#A Feel Appeal

[stuckinapril]

I love Tumblr because nothing matters here truly. There are no influencers. Having followers doesn’t mean anything. It’s just a site where people post their sporadic thoughts and rb pretty pictures. Anyone who thinks any of this matters is woefully missing the point

#I joined tumblr for the aesthetics and now I’m here bc it’s the most low pressure social media to be on #Instagram is ppl’s highlight reel but Tumblr is where u see their pure thoughts unobstructed and I adore that #It’s very nice to have people to relate to and is def the main appeal to me but I don’t think there’s much more to it than that genuinely #Monetization on tumblr isn’t a thing and probably won’t be so it feels stupid to put more stake than necessary in it. Like you’re in the #Trenches over tumblr of all things. Embarrassing #I know chronically online people exist bc I have seen them in my or somebody else’s inbox but imagine waking up at 70 one day and the #Realization hitting u like a freight time that u wasted all ur time thinking tumblr. TUMBLR. This dying website. Has enough weight for u to #be sending anon hate or reviewing ppl’s blogs like they’re some kind of product. Brother this is licherally tumblr #I choose to laugh at this behavior than take it seriously bc absolutely no one is driving me crazy on my OWN blog. On tumblr dot com. #I refuse #I will do whatever I want forever etc

[amygdalae]

its interesting to me how self-deprecation neatly ties into making others feel bad. like. if you constantly assume that you’re stupid no matter how informed or skilled in a topic you might be, people who are a bit less learned or skilled than you might see how you, someone who is obviously skilled, talk down about yourself, and assume that if you think YOURE an idiot you must think theyre an even bigger idiot and lose confidence or find you intimidating as a result. its fucked up. and its part of why it can be so important to break out of cycles of self-hatred--not just for yourself, but for people around you

#speaking as someone who deals w imposter syndrome and self-hatred constantly. its just an important perspective to have #especially cuz when you deal with self hatred sometimes self improvement sounds less appealing if you only think it helps you #but understanding true self-confidence as something that can also be good for those around you kind of helps motivate me. idk #sorry i need to eat dinner im feeling a lil loopy

[tinymintywolf]

thinking about arcane again

#arcane #silco #arcane league of legends #arcane netflix #silco fanart #zaun #ive said it before and ill say it again. silco is a character that feels like he was engineered in a lab specifically to appeal to me

[flightdescending]

Creeping Tendrils but they're different plants (of varying weirdness lol) (the eye is an "Iris" food item from FR and the last one is a hybrid with a Prickly Strangler)

#my art #flight rising #this one has broad appeal i feel like lol not as niche #frfanart

[kaladinkholins]

Very interesting to me that a certain subset of the BES fandom's favourite iterations of Mizu and Akemi are seemingly rooted in the facades they have projected towards the world, and are not accurate representations of their true selves.

And I see this is especially the case with Mizu, where fanon likes to paint her as this dominant, hyper-masculine, smirking Cool GuyTM who's going to give you her strap. And this idea of Mizu is often based on the image of her wearing her glasses, and optionally, with her cloak and big, wide-brimmed kasa.

And what's interesting about this, to me, is that fanon is seemingly falling for her deliberate disguise. Because the glasses (with the optional combination of cloak and hat) represent Mizu's suppression of her true self. She is playing a role.

Take this scene of Mizu in the brothel in Episode 4 for example. Here, not only is Mizu wearing her glasses to symbolise the mask she is wearing, but she is purposely acting like some suave and cocky gentleman, intimidating, calm, in control. Her voice is even deeper than usual, like what we hear in her first scene while facing off with Hachiman the Flesh-Trader in Episode 1.

This act that Mizu puts on is an embodiment of masculine showboating, which is highly effective against weak and insecure men like Hachi, but also against women like those who tried to seduce her at the Shindo House.

And that brings me to how Mizu's mask is actually a direct parallel to Akemi's mask in this very same scene.

Here, Akemi is also putting up an act, playing up her naivety and demure girlishness, using her high-pitched lilted voice, complimenting Mizu and trying to make small talk, all so she can seduce and lure Mizu in to drink the drugged cup of sake.

So what I find so interesting and funny about this scene, characters within it, and the subsequent fandom interpretations of both, is that everyone seems to literally be falling for the mask that Mizu and Akemi are putting up to conceal their identities, guard themselves from the world, and get what they want.

