you aren't a shark killer yourself, a lot of things you believe of sharks are untrue myths that come from making sharks "evil" human killer animals. Sharks cannot smell blood from miles away, that's not even how water works, the particles of blood need to enter their nostrils. Sharks are not man eaters, they attack other prey animals before human. Shark attacks are extremely rare, even if they happen they are not justifiable to kill all sharks.

Sharks actually have personalities they can fit in, they are smart and recognize people and boats- and form positive relationships with people. They can even like getting pet by people.

Other level to represent other thing sin media that affects reality we can address Queer, representation as a topic.

I hope it is not a surprise for you... possible non-straight, non-cis person reading this. That the constant representation of gay man as kid predator is a problem. They used old commercial (PSA) to spread negative views of gay man. Media is used to spread messages and affect its viewer. This is, there are cartoons created by Jehovah witness (or similar religions) to spread their beliefs and teach to their children in an easy, digestible way.

Same with the amount of straight woman that went off to read shitty yaoi manga and fetishy gay wattpad stories, and went to sexualize and diminish queer men. Constantly making gay man's personality into bottom or top (uke and seme shit). I witness this irl, others have too.

Same with shitty men that view Lesbians as a porn machine for men, cause "monkey brain like woman, lesbian = two women". Which happens in general and adult media. All of these are EASY examples.

Another one which turns out many people don't think about. Having your representation of an AroAce character (on purpose or not) be the psychopath with no feelings. Associating the not being romantically or sexually to means you have no heart, to be abnormal, by then a psychopath. An abuse or serial killer.

Fiction does affect reality-

A racist film, 'Birth of the nation' Revived the KKK and let to all the discrimination, and the homicide of black people of centuries ahead.

-

Coming back around, how you treat the topic of SA, and r-pe- affects the real world. You would think someone who wrote that, had in mind on how that affects people in real life. Didn't you want to represent victims of SA/R-pe that are sex workers and male?

Reducing the r-pist, pimp, trafficker character to an air head to treat as silly is crazy to do. Specially as... oh idk... the creator? Both this and the tweet of the voice actor calling Val "Bubbles Coded" is so crazy. The character is also not deep enough by itself, it's pretty much Stupid and a R-pist sex trafficker. The tweet below Viv's fucking kills me too.

The fact Val is shown to be air head stupid doesn't delete he backed Angel (and by being a sex trafficker and a pimp, and him licking charlie that means he has multiple victims) into a corner and under his control. Too then abuse of him in many different ways. Manipulations are not only done by Super mastermind people, and representing it in such way diminished, affects people who have being manipulated and actually try to question if they have being or not. Manipulators can be normal, average people, they usually are not obvious. Even if Val is openly a shitty person that's really obvious, it doesn't detract from him being manipulative to people. The scene where Val threatens him in chains that is manipulation, his text messages are manipulation (even if you think it is too obvious to be successful).

How you represent SA/R-PE, and its perpetrators, do affect real life.

Going around and having your "serious R-pe episode", to then go in other episodes or the other series you are writing to make r-pe/sa jokes is terrible. For the person that directed the whole scene of poison to NOT be r-pe/sa victim (said by themselves) with a r-pe fetish with this character's in specific, to directed in the most graphic way possible is awful. To go around babying your r-pist character is crazy.

Hope you understand that this doesn't mean not treating any topic at all. Creators should be awere on how they treat topics and the scenarios they create with them, too. People and viewers need to also put their brain to understand the media they consume. But you can't always put all blame only on the viewers of a series, if media is messy is a fault of the media. You can criticize both.

You need to acknowledge Valentino is indeed a terrible person, You don't need to delete his actions or the weight of them.

I also just know that a lot of Val fans just like him to draw him in r-pe art and get their fetishized gay ship. Cause that's what they are into. You won't even do that with a woman, because you are into your fucked up fetishized gay porn from wattpad you never left behind.

If you like him, FUCK IT, just please take his abuse seriously. Don't default your entire usage, and view of the character to be 'uwufied' fandom stuff, please.

I hate how the topic has being treated, in and out of the show. I'm a victim, and I'm hurt by how these things are treated and knowing how it affects others. Even in things I haven't watched! Don't make the argument don't like it? Just don't watch it. The movies from the video of SA of men being a joke, many I haven't watch- that still affects over all. It's still a problem and it's disheartening.

Also have this:

hiii gina did you see this? it’s everything we’ve been saying that happens in this industry https://www.gaytimes.co.uk/originals/matt-terry-the-x-factor-coming-out-interview/

Hi, honey. No, I hadn’t but it really is just the same fucking story over and over, isn’t it? It’s disgusting. And it all sounds so familiar. 😡

GT: Coming to terms with your identity is one thing, but you had to go through that process on one of the UK’s most-watched shows, with various publications then questioning your sexuality. At the age of 23, too. What was that time like for you?

MT: I’m smiling because I feel like I’m finally getting this off my shoulders. I’m a Taurus, so I do everything by myself: ‘I’m strong, I can handle it.’ But, it was so f**king hard, I’m not going to lie. Any comment I saw or heard, any tweets, my heart would drop and I would immediately break into a sweat. I went on the show because I love to sing. I didn’t want to be – it sounds so silly – famous. I’m not here for that. I want to dedicate my life to my passion and my art, which is songwriting and my voice. I went on the show because I had £4 in my bank account, and I didn’t want to be a waiter anymore. When I won, I never thought about what would happen. I didn’t think ahead. I never thought about the press or my sexuality or, ‘What am I gonna tell people?’ The paparazzi would always write ‘Matt Terry kisses male outside pub’ or ‘Matt Terry likes Tom Daley’s Instagram picture.’ I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. I hadn’t spoken to my family. I hadn’t spoken to my friends. It was getting on top of me.

Also, I had the pressure of delivering a number-one album, otherwise I’d be a failure. The team I had – I’ll say it – weren’t the best. I don’t think we understood each other very well. I had a manager who… I won’t name names, but bear in mind, I was new. She was like, ‘You need to tell me now – are you or aren’t you gay? I’ve got the whole industry right now asking about you. I’m here defending you, telling them no. If it turns out you are, I’m going to have a massive egg on my face because of you.’ I couldn’t believe what was happening to me. There was no one there to protect or help me. I was like, ‘Okay, I see what’s happening here.’ And that’s when I decided that [my sexuality] is for me. That’s when I said, ‘I’m going to take a step back. I will let you in when I know who I am.’ So, I privately came away from the industry, and lots of people have been like, ‘Where have you been?’ I’ve been discovering who I am as a human and as an artist. This is me taking back control.

[…]

GT: My first reaction to your manager’s comments was to laugh, because it’s almost like a parody of a fictional villain. But, as we’ve seen, these people still exist – and not just in the industry. Celebrities are still having to confirm or deny whether they’re straight or queer because ‘fans’ are demanding to know.

MT: Like with Kit Connor. The whole thing was just a disappointment. We all watched Heartstopper. If you understand the show, you wouldn’t be prodding him about his sexuality.

