#and the thing i think that we also deserved these two as the baby wlws that they are man.. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

juneviews · 1 year

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I’m so glad you made a post about Sam being toxic. Gap has been a huge disappointment to me because of Sam. I felt like I couldn’t or shouldn’t say anything because it’s our first Thai gl and we should feel grateful but toxic representation does us so much harm. Sam is manipulative and downright cruel to everyone especially Mon. The power dynamic between rich and poor, younger and older, and boss and employee are also a problem. They didn’t they pick just one? There is a lot of coercion in their relationship too - from Sam using her boss status to make Mon stay over her house and in her bed to the bathtub scene in the last episode. Mon was clearly uncomfortable both times (a lot more times) but Sam coerced Mon to get her way. “I’m your boss so do as I say” and “We’re dating now it’s okay.” Also, the last episode really showed how much Sam gaslights Mon and treats her like shit. Firing her publicly and then changing her mind the next day because that was yesterday and she’s the boss so she can do what she wants. Gross. If Sam was a guy, I think more people would be taking about the toxicity between the two but queer women get so few things that we’re just dealing with it because when will we get this again? There’s a MilkLove gl coming but that’s it. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, etc will probably cancel the next wlw show they put out. We deserve more.

Sorry for ranting :(

agreed, it's so sad that the series is written that way bc otherwise it could be really good, and also freen & becky have excellent chemistry :( honestly the first few eps of the show really had my heart but lately I spend most of the show wanting to skip scenes bc sam's treatment of mon makes me hella uncomfortable... but to be fair, this is not bc this is a gl, though people overlook it bc it's 2 girls, just like they overlook abuse in bl bc it's 2 guys. but sadly it's more thai drama culture that influenced this choice by the screenwriters, bc thai dramas LOVE their misunderstood, mean & abusive love interests who are actually such good lovers once you get through to them. trust me, I've seen it happen more times than I can count. I'm still happy to see this show consistently get over 1M views in less than 24 hours for each of its episode's part, and I'm happy people are showing up for it, bc I know there is more thai gl to come. you don't have to worry anon, even though western media cancels every wlw content, gl is DEFINITELY on the rise. if the milklove gl is successful, which it most likely will, gmmtv will produce more. also I'm very glad to announce it's NOT the only thai gl coming in 2023! the shows that have been announced so far on top of 23.5 are show me love, reverse 4 you & be my baby! hopefully more will be announced as the year progresses :)

xxx

#answers #gap #gap the series #thai gl #gl #but I totally agree that the lack of sapphic rep is so fucking annoying & we deserve better...#but at this point all we can hope is catch up with bl & mlm rep bc there's nothing else we can do :(

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msfbgraves · 5 months

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I got into CK about two months ago and I enjoy it a lot but...the writers of this show can't write female characters. At all. Not even Amanda is a well written character (and how sad is it that her husband has way more chemistry with Johnny and Terry than with her lol??). It's so disappointing to see how poorly female characters are written in this show, when the male characters (except Johnny who has become trash) are given so much depth and nuance. I think Tory and Carmen get the worst of this, and Sam flip-flops back and forth.

Well, Sam's whole deal is that she's in a permanent state of identity crisis, not unlike Johnny. She's terrified of her aggression and not conforming to feminine standards of behaviour and obsessed with another girl - let that poor girl come out as some form of wlw at least. Bi, gay pan - she's just as repressed as Johnny and given that both her parents are so bi coded I can only see this as a form of rebellion. I doubt the writers meant to write it that way but the only blueprint for Sam they may have had was "Pretty rich girl into chick fights." and "Teenage female audience avatar." Since Mary Mouser is now obviously aging out of the 14-17 demographic, they have brought in Devon whose entire personality seems to exist of - does she have a personality, other than not being an asshole about pronouns?

But look. The whole premise of Cobra Kai is "The bullies were right all along" and "Mid 20th century male gender norms desperately need to make a comeback." And modern audiences agree they can't write women, but modern audiences of course don't know what they're talking about. Because, you see, the way Cobra Kai sees women is really, really simple. Women are there for two things:

Enticing a guy to have an orgasm; preferably inside her body

Dealing with the fallout of a man having had an orgasm in the female body.

That's it! Even women can understand that much. Because they all agree! We've asked some women whose salary we pay and one or two who consented to go out with us, what more do you need? And sure, there are some women who do not agree, but we all agree that there is something wrong with them. You know, like our sisters, who we don't want to fuck; which proves our point. And all Amanda's and Carmen's and Sam's and Tory's actions line up exactly with those primary objectives. So they're in fact perfect at writing women at Cobra Kai. Girls fighting girls? Hot. Women bitch slapping men? Yeah, hot. The only girl we actually see fight a boy is Aisha, but she's not mainstream hot and she's not white, which means there's something wrong with her. It checks out all the way through! It's genius. Genius!

And no, logically, a woman like Carmen would not date Johnny Lawrence. But women don't do logic, we all know that. Of course a single woman in her thirties with a medical degree and two dependents would fuck a man with absolutely no prospects who would have, logically, gotten Miguel permanently paralysed. (But disability is - yuck. And it only happens to people who deserve it, anyhow. Or something. I don't know. Gross!) Anyway, ignoring that, she's a MILF! Of course a MILF has babies. It's what women do! No way would she consider abortion, and no way would she consider any other birth control than faulty condoms she'd have to trust Johnny to buy, because otherwise people like Johnny Lawrence would never become shitty fathers and since many fathers are shitty fathers it must be the women's fault because again, all they do, and want, is a man's orgasm... you know, let's not talk about it. We all know how things are. And women never simply... not tell the men when they're late. That would rob the man of that feeling of pride they get when they hit the jackpot. They wouldn't just... take a pill or or make a quick appointment and also miscarriages never happen to anyone ever, right, or entopic pregnancies or, ew, man, this is Cobra Kai, not the Hallmark channel? The point is, these writers are right about everything always and that's how it's supposed to be. And if it isn't, well, that's why they write. Just watch them.

#cobra kai #men writing women #sexism

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blackberrywars · 1 year

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Berry’s Masterpost

♥️ A new and improved, mostly comprehensive version of my masterpost, to be used as a guide to my works and/or my blog ♥️

Tags to find/block posts: #berry’s fics, #berry’s games, #the witcher, #legend of korra, #osha violation, #bears, #berry cute in the berry queue

Asks/PMs: always welcome, whether we are mutuals or strangers. If you want to talk/ask about my blog/fics, or if you just want to chat!

Ask Games: I’m basically always down to play these, no matter how long ago I reblogged it, so please feel free to send an ask about anything. All the games I’ve participated in should be in #berry’s games

Fics: all available on my AO3, some available right here on tumblr. There’s a lot for the witcher, especially wlw Lambert/Aiden, but I’ve also branched out into writing for the Legend of Korra.

♥️ The Witcher ♥️

Request Fics

Kitten-Tossing: (Teen/959/No Archive Warnings Apply) Guxart discovers a new and efficient method for keeping his rowdy kittens entertained, all while developing their sense of balance and spatial awareness. (On Tumblr)

Waltzing Wolves: (Teen/1,049/No Archive Warnings Apply) Geralt has seen many, many things in his very, very long lifetime. He has never, as his partner Jaskier points out, champagne glass tipped just so, seen Agent Eskel dance a waltz. (On Tumblr)

Copy-Cat: (Mature/2,364/No Archive Warnings Apply) Keira thinks she’s rescuing a half-dead Cat for her boyfriend, only to realize she’s saved the wrong one. Oh well. (On Tumblr)

Grampa’s House: (General Audiences/1,945/No Archive Warnings Apply) Vesemir struggles to figure out what to do while watching his five year-old granddaughter for the weekend because he’s an old-ass man with old-ass man hobbies. Turns out she likes that just fine. (On Tumblr)

Two Cloaks, XXXL: (Explicit/1,376/No Archive Warnings Apply) Erland is determined to win the most difficult battle he's ever faced: getting Arnaghad to wear weather-appropriate clothing. No matter how much the big bastard insists he's fine without it. (On Tumblr)

2022 Witcher Summer Camp

With Her Own Two Hands: (Teen/2678/No Archive Warnings Apply) Aiden spends her winter building a safe, warm nest for her baby wolf, and doesn’t regret a single splinter. (On Tumblr)

Flint And Steel: (Teen/2848/No Archive Warnings Apply) Jaskier watches Geralt and Yennefer tear each other apart, and decides that, at the very least, Ciri shouldn’t have to put up with that shit. (On Tumblr)

The Art Of Threats: (Explicit/3433/No Archive Warnings Apply) Ivo hates the sun, and he hates being sweaty, but he hates the thought of a beardless Junod even more. Cue the filth. (On Tumblr)

Calm Before The Storm- (Explicit/4879/No Archive Warnings Apply) Arnaghad and Erland have a final confrontation before the end, but they both know they’re a tragedy in the making. (On Tumblr)

Half-Drowned Kitten- (Teen/1962/No Archive Warnings Apply) Aiden would have gotten herself killed chasing beautiful sirens, except Lambert is there to save her, and she falls in love. (On Tumblr)

Guxart’s Fables- (Teen/4350/No Archive Warnings Apply) Every night, Guxart reads a fable to a tangled pile of kittens, and on this one, he teaches them a slightly biased version of their history. (On Tumblr)

Laiden Gets Laid (Again and Again)

Sweeter Than Pride- (Explicit/2524/No Archive Warnings Apply) Aiden is so fucking proud of her baby wolf... and all she wants to do is take her completely apart, as low as it makes her feel sometimes.

Collars Of Many Kinds- (Explicit/1830/No Archive Warnings Apply) Aiden hates Lambert's armor, specifically the ugly, flaking, fucking hideous collar. Her baby wolf deserves better than that, and she's damn well gonna get it.

Curiosity Killed The Cat- (Explicit/5142/No Archive Warnings Apply) Lambert tries to get in some stress relief, and Aiden is very accidentally a peeping tom. It works out for both of them

Digging Graves —Crawling Out

No Grave- (Mature/2293/No Archive Warnings Apply) Jad Karadin kills Aiden and buries her six feet deep. It’s not gonna be enough to keep her from her from her baby wolf.

As A Shrike- (Explicit/8700/Graphic Descriptions of Violence & Major Character Death) One by one, Lambert hunts down Aiden’s killers, and absolutely nothing and no one can stop her

You’re Good To Me- (Mature/4371/No Archive Warnings Apply); Aiden crawls from her grave and gets help from an unexpected source. Lots of healing and re-learning how to witcher again.

