#like they’re not perfectly healthy because no relationship is. that’s the point.

[adamarks]

The thing is. Not gonna put this on fox’s post bc it’s a tangent. Anyway the thing is Ed and Stede are kinda codependent? What they are, though, is a) two animals who have pair bonded and b) ed seems to have more of an actual clinical depiction of codependency.

The big thing about codependency is that it’s not actually “one partner keeps the other partner good and pure and keeps them from being Mean and Bad.🥺” Codependency’s whole thing is control. It’s a saviour complex. And THE THING IS? It doesn’t work. You cannot “save” a person from being themself, from engaging in their addiction, from hurting themself. They need to make the executive decision to change, the codependent person cannot do that for them. Thus it becomes a cycle. Try to save -> see that they’re not doing what you want -> get angry/upset/punish yourself for not succeeding/sink with them -> rinse and repeat.

Izzy? Now HE is codependent on Ed. You can be codependent on someone who is perfectly fine. He tries to control Ed’s every move, doesn’t succeed, and inevitably gets angry. If you pick up an on god actual textbook, or like any Melody Beattie book, you will see that he is the very definition of codependency.

Cycling back to Ed, though. I do think he’s codependent. You don’t kill your alcoholic father to protect your mother. We don’t mysteriously never see his mother again and know that he went to sea at a young age for no reason. He tried to save her, it backfired. A woman telling her child that they’ll never have better because god decided they’d be miserable is not ready to be saved, is not ready to get out of an abusive situation.

Then, of course, there’s Jack. Jack is eternally getting Ed to do shit for him. To help him because he’s so helpless uwu or whatever. A douchebag who can’t seem to take care of himself and is on the hunt for someone to cater to him??? Mmm yummy! A codependent’s dream! In the episode, he caters to Jack’s every whim, makes excuses for him, and finally does the “sinking with him” thing when he inevitably pushes too far. This is partly because of Jack’s manipulation, partly because that’s what Ed’s family situation had been.

Now that we’ve established all of that, back to my original point: you don’t stop being codependent just because you get into a healthy relationship. I’m certain that a small part of the breakup era sads was that yet again he’d done something huge, sacrificed something big, and his efforts had gone wholly unwanted, just like what he’d done for his mom. And then there’s that fear. Ed knows the power that people he loves have over him. He knows how he acts in love! He knows how much it hurt when Stede left him! It makes sense, then, that he would run away when he sees Stede doing something he’s not too keen on (going full pirate party animal when Ed doesn’t want to be a pirate anymore). It’s fantastic that he’s running away though! He’s not doing shit he doesn’t want to do to humor Stede like he did with Jack. He’s not trying to force Stede to change directions. He’s not trying to control the situation! He’s seeing that he’s freaking out and he’s removing himself. Albeit poorly, but this is a step closer to being able to actually communicate things. He realizes he’s the variable he can change in dynamics.

So to close up, yeah the relationship is maybe a little codependent but not in the way people seem like to say? It’s codependent in that Ed has codependency issues and those will inevitably crop up in any deeply intimate relationship you’re in. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be in a relationship. It doesn’t mean that the relationship is bad or unhealthy. It just means you’re a human person with shit to work on.

#idk. sorry for the rant. maybe this is stupid #aaaauuuggghhh don’t look at me

[transboykirito]

“i write kirisuna out of character because they’re not healthy in canon” “i want to read non-toxic kirisuna” that’s nice i’m writing about them having sex instead of acknowledging a single emotion. i’m writing them suffering alone and nearly breaking up because they won’t talk to eachother. i’m writing about asuna having an entire affair with kazuto and building a life with him and his family while she’s married to another man and carrying his child.

#god forbid someone doesn’t want to read kazuto breaking out the therapy language to talk to his girlfriend 😭 #like they’re not perfectly healthy because no relationship is. that’s the point. #yall complain about being seeing kirito and asuna as boring mary sue self insert jesus kun characters and then strip them of all their flaws #sword art online #sao

[therainscene]

It’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it, but the Alan Turing poster really tells us so much about Will that I consider it to be a significant piece of foreshadowing for S5.

First, let’s dissuade ourselves of the notion that Will chose Turing for his hero project for nerd reasons -- Will’s preferred flavour of nerdery is escapist fantasy, not computer science. He doesn’t know what an IP address is and the first thing he thinks of when he hears modem noises is a movie he likes.

No, he chose Turing because he admires him for being a gay man who accomplished so much in his short life.

On one hand, that’s pretty heart-warming -- the fact he’s willing to identify with other gay men and look up to them as role models shows us he’s making good progress in accepting his identity. On the other hand, it’s heart-breaking, because Turing’s story is not a happy one -- he was caught having a sexual relationship with a man and forced to choose between jail or chemical castration. He chose castration.

I remind you: Will identifies with this guy.

Will is growing up under the twin specters of AIDS and homophobia and likely assumes he’s destined to die young too. He’s been abused and bullied so much, I imagine he’s heard and internalized it all: that he deserves to die, that he’s disgusting, that he’ll never be fulfilled in life.

So when puberty begins crawling its way inside him and implants those shameful desires that make gay men so worthy of abuse... he chooses castration.

For all the sad pining he does in S4, we never really see Will express desire for Mike -- he never checks him out or shows signs of nervousness when they touch. He behaves with perfect platonic decorum at all times...

...unless we consider That One Scene With The Hose.

Sexual interpretations of this scene are controversial, and I can understand why; we’re so used to seeing Will as this innocent, immature little boy that it's shocking to catch him fantasizing so lustfully, even though these sorts of thoughts are pretty normal for a 15 year-old. But I think that’s the point. We’re supposed to feel uncomfortable about this, because Will feels uncomfortable about it too.

He’s done well in accepting his identity, but he’s an absolute repressed mess when it comes to accepting his sexuality.

So, that’s what the Turing poster tells us about Will. Here’s where the foreshadowing comes in: Will is not the only queer-coded character to have been metaphorically castrated.

Henry’s experience bears striking similarities to Turing’s: he too was caught engaging in a natural but forbidden behaviour and forced by his government to undergo a medical procedure to suppress that behaviour.

His villain speech to El in 4x07, which is ostensibly about his powers, also reads very strongly as a scathing criticism of heteronormativity, and it’s covered in rainbow motifs.

The metaphor here is obvious: Henry’s powers are a manifestation of his homosexuality.

Which implies that Will’s homosexuality can also manifest as powers. They’re repressed because he’s repressed.

It’s not a coincidence that the sexual tension was through the fucking roof in the infamous sauna scene. Every time Will’s supernatural ability to sense the Mind Flayer triggers in S3, Mike is also nearby.

What’s interesting about Mike is that his queer acceptance issues mirror Will’s: Mike has a healthy relationship with his sexuality (he casually checks guys out and plasters his bedroom walls with posters of buff dudes) but he just can’t bring himself to accept what this implies about his identity.