[…]

With my first album, there were girls in the music videos. I remember turning up on set and the label saying, ‘Here, pick one of these girls as the love interest.’ I’m looking at headshots of all these beautiful girls and I thought, ‘Did I even imagine a girl in this? Or did I imagine a man?’ Before you know it, I’m in music videos snogging women.

I have prepared myself for support and love, but I’ve also prepared for homophobia. I will have some unfollows, but I don’t care. I would rather have 200 followers that love me than 200,000 followers that are homophobic.

Full interview here

I'm here on the behalf of the "send me a character" ask game and I'm going to cheat by asking for two characters: Hua Cheng and mtp Sherlock Holmes (bc tgcf and mtp are both special interests of mine and I'm always excited remembering you post about both of them)

I love that there are other people who are into both of these series!

Send Me a Character & I'll Tell You✨️

Sherlock Holmes (Moriarty the Patriot)

My first impression: tbh he definitely grew on my gradually, I seem to remember watching the anime the first time and every time the focus was on him being like BACK TO WILLIAM BACK TO WILLIAM.

My impression now: I am so fond of him. I think he is sincerely such a lovely adaptation of Conan Doyle's character. He's lively and silly and moody and awkward and smart and caring and I just really like him.

Favorite thing about that character: I feel like he's very...steadfast. He sets his mind to something and just goes for it, stubbornly. Sometimes unhealthily. But I admire it.

Least favorite thing: I do still get a little bored anytime the story is just on him without William. I love him best when he's with his hubby.

Favorite line/scene: obvious pick but THAT whole interaction on the train is one of my favourite scenes in the whole series. "I was just thinking it'd be fun if you were that clever mastermind"????? [parapharasing again] Sherlock that is crazy people talk, what are you on about you kinky weirdo. But also the bridge scene is right up there. And the rooftop.

Favorite interaction that character has with another: extremely hard to pick between Sherliam moments but I think I'm gonna land on the entirety of chapter 67.

A character that I wish that character would interact with more: Hmm. Bond, maybe. I want to see them get really chummy in part two.

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character: Sherlock Holmes from the original ACD stories. 🤣 (Again, I'll edit if/when I think of a better answer)

A headcanon about that character: He idolized Mycroft as a little kid but between a mix of teenage cringe-syndrome over hanging out with big bro and the ways he sees their worldviews as diverging, they drifted apart as he got older.

A song that reminds of that character: Sherlock-focused-Sherliam

An unpopular opinion about that character: Idk if this counts, but that he doesn't actually actively dislike women (though he is very gay and not interested in them romantically/sexually) he's just annoyed by the front proper Victorian society makes them put on. Once he actually gets to know a woman, he usually likes them.

Favorite picture: pretttttty

Send Me a Character & I'll Tell You✨️

Hua Cheng (Heaven Official's Blessing)

My first impression: I first saw a clip of the scene where he's leading Xie Lian through the bloody forest in the wedding clothes beneath the red umbrella, and I downright swooned over the romance of it all.

My impression now: basically the same. THE romantic character. Like. Literally a character who exists for the sole purpose of loving another. I'm getting sentimental in my old age, because I would have turned my nose up at that idea fifteen years ago, but now I adore it.

Favorite thing about that character: he's just so gentle and careful and thoughtful and loving? But also powerful and dangerous. Knight in shining armour hours. But then to be all of that and also be such a bratty, sometimes teasing and sometimes sulky husband is so funny I love it.

Least favorite thing: Uhhh. Hmm. I get why he's mean to...basically everybody but Xie Lian, because everyone has been cruel to Xie Lian. But in a sort of realistic sense that I don't actually bother to apply to fiction like this, I'd like to see him encourage Xie Lian to have other people in his life. It's fine if he wants to stay mad at Feng Xin and Mu Qing, but he should invite Yushi Huang for tea and encourage Xie Lian to hang out with Yin Yu and so on. It would be good for them both to have other friends. But like. That's me forcing myself to come up with an answer lmao.

Favorite line/scene: any big romantic speech, but also anytime he just absolutely embarrasses himself. "Gege, want to get married?" PFFFT. Loser (I love him.)

Favorite interaction that character has with another: I think the part where he's disguised and Xie Lian is laughing at him and he's pouting, and then "Only after having met you did I rediscover that it's such a simple thing to be happy." Just imagining what that must have done to Hua Cheng's heart makes me so happy.

A character that I wish that character would interact with more: Yushi Huang. They are covert infiltration buddies.

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character: Has there ever before been this level of simp? Has anyone else romanced so hard? I'm gonna say maybe Kurogane from TRC, because ( TRC SPOILERS) while Hua Cheng is much softer and more poetic about his love, Kurogane did cut off his own arm to save his beloved, and bond his soul to a vampire who could only feed on him, and definitely seems the type to do what Hua Cheng did in the current donghua arc with refusing to let Xie Lian take blame beyond what he actually had done even when that was what Xie Lian wanted. Those all feel like Hua Cheng levels of dedication.

A headcanon about that character: just absolutely and entirely overwhelmed by actually having sex with Xie Lian the first few times. He cries. He maybe panics a little. He comes too fast. He cries some more. Xie Lian adores him.

A song that reminds of that character: I mean, A Thousand Years is more about Hua Cheng than it's ever been about anyone else ever. But also this.

An unpopular opinion about that character: apparently, in some corners, my belief that the donghua version is very very in character to the novel would be unpopular lol

Favorite picture: all the manhua art is of course utterly gorgeous but...

Danmei and MXTX novels

Would you look at that, another post that's not about anime? WILD. It is about MXTX novels though so the hyperfixations continue. I'm actually in the process of planning a very lengthy analysis of all three of her series but this is a warning, don't expect too much. I was never good at those in school plus it's been almost 7 years since I've last written something like that but I feel so passionate about her works that I really wanna try to share what I thought about the novels. Nevertheless, this isn't actually those analysis posts since those are gonna be separate and will probably be written after I re-read each series. However, since I'm actually finally fully done reading all her series - including the extra side chapters - I wanted to quickly share some of my opinions and how I feel after finishing all 18 of the books.

This goes without saying but just in case - SPOILER WARNING for Heaven Official's Blessing, The grandmaster of demonic cultivation and The scum villain's self saving system novels.

First off, if you haven't read any of MXTX's work before, prepare for trauma and tragedy. Most of her characters are either deeply traumatised already or in the process of. I will always encourage people to read content warnings before reading her books.

Starting off with my favourite - TGCF or Tian Guan Ci Fu (aka Heaven Official's Blessing). This story means a lot to me. I got introduced to TGCF through the donghua before I even knew it was queer fiction and even with censorship, the closet is made of fucking GLASS so I had to look for the source material. Honestly it took me a while to commit to reading the whole series as I've been struggling to pick up books for years now but TGCF actually got me back into reading (I think in total it took me about 8 days to read all 8 volumes). More than just the story telling being good, I got so incredibly attached to every single character (except Jun Wu, he can eat shit - tho the fact I'm even saying this speaks volumes about how well MXTX can write characters. It takes a lot for me to hate a character this much).

