Due to the amount and frequency of misinformation about the revised version of TGCF, I wanted to make a post to serve as a resource for those who are confused about it, while also helping to debunk some of the sensationalist rumors floating around.
This post will be edited to include new things as needed.
⚠️Spoiler Warning: if you have not finished reading the original novel, or want to experience the new scenes from the revised naturally/fresh, please proceed with caution! I've intentionally kept things as vague as possible, but some spoilers are unavoidable!⚠️
✨ PART ONE: Frequently Asked Questions ✨
🔹What is the "revised" version of TGCF?
MXTX had been working on a revised version of TGCF since completing the original, as mentioned this in her postscript/afterword, and in an online interview (Q.27) done years ago just as she competed TGCF. That's all that was known for several years.
In early 2023, TGCF was finally released in print format in mainland China — and this was revealed to be the revised version! Due to regulations, this was a censored edition. However, in early 2024, the uncensored edition was uploaded to JJWXC (the site where all of MXTX's webnovels were originally published)! It's currently fully available to read in Simplified Chinese.
If you want a more in-depth explanation about the revised, please see my post about that here.
🔹What does the revised change compared to the original?
Several scenes have been added, some removed, others expanded upon. Overall, MXTX reportedly wrote 100k characters (words) of new content. While the overarching plot of each arc and the novel as a whole remains the same, it's a more cohesive and polished story. Pacing in each part of the story has been adjusted to flow better, especially in arcs notorious for feeling slow or disjointed.
Some segments have had fairly significant changes — namely the Bloody Banquet/Fang Xin Guoshi arc. (Though it still plays out much the same way.) Most others have smaller changes.
A new extra was also added, called "the Ghost King Dressed Down," which has been translated by Scarabsi on twitter.
🔹How does the revised version effect characters?
Apart from certain minor characters — such as the child Lang Ying who was removed entirely — there haven't been many drastic changes. The biggest thing was side characters like Lang Qianqiu and Ling Wen being given notably more backstory to further flesh them out. Their characterization itself hasn't changed, however.
🔹Which version is canon, then?
Whichever you want, and you can mix-and-match! MXTX has given fans her blessings and encouragement!
🔹How do I read the revised version in English?
Currently, there are no official or unofficial English translations of the whole revised version. Nor are there any plans to do so for the near future.
However, there are English fan translations of a few notable chapters, which you can read here. There's also instructions on that site on how to read the rest of the updated webnovel in English, using a browser extension.
Additionally, the audio drama is adapting the uncensored revised version, and has been doing an amazing job! Check out how to listen to that with English subs here.
✨PART TWO: Debunking Rumors & Clearing up Misinformation✨
Note that all chapter numbers given will be referencing the webnovel's. The old chapters are also available towards the bottom of the page as "serialized versions."
(Translated screenshots provided are janky because it's just basic google MTL!)
🔸"Mentions of Mu Qing's mother was removed from the revised!"
Not at all! Both his parents are still mentioned, along with how Mu Qing is the primary breadwinner due to his mom's failing eyesight. (Ch. 57)
🔸"The earring scene isn't there anymore!"
The earring scene is still very much there! Not actually sure why this is a rumor at all, when the whole earring thing spans several chapters. Here's the conclusion of it (Ch. 59):
🔸"Characters have been butchered in general, with Mu Qing especially getting scenes cut!"
No character (who didn't straight-up get deleted) has been butchered. Nor has any character been singled out for having their scenes deleted/changed, because that's happened to every character — yes, including Xie Lian and Hua Cheng! — and they also have new scenes added!
E.g. the scene where Mu Qing picks the cherries is removed, because that whole section was changed. (However, it's still mentioned that others are prejudiced against him due to his background, and so on.) Meanwhile, there's a brand-new scene that shows Mu Qing's aptitude in treating wounds, as well as he and Feng Xin having new hijinks as "junior officials" with Xie Lian, and more.
