#sorry for being emotional on main but i love queer media so much

[p4nishers]

i'm thinking about the moonlight kiss and crying. tears are running down my fucking face bc we CAN have that. we can have just a moonlight kiss between two queer people, something that is sweet and gentle and not rushed and we can fucking have that and it can be beautiful and it is beautiful and fuck me we deserved that kiss so much i'm so grateful for it

#never being normal about that kiss again that wide shot of them w them moon is genuinely everything to me #sorry for being emotional on main but i love queer media so much #ofmd #ofmd 2 #our flags mean death #our flag means death s2 #stede bonnet #edward teach #gentlebeard #ofmd spoilers

[charcubed]

I'm curious, what are the main reasons why Dean is your favorite canon bisexual in media? Love your meta and that video btw

Ooooo, anon, thank you for the kind words and for giving me an excuse to talk about my love for bisexual icon Dean Winchester <3

I'm going to be really annoying (sorry) and quote part of my meta first. It summarizes and articulates many of my thoughts on this. And then to further answer your question I'll add a bit under it!

From the very beginning, Dean Winchester has been a character tied to classic elements of American masculinity. He was introduced with a superficial veneer involving those elements, but almost immediately the early episodes provide a look at the complexity of his character underneath it. Over the years, that complexity was further explored, and he came to embody a study in things society would often have us think should be incompatible contrasts: the gruffness and grit of hunting life and its associated masculine iconography, paired with his open and deep emotional care for the world; unabashed love for classic rock, superheroes, and horror movies, as well as unabashed joy connected to TV dramas, chick flicks, and childhood favorites like Scooby-Doo; life on the road with a muscle car, but the desire for a home base with creature comforts he can make his own; motivation to always help people, but the clear longing for balance with personal domesticity and relaxation so he could save not only others but also himself.

As a whole, his character functions as an effective deconstruction of toxic masculinity and stereotypical American heroism. And while much of Dean’s most masculine traits and interests are said to come from his father’s influence, part of his journey is loving those parts of himself on their own merit not because he ever had to but because he wants to. He is not his father, and he redefines those valued parts of his identity so they are his and his alone. He also crucially learns to recognize and joyfully embody that those masculine traits were never all that he had to be, working through and overcoming shame and hesitancy along the way. The result? He’s “good with who he is.”

He and the audience are encouraged to see that there are no rules his identity and interests must subscribe to, on a micro or a macro level. The message is to disregard predetermined destiny or duty. Free will means his life is his to determine, his family can be what he makes of it and how he defines it, and what he needs and wants do not ever have to be mutually exclusive. Dean’s journey is about freedom from outwardly-imposed limitations–whether those limitations come from his father’s example and the God altering his story, or from the pervasive societal ideals and network/executive interference outside of it. Dean can and should contain multitudes, all at once.

In this way, Dean’s story is a powerfully queer narrative that acts as metacommentary. In the fullness of its execution, it is also specifically a deeply bisexual narrative.

The not-so-hidden truth is that Dean is canonically a bisexual man. His story was afforded something that’s rare for most characters and almost nonexistent for queer ones: fifteen years of lengthy, nuanced development.

[...]

Again: Dean’s identity journey is about how he can and does contain the capacity for multitudes, and it’s part of what makes him such a compelling character. He can like “this” and “that.” He can be attracted to women and men. Or, as writer Ben Edlund and director Phil Sgriccia said in a DVD commentary, Dean has “the potential for love in all places.”

I wanted to include the above verbatim because it spells out something specific: Dean's narrative is bisexual in its bones. Supernatural evolved to become a queer text, but the specific ways the show and Dean as a character evolved are very intertwined with and informed by the fact that Dean is a masculine bisexual man. SPN is a story that was not meant to be about being queer, but as it became about freedom through free will, those themes were then leveraged and emphasized in connection to queerness because of Destiel. And by the end, the free will narrative and Dean's journey as a bi man are utterly inseparable, because Dean's fight for true freedom is tied to his love for a man and their untraditional family in a way that higher forces are trying to hinder.

You cannot cut out or edit or remove Dean's bisexuality from the story, or several narratives and plot lines (not just Destiel) would at minimum be misunderstood or at maximum fall apart. And yet, simultaneously? Dean's bisexuality is also far from being the sole important thing about his character because he is written with such nuanced complexities and across so many years of material.

Of course, add onto this the overall unique situation that surrounds Supernatural as a piece of media. People talk at length about how there will never be anything like it again, including me; that's obviously true from multiple different angles and for multiple different reasons, with Destiel being prime amongst them. But a related yet distinctly significant branch of that topic is there will never be another bisexual character who is written and evolves quite like Dean.

Was Dean supposed to be bisexual from the very start, out of the mind of Kripke? Who can know for sure, but probably not. Were certain writers and members of production deliberately putting more queercoding and subtext into Dean's character/story from the very start? Who can know for sure, but potentially yes, and certainly the answer becomes unarguably definitely yes the farther you get into the show. That's part of my love and passion for him too, because all of that is deeply unique and incredibly cool.

Dean's bisexuality evolved in a way that (against all odds) actually feels organic, seamless, and like it's simply a part of his character that's been there all along. The effect when you look at Supernatural as a whole body of work is that Dean's always been bi, and his expressions of and acknowledgements of that part of him ebb and flow depending on situation–which is a very relatable notion for many queer people. And as those writing the show became more committed and certain about that piece of who Dean is, so did he, in nuanced and subtle ways skillfully embedded into his story by design. It's bafflingly, impressively cohesive; gives him an incredibly realistic feel; matches his overall character growth; and rings true to his demographic, age, personality, and experiences.

Dean and his story and the situation(s) surrounding both are simply incomparable, and that will be true forever ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

...also. Well. I simply love him, y'know? For even more reasons unconnected to this. How can you not, right? :')

Thank you for asking, and thanks for reading this bi Dean manifesto!

Putting my video that you mentioned here for anyone who's not watched it:

My new magnum opus, please stream, etc.

(or watch on Tumblr here)

#bisexual dean winchester #dean is bi #bi dean meta #bi dean winchester #dean winchester is bi #supernatural #spn meta #char writes things #God I LOOOOOVE HIIIIMMMM #dean #anonymous #yes I used like 5 dean is bi tags. I'm valid. leave me alone

[wordsifelt]

Hi....If you don't mind, can I ask, what are your top 10 (or top 7) favorite media (can be books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series)? Why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before......Thanks....

Hi! That was a hard question to answer lol, but after several hours of deliberation I have arrived at the following 10, in no particular order:

Mo Dao Zu Shi and Heaven Official's Blessing by MXTX: (danmei) So yes i cheated a little, these are two novels by the same author, but what I like about them are the same, the author writes relationships extremely well, and she writes very well rounded characters. The plot is very nuanced and makes you think.

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Prachett (Tv series): Truly is a gift to humanity, i love this series, I love how queer it is, how the love permeates everything, how very humane it is (also I'm a sucker for mythological fiction, Percy jackson was a favourite growing up)

Loveless by Alice Oseman (novel): This novel is brilliantly done, and perfectly explains being on the aroace spectrum. I read it recently and it's helped me so much with my own journey discovering my sexuality.

Not Me (Thai drama): Apart from having one of the sweetest romances I've ever seen in any media, this drama also focuses on a lot of political issues, revolution, anarchy etc. Also a great exploration into queer joy. I think it is the only drama i have 10/10 stars

Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo: well written characters, good motivation and plot, beautiful world building and most of all amazing representation, one of my all time fantasy favs.

The All For the Game trilogy by Nora Sakavic: I went into this series with actually zero expectations and it has consumed me for years until I can't find anything else even remotely close to the raw emotion this brings out in me. I don't think anything will ever surpass this. Definitely my comfort read.

