#enjoy your little gay blorbos

[cruilty-ink]

got around to doing @triona-tribblescore dtiys

And one without the front piece

They're Titanicing

Also congrats on 2k!

#Rottmnt #Anlfm #triona2kdtiys #enjoy your little gay blorbos #The colours messed with me a bit #But I got it eventually #Enjoy #:D

[suffersinfandom]

I feel for the Izzy fans, I really do. It sucks to have your favorite character killed off, especially when you feel like their death serves no narrative purpose. It genuinely hurts to lose a character that you identify closely with, and it's okay to be sad and grieve. The character might not be real, but the grief is. Let people mourn. Don't be rude to the ones who are just being sad in their little corners of the internet, yeah?

That said.

Some of the stuff I've seen in the OFMD fandom today? Worst shit I've seen in a fandom that I love and care about, and grief is no excuse. I know I'm a no one in this fandom and I'm mostly typing into a void, but I've got to get some things out:

The show doesn't deserve to be canceled. None of the creators, producers, or writers deserve to be canceled. Nothing queerphobic, homophobic, or ableist happened.

Izzy's death was not an insult or a cruelty or a targeted attack.

David Jenkins and the rest of the writers did not gaslight and abuse anyone (yeah, those are take I've seen).

It wasn't "objectively" a cheap or meaningless or badly-written death. You can hate it and that's okay, but that's still subjective!

Izzy was not the main character or the "heart" of the show. The heart of the show -- the show itself -- is Ed and Stede's relationship. We have been told as much.

"Ed hasn't faced any consequences for his actions." He has though? He didn't gaslight girlboss his way back into everyone's hearts. Izzy is not Ed's hapless and helpless victim. He was almost beaten to death and ran around in a penitence onesie with a catbell on; I think those were consequences.

"How do you feel when gay characters are randomly killed off to help a straight couple progress their narrative? Not good, huh? That's how disabled fans feel." It's okay to feel that way, but don't make any sweeping assumptions about disabled fans. I'm disabled and I'm gonna say that's not what happened here.

"How dare you kill off this character who's abused, flawed, suicidal, disabled, and queer!" Ed is still right over there, yeah? Check, check, check, check, and check. (Little note: I've seen a lot of "he's not disabled!" Even if you don't buy the kneebrace ((Ed Teach with bad joints is so important to me, shhh)), what about invisible disabilities? What about mental health issues? I'm not here to diagnose a fictional character, but it's clear to me that Ed has mental health problems that dramatically impact his life.)

"It's sick that Izzy died in the arms of his abuser apologizing to him." I don't even know where to start with this one, but I get the feeling that some parts of the fandom only consider physical abuse valid. Mental, verbal, and emotional abuse are pretty fucking damaging and I think it's sick that some folks think they aren't actually abuse.

People who enjoyed the last episode of season two aren't media illiterate. People who love Gentlebeard aren't abusive narcissists.

I just.

I really, truly feel for Izzy fans for I too have lost a blorbo. I'm giving a huge hug to the Izzy enjoyers who aren't out there making threats and calling everyone abusers and being outright hostile to anyone who had the nerve to enjoy this season. Like, I genuinely hope you guys are doing okay, and if you need an ear, I'm game.

#ofmd #ofmd s2 spoilers #cw: abuse #tw: abuse #i'm just frustrated and sad #fandom critical #day two: still bad #but i've seen some very cool izzy fans out there talking down their friends #as well as some kind and patient words from neutral parties #this fandom is still mostly good and kind #day three: i think we're doing better! #day four: backsliding :( #me typing things

[swashbucklery]

Out of curiosity why do you ship sabine and shin ?

Okay anon so I am trying to figure out how to approach this ask because I know that this fandom has a real problem with bad-faith actors looking to troll Wolfwren shippers and I do not have the patience to deal with that, but also I do want to talk about them because they're lovely.

So. If you are asking because you're a troll, the answer is that I'm a big mean lesbian who likes ruining Star Wars and gets off on making innocent fanboys cry, #sorrynotsorry, it's part of my Terrible Queer Ruining Agenda and I am going to be doing it every second Tuesday until society as you know it has crumbled into gay dust.

If you're not a troll: because they hit this very particular combination of Trope Buttons that makes me ever so happy, anon!

Because it's about - like, there are ships that I love because they are a type of loving partnership that entrances me, where I see myself or see the type of love that speaks to my soul and want to enjoy the process of rolling around in it like a cat in nip. Then there are ships that I love because I'm attached to a particular character where like - this blorbo deserves the world and that includes a healing love, a warm love, a love that cultivates a space for them to rest after the harsh world around them has bruised them ever so.

THEN there are ships where - the dynamic fascinates me and I want to dig deeper into it. Where it's not about cultivating love as much as it is taking what's on screen to its gayest and most extreme possible endpoint, and that's where Sabine/Shin really gets me.

It's about the deep obsession of nemeses and the way that can feel inherently queer. It's about the ways that they are both mirrors and opposites. The way that Sabine carries so much anger and self-loathing and shame and guilt in her little heart and constantly pretends that she doesn't. The way that limits her throughout the series is riveting to me.

It's the idea of Shin, who in may ways is a more successful Jedi but in other ways is a sad, lonely little weirdo who has no community except for this weird old man and pretends that she's fine with it but can't be.

The way that they are both successes and failures in ways that mirror each other, the way that they orbit each other as nemeses and fight constantly but in their darkest moments have a weird little glimmer of - not love, but the beginnings of compassion.

And I have seen lots of writers and artists who look at that glimmer and see it as the beginning of a 200k slowburn story where they bicker and argue and slowly tenderize each other into being people who can be vulnerable, who learn to soften their prickly edges to fit around each other. And that's wonderful, and that's a beautiful way to ship Sabine & Shin.