It's also a little frustrating because the fanon seems to twist what actually makes Mizu and Akemi's dynamic so interesting by flattening it completely. Because both here and throughout the story, Mizu and Akemi's entire relationship and treatment of each other is solely built off of masks, assumptions, and misconceptions.

Akemi believes Mizu is a selfish, cocky male samurai who destroyed her ex-fiance's career and life, and who abandoned her to let her get dragged away by her father's guards and forcibly married off to a man she didn't know. on the other hand, Mizu believes Akemi is bratty, naive princess who constantly needs saving and who can't make her own decisions.

These misconceptions are even evident in the framing of their first impressions of each other, both of which unfold in these slow-motion POV shots.

Mizu's first impression of Akemi is that of a beautiful, untouchable princess in a cage. Swirling string music in the background.

Akemi's first impression of Mizu is of a mysterious, stoic "demon" samurai who stole her fiance's scarf. Tense music and the sound of ocean waves in the background.

And then, going back to that scene of them together in Episode 4, both Mizu and Akemi continue to fool each other and hold these assumptions of each other, and they both feed into it, as both are purposely acting within the suppressive roles society binds them to in order to achieve their goals within the means they are allowed (Akemi playing the part of a subservient woman; Mizu playing the part of a dominant man).

But then, for once in both their lives, neither of their usual tactics work.

Akemi is trying to use flattery and seduction on Mizu, but Mizu sees right through it, knowing that Akemi is just trying to manipulate and harm her. Rather than give in to Akemi's tactics, Mizu plays with Akemi's emotions by alluding to Taigen's death, before pinning her down, and then when she starts crying, Mizu just rolls her eyes and tells her to shut up.

On the opposite end, when Mizu tries to use brute force and intimidation, Akemi also sees right through it, not falling for it, and instead says this:

"Under your mask, you're not the killer you pretend to be."

Nonetheless, despite the fact that they see a little bit through each other's masks, they both still hold their presumptions of each other until the very end of the season, with Akemi seeing Mizu as an obnoxious samurai swooping in to save the day, and Mizu seeing Akemi as a damsel in distress.

And what I find a bit irksome is that the fandom also resorts to flattening them to these tropes as well.

Because Mizu is not some cool, smooth-talking samurai with a big dick sword as Akemi (and the fandom) might believe. All of that is the facade she puts up and nothing more. In reality, Mizu is an angry, confused and lonely child, and a masterful artist, who is struggling against her own self-hatred. Master Eiji, her father figure who knows her best, knows this.

And Akemi, on the other hand, is not some girly, sweet, vain and spoiled princess as Mizu might believe. Instead she has never cared for frivolous things like fashion, love or looks, instead favouring poetry and strategy games instead, and has always only cared about her own independence. Seki, her father figure who knows her best, knows this.

But neither is she some authoritative dominatrix, though this is part of her new persona that she is trying to project to get what she wants. Because while Akemi is willful, outspoken, intelligent and authoritative, she can still be naive! She is still often unsure and needs to have her hand held through things, as she is still learning and growing into her full potential. Her new parental/guardian figure, Madame Kaji, knows this as well.

So with all that being said, now that we know that Mizu and Akemi are essentially wearing masks and putting up fronts throughout the show, what would a representation of Mizu's and Akemi's true selves actually look like? Easy. It's in their hair.

This shot on the left is the only time we see Mizu with her hair completely down. In this scene, she's being berated by Mama, and her guard is completely down, she has no weapon, and is no longer wearing any mask, as this is after she showed Mikio "all of herself" and tried to take off the mask of a subservient housewife. Thus, here, she is sad, vulnerable, and feeling small (emphasised further by the framing of the scene). This is a perfect encapsulation of what Mizu is on the inside, underneath all the layers of revenge-obsession and the walls she's put around herself.

In contrast, the only time we Akemi with her hair fully down, she is completely alone in the bath, and this scene takes place after being scorned by her father and left weeping at his feet. But despite all that, Akemi is headstrong, determined, taking the reigns of her life as she makes the choice to run away, but even that choice is reflective of her youthful naivety. She even gets scolded by Seki shortly after this in the next scene, because though she wants to be independent, she still hasn't completely learned to be. Not yet. Regardless, her decisiveness and moment of self-empowerment is emphasised by the framing of the scene, where her face takes up the majority of the shot, and she stares seriously into the middle distance.