Always with the symmetry, these two. They complement each other perfectly; one’s hang-up is the other’s strength. They have a lot to teach each other about being queer.

And as repressed as they are, I think they want to learn from each other -- Will lets himself get flustered when Mike flirts with him in his bedroom, and Mike hangs on to every word of wisdom Will shares with him in their heart-to-hearts.

Internalized homophobia is a powerful force, but their bond is so strong that it empowers them to fight back.

Henry’s powers symbolize his anger at being mistreated and his desire to take that anger out on the world... but Will’s powers symbolize self-acceptance and love.

So he isn’t just going to defeat Vecna with his powers, and he isn’t just going to get the boy: these two things are one and the same.

#stranger things #will has powers #byler #will byers #mike wheeler #henry creel #my analysis

[dreamchasernina]

Am I the only one worried about adult gaang movie? I know Bryke are the ones working on it, but honestly…I don’t have much faith in them.

Look, Avatar is like this sacred prefect thing to me, and I cannot handle a thought of something ruining this perfect story and characters. It ended so perfectly, but to be able to write another story with these characters they’re gonna have to create problems, right?

Like for instance, how are they going to create a villain that will be an actual threat to Aang (especially Aang in the avatar state), without breaking the rules of the world they built? They broke those rules over and over again in Korra to one up a previous villain.

Another conern is, are they going to ruin the relationships? Writers don’t like seeing the characters in happy relationships, case and point, Korra and Mako. I don’t really care about them, I just found it wierd spending the whole first season building up their relationship just to break them up in the second season. It’s a problem with a lot of writers, they’d rather break a couple up and get them back together again by the end, than let them be in a happy and healthy relationships. Same said for the friendships. I’m scared to discover the movie starts with “I haven’t talked to Zuko in years because A B C happened”.

Another thing, is there going to be an arc for every single character? If so, how are they going to accomplish that in 2 hours? I love love love how every single character in ATLA gets an amazing personal arc, and well, if they’re going to to the same in the movie, how will that work? Or will some of the characters get a backseat and become not as significant. Again, I have to bring up an example from LoK. You can’t say Mako and Bolin’s parts in the last seasons were as important as the rest of the characters’. Again, I personally don’t care about those characters, so I don’t have a problem with it, but the balance between the characters in ATLA is what makes it superior to LoK, so I’m sure if they decide to make Sokka’s (for example) journey less significant than others’, it would make a lot of people angry.

Anyway, these are just my thoughts. Of course I want to see more content from the Avatar universe, especially the gaang, but I’m just scarred from LoK and not sure I can handle them ruining characters even more.

Can we just have 2 hours of the gaang on vacation on ember island just getting in all kinds of shenanigans?

#avatar the last airbender #avatar #avatar: the last airbender #the last airbender #atla #aang #sokka #zuko #katara #Bryke #toph #anti LoK #the legend of korra #kataang #maiko #sukka #team avatar

[nutal]

got a question >:)

how healthy (or unhealthy) is Adam and Lute’s relationship 1 to 10 >:)

alright so, here’s my take: as toxic of people Adam and Lute are INDIVIDUALLY, I’d like to think they’re actually really sweet with each other.

Lute does not give a shit how much Adam tries to down talk her because in the end he ALWAYS listens to her. A prime example of this is during that scene in the where Adam almost starts a fight, and Lute literally MANHANDLES this guy explaining to him why he shouldn’t. And Adam just stands there, with Lute’s hand on his fucking collar, and listens. Of course, he has to brush it off with a quick “don’t fuckin shush me bitch” to look tough, but you can tell he respects her and what she has to say regardless. And Lute seems to be pretty okay with that.

On the topic of him name-calling her, I think she lowkey enjoys it like in her mind it’s almost empowering since she doesn’t necessarily see being a ‘bitch’ as a bad thing. And Adam has caught onto this and purposefully does it more just to screw with her it’s the same scenario with ‘Dangertits’ like weird ass petnames 💀

Btw, when these two do argue? It’s typically over really dumb shit. Like splitting the bill or who gets to drive (Adam is a horrible driver he got his license suspended like twice now because he keeps going past the speed limit and Lute is just so done with him she keeps urging him to just let her drive because she knows for a fact that he’s going to hit a curb because of how he’s done it too many times in the past)

Or, yk what, picture Adam arguing with her over metallica albums or something like: “SERIOUSLY LUTE?? YOU PREFER THE BLACK ALBUM OVER RIDE THE LIGHTNING?? FUCKING POSER!” and then he proceeds to go out of his way to learn and play her nothing else matters (from the black album) on his guitar while she’s falling asleep on him or something ☹️💔

My god, I could go on about these two assholes forever, but here’s just my two cents. While they may be a very unconventional couple objectively speaking, they really do love each other. They balance each other out perfectly. So, healthy? Yeah! Like a 9.5/10 on healthiness in my book, retracting like 0.5 points just because they’re literal psychopaths who could go from play-fighting and chasing each other around with swords mid-sparring because Adam made some dumb sexual joke. To which Lute gets intimidating and gives him death-stare eyes going all “I’m going to kill you.”

And when Lute tries dragging him aside to a secluded area to scold him, they somehow end up having a ‘hate’ make out sesh instead and that’s basically how they solve all and any of their disputes LMAO these idiots

When it comes to how good of a couple they make tho? 100/10

#guitarspear #hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel adam #guardrock #hazbin hotel lute

[dailydragon08]

I hate the “no attachments” rhetoric so much and I hate that both Ahsoka and Luke in Mando and TBOBF fell straight back into it. Cuz they especially should know more than anyone that the feelings of isolation, feeling like you’re not in a safe space to healthily process your emotions—which requires actually feeling them and being in an environment where you’re allowed to feel them—and feeling like you have a support system where you can speak your feelings without judgment to get guidance and support is REQUIRED for Jedi to stay on the light side. Cuz loneliness, feeling like a burden, feeling like if you have one bad emotion it makes you all bad because of rules around feelings that are unrealistic and too rigorous makes you way more susceptible to the dark side.

Trying to beat bad emotions out of people completely is unrealistic. Expecting literal children to not feel those feelings and just know what to do with them cuz you’ve created a space where those feelings are forbidden is unrealistic. Pushing feelings and emotions down and “burying” them (re: obi wan telling luke “bury your feelings deep down” in ROTJ) and expecting those people to be perfectly healthy is unrealistic. Wanting this level of control over people, their thoughts, and their emotions, and this black and white thinking is not only toxic and dangerous, but is akin to cult culture. The PT era Jedi were extremists in this way and just too blind and couldn’t accept any criticism enough to see it because for some reason, a bunch of old guys decided evolution was not allowed and they’d just keep running the system the same way they always had with no room for change and that would somehow be this foolproof path to survival—which is a complaint a lot of people have about our current irl political system and is causing a lot of damage, btw.

