#anti love interest

[cin-was-taken]

Single dad supremacy

#i dont think i can handle a romance #aroace din wooo #the mandalorian #i want my aroace rep #aro din #ace din #anti love interest #every fucking show #please not this one #din djarin #please #aroace din #aroace din djarin

[ecoterrorist-katara]

Why I feel like Ka/taang is one-sided, despite textual evidence 

ATLA does try to convince us that Katara has romantic feelings for Aang. For example: she seems thoughtful when she realizes that Aang is a powerful bender; she’s offended that he didn’t want to kiss her in the Cave of Two Lovers; she gets jealous when Sokka says On Ji and Aang look good together.

So…what’s wrong with anti-Kataangers? Do we just lack media comprehension? 

To be clear, on their own, these gestures can indicate romantic interest. But at the same time, we have stuff like “Aang is a sweet little guy, like Momo.” We have her ambivalent facial expression after he kisses her before the eclipse, and her hedging during Ember Island Players, and her anger when he kisses her anyway. In the context of these conflicting cues, Katara’s possibly romantic reactions can absolutely be interpreted in a different way, because: 

Acknowledging a friend as a potential romantic interest is not the same as actually being romantically interested in them. (Imo this is something young women struggle with, due to a combination of romance-centrism and heteronormativity that make women feel like they should be in romantic relationships, and that boys and girls who share intimate and deep feelings for one another must be romantically into each other) 

Wanting someone to find you desirable is not the same as desiring that person. (Which is something a lot of women, especially young women, struggle with. Remember all the discourse around Cat Person back in 2017?) 

Being jealous when someone flirts with your friend is not the same as wanting to be with your friend. (Especially when you see your friends as family, or if you’re accustomed to a specific type of devotion from that friend. It is jealousy, and it is possessiveness, but it doesn’t always arise from romantic feelings) 

Growing up in a patriarchal society means that your desires are always filtered through what men want from you, sometimes in an abstract male gaze-y way, and sometimes in a very visceral and interpersonal way when a boy wants you specifically. And Katara’s reactions are just that — reactions. Reactions to what other people — including Aunt Wu, Sokka, Aang himself — have insinuated about her and Aang. She’s not really proactive in her interest in Aang: we don’t really see Aang, romantically, from Katara’s POV. Under the framework of “Katara is reacting to a romantic prospect she’s kind of uncertain about,” it is completely plausible — and indeed likely — that she would sometimes act in ways that indicate romantic interest, in addition to moments where she indicates the opposite. 

Ka/taang shippers often bring up other evidence, like Katara’s despair when Azula hits Aang with lightning, or how protective she is of him when Zuko joins the Gaang. The thing is, these pieces of evidence aren’t necessarily indicative of romantic love. The fact that Katara genuinely loves Aang makes the whole thing more complicated, not less, because — especially at that age, especially when Aang is twelve years old and grew up in a sex-segregated society of monks — it is really difficult to tell the difference between platonic love and romantic love. Their mutual devotion is layered and complex yet straightforward in its sincerity. What was not straightforward, until the last five minutes of the show, is whether this devotion on Katara’s end is romantic. The romantic arc for Katara and Aang is not really an arc, as Sneezy discusses in this classic ZK video. Katara actually becomes more conflicted over time and we never see an event that clarifies her feelings. She seems more interested in him in The Headband than on the Day of the Black Sun, and she has never been more hostile to his romantic overtures than in the penultimate episode. 

And in light of this, it’s pretty easy for fans to fill in the blanks with a different interpretation: maybe Katara’s weird expression after their kiss at the invasion means she didn’t enjoy it; maybe the kiss made her realize that she doesn’t actually feel that way about Aang; maybe against her will and her better judgement, she’s developing feelings for another person, a person who hurt her and whom she fervently tried to hate until he pulled off what is in my opinion the greatest grovel of all time in the form of a life-changing field trip. Maybe. Am I saying that Zutara has more romantic interactions than Ka/taang? Of course not. But ironically, the lack of romantic interactions means that it’s not inherently one-sided, the way Ka/taang became in the latter half of season 3.