To conclude, I wish popular fanon would stop mischaracterising these two, and flattening them into tropes and stereotypes (ie. masculine badass swordsman Mizu and feminine alluring queen but also girly swooning damsel Akemi), all of which just seems... reductive. It also irks me when Akemi is merely upheld as a love interest and romantic device for Mizu and nothing more, when she is literally Mizu's narrative foil (takes far more narrative precedence over romantic interest) and the deuteragonist of this show. She is her own person. That is literally the theme of her entire character and arc.

#blue eye samurai #mizu blue eye samurai #akemi blue eye samurai #blue eye samurai meta #just in case... im gonna tag this as #mizukemicritical #akemizucritical #though this post isnt actually criticising the ship itself but rather fanon's portrayal of the ship and the characters #for that reason lemme also tag this as #wank.mp3 #feel free to disagree of course but please be civil #and if you need to rant about how wrong i am without any convincing evidence kindly feel free to make your own post. peace and love <3 #fandom.rtf #meta dissertations.pdf #shut up haydar #edit: for full disclosure. i do rather dislike this ship. but obviously it's fine for anyone to enjoy it. please do! have your fun! #it's just that as usual! popular fanon and fandom around a ship is what has completely deterred me from any sense of enjoyment of it #it's a shame too because i was very open and even eager for some mizu/akemi romance in the future #but out-of-character fanon + the rudeness of certain fans has definitely soured it for me #but that doesn't mean people can't enjoy it obviously! ship and let ship!!! #plus it has its appeal which i DO STILL see and enjoy!!!! #i would even go as far as to call them soulmates because their narratives and characters are LITERALLY intertwined!!! #but. yeah. my gradual distaste for this ship is indeed very unfortunate.

[suntails]

ripples

#i thought of this like months ago and only got around to it recently #he is babie he is adorable. the ripples of him being found have affected everyone in his life for the better #also anything with him in moonlight is so appealing. moon child. i love him i feel sick #he is my son he is a son of the night #twst #twisted wonderland #twst silver #suntails

[ruporas]

feast (ID in alt)

#vashwood #vash the stampede #nicholas d wolfwood #trigun #trigun maximum #tw blood #im posting this so late because october escaped me Suddenly.. hello.... #i wanted to make it a photoset with this other vampire vw wip but i don't think i'm finishing it any time soon and the mood of it is #completely different anyway. also i don't think i ever shared anything about my vampire au on here !!! it's all old art by now so im shy lo #but maybe i'll do a photodump of it. long story short vash is a vampire since birth and ww is a human vampire hunter that turns during thei #travels together due to EoM experiments + getting vash to drink from him at some point. #humans turn once they get bitten but bc ww has been experimented on #& got bitten by a bunch of human turned vampires thruout his hunts he thought it wouldn't be a problem for vash to drink from him but alas. #theyre both ok though theyre traveling together definitely not hating themselves for what theyve become and feeling guilty for what theyve #done to each other. theyre completely normal about it. the biting part is really appealing to me in vampire aus so i draw it a lot but #in reality vash only drank from ww once and ww mightve done it twice under the realization he might actually die otherwise #since he wont drink from humans after being turned.... he's combatting the 5 stages of grief at all times #if this is all nonsense im sorry DMGKSDF I'M NOT good at explaining and this au came from nowhere in the depths of my mind its a mess #ruporas art

[turbo-tsundere]

*superglues them together*

Aka, eeeeh fok it. Here's some ougoku stuff I've been sitting on. Happy THOSE GUYS day.

#gonta gokuhara #gokuhara gonta #kokichi ouma #ouma kokichi #kokichi oma #danganronpa #v3 #ndrv3 #ougoku #ougoku day #awwgoku #wip #I drew some of these for jellybeanbagel to bribe them into finishing their fangame lmao. #2021-2023 stuff #my art #I doubt me liking this ship is a surprise to anyone given my old uploads but tbh it's a miracle that I do. Or should I call it 'anomaly'? #this is very much a 'ship chose me' scenario - my conflicting feelings towards it oddly became part of the appeal that I learned to embrace #it's complicated and might be due to me being prolly uncommon case of Gonta-main ougoku enjoyer and maybe also a masochist sdfdf #but I will never object to Gonta being treated kindly when it comes to fluff and 'what could've been' potential #and upsetting parts are compelling and deserve to be seen and explored for what they are- it's a waste to justify/idealise or minimize them #and boy do these guys have an emotional range I physically cannot overlook despite visceral and deeply personal pain some parts of it cause #...and also because of it #and on that note - I have some not so sweet nor cozy stuff with them as well that I might compile one day... to balance this post >:) #still tho I promise to give other gonta ships some love too. after all this is only one of my top 3