For me, it's more about digging into that weird, fucked up little place of what if they didn't. What if they stayed fucked up and didn't soften but those orbits got closer and closer together. What if it wasn't toweringly romantic what if the orbit was the path of a comet colliding with a moon. What if that was somehow what each of them needed even though they both hated needing it. What does it feel like to confront the fact that sometimes our desires and what we want our desires to be don't align? What would it be like to envelop that in the complex ten-dimensional web of denial that both of them embody; desiring but pretending not to desire, indulging but pretending not to indulge. How far could that go before it hit a crisis point? What would that crisis point be?

There are so many stories there and that's fascinating and a thing that I find fun to explore in fiction, anon. If that's not for you, that's totally alright but there might be other dimensions that I described above where they ping with your interests more.

Or, they might just not be for you, and that's also okay.

#anyway they're weird and gay and fucked up #and i refuse to uwuify them do it if that's your thing #but i prefer it when they bite each other and have sexually charged duels #night of the living anons #shin hati: murder murder laser murder #sabine wren: tender feelings laser sword #wolfwren #ahsoka series #go see a star war

[toxictoxicities]

                                   /|                |\                                   /  |                |  \         _____        <3    \  |   _____   |  / –  /    <>  \ –           –  /  :{_}:   \ – |   |    O     O |  |     |   | O    O    |  | –  \ _____ / –          –  \/\___/\/ – (_______)                {_._._._._} /        |  |   \              /              \  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!! sorry i'm a little late i was going to doodle you something but motivation was not motivating enjoy some ascii art of your favorite gay blorbos :)

BELOVED QUEERS FEYDGWHUD

also ure perfectly fine man! This is wonderful enough <3 !

#thank you!!! ^^ #QNA #toxtalk #beloved queers #trafficlights #srs #nsh #rw #rain world #i love em

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

Spoiler for Jujutsu Kaisen

I'm sorry it's so long and looks like a vent post. I'm sorry for those of you who had great luck in avoiding Jujutsu Kaisen until now. With that, let me give some context before the assholery.

Jujutsu Kaisen has a breakout character, Gojo, he is unique, flawed, well written, well loved, overpowered, and the most misunderstood character in this series. He recently met his end in the most infuriating way possible. It was an unceremonious death, off screened, after the biggest most violent battle in the series. Before he was brutally offed with just meaningless exposition detailing how he was killed and him uncharacteristically justifying the death in an afterlife scene that's written to appease a large part of the fandom (shippers- he's gay coded, no waifu here). His death completely destroyed his legacy and the future of this manga.

Problem: This is a popular series with disproportionate numbers of haters, casual fans, fans who get their information from tiktok or fanworks instead of the manga, fans who did a surface level reading of it, opinionated fans who didn't read after a certain point but discuss every new chapter like they're experts, people who hate it because they compared it to their favorite series and Jujutsu Kaisen didn't go that way, people who harass the readers and wish bodily harm on the author for not conforming to FANON, the works.

Gojo was MIA for almost 3 years which made fanon takeover the fandom, when he came back the author was accused of mischaracterization and bad writing because he didn't match 3 years of fanon. Reiterating, I mean fanon not headcanon, the headcanons here are almost all fanon based too and you will get nasty anons if you say you dislike FANON or praise CANON but I believe in people's right to headcanon.

My relationship with this: I've been a fan since 2019, this character of Gojo resonated with me like no one did in my 20+ years in fandom, he is my specialest blorbo, his relationship with his best friend has moved me etc. I'm autistic and this is my special interest as well. Needless to say depression has hit me like a freight train.

MY problem: My friend of 7 years who's currently deeply into yuri and danmei, who shared many fandoms with me, has been through the thick and thins with me, has decided to make me an enemy. When the chapter came out he chatted with me sent his condolences. Then he in his own social medias started talking about how he knew it was going to be a bad series, how he's glad he quit after struggling through 50 chapters, made all the jokes in the world about this death, discussed every little thing he hated and mocked this with his other weeb friends who are like the people I mentioned in the Problem section, validated all their complaints based on their reading of the FANON. He has had many discussions with me about this manga and very rarely did he express any of this negativity.

My assholery: I got frustrated, it was like he wanted me to see how much he could hurt me. I messaged him saying, "Hey what are you saying here, that's not how this character is written. The chapter is bad but this criticism is baseless and in bad faith" He laughed it off, "It's not that deep, this is fiction." I argued that's a shallow thing to say, he said it should have been like FANON since that makes more sense. I said that's conventional writing I thought we wanted different things than the same old nice characters in found family and such.

Then I said something about his favorites and hypocrisy, he said he's not so into it that he couldn't take criticism. I said that was a lie he's always writing essays about those characters. I also said criticize it for the right reasons damn it. He kept denying his own love for his fave so he could keep criticizing mine, because he at least had the sense to not fall for a shounen series. I asked if he was enjoying hurting me. He said are you for real, get a grip and stop justifying your behavior for fiction, they won't giving you cookies for defending them, if you can't bear to see negativity then feel free to mute or block. I snapped and said this is why no one likes casual fans, you can't keep your mouth shut about things you don't know. Have fun with being a two faced friend to everyone. Then I blocked him everywhere.

Some of my friends said I should have muted him long ago, I said this was inevitable if he was just going to validate everyone in vicinity, he had to pick a side. Others said I was right to tell him off. I regret some of the comments I made now.

AITA for the way I handled it? He is right, I could have muted him, I could have not spent my time doomscrolling and seeing all the bad takes he agreed with. I could have waited it out and not dropped an old friend over fiction. I could have done many things.

Please don't comment about touching grass, that's the least helpful thing anyone can say on blorbo the website. It's not a real advice we all know that. Therapy is also there for the depression and it will take years for me to get over the death, you don't need to remind me.

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

[lurkingshan]

10 Things I Love About 3 Will Be Free

I am very late on this one, I know it! But this week I finally sat down with @wen-kexing-apologist and binged the whole thing, and had a grand ol’ time doing it. @waitmyturtles the verdict is two enthusiastic thumbs up. This was such a fun romp, and here are a few of the things I loved most about it:

SHIN MY BELOVED

Guess who has a new blorbo!! In hindsight it is absolutely absurd that it took a Tay Tawan girlie like me so long to watch this show, because Shin is an instant entry on the all-time fav characters list. I love his sad gay ass. He’s sensitive, he’s lonely, he’s repressed, he’s far too susceptible to Stockholm syndrome, and I would protect him with my life.