I’m not arguing that Katara’s unequivocally not into Aang. Obviously the text declares that she is, because they get married and have kids. But I am saying that there’s a very good reason that so many people, especially women, see Katara’s interest in Aang as ambiguous. It’s not because we can’t pick up “subtle” hints of growing affection. It’s because we know not all affection is romantic, and it’s really easy for someone else’s insistent romantic intentions to muddle what you want.

P.S. I first started thinking about these topics (platonic vs romantic love, desiring someone vs wanting to be desired, etc) in the context of compulsory heterosexuality, a term describing how queer women contort themselves into relationships with men even if they’re not really into men. I saw a post a few days ago joking about why so many queer women seem to be into Zutara. I wonder if part of the reason is because as queer women, we are very sensitive to the ways in which we can talk ourselves into wanting things we don’t actually want, and Katara’s romantic interest in Aang can be easily seen that way. 

#Anti Kataang #Zutara #anti Bryke #Katara deserved better #From Bryke who offered her so little romantic agency #I actually think Aang and Katara’s mutual devotion is really compelling because the wires get crossed when you have such intense love #And navigating romantic vs platonic feelings can be very complicated and interesting #but no we did not get that bc I guess they just had to end with a romance however shoddily developed #my meta

[novaricewrites]

Very tired of the shadowy/darkness-themed brooding male love interests in fantasy romance books. Especially the ones where the character revolves heavily around sex / sexualization.

This is especially irritating when they are 'healed' or complete as people because they are dating the protag. Seriously. It just promotes that toxic 'You can fix him with love' concept. This is such an inherently harmful message.

Not saying those kind of broody characters shouldn't be allowed to exist at all. However, the dominance of that character type over other portrayals in romance especially, subscribes to the common notion of masculinity having only one desirable form.

The main lead does not have to be the most powerful, the most virile, most tragic or most intimidating.

It's shallow and overdone.

Why can't the men and boys in these leads also be written as thoughtful and warm, sunlight characters. Soft hands and gentle voices. Complex and spirited and vibrant. Let them also be kind, lovely and full of quiet things.

I have so many thoughts on this general topic that go into way too many directions to summarize in one post.

#is this prompted by my fondness of peeta mellark maybe #anti sjm #anti rhysand #anti ic #anti acotar #men in media #fantasy romance #masculinity in literature #lucien vanserra #and the point is why are they often not the main love interests but just a side character when they are not that typical format #twilight too #we should not perpetuate the idea of men being fixed by love and sex #this literally connects to the victim blaming mindset #you should have given him a chance bullshit

[invisible-pink-toast]

#i was just innocently going through ao3 trying to find some nice friendship fics #i excluded anti / character bashing tags #AND STILL #like sure not all random female love interests are written super well #but that doesn't mean you have to turn them into stalking attempting murder nutcases to justify your mlm ship sjdflkhsdf;hasdkfh;sf #ana flores #taylor kelly #abby clark #natalia dollenmeyer #chrissy cunningham #kira yukimura #malia hale #Braeden teen wolf #lydia martin #rey star wars #sharon carter #guinevere #tropes #female love interests #911 #stranger things #teen wolf #merlin #star wars

[arson-09]

Man, Rhysand was never the dreamer in that god awful series. It was always Tamlin

Tamlin is the one who has always done everything he can do to stop injustice. Protecting mortals, always accepting fae from other court in his land, trying his damnedest to find a way to break the curse instead of stealing a mortal. He has always dreamed of a safer and more just world and has always tried to make that come true. Even after loosing so much he always did whats right and true in the end.

but hes doomed by the narrative. His good deeds and genuine soul over shadowed by the biases of the narrator. Hes the age old tragedy of wanting to be the best he can and do the best he can.

