#ask roundup

[lesbian-vmin]

Ask Roundup #2

Nope. I don't have any recent asks, but I do have over 100 in my inbox that haven't been deleted yet. I said in this (x) post that I wanted to revisit some of my old analyses and clear some things up, and some of the asks in my box relate to things that I've said before. I'm not going to be answering them individually because I don't wanna overwhelm my followers' notification (if anyone gets notified when I post) and clog your dash.

So, anyway, I'm taking the opportunity to go back to some things I've said before. I'm also heavily paraphrasing (especially for many asks that are related) because these are so old. The people who sent them may or may not be hanging around my blog anymore, but I don't want anyone to feel called out (even though that's not my intention, and not what this is going to be about - I'm going for light and soft-hearted here). But I've had people be offended when I've answered asks in certain ways, and since these are so old, I don't wanna do that.

Anyway. Roundup below the cut.

a few asks were along these lines:

I really like your posts! I like how your answers and analyses are well thought out, and I appreciate how you don't "read too much" into things. You appreciate all the members and value their friendships, and I just wanna say that makes me happy. BTS really cheers me up and they help me through tough times.

I started with this topic because my earliest ask in my box actually pertained to this, but I also wanted to thank everyone who sent something like this in. As I was reading over my analyses, I can see where certain people may have taken what I said out of context. I still believe that I was clear and thorough in a lot of my own responses, but I also understand that a lot of people are going to pick and choose what they want to see.

As this is a Vmin blog, I've focused a lot on Vmin. I've stated in the past that I can see the potential of something romantic going on between them (and that hasn't really changed), but that was never my point. I don't like Vmin because I think they are a couple or would make a cute couple. I like Vmin because of their friendship and their vibe. At one point in this blog (an among the fandom in general), we could just talk about that. But, my, how this family has grown. As BTS skyrocketed to popularity, a lot more people are here to take things out of context. And that's just what they'll do. My main focus on this blog was supposed to be Vmin's friendship (with the occasional fun theory that there might be something else going on because I like to play and let my imagination go...I'm human...I don't wanna be all logical and serious all the time. I wanna have fun. but it's supposed to be harmless, and I wanted it to be perceived by people who could take it lightly. Unfortunately, I can't control who sees my content), but people kept coming here asking me to validate their shipping beliefs. And sometimes going so far as to demand that I debunk j/k shipping theories, even though I don't even care about that. If you know me at all, you know I'm more interested in Hope/Kook, so while j/k is freaking adorable to me, it's never interfered with me enjoying vmin. And too many people kept trying to ruin that for me.

Anyway, to those of you who sent asks like these in, I am sincerely thankful. Because it really goes to show that are people out there who can read what you are trying to say and understand your intent. At least, I truly want to believe that's what these asks meant. That you all understood that I wasn't trying to "prove" anything and just trying to enjoy my blog about vmin and their friendship. It's possible these asks were sent with the intent to thank me for confirming shipping thoughts, but I need to believe that you all just really understood me. So that's the meaning I'm going to choose for these.

Someone said:

Hobi is the cutest

Another said:

Hobi really is the cutest

And another:

But really HOBI IS THE CUTEST

To which I say, yes. Yes, he really is. There is so much Hobi love in my inbox, guys. I'm not even joking. I kept them around for a while because they'd make me smile every time I read through my asks. So thank you all who sent in adorable Hobi asks.

Sometimes people complained:

You always refer to Vmin's friendship, and that gets tiring. Can there be one vmin blogger that doesn't say they're "friends?"

When I'm just posting theories and trying to have fun, yes, I agree. It's exhausting to have to disclaim and point out that I'm aware of their friendship all the time. Sometimes I just wanna go off with a fun little theory and have likeminded people read it, smile, and go about their day. By likeminded people, I mean people who understand that it's a theory. That's all. It's not something I believe. It's not something I'm trying to push onto other people. I'm just having fun and allowing my thoughts to pour out with people who want to read it all in good fun. So yes, in these terms, it'd be nice not to have remind people all the time that my theories on the idea that Vmin could possibly have an intimate relationship together is not me saying that I believe they are anything "more" than friends. I would love to leave out disclaimers and have fun.

