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irish-urn · 4 months

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For the ask game:

001 - Dasey

002 - Derek and Casey

Dasey:

when I started shipping it if I did: Oh, boy. That's a question, now isn't it? I low-key shipped them when I first found Dasey fanfiction waaaaaaay back in my undergrad (so, like 10-12 years ago?). But it was super low-key. I got BACK into Dasey majorly in the spring of 2021 and stumbled upon fanvids and fanfiction of them AGAIN and because I was laid up health-wise, I got obsessed.

my thoughts: I have a LOT of thoughts about Dasey???? I think they're fascinating characters and I adore them both as individuals and as a couple. I think their physical comedy (and by that I mean they're complete lack of personal space) is hilarious; and I think they have insane chemistry. I think Derek knows Casey better than anyone, and Casey gets Derek better than anyone; and I think they're both stupid and stubborn enough to never acknowledge that. I think they're far more alike than they are different, and I think I need to continue my rewatch of the show because I'm gonna end up writing an essay about them.

What makes me happy about them: I think it's how good of a team they can be. I've always been a BIG friends-to-lovers shipper, but even more than that, a "we're partners and i've got your back" shipper. And even though Derek and Casey TRY to pretend to they hate each other, we have sooooo much evidence of them being protective of the other, of them going out of their way to help the other (usually complaining the whole time, but c'mon), and of them kicking serious butt when they do work together. It just makes something inside me purr.

What makes me sad about them: THEY'RE KIDS IN AN AWFUL SITUATION and they don't FEEL like family, but everything in their lives are telling them they're supposed to be; but they CAN'T be, and if they TRY to be together, they might hurt their FAMILIES who they LOVE so MUCH; and I think you catch my drift.

things done in fanfic that annoys me: ...I really hate OOC-ness, but the MOST OOC-ness I hate is when people make Derek to be, like, abusive? Or completely inconsiderate of Casey's boundaries, and you get into non-con. I just... Nope.

things I look for in fanfic: EXCELLENT CHARACTERIZATION. Good bantering, that push-and-pull that they both have... I also think they have at least mildly kinky sex, and I support this.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: Well, all of Casey's boyfriends SUCK except for Sam who is an excellent person but not good for her. And I'm pretty sure her husband in LWL isn't doing a good job either. So they'd have to create a WHOLE NEW CHARACTER for her--

I don't mind Derek/Sally, except I think they'd have to work things out as adults better. I dunno; the show purposely shows us that Derek and Casey are far more important to each other than any of their significant others (that's been stated by the creators, btw), so yeah. No one.

My happily ever after for them: THEY GET TOGETHER AND THE FAMILY ACCEPTS THEM AND THEY STAY TOGETHER FOR, LIKE, 60+ YEARS AND BICKER AND BANTER AND LOVE EACH OTHER THE WHOLE TIME and whether or not they have kids depends completely on their choices and Derek calms Casey's panic attacks, and Casey reminds Derek of his worth, and I cry.

who is the big spoon/little spoon: THEY. SWITCH. I think most of the time Derek is the big spoon because he's kinda sexist, no lie, but I think when he's having a bad day, he likes getting spooned. Casey likes being held, but she also likes holding him. So, uh... 80% of the time Derek is the big spoon.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity: Honestly, I think it's arguing. But in, like, a fun way? With bets and competition and teasing and flirting; I strongly believe that they would just have a lot of small arguments and that would keep the big fights small too. And Casey likes debating and Derek likes challenges.

Derek:

How I feel about this character: MY BLORBO???? I LOVE HIM??? HE'S SUCH A LITTLE SHIT; I ADORE HIM???

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Well. Casey, obviously. And to a certain extent, Sally.

My non-romantic OTP for this character: ...Derek&Lizzie. I know, I KNOW that Derek & Marti are like, gold, but I think his interactions with Lizzie are superb.

My unpopular opinion about this character: ...do I have one? I dunno. I have a lot of opinions about his relationship with his parents, but I wouldn't call them unpopular, more... me looking at things differently than some others do.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I wish, in LWL, people (Genora) recognized how much he had grown. Just because a person likes to have fun and tease and passes off some of his responsibilities to people he knows will do them (see: Skyler and Casey, but they also ENJOY doing these tasks most of the time), doesn't make him immature. He was SUCH a good dad and was taking steps to improve Skyler's life, and maybe their lives weren't traditional, but she was healthy and loved and appreciated and he had raised her as best he could; and honestly, his relationship with Skyler was much better than his with George, I'm just saying. Derek is clever with a large heart, and I wish people in the show saw that more.

my OTP: ...Dasey.

my cross over ship: I don't like crossovers? *shrugs*

a headcanon fact: Derek is a dork. He's a big ol' dork. I HC that he knows an awful lot about very certain things because he gets hyperfixated -- reword: Derek has undiagnosed ADHD. There. That's my fact.

#ask game #life with derek #dasey #derek venturi

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sauriansolutions · 4 months

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Me: my kink blog needs more kink content... I'm going to write burpcanons for my favorite characters!

Also me: oops I accidentally just wrote an entire character analysis essay about Jade ;;

Yeah uhh... idk why I'm like this? I'll try again another time... but if anyone wants to read my way too intense whoopsie attempt, imma throw it here~!

my main jade headcanon is that jade's excessive politeness is just a mask to hide his more twisted core (see what i did?)

But i can also imagine a jade who genuinely values social etiquette. Maybe it's an anxious/ASD insistency on "rules"--he learns an effective rule, (ie, burping in public is *always* rude), and unless he has legitimate cause to update (say, he learns burping is considered a compliment in the Scalding Sands), he'll continue to follow this rule rigidly forever.

This would generally work well for jade. But it might make him seem unapproachable in a different way (*too* polite! Suspicious! Is he a robot? What's his deal?)

The other problem is, such a system could easily lead to jade holding himself to an unrealistic standard. If he ever did slip up, (letting out a loud burp in public by accident,) i could see this leading to excessive embarrassment and self-recrimination.

I can imagine a child version of jade coming to the realization that his predatory nature scares others away, realizing that he needs to find *some* way of appearing more approachable, if he ever wants to "fit in" and make any friends besides floyd and azul. Even among the trio members, i think jade is legitimately the scariest--he's as smart as azul, as strong as floyd, and he also lacks their innate social skills (potentially toeing the ASD/psychopath line).

A really cute, kinda sad idea: what if little jade asked his grandma tried to teach him "proper etiquette?" And she does... but, because she's from a totally different generation of merfolk, it's rather antiquated?

Jade's parents and teachers make things worse by encouraging this... because, c'mon, a ten year old politely bowing and saying things like, "my goodness, please excuse me!"... is actually really adorable.

This leads to jade developing a persona that's very respectable and charming.

Yet he'd still come off pretty eccentric, and he'd have an especially hard time relating to other kids his age. While mer kids would just find his behavior and speech patterns stuffy and outdated, on land he'd definitely come off as the most "foreign" of the octotrio, as the high-class manners he learned are specific to an older generation, *of the northern coral sea.*

Unfortunately, i think azul would also strongly encourage jade's overly-polite personality change... but this is because azul sees how uncanny and frankly terrifying *this* jade would be as a business associate.

This isn't to say i think azul would intentionally sabotage his friend! Rather, i think azul a.) Respects jade to the extent i doubt he'd believe himself capable of manipulating him, and b.) Wants to be like that himself--outwardly perfectly polite and respectable, secretly capable of being as cold and ruthless as necessary.

I think this whole, "being envious of a character trait the other believes is a serious flaw" component of jade and azul's relationship has tons of angst/introspection potential, whether used as a kink thing or not.

Kink example: jade accidentally burps during some meeting or social event. He excessively over-apologizes, and smoothly directs the conversation on. Everyone, especially azul, comes away with a higher opinion of jade--"oh jade is so courteous~ wow, even when he makes a (totally reasonable) mistake, he goes so far out of his way to apologize, what a gentleman~~"

What they don't see, is jade secretly reprimanding and hating himself. Endlessly agonizing, recommitting to a standard of absolute, inhuman perfection that is 1000% fear and shame driven. Believing that anything less will make others hate him, (even more than they probably already do!)

Meanwhile azul is like, "i wish i could commit to *that* level of self-destruction! I'll just have to try harder~"

One last thing re: jade/azul's messed-up dynamics, then I'll move onto jade/floyd. I think, tragically, that jade and azul secretly idealize each other--hyperfixating on their strengths and successes, and minimizing/completely overlooking their flaws and failures. But, because they're snarky bitches to each other to hide their vulnerabilities, they both believe the other holds them in disdain and contempt, when in fact, the opposite is true.

And because they're both intelligent, driven, hardworking, and self-sacrificing, jade and azul have not only accidentally grown to become each other's perfect enablers--they've tricked themselves into believing that they like this arrangement.

Floyd time!

Regardless of whether they had to eat their siblings to survive or not, i hc that jade always took on the role of the "parentified" twin. Now, floyd is a prodigy in many ways: strong, stubborn, and dangerously creative... but i think he's only able to be this way because jade was there to be the anchor twin. Unlike floyd, jade can be relied upon to be unflinchingly stoic. Jade's always (needed to be) the one who can make the hard decisions. To do what needs to be done, without crying or complaining. And, no matter the toll on his body or soul, move on to the next thing, seemingly unaffected.

The Leech twins are, especially in life-or-death situations, actually highly complimentary and really effective together, in these roles. That said, the twins' dynamic, especially in "normal" situations like making friends and going to school--could easily veer into toxic codependency.

And since jade is the anchor, i think floyd was probably really, really upset when jade first started developing his polite personality.

Initially, jade's attempts at becoming this "new" jade probably led to a lot of pushback from floyd. And I'm talking fighting, pleading, complaining, full-on tantrums, tearful threats of abandonment, and basically anything and everything floyd could think of (and he is Dangerously Creative), to get jade to go back to behaving like he did before.

But a combination of jade's stoicism, stubbornness, and refusal to back down from his decision in any way eventually led to floyd more or less accepting that jade is going to do what jade is going to do.