♥️ Legend of Korra/Avatar the Last Airbender ♥️

His Clothes: (Teen/3,213/No Archive Warnings Apply) A newly-liberated P’li desperately needs something to wear, and Zaheer is more than happy to give her the clothes off his back. Too bad he’s kind of into it. (On Tumblr)

All Things End: (Teen/1,623/No Archive Warnings Apply) A re-write of Ghazan’s escape scene where he realizes his tattoos have faded along with his hope, just before Zaheer arrives and he kisses him on the mouth. (On Tumblr)

#berry's fics #berry's games #the witcher #legend of korra #lambert #witcher aiden #geralt #jaskier #yennefer #ciri #eskel #ivo #junod #arnaghad #erland #guxart #zaheer #p'li #ghazan #ming hua

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zukoromantic · 3 years

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Webby and Lena should have been gay and like nothing you will say could ever change my mind

#this is no hate post at non shippers or something but i'm just saying man they have been a thing #i know that kids/girls being friends is also important and that you can say the things they say and still be platonic #like i of all people know this #weblena #but literally man they were the rep we deserved......#i see lumity and god i can't even begin to tell you how happy it makes me to see them and feel so represented #it's just so beautiful #and the thing i think that we also deserved these two as the baby wlws that they are man..#they are very important to my heart and there's a REASON that there's a whole community behind them who feels exactly this way #god thank the stars for lumity mate they are the rep we deserve #but i do think weblena would also have been rep we deserve #this is no 'unfollow me if you think otherwise' okay like if you don't care then fine mate this post isn't for you #but i gotta get my emotions out there because i feel very strongly about this

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moraxrkive · 2 years

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dom, sub, switch or brat? - genshin women x female!reader

cw: 100% lesbian content with jean, beidou, rosaria, ningguang and lisa; NSFW, explicit sexual content, BDSM dynamics, soft and hard doms, praise, degradation, blasphemy (?) on rosaria's part, mention of face slapping in beidou's. MEN, NON-WLW, AGELESS BLOGS AND MINORS DNI. YOU WILL GET BLOCKED.

A/N: i told yall i was gonna take this matter into my own hands. 😈 as always, remember english is not my first language! i apologize for any mistake.

jean

ah, dear jean... she's not only a sub, but a pillow princess.

poor girl is so stressed with work... and what better way to de-stress than letting her girlfriend take care of her?

she loves being a sub. she loves not having to think or to make an important decision. she can just... let go. give up control. trust you to think for her. she knows that, at least during sex, she's not the Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius... she's just your jean. your girlfriend. your good girl. your pretty princess.

and you're so good to her. praising her in the way she deserves to be. she's such a hardworker, doesn't she deserve all the praise in the world? isnt't she just a good girl? you treat her so sweetly, kissing her whole body just to see her shiver and blush, all shy.

"you're so pretty..." you said, leaving another kiss at her pussy, two fingers working inside her. she was so embarrassed, poor thing. her right hand was covering her mouth and, once you noticed that, you used your left hand to remove it, intertwining your fingers with hers, making her look at you, all red and shy. "i want to hear you, baby. let me see how good i'm making you feel, yeah? nothing to be embarrassed about, princess."

beidou

a lot of people see beidou as a hard dom, and i see where they're coming from.

but, consider this: brat beidou.

she's not only a pirate, but also a captain. she has her own ship, her own crew and, similar to jean, she also has a lot of work and just wants to let go.

but here's the twist: she wants to let go, but she also loves to challenge you. she loves seeing you snap and putting her in her place. she's a total sucker for that.

she will tease you through the day, she wants to do whatever it takes for you to put your hands on her.

"huh, that's all you got?" she said, smirking at you, as if your scissoring haven't been doing anything to her. you rolled your eyes and squeezed her neck hard, making her moan and arch her back. "keep talking shit like that and I'll hit that pretty face of yours. i don't think you want that, do you?" that's a lie, you knew she did, that's what she looks forward to the most, such a little masochist she is. lucky for her, she has you, her little sadistic brat tamer girlfriend. ah, a match made in heaven.

rosaria

hard dom. i don't think i need to elaborate, do i?

i mean... just look at her. such a strong, independent woman... it's just natural that her personality would extend to the bedroom.

we all know rosaria doesn't like receiving orders. the reason? she prefers to simply give them.

she loves seeing her pretty little girlfriend squirming and obeying her like a good little sub would. the image of you bellow her, looking at her so ready to obey is enough to get her completly worked up.

she loves to degrade you. her mouth is so filthy and she's so mean to you, teasing you just to say you're the desperate one.

"you're such a slut... you know that, right?" she said, looking down at you between her legs, grabbing your hair and jerking your head up, so you can look into her eyes. "dropping on your knees and pratically crying to eat me out at the church. what would the sisters think?" she was being so unfair, she was the one teasing you! she was the one who has been whispering filthy things in your ear since the morning, she's the slut... right? totally not you for just acting like a whore - her words, not mine - and humiliating yourself just to eat her pussy on holy ground... right?

ningguang

dear ningguang here, is a switch. but most of the time, she's a soft dom.

she just loves to spoil you, in any sense. you liked a dress? she buys it. your favorite rock is cor lapis? expect an earrings + necklace set by your room in just a few days. that's her love language.

and it wouldn't be different in the bedroom. she spoils you with everything possible. kisses? touches? toys? whatever makes you moan so sweetly and makes you see stars, she will use. she just wants to make her girl happy.

and whenever she's a sub, she doesn't change her attitude. she'll do everything to please you. she will drop to her knees the second you ask her to, she will kiss every inch of your skin, she will put your pleasure above hers. "giving you pleasure gives me pleasure", she said once.

but you still don't let the night end without giving her pleasure too. she spoils you so much, she deserves to be spoiled too.

"is this good, darling?" she asked, kissing your inner thigh while two of her fingers were already inside of you, hitting that sweet spot that makes your eyes roll back. "y-yeah... like alwa- fuck" you gasped as she added a third finger and curled them upwards, stimulating you even more. you grabbed the back of her head and started slowly grinding against her fingers, making her bite her lip, just to let out a little moan after. she moves a little bit upwards to kiss your lower belly, right above your pussy. "i love seeing you like this, darling. i love to see you using me for your pleasure."

lisa

i see lisa as a dom, but here's the thing: she's a soft but mean dom?

let me explain.

she spoils you a lot during sex, always making sure you come at least three times and making sure to take care of your needs, but she constantly praises and degrades you at the same time - the perfect balance -, except it's a little tricky because she always has a sweet tone to her voice.

she uses her vision in her favor, giving you little shocks just to stimulate you a bit more. she even taught you how to manipulate it a little so you could use it on her too.

lisa, in my opinion, might be one of the kinkiest of this list, but damn if she isn't the queen of aftercare. overstimulating you until you're crying and shaking? expect a warm bath. spanking you until it actually hurts? expect lots of kisses after.

she knows the best spots in the library. that's all i'm gonna say.

"is there a problem, cutie?" she asked, faking sweetness in her eyes as she looks at you, all spread out for her, eyes rolling to the back of your head as you feel her wet pussy rubbing against yours "are you so fucked out you can't even speak anymore? my my cutie..." she just started to scissor your harder, not giving you time to relax. she was a little box of surprises.

#genshin x reader #genshin x female reader #jean x reader #beidou x reader #rosaria x reader #ningguang x reader #lisa x reader #its my first post im so nervous aaaa

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scott-mccall-the-hot-girl · 3 years

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THINGS I NEED IN THE TEEN WOLF MOVIE: a disaster list !!

theo raeken full fledged redemption

theo raeken afTER THE battle ?? iS BIG STILL HOMELESS ,, plEASE TIE UP THE LOOSE ENDS

exploring or at least acknowledging the overlooked trauma (ex: mason as the beast, scott ripping his actual eyes out, parrish actually dying and being possessed by a fire god ect.)

stydia !! just them being all domestic & all six seasons of build up for them to finally be happy

either scalia endgame or a break up on good terms and wlw malia

i literally love scalia so much though…

puppy pack !! PUPPY PACK !!

scott & stiles just being scott & stiles

the parents but now, they are just older & over this supernatural bullshit

scott being a really good alpha ,, like we were intoduced to alec in the finale but maybe a few more wayward werewolves

finding out what happened to monroe

like did they ever find her ?? i hope that bitch is rotting in jail

or alternatively having an official fight against the hunters ,, no anuk-ite making them crazy some good old fashions werewolves vs hunters with nods to the first two seasons with the argents

okay i’m holding out for thiam but i know it’s unlikely jUST GIVE ME THE BOYS TOGETHER

being partners on a mission and having to either reunite after several years oR being best fucking friends and just fighting together as well as that day at the hospital

KIRA FUCKING YUKIMARUA ,, BRING HER BACK or At lEAST ACKNOWLEDGE her

same with issac ,, someone get daniel on the phone

also if we bring back mr. lahey i need him & argent to bond AND i’m expecting a french accent

i knOW THE JEEP WAS IN THE TRAILER but it’s a very important character to me OKAY

a goOD CONCEPT !! like a concrete plot

gOOD CGI !! PLEASE I BEG !!

cora hale ,, this one is unlikely but she was pretty fucking cool

did i mention that i’m very excited for theo raeken bECAUSE ITS A BIG DEAL AND HE DESERVES A VERY IMPORTANT ROLE

i’m kinda conflicted bc holland roden is icky BUT lydia scenes <3

like imagine lydia finally perfecting and having absolute control of my banshee abilities !!

scott having a big house that he keeps the pack in when they are in beacon hills ( like some fucking werewolf hotel ) & gives them like carrot sticks # mommy scotty

okay okay this one is far fetched but give somebody a baby , i don’t even like babies but i think it would be funny

corey & mason bc they are the least problematic of the bunch

chimera bonding between corey & theo

DID I MENTION THE PUPPY PACK ??

hayden but a le$bean

coach !! i need more coach

preferably liam and scott being out on the field either helping the lacrosse team OR

we need some pack lacrosse game !!

i love the opening sequence !! I WANNA HEAR THAT MUSIC AND SEE ALL OF THEM AND LOOSE MY ACTUAL MIND !!

aka give cody an opening card pls n thanks <3

nolan !! hunter redemption,, like let argent adopt the boy or something

peter hale !! being very peter-ish

malia & peter BONDING !! give me father daughter bonding !!

a reference to both elevator scenes, ifykyk

#these are the requirements #i’m basically giving these to jeff davis for free #just take them and run #teen wolf movie #what i wanna see in the movie #teen wolf #theo raeken #liam dunbar #mccall pack #teen wolf fandom #scott mccall #thiam #teen wolf gay #stiles stilinksi #theo x liam

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mohluskiepedard · 4 years

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Rating ATLA Characters literally only from what I’ve seen in fandom

or: posts that probably shouldn’t be on my writeblr except I don’t have a sideblog

the context here is it’s half midnight and I have never seen ATLA except I have opinions now apparently so here we go whoop de do-

I’m also not actually rating them like numerically that’s too much work i’m just stating opinions I know I’m a fraud

AANG

- A child? - A son? - he is Baby. but also. he has had It Rough - would make the updog joke - has unspeakable power or smth and everyone says he’s better than the Korra girl who comes after him but honestly tastes like sexism to me - doesn’t kill people because he’s like twelve, right? he’s like twelve so he refuses to kill people - I stan honestly - less twelve year olds should kill people - Some people say his name WRONG and they are BAD but i don’t actually know what the right way or the wrong way is so. have fun w that yall - lived in peace unTIL THE FIRE NATION ATTACKED