Despite the rumors, characters haven't been flattened to make them more one-dimensional compared to Hualian. Perhaps the idea of certain scenes being cut sounds scary for characterization, but a lot of the original has been retained one way or another. In many cases, MXTX just condensed things, or moved them around. The revised is meant to be looked at as a whole, after all.
🔸"Mu Qing now leaves for no reason in Book/Arc 4, instead of for his mother!"
Mu Qing clearly states in the revised that he wants to leave in order to find a way to improve their situation, since they anyways cannot agree amongst themselves. Just like in the original, he was frustrated and felt there was no point in continuing along the same path. (Ch 152)
And yes, he does not bring up his mother in the revised scene. For context: there is a three year gap between the end of Book/Arc 2 and the start of 4. Which means in the original, Mu Qing didn't mention his mother for those three years. Given the events leading to his departure, and what follows, this causes several inconsistencies.
That is a whole topic unto itself, however. But it's not surprising the revised did it a bit differently.
🔸"Feng Xin isn't as funny anymore!"
Feng Xin is actually one of the least changed characters! This rumor likely stems from the scene where Xie Lian reveals his password, to Feng Xin, who no longer rolls on the floor while laughing. Or maybe it's a miscommunication based on the printed revised, which censored some of his (and Qi Rong's) cursing. But that was only for the printed!
🔸"Ling Wen's character isn't as interesting because of the changes!"
People will really say anything on the internet. She's been given more depth and complexity, if anything. There's new scenes that expand on her background and early days in heaven, and her relationship with Bai Jing has been given a lot of extra attention. Her motivations and actions remain the same, but if the subtext was missed in the original, it could have led to some readers thinking of Ling Wen as certain way. Like a ruthless girlboss.
The revised reiterating that this isn't the case doesn't change or detract from her, as that was one of the points of her story to begin with. Plus, the revised arc gives Bai Jing much-needed characterization.
🔸"Ling Wen's ascension is now due to Jing Wen/not on her own merit/etc!"
Frankly, this rumor might be due to people not properly understanding how ascension works in TGCF, and thinking the revised is adding something that they forgot was already in the original. The revised didn't change anything about the manner in which Ling Wen ascended.
You can actually check out the revised Brocade Immortal arc here for yourself, as it's been fan translated!
🔸"The dynamic between Hualian is different in the revised!"
Their dynamic is exactly the same as before, only reinforced if anything. If the new additions are enough to destroy someone’s image of Hualian or turn it on its head, that’s definitely not a fault with either novel version!
🔸"The scene where Hua Cheng is disguised as Lang Ying and accidentally catches Xie Lian bathing is removed!"
Unfortunately, yes, the bathing scene is gone. However, Hua Cheng in disguise is still there — he's a village kid instead.
🔸"MXTX made changes to side characters/ships because she felt threatened by their popularity compared to her main couple!"
This one just doesn't really make sense, because several side characters were given *more* content — including their relationships.
Lang Qianqiu finally feels like an actual character. Quan Yizhen and Yin Yu have new stuff about them. Shi Wudu has some clever little cameos. Pei Ming’s feelings about Yushi Huang are brought up. Pei Xiu’s backstory is even more heartbreaking. Qi Rong has new scenes that make him feel genuinely menacing. Xiao Ying’s been completely revamped. These are just to name a few, and excluding things already talked about above.
It seems unlikely that MXTX would go through the trouble of adding to her side characters if she didn’t care about them, felt they weren’t important, or thought they were getting undeserved attention. Besides, popular characters like Shi Qingxuan and He Xuan had no cuts to their arc!
Looking at the actual metrics… MXTX has no need to feel threatened by her side ships vs her main ships.
Can't stop thinking about how Sylus is implied to have been abandoned by his kin as a child. He was rejected and let down and hurt by every. single. person in his life bar one simply because he wasn't dragon enough for one group, and not human enough for the other. He was an outsider and an outcast from his earliest days. Only one person ever made him feel seen and cherished. And yet he was willing to let go of this sole person when that seemed to be what she wanted him to.
Let that sink in.
