EXPECTATIONS
The Bright Sessions
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Sade Olutola
Fai_Ryy
noise dept.
Aqua Utopia｜海の底で記憶を紡ぐ
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Cosmic Funnies
One Nice Bug Per Day
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Game of Thrones Daily
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@tacocattacocattacocatexplosion
i feel like a big part of the appeal of dungeon crawler carl is that it is fundamentally a story where a man is told "through complex legal and technological processes we have completely fucked over the lives of you and everyone you care about to enrich ourselves" to which the man asks "what if i killed you with bombs" and it turns out the answer is they forgot that was an option
Keeping the tags in
It's so funny to me that after all these years White Wolf is still shocked by the fact that people want to fuck vampires.
"Vampires don't fuck." [fans ignored that]
"Vampires can fuck, but it's all vitae, it's all blood, every fluid is blood—yes, every fluid! And their bodies are cold and icky and gross. Ha-ha! How do you like that?" [fans are into it]
"Fuck's wrong with you people. This is a Christian server. Vampires can't fuck unless they have high Humanity." [fans ignored that]
And now in v6 vampires who lean "Monstrous" can't enjoy sex. Just let vampires fuck, fellas. Or spice it up a little. What if only low-Humanity vampires can fuck? All I'm saying is that you can't win the war against vampire-fuckers.
The discourse around fated mates has become so painfully contradictory that all I can do is laugh.
If you genuinely believe the trope is inherently immoral because it "takes away choice"... why the fuck are you choosing to read books built around that exact trope?
No one is forcing you to read fantasy romance. I don't read dark mafia romance because dub-con and non-con aren't for me. That's called curating your reading. I don't spend a decade demanding those books abandon the very tropes they were written to explore.
SJM has been writing fated mates for well over a decade. It's one of the foundational pillars of her worlds. This didn't suddenly materialize because you got attached to a ship, one that is so painfully obvious a red herring for Elucien.
The author chooses the trope first. Then she builds a narrative to explore it. That's literally how storytelling works.
Some of y'all have self-inserted so hard you've forgotten these are fictional people in a fictional world operating under fictional rules.
SJM has literally explained why she paired certain characters as mates: because she wanted to tell that story. Two people who begin with distance, discomfort, indifference, resentment, and impossible odds discovering whether they can grow into love anyway.
The obstacles aren't proof the mating bond is failing. The obstacles are the story. Complaining that a fated mates romance explores the complications of being fated mates is like complaining a murder mystery has a dead body, enemies-to-lovers starts with conflict, or Game of Thrones has dragons.The trope is the premise. The characters exist to explore it. What's so fucking fake and funny is watching people scream that fated mates are "problematic" while simultaneously insisting their own ship are the real mates. Bitch, pick a fucking lane.
... is the trope immoral, or do you just want it to apply to your favorite couple?
These are fictional characters in a fictional world built around a fictional magical bond. If that isn't your thing, there are thousands upon thousands of romance books built around different relationship dynamics. Go read those.
What I'm tired of is the fake moral outrage over a trope that has been central to SJM's writing for over ten years. Not every book is written for every reader, and authors are under absolutely no obligation to abandon the foundations of their own worlds because a corner of the fandom suddenly decided they don't like one of fantasy romance's most recognizable tropes and we know SJM will never give into fan service, she has continued to write mates as endgame and I can bet she will never change that.
Read it or don't.
But stop acting surprised when a fantasy author writes... fantasy.
Honestly, if I collected half the posts from people suddenly acting morally offended by fated mates and showed them to the fantasy authors I know, they'd laugh. Hell, I think SJM would laugh too. This genre has been playing with magical bonds, destiny, prophecies, soulmates, and fate for decades.
Yes, there are fantasy romances where mates reject or break the bond. And guess what? Nine times out of ten, that's just the setup for a second-chance romance, because the author is still exploring the mate bond as the central narrative device. Spoiler for ZA (Tori HATED Darius, she flat our rejected him, readers were mad and guess what, by the end of the series, they were endgame) Every author uses the trope differently, but they are always endgame because it is what the trope demands.
SJM has been remarkably consistent about how she uses it. She's a HEA writer. Her romances don't end in tragedy or permanent heartbreak, They end with her couples finding their MATE/EQUAL and choosing each other. Whether people like that or not doesn't really matter. It's her story.
Some of y'all aren't even arguing with the text anymore. You're arguing with the genre, the conventions of fantasy romance, and the very storytelling foundation SJM has built her worlds on for over a decade. Then you turn around and act morally superior because you don't like one of the genre's most established tropes. Well... go read another author.
