rated m for memes

gabu/rowan. nb (they/them). queer and ace. white. 26. currently in CQL hell. at any given moment there is a 99% chance i am crying about anders.

[epicsause-official]

as a cis guy, when presented with the "99% you get a ton of money, 1% you turn into a girl" it honestly would be dumb to not hit that button until it breaks. like ok now i have 100 bajillion dollars and gender dysphoria. big deal. i have all the money in the world to turn me back into a guy. like with that kind of money i could have obama do me a phalloplasty. he wouldnt be able to do it as he isnt a surgeon but the point still stands

[biggestcommunismbuilder]

Okay but hear me out OP, what if the button does the genie wish thing and it flips your internal experience of gender but doesn't change any of your external sex characteristics? This isn't even a gotcha, I'm just actually curious

[epicsause-official]

well in that case i still end up with the "shitload of money & gender dysphoria" combo but this time obama is doing a vaginoplasty instead

[cameoappearance]

#all roads lead to obama bottom surgery (via epicsause-official)

[paulgadzikowski]

"Then transition."

[werewolf-transgenderism]

weird little beaſt pride parade

[ID: a medieval manuscript-style digital drawing of several medieval marginalia beasts carrying pride flags, surrounded by a thin pastel rainbow border. from left: an orange dog carrying the progress pride flag, a green frog carrying the trans flag, a pastel rainbow dragon carrying the lesbian flag, an orange catlike creature carrying a lute and the bi pride flag and wearing a bi pride flag cape, a little grey mole carrying the nonbinary flag, a pink and purple mammalian beast carrying the intersex flag, a blue mammalian beast in a rainbow snail shell carrying the asexual pride flag, a purple mammalian beast carrying the pansexual pride flag, and a grey bat with rainbow wings carrying the original gilbert baker pride flag]

[gil-estel]

LIVE SLUG REACTION???!!

[gil-estel]

YOU'RE KIDDING ME THE SLUG IS GAY??????

[majinzelpher]

[arowitharrows]

tbh I really dislike how aphobia tends to be discussed whenever there's some kind of incident that makes it visible to general society. The most common response seems to be some variation of "why would anyone hate asexual/aromantic people, they aren't even doing anything" and it just always sits wrong with me. It paints such a passive picture of our existence and feels like a comment influenced by the level of invisibility that aspec people have in society. Why would you be annoyed by someone who is practically invisible? Just go back to ignoring they're existence, it's easy!

But despite the invisibility, aspec people are actually doing quite a lot of things that will piss off queerphobic, right-wing and religious people (and hell, even left-wing people). And the most obvious point is that we are actively not performing heterosexuality the way they want us to. People who's entire world view is "cis men and women should be in monogamous, heterosexual marriage and have (white) babies" are not going to lean back and say "oh but those asexuals and aromantics are fine". They will also hate our guts, and they will come up with all sorts of reasons, including insinuating we're all secretly into bestiality, or mentally ill, or not human, or attention seeking children. It's just plain old queerphobia, and like all queerphobia, there's no inherent logic to it which you can worm your way out of by "not doing anything".

And like, there's a lot more that aspect people do which people hate. Raising awareness about amatonormativity? People feel attacked, they hate it. Asexual people having sex? Or not having sex? People hate it! Aromantic people being in (seemingly) romantic relationships? People fucking hate it! Aromantic people having sex? Ohh people hate that!!

I guess the existence of aphobia can be confusing when you haven't spent much time thinking about asexuality and aromanticism, but in the end, these are identities that aren't heteronormative and they will be hit with the same or similar bigotry as any other queer identity. I just get tired of this response after seeing it recycled for 10 years without ever seeming to go any further.

[kirkwallguy]

saw a bad cullen defence post and i really think that the issue with the inconsistency between his character in dai and his character in da2 is that you're not supposed to draw the same conclusion from them... like dai cullen is all about how the templars have it bad too etc etc but da2 cullen feels more like a point about how just because someone appears more reasonable / polite / less visibly unhinged it doesn't mean they're not also actively contributing to oppression. and this means dai cullen completely undermines da2 cullen's entire thing lol

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Ironically, I think DA2 was much more effective in its commentary on Cullen's trauma from the events in the Kinloch Hold. He literally cannot comprehend the fact that Uldred's horrible attempt at revolt was caused by the harsh environment of the Circle.

