is your whole blog deadass dedicated to jabbing at people who like to hc characters as diff genders and sexualities? 😭 bru what
i made this blog in like 2015 as a snot-nosed teenager and to be honest i am shocked to be reminded that it exists... have changed my mind on everything since live laugh learn x
i’ve noticed that recently a lot of people are claiming that bill cipher from gravity falls is aroace (aromantic asexual, in case anyone isn’t familiar with the shortened term), usually in the context of anti-shipping blogs, who claim that any ship involving bill is aroace erasure because of his supposed orientation.
while i fully support aroace headcanons in most circumstances, i would like to point out a few things about bill that suggest this interpretation is both non-canon and a form of erasure.
Okay, as someone who knows SEVERAL aro/ace rpers who rp bill as being such, I must say, I think it’s only you who’s offended by such. Hell I do it too, and I’m gray/ace!!
People rp him as aro/ace because they don’t think shipping with him is healthy, which it isn’t. He’s canonly abusive to just about everyone. Most people who rp him aren’t comfortable with being this abusive; And as someone who’s been in an abusive relationship myself, I can understand this! In fact, it disgusts to think of all the ships where Bill is involved, I know my opinion isn’t a popular one, but c'mon! I can see him having a different sexuality in an au perhaps, but canon, triangle Bill, in my, and many other’s opinions, will remain aro/ace.
please read my post. i am not offended on the behalf of ace/aro people; i am offended on the behalf of gay people like myself, who have, historically, had gay coded villains like bill cipher used against us as a form of homophobic propaganda and micro-aggression.
your opinion is wrong. bill clearly states that he doesn’t know his sexuality and does not believe in love. there are 14 billion genders in his dimension, and he is attracted to some of them. he cannot be aroace.
i also do not appreciate your implied assumption that i am not an abuse survivor myself. please don’t do that.
Homophobic propaganda?? Have you seen this show ?? Are you even aware of the characters that were going to be gay?? Disney had an issue with that, but Disney didn’t make Bill; Alex did, and if he wanted lesbians I don’t think he’d make an anti gay character. Also I never implied I was the only abuse victim ???? Holy shit ??????????
i’m sorry if i misinterpreted you about the abuse thing. entirely my fault- i’m tired and may be reading between the lines too much.
no, disney didn’t make bill, and obviously alex isn’t trying to make a homophobic statement. however, bill is very clearly based off gay coded disney villains. probably just because they make great characters; i love scar and ursula more than any other classic disney characters despite the obvious gay coding there.
alex can’t erase the history behind his inspiration, though, and regardless of whether he was aware of it or not, bill remains a character that is coded as gay. i personally believe that this is purely because he is based off a disney trope, but that doesn’t make it less true. and as a fan, you shouldn’t be ignoring that history either.
i just wanted to let you know that your post on bill and the aroace thing is amazing and i agree completely. and i've been wanting to make a post on it for a really long time but my thoughts were never like, coherent? so u put it into really good words. thank u !!
thank you!!! i’m really glad that you agree, although thinking about it i prob should hve written more about exactly WHY it’s erasure. .. the point abt historical micro-aggressions was totally lost and i forgot to even mention the AIDS scare and propaganda and stuff. i might go back and edit it later.
anyway yeah i’m pretty damn sick of how the fandom treats bill’s character in general so expect more rambling analysis where that one came from
i’ve noticed that recently a lot of people are claiming that bill cipher from gravity falls is aroace (aromantic asexual, in case anyone isn’t familiar with the shortened term), usually in the context of anti-shipping blogs, who claim that any ship involving bill is aroace erasure because of his supposed orientation.
while i fully support aroace headcanons in most circumstances, i would like to point out a few things about bill that suggest this interpretation is both non-canon and a form of erasure.
Okay, as someone who knows SEVERAL aro/ace rpers who rp bill as being such, I must say, I think it’s only you who’s offended by such. Hell I do it too, and I’m gray/ace!!
People rp him as aro/ace because they don’t think shipping with him is healthy, which it isn’t. He’s canonly abusive to just about everyone. Most people who rp him aren’t comfortable with being this abusive; And as someone who’s been in an abusive relationship myself, I can understand this! In fact, it disgusts to think of all the ships where Bill is involved, I know my opinion isn’t a popular one, but c'mon! I can see him having a different sexuality in an au perhaps, but canon, triangle Bill, in my, and many other’s opinions, will remain aro/ace.
please read my post. i am not offended on the behalf of ace/aro people; i am offended on the behalf of gay people like myself, who have, historically, had gay coded villains like bill cipher used against us as a form of homophobic propaganda and micro-aggression.
your opinion is wrong. bill clearly states that he doesn’t know his sexuality and does not believe in love. there are 14 billion genders in his dimension, and he is attracted to some of them. he cannot be aroace.
i also do not appreciate your implied assumption that i am not an abuse survivor myself. please don’t do that.
i’ve noticed that recently a lot of people are claiming that bill cipher from gravity falls is aroace (aromantic asexual, in case anyone isn’t familiar with the shortened term), usually in the context of anti-shipping blogs, who claim that any ship involving bill is aroace erasure because of his supposed orientation.
while i fully support aroace headcanons in most circumstances, i would like to point out a few things about bill that suggest this interpretation is both non-canon and a form of erasure.