[love4hobi]

🫶

#bts #hoseok #jhope #hobi #btsgif #btsedit #dailybts #userbangtan #usersky #annietrack #* #not cropping the subs out feels sacrilegious but i felt a primitive urge to gif this #trying to convince myself it has some sort of retro appeal to it #anyway he is my most prettiest boy *gently cups his face*

[nattikay]

#avatar #avatar 2 #jake sully #neytiri #neteyam #kiri #norm spellman #sully family #jeytiri #my art #comic #yeah yeah i know this is basically the same joke as the time travel shenanigan series #(which there will be at least two more parts to that coming at some point) #but listen... #...as someone who currently feels kinda Stuck in life and increasingly anxious about it... #...the idea that personal circumstances can change so much in such a short time... #....is kinda an appealing/intriguing concept to explore with my blorbos :P

[thisisadonaldduckblognow]

all the rise boys get done dirty on characterization by fandom in different ways i think. (not ALL the time every fanwork etc etc these are just like, trends i tend to notice?) every fandom suffers from losing character nuance.

- leo i’ve talked about plenty on this blog, how some of his canon traits (genuine belief in his skill and cockiness, capacity for joy, his manipulativeness whether for good or ill) seem to get watered down or wiped off the board and supplemented with generic sad boy. his struggles with purpose and identity and not wanting to fail somehow morph into “he hates and completely holds no value for himself”

- donnie’s canon personality gets blurred out and largely replaced with whatever list of Neurodivergent Traits. and i think there’s such a fine line to walk between exploring a character that’s been word of god confirmed as on the spectrum and overwriting what’s canonically there. it’s a hard needle to thread. it also feels like a lot of his canon emotiveness gets left off the table for some reason. bc he does have his moments of flat/deadpan delivery, but a lot of the time he’s honestly very emotive. he has the passion of a theatre kid and the vindictiveness of... also a theatre kid. and the mind of a scientist.

- raph loses so much of his rowdy teen boy energy it’s kind of wild? like interpretations sand off that he’s also impulsive and can be reckless and dumb and LOVES fighting and roughhousing and isn’t the most eloquent person. suddenly there’s this pitch perfect soft boy big bro who would never hurt a fly and always says the exact right supportive thing and singlehandedly raised his 3 brothers (which simultaneously sands off all the nuance of splinter’s issues emotionally connecting with his sons and how that affected all of them). and like i LOVE raph, he’s so full of love and care and anxiety, he clearly has learned to put a lot of work into being aware of his strength and size. but there’s a difference you know?

- mikey is like. where raph gets overparentified by fanon, mikey gets over “family therapist”-ed IMO. the impulsiveness, the goofiness, the powerful emotions including a VERY powerful temper, the flat-out dumb teen boy choices... they get ignored. suddenly there’s this only very sweet and earnest boy who has read a hundred psychology books and runs group family therapy weekly or something. he is crying in his room bc leo and raph are arguing about something. which is so. he IS very sweet and can be very earnest and is full of love! he HAS come in with his opinions and unsolicited advice a couple of times and life coached for the greater good. but there’s a difference between what he does in canon and the role he gets in fanon.

#rottmnt #rise of the tmnt #idk this is not a very eloquent rundown its very hard to explain exactly my vibe #ig the long story short is i feel like a lot of their most interesting and fun qualities get left in the dust #mikey as family therapist is getting under my skin the most rn i think its just so. #for as much as it seems like his brothers try to shelter him (esp raph with his overprotectiveness)..... i just dont see it #i dont see his brothers and definitely not his dad putting their issues on him like that... #him dragging donnie into that one dr feelings session and dragging draxum into a new moral alignment were different #than 'yeah everyone tells mikey their stuff and he has to do the labor of helping with it' #like it just doesnt vibe for me #i think he is very emotionally OPEN on all levels compared to his family #i think he is more likely to share when HE struggles #i dont think raph or leo is sitting with him at 3am like 'it all started when i was 4 and accidentally broke a plate' or what have you idk #it's all so ymmv i do just scroll past stuff i dont vibe with i dont drop hate on it i just #idk dudes its so hard to see the appeal in some of the choices made

[hyunpic]

#hyunjin #skz #stray kids #fantaken #looking at him and i understand the appeal dogs feel chewing on their toys..

[royalarchivist]

Fit: I just get a little silly sometimes, you know? I'm just a little crazy sometimes! Yeah. Ok, let's exit.