Taking place in a beautiful fantasy world, we follow Xie Lian and Hua Cheng through tragic traumatic past and present and we learn of the horrible truths about the lives of immortal beings. We also see two idiots in love take their sweet ass time to confess. I love me a good slow burn full of longing and pining. I eat that shit UP every time and MXTX gave it to me with every single one of her series.

TGCF for me was a journey full of kicking my feet at fluff, second hand embarrassment (because xl I stg, what do you MEAN you were taught how to resist the advances of women but not how to resist hot men you gay lil shit the closet is made of glass) and honestly, lots of crying. The hundred stabs incident, ruoye's creation and hcg's last death made me sob and scream (no exaggeration, I was stomping around my room, crying and yelling GIVE HIM BACK RIGHT NOW).

Also, in a not so unpopular opinion (I think?), Pei Ming is my fave because 1) he's the no.1 Hualian shipper - check the whole Mt Tunglu adventure for proof and also 2) he's just a lil slut with a big heart. I could seriously talk about him forever because I went from hating him after he tried to throw the blame for the Banyue Pass incident on Xie Lian, to loving him after I realised that everything he does, he does because he is truly just a kind man who loves a good fight. He's so silly! Just a lil guy! Go Pei Ming go!

Fuck you Jun Wu. Again. (I hate him just as much as I hate Mahito. Maybe a little less. I really hate Mahito).

Moving on to my second favourite (but honestly it's such a close one), MDZS or Mo Dao Zu Shi (The grandmaster of demonic cultivation). Take a wild guess about how I got introduced to it... Fandom of course, because very few people talk about TGCF online without mentioning MDZS so I just had to give it a chance.

The great grandmaster of demonic cultivation has been dead for a while but when he gets gifted a new body through a not so well known demonic ritual, he runs into an old acquaintance. We learn about Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji's past and current world of cultivation and hear stories about messy betrayals and conspiracies. Aaaand we find out about some more trauma and tragedy because is it really an MXTX novel without it?

And talk about a rollercoaster because (and please don't hate me for this) I found Wei Wuxian annoying initially.... But it's okay now because I kin him so go figure. Tho I actually kin only his adult self, I was a very introverted and rule abiding teenager, a lil more like Lan Wangji. In any case, wwx is the same stupid chaotic bisexual that I am and he is babygurl. Yeah and what if he murdered 3000 people? It was self defense. THEY ATTACKED FIRST. Your honour, he did nothing wrong and he does not deserve to be punished!

On a serious note, MDZS explores so many themes that are personally important to me, my favourite being the power dynamics of the world. It’s truly moving that even with all the pain Wei Wuxian went through, how far in his cultivation and how powerful he got, he still couldn't protect those he loved (until Lan Wangji of course because Wangxian is perfect together and they always protect and defend each other. Wangxian my beloved). While it might be a stretch for some, it really reminded me of how powerless we are in the world. People aim to educate themselves and go on to do whatever they can to better the world in their own way and yet, it really feels like nothing’s improving sometimes. I could talk about this for hours but maybe I’ll leave that for another time and another analysis post since this is supposed to be a shorter one (lmao)

Last but not least, RZFZX or Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong (honestly this one I use the english name for because I can’t pronounce the chinese as much as I try - The scum villain's self saving system or Svsss). This one I actually kinda struggled with - first of all because WHY BUGS MXTX. Not much bothers me in fiction but BUGS? Too far. Heads with spider legs? Raw flesh with maggots? Blood mites? I was out (for about half an hour and then I kept reading). Please note that it's not the raw flesh that bothered me, it was the fucking maggots. I can read about graphic murder, creepy hauntings, torture and many more but as soon as there are bugs? Nope! I’m done. People have phobias and that’s mine I guess. Enough ranting about bugs!

The story follows Shen Qingqiu, the scum villain of the hit web novel Proud Immortal Demon's Way (or PIDW for short, as it's referred to in Svsss) who is actually one of the original readers - and haters - of PIDW, who transmigrates into the book in order to fix the plot holes left by the original author. With his guide “the system” he does his best to lead the male lead of PIDW, Luo Binghe, down a better path than in the original story.

Svsss employs a comedic way of storytelling, with our protagonist being omniscient, it allows for the narration to be sarcastic and poke fun at a lot of moments that are cliche or badly written, as interpreted by sqq. Honestly, this is just a personal preference but I favour the more serious storytelling way of MDZS and TGCF (give me hurt until the very end when the main characters get together and then give me comfort).

To me, Svsss is a lot harder to analyse as a lot of its themes are unfamiliar to me, especially considering I’m the furthest from having any sort of humanitarian education (I have 2 engineering degrees). Using a story within a story, MXTX is able to deliver two main overarching themes; one about abuse and its results through Luo Binghe as well as one about the relationship of author and their readers, the feeling of being trapped by the readers' opinions and wanting your story to be liked through Shang Qinghua (to be honest, I hadn’t really picked up on this one until I saw discussion about this in the fandom).

If I'm being completely honest, I don't think I grasped this series as well as the other ones and I'm finding it hard to digest lbg and sqq's relationship. I'm unsure as to what it is that's holding me back from loving them as much as Hualian and Wangxian. I do tend to prefer tropes like theirs more than the whole "had to convince him to date me" thing which is what Bingqiu's relationship seemed like to me up until the end of volume 3. It’s also why I'm glad I actually followed through and finished the extras in volume 4 (I was really tempted to stop reading once I finished volume 3 not gonna lie). I believe those to be integral to understanding sqq's feelings towards lbh and while I understand that sqq did actually love lbh from the beginning (denial is a river in egypt and the gloset is made of glass - what the fuck is with MXTX's bottoms and the damn glass closet), I struggled to see the tipping point of where he actually understood his own feelings and what was going on in his head and that he was actually in love with lbh. Which is why I think to really understand Svsss, I would seriously need to reread it.

I also would love to eventually talk about queerness in MXTX's work because in each book, sexuality and queerness is explored and examined in so many different ways. As a queer person myself, it fascinates me as I can relate to so much of it. To be honest, I think I could write a short thesis on just this.

Honestly, while I'm very passionate about my favourite pieces of media (if you've heard me talk about any of my top 5 anime you'll understand what I mean), there hasn't been a lot of things outside JJK and MXTX's novels that have made me wanna dive deep into analysing every single detail. It genuinely makes me feel like I'm gonna implode sometimes. These 3 series have seriously reignited my love for reading. I was shown that a good book - in my opinion of course - doesn't need to avoid difficult topics. It simply needs to use them well as a means of delivering a message and a story, rather than them being included just to be included. They also reminded me that I love queer fiction and I need to read more.

I actually would really like to read Erha (or 2ha or The husky and his white cat shizun) but I've read the content warnings and I'm ~~apprehensive~~. While not a lot of things bother me, I'm not sure I want to read about that stuff (please look at the content warnings of this book, or any piece of media in that matter, especially if you have topics that easily bother or trigger you). Remember, it's our responsibility as readers/consumers to look out for ourselves first!

