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apocalypse-shuffle · 5 months

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JASON TODD | RED HOOD (generalized fanon | wfa)

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“Past The Time till Midnight” (Jason Todd & Fem!Reader)

| Jason’s a no good bastard and now you’re bored out of your mind.

| SFW, galas, mild(?) discrimination, -platonic!reader & queer!reader

| Could be pre-relationship if you want, I suppose. Background!(Rose Wilson x Jason Todd) & (Rose Wilson x Fem!Reader)

| Pic source — Batman: Wayne Family Adventures webtoon)

| 2k+ words

You’d had zero clue up until tonight just how fun draining a New Year's Eve gala could be. Honestly, you're upset you had to gain the knowledge through first hand experience too, but that only translates to you hip checking Jason when you make your way back to him.

He lets himself rock sideways the tiniest bit for your benefit. You roll your eyes.

“I thought you said this would be fun?”

You pass one of the drinks in your hands to him and he pockets his phone - whatever urgent call dealt with for now.

“Oh did I?” He nods in thanks then knocks back the flute of champagne. “I lied.”

You suck your teeth, “I fucking hate you.”

A burst of brief snickers is all that proclamation provokes.

With a sigh you cross your arms, sipping at your drink at a far more acceptable pace as you people watch.

Jason and you both are largely out of the way by design. You were of the vast majority of people who didn’t see the fun in being scrutinized by droves of rich socialites for hours on end, and Jason was…Jason.

He maybe showed up to two of these things a year - and never without extensive weedling and bribery from some other one of the bats (though noticeably never by Bruce himself who was almost always the host of the Galas that Jason bothered to show his face at).

Two ladies throwing small looks your way, giggling and laughing, catch your interest on your sweep of the ballroom. You squint.

It’s you who redirects Jason’s attention towards them with an elbow to the side. He makes a low irritated sound that makes you laugh but doesn’t even retaliate before following your gaze.

When he does his eyes briefly light up with recognition. Instantly you perk up too.

Finally, something interesting.

The both of you glance at each other - a grin spread across his face and a raised brow on yours - before moving in tandem towards the other duo without another word.

The women straighten, standing impossibly taller, smiles losing their genuity, as you close in on them.

“Hi,” Jason reaches out to take the shortest of the two’s offered hand. He doesn’t bend down to kiss it though, just holds it until the woman frowns at his lack of kiss then let’s go. “We saw you laughing and couldn’t help but want to join in on the fun. These things can be so uneventful sometimes.”

“Oh! Of course.” She laughs, high and melodic and fake, “Any son of Thee Brucie Wayne is always welcome to join!”

“Great.” Watching Jason’s crowd smile spread across his face is fascinating. “No problem telling me what gossip had you laughing and saying my name then? I like to get ahead of the press.”

He caps the sentence off with a jovial shrug, smile still in place, and it works. Even with their reservations in place - and the fact Jason’s never left his pure disdain for the likes of them secret - they don’t seem to catch that they’re walking into a trap, their smiles broadening. Jason has somehow managed a very distinct balance between alarming and painfully boyish and it’s actually working.

If this is what he always looked like when he did this song and dance in the helmet you were going to clown the hell out of him later.

“Well alright, but we were just talking gossip like girls do.”

You exchange another rapid fire look and Jason’s grin dips teasingly, eyebrows raising.

His look says, “You're up. Bet you can’t do better.”

You grit your teeth just long enough he catches your acceptance, then force the corners of your mouth up.

“Oh yeah, about what?” You look between both women. Jason’s already bracing himself, expertly masking his amusement.

Clare laughs in that airy way these types love so much.

“Me and Linda were just discussing how…fitting it is that two people from your backgrounds would come together under the Wayne name.”

“A wonderful coincidence really,” Linda nods along. Any faster and you think her head will fall off. You wonder if it would look like those mannequins that get knocked over at the mall.

You shake your own head, adopting a bewildered expression. “I’m sorry I’m just not seeing what’s so funny. Could you explain?”

Jason chokes - on what? you don’t know - beside you and dissolves into a short coughing fit. You reach around without looking away from your companions to pat him on the back, silently handing him the rest of your drink.

Clare makes an aborted motion as Linda coos uselessly at Jason.

“Well,” she clears her throat, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “Well. It’s not funny per say. I think you may have misinterpreted - um, confused - our reactions. We just think it’s sweet that two…um…uh…. disenfranchised people managed to meet and get so close after being helped by Bruce. That’s all hun.”

You're not her ‘hun’ and you want to burn the patch of skin she touches when she pats your arm. A reminder to settle down; like a half trained dog stepping out of place.

Your teeth grind together but you maintain your open expression, saying your next words cheerily.

“Oh! Girl, I’m not ‘disenfranchised’,” you laugh, head thrown back for a moment and all, before dropping your head to look her in the eye, “I’m just black.”

Instantly the laughter Clare had joined in on peters off into silence on her end. She stares at you a little blankly. You smile, continuing, “Yeah, and I - uh - just met Bruce Wayne today actually, but I do think I get what’s funny now. Now I know you’re just as fake as your smile…and your personality too, probably. Hell, I’d even be willing to bet that whatever charities you deign to donate to you bad mouth on the side too. Gotta keep up appearances though, right?”

Clare goes beet red and Linda freezes, her little smile and nod deal etched in place.

Clare sputters, brows furrowing in an especially non flattering way in a bid to find something to respond with.

Jason hums lowly, gesturing idly with your now empty glass and her mouth snaps shut like a snapping turtle with a baby’s finger in its clutches. “And I think the word you were looking for was ‘homeless’, Nats.”

Clare doesn’t respond, she stops doing much of anything in fact, only getting redder by the second in the face of Jason engaging directly with her. Wayne influence was strong enough that everyone wanted to gossip about them but no one was willing to say a damn thing to their faces about it it seems.

You can’t help the little grin that realization pulls out of you. The way your heart starts to race alongside it makes it hard to tell whether you want to spit in her uppity little face or laugh in it.

Ultimately you don’t get a chance because Jason’s face rapidly shifts from that deceptive boyishness to a sneer that’s very skillfully hidden behind his own even nastier grin.

“I don’t like you Nats, you know that, and we’ve blown up about this before so I don’t want to hear any more of your shitty justifications trust me,” he pauses purely because he’s just that dramatic, huff of laughter falling past his lips, “but you know who would like to hear them?”

Clare scowls, lip upturning. “Who Wayne?”

His sneer drops and all that’s left is that grin. Still just as nasty but clearly mocking. “Vickie would. And she’s always begging for an interview with the previously estranged ‘disenfranchised’ son of Bruce Wayne. She’d eat up every word out of my mouth.”

Jason doesn’t wait for a response, just grabs you by the hand and leaves her horrified face and Linda’s meek cries of: “Jason please,” behind.

You blow out of there so fast that Jason eventually ends up having to catch up with you, long strides barely holding a candle to you fleeing the scene like there’s an active fire up under your ass.

“Don’t bring me back to one of these, Jason.”

“Gotcha.”

“I mean it.”

“I know,” he waits a beat, “and I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s not.”

“She insulted you too.”

“Yeah but I’m used to rich people’s inability to feel real human emotion, and even more familiar with Clare Nats’ particular brand of it.”

“Fine.” You step over someone's jewelry laying on the floor. You turn back to your friend after giving the diamonds and gemstones a good glance. “And that was definitely a tie by the way.”

“Sure,” he starts leading you towards the other end of the ballroom. “You want something to drink? I need a drink. Hate name dropping Bruce like that; makes me itch.”

You also already knew that from first hand experience; watching him act like he’d quite literally broken out in hives after needing to pull out his father’s name to get through a hospital of all places faster. Steph was hurt so obviously he’d done it but he’d scratched the whole way to the floor she was being held at in Gotham General like he honestly couldn’t help himself. You hadn’t laughed then and certainly haven’t brought it back up to laugh at him after the fact, but you think about it often.

It was a really good pick me up out of context, how could you not?

The two of you hit the bar like sea drifters catching sight of land for the first time in ages, more so because of Jason than you though. You weren’t nearly that thirsty; just dragged along.

He grips the lip of the bartop hard and flags down the bartender. He’s forcing the coolness in his voice, in his posture, when he orders but it’s not like they’d know that.