KATARA

- She is also like twelve??? - Is everyone here twelve - Cortana?? Katana?? Catbug?? - She has good hair, - Her mother is dead??? her mother is dead n she has a brother but she cares about her mother being dead WAY more than him (or apparently the entire fandom??) - Badass - She seems soft. good. sweet - she’s a water breather or whatever??? her brother is NOT but he is a meme - I love her

SOKKA

- NGL looks like a fuckboy - The meme brother! does not do the water things, but he has an aXe??? - dates BAMF lady - ngl until I talked to my ATLA watching friend I thought he canonically dated Zuko - kinda mad he doesn’t - I haven’t actually seen anything about him except like. in zuko ship posts and also Suki appreciation posts - joined the white lotus not-a-cult by accident??? - dark ATLA tumblr show me more Sokka posts - is his name prounounced the same way as Soccer or isn’t it I need to know - HIS FIRST GIRLFRIEND TURNED INTO THE MOON - (AND THAT’S ROUGH, BUDDY) - He and Suki are a good ship, but also, Sokka Has Two Hands

SUKI

- the BAMF herself - she says STOP in that photo but also to sexism - Rlly all I see of her in fanon is abt her teaching Sokka to drink his respect women juice and I appreciate her doing that but also it’s sad she never gets talked about outside of what she did for a man - I hope she has other badass moments w/o him it would suck if she didn’t - she is NOT the girlfriend who turned into the moon, she is the one who didn’t - I don’t know much else about her ATLA Fandom y’all should appreciate her more

ZUKO

- Look at him... my son... - He has a good redemption arc - he and his sister are evil lesbian and redeemed gay guy??? - has a straight canon ship but should’ve been with Sokka this boy is gay - I Want To Protect Him - That’s literally it - he has a cool uncle and his dad sucks - people ship him with Katara and I Do Not Get It that’s his sister in law except not really - “We don’t trust Zuko’s change of heart” [the next day] “so Zuko is my closest friend now,” - His dad was like “fuck up the avatar to prove your worth to me” and Aang was like “counter argument you already have worth and we should fuck up your dad” and I think that’s beautiful - he becomes the fire man and he’s very good at it - Zuko for President 2020 - in the words of myself, half an hour ago: “ I was like "that kid with the burn on his face seems like a sad but then happy mlm who needs found family" and I was RIGHT” - took too long to find a happy picture of him :( Zuko rights NOW please - His mother’s story got compared to an OC of mine and all I can say is oh no and they deserve better based on that alone - I have had Zuko for five minutes but if anything else happens to him I will kill everyone in this throne room and then myself

TOPH

- She is badass but like also will murder you while laughing maniacally? - for some reason reminds me of Nott from Critical Role, another show I Have Not Seen - Is blind but gets more out of making jokes abt being blind than she would from being able to see - “Sight is just a cheap tactic to make weak benders stronger!!!” - Literally the opposite of Aang and has killed many people?? - She Can Tell When You’re Lying. But I do not know how and Am simply mildly threatened by this - Therapist: Toph’s ability to know if you’re lying isn’t real and can’t hurt you. Toph’s ability to know if I’m lying: - She and Zuko.... buddies??? - if not they should be - tiny sad boy needs friends like toph

AZULA

- Evil Lesbian Culture - [BDG Voice] You committed a war crime! Oopsie! - took be gay do crime too literally - her and Zuko have accurate sibling writin except instead of “you ever want to murder your sibling for breathing in the same space as you,” being a Joke Azula took it seriously - okay but with a name like azula she should be the blue bender this ANNOYS me she should NOT be red bender - AZULa - AZUL - IT MEANS BLUE - She was half of y’alls gay awakenings and it SHOWS - Should have maybe been redeemed too??? Jury is out no one knows - Was she gay for Ty Lee or wasn’t she I can’t tell how much of that Audio is a joke - IS SHE ALSO TWELVE??? IS EVERYONE HERE TWELVE?? IS THIS TWELVE YEAR OLD COMITTING ATROCITIES?

UNCLE IROH

- A Good Man - Finally, Some Good Fucking [Adult Figures] - he has the tea. literally and figuratively - Ozai is like “and I will permanently disfigure my son and throw him out” and Iroh is like “What The Fuck, Ozai,” thus voicing the entire audience’s thoughts - Literally the only adult in this that I trust - I? I love him. this is all I have to say. my love for him is unending. Some1 protect this man from all harm - he’s Zuko’s uncle (and also Azula ig) but he does not seem related to Ozai. is it just a theme in this family that one sibling is chill and one sibling commits horrendous atrocities against your fellow human beings or - something happened to his son???? :((((( I Don’t Want Him To Have Suffered Like This

OZAI

- A BAD MAN - Uh Oh (stinky) - THE WORST OF THE MEN - I do not like him - Bastard man. nasty. committed war crimes and then went “but what if - get this - i also abused my son,” - I would like him to Not Be Like This - by Like This I mean present and alive - :/

TY LEE

- She’s NOT the There Is No War In Ba Sing Se lady and I don’t know why i thought she WAS but until I looked up her photo I thought that was her - She looks like a sweetheart tho - I hope nothing bad happens to her???? - talks about auras??? or smth??? let her vibe - She would talk animatedly to me about warrior cats if she was in my year seven class and I was sat alone and I would understand none of it but appreciate her anyway - if azula bullies her I’ll be :( at Azula and Azula will not care because she has Mommy Issues and therefore is slightly unhinged - She seems like that one kid with no trauma vibing at the edge of [every other kid having trauma] and not really getting it but trying her best - Is she also twelve?????? She maybe looks twelve

CABBAGE MAN

- HIS CABBAGES - fulfills my favourite trope: ordinary person repeatedly has life disrupted by the inconveniences of relying on actual children to save the world - probably has a campaign post canon for letting trained adults fix the worlds’ problems in the future - or sets up the Very First Cabbage Insurance Company - look at him. he loves his cabbages so much. you go you funky lil cabbage man

ALSO THE MOST IMPORTANT ONES MOMO

- LOOK AT HIM HE’S SO GOOD - small. fluffy. big ears - Lord Momo of the Momo Dynasty: his Momoness - a Good Boy...

APPA

- he looks so soft... - he can fly but he just does it by??? vibing through the air?? motionless??? iconic - I saw that one post about mishearing it as Abba and thinking he was Aang’s dad and he looks like he would be a good stand in dad ngl - he’s so LORGE - a chonky boy - love him

that is everyone I have heard of it and if I left someone out it’s a sign that y’all should talk about em more bc I have no clue they exist put more ATLA On my Dash ig I’ll do Legend of Korra ig maybe apparently that one has canon wlw and i love me some canon wlw

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thesiriusmoon · 3 years

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Harry Potter ships I truly hate

Disclaimer: I’m not telling you who to ship and whatnot, I’m just expressing how awful these ships are to me and then explaining why.

1. Harry X Draco

Now this is coming from a former drarry stan who before, hadn’t read the books. I thought Draco ‘had no choice’ and ‘just wanted love’ until I opened my eyes and saw the character for who he really was. That is a spoiled blood supremacist who hates muggleborns, and is loved by both of his parents. Draco bullied Harry. Although Harry fought back, it was because he was the victim and had to defend himself. Harry never went out of his way to hurt Draco, but Draco did it constantly. Draco and Harry would never work because Harry hated Draco just as much as Draco did him. You could ship Harry with so many others that wouldn’t be toxic such as, Ginny, Cho, maybe Hermoine (but I prefer Romoine), maybe even Ron if you want to. (I don’t ship Harry and Cedric because the ages are too weird). It’s so obvious throughout the entire book that Harry didn’t have romantic feelings for Draco, he only ever thought he was doing bad things, seeing as he was a bad person. Harry found love in Ginny in like the fifth book? Which is when the crush started, and no one else was in the picture for him once he began dating Ginny. In conclusion, Ginny is the one he married and had children with, not Draco, because he hated him and wanted nothing to do with him as he was nothing but a bully who hated muggles and muggleborns. Seeing as Harry is a half blood, and his mother was muggleborn, why do you think Harry would turn around and be like “oh he’s just broken I’ll fix him.” And ignore everything Draco ever said about his family???? That’s such a toxic thing to think... because believe it or not, in a relationship you’re supposed to be with someone you like as a person. Just because you may find Draco attractive, that doesn’t make him a good person!! Harry would never choose Draco over anyone for that matter. If it were between Ginny or Draco to be saved, you better bet on Harry saving Ginny.

2. Hermoine X Draco

I genuinely hate this ship with my entire being. It disgusts me. This isn’t an enemies to lovers, this is literally bully X victim. Hermoine didn’t fight back, meaning Draco was the full oppressor and she was the oppressed. Draco is a blood supremacist who called Hermoine a mudblood constantly and hated her, and the feeling was mutual from Hermoine because why would anyone like their bully? Falling in love with your bully is a book trope, that doesn’t happen in real life. When Hermoine was being tortured in Malfoy Manor, Draco stood and watched because he didn’t care, meanwhile Ron, the boy Hermoine was attracted to and loved, was screaming and crying begging for him to take her place so she would be protected. That’s true love, something Hermoine and Draco will never have. I really will never understand why so many people love shipping victims with their oppressors... like do you get a sick kick out of it by babying the oppressor? Saying things like “oh he’s just unloved” or “he can change!” When none of that is true. Draco chose to be who he is, which is a blood supremacist and was loved by his family, and Hermoine chose not to ever engage with him because of his personality and attitude. Draco hated her, and everyone else like her because of their status, and overall, Hermoine just isn’t attracted to him. Hermoine is attracted to Ron and he’s the only person I can see dating Hermoine because everyone else would be a bit strange. Dramoine is unbelievably toxic, and all it does is romanticise abuse. “Oh Draco only bullied her for 7 years because he was afraid to love her.” Stfu. You’d never hurt someone you love. Draco bullied her because he thought he was ABOVE her, and she was nothing but dirt on his shoe.

3. Hermoine X Pansy

When it comes to fanon, I still don’t understand why it gets shipped because in order to do that, you have to change Pany’s entire personality to the point where it’s not even Pansy anymore. It’s just some nice girl with the same name. Because the real Pansy bullied Hermoine and made it known how much she didn’t like her. Not only that, but Pansy was head over heels for Draco. This isn’t an enemies to lovers, this is shipping the bully with the victim for some weird reason... because Hermoine didn’t fight back just like Hermoine X Draco. If they were both at each other’s throats I could see your enemies to lovers, but that’s just not what this is. If you ship them because you’re looking for a wlw ship, why not take a look at Ginny X Luna, Lavender X Parvati, or even Tonks X Fleur, rather than picking the toxic ship that would never ever work and would only hurt Hermoine. Ron Weasley exists for a reason. Again, shipping someone with their oppressor is a very weird thing to do. For example, Ron is a pureblood, but Ron wasn’t prejudice towards muggles or muggleborns, because he’s a decent and normal person. Pansy and Draco aren’t decent people, and they bullied people. Really there isn’t much else to say as all canon stuff about Pansy is about her bullying people, and encouraging people to capture Harry because SHE’S A BLOOD SUPREMACIST THAT’S ALL SHE IS. Hermoine is a strong and independent woman and would NEVER date someone prejudice like that, she has standards.