Yuuri on Ice (Anime) : One of the first queer anime I ever watched. I love figure skating, the animation style was beautiful, and the love was there. It's a very comforting and fun anime to watch.

Given (Anime): Yet another amazing queer anime. Great exploration of grief and healing and love. Also amazing music.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak(novel) : It's such a bare look at the holocaust and at how it affected those persecuted and involved. Beautiful writing style. I can never read this without crying.

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman: Queer joy for everyone 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈 (need I say more?)

Some honorary mentions:

Gideon the Ninth: This book drove me insane

I Wish You All the Best (novel): beautiful exploration of non-binary gender

Word of Honor (Chinese drama): I love the main couple, they've got great chemistry

Sasaki and Miyano(anime): most wholesome fluff anime ever

Hope this answers ur question. And I hope you find some good recs in this!

#mdzs #tgcf #heaven official's blessing #loveless #good omens #not me the series #six of crows #all for the game #aftg #yuri on ice #yoi #given anime #the book thief #heartstopper #queer shows #queer books #lgbtqplus #lgbtq+ #lgbtq community #asexual

[mooifyourecows]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks...

Sure! (given in no particular order)

1. Daichi from Haikyuu, of course.. I just love everything about him. He's a great captain and he has a big appetite and he's so down to earth and masculine in the best ways, what a man!!! I want a tattoo of him on my body!

2. Pam Poovey from Archer. It's hard to stand out in a show where nearly every character is the single most interesting person in the world but I really do think that Pam takes the cake. She's a real one. She stays true to herself no matter how much everyone else begs her to stop and I RESPECT THAT. Also she's a fat character who isn't limited to being the Fat Character. While her weight does come up, often in insulting jokes or bits, she has so much else to her that it feels like such a small part of her character.

3. Princess Carolyn from Bojack Horseman. Out of all the insanely good character arcs in Bojack Horseman, Princess Carolyn's is my favorite. Usually the hardworking career woman character who wants a baby winds up the most disappointing character for me because she always gives up her career to be a mom but NOT MY GIRL PRINCESS CAROLYN. She said I want to be a badass boss lady AND a mom and I don't need no man to get what I want! And she did that shit. She deserves it.

4. Linda Belcher from Bob's Burgers. I aspire to be like Linda. She's fun, she's extroverted, she is just so excited to live her modest life with a struggling burger business, a husband she actually enjoys spending time with, and 3 kids she adores with every fiber of her being. She sings and dances at any given opportunity and doesnt let embarrassment faze her. What an icon.

5. Samwise Gamgee from Lord of the Rings. Every time I think of him I wanna cry. He's just so.... perfect.... and wonderful.... He is the sweetest, bravest man to ever exist and NOBODY CAN ARGUE. The original Ride or Die. We all need a Samwise Gamgee in our lives. 🖤

6. Usopp from One Piece. That's my boy! He's so funny and relatable. I love characters who are brave while being terrified. Despite his wacky goofy personality, he's complex and insecure but he stands by his guns and isn't afraid to challenge even his best friend/captain to defend what he believes and GOSH what a stand up guy ammiright?

7. Eleanor Shellstrop from The Good Place. I love a disaster of a woman. She's a selfish bisexual with zero shame, what's more to love? I just can't help it. I'm weak for women who are just The Worst ™️.

8. Manny from Swiss Army Man. I mean... He's dead, he teaches us what it means to be alive, and he's played by Daniel Radcliffe. He's basically the perfect character, right? Listen, Swiss Army Man is my all time favorite movie and I want everyone else to like it too. I can't even talk much on it because it's so much better when you watch it yourself. Especially if you love amazing soundtracks, beautiful visuals, and queer revelations.

9. Hal from Malcolm in the Middle. I'm such a sucker for husbands who are obsessed with their wives and men in touch with their emotions and Hal is the epitome of both those things! I watched this show while growing up and I truly think that Bryan Cranston's portrayal of Hal taught me how men are supposed to act, especially in regards to their romantic partners. And now my own partner is basically a less theatrical version of him so it paid off ya know?

10. Judas Iscariot from Jesus Christ Superstar (1973). This is mainly based on performance. Carl Anderson did such an AMAZING job playing Judas that he literally stole the show, imo. Jesus who? You mean Judas's boyfriend? It's not JUST his performance though, the way the character is written is so well done that I feel like Judas is the real main character. Yeah, this is the story about Jesus but he ain't the star, ya dig? He's a basic bitch in comparison to the complexity and emotional turmoil of Judas. Also they're gay and in love, what a tragedy! This is cinema!

[show-stoppin-enby]

I watched Nimona the other day and absolutely loved it!!!!!! The story was so incredibly touching, I will freely admit that I cried at The Hand Bit. It was a joy to watch the characters develop, the art style was AMAZING, I just loved it so so much!!!!

The only possible fault I could find is the rather obvious character naming. “Hmm, how do I establish that this dude is The (Conventional) Chosen One, descended from a member of royalty that is worshipped to the point of divinity? I know, I’ll call him Ambrosius Goldenloin!” Its like if your protagonist, who everyone hated for being the first dark-skinned non-noble knight, was given the last name Blackheart- oh wait! I’m sorry, but I cannot take a character called Ambrosius Goldenloin 100% seriously. I say this, but I want to clarify that it didn’t impact my enjoyment of the movie at all.

However, it was extremely refreshing to see a Chosen One that was neither the protagonist or a villain. Normally they are the Hero, or the well-meaning villain that fights to uphold the corrupt society that worships them. Ambrosius is, at his heart, kind. Even when he thinks that Ballister killed the Queen, when face to face with him after he escaped prison, his reaction isn’t “oh no! Dangerous Queen Killer is loose! I’m confused that my boyfriend is suddenly evil, so I’m channeling my emotions into sword-swinging rage!”. He is so clearly torn; he watched it happen right in front of him, and everyone around him that he trusts thinks that Ballister is a murderer, but he cannot bring himself to believe that Ballister could ever do such a thing. His face, in that moment, is anguish, confusion, betrayal, heartbreak - not rage. He wants to forgive him, so so much. Even later, when leaning into the “queer people Nimona is a monster who’s brainwashing you” rhetoric, he did so out of a place of such deep love and kindness that he was willing to go against The Director and the regime that he dedicated his whole life to in order to give his boyfriend another chance when no-one else would.

The character of Nimona herself? Perfect. Brilliant. Amazing. She can shapeshift and chooses not to look like a size 0 model, but a normal person with cool hair/ piercings and a grin that’s just a little bit too shark-like? Perfect. My little genderfluid chaos gremlin and I love her. On a more serious note, the LGBTQ+ themes conveyed through her character are so heart-achingly relatable; I don’t think I’ve ever felt this seen by a piece of media. I know it’s a bit of a cliche/ cringy thing to say, I’ve always thought so, but I GET IT NOW. When in response to terrified “what are you?”s, a simple “I’m Nimona” - you’re not entitled to an explanation of who I am. Ballister just saying “metal” with a smile, upon learning that she can breathe fire - someone accepts and loves you, unconditionally, finally. Sometimes enjoying when people see you as a monster, enjoying causing a bit of mischief and trouble, but also wanting to be seen as human. The main ideological difference between her and Ballister, especially: he wants to assimilate and be seen as a normal human, but she wants to destroy the society that created a “normal” that excludes and punishes her for something outside of her control - the argument between assimilate vs. keep queer spaces separate from cishet ones is one that has been debated for decades.

In the end, Ballister and Nimona swap roles: he realises the corrupt foundations of his society and wants to dismantle it, but she is done fighting; she’s tired, and hurt, and fought for CENTURIES, but gotten nowhere, and what’s the point of it all anyway, it’ll never work, it never does. She just wants to be seen as human. She spirals into a deep, deep pit of rage and anguish. What’s the worst that will happen, anyway? Everyone already sees her irredeemably as a monster. And when Ballister calms her, with just one hand and a few comforting words, she collapses. The fight is gone from her. She’s just a hurt, scared, tired little kid who desperately needs a hug.