The rest of us are going to keep reading the books the author actually wants to write, not the ones you've rewritten in your head.
i refuse to put any effort into a shitpost so happy pride 🏳️🌈
The thing that compels me about Lasombra clan culture is how much it's basically a cycle of abuse. When the Lasombra ignited the First Anarch Revolt, they saw the exploitation of the old over the young and rightfully wanted to free themselves from it. Patricide is encouraged and seen as a way of overcoming weakness and escaping this system, but in reality, the childe ends up replacing the father and perpetuating the cycle until another childe comes to replace her in turn.
Lasombra will tell you they aim to break the shackles of blood that chain us to the elders. But what chain have they truly broken when one link simply replaces the next? There's no freedom here. A prisoner kills her jailor and becomes the jailor herself, all the while still in that same prison.
Do you think Lasombra shadowplay exists? They can make you feel things by touching your shadow so what happens when two Lasombra touch each other's shadows.
Jurian is the funniest character in the entire ACOTAR series and I'm pretty sure most of what makes him so funny isn't even on purpose. like he's a living legend. he led a slave revolt and allegedly spent the whole time bragging about how great he is. he's a femme fatale. he crucified someone. for five hundred years, he was Spirit Halloween costume jewelry. he eats loudly. he was such an obvious double agent and literally nobody around him noticed even though four of them could read minds and his motive for siding with the baddies made no sense. he's really annoying. he's deeply traumatized. his ex girlfriend tried to murder him in the middle of the final battle of the series. despite being a relatively minor character, the main trilogy nearly ends on him and Feyre talking about the future. his best friends are a queen he unintentionally got turned into a bird and a centuries old nobleman he spent months intentionally antagonizing. he's almost a king. he's sprawled out on a ridiculous pink couch. he's undead. he's literally just a guy.
Stardew Valley helps with stress ngl
So Lucien loves Vassa but he's going to challenge Azriel in a Blood Duel for Elain? (@primulagoldworthy gets credit for this thought)
(That'll be weird for Vassa).
So E/riel is forbidden but I thought Lucien didn't even want her because he's already in love with Vassa? That must mean Vassa is more forbidden than e/riel considering she's human and we all know what Beron thinks of Lucien's lovers who aren't High Fae. Not to mention a human female wanting the mate of a High Fae female would be even more forbidden still.
And if Lucien has no interest in Elain because he wants Vassa then how will Elain's story will be about choice? Ma'am, if he doesn't want you then what choice are you making?
So E/riels think Elain saying she doesn't want a mate or male no longer matters because she clearly now wants a male. But if Elain, from one book to the next, could changed her mind on wanting a male, doesn't that mean she can also change her mind from one book to the next on wanting a mate? And if the answer is no then why do they romanticize Az saying he wants to be Elain's mate because clearly she doesn't want one of those?
So E/riels claim that if Elain's bond with Lucien is real then she shouldn't be able to feel attraction for another person but I thought they were mad about the bond taking away her choice? Shouldn't Elain's ability to still feel physical attraction for someone who isn't her mate prove she does have choice? Correct me if I'm wrong but she does still have eyes and she is currently single, right? She is just getting out of a serious relationship so doesn't she deserve to see what's out there? Mating bond does not equal her admission into a convent. Shouldn't they applaud Sarah's handling of Elain's autonomy? Which would then prove, if she does choose Lucien as her forever, it was in fact a choice because she was able to explore before settling down for eternity? (It's a pretty hallmark feature of Sarah's writing). It doesn't matter that Elain has known about her bond because she still deserves to have experiences the same as both Feyre and Nesta did before accepting their bonds. Sarah's not going to force Elucien's story before it's time just because they instantly knew about their bond, she wouldn't write Elain as being the only fmc who doesn't get to make a few mistakes before saying "I do". What she does, however, is write the male being loyal to his mate once he suspects she's his mate and Lucien has got that part down pat.
So E/riels claim there's all this noise about Gwynriel when nothing has shown she's romantically interested in Az but aren't they the same ones who insist Vassa and Lucien want one another despite Vassa showing ZERO romantic interest in Lucien?
I'm nobody to say one way or another, of course, but I feel when someone is shooting themselves in the foot with their own arguments maybe their arguments aren't all that great.
Then they think they can tear apart the posts we make by saying things like "they're stupid for shipping Gwynriel because it's canon Az wouldn't call Gwyn a friend!" and "Eluciens are delusional because Elain will never forgive Lucien!" or "Elain shrinks from Lucien!" and "Elain was aroused by Azriel and he wanted her too!"
But you know who once cringed at the sound of Rhys's name? Who was once scared of Rhys? Feyre.
You know who once said about Lorcan, "And that means he earns my forgiveness?" Elide
You know who once told Aelin they weren't friends? Rowan
You know was also aroused by Azriel? Nesta
You know who Azriel also wanted? Mor while Elain sat in the room with them. (I don't know who needs to hear this but attraction can easily come and go and there is NO RULE that says just because E/riel nearly kissed and felt attraction for one another they HAVE to end up together)
You know who was aroused by another man even after meeting her mate? Feyre
You know who laid in bed beside her endgame person while missing another man? Aelin
We actually have precedent with Sarah's writing that proves their arguments don't have any weight because every single endgame pairing has overcome far more than Gwynriel or Elucien would need to overcome in order to end up together.