There was also comfort in the realization that, no matter the outward facade, jade was still jade

#absolutely failed attempt at uhh what i intended #know what i don't even want to dignify this with real tags #no for real why am i like this #“ahh yes let us explore this character's kink potential”#but first let's completely psychoanalyze him #JC tries to do a writing exercise

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tyrianluda · 4 months

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(Context: This is part of the Narrator essay I'm writing but I think this section was broad to taken outside of the essay. Take this as a little PSA)

(A Short Word about Boundaries and Parasocial Relationships: This is a Serious Section; FINISHED)

(Also a quick note: If you see a post or person that does something similar to what I'm writing about, please do not harass them. Especially when it's people having parasocial relationships. They just need to be careful to not have a unhealthy attachment over people since it hurts them mentally in the long-term. I chose to not name anyone or use specific pronouns for the sake of anonymity; not for any malicious attempt.)

For people in the fandom who are wondering, I have unfortunately seen people border on the line of sexualizing the Narrator’s VA, Kevan Brighting. More specifically, disregards his boundaries for how he wants his voice to be used and not used; especially in context to…not safe for work uses of his voice. I want to say this now before this escalates into people genuinely crossing this line and I feel like it’s a good reminder. We should care about making Kevan Brighting as comfortable as possible when engaging in the fandom, as he now knows what we say about him. As funny as his “sexiest man in Britain” tweet was, he knows. We should care because he does connect himself quite often in fan-made and Stanley Parable-inspired projects. He has always absorbed himself in the fanbase when he didn’t absolutely need to since the original game came out, and it’s best to have him stay comfortable doing this. Since his level of involvement in the fandom is not very common, to begin with, it’s not wise to give him a reason to stop. Also, more generally because it’s not okay at all to disregard anyone’s expressed boundaries and it shouldn’t be a normal thing to do. Actually, in this case, it’s really creepy and disrespectful and did I mention creepy?

For context, a Tumblr user by the name of @/shinakazami1 contacted Brighting to ask for his thoughts on his voice being used for AI. This was his response;

“...Regarding AI - I hate everything about it. The idea that someone could use my voice for something I don’t agree with is abhorrent. A voice artist must have artistic control over the work he/she does…” - Excerpt of his response

Tumblr Post; for Context: https://www.tumblr.com/vega-482/711812424798535680/kevan-brightings-opinion-on-voice-ai?source=share

You must be wondering about the connection between AI and the sexualization of the voice actor. See, the reason the user contacted Brighting, to begin with, was because another person on a Stanley Parable Discord server posted an NSFW audio of the Narrator. Using the AI of Brighting’s voice to do so. Pain. Agony, if you will.

There are a lot of ethical issues behind this action. Aside from the reason Brighting stated directly, this could also affect him financially; as he is a voice actor and general voiceover artist. AI audios of his voice would certainly impede his career. As an artist, this is a genuine thing he would probably worry about; and rightfully so. In the case of NSFW audio, this may also overstep a potential boundary he may have. Especially when it is NSFW without his permission. Even if he had no issue over NSFW audios particularly, he would have an issue about being in audio where he didn’t even get the chance to accept/deny. Even if you’re embarrassed, just ask him about his boundaries. Like, he should at least have a choice to say ‘no, fuck off’ and take requests on his own terms. Hopefully for obvious reasons. …but people kinda suck.

Unfortunately, it’s not just that one Discord user. Bro, I’m at my limit. I’m gonna have to talk about TikTok. God damnit. I said TikTok was its own beast about the Narrator for a reason. TikTok as well as Instagram, are mostly known in fandom spaces for containing edits of whatever character in whatever media. There’s a lot of work and effort that is put into making edits, and many are rewarded by people barking in the comment sections. As someone who has seen edits from different fandoms for about three to four years, I respect many editors and I understand why some would edit certain characters. Of course there are going to be edits of the Narrator; especially if you include Sad-ist’s Clock 0ut animations that are inspired by the Stanley Parable. It’s a hot old guy with a hot voice; I’m not exactly shocked by that in itself. By extension, of course some of those edits are suggestive or lean into NSFW territory. It’s understandable and it can be fine to make those edits if it doesn’t impede on real people’s boundaries or if the involved people openly say ‘It’s good, bro’. Now here’s where the problems start.

At least a few TikTok edits have used AI of Brighting’s voice for parts that have NSFW. Whether it’s having the AI say NSFW things, having it be implied or even having it whimper, the main gist is that his voice is used for NSFW; despite the voice actor not directly consenting to a part of it. I’m so done with you people. Many potential problems would occur because of the decision of doing such. I already brought up how Brighting’s career of voicework could be affected financially by the use of AI but there’s another potential issue. It could probably also affect him socially and his involvement in future projects. The fact that these edits featuring AI don’t get that popular, is kind of a miracle. If those edits ever went outside of the fandom and into a more professional setting, it would be unnecessarily difficult for him to explain that he wasn’t even a part of those edits. I say ‘unnecessarily’ because you don’t even need AI to hear him in that context.

You could’ve used a scene from one of his audiobooks. They work for their intended purpose and you don’t even have to buy the books. I understand not doing some things because of money problems but… NSFW audios aren’t a necessity and the audiobooks are free! If it’s because of convenience, then how is AI any more convenient? It’s not hard to find the audiobooks at all! Some of the audio files are on Tumblr for fuck’s sake. There’s no logical sense of why the decision of using AI is okay because it’s not okay. It is very disrespectful to disregard his boundaries and if I really wanted to go there, this borders on harassment. It’s not difficult to respect open boundaries that are openly stated with absolutely no ambiguity. Look, at least for the audiobooks, Brighting did them willingly. You did not need AI; you really didn’t.

Some people even go as far as to say his tweet about him being the sexiest man in Britain was indicative that he’s fine with the sexualization of the Narrator and by extension, NSFW edits featuring AI. Well, that’s a fucking reach if I ever saw one. Even though the sexualization of the Narrator wasn’t even the issue stated, Brighting responded in an email stating how much he hated AI. The AI is the issue; not the Narrator simping. Kevan Brighting can think the sexualization of the Narrator is funny because the Narrator isn’t real. But Brighting is real. He’s a living, breathing, voice-acting guy with boundaries. You couldn’t be bothered to have the NSFW audios be from the audiobooks he agreed to be a part of and consented to do? If you could put enough effort into making a TikTok edit, you could put enough effort into not being a smooth brain. You don’t need a fictional character’s consent, but you do need consent from real-life people who are affected if you don’t respect their consent. If you can’t understand the difference between a fictional character and a real person to where it affects real people in reality, you shouldn’t be trusted to post anything of that nature.

It’s one thing to not know and later to apologize for your mistake. But, it’s another thing to hear his response that he doesn’t like AI of his voice period…like at all and it’s just…one ear and out the other. The people who make these edits with AI did not understand why he said this and should have apologized or deleted them after being disclosed of his boundaries. It won’t kill you to have basic courtesy. I assume most people don’t know of his thoughts on AI before making the edits because if they knew already, it would make the situation so much worse. Still, it’s worth an apology. (See Also: Hanlon's razor)

(Parasocial Relationship Part)

AI is not the only issue since TikTok also blurs the line when talking about the Narrator and Kevan Brighting in some unrelated cases. Some people forget that Brighting is a real guy and they think of him as like a fictional character.

I saw a TikTok post that wondered why Brighting was wearing women’s frames for his glasses in one image and half the comments were like ‘bully him’. First of all, I don’t care about what kind of glasses he’s wearing so the post already feels a bit weird to me but outside of that. If these are jokes and I hope these are jokes, they are jokes that you would make for a fictional character. Similar to “I wanna stick this fictional character in a blender”; but that’s obviously a joke because the character can’t actually get hurt. There’s no tangible effect if you shoved a fictional character in a blender. Except these are jokes about a real person; not a fictional character. There would be a tangible effect if someone were to actually bully Brighting for wearing women’s frames. Which is also stupid because even if he did wear mainly women’s frames, why does it matter? Is that really something that would make you feel less about a person? Hopefully not, because it really doesn't matter and I can't think of a way where it would. Also men can wear women’s frames as long as the frame size is right for his proportions, and most frames are labeled as ‘unisex’ so it matters even less. Imagining genuinely having the want to bully an older guy because he doesn't present himself in a completely masculine way, despite him wearing different frames in every other photo and not even wearing glasses in some. This is why I’m dead set on these being jokes because if they aren’t, as a gender-non-conforming person, I would be so mad. This is a weird thing to fixate on because glasses frames are unisex; so not even people who are weird about gender roles give a shit. Even my 70+ year old grandpa didn’t care when I was trying out new glasses. It really doesn’t fucking matter. Though on the plus side, the other half of the comments were like ‘Leave him alone. He just wants to and he can do what he wants”. Though there were a few people that called him ‘girly pop’ in Brighting’s defense, I'll get to that. It does show how easy it is for people on TikTok to think of reality similar to fiction; which makes some users say stupid shit about the real person.

Some people are also way too comfortable when talking about Brighting, thinking of him as a best friend or an ‘icon’. That one person who called Brighting “girly pop” is a good example of how comfortable people can get when talking about him, despite not even sharing the same air as him. Like I see people respond to his tweets with “bestie” and “I love you”. It could be just me but it takes years for me to be best friends with someone and to tell them “I love you” is even longer. So the words and phrases I associate with long-lasting friendships are being used for someone who hasn’t even talked to you. If that isn’t parasocial, I don’t know what is. In one case I particularly remember, I saw a TikTok of someone thinking about Brighting as like an adoptive father figure. Basically wanting Brighting to adopt them. Which…I'm not gonna completely disregard the entire idea. I understand the want for a respectable father figure in your life; hell, the relationship with my dad is nonexistent. I can see how people think of him in a parental way and in most other positive ways. However, I worry for the people who attach themselves to Brighting in this one-sided way if they aren't careful. Especially if they perceive him as such a personal figure, like a best friend or family member. Because when you perceive someone in this regard, you're going to feel the same emotions that you would with actual friends or family members. This goes for positive emotions, and unfortunately, this also goes for negative emotions. And don’t even get me started on perceiving him romantically or… suggestively because those emotions are even stronger. I’ve even seen people on TikTok openly say they’re “simps” for Kevan Brighting; the real guy that can easily see your comment and understand what you’re talking about by looking it up.