From childhood Sylus was discarded and unloved, and had more than likely not had a single truly happy day in his life until meeting MC. She was the first person he ever had that cared about him. The only one to love, accept, and want him unconditionally. MC represents everything good in his life. She is the person who taught him his worth and that he is not the monster he believed himself to be. The one who made him feel human for the first time in his life, who showed him what it is to love and be loved, who introduced him to the beauty of music and of life. The one who willingly shared half a soul with him to save his life, and who helped shape the person he is today.
MC is everything to Sylus. He spent the (most likely numerous) decades after coming back to life searching the cosmos for her. He built Onychinus and his empire with the intent of ruling it with her by his side. He dedicates himself to taking down the evil corporaation that harmed her as a child. So much of what he's done and still does is for her sake, and in hopes of building a happy life and future together. In a lot of ways, he lives for her. She is the living embodiment of his happiness.
And yet... he was and is willing to let her go if that is what she wants or what is best for her.
Because his love for her is pure. At his core, Sylus' heart is pure, in spite of everything that he has endured.
My heart bleeds when I think of all that he's been put through. But it is so healing to see him be loved, treasured, and happy now, his recent birthday event being a prime example of that. He is living the life he always deserved but was out of his reach for most of his life.
There is a place for Sylus in this warm, peaceful world 🩷
Warnings: nsfw, heavy bdsm themes (sadomasochism), power imbalance
A = Aftercare (what they're like after sex)
You’ve seen how he is in his route: he’s a god of aftercare, and will get you anything you want (water, a warm drink, extra blanket, a hug). He’ll bathe you even if you pass out (he might do some unsavoury things to you while you sleep, though). He’ll be a bit demanding if he’s been the ‘beloved’, and a bit clingy.
B = Body part (their favourite body part of theirs and also their partner's)
He likes your face, mostly because it’s hidden, and such a rare commodity is more sought out, not to mention the fact you are beautiful. He likes his body, his slender frame, the work he puts into his body and his ass.
C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)
He’s got a bit of cum, stringy and he’s got a lot of precum. There are instances where he’s came in his pants, when he’s either inflicting pain into you, or seeing you inflict pain on yourself. He likes to cum inside you, without protection, regardless of if you can get pregnant. He likes to see it drip out of you, or you struggle to swallow after he ejaculates in your mouth.
D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)
Not a lot of secrets with this man - what he likes, he will either tell you, if you’re lucky, or simply drag you into it. He’s open to trying a few things, but is usually opposed to bottoming, but, once he’s experienced it, he rather enjoys it if he trusts you.
E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they're doing?)
There’s many an unsuspecting soul he’s had intercourse with, whether that be engaging in bdsm practices or full on sex, so suffice to say, he’s got quite a bit of experience, with both sexes.
F = Favourite position (this goes without saying)
He enjoys being in positions that give him power (think wall sex, desk sex, doggy style, etc. He’s not much into mutual satisfaction (think the 69) as he doesn’t care much for your pleasure, but, if he is rather fond of you, he’s not opposed to it.
G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)
He’s very much serious, and doesn’t appreciate jokes in the bedroom. They spur him on, and would give you a punishment, but he finds no pleasure in them.
H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes?)
Although priests aren’t supposed to be very vain, Cirrus himself is, and takes great care of his appearance (although it’s covered by a mask), so, naturally, he is well-groomed down there. He prefers to have a lover who also grooms their pubes, but it’s not a must. He will say something about it, sometime, when he’s feeling less nice.
I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? are they romantic?)
Sex is somewhat a transaction for him - he’s simply using you for his pleasure - but if he ever gets romantically involved, then yeah, expect intimate gestures, mainly outside of sex. Perhaps on an important date, such as a birthday or anniversary, he’ll make things romantic in the moment, but mostly, he’s indulging in his fantasies.
J = Jack off (masturbation headcannon)
He usually seeks out pornography when he’s feeling horny, whether that be a magazine or a prostitute, and he doesn’t really masturbate unless it’s because he’s in the mood for something less savoury.
K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)
He’s into hardcore sadism (I’m talking knifeplay, maybe some wound fucking) as well as discipline and bondage (he’s not really a masochist, though). Power play is also a turn on: call him Father, and he’s wanting you on your knees. Be obedient, and he’s sure to reward you.
