#of course catra is traumatized

[anti-catradora-collection]

"oh but catra acted that way towards adora cuz she's abused and traumatized and and and-"

okay, i know this may sound harsh, but listen to me for a second.

THIS. IS. NOT. ABOUT. CATRA.

#can we stop trying to make adora's abuse about her abuser? #of course catra is abused #of course catra is traumatized #of course all of these facts helped building catra's character #but nothing justifies the way she treated adora. #everyone seems to forget how she was a war criminal too lmao #anti catradora #anti spop #spop critical #spop criticism #spop discourse #spop salt #anti c//a #anti c/a #spop #she ra

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

Meaningless Suffering ≠ Consequences: An SPOP Rant Analysis

so one huge argument i've seen from SPOP fans, when it comes to Catra's redemption is that “she got tortured and mind controlled by Horde Prime. she almost died at his hands. therefore, she faced the consequences of her actions.”

now.. could this be considered a consequence of her actions? the important question here is: why did Catra get punished by Prime? for going against his rules and freeing Glimmer. she got punished for doing one good thing. this was the consequence of her doing something right. if anything, she would be more discouraged to do good in the future, because the first time she does something good, she almost gets murdered for it.

but i digress. i've seen this trope be used with quite a few characters in media. the other example of this i want to talk about is Marcy from Amphibia. (spoilers for Amphibia below)

in the s2 finale, Marcy is revealed to have stranded her friends Anne and Sasha on Amphibia on purpose, because she didn't want to be alone. while this wasn't as bad as any of the shit that Catra pulled, it was still a fucked up thing to do. Marcy deliberately took Anne and Sasha away from their home and their parents, for her own selfish reasons.

like Catra, Marcy also has abandonment issues. her parents had informed her that they had to move and Marcy was terrified at the idea of having to leave Anne and Sasha behind. but that was still not an excuse for what she did.

not long after her secret was exposed, Marcy gets stabbed by King Andrias while trying to escape Amphibia. she doesn't die, of course, it's still a kid's show.

but to make things worse, she gets possessed by the Core later on, which is shown to be an extremely painful and traumatizing process (which they barely touch upon later). and then they show in a flashback that Anne and Sasha used to ignore Marcy and make her feel lonely, when this was not touched upon earlier in the series. in fact, Anne was shown to be very caring and attentive to Marcy up until this episode.

at this point, it's clear that the writers are trying to make the viewers feel sorry for Marcy. if they keep adding reasons why she's so miserable and traumatized, maybe the viewers would forget what she did to Anne and Sasha. right?

there is a small scene in s3 where Sasha questions why she should forgive Marcy, but it is quickly fixed by Anne telling Sasha that she should forgive Marcy. there's also a moment of realization for Marcy but even that is done in such a cliché and lighthearted manner, where the severity of her actions aren't addressed. and that's it. Marcy is rescued, she apologizes, and is immediately forgiven.

but then again, like SPOP, the last season of Amphibia was trashfire. i refuse to believe that people genuinely liked that season, it was so badly written and ruined everything that was set up prior to it.

anyway, let's come back to SPOP. it's clear that the writers of SPOP were also trying to do the same thing. put poor catgirl through the wringer, have her almost die and come back to life and voila! she is absolved of all her crimes.

for those of you who are still not convinced, let me try to make a real world comparison. let's just say i'm someone who bullies or abuses people. one day while getting home from school/work, i get hit by a car. i get grievously injured and go through a lot of pain. heck, maybe it even leaves some kind of permanent disability or injury.

is that a punishment for my actions? you can call it karma, but let's be real, karma doesn't exist. it's just a coincidence. and you bet i'm not going to wake up in the hospital thinking “this must be my punishment for abusing people”. if i really am an abuser who has no remorse for my actions, a random accident isn't going to change my mind.

and that's what happened with Catra too. she didn't consider Horde Prime's torture as a consequence of her actions. if anything, she used that as an excuse to mistreat Adora and the others even more. it's clear that she pitied herself for what happened. and everyone else pitied her, including the audience.

imagine if the good redemption arcs were written this way. imagine if, instead of working through his issues and facing actual consequences of his actions, Zuko was just tortured and traumatized even more by Ozai, and the Gaang just forgave him because they felt bad for him. yeah, people wouldn't be praising his arc anymore. or they would, who knows. i know i wouldn't be praising his arc.

because this is not the way to redeem a villain. the only way to redeem a villain is to have them face consequences of their actions and work for forgiveness. to show them consistently trying to make up for what they did and trying to be a better person, not because they want to be forgiven or accepted by the heroes, but because it's the right thing to do.