The emotions towards the person are increased to such a strong and personal level, simply put. So when he disappoints you or does what you perceive as disappointing, it’s going to be more difficult to brush it off than if you thought of him as just a guy. As someone who had parasocial relationships like that at a young age, it’s very difficult to get over it and it’s even more difficult to recognize that you’re doing it. So the one thing I just need to say that you have to know is the famous person of your attachment doesn't know you exist. Kevan Brighting is not your friend. That’s not his fault and that’s not your fault. He’s just not reasonably going to know every person that knows him, and he’s probably not gonna be on-board with every person’s perception of him. If I was in his position, I would not feel comfortable being regarded as a parental figure or a best friend by people that I don’t even know. But I’m saying this to myself as much as I’m saying this to other people because I make this mistake as well. I get too comfortable talking about people I know nothing about. I’m not innocent in this regard. I get too fixated over real life people sometimes. Despite me knowing about Brighting’s career in voicework and broadcasting, I really don’t know him personally. I don’t know his age, his height, his favorite fucking color and I certainly don’t know how he is as a person. I can make guesses but they are just guesses. Just because I have the opportunity to acknowledge him doesn’t mean he has the opportunity to acknowledge me, and that’s fine.

It’s fine to talk about how talented his voice acting is, or even how attractive/hot his voice is. Because he’s indeed talented and his voice does sound very attractive. But there’s gotta be a limit. I also understand thinking positively about him because he seems like a genuinely friendly and down-to-earth person. But notice how I said ‘seem’? That’s because, to reiterate, I don’t know him personally. He could be eating souls and I would be none the wiser (THAT IS A JOKE). Kevan Brighting is a real-life person with thoughts and feelings and his bounds should be respected. Don’t be like the people I just talked about. He’s talented as hell in voice acting, and that is enough for the community to talk about. It definitely was for me; like look at my “Narrator’s Voice” section again. Straight up 10 pages. Hell, I’m planning on writing something else about his other performances because his voice is just…too good. Yeah, that’s right! I’M NOT DONE!

(We Are Experiencing Some Technical Difficulties)

TL;DR: Don't be weird over real people

#tsp #the stanley parable #tspud #the stanley parable ultra deluxe #stanley parable #tsp ultra deluxe #kevan brighting

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league-of-blorbos · 9 months

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So, on a reddit post I made (it was on potential Arcane seasons) someone in the comments convinced me to write a whole essay on Rhaayn and despite writing it in an hour long hyperfixated haze I like how it came out so I'm posting it here too for the people who want to read my analysis on why their relationship could work:

Ok, so for myself my favorite thing about ships is when you can see what each member offers to the other, or you can see why they fell in love and chose to spend their life with that person specifically. And what Kayn and Rhaast have in common is that they are both lonely men that have been traumatized by war. Swain even says in a voiceline to Kayn that what he really wants is love, since as a child soldier Kayn has only ever known hate. On the other hand, the darkin have all lost themselves from their war with the Void and from being isolated for centuries in their weapons, and the other darkin we see all remedy their isolation in different ways: Varus’s heart is changed by Kai and Valmar, Naafiri embraces being a pack mother and wants the darkin to come together like a pack of wolves, and Aatrox calls his darkin brethren to him so they can have one last war together. Rhaast would never admit it, but I think him toying with Kayn instead of spending all his energy trying kill him is his remedy, he’s the only form of interaction he’s had in so long and deep down he knows he’d be isolated all over again without him.

From there, we know from their Odyssey voicelines Kayn is much more susceptible to getting attached to Rhaast, he still tries to talk to him after he’s killed Rhaast off and reminisces on the fun times they shared, which makes sense. Kayn is much more of a serious edgelord while Rhaast is still edgy as hell, but more in a Dante from DMC and always joking around kind of way. Kayn could use someone less serious to balance him out and keep his mood from getting too dark. Kayn is also someone who desires praise, he wants to impress Zed any way he can and in Odyssey he wants the galaxy to bow down to him as emperor. What I’m saying is Kayn has an obvious praise kink. And in his own way, Rhaast praises Kayn for being both a worthy opponent and a worthy vessel.

Which brings me to Rhaast, and I have an idea for how he would fall for Kayn which relates back to his desire for a worthy opponent. Rhaast rejected many possible vessels back in Noxus because he knew they wouldn’t give him a good fight, and were therefore too weak for him. But he respects Kayn’s power and wants to fight Kayn head on for his vessel. But what would happen if someone other than Rhaast brought Kayn near death? Rhaast feels like the type of character who wants to fight Kayn as his full power and have a fair battle before he would slay him (back with the DMC references, a very Vergil thing to do). I could see that turning into Rhaast being very protective of Kayn and even using his hemomancy to heal him during fights, as he can’t have someone stealing his kill, he needs Kayn to stay strong and healthy for when they have their epic duel to the death! Then once the time for that duel comes, Rhaast finally realizes he doesn’t want to kill this man he’s been protective over, who is just as bloodthirsty and lonely as he is, and who he sees as an equal.

And from there, there are so many ways their dynamic could go that doesn’t involve them killing each other and they could spend the rest of their time together doing whatever they want and bickering over the dumbest shit imaginable. (may have strayed a lot from the rom-com idea and got too into character analysis, but that’s the beauty of this ship is that there’s a lot of different parts of their dynamic you could focus on and find the romance in, they just work so well together.)

#also wanted to mention this somewhere but couldnt find a good spot to #but i recently got into the band GHOST #and Circe is such a good rhaayn song #'you cannot hide in the darkness' 'i can see through the scars inside you' 'from now our merge is eternal'#those are some rhaayn coded lyrics there #league of legends #lol #rhaayn #kayn #shieda kayn #rhaast #darkin

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fizzigigsimmer · 3 months

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i wanna hear about all your fics!! so bachelor au, blinding baby like city lights, news paper au and love aint fair at all!!

Ahh bless you nonny. Some of these are still just outlines but a few have chapters posted.

Starting with OUTLINES

The Bachelor Au: This is still one of my favorite ideas lol, born of my love of the insanity that is the bachelor franchise and the poorly concealed producer plants who are clearly just there for the drama. You can't tell me Billy wouldn't make a perfect Chad. The gist is Steve is the first Bisexual bachelor contestant. An icon, An American sweetheart looking for love. Robin and The Party are crew members and all the stranger things teens are contestants (Nancy, Chrissy, Eddie, Jason, Argyle, Heather) vying for his hand and represent various types of typical bachelor contestants. The funny ones, the good guys, the people there for clout, the people who somehow think they can get away with going on a dating show while still involved in a situationship back home, and the people who decide to do a reality show instead of go to therapy for their bag of issues. Billy is an instagram model hired by producers to be the seasons 'villian' and be hated by the audience. It's just supposed to be a free vacation where he gets to make some extra cash to be his most extra before he's finally sent home. But oops, they fall in love. Leaving them to figure out how they build a life together after the show when there are NDA's involved and they are the most hated ship in America.

Newspaper Club Au: This is a no upside down college fic featuring Billy/Nancy friendship, nerd!billy and jock!Steve. I haven't decided yet whether it's modern, 80s, or an ambiguous setting but the basic gist is the boys meet in college. Steve is there on a sports scholarship and chose California to follow Nancy, now his ex-girlfriend. Billy's an English major who works on the school paper with Nancy (one of his electives). He's pissed when she puts him on the sports column as it means he actually has to attend the games. He starts using the column to flirt with/aka harass swimmer Steve through increasingly ridiculous and suggestive commentary. The campus thinks it's a riot. Steve thinks Billy's an asshole and making him the butt of a joke just because he's a "dumb jock". Nancy plays matchmaker and also saves the integrity of her paper by finagling Billy into helping Steve write an essay for his English literature elective. Billy takes the opportunity to show him he was 1000 percent serious about wanting to know if his dick is even bigger out of the speedo.

Onto the POSTED fics

Blinding Baby Like City Lights: Is a dom/sub au where everyone is either a dominant, submissive, or switch. Basically some people need to dominate to stay balanced and others need to submit, or some mix of the two. And everyone responds differently to different things, creating many different 'types.' Naturally not all types are good for each other. Billy is a masochistic sub, has known it for a long time but wasn't safe to explore it growing up with an abusive sadist for a father. He's managed to claw his way out of his abusive home and become a successful business man who is often mistaken for a dom. He found family in Heather & Chrissy, but never a dominant he can trust enough to handle him and give him exactly what he needs. Steve's a recovering sadist. Too much privilege and neglectful parents lead him to some pretty unhealthy and toxic tendencies in his relationship with his first love Nancy. Losing his sub nearly broke him, but he broke good and has been rebuilding his life with his best friend Robin for the last few years. He just wants to take care of people by making good food, and find someone he can take care of always, without having to be afraid of his own desires. Steve might just be perfect for Billy, and Billy might just be what Steve needs to finally embrace who he is.

*** EDIT

When you have so many WIPs you confuse two of them.

Love Aint Fair At All: Werewolf au + a/b/o dynamics. This is a retelling of Snow White that takes place in an alternate version of Hawkins where magic exists. Some peoples magic makes them Wolf Shifters (people who are born with the ability to turn into wolves) and others use their magic to bend the external elements, these people are called Hags. Steve lives in the Cold Zone, a portion of the country that is suffering under a powerful Hags curse. Billy is a Wolf Shifter, exiled from their former pack in California, he and Neil make their way as huntsmen for hire. But everything goes to shit wen Neil brings the family to Hawkins to serve Steve's cousin Elsie, a powerful and mysterious Hag whose obsession with beauty and power threatens to cover the world in ice. The only thing holding her at bay is an old curse that limits her powers and a prophecy that promised one day an omega child would be born who was fairer than her. Good thing Steve is a perfectly normal bland beta boy - until he isn't.