The best villains (imho) are the ones who are relatable, who you can understand how they got to where they are, who scare you not through irredeemable acts, but through worries that in that situation, you would do the same - The Director is a prime example of this. Her ultimately fatal flaw is her fear of change; this is the way it is, and the way it has been for the past 1000 years, and it works perfectly well, so why change? Keep everything the way it is now, no matter the cost, and everything will keep running smoothly. She objects to Ballister ever becoming a knight, because it’s Not How Things Are Done. Change in tradition means unpredictability, it means things might go wrong. And if things go wrong? Well, you’ve heard the stories of what’s on the other side of the wall, we CAN’T risk things going wrong. She serves the system in rhe name of the ‘greater good’, and any price is worth paying, even the murder of the figurehead of the system itself. [tumblr mobile deleted the second half of this paragraph, and I’m too tired to rewrite it. It boils down to ‘at the end, she decides to fire the laser (and kill herself) rather than face the fact that she was wrong and deal with the consequences’]

This has become a whole analysis! Wow! I only wanted to make a snarky comment about the name Ambrosius Goldenloins, but here we are! Of course, this is not intended to be a full character breakdown, or even entirely comprehensible, I am currently not in the best of health and very tired and this is really just a drabble of admiration for a film that I very much enjoyed that got out of hand. I’m not very good at conclusions/ signing off or whatever, but I don’t want to ramble. I’m barely restraining myself from asking you to like the video, smash that subscribe button, and leave a comment telling me what you think.

Nimona is an awesome film. Watch it.

#nimona #ballister boldheart #ballister blackheart #ambrosius goldenloin #analysis #Nimona analysis #the director #character analysis #shit I should really go to bed now #I lost half of the director’s paragraph bc of mobile so I had to rewrite it #I want to fix the formatting but I don’t want to lose more of it so. I’m sure you can deal with a few dense paragraphs #nimona spoilers

[badass-queer-couples-battle]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks....

Oh boy, that's a difficult question given how many favourites I have but I'll do my best to answer!

(Under the cut though because I'm physically incapable of being brief about media I'm passionate about)

In no particular order:

James Flint (Black Sails) - a complex and almost poetic show with an equally complex and occasionally ruthless lead. He's a pirate captain on a revenge quest against England for taking his previous life and loved one away from him- I did not expect a show set in the 18th century to have a queer lead, much less one treated with so much respect and written as this multifaced and hard to judge morally. Just a warning though, the show gets dark and comes with a pretty extensive list of trigger warnings, so please take that into account if you're interested in watching!

Astrid Nielsen (Astrid et Raphaelle/Bright Minds/Astrid and Raphaelle [depending on translation]) - not a big crime drama guy, but she's one of a kind protagonist of a one of a kind show. A brilliant archivist and assistant investigator played by an equally great actress (Sara Mortensen). One of the only autistic leads out there and treated with such respect and attention to detail I cried several times watching just from how relatable Astrid is- I've never seen any representation like this before and certainly not for a female lead character. She's a genius but not emotionless (quite the opposite, in fact), never infantilised and her friendship with Raphaelle is beautifully written and takes into account their differences as a young ND woman new at her job and a neurotypical experienced detective. Astrid needs Raphaelle's perspective and help just as much as she needs hers, it's wonderful. This series does admittedly get queerbaity at times (imo) and Astrid faces occasional ableism, though it's always called out.

Kenzo Tenma (Monster manga/anime series) - hands down my favourite thriller out there and Dr. Tenma is a deeply honorable, determined and exceptionally kind man even despite his entire life falling apart, even towards the main villain who's a literal serial killer. I'd compare him to Aang (ATLA) in terms of how dedicated he is towards helping people and staying true to his morals. Incredible protagonist of an incredible story.

Donna Noble (Doctor Who) - she's so fun! The show was right to call her the most important woman in the history of creation, she's everything to me. Funny, lovable, strong, sarcastic, deeply human, I'm so glad she'll be back soon even if it seems like a brief guest starring type of deal.

Jolyne Cujoh (Jojo's bizzare adventure: Stone Ocean) - when I say I want complex female leads, not just strong ones, Jolyne is a good example of how they should be written. She's allowed to swear and be angry and imperfect, makes mistakes and deals with the consequences- all while being a great friend, caring daughter (despite daddy issues, her dad did admittedly kinda suck) and a smart fighter in the face of likely the most powerful villain in the series this far. There are uh... several problems the author has in terms of his writing of women, but Jolyne was so good.

Raine Whispers (The Owl House) - my beloved bard! They were such a good addition to the show both as Eda's ex (who she's still in love with) and a rebel witch! I loved their determination, they were smart as well (totally see why Eda fell for them so hard, same). Disney sucks for cutting the show short, I know they would have gotten more importance had the crew been allowed to make a full third season instead of several eps to wrap up the story :(

Xie Lian (Heaven Official's Blessing) - he gives me so many emotions... So deeply sad and yet so loving, one of the most compelling and complex protagonists I've seen- can't say too much without spoilers, but his backstory made me weep. Season 2 of the animated show just started, he's now a priority blorbo & both the animation studio and his actor do such a great job! Please do be warned, just like with Black Sails the trigger warning list for this series is LONG. Truly puts the 'dark' in dark fantasy.

Lee Dongsik (Beyond Evil) - a show that will emotionally punch you in the gut and kick you when you're down. He's a detective labeled as an insane weirdo and a potential murder suspect, but most of that is due to intense trauma and a (bad) coping mechanism. The show can and will make you question your view on every character and has so many twists, if you're a fan of crime dramas it's a must watch & Lee Dongsik is a super complex and fun to watch lead.

Edward Elric (Fullmetal Alchemist) - this show entered my head years ago and refuses to leave, and this boy is so well-written and such a good example of how to make an engaging and likeable action/fantasy lead! Even before I got into anime my best friend kept recommending me FMA as a series for everyone, she was right- it's universal and Ed is a big part of that, I love him so much.

Korra (Avatar: The legend of Korra) - this list couldn't be complete without one of my favourite animated series leads! Great character development, strong and determined, realistic, very cool overall! I had such a crush on her in high school. Can't not mention her relationship with Asami, they paved the way for more openly queer characters in animation and will forever be famous <3

#bqcb asks #mod speaks #please do send me asks like this i love answering questions abt my faves! #mod's favourites tag

[wen-kexing-apologist]

Watchlist Tag Game!

Another unexpected tag game! This time from @waitmyturtles

Currently watching

A Boss and a Babe: Wasn't sure if I was going to watch this one because I'm not a huge fan of boss and subordinate as a positive romantic plot (looking at you GAP, sorry). But started watching it after seeing some of @respectthepetty's posts about Episode 4.

Bed Friend: If I were being accurate, I would have put this show down like four times in a row because I have rewatched all available episodes about four times, and honestly will probably watch the whole thing again. I love it so much, I do still think that Moonlight Chicken is my favorite show of the 2023 line up so far, but goddamn if I don't get overly attached to traumatized men.

Breaking Bad: Fun Fact! I have watched the first season of this show three times and never made it beyond that! So my friend set out to fix it and now we are trading one season of Breaking Bad for one show of my choice with a comparable number of episodes. Traded season one for Moonlight Chicken, and I'm trading season two and three for Word of Honor.

The Eclipse: Can't put my finger on why but for some reason I am obsessed with this show where the main character is a emotional repressed gay boy who has difficulty accepting himself and feels pressured to perform actions far outside what a teenager should be allowed to do because adults put pressure on him and because he doesn't want people to be disappointed in him...Anyway, with the Our Skyy 2 release date coming up how could I not rewatch this show I have already seen approximately six times?