4. Lily X Snape

We have to stop with this “she can fix him” mentality, because women don’t exist to fix men. Either Snape was a good person, or a bad person. He should be able to choose that himself. Which he was actually, and he was very clearly a bad person. You can’t force someone to be attracted to another. Attraction forms on its own, and it’s something Lily never had for Snape, they were only friends. To say that Lily owed Snape something because he liked her... is so wrong and disgusting. If she doesn’t like him, she doesn’t like him and Snape should fucking move on instead of obsessing over her. But, Snape overall was a creep so you can’t say “oh he made a mistake” when that man knew EXACTLY what he was doing. Ripping Lily’s happy photograph of her with her husband and baby, and taking the letter she wrote for Sirius who Snape could pretend she did that for him. Literally disgusting. Even the friendship was toxic. When reading I realised that Snape played the victims card a lot when talking about the marauders as if he wasn’t doing WORSE thing to them. Lily knew that Snape wanted to join Voldemort, as seen in the books. ‘You and your previous little death eater friends — you see, you don’t even deny it. You don’t even deny that’s what you’re aiming to be! You can’t wait to join you-know-who, can you?” Then she says “I can’t pretend anymore, you’ve chosen your way, and I’ve chosen mine.” Lily PRETENDED that Snape wasn’t going to be a death eater because she didn’t want to believe that her own friend would hate her kind so much. Though once reality hit her she was gone and was never coming back. To ship someone who was oppressed with the oppressor is so weird and wrong, and I genuinely think you’re strange if you do that 😐. Snape already didn’t like Lily having other friends... so what does that tell you about what kind of relationship they would have? A manipulative one and an emotionally abusive one. James Potter was a pureblood, and not once did he ever bully someone for their blood status. He did things to Snape because Snape was a prejudice piece of shit and deserved it quite frankly. I would have done the exact same thing. Remember, the Potter’s were ‘blood traitors’ and Snape was a blood supremacist, of course the two aren’t going to like one another. But the difference is, Snape bullied innocent people (laughing at the fact Mary MacDonald was subdued to dark magic) and James fought back for those without voices. Getting revenge for people who couldn’t do it themselves. That’s the difference between a bully and a hero tbh. There’s no way Lily would ever date a death eater, she’s a strong woman who can make up her mind for herself rather than having people on the internet say things like “she was brainwashed!” And things like that. She became attracted and fell in love with a respectful man who would never cause her any type of emotional or physical harm.

In conclusion, I will judge you if you think shipping abusers/oppressors with their victims is ok in any way.

If you made it this far, feel free to comment or reblog with your own opinion. Just know that my opinion on these ships will never change because they’re all extremely toxic whether you like it or not. That’s just common sense. It’s canon that Draco, Pansy, and Snape were horrible people who liked to make fun of others. Fanon doesn’t mean a single thing in this because fanon isn’t real. If you have to change the entire personality of someone so they aren’t abusive... what does that tell you about their character? A lot of people do this because they like how a character looks, which is so tone deaf. If you think a victim should date their oppressor because of looks... I’m judging you heavily. If a character is wrote to be abusive, I don’t understand people do fan art of them with the people they hurt in a romantic way.

You might say I’m being over dramatic, but really it’s not that hard to understand that you shouldn’t romanticise abuse or say that oppressor X victim would make the perfect couple just because of their looks.

Would you ever ship Neville with Draco? No you wouldn’t. And it’s not for the reasons you would think. I bet if Neville was conveniently attractive (in the books, I love Matthew.) people would have shipped him with Draco despite Draco mercilessly bullying Neville for 7 years. A lot of people would have made excuses like “Draco was broken!” In order to be able to ship two attractive men together. (Which also plays into fetishisation of lgbt+ couples I think...) This fandom is rather toxic when it comes to this, and they’d rather ship a very abusive relationship with two conventionally attractive people rather than a loving one with two people that aren’t.

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spacelessbian · 3 years

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So CAOS Part 4 was a mess

SPOILERS FOR EVERYTHING

I used this exact same title for Part 3 but it seemed very fitting for Part 4 as well. I just want to preface this by saying I didn’t expect anything before watching (well, I expected it to be bad, which gave the show a chance to surprise me), I just hoped that my friends shipping Zelda and Marie would get some sweet sapphic content and well... Let’s get to it.

I must say Part 4 was not as nonsensical as Part 3 and I must give credit where credit is due. It also returned to the monster-of-the-week format which I love. The Eldritch Terrors were a good concept with mostly fine execution (although the Terrors could have been a little more diverse... Would it kill the writers to give one more of them a female voice? And on that nore, why not hire Janet from the Good Place to voice the Void? They missed out on that so bad!). Other things I liked, in no particular order:

Vinegar Tom coming back to life and Zelda being truly happy for once

giving Agatha her sanity back

Prudence and chainsaw, ‘nough said

Lilith finally murdering her abuser the way she and we as the viewers deserved

the OG aunties and their whole episode

Ambrose, the light of my life, and all the adult cast (except for Lucifer, what the hell was that)

Unfortunately these are mostly minor positives and I don’t have the capacity to cover everything bad with Part 4, so I’ll just stick to what I started at the beginning of the post – Mambo Marie and the wlw representation in the show. Prepare for long-ish post.

It was weird from the start. We got a cute scene in the first episode (with horrible lighting I must say, I immediately felt sorry for y’all who make gifs) but then Zelda and Marie barely interacted. Yes, they were often standing next to each other, but I don’t think they had a single meaningful interaction since. I don��t think they even touched, let alone acted romantically towards each other. Marie was also extremely shady the whole time, she was constantly acting on her own (only after the fact was it acknowledged that the rest of the coven knew, but to me it just looked weird), that I really thought I was right with my joke prediction of her being the surprise villain. Turns out she’s a surprise man and the villain is Roberto, the showrunner!

From the start of the show it must have been obvious to Roberto and the rest of the creative team that a large number of fans wanted to see some lesbians (specifically Zelda and Lilith getting together). Obviously the creators do not have do anything the fans want, but giving us a canonical sapphic relationship and then being like “syke! fooled you, there were no lesbians actually. no homo uwu” just seems extremely ignorant at best and malevolent at worst. Plus the fact that in the alternate “perversed” universe, Zelda was called Madam Spellman. Who does that??? WTF.

I must also mention that the reveal, that comes out of nowhere and leads to nothing, means that Zelda’s two consecutive partners didn’t care about informed consent. Big yikes. Of course none of this was acknowledged in universe, so thanks for that, Roberto, thank you very much.

And now to minor grievances:

Theo and his boyfriend, whose name I don’t remember, go through unnecessary conflict that just takes up time and space

it almost looked like the Blackwood twins will become real people with their own thoughts and actions, but no

the afterlife doesn’t make sense, also the glorification of suicide

people constantly bring up the color of Sabrina’s headband like if anyone cared about that to notice (I expected some twist with Sabrinas changing places and the reveal being the headband, but no)

you turned an octopus into a... diving equipment???

Sabrina and her huge crisis that she doesn’t have a boyfriend for 5 minutes (so she has to make out with more than one Eldritch Terrors)

Roberto not being capable of letting babies exist after their extremely traumatic prolonged birth scenes (yes, I’m coming back to Part 1, too, what about it)

Aaaand I think I’m ready to breathe again. I’m happy the show’s over, not because I’m an evil hater (I am definitely evil though) but because it had (and still has) so much potential, but it is obvious the writers can’t write for shit. The cast is amazing and I love almost every single one of them, their kind interactions with fans were really a joy to watch (that cannot be said for some fans but what can you do). I hope I will have the opportunity to meet some of them when the ‘rona is finally over. I also met a lot of lovely people through CAOS and I am eternally grateful.

If you’re still reading, you’re a star ♥. This was a wild ride.

(Please note I will not respond to any aggresive or nasty comments but I’m eager to read any of your hot takes or polite disagreements.)

#caos #chilling adventures of sabrina #caos spoilers #caos part 4 #madam spellman #zelda spellman #mambo marie #mambo spellman #sabrina spellman #tw: suicide

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diwatera · 3 years

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LGBTQ+ Movies I Watched Recently (Part 2)

Happiest Season (2020) dir. Clea DuVall

Short Summary: Abby plans on proposing to Harper when they visit Harper’s family for the holidays. Her plans get derailed when she learns that Harper hasn’t come out to her family yet.

Why you should watch it: Not gonna lie, Mackenzie Davis drew me to this movie; I’ve been in love with her ever since San Junipero came out. Add Kristen Stewart, Aubrey Plaza and Dan Levy to the mix and I’m sold. If you want a sapphic romance with a happy ending, this one’s for you.

Été 85 (2020) dir. François Ozon

Short Summary: Alexis recounts his six-week love affair with David during the summer of ‘85.

Why you should watch it: If you love 80s aesthetic and music, you definitely should watch this. The movie made me nostalgic of that decade and I wasn’t even alive back then! It’s a whirlwind summer romance reminiscent of Call Me by Your Name but with a more devastating twist.

Getting Go: The Go Doc Project (2013) dir. Cory James Krueckeberg

Short Summary: An obsessed college boy pursues his internet crush through the pretext of making a documentary about him.

Why you should watch it: The script and the acting are the one-two punch of this film. The writing is incredibly genuine, and both of the actors’ performances made the lines feel even more natural. I’m not the biggest fan of mockumentary-style films, but this one felt like it was a recording of my own life. Hyper-obsessive college grad with a Tumblr blog? Might as well have called out half the population of this damn site.

Pihalla (2017) dir. Nils-Erik Ekblom

Short Summary: Miku and Elias find themselves, and each other, during a summer in the Finnish countryside.

Why you should watch it: I’m a sucker for gays in the countryside™ and although this one is not quite up there with God’s Own Country and Call Me by Your Name, it still makes for a good watch. Miku as a character and his relationship with his parents was chaotic and fun. His relationship with Elias felt really natural and dreamy.

You, Me and Him (2017) dir. Daisy Aitkens

Short Summary: Olivia, a mature responsible lawyer, wants to have a baby, but her girlfriend Alex isn’t ready for the responsibility. Things get even more complicated when their flirty neighbour, John, joins the picture.