#spop critical #spop salt #spop criticism #spop discourse #spop #she ra #anti catra #anti catradora #anti spop #anti c//a #antic//a #anticatra #anticatradora #anti amphibia #amphibia critical #amphibia salt #amphibia criticism #amphibia discourse #amphibia #long post #tw abuse #tw death

[spopsalt]

Ugh..I remember this scene so vividly...it was horrifying....as if this gif isn't bad enough, for context Entrapta learned that the portal would end the world, and Entrapta, still being a good person, wanted to tell Hordak so they wouldn't open the portal. What is Catra's reaction to this? Tazing her of course! Just everything about this scene...how Entrapta looks to be in so much pain...Entrapta's scream...oh my god her scream...it sounds like that really hurt...how angry Catra looked...then Catra dropping Entrapta off to beast island having no idea if she would survive...it's just terrifying...this is the woman y'all are calling a precious traumatized cute meow meow?

#spop discourse #anti spop #spop criticism #anti catra #spop salt #spop crit #spop critical

[misrepresentedmorallygrey]

PROPAGANDA

Catra Propaganda

"Seeing SPOP fans call Catra unhealthy and problematic makes me laugh… people love babygirling anime men who commit genocide but start finger wagging when it’s a lesbian space catgirl. Sure, fine. Personally, I think she should have commited more war crimes and killed people on screen. Lesbians should be able to try to kill each other on TV without people crying about how their behavior shouldn’t be “normalized”. Just sit back and enjoy the show"

Yukari Propaganda

"YUKARI PROPAGANDA: SHE IS LITERALLY SO CORRECT ABOUT EVERYTHING. People call her a bitch for uhh [checks notes] having a a brief freak out after she's shown live footage of her father's gruesome death? For [checks notes] accusing Mitsuru of lying to them about important information (which turned out to be COMPLETELY TRUE, by the way, but fans still mock her for this)? For [checks notes one last time] being mean to Junpei, who gives as good as he gets with rude and sometimes sexist comments in response? And even then, several times she apologizes or reassures him that she was just kidding when he seems genuinely upset by her words, so it's not like she isn't compassionate towards him. She is also routinely mocked and villainized for (huge spoilers) wanting to risk it all to attempt to save the protagonist after he passes away saving the world. To be fair, this turns out to have been the wrong choice, but let's be real -- she was a grieving teenager trying to save her friend slash crush. Yes, she was emotionally all over the place during The Answer. Of course she was! THE WORLD ALMOST ENDED AND HER FIRST LOVE HAD TO DIE TO SAVE EVERYONE. LIKE, THAT JUST HAPPENED TO HER. And everyone somehow just expects her to behave perfectly rationally when she's a 17 year old girl who just lost someone important to her and also almost died with the rest of humanity. Girl is traumatized and grieving and all people can do is call her a hysterical bitch or whatever other shit they wanna come up with." (by @ragecndybars)

"she's NOT a bitch she has a hard time opening up to people + she's a 17 year old dealing with grief after one of those people dies leave her alone!!"

#round 2 #round 2b #females fucked over tournament #she ra and the princesses of power #persona 3 #spop catra #yukari takeba

[dailycharacteroption]

Pop Culture Builds 13: Adora (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power)

Few things are more gut-wrenching than realizing that you’re the bad guy, that your entire life is a propaganda-drowned lie that has brought great suffering to others.

Imagine how that inner turmoil only grows when you also learn that you’re the destined hero meant to stop the forces you once worked for… which includes everyone you once called friends, many of which are just as ignorant as you once were.

Such is the role and life thrust upon Adora, former solider of the (Evil) Horde, who was captured and made to realize the horrors she was culpable in, and then discovered a magic sword which imbued her with the divine power she needed to become the Princess of Power: She-Ra! (Now if only things were as simple as the original 80’s show…)

We actually did another character from this show a while back, Shadow Weaver, who had a personal hand in the raising and training of both Adora and her friend, Catra, which is a whole can of worms in it’s own right. Suffice to say it’s a traumatic and emotional tale.

But how do we build Adora in Pathfinder? Well, let’s take a look, shall we?

Without going into too much detail, Adora is a First One, part of an ancient civilization that spanned the stars. Functionally, however, she is human, but that doesn’t have to be the case for your build.

The real trick was figuring out what class to make her. I went through a lot of ideas, but I settled on the following. While her powers are not truly divine in nature (and in fact probably best are defined as druid-like primal magic due to it’s source), I finally decided that Adora should be a paladin with both the warrior of holy light archetype and the legate archetype. The former gets rid of spellcasting in favor of being able to channel raw magical energy into a versatile light with multiple effects. Meanwhile, the legate archetype is defined by it’s ability to conjure magical armor that can be tailor-enchanted to suit the situation, which is a good stand-in for her transformation into She-Ra. Naturally, she also chooses the weapon bond.

Adora is a warrior first, so most of her feats should probably be classic options that improve her prowess, such as Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Power Attack, and of course feats which require those as prerequisites.

The signature equipment of She-Ra is of course the Sword of Protection, which is much more than it appears, and while eventually she does not need it, a reflection of it (or more accurately, the true sword) remains part of her arsenal. As such, I’d probably build it as a unique longsword with the transformative enchantment as well as a multitude of spell-like and supernatural abilities, such as elemental manipulation, transforming animals into divine beings, and so on. Beyond that, Adora doesn’t carry much, but she uses whatever she needs for the current situation.

