Scrapbook #6: Mercury (Click For Full-size Image.)

carletoncolton - GPOY 1

Parvati Holcomb: The Unaccountably Happy Face of the Unreliable

The Outer Worlds, the new space RPG courtesy of Obsidian, helpfully provides your player character with exactly the sort of ragtag gang of misfits which you are probably expecting in such a game. Today, we’re going to talk about the most important of them. 

Parvati Holcomb, likely the first companion you meet and definitely the first companion you can recruit, is a well-written female-character. Her talents for engineering and her incredibly positive and cheerful outlook quickly draw comparison with the character of Kaylee from Firefly (allegedly one of the main inspirations for the character), but there is one very clear difference between the two. 

Parvati Holcomb is an asexual character. 

While the term “asexual” is never actually used in the game, Parvati’s experiences and worries were so obviously born form the real-life experiences of asexual people that I was not the least bit surprised that she had been written by an asexual woman: 

I was, however, properly delighted that Parvati had always been intended to be an asexual character, even before an asexual woman took over as Parvati’s writer; Chris L’Etoile, the original writer, explicitly made the decision to create a warm and loving character, someone who could see the beauty and hope in a failing colony, who could express all the wonder they wanted their players to feel, and then he decided to make her asexual as well. 

The stereotypical ‘link’’ between asexuality and ‘coldness’ is even explicitly referenced by Parvati herself, when she explains her fears about starting a new relationship: “I’m not much interested in… physical stuff. Never have been. Leastways not like other folk seem to be. It’s not that I can’t. I just don’t care for it. It’s been a problem, in the past. The folk who wanted to be with me, back in the Vale? They didn’t - They said I was cold.”

The first response offered to players? “You’re about the warmest person I ever met. To hell with them.” 

Indeed, The Outer Worlds is a game which, over and over again, tells us that Parvati is not cold or unfeeling. This is a young woman who names a robot the moment she fixes it, who worries if the Captain calls the ship’s computer “it”, who checks in with crew members and, in a game with a reputation system (rather than a Mass Effect style morality system), acts as the world’s most adorable conscience. 

And, while Parvati does find her relationship with Junlei complicated, those complications have very little to do with her sexuality and far more to do with her being a young woman, away from home for the first time, and experiencing possibly the first great love of her life. There are miscommunications, a night of drowning sorrows, endless over-analysing of each other’s words and actions, and the need to go to four different worlds just to plan a date. As the player character can say: 

PC: “If you two marry, you’ll be saying, ‘Haha, just kidding. Unless you’re not.’” Parvati: “I resent you saying such, on account of it being uncomfortably likely.”

But once Parvati has worked up the courage to tell Junlei who she is, the relationship works well. Well enough for Parvati to find a new home with Junlei once the fight is over: 

Now, I always expect an Obsidian game to have some awareness of the wider spectrum of human sexuality - Fallout New Vegas included some same-sex relationships, and the player character could be played as straight, gay or bisexual, depending on which perks you picked. But I wasn’t expecting the only great romance subplot in an entire game to include an asexual woman actively pursuing another woman. Were this just one relationship among many, it would still be beautiful, but for it to take centre-stage and not have to share that space with anything else? It’s phenomenal. 

And, just when I think that The Outer Worlds couldn’t get any more lovely, it did this: 

Yep, that’s the option to identify your character explicitly as asexual. There’s even the option just afterwards to clarify your character as aromantic as well, which Parvati takes perfectly in her stride with a nice little nod to the player’s strong relationships with their friends. Either revelation is meant with the same response from Parvati: 

“So we’re… we’re kin-like. That makes me, well - unaccountably happy, Captain. It’s a lonely thing, being different like this.” 

Judging from that reaction, the Captain is likely the first fellow asexual who Parvati has met, and the relief in her voice was such a punch to the gut. Because Parvati’s right - the loneliness of feeling “other” sinks in fast and there’s nothing quite like the relief when you finally feel like maybe you’re not alone after all. 