Like wasn’t that the whole point of showing the Jedi’s fall? And doesn’t clone wars especially show how this thinking created all these cracks in the system that Palpatine was easily able to exploit and manipulate and Anakin was just someone who wanted change in the order and he was ostracized for it, so Palpatine latched onto him and Anakin was like “oh finally someone values me,” just to be manipulated and abused and have his whole life blown up to the point that he thought the empire was his only option (obv not excusing the atrocities, just saying I can see how he got to where he did mentally by ROTS)? Like he literally tells Luke that they can team up to overthrow the emperor and in ROTJ, when Luke tries to get him to run with him pre-throne room battle, he says “it’s too late for me,” so he KNOWS this is bad and only going to get worse, but has resigned himself to it.

Like wasn’t the whole point of the OT and the “I can’t kill my own father/there’s still good in him/I can turn him back to the good side” meant to prove that Jedi DO NEED healthy connections in order to thrive and stay on the light side? If they wanna forbid anything, they should be forbidding possession and control, but the PT Jedi Council instead used that for their own benefit and lacked any self awareness to see they’d just become what they were preaching against.

Like give me a post-OT Jedi council who teaches healthy connection and letting things go that aren’t meant for you to control and that friendships and relationships can be powerful things that bring you back to the light in your darkest moments, and a more Legends-esque New Jedi Order that values emotional health and well-being and is a safe space for not only the galaxy, but Force sensitives, no matter how they’re built instead of trying to force everyone into the same box. This is the order I wanted to see Luke cultivate in canon and I will forever be salty that this isn’t what we got.

#luke skywalker #star wars #star wars discussion #anti sw sequels #anti disney star wars #anti jedi #anti jedi council #anti prequel era jedi #new jedi order #anakin skywalker #darth vader #anti no attachment #the mandolarian #tbobf #mandolorian spoilers #the book of boba fett #tbobf spoilers #the book of boba fett spoilers

[eego0]

My Aarmau rant as promised! (This is kind of the part 1 of a big LOOONG rant)

A huge part of why I love Aphmau and Aaron’s relationship is how hush-hush they kept it. Secretive just like Shad and Irene’s relationship. It fell perfectly under the radar but poked up more as it progressed. We the viewers see when their friendship/relationship gets more serious (though, a lot of people in the fandom choose to ignore it because they’re still holding on hope for Laurmau or Garmau).

There are details that highligh the progression of their relationship that I think are BRILLIANT, even without them explicitly saying anything! There are little things right up to the night before Aaron leaves on a suicide mission to get Garroth out of the Irene Dimension unbeknownst to Aphmau. One example of a small detail to look back on later is how their beds are pushed together when they were clearly apart an episode or 2 prior. From the dialogue, we could infer that they were already together by that point, but a staple in the minecraft community is pushing yours and your SO’s beds together! Cute! They’d begun truly building a life together.

There’s something so beautiful about how we don’t see every romantic action in their relationship because their relationship is more focused on learning about themselves and growing as people together. They were both placed in some TERRIBLE situations but found comfort in each other so they could remain proficient in building their new island of peace rather than bottling everything up until they exploded on their unsuspecting friends. Unlike Aphmau’s relationship with Laurance and Garroth where it’s very upfront in the episodes (ex: she’s forced to pick between the two of them while still figuring out who she is), Aphmau and Aaron prioritized the settings/people around them but still maintain a healthy relationship where they talk about everything and love each other regardless of what they say in their deep conversations. Their love isn’t about showing each other off to the rest of the world and claiming eachother! Aaron never fights with Laurance and Garroth to prove how he loves Aphmau, he just DOES.

They also have a playful, friendly front to their relationship which kept people wondering about them for so long. Yes, Laurance and Aphmau also had this friendly aspect to their relationship but a lot of it (from my best recollection) was Laurance’s failed attempts at picking up Aphmau </3 Aphmau teases Aaron about his quiet/mysterious nature and he teases her right back because of her overly friendly/to stubborn to let people help her attitude. This shows as Aaron starts joining the group on long journeys (ex: The journey to find Lucinda; they were at Isabella’s campsite and Aaron let Aphmau know that there were some strange figures lurking about in the camp. She retorted playfully that they’d probably say the same thing about him and he flusteredly shuffled away)(Another example I love is one the Alliance Island when Laurance, Aaron, and Aphmau are exploring, Laurance falls down the hole to the wyvern cave, and Aphmau and Aaron are deciding how they’re going to get down to him. Aaron offers to jump down first and catch her but stops himself, saying “Though knowing you—“ referring to how she’d rather get down by herself and show everyone that she’s capable of doing anything everyone else can do).

Laurance and Garroth’s relationship with Aphmau was highly based on them protecting her, which is only natural because they were her faithful guards. It was attractive but on that same hand, they couldn’t relate to Aphmau’s issues on the personal level that Aaron could, given that he was a lord himself, and one who faced incredible emotional turmoil no less.

Their plot obviously thickens once Lilith is added into the mix because now Aaron has promised to take care of her and Aphmau. They named Lilith Garnet after people they cared for and lost while still making her her own person. If they weren’t close before, they were DEFINITELY closer when they began co-parenting. They just wanted to give their daughter the best life, building an empire around her, going on family picnics, etc.

There are so many other reasons I love Aarmau and I LOVE rewatching MCD and catching the little pieces of dialogue that help set up for the big reveal. It’s so upsetting how they never got their happy ending in any universe (except maybe Mermaid Tales)

Thank u for reading <33

#mcd #minecraft diaries #aphmau #mcd aphmau #aphblr #mcd aaron #aphmau mcd #aarmau #mystreet #mcd garroth #mcd laurance

[quicktosimp]

Aonung - NSFW ABC

A= Aftercare (what they’re like after the act)

This man loves you to death, but once he’s done the act, he’s asleep in minutes. He’ll try and take care of you, but most likely, you will be cleaning yourself up to the sounds of his snores.

B= Body part (favorite body part their own or their lovers)

For Aonung, it’s gonna be his hair. All throughout the movie, Aonung’s hair is in pristine condition, and salt water does some damage to your hair, yet he always looks shiny and healthy; he definitely cares for it well.

For his lover, he loves their hips. Lovely wide hips that sway as you walk. Totally not thinking about how those hips will hold his child…

C= Cum (anything that has to do with it)

Aonung isn’t specific on cum; he prefers to do it inside but is also fine cumming anywhere.

D= Dominate (how dominate are they)

Acts like a tough man with strict rules, but is a complete simp for you. You can see the hearts in his eyes even when he scolds you. He is more likely to pout and sulk than actually dominate or scold you.

E= Experience (do they know what they’re doing)

At one point was 100% a playboy, so many girls and gut were throwing themselves at him, and Aonung didn’t say no. So, in theory, he is physically. But before you, Aonung never had an emotional relationship. So while he can rock your body into next week, he’s still learning the emotional ropes.