That being said, if you want to find a vmin blog to be more concrete in the idea that they are anything "more" than friends (god I hate that term because why is romantic love "more?"), stop. There are bloggers out there who will validate you and post more theories about how they believe Vmin are in a relationship and try to bring up points to prove it (most, if not all, of which can be debunked, mind you). However, these are not the people you need to be following and listening to. It's pretty invasive to try to assume you know everything about someone's personal relationship when you have very limited access to their personal life. I have talked about how limited our view on their lives are, so I'm not going to go into that here.

And finally. Calling someone "friends" or referring to someone as your "best friend" doesn't invalidate the possibility of romance. Many couples refer to each other as their best friend. Relationships founded on friendship are actually the strongest relationship out there. So, the reason I will always refer to Vmin as friends (even in posts talking about romantic potential) is because they are friends and referring to them as such doesn't invalidate any other sort of relationship. It just reinforces the one thing we do know about them. They. Are. Friends.

Someone asked:

Can we talk about ji/hope though???

Um, absolutely! Any BTS ship is fair game on this blog. Honestly, if I really wanted to, I could talk about the potential romance between them all. However, the focus on this blog is friendship (and possible romantic vmin or hope/kook and obviously romantic taegi lolololol okno when I wanna play). And all Hobi ships are especially welcome here. Hobi anything (nice) really!

So let's talk about jihope. I don't know many (if any) Jihope shippers, so I can't say anything about their fans. However, this ship is so incredibly precious to me. With Hobi and JM being two of the best dancers in the group, it's no surprise that they'd be relatively close and have special and cute moments all the time.

I think Hobi has this sort of personality where he can joke with the members and tease them, but he feels bad if it goes too far or if one of the members seems upset about it. And I feel like this side of him really shows around JM, as he's always supporting him and giving him complements.

JM is really supportive of all of his members. I mean, really. Anyone who calls themselves BTS's biggest fan clearly hasn't been paying attention. BTS is their own biggest fan, and JM is the biggest fan of them all. I think he's Hobi's biggest fan, too. When it comes to the best dancer in BTS, the fans can argue about it all day. Ask JM, and he'll say it's Hobi. After all, Hobi is literally their dance captain.

That being said, I think it's funny because Hobi and JM can sometimes seem to be the sweetest members of the group, but they both have their moments. I love it when the members talk about receiving dance instruction from them. Hobi can be mean sometimes, but Jimin is said to be really nice about it. I think that actually could stem from Hobi being in charge of dance, so he feels responsible, and that could possibly give him stress when trying to help the members. But it's just a funny little difference between the two.

As far as talking about Jihope in general, I think this will do for now. I may bring up topics about them later. We'll see.

someone asked:

3 movie recommendations? favorite thing you've written? the sun, the moon, or the stars?

This was someone wanting to participate in a soft ask thing I reblogged a while back. I guess I missed this. Don't know if this person is still around here, but I'll answer it anyway.

Movies: First of all, Wish You on Netflix. It's pretty a pretty appropriate recommendation coming from this blog. Not only is it a Korean movie, but it's also about two boys who work in the music industry and how they fall in love with each other. I honestly didn't have very high hopes when I started watching this movie, and I was pleasantly impressed with the overall outcome. You can feel the awkwardness between the two characters as they try to come to terms with their feelings, but it doesn't highlight the "oh this is weird...he's a boy....he shouldn't be making me feel this way" the way a lot of LGBT+ movies (especially Asian ones) tend to do. The two boys sing a romantic song together, and it's not highlighted in a way that it's "a romantic song and two boys are singing it together", and I absolutely love that. The other characters are also such big supporters of them, and the entire movie is just done really well. Watch it. Please. This is how gay movies should be made. (I'm not saying slipping in realistic problems that gay people face isn't acceptable, but sometimes we just wanna watch a movie that shows us what it would be like to live in a world where we can just exist. And sometimes, dragging attention to the character's identity too much makes it feel like being a gay movie is the selling point rather than just being a romantic movie with a nice tale. Like...DoNt FoRgEt ThIs ChArAcTeR iS gAy!!!11!!!1!! ThAtS wHy YoUrE wAtChInG tHiS!!!1!!)