And the idea that this game and this character might give that moment of relief to someone out there, well, that just makes me unaccountably happy as well.

I have 300 followers! Just for kicks, I’ve decided to do a giveaway, but I don’t have fun things or what have you, all I have is a brain that dumps fic into the internet with fair regularity. So, that’s what I’ll give you.

You:

must be following me, since this is a follower giveaway

likes and...

I can’t believe over five thousand lovely people are following me! I wish I was able to properly express how grateful I am for each and every one of you. Your support has been incredible and I’m so blessed to be able to interact with you all! Here’s a silly little giveaway. It’s not much, and I wish I could give something to all of you, but alas I’m just a poor little artist. That being said I will always be willing to talk to those who need it and I’m always open for hugs!

rules;

since this is for my followers, you have to be following me.

no giveaway blogs.

one like and one reblog, but that also means if you do both, you’re entered in twice.

have your ask/submit open.

winners must respond within 24 hours after i message them or i will choose a new one

must be willing to give me shipping address so i can give you the things!

(also, i will ship anywhere in the world!)

prizes;

there will be two winners!

the first winner will receive the following:

+ one digital painting (can be anything!) + one original, traditional drawing (can be anything!) approx. 9x12 + one signed print of my work (you choose!) approx. 8x10

the second winner will receive the following:

+ one digital sketch (can be anything!) + one signed print of my work (you choose!) approx. 8x10

This giveaway ends June 1, 2014!

If you have any questions, my ask is always open.

Thank you everyone and good luck! I really wish there was more I could give. You’ve all been so great and I love ya to pieces! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧

Out of curiosity, could you take a moment to reblog this if you believe that demisexuality exists? I’m demisexual, and I feel like demisexuality goes really under the radar, even within the asexual community umbrella. A lot of people don’t believe that it exists, and even within the ace community, demisexuality is still questioned as being legitimate, although we share the same flag. So reblog this is if you believe it exists. 

I was tagged by @earlgreytea68

Countries I have lived in: 

The United States. I've never so much as been out of it. I live in Michigan and haven't even taken the drive to Canada.

Favorite fandom fandoms: 

Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Star Trek, Star Wars, Sherlock Holmes (ACD to BBC to Elementary), Hannibal...

Languages I speak: 

*average American voice* English. Just English.

Favorite film of 2016: 

I’m not much for playing of-the-year favorites in general, but especially with four months left. I did see Star Trek Beyond in theaters three times, though; it soothed something wounded in my Trekkie heart.

Last article you read: 

"What to do when you're not the hero anymore" by Laurie Penny

Shuffle your library and put the first three songs here: 

Cherry Blossom - Lana Dey Rey, What You Won't Do for Love - Bobby Caldwell, How's This? - Hyuna

Last thing you bought online: 

A set of two acrylic tortoiseshell combs and the ten dollarest bottle of rose soliflore perfume I could find.

Any phobias or fears: 

As the not-at-all good Doctor said in Hannibal, "Children transport us to our childhood." For that reason, being around young children for any length of time is... wearing, for me, to put it lightly.

How would your friends describe you: 

"That's what I like about you, you're logical". "Jack's a sweetheart". "Delightful. Quiet, but delightful." "Bona fide."

How would your enemies describe you: 

Pretentious ("gives herself airs"), rude, argumentative, unreliable, dishonest.

Who would you take a bullet for: 

Oh, probably the usual suspects? Family, friends, my S.O. There's really no accurately predicting what you'll actually do in a situation like that, though, if I've learned anything about shock.

If you had money to spare, what you would buy first: 

The best damn eleventh anniversary gift I could lay my hands on.

Now tag 10 people you want to get to know better:

Boone - Preview for Scrapbook #16

Scrapbook #16: Hostiles (Click for full-size image.)

Other entries in this series: 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Happy Valentines Day from Buff!