Please recommend any good danmei (other than MXTX) and possibly include links where they can be read! I would also highly appreciate recommendations for some good wlw fantasy fiction as I really would love to read some wlw novels - or even anime/movies/webtoons/manga. Just in desperate need of quality wlw content.

Also while I said I'd keep it short, it seems I ended up writing over 2000 words…

PS. I proofread this about 5 times and during one of them my file crashed, so if there's any mistakes or if I’m not making sense somewhere, blame my deep-fried brain, thanks

Thanks for reading my novel ramble! Enjoy reading :)

theNanamiSimp

15 questions for 15 friends

Tagged by @gingerniiiija. Thanks, friend! This was super fun.

Were you named after anyone? I was. In good Southern (US) fashion, I have a double name that incorporates my grandmother's maiden name, which was also my mom's middle name and is now one of my niece's names.

When was the last time you cried? Today. I took one of my dogs to board at the same time that a pup was coming for their last vet visit and watching him surrounded by his crying family while an instrumental version of a Brandi Carlile song played over the vet speakers broke me. Managed to keep it together until I got to the car. Before that, Thursday during Critical Role.

Do you have kids? I do not. I do have wonderful nieces, and being their aunt is one of the best things in my life.

What sports have you played/do you play? I played church basketball and soccer when I was little. As an adult, I've played rugby but I tend toward activities like running, yoga, swimming, and hiking/wandering with my dogs.

Do you use sarcasm? Yes, in a dry humor way. My entire family is dry as hell, so it's a big part of my sense of humor, although I rein it in with strangers so as not to be a tool. I'm typically called a golden retriever gay, but one of the highest compliments I have ever received was one of my oldest friends telling me that Sister Michael from Derry Girls reminded her of me.

First thing you notice about people? I genuinely don't think I have a pattern here. Voice, maybe? Or smile? I do often appreciate and take note of people's style as well, especially shoes.

What is your eye color? Green

Scary movies or happy endings? Whichever has the better queer storyline

Any talents? I come in clutch in the following trivia categories: pop culture (non-reality tv); 90s country music/modern women of country; name that song; US history and politics and/or law; and queer things. Per my nieces, I am very good at the "funny faces" feature on FaceTime, a solid water slide escort, and an acceptable makeshift jungle gym. I have been told that I'm an excellent driver; I enjoy driving and have driven both a passenger van and a U-Haul up most of the East Coast of the US.

Where were you born? A military base in the United States.

What are your hobbies? I love writing, feeding/spending easy time with friends, reading (preference for fiction, poetry, and comics, although I do love some philosophy and theory as well), exploring good food and new places (solo or with friends, my own city or others), live music and theater, playing board games and Switch, watching tv and movies (my oldest niece and I see a movie every time I visit them in person and it brings me great joy), and being silly with my nieces. I'm a lawyer and a law nerd, so I also spend time following SCOTUS and listening to legal/political podcasts.

Do you have any pets? Two dogs, Annie and Buffy, a big doofy retriever mix and a tiny poodle-ish terror respectively.

How tall are you? 5' 8"

Favorite subject in school? Growing up, English/Lit, closely followed by History. At university, I majored in History and Gender & Sexuality Studies.

Dream Job? Obligatory note that I do not dream of labor. But I'm actually currently working on a career shift, so I'm giving this a lot of thought. I'd love to be a writer, journalist, professor, or preacher (last one is more complicated, for probably obvious reasons).

Would love to see answers from anyone who wants to do this! Tagging @korralone, @kasadilla11, @antlereed, and @overnighttosunflowers. Pls forgive me/disregard if you hate this, ha.

reading update: july 2023

I don't have a cool and witty opening for this one. I read a fuck of a lot of books this month and I want to tell you about them LET'S GO

Black Water Sister (Zen Cho, 2021) - Black Water Sister has a very fun premise: a closeted lesbian and unemployed recent graduate moves back to Malaysia with her parents and is already having a bad enough time when she starts hearing the voice of her dead grandmother, who turns out to have been deeply involved in supernatural organized crime. our hapless protagonist becomes a medium against her will, and has to navigate to world of Malaysian spirits and superstition to lay her grandma to rest. unfortunately the actual style of the story wasn't more me; although definitely adult fiction, the prose is breezy in a way I affiliate strongly with YA, which is not to my personal taste but is still so hashtag valid. if you're one of the countless people trying to make that jump from YA to adult fiction and you like queer urban fantasy then Black Water Sister might be a great fit for you, although I should provide a warning for a pretty surprisingly graphic near-rape in the book's climax that really took me by surprise in a story that's otherwise pretty zany in its violence.

The Bride Test (Helen Hoang, 2019) - I think I said last month that Alexis Hall's A Lady for a Duke was the best so far of the romance-novel-every-month scheme I'm trying to pull off this year. the Bride Test has pretty swiftly displaced it; have I finally discovered the really good romance novels? (worry not; I know what I'm reading for August and my hopes are. low.) our two protagonists, Mỹ/Esme (her chosen American/English name) and Khai, are both genuinely charming and are pretty strong characters independent of each other, which cannot be said for A Lot of romance protags. despite the absolute insanity of how they met (yes, Khai's mother went to Vietnam and offered, uneducated a poor single mother a tourist visa in exchange for trying to seduce her autistic son. yes, that's shady. don't think about it too hard) and Esme waiting until WAY too late in the game to reveal the existence of HER LIVING HUMAN CHILD, I liked this book a lot. it's silly and heartfelt and I had fun; what else do you need? 5/5 eggplant emojis.

Giovanni's Room (James Baldwin, 1956) - there's probably nothing I can say about Giovanni's Room that I could say that someone smarter and gayer hasn't already said, but god. it really is breathtaking. I so often see this book talked about as a gay tragedy, and honestly that feels like almost too glib of a description. it's a really meticulous dissection of white male masculinity and the claustrophobic constraints there of, and our narrator's claustrophobic fear of divesting himself from the power that he's entitled to by virtue of being a white American man perceived as a heterosexual. this man would rather live in repressed misery for his entire life than risk being like those effeminate faggots at the gay club, but spoiler alert! being miserable doesn't make you better than your fellow fags; it just means you're miserable AND a fag. sharp and painful and so so so smart. also I'm going to summon @zaricats because I was supposed to tell you what I thought about this book. oops!

Lone Women (Victor LaValle, 2023) - okay so listen. did I just say Black Water Sister wasn't really for me because of the simplistic prose? yes. did I really enjoy the very sparse, straightforward style of Lone Women? also yes. leave me alone, I contain contradictions. anyway, Lone Women is a ripping piece of historical fiction spliced with supernatural secrets, based on LaValle's research into 19th century Black women homesteaders who made their lives in Montana. LaValle opens on a scene of irresistible intrigue - Adelaide Henry, lone woman, sets out for Montana with a mysteriously heavy trunk after burning down her family's California farm with her parents' mutilated corpses inside. and boy, does it escalate from there! it's a story about isolation and community and the people who are failed by so-called close knit small towns, and the ways in which vulnerable people band together to protect one another. it also makes the compelling point that maybe, just maybe, the real monsters were your local transphobe and her husband's lynch mob all along.