The Eighth Sense: Have to thank @bengiyo for writing about The Eighth Sense, and everyone else that I follow that started watching this show immediately and started writing beautiful things about how queer it feels. It's my first Korean BL TV show (I did watch Wish You a few years back) and I am thoroughly enjoying my time so far!!

Unintentional Love Story: Don't have a lot to say about this show yet, I'm only two episodes in, but I think it's good so far!

Word of Honor: Rewatching this with my friend to try to get him to branch out of American television. I figured the costumes alone in this show would keep his interest, but let's be real, I was dying to see his reaction to my favorite little war criminal Wen Kexing who has done absolutely nothing wrong ever in his life, m'kay? This is my completely unbiased, objective opinion (do not look at my username).

Looking forward to watching soon

*ahem*

That is all...

...just kidding!

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: Somehow, my tumblr blog accidentally turned into a primarily BL based blog, probably but actually before I was introduced to Word of Honor and then rapidly and descended into the Thai BL world from there (I know WoH is a cdrama, but I found KinnPorsche through a masterpost of queer asian media that was on the woh tag) my hyperfixation and truest love is playing Dungeons and Dragons. I've been in a campaign for 6 years now and recently started another campaign with another group! I wanted to see this movie when it came out but I had COVID and only now am freed from my self isolation! Heard it was good and fun and worth seeing in theaters so I am hoping to go soon!

Our Skyy 2: I just miss my boys, okay? I'm only human.

Only Friends: If the fact that I have watched KinnPorsche 14 times is anything to go by I love messy bitches, and this seems like a show full of messy bitches! Any show that requires a fucking flow chart to know their relationships to one another? I'm in! Also, I listened to the playlist that Jojo posted on Spotify and I was sold. This is definitely my most anticipated of 2023.

Still deciding if I’m gonna watch

Succession: I follow at least one person who has been posting a lot about Succession as the fourth and final season airs, and it sounds really good! I was actually convinced to start the first episode but I kinda fell off of it pretty quick. I think I was tired and I know like with any show the pilot is not the episode to judge something on.

Beef: Only putting this on here because I felt compelled to look it up in the tumblr tags today just to put some feelers out.

and that's it lol, I finsihed Shadow and Bone Season 2 and The Owl House so I don't really have any other shows that I am thinking about watching at the moment. If anyone who reads these block paragraphs has suggestions I'm all ears.

Well, anyone I was going to tag has been tagged by wmt so uhhhh, if you wanna do this game, take this as me officially tagging you!

#tag game #a boss and a babe #bed friend #bed friend the series #breaking bad #the eclipse #the eighth sense #unintentional love story #word of honor #d&d: honor among thieves #d&d movie #our skyy 2 #only friends #beef #succession

[beepboop358]

Whether platonic or romantic, Byler is an example of a really strong, wholesome, and meaningful close relationship between two boys. Their connection isn’t rooted in dirty jokes, rivalry over women, toxic masculinity, any of the bullshit ways male friendship is often depicted in shows or experienced in real life. You can look to them as a model and say, “See, guys can be vulnerable, they can cry, they can show genuine affection for each other.” It’s similar to Chris and Gordie’s amazing friendship in Stand By Me (which some might argue is also queer coded). Do you think Byler being confirmed romantic could set male friendships back in media, in a way? Where writers become afraid to write vulnerable, sensitive best friends like will and mike lest they imply their homosexuality? Or even in real life, where straight guys (or guys who aren’t out of the closet) become more scared to open up? Like could it accidentally reinforce weird toxic boundaries where things are either traditionally masculine OR they are gay? I don’t know if that makes sense.

hello anon!

I totally agree their friendship is super wholesome and meaningful! It's one of the main reasons I love byler so much, because their relationship is built on genuine care for each other, and not stupid teen cliches or anything like that, like what you said.

I love Stand By Me. I think the writing's genius. It's one of my favorite movies of all time. And there's a lot of Stand By Me influence in ST! Also, don't worry you totally make sense. I think while we can definitely make the argument that Chris & Gordie's friendship is queer-coded, and it very well may be because the attitude in the 80's for gay characters in mainstream movies was "how much can we get away with", which is exactly what Nightmare on Elm Street 2 did. However, Chris & Gordie do not have the level of detail Mike & Will's relationship does to make a case for why it's queercoded, mainly because they're missing the OVERTLY *not just friends* moments that Mike & Will have. Chirs & Gordie don't flirt with each other or make really queercoded comments, etc. But Mike and Will...they flirt with each other, they shoot each other playful glances, there's so many small touches between them, the LIP STARES my GOD, the coded dialogue, etc. I think that's what distinguishes byler from ever being criticized by that argument/stereotype of 'guys being really close friends means their gay', is because Mike & Will don't just act like really close friends do, sometimes they act like they're more than friends, and hopefully people will open their eyes a bit to see that that is actually happening, and that all those little moments they either didn't notice or glossed over, is what separated them from being just friends, to be being more than friends. I mean, guys who are just friends do not constantly check out/stare at their other male friends lips all the time...But Mike & Will do. I'm all for breaking down toxic masculinity and showing guys can be vulnerable with each other without them being stereotyped as gay for showing emotion to each other, but I think Mike & Will's relationship goes beyond that because of all the little things they do in their interactions with each other, that indicate that this is not just a strictly friends thing. I think if Mike & Will were just meant to be good friends and not be romantic, there wouldn't be all these lip stares, flirty touches, them being glued to each other in season 3, etc etc. Sorry this was so long, I hope I made sense!

Thanks for the ask anon! I hope you're doing well! xx

#byler #byeler #stranger things 4

[saltedsnails]

I'm just worried as a result of Bumblebee becoming canon; fans of the ship are going to ignore the issues with Adam's portrayal, the complaints from queer critics regarding the build up and the very bigoted company using the ship to handwave all of its bigotry. I don't think BB fans aren't allowed to be happy, hell I was pretty pleased with the confession scene. I really just the fandom could have an open discussion about the ship without it the compalints being seen as homophobia

I’m not a fan of Bumblebee myself, in fact I don’t really ship any characters at all, because RWBY isn’t supposed to be about shipping at all! We’re supposed to be overlooking a journey about saving the world, damn it!

You really just have to love that certain fans disregard the treatment of real-life LGBT+ folks by RT in favor of their ship becoming canon.

At the end of the day, I find that pathetic.

I also didn’t like the confession execution, because they were forced to say their feelings under pressure rather than a true confession where the parties in question didn’t feel pressured. Sorry, but I don’t like when people are forced to do things when they aren’t ready to handle the outcome. Been there, done that, not a fan of it.

Also just because someone criticizes an LGBT+ ship for aspects of the writing, it’s not homophobia. Maybe the execution development sucked. Maybe the characters themselves sucked or didn’t fit well together. This isn’t just for BB by the way. It’s for every ship. Talking about elements of a ship you don’t like that has to do with an LGBT+ couple isn’t automatically homophobia. It’s just criticism, and people need to learn that.

Also a note for in general, and nothing to you specifically, more of an audience awareness PSA: Putting all of your self worth into a fictional relationship and going rabid-feral when people don’t agree isn’t a healthy thing. You desperately need to evaluate how abrasive your shipping mentality effects you and your relationship with others; both on and off the internet. If something exists on the internet, some people aren’t going to like it. And y’know what, big whoop!

Stop going after people not agreeing about a damn ship, because you’ll either a) force people out of the fandom/media-space you’re in because you’re a toxic collective which will —> provide less of an audience for the media you consume which will —> lead to a loss of revenue and eventually cancel the show production or b) make the fandom split apart into smaller sects that either don’t interact or when they do, become knuckle-dragging troglodytes spewing death threats and doxxing each other that makes even wanting to dip a singular cell of your big toes skin to experience the fandom not worth it.