So Cullen comes to the obvious conclusion: If the Templars had been even stricter, nothing would've happened. This is the belief he was taught, and he has no reason to question it, not after his trauma.

Of course, this drives him to the radicals. Don't trust any mage, they're not real people, they're just waiting for the opportunity to make deals with demons and destroy everything you hold dear. Of course he sees tranquility as a good option. It's not genocide if you don't kill them, y'know ? You just make them tranquil and agreeable, and they're still useful, win-win.

Ironically, DA2 was also much more effective in its commentary on the drug addiction that every Templar inevitably suffers from. Idk, maybe it's just me, but Samson's struggle strikes a much more memorable image because it actually looks like a struggle. With Cullen, his addiction is literally cured after one conversation with the Inquisitor because it is never mentioned again.

Still, the addiction is part of his trauma. How many Templars overindulge in lyrium out of fear of mages? Does it help them with their anxiety? I think it's important for this conversation.

[kirkwallguy]

yeah i agree wrt it being more effective and realistic tbh - irl most bigotry is justified via fear / disgust / uncertainty, having a character be traumatised by an event that was the result of mages being oppressed and using it as justification of oppressing them harder is soo interesting/true to what happens with various marginalised groups irl. cullen and the other templars aren't actually benefiting from this oppression in any way, the chantry is the only one winning, but they're still one rung above the mages on the ladder and are being constantly convinced that stamping down on them will make them feel better. it's a surprisingly coherent portrayal of how systems of oppression work for an aaa game from 2011 lol. it also makes him interesting to compare to fenris, who holds similar opinions and is similarly traumatised by magic but doesn't have the same social status and therefore the same ability to cause harm.

and then dai comes in like "umm well his trauma shows the mages and templars both have it hard 🫶🏻" which kind of erases any of what made his trauma interesting or realistic lol. how does his trauma even manifest in dai beyond him throwing his lyrium paraphernalia one time.

also yeah, bioware is ALWAYS weird about addiction for some reason and samson is no exception but he does a better job at showing why a lot of templars stay in the gallows despite disagreeing with what the order has become.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

People who hate Anders always talk about how he attacked innocent people. What did the Chantry do to you, you horrible terrorist? Meanwhile, the Chantry literally created and still upholds this completely rotten but extremely self-sufficient oppressive system.

They take mages from their families when they are still teenagers and create the perfect conditions for them to become abominations (constant stress, pressure of being under constant surveillance, you can't leave, you can't decide anything for yourself, this is your prison and this is your life now), and they also create the perfect jailers by taking teenagers from their families and raising them to obey without question, to distrust, to oppress and not see their actions as oppression, to never question the doctrine.

Nobody benefits from this system except the Chantry, which is literally swimming in money. It's so incredibly realistic!

About DAI, I've said it before and I'll say it again: I think it just can't be anything but painfully bland and centrist in its main message, simply because of how the story is framed. You're the person perpetuating this cycle of abuse, you're the authority, you're the one with the money and the influence and a fucking castle because other people in power who also have an interest in maintaining the system put you in that position.

The end of the world happened, but the Chantry is still a major force in Thedas, Cassandra and Leliana are still Andrastians, one of them becomes a Divine.

Some things can change, sure: Leli can disband the Circles under her authority, but the system itself still stands, and her decision can be reversed, and no one starts helping Tranquil become whole again.

Anders was so, so right. As long as the Chantry exists as it does, true liberation is impossible. I also love how DAI portrays the mage rebels as helpless, just waiting to be either saved or corrupted by Corypheus. How would you justify the Chantry's existence otherwise?

Also, hell yeah, the comparison between Fenris and Cullen sounds fun. Would love to read that meta.

[eddiesmustache]

[cauliflowergnocchidyke]

i really hate coming out but still want my extended family to know, so my mother took it upon herself to invent the game “guess which one of my kids is gay.”

the rules are simple.

sit down with uncle so-and-so

he says something about gay people in passing

my mom says “there’s a gay person at this table right now. guess which of my kids it is!

he looks frantically between the three of us trying to figure out if she’s joking or not and trying desperately not to offend anyone but also she won’t continue with the conversation unless he makes a guess so he has to make a guess

we all enjoy his discomfort immensely

[lokiago]

This isnt coming out of the closet. This is coughing loudly from within the closet to scare the people outside of it, which is immensely more entertaining.