L = Location (favourite places to have sex)
The bedroom, or whatever chamber where he’s able to get his hands on bdsm toys would be nice, although he’s not entirely opposed to having sex on the altar of the church, although the door has to be locked. He has an image, doesn’t he?
M = Motivation (what turns them on?)
Either be obedient or do something that would get you a punishment, and he’ll be rather horny. Whether that means engaging in sex or simply punishing/rewarding you is dependent on his mood.
N = No (what turns them off?)
He would get rather bored if you’re not respondent to pain, or he might try to push you further (think lasting wounds with that weird liquid). He finds things like scat a bit weird, but isn’t majorly turned off by it.
O = Oral (do they prefer giving or receiving? how skilled are they?)
Canonically, he prefers receiving (no I’m not digging up that post), and therefore doesn’t have much, if not any, experience giving. He does have a rough idea of what to do, if there’s ever the rare chance he wants to give you oral.
P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual?)
As for bdsm, he’ll push you and push you until he’s satisfied (or until you say the safe word). As for sex, he’s fast and rough, digging his nails into your hips and biting hard to make you yelp in pain.
Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies)
Not a big fan of quickies, as he’s already not a big fan of sex, and a quick session of impact play would only make him want more.
R = Risk (are they experimental? do they take risks?)
He’ll experiment for his own pleasure, and would take calculated risks, such as risking you passing out, but won’t put your health in jeopardy. He doesn’t want his favourite toy not being able to participate, does he?
S = Stamina (how long do they last?)
Assuming we’re talking about sex, he can last only about one or two rounds, as he doesn’t experience sex often.
T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them?)
He’s got all of them, including the more hardcore ones. I can’t see him in possession of a gimp suit, though, as well as some others. But he does have cock rings, vaginal clamps, sounding tools, gags, dildos, chains, etc.
U = Unfair (how much do they like to tease?)
He likes to tease a little, such as edgeplay, but doesn’t prolong the foreplay too long. He’s very unfair, as in he won’t let you top nor inflict pain onto him, and will punish you severely for that.
V = Volume (how loud are they?)
Canonically, he’s more quiet, unless he’s telling you what to do, then, as rottenraccoons put it, ‘the words will flow’.
W = Wild card (a random headcannon for the character)
He doesn’t necessarily have a mask kink, but he likes the idea of him being fully clothed during sex while you being completely naked. It reinstates the power dynamic in a physical way, and he’s sure to call you a slut and all those things while that is happening. He also can’t have sex without his sadism kicking in.
X = X-ray (let's see what's going on under those clothes)
According to this post, Cirrus isn’t the biggest, although they’re all around average proportionate to their body size, and Cirrus is rather tall, so I’d guess 5.9 inches (15 cm).
Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)
Not sex per se, as he doesn’t really want to engage in sex, but if you’re talking about his sadistic urges, then yes, it’s rather frequent, and can show up multiple times a week at random. If he favours you, his drive for sadism flares up more frequently, but he’s good at hiding it.
Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)
He’s got a pretty high sex drive, and usually tires you out before he tires himself out, but, on the occasion he’s tired (more often it’s him receiving), he’ll sleep quickly, cuddled in your sheets.
I just have this strong inkling that Sylus is gonna be a strongly multi-layered character. Like yes, he is a villain, and probably with good reason. Considering how the current timeline/story is so deeply woven with the myths and other phenomena we may not know of yet, it's likely that Sylus is this anomaly who exists to bring an unexpected sequence of events that hasn't been foretold by any prophecy or past life.
Knowing that Xavier's role has allusions to time and time traveling (the current timeline we play in is the past), he's essentially breaking that prophetic rule, in a way. Going back to the main timeline to try and save the MC, destroying the protocores in Onichynus' possession...