To get back to the Adam and Blake thing, we missed out on so much context and development for both Blake and Adam that would’ve made their final confrontation more satisfying for the end of V5/6. Like yeah, sure it’s a “I’ve changed now and all I see is a monster”, but personally, this isn’t an emotional payoff. It’s a one-dimensional storytelling experience that’s been done a billion and a half times. The characters don’t even have much of a connection anymore because Adam and Blake interacted for like, 2 minutes at Beacon during the fall, and then the confrontation leading to Adam’s death? Like, where’s the payoff?

I don’t see it. Truly, I don’t. Both Adam and Blake had such disservices done to their characters by not providing neither context nor true attachment other than “because I said so”. While yes, it is implied, we never explore the emotional nuances of their relationship. It could’ve paid off so much more if RWBY truly cared about the connections the main girls had.

- 🐌

#snail speaks #rwde #‘nonie time 🕶️ #adam taurus #**emotional nuance isn’t a bad thing everyone!

[zo1nkss]

Hi! What are your headcanons for Wilhelm from young Royals and Eleanor from the good place? Bye!

Sorry this took so long, I have this weird thing about answering asks "in order" but then it ends up taking me six years to answer them, anyway I'm trying to kick that weird personal rule so hopefully it sticks.

Wille HCs

Absolutely adores The Sound of Music

He doesn't have the same technical or curated talent as Simon, but he's a decent enough singer. However; he only ever sings to properly belt out the chorus to really emotional breakup songs and he doesn't know how to belt correctly so it just sounds really forced and throaty rather than powerful and guttural and Simon knows he's probably hurting his voice but he can't bring himself to tell him to stop because Fuck that's so cute???

Autistic Wille truthers, find me, love me, speak to me plz I know you're out there and I need more autistic Wille ppl in my life

I guarantee that if you handed Wille any puzzle that is solvable by hand, he could do it. He'd figure it out somehow. My man thinks, and he thinks Hard. And he thinks best when he's using his hands if you've noticed, so I think in another life he could be one of those champion Rubix cube or cup stacking competitors.

He had a cup song phase and he's very ashamed to admit it

He's secretly obsessed with the Pitch Perfect series, why do you think the first thing he did at Hillerska was fall for a coir boy?

As a fellow Repressed Queer I believe he has the potential to do a complete aesthetic make-over, but I also would really love to just....see him stay the way he is. I love little gay dramas where the main character is just Gay and they don't really do much about it. (I'm a loud gay but I feel media neglects the subtle gays far too much)

He also watches Stranger Things but is honestly a little scared of the fandom

(actually, he just doesn't really like fandoms, there are so many people with so many opinions and he just wants to watch his silly little shows)

Eleanor HCs

Pre Death, she liked the feeling of living like a bachelor so she lifted the toilet seat after she used it so it looked like a cis guy who didn't care about anyone else lived there

During at least one of Michael's Bad Place attempts, he had to have told her that her soul mate was a drag queen and she had to have accepted it so completely that it genuinely devastated her when she realized it was fake. My reasoning is it would be so easy to torture her simply by making her drag queen soul mate generally unavailable at all times. It would truly be hell, and THATS how she figures out it's the bad place in that attempt. I don't think she would even need Chidi if I'm being honest. She's just so gay, she would be so madly in love with the concept of dating a drag queen, and being robbed of that would be like an instant tell that she's not where they said she should be.

That was so many words for "Eleanor loves drag queens" wow.

Anyway she's an extremely competitive beer pong player and she's also extremely bad at it. But drunk Eleanor thinks she's good at literally everything, so it doesn't really stop her.

She doesn't actually like shrimp, she only stole all that from the cokctail bar because it she was drunk and sad.

#Void.answered #alyxgeeks #HCs #the good place #Eleanor Shellstrop #young royals #prince wilhelm

[tellywoodtrash]

Hi TT.

I recently came to terms with the fact that I am queer. I use that word because I haven't exactly figured out what label I fit into. All I know for sure is that I'm not straight. And I'm terrified. Being desi and queer doesn't even seem like something that's possible. I mean openly. I can't tell my family. I tried telling my friends but before I could actually get there it became pretty evident that they were uncomfortable with the topic altogether. I don't have anyone to confide in and even now as I'm writing to you anonymously I'm still terrified someone will somehow trace this back to me and I'll get in trouble. I feel suffocated and I feel terrified that I can never be myself because everyone will just hate me. Do you have any advice for me or any comforting words? And even if you don't I just really really needed to share my truth with someone and your blog seems like a very accepting space.

Dearest anon,

First of all, I am so honoured that you chose to share this part of yourself with me. Thank you so much for trusting me, and you can be assured this is a safe space for you. I am giving you the biggest and tightesttttttttttt hug you've ever had!!!!!

There's lots of noise and conversation on "coming out", but please know that it's in no way a mandatory thing. You don't need to reveal this side of yourself to anyone if you don't want to, until you are ready. Anyway in desi society, talking about one's sex life is taboo; so game the system back: your preferences are none of anyone's business. Your safety is paramount. Only come out if and when you feel utterly comfortable and safe with a person. My biggest advice for you would probably be that you should make sure that you are working towards being financially independent from your family. Even if they are unsupportive (or in worst case scenario, the situation becomes unsafe) you should have the freedom to leave and make your own way in the world. Emotional freedom is more tricky, and that will take more time and effort, but that's for a professional therapist to guide you with.

I am sorry that your friends seemed unsupportive and uncomfortable with the topic. It's saddening and frankly, absurd; because you're still the very same person, you just learnt something new about yourself. Discovering new sides to yourself is all a vital part of growing up, and your friends should embrace this part of you just like they do any other growth you go through! It's possible that perhaps some of them are actually supportive but reluctant to speak in a larger group setting? So maybe you could try talking to those who you think might be open to the idea on a one-on-one basis. If someone is openly queerphobic though, it's time to reconsider your friendship with them. You don't need that kind of energy in your life. Either way, you don't need anyone's approval or permission on this matter any more than you do on your favourite colour or taste in music. And sometimes, you grow out of your friend circles. This doesn't mean you/they did anything wrong; it's just a relationship that has run its course and isn't adding value to your life anymore. You can still have goodwill for them as you part, but you deserve friends who accept and embrace this part of you. So be open to expanding your circle and making new friends!!!!

And oh, please remember to love and accept yourself! As I always say, the longest relationship you will have in your life is with YOURSELF, and you need to make sure that is a happy one. Read more on the subject(s), educate yourself, and surround yourself with media that shows you the joyful side of being queer, rather than just the challenges. (Again, please remember to be safe, use incognito mode and VPNS and alternative accounts rather than the main ones you have all your friends and family on.)

All in all, please know, if no one else got you, you have me (and my friends who follow this blog) in this little corner of the internet, super duper proud of you and always wishing you all the love and happiness and success! 🤗🤗🤗🥹🥹🥹 I hope you live your best authentic life!!!!!!!!!!!!! ❤️♥️❣️💖💗🌺🌷🪷🌸💮🏵️🌻🌼☀️⚡🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈

#happy pride 🌈 #big sister tt gives life advice #tt answers

[carli-in-the-morning]

HIHIHI

Sorry for not posting much recently, mans been busy (I got a job!!! :D), BUT THIS ISNT ABOUT THAT

THIS IS ABOUT WELCOME TO CELIBACY CLUB

(WARNING: this is going to be a long, emotional post, but I beg of you, if you have the mental space for it, please read what I have to say)

For those of you who likely do not know, Welcome to Celibacy Club is a short film that is currently getting funds raised for it. Now, you might be saying, "Carleigh, that's cool and all, but why should I care?" And I wouldn't blame you for saying that because you don't know the most important thing about it. This short film is going to be about an asexual main character who learns how to be confident in her asexuality.