Mae

A working class trans character with an actual plot?! Thank you for your endless gifts, P’Jojo. Sure, my girl Mae made some questionable choices (just a little light murder!), but listen, I support her, in the words of @wen-kexing-apologist, embracing her feminine rage. And in the end, she figured out exactly the right target for her rage and lived her best life.

Miw

A Survivor. Gets shit done. Absolutely will kill a man if he forces her hand. Loyal to her boyfriends even when it would probably be smarter to ditch them. Also, she so pretty.

Neo’s tanks and crop tops

I never claimed not to be shallow.

Neo and Shin’s backstory

Episode 5 was my favorite of the show and the moment it really clicked for me. I loved getting a glimpse of Shin’s lonely and dejected teen years (I just wanna talk, Ken 🔪🔪🔪). I loved that the basis of Neo and Shin’s relationship and initial attraction was the way they played together. Shin laughed more in his few days with Neo than he probably had in the several years preceding them. I loved that Neo gave him his first kiss and that Shin treasured those memories so dearly.

The Worst Criminals Of All Time

Truly remarkable these three are still alive by the end of the show. Their ideas were half-baked and their execution was severely lacking. They never had a plan they thought all the way through and they never had a single scheme that went off without a hitch. Luckily, the bad guys chasing them were also thoroughly incompetent, so it all evened out. The only smart person in this show was Miw’s mom, who knew the only prudent move was to stay the hell out of this mess.

Miw and Shin’s friendship

I just love that these two developed their own bond, even though they’re not into each other the same way they’re both into Neo. They both risked their lives to save the other. They tease and joke with each other. Shin literally wanted to bring his new bestie home to live with him. They’re adorable.

This weird little guy

Toptap. My guy. What are you doing here and why are you being so strange? Are you good, are you bad, are you chaotic neutral? Who can tell! Certainly not me. But I enjoyed every moment your weird ass was on the screen.

There's a polyamorous relationship, and it’s depicted onscreen!

Okay, here’s the part where I admit my expectations for the poly romance in this show were a liiiiiiilttle off base. I must gently rib the fandom for leading me to believe this show would have any actual sex in it (or really a focus on romance at all) and once again recite to myself a universal truth: gifs removed from context are so misleading. At the same time, I also must acknowledge how groundbreaking it was at the time to depict polyamory at all. I would have loved a bit more time spent on the actual relationship dynamics and the emotional complexities of this triad they formed, but I recognize that’s not really what this show was about and appreciate they included a polycule in the first place. Now that it’s 2023 and he’s been give a lot more freedom, I look forward to Jojo’s further exploration of sexy polycules in Only Friends.

Against all odds, these crazy kids got their happy ending

When this show started I did not see any way for them to come out of this in good shape. I was going to be happy if they simply survived. But not only did they survive, they are thriving! Shin has inherited his dad’s legitimate business and discovered he looks hot in a deep V. Neo and Miw are living that beach life they deserve. Everyone loves each other and everyone is at peace. A+, 10/10, would watch again.

#3 will be free #3wbf #thai drama #10 things #shan shouts into the void

[celluloidbroomcloset]

https://celluloidbroomcloset.tumblr.com/post/735562286934245376/yknow-and-props-to-jenkins-for-seeing-the

Sorry but I have to rant about this a bit. Not about your addition though! It's entirely about the Izzy canyon op's clear intentions with that post. You don't have to post this, I just need to get it out of my system. 😅

I just love how the canyon is trying to turn fans against Jenkins. Sorry canyon op, it was always a romcom and Ed and Stede were always a real love story. Jenkins might've changed his mind on some of the details, but it was always a queer romance. Every other one of the collected articles and quotes they helpfully linked shows that very clearly, so thanks for that canyon op.

Sorry again canyon op, but that one quote doesn't suddenly turn the show into a barely dodged queerbait either. A queer romance possibly not having a storybook happy ending in its original plan does not mean it's "not a real love story" or anything resembling queerbait. (somebody please take that word away from the internet, I am begging!) What it is is a sweet love story in a fun romcom and he even gave it a clear happily ever after ending intentionally in case they aren't renewed.

And yes, the cast's influence on their characters and their stories is awesome and wonderful and at Jenkins' suggestion. They wouldn't have been allowed even a tiny fraction of the freedom Jenkins gave them to shape their characters on most other shows. That actors, directors, writers, and showrunner could all work together so closely and so well to create this incredible show is very telling of the kind of showrunner Jenkins is and it's a rare one.

Jenkins may not be perfect, but that one quote doesn't suddenly make him less of an ally or any less amazing for putting this fun little queer as all hell show into our lives! It doesn't make the show any less joyful! I'd say it makes it more so for having this straight man, as good an ally as he is, see and realize what it would mean to people to have this thing and willfully change his plans to make it even better for us. He didn't have to give Ed and Stede such a wonderful ending this season and yet he did! He did it because he wants them, and us, to be happy.

I'm sorry your blorbo died, canyon op, but Jenkins is not "losing the other half of the fandom" now. The canyon aren't even half of the fandom to begin with! It's a very loud minority that I wish would just leave the rest of us to enjoy the show in peace instead of trying to turn us all against it. 😒

Lol - you know what’s hilarious? I honestly didn’t look at the source of that post. I’d heard some of this stuff before and was like “oh, yeah, it sounds like Jenkins changed focus and it worked really well!” Because…that’s the nature of art, especially a collaborative art like film and TV, and it seems clear that other writers, the performers, etc. all helped to shift focus, and Jenkins himself saw the potential and went with it, even likely listened to the queer people on the show to help guide it. Which is…normal and good?

I dunno what this show might do for season 3, and it’s perfectly possible that they sacrifice good will for some strange narrative about-face, but that will have fuck-all to do with Izzy actually being the main character and everything to with…everything else on the show.