But everything that Xavier's purpose is, maybe Sylus has exceeded that already or intends to, at least. Since he's been watching the MC this whole time, and has seen her with Xavier/Lumiere... the central rivalry will transpire between those two. I can also see a rivalry between Rafayel and Sylus, only because Raf seems to have the deeper connections when it comes to networking and who does what, etc. (And with Zayne who became a cardiac surgeon with the intention of saving MC, it's likely a tense rivalry between him and Sylus would gradually turn into something of neutral ground.)
Anyway, my point of it all is: Sylus will break the pattern. Whatever curse there is that has been placed on MC, his existence seeks to rid of that curse by any means possible. I do truly believe he wants to let the world burn for her, and the protocore experimentation serves a greater purpose of trying to save her...
(NOTE: This was originally posted in September 2015 on Blogger/Blogspot.)
She sat on him to hold him down as she tried to tie him up, but she was small, and he was big and struggling, so she grabbed a big, somewhat heavy glass container with both hands and hit him over the head with it as hard as she could to knock him out. After he was out, she tied him up, picked up the knife she got from the kitchen and stabbed him in the heart and continued to stab him over and over again just to get out all of her anger and sadness over things that have absolutely nothing to do with him. When she was done, she was breathing hard and crying, not over her victim and what she did to him, she couldn't care less about him, but over why she did it. Then she changed clothes and proceeded to try and hide the body. Killing him just so she can take her emotions out on something is wrong, but she can't help feeling good now that they're finally out. Now she just needs to hide the body and clean up the evidence well enough to get away with it so she won't go to jail for something she feels was completely justified, and she knows she can never let this happen again.
life is for taking therapeutic walks and being in your own bubble and reading books in bed and drinking iced beverages and eating fruit and gaining new experiences and dozing in sunlight and finding love in everything and not letting guilt consume your life actually
Has anyone else noticed that there's been like a slow but kinda sudden surge in vampire anime recently, or is it just me? Like there's been, not alot but quite a few vampire anime coming out since 2020, and I'm just wondering why. Cause vampires have never been that popular in anime and there aren't alot of vampire animes out there. Now all of a sudden there's several coming out. Here's a list (all info from LiveChart.me).
when your 15 year cash cow is the only thing keeping your unprofitable network afloat and it’s ending so you produce a copaganda show starring one of the main actors in an attempt to keep that dedicated audience, but in marketing this new show you butcher the cash cow’s last season and alienate a significant portion of the viewers, the finale inevitably overshadowed by accusations of queerbait and homophobia which drives off those viewers from your network completely, and now you’re left with a reboot of walker texas ranger in a politically divisive cultural climate and you realize that the actor that stayed on your network wasn’t really the main draw to your television behemoth and the other actors who arguably did draw in viewers have moved on to other projects with no interest in coming back to your network, and then your star actor has a twitter meltdown and the other main actor in your copaganda leaves for “personal reasons” and your powerpuff girls live-action remake gets its pilot script leaked and torn apart over social media and somehow riverdale becomes your last line of defense against online streaming who is quickly destroying network television which you haven’t made money off of since 2006 anyway
this is literally the most asinine reductive explanation of what’s happening with the CW network. it’s also factually incorrect in many ways. i’m going to break it down bit by bit because it’s full of blatant misinformation and it frustrates me when people spin falsehoods that get rebageled and put on my dash by people i respect or admire.
i don’t have time right now to pull up social media-related sources for some of these but i can try to do so over the weekend if anyone wants evidence for things stated in my rebutals that i didn’t link yet here.
background: the CW, which is a jointly-owned network by the WB and ViacomCBS, isn’t profitable on its own in the era of streaming, and the joint venture is looking to sell
-
claim: SPN was a cash-cow for the network and is in trouble specifically because it ended
reality: first for clarity, the CW is a network that broadcasts programs made by other companies such as WB and (viacom) CBS studios who jointly owned it. so the cw itself doesn’t own the IP of the things that air on that network necessarily - they are the distributer of those products. so SPN wasn’t their ‘cash cow’ in the way that you think. the CW as a network doesn’t profit off the IP merch or such for SPN, that would be the WB profiting – and is still pulling in revenue considering that SPN merch, conventions, etc are all still going and it’s getting tons and tons of views on netflix according to monthly ratings for acquired series.