Black Disability Politics (Sami Schalk, 2022) - what a cool book! Schalk's argument begins with the idea that Black disability politics are distinct from predominantly white mainstream disability politics, and are therefore often overlooked in conversation, activism, and academia. Schalk analyzes the historical work of the Black Panthers and the National Black Women's Health Project to showcase what she describes as Black disability politics in action. in Schalk's conception, Black disability politics take a much more holistic approach to disability, conceptualizing as just one form (and, frequently, as a result of) of oppression tangled up with a myriad of others that cannot be meaningfully addressed when they're treated as separate issues. the book concludes in interviews with contemporary Black disability activists and organizers that shed light on ways in which the wider movement is often unwelcoming to folks of color, and an exhortation from Schalk for readers to continue the conversation well beyond the confines of the book. in a killer show of praxis, the entire book has been made available to read in PDF form, and I strongly recommend giving it a look!

The River of Silver (S.A. Chakraborty, 2022) - mentally I am kicking myself a little for waiting so long to read this continuation of my beloved Daevabad trilogy, because it did take me a minute to get back into the swing and mythology of the world and that did make me feel unpleasantly like I wasn't appreciating these character-focused short stories as much as I could be. but even having said that - man! fuck I love the world of Daevabad, and I adore these characters so much. getting to see them again, even briefly, was a delight, and I am once again congratulating Nahri and Ali on being the invention of heterosexual romance. (also, on a related note, but I ADORE the way Chakraborty writes her characters having crushes. they crush SO hard and it's very sweet. these books are such big drama all the way down.)

Men We Reaped (Jesmyn Ward, 2013) - an absolute powerhouse of a memoir, and devastating the whole way down. in Men We Reaped Ward attempts to make sense of a series of tragedies that befell her community when five young Black men - beginning with Ward's younger brother - died between 2000 and 2004. the word 'unflinching' is hopelessly played out, but it's difficult to figure out how to describe the head-on way Ward explores each young man's life and ultimate end and her own upbringing. the men in Ward's history - her brother, the friends she lost, her father and other male relatives - are never idealized; their demons, miseries, infidelities, addictions, and violence are placed on full display. but Ward is also insistent on displaying these men with dignity, compassion, empathy; showing them at their best and, most importantly, as men who were loved and deserved better than the violence that poverty and racism wrought on them. it's a furious memoir, one that will leave you mourning too.

Nimona (ND Stevenson, 2015) - did I only read this so I can make more informed complaints if/when I end up watching the netflix movie with my wife? YES. but listen, it wasn't JUST petty hater behavior. Nimona is just really good, and I think I got a lot more out of it this time around that I did when I first read it years ago. this comic is wild and unfettered and so spectacularly weird; I wish more things felt the way Nimona does. I also with more things starred small girls begging to kill cops and stage a violent overthrow of the government, that rules hard. also man I love Ballister, he's SUCH a good protagonist. he's curmudgeonly, he's deeply principled, he's held a grudge for years, he's paternal, he's even gay. what a guy!

This is very silly but I think I kinda wanna call myself aro but a part of me is worried this will somehow interfere with my enjoyment of shipping. I love romances just not ones I’m part of.

you can still be aromantic and like shipping

in fact, looking at some polls it's actually quite common!

some aros are uninterested in or averse to shipping and romance as a whole. others are super into it. both are perfectly valid ways to be aromantic! there are no rules here!

(i myself fall somewhere in between. i ship occasionally, but i prefer platonic/familial love, and i am extremely picky about shippy stuff. and i am very critical of amatonormativity in parts of shipping/fandom culture and in certain romantic tropes).

it's like, you don't need to be attracted to characters in order to ship them (like, a gay man could ship an f/f couple even though he's not into women). and you don't have to want to do something personally to enjoy reading about characters doing the thing (plenty of people are chill homebodies who like to live a relaxed life, but love fast paced action adventures in fiction)

and ultimately, whatever label you use is just a way to *describe* yourself. it's not a rulebook on what you can and can't do. it's just an adjective, not a job description, y'know?

Faye: I can't be stuck in one place for long - it'll kill me. My whole family's like that.

Spike: Yeah right.

Faye: We’re Romanies. For eons we’ve wandered the stars looking for love. It's our way.

Spike: Huh?

Faye: You don't know anything, do you? Romanies are gypsies. And you know what we call someone like you? A gadjo, that means a bumpkin that doesn't know which way is up.

Spike: gadjo. I like that.

Faye: [howls] The wilds are calling me! You can't keep me locked up!

PS - This is mostly for sillies. I was thinking about Gypsy Rose Blanchard and how unfortunate that name is. While I take the issue of slurs seriously, I DO just think it's funny to cancel fictional anime women for their crimes. Faye should really be cancelled for making me gay.

PSS - I couldn't find a gif of her when she was handcuffed to the toilet on the Bebop so I just used this one of her and spike giving each other fuck-me eyes

hi to the new people in the les mis fandom joining bc of joseph quinn, it is lovely to have u all with us and u are more than welcome, however u should know that bbc enjolras (and the whole bbc adaptation) is nowhere close to the original character and everything he represent.

while joseph quinn did a really good job at acting enjolras, the way the writers wrote his character was bad and out of character. obviously, and it's normal, an adaptation will always have its own interpretation of a character, and that's what's make fiction so great. but i think u need to be aware of the fact that it's not a good representation of what enjolras' character is and what his character has been representing for over 150 years (i could go into details and maybe will but it's late and i'm working early tomorrow).

i also wanted to say, as a reminder that, while it's completely fine to simp for enjolras (no one is immune to him, whether he's played by aaron tveit, joseph quinn or anyone else) and find him hot (because he IS hot or because he's played by joseph quinn, again, i get it; i don't find moustachjolras hot but damn that man is find irl), u need to be aware that enjolras is a queer character. it's stated multiple times that he has no interest in women, never has and never will. his character has been an important representation for the queer community, him being compared to a lot of gay historical figures (and i'm not going to start with the enjoltaire); but also for the aromantic and asexual community and trans community. his character is very likely to be aroace; and victor hugo describe him as being very androgynous looking, looking like a young woman. and while i don't want to talk on behalf of the trans community, i've seen a lot of post and fanfictions headcanoning him as trans, and i think it's very important to have that kind of representation in such an important piece of classical literature.

so please, be aware that the y/n fanfic and nswf y/n fanfic with female character x enjolras can be really disturbing, especially for people who have been in the fandom for a long time and are really looking up to his character and kinning him. don't just reduce him to hot-man-u-wanna-do-the-dirty-with when his character carries so much importance and has for decades. and i promise, caring about a character's whole essence and personality doesn't make them any less interesting or hot (quite the contrary actually).

also, let's not forget how we collectively hated on the casting choice when it first came out and i find it a bit odd to suddenly change our mind just bc it's the same actor who plays eddie munson. i personally think we were right to complain, bc it WAS a bad casting choice considering all the physical description of enjolras we had (and yes, in les mis, his physical appearance matters of lot).

we are not trying to gatekeep our fandom. on the contrary, i think it's really pretty fucking cool to have new people finding an interest in a 160yo book ! and for me, u guys are more than welcome to join our sad silly little fandom. but we just want u to be aware of all of this (and maybe some other issues that do not cross my mind rn) and be educated so we can all be drama free.

ok i'm done now, sorry for the long post, welcome again to the fandom, and if u decide to stay be ready for the tears and the pain caused by mr victor hugo ! bye bye, with love, a little french fan

Ykno. I think a lot about "let men in fiction be friends" debates and icl I absolutely see where the people in that camp are coming from, though not to the degree of pretending there's an overrepresentation of gay male relationships in media.