#acotar #a court of thorns and roses #tamlin #pro tamlin #sarah j maas #sjm #he’s actually such a good and interesting character but is thrown aside for a supposedly morally gray man #the fact tamlin tries to be so morally good causes more interesting scenarios #hes my babygirl #i have so many thoughts i hope this makes sense #my brain is melted from playing stardew valley #Tamlin is so tragic he deserves a happy ending #with people who care for him and who he loves #thats a major part of my fic #if i may self promote #anti rhysand #adding that tag cause some of yall dont know how to scroll

[the-darkestminds]

Rhysand better have fuckin apologized for this later cuz why did he make it so personal ☝️😭

#this was right after he brought up jesminda and called her a commoner #he was soooo awful to Lucien and Tamlin #I know he had to convince them he was truly evil #but bro 😭 #anyone who says they loved Rhys in book 1 is crazy he was a dick lol #an interesting dick #but be real #I looooved Tamlin when I first read this #he clearly loved Feyre sm #sarah j maas #sjm #acowar #acomaf #acotar #a court of wings and ruin #a court of mist and fury #a court of thorns and roses #a court of frost and starlight #a court of silver flames #acosf #acofas #Lucien #pro Lucien #Tamlin #Rhysand #pro Tamlin #Lucien forgave him so quickly in acowar too #pro elucien #anti ic #anti rhysand

[butterflysonnets]

yes i'm rooting for m*leven breakup because byler is neat but mostly? i'm rooting for m*leven breakup for the sake of el and mike.

to me, their romance was always a puppy love born out of a combination of social pressures, naïve curiosity, and a lack of true understanding regarding intimacy and romantic love and what it really is. it was real in that they do truly, deeply care about each other and they are close friends, maybe even shared an attraction, but a maturing romance is so much more than that. they've grown up and out of being boyfriend/girlfriend, and that's okay! i think television/film needs to show more often that most of us don't have definite "soulmates" or first childhood loves that we spend our whole lives with. it doesn't mean these relationships meant nothing and didn't impact us, it just means they've run their course and that something else is in the cards, and this is part of life!

i've always felt el was at her best and most confident self when broken up with mike, discovering who she was and what she liked alongside another girl her age instead of just relying on mike for mentorship on how to live in the real world. she deserves more of an opportunity to find herself, her autonomy, and her independence, and to love who she is, and she's made it clear she's felt insecure in the relationship with mike because she isn't being loved and understood the way she wants, needs, and deserves from someone who is her partner.

also, it's okay if mike doesn't love her in "the way he should". he is not obligated to love her romantically and stay in a relationship with her just because she's a girl, because she "needed someone", or because he cares about her a lot. he shouldn't be pressured into a romance if it's not truly coming from his heart. he deserves freedom to find out and honour who he is, too, instead of just staying in his non-functional first relationship — one he got into as a child, essentially — and defining himself that way because it's what's expected when a boy and a girl are close. he loves her in some way, yes, but it's okay if he doesn't feel comfortable or secure being her boyfriend anymore, for whatever reason that is. he's felt insecure too, and that's valid and it matters.

they are their own people and are steadily growing and changing every day. they need time to figure out who those people are, and it's become clear (at least in my opinion) that those people aren't meant to be a couple at this stage.

they deserve freedom. they deserve to grow up and be authentic to themselves and not feel like they need to lie for the sake of a relationship. they deserve to move on from this version of their relationship that isn't making them happy and rekindle the best part of their bond: their strong, beautiful friendship. they don't have to be a couple if it doesn't make them stronger and better and happier people.

i think it would be healthy and wonderful for a show, especially one consumed frequently by young adults, to show a relationship starting, progressing, and ending on good terms in this way. sometimes things don't work out, and that is okay.