(as evidence for that last one about viewership, click this link then scroll to the ‘acquired’ tab. looking at the data for december 2020, which is over a year after the SPN finale aired, the show is still #6 in streaming platform viewership for acquired series. that’s huge. you realize that’s huge, right? the WB is still making money off of SPN).
meanwhile viacomCBS are the side producing and filming walker, so a hit in merch and IP-related stuff from spn isn’t really tied to the profit CBS/walker is making anyway, and what really matters for the CW and that joint-venture and joint profit is viewership.
the CW as a network brings in money predominately through ad revenue based on the number of eyes on their programs (on network and online). so let’s look at viewership numbers.
-
claim/implication: the cw is bleeding viewers due to spn ending and walker being inadequate to help fix things
reality: this one is so easy to fact-check omg. supernatural has decreased viewers as time has gone on. it wasn’t a cash-cow in viewership anymore, because by season 15 was averaging like 1mil viewers (other than the finale episode which was higher), and walker in its first season had incredibly similar averages. walker is doing as much for the cw as supernatural was at the end.
i obviously don’t have this data, but it’s not unreasonable to guess that walker would be costing less to produce than the late seasons spn as well. this would be because of things like consistent sets, costuming, and way less monster-makeup and special effects and cgi, all of which were shoestring by the end of spn because the budget was being stretched. if you don’t know, this is partly because contracts for people who work on shows increase with each season (and reportedly but i can’t fact-check this one, j2 of spn accepted lower salary increases than industry standards in late season to help ensure the show they loved could continue for longer and stay afloat, which if true really pops that cash-cow myth.)
-
claim: the finale was overshadowed by claims of queerbaiting and homophobia and this has made a problem for the cw because of large-scale boycott or viewers being “driven” from the network
reality: while some fans have made claims of homophobia and queerbaiting, there has been a positive trend in spn viewership on other platforms like netflix that is still going over a year later (as of dec 2020 data).
(possibly because most viewers don’t actually care about d*stiel and don’t see it, and even a huge proportions of queer fans like myself and my friends who watch it all don’t ship it and have never wanted to see it in canon.)
the claim of queerbaiting has never even made sense to me though? first because the show was never about shipping or romance and has stayed true to its focus on family from the very beginning. it wasn’t in the narrative. but second because queerbaiting is a marketing technique to string along queer viewers and profit off queer fans. and while misha collins might profit (with/via Stands) on d*stiel merch, rather than complain about that profiteering, fans seem to be taking their queerbait complaints against everyone else?
meanwhile the show’s creator and the various every showrunner, producer, decision-maker, and j2 as co-leads have all been clear that the show is about sam and dean, and that romance is not only not the focus of the story, but to quote jensen ackles about this ship in particular, “destiel does not exist”. it can’t get any blunter. it’s not baiting when you’re being explicitly told for several years on end that it’s not happening and won’t ever happen and that’s it not what the show is about. it’s just projecting your wishes onto fandom, buying into distorted fandom meta and slowed down gifs and image manips, and then blaming the narrative for being what it always was, rather than what you were hoping it would become.
bizarrely from what i can tell, no one is boycotting the show itself, which is the purported homophobic entity itself? instead folks are blaming the cw as a network??? the cw doesn’t create the content! the WB does that! the cw really has no role in the writing or ‘censorship’ at all. please stop blaming the cw for this.
also worth noting: the cw in 2020 had the greatest % of main character queer rep any major US network according to GLAAD (page 11). it’s literally #1. so if people are actually boycotting the cw because d*stiel didn’t go canon then they’re actively spitting in the face of the network trying its hardest to listen to queer audiences and making the most space for that representation.
