Sometimes The Point Isn’t Obvious, But Please Don’t Underestimate People’s Ability To Completely

I found my phone and I’m definitely writing down my passwords so I don’t get locked out of literally everything again

phone inaccessible I feel like I'm losing it

I think most of the hatred that Caitlyn gets isn’t just the standard misogynistic hatred that female characters get, it’s hatred for the system she represents.

People forget that the enforcers are literally vessels to show Piltover’s dictatorship over Zaun. Enforcers started in LOL as a joke about police brutality (VI’s old attack names anyone?). In our current day and age it’s more than understandable why people might hate the character meant to be the oppressor. Caitlyn isn’t like Ekko or Jinx, she’s not fighting the system she’s a representative of the system.

I’m not saying nobody’s supposed to like her, the show wants to test your boundaries and make you think about stuff like this, I’m just sick of people not acknowledging the very real reasons people may not like Caitlyn. Right now in the US it’s not very fun or calming to see people fawning over a character that gassed a “lower people” with the way our politicians are acting.

Genuinely upset that the supernatural fandom didn’t decide to call ourselves “supernaturalists“ like come on the pun was RIGHT THERE

Also. I have to mention the fact that the enforcers don’t HAVE to parallel cops specifically. They’re “enforcers”. Look back in history to any violent regime and you’ll find more parallels between the enforcers and them.

they’re not just cops- they’re the idea of violence carried out via the government, and that’s never been a North American specific issue.

"Stop projecting your America-centric view of cops onto the enforcers in Arcane!" as if the very first shot in season 1 isn't a bloodbath with Vi and Powder's parents having been murdered by enforcers, as if we don't witness multiple violations of their power in season 2 and as if police brutality isn't a global issue.

if you like wrestling, Stephen Amell, Alexander Ludwig, or even just good drama, watch Heels. It’s on netflix right now and the more you watch the higher the chances for season 3

it’s a good show with characters that feel real in a way not a lot of shows feel like

who up hating pop psychology

ignoring the conversation about tori woods being arrested because there’s more to talk about than just that,

I hope people (specifically dark romance lovers and defenders specifically) start to see just why others have such a hard time swallowing dark romance being mainstream. Because all the rest of us see is a race to the bottom with no care about HOW to present these topics to a wide audience.

it’s not just her dad’s friend, it’s her dads older friend in his thirties ;) no no wait it’s not her dad’s friend it’s her uncle!! And she’s barely legal!! No wait!!! It’s her cousin AND her uncle and they act possessive! No it’s a stalker! And he doesn’t care about her consent! It’s her step brother!! And she’s underage!! No wait-

She was groomed. She was assaulted. She was abused.

I fully understand the point of using this sort of fiction to cope with painful trauma, I’ve even done the same thing. But after a point it is reckless to contribute to the romanticism of abuse, especially to young girls and to a wider extent AFABs and feminine presenting people. You may be gaining a helpful perspective or healing but what happens when another abuser gets their hands on this material and uses it to manipulate another victim? What happens when someone impressionable (young and impressionable are not the same, elders are often impressionable, stop muddying the conversation by bringing up that “teens shouldn’t be reading this anyway” because it doesn’t matter) reads this and it only reassures them that their current abusive situation is okay? Hell, booktok had been openly listing over a REAL 16 year old boy and suggested he read a book with romanticized rape in it.

this issue goes beyond dark romance but it is most prevalent in dark romance because everyone for it and against it has a trigger finger for attacking anyone who says something they don’t like. I’m hoping that this doesn’t fall on deaf ears and this can help a conversation to be had. Because this conversation has needed to happen but everyone has been too stubborn to even begin.

So as a brain worm for you to think about because I can’t find my own answers to these questions yet:

What dark romance is good? Does the genre require more restriction? What is a respectful way to portray the topics often used in dark romance? At what point should the publishers/publishing company be held responsible for any harm done by the book? Does the use for survivors to cope outweigh the possibility victims created by romanticized abuse?

Bo Swan and his freaky little boyfriend

The worms were caused by this specific drawing. I meant for it to be normal fanart but halfway through the idea struck of "what if Bella were actually trans" and then this was birthed.

Made using Krita, with a pencil brush for line art, and chalk brush for that delicious chunky lighting I've grown so fond of. I wanted to try and make this a really easy piece by being a little more cartoonish in my proportions (bigger eyes, fluffy hair, cutesy poses) and it worked really well. While my Ripple AU captain took about a week working on it a little at a time while constantly referencing pictures of Chris Evans, this took only a day. From start to finish it was maybe only five hours?

Versions without rain and filter below cut

not to mention that it’s 6 USD. People tend to forget that the conversion rate for other currencies into usd is high. And people forget that other countries do watch things on YouTube, even the companies forget that.

saying 5.99 is a dispensable monthly amount for any and everybody is just such a wild statement on its own