F= Favorite position

69, Aonung loved being able to eat your pussy while you please him. It doesn’t matter if you’re Na’vi or human; he will scrunch up to fit in a 69.

G= Goofy (how serious are they)

Surprisingly, I think Aonung has a bit of a funny bone. He won’t hesitate to giggle a bit when he’s kissing you. Why wouldn’t he? Aonung is giddy to be able to kiss you.

H= Hair (grooming habits)

Just like before, if the Na’vi have pubic hair, then Aonung is probably going to be in pristine condition. Perfectly shaped, shaved, and not a hair out of place.

I= Intimacy (in the moment romantic or rough/dirty)

Definitely loves having a romantic moment with you, sweet lovemaking (with the goal of breeding you), but if he gets the chance to dick you down on the beach, on an ilu, Aonung doesn’t care he’ll do it.

J= Jack off (do they masturbate and how often)

Absolutely, Aonung will jack off multiple times a day if he can’t find you. Aonung has mastered sneaking away from the crowd so he can handle his problem.

K= Kink (kinks they like, possibly unusual)

100% breeding kink, but he also secretly loves anal. Something about it being forbidden, and knowing that no one else has been there before.

L= Location (where they like to get it on)

Aonung has no preferences, beach, ocean, his marui, or someone else's marui… he doesn’t care as long as he has you.

M= Motivation (things that makes them tick/turn ons)

Anything. Aonung is always ready to go; just the change in the wind and Aonung is itching to go.

N= No (turnoffs or absolutely won’t do)

Hurt you. Aonung will never lay a hand on you, not one spank, rough hair pull, nothing. The idea of seeing you hurt because of him is enough to make him sick.

O= Oral (receiving or giving and how skillful they are)

Like I said, this man loves to 69. He is an overhyped puppy when faced with your pussy, eager to please, and never wants to leave from between your legs.

P= Pace (how fast they are and how long they last in bed)

I don’t think Aonung knows how to stop? He will keep going until his cock is raw and then will still try and fuck you a bit more.

Q= Quickie (do they prefer fast and hard)

While Aonung prefers a nice romantic time with you, he will take what he can get. And if that means bending you over outback near a cove, he will love every minute with you.

R= Risk (do they like to try new things)

Yes! Aonung is willing to try almost anything with you! There are quite a few things he’s interested in but is waiting for you to bring up because he doesn’t want to risk pushing you into it.

S= Stamina

Stamina for days, will fuck you until his cock is raw, and even then, will still try and fuck you some more; fyi, you will need to tell him to stop.

T= Toys (are they game for using sex toys on themselves or lovers)

Aonung will definitely be weary about using human toys; this is the first time having seen human technology. And may take some convincing before he tests them. But once he does, Aonung definitely appreciates what the toys can do but ultimately prefers skin-on-skin and not a toy.

U= Unfair (how do they tease or do they enjoy suspense themselves)

Aonung has to be in the mood to tease you; most of the time, he isn't. But if you find him in the mood, then his go-to is edging. Bringing you close to the edge again and again is a dream of his. However, Aonung can't resist making you cum.

V= Volume (are they loud, what sounds, and do they talk)

Aonung is very vocal during sex; between moans, whines, growls, purrs, and talking, Aonung is always in your ear.

W= Wild card

Aonung loves to do it in the water. This boy is an aquaphiliac. Seeing you pose for him in the water gets him going like nothing else.

X= X-ray

Aonung has nothing to be shy about, packing a good 22 inches (56cm).

Y= Yearning

He doesn't stop, if you even look at him with the hint of bedroom eyes, and his tewng is on the floor. Aonung is ready morning, noon, and night; doesn't matter. And if you even think about falling asleep horny because you didn't want to wake him up at 2 in the morning, you will have a sulky boy on your hands.

Z= Zzzz (do they sleep after if so how quickly after)

You have maybe 4 minutes if you're lucky...

🎶And another one bites the dust🎶

Still sick and bored, send me an idea?

Dividers by: @cafekitsune

#avatar #avatar way of water #atwow #smut #headcanons #aonung x female reader #aonung #avatar twow #avatar 2022 #aonung x y/n #aonung x you #aonung x reader #ao'nung #aonung smut #ao'nung x reader #ao'nung smut #ao'nung x y/n #ao'nung x fem!reader #ao'nung x you #avatar the way of water

[muzzleroars]

I love the personalization you give V2 in your most recent comic, I’m reminded of Plato’s Socrates, they’re one step ahead of Michael’s arguments, picking them apart and shaking up expectations (and being a bit of a troll to boot), but from that I also get the feeling that these are questions V2’s already asked itself.

It’s a thinker, an asker, programmed and taught with human intelligence and curiosity, and in a world mostly bereft of people thinking and asking questions like them I bet it’d turn that curiosity inwards.

I also bet that V2’s very appreciative of having someone to bounce questions off of, someone of a different mindset and origins to provide differing lines of thought and alternative viewpoints. Argument need not be a negative experience, after all.

I’m betting a lot of things, they’re just stuck in my head now and I can’t help but think about how this snarky warrior-poet would contemplate its life. So perfectly human but also so perfectly inhuman, detached and attached to how we think.

I think I sent a rant about how much I love the way you write and draw a while back, I can tell you put so much thought and effort into your work, and I want to reiterate that, I ADORE the work you put in, it shows and it shines so brightly. Thank you for posting it.

(see this!)

WAAAUUUGHHH THANK YOU,,,,i've been wanting to do a lot of little character interaction comics, and with settling on a simpler style to get them done, i'll definitely have a few more i'll make!!

but that is a lot of what i think about v2 as a character - it's very different from the machines that surround it and didn't find any that could understand its curious, inquiring mind, so it had a lot of conversations with itself. it got to know gabriel, which was its first true conversational partner ever since humans got wiped out, but michael is a much different experience for it. while gabriel is great to talk with since he's gregarious and charming, michael is introverted and, for a warrior angel, a rather deep thinker with obvious existential questions weighing on his mind. yet those thoughts aren't allowed to go anywhere because mike needs to constantly keep himself "on track" and answer himself with what his faith dictates. v2, as a rather free thinker, just goes where logic leads it and accepts that as the truth. sure, it knows here that it's poking at mike by pointing out the similarities (it really can't help being a LITTLE annoying lol), but it also views mike as someone with a deep but narrow mind. he has so much potential, v2 KNOWS he's a lot like it in many ways, he just refuses to get out of the comfort zone of his rigid dogma. so it does something small here. because v2 sees this all differently - its name is perfectly unique, as it is the only one that is the second of the v-series, the same way mike's name is unique as he is a warrior of god named for his own battle cry. it knows he won't agree, he'll argue the differences in his talking points, but all v2 ever wants is for mike to think. he has a mind starved for it and wanting it, but no one could challenge him in any previous connection he had. he is the prince of heaven, always so right and always so intimidating, but v2 can start cracking away at him little by little...and it's exactly what both of them have wanted. they begin having healthy arguments, and i think their relationship is always marked by debating one another. it gives v2 the conversations it's always wanted and it gives mike more and more room to breathe in a philosophical mind that had always been so smothered.