Like I said earlier, though, there are other paths you might take. For example, you might drop the warrior of holy light archetype to gain access to the buffing spells and offensive spells of the paladin. Or you might make her a magus with lots of buffing spells. I also considered both the magical child and zealot vigilante archetypes as well, but decided that both of them rely too much on their spellcasting to really reflect Adora’s abilities, but you’re welcome to try them out.

A divine warrior that channels raw divinity and summons her armor wherever they need it. That’s certainly appealing enough to try even if you’re not making Adora herself.

That does it for today though, check back tomorrow for more!

#pathfinder #pop culture #pop culture characters #pop culture builds #adora #she ra and the princesses of power

[stormwitch898]

Adora analysis "In the Shadow of Mystacor"

The 2018 Netflix Original She-ra and the Princesses of Power is a spinoff from the eighties She-ra and the Princess of Power. However, the newer version is insightful and impactful because the messages about overcoming trauma and abuse elevates it into a thoughtful and meaningful show with realistic characters. Also the new show has more diversity in the cast of characters, voice actors, and writers transforming it with different perspectives. 

 Our main protagonist is Adora. She is an orphan since birth raised as a Horde Soldier and has never been outside the Horde occupied territory, the Fright Zone. The Rebellion opposes the Horde invasion. In the first episode Adora steals a skiff with Catra, her best friend since childhood. They accidentally end up in the magical Whispering Woods. Adora finds a sword, which changes the entire course of Adora and Catra's meticulously manipulated and controlled life by Shadow Weaver, an abusive “parent figure;” and places them on an unpredictable path. Adora ends up leaving the Horde to join the Rebellion as She-ra and effectively leaves behind Catra. 

Adora is complex and psychologically fascinating; her journey is important for abuse victims to see. Due to the impact of abuse it is hard to overcome the psychological manipulation even after escaping the abuser. In particular “In the Shadows of Mystacor” demonstrates how Adora acts when confronted with her abuser and how she overcomes it in this single episode. This character growth is not final, as she will still fall back into her old safety habits and programming but she does learn that her friends-Bow and Glimmer-are not exploiting her for personal gain, as Shadow Weaver was doing. Moreover, Bow and Glimmer care for her even when she shows supposed “weakness,” which was not allowed in the Horde.

Throughout the entire episode of “In the Shadows of Mystacor” Adora is in survival mode, using the resources she was taught in the Horde. She has not slept the entire night because she has to be on guard so she could have a sense of control. That night she is staring at a point in the distance because she thought she saw a shadow and it could have been Shadow Weaver. Seeing shadows is traumatizing as they are all around her and remind her that any of them could be a Shadow Weaver trick. When her friends, who were not worried about a guard, wake up, Adora is defensive and says “someone has to stand guard.” This shows that she is on edge even though others around her believe they are safe. As the Whispering Woods are under the protection of the Rebellion it should be safe. Her body language, such as arms folded against her chest and, when startled, hands in combat position demonstrate her hypervigilance waiting for something to go wrong. 

 Furthermore, even something as exciting as riding a flying cloud to Mystacor was not enough for her to forget her anxieties. When Bow exclaims, “how it never gets old” she replies “uh, sure, yeah, heh. It was great.” This demonstrates her focusing so much on her anxieties that she can’t appreciate her surroundings at the present moment. Another example is when they are in the steam room and Adora brings her sword (another episode she has a dagger under her pillow) when no one else does. A steam room is supposed to be relaxing and soothing, not somewhere where a battle would occur. Mystacor has a magical protective shield so evil can’t get inside. Although there is no logical basis for Adora to believe there is danger requiring a sword, in actuality, Shadow Weaver is able to break through the enchantments. Thus, Adora is not being paranoid; Shadow Weaver is really pulling the strings for Adora to return to her and the Fright Zone. If something that should be logical defies the odds, how are you supposed to know when you are really in danger? Adora learns to rely on her friends until she can retrain her brain to know true danger and that they can fight it together. The paranoia, hypervigilance, and anxiety, all symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, demonstrate the effects of abuse and how it causes lasting damage.

As shown in the prior paragraph, Adora is still recovering from the trauma while Shadow Weaver knows exactly what to do to slide right back into her head to make things worse. Adora struggles with a sense of self worth outside of what she can do for others. She was raised as the golden child only avoiding harm and getting small rewards of affection if she is at the top of training. In contrast, Catra was the scapegoat; nothing she ever did would get Shadow Weaver’s approval. If Adora did something wrong Catra was blamed and tortured. Consequently, Adora believes that other people are her responsibility if something goes out of her control. Shadow Weaver explicitly says “everything that’s about to happen is your fault, Adora. You’re to blame.” Exactly what she has been told over and over again. What makes it even worse is Shadow Bow says the line. It’s not as effective for Shadow Weaver to say it because Adora is starting to recognize the emotional abuse. However, if a friend (someone you trust) says something it’s easier to believe it is true. Even though Adora knows that it is a shadow and not truly Bow, when you have been told something you already think is true it does not take much to break what little resistance you had to believe it. Shadow Weaver is effective with her manipulations because she knows exactly how her victims think and function.  