Why is that important? BECAUSE IT LIKE DOESN'T FUCKING EXIST IN MODERN MEDIA!!!! I'm serious!!! I literally wrote an essay on this exact topic for my senior year AP Composition class, the need for asexual representation in media. You know how many characters I can think of off the top of my head that are asexual? Like 5. Only 5. There's some character in like Shadow Hunters or Teen Wolf or smth, Lilith from The Owl House, the protagonist of Loveless by Alice Oseman, Issac from Heartstopper, and some like alien queen or something from a series that my creative writing teacher is obsessed with. That's it, that's all I've got. That's abysmal compared to the millions of characters who are straight in modern media, hell, that's abysmal compared to the amount of lesbian characters and gay characters in modern media. That's not me trying to diminish the importance of lesbian and gay characters because they are important, but for fucks sake, asexuality only just recently became officially recognized as something that doesn't belong in the DSM. To those of you who don't know, the DSM is basically the bible of mental illnesses and disorders.

Even more so, let me tell you two quick little personal stories.

First story is about me and my most recent ex boyfriend. We were, and still are, extremely close best friends who talk to each other about anything and everything. We broke up in March of 2020 because of the pandemic and parted ways for a year or so before we became chill again. Since we have been chill, he confessed to me that, had I not been asexual, he would have "Wifed [me] up immediately."

Story number two is one night my parents and I were driving home from basically my town wide GSA meeting. Naturally, being cishet parents with an aggressively queer kid, they decided it was safe to ask me questions about my queerness given the tone of the rest of the night. They were asking me all sorts of things, but only about my asexuality. They wanted to know if I had any sort of libido, if I had any interest in getting myself off, etc etc etc. Any time I would answer their questions, it'd then be IMMEDIATELY followed up with something along the lines of "Wow, that's so strange, I could never imagine living like that...like I love living with having had sex, I wouldn't want you missing out on that."

What do these stories have to do with anything? I'm glad you asked, I have never in my life felt more uncomfortable than in of these instances. I mean it. And the fucking miserable part of it is that I can think of oodles and oodles more of them because the unfortunate truth is that I have had to accept that my life, as an asexual person, places me in a fucking display case to be gawked at by allosexuals. I am always going to be made to feel uncomfortable by the allosexuals in my life because they just don't get it and they refuse to accept they dont get it and move the fuck on.

When I am the one genuinely asking what the appeal is in liking boobs or ass or a dick or anything sexual, the responses I am given are so "Uh....duh, they're boobs, how could you not like them?" But if I were ever to tell them "Uh....duh, it's sex, why would you ever like it?" They would just not fucking accept that as a valid answer to give. I get fucking interrogated by the allosexuals in my life relentlessly anytime my asexuality comes into conversation. And any time I'm the one to bring it up? I'm given eye rolls.

Now, what the hell does this have to do with Welcome to Celibacy Club? That's a fantastic question. I genuinely believe with my whole heart that Welcome to Celibacy Club has the power to help change the problems that I have faced being asexual. Maybe not for me, it might already be too late for that, but definitely for all of the younger asexual people out there in the world. Welcome to Celibacy Club will provide some long needed positive and proud asexual representation in media that will be able to show the baby asexuals out there that they are not alone. Even more than that, it has the power to show the allosexuals who interrogate, poke, and prod us that we are not here to gawk at. Welcome to Celibacy Club has the power to shatter the display case us asexuals get placed in and allow us to breathe and be recognized as the human beings we are.

But it can't do that alone.

As of writing this, Sunday August 28th 4:50 AM EST, Welcome to Celibacy Club is just under halfway to its funding goal and it has only two more weeks to get the money it needs to tell its story.

So I am asking, begging, you Tumblr; please, fund this short film. For all the asexuals who have been made to feel so alone because of feelings we can't control, fund this short film. Let our story be told with a happy ending for once.

Below you'll find the link to the Indiegogo donation page they have. Please, give anything you can comfortably spare. Pennies, dimes, dollars, anything.

TLDR; Welcome to Celibacy Club is the chance to tell a positive story about asexuality, but it doesnt have a lot more time for funds to be collected. Please donate to the production of this short film.

#asexual #asexuality #asexual representation #asexuality in media #asexual character #asexual characters #asexual story #asexual spectrum #asexuality is valid #asexuality is beautiful #asexual love #asexual storytelling #asexual media #asexual inclusion #asexual inclusive #asexual inclusivity #asexual pride #asexual problems #asexual positivity #asexual flag #asexual film #asexual films #asexual stories #donate #fundrasier #fundraising #short flim #short films #movies #movie writing

[theflagscene]

Are you watching Love in the Air? I like your characterization in your Eclipse fics, I think you’d be able to get into Rain’s head good.

Firstly lemme thank you for enjoying my Eclipse fics 😊 Whenever someone says I get the character’s voices or headspace right, it makes me really happy.

As for your question, no, I’m not watching LITA. I watched the first two episodes and basically noped out of there, I feel like I’ve given MAME enough chances that I’m just kinda disappointed in the fact that her work hasn’t matured at all. She was a very young person when LBC first came out so I forgave it for its faults, especially since for the most part the main couple weren’t insanely toxic, I admit that Ae and Pete can be considered one of my ‘comfort couples’. By the time I sat through TharnType I just felt sick to my stomach and didn’t even wanna sit through the second season but I saw good things about Don’t Say No, so I forced myself to sit through the joke that was TT2 just so I knew about Leo and Fiat. I honestly think out of all the series adaptions of hers, DSN is the least problematic, which is saying something considering the slut shaming, emotional abuse, blackmailing, gaslighting, revenge porn, horse shit that went down in that. But at least no one was sexually assaulted or r*ped, so just by passing that VERY low bar, DSN is the best MAME adaptation in my eyes.

It had been a few years so I was actually looking forward to LITA, I didn’t expect much plot, it is MAME after all. There’s either no plot or all the plot at once, no in between. But I was hoping she had grown as a creator a bit, learned about the dangers of romanticizing r*pe and dub con, especially in queer media when that type of thing, including abuse, both physical and mental, are so often ignored between queer couples in real life. Only to be disappointed midway through the first episode when an attempted assault happened, and then in the second episode when a full on assault happened only to be written off as ‘he secretly wanted it all along’ which is NOT how you enter into a kink/bdsm relationship at all. It was all very 50SoG which I am not here for, at all. I wasn’t about to sit through another queer character being tricked into being dicked down and turned into a ‘wifey’ by a domineering top while it’s called romance. I had enough of that with TT, I cannot do it again.

That being said, just because I don’t enjoy it, I have nothing against other people who do. Not everyone can stomach that type of media, I’ve been a queer SA survivor advocate for years, so I happen to be one of those people. But I know tons of other people are able to ‘trash watch’ or just have no problem watching because it is still just fiction at the end of the day, which I respect. There’s a reason it’s a top trending show, clearly people are enjoying it, that’s great and I’m glad the actors have a hit show on their hands, they worked hard and deserve recognition for that work. Unfortunately though it’s still not something I’ll be watching, sorry 🥺 Rain is adorable tho.