As a kid I never really understood why people shipped Naruto and Sasuke romantically. Now I'm older and have engaged with more media where boys write about boys and can admit, yeah, their relationship is pretty homoerotic, considering how poorly fleshed out their relationships with women are in comparison to all the hours they spend thinking about and admiring and pursuing and challenging one another. But I still choose to see them as a bromance, cus I just believe in friendship that strongly.

There are plenty of people irl I've refused to give up on and would take a bullet for without a second thought without being attracted to them, or anything. The reality is a lot of men are lacking in meaningful relationships with other men in real life (especially the nerdy guys that interact with fandom enough to be seeing people talk about wanting anime boys to have gay sex with each other), and it's kinda hard to blame them for projecting and getting hyper attatched to dudes like Steve and Bucky or Naruto and Sasuke or Goku and Vegeta, I also like to believe in a world where men just, care about each other that intensely, and have that much fun together, and can be that intimate with one another without thinking about it. I mean, that's why I like anime so much. Male friendships are just that fucking intense all the time. What is life without a homie who pushes you to be your best self at incredibly formative stages of your life.

At the end of the day though I'm just some straight dude, so it only makes sense that I feel this way. I'm not really wired to see what they see in those homosocial interactions cus I've never experienced them myself, and I'm not one to deny marginalized people wanting to see themselves in cartoons. I just think it's kinda silly to brush the guys who do prefer bromance off as boring and stupid and shallow.

i thoght the yaoi thing was joke? :(

its /hj. tbc i haaaate most yaoi the majority of it is tasteless voyeuristic erotica which isnt like an evil thing to make but still extremely bad. i think its funny and i mostly read it cos its hilarious. more thoughts under the cut

it's misrepresented and #misunderstood especially by western gay people. its not representation, it's not 'led by queer people', and the difference between 'yaoi' and 'boy's love' is marginal. it's predominantly heterosexual women who enjoy writing drawing reading two (or more..) guys fuck which is fine. yaoi vs bl is often used as both a categorical distinction (yaoi is erotica, bl isn't) and a moral one (yaoi is cringe/homophobic/bad and bl is pure/wholesome/untainted) which is like fundamentally so wrong if you know anything about the genre.

the history is really interesting. It's roots are firmly in shojou manga, as in, explicitly for young women. early works are often taboo-breaking and deal with sexual abuse, incest, etc. an early muse for the genre was bjorn andressen as tadzio in the film 'death in venice' and if you know anything about that film and andressen says A Lot. shonen ai (literally boy love) was originally a term which was pederastic in nature but became the name for the genre. to crib from the wikipedia article cos it summarises it well:

While the term shōnen-ai historically connoted ephebophilia or pederasty, beginning in the 1970s it was used to describe a new genre of shōjo manga (girls' manga) featuring romance between bishōnen (lit. "beautiful boys"), a term for androgynous or effeminate male characters. Early shōnen-ai works were inspired by European literature, the writings of Taruho Inagaki, and the Bildungsroman genre Shōnen-ai often features references to literature, history, science, and philosophy; Suzuki describes the genre as being "pedantic" and "difficult to understand", with "philosophical and abstract musings" that challenged young readers who were often only able to understand the references and deeper themes as they grew older.

Yaoi, on the other hand:

Coined in the late 1970s by manga artists Yasuko Sakata and Akiko Hatsu, yaoi is a portmanteau of yama nashi, ochi nashi, imi nashi (山[場]なし、落ちなし、意味なし), which translates to "no climax, no point, no meaning".[f] Initially used by artists as a self-deprecating and ironic euphemism, the portmanteau refers to how early yaoi works typically focused on sex to the exclusion of plot and character development; it is also a subversive reference to the classical Japanese narrative structure of introduction, development, twist, and conclusion

by the way, that [f] note is: "The acronym yamete, oshiri ga itai (やめて お尻が 痛い, "stop, my ass hurts!") is also less commonly used."

Like the term fujoshi, meaning 'rotten girl', is the same it's very silly and self-deprecating. That's so fun! I think the yaoi genre in general is a really interesting phenomena that's rooted so deeply in Japan as a culture. I think it's great that women are able to sincerely enjoy something fun, I think it's great that women were able and continue to have successful careers in writing, and I also think it's mostly bad.

A lot of modern stuff, especially the works getting pumped out of korea by genuinely evil webtoon companies, suffer from the fundamental problems with serialisation. It putters from chapter to chapter and every single one is the same as the other. A lot of Japanese bl/yaoi is in the form of short fiction, about 5-10 chapters, and again there are fundamental problems with this. they often suffer from too much crammed in AND from so little stretched thin.

I also think yes morally or 'representationally' or whatever they are like Pretty cringe. like sorry uke/seme is BAD. sexual assault is not even handled so much as it is kicked around. Women are non-existent at best and horrifically sexist at worst. Also the writing, though ofc i read (often fan-) translated works, just sucks.

You guys don't know how bad it gets. like ok example.... it's hard giving examples cos most of its just boring or bad in a lame way. okay there's this korean rom-com drama webtoon about a boss and his employee and the boss is actually an immortal snake-deity who fell in love with this guy and his employee is the reincarnation of that guy. sounds fine right? well the snake boss has two dicks. So.

alright, I was originally gonna make this as a comic but I’m really busy so I can’t manage that. I swear, this is my last anti-fujoshi post and then we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled inane nonsense.

firstly, I’ve seen a lot of people saying that they dislike the term ‘fujoshi’ to describe these people because of its misogynistic origins. I find this to be reasonable, so I will be referring to them as maiali pervertiti instead. It’s Italian! Hope y’all like it xx That out of the way, let’s begin.

I have put real, genuine, actual research into this. I scoured maiali pervertiti blogs to find their arguments, their mindsets, their justifications. As far as I could find, there are four main arguments. These being the following: ‘It’s just fiction, not reality’, ‘Hating us is misogynistic’ ‘hating us is transphobic/homophobic’ and ‘hating us is racist’. I will be unpacking each of these, looking at them from both perspectives, and explaining why exactly they’re flawed perspectives. Hopefully, a properly researched and informed take on this will help to clear the waters.