“Who is Clare exactly?” You gesture to him, unimpressed. “And is Bruce gonna be pissed you mouthed off or something? It’s not like you just ended all prejudice around the world and now he’s got nothing left to fight for or some shit. Why are you drinking?”

“Fuck you, I do not need his ‘okay’ to talk to people.”

You roll your eyes, “Then why, Jason?”

He glares over his shoulder at the way you accentuate his name, roughly emphasizing the vowels, but you don’t do anything more than stare back.

“Nats and I grew up at the same time and she had a lotta opinions about my adoption back then, but I’m mainly irritated cause they’re gonna start…gossiping now.”

You laugh.

“Aww is the big bad outlaw scared of a few blog articles now? I’ll make sure to keep that in mind for when we go up against some asshole with a gossip column.”

The shot of tequila comes, no chaser, and Jason snatches and downs it in one fluid motion. You cringe just as he brings his head down to look at you, pointing with his hand still occupied by the little glass.

“You are…the worst.”

Your facial expression widens; eyes getting big, brows rising towards your hairline, mouth agape - the whole nine yards.

“Me?” You tutt, “I know you fucking lying. You can’t expect me to take your fear of women who sit in front of keyboards while probably sipping on lattes seriously? Come on, man.”

“It’s not just- It’s not just the keyboards okay? It’s the whispers. I don’t give two shakes of a rat’s ass about what these 10% assholes think of me, but having all their attention…”

You find yourself nodding (and mercifully skipping over the rat comment) and hum quietly. “Alright, when you put it like that I guess I get it.”

Jason grunts, sliding the shot glass closer to the opposite edge of the counter, “Yeahhhh. I hate when this happens.”

The bartender takes the glass without even stopping in their rush to the couple flagging them down and you squint.

“Aren’t you 19?”

“Twenty; and nobody asks questions when it could mean they won’t get paid at rich people parties.”

“How very criminal,” you say. You wait for that to - predictably - get a smile out of Jason before jostling him. “Now come on.”

He follows you easily when you walk away, catching up to you almost immediately now your gait is calmer.

“Where are we going?” Jason’s hands shove into the expensive pockets of his suit pants.

You get part way up the first flight of stairs leading to the second floor till you answer him.

“We’re gonna make Bruce do something embarrassing so everyone’s too busy talking about him to remember you exist.”

“Gee,” Jason scoffs, “you sure got a weird way of showing you love me.”

“It’s in spite of how lame you are, trust me.”

Once you get past the stairs Jason automatically takes the lead and steers you towards the east wing of the house.

You’re both rummaging in the attic for anything sufficient for the combined goal at hand, and you’ve got a mesh bag of brightly colored marbles in your palm, when Jason stops searching and turns to you with a grave look on his face.

For your part you stop too, facing him fully with the bag bouncing in one of your hands.

“Hey, in all seriousness I’m sorry again, yeah? My plan was for us to be bored together, not angry together.”

You can’t help the way your eyes roll. “We literally made the decision to go screw with them, because they were talking about us, to-ge-ther. Chill out.”

For half a second Jason looks like he’s legitimately fighting the urge to flip you off - or set Artemis on you during y’all’s next sparring session - but ultimately he just ends up shaking his head at you.

His lips undeniably quirk in the low lighting you guys are working with though so you’ll call that a win.

“Alright yeah. The way she changed colors was pretty funny.”

“Wish I’d gotten a picture,” you add, nodding.

The two of you glance at each other before bursting out into laughter.

After that coming up with a plan to fuck with Bruce - and Tim, per Jason’s added stipulation - takes barely anymore time.

Although—

Conspicuously you check the time on your phone and when 11:53 flashes up at you you grin.

“Hey, do you know if Rose is still here?”

Jason’s brows furrow, but he shrugs at you as he’s looking out over the grounds. He thinks Bruce is entertaining people outside right now and is doing his best to locate him from afar.

“Pretty sure she is. Why?”

It’s then that he turns to you and whatever flashes through your eyes gives you away apparently because then he’s practically wagging his damn finger at you.

“You better—”

“—You better hope I don’t get to her before the clock strikes,” you cut him off.

A beat passes where Jason clearly digests the challenge issued and then you’re both fighting to get through the little door that leads to the attic.

Your plans for Bruce - and Tim - could wait for later.

NOTES: Hope you enjoyed!!

This feels slightly all over the place, but whatever. Mind any typos I will catch them later.

Ending off yet another year with a Jason Todd fic. Till next year Lovelies!!!🧡

btw: if you’d like to leave a comment I’d very much appreciate it!

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princess-of-the-corner · 3 months

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It's weird to me that the Dadzawa crowd act like everything would've been perfect if Aizawa was told about Midoriya not having a Quirk most of his life as if this man didn't watch Midoriya's limbs explode and made the decision to expel him before the school even started instead of trying to stop that from happening.

(Side note: I'm constantly amused by the scene in the war arc where Midoriya claims Aizawa is his treasured teacher who's always looked out for him and we see this represented by a one-panel flashback to a scene that never happened, presumably because literally all school time in MHA happens offscreen)

(Side side note: I also find it funny that the expulsion thing was so dumb Horikoshi later retconned it)

Don't get me wrong, I don't like bashing on him like I've seen some authors do but. There are times. Where becoming familiar with the source material makes you learn things about characters you would prefer not be true.

Oh yeah no I just.

I've said this before but Aizawa 100% has pretty privilege. He's attractive enough to the majority of fans that they just let shit slide when they don't do it for other characters.

Like the same people who are like 'uwu perfect dadzawa!' are the ones who bash All Might for doing similar 'dream-crushing' things(even though he does it with more kindness and compassion) or for not being a 100% perfect teacher right out the gate

And I've said this before as a joke, but "I was quite traumatized by losing someone I cared for, so I pushed myself to be the best Hero I could, and when that wasn't enough I started projecting and taking it out on the kids in my care" is something that can /also/ be said for Enji, but guess which one is seen as peak father material and which one has fans going 'nah the homicidal maniacs are right throw the whole man out'?

And it's. To be fair, Aizawa /does/ get better and they did retcon the expulsion thing(even though I still argue that the method could have caused just as much if not more damage to the students as a real expulsion in some cases). And I do love me some dadzawa shenanigans(which is why I roll with both canon and fanon to speedrun his character arc so I can jump ahead). But a lot of people really do ignore that he did some shit.

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the-kipsabian · 1 year

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is kip sabian a tumblr sexyman

//kinda heavily edited 7/28/23. im trying to be more neutral about this, still keeping this within just the on-screen character. added in a few more things that are on the list linked below, so the results have actually kinda drastically changed now these are still just my opinions and ofc this doesnt negate how hes really perceived, its just interesting to see this being called out so many times but when you put actual evidence on it, boy how the tables turn lmao

so we all have probably heard the question by now

seeing this post on my dash, i have found resources now to see for myself, collect data and give you the actual result to this burning question

i got you tropes, my takes on them and whether they apply to him under the cut. things to note, this is my personal view tho im trying to keep it neutral, and im only tackling the on-screen character as its been portrayed on tv and some other special occasions when it has specifically shined through (take him invading ocs streams for example)

green is yes red is no yellow is maybe anything in italics are an edit from the original post

4th wall blurring - technically wrestling is already very blurred lines, but take the kip/oc feud for example and the lengths he took it to on social media, twitch etc. outside the ring

Androgynous - arguable, its the eyeliner for me bro. that and the way he carries himself. currently this also includes the hair/hair colors and the eye shadow. gender is a social construct

Animal theming

Angst - it depends how you view it. its not like full blown angst sadness, but it sure does exist, especially with how he talks about himself tbh

Bait - he just organically formed into this shape. i dont believe he specifically designed this style or characteristics to make himself be perceived as a tumblr sexyman

British

Burton

Capitalist

Chaoslord

Chronokinetic

Criminal

Cosmic

Clown

Controversial - i dont know why some of yall hate him so much but apparently people do so. whatever

Deadpan snarker - he can be, but not to a point of a defining character trait

Dealmaker

Detective

DILF - not yet

Distinctive voice - so the source list updated this to feature catchphrases and yes. "embrace the change", "time doesnt heal it changes you", "underrated and over it". you get the deal

Divorced

Dominating - there are cases. but mostly i think hes just a pathetic fool idk. but also this is a theming in wrestling in general so like. go figure

Duality - with and without the box, there is a difference

Egotistical

Eldritch - only in fanon i think ive seen this one. and partially personally applied this one lol (tho i mean idk if we get the box back in some form we might see more hints about this so it might turn into a maybe!!)