In regard to the whole weird Izzy discourse…I barely poked my head into this fandom during the first season, but obviously have done a lot more than that now. And I was immediately just confused by the cadre who seem to think Izzy was the main character. You mean…the angry homophobic white dude who tried to kill one of our leads multiple times and then sent our other lead into a suicidal spiral by telling him to stop acting so gay? THAT dude? Isn’t he, like, the villain?

I dig what they managed with Izzy and I was so happy to actually care about him instead of just hating him, but his narrative function is to advance the Stede/Ed relationship. He’s less independent, narratively, than most of the Revenge crew. His death was sad and it made sense. * shrugs*

I’m still honestly a bit concerned that ANYONE looked at Izzy in Season 1 and went “that’s my guy!” That’s…disturbing, my dudes.

#reply #ofmd s2 #izzy hands #ofmd

[lambert-simnel]

just showed the first three episodes of Torchwood to my best mate while he recovers from top surgery because now I have a captive audience for my insanity

long fucking post of my opinions under the cut

First of all the audio stings and sound track and burned into my fucking frontal cortex I watched it for the first time 3 years ago and the moment i heard it again I was like yeah this is all i’m gonna hear for months now

I honestly remembered it as worse than it is, first ep is not super batshit, the dialogue is insane but well written, my friend was like “why did you think i wouldn’t like this??”

also to add to my Owen bullshit i had completely forgotten his fucking gay kiss moment in episode 1?? like why do they never revisit this like I know we joke about how every character is bi but he is the first character confirmed as bi and then he just never gets to make out with dudes again?? (also yeah that scene completely unethical like massive date rape vibes I am aware) my friend really liked Susie which was a shame lol seeing as she doesn’t stick around but anyway

He actually really enjoyed the sex gas ep like all the stuff with the girl purposefully using the alien sex murder to kill her shitty ex boyfriend my friend was like “jennifer’s body could never” like we do joke about this ep a lot but it is interesting. my friend also didn’t think the complete hornyness was bad like he said that it’s about being in your 20’s so it works. I honestly remembered it being a lot more immature around sex and now i’m actually in my 20’s i’m like no i know people like this, it’s like being a horny teenager but with a lot less angst around sex this kinda makes sense.

What I will say is I had forgotten how many unsolicited sexual comments people make especially Jack and Owen it’s definitely a product of it’s time in that regard especially as Owen is treated as a fuck boy but Jack is “charming”. Obviously episode 3 is kinda Owen realising he’s part of the problem so like early character development yay but yh I did get worried showing it to my friend while i’m soft launching him as my new blorbo of the week lol.

anyway, i was pleasantly surprised that i remembered it as worse than it is and that my friend is now hopefully going to be as insane as I am about this and it’s fuelling my anger about what happened to Tosh and Owen.

they are so prevalent in the early episodes, Owens gets basically his own episode in episode 3!! Ianto barely shows up until obviously ep 4 is cyberwoman and it was probably intentional to have him fade into the background early on so he’s more secretive but still??

like I remember so clearly being confused about how little screen time he got and how much Tosh and Owen got when I knew he was in the doctor who crossover so I knew he was a big deal, it just fucking sucks that Tosh and Owen were clearly major characters from day one and they just get dropped for Gwen and Ianto later on !!

#long post #torchwood #bbc torchwood #doctor who #torchwood spoilers

[mclarenyaoi]

list 5 songs you've been enjoying recently — tysm @albontology for the tag!! apologies in advance for the yapping lol i like my tunes ^^'

"andy, you're a star" by the killers — there are two different interpretations of this song and i enjoy both of them but i enjoy the one where its abt gay yearning WAY MORE

"agnes" by glass animals — how to be a human being is one of my fav albums OF ALL TIME.. anyways agnes is an incredibly sad song but its fantastic and a great ultimate song for the album

"死にたがり" (shinitagari) by 梨本うい (nashimoto ui) feat. hatsune miku — first heard in a homestuck pmv when i was in my homestuck kick a couple years ago but its surpassed that (the pmv is still great tho lets not get it twisted)

"i want you to know that i'm awake/i hope that you're asleep" by car seat headrest — 8 minutes and 43 seconds of realizing i relate a little too much to 2014 will toledo. and like the whole album is good, car seat headrest is good, i <3 csh. honorary mention to my boy, the song of all time (true)

"kitty kat" by megan thee stallion — idk how many of yall watch rupauls drag race but. yeah morphine fucking bodied dawn rip i was rooting for her and more importantly that lipsync reminded me i LIVE for megan thee stallion. loveee body ofc but ive been listening to kitty kat more =^u^= meow

very sorry if anyone im tagging has already been tagged!! no pressure @box-box-blorbos @oscah @solitaire-enthusiast @inchidentally and if YOU are seeing this... consider letting people know about your enjoyed tunes

#tag game #simon says #for reference no one needs to talk abt every song i did tho bc i like talking

[chrononautintraining]

All right! Fine! I’m in! Can you recommend me your favorite fic in the non-hobbit fandom that you post about a lot? I’m not familiar with it all so a fic that explains canon a little more than an a total AU would be best

No biggie if you don’t want to recommend any hahaha just send me on my way with a ‘no’

Yes! Join us! You must be referring to The Untamed, which is a Chinese drama based on a web novel translated into English under the name The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation. It has a lot to recommend it to Hobbit fans! Swords! Legendary monsters! Do you like that scene in the Fellowship of the Ring where the hobbits stumble across the ancient tomb and are almost laid to rest by a barrow-wight, but come out with the Numenorean blades? I have good news about both leveling up weaponry in graveyards and ancient tombs!

If your preferred way to enter a fandom is a fic rec, I have to say A Narrow Bridge by JoLaSalle and FrameofMind is my current favorite. It's a Fix-it-AU that tells most of the early canon through flash back scenes while diverging wildly. I'd say it goes into even more detail than canon about how some aspects of cultivation and demonic cultivation works. Moreover, it has a *lot* to appeal to Hobbit fans. "How do you feel about pastoral novels?" she asked knowingly. Please enjoy two devoted, justice-loving idiots growing radishes in a graveyard, zero feet apart because they are in love.