Why you should watch it: It is one of the most feel-good lesbian romcoms I have seen in a while. But I warn you, there are some dark parts that can really sneak up on you. Yeah, it’s hilarious, but damn it made me ugly cry, too. Oh, and if you want to see David Tennant as an alpha male douchebag, here’s your chance. (CW: **spoiler alert** p̶r̶e̶g̶n̶a̶n̶c̶y̶ ̶l̶o̶s̶s̶ )

Giant Little Ones (2018) dir. Keith Behrman

Short Summary: Franky and Ballas have been best friends since childhood, both on the swimming team, both incredibly popular. But after an incident during Franky’s birthday, they quickly fall apart and Franky falls from grace.

Why you should watch it: I think the film captures just how tumultuous coming-of-age stories are. Franky is going through his own journey of self-identity, and I’m happy that the movie didn’t rush in with labels. The conversation Franky has with his dad at the end also hits hard. (CW: physical assault, allusions to sexual assault)

Our Love Story (2016) dir. HyunJu Lee

Short Summary: A fine arts student meets an attractive bartender, and the two women begin an intimate relationship.

Why you should watch it: It’s a very intimate love story that isn’t rushed or dragged out for too long. We definitely see Yoon-Jo and Ji-Soo’s relationship bloom from start to end, but it’s not mind-numbingly boring to watch. Raw and unembellished, I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a realistic portrayal of wlw romance.

Die Mitte der Welt (2016) dir. Jakob M. Erwa

Short Summary: The film follows Phil and his relationship with his family, his best friend, and a newcomer at his school, Nicholas.

Why you should watch it: This is technically a second watch for me, and I’m glad I rewatched it, because I was able to catch some glaring red flags that I missed the first time. I love this movie in spite of all the heartache it caused me. The story, especially the deal with Phil’s family, struck a chord in me. And the shots! Visually stunning as well!

Les Amours Imaginaires (2010) dir. Xavier Dolan

Short Summary: Marie and Francis’ friendship is put to the test when a beautiful boy called Nicolas comes between them.

Why you should watch it: Watch it for the visuals -- the colors, the costumes, the cast. Seriously, the actors included here may as well be kept in the Louvre: Xavier Dolan, Neils Schneider, Monia Chokri, hell, even a cameo from Louis Garrel! Dolan said it himself that this is a shallow film, but it’s worth the watch just to see Neils Schneider wearing heart-shaped glasses.

Closet Monster (2015) dir. Stephen Dunn

Short Summary: A creative and driven teenager is desperate to escape his hometown and the haunting memories of his turbulent childhood.

Why you should watch it: Right off the bat, I am going to say that this film is dark. I tried watching it back in college but tapped out within the first ten minutes because something traumatic happens. Then I tried again about a week ago, finished it this time. It’s actually a very moving film. It’s violent and gory in some parts, but also ridiculous and wholesome in other parts. IT HAS A TALKING HAMSTER NAMED BUFFY! BUFFY WAS THE STAR OF THIS MOVIE FOR ME. (CW: gay bashing/sexual assault)

Straight Up (2020) dir. James Sweeney

Short Summary: Todd and Rory are intellectual soul mates. He might be gay but she might not care.

Why you should watch it: The dialogue in this film is undeniably sharp and witty. Loved the fast-paced back and forth between the two main characters as they discuss relationships, sex, gender, and more. James Sweeney and Katie Findlay’s chemistry just pulled you into the screen. It was funny, it was sweet, it was heartwrenching, it was great! (CW: allusions to sexual assault)

Latter Days (2003) dir. C. Jay Cox

Short Summary: A promiscuous gay party animal falls for a young Mormon missionary, leading to crisis, cliché, and catastrophe.

Why you should watch it: I saw this in santiagonex’s top 20 LGBTQ+ films with happy endings, and I honestly thought it was gonna be a feel-good watch. Instead, I got a rollercoaster melodrama filled with early 2000s gay culture, religious guilt, buttcheeks, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Needless to say, I got more than I bargained for. (CW: self-harm, conversion therapy)

The Old Guard (2020) dir. Gina Prince-Blythewood

Short Summary: A covert team of immortal mercenaries are suddenly exposed and must now fight to keep their identity a secret just as an unexpected new member is discovered.

Why you should watch it: Okay, I was debating whether I should include this here, because it’s not necessarily an LGBTQ+ film as much as it is an action film with queer characters. I decided to include it, because JESUS! I have never seen such respectful and well-written representation of queer characters and relationships. Joe and Nicky are the most unproblematic couple in history. PERIOD. Pray for sequels, everyone. This is the kind of representation we deserve in mainstream media.

. . .

Click here for more LGBTQ+ film recs

#Queer Cinema #queer films #LGBT Films #lgbtq #Movie Recommendation #kristen stewart #mackenzie davis #summer of 85 #the old guard

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alphafemalecarla · 3 years

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Hello folks let's talk about Fire

So there is this lesbian Indian movie from 1996 called Fire and I think everyone should watch it cause it is fabulous (Wikipedia says it's erotic but there are like what two kisses and one nipple that's it)

I would love to talk about the movie itself and the ✨controversy✨ that surrounded it but I am on low energy right now so if you want to a) rant about the movie or b) rant about the controversy I'm all here love ✌

A short summary: Sita is a newly married to Jatin, a young man. He was never willing to marry Sita, and has a lover outside of their marriage, Julie, who is from Hong Kong. Jatin usually stays outside for majority of the nights, leaving Sita alone by herself. She hates this, and finds solace in her sister-in-law, Radha, who too is neglected by her husband because she can't bear babies (said husband does a lot of questionable bullshit in the name of celibacy, watch the movie to find out) Yes those are the main characters and they fall in love because their husbands are assholes

Honestly the movie deserves so much more recognition. It talks about not only the lesbian romance itself by also the life of a married woman: take care of the house, be as good as possible, take care of the elders in the house, become a mother and have babies, all while the husband is allowed to do whatever his heart desires.

Also I do want to point out that we don't know the exact sexualities of the women, but it's not impossible that they're lesbians because they have probably never questioned attraction to any one that is a not a man and from the looks of it, neither of them actually want the marriage but they could very well just be wlw, anywhere in the spectrum, and honestly, it doesn't matter.

Anyways thank you for joining to my TED talk and now it's time for links 💅

Link to movie (as I said this is not erotic but yanno ✨YouTube things✨)

Two videos about homosexuality in India and the impact of Fire on LGBTQ community in India

Enjoy~

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solanospetra · 3 years

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if you ordered the jtv seasons how would you rate them because every-time I try to it’s a hot mess but based on your posts you seem to also have the exact same thoughts I have

Thank you for the opportunity to spiral. A little delayed because my laptop has been at work and I didn’t want to type this up on mobile. Explanation under the cut.

FYI: I haven’t watched JTV since it ended so a lot of this is probably rage based but when I do eventually get around to rewatching I don’t think this will change

1. S1 - Iconic when it premiered, no one was doing it like them, has the perfect mix of family, romance, crime, and Jane/Rafael were still good

2. S2 - Good because Luisa, Petra, Jetra, Petra & Raf but the triangle sucked both Jane’s and Xo’s, I also don’t like Michael’s rewrite

3. 4B - Only deserves rights because of Jetra & Petramos (we’re ignoring the whole gaslighting thing because why tf did Jennie think that was a good idea)

4. S3B - Hate Chuck, hate the time jump, hate the Ro/Xo storyline, hate Rafael getting back together with Petra, hate Jane getting feelings for Raf again, the OT3 saves this season and so does Jane’s grief storyline

5. 3A - I hate the first episode of the season felt like such a retcon, hate Anezka, hate Rafael in part of this for the gaslighting, didn’t care for Michael’s recovery or career struggles but I liked how Jane and Rafael were learning to navigate around each other and I like the peaceful place Michael and Rafael eventually settled in. I liked Darcy/Ro & Bruce/Xo but too bad it doesn’t last.

5. 4A - Raf’s an asshole but this still beats the hatred I have for S5.

6. S5 - 10/10 do not recommend I can’t think of one thing that makes this season worth watching

1. Season One

It might be nostalgia or maybe it’s just that good but my favorite season is S1. You have the best of the Villanueva's, Xo/Ro, you have the perfect mix of romance and crime, and sue me but season one Jane/Raf will always be part of what makes me love this season so much. Yes, Petra maybe isn’t the best in this season but you’re seeing glimpses of the fact that she’s not a horrible person, her mom just sucks. I find it hard to like Michael at all in the series but part of the reason this is my favorite season and not S2 is because I think in S2 we start to see the love triangle weaken a lot of characters with Michael getting a rewrite and Rafael getting lost in the story.

2. Season Two

Already mentioned it a little above. I think that the writing favored Michael a lot this season, we’re supposed to forget that he spent most of S1 being a creep. Rafael starts getting done dirty from here on out IMO he’s literally in love with Jane until S3 and for what, it doesn’t do anything. I know a lot of people don’t like him in this season but when he calls Michael a roach, iconic. There is still a lot to love about the Villanueva’s, Rogelio. I like Jane’s arc in this, the going back to school, motherhood, trying to balance Michael and Rafael, that brief moment where everything lines up for her. This is one of Petra’s best seasons, in my opinion, she makes mistakes (like inseminating herself) but we really get to see her begin to value herself (turning down Rafael) and also watch her begin to overcome her issues with motherhood. Also, her storyline with Rafael is one of my favorites, yes they’re begrudging coparents but you get glimpses as to why they fell in love with each other in the first place. JETRA, and Luisa’s storyline is good up until the finale. Mostly everything is good until the finale that’s when I start to hate the paralysis storyline, Rose being Susanna, Michael getting shot, etc.

3. Season 3

I know I split it up above but this season is shaky at best. They had the foundations for a messy but loveable family but they kill Michael, throw Rafael/Petra/Jane back into a triangle, they also rush Xo/Ro for no reason only to kind of run out of storylines and give Xo cancer and make Ro a dad to a baby we barely see. Of course, we all know Michael was killed for no reason so. I think I only really like Petra’s arc this season.

4. Season 4 -

4A was difficult but it honestly began to pick back up and solidify in 4B with Jane/Rafael being a little more believable, Petra’s storyline, and also I liked Alba’s storyline with Jorge (even if I hate him later.) Adam was fun even if he was temporary and it kind of looked like we were getting somewhere until they bring Michael back and reveal Petra gaslit JR which completely soured everything for me once they failed to fix it in S5. Also, Jane’s book storyline wasn’t my favorite. Neither was Xo’s cancer storyline.

5. Season 5 -

Absolute garbage, Michael coming back does nothing but make Rafael look like an asshole, weaken Jane who is reduced to begging for someone who frankly is no longer worth it. Xiomara is kind of lost this season and I’m still sad everyone’s dream came true but hers. I dislike River and the amount of time she took away from storylines like Petra’s, the Petramos storyline is nice but I don’t think they ever talked about the disturbing fact that Petra gaslit her, I would have liked an explanation but we never get it and JR’s exit and return are underwhelming and while I LOVE LOVE LOVE that after years of beginning for wlw Petra, this is what we end up with. There were some bright spots in Jetra but S5 is such a disappointment, if they were going to bring Michael back they should have to committed to more than just shoving into the background so they could get to their shitty musical number.