#i really REALLY love the comparison of their relationship to that of gabe and v1 #gabe needed the outlet of violence and physicality that he has never allowed #v1 needed someone that could understand its inherent drive for that violence #while mike and v2 has been starved of any deeper thinking or philosophy because they're not meant for that #and the idea that both of these things are good. people have different needs #and it's just about finding the person that fits with you!!! #cake answers #v2 #michael #rise and fall au

[pinkandpurple360]

Even being the Fizzomdous trash as I am, I'm starting to get worried about some of the ask of those trying to defend it.

Both Fizz and Ozzie are grown men, not children. Yeah, if Fizz and Ozzie broke up: they'll get over it eventually because life goes on. Sure one of them may have a harder time than the other due to attachment issues but if you lived for thousands of years you had to have friends come and go and yeah, I refuse to believe Fizz is the first person he fell in love with. You live that long you more than likely had crushes or grew feelings for someone (unless you're aro and even then platonic queer relationships exist).

That and it's unhealthy to have your life devoted around one person and no one else. The problem I just realized about Viv's pairings in the show is that it seems that both are supposedly completely 'in Love' with each other but don't have a life outside of that. Millie and Moxxie are glued to the hip but are you telling me neither of them have people they hang out with outside of work or their relationship? How often does Millie see or talk to her family? Where's her friends? Does she even have any? Same with Moxxie? Do they have hobbies they both like when they're not together? Even couples are gonna have different interests from each other. Granted, I'm not saying we need to see every part of their life but my point stands that even in healthy relationships, couples do have lives outside of each other. Isolating yourself and spending time with only your partner and partner alone is going to lead to some codependency and I don't know about you, that ain't romantic.

Also people saying that Ozzie and Fizz can't break up for Fizz to be with Blitzo: Um, all three of them have two hands? And damn does Blitzo need a partner that isn't going to talk down to him and see him as a sex object. He gets two loving boyfriends for the price of one! Everyone wins but Stolas but who cares about Stolas he proves he shouldn't be in a relationship right now with how he treats others around him. Heck Blitzo already has more chemistry with Oz than he does with uwu sad owl boi. I know poly isn't for everyone but c'mon people think outside the box!

(and I'm sure Ozzie is more than down for a threesome. just saying).

Seriously, some of you who are grown adults really have a childish view on relationships.

I’m a fan of them myself. And I have no problem just enjoying the story as it is. I’m just trying to take a critical view on it and keep in mind the fact that this show is supposed to be on the maturity level of Bojack, soo what’s with all these heroic masculine characters rescuing feminine characters from all their troubles.

Why are people talking about “soulmates” — a concept I don’t really believe in. Two people can meet at the right time and fit perfectly, or they can just barely miss each other, the attraction and compatibility either gets stronger or weaker with time. That’s why love is so special when you do have it. That’s just my experience though if people don’t like that I won’t force it on them.

Going back to MnM, nobody has dethroned them yet. Not even close. Millie and Moxxie are so so different but they met at the perfect time for something beautiful to blossom. But if Moxxie, a terrified impressionable person in the past, met Millie, a once violent unforgiving person, they wouldn’t have clicked. It would have been the wrong time. Now however they are very much compatible and in love but slowly leaving the honeymoon phase. That transition is very difficult. It explains perfectly why they’re still so rosy cheeked and gleeful to be around each other. The two are newly weds.

Exactly exactly, that annoys me too. So. why don’t the two of them have other friends? It’s all entirely each other or their boss blitzø. But B actually does have friends he used to party with. And probably connections in lust? but we never see them. Wouldn’t it be nice if Millie had a favourite western themed bar with a small social group and knife throwing tournaments? Maybe Mox knows some people from the shooting range or from the opera theatre he loves so much. Idk. Just ideas.

Oh yeah polyamory. What a concept. Blitzfizzarozzie is such a perfect ot3 and you’re right. Asmodeus built a mutually respectful trust with Blitz in what..? Ten minutes? With a foundation that they both love and protect Fizz. And it’s probably been over a year and stolas can’t even have one conversation that is non hostile and non sexual with him. Not one.

I’ve heard rumours that allegedly Viv gets the ick from polyamory. That and her alleged hostility to trans men…so much for a “queer” show. I really really wish she’d put out a statement about how she doesn’t believe this anymore, ‘was in a bad place’ or something, instead of running from it. I wouldn’t be so quick to let it go personally considering how much denial and dishonesty she was in, but most fans would eat it up.

If she has addressed it let me know actually, might be wrong.

#helluva boss critical #helluva boss #fizzarozzie crit

[sunflowersandink]

So basically, that entire conversation was pointless then?

Context

If what you’re looking for from the fic is a perfect resolution to Tim and Jason’s relationship, and for Jason to instantly transform into a mentally healthy and perfectly supportive older brother figure, yes, it’s pointless. You are not going to get that.

There’s a reason why the fic has the tags “Jason Todd Being Jason Todd,” and “Bittersweet”. Jason is, and I say this with quite a bit of love for his character, an asshole. He’s about 15 different layers of trauma and poor coping mechanisms in a leather jacket.

He is, in fact, one of Tim’s abusers, a fact he’s finally starting to grapple with.

The point of the conversation was to get some amount of resolution for the both of them. They’re both abuse victims who are never going to get any true remorse from their parents, but Tim deserved an apology for the abuse he suffered, and Jason deserved to give an apology.

But Tim is still, on some level, angry about what Jason did to him, because that kind of hurt doesn’t evaporate just because you got an apology (there’s a reason why Jason explicitly tells him he doesn’t have to accept his apology just because’s it’s offered - Tim has learned to accept scraps of good treatment rather than allowing himself to acknowledge his own anger, and that kind of repression isn’t good for you).

And Jason still, on some level, feels like Bruce has abandoned and replaced him. While he can recognize at this stage that that’s not Tim’s fault, it is still painful for him to watch Tim receiving the home and family he feels like he can never really return to.

Which is why he says the line you took issue with - that’s his expression of that hurt. Which Tim recognizes, and I think Jason knew he would recognize. It’s framed in context as a prickly but mild jab, because they both understand the subtext.

Pretty critically, the context is also that they just got done with a very solemn and sincere conversation about the abuse they’ve both suffered - a sarcastic “your life is a series of horrors”, coming from someone who’s just earnestly opened up about how they’ve been through the same trauma doesn’t exactly have the same bite to it that it would if, say, Dick tried to make that joke.