Okay, so A Narrow Bridge is 700 thousand words. A big part of the appeal of this fandom is how many incredibly writers go for sprawling, epic AUs. There is a library here waiting, if you find you like the blorbos. That said, if you're looking for something a little shorter:

Short and Sexy - if this is what you like in a fandom, my friend, this one has a tremendous amount of well written, niche smut.

River-to-the-Sea Sure by Deastar is ~7k words of heat. This fic is A/B/O, which is not usually my thing. So believe me when I say that it is both extremely sexy and genuinely virtuous. It captures the characters of our main leads and their usual dynamic very well. Interestingly, this is the first in a series of A/B/O Bingo by the author, which somehow manages to keep Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian in perfect character no matter their "dynamic". But the dynamic illustrated in this story is the one you meet with most often.

But the rose was awake all night for your sake knowing your promise to me by x_los is ~8k of magical lovemaking. Very magical. Using tentacles of resentful energy...

Midlength Mysteries - my understanding of the genre is that the typical format involves two cultivators traveling together to investigate supernatural mysteries. Here are some of those.

And I will Call You Home by Spodume 42k of a post-canon investigation into some mysterious deaths. This is an interesting example of the ways the monsters in cultivation novels differ from traditional western Dragons In Need of Slaying, ala Smaug. At its core, this is two investigators working a problem, and one very smart protagonist coming up with an answer. Also, the investigators are in love. Love is the answer.

Vagabond by xantissa is 65k of something similar, equally good, with added undertones of gay culture in ancient china. I really adore this one, but maybe read one or two other stories first so the climax has its full impact.

Look Not With the Eyes by Spodume 28k Classic tropes, truly classic mythological creature, absolutely adorable. Is it kind of cheating to recommend two by the same author? Maybe. Do I low key think you should just start with this one? Yes. Two men travel to investigate a mystery. After a strange encounter, they find that everyone they meet falls instantly in love with one of them. The other is totally not extremely jealous, but works hard to solve the mystery and fix this serious problem.

And once you're in deep, hit me up again! I have a million AUs to recommend.

#wangxian #the untamed #chen qing ling

[thana-topsy]

1,6,8,11,17 for the ask thing!

Answered #6 in this post, and #8 in this post!

A fanon characterisation that you love

Oh, this took some thought. I went scrolling through my AO3 bookmarks for this one. But at the end of the day I have to go with my good friend @nientedenada's interpretations of Elenwen and Ondolemar in her Q&A style fic: "The Dominion is Here and They're Answering Your Questions" - her take deeply influenced the way I wrote both of these characters in "Hollow Men" as well as just helped to shape the Thalmor into people in my mind, as opposed to stick man villains.

11. Recommend a fic with an unusual/original headcanon or characterisation that you loved

Accidental Double Thalmor Post, but I'm going to have to recommend "Evil is Made of Us" by LeviathansEyes on AO3 for their masterful interpretation of the Thalmor. It's a purely OC-driven fic that's technically a sequel to a much longer fic, but I think it can be enjoyed on it's own easily enough. I had already finished up my own Thalmor-centric fic (Hollow Men) by the time I was reading their work, but I was still SHOOKETH by the end of that story. It was an unflinching look at how "evil" manifests itself, but also how, at the end of the day, people are just people. "Evil" is a concept within the framework of an institution.

17. Something you love that you don’t often share because you’re worried what others will think

Hmm... well, for the most part I'm pretty shameless with most of the stuff I share. I put myself out there in good faith, and generally expect that my work will be taked in good faith in return.

I think, maybe, if I want to be vulnerable for a minute, I'll admit that I tend to meme on Neloth publicly a lot to cover up just how deeply I've been impacted by writing his character. More below the cut, because this turned into a bit of a ramble...

I write Neloth as a low-empathy individual who arguably has a personality disorder (I won't throw around specific labels, as I don't think there is a specific one that I had in mind when going into his stories). My love for Neloth runs incredibly deep because I've been working with this fatally flawed, deeply damaged character who has built his own defences up so impossibly high over hundreds of years that even he is unsure of where his own walls end and the core of himself begins.

And then, to pair him with Teldryn, (which I think most people who only see the ship art or the memes think I just picked two characters and smashed them together for fun or because Hee Hoo Gay, which... isn't a lie, but it isn't the whole truth either). I write Teldryn as an endlessly compassionate person beneath the armor he's been forced to wear (literally and figuratively) over the years. The Nerevarine Prophecy left him questioning his own place in the world with a terrible case of impostor syndrome, and then the Red Year absolutely ripped out his heart (no pun intended??) and left him feeling that everything he did amounted to nothing. So he's cynical and jaded, he's hiring himself out as a merc, he has every reason to hate the gods and the life that's been thrust upon him. And then, for whatever reason, when I put him and Neloth in a room together for long enough, they somehow managed to crack through each others' shells. And it wasn't pretty at first, and, hell, it wasn't even romantic. But it happened. And sometimes, writing can be magic like that.

So here's Teldryn, a literal hero, giving this (by all accounts) terrible person a chance to show that he's capable of both receiving and giving love, actually. And that love can look a little different in everyone. And augH GOD, I HAVE A FUCKING CHARACTER TYPE, OK???

Anyways, tl;dr -- Neloth is actually more than just my special little meow meow babygirl blorbo, he is my shadow self, my darkest reflection, the opposite of everything I strive to be and everything I fear becoming. And I think, by writing him as still being worthy of love and companionship and joy, I'm writing to let myself know that I am also worthy of such things.

