side blog of mothsnest0, pretty much entirely MCYT art, mainly surrounding Hermitcraft, Life Series, PowCreations, Empires, and other related or adjacent SMPs (They/Xe)
liking popular characters and ships but in a way that’s completely different from the majority of fandom is like being in the middle of the ocean and dying of thirst because the water around you is undrinkable
One of the most common reasons given for boundaries (and subsequent boundary policing) is the idea that cc's see themselves as their characters and it makes them uncomfortable in some way. Sometimes this is made explicit (such as luanne + kyleff) and other times it's the clear background implication (pyro). There's a term in broader rp space for this concept called "character bleed" (<- blog post describing it w/ some academic articles) and its usage in the context of boundaries is complete bs
I think graecie (in her discussion on stream and on tumblr) unpacks the idea that managing bleed is on the audience really well! I also think it's a shame that, despite this, she's never used as a "good example" when talking about boundaries. So, I'm talking about her and why other people should too
Here are some quotes from when graecie clarified about her post further on stream:
"When I bring up character bleed or how our brains differentiate- or-or. Our brains are unable to differentiate fake emotions from roleplay to real emotions in real life and how, like, your brain treats those emotions that you feel the same way. I don't ever want that to be misconstrued as I'm putting that responsibility on the community to prevent us from getting character bleed, or prevent us from struggling with those things. That's not it." (22:40)
(Small note that the use of "us" is super notable here! This is something that (should) apply to all creators, not just graecie)
"When I brought [character bleed] up in the past I think it might've been misconstrued as me blaming the community or, not blaming the community but expecting the community to be responsible for preventing that and that's never what I mean. Whenever I bring it up it it just, I think it's something creators in the mcr space— in the mcrp space are unaware of, um, because it is so new. Safety tools, uh, self-care in roleplay, all of that is relatively new to the mcrp space, uh, and I don't think a lot of creators understand the impact that playing a character live non-stop can have on their mental. And like, how they— how they view that character as more of themselves." (23:45)
"It-it can be stressful to navigate but that's also, it's on me to navigate, which is what I've been doing. Um, it's not on anyone who engages with my media to navigate for me." (25:10)
This is already (somehow) leagues above every other creator who thinks it's on their (mostly underage) fanbase to regulate their own emotions! What's most interesting to me in this stream + graecie's subsequent posts is that she's clearly interested in spreading this idea outside herself. In a recent(ish) tumblr post she detailed some of the consent/safety tools she introduced on the flight and on stream she mentioned:
"I've been slowly trying to introduce more dnd safety tools into the mcrp space. I did a character, uh, like safety and consent checklist form for the flight for everyone to fill out... it's absolutely, it's on the other people you play with and the gamemasters but it's not, I-I would say it's not on the community who is consuming the content you create to be aware of and prevent [character bleed]." (25:30)
"And, I'm there for my friends if they're going through it, I've got resources for that." (27:09)
You'll notice that it didn't take some huge controversy for graecie to change her opinion, just some self-reflecting and actually listening to the community. Here's her establishing a dni tag and talking about it on stream
That other people (the ones ppl usually point to as good examples) had such a public turn-around and have done nothing to actually change the culture which encourages boundaries brings their motives into question. It's an issue that "changed" creators get to respond to their co-workers insane boundaries by saying "I do respect other creators boundaries cause its their preference" and get uncritical praise. The only reason we see boundary discourse come up so often is bc ppl who are "okay about boundaries" aren't willing to challenge the overall culture in mcyt that endorses that behavior. An unwillingness to challenge even basic ideas such as "the rules that inspire harassment are good" and "my emotional regulation is the job of the audience" makes me wonder if opinions have actually changed or if creators are just searching for fandom brownie points. If creators who "figured it out" were interested in more than just themselves I don't think this discourse would be happening every other month
I mainly just think there are better examples of "boundaries done right" than the names ppl usually throw around. Especially when graecie's a marginalized creator who (lbr) probably deals w/ a lot more fandom weirdness than the (mostly cis and het) men that ppl talk about :). That she didn't require some explosive discourse also proves this is a topic of discussion because these mindsets are so normalized
man I miss the Mean Gills. there's a vibe between Scott and Martyn in Limited Life that no other Life Series alliance can capture. they're both incredibly capable, deeply strategic, and endlessly clever. Martyn's the more aggressive of the two, but that doesn't mean that Scott won't strike someone down when he needs to. they're both charismatic, aceing the social game (with a few notable exceptions, namely Joel with Scott and Tango with Martyn). it's no wonder they both survived until the very end, with each other as a teammate.
but there's a slight tenseness between them, despite the amount of faith they clearly have in each other. it starts in episode 2, when Martyn comes "crawling back", and from then on, this looming unease continues. Scott only gives Martyn his time when he absolutely has to, quicker to hand it over to the Clockers or Jimmy, and when Martyn asks for it point-blank, Scott resists. they're both incredible independent, going off alone as much as they travel together. and several times, the mention of betrayal or broken alliances clearly haunts them, to the point where Scott fully asks Martyn if he's planning to leave the alliance after a conversation with Jimmy, then again in the finale when Martyn starts running around with Team TIES. one could call this foreshadowing.
to an extent, they hold each other at arm's length, and I suspect it's because they both know just how much the other is capable of. but there's still that intrinsic trust. they rely on each other time and time again, and even when the entire server is after Scott, Martyn always defends his teammate, consistently his bodyguard and protector. sure, Scott's not going to just hand Martyn 30 minutes, but when there's a crowd chasing after him, Martyn's the one he trusts to put a sword through his chest. if Martyn plans a trap, Scott is quick to offer his help, and if Scott's chasing someone down, Martyn instantly joins in. and, of course, there's the moment that I CONSTANTLY think about where Scott comes in with "Martyn, they tried to kill me!" and Martyn INSTANTLY responds with, "right, that's it, they're dead."
and this trust, combined with that ever-present unease, is really what makes the Mean Gills special. they're simultaneously one of the most tight-knit teams and are also one of the wariest, holding each other close with swords at the ready. and it all culminates in that unforgettable finale, the ultimate betrayal, and of course, Scott's iconic line: "my own Mean Gill... I wouldn't have it any other way."
before we start posting that july is gay wrath month let’s consider that july is disability pride month first and foremost. the “be gay do crimes” memes can wait
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