Both of these characters start and end the story traumatized. Tim is still evasive and manipulative when it comes to disguising his hurt, and Jason is still an asshole who’s going to say something prickly before he says anything gentle. Tim, ultimately, might not be able to fully forgive Jason, and Jason might not be able to return home. But they have given each other some amount of peace, and the tension between them is something they can actually live with now.

The point is that people can choose to do better, and that’s worth it, even if it’s not perfect.

The same way I personally chose to give you an actual answer, rather than just my first response, which was:

correct, I wrote a 2000 word conversation for no reason <333 hope that helps

[idkhow-but-im-here]

OK OK OK OK OK

I finally finished Good Omens season 2 and I have so many fucking thoughts which I will list in no particular order:

The Doctor Who references are always golden. (somewhat related: that part when Crowley was bullshitting about war regulations in front of Shax & co in the bookshop? super reminiscent of Ten’s speedy sci-fi jargon)

The music, as always, fucking slaps, especially at the end of each episode when the theme is played in a related style I love it so much

Nina and Maggie!!! I do really like them as a ship (coffee shop + record shop? that’s a built-in au fic) but I also like how they’re not actually together at the end. I love how they’re so healthy in how they go about their potential relationship, both acknowledging how messed up it was for Aziraphale/Crowley to meddle with their lives and how dumb it would be to rush into something headfirst regardless of all the shit they had been through both togther and as individuals. Also Fuck Lindsay all my homies hate Lindsay, as much as I liked what they did with visualising her shitty messages (the blackboard and crumpled notepad sheets? because of coffee shop reasons and how Nina’s work and love life was suffocatingly forced together by the incessant behest of Lindsay)

<The dancing/ball/Jane Austen vibes3

Beezelbub and Gabriel!?!? When I first came across this ship on ao3 I thought this ship made somewhat sense but would stay in the realms of fanon yet here I am disproven and I can’t lie… they’re kinda cute together. I was caught off guard (like every other character) but fair dues to them. Their parallels with the ineffable husbands are just ughh *chef’s kiss*

^alpha centauri!!!^

Peter Davison and Ty Tennant??? Their appearances did make me giggle for meta’s sake. Perhaps a Georgia Tennant appearance in season 3? (if they make it please please please say they’ll make it)

WAS CROWLEY ACTUALLY RAPHAEL??? I thought it was just a headcanon/fan theory (which I did fall in love with after watching this beautiful animatic years ago) but Crowley having access to classified files and the Metatron mentioning that an archangel being cast out has happened before??? it’s becoming more and more plausible.

AND JUST PRE-FALL CROWLEY IN GENERAL HE LOOKS SO HAPPY all he ever did was ask valid questions goddamnit (literally). nebulae are very pretty I would also be indignant if they weren’t gonna stick around for long. AND THE PARALLEL TO THE FIRST EPISODE WITH THE WINGSSS

Crowley just being a good nice decent person all throughout time (the goats, children, helping out elspeth, ect) it makes me happy

ANDD Aziraphale’s reactions (both positive and negative) to aforementioned deeds create a great moral foil to Crowley and perfectly builds up to what we see at the end (I’ll probably write about s2 Aziraphale in a different post because man I have so many thoughts)

Crowley’s callbacks to the date lunch at the Ritz!! Him talking to Nina and Maggie about taking Aziraphale to the Ritz again to him pointing out the lack of a nightingale (idk if that was leaning into meta a little but it didn’t bother me) just HURT so damn much

“Emotional damage support angel” you’re damn right he is/was

The battery-powered candles lmfaooo and literally any reference to the fire, including the absurd number of fire extinguishers, had me giggling

Muriel is a goddamned (or not so in some sense) treasure, a little ray of sunshine with a heart of gold and dumb of ass. I adore her and found Aziraphale and Crowley humouring her hilarious.

THE SECOND COMING??? I’m sorry wHAT WE ALREADY HAD THE ANTICHRIST NOW WE’RE DEALING WITH CHRIST CHRIST? YOU CAN’T LEAVE US WITH JUST THAT MR. GAIMAN

and of course the bloody

K I S S

THAT WHOLE SEQUENCE OF CROWLEY FINALLY FINALLY OPENING UP AND JUST BEING WHOLEHEARTEDLY HONEST (going against his predisposition and entire NATURE to lie/omit or walk around the truth)

CONFESSING HIS TRUE FEELING AFTER COUNTLESS MILLENNIA OF PINING EVEN AFTER AZIRAPHALE DROPPED THAT BOMBSHELL

AND HALF STORMING OFF BEFORE GOING BACK TO KISS THE SHIT OUT OF HIM AND THEN FULLY STORMING OFF

with aziraphale clearly unsure of how to react BUT STILL TOUCHES HIS LIPS IN SHOCK AS HE WATCHES CROWLEY LEAVE

That shit had me fully standing up on the sofa, arms in brace position, gasping, screaming, close to tears, indignantly repeating “NEIL GAIMAN!” every couple of seconds

Truly a brilliant scene and a brilliant season overall.

As always the cast, the writers, the set designers, the effects artists, the costumers, the camera crew, everyone who had a part in creating go2 was fucking fantastic.

#i’m genuinely not ok after watching it #there’s so much more to talk about but i have been typing for well over an hour #season 3 is not a want it’s a NEED #please i beg #everything needs to be resolved #good omens #good omens spoilers #go2 spoilers

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

idk why this bugs me a bit but I really don’t like when you see art or writing that delves into the dynamic between characters in a less positive way - like an argument, or clashes between coping mechanisms, or a miscommunication that causes some problems and doesn’t get immediately resolved - and you get people saying stuff like “oh they’re so fucked up” or “this would not be healthy irl but here it’s cute” and I just. what do you think a healthy relationship looks like. it’s never going to be perfect. people disagree. not everything gets resolved perfectly. sometimes there will be parts of a person you will never completely understand no matter how close you are to them. what matters is communicating in the ways that you can (which isn’t always in the way help books or therapists tell you to btw! there are lots of ways to communicate effectively that are specific to who you are as people), making active efforts to show your care (which yes, sometimes isn’t easy. that’s why it’s an effort), and enjoying this person’s company (they should make you feel good to be around overall! clashing a little is okay but they should not make you miserable!)

anyways I guess it also irritates me because I see these kinds of comments a lot under studies having to do with characters struggling with trauma or mental illness and therefore not communicating in necessarily healthy or productive ways and maybe always having issues that do not get resolved perfectly and I really can’t stand it. we already live in a world where people have to pretend to be fine all the time. I’m quite flattered when people are comfortable enough with me to let that veneer go. they feel safe around me! what a compliment! I always feel like that’s so much more than I deserve. sure things can be uncomfortable at times and I do sometimes have to say “I can’t listen or help right now but please tell me later” and that’s ok! because we all want to make sure we’re safe for each other to come talk to. to be honest with. a little personal discomfort at times is worth it. always.

people are messy. you’ve got to let people be messy. friendships, relationships, etc, they take time and effort from everyone involved. learning to manage less than ideal situations actually is going to help you draw better boundaries against things that are actually “fucked up” or toxic than expecting perfection, or for a happily ever after where all the conflicts you started out with get resolved.

idk. it’s just. people you care about deserve to not have to be ideal around you. likewise you deserve to have to not be ideal around them. isn’t that. the whole point of someone knowing your soul? the ugliness? and the way it’s a package deal with the rest of you? I would like to learn you. I don’t just want your scraps. I want every part of the whole I asked for. I will learn to manage the sharper edges.