I won't ramble with my next two recommendations: Abbey Grace and Tom & Huck. These are probably the two most random recommendations, but I really have a wide range of interests, and I feel like these two movies are as different as can be. Especially with the first recommendations. Do be warned, Abbey Grace is a horror film, so if that's not your cup of tea, don't watch it. I'm not a big horror film either, but this one was really well made for a horror movie. Tom & Huck is based on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. The movie is quite a bit different than the book, and you have to keep in mind that it's an old movie. Like...as old as vmin old movie. But it's enjoyable, nonetheless.

Also, these aren't my favorite movies, but they are all moves I've enjoyed a lot. So maybe you can learn a little about me, too, if you watch them. lol

Favorite thing I've written: Coffee Love. It was my first major BTS fan fiction that I worked on with a couple of friends. It went on for a long time, but I'm no longer making updates to it. I've considered doing a revamp, but we'll see.

Sun, moon, or stars? I cannot even look at the sun. It blinds me when I'm trying to drive, and I cannot drive on extra sunny days because I can't see anything. I am extremely sensitive to light, so not a fan of the sun. I also love the night view, so I obviously prefer the moon and stars over Our Star. If I had to choose between them, the moon. Because there's only one, and most of the light provided at night actually comes from the moon shining the sun's light back on us. If you are ever out in the country or wilderness, you'll notice that's why nights where there's a full moon are brighter than new moons.

And now I think we've discovered that I absolutely cannot answer a question without rambling. But how boring would it be if I just said "the moon"? You don't learn anything about me that way.

someone asked

do you watch BL anime?

I have tried to get into a couple of BL anime (I have watch GL(?) anime, too, which tends to be more well done in my opinion), but I can't really get into a lot of them.

Most BL anime that I have seen glorifies SH and SA to a level that I'm uncomfortable with. It's always one character strongly pursuing, to the point of forcing himself onto the other character. It's harassment, abusive, and I do not approve. If it was a male character pursuing a female character in this way, people would see the issue. But since it's gay, it's hot or not that serious.

If you can recommend me some with a genuinely nice story line, I might appreciate it more. But as a general rule, I steer clear of BL anime.

people asked:

about bed sharing / car sharing?

I think there was a point in time where I got a lot of asks in regard to car sharing, and I mentioned how I don't think it means anything. A lot of the times, the members don't even get to choose which car they go into. I honestly don't think they get that much freedom in general. Even when they go into certain cars on shows like BV or ITS or anything, I think it's sometimes predetermined who they get to share a car with. It's very baseless to say that this amounts to anything.

As for bed sharing, the only time I think bed sharing is significant is when they get to choose the beds they use. I've pointed out the time in BV where JM decided to go with the room TH wanted instead of taking the room he wanted because he wanted to share a room with TH.

That being said, I am not saying this is significant in terms of proving anything romantic. All the members share beds. All the time. They share beds with different members. JM's shared with YG and JK and JH and probably all of them at some point. And the same with TH. When I classify it as a significant moment between Vmin, I'm just saying that it goes to show that they often choose each other when given the choice. Which proves that they genuinely want to spend time together. Not that them sharing a bed (even by choice or even off camera like that time TH revealed that he asked JM to sleep with him) means anything romantic.

****

Now I've spent my entire morning get all this typed up. It's too cold here, and I can't do anything today. So what else was I going to do?

If any of you actually read all of this, I'm sorry. I will never learn to be brief.

[gotgifsandmusings]

A really fun dive into my inbox!