#harringrove #billy hargrove #steve harrington #answered asks #FWF

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phil-lesterfan · 3 months

Text

straightman count your fucking days

ngl i understand why g*iman might want to say heaven/god isn't homophobic in the sense that like "oh people love the g*mens 'verse and want to imagine a world without homophobia"; however, i think it's safe to say that, definitely by now, heaven are also bad guys. perhaps god isn't homophobic and fans could maybe take comfort in that, but heaven can be without that reflecting on god and ruining that illusion.

that being said, defensively shutting down an interpretation (coming from the "interpret everything however you want" guy) that makes the story even more meaningful than it already is, especially when focussing on the show's version of the story, which has definitively moved into "love story" territory, is such loser behaviour. you're allowed to tell fans things they don't want to hear, and fans should be allowed to recognise themselves and the things they've been through without being called delusional or wrong or whatever for it.

covering your ass with the sandalphon comment is hilarious too, because yeah, everyone totally thinks about everything but homophobia when they think of sodom and gomorrah. be serious for me for just one second, please!

no one even called him homophobic for the scene's inclusion (because duh, what you write about doesn't 1:1 reflect your values), but tbh, with the way he reacted, well . . . it's not a very good look, i think. saying "hey, this scene reflected homophobia experienced by gay people [in this instance, specifically gay men]" isn't at all the same as saying "you endorse homophobia" — imagine how impossible it'd be to write a story without any ~problematic~ elements — and if you interpreted g*yziraphale's statement as accusatory, you need to take a step back and do some serious reassessment.

(and the tags about "it doesn't even have to be 'boyfriend'! it could've been 'lady friend' or 'bosom friend'"? what? first of all, if only it were that easy to avoid homophobia! sadly [sarcasm], gay people exist. secondly, WHY DIDN'T THEY JUST SAY ONE OF THOSE THINGS THEN? if angels don't have an understanding of gender or sexuality, why didn't they use one of the neutral terms you suggested? and again, if a and c being just friends was enough to spark heaven's anger and if heaven really has no concept of sexuality — let's remember, s1 had their relationship hella ambiguous still, so if some viewers of the show couldn't pick up on anything between the two, you think 'i don't get sex' heaven would? — they should've just said "friend"!)

i hate that i've written an essay because i hate that i'm putting so much time and (emotional) energy into this, but i'm just so sick of gay people being called delusional or "looking too deep" for pointing out where stories parallel their own. also, nice little "actually *you're* the homophobic one for even noticing it!!1!"[1] there. really deserving of a glaad award, sir. (or is that yet another statement i'm not allowed to interpret?)

1 look, i get he could be acting like he's just got the gender version of colour blindness, but he's a grown up. he should know damn well how that line comes across.

#oc #sorry for the long post i just hate fandom tbh. all of you are major losers. explode.#there's only one fandom that's pissed me off more than this one. and it's not a good fandom to be compared to

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thespacelizard · 3 months

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happy valentine's day! if you had to make oc specific valentines, what would they say? bonus question: would any of them do anything special for the holiday?

happy valentines fox!!

im at work rn so i can’t make those terrible valentine card things but let me throw out some bad ideas.

For Ashenivir, something like ‘I submit my heart to your love, valentine’. god i think i pulled something cringing writing that adsllsakdj

and Rizeth maybe…i can’t even think of one. he’s too serious. Love is stored in the finish your essay, valentine, before I tie you up and make you finish it.

Vizaeth… ‘My heart is yours (literally) (no, i’m serious, i have a knife ready to go just say the word)’. God, if he knew about valentines he’d just. send as many slightly unsettling cards to Pharaun as possible. Someone could send him a fake one from Pharaun and he’d treasure it forever.

Zeth’rinn is just. whatever’s the flirtiest possible thing. Even if it doesn’t make sense. ‘I’ll Bregan your D’aerthe, valentine’. what does that mean, Zeth. what does that mean.

and since I've got Rune brainrot (again), his would be like 'the fastest way to my heart is through the third and fourth rib. don't miss, valentine'

as for doing special holiday things:

Obedience boys are both kinda pretending the holiday isn’t that important and then both try and surprise each other with nice things. God, their first valentine’s, Rizeth would so overcompensate, try and have like. the Perfect Date. Flowers. Chocolate. The works. Ashenivir enjoys that stuff, but doesn’t need it.

They’re also going to spend as much time in bed together as possible, and after they’re done fucking each other stupid, Rizeth’s gonna feed Shen chocolates by hand. Because Shen’s still tied to the bed, obviously.

Whoever Zeth’s dating at the time would get treated to something elaborate. He’ll do the equivalent of ‘borrowing’ dads credit card to take someone on the fanciest, most expensive date possible. When he was with Menzova, I think he’d definitely get kinda sad to not be with her on the Love Holiday (she lives in Mythen Thaelas, and he was on the surface for a good chunk of their relationship. they seperated bc of it eventually, but it was friendly)

oh my god, additional thought: Zeth making valentines for every single Bregan D'aerthe member currently at the safehouse. Just painstakingly writing them out. Valas is bemused by this.

...i'm realising now that I think Zeth has a bit of a longstanding crush on Valas, who is never going to let anything happen because he helped raised that boy and thinks of him like a weird little cousin/step child.

Vizaeth daydreams about romantic times with Pharaun and then lies to himself about it, because love isn’t real and Pharaun hates him and romance is fake and everything is awful. he wants Pharaun to like. whisk him away to some fancy Menzo bloodsport and publically make out with him.

God, I want Rhylfein to take him on a vday date. @lawful-evil-novelist where would your boy drag his horrid boyfriend for a date?

Astarion tries to take Rune to a nice Upper City eating house and Rune mostly behaves himself, but he does snarl at a waiter for some kind of slight, and also it takes a lot of persuading to make him eat with cutlery and not his hands. they have a better time afterwards just walking to the beach in the dark, and chilling in the moonlight.

also, now you gotta tell me what the Nydalla’s are doing. how much of a valentines princess is Iphis. does he want that fancy chocolate. will he stab a bitch to get it.

#im so bad at thinking up valentines alkjsadkj #obedience fic blogging #obsession fic blogging #c: ashenivir zauvym #c: rizeth velkon'yss #c: vizaeth thaezyr #c: zeth'rinn baenre #c: rune #astarion wrangling Rune into nice clothes and civilised society is an exercise in patience #Rune does try bless him. it's just hard #free additional zeth lore today!

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p-receh · 8 days

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Need to rant feel free to ignore :D

Have you seen the new windara poster? I'm very excited for june now, i am SHOCKED at how well the bug aliens look. Also kokotiam's armor design looks so fun and fits so well with the overall bug theme (Gopal and fang are hilarious i cackled when i saw them)

Boi's an ant and theres probably an essay someone already wrote about the meaning behind that, yaya's a lady bug and gosh she looks pretty, ying is a bee and i love the sporty look since bees are very fast bugs so it fits very well (also thank God she finally has a helmet my girl you are basically at a war protect your head dear God) it also fits better than the previously more "mage" look which.. did not make sense to me WHY she was designated that class

Fang and Gopal are Hercules beetle and rhinoceros beetle, which looks absolutely hilarious but makes sense. Again theres probably already an essay out there about the significance of each bug that has been designated for each kokotaim member so i won't bother you on that (though the research is fascinating and i highly recommend!)

Now.. بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم ...

Consumers. Kindly. SHUT UPPP

Kritics are getting WAY too comfortable, we get it its not based on the comics designs. Infact i'd argue its better since the comics are literally just them with armor. In a bug planet. They have armor. For. Humans. That LOOK human, with the exception of Fang's but do you realize how nonsensical that sounds?

Also we were already told there were going to be changes in the story and design. The creators were very open on that, you don't like the 3d animation design? Great! You have a preference, sure; fantastic happy for you, we have our opinions so kindly. Shut up :D

Look kritics are normal i am not dissing on that, i'm more on people being mad that kokotiam doesn't look as "pretty" or "cool" or whatever and all i can say is. ARMOR IS FOR PRACTICALITY NOT LOOK POINTS WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE ONNNNNNNN

Also adapting a 2d design from a comic to a 3d design is HARD (trust me, blender i both love and hate you) thats not even counting ANIMATING it, you hate the 3d version? Well boi do i have good news for you that theres a 2d version :D its in the comics thats FREE for you to read on webtoon.

There wasn't even supposed to BE a galaxy season 2, there was no preparation for it ehich is why the comics are so different than the status quo. They took risks because there was never a plan for an animated version. So the fact we're getting anything at all for FREE mind you is a BLESSING

You can kritic sure yeah thats fine but use at least polite wording. These are people thats working on these things not your slave.

DON'T JUST SPEW NEGATIVITY AROUND LIKE ITS NOTHING. YOUR RUINING THE FUN FOR EVERYONE; THOSE WHO DIDN'T MIND THE DESIGN CHOICE, THOSE WHO JUST WANNA HAVE FUN, THOSE WHO ARE ENJOYING BBB JUST AS IS.

You have a specific design or writing that cater to you or you enjoy more? Do it yourself :D

Grab a pencil and start writing/sketching. HAVE FUN, you may not like it but not everyone is like that. There are those who like it, there are those who don't mind, there are those who understand that its not easy to create an adaptation.

Moreover the comics and show have very different audiences. Look at the difference between movie 2 and its comic, you can see that some scenes were either soften up or cut entirely because what audience it caters too more

If you want a more serious and emotionally mature view you can go read the comics (they are fantastic btw! Highly recommend movie 2 and the compilations)

Take a deep breath and think for a second. Is this kritic important? Is there an ACTUAL issue with this design choice? Will there be people who feel hurt by your words?

Anyway how was your ramadan and eid? Did you have fun :D ?

ALLAHUAKBAR ANON 🤣🤣

I can feel your emotions went turmoil in your long essay and yet still managed to end it with a smile. Of course I could not ignore yours anon😅

Have you seen the new windara poster?

Definitely~~ :3

The poster fire af!!!!!!!! It packed from top to bottom!

