As Soon As I Saw Her Gem, I Knew

doodle

Same old world

Barn mate

and….

OK K.O

I dunno if you are aware of this but anyway

well you know what i have to say to that?

I mean he can tell me they have three seasons of development and mutual feelings all he wants, but that doesn’t make the context of that development somehow healthy or not messed up.

Especially when the show ADDRESSED that a lot of this is messed up and not ok to begin with.

If you’ve watched the show this long and don’t think there are any uncomfortable situations placed upon these kids that pressure them to date, and also think it’s somehow romantic these two have been hurting other people who care about them for each other and don’t really suffer consequences for it, then that’s a problem.

there are ALOT of problems with how they set up their romance, and it’s hard to watch because i both feel uncomfortable since they’re kids and everyone seems to be pressuring them to date. And frustrated because their romance hurts their relationships with everyone else because some of their worst moments on this show, come from it.

Marco kicked jackie away like she was nothing, for star.

Star, ignores her own boyfriend, and ditches him for marco repeatably.

Marco wasn’t even planning to go back to earth again.

Star, was spying on marco’s relationship for months apparently.

And no one sees a problem with this?

This isn’t healthy, and the sad part is marco and star don’t really feel bad for most of this, even when the show addresses it star and marco don’t really deal with doing this stuff.

we waited most of the season, to even address the crush.

I would prefer the see the secondary character’s be treated with more respect then this, then have all their feelings brushed aside because star and marco’s romance matters more then how it has affected other people?

Even if you find some of this romantic, you cannot deny there are some serious problems in their relationship that need to be fixed for their relationship to be healthy for them.

I want these characters to be better then this, better friends and better people who actually learn from their mistakes then get a pass for being in love.

I liked star and marco more, for being characters that felt bad when they hurt people or did something wrong, then for getting a pass for everything they do for love, because it makes them feel more real and like caring people i can enjoy watching.

When people say they support aspecs but only talk about asexuality

idk how many vogue edits are going around rn and how many are by black people but just so yall know it was originally a way for black people to show what it would be like for more of us to be featured on a vogue cover + to just have some fun creating stuff for us by us and i dont think the original message should be lost in the excitement

pink

doodle & doodle & doodle animation

Not to be dramatic but she could have my whole life

Together Alone doodles

Hi! I really like your post about how femininity vs. badassery and female characters so often wanting to be mothers. I saw you mentioned Marinette in your tags, and I definitely agree that the way her crush on Adrien is portrayed as this elaborate plan for the future is,, weird and unrealistic, especially for a character with so many other interests. (Not to mention the narrative punishes her for it, but that's a dif issue) I think That Guy probably assumes that's the only way a girl can crush

(i have more sorry) This bit is more based on me, but another reason I think having Marinette want kids enough to already have names doesn't fit is that she's pressured into babysitting against her wishes pretty often. Like, if that happened to me, I would get tired of kids pretty fast and probably wouldn't be as eager to have my own (if I wanted them). I had more but ofc now it's gone. Thanks!

no thank YOU for giving me the opportunity to tackle this directly because. honestly i don’t like any of the little kid characters and there could be some commentary on how young teenage girls are forced into motherly roles over their younger siblings/family friends but i think that’s just my own personal beef about how Marinette “can never say no” and how it’s always framed as her own fault when being Ladybug conflicts with babysitting like. Let her say no! Let her refuse! She doesn’t have the TIME.

marinette is just. they literally said this in the licensing trailer!!! that she was to be a relatable female superhero!!! but they ONLY made her relatable to what they believe young girls are. 

“Marinette is a character that girls will really identify with. She likes fashion, she makes her own accessories.”

“She’s an innocent, happy little girl, who is very kind and clumsy.”

“[...] what makes her stand out is her generosity, that’s what makes her an exemplary heroine.”

The last line is said by Astruc and ESPECIALLY pisses me off because girls are already told to be generous and kind to the point whereas with guys it’s “boys will be boys” when a guy’s a dick as if being respectful and giving is inherent to being a girl.

Marinette is OVERWHELMINGLY generous to other people, but instead of a lesson where it’s about “you can be kind and have boundaries” or “you can be helpful without neglecting yourself” or “you are not defined by what you can do for others”, the show just doubles down on all of it! Marinette’s not allowed to NOT help people around her or else they get akumatised. Marinette’s not allowed to snap at Lila or Chloe or else they will get akumatised or take it out on someone else and get them akumatised. Marinette’s not allowed to reject Chat Noir and refuse to go on his dates, otherwise he throws a fit about it and stops helping her during akumatisations.

And THEN. when she isn’t being the thirteen year old version of the perfect fucking 1950s housewife who will never deny you and do everything you ask, the one (1) somewhat gender subversive trait she has is that she’s a great gamer, and it doesn’t even come up BECAUSE she likes gaming! She does it specifically because Adrien is involved.

and it’s not HARD to make these traits into genuine actually progressive lessons. She-Ra already did that and they didn’t even need to boast about how woke they were when they gave Adora the lesson of being allowed to do things for herself and that she isn’t solely what she can do for other people.

Maybe Marinette takes on too much responsibility because she doesn’t want to cause more akumatisations by asserting her own boundaries, maybe she lets Chloe do whatever she wants and gives up on exposing Lila because in the short-term it keeps Ladybug from having to fight more akumas. Maybe all of this turns into an analogy for how kids (especially girls) are told not to fight back against bullies because “you have to be better than them” and how adults don’t always keep you safe and how complacency can be a coping mechanism AND cause a lot more harm.

Maybe Chat Noir constantly pursuing Ladybug despite her rejections becomes a lesson on how much harder it is for girls to refuse guys because some of them won’t take ‘no’ for an answer, and if you’re mad at me for saying that you can blame that on boys being raised to “never give up on true love” and that you just need to wear girls down until they say yes because they’re just “playing hard to get”.

I am just so increasingly livid about how many GOOD lessons we could have gotten if this show weren’t produced and written by straight white men, if it were written by women who understand the nuances of being constantly told as a child to be “kind” and not rock the boat, if it were written by WOC who know how your race affects how “kindly” other people will perceive you, if it were written by queer women who understood how stifling it is to grow up in a heteronormative society and trying to be pushed back into the role of “proper femininity”, or trying to be a girl in a world that refuses to see you as one.

diverse characters do not start and end with what’s on the screen, but who puts those characters on-screen. what’s the point in having a female superhero if there is only one female writer in s2 and s3, and that singular writer is up against the many straight white producers and executives and a head director/writer who refuses to take any criticism and can fire you if he disagrees with you?

@ everyone wondering where white pearl’s eye is