The other side might be loud with their arguments but that doesn't actually make them valid.
More canon facts, let’s go:
Lucien is not “untrained.” He trained with Tamlin for hundreds of years, a high lord that even Rhys admitted was more skilled fighter than him.
He got “winded” while hiking with Feyre because he was drugged at the time, impacting him physically.
Lucien fought across an entire battlefield to get to Elain in ACOWAR. He stated that he didn’t wish to fight again, but that doesn’t mean he can’t.
Lucien was able to break through the King of Hybern’s restraints to get to Elain. No one else managed that.
Cassian is the most skilled fighter in the Night Court, nicknamed the Lord of Bloodshed. Lucien was able to magically force Cassian to obey him with just the sound of his voice.
Lucien has respected Elain’s need for time and distance. He has never forced her to do anything and has never been possessive of her and fought the instinctual need from the bond. There are no signs that he would call a Blood Duel.
Elain stated in SF that she is not a thing to be fought over.
In the bonus chapter for the same book, Azriel says he would fight Lucien for her and “kill him with little effort.”
Give me Elain shrinking into herself around Lucien. Give me Elain being so damn uncomfortable around him that she's ready to flee the room. Give me Lucien being the one character that has Elain unable to put on her mask of "everything is great, I'm great, we're all great - nothing to see here"; the one person Elain can't fake it around. Give me Lucien being the one who forces her to deal with the things she's trying to avoid dealing with simply by being in her presence because their bond lets him see what nobody else sees, what she keeps secret from everyone else so as not to disappoint them and she hates it because she wants to keep pretending. Give me Lucien for Elain because he's the only one who we've ever seen disrupt the unhealthy "I'll happily care for your gardens then serve you a dinner I helped cook while we share in such proper polite conversation around the table!" persona she's trying to put out there so as not to make herself a burden. Give me Lucien because he's the only one who makes Elain feel something real because real is messy and uncomfortable especially in her situation, where she just lost her father, her fiance, her humanity. Give me Lucien for Elain because she should be out of her comfort zone in order to change, to grow, to heal. Staying in the same repetitive routines while living with Rhys and Feyre, having had no new experiences from after the war ended until the end of SF has done nothing for her outside of give her the same "safety" that Tamlin gave to Feyre while she was in the Spring Court. Elain needs someone to push her and challenge what she's feeling and it's clear she's getting none of that in the NC (outside of the fights she had with Nesta). If she's uncomfortable but just around Lucien? Good. If she shrinks back from him? Good. All that means is he's the one person whose proximity forces her to feel something different and that's exactly what a fmc needs if she's going to lead a book.
In the 88 Cups of Tea podcast Sarah mentioned how she's been a baker her whole life.
In a special edition copy of ACOFAS she mentioned how she would be a florist if she weren't an author.
In another interview she was asked who she'd be best friends with. She took some time to think it over but decided on Elain because she said she'd most likely share her real life energy.
Sarah also mentioned being obsessed with Jamie Fraser, she even thanked the actor who played him in her ACOTAR acknowledgements and based Lucien's character of him.
She also mentioned being the founder and President of a Lord of the Rings fanclub and the reluctant leader but clearly meant to be king similarities between Lucien and Aragon are fairly obvious.
She also called Lucien her love and said he's always been one of her favorite characters.
She also said it would be fun to write a book with Lucien because of how intelligent he is.
She also mated Elain and Lucien.
At the end of the day, we’re arguing with a community of people who have doxxed, harassed, and bullied Gwynriels and Eluciens on multiple accounts, while they do nothing to hold anyone accountable. A group of people who have been racist, ableist, and overall very problematic and instead of making changes, point fingers and say, “well you did this!”
To expect any kind of accountability is a waste of time, energy, and effort.
And I don’t know about you, but I refuse to listen to women who peaked in high school. Let them talk. They love to spew bullshit, no substance.
In what world is tall muscular man not conventionally attractive
We've all been down here too long. I truly think there's a chunk of tumblr's population that can no longer survive sunlight.
women will say “hear me out” and show u a photo of pyramid head and then tumblr users will go “this is a perfectly normal man and an ice cold take”
Like the ship or not, the Elucien mating bond reveal was one of the best plot twists in the series so far and I'll stand by that
I’m so hype for it
Attention history nerds, I am looking for books on specific topics and was looking for suggestions if you have any that you have read. The topics are tuberculosis (Victorian/gilded era) anything on the spiritual movement in the 1800s and Edwardian era, paranormal/cult societies during that time period, and anything about sideshow/circus stuff. If you know of any good ones let me know I may or may not have a side project I was cooking.
I appreciate any responses I get.