Eye imagery

Fanon splintering

Forest Dweller

Gay/LGBTQ+ coded

Girlboss

Glowing neon

Goo

Himbo - okay listen. as much as i would LOVE to mark this one as a solid yes, since we are strictly talking about boxman era and after on-screen kip, this doesnt stand, as he doesnt show himbo behavior on camera. im keeping it as a maybe tho, just for the sake of showing that im aware and i care <3

Hot-headed

Intelligence - also counts for the sub category smartdumb. an idiotic mastermind

Johnlocked - dont get me wrong, ive seen ships, but i dont think its ever been super extensive or overpowering. yall need to work harder lol. unfortunately despite my personal bias and seeing its growth in popularity, i still cannot mark this even as a maybe

Knifemurder

Mad scientist

Magnificent bastard - im just gonna copy the definition here. "As per TV Tropes, a Magnificent Bastard is a "villain (or morally gray character at best) portrayed as confident, charming schemers who thinks on their feet, outsmarts their competitors with style and grace, and remains graceful even in the event of defeat"."

Marked canon/fanon divergence

Monster features

Mysterious - boxhead in the crowd for months building intrigue + the unadvertised meet and greets at events. plus seemingly extensive lore we never get/got, unexplained box mysteries, etc.

Neurodivergent - i was thinking about excluding this, but he talks about his adhd so openly PLUS a big part of boxman came from the depression and anxiety of when he was on the shelf after surgery so. it counts for me

Nonhuman

Object head

Obscured face - technicality, but i count it as he wore the box for so fucking long. we didnt see his actual face for literally a year

Obsessive - HAVE YOU SEEN HOW OFTEN HE TWEETS AT OC i rest my case

Oncelerization

Pale twink - im making a personal decision to say no on this as none of the definitions really hit the mark like, at all. literally the only ones on the list are 'young' and 'dude' like. nope

Parental figure

Parental issues

Pathetic - A THOUSAND TIMES YES

Perpetual smiler - he gets the shit kicked out of him in the ring and still fucking laughs at it on the spot

Power

Power of love - yall have seen penelope, right?

Religious imagery - no, but marking sub category demonic as a maybe since connections to penelope

Retro - this is interesting, im putting it down as maybe since its not really showing but the current design choices with the grayscale gear makes me think about old timey stuff

Robot

Royalty

Scars

Secret agent

Short

Tall - im withdrawing this one, since the definition is "really/abnormally tall" and hes only 5'11 so. this was marked as a 'maybe' before

Teacher figure

Theme song

Thin - "characters that are fairly slim but dont fit under pale twink" i can accept this lol

Traitor/Twist villain

Twisted freaking cycle path

Unkempt

Upper class - i dont necessarily consider it but i guess. keeping this as a maybe since the suit aesthetic is very high class so

Urban legend aesthetics - CRYPTID RIGHTS FOR KIP

Villain/Morally gray/Refined villain/Technically antagonist

Well-dressed/Suitguy/Long coat - suit, pinstripes, long coat. i kind of want to also say the alt fashion counts here since he can be very emo but you know

White twink humanization - all im asking is that you dont humanize that box. please

White hair

29/75 40/75 6/75

final thoughts:

so i see where this thought comes from. he definitely hits like some of the biggest tropes (fancy british man with an object head, a stupidly catchy theme song and catchphrases, a hot wife and a plan to dominate orange cassidy the world), but we are also missing some obvious ones like him being just a stupid murder whore so like. go figure

this is a very subjective list im aware, there are a few things that could probably be seen differently but i, as a self proclaimed Expert And Conspiracy Theorist In The Kip Sabian Space™, will hold this belief system until someone tells me otherwise lmao

anyways this was just for fun dont take this as seriously as i did the first time around lol. enjoy, just dont argue with me. if you need any tropes need explaining, look at the link above and/or just ask and i'll let you know what i was thinking with marking them if there arent notes explaining or if they are confusing

✌

#this is still the single stupidest thing ive ever done but behold #i spent so much time on this originally and now going through it again wow #anyways. have fun im gonna have coffee oof #kip sabian #my beloved #kip in a box #i need to tag this now in case i need to find it again fuck me #wrestling musing

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cipher-fresh · 2 months

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Hey, I am watching Doctor Who for the first time and I have reached Twelves last episode. One of my favorite Doctors so far for sure, and I'm procrastinating watching the final ep because I dont it to end but also because I have only heard bad stuff about Thirteen's seasons :/

What are your (spoiler free) thoughts on Thirteen?

putting this under a readmore because I hate reading chibnall salt if i'm not seeking it out specifically. i do have a lot of positive things to say though. no spoilers 👍

the 13th Doctor era frustrates me immensely because while it is not nearly as bad as the "anti-woke" crowd makes it out to be, but also nor is it as actually turbo-progressive as dudebros complain about. I like the Thirteenth Doctor, but I think moreso the idea of her or the way she is in fanon than canon. Like, the era has like, 80% great stuff, that then aren't brought to their full potential or have frustrating misfires or missed opportunities. Not that the other eras don't have the same, but I think it's compounded by the fact I don't like the companions as much. I can be entertained by an episode that has a nonsensical or boring plot if I'm enjoying the character interactions, but, for example, Ryan Sinclair is not much more expressive than a cardboard cutout. And that's frustrating! (And also, not Tosin Cole's fault.) I want him to have more personality and a life and character! I'm even writing a fic for that, right now.

(Applying criticism to only the 13th doctor era is misogynistic. Acting like RTD or Moffat were perfect but the Chibnall era sucks uniquely is stupid. Every era has problems in its own way.)

(Chibnall's also done stuff like hiring the first writers of color on the show, having a significant amount of female writers and like, I don't know, cast a woman as the Doctor or something. Big if true. /j)

For 13 specifically, I love the way Jodie plays her, I think the way she plays with gender in the narrative is fun, I love that 13 is flawed and an intelligent inventor and looking for fun in the world, that she's funny and awkward and sincere.

I sort of fell out of love with her (or stopped being starry-eyed about her) after series 12. I had been certain that the majority of the era's criticism was just disguised misogyny, but I came to a point where I was constantly thinking "This doesn't make sense" or "that's a horrible rhetorical move." or "What a big missed opportunity!" And I hate sounding like the dudebros who say "Not my doctor!!" or who think Chris Chibnall is the source of the world's problems. There's also a lot of things that were external factors in the era that were downgrades, like the decreased episode count and having to film with pandemic restrictions for series 13.

I do think the 13th Doctor era is a net positive, and there are some really fun and high-quality episodes like Demons of the Punjab and Eve of the Daleks, but this era frustrates me beyond belief. the 13th Doctor era is one of the few places where I prefer fanon to canon. Believe me, that does not happen often.

#updates from cipher #tried to keep it as spoiler free if i could. this also really makes me want to work on my ryan fic again

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iamtheshriekingguineapig · 2 years

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Hey Guineapig! Have you filled the character ask game for Nero or Credo yet? If not, I’d love to get your insights on either or both of them, take your pick :)

Oh my word I am unreasonably excited for this. And I absolutely will do both.

Ok, so, for Nero

Favorite thing: I have a thing for the "grumpy yet soft" characters. I love how Nero has an edge to him but we also get to see that he is an absolute sweetheart too- he looks out for Kyrie and his friends, and he practically carries V in 5. Also, we get to see him legitimately cry in 4 and men should be able to cry more in videogames. Idk I just love Nero immensely, he is my favorite character in this series.

Least Favorite thing: by that same coin; Nero, homie, we know that you care about people. You don’t have to be so aloof and deny it. Don't turn out like your father. I feel like we see Nero- mostly in the beginning of 4- have this "I don't care about most other people" attitude, and he needs to cut that shit out. Embrace the finer parts of humanity, you punk.

Favorite Line: THERE ARE SO MANY GOOD ONES it is hard to pick. He's a sassy little punk that likes to play with his food like Dante. "You do parties?" Is hilarious, but I think my favorite is still "I'M NOT LETTING YOU DIE". Super dramatic, 10/10

BrOTP: Nero and V. Nero was V's first (human) friend. I love getting to see Nero interact and fight alongside the more human part of Vergil. It's like Dadgil but brow.