#jtv #jane the virgin #it's essentially is linear for me #S2 & S1 are interchangeable depending on my mood #and yes splitting the seasons is necessary in my opinion because sometimes I like S4 more than S3 #but that's probably because it was gayer #let me know if our thoughts matched up again!#anonymous #answered

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revisitedgrunt · 4 years

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Motherland: Fort Salem. Episode 1x05: Bellweather Season.

Being completely honest with y'all, this episode ruined me. It's taken me a while and several rewatches to sort out my thoughts and feelings. Now I want to talk about it. I'm going to go scene by scene, so this isn't a rambling stream of consciousness. This will be very long and image heavy.

I find the Unit's dynamics interesting. We've seen them get closer and work together better, but Raelle and Abigail both have strong personalities, and very different life experiences. One wrong word can immediately start a fight. Abigail uses the phrase “the community that matters”, which is incredibly elitist. Raelle, rightly, takes offence and ends up storming out.

The first Raylla scene of the episode. Scylla combines some minor manipulation, which is an attempt to get invited to the wedding with, in my opinion, a real story about her past. I believe everything Scylla has told us about her past. Porter confirmed that her parents died, and in the last two episodes we've seen Scylla start to open up with Raelle. They talk about running away, and less than five minutes into the episode, we get this.

I may, or may not, have let out this really unflattering squeal. Part of me is still amazed by this relationship. Every week I think we've hit the limit on how awesome it can get, and every week I'm proven wrong.

Raelle making a bird skull charm for Scylla is so sweet. I think Scylla's linking spell is going to be very important in the episodes to come. I do wonder if the mark is permanent. I hope not, just for the fact that Scylla permanently marking Raelle, without her permission, is not a nice thing to do.

We get another kiss and Raelle cups Scylla's chin again, which I am a big fan of.

You can see Scylla smiling when she enters her room. She genuinely likes spending time with Raelle. With the way she caresses the bird skull, we can see she's really touched by Raelle's gift.

We're then reminded that the Spree is a terrible organisation, when they threaten Scylla again. I'll probably talk more about the Spree later.

Scylla pretending to be a waitress was smart. However, the smarter play would have been to stay undercover until it was closer to 6pm, as she would have avoided unwanted attention. How much of this was a mistake on her part, and how much was it wanting to spend time with her girlfriend?

I love the lingering fire effect in the hair. It's such a cool detail.

Scylla's adorable little “Hi!” added 10 years to my life.

Raelle being super excited to see Scylla and the banter about the “corsage” was very cute. Raelle proves, once again, that she's a great girlfriend by introducing Scylla to the Bellweathers.

We get more confirmation that Abigail doesn't like Scylla, calling her “Another shitbird.” I believe her antagonism towards Scylla is because she thinks she's a distraction. Abigail thinks if Scylla wasn't around, Raelle would be more invested and involved in the Unit. However, we know this isn't the case, if it wasn't for Scylla, Raelle wouldn't be trying at all. Abigail should be thanking Scylla.

I love world building so I thought the wedding was really interesting. We find out that weddings are a contract that lasts for five years, which explains Abigail's different fathers. I think families like the Bellweathers think this is a way to strengthen their bloodline. The women can have several babies with different fathers, which helps expand the family. I think civilian weddings are still for life. Raelle's mom and dad were still together when Willa died.

What makes a believable relationship for me, is the small things. Not great declarations of love, but how they stand next to each other, how comfortable they seem together, how they look at each other and when they reach for each other. This was a great example of that.

I thought the scenes of Abigail trying to corral her unit were hilarious. She's desperately trying to make a good impression, and they unintentionally embarrass her every time. Scylla's “They have lobster.” and Tally's gasp gave me a good laugh.

Our first scene of Raylla dancing. When I saw the pictures I thought it would be a one and done deal. I should know by now that Motherland: Fort Salem always goes the extra mile when it comes to their wlw couple.

Raelle putting a protective arm in front of Scylla, starting down Anacostia and telling her “She goes where I go. Scylla's my girlfriend.” Just... wow. That was hot. And to illustrate the point, she gives Scylla a long, lingering kiss.

Anacostia v Scylla, round 2. I think Anacostia is incredibly cool, but I'm always gonna have Scylla's back. Scylla tries to protect Raelle and takes the heat for their relationship. Seeing her sass Anacostia was pretty amusing. Then she immediately grabs some drinks.

I'm not sure why Anacostia has a problem with Scylla. Is it the same reason as Abigail, or something different? Is Scylla not a good cadet? Does Anacostia think Scylla will hinder Raelle's performance? Scylla was right though, Raelle did start trying because of her. We also know Raelle is almost always boosted because she's having sex with Scylla.

Jessica Sutton's expressions this episode were perfection.

Every Raylla scene warms my cold, dead heart. How cute are they about the “girlfriend part”! And Scylla dancing Raelle onto the dance floor! And the way Scylla keeps eye contact with Raelle! I just can't!

Look at the smile Scylla gives Raelle!!!

This is a pretty upbeat song and you can see the other dancers energetically dancing. But Raylla are just slow dancing, wanting to be as close to each other as they can. You can also see Raelle has this soft smile on her face. The amount of care and detail Taylor and Amalia put into their scenes together, never fails to amaze me. It's so obvious they want to make this relationship as believable as possible.

Gerit got engaged before Baltane, went to the festival thinking he'd hook up with a girl and give her a power boost, and fell in love. He really does try to tell Tally he's engaged. I just feel sad for the both of them. I'm not really into heterosexual ships, but they were cute. I wonder if this is the end, or if Gerit will break off his engagement. Seeing Tally cry hurt, a lot.

Abigail gets smacked in the face with her privilege. For how different the universe of Motherland is to our own, some things are still very much the same. The rich and powerful will get all the opportunities, whether they deserve them or not. I do respect Abigail for wanting to make it on her own merits and not coast on her name.

I really admire Raelle's courage. She's a first year cadet, but she marches up to General Petra Bellweather and demands answers about her mom. She doesn't get them. Like any good politician, Petra deflects and heaps praise on both Willa and Raelle. It takes the fight out of Raelle, but made me even more angry.

Ashley and Bernadette did a really good job conveying Abigail and Charvel's relationship in the time they were given. They are cousins, but you see they are close and I got a sibling vibe from them. With the advice Charvel gave Abigail throughout the episode, she came across as an older sister. This makes me wonder if Abigail does have actual siblings. Given what we know of the Bellweathers, it would surprise me if Petra only had one child.

Scylla does a really bad job of checking the bathroom.

It's telling to me that Scylla tells the balloon “I need to know she will be safe, once I get her there. Should I wait with her?” I've always believed Scylla had genuine feelings for Raelle, and this is more confirmation. The balloon is clearly not a Raylla shipper.

Tally sees the balloon, and Scylla's cover is blown. I did not expect this to happen so early in the season, or for it to happen this way. Motherland keeps me guessing.

With 5 minutes left to get Raelle to the extraction point, Scylla sees a downhearted Raelle. She makes a half-hearted attempt to complete her mission, but there's no conviction there. She doesn't want to do it. When Raelle asks if they can dance instead, Scylla could have tried to convince Raelle to go for a walk, she didn't. She chose to dance with her. Scylla was scared, Scylla knew she was going fail her mission. She had to make a choice, The Spree or Raelle. She chose Raelle.

Tally telling Anacostia about Scylla was smart. I briefly thought that she might tell Raelle, but that would not have gone well, and doing it at the wedding would not have been the right time. Now Scylla's number one fan has a legitimate reason to not like her.

And now we get to the scene that killed me. I'm not gonna lie, I cried. I don't really get emotional about TV shows, but I've really come to love Raylla and this hit me hard. As soon as that song started playing, I knew I was in trouble. I started to choke up when Scylla remembered the times she'd spent with Raelle. My eyes started to water when I saw how scared she was she'd missed the deadline. When she told Raelle she loved her, I totally lost it. Raelle's smile was the last punch to the heart. I was a complete mess by the end of this scene. We leave the scene with Scylla looking incredibly sad.

This was Scylla saying goodbye to Raelle. She knows she can't stay at Fort Salem, she knows the Spree will come for her. If she doesn't run, she's as good as dead. I really hope that this episode alleviated any doubts anyone still had about Scylla. It is now absolutely clear that she loves Raelle.

Fortunately the next scene was much more upbeat and light hearted. Joking, we find out Charvel has been murdered, brutally. Most of her throat has been cut out. The effects were excellent and very gory. Abigail is ambushed by two Spree members and we see that they can nullify a witches abilities, when Abigail tries to Windstrike them and nothing happens.

Things go from bad to worse.

I'm not sure if this was always the plan, or a backup in case Scylla failed. My opinion was this was always the plan, and was set up to distract people so they wouldn't realise Raelle and Scylla had disappeared.

The witches summon a tornado and disable the balloons. The tornado looked pretty big and I thought back to the witch in episode 1 who was controlling 6 tornadoes at once. That seemed pretty powerful at the time, but I remember them being small, so I assume if they combine their power, they can summon bigger tornados.

Petra finds Abigail just in time to stop her daughter getting murdered.

During a well choreographed fight scene, we are reminded that these women are soldiers. Even without “the work” they are trained in hand to hand combat. We see both Abigail and Petra are good fighters. Abigail has a very badass moment here, after getting stabbed, she pulls out the knife and uses it on her attacker.

The Spree members set themselves on fire, so they can't be questioned, which is par for the course for fanatics. I had expressed sympathy for the Spree before. I said their cause was just as they were trying to liberate witches. I even understood them killing civilians, the civilian Government is the body forcing them to join the army, or be hunted. However, it now seems the Spree are equally terrible towards other witches. They brutally murder Charvel, a fellow witch and threaten Scylla's life if she doesn't do exactly what they say. At this point I say screw the army and the Spree, I want the Unit and Scylla to form a third faction.

In all the confusion, Scylla disappears. I think we’re meant to believe that she ran, but I think it’s more likely Anacostia grabbed her, as she is noticeable absent during the Spree attack. I think Scylla is probably in some secret dungeon at Fort Salem, and we'll get to see just what that mark she put on Raelle actually does.

The episode ends with the Unit comforting each other.

It's interesting that in some way, each member of the Unit experienced a loss this episode. Abigail lost her cousin, Tally lost her first love and some of her innocence, and Raelle lost the girl she's fallen madly in love with. Hopefully they'll continue to support each other as they heal.

The sheer amount of Raylla in this episode was unbelievable. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say their scenes from this single episode, would probably cover 6 episodes on any other show, if we’re lucky. I'll keep saying it, I have never seen a show give a wlw couple this amount of time, care and respect.

It seems like we may not see them together for a while. I'm OK with that. We've had so much content over the last five episodes, more than I have seen in any other show. And remember, absence makes the heart grow fonder. Imagine the amazing scene we'll get when they reunite. Taylor and Amalia will knock that out of the park.