During this entire episode Adora has been seeing things through the lens of Shadow Weaver. She believes the narrative that everything is her fault. Adora acknowledges that Shadow Weaver “never loved [her]” and “just played twisted mind games.” The hardest thing about emotional abuse is recognizing it. Not only does she recognize it but she rebukes the statement that she is a “cutthroat, ruthless warrior,” and rejects that she could never have a place with her friends or that they are using her for her strength. If her friends were actually using her when she damaged property and freaked out at little things, they would have tossed her out the second she messed up; instead, she was met with only kindness and compassion.

  The sword channels Adora’s power, which is tied to her confidence and emotions that are affected by the trauma she experienced. When she is confused about where she belongs she is unable to transform into She-ra. With the line “you have no power over me anymore” her sword once again works and transforms into a shield with raw energy and Adora defeats Shadow Weaver and her abuse. What is particularly interesting is what the shield represents. A shield represents defense whereas a sword is violent. Adora has been prone to using a sword but her magic is channeled into something safe and protective. She believes that her friends care about her and in turn she cares about them. If they are in danger she will protect them. Adora chooses her own ideals and values that she will protect her home planet Etheria. Before, Adora might have thought her friends were using her but now she knows that they care about her. After this episode Adora is able to pick up the subtlety of the emotional abuse and is harder to control. 

Undoubtedly this show has merit beyond what might seem as just a children’s cartoon. The depiction of abuse and anxiety is realistic. Not only does it show physical abuse by way of the scapegoat, Catra, but it shows the emotional harm of being the golden child. Both scenarios are just as damaging. It’s important to recognize that once abused it takes time to unlearn the unhealthy patterns and She-ra depicts a real journey of hard work and healing. Abuse should only be treated with kindness and compassion, something that was not previously given to victims, so that they can learn good patterns instead of harmful ones. 

Finally, this show is relevant and meaningful to me because of the diverse character representation. In today’s society rights are being taken away, from book bannings to new legislation against women and LGBTQ+ community, which is why this show is more important than ever. She-Ra is groundbreaking with respect to its diversity of main characters having different: ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, body type, and neurodivergence. In 2014, the Legend of Korra paved the way in children’s entertainment for this groundbreaking show by having two female bisexual characters, without kissing, demonstrate romantic affection for each other. In 2020, She-ra broke ground with the two main characters Catra and Adora kissing in the finale in a child’s cartoon showing that it’s not inappropriate for kids to see this romantic display. What is so magical about the show is that it is not set in a white cis-heteronormative world. Diversity is a natural part of their world where no attention is paid to the differences and no one blinks twice. Even villains such as Shadow Weaver routinely without fail use they/them pronouns. This goes to show how easy it is to understand and use the proper pronouns. Adora means a lot to me and I hope people can see the complexity in her as they can see in Catra.

#she-ra #she ra adora #catra

[foolforshera]

Go check out this person's first fic!

"What if Catra had stayed behind to look after the captured Adora in the Northern Reach while Scorpia went to check out the alarm?

What if all took to change the course of the war was a floppy Adora, and two traumatized kids taking one last chance on each other?"

#catra #adora #catradora #spop

[cirusthecitrus]

For the ask meme, 002 entrapta

Thank you for the ask! uwu

How I feel about this character: the best gremlin princess who deserves the world <3 Love her character, adore her design and aesthetic - I want to squish her like a stress toy, she's so cute and fun and cool and OP it's unbearable sometimes! 😔

All the people I ship romantically with this character: nggh i'm so boring when it comes to this stuff, but i only ship her with Hordak, do not care for other ships *shrugs*

My non-romantic OTP for this character: I'll say Entrapta and Kadroh, aka her future brother in law^^ Love their dynamic!

Oh and I also like the potential of Entrapta and Adora as a duo - honestly I wish they could interact more in canon! Adora was among the few who was always nice to her and never did her wrong, seeing Entrapta as a person rather than just a useful tool. Plus sometimes they give off such simillar vibes and they can be hilarious when together, I can totally see them becoming much closer friends post season 5!

My unpopular opinion about this character: I'm not a big fan of Entrapta's relationship/friendship with Darla and several jokes in s5 about her wanting to fuck a robot. Personally, it does make me a tiny bit uncomfortable, but my main complaint is not about that. What I'm trying to say is that it's season 5, the final season, and yet Entrapta is still more eager to interact and spend time with robots and anchient ALs than real people. There are Entrapta's supposed friends on the ship with her, and yet Entrapta spends most of the time with Darla or around new tech she found. I get that she's always excited about tech, but Entrapta went through an entire character arc about friendship and learned a lot about relationships and people, she literally wanted to find new friends who are not robots?? And yet in the final season it still doesn't feel like she's friends with anyone from the main cast. On one hand there are the princesses, their bulling and ableism, and on the other there's the best friends squad in which Entrapta was never included despite all the time she spent with them - and for the most part it felt like Entrapta wasn't actually with them, that she's all by herself on her own mission, just a crewmember and not a part of the team. She spends the whole season around people she's not really closed to and they never become closer even after their many adventures together. It makes Entrapta's interest in Darla even more understandable, but also sad. It lowkey feels like a character regression to me, but it's just my opinion.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: ooh i wish so many things had happened in canon. Like an actual scene of Entrapta finding the luvd crystal, or her reunion with Scorpia and Emily (and Imp!), or her still having some conflicting feelings towards Hordak - since she was feeling conficted back on Beast Island and there was no one who could tell her that Hordak was lied to and didn't know about her exile