OTP: Him and fanon!Kyrie. Kyrie in Canon is essentially what we call a "sexy lamp". The writers did her So. Dirty. And essentially made her a plot device for Nero and not a character at all. But Fanon Interpretations of Kyrie are ✨golden✨ and I am MORE THAN THRILLED to recommend some fics where Kyrie characterization is both interesting and on point. Nero deserves a partner that isn't a lamp.

nOTP: Nero/V. Just... no. It's a little too close to Spardacest for my comfort and also it's just so much better platonic in my mind. I just do not like it.

Random Headcannon: he's allergic to strawberries. I literally got that from one single fic-writer and I kept it. Their username is escaping me right now, I'll have to put it in the replies later. (They have some great Nero/Kyrie fic)

Unpopular opinion: Nero is my favorite. I like him better than Dante. This seems to be a popular opinion amongst newer players and fans of the games (like myself) and unpopular with some of the older crowd.

Song I associate with them: You're Going Down by Sickpuppies

Favorite picture: I own this poster, it was a Christmas gift a couple years ago from Avaantares

Okay! Now Credo!

Favorite thing about them: Credo is an honorable guy. He is willing to apologize and make amends for his mistakes; he genuinely cares about the people around him; he is responsible and kind. I love Paladin Man

Least Favorite thing: *deep breath* okay. In almost all of game four, he seems like a jerk. We don't get to see a lot of the good parts of Credo in game up until "the end". In fact, I could not stand him throughout most of the game, grew to like him in a single moment when he was trying to protect Nero, and then Sanctus had THE AUDACITY TO KILL HIM BEFORE WE GOT A PROPER REDEMPTION ARC!!! I AM STILL MAD!!! It is in sources outside dmc4 that we truly get to see what kind of person Credo was and I'm heartbroken that that is not the person we get to experience in most of 4. Also I hate his stupid beard don't tell him

Favorite Line: "I am an ANGEL!" No you're not, you're a dumbass babe but I still love you.

BrOTP: he and Nero!!! I am a SUCKER for brother relationships in fiction and I love how much Credo loves Nero and looks out for him and I can just imagine them laughing together and I just have a lot of feels okay.

OTP: pretty sure most of my mutuals know this by now but I have an OC that I pair with Credo. Yeah, cringe, boring, whatever- don't care. I like the idea of Credo being with someone that challenges him everyday; whether that be by pushing him to be better, challenging his preconceived notions about people and the world, or whatever. I put our Stoic Lawful Paladin with a Chaotic Feral Bard and have just about zero regrets with it.

nOTP: Credo/Dante. I don't get it, I don't see the appeal. I guess it works for my same "opposites attract" thing I have going with my OTP but... idk man I'm not feeling it. To each their own though.

Random Headcannon: Credo is dyslexic. I've said it before and I have nothing in Canon to back me up but I will hold onto it staunchly until the day I die. Audiobooks and a secretary who will read paperwork out loud to him are assets to this man. Also the "secretary" may be his cute wife reading him reports while they sit on the porch drinking their morning coffee idk it all works out in the end.

Unpopular Opinion: yes, I am fully aware that a lot of Nero's character development in 5 hinges off of Credo dying in 4. I also am fully aware that I am unhinged and I refuse to acknowledge that he is dead in Canon. I will literally forget occasionally because I am that deep into my own bullshit.

Song I associate with them: Angel With A Shotgun by The Cab is my quintessential Credo song

Favorite picture: this one by Duckydrawsart! I love how casual and relaxed he looks and that he is alive and well with his friends! Also his beard doesn't look as stupid

#devil may cry #the guinea pig has spoken #dmc fandom #deadly fortune #the guinea pig answers #i had so much fun with this but it took me like an hour #nero dmc #dmc credo #credo deserved better #credo apologist

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dreahmdere · 1 year

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I agree that people like characters like Marco who died early because their own version of those characters is what they really became attached to, but I don't think that's bad if they could just admit that what they love is the crowd sourced fanon version. But I also think it's weird to call these characters npcs. None of them are "player characters" it's an anime and a manga and, well, a lot of the characters you complained about are actually playable in the games. Calling background and/or minor characters npcs is weird.

By “npc” I mean characters who only appear for 1-2 episode in a non-(insert character) specific one. Say, Nifa, we don’t know anything about her, Frieda only appear in flashbacks, but saying she’s npc is not the best way to describe her (Frieda), but Nifa is a very minor bg character that makes me comfortable enough to call her npc. And I used npc to not overstate the word “bg” too much, but this out of the way, I never said it’s bad to prefer fanon version, but I don’t like it when people say their hc is better than the canon just because it’s not going the way they want it to be. Say, Sasha’s death and Gabi, I’m in shock when I know people still hating on Gabi and even hating her stans. Yes hc can be better than the canon, but you need to analyze the canon with no bias even if it doesn’t follow your narrative. Because in this case it can come off as arrogance and just hating the author + the way they want to write their series.

Furthermore, my point from that post is that, users who usually say this needs to understand that not all characters in the picture can be given an arc or backstory, some of them goes out of the way to call Isayama “sexist” because he killed off Nanaba. Can you make headcanons of her? Of course! If you scroll down you’ll see a post dedicated for the bg characters in aot, there I make headcanons based on the lines and actions of Frieda and Nanaba. But claiming Isayama done them dirty or it’s better than the arcs of the canon characters, it’s downrating the author’s writing.

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problematic-faves-appreciation · 2 years

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There it is, the "LO critical" crowd's approach to "critically analyzing" Lore Olympus:

──

Translation: "Disregard events from the story and reject its author's unambiguous intent behind those plot outcomes, character roles, their motivations/actions, the narrative consequences — reward versus punishment— handed out to them as a result of their choices."

And do what instead of reading RS' story as is? Ignore the source material in favor of my fanon? Equate tropes or fantasies from a story with reality to haughtily shame the people who dig this fictional content? Mischaracterize or demonize characters because I think (against all evidence) my fave was "done dirty" by the narrative? Attack the creator?

Yeah, no thank you to all of that, LO antis.

"If you actually read the comic with a critical eye," says them. Lol

#lore olympus #lo #lo hades #lo minthe #fanpol #my posts

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haleigh-sloth · 2 years

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Hey I was the person who sent the tomura/tenko ask! I just wanna clarify that I mostly avoided the fandom because of all the discourse so now it's like... diving into it and seeing people take "sides" is feeling like I am sitting down for a test I didn't study for. I have a pretty good idea in my head (I was in camp "same person but trauma makes things weird") and then I see 1 *slightly* convincing argument and it's like "well this person knows more than me". (1/4)

Ahh, I see.

Well first: I'd be curious to see what slightly convincing argument it was, because any argument that sides with the "Tenko and Tomura are different people" take is usually just full of bullshit lmao. Me, and several other people I can think of off the top of my head could probably rip it to shreds, and probably have already in countless metas about the subject.

Second: Tbh, the "villains should just be killed and put down" crowd doesn't even bother me at this point. Canon has worked against them so hard for the past two years that any time I see those arguments I just go "Oh honey, it's okay" (derogatory). The people who have bothered me with this whole Tenko/Tomura thing are actually people who like the villains, but for some ungodly reason view this as "I lost my favorite character and Tenko is a character I don't even know >:(" type of situation. Which, in one of those links in my previous response to you, I linked to that very post where I said that that was just really plain dumb. Because they're the same fucking person. Lmao. No, the people who bother me are the ones who want "Villain King Tomura Shigaraki" to reign supreme and completely break character for their own fanon version of him. I am not holding back anymore, that is literally how I'm reading those takes. Which dude, if that's the version of Shigaraki some people like, that's fine! But if you're gonna send me an ask about it--get ready for my response. Lol. This take also is followed by what I personally consider to be completely fanonized versions of the League as a whole and each League member, but that's a rant for a different post.

I ranted about that whole situation here this morning actually lmao.