#anon answered #I don’t wanna tag this with lita because the fandom doesn’t need my thoughts clouding up their space #be free to enjoy what you like 👍 #bl thoughts #thai bl

[digitalmeowmix]

Nov.5th / Destiel rant

I actually ship Destiel it’s just not my OTP. I see the subtext and I love the dynamic. I reblogged a bunch of memes and and emotional fanart and stuff on November 5 like a lot of tumblr. I do believe they could have been a great love story on a better written show that was actually about romance and was capable of doing it well. Like a lot of dumb genre tv the show stumbled on to a great story by accident . But I never expected it to be canon in a satisfactory way for 3 reasons

1. SPN was always a horror show that was primarily about platonic family bonds above all else . Romance was never important to the plot or the characters in the long run. It was always a story about Sam and Dean. I understand only caring about a canon for a ship I've done it too, but don't act surprised and betrayed that your specific focus as a fan was not the focus of the actual canon.

2. Almost everyone involved in the show told you Destiel wasn’t going to happen many times in many ways including Jensen. I know Misha was trying to support the fans by encouraging/validating them and their ship and how much it means to them but at certain point expectations have to be adjusted /lowered and he lead a lot of people on .The signs were all there and one yes doesn’t outweigh 12 years of no’s .

3. The show was frequently homophobic and badly written and would not have done a gay romance well . The shit they did they did to LGBT characters like Charlie and Kaia for example was bad enough. This was shown with what they did with the very messy confession. They waited until the last minute to try and make it half way canon to throw shippers a bone and flubbed the landing so horribly the whole internet was making fun of it. Canon screw ups ships all the time and this is why many shipper prefer their ship stays fanon. I have had ships that got fucked over I understand it sucks and even hurts .

If you honestly thought a dumb and frequently bigoted CW horror show that started airing in the Bush era was going to have gay couple that included a main character as an endgame ship that’s your own bad viewing comprehension and lack of critical thinking and naivety that's to blame . There’s a reason the show was called the last great American queerbait.

The level of rage and depression that the finale has caused some of you is very sad and worrying and I’m sorry your hurt and I wish you all fandom joy again someday. But the the harrasment and entitlement and conspiracies have to stop. There is no finale conspiracy or a secret good Destiel ending . It’s just a shitty CW show written by mostly straight white men that tried to have last a ditch fan service/queerbaiting scene and screwed in up.

Jensen has never cared about Destiel and he has said many time the hyper focus on a ship in a show about platonic familial love that he worked hard on for 15 years bothers him. He is not your Heller king . Also leave Jared alone, your parasocial hatred of him and blaming him for everything you hated about the show and finale is pathetic.

I’m begging you to move on and consume and engage with real LGBTQ media and better written media in general and please learn not get fanon tunnel vision and fall for queer-baiting. This will help you to not be so disappointed in the future .

I would love to talk about Destiel more and engage in that side of fandom because I do love the ship! But a lot of you are so entitled and obnoxious I stay away. To those people I say I hope your Spanish dub and being the laughing stock of the internet was worth 12 years of watching the show expecting it to be something it’s not while making fandom miserable for others.

#anti destiel #rant #fandom wank #heller critical

[annethepancake]

Sherlock rant

I recently rewatched BBC Sherlock for Rupert Graves, and aside from the lack of Lestrade appreciation I have a lot of problems with this series. Here are my thoughts:

1. It was all a blur

My second first impression of the show: I don't remember anything but the characters. And some characters I just blatantly forgot, like Mary. And I loved Mary on my second watch! I really forgot that at one point John actually got married and I don't even remember when I watched the show for the first time. I can still recall most of HIMYM's events and I hated that series.

2. It’s overall not a detective/crime show

Watching Sherlock for the second time, I mostly turned off my brain and just let it play in the background because (1) there's hardly anything for me to solve with the characters, most clues are taken by Sherlock off-screen anyway (especially after season 2), (2) they focus way too much on the quirks of the characters that make it almost like a sitcom that got dragged on for way too long. A crime/detective show shouldn't allow me to turn off my brain.

3. The characters just kinda fall flat

Exploring the depth of human emotions is not a bad approach to a modernized version of anything, I’m not trying to pretend I’m better than someone who gets sentimental over fictional character (if you know my blog at all, you know I am not), but at least write good characters. Sherlock is hardly a multi-faceted person; in fact, he’s kinda like the Wattpad teen fic main character sometimes. He physically fights off some terrorists with a machete to save the damsel in distress? He gets high off his tits but still got everything right all the time? John is just kinda there for most of the cases. Jim is a poorly written antagonist. Irene is a lesbian but gets the hot for our main character, surprise surprise. The only interesting characters to me are the ones who act like normal people: Molly, Greg and Mary. They are the multi-faceted characters, ones who I can actually relate to without feeling inferior to them in any way. Write characters like them, stop trying to be smart about it and stop writing Wattpad fanfictions for Sir Conan Doyle’s original works.

I get that they try to make Sherlock more like a human with emotions, making him quirky and arrogant, then make him quirky and more likable. It’s hardly a convincing character development though. He’s given over-powered deduction skills, so edgy, so high and mighty all the time. When he is finally written as vulnerable, turns out he has plans for that too. I would love to see him get it wrong once and maybe get humbled by that mistake, but getting Mary shot and killed is hardly even his fault, he is only doing his job. And killing off Mary is overall a bad idea anyway.

4. They treated the fandom like shit

I was absolutely disgusted at the start of season 3 when the showrunners just straight up shat on their fans. I wasn't there with the fandom during the wait between season 2 and 3, but I believe it was a pretty long wait (2 years, I could barely wait 2 years for my comfort series, and they have like 10 episodes per season), and they were presented with the first actual mystery of the series: How did Sherlock survive the fall? After years of waiting and having fun theorizing, they were met with a mockumentary about them, starring the most hated character of the protagonist and the fans. Those are the people who actually cared about the show for god's sake. The fact that the showrunners treated fans like crap and there's still an active fandom for the show appalled me.

Now not only The Empty Hearse bugs me, but the entire show does as well.

Allow me to digress.

Doki Doki Literature Club is a great example of audience engagement done right (Sorry for using this example I’m not actually that invested in the other franchises). After the success of the first game, the story provoked so many fans into solving the mysteries of the characters, some of them went really, really far. And that’s because of the actual mysteries that the development team took effort to plant into the plot. There is actual pay-off for painstakingly following the clues; as far as I know, only two (2!) people in the world have come close to solving the mystery of the first game (or they actually did). The game developers value their fans and their intelligence enough to have planted those clues where they did, and it’s a genuine exchange between the fans and the creators. Now even though you haven’t actually played the game, when you hear of the name and you’re only kinda familiar with gaming (like me), you’ll probably know what it is. What started as a mere open-source game by an indie developer became a sensation which left millions of fans begging for more.

Looking back at Sherlock, there are tons of logical flaws for a self-proclaimed crime series, virtually no clues for the audience to solve crimes along with their favorite detective, and when there was actually a mystery (Sherlock jumped off the building), they plainly showed him alive and well minutes later. Do we really need to see things spelled on screen to know what’s going on? Are we supposed to accept that Sherlock Holmes is an all-knowing future-predicting genius now too? Not a great sign of respecting the audience there.

So far, the only thing left that’s interesting about this series is the characters’ dynamic. Which brings me to the next criticism I have for the show.

5. The plague that infested mainstream media

Why is there still an active fandom? Queerbaiting and targeted marketing.

Community marketing is proven to be one of the best marketing methods there is, if not the best, to lengthen the lifespan of a product or service. The way they do that for shows and films and video games is usually by planting seeds of possible lores and history inside the content. Look at Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings, they are franchises that ran for multiple years with a ton of history and world building that provokes fans’ imagination.

Sherlock - well, Sherlock has sexually ambiguous men.

Sherlock has a formula for success. It was an adaptation of the most iconic detective novel in the world, funded by one of the biggest TV networks in the UK and possibly the world (don’t quote me on this). Making this series means you can appeal to such a wide group of audience even before airing. Adding in the quirky smart men who live together, you’ve basically guaranteed a prime-time show with millions of loyal fans all over the world.