#eve text #elmike #stranger things #byler #only tagging byler because i feel like yall will like this take lol #tagging tagging tagging WHAT ARE EVERYONE ELSE'S THOUGHTS #god i can't believe i'm making a post about stranger things. this feels like poking a bear #i'm not particularly anti m*leven but like... they'd have to do something pretty special at this point for me to feel like it's viable #i'm seeing the bts of s5 and it's got me Having Thoughts #elmike friendship is something i am so passionate about #even before i ever liked byler (didn't ship at all until s4 even though i knew it was a thing before) i've felt this way about elmike #i always believed they were close friends at heart and needed to break up #the romance part of them felt very distinctly young and very much “he was a boy she was a girl” to me #and it hasn't deepened into anything more mature and i don't see how it could based on the current state of the writing... #the fact that lumax exists — a young relationship that is actively maturing and is healthy — makes that clear to me #and the “love confession” in s4 and how disingenuous and miserable it felt was just the nail in the coffin #also the fact that will (who is IN LOVE with mike) was instrumental in making it happen? ... uh... okay... interesting choice… #fucked up and reductive if they make it another queer unrequited love sacrifice for the sake of pushing the heterosexual agenda YUCK #so i really hope the speculation about a m*leven breakup is real!! i think it just makes sense for their characters but who knows #i don't believe in the notion of love at first sight or one true love and i think the writers don't too??? #love to me is an accumulation of experiences and we inevitably choose it at some point rather than fall into it... but idk #tv is so fixated on keeping couples together... sometimes it's just not reality guys especially with young people... LET IT GO... #like i said though i'm not 100% sold that they're going to give up their “golden couple” LMAO #stranger things hasn't historically subverted too many tropes if i'm being honest #anyway i seriously need this season to come out quickly... i'm so bored and getting my master's is crushing my soul #i need frivolity #ALSO btw i won't respond to hateful messages about this so please don't bother. it's not that serious. this is a netflix show

[achaotichuman]

Ngl today alone I have seen countless men who could easily play Rhysand if they were given violet contacts and bat wings.

In my entire period of living I have seen maybe one or two people that could MAYBE pass for Tamlin if they had makeup on.

I have never, ever in my life passed a man on the street who could play Lucien or Eris Vanserra.

#acotar #tamlin #pro tamlin #lucien vanserra #pro lucien vanserra #anti rhysand #rhysand is just so boring #the dark haired love interest can be found at your local supermarket #tamlin would need to be hunted down using the dark web #lucien and eris straight up don’t exist in real life #acotar headcanons #eris vanserra #pro eris vanserra

[sluttypatrickstar]

no.

#i don't read percy jackson and think #wow #what im really missing from this was a sexy morally grey demon love interest #anti booktok

[they-call-me-haiku]

i hate the whole "the show was cancelled" excuse that toh fans constantly use to justify poor writing choices. i'm as upset as anyone that toh was cut short, but the show writers got an advantage that a lot of other shows didn't. they were allowed to actually end the show. look at infinity train, for example. it had more seasons planned but the execs decided to cancel it without even giving the creators time to write a proper ending.

so in that case, the writers of toh should consider themselves lucky and make do with what they have. of course, it's most ideal to have the freedom to write the entire show how you want. but when you can't do that but you're allowed to give the series a proper resolution, you have to pick and choose what plot points to focus on.

instead of focusing on the important arcs and plot points (belos's backstory, the collector's origin, hunter's arc, etc) the writers decided to add completely unnecessary ships and additions to further complicate the plot. i'll say it: huntlow was unnecessary, the whole hexside and kikimora thing in s3e2 was unnecessary, the collector's rushed redemption arc was unnecessary. in fact, some of these decisions actively affected the ongoing plot badly (huntlow ruining hunter's arc and bringing him back to square one).

in the end, you're left with more questions than answers. what's with the collector's sudden switch from evil and calculating to poor innocent uwu child? what actually happened in belos's past? how did hunter move on from his trauma without getting any closure and being paired with a person who acts a lot like his controlling uncle? why did amity forgive luz so quickly for lying to her after she asked her not to? what happened to all the witches and citizens of the demon realm who actually followed and worshipped belos?

so yeah, you really can't defend toh with this excuse. if i was making a show and was forced to cut it short, i'd be angry and upset, sure. but i'd try to make the best of it. i would focus on the main plot instead of going after side characters or ships that add nothing of importance to the plot. i still like this show a lot but i'm not going to blindly defend it. it has its flaws and they need to be critiqued.