Third: You really don't need to find logic in it. Because it's symbolism, nothing more. There is no physical manifestation of Tenko that is going to emerge from the vestige and takeover Shigaraki's existence. It's symbolism, and it's put there for us readers to understand what the author is trying to do with Shigaraki. It's also there for the protagonist to have a gateway into Tenko's heart and mind and find out the root of the issue and save him by addressing it 1 on 1. Because much like the rest of the League, Shigaraki does not disclose what's actually on his mind. He trauma dumps his complicated, messy emotions on people--but until MVA he didn't even understand the source of those messy emotions. After he recovered his memories--guess what--he STILL didn't disclose that information to anybody! Not the League, not anyone. That's why it was such a breakthrough for Izuku to see the crying child inside--the real representation of what's going on inside Shigaraki's head. Because Tenko isn't just the solution to saving him, he's also the answer as to why he needs to be saved in the first place, and the answer to what he needs to be saved from. Because it isn't just AFO he needs rescuing from, he needs it from himself too. That's why someone has to help him, and that's why little Tenko was shown to the main character--so he could start somewhere and work toward reaching him and digging him out of the dark pit Shigaraki is currently in.

I get the anxiety from reading bad takes, or even slightly convincing arguments that back a bad take. But honestly I've relaxed a lot since around this time last year, and I've stopped caring what other people say if I can tell that they're basing takes off of what they WANT and not what they're actually seeing. I try to read objective (as much as possible) metas that use manga panels and context to back their arguments, and that's usually how my mind is changed on things (and my mind does get changed a lot from these types of posts!). Or on other occasions, how I find other people who think the same as me, and it's comforting. I ALSO try to be as objective as I can, by using manga panels and dialogue to back up what I'm saying. I suggest making sure if you're reading people's metas, make sure they're backing their argument with canon by using manga panels and dialogue from the characters and such, and not just saying what they find ideal and most appealing and saying that it's what is happening, when it's not. You can avoid a lot of annoying, stressful takes that way.

#bnha #bnha asks #anonymous #boku no hero academia #shimura tenko #shigaraki tomura

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fandom-rants · 2 years

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@mywitchcultblr said: "I can understand her background but i cannot agree with her politics, an ex mutual blocked me simply because I'm critical of her lmao

"I love dragon age and all of my fave, im still passionate but it's just i have no interest to interact with the fandom too much"

I feel the exact same! Dragon Age is my favorite game series, and yet the fandom is hands-down one of the most toxic I've ever had the displeasure of interacting with. Don't like Sera? Lesbophobe. Don't like Vivienne? Racist. Don't like Solas? Misogynist, for some reason. Don't like fandom's favorite fanons because they go directly against known lore? Gatekeeper. What's that? Fandom can enjoy fanon, but you dislike it and block any mention of it from your eyesight because you love the original world and lore of DA? Still a gatekeeper, apparently.

Worse, the fandom has a handful of favorite blogs that are Always Right And Best, and everyone else had better toe the line while also being forced into obscurity. This is something I've always seen, both in fandoms and in life - the popular people are right, always, and the unpopular people need to be quiet "and let people enjoy things" (by not speaking about what they enjoy, of course). But it's the demanded silence that really does it to me. The Dragon Age fandom barks and howls about inclusivity, but the instant you don't fall in line with their reinvented fanon DA, you get attacked as if by rabid wolves.

Have you ever mentioned that, while the fics and pics to the contrary are fun and interesting, Solas made it clear in Trespasser that he was never one of the Evanuris, so he was never considered a god before he started the war? I don't recommend it; Solas stans get really upset when you point it out.

Hell, I remember someone posting about how Solas' eyes are canonically brown, not blue, and someone telling them they don't want to know that. Like???? The fandom is INSANE.

It's the height of the "woke" crowd, and I put "woke" in quotation marks because they aren't woke so much as they try to make everything about marginalization and demand everyone agree with them, even if it means deliberately ignoring canon. The creators who wrote Orlais and Ferelden are racist against the French-speaking people in Canada. Making a corrupt Chantry led by women is misogynistic. Cullen getting an okay ending is abuser/racist apologism. Vivienne is a black woman girlboss with no bad features hated simply for being black. The Ancient Elves are evil and selfish like boomers. And on and on!

It's exhausting. If these people want to enjoy Dragon Age in this way, even though I can't imagine how, they are free to do so. But anyone who wants to enjoy it in any other way - by reading the side books and knowing Vivienne is a corrupt liar, by learning the history and cultures of the games and knowing the plight of the Ancient Elves is far more complex than boomer rhetoric, by enjoying the complexity of characters enough to say Cullen and Solas are morally grey, by tackling the complex political world of Thedas and seeing how religious extremism is the problem with the Chantry and would be the problem no matter who led it... all of these are unacceptable interpretations by 99% of the fandom, and any time a person sticks their neck out to say something that goes against the status quo, fandom will jump them like slavering beasts in an effort to shut them up.

If ever there was a fandom that I never, ever wish to interact with again, despite how much I love the original source and have even created art and fic, it would be the Dragon Age fandom. I have written several stories and drawn countless art pieces that will never be seen online, because I don't want to hear these people praise my works - nor do I think they deserve to enjoy them - while waiting in the wings to jump my shit because I mentioned that the vallaslin was unwittingly culturally stolen by modern elves from the Ancient elves.

#mywitchcultblr #response #long post #damn every time i think about the da fandom i get upset all over again #i can't tell you how many times i've said something and gotten people screaming at me #you think i had it bad with the anti-terraven crowd? you haven't seen anything #just mention that elves aren't any real group of people and you'll get countless idiots screaming that you're wrong and a disgusting person #even though they are ELVES. in a fantasy world.#watch them slaver all over themselves to jump in your inbox about how you're antisemitic or something #tw: racism mention #tw: antisemitism mention #tw: misogyny mention #tw: homophobia mention #dragon age rant #da:i rant #fandom rant

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retronamic · 2 years

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Sevika x Stripper! Reader

I just made this quick little drabble in between my study time cuz I’ve been sitting on this for a while. It’s pretty fanon that if Sevika were to have a partner, they would most likely be from Babette’s (a brothel were she canonically visits....very fucking often) or part of Silco’s gang. NOTE: I decided to make Babette’s a brothel and a strip club-ish? Idkk but take the crumbs :3

TW: Wattpad mediocracy at it’s finest

Gender Neutral! Reader

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- You came to work for Babette when you were young and broke and in desperate need of cash, so you could pay off your landlord and afford a diet that didn’t consists of chips and energy drinks. Babette didn’t have any issues with hiring you. You were quite attractive and were willing to work hard for a paycheck.

- She could see that you were new to this line of work, no problem though. Most of her workers started out as newbies and she basically showed them the basics and showed them how this world worked. Luckily, you were quite a fast learner.

- Though, you struggled a bit to get the full swing of things, the other workers had no problem helping you out. They were all really nice, and were in similar situations as you, so making friends with your co-workers wasn’t hard.

- The time came around for your first performance.....you could practically feel your heart in your ass. It’s no secret that new dancers always drew a crowd, so you had every right to be sweating bullets. Again, your co-workers were super helpful, they helped with your make-up, outfit, hair, and gave you a pre-show pep talk, and it honestly worked. You swallowed your fear and made your way to the stage.

- Never in your life had you seen so many people cheering and getting riled up for something. And that “something” was you. You, under the glow of the stage lights in the skimpiest outfit you've ever worn before. But regardless you gave a show, even if it was for a crowd mostly made of drunkards and men pushing their 50s. You moved your body to the beat of the song playing, all while maintaining eye contact with the crowd.

- With every sway of you hips, the crowd got wilder. You almost began to enjoy yourself a bit, I mean they were practically worshipping you. Never in your life had you ever felt this adored, even if the praises were from a bunch of men who probably drank half their body weight by now.

- At some point during your routine, you became distracted for a bit. There was a faint glow of a cigarette in the corner of your eye. At first, you mistook it for a light or something but no, it was someone’s cigarette. You would purposefully slowed your movements just to catch a good look at whoever was smoking. (Pure wattpad y/n moment)

- The club was very dim, with the only strong source of light being on the main stage, but the cigarette’s glow illuminated their face a just bit. Just enough for you to see that it looked to be a woman? But by the time you could confirm, your routine was finished.

- You made you way off the stage, blowing kiss to the crowd making people throw a few more cheers (and cash). You made your way to your dressing room, and just before you walked in, one of your co-workers stopped you.