#ugh ok so there’s a lot of nuance I couldn’t cover here this is more of a mini rant but yeah. #some of you do not know what ‘fucked up’ actually looks like I think… #fucked up dynamics are fun to play with! but a functional relationship that happens to have some issues is not it! #especially when the issues have to do with past trauma or mental health issues. kind of gross man. #I guess it extra confused me too because like. I’ve never found it to be overly stressful or a big issue to accommodate people? #I don’t find it overly taxing. At least not anymore than socializing in general #in fact I like it better because now I have a goal to focus on in the interaction - make person feel comforted/better/supported/safe #most interactions I feel like I’m flailing lol #agh anyways. bye #storyrambles

[extasiswings]

Ok I need your big brain, do you think that maybe talking with eddie will make buck understand that he can’t be a father and walk away? or he will be rejected to be a donor for family history or whatever and Eddie’ ll be there to pick up the pieces? I think I’ll prefer option 1, so I hope that buck decides for himself, but what do you think?😘

Honestly, I think right now it's looking like he's not going to talk to Eddie about this at all and they're primed for it to blow up in their faces (as I said in another post, really not unlike Hen and Karen right now, with Hen making decisions that are going to impact not just her but her family without talking to her wife). The way the episode framed it was that this is a secret. Yes, he did ultimately go to Hen for her advice, but he's very deliberately not talking about certain things with certain people and not listening even when those conversations happen (like blowing off Maddie's thoughts about his "year of yes" or whatever, theoretically musing on Hen's question about whether he can walk away but then agreeing anyway). See also, the foreshadowing of Buck on the bike, charging off without a word, and Eddie shouting after him "Where the hell are you going?" Because Buck's going off down a path that Eddie can't see or understand and Buck's not saying a word.

I also do think he'll end up being rejected as a donor, or otherwise not following through in a way that's related to the Daniel of it all (as opposed to something that makes his withdrawal voluntary). I totally understand and respect the desire to want to see Buck set healthy boundaries for himself and say no on his own for healthy reasons, and I'll be perfectly content if I'm proven wrong, but I genuinely don't think that Buck's there yet.

Because Buck does not set real boundaries even when things are hurting him. He spent nearly a year in a relationship with Taylor that was making him miserable, trying to force himself to accept the things he didn't like about her, changing himself rather than setting a boundary, accepting that he fundamentally cannot compromise on certain things, and ultimately ending things. That took a year. And frankly, with all the self-help nonsense he's ingesting, there is nothing about the path he’s currently on that is going to help him get to a point of being able to set the boundaries he needs to and learn to say no to things that are harmful to him.

And here's the thing. These writers are so intentional and so good at telling difficult, adult stories about trauma and healing. And they are consistent. They have made clear with so many other characters, Athena, Maddie, Eddie, (and Bobby, Hen, and Chim on somewhat lesser scales), that when you ignore and avoid your trauma instead of facing it, you will hurt yourself and the people around you and you will not be able to make the healthy decisions you need to for your life.

Buck is not facing his trauma. Buck got a little bit of therapy, washed his hands, and said he was all good (including with his parents). But Buck has massive issues, as we've all seen over the seasons. And Buck’s lack of self-worth, his feelings of expendability, his inability to set boundaries—those are all intrinsically linked to his root trauma—Daniel, the “spare parts”/“defective parts” of it all that was revealed in What's Your Grievance/Buck Begins but that Buck has never actually reckoned with in a meaningful way. And until he does, he cannot achieve any sort of meaningful healing and growth.

It's like the hotel walkway that collapsed at the Happiness Convention. They identified the problem, but never made the repairs, so years later it finally gave out. That’s the story they’re telling. That's Buck. (Similarly with the birdwatcher and the tree, the thinking it's fine to get close to something because it seems harmless now, only for something to shift so that now you're being crushed under it without warning).

The Daniel of it all needs to come up again, because otherwise Buck will simply keep ignoring it. And as painful as this storyline is, it's also a perfect vehicle for that, particularly after they went to the trouble of giving us Maddie in Dumb Luck (really only about 8 episodes ago) talking/worrying about whether she should have had children at all because of their family medical history. I don't see a way where it doesn't come up, and that's why I also think it has to relate to Buck ultimately not going through with it, whether because he's rejected by the parents after they find out, or because a doctor tells him he shouldn't (or can't), or something to that effect.

[Related to Buck not setting boundaries or talking about things that hurt him, I've mentioned before that he's misunderstood Eddie and Christopher and the will entirely, but he's also never acknowledged that, and so Eddie's out here thinking he made Buck his partner and co-parent as a sign of his love while Buck feels like he's just a fallback and not a real father and is sitting in that space of feeling miserable about it. So in that sense, in his mind this donation maybe doesn't feel all that different to what he's doing with them. And while him learning that lesson (that he already is a father, that his family is right there) is part of his journey, I think he still has a ways to go before he'll be able to see that, especially if he continues hiding things from Eddie and therefore not giving him the chance to clarify anything].

#chapel talks #ask #anonymous #911 spoilers #these writers are so good I'm obsessed

[silvantransthranduiltrash]

Finwe, Ingwe, Olwe, and Elwe (The -We’s) are all emotionally stunted and have untreated PTSD.

Seriously though, most of their subjects don’t realize it because they were born in valinor/the girdle, while the -we’s were born before the valar discovered the elves.

Let me tell you what indicates that the -we’s are emotionally stunted.

In the girdle/valinor, the elves were safe for the first time in existence. And this safety allowed them to focus on fostering positive and emotionally healthy relationships with one another because they no longer needed to fear death around every corner. For once, whole families could grow together with no chance of a member being killed due to the darkness. The elves even had time to foster skills and explore at their leisure, instead of being solely focused on “survive, survive, survive”.

All in all, this means that those who were born/grew up in valinor/the girdle were the first elves with the chance to grow up emotionally healthy, with proper communication and relationship skills. Because they actually have the time and energy needed to learn these skills.

The -we’s (finwe, ingwe, olwe, and elwe) however, were born and grew up during a time where they were in constant survive mode, fight or flight. Their priority was living to see another day, and they likely were surrounded by constant death/disappearances of their family members/people they cared about. AND while the elves may have spawned in cuvinan fully grown, they still have absolutely no life experience then, nor did they magically know how society and their fellow elves worked.