Let’s start with the first take. The ever-quoted ‘it’s just fiction, not reality’. This is an argument you’ll find in a lot of places, mostly in any place which is in support of questionable things being treated as erotic. Pro ships and pro-shippers also love to tote this. Now, on its surface this argument seems logical. However it starts to fall apart when you think about it critically. When we consider how the brain works, you’ll see what I mean. To be concise, the human mind slowly accepts things the more it’s exposed to justifications for them, regardless of how reasonable those justifications are. It associates a bad thing with ‘but nevermind, it’s fine’ and you stop feeling shame or regret over time. This is why you’ll often see lolicons say downright atrocious things about child characters- they’ve justified it for so long that they don’t see a problem with it.

Now, on the ‘it doesn’t affect reality’ claim, let’s look at other groups for this. Think about how many studies have been done saying that men who watch rape porn are more likely to become rapists. Think of all the people raised on the ‘I can fix him’ mentality on tv growing up to get in bad relationships or romanticise abuse under the idea that they can make an abuser better by loving him. It’s no secret of society that, actually, fiction does affect reality. The most concise, albeit silly way I’ve heard it put was ‘But you’re still jacking off to it. It’s affecting your dick and balls’. And I think that sums it up.

Next, let’s look at the ‘If you hate us you’re misogynistic’ claim. The mentality behind this claim is that women in Japan were referred to as ‘rotten girl’ for liking yaoi and bl, and to continue that rhetoric of not liking them is the continuation of misogyny. Again, this is a take that seems logical right up until you pick it apart. First we have to understand that the reason these men were calling these women rotten was because they disapproved of them exploring their sexuality and reading erotic content at all. They don’t hate women for reading gay porn, they hate women for reading porn period. The gay people criticising maiali pervertiti on tumblr aren’t hating them for the same reason. We don’t hate you for reading porn, read all the porn you’d like, we just want you to stop fetishising us. The difference is in the context; the men who were shaming Japanese women were shaming them for exploring their sexualities, were shaming you for treating an entire minority of people like they’re a porn category and for spreading gross, abusive content of mlm because you think it’s hot. It’s also important to note that Japanese women mostly started reading yaoi and bl because of the culture toward female sexuality in Japan. They couldn’t read erotica of straight couples, or they’d be seen as perverts. They couldn’t read wlw erotica, or they’d be seen as lesbians and shamed. Their only option for exploring their sexuality became mlm erotica. You, Lindsey from California, do not share this same issue.

Next we have the ever-irritating ‘If you hate us, you’re a transphobe’ argument.

*deep, deep sigh*

stay with me, fellow trans achillians. We can get through this. This argument is based in the idea that transmascs, specifically mlm transmascs, might read yaoi to explore their genders through sexual content. Unfortunately, exploring your gender through erotica and having a fetish are two different things. I personally did explore my gender through gay sexual content. Mostly fanfiction and mental fantasy, but with the odd fanart or comic sprinkled in there for flavour. The difference is that I never had a fetish for it. Most maiali pervertiti seem to argue with a very subtle straw man by implying that reading mlm content is the same as reading the gross rape porn yaoi that ‘fujoshi’ spaces are steeped in. This is not the case- there is a clear divide. I personally consumed actual, healthy content of gay sex. To go further with this argument, I actually think it’s actively harmful to perpetuate the idea that young trans people struggling with their gender should be exploring it through the things that are spread in fujoshi spaces. I’ve read some pf this stuff mostly by accident or against my will and that shit should not be associated in a young trans person’s mind with their gender. It isn’t safe.

Next we have ‘it’s homophobic to hate us’ which is definitely. A take. The rhetoric here is that by hating on the fetishisation consumption of yaoi, you’re really just hating gay men.

this is just… can I drop the nuance voice here? It’s bullshit. It’s gross bullshit. Gross, steaming, cowpat bullshit. Okay, nuance voice back up, let’s explore. maiali pervertiti, please understand that it’s mostly gay people who don’t like you. This is, again, a straw man argument. They’re trying to yell homophobia so they can ignore the real criticisms. The problem isn’t the homosexuality, my dear sweet perverted little fucking weirdos, it’s the rape porn and incest and abuse. Just read normal fucking mlm content I’m begging you.

Finally, we have the ‘it’s racist to hate us’ argument. This is an example of what I like to call ‘the firemen diversion’. This name comes from an example where a person might take the statistic of their being higher fatality risk the more firemen walk into a burning building, and then using it as an argument to suggest that it’s dangerous to call the fire brigade if there’s a fire. There’s a tiny nugget of reasonable argument in there, but it’s backing up a complete and utter bullshit lie.

This is basically what this argument is. The idea here is that the term ‘fujoshi’ was originally a reclaimed slur, and that westerners are changing it to degrade women again and are therefore misunderstanding the actual language behind it.

Now, this is based in a little bit of truth. Westerners do, in all fairness, misunderstand the term. I can’t speak for the reclamation of the slur, considering how I don’t know if that’s true, but I do know that the way it’s used has been quite incorrect a lot of the time. That’s the true bit. The rest of the argument, however, is nonsensical. While yes, some people misunderstand the word ‘fujoshi’, it doesn’t mean that the criticism of the culture (especially the culture in the western world) is racist. Please, don’t cry racism when you see people asking not to be fetishised. You will end up making the actual movement against anti-Asian hate crimes (which have increased in recent years, need I remind you) look less credible. Once again, I am asking allies to shut the fuck up talking for the minorities they claim to represent while being batshit insane x

TL;DR: no, it is not misogynistic, racist, transphobic or homophobic when gay people tell you to stop fetishising us. Stop arguing straw men and just take accountability.

Also, maiali pervertiti are the female equivalent of straight men who watch lesbian porn. But somehow worse. That’s all, have a good day.

Hi, we're the Starmeadow System! We're an autistic transfem system who kinda just exists and also draws things sometimes.

About us (individually)

Stella (she/they/kit): Kittygirl host. Shows up the most often. Loud and outspoken about a lot of things. Makes up the most things and kisses the most girls. Wants to do more things for her headmates.

Apple (she/her): The red panda gremlin who manages to be a bigger lesbian than Stella (when adjusting for the resource gap). She also has a sister in our partner system.

Pizza (they/them): Fictive from Chicory: A Colorful Tale. They are very silly and cute. Very pettable as well.

Cupcake (she/her): Really cute dog. Also one of Stella's several exes.

Ezekiel (he/they/ze): Green bird who lurks and says "computer" sometimes. Has the voice of a 90s text to speech program.

Volo (he/him): Fictive from Pokemon Legends: Arceus. Memelord who announces his presence with his theme. Approves his source's Near MB post we think.

Artemis (she/her): Fictive from Deltafauna, a series we tried to develop once. Acts and speaks in a very deadpan fashion.

Crystal (she/ice): Pretty glaceon with a southern accent. One of Stella's kids somehow.

Amethyst (she/her): Fictive from Steven Universe. Lurks. Says things sometimes.

Technoblade (he/him): A mix between his "real life" and "dream SMP (my behated)" self. Also kind of a memelord. Claims to get along with Volo well.