Fans are not stupid, and queer people don't just find queerness everywhere they go. They know a gay subtext when they see one. Sherlock came back from the literal death for John, pretty gay if you ask me.

This show is very much not just about some guys being dudes solving crimes, they have relationship that’s deeper than friendship, and definitely not platonic. They deliberately wrote a sexually ambiguous Sherlock Holmes from the get-go - literally from the very first episode, then capitalized off of the targeted demographic, never a pay-off for their anticipation. Martin Freeman said in interviews that he could recognize Sherlock fans, them being generally women from 16 - 25. No shit Sherlock, this show targets them and capitalizes off of them, being quirky and gay as hell, of course the fanbase is generally 16 - 25 and female.

Sherlock queerbaited the fandom for years for the sake of marketing and there’s never a pay-off, nor was there any recognition to the community, and to add to all that bigotry, queercoding pretty much all of the villains? Why was a show aired in the 2010′s allowed to do this? Why did Mark Gatiss, an openly gay man, a writer of the show, allow this to happen? Why are millions of fans all over the world allowing all this to go on?!

6. Conclusion

Now I haven’t read the books yet, so I’m not at all qualified to criticize the adaptation quality of the TV series; I’m just talking about the TV series on its own. Despite my criticism, I think the first two seasons did quite okay. There are quite a few nice cases there, I like The Blind Banker and The Hound of Baskerville. They did those well because the focus was on the cases themselves, and the connection between John and Sherlock was only in the background. I, like many other fans, like to figure things out on my own, to read between the lines, and to not have things spelled out for me. With the next seasons bombarded with Sherlock and John bonding it seriously felt like mere fan service for me and even though I wasn’t there when the show was on, I still felt like I was robbed and my interest in the show was abused.

Sherlock is undoubtedly super influential in pop culture even now. It has to have done something right to be in that spot (capitalizing off loyal fans?). I’m not writing this rant to change someone’s mind about the series, by all means, I’m still gonna love the hell out of Gavin Lestrade, and absolutely lose my mind over Mary Watson. So do take my words with a grain of salt, I’m just disappointed that one of the most influential shows there is is just short of my expectations.

#sherlock #bbc sherlock #rant #criticism

[queer-crusader]

Finally finishing Loki and I just... I'm disappointed. Putting opinions under the cut.

Like, I've seen the criticism, I got spoilered, and I won't lie, it definitely influenced my further viewing. But even so, it disappointed me. I don't think the whole "Loki not even being the main character of his own show" is as egregious as Tumblr made it out to be for me, though yes, a LOT of focus was put on Sylvie - her revenge narrative, Loki just being along for the ride ("a flea on a dragon's back". Thanks for being self-aware, show). To me, there are other frustrating factors.

"Glorious purpose" seems the catch-phrase of this show. Which seems... stupid, to be honest. When Loki uttered it in the Avengers film, there was a clear madness to him. Marvel claimed officially that Loki was under the influence of the mind stone by then, but the show still thinks that was genuinely Loki talking - and it is something all Lokis seem to agree on.

Then there's the whole throne thing. Loki mentions near the end that he doesn't want a throne. He says it like he's finally had a realisation, like this is his emotional growth. But it ISN'T. This show is set after Thor 1, in which Loki very clearly says to Thor: "I never wanted the throne. I only ever wanted to be your equal." So this is not some grand revelation. This has always been the case, and something he was fiercely aware of. He's never wanted to be a ruler.

"Don't you want to win in New York? Kill Thanos?" This is more of a headcanon, but one shared by much of the fandom - a headcanon marvel can't have missed, since they saw our collective outcries that Loki was brainwashed and claimed it canon years after The Avengers, just because they couldn't ignore it anymore if they were making a show about Loki. Anyway, the collective headcanon is this: Loki didn't want to win in New York. His plan was doomed to fail from the start. Earth is unruleable, a space army coming through one wormhole and the gate has a built-in self-destruct button. He scattered the Avengers, but he also got them together. The headcanon was that he planned it all, in a way that seemed good to Thanos, but was meant to make him fail.

As to killing Thanos, yeah, he deserves that. In fact, Retro Loki says it beautifully - the knives look cool but are fucking useless, something Loki should know without getting his neck snapped by the Mad Titan. Thanks for spelling out something obvious, again something the fandom has been yelling about since Infinity War came out! Did the writers steal Retro Loki's survival tactic off a Tumblr post? Because it feels a little like it, almost in an attempt to soft-retcon that film. "We can't fix that dumb plot point, but we can show that we understand Loki better, that we you came up with a better idea of what could have been." Again, thanks.

This show is just full of the writers showing us things we already knew. They make Loki a bumbling idiot - and I get it, conflict is the heart of western storytelling, but he doesn't need to be incompetent to struggle. The thing is, were they to make him as formidable and clever as we once felt he was, they would have needed to make his adversaries even cleverer. And much as I enjoy certain bits of the story (croki my beloved)... I just don't think they were quite up to that task. It all feels like a fanfic, which on the one hand, can be fan service. But on the other hand, it feels like a Frankenstein fanfic. A puzzle of stolen tropes from fics the writers have read and put together, none of it quite their own. I'm making assumptions and not being very forgiving, but this is just how I feel.

And that brings me to my next and almost final point. What really hammers the fanfiction feeling home for me is all the self-reflection. It can be done and it can be done well, but this show didn't do it well. The self-reflection felt out of character, disingenuous, inaccurate, and clunky.

The writing is clunky, and at times rushed. And it's just... almost bad at times. There wasn't a single moment where I went "oh this is revolutionary" or "this quote will haunt me". Most of it was incredibly mediocre. This absolutely includes the quote where Loki canonically notes that he's bi/pan/not straight. Russel T Davies said it spectacularly; marvel/Disney pats itself on the back with each weak nod to the LGBTQ+ community. If they want to be ground-breaking, they'll have to do better than a queer on-screen kiss.

And speaking of kisses: I just... No. I don't have anything against selfcest in fics, I'm not afraid to admit I've read it before, and in canon media it can be utilised in fascinating and clever ways. This show did not do that. To have Loki berate himself, only to romantically fall for another version of himself that is, let's be real, very different from him, is not some deep representation of growth and self-love to me. It is once again clunky. You want growth? Stick to those self-reflections and do better, or become more metaphorical. Either way, write more cleverly.

I'm sorry, my standards are high, and this just didn't meet it. I appreciate the effort! I'm glad someone with love for this character tried to make something of it! But it fell on its ass, and came out as a butchering of a beloved character only to make space for a hopeful replacement. That to me is a massive failure, and not one I can forgive easily. Your show is called Loki. Act like it. And if making it a love letter to him and us was your intention, do better.

#i still have points i haven't even mentioned in this #like sylvie being a loki #i guess it's an interesting idea but it's a failed attempt at trans/nb rep if it even was an attempt #but other people on tumblr have gone into that much better than i ever can #and loki IS genderfluid! the original god was!! and it's shown in the comics too!! #she was basically amora the enchantress but they slapped a loki sticker on it and called it a day #which is just incredibly boring #honestly this entire show was beyond uninspiring #i liked the twist that the time agents were all variants and sylvie could access their original memories that was nice #and the loki variants were fun until they started betraying each other #god every character was just so incredibly 2D #and the visuals quite frankly were beyond uninspiring too #hated the 70s vibe and the space colours were objectively pretty but just not interesting to me #like the character assassination is one thing ive come to expect that by now and feared it before it even started #but for writers to just create something so basic and not that original or fresh? for writers to create something uninspiring?? #that is a crime against the craft and as a fellow writer im just disappointed in them #i hoped they'd be better than the rest of marvel but they really bent the knee to the mouse #anyway i guess that's all i have to say for now #anne speaks #marvel #loki series #loki wank