[rednightmare18]

Do you know how I feel right now. I am a chronic rarepair fan and I have NEVER had a ship go canon. Now I am, as a humble lifelong medieval history nerd, after SEVEN YEARS of dev silence (and <20 fics on ao3 last time I checked, many written by yours truly), witnessing the altright fandom melt down into nuclear waste in real time. Because their ~antiwoke hero~ studio just dropped a major sequel confirming my ultra rarepair lgbtq+ nothingburger never-gonna-happen ship was endgame all along. They suck face horizontal ON SCREEN. We went in expecting Kingdom Under Heaven: Braveheart II and we got fucking Maurice with Swords. I could bend steel with my pinkies. This is my Roman empire. This is video game Christmas to me. I am unkillable right now do you understand

[4humankind]

Imagine being one of those blessed early fans getting their shit canon, IMAGINE

AMAZING

[punksalmon]

"it's the date night cologne," buck repeats

[cinnamonchaos]

This captures something I don't think I'll ever be able to put in to words.

Oh how I love shaun tan.

[frostedtea-arts]

Anders and cat Pokemon

[enki2]

[shiftycryptid]

[imamagicmuffin]

[mouth-less]

[cock-holliday]

Sometimes wild attraction shit happens when you learn to separate masc/fem from man/woman. I’ve known queer women find the femininity in a man attractive. I’ve known gay men get so hot and bothered by the masculinity of a woman.

There was once a guy who was not really my type but then he did drag and was suddenly wildly attractive to me. And since I’m bisexual it doesn’t give me a crisis when someone is suddenly hot to me in an unconventional way. I used to think this was particularly a bi experience.

Then I’ve met plenty of gay men and lesbians who are also chill about that sort of thing. Sometimes life is like that “oops made out with a twink in Brighton who turned out to be a lesbian who thought I was a lesbian” and sometimes it’s like “hey, I’m not normally into men but this guy has got something hot going on.”

[cock-holliday]

Getting a lot of traction again on this post. What it all boils down to is examining a few things:

1. Men and women are not opposites and if one or more isn’t your bag, you may sometimes find some aspects appealing and you don’t have to make it a big thing if you don’t want to.

Straight people will be like “oh haha if I was into women/men…” and it doesn’t make them not straight. It doesn’t have to change your label. Sometimes a person will exhibit aspects of your attractive gender without being it. Maybe it awakens something for you, sometimes it causes a funny/awkward mixup, sometimes it makes you go “huh” and think nothing more and do nothing more about it.

2. Many people see the change from iding as bi to gay/lesbian as a fine shift but think moving from gay/lesbian to bi is comphet. That’s shit.

3. There are countless people who date/sleep with people outside of what their label suggests. This is not actually a personal attack against you and does not require the same behavior from you. Looking at a queer man and a queer woman kissing is not forcing comphet on you.

4. Anyone who actually tries to force you to date/sleep with a person or demographic is a dogshit person for not respecting your comfort and boundaries BECAUSE of going against your wishes, not because it would lose you points on the Blizzard Diversity Wheel or rob you of your Gold/Platinum Star

5. Please understand what compulsive heterosexuality is and stop applying it to queer people being queer in ways you don’t like and aren’t part of

[huaepiphany-deactivated20250324]

Night meeting sketch

[tigriivy]

I made this out of the rage I felt from seeing transphobic, butchphobic and enbyphobic comments in my tl.

Being a lesbian is part of my identity too and I refuse to let other people tell me I am not a lesbian just because I don't fit their binary perception of things. It's so sad to see other lesbians shitting on butches and gender non-conforming or non-binary lesbians.

But hey, we are here and we're not going anywhere, I am not going anywhere. I've always been a loud lesbian and I'll always be.

Keep being loud, proud and gentle with other lesbians and be fierce with the ones who try to erase us.

[imma-bunni]

Bunnies on rooftops 2.0 ♡♡ This is a redraw of the very first Untamed fanart I ever drew! ♡♡♡

[dajo42]

need a polite way to say "im not engaging in a discussion on this topic with you because the conclusions you have reached are based on so many interwoven layers of misconceptions it would be easier to just like, hard reset your whole brain, just start over as a baby and try again"