Rich (he/him): Factive of a guy we worked for once until we got laid off. Hasn't shown up in a while. Don't know what he was about tbh.

Nomi (she/her): Fictive from Dogs in Space. Just as chaotic as her source, and is also probably very very gay. Pettable.

V1 (he/him): Fictive from Ultrakill. Very violent. Claims he's a gopro. Even more enthusiastic about killing transphobes and cops than most of the system.

Sox (he/him): Fictive from Lightyear. Acts as a therapist who remains unaffiliated with the psychiactric system. Very pettable.

Doris (she/her): System member who briefly showed up based on the person-sized dinosuar plushie we have. Kissable.

Bluey (she/they): Fictive from Bluey. Small, adorable dog child. I (stella) would kill for her. And do the dishes for her too.

Rocket Raccoon (he/him): Fictive from Guardians of the Galaxy. I'm a little gremlin who likes shooting shit. Hope you understand.

Fandoms

Listed in alphabetical order. Non-exhaustive.

Animal Crossing

Beastieball

Bluey

Breaking Bad

Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling

Celeste

Chicory: A Colorful Tale

Deltarune

Dogworld (2021)

Grapple Dog

Hollow Knight

The Hunger Games

Kirby

The Legend of Zelda

Pix and Bit

Pokemon

Preeny Has To Repeat 6th Grade

Rain World

Sonic the Hedgehog

Super Cat Tales

Super Mario Bros.

Squid Game

If you notice there's a pattern: yes, we're furry gamers lmao especially Stella

Shit we do

We post things, reblog furry women and Very Fun Political Things Going On, and sometimes maybe work on some projects.

Stella's the main person who manages things about "Pure of Heart" characters on tumblr, and posts about it when she feels like it. She has also made a 100(DEC36)-point moral scale for evaluating fictional characters. Discussion around this is encouraged.

Independently of that, kit's also planning Souls of the Broken Warrens, an adult interactive comment-driven dark fantasy quest about genocide, cute rabbits, and love and companionship in the darkest of times.

Pix and Bit Save the Galaxy is a fanfic I sometimes write for on AO3. It's about a couple trans lesbians fighting one of their dads and his army for the fate of the Galaxy. You know, normal shenanigans n shit.

These plans are about as liquid and malleable as life itself, of course, so uh. Yeah.

Cool people you should also follow

@rougewitchfox - Our partner system. Very very pretty and cute and kissable. Minors aren't allowed on her account. She's also agreed to proofread for Souls of the Broken Warrens so that Stella doesn't accidentally end up harming marginalized people, given the sensitive nature of the game's subject matter.

@autisticsupervillain - cool guy who happens to often talk about Magnificent Bastards, Complete Monsters, and pitting fictional characters in fights to the death and seeing who wins with better logic than Death Battle. We consider him a good friend of ours.

@imsobadatnicknames2 - Interesting fella who runs Brave Little Mouse, a cyoa with Mausritter rules. Has a Ko-Fi. I cant buy him one rn though :(

Anyway that's it we think, have fun dealing with us lol

The Warp Effect Ep 4 Stray Thoughts

Happy New Year! It feels significant that our first show of the year should be from Jojo.

Last week, Jean was experiencing painful cramps and Kat suggested she go see Alex because he is considered to be a very good gynecologist. Because Alex knows nothing, we and he received a lesson on proper procedure for a pelvic inspection. Jean panicked as she thought about the last time she was this vulnerable with Alex and fled the office.

Elsewhere, Alex has reunited with his high school friends, Ew, and Nim. Ew is into puppy play, but it seems his girlfriend is not. Nim is seeing another woman, whose name I don't know yet, who wants to have a baby. Foreshadowing says Nim is going to carry that baby.

Also, we watched Army get head in a car, which is significant because anal requires too much planning for some of the spontaneous sex BL likes to use.

I like present-day Army. He sees Jean running from Alex and knows it's definitely his fault, and then immediately vents how frustrated he is with Alex, too.

Wow, I think this is the first time I've seen a Thai drama, of any sort, voice the opinion some of us have that gays and straights cannot be friends. (I don't personally believe this, but I completely understand where it comes from).

Army is also right to feel like Alex is being hypocritical when his current reputation is one of a player.

Nim's girlfriend is Bew, and she's got big dreams. I love lesbians. Excited to see Nim come to grips with carrying a child.

I think Sing is perfectly cast for Eiw. You need someone who can seem a little silly, and also who can be extremely heartfelt. His hurt at his own friends calling him abnormal hit perfectly.

Oh no, Army. Please vet this boy. Don't have sex with someone underage.

Jojo said, "It's 2023. We all vers now."

Nothing but praise for this rejection scene. Love that Army had to say no more than three times, and held firm despite his own arousal. I'm sure this boy is going to cause more problems later, but super glad Army is sensible.

That's right, babies! The laws about age of consent are designed to protect both parties! Don't endanger yourself or others by lying about your age!!

Sincerely, I don't think Joe overreacted here. Given Army's reputation and his apparent personal experience, it is the right response to protect your student when you see signs of danger. If Joe is also queer, this is especially important.

Why are fictional lesbians consistently so demanding when they want a close friend to be their donor? I'm not complaining, but it's very specific. Also, poor Eiw being rejected out of hand as a donor.

Okay, Mollie! They have also figured out some things in the last ten years.

I'm still not sold on Joong, but Fah is good with almost any scene partners.

Yes, Mollie! You better crush this role!!

Love Mollie's and Jean's integrity.

I'm so nervous about these cramps for Jean. They serve as a convenient plot device to force Alex and Jean back together, but I'm also worried about her health and the health of women like her.

Ice is correct to call his friend out about being rude to Kim. She doesn't need to reveal the interior aspects of their sex life to their friends to sate their curiosity.

They're not backing down in this show. Now we're discussing men's sexual health and the dysmorphia about penis size.

This scene between Ice and Kim is important. It's important to understand that people want different outcomes from sex sometimes, and that the opinion that most matters regarding sex is that of your partner. Ice does not need to worry about what his friends think, because he's got a partner who wants him in Kim.

Raw?? IN THIS ECONOMY???

Okay. I am glad they showed Army reflecting back to a time with Joe while masturbating in the shower, but did they really have to make him run his hands through his hair IMMEDIATELY afterwards??

Cannot overstate how relieved I am that this show is going out of its way to show that Jean and Kat do not have any beef with each other.

I don't think it's smart of Army to go looking for Joe on a school campus. He clearly has sexual intentions, and they should not do anything at a school. The risks are too high.

Love that this isn't BL, so Joe is just closeted for professional reasons, and also pissed at Army for the unknown infraction.

Again, it's like Jojo has been listening to our complaints about spontaneous gay sex. Making out and jerking with clothes on in a locker room is the exact kind of thing gays would do. Army jerking Joe off and begging him to forgive him might top end of the year lists and it's only the second day of the year!

Still, I'm glad a student showed up looking for Joe. Let's not forget that it is a terrible idea to do this at a school.

Fluke Pusit... I see you, sir. Good job.