(oooooh I'm scared yet excited for the fully animated version of Beliung omgggg >_<)

I'm very excited for june now, i am SHOCKED at how well the bug aliens look. Also kokotiam's armor design looks so fun and fits so well with the overall bug theme (Gopal and fang are hilarious i cackled when i saw them)

Fang and Gopal are Hercules beetle and rhinoceros beetle, which looks absolutely hilarious but makes sense. Again theres probably already an essay out there about the significance of each bug that has been designated for each kokotaim member so I won't bother you on that (though the research is fascinating and I highly recommend)

My biggest spotlight of all for me was how they reimagine the adult characters since well to be fair it has been uhh.... six years ago we had more than a few we had since movie 2? (Sori only had Gaharum and....uuuhh the trio lobster guys that I forgot what their names were in the tv ver :/)

And yes anon. The lady bug, Maripos, General Reramos and Princess Kuputeri. That number alone is a big step up from Sori. We also need to mention the army below in the poster. I highly appreciate they risking themselves by involving more characters like in Galaxy season 1.

To my suprise, I really looove Maripos in this ver. 😘🤌

Wait there's an essay behind Kokotaim's suit? Can I see???👀👀

Now.. بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم ... Consumers. Kindly. SHUT UPPP Kritics are getting WAY too comfortable, we get it its not based on the comics designs. Infact i'd argue its better since the comics are literally just them with armor. In a bug planet. They have armor. For. Humans. That LOOK human, with the exception of Fang's but do you realize how nonsensical that sounds? Also we were already told there were going to be changes in the story and design. The creators were very open on that, you don't like the 3d animation design? Great! You have a preference, sure; fantastic happy for you, we have our opinions so kindly. Shut up :D Look kritics are normal i am not dissing on that, i'm more on people being mad that kokotiam doesn't look as "pretty" or "cool" or whatever and all i can say is. ARMOR IS FOR PRACTICALITY NOT LOOK POINTS WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE ONNNNNNNN Also adapting a 2d design from a comic to a 3d design is HARD (trust me, blender i both love and hate you) thats not even counting ANIMATING it, you hate the 3d version? Well boi do i have good news for you that theres a 2d version :D its in the comics thats FREE for you to read on webtoon. There wasn't even supposed to BE a galaxy season 2, there was no preparation for it ehich is why the comics are so different than the status quo. They took risks because there was never a plan for an animated version. So the fact we're getting anything at all for FREE mind you is a BLESSING You can kritic sure yeah thats fine but use at least polite wording. These are people thats working on these things not your slave. DON'T JUST SPEW NEGATIVITY AROUND LIKE ITS NOTHING. YOUR RUINING THE FUN FOR EVERYONE; THOSE WHO DIDN'T MIND THE DESIGN CHOICE, THOSE WHO JUST WANNA HAVE FUN, THOSE WHO ARE ENJOYING BBB JUST AS IS. You have a specific design or writing that cater to you or you enjoy more? Do it yourself :D Grab a pencil and start writing/sketching. HAVE FUN, you may not like it but not everyone is like that. There are those who like it, there are those who don't mind, there are those who understand that its not easy to create an adaptation. Moreover the comics and show have very different audiences. Look at the difference between movie 2 and its comic, you can see that some scenes were either soften up or cut entirely because what audience it caters too more If you want a more serious and emotionally mature view you can go read the comics (they are fantastic btw! Highly recommend movie 2 and the compilations) Take a deep breath and think for a second. Is this kritic important? Is there an ACTUAL issue with this design choice? Will there be people who feel hurt by your words?

ANON CALM DOWN

I absolutely understand your feeling, sister/brother. 😅

I think I already written an essay, twice. Either if it's your ask box or not I'm just gonna put it here

and here.

My version gonna be a bit different from yours, so bear with me anon. Every perspective from each individual is still counted as subjective, no matter how objective they are, including myself.

Ehem.

Me personally... I'm on both sides of the group. I can understand why some people are angry about the suit design because I'm gonna be honest, even tho there were two different media between the comic and the tv/movie, staying in the source material without changing anything is essential to any adaptation series.

So the way people are furious with it. I can see where are they come from.

'The Kokotiam armor suit is heavily different than the comic ver?' Valid; 'Still use the chubbier render ver from Sori when this arc starts to get darker?' Valid.

And other takes that I obviously ignore since that were just beyond logic. I kid you not, anon. When they posted it the first time, my instinct was muting all words related to Boboiboy or spending my timeline with another topic. Because your frustration was my biggest worry that came true.

But at the same time, not many franchise could do the same strategy. Sometimes, refurbishing them without losing the source material could also work WITH extra proper care and permission from many parties. Because this tactic is such a gamble to please anyone. I also highly recommend studying the story behind the redesign of Sonic Movie 2020, Pre-Launch-Post Launch, and the impact on its linked franchises.

(Well to be fair the MCU franchise starting from Spiderman 1 was also a good topic to study)

So my bet is...maybe Monsta doing the latter strategy. It is risky for sure, I can guarantee that when they published it on YouTube since og era. But I can see the reason for their decision. Designing a proper armor for their planet's theme is genius tho. Big bonus to differentiate each bug for Kokotiam's gang that has meaning to them.

(Were they attempted to make Bug's Life in Boboiboy series? Lol😅)

Critics aside, people need to know, that even tho the comic looks dope as heck, Boboiboy's first release was on the screen, not on the paper. The screen audience within SEA is waaaay higher than the comic enthusiast. Therefore comics, in this case, is a fan service. You don't need to know the details, but you might get curious to search behind the scenes further.

(That's what I do after I finished Sori btw.)

There are advantages & disadvantages of Monsta releasing the second season comic first before the animated ver. The launch of the Mechamato series and Galaxy 2nd season may or may not help Monsta during the pandemic. Monsta's mini-series about covid awareness also helped them to survive.

Yet, people treat the Boboiboy franchise now are kinda similar to how people demanded things from an animated series that adapted from the manga. Which... Uuuh a bit unhealthy to be honest.

But again as I said before, at the end of the day, criticism especially from the internet always wants what they ask, not what the creators want.

This is also the reason for my decision to not meddle my interest further on the internet. The damaged left me a scar from my previous fandom that I'm at this point I'm toooo lazy to engage more in the community.

(But that doesn't mean I don't like the franchise anymore tho. I still love it af)

Anyway how was your ramadan and eid? Did you have fun :D ?

Alhamdulillah anon! My schedule really packed pre-during-and post Ramadhan!

I went to two towns for "mudik" tradition before and after ramadhan for the first time after the pandemic! (for outdonesian or maybe outside of malaysian as well, it's like a Christmas gathering at grandparent's house... I guess(?)).

It was such a wholesome trip for sure! but boy I did need some time to adjust too(It was a challenging ride if you have a place at the mountains🤢)

My ramadhan month was also busy with working as a part-time job at my family stand. It is tough to sell things that were really not on the most target wanted.

But Allhamdulillah most of them were sold! I'm soo relieved! 😆😆

And because it was a holy month, I really need to take a rest from any social media. I still use them honestly, but not as many as before.

Now I'm struggling to get my drawing and writing enthusiasm back.

Hope you also had a wonderful ramadhan too, Anon!😆👍

#boboiboy #boboiboy galaxy #bbbglxs2 #menjawab anon #Imo I would love if the girls outfit from the poster still has some attire from the comic ver.#for instance #Ying's final ver + the cape. That's so fire.#buuuut on the second thought it kinda look like to Kuputeri #how about Yaya? hmm...to be fair she might be the one who almost has the resemblance of the book?#aside from the obvious antenna of course. But overall It looks the same for me and I'm fine with it #aside of that.#that arabic sentence of “Bismillahir-rahmanir-rahim” caught me lmao #oh yeah I might or might not have a plan to visit my grandparents house shortly #also because nowadays I am super lazy to write long on my laptop so I need a smaller keyboard that is compact with my phone.#so yeah. there's that.#apologies for my late reply anon #Uuuuuuh I have so many ideas for my 319 and other AU as well yet I may have writer's block :'/

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angeloddity · 2 years

Note

Request: steve struggling with school

mostly hurt a little comfort, self conscious/self deprecating steve, gn!reader (wc: 674)

He doesn’t understand. He’s trying, he really is, but Steve just doesn’t understand.

The two diagrams laying on the bed before him representing the various stages of meiosis and mitosis are meant to make things easier to comprehend, providing a visual to go along with the many phases that have names that all sound the same. Instead, each part is just blurring together in Steve’s mind more and more the longer he tries to parse through them.

“This is pointless,” he groans, tossing his homework aside, the paper fluttering to the ground below, now out of sight. “Why’d the scientists have to give everything such stupid names?”

“It’s not pointless. Studying is just like anything else in life, the more you practice, the easier it will be,” you state. Steve just scoffs, a harsh sounding noise despite being little more than a huff of air.

You look up from your spot sprawled at the foot of his bed as you speak, book in hand, breakfast tray folded up beside you to provide a flat surface to write on, your latest essay already half way done. You had already finished most of your homework by the time Steve called you, asking to study together. You thought it was a euphemism, bringing next to nothing with you because you didn’t think you would get much work done, if any got completed at all.

Steve, however, was serious about studying, something he never would have thought would be true even just a few years prior. Now his grades are tanking, his peers are bragging about their inevitably bright futures, and he just doesn’t understand.

It wouldn’t be so bad if it was just biology that he didn’t understand, but none of his classes make sense. He can’t analyze books, or use the quadratic formula, or speak Spanish with any sort of clarity. He’s just… not smart enough.

“It is! it’s completely pointless. No matter what I do I’m not going to get a good enough grade. I’m just wasting my time, and now yours as well.” His eyes burn from the threat of tears that he refuses to let fall, frustration building both for the assignment he can’t figure out and disappointment with himself. Why does it have to be so difficult for him to understand when everyone else seems to get school so easily? It isn’t fair, and who else is there to blame but himself? How is he supposed to get anywhere in life if he’s not good at anything?

“It’s not pointless, not if it helps, even just a little. You don’t need to have straight As, you just need to focus on doing your own best. You’ll graduate, and then you’ll find something in life that’s a good fit for you.”