They essentially had the cognative function of an adult, yet were as dumb as babies, because they didn’t just immediatly know everything. They had to figure everything out. Like cave men, kinda. So yeah, these first elves are absolutely useless when it comes to being emotionally healthy and well developed. It wasn’t until they were safe (in the girdle/valinor) that they really started to develop society as a whole, with kings and queens and governments, etc. Before that, they had a loose-ish leadership going on. Heck, the -we’s only really became the leader bc they were the first to follow the valar.

Now, you’re probably wondering “well what about the other elves that went on the great journey? Are they emotionally stunted to?” Probably to some extent, but the -we’s are by far the worst. And the reason is because they are the kings (I guess Miriel probably also falls in this category).

No one’s going to go up to the leader of a nation and say “hey, you need therapy”. That and the pressure of being perfect leaders means that they never got the chance to really become emotionally healthy and be able to form healthy relationships with their family, because they couldn’t admit that they weren’t perfectly mentally healthy in the first place.

Now, why is it important that finwe, ingwe, olwe, and elwe are emotionally stunted? What affect does it have on the story/silmarillion? Well-

*points at Miriel breaking down and fading*

*points at finwe’s crap handling of his family*

*points at elwe’s crap handling of his family/people* *in all honesty, his refusal to make peace with the noldor might be a result of his pre-valar’s arrival all-or-nothing survival drive* (don’t get me wrong, I still think he was dumb for some acts, but somethings I understand)

*idk a lot about olwe or ingwe, but olwe’s fear of returning to the pre-great journey days would explain his refusal to allow feanor the boats*

So I guess what I’m saying is that finwe, ingwe, olwe, and elwe (and Miriel) are emotionally stunted and have untreated ptsd from the days before the valar arrived, and no one’s forcing them to go to therapy bc 1. They’re kings and 2. Most elves (especially those born in valinor/the girdle) probably don’t even realize they have it, and it resulted in a lot of problems.

Side note: this either means that the silvans/avari/cirdan’s people are either the most emotionally healthy as a whole OR the most emotionally stunted. For the sake of my feral silvan au, I’m going with stunted, yet acutely aware of other elves’ emotional needs.

#silmarillion #lord of the rings #lotr #feanor #sons of feanor #finwe #lotr elves #ingwe #olwe #elwe singollo #elu thingol #miriel #ya’ll get them some therapy stat #Ngl I’m really fascinated at how those first days after the elves awoke impacted their way of life #also I don’t hc that the -we’s were some of the wakers #and rather we’re born after #I definatly think the -we’s + Miriel had ptsd #but couldn’t get the help they needed #(yes I do think Indis was born in valinor so she’s not included in this line up) #finwe’s family: falling apart #finwe: help how do I emote? #the silmarillion: how family drama changes the world #the silmarillion: how one guy’s untreated trauma caused everyone problems #well multiple elfves’ untreated truama #poor feanor #both his parents refused to go to therapy and it fucked him up #and he in turn also didn’t go to therapy

[another-trans-nerd]

This post is discussing why Mileven is unhealthy. Don’t like? Don’t interact.

Funky fresh reminder that mike referred to el as a superhero while max referred to her as someone with superpowers…..

Hmmm 🤔 almost as if mike only sees her as what she does while max sees her as her while still appreciating her for what she can do

And yet milkvan still is viewed as “healthy”?

To compare it to the book series keeper of the lost cities (spoilers ahead), it kinda reminds me of part of Sophie’s arc in the last book.

Essentially, she finally is officially dating the boy she’s liked for years (his name is fitz) but something is…off. When they do their telepathic bond excersises, she sees exactly how he views her in his mind: perfect. He sees her as completely perfect. While a lot of other protagonists might swoon, it just makes Sophie uncomfortable. Why? Because she’s not perfect. She’s made shitloads of mistakes. She’s almost started wars, she’s tripped a bunch, she’s been tricked, lied to, kidnapped, been impulsive, and more. She is complex and flawed and struggling, AKA she is a real person. Fitz doesn’t see her flaws, and therefore does not accept them. It makes Sophie wonder if he’ll still want her when he does accept them. It’s also been showcased in the books that fitz is shocked and enraged when Sophie does mess up, as if she’s not a sixteen year old with the world on her shoulders. He only sees her as the good she’s done and some imaginary picture perfect happy girl, so when things go wrong he lashes out.

This dynamic is later confirmed when Sophie looks at some drawings via her other love interest, keefe. The art is beautiful and really realistic. More so it’s real. He doesn’t filter out any of Sophie’s appearance, like her posture and scars. He recognized the societally dubbed imperfections but doesn’t think she’s any less beautiful. The way he roots for her shows that he sees her for what she is: a capable and powerful person, but still a goofy and clumsy teen. He sees her, all of her, and still loves her fiercely. That’s what Sophie needed, that’s what makes her feel truly loved. Keefe knows of every scar, every mistake, and every problem Sophie has ever had, and he adores her even harder. So Sophie chose him (for now, the series isn’t over).

(I’m not being anti-sophitz, I think it’s a perfectly fine ship (though I don’t ship it myself), but it was fairly toxic the last book, with Fitz’s expectations and neither really being ready for a relationship)

My point is that milkvan is not healthy in the way mike sees el, and she knows it. She’s got darkness in her that mike never acknowledges or talks to her about. He sees her just for her special parts, like her powers, looking past the fact that she has killed people (they deserve it obvi, but like bro you should prob at least talk about the time she exploded like ten peoples brains). Max knows that el has powers, but encourages el to use them how she wants to for once, instead of self defense or for someone else. Max helps her claim ownership of her powers, making them a part of her not just who she is. She’s clearly trying to move past the mentality of doing everything for other people (mike) but goes back to it when it becomes clearer that mike sees her just for her powers.

El deserves to be selfish and have fun. The happiest we see her is when she is doing so. Mike never seems to accept that.

Mike is seemingly only like this with el, and only when they’re actively dating. He doesn’t pressure his other friends like this.

Mileven is an unhealthy relationship.

The duffers show us it’s unhealthy by comparing it to healthier relationships like elmax and how different they are.

Mike and El had a healthier relationship when it was platonic, and they will again when they (hopefully) break up next season.

El is caught in the same trap she’s been in since br*nner wired it into her brain. She equates her self worth with what she can do for others, and what the current presence in her life wants from her. It’s not her fault, it’s a result of her trauma.

Which is why she needs to be without a partner or major male presence in her life for a while. To learn to love herself regardless of what she can do for others, and without the influence of anyone else.

TLDR: milkvan needs to break up Jesus Christ

#stranger things #discourse #anti mileven #kotlc discourse #sophitz neg #strangers things #elmax #bylers are target audience