I thought this was the best episode so far, and one of the best hours of TV I've ever seen. This had the perfect mix of world building, humor, sadness, tenseness, action and romance. This show is such a gift and I can never thank the cast and crew enough for it.

#motherland fort salem #motherland: fort salem #raelle collar #scylla ramshorn #raylla #abigail bellweather #tally craven #anacostia quartermaine

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norgestan · 3 years

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norandro, eva/nora, amiris 👀❣️

NORANDRO:

i mean, starting off pretty strong with my favorite eskam couple. oh god. THEM. as someone who cannot stomach season 2 and also skipped william's clip and william's clip only when season 4 of skam came to an end... i will ALWAYS love what eskam did for this couple. i think i explain it pretty well on my season 3 review, but to sum up those thoughts: i think this is what noorhelm was truly supposed to be, they're both pretty flawed characters with great arcs who make their get-together super interesting and organic, alejandro is my baby and the most developed william and i'll die on this hill, etc.

especially i think that norandro, for a ship that got way less screentime that all their other counterparts, is by FAR the most developed couple in all of them and up there in eskam too, and although they weren't the focus of most of the show, it's clear as day that the writers really tried to tell a compelling story with these two - and they succeeded. it's shocking to me that eskam actually got to link the "everyone is fighting a battle" motto that has become a meme for how poorly incorporated it is on the skamverse, as alejandro effectively behaved around that motto: during season 3 and onwards, which is where i believe he's fully reformed as a character and love interest, he never hurts nora - nor anyone - in any way. he struggles to tell nora how he doesn't want a relationship because he doesn't want to hurt her, and in the miscommunication fest that their first clip of s3 is, i've always LOVED that nora calls alejandro a "fuckboy" still, and he's clearly annoyed by this, but doesn't bite back. he's always so mindful of her feelings even though he's struggling himself, BECAUSE he understands that his suffering is not the center of the world! because treating people with kindness is a strength in itself! and it continues like that for the rest of the season. like, at his most petty, he just sends a text to nora calling her a "fuckboy", which is honestly hilarious. he deals with a lot of jealousy because of nora's new relationship, yet he values her friendship so much that he never snaps at her, he never lets it show when he's talking to her, and he's never passive-aggressive about it - you can tell that he's so genuinely glad that they're still friends after all. god, the clip where he realizes that miquel is a shit boyfriend while he's talking to nora... imagine the things any other william would've said there. imagine the ways alejandro could've been petty or overprotective and fuck everything up. instead, he recognizes nora needs space and even though it hurts to be away from her, he does it because he understands it's what she needs - and his own feelings and entitlement (that he previously showed, too!) aren't the most important thing. it's beautiful. UGH. what a great character eskam crafted, there.

i like them well enough in s4, too. i think, for what they had to work with, they took them in a good direction and their happy ending feels deserved. it's just that... personally, i wish there was more introspection of nora's aftermath in s3, which is also one of my complaints with season 3 - and where characters like emma could've been SO good. although i understand the intentions, a lot of nora's internal turmoil regarding her abusive relationship with miquel are only tied to her desire to be with alejandro. it's frustrating that it became so boy-focused when the girl squad was the center of the emotional climax of nora's season. to me, the solution is still in giving the pov's to the girl squad and not... random characters lol, but oh well. i think eskam did good there and i still love this couple the most!!! i just wish there was an universe where their story doesn't have to be wrapped up in one season and we can get actual glimpses of a beautiful slow burn where they can finally get together and make their relationship work - and this is where the fanfic part comes in, i guess! as someone who loves the couple, i liked seeing them lovey-dovey in the background of s4, but also i wouldn't have been too mad if they held off from making them completely canon and only hinted their status as endgame, kinda how they did with eva and jorge. oh, and speaking of eva, i guess...

NOREVA:

i guess, the main thing with them is that i love norandro so much that i can't really see nora with any other love interest??????? now, platonically. UGH. 12/10. anyone who's seen season 3 should know and i shouldn't even have to explain it tbh. i love the focus that is put on their friendship and how emotionally charged it is when it comes to miquel and the aftermath of all that. like, a similar thing is done with norandro - because at that point, nora and alejandro were exclusively friends, but it becomes even more relevant when it's about eva. eva who, you know, was in a toxic relationship herself. i love that she herself brings up her relationship with jorge when she's talking about miquel, and how wary she is of everything that happening. the fact that she's the first one to sense it feels so right!!! i love that eskam really made them close and gave them the window scene, which is both so powerful on its message and a true love letter to female friendships.

i think eva is a really underrated eskam character as it is, like... people really don't understand how great of a character she is and how much she's grown. they are quick to call her a boring, ooc party girl once s2 rolls around, like eskam didn't spend TIME making eva herself declare that hooking up with cristian (and cristian ONLY!) was something she did out of fun and she was decided to stop as soon as it stopped being fun for her. moreover, eva is such a perceptive person: she's been that way since s1 and it has only carried across for the entirety of the show since then. and when pairing two really good characters together, like eva and nora, you really can't go wrong. their friendship brings great things out of both of them and it goes through its own arc during nora's season, whereas other seasons either dump eva as noora's bff midway through or just make them really close to introduce character drama but don't really do anything to their dynamic as it is.

romantically... sigh. i'm sorry LOL as much as i love girls kissing and wlw romance done right... i don't see potential for this relationship outside their platonic dynamic. which is, btw, incredibly strong and beautiful. i'm super contented with how eskam handled their friendship and therefore i wouldn't want anything else from them, and it's not like nooreva where the chemistry was THERE. however! i'm always open to see people's interpretations of what romantic noreva could be. wasn't it you who wrote that beautiful fic of nora realizing she's bi and falling for eva after season 3? because now THAT'S the shit i'm looking for. i think there's a lot of potential there which i'd like to see explored in fic, but other than that, i love their relationship how it is and i've never felt a desire to see them as each other romantic interests.

AMIRIS:

first things first: why did eskam NEVER confirm cris having an embarrassing, sweet, confusing childhood crush on amira? i mean, it's my headcanon that she'll later realize it and she'll jolt awake and think "holy FUCK" but like... it's a thing that isaks are into their jonases. why didn't it happen here :(((((

being honest, childhood friends to lovers has never been my thing? a simple friends to lovers doesn't do it for me: i like my relationships rocky, with lots of character moments and whose survival and success depend only on the people involved making efforts to change and do better. if you've seen s4... yeah, that's not really the case. it's just disappointing because damn, amiris is the realest thing indeed, but also... what case are the writers doing for them? because it was only irene and hajar doing the intense gazing and bringing all the chemistry home. s4 cris is a mess and a half, and while i like the idea of the bench scene featuring both of them, and being more about cris reminding amira the reasons she's made it this far instead of lecturing her about sucking it up better... the result is still lackluster. there are SO many issues on their friendship that were introduced and then dropped, and it's really nice that cris finally is there to comfort amira when shit goes down, it truly is! but what else is there? it's just a small part of s4 being a bunch of missed potential. they could've REALLY done something great with their relationship and bring back and close cris' development in the show, but we only got... well, nothing. back to 0. amira has to live with those problems, now. things like that really make it seem like once amira broadens her horizons, she won't really go back to her friendship with the girls, and cris will be a lingering wound of the past. oh well.

ehem. romantically!!!!!!! as i said, cris was totally crushing on amira at some point. like... canon really makes a point at making cris' brother amira's love interest, where dani has nothing to offer to amira than cris hasn't done yet. iftar on a rooftop? ha, loser, cris did it first. admiring her passion and her faith? cris does it arguably way better than dani. longtime pining? dude. go home. okay, i'll cut dani soto some slack since it's not about him lol. point is, if amira was charmed by all of those things, then what tells me that the option of her and cris being a thing is off the table? at the end of the day, they're indeed a relationship that needs a lot of work and patience to last. the 500k slow burn is writing itself, really.

(regardless of amiris' future, i still think irene and hajar have to do a cute romcom romance at some point. their chemistry is off the charts.)

#skam españa #putting a read more thingy because as usual i've gone in too deep #also yes. i did mark 'i want to kiss them' in every ship. and what about it #thank you so much for your ask adelaide!!!!!!!! <3 #answered

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popculty · 3 years

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52 Films by Women: 2020 Edition

Another annual challenge complete!

Last year, I focused on diversifying my list. This year I kept that intention but focused on watching more non-American films and films from the 20th century. Specifically, I sought out Agnès Varda’s entire filmography, after her death in 2019. (I was not disappointed - What a filmmaking legend we lost.)

I also kept a film log for the first time and have included some of my thoughts on several films from that log. I made a point of including reviews both positive and negative, because I think it’s important to acknowledge the variability and breadth of the canon, so as not to put every film directed by a woman on a pedestal. (Although movies directed by women must clear a much higher bar to be greenlit, meaning generally higher quality...But that’s an essay for another day :)

* = directed by a woman of color

bold = fave

1. The Rhythm Section (2020) dir. Reed Morano - Not as good as it could have been, given Morano’s proven skill behind the camera, but also not nearly as bad as the critics made it out to be. And unbelievably refreshing to see a female revenge story not driven by sexual assault or the loss of a husband/child.

2. Cléo de 5 à 7 (1962) dir. Agnès Varda - If you ever wanted to take a real-time tour of Paris circa 1960, this is the film for you.

3. Little Women (2019) dir. Greta Gerwig - Still my favorite Little Women adaptation. I will re-watch it every year and cry.

4. Varda by Agnès (2019) dir. Agnès Varda & Didier Rouget

5. Booksmart (2019) dir. Olivia Wilde - An instant classic high school comedy romp that subverts all the gross tropes of its 1980s predecessors.

6. Girls of the Sun (2018) dir. Eva Husson

7. Blue My Mind (2017) dir. Lisa Brühlmann

8. Portrait of a Lady On Fire (2019) dir. Céline Sciamma - Believe the hype. This film is a master thesis on the female gaze, and also just really effing gorgeous.

9. Belle Epine (2010) dir. Rebecca Zlotowski

10. Vamps (2012) dir. Amy Heckerling - With Krysten Ritter and Alicia Silverstone as modern-day vampires, I was so ready for this movie. But it feels like a bad stage play or a sit-com that’s missing a laugh-track. Bummer.

11. *Birds of Prey (2020) dir. Cathy Yan - Where has this movie been all our lives?? Skip the next onslaught of Snyder-verse grim-darkery and give me two more of these STAT!

12. She’s Missing (2019) dir. Alexandra McGuinness

13. The Mustang (2019) dir. Laure de Clermont-Tonnere - Trigger warning for the “protagonist” repeatedly punching a horse in the chest. I noped right out of there.