You slide the half finished essay between the pages of your book before sitting up. You reach for the papers and textbook tossed aside in Steve’s frustration, and bring them back up onto the bed with you.

“You don’t have to go to college, or own a business, or follow in your father’s footsteps. School isn’t for everyone, you don’t ever have to go back if you don’t want to. Or, if you do want to later on, you can always go back. But this”—you tap the page laying out the steps of cell division—”won’t determine your worth, or your future, or anything that matters. The fact that you’re still trying despite your frustrations tells more about your character than this ever will.”

It’s not the first time Steve’s had this conversation with you. He hates it, each time the topic only comes up between you when he’s finally frustrated enough with himself to snap. It’s a cycle, and while he feels a little better each time, he can’t help but feel self conscious every time he thinks about how much he struggles with school. He just hopes that one day, when homework and studying and tests are all in the past, he can hold himself in a better light.

#steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington x you #steve harrington #stranger things #stranger things x reader #steve harrington blurb

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liminalweirdo · 5 months

Note

6 / 17 / 34 for the fic writer q's! <3

Thanks for such interesting questions! <3

6. Do you have your work beta'd? How important is this to your process?

I try to have my work beta'd/edited when I can. With fanfiction it's not always possible or practical. The only beta I have atm is my husband and I write faster than he feels up to editing which it absolutely fair, so usually I post things with just my own editing.

I say that the worst writing advice anyone ever gave me (or anyone) was "you don't need an editor," and I think that's mostly true. Fanfiction is... maybe not so serious, you know? I forgive other writers their typos and mostly just gloss over them and barely notice, but I hate when I find them in my own stories haha. But if you're doing something for publication, even if it's a self-pub — if multiple people are gonna be spending money on your finished product, please please please get an editor. Just my opinion as a writer, an editor, and a bookseller for over a decade. I've seen many an awful self-pub that could have been improved so much by editing.

I think a trusted second eye can make your work better. If I can't find an editor/beta reader I'll usually write something and try to edit it myself, but even though I have experience editing professionally (i.e. for money) I am still catching and correcting at least grammatical errors in my published work even months later, which sucks for the reader (sorry!). It's harder to edit your own stuff because you know what you meant so you tend to accidentally miss errors and not catch things that don't make sense/don't line up just right plot-wise, if that makes sense.

One of the tricks I use is handwriting my story and then, when I type it up I can often flesh out the story better, but that may just be how my brain works. Idk, see if it works for you!

Also, I'm usually willing to beta people's stories if they want me to so just lmk and I'll try to help out if I feel like I'm qualified (i.e. I know your fandom, and if I have enough time).

17. What do you do when writing becomes difficult? (maybe a lack of inspiration or writers block)

I never ever had writer's block until a few years ago, which fuckkinnnggg suuuuucks. The pandemic messed me up, I guess. I think the best thing is either just sitting down and writing either a set amount of words or for a set amount of time even if I hate every moment of it and if that's too much -- because let's face it, sometimes life/shit is hard — I will ... take a break! I'll either do something totally unrelated and let my brain chill out, or I'll re-watch the movie/film/read essays or other fic etc., just to get excited about it again. This is a lot harder in small fandoms or with things that have limited source material. When that happens I read/watch/find things adjacent to it and hope to find inspiration there.

34. Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?

I mean, I think and I hope I'll still be writing fanfiction. I hope that in five years things will be different with the pandemic and I'll be able to be more out in the world, actually having wider experiences again. If I ever publish anything, I think it will probably be nonfiction before it's fiction, but we'll have to see. I'd like the opportunity to write for film.

#liminal asks #liminal answers

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anhed-nia · 4 months

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You can really hear the smug voice of an insufferable grammar wonk dictating the tagline for this stupid movie. THE LESSON has one of my favorite movie problems to hate on, which is that it's about someone impossibly great at their craft creating an impossibly great masterpiece--a premise that almost no one can execute, unless you're like making THE RED SHOES with Moira Shearer who was beyond human, this is basically the worst plot setup ever. If you don't literally have the greatest living artist to help make your movie about the idea of the greatest living artist, just don't do it, I'm serious. And actually it's even worse when its a story about a great writer writing a great story, because what is that supposed to imply about the screenwriter who wrote it? And god forbid it's some sort of fantasy tale in which you get to have the uniquely insulting experience of a storyteller telling you that storytelling is literally magical, the implication being that the storyteller is himself some sort of high priest you should worship. But the king of this general problem is FINDING FORRESTER, a movie with all sorts of issues, the main one of which is that it's supposedly about "great writing" but you basically never catch a glimpse of what that consists of. It's like making KING KONG with no ape, just people telling you how big the ape is. Holy mackerel he was a whopper, take my word for it! Big, big ape. The biggest. As I recall your closest encounter with the amazing writing of the story's young prodigy comes when he drops his backpack while trespassing on scary Old Man Forrester's territory, and Forrester leaves notes all over his notebooks like "CONSTIPATED THINKING" and "ATMOSPHERE PUNGENT." Spoiler alert but near the end of FINDING FORRESTER, there is finally going to be a big public reading of an amazing essay--but then as soon as it starts, the music swells and there's just this hilarious montage of extras pretending to listen to something awesome. An amazing mass performance by all the extras.

So anyway THE LESSON is about how Richard E. Grant is a super amazing writer writing his highly anticipated next novel, and Daryl McCormack has to come to his palatial estate to tutor his neurotic son. Daryl spends a lot of time presumably doing great writing, spying on Richard E. Grant while he eats out his wife Julie Delpy, and spontaneously spouting verse or rattling off Wikipedia articles about great cultural figures. THE LESSON has a lot of cosmetic similarities to SALTBURN so it's really obvious that some sort of perverted plan is being hatched by one or more of the people involved, and like I just could not wait for them to get on with it. Daryl is so smarmy and precious and dewy-eyed I just wanted to punch him in is pretentious little face, I never imagined how angry I could be at someone just for reciting Shakespeare, I was really rooting for him to get victimized by the rich people. At least Richard E. Grant is always exciting even when he's saying the dumbest "smart guy" shit imaginable, he's such a demon, but this script is really the pits. It's almost like the guy who wrote it actually hates writing and writers and has some sort of bone to pick with people who are good enough to get novels published. Actually the guy who wrote it is a playwright who does some sort of comedy routine with an acoustic guitar, and I don't think I need to know a whole lot more about that. But at the same time this movie could have done with some jokes, and it was stingy of him not to offer them.

I do have one nice thing to say about THE LESSON though, which is that intermittently, for no particular reason, there are these great inserts of beavers dicking around in the idyllic pond by Richard E. Grant's house. It's so startling when it first happens because apparently beavers make THE WEIRDEST NOISE, it's so cool and fucked up, it sounds like a sick kazoo and I totally love it. I have to think that the beavers were included in the movie spontaneously during production just because they happened to be there and it always adds value to have random nature stuff if you can get it. Nobody ever refers to them, there are no other animals or animal-type metaphors in the picture unless you count some sort of analogy to Julie Delpy getting her beaver licked constantly. That would be pretty funny actually.

N.B. I couldn't find a video of the angry beaver noises that closely resembled the ones in the film. It would be weird if it was just some eccentric foley choice, I don't think it is, but in any case you'll just have to imagine it unless you want to watch THE LESSON.

I'll say one more thing about SALTBURN and then I'll stfu: I guess this is vaguely spoilery so stop reading if you care about that, even though I have to say I found that movie so obvious. By the time it finally gets around to its big perverted twist, I just kind of felt like, Well yeah, DUH. Usually I when I come to a movie like that, I tolerate the beautiful young people and stay for the psychotic debauchery, but in this case I found the movie's darkness so forced and condescending and basically meaningless that I couldn't bring myself to give a shit. The best parts of SALTBURN are when the beautiful young people are having a great time, trying on fun outfits and frolicking on the castle lawn. That seemed to me to be the most honest part of the movie, and actually I think that when people tell these stories about how rich people are secretly corrupt and dead inside despite their veneer of happiness and achievement, it's clear that they're really in it for the fetishistic depictions of extreme decadence, and the twist or the comeuppance part is just a cheap, moralizing excuse to fantasize at length about how awesome it would be to be rich. I guess SALTBURN's big excuse for existing is its ultimate assertion that being jealous of rich people is way sicker and more disgusting than being an actual rich person who hoards resources and plays games with the plebeians. I find that pretty suspect, and I think it would have been a better movie if it just let itself honestly fetishize power and luxury instead of making shady excuses.

#not blogtober

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aresmarked · 9 months

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kanamafu anon again! thank you for the lovely response! here’s an imo trickier niigo question: what do you think of ena’s dad?

i often see fans blow his shittiness out of proportion, like making him a physical abuser to the whole family or acting like he’s always been unsupportive when the text itself says he was supportive of ena’s art when she was a little kid. i agree that he’s shitty, but part of me thinks that… his relationship with ena can be salvaged, somehow? i know other fans wont forgive him even if he and ena get closure, which is fine, but i dont really feel that way? i keep trying to ask myself what sets him apart from, say, mafuyu’s mom in my mind, when they both say harsh things to their kids in an attempt to “protect” them. it’s like my brain’s really clinging to that part about how he wasn’t always like this, unlike mafuyu’s mom who has always used guilt tripping to control mafuyu. but maybe that’s silly of me, dunno. part of me thinks he’s just an emotionally stunted old man who is piss poor at phrasing things and that he just has some serious growing to do to salvage this, but then again maybe he shouldntve been a parent before that point and he still sucks because, again, he at least had the sense to not say “this art is shit” to, like, a seven year old so maybe it IS his fault? i do consider myself a fan of his character so i ponder this a lot. given your insight about mafuyu’s mom, though, i was just curious as to what you thought!

...Hfhfhf, almost right out of the gate with the essay questions. Hm.

I'd break my thoughts up about him into a few main points, but TL;DR if I knew a parent like this I'd go out of the way to make sure the kid gets some positive feedback from me, but he's a character/parent i could see improving in time.