- They said someone asked for a "special request" for you. Special request? For you? On your first night? There go your nerves again. Our co-worker tried to reassure you that you could deny the request, but....you said you'd do it. You weren't quite sure why you agreed, but might as well, plus it is an extra tip. What's the worst that could happen?

- The worker soon informed you that your client was a woman named Sevika. Oddly enough, that wasn't the first time you heard that name. She was known to be somewhat of a "household name" in the brothel. The other workers said she was Silco’s right hand and the scariest woman in Zaun. By appearance and demeanor, she surely did live up to her reputation.

- She was tall, muscular and her scarred face was always in a scowl. You expected her to be a demanding or mean customer, but she was surprisingly sweet. She always left a large tip and most of the time sessions with her consisted of just chit chat, just you sitting and listening to her rant about her job.

- It was not long before your little one night talk session, became a weekly occurrence. An occurrence you always looked forward to. Everyone in the brothel knew that when she arrived, all they had to do was point her to the room you were in. Some of the other workers would tease you and call her your "girlfriend", of course you would brush them off.

- You didn't really think of her in that way, well you tried not to at least. You didn't hide the fact that you did like her. But you knew your relationship wouldn’t go further than your sessions at the brothel cause despite Babette being a great and lenient boss, she had her rules. Ironically mixing business with pleasure is a definite no. Dating your client could result in you losing your job, so whatever crush you had on Sevika, would just stay that, a crush.

- But your decision to not further your relationship, didn’t click with Sevika when she invited you to the Last Drop. She wanted to bring you to have a drink with her and watch her gamble a bit....like....a date? She said it wasn’t technically a ‘date’ if you didn’t want to call it that. You agreed to your little get together and you had a great time.

- She introduced you to her co-workers and watched her gambled. It honestly was just like your sessions at the brothel, just talking, little bit of flirting and drinks on the side. You even sat in her lap during one of her games, she even called you her “lucky charm” :))) You also got to try and play a game with her....you lost (obviously) but she told you not to sweat it and bought you a drink as an “A for effort” prize

- The night began to wind down and she asked to walk you home. You told her it wasn’t necessary, but it was pointless since she still was gonna walk you home. The walk was quite nice, even though you didn’t talk at all, you just liked her company in general. Sure she doesn’t look like the most inviting person, but every time you guys hung out, there was an undeniably warm feeling you got with her.

- She followed you to your apartment door and you turned to her and thanked her for the amazing night. She said it was no problem (you could swear you saw her blush a bit). She asked if you wanted to do this again some time, of course you said yes. You tipped up a bit and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek (she was definitely blushing now). She returned the gesture with a kiss on your forehead and you both said your goodbyes.

- You let out a huge breath that you didn’t know you were holding. Despite all your flirty and downright bold gestures towards each other, this was the first time in a long time that you truly felt you heart race that fast around her. It took you back to the first night you both met. And the fact that she kissed you back, it took everything in you not to just die on the spot. Honestly you couldn’t wait for your next session with her.

Not my favourite ngl plus i rushed the ending tbh, but i gotta get back tk studying anyways sooooo yea enjoy byeeee!!!

#arcane #arcane women #sevika #sapphic #wlw #lesbian

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tellmewhytheyswoon · 3 years

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really obsessed with how different social media platforms completely change the dynamics of fanbases... i feel like with the dps fanbase i have this unique perspective of having been here for a while (i first got into it about five years ago), so i’ve seen the shift and the rise in popularity (which was partially because of its inclusion on US Netflix and then Hulu/Amazon prime, the popularization of dark academia aesthetics, etc.). but that’s just part of the equation. what i’m really interested in is how different social media sites offer completely different spheres for the fanbase to operate in, and that these spheres often don’t mingle at least to my knowledge?

for example, when i first started getting back into dps i made a dps specific twitter. it’s a really interesting and cool culture on there, but i’d failed to realize that stan culture has changed a lot on Twitter in the past five or so years, and it felt a bit strange/not to my comfort. i think what younger people are doing on “dpstwt” as it’s called is super cool, but it is definitely a younger (or more ‘stan culture’ savvy?) crowd, if that makes sense. as a 20 year old twitter/tumblr veteran i felt out of place. i migrated to tumblr because it is largely the same as it was five years ago, at least dps wise. yes, there are new people but people interact in a similar way. it feels cozier, more private. and then recently i found out a lot of young people have made a fairly significant dps fanbase on tiktok!

what was also super interesting to me is that each of these platforms has commonly held beliefs (or fanon), and some of it overlaps while other stuff simply doesn’t.

for instance, i noticed on dpstiktok that a lot of them really dislike cam. while i know he’s still considered a complicated a flawed character, i feel like the general consensus on dpstumblr is that he’s just a kid. we like him - he’s a problematic fave, if you will. this is all conjecture of course, but i wonder if this difference in commonly held opinions of dpstiktok and dpstumblr has something to do with how the mediums actually operate. on tiktok, it’s harder to have continual, long (written) communication with fellow fans. you’re presenting info and heavily relying on an algorithm to find fellow fans. on tumblr, while there is some sort of algorithmic function, there’s also much more of a reliance on written media and long form discussions about characters. people are able to have interactions that can appear directly on a timeline, and are easily available to comment on. on tiktok you can stitch, but it’s not necessarily the easiest way to have a fandom wide convo.

forgive me if this sounds nerdy or boring or weird. this isn’t meant to be a value judgment on any of the different spheres that the dps fanbase operates in, i think they’re all very interesting and unique and special in their own ways. i also think that these spaces tend to differ and converge in interesting ways, which is very intriguing to me given that we all pull from the same (limited) source material.

obviously there are people who have been here longer than me or have different experiences and i’m VERY interested in what your experience is. if you want to talk to me about dps fandom and the nuances of it, please do! a thing i’m interested in right now is fan studies, and the way the dps fanbase is a really interesting subject for me right now, even outside of my interest in the film itself.

#guys i’m sorry if this is boring or seems like i’m in trying to sound like an authority #i know nothing i just like thinking abt how stuff works #and i’ve been side eying a masters in anthropology lmao #dps #dead poets society #does this post make sense #idk #anyways pls dm me about this if you wanna talk about fan studies and dps fanbase #whatever ur experience i’m interested

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vrishchikawrites · 3 years

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I dont think these fanon takes are a minor thing, I think its more of a cql thing, if people have watched the drama first/only, their perspective is heavily influenced by it, its no fault of the actors but the script heavily does change stuff, WWX is made to cry 82 times in cql? In novel its 2 at most, JZXs death and when he returns from the dead, his resilience trait is..gone. Jiang Wanyin is shown as soft instead of brash/impulsive that he is, JYL has a fixation on family stuff 1/2

Which is more subtle in the novel, to remove WWX remembering LWJ in burial mounds they add lotus pond scenes, this instead shows that WWX missed 'home' or 'regretted' his actions, in novel he never once did, he wasn't bitter/guilty because he knew he was in the right, and Wens were grateful to him, the public hanging of Wens??? I mean, the whole arc was what rumor mongering does, no one knew they were innocent people because this was hidden from them, people like LXC and NMJwouldNOTstandforit2/?

What is up with Mian Mian being from a bigger sect when she worked hard in a smaller sect to gain a high position and then discarded it for righteousness? ? What about JZX? His arc has him an only child thus influence on his pompous behaviour, and he steps up to save Mian Mian 'daughter of a servant' not his close friend, it highlights him not care about status when looking at people, and sure JWN throw the person down the cliff your sister died saving, what a way to honor her sacrifice 4/?

How they changed JWN into a 'soft' person (with emotional scenes on screen)when he is brash/impulsive fixation on yunmeng trio, JYL with family, WWX never regretted his decision, ever, hes in the right thats why, he doesn't throw the seal into the crowd, he dies from the backlash of destroying the seal because of the very reason he knows they'll use it to harm others which he didnt want. It seems more like scrip writers didnt address mxtxs work as an adaptation they were adapting 5/?

Anon, I'm assuming you said what you wanted to say? Idk, but let me reply to these?

Bear in mind, I watched the series once and actually fast forwarded a few scenes.

I agree that CQL has colored people's opinion on the characters. But I still don't get the takes. Even if CQL softened JC significantly, his actions are still Very bad.