Ramon: it's ok

Fit: Thank you. Thank you for accepting me for who I am, Ramon. Yeah, let's go, let's- [realizes Ramon was writing a sign] oops.

Ramon: i'd accept u for anything

Fit: Aw, thank you, Ramon.

Ramon: especially if u marry pac

Fit: [Puts his head in his hands and laughs] Of course, Ramon. If you desire it, child, it shall happen. Uh, but maybe more of like a– you know, like a long term partnership, 'cuz– Marriage is like a big commitment, Ramon! And there's also like, tax implications, and like, I would want to have a prenup, obviously, but...

Ramon: spring wedding. we don't pay tax

Fit: Yeah, well, it – You know, it's just... Spring, that's- that's kind of quick, you know? We're- we're practically in spring right now! Ok, we're still in winter, but.. eh.

Ramon: look at cellbit and roier

Fit: Yeah, you know what? Yeah, look at Cellbit and Roier! Where are they now? Huh? Where are they now? Where are they now? You know, like– so they got– No. If I'm going forward with someone, I wanna make sure that– you know, you know what I'm saying? Like, I need to be 100% certain it's gonna be right.

Ramon: that's fair but still :D

Fit: Yeah, I know. I know you're excited, Ramon. Let's just get through the next week with what we have planned. Let's just get through the next week.

#FitMC #Ramon #QSMP #Hideduo #FitPac #Fit #not him coming for Guapoduo's ass LMAOOOO #he's right though #I like that they're taking it slow. It's sweet. It feels realistic and it also appeals to my personal perspective on love #also: that was just so funny #January 3 2024

[coyotesinew]

I want to see more portrayals of raw nonhumanity.

I want us to talk about ALL aspects of nonhumanity. we can talk about wanting to play fight, to chase prey, to long for missing extremities, but we should also be talking about wanting to roll in filth, wanting to mark your territory, urges to eat your young, and everything else that's "gross" even if it’s uncomfortable. Nonhumanity is weird and gross, it makes you want to do things that humans don't do. We don't exist to be palatable images of "human who identifies as an animal (but only in the cute ways).”

There is a unintentionally upheld standard that you have to make an image out of your identity, it HAS to be pretty and digestible for other people, your nonhumanity MUST to be organized and palatable. it can be "edgy" but it can't be too weird otherwise you're too weird. Why bind your existence to an idea of normalcy? Why stifle yourself in order to conform to the standards of a world that will never accept you? Why strive to be accepted by those that will never truly listen to you?

You are more than aesthetic photos and gear and silly posts!!! You are full of depth, you are a grotesque experience and you are made of blood and bones and guts and thoughts and instincts, and all of that should be treated with as much weight as it can be! You are allowed to be “Off.”

Interrogate your own discomfort around your identity, let yourself be okay with the things that are uncomfortable!!! You should relish in your own nonhumanity, you should wholeheartedly project the nasty and weird and angry parts of existence as an animal, they are just as real and as tangible and beautiful as your collars or your masks or your tails or anything else you hold dear. yeesh!

#all this to say; you don’t need to conform #you don’t need to make sure your identity is pretty and aesthetic #there’s no rules about being an animal #you aren’t going to win over humans by dampening or hiding parts of yourself and even if your goal isn’t to appeal to humans #you are only hurting yourself by not embracing who you are and treating all of your instincts and experiences with respect #this especially applies to canid identities because I feel they are excessively turned into an aesthetic which is weird to me lol. #canine therian #therian #therianthropy #otherkin #nonhuman #dog therian #therian shifting #therian community #alterhuman community #alterhumanity #nonhumanity #endelity #otherkin community

[ruff-ing]

can we stop doing this

#it just feels like minimizing the disability because it isn't “cute” or “appealing” #its not even that hard like whats wrong #warriors cats #crookedstar #brightheart #ableism

[trashthemorgue]

finished this project ive been working on- a lyric booklet for the black parade inspired by illuminated medieval manuscripts! i think a lot about how the album was inspired by medieval cycle plays and always thought it would be fun to do something with that aesthetic. you can read it here!

#was inspired by mcrzines zine prompt but im not sure if it classifies as a zine? #tbp manuscript #my chemical romance #the black parade #mcr #mcr fanart #mcr the black parade #i feel like this is a weird and niche crossover so im not sure if it appeals to anyone but me haha #but i had fun! #im also gonna post some of the pages here on their own! #mine