1. the AMA
the above quote, from the AMA alex hirsch did for bill on reddit last year, is used by some as ‘canon evidence’ for bill to be both aromantic and asexual.
here it is in plain text, for accessibility:
reddit user: have you ever been, or considered being, in love?
bill cipher’s response: “love” is your sick raw biological urge to reproduce trying to dress up in a suit and charm its way through the opera! don’t be fooled by the high priced PR and fancy linens! this imposter only wants to tie you down and drag you into the grave!
fair, i can see why you might use this to suggest an aroace character. but let’s break it down a little more.
firstly, he mocks the way that humans express love, claiming that it is merely an extension of natural instinct to mate. he does not believe that love exists, at all- meaning that he cannot be aromantic. aromantic people know what love is, and know it exists, and are aware that they do not experience it. bill thinks that nobody experiences it. calling him aromantic because of this is erasing the difficulty that aromantics face when growing up in a romance-obsessed society (this is not the main point about erasure that i wanted to make, but i feel that it might be worth mentioning).
secondly, bill says nothing about whether demons reproduce. he states that the urge is ‘sick’ and ‘biological’, but that has absolutely no bearing on whether his species have reproductive urges. of course this wouldn’t have come up in the AMA, as it was something for fans of all ages to enjoy, but regardless it means that arguing bill is asexual from this quote alone is extremely flawed.
most importantly, when bill is asked directly about his sexuality, he says this:
plain text version:
reddit user: dear mr cipher, what is your sexual orientation?
bill cipher’s response: my dimension has 14 billion different genders. its very confusing. im honestly not sure. it would take years of paperwork to sort it all out.
worth noting immediately is that bill did not ridicule the idea of demons having sexuality, implying that in the previous quote it was only the romantic aspect he found amusing. but more than that, this is bill clearly spelling out his sexuality in his own words: he doesn’t know. to me, though, this quote implies that he is definitely attracted to some of those 14 billion genders, probably more than one or two, or else it wouldn’t take ‘years’ to work out; ‘i’m not attracted to anyone’ is a fairly simple answer that he could easily have given here, were he intended to be aroace.
so, yeah. that’s it for the AMA. moving on.
2. gay coding
this one is more debatable, but it’s definitely worth bringing up as i know i’m far from the only gay gravity falls fan who has picked up on it.
bill is- likely unintentionally or semi-consciously- gay coded. this is mostly by extension, because it seems very much like he is modelled off classic disney villains. (read more about disney villains and ‘queer coding’ here, here, here, here- you get the point. a quick google search on this brings up almost 80,000 results).
here are some of the main points usually made about how disney (and other companies, of course, but disney is the most famous example) gay code their villlains, and why bill fits these tropes:
well dressed
he’s only a triangle, but bill wears a top hat and a bow tie, and is even seen with a cane. also, note how in the above image he is examining his hands/nails in a stereotypically effeminate manner.
dramatic hand gestures & ‘effeminate’ mannerisms
there are too many examples of this to post more than a few. everything bill does is hugely exaggerated and melodramatic. especially note the last screenshot, which literally screams ‘gay stereotype’, limp wrist and all.
smooth talking, conniving
it’s a slightly unconventional manner of smooth talk, admittedly- bill’s more of a conman than a gentleman- but this is definitely a major character trait. for example, how he uses subtle manipulation tactics on dipper in sock opera:
“seems to me one little puppet is a small price to pay to learn all the secrets of the universe. besides, what’s your sister done for you, lately? how many times have you sacrificed for her, huh? and when has she ever returned the favor?”
his entire relationship with ford is another example of this, telling him that he is a ‘muse’ to gain his trust, appealing to his ego and using subtle flattery and reinforcement of his fears to manipulate.
bill is obviously a very sly, smooth, persuasive demon.
flamboyant tastes
he’s drinking out of a martini glass. and let me tell you, straight men are terrified of martinis for this reason:
(a google search for ‘martini gay drink’, coming up with 546,000 immediate results)
yeah. apparently, martinis are so ‘gay’ that people actually call them ‘mantinis’ for the full on no homo effect. straight guys are weird.
the ridiculousness of straight men aside, however, this is far from the only example of bill’s extravagant, perhaps gaudy taste. the inside of his party pyramid is hugely overdecorated, including detailed stain glass and a throne made entirely of stone humans. the red and gold colour scheme has connotations of royalty, and aristocracy and wealth are also associated with being a gay stereotype.
his love for ‘partying’ also plays into this.
other
flirtation - many fans have interpreted some of his lines as flirtatious, particularly “did you miss me? admit it, you missed me!” and his rendition of ‘we’ll meet again’, directed at dipper and ford respectively. both characters are male, and one is a child, which brings in a further stereotype of gay men being predatory.
deals - we only see bill making deals with male characters; gideon, dipper, ford and blendin. he didn’t make a deal with mabel, despite manipulating her to gain the rift, and he doesn’t once attempt to make a deal with a female character throughout the show.
bill cipher is gay coded in the same manner as the disney villains he bears so many similarities too. therefore, headcanoning him as aroace is gay erasure.
3. nonhuman characters and aroace rep
this is my last- and shortest- point: congrats to everyone who made it this far! my poor scrambled brain is already exhausted from typing all this.
headcanoning nonhuman characters, particularly nonhuman and malevolent characters, as aromantic and/or asexual for no reason other than their being nonhuman and therefore not ‘understanding’ is harmful to aroaces in much the same way that headcanoning robots as nonbinary just because they are robots is harmful to nonbinary people.
think about it. all the rep that aroace people ever get is nonhumans, bad guys, and mixes of the two. this is demeaning and patronising, particularly as it comes with the implication that aroace people just don’t ‘get romance’. bad rep is not good rep. even if bill were canonically aroace- which i hope i have just proved he is not- he would be a very offensive representation, especially if he were the only aroace character on gravity falls.
of course, projecting is fine. headcanons are fine! the issue is with erasure and misinformation, and telling people off for not agreeing with what is definitely, indisputably, purely your headcanon.
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