#toh criticism #toh critical #toh salt #toh discourse #anti huntlow #anti huntl0w #huntl0w negative #i had high hopes for this show i really did #especially around hollow mind era when it really peaked #i was so hyped about belos and how complex he was #but then they scrapped all of the religious trauma in the finale and was like “nah he's pure evil just murder his ass” #i'm not saying i wanted a belos redemption #but his arc was so disappointing #he may not be forgivable but he was a sympathetic character #the reason i loved belos so much in s2 was because of how interesting and well-written he was #they really had to go and ruin that

[antianakin]

Obitine is a Felony™ ship (derogatory).

#star wars #obi-wan kenobi #anti obitine #obitine critical #anti satine kryze #anti satine #satine critical #satine kryze critical #filoni critical #dave filoni critical #obi-wan deserves better than this anti-jedi bullshit ship as his only canonical love interest

[trippingontheescalator]

I think there's too much moralizing in the HP fandom. Like, every time I see arguments between the Marauder/Snape fandoms, it boils down to morality, which is ridiculous because characters are not real people. They do not have morals, or thoughts, or actions. They're puffs of smoke that only exist inside your own brain. Imo, the worst thing a character can be is boring. Snape is many, many things, but he's not boring. Part of what makes him interesting is that he's contradictory, sometimes he does bad things with no real reason but to satisfy his own emotional stuntedness, sometimes he does good things because it's the right thing to do, and all of these actions remain in character.

James Potter is a footnote in canon. A tabula rasa. We know a handful of basic facts: he desired Lily, he bullied Snape, he saved Snape from getting eaten by a werewolf, saving Snape didn't stop him from bullying him, somehow Lily decided to date him even though he literally tried to blackmail her, his friends loved him, he was loyal to them, he was charming, he fought in a war. Everything else is fair game! Make him your own! Do something with these bare bones and create an interesting character! And yet when I see these interpretations of him that are like "Bambi did nothing wrong, Snape was actually the evil mastermind behind all of this just to make poor James look like the bad guy >:(" I just saw a take that had Snape as the mastermind of the werewolf prank that he designed to break up the group, and I'm just like, my friend, those horrible flaws make James interesting. You just turned him into a sad sack of goo. He's no longer a character who acts, he's a blank slate that things happen to. There's a difference. You somehow made a footnote even more boring. Don't be afraid to embrace the darker aspects of him just because you're afraid of a character who is not perfectly moral and good 100% of the time.

#severus snape #pro snape #snapedom #not even anti james potter or anti marauders #stan them all you want #but for the love of god stop stripping them of everything that makes them interesting #at this point they're just pretty pieces of plastic

[greensaplinggrace]

I think one of the biggest differences between bangel and spuffy is that angel isn’t a partner to buffy. he’s not even someone she knows that well. he’s not someone she’s ever familiar with, and he’s not someone she can ever fully rely on.

yeah their romance was big and grand and all the things a tragic fairytale romance is. but at the end of the day their relationship is so incredibly surface level. all there is is the idea of love, and not even the real thing.

#btvs #spike btvs #spuffy #buffy summers #anti angel #anti bangel #just in case #tbh I’m usually a multishipper when it comes to this sort of thing but… #b*ngel comes across as so surface level to me #there’s no real force or depth to it #even disregarding the weird vibes angel gives off about buffy’s age and his condescension and when he first fell in love with her #and all the ways he keeps her hooked by refusing to leave her alone after breaking up with her #a choice that he makes ‘for her own good’ - which he seems to do a lot #it’s that he has no real impact on her as an actual person/slayer with interests and complexity and depth #while he hurt her and affected her #sometimes it feels like he barely made a scratch at all to what actually represents her personhood #anyways I don’t hate him or the ship really and I get why people like him #it’s just to me it’s kind of ridículous that people #say he was it for buffy #when he was barely even a partner #that’s high school romance not real bone deep love #myramblings