Even in CQL, he-

1. Owes a debt to the Wens and refuses to disclose it.

2. Knows people in the BM are harmless and there's a child there.

3. Doesn't support WWX at critical times, showing division instead of solidarity.

4. Lets the woman he was intent on courting burn before his very eyes.

5. Participates in a seige against his martial brother.

6. Helps that martial brother commit su*cide.

7. Threatens a resurrected wwx multiple times.

8. Tries to fight wwx when he was legit bleeding and swaying in front of him.

9. Goes 'what of my mother, father, sister,' during the whole GC conversation at the temple.

10. Treats his nephew like shit.

11. Benefits immensely from WWX's death.

This is just from the top of my head. Just CQL material.

So, all of these things aren't subtle. They're not nuanced actions of discreet character that you need to dig into. All of these incidences are significant events, clearly described and showcased in CQL.

Blaming CQL is well and good, it has a lot of flaws. I agree with everything you mentioned. But, my thing is, CQL JC is almost worst. CQL WWX is actually more innocent. CQL goes solidly white vs. black morality. LWJ and WWX on the right side, everyone else (juniors and wn not included) on the wrong side. It can't be clearer even in that, somewhat clumsy, adaptation.

What I think is happening is people are overly identifying with a foil character. Instead of thinking, "Well, this is how this character works, these are his actions" they go, "this is how the author, unjustly, crafted my fav character. His actions are the author's fault and really, he is better deep down inside of him. You just don't understand him like I do. Really, the author was unfair to him."

All the while, they forget this is a fictional character crafted from the author's imagination and not a real, dynamic person.

The case with MianMian is ridiculous. Her character is compelling in many ways and CQL definitely messed it up. JZX would've benefited from that nuance. I won't comment on how much I hate the low self-esteem so prevalent in WWX's CQL characterization because it makes me scream.

But even then, WWX is shown as competent, confident, and so done with everyone's bs. He clearly reached a point where he only cares about LWJ. It is pretty obvious that in his opinion, everyone else (aside from juniors and wn) sucks.

CQL may be iffy, it isn't fully to blame. Fanon takes are... well, just some people deciding they wanna ignore the source material and believe their fav character is different. Which, sure. I don't mind.

Still doesn't change the fact that they chose to interpret characters in a certain way despite all evidence to the contrary.

#reader asks #quite long

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titleknown · 3 years

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What Does Jenny Everywhere Mean?

It's Jenny Everywhere Day! On Friday the 13th no less! What a bizarre coincidence! But... who is Jenny Everywhere?

Well, perhaps as good an explanation as any is the appellation that any use of her requires:

The character of Jenny Everywhere is available for use by anyone, with only one condition: This paragraph must be included in any publication involving Jenny Everywhere, that others might use this property as they wish. All rights reversed.

She is a character designed to appear in all universes, a character not just designed to be everywhere at once in fiction, but in the world of the written word, just some keystrokes and penstrokes away from being anywhere, the walls of copyright toppled like the walls of Jericho with a powerful yawp.

Now, there are much better chronologies, and much better masterposts of the character. The main wiki is one, and folks like Askthehatboxghost and the other members of the Jenny Everywhere fan-Discord have been doing so for ages.

What I want to talk about is why she matters. Which will be after the break because this gets long.

Now, there've been some that say that the character's just... a cypher, a blank vessel without a work. Cartoonist Maxwell Atoms, no disrespect, said as much when I asked him about this.

But, I would beg to disagree. Characterization, as with much of fiction, is just as much a social phenomenon as it is of the core of ink pressed to page or pixels pressed to plasma. Anyone who's been in fandom, and seen the differences between fanon and character (which has lots of... problems, but that's its own discussion) would know as much.

But... the key problem is, often times it isn't really ours.

Sure fandom and fanfic strains against the bounds and chains, but they cannot break them, or they would be sued into the ground. Ao3 knows this, even if in their cowardice they build their warped Adompha-gardens instead of fighting back.

As an example, the talking point of the superhero genre being the new mythology died with the Disney monopoly, but before then it was near death with the swathes of Crises and Secret Wars and never-were Twilights of the Superheroes, worlds dying and stories being wiped away at a corporate whim. a

At first, it was for a cause or it didn't intefere too much, but more and more it came and devoured stories in an endless ouroboros, because, as the art-troll that Bob Iger keeps in his basement making comics in-between Pixar movies says, Marvel Need Money

As the man behind the curtain enters his final boss form, we see that we never really owned our culture in the age of copyright, we just rent it. But, so many people use this as a means of condemning the sharing of our current culture, viewing it not as a stolen commons to take back but as an Omelas to walk away form.

But we, in the Open Source Creation community, choose another way. We believe in creating cultural institutions that are not only shared, but shared in a way that nobody can take them away from us, for what is truly shared cannot be truly stolen.

Now, there are two schools of Open Source worldbuilding projects, roughly delinneated by aesthetic license, neither better than the other but both with their advantages and disadvantage of which this essay is too short and on too short a notice to cover.

There's the CC-BY-SA school, and the CC-BY/Public Domain school. Of the former, there are many successes, but the great eidolon above them is the SCP Foundation. But, of the latter... It is Jenny that leads the way, that holds the ever-shifting prismatic standard.

And, what we need is a standard-bearer, because what we need is a movement. In another day, another article, I may go over the many of them, but there are other Open Source Characters in that vein. But they are scattered, like grains of sand in a haystack.

They're isolated. But, Jenny is the codifier. Though there were a few other precursors before, she was the first modern incarnation of the concept. She is the link between the worlds we need. The one who can be everywhere in not just a narrative sense, but in a metanarrative sense.

Between worlds, between breaths, between the tick and the tock she can be there, to bring our shared characters together. To bring shared worlds together.

To bring us together. In a world united, but in a world free too. That's what it is.

I have more I have to write, but my queue-based self-imposed deadline is running short, as evidenced by the ideas expressed in pathos and egos-drenched lavender prose rather than in restrained logos. That's probably for another article to elaborate.(edited)

But, if there's any message here, it is that we need a world where culture is truly free, and to lead the charge there's few better than Jenny. if you are writing a story, bring her in, perhaps.

Maybe let her take someone with her along the way. And if they hop over to another world, maybe tell the huddled crowds, whispering of when and where they came, that Jenny sent 'em...

#my writing #jenny everywhere #jenny everywhere day #creative commons #open source character #open source characters

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cto10121 · 3 years

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The bad Shakespeare takes keep coming, I see. This one had the cleverness to couch itself as a personal narrative (makes it much more interesting, tbh). But as bad Shakespeare takes are my bread and butter, my boon and bane, mamma mia here we go again, with Merchant of Venice.

“But those who thought the play was irredeemably antisemitic were, the consensus went, vulgar and whiny—and, completely coincidentally, they were also Jewish, which somehow magically invalidated their opinions on this subject.”

I’m glad (is that even the right word?) this author found scholars that don’t think this play is anti-Semitic, but my experience with scholarship has been way more mixed than that. Suffice to say, this is literally all the play is known for these days, and views of the play as anti-Semitic are everywhere (Rosenbaum even had a hot take that since the Nazis liked it, it must be anti-Semitic). Didn’t know Harold Bloom thinks this play is anti-Semitic, though. That in itself is a bit of a red flag, as Bloom is a notoriously poor reader of Shakespeare.

“[I]n Merchant, Portia unhappily fulfills her father’s requirements of her suitors, while in Il Pecorone, the lady enjoys drugging her suitors and robbing them blind. By removing this detail, Shakespeare removed the suggestion that malicious schemers come from all walks of life.”

Or, by removing this detail, Shakespeare removed the clear and abhorrent sexism of his original source that turned a woman robbed of her autonomy by her father’s will into a criminal. It’s almost as if you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

“Dr. Lopez, one of the most respected physicians of the 16th century, had indiscreetly revealed that he once treated the Earl of Essex for venereal disease. The earl took revenge by framing Dr. Lopez for treason and arranging for his torture; while on the rack, Dr. Lopez “confessed”—though “like a Jew,” as the court record states, he denied all charges at trial, while the attorney for the Crown referred to him matter-of-factly as “a perjuring murdering traitor and Jewish doctor.”

This is a very twisted account of the Lopez affair and Essex’s motives in going against him, at least to my understanding. For context, Lopez was accused of receiving loads of money from the King of Spain to poison Queen Elizabeth.