[lesbian-vmin]

Ask Roundup #1 - Vmin

Hey, guys! I promised to be here at least once this weekend and answer some asks. As I’ve been terribly busy with work, a lot has built up in the in box. With over 200 asks to get to, I decided it would be better to take an idea from romanticdrift and do an ask roundup and sort of answer what I have so far. No, I won’t answer all 200 in this post because a lot are very similar. But I’ll be summarizing asks and clearing out my inbox. Many of these are paraphrased, but keeping the original context. (vmin focus only)

Discussed in here

The importance of vmin friendship

4 o’clock

Chim’s reaction to Tae calling during kimbap live

No vmin live

Sad Tae / Vmin tension

Vmin friendzoning

I was going to add more asks to the mix, but this got really long with just the few that I answered. I also tried to do a mix of soft vmin and people wanting me to expand on some idea of vmin not being close or the “friendzone” thing.

(BELOW THE CUT)

anonymous asked:

Part of me wishes that vmin was real. Another part of me doesn’t want them to be. Don’t get me wrong, I ship them and don’t have a problem with the idea of them being gay and in love. But somehow I really like the idea of them being best friends who just really care deeply about each other. Does that make sense?

That makes perfect sense to me, honestly. I often talk about the value of friendship on this blog and how friendships are just as important as romantic relationships. If vmin have the close bond they do with each other, and it’s totally platonic, it sort of proves that there are friendships out there that have connections just as deep as romantic love.

This is one of the reasons I don’t push the “romantic vmin” agenda too hard. Because their friendship is perfect and ideal if that’s all it is. It really puts the statement “something deeper than friendship” to shame. Because what’s deeper than friendship? In fact, a romance with someone you can’t also consider your best friend doesn’t seem deep at all. It’s almost like “friendship” is what make romantic relationships deep. You know what I mean? You just won’t have the same connection with a romantic partner if you’re not also friends with them. So it’s silly to me how friendships are often devalued.

Regardless of what type of relationship vmin have, I think it’s okay for them to be the model of the type of relationship someone else would want to have. Whether it be with a friend or an s/o. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to have a romantic relationship that matches someone else’s friendship. And, if you don’t think vmin is real but still relate to them as “couple goals” because that’s the kind of relationship you want, then that’s fine. That’s actually sort of the kind of shipper that I am.

someone asked:

Tae started crying at the end of 4 o’clock during their performance. But if it’s just about the dumpling fight, why would he cry? Am I delulu? Was the fight really that intense?

someone else said:

Chim was smiling and stuff during the practice of 4 o’clock. So I think he had to have known that the song was about him?

These asks were from an anonymous person, but they were two separate asks. So I wanted to specify them as two separate asks in this post, but answer them together.

First things first. Let’s get a few links in here that you can reference to understand my answer a little better if you don’t know the whole story.

Four O’Clock | RM & V perform 4 o’clock live | The practice for the performance | The Friends Unit Interview | My (Old) Analysis of the Interview | Vlive in Which Chim Talks about The Incident | Vlive in Which Tae talks about the Incident

Okay. Let’s talk about Tae crying during the performance. I can’t actually say that he really cried, but he did seem to get emotional at the end. It’s a song that’s about a fight that is a big staple in their friendship. I think it’s pretty obvious that there’s more to the dumpling incident that they’re not telling us. I don’t think that’s the first time they would have had such an argument. They probably argue about whether to eat pizza or burgers all the time, and whether they should have dinner first and then watch a movie or watch a movie and then eat dinner.

Just the fact that Chim stated that he had to go and have a drink with Syub after the fight tells us that there was more to the incident than they are telling us. You don’t go and drink yourself drunk because you and your best friend can’t agree on whether to eat dumplings before or after practice.

I think that incident is one of the building blocks of their friendship. I think that it happened at a time they were going through a lot of changes. We know that Chim tends to be pretty possessive, and this was at a time that Tae started having his own schedule because of Hwarang. I think there were a lot of sudden changes to things, and that stressed them out and put some strain on their friendship. And it’s possible that’s entirely wrong.

Either way. It’s pretty clear there’s more to it than dumplings. But we can’t begin to analyze and figure out what it is and expect to