#topsy's asks #spread the love asks #neloth

[just-late-roman-republic-things]

Hello! I have a humble ask for you if you have a bit of time to indulge me. While I understand from your name that your interest is primarily in the late republic, I was wondering if you had any recommendations for me regarding a slightly later period:

I’ll be taking a class on the Roman Empire and its emperors (+Julius probably) next semester. I’ve got more of a background in Classical Greek history than Roman, so I’m a bit out of my depth. I did a brief survey of some of the early big names in high school (mostly I just remember J Seas, October August, Capri Pants Tibby, Little Booties, Neckbeard Zero, and Ostrich Boy, though I’m sure we covered others), but I was wondering if you had any recommendations for interesting figures in and around the imperial court at really any time during the centuries of Roman Empire to look out for and/or stan in the coming year. I tend to find that being able to latch on to interesting people with lots of personality or story about them makes it easier to study the surrounding events, so I’m hoping for some help from fellow tumblr nerds to get a head start on that. Thank you for reading (and perhaps replying)!

Welcome, dear reader! It sounds like you're in the market for a blorbo...or perhaps a punching bag!

You already know the Julio-Claudian Clusterfuck, so I'll skip them. (I recommend all of them though!) If you enjoyed their family drama, you'll find even more of it in the Severan dynasty. Starting with Rome's first African-born emperor, through his fratricidal sons, to Elagabalus - who might've been what we now call transgender, but it's hard to tell. These folks make the Julio-Claudians look stable.

Or maybe you'd prefer a more relatable guy like Marcus Aurelius. He's one of the few emperors whose inner personality we can really see, thanks to his diary surviving and getting renamed the Meditations. I think many people struggling with depression, anxiety or existential dread might find a lot in common with Marcus' writings. He was a good guy who tried his best, despite never wanting to be emperor and facing horrible luck. His predecessor Antoninus Pius was also a very cool dude, the kind who did good quietly and resolved issues with diplomacy instead of war. They're two of the few emperors I think were actually good people.

If military history's your thing, you can't go wrong with Trajan, Aurelian or Constantine. Trajan conquered Dacia and Mesopotamia, making the empire bigger than ever. Aurelian's superb leadership and character helped to end a 40-year civil war. People seem to either love Constantine or hate him. He was also the first Christian emperor, and played a huge role in shaping Christianity as an institution and orthodox set of beliefs. Whether that was good for Christianity is a question in itself...Constantine's family had tons of drama, too!

If you'd rather pray to Jupiter than Jesus, you'll probably like Julian, Rome's last pagan emperor and a Huge Fucking Nerd. He's a favorite of alternate history buffs for what paganism and Christianity might've turned into if he lived longer. Also, he wrote satirical fanfiction about other emperors for fun!

Vespasian, Titus and Hadrian are interesting if you're into Jewish history. Well, "interesting" in a bad way...You can blame the first two for the destruction of the Second Temple, and Hadrian for the atrocities of the Bar Kokhba revolt. I liked reading Flavius Josephus' account of the first Jewish revolt, which characterizes Vespasian, Titus and Herod (that Herod) quite vividly. It's a very bloody tragedy, and all the trigger warnings apply, but it really brings this time period to life. (Get an edition with a Jewish translator, if possible - older Christian-led translations tend to shove antisemitic junk in there.)

Titus was the emperor when Mt. Vesuvius erupted, so the ruins of Pompeii and Pliny the Elder's wacky Natural History date to Titus' time. Some people really connect with Hadrian's famous gay love affair with Antinous, and he was an incredibly well-traveled man who left monuments like Hadrian's Wall all over the empire...but his genocide in Judea overshadows everything else for me.

But hey, maybe you're fascinated by the awful ones. Or maybe you think some emperors have been misunderstood. There's been a lot of discussion in recent years over whether Tiberius, Nero, Domitian and Commodus were as bad as they're usually portrayed. I'm only really acquainted with Tiberius. In his case, I found not a monster, just a deeply troubled man who'd been put into the worst job possible against his will.

I don't know many imperial women, but I gotta give shout-outs to Livia, Julia the Elder, Agrippina the Elder and Younger, Empress Theodora (wife of Justinian), and Empress Irene (whom Charlemagne wanted to marry!).

Readers, feel free to chime in with your favorite emperors, empresses and court-adjacent Romans! The wilder the stories, the better!

#just roman asks #local-queer-classicist #roman emperors #suetonius is also a lot of fun for reading about the first twelve emperors #even if he's blatantly wrong sometimes. especially when he's wrong #A+ source of imperial gossip #genocide mention #jlrrt essays

[moon-swag-tourney]

please tell me about your blorbos/myshows i have questions

these are all the series/characters i want to hear more about,,, don't fret if your blorbo isn't on here, some of them i just don't want spoilers for, and others are from things I'm already a fan of!

this is. kind of long bc im curious about a lot of things. but if you spot your guy in here feel free to send me an ask or respond to this!! also this is just in alphabetical order lmao

The main things I'm looking for are:

About the character

The premise of the series theyre in

Please assume this has spoilers, btw!

Aruru Otsuki - Revue Starlight

tbh I don't understand what kind of franchise revue starlight is so that's my first question. But I also see that a lot of people love her and i wanna know what's up with that!! i heard a lot about her experiencing potential found family trauma and that's always interesting to see

Bayonetta

this is kind of a weird one bc tbh bayonetta is rlly popular as is, and it's something i've been wanting to get into for awhile, so my main question is: is it inappropriate for minors or could i watch it and if so what's the best order/sequence to watch the games in??

Cure Moonlight / Yuri Tsukikaga - Heartcatch Precure

tbh im just gay on this one. but I saw a lot of love for her even when she had zero propaganda so i wanna know what makes her so beloved by the precure fans?? and tbh if the precure she's in isn't too long i'll probably watch it

Hisoka Mikage - A3!

I'm gonna let you guys on a secret. this dude is the reason I wanted to make this. he only had one submission but on top of being a long one the amnesia storyline just appeals so deeply to me please tell me how I can absorb info about him and/or watch canon events of him oh my god

Judith - Tales of Vesperia

i think i mentioned it in the ask about her but she's seem interesting!! and im always down for some sapphic storylines!! a lot of it is just that ive heard the tales of vesperia name but never really knew what it was, but off of the descriptions i do have i could enjoy it and wanna hear what exactly it's about?