thanks, i guess, for telling networks that anything less than your favorite ship or character being queer isn’t enough and that you’ll boycott them despite all their best and genuine efforts because queer representation doesn’t matter unless shippers are happy. that’s definitely helping fight the good fight /s
-
claim: spn season 15 was ruined to advertise walker
reality: spn’s writing has been a mess for years (dabb does not know how to corale his writers) and continued on its existing trajectory. tons of the general audience and a major proportion of fans in fandom actually enjoyed the ending of the series (myself included), and the show’s end was beloved enough to spark a renewed interest that is partially the reason for its massive viewing numbers for acquired shows on netflix, ever since the end of the series.
to be honest the entire thing about spn somehow marketing walker is so ridiculous i have to laugh. i have no other reaction to it. where? show me where in the series it markets walker. because jared padalecki had one shirtless scene in the finale? like ????? if they were going to advertise walker in the final season they might have had an episode with a texas ranger or sam and dean masquerading as rangers or literally anything like that. but they didn’t. because this claim makes no sense and holds zero water.
(look if you didn’t like s15 fine - i didn’t love most of it either. but that has nothing to do with walker. the lack of reciprocation in d*stiel has nothing to do with walker either or maintaining a conservative audience. the story was never going to go that way; it’s been about sam and dean from start to finish and about platonic and familial love. as mentioned above, everyone leading the show has said so, including showrunners referring to spn as “the epic love story of sam and dean”. spn was just staying true to its roots and its characters and if you don’t like that then write about how vexing it is for shows to have storylines that don’t suit your tastes and how little there is out there that represents the narratives you want to see, rather than pretending one show would deliberately altar its own narrative in meaningful to advertise an entirely different property).
-
claim: jared padalecki had a twitter meltdown
reality: padalecki did not have a twitter meltdown. he responded in a tweet that he wasn’t aware an spn prequel series was in production when it was announced, and then indicated confusion/hurt over this when asked directly if he was seriously not aware of it. that hurt is reasonable and makes sense considering he was on the show for 15 years as co-lead, and the announcement of the prequel was less than a year after it ended. you can call him unprofessional if you want for being transparent about his lack of knowledge, but it’s unprofessional to announce a spin-off series without informing the co-lead and co-face of the show so no one came out of this looking like an angel. the others attached to the prequel have since explained and acknowledged the miscommunication, and in either case the issue was swiftly resolved privately, the entire thing sorted.
most importantly, one tweet is not a ‘twitter meltdown’, nor is it a meltdown to express confusion over a property you’ve been a face of for 15 years having a spin-off you were unaware of. padalecki sent one other tweet to a writer attached to the prequel that was swiftly deleted because it was a step too far, and that also really doesn’t constitute a meltdown.
it’s also worth noting that padalecki has been incredibly open and transparent over mental health struggles for over a decade and has championed various mental health causes. there is an insidious ableism to accusing a man who is open about his emotions, transparent, and actively struggles with anxiety and depression of having a “meltdown” because of one professional tweet and one more personal one which was, again, swiftly deleted and likely an impulse.
(sidebar here that the amount of “jokes” i’ve seen on twitter making fun of him for simply admitting he was upset over the lack of communication is… fucking gross, honestly. it’s not even really padalecki you hurt with those jokes, it’s everyone, predominately young and impressionable teens on the platform and mentally ill people. making those jokes and claiming a reasonable response to shocking and upsetting news is ‘meltdown’ promotes the idea that people shouldn’t be allowed to express their emotions and are hysterical for having valid reasons to be hurt and daring to communicate that hurt. i wish everyone who has made those tweets would take a moment to consider the message they are spreading to their loved ones about how safe they can feel sharing their vulnerable emotions with them.)
-
implication(??): lindsey morgan’s personal reasonings for leaving walker were for something related to padalecki?? or due to the network??
reality: lindsey morgan has posted time and again about her love for the show, her absolute respect for padalecki and the walker team, and how hard it has been to leave because it is such an amazing environment to work in and an amazing experience to be part of. reducing her genuine heartfelt words to distorted implications to further some anti-cw agenda is frustrating beyond belief.
crew members of the show have also referred to walker as a ‘golden goose’ show because the working conditions are so good, with work days capped at reasonable hours (including no pushing the crew friday night into saturday sun-up which apparently is normal in hollywood but padalecki in his role as producer reportedly won’t allow to happen on his show).