14. Monster (2003) dir. Patty Jenkins – I first watched this movie when I was probably too young and haven’t revisited it since. The rape scene traumatized me as a kid, but as an adult I appreciate how that trauma is not the center of the movie, or even of Aileen’s life. Everyone still talks about how Charlize “went ugly” for this role, but the biggest transformation here isn’t aesthetic, it’s physical – the way Theron replicates Wuernos’ mannerisms, way of speaking, and physicality. That’s why she won the Oscar. I also love that Jenkins calls the film “Monster” (which everyone labels Aileen), but then actually uses it to tell the story of how she fell in love with a woman when she was at her lowest, and that saved her. That’s kind of beautiful, and I’m glad I re-watched it so that I could see the story in that light, instead of the general memory I had of it being a good, feel-bad movie. It’s so much more than that.

15. Water Lilies (2007) dir. Céline Sciamma – Sciamma’s screenwriting and directorial debut, the first in her trilogy on youth, is as painfully beautiful as its sequels (Tomboy and Girlhood). It’s also one of the rare films that explores the overlap of queerness and girl friendships.

16. The Trouble with Angels (1966) dir. Ida Lupino – Movies about shenanigan-based female friendships are such rare delights. Rosalind Russel is divine as Mother Superior, and Hayley Mills as “scathingly brilliant” as the pranks she plays on her. Ida Lupino’s skill as an editor only enhances her directing, providing some truly iconic visual gags to complement dialogue snappy enough for Gilmore Girls.

17. Vagabond (1985) dir. Agnès Varda – Shot with a haunting realism, this film has no qualms about its heroine’s inevitable, unceremonious death, which it opens with, matter-of-factly, before retracing her final (literal) steps to the road-side ditch she ends up in. (I’m partly convinced said heroine was the inspiration for Sarah Manning in Orphan Black.)

18. One Sings, The Other Doesn’t (1977) dir. Agnès Varda – Probably my favorite classic Varda, this film feels incredibly personal. It’s essentially a love story about two best friends with very different lives. For an indie made in the ‘70s, the diversity, scope, and themes of the film are impressive. Even if the second half a drags a bit, the first half is absolute perfection, engaging the viewer immediately, and clipping along, sprinkling in some great original songs that were way progressive for their time (about abortion, female bodily autonomy, etc) and could still be considered “bangers” today.

19. Emma (2020) dir. Autumn de Wilde

20. Black Panthers (1969) dir. Agnès Varda

21. Into the Forest (2016) dir. Patricia Rozema - When the world was ending (i.e. the pandemic hit) this was the first movie I turned to - a quiet, meditative story of two sisters (Elliot Page and Evan Rachel Wood) surviving off the land after a sudden global blackout. Four years later, it’s still one of my favorite book-to-screen adaptations. I fondly remember speaking with director Patricia Rozema at the 2016 Chicago Critics Film Festival after a screening, her love for the source material and desire to “get it right” so apparent. I assured her then, and reaffirm now, that she really did.

22. City of Trees (2019) dir. Alexandra Swarens

23. Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020) dir. Eliza Hittmann - To call this a harrowing and deeply personal journey of a sixteen-year-old who must cross state lines to get an abortion would be accurate, but incomplete. It is a story so much bigger than that, about the myriad ways women’s bodies and boundaries are constantly violated.

24. Paradise Hills (2019) dir. Alice Waddington

25. *Eve’s Bayou (1996) dir. Kasi Lemmons – I’ve been meaning to watch Kasi Lemmons’ directorial debut for many years now, and I’m so glad I finally have, because it fully deserves its icon status, beyond being one of the first major films directed by a black woman. Baby Jurnee Smollett's talent was immediately recognizable, and she has reminded us of it in Birds of Prey and Lovecraft Country this year. If merit was genuinely a factor for Oscar contenders, she would have taken home gold at eleven years old. Beasts of the Southern Wild has been one of my all-time favorites, but now I realize that most of my appreciation for that movie actually goes to Lemmons for blazing the trail with her story of a young black girl from the bayou first. It’s also a surprisingly dark story about memory and abuse and familial relationships that cross lines - really gutsy and surprising themes, especially for the ‘90s.

26. Blow the Man Down (2019) dir. Bridget Savage Cole & Danielle Krudy - Come and get your sea shanty fix!

27. Touchy Feely (2013) dir. Lynn Shelton - R.I.P. :(

28. Hannah Gadsby: Douglas (2020) dir. Madeleine Parry - If you thought Gadsby couldn’t follow up 2018′s sensational Nanette with a comedy special just as sharp and hilarious, you would have been sorely mistaken.

29. Girlhood (2013) dir. Céline Sciamma

30. Breathe (2014) dir. Mélanie Laurent

31. *A Dry White Season (1989) dir. Euzhan Palcy

32. Laggies (2014) dir. Lynn Shelton

33. *The Old Guard (2020) dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood – Everything I’ve ever wanted in an action movie: Immortal gays, Charlize Theron wielding a labrys (battle axe), kinetic fight choreography I haven’t seen since the last Bond movie…Watched it twice, then devoured the comics it was adapted from, and I gotta say: in the hands of black women, it eclipses the source material. Cannot wait for the just-announced sequel.

34. Morvern Callar (2002) dir. Lynn Ramsay

35. Shirley (2020) dir. Josephine Decker

36. *Radioactive (2019) dir. Marjane Satrapi – The story is obviously well worth telling and the narrative structure – weaving in the future consequences of Curie’s discoveries – is clever, but a bit awkwardly executed and overly manipulative. There are glimpses of real brilliance throughout, but it feels as if the director’s vision was not fully realized, to my great disappointment. Nonetheless, I appreciated seeing Marie Curie's story being told by a female director and embodied by the always wonderful Rosamund Pike.

37. *The Half of It (2020) dir. Alice Wu - I feel like a real scrooge for saying this, but this movie did nothing for me. Nothing about it felt fresh, authentic or relatable. A real disappointment from the filmmaker behind the wlw classic Saving Face.

38. Mouthpiece (2018) dir. Patricia Rozema - I am absolutely floored. One of those films that makes you fall in love with the art form all over again. Patricia Rozema continues to prove herself one of the most creatively ambitious and insightful directors of our time, with this melancholic meditation on maternal grief and a woman’s duality.

39. Summerland (2020) dir. Jessica Swale - The rare period wlw love story that is not a) all-white or b) tragedy porn. Just lovely.

40. *The Last Thing He Wanted (2020) dir. Dee Rees – As rumored, a mess. Even by the end, I still couldn’t tell you who any of the characters are. Dee, we know you’re so much better than this! (see: Mudbound, Pariah)

41. *Cuties (2020) dir. Maïmouna Doucouré – I watched this film to 1) support a black woman director who has been getting death threats for her work and 2) see what all the fuss is about. While I do think there were possibly some directorial choices that could have saved quite a bit of the pearl-clutching, overall, I didn’t find it overly-exploitative or gross, as many (who obviously haven’t actually watched the film) have labeled it. It certainly does give me pause, though, and makes me wonder whether children can ever be put in front of a camera without it exploiting or causing harm to them in some way. It also makes one consider the blurry line between being a critique versus being an example. File this one under complicated, for sure.

42. A Call to Spy (2019) Lydia Dean Pilcher – An incredible true story of female spies during WWII that perfectly satisfied my itch for British period drama/spy thriller and taught me so much herstory I didn’t know.

43. Kajillionaire (2020) dir. Miranda July - I was lucky enough to attend the (virtual) premiere of this film, followed by an insightful cast/director Q&A, which only made me appreciate it more. July's offbeat dark comedy about a family of con artists is queerer and more heartfelt than it has any right to be, and a needed reprieve in a year of almost entirely white wlw stories. The family's shenanigans are the hook, but it's the budding relationship between Old Dolio (an almost unrecognizable Evan Rachel Wood) and aspiring grifter Melanie (the luminous Gina Rodriguez) that is the heart of the story.

44. Misbehaviour (2020) dir. Philippa Lowthorpe – Again, teaching me herstory I didn’t know, about how the Women’s Liberation Movement stormed the 1970 Miss World Pageant. Keira Knightley and Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s characters have a conversation in a bathroom at the end of the film that perfectly eviscerates well-meaning yet ignorant white feminism, without ever pitting women against each other - a feat I didn’t think was possible. I also didn’t think it was possible to critique the male gaze without showing it (*ahem Cuties, Bombshell, etc*), but this again, invents a way to do it. Bless women directors.

45. *All In: The Fight for Democracy (2020) dir. Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortes – 2020’s 13th. Thank god for Stacey Abrams, that is all.

46. *The 40-Year-Old Version (2020) dir. Radha Blank – This scene right here? I felt that in my soul. This whole film is so good and funny and heartfelt and relatable to any artist trying to walk that tightrope of “making it” while not selling their soul to make it. My only initial semi-note was that it’s a little long, but after hearing Radha Blank talk about how she fought for the two-hour run-time as a way of reclaiming space for older black women, I take it back. She’s right: Let black women take up space. Let her movie be as long as she wants it to be. GOOD FOR HER.

47. Happiest Season (2020) dir. Clea Duvall - Hoooo boy. What was marketed as the first lesbian Christmas rom-com is actually a horror movie for anyone who’s ever had to come out. Throw in casual racism and a toxic relationship treated as otp, and it’s YIKES on so many levels. Aubrey Plaza, Dan Levy, and an autistic-coded Jane are the only (underused) highlights.

48. *Monkey Beach (2020) dir. Loretta Todd

49. *Little Chief (2020) dir. Erica Tremblay – A short film part of the 2020 Red Nation Film Festival, it’s a perfect eleven minutes that I wish had gone on longer, if only to bask in Lily Gladstone in a leading role.

50. First Cow (2019) dir. Kelly Reichardt – I know Kelly Reichardt’s style, so I’ll admit-- even as I was preparing for an excellent film, I was also reaching for my phone, planning on only half paying attention during all the inevitable 30-second shots of grass blowing in the wind. (And yes, there are plenty of those.) But twenty minutes in, my phone was set aside and forgotten, as I am getting sucked into this beautiful story about two frontiersman trying to live their best domestic life.There is only one word to describe this film and that is: PURE. I’ve never seen such a tender platonic relationship between men on screen before, and it’s not lost on me that it took a woman to show us that tenderness. Reichardt gives us two men brought together by fate, and kept together by a shared dream and the simple pleasure of not being alone in such a hard world; two men who spend their days cooking, trapping, baking, and dreaming of a better life; two men who don’t say much, but feel everything for each other. The world would be a much better place if men showed us this kind of vulnerability and friendship toward each other. Oh, and it’s also a brutal take-down of capitalism and the myth of the American Dream!

51. Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) dir. Patty Jenkins - My most-anticipated film for the past two years was...well, a mixed bag, to say the least. Too many thoughts on it for a blog post, so stay tuned for the upcoming podcast ep where we go all in ;)

52. *Selah and the Spades (2019) dir. Tayarisha Poe

I hope this gives you some ideas to kick off your new year with a resolution to support more female directors!

What were your favorite women-directed movies of last year? Let me know in the tags, comments, or asks!

#finally finished this #52 films by women #2020 #writing #movies #movie reviews #orig

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