Moonlight Cookie - Cookie Run

i've. tried to get into cookie run before. but i just couldn't bring myself to care. so i guess my question is can you guys please tell me about how she's a lesbian, as someone who has zero bias whatsoever (lying i am a lesbian) and also just what appeals to you about the story so i can maybe give it a second shot?

Sigma Klim - Zero Escape

listen im all for mastermind plots, even if I know the plottwist going into it. ive seen fanart of 999 from an artist i've admired for awhile and it looks like it could be interesting but i don't know what the series is about so please tell me if you don't mind,,

Sirius Gibson - Witch's Heart

im a sucker for games with different endings, and also a sucker for small indie games that have a lot of passion put into them. i'm not actually sure if that's what this, but that's what i assume it is, and it looks interesting enough to give a chance either way? but i don't

Ursula Callistis / Shining Chariot - Little Witch Academia

so uh. fun fact. one of my siblings actually tried to get me into little witch academia once! and then we never continued bc i guessed the plot twist of the teacher being shining chariot, but that was very early on before i'd really gotten attached to anyone. what im trying to say is if you can pitch the writing and/or characters of this that would be epic sldkjf

Vanitas of the Blue Moon - Vanitas no Carte

i honestly can't remember what appealed to me about em off the top of my head, but it mightve been that one post with the gifs going a bit more into the lore of the story? as of now im just a sucker for the aesthetic but i wanna hear more about the premise to see if its my kind of story sdljf

Yue / Yukito Tsukishiro - Card Captor Sakura

i actually have friends who are fans of ccs! well. friends of friends im not super close to but it still counts! i wanna hear more about them bc tbh i both think he could be interesting and im sure said friends would appreciate it :'D i also just don't know a lot about ccs premise though, if you'd like to offer that instead!

#mods questions #i don't. want or know how to tag this :'D

[herefortarlos]

Hello Desi!

One thing I adore about seeing you on my dash is just how much I can see you care for this show.

Your tags are insightful and always topical, you find hidden gems to unearth for all of us experience again and you're always so happy to engage in conversation.

So, for Nice Ask Week, I want to know; what is something you absolutely love about this show and what's something you think they absolutely just knocked out of the park?

I know some people say "this is something I'd like to see" or "something I'd like to change" (you can answer that too if you want!) but I'd love to know what you think they absolutely nailed.

Ada 😭 Thank you for those kind words!! It always make me so happy to know that I can bring others a little joy from just my queue and tags ❤️ Thank you for enjoying my little blorbo and silly, unhinged and horny thoughts 🤣

Now I will briefly mention the obvious of how I absolutely LOVE and adore tarlos! TK and Carlos are amazing separately but together they are absolute perfection! I am sooo happy I found a show to obsess over with a canon gay couple that are written and acted so damn well! But I digress 😆

Something else I absolutely love about Lone Star is the diversity among the 10 main characters!! We have been gifted characters of different races, backgrounds, sexualities, genders, ages, and it is a great example of why diversity is soooo important! These characters mesh together so well and they learn from each other and grow with each other! I can't think of many other shows I've watched where their is a main cast of TEN people and I love and adore all of their characters to some degree! And having many diverse characters means they can give us sooo many different stories!

And then something I think Lone Star has absolutely nailed is the foundation of this show, the Found Family aspect!! These characters are a family and you can easily feel that between all of them! They have been with each other through some of their best and absolute worst days. This can tie into, "something I'd like to see in season 5" is I really hope they show this more again because I do think it was lost a bit in season 4, although s4e12 Swipe Left, with the majority of the cast chaperoning Marjan's dates made me so damn happy, and the fact that Owen was like, "Marjan, you do have family right here." Give me more of these characters interacting again please, the ones that made me want to watch the show and fall in love with Lone Star in the first place!!

#Thank you so much for the ask 🥰 #I have 2 more to go!! #nice ask week can't end if I don't finish answering mine 😆 #911 lone star #desi answers #nice ask week

[squishmallow36]

hii . might be a strange question but can u explain the appeal of detz to me. like, i have a req i may or may not do but i just. dont really get it? and i dont want to just draw ship art with no flavor. and ur also the fedex guy i think. thank you :)

Wait /I'm/ the fedex guy? I mean to me @/kamikothe1and0nly is the fedex guy but sure. Why not? I definitely have a lot of thoughts about them (my one single brain cell is almost constantly microwaving them), I just sometimes forget that people are aware that I exist. I apologize in advance if this gets long.

You might want to scroll through @/askdetz as well, although there's a story on there that's been going on since I want to say March? so reverse chronological might not be your friend but yeah. Good source right there. @/kale-of-the-forbidden-cities also has a fedex mermaid au so that might be another source if this post is insufficient.

For me, I think the reason I first got into it was because I liked the name. Ship it like fedex is just absolutely iconic. And also I project onto Dex. A lot. I used to have an obsession with finding 7-up trucks when I was younger so I think it was meant to be but that's up for debate.

Canonically, we see Dex and Fitz going from--I don't like to call them enemies because it was certainly one-sided on Dex's side. He was sooo mad. For reasons. Probably gay ones but he isn't aware of that. but sort of enemies--to friends. These scenes are just about the only things in the books I remember some days and we don't even get to see the one in neverseen where they agree to be friends. Nevertheless, a "enemies" to friends to lovers arc definitely is something that Is fun to play with in fics. Also this might be the aromanticism talking, but that kind of arc does require a certain amount of slowburn and I need that to believe anything.

Dex and Fitz are also foils of each other, especially in the first few books. While Fitz is perfect, Dex is the imperfect son of a bad match, and that contrast is just so, so fun.

But it's not just a case of opposites attract. Just like how kam works, they've got a whole bunch in common. We know that Fitz is the top of his class, so he is more than likely a giant nerd. We also know that Dex is a technopath (and I project onto him) so he's also more than likely a giant nerd. While they have different skill sets--I assign Dex all the stem stuff and Fitz the history and english stuff--they're absolutely going to be listening to each other infodumping about the new thing they learned this week and the listening one doesn't understand any of it. Adore that for them.