-
Addendums:
i can’t pretend walker isn’t copaganda but so is supernatural in its later seasons, with its love for law enforcement (jody, donna) and the shifted message from the kripke era (our boys are criminals and acab) to what it became in the later era (our boys are good friends with cops, everyone trusts law enforcement, and cops are never in the wrong, and hunters are basically cops against monsters). if you want to level a critique at walker do the same for spn.
i can’t speak to the PPG script except that it was bad and the developers are right to re-work it.
-
Opinion:
the cw has a big issue in terms of its diversification of content because they went hard with superhero shows and put too many eggs in that basket (i mean this is mostly the WB but the cw is airing those) and i believe that moving to include shows like walker is probably a healthy step for the network, but there is a real problem they’re having with appealing to the core audience of younger viewers who typically eat up the cw content in the era of online streaming when teens and young adults consume media predominately via streaming platform. the cw is in a difficult position as a network/distributor and the moves they’re making reflect that. but absolutely none of those problems, from what i can tell, are a result of walker or queerphobia.
ultimately the sale is probably a good thing?
(edit: came back to add that other reports indicate the cw literally never been profitable since it was created in 2006, so this cash-cow line is really truly incorrect if so. which makes sense because cw didn’t own any IP so it doesn’t reap the rewards of those shows, just the viewership, and that’s not enough to run a network. but WB and CBS needed a cable distributor for their content so that they could profit of that IP, but now that’s changed with streaming. anyway - )
WB and ViacomCBS will still likely be minority-share owners of the CW according to the current reporting. the article i linked above (here again) talks about other mergers and activities of these companies that will ultimately help them create media for 21st century audiences on streaming platforms, and allow the WB and Viacom to individually pursue their strengths in other ventures.
to quote the article “…both WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS prefer to focus on creating new content over managing an old model.” < – that is literally good business, guys. it’s essential to adapt to changing times. this has probably been a long-time coming before its become public.
if i had to guess, though i could be wrong, i’d assume that it’s necessary for them to go in other directions and that they couldn’t jointly manage the cw due to contractual obligations elsewhere anyway. it seems like the WB with its superhero content and SPN will be pairing up with HBOMax for darker and more adult content presumably (like Titans), whereas ViacomCBS which creates Walker is teaming up with Paramount so will likely make new content in that vein.
Such a good rebuttal. WITH SOURCES.
Gonna spin off on a little bit of a tangent, here.
There’s a lot of discussion to be had, and we surely don’t know all the facts, but I’m repeatedly disappointed by the lies and misinformation and just flat-out shittiness oozing from the parts of fandom who felt they were owed something from the show, and when they didn’t get it, they’ve been behaving poorly ever since, and doing their damnedest to tear down everything in their path. To hurt others the way they feel they’ve been hurt. To do real-world harm.
Maybe I’m not disappointed, actually, because this has become standard operating procedure and they’re simply living down to those expectations.
I understand the hurt. I understand how fandom in-fighting has led to a persistent us vs. them behavior model. “They’re winning”, and we can’t let that happen, can we?
I understand how a dogged narrative of fanon within parts of fandom has led to the belief of certain truths that are actually just apophenia (or flat-out deceit), and because of the passion (and inflated importance) of these things, the sting is real. The feeling of being fooled … is real. The sunk cost fallacy is real.
But I have to wonder: who’s doing the fooling here? When no one looks for actual facts (or they get them from thoroughly untrustworthy sources and stop looking there, because it confirms their beliefs), who’s really fooling whom?
Why does this look so much like flat-earthers or qanon? Why does “Release the tapes, Jackles” sound so much like “Stop the steal”? Because it’s the same psychological pattern and behavior and conspiracy theories. And look where that got US(A).
Shake your brains and get those little grey cells activated, gang. Parse the feelings from the facts. I know it’s tough, but we can do it. (This is me reminding me, too!)
RavenStar Yui @ravenstaryui - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
germansingergirl
kaledo-art
origamiaround
romaincrisis
yousharknotpass