According to Stephen Greenblatt, in Will of the World: “Essex had tried some years before to recruit Lopez as a secret agent. Lopez’s refusal—he chose instead directly to inform the queen—may have been prudent, but it created in the powerful earl a very dangerous enemy. After his arrest, he was initially imprisoned at Essex House and interrogated by the earl himself. But Lopez had powerful allies in the rival faction of the queen’s senior adviser William Cecil, Lord Burghley, and his son, Robert Cecil, who also participated in the interrogation and reported to the queen that the charges against her physician were baseless.” Lopez apparently had been taken bribes from various sources, and confessed (freely? under torture?) “that he had indeed entered into a treasonous-sounding negotiation with the king of Spain, but he insisted that he had done so only in order to cozen the king out of his money.” Weird.

Greenblatt isn’t a historian, though, and Essex was indeed an asshole to Lopez, (and for what is worth, I feel Lopez was innocent; I just get those vibes) but so far I can find no other source that Essex actively framed Lopez. Most likely he did some sleuthing, dug up some questionable, compromising stuff, and tried to blow a hearth flame into a firestorm.

“After all, the historical record gives Queen Elizabeth a cookie for dawdling on signing Dr. Lopez’s death warrant; her doubts about his guilt even led her to mercifully allow his family to keep his property, not unlike the equally merciful Duke of Venice in Shakespeare’s play.”

Again, Lopez had powerful allies (doesn’t get much higher than Burghley), and again, re: Greenblatt: “According to court observers, Elizabeth gave Essex a tongue-lashing, ‘calling him rash and temerarious youth, to enter into a matter against the poor man, which he could not prove, and whose innocence she knew well enough.’” A cupcake, then?

“And it is of course entirely unclear whether this trial and public humiliation of an allegedly greed-driven Jew attempting to murder an upstanding Christian, rapturously reported in the press with myriad antisemitic embellishments, had anything at all to do with Shakespeare’s play about the trial and public humiliation of a greed-driven Jew attempting to murder an upstanding Christian—which Shakespeare composed shortly after Dr. Lopez decomposed. Most likely these things were completely unrelated.”

Nearly all the major Shakespeare biographies and articles I’ve read literally and explicitly talks about the possible influence of Lopez’s execution on Merchant of Venice and names it as an inspiration: Greenblatt, (he even headcanons that Shakespeare watched the execution!) Bate, Ackroyd. That’s how Horn managed to ping my BS radar something awful—because I had read about it, many times, even if it was mentioned in passing. It’s solid, legit Shakespearean academic fanon. The sarcasm is really unwarranted, and childish besides.

“It was damned hard to hear the nuance while parsing lines like “Certainly the Jew is the very devil incarnal,” or “My master’s a very Jew; give him a present, give him a halter,” or explaining what Shylock meant when he planned to “go in hate, to feed upon / The prodigal Christian.”

The first two are the fool’s, Lancelot’s, lines, I think. As for Shylock’s hatred toward Christians, while ugly, it’s entirely understandable given the Christian characters’ treatment of him pre-play and during it (Antonio spitting on Shylock’s gaberdine and then asking him to borrow money from him is called out by Shylock himself for its sheer hypocrisy). It also fits Shylock’s character as an unassimilated Jew, resenting Christian hypocrisy and racism.

“The actor began the brief soliloquy that every English-speaking Jew is apparently meant to take as a compliment: ‘I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? . . . If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?’

“Wait, that’s the part where he’s more human?”

[…]“Sure,” I told my son, game-facing him back in the rearview. “He’s reminding us how he’s like everyone else. He’s a normal person with normal feelings.”

My son laughed. “You seriously fell for that?”

[…] “What do you mean?”

“Shylock’s just saying he wants revenge! Like, ‘Oh, yeah? If I’m a regular human, then I get to be eee-vil like a regular human!’ This is the evil monologue thing that every supervillain does! ‘I’ve had a rough life, and if you were me you would do the same thing, so that’s why I’m going to KILL BATMAN, mu-hahaha!’ He’s just manipulating the other guy even more!”

And then the crowd applauded, Harold Bloom cried, and the mayor gave the author’s six-year-old son a gold medal for his Brave Hot Take. Honestly, this was the most unbelievable part of the essay I’ve read. Unless this kid has been reading academic essays on MoV that posit this exact same interpretation (“Shylock was just using humanistic rhetoric to justify his ~bloodthirsty revenge!”), this one’s for a fake Internet stories anthology. Shylock may be a dour, miserable pain in the ass, but he is no Barabas, an actual anti-Semitic caricature—he has a character, and a recognizably human one, and the play bears it out that he is right in his anger.

“I reviewed the other moments scholars cite to prove Shylock’s “humanity.” There were two lines of Shylock treasuring his dead wife’s ring, unlike the play’s Christian men who give their wives’ rings away. But unlike the other men, Shylock never gets his ring back—because his daughter steals it, and becomes a Christian, and inherits what remains of his estate at the play’s triumphant end.”

Er, this is a non sequitur—that last has nothing to do with the first. The point is, Shylock doesn’t give away his ring; the fact that his daughter stole it means nothing to his treasuring it. It may be proof of the play’s marginalization of Shylock (which accurately if sadly reflects real-life systematic marginalization), but not his humanity. Shakespeare just doesn’t do backstories, even for major characters, so it is significant that he gave Shylock a wife/beloved in the first place.

“Finally, scholars point to the many times Shylock explains why he is so revolting: Christians treat him poorly, so he returns the favor. But for this to satisfy, one must accept that Jews are revolting to begin with, and that their repulsiveness simply needs to be explained.”

This makes absolutely no sense at all. If one accepts Jews are inherently revolting, then no explanation need be given for when a Jewish character acts revolting! The racist accepts the revolting Jewish characterization without qualm. The fact that the play insists on his grievance is significant.

“We listened together as Shylock went to court to extract his pound of flesh; as the heroine, chirping about the quality of mercy, forbade him to spill the Christian’s blood as he so desperately desired; as the court confiscated his property, along with his soul through forced conversion; as the play’s most cherished characters used his own words to taunt and demean him, relishing their vanquishing of the bloodthirsty Jew.”

YMMV, but to me there are no cherished characters in this play. That’s the whole point! Everyone is so mired in this dreary capitalist materialism that denigrates genuine human connection into mere transaction. Everything to these characters is money, money, money (and class), or at least tainted by it. Shylock is simply the most overt (and honest) of the lot. Love relationships, religion are impoverished; Portia and Bassanio are scarcely more suited than Portia and her other suitors. Shylock and Antonio are Jews and Christians in-name-only: They are capitalists first and foremost. Portia is a smarter, more likable Karen. Lancelot isn’t funny. Jessica is okay, but her leaving her father is framed as a asshole moment at least in one instance. Portia is probably the most lovable, but she has her asshole moments too. There are no truly awful characters, but you don’t need to demonize and dehumanize your whole cast into two-dimensional racists just to make a point.

Merchant of Venice is not the best of plays. It is one of Shakespeare’s experiments, a proto-problem play before his Jacobean era, using dark comedy and a slight bent of farce to explore and elucidate social issues, racism and discrimination, chiefly. At least it tries, anyway. Taming of the Shrew is the first proto-problem play done completely farcical, which at least makes it compelling in a slapstick-satire way; Merchant is much more sociologically astute, but also more dull and coolly distant even from its own concerns. I don’t blame anyone, much less Jewish people, for not liking the play or thinking it a masterpiece. I myself don’t, though for reasons that have nothing to do with the usual ones. I like what Shakespeare was trying to do and I think he did some things very well. It has ambition and thought. But I feel like for most of it Shakespeare was on writing autopilot while mentally looking around for something a bit meatier to adapt and develop. It’s a jogging-in-one-place play; he has a couple of those.

In sum: Author argues for complicated play’s anti-Semitism, ends up just saying the racist slurs by the flawed/asshole Christian characters made her and her son uncomfortable (feat. A distorted and even misleading account of the Lopez affair). Plus some internalized anti-Semitism to sort through, methinks.

#the merchant of venice #shakespeare #cristina metas #shakespeare meta #kind of #cristina reviews #also kind of #merchant is not even one of my liked plays but these takes are just wearying

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