He's one of those guys who's good at his craft but terrible at teaching. (You see these sorts a decent amount, for better or worse). While he had valid points, the way he chose to 'advise' isn't great. if a parent said something like that around me about one of their kids i'd have a Hard time reining it in.

As remarked upon in the game itself, he didn't talk to Ena as his daughter, but more as another artist, and moreover, I'd say, an adult artist. A few additional words would've made a huge difference in how Ena walked away from that conversation. like 'right now'. or advice on, y'know. what to actually work on. see point one again.

The major difference between him and Mafumom is that he does consider Ena's wishes, not hindering her from going into the arts, and not inserting himself where he's very much not wanted. He does respect what Ena wants to do.

Doesn't stop him having done a wrong and needing to repair that, to move forward. People are full of faults and strengths and I appreciate PSekai actually writing people with those. parents with those. it makes us feel even more strongly for ena cause yeah, a parent's mistake hurts a Lot! It makes a better tale cause it's real!

That said, while I think it's possible for Ena and her dad to potentially mend their relationship, as you say, such a mending will take time to believable and acceptable I think, not just to readers but to Ena. She's got no real interest in mending their familial relationship right now. and a 'forgive your parents' plotline when said parent hasn't taken real steps to actually mend the familial relationship would just be. so tired. that grounds been trod a thousand times. 'You'll understand when you're older'. i hate those plots where the kid forgives their parents without the parents really doing anything to reflect on their actions. the fact it's still a bit of a revolution when a parent does admit they've done wrong speaks mountains.

#project sekai #shinonome ena #anonymous #war replies #i'll be honest: i'm currently way more interested in shinomama with the glimpses we've seen in cards and the mafuena event #not only incredible at supporting her kids through tough times but others as well. i want to see her butt heads with mafumom #them being all ^-^ at each other while sparks fly between them

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goddamnwebcomics · 7 months

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6 years ago I gave some advice...

Let's see if I still agree with myself.

Write a script in literaturic form before turning it into comic, the script of the comic must be in advance at least three arcs before you start submitting content to the webs.

I still agree with that, but I don't think you need to go out of your way to write a script, you should also have a general plan of how things will go, even after the first three arcs. But a more "literaturic" script would also work, so you don't come up with shit on the fly.

List each planned thing for the future of your comic so you know what to foreshadow, if you lose interest on a thing you can remove it and all references to it from the script before you have published it. This prevents plot points that lead to nothing, and pointless foreshadowing.

Yes I agree with that, but there are more things to hint at future plot points and revelations than foreshadowing.

Even then it's not the biggest crime in the world if some plot point is abandoned in favour of something else, especially if there is some critical backlash or you feel like the idea isn't good enough. There is a rejected plot point in Peter and Company I won't spoil, but am glad was never really followed up on.

Not everything that suddenly comes is needed to be foreshadowed or built up to, but if it’s a huge twist, like character learning a new ability, don’t pull it out of the blue. Try to be as clever as possible but not too subtle.

I agree, but I do think sometimes ass pulls are justified when they're realistic like, I don't know, suddenly some character gets hit by a car and dies. Because that shit happens in real life. Of course it depends on how it's written, like don't make the character into a blatant diebait, and don't include it for the sake of a SHOCK.

Learn to keep an appropriate distance between comedy and serious stuff, comedy usually lightens serious story if used properly. And if you intend your comedy comic to be comedy, keep it comedy. Don’t transist to seriousness out of nowhere for whatever reason, because it’ll never stop being a comedy despite this. Take my advice.

Yeah.

Avoidfor the love of god taking influences from other webcomics, because those webcomics usually have taken their influence from shit things. Read books, and official printed comics, as well as pick up possible advice books written by masters of creative writing.

Yeah this feels overly elitist. Because just because you're inspired by something written by a great literaturist, doesn't mean your stuff will be good. You can take influence from bad webcomics too, you just have to make it better. Like Gene Catlow has a lot of great concepts, but you have to alter them, like Friendship Island would work well as a villain masquerading as a good entity.

Don’t plagiarize. Just because someone did it cool doesn’t mean you also do it cool. Think this is a school essay and that plagiarizing automatically gives your webcomic F–.

This is pretty useless advice because unless you're SuperSaiyanCrash you always have some awareness that you can't just completely rip something off from a more well-known source.

Not all non-webcomic influences are good though, so avoid using Dragon Ball Z, Lord of The Rings, H.P. Lovecraft’s work and other over-referenced things as influence. Someone’s masterpiece can be your disaster.

I...what? Yeah I probably used to think pop culture references were "influences" or something. And I remember I used to really hate superforms. Otherwise I can't make sense about any of this.

Underrated Creator of Influence is Music, listen to it and form images in your head what atmosphere you want your comic to have.

I agree, go with the mindset that the music you're listening to is like the soundtrack of your comic, and it might help paint a scene.

The most underappreciated influence of them all however, is the real life. I’m not talking putting self-inserts, but rather study nature, learn to use your imagination to make the most boring thing exciting and see fucked up dreams. Avoid doing drugs though, drug-influenced media was only acceptable in 80′s.

Oh you sweet summer child. You didn't know about Peter And Company back then.

This is terrible advice. What can you learn from nature? Unless you're trying to look for backgrounds and doing "pollution bad" story. Nature is something that should be reserved for mindfulness, not creativity.

I think going "HAHAHA WAS THIS MADE ON DRUUUUUUUGS" to anything weird or surreal is cringe, and the last part is not helping that. That and I have some friends whose creativity has been boosted from smoking weed. Just don't overdo it, and don't use dangerous shit like DMT.

There are two important rules regarding this type of story. First, don’t make characters, especially the main one, your mouthpiece or make your opinion or point of view the character’s good opinion, because that leads to Strawmanism, mary sue self-inserts and circlejerk hivemind settings buzzword buzzword.

I am...torn on this. I know that people love to say "every fictional character ever is a selfinsert" which is fucking wrong, but isn't the point of a story you're always trying to make the story's theme, message and whatnot align with how you see the world? Some people do it in more nuanced ways than others. And obviously the protagonist isn't always going to be good or sympathetic. I like a hero with flaws more than a perfect hero. I think my general point here is "the hero should not be a carbon copy of the author, unless you have some justification for it." And no, there is no such thing as "semi-autobiographical".

The Second Important Rule is Five Nos of Webcomic Subjects, five themes you must never insert into your webcomic, especially if you’re not a good writer and add them for “shock” or “drama”. They are environmental messages, political opinions on gun control, using anthropomorphic animals to carry anti-racism messages, miscarriage and rape. Using any of these in serious manner you have gone too far for attention and usually this leads to your comic becoming internet infamous, unless getting publicity one way or another is okay.

Five Nos of Webcomic Subjects is something I wish I had never come up with. Mainly because it feels like policing. That being said I do agree that using rape as a shock factor is terrible. The only way it's justified is if you're writing it to cope with your trauma of being SA'd or raped in the past. Rest of these topics should be handled with the biggest fucking nuance you possibly can. I don't know why I put gun control there, I am not even american!

Aesops are okay, and it’s okay for characters to teach something that you also see as a right method of life, but don’t teach that anyone who opposes it is a villain or such. You’re not George Orwell or Ayn Rand.

Oh for fucks sake. It's literally impossible to depict "side you hate" as not a strawman. I am not going to further touch this topic because the discourse around this topic is so rotten to the point it gives me radiation poisoning.

Never do something for shock value, don’t just avoid stuff that’s listed on the list of Five Nos, but also the murder of a child or an animal most people find adorable. You’re an absolute piece of shit and should stay away from anything creative as far as possible unless you’re intentionally doing this just to trigger people and cause controversy, then you’re just a loser.

This is still true. You heard that, UrbanSPOOK?

Settings that are set on Fantasy World, High School, Space or Superhero-infested universe are overdone, so if you’re using it try to pull an interesting twist to it. If you’re not trying to break any new grounds, just try writing an entertaining story.

Once again this is elitist. It's not cliche to have a story on any of these settings, it's about how you portray it. That being said if you're doing it with "I hate every work set on this genre" mindset, I will make fun of you.

I still agree with the last part though. Not everything needs to be a deconstruction or subvertation of expectations.

For the love of god, AVOID settings where anthropomorphic animals and humans live together in harmony or war. This is never done properly. Ever. Also, if you’re trying to do anthropomorphic animal story, don’t do it to expose your furriness. You can also make an anthro animal story entertaining.

I disagree with all of this. I think it's all bullshit. Sad truth is furries are more dedicated to the craft of writing webcomics than anybody else. Why else would I have SO MANY furry webcomics on the rifflist???

No character in your comic should ever have a superform, moving on.

Female characters are an interesting piece of cake,let’s get this down though, Strong Independent Female Characters are even more blander than stereotypical damsels.They have only one character trait, they‘re women but they fight.Making your female character STRONK and INDEPENDENT isn’t revolutionary, it’s as generic as possible. What you should do is to write female characters like how you see them suiting your story without trying to pander to PC bullshit, because then you just come across as pretentious.

I still...kinda agree with this aside from the last part. Let's just say, the defining trait of a female character shouldn't be they're a woman. It goes both ways.

I’m not that good talking about diversity

And I still am not.

Villains must have a motivation, other than “i’m evil”, “i want revenge” and “i represent the side of the world author finds uncomfortable and scary”. You know you’ve made a bad villain if you’ve basically created an edgy teenager who might also be a school shooter. Villains need to show sympathy to at least someone and they should also have an excellent fashion sense. I’ve heard someone say Flawed Webcomic Protagonist makes a good villain, so seek on to that.

Flawed Webcomic Protagonist still makes a good villain and Gene Catlow is proof of that.

Once again this feels elitist. We kinda live in post-villain society where a lot of the mainstream stuff is afraid to depict a villain that is evil for the sake of evil. It's funny how villains who have sympathetic backstories became so common when in real life, evil people are evil for the sake of being evil.

But what about a third option, a villain who thinks they are the hero? Someone who acts like everything they do is for the greater good, they've just mastered good PR, therapy speak and logical fallacy accusations to make themselves unquestionable source of virtue? The definition of "Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions".