But what would I want to see the most is Entrapta actually being allowed to be angry at Catra for what she did to her. Yes Entrapta forgives her, it's fine it's her choice, but at least let her be upset!! Let her being sent to die not be treated like a joke/just an inconvenience and sidelined by more Catra angst. That scene where Catra and Entrapta finally meet and Catra apologizes to her was once again about her own feelings only and never about Entrapta's. Even though Beast Island was this huge traumatic experience for her! She was willing to die there, give in to the signal because she felt like she was the problem and all her relationships failed because of her EVEN THOUGH she was literally betrayed by Catra and left behind yet again and gfphifphpg

I'm ranting at this point so I'll shut up now. In short, yeah, would be nice if Entrapta was allowed to feel upset, even if just for a moment

my OTP: Entrapdak, of course^^

my cross over ship: do not have one!

a headcanon fact: she bites and she bites HARD. Entrapta has many chewing toys/medallions but they usually don't last long. On rare occasions when she feels an urge to bite (usually when she's stressed/annoyed or in a deep thinking process) and her hands are unprotected she might bite her own palm and fingers. But nowdays her favorite target is Hordak)) No matter if she's excited or angry or anxious or bored - if Hordak is at arm's lenght from her Entrapta will gently nom on his ears, arms, shoulders or thighs. Hordak doesn't feel any pain or serious discomfort, but getting used to it was not easy, cause sometimes Entrapta warns him and sometimes it happenes unexpectedly :p

#ask memes #ramblings #entrapta #entrapdak #spop #shera #spop salt #? #edge lorde #btw my last headcanon is based on this interesting pattern i've noticed while listening to many stories from my friends and internet people #and it's that the girls in a relationship have this unexplainable urge to bite their partners not cause they're mad or smth - just because

[ohhalefire]

Thanks for the tag, @greyhavenisback!

Ten Characters From Ten Fandoms: (Or: a list of mostly traumatized queer assholes) 1. Derek Hale (Teen Wolf) Traumatized queer asshole: Y

2. Kurogane (Tsubasa Chronicle) Traumatised queer asshole: Y

3. Catra (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power) Traumatized queer asshole: Y

4. Ronan Lynch (Raven Cycle, Dreamer Trilogy) Traumatized queer asshole: Y

5. Harry Dresden (Dresden Files - I only read the books, though) Traumatized queer asshole: N, just a traumatized asshole

6. John Murphy (the 100) Traumatized queer asshole: N, just a traumatized asshole. He was, however, the pb for an OC of mine who IS a traumatized queer asshole, so I associate him with the trope anyway

7. Yuri Plisetsky (Yuri!!! On Ice) Traumatized queer asshole: Y

8. Mickey Milkovich (Shameless) Traumatized queer asshole: Y

9. Steve Harrington (Stranger Things) Traumatized queer asshole: N. Definitely got some trauma over the course of the show; definitely part of the fruity four; and definitely used to be an asshole, though. So like, he has a relationship to all parts of the trope?

10. Mogget (Abhorsen Trilogy) Traumatized queer asshole: N, he is a cat. (Definitely an asshole, though.)

Obviously no one else has to relate their characters to their favourite tropes, I just felt like highlighting how fucking predictable I am 😂 I tag @scribblesandsorcery and @fira211, and re-tag @halinski, @blue-eyedbeta, and @all-or-nothing-baby because I want to see y'alls responses!

#tag game #long post

[anti-catradora-collection]

ADORA NEVER LEFT CATRA.

And that's a fact, even if this show loves to contradict itself.

in fact, adora gave multiple opportunities for catra to come with her. catra is the one who constantly abandoned adora. catra REFUSED to go with adora multiple times and then acted like she was in the right for saying that adora abandoned her.

adora left the HORDE, not catra. she really wanted catra to come with her, she did her best for catra to accept that. however, as shown in these three scenes as examples, catra left adora. nothing else, she just left adora behind.

and even so, this show loves to make the spop fandom believe that adora is the abandoner here. like in the scene below, where double trouble says "left you" in adora's form to catra. catra even implies in season 5 that "of course adora left, that's what she does isn't it?" and even during her love confession where she says "so please, just this once, stay!".

yeah, spop really doesn't give a shit about adora. CATRA is the traumatized one, the abused one, the abandoned one. adora's trauma doesn't matter to them.

#anti spop #spop criticism #spop salt #spop critical #spop discourse #spop #she ra adora #she ra #she ra and the princesses of power #anti catradora #spop catra #anti c//a #anti c/a

[beevean]

Fuck it. Proship ask meme. All of them.