They're also angry little assholes in canon despite what fanon wants to do to Dex. Anger (especially at society) is a trait that I enjoy in my blorbos.

It's also very easy to write them to be extraordinarily oblivious to everything. And that's always fun. Fitz is going to be oblivious (even to his own feelings) as a requirement to participate in society and Dex isn't going to believe that Fitzroy Vacker knows that he exists.

And then as the brant guy I'm sure you understand how society making a relationship difficult is a fun concept and Fedex has that too. Them dating would be an automatic bad match and the fact that Fitz has to carry around his family's legacy is something I think about. A lot. Probably too much.

If you have any more specific questions just let me know. I may be forced to paint today so it might be a couple of hours before I see anything but I will answer any questions. Eventually.

Tldr: they're my idiots, your honor :)

#kotlc #kotlc fedex #fedex #detz #kotlc detz

[uhhhyaenbyjade]

@mimbotomy tagged me in a fun tag game for fanfic writers, so here's my answers!!!!

How many works do you have on AO3? I have 62 total works, and I am so disappointed in a lot of them 😅

What's your total AO3 word count? 339,839 words!

What fandoms do you write for? Lately I've been working a lot on fics with AC: Odyssey, Monsterverse, and VicTORIous. However, I did recently do a fic for Mean Girls (2024) and I used to write a lot for BNHA/MHA, when I was very big on that fandom, but all those fics are really bad and cringe so I try to pretend they don't exist. I also have some batfamily fics, and a few for Dynasty. A few oneshots here and there with that fic being my only work in the fandom. And how could I forget, Horizon!

What are your top 5 fics by kudos? Confidence - What a Hero Needs - this annoys me so much, it was my first fic, EVER. I wrote it 4 years ago, and it's still my most popular, I've written much better stuff. I've even REWRITTEN THIS ONE AND THE OG IS STILL MORE POPULARR GKHDGHJHWJHK Apects Unknown - or are they? - a fun batfamily and wonderbat based fic off of my own mini-universe. Very cute, and very proud of this fic Perseverance - What a Hero Needs - the immediate follow up to Confidence. Again, I've written a lot better stuff "What? I like hero merch!" - My favorite crack fic I've written. Also BNHA/MHA based, but this was just fun and cute Among (Us) the Villains - yet another BNHA/MHA fic, but this time it's based about Izuku being friends with the LoV. And gaming with them. Made around the time of Among Us, hence the title

Do you respond to comments? I try, especially once I post something new. But honestly, a lot of my responses end up being just hearts or "thank you's" and it personally makes me feel like I'm being disingenuine when i respond with them too much

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I suppose Kumandra's Heart? But that was more sad than angst, I think?

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Pretty Girls, my Mean Girls (2024) fic!!!! I love this one so much, it's one of the few I go back and reread often! Basically a rewrite of the movie to be a lot gayer.

Do you get hate on fics? Oh yeah, there was this one marvel fic I did, and this one commenter was really mad that I wasn't going exactly as canon dictated. Because of course

Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I have a few fics with smut, and it's mainly kink-based. Definitely love involved too, but very kink-based.

Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written? Yes! I enjoy it a lot! My craziest one would probably have to be the one I'm currently writing, combining the Assassin's Creed universe and Legendary's Monsterverse. It's called Ancients Risen Anew, and based on Kassandra joining MONARCH after the G-Day event in 2014!

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not to my knowledge! I made all my fics available only to registered users for the purpose of keeping them as safe as I can while still sharing them.

Have you ever had a fic translated? Nope! Would love to see it happen though!

Have you ever co-written a fic before? Nope! It sounds interesting to do though!

What's your all time favorite ship? I would have to say Jade West/Tori Vega. The good old classic gay couple from Nickelodeon, as much as we hate how that era of TV was behind the scenes. A close second would probably be Aloy/Seyka, from Horizon. I just love them so much, they're my little blorbos (i think i used that term right :D)

What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I have a few, but I'll talk about Cascade for now. It's the marvel fic I mentioned earlier, and I kinda lost all interest in marvel recently. The last media I saw was The Marvels, and I enjoyed it a lot, but I kinda got oversaturated with too much Marvel stuff, and not enough of it was as amazing like Shang-Chi was to make me wanna stay interested. Will definitely watch the stuff I'm interested in though (anything with Kate Bishop and Yelena)

What are your writing strengths? Hmmmm, tough one. I would say lore. I love writing lore and explaining lore. I am also very good at writing outlines.

What are your writing weaknesses? Fight scenes. Especially fast paced ones. I love the choreography in movies, but how am I supposed to translate the fast-paced combat into writing in a way that feels natural????

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I have done this for a short story! Please go check it out, its non-fandom related so it didn't get traction, but oh my god i did so much research for it and I love it. It's called Children of Níðhǫggr!

First fandom you wrote for? Boku no Hero Academia / My Hero Academia. Please, end me

Favorite fic you've written? How the fuck am I supposed to choose just one?!??!?! I'll limit myself to five, to keep this short, lol Ink & Sparks - which is my favorite Jade West/Tori Vega fic. I rewrote it several times, and the version linked is the best one I've done. Please check it out, I love it so much! There's More To Life Than Surviving! - Honestly, this one is a contender for top fic. A crack fic, but for Ninjago! Loved it a lot The Titan of the Pearl - A very nice fic I wrote combining the Pirates of the Caribbean and Godzilla. Because I can Kumandra's Heart - A slight ending rewrite of Raya, the Last Dragon, which is my personal favorite Disney Princess movie Pretty Girls - the Mean Girls (2024) fic I mentioned earlier. I love this one so much, and like I said, I keep going back to reread it, that's how much I enjoy it Going to tag @aeide, @hartlesshart, @foibles-fables, and @spectres-n-knights for this! And if anyone else wants to, please go ahead!

#fanfiction #ao3 #tag game