I used to not understand what they meant by "villain who thinks they're the hero" until I saw what Family of Intelligent Life is. This goes back to Flawed Webcomic Protagonists making good villains.

Fanservice is okay, as long as it doesn’t distract from the plot

Fanservice is still okay even if it distracts from the plot. Just don't make it Monster Girl Academy please.

Don’t use your fetishes as fanservice, or disguise them to be part of a joke. Please.

Everything is fetish now. So don't write anything. Got it.

But seriously, I feel like "haha is that a fetish" has harmed creativity immensely. We have people overreacting on Twitter to that new Mario game because there's inflations and elephants.

Yes, there are times when writer's overly specifc fetish sticks out like a sore thumb and webcomics are the biggest example of this, but don't act like it's possible to make something with nothing anybody would find kinky. It's only bad when a sicko is making something absolutely disgusting that they get off to under the guise of "commentary" or "horror" (again, looking at you UrbanSPOOK)

I am not the kind of person to be asked about this, because i believe good script makes up for bad art, but good art doesn’t make up for bad script, you heard it Spinnerette.

I STILL stand by this after all these years. That being said, good script can't justify inconsistent artstyles, bad designs or worse redesigns!

I have one thing to say about art, if you want to go with anime-inspired style, it’s okay. Just don’t include chibi faces or other animu art cliches.

I still don't like chibi faces. Oddly enough it's a webcomic specific issue. I don't really have an issue about those in anime and manga because they have the hometown advantage, of course if it's overused or it causes tonal issues I am still going to complain about that.

I don't know what other "animu art cliches" are there, speed lines?

Don’t get your style inspired from so-called “Cal Arts style”, or Steven Universe art style. This website fucking loves that style, and it’s used to make some terrible false-ass diversity shit. Even good script can’t save how simplistic and….ugly that style is.

I stopped using that term the minute I learned John Kricfalusi was the one to create that term, and it didn't originally even apply to Steven Universe style, just any mainstream american style in general. John K's style is not any better.

What people call "Cal Arts style" has been on its way out since the pandemic, and it's just another style that will pass. I think people only hated it because of the Tumblr noses. Like I am willing to admit, I hate the tumblr noses too, but it's odd because Steven Universe almost never features those noses.

I will still raise an eyebrow if I see a webcomic use that style instead of something more unique. But trust me, I've seen bad artstyles that are even worse than the "Cal Arts" style.

Let’s get one thing down, react to critism with neutrality, don’t get angry at people who don’t like your comic. I know there’s a difference between troll saying “this is shit” for cheap reaction and a person in actual real life way disliking your comic, but as person with good guts you should learn to see the difference.

Yes, not sure what critism is, but it's funny how I advocate for neutrality when I also tell you to learn to differentiate between flaming and reviewing.

Listen, flaming, riffing and reviewing are all different levels of criticism. Flaming is destructive, reviewing is constructive and riffing is...in between. Like obviously I am not going to start acting like my blog is all 100% constructive criticism, I like having fun, I like cussing out fictional characters, I like making stupid theories. But if the author of any comic I was riffing came to me, I would be able to present them with genuine critique. And that's why I make separate reviews for webcomics after the riffing is over. I am also open to criticism myself, which is why I am critiquing all this advice!

If people start liking a character audience isn’t supposed to like, don’t kill them off. It just makes you come across as petty douche. Unless you’re trying to be George R.R. Martin, then at least kill them because plot demands them to be killed.

I still agree a lot with the first part. Don't kill a fanfavourite off just because you don't like them.

Killing characters is rather so-and-so, don't do it for the sake of a shock. And also if the character is dead, most of the time they should stay DEAD. Don't pull Marvel or Dragon Ball and resurrect everyone all the time.

And that was me critiquing my old advice. A lot of it is a product of my mindset back then, but there was still a lot of valid advice. And it could've been a lot worse, it could've been Lily Orchard's writing advice. I might look at that another day.

#article thingy

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i-am-minty-fresh · 1 year

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Topic Essay:

Fandom: One Piece

Topic: Luffy

Sub-Topic: The Moron

!Spoiler Warning!

I’m gonna (try to) make a much more broad topic essay about Luffy as a member of the strawhats later, but I was watching a video by LonerBox titled “Joe Rogan and the Hard Men” (which is really good, sidenote) and I started to think about the type of ‘Main Character’ that Luffy is and…I decided to write about it!

Clarification: This post isn’t supposed to be attacking the characterization of other main characters from various shows, even the ones I will bring up in this essay. For every character mentioned in this essay, keep in mind that I have either watched all the shows and/or I am an active fan of the show. I’m not here to say that Luffy is the best main character ever, I’m really just trying to break down why I specifically am as attached to him compared to other main characters I’ve seen before.

Stupid and Straightforward: For anime specifically there tends to be two types of main male characters in like shogun anime:

The Genius

The Moron

The best example of this trope is with Chainsaw Man. To avoid spoiling as much as I can, Denji is your trademark stupid guy. He has a one track mind and little to no patience or sense of decorum. He’s more than a little selfish, cocky, and has zero sense of self-preservation. He also enjoys eating out, making friends, and hanging out with Power, you know…the simple things. He’s your Moron. Aki on the other hand is your stuck-up twat. He’s cold, and serious. He’s got a tragic backstory that fuels his passion. He hates how dependable Denji is for how fucking stupid he acts, while also being pretty destructive when he wants. He’s your Genius.

This is a very common trope because it creates a bit of light-hearted tension between characters without it having to mean anything more than they have completely different personality traits. Natsu vs Gray (or Natsu vs Erza) from Fairy Tail, Tamaki vs Kyoya from Ouran Highschool Host club, Kirito vs Asuna from Sword Art Online, etc. (I know, I have a pretty shit taste in Anime but my point still stands). Even in traditional media it’s not uncommon to see the laid-back, do nothing, extraverted character becoming sort-of-frenemies with the quiet, up-tight, introverted character in an opposites attract kind of way.

Of course not all main characters fall into this grouping (Tanjiro from Demon Slayer, Yumeko from Kakegurui, Light and L from Death Note, etc.) but the more simple the anime is the more likely, in my experience, that these kinds of characters are used.

As I mentioned before, this is not a critique of this trope, if anything it's my analysis of why I like the trope as much as I do, but I digress.

When we first meet Luffy, it’s obvious that he’s supposed to be the moron. From falling asleep in a barrel when he can easily drown, to not noticing the bad situation he’s in, to not taking the easy way out of said situation (i.e. just complementing Alveria), to announcing he will be King of the Pirates, this is our lovable moron. The more we watch the show/read the manga, the more he checks the boxes: Selfish? Check. Zero self-preservation? Check. Enjoying the simple things? Check? No Patience? Double Check.

Alright we have our moron, now we need our genius. I’m putting emphasis on need here because without a genius the moron can be a little…hard to be around. The reason the duality works is because it lets the viewer enjoy the best parts of both personalities without having to deal with all the negatives. Without the genius, the moron can hit a break wall and try to brute force their way through it without figuring out a logical way out, while without the moron, the genius can waste time by wanting to plan out every possible step. With that said, now we need the genius…well that’s when One Piece I think, really starts to show what makes it different.

Not a Braincell in Sight: One Piece has its fair share of smart characters. From characters held as geniuses like Law and Robin, to geniuses in their field like all the strawhats, to kings and princesses there has never really been a shortage of smart people in the show that could be used as the genius to Luffy’s moron but…it doesn’t. It’s kind of implied that everyone on the ship is smarter than Luffy, by occasionally a comically wide margin. Even characters that the strawhats meet later, even the fucking kids they meet later, are smarter than Luffy by comparison, but it doesn’t matter.

Because He Runs The Ship.

Whether that be literally, in that he is the Captain or because he’s probably right and so everyone has to just follow his lead. He’s a selfish moron, but he’s also exactly what every person he meets needs. When he meets Vivi, she has overcomplicated her task. Not only does she have to save Alabasta, but she has to do it without anyone dying. She outlines how best to do it, planning, plotting, strategizing. Luffy breaks it down for her, he has to beat Crocodile and then everything will work out. Is he wrong? Not really. Without Crocodile, the Baroque Works has no reason to keep framing the king and with due time, peace will come. You can of course speed up this process if you fix your perception and build back trust before the end of the war, but it doesn’t make it wrong. The same thing happens at Dressrosa with Doflamingo. Luffy’s right to kick Doflamingo’s Ass, not just because he’s a douchebag, but because what brain cell was Law running on to think that if Luffy and him can’t beat Doflamingo, that beating Kaido is even possible. Luffy picks who to fight, Luffy picks how far into other people’s problems he’s going to go, Luffy saves whoever he wants whenever he wants. Everyone else in One Piece acts as the Genius, the people who are too into their own thoughts to get out of their own misery. Sanji and Franky refusing to join because of a debt they created for themselves, Chopper, Usopp, and Robin not believing that they have the right to join such a crew, Zoro and Nami not believing that they’re strong enough, and Brook’s total insanity. They are the one’s complicating their lives, and Luffy is here to simplify things.

I’m Going to Become King of The Pirates!

Luffy doesn’t know what the practical application of those words mean. He doesn’t know about Laugh Tale, or the Polyglyphs, or the Warlords and Emperors that he’ll need to fight to get there…because his job is to be the moron. The simple minded, self-sacrificing, impatient, child who gets his way no matter what. Every other character in the show acts as the genius, but not to dull his loud personality but rather to protect it. His crew is tasked with knowing everything else, his only real job is to always win…and he always does!

Conclusion: As I have mentioned before I can write a million essays about Luffy as a character, but to me he’s a character that knows that he is the moron. He cannot use a sword, or cook, he cannot sail, or snipe, he cannot bandage wounds, or read the polyglyphs, or fix ships, or write songs. He knows his limitations and does his best. He can not be the Pirate King without his friends, and no one knows that more than him.

I love the silly little stretchy boy with my whole heart!

#one piece #monkey d luffy #topic essay #character analysis

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