Man 😂 ripping off the bandaid, huh

I answered 9 and 15 here, and 10, 11, 12 and 14 here.

1.) What is your favorite problematic theme/trope that appears in a lot of your ships?

Age gap and power imbalance abuse :) the power imbalance creates interesting dynamics and conflicts, and the age gap... well it's just sexy :P

2.) Are there any problematic tropes that squick you out?

Incest, especially if depicted as wholesome or hot. This kind of alienates me from the proship community because incest is super popular (obviously, this is where the shippers flock) and I'm here like, good for you, but no thank you get it out of my sight 😂

3.) First problematic ship since you joined the proship community?

Sonegg? I don't consider myself a member of the proship community, but it was my very first "what is wrong with me" ship lol

4.) First ever problematic ship? (you didn't have to know it was problematic then)

See above. I knew it was "wrong", but hey, I've always been a weirdo.

5.) Ship you don't think it all that problematic, but the rest of your fandom hates?

... see above 😂 Sonegg is super tame compared to some of the other stuff I'm into, and I don't even feel the age gap in their case.

Oh, and Baroryuu, of course. I mean, it has some problematic aspects (Barok's very offensive comments towards Ryuu for a good chunk of his screentime), but I still think the character development of the two is strong enough to make them cute by the end.

6.) Cutest, most vanilla ship you are into.

Sonamy. They're adorable, and that's all they need to be. Even if I disagree with some of the popular takes :P Knuxamy to a lesser extent, I don't know if people have a problem with it... if only because it's a rarepair fhdufhdskj. but they cute too. power duo :D

And of course, Hectaly, who are 100% canon and wholesome and 💖

7.) Ship the antis in your fandom like, but you think is hella problematic?

uhhhhhh well I have many fandoms. I haven't bitched about fan-favorite Lapidot in years, so I might as well now: I relate too much with Peridot having to bend herself backwards to not upset Lapis, only to see herself abandoned by her best friend in a traumatic way, to think of them as wholesome when Lapis didn't even apologize for fleeing like she did.

8.) Ship that is (presented as) cute in canon/fanon, but you think is problematic anyway.

Lenector, as I have extensively explained by now :) and Lapidot as above. Catradora too, even if I'm not super into She-Ra - Catra's abuse of Adora is too extensive to be brushed aside in the last season alone.

13.) Rec a dead dove fic!

I mentioned a dark Lenector fic in the second ask I linked. Here it is <3 It's Hector suffering from severe PTSD and disassociation as Lenore keeps using him as a sex slave. This is the stuff I love, a mind scarred by trauma, even if the ending is not what I hoped for. (also "evil Lenore"? please this is her canon behavior)

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

you know, there's a difference between relating to a character and defending them with your life. it may seem to some spop fans that i just hate catra because i don't relate to her. and while it's true that i don't entirely relate to her, i want to talk about a villain/antagonist that i do relate to: azula from atla.

that's right, i'm an azula kinnie. of course i wasn't brought up by a tyrannical dictator or groomed to be a child soldier, but the relationship azula had with her parents, especially her mother, stuck with me a lot. because i felt the same way.

and guess what? i hated her when i first watched the show. i absolutely despised her and i couldn't understand why people sympathized with her. it took me a second watch to realize that not only is she sympathetic, but she's also a lot like me. luckily, i didn't turn out to be as.. aggressive as her, for the lack of a better word. but by seeing myself in her, i was able to identify a few of my flaws that i needed to work on.

does this mean that i think azula did no wrong and that she should have been forgiven? do i get into fights with people who dislike her? nope. she was still a horrible person and while i think that she could have had a redemption arc, it wasn't necessary.

honestly, i like her a lot better because she didn't get redeemed. because her arc is supposed to contrast that of zuko's. whereas zuko starts off as lonely, traumatized and mentally unstable, and slowly works towards being a better person, finding inner peace, building his skills and making new friends; azula goes from being the calm and calculating firebending prodigy with her own posse by her side, to having her father and friends betray her and spiralling into a mental breakdown.

so yeah. while i sympathize with azula and relate to her, i do not condone her actions in the slightest. she was still a cruel and apathetic person who enjoyed manipulating, abusing and hurting others. she still did what she did, even if she had her reasons.

you can like or kin a character while also acknowledging their flaws and holding them accountable for their actions. i promise you, it's possible.

#spop critical #spop salt #spop criticism #spop discourse #spop #she ra #anti spop #atla #atla azula

[spopsalt]

https://www.tumblr.com/cure-icy-writes/674028990022975488/sheathandshear-expartebollmanisirrelevant-not-to

I agree with this post, but of course someone in the reblogs mentioned Catra. These tags are so utterly nonsensical. Yes, Catra was a traumatized kid, but that doesn’t excuse her actions. Adora chose to love her because she was guilt tripped into doing so and because the writers shoved her with Catra for the sake of their own fantasizes, not bc Adora always loved her. And how the hell is she “queer coded?” She is explicitly not straight. Besides, what does her sexuality have to even do with anything here? Now I agree that both Adora and Catra deserve to heal, but they’re certainly not gonna heal by being each other’s girlfriends. This person doesn’t know what they’re talking about.

https://www.tumblr.com/sicut-anima/661550152791818240/expartebollmanisirrelevant-not-to-post-even

This person tagged Catra in this post too. Catra stans continue to not know what they’re talking about.