[rogersstevie]

really and truly unless it's a discussion about why peggy/steggy fans shouldn't like endgame, at this point idk why people feel the need to continually make the argument about her having a family as if that's the biggest problem about the ending especially when i figure most people are of the belief that it was another timeline or whatever idk what the current consensus on that is in the mcu and i don't care

but what about the fact that it destroyed steve's family? does that not matter because it's not the standard spouse and children but is instead a family he built for himself with sam and nat and bucky? because it's easier to decide steve is a selfish asshole and always has been instead of acknowledging that that storyline did more of a disservice to him than to anyone else? like oh maybe peggy's family was erased and that's horrible but it doesn't matter that steve's family was abandoned in the midst of the kind of trauma he knows very well?

i've said it before but it makes me so sad that so many people just turned on steve and decided a decade of movies don't matter in the face of one shitty desperate attempt of a movie to make him look like a pathetic creep just so they could justify their heterosexual nonsense ending

#steve rogers #anti steggy #anti endgame #also just occurred to me how part of the whole bullshit about not undoing five years #was so tony's daughter wouldn't be erased (even though like hey pepper could've already been pregnant in iw and it would've been fine) #but they had no qualms about peggy's family (since the writers and directors didn't even agree about the timelines) #bc peggy does not matter as anything other than steve's love interest lol and they just continue showing that as far as i can tell #marvel does not care about her as being anything but part of a ship that only ended up together #as a fulfillment of male fantasies and to try to squash stevebucky #so idk why fans are so defensive of marvel on that front #in the end anything redeeming that they wrote for her character was negated and stripped down so she's just a girlboss and a prize #neither of which are good things no matter how hard y'all try to put a feminist spin on it!

[barblaz-arts]

bc of you I finally started watching Wednesday finally damn yall weren't lying im only on episode and the wenclair vibes are real

Omg

I'm so sorry for the het nonsense that is the Love Triangle you will be subjected to 💀

To be perfectly fair Wenclair started getting a fandom all because of this clip in the very first teaser(which came out exactly a year ago whoa)

We didn't know anything about Enid or her relationship with Wednesday or she'd even get a decent amount of screentime but we all went "They should be girlfriends"

We were all pleasantly surprised too when the show aired and realized dang we may not be completely delusional

#asks #antis mock us bcuz of the male love interests #but honestly im just ecstatic that we have a decent amount of shipping fuel AT ALL lmao

[tadpal]

what annoys me the most about taylor swift is that it appears that she and her fans have no curiosity or respect for the genre she works in

#like its pop but likeITS POP MUSIC!!! there are innovations and interesting twists happenign ALL AROUND HER #and she has the money and time and collaborators to really DO SOMETHING WITH THE GENRE #but she doesnt even reallt appear to enjoy it. every time she has to describe her own work she shies away from POP which is what it is #what ALL OF IT HAS BEEN #like explore the genre!! its influences!! where its come from and where its going!! what your peers are doing with it and what it says!! #its an interesting place to be!! you could do so much!!! #but NO. no curiosity for it. where is the love? or passion or drive? #and she consistently tears down other people working in the field. mostly women of colour #like the olivia thing and the way her fans talk about beyonce and rihanna #they pit her against arianna and drag mjs name around and throw in random comparisons and its like??? dont you guys LIKE POP MUSIC #DO YOU GUYS LIKE THIS GENRE EITHER.? DO YOU LISTEN TO OTHER PEOPLE? #do you understand that taylor swift having peers is a good thing. that she could foster relationships and learn and grow alongside them #that they could be her biggest influences and critiques and thats how healthy art spaces thrive. but NO SHE MUST WIN AT POP MUSIC #thats not the aim!!! or it shouldnt be!!! god!!!!!!!!!doesnt it tire you? dont you want to listen to someone who takes pride in their craft? #anti taylor swift #<-for blocklists if you hate hearing negativity about her ig