Exactly! Traumatized or not, you are still responsible for your actions! Catra's trauma is the reason why she did what she did, but it does not excuse her from what she did and she should still receive conquences of her actions and not just be welcomed with open arms because cute kitty!

#spop salt #anti spop #spop discourse #spop criticism #anti catra #spop crit #spop critical

[baggebythesea]

Hey Bagge, there's this scenario that I constantly think about ever since I started to ship Glitra, and I want to share it:

So, the Best Friend Squad is going through their universal road trip, and they stop on a ice planet because according to some of the records from Prime's ship there's broken First One's tech in it, and Entrapta, Hordak and Bow want to study it.

Long story short, the planet grounds are a bit unstable, accidents happens so Catra and Glimmer are isolated from the rest inside the frozen caves. Catra gets increasingly frustrated, Glimmer starts to internalize all of that negativity, and what she also doesn't want to bring up, is that the claustrophobia of the closed up walls of the caves brings up some very bad memories from Prime's ship.

And once Catra notices you can do all of that sweet, sweet angsty fluff, the two of them open up about the trauma they're still working through, and the setting can give some choice scenes, them having to share resources like food and water, ans of course, the classic of having them sleep cuddling to share warmth.

Exploring scenarios that are made to make Glimmer and Catra grow closer are just so much fun.

Oh, I really love this. It's the force field scene all over again in all it's traumatic glory. I especially like how you make a direct callback to it with Glimmer's trauma from the ship.

I have a very soft spot for Glitra being isolated and having to depend on each other for survival - both in a physical and emotional sense - and them growing closer during the experience. I've had a lot of fun with it in some of my fics (especially 'we won't die here'), and I'd love to see more.

You should totally write it :-)

#spop #Glimmer #catra #Glitra #asks

[stanggrl]

So I just realllllyyyyy want to listen to someone go on about Adora’s character arch and her trama and how she must come to terms with the fact that she is deserving of love even if she is not *good enough*.

Like I really need to hear it.

Help a sister out??

#adora #catra #she ra #catradora #both Catra and Adora’s trama really hits but i feel like more people address Catra’s because its more OBVIOUS #Please preach to me how trama is JUST AS BAD even when it only manifests in ways that hurt to traumatized person #like THATS a BIG reason why Catra leaves when Adora takes the heart #she own trama applies too of course but she also cant stand by and watch Adora Sacrifice herself again #i could go off

[catrasredemption-moved]

Taking Control Rewatch/Analysis

After a lot of discussion, I've decided it's time to rewatch Taking Control, because it really does highlight Adora's and Catra's separate issues with each other, and shows that Adora, frankly, has very shitty habits when it comes to dealing with Catra.

NOTE: I am not, at any point, saying that Adora is abusive. She's not, but her approach to Catra in this episode just sort of sucks for a good amount of time, and it's all a result of how they were raised.

Let's just jump right in - Catra is clearly traumatized. We come off the theme song right into her having a nightmare:

And not just any nightmare - she's dreaming about Prime, and everything that happened.

So... off to a good start for her.

And then Adora comes in, and god help her she just wants to do whatever she can for Catra, but at that moment, even Catra doesn't know what she needs, and she's spent years dealing with Adora's "we can fix it" savior complex, so of course she does the one thing she knows how to do - gets angry and lashes out.

(It's also really important to remember that Catra specifically told Adora not to go to Prime's ship. "Don't come here, no matter what." She was ready to die on that ship, ready to die for the only thing that still mattered to her - Adora.)

Then, just like Catra, Adora falls back on old, Horde-learned habits - she gets angry.

An Not at a great move considering everything Catra just went through, and blatantly ignoring Catra's admittedly ridiculous request to just be dropped off on some planet. ("I said I'm going to take you home and that's exactly what I'm going to do.") Is it something Adora should indulge? No, of course not. Is the correct response flipping the mattress and throwing Catra on the floor? No.

And then...

"Why are you acting like this? We saved your life!"

Catra told Adora not to come back. She sent Glimmer away specifically to keep Adora from going to Prime's ship. She had already accepted her fate and planned to die or spend the rest of her life as Prime's mini-me, and she was at peace with it. The implied "we saved you, you should be grateful", is very Shadow Weaver-esque, while also saying Catra should be grateful for something she did not want.

Again, is Catra being reasonable? Of course not. She should've known Adora would come back for her, whether it was to save her friend or to be a hero. So of course she gets mad and yells back because she never asked to be saved, or given another chance at a life she didn't want.

"I thought things could be different this time but clearly nothing has changed."

And Adora is very, very wrong. A lot has changed. Catra has changed. But Adora's way of arguing with her hasn't adapted to catch up with all that yet.

And the kitchen scene. Oh the kitchen scene.

"I thought we actually stood a chance at fixing things this time, but after everything we've been through, she's still a stubborn brat!"

Well, Adora... you haven't actually tried to fix anything. You went in, tried to force her to talk when she clearly didn't want to, then yelled at her and walked out. You want her to be grateful that you saved her even though she had absolutely zero desire to live, and you kind of threw her out of bed.

"We all risked our lives to save her, and she can't even say thank you?"

How long has it actually been since they got away from Prime? I can't imagine more than twelve hours, since Darla is still in pretty rough shape and Entrapta is running around like crazy to fix things. That's less than a day to recover from being chipped, dying, being brought back to life, and adjusting to now having to live a life you'd given up. Catra's still trying to catch up with everything, and Adora is already harping on her about changing and being grateful.

And again, let me be clear - I do not think Adora is abusive or malicious. Frustrated, yes, because Catra is being stubborn, but not for the reasons Adora thinks. She's used to Catra acting this way, but the feelings are coming from a completely different place, something Adora hasn't taken time yet to understand. She's not just being stubborn, she's scared.

We also get Glimmer being the voice of reason in this scene, and that's so important:

"This is Catra we're talking about. Did you think she was instantly going to become a totally different person?"

Two things to note here: Glimmer, by this point, has spent a lot of time with Catra. Catra, who kept coming back to her cell to taunt her, but also stayed when Glimmer asked. Catra, who laughed when they talked about Adora and told her about being cadets in the Horde. Catra who saved her life. Glimmer knows Catra hides behind a hard exterior, and from the way Adora's acting, she can probably guess that she sent Catra right back into that after some very painful vulnerability.

Second thing - Glimmer says different person. Not better, not good, different. Catra's already proven she can be good, and Glimmer knows that'll come out when Catra is ready. But Catra's processing method doesn't run on Adora's schedule.

"I thought she'd at least try."

Again, Adora, you haven't given her a chance. Old coping mechanisms just aren't going to work here, no matter how hard Adora tries.

She also just really unintentionally has the worst timing.

This is the second time she's walked in right on the heels of a flash, and it's obviously not her fault, she doesn't know. It just terrible, terrible timing.

And this is where we get into some really dicey territory.

Catra had complete control of her body just ripped away from her. She's been violated in one of the worst possible ways. She's had almost no time to recover mentally. And now here Adora is, with someone Catra does not want to see, ordering Catra around and making demands.

Again, Adora isn't wrong per se. The chip needs to go. But Catra is in full defense mode, and Adora isn't helping. She's making it worse. She literally backs Catra into a corner and yells at her. It's really not a good look.

She's scared. Scared of the situation, of the fact that she has to face Entrapta, of the idea of living a life she had no intention of continuing. And she's scared of Adora. Because Adora is still acting the way she would have before Horde Prime, but Catra's not the same person anymore, and Adora hasn't seen that yet. She doesn't see it until Catra finally takes the hardest step and reaches out to her.

"Stay."

And finally, finally Adora sees. She sees Catra being vulnerable, asking for her. She realizes that maybe she's been doing this wrong. Maybe her old approach isn't right. Maybe Catra doesn't need the old Adora and her way of dealing with things. She needs comfort. She needs to know she's not making a mistake by letting Adora see her weakness.

Catra, meanwhile, has at least started to come to terms with things. She has this life, even if she didn't want it, and she's so tired of self-sabotaging. And when faced with the possibility of never seeing Adora again... she realizes she doesn't want it. She doesn't want to be alone anymore.

And they proceed with this new, tentative, weird dynamic. Catra forces herself to face the flashes the chip's been causing and use them for something good, and Adora supports her through it instead of arguing. It's new, and it's strange, but it works.

Rounding out to the end of the episode, it's really significant that Adora goes to Bow and Entrapta after the fight rather than back to Catra. She's finally recognizing that she needs to give Catra space, and that if Catra wants her, she'll come to her. It's a gamble that pays off.

The Point:

There's a lot going around about how Catra is abusive and cruel to Adora, but not a lot about how it goes both ways. Adora is the hero, she's supposed to be perfect, but she's not, and we see that as early as the first episode when she all but blames Catra for the way Shadow Weaver treats her. ("You are kinda disrespectful.")

It's a terrible consequence of the way they were raised, and it's really showcased in Taking Control, where Adora immediately reverts back to old habits and ways of dealing with Catra that don't fit anymore. It's only when she learns how much things have changed - when she truly sees how vulnerable Catra is - that she tries to adjust her own behavior accordingly.

Catra, in much the same way, learns that she can't just slip back into her old skin - her old habits, her old way of acting. It's not who she is anymore. So she takes a chance. She lets herself be vulnerable. And Adora responds positively. It's a huge step for both of them, and a turning point in their relationship. Now they really do have a chance to fix things, because they're finally on the same page.

#catra #adora #catradora #Sam's Meta #abuse tw #discourse tw #It's about Catra of course there's going to be shit #it's almost impossible to talk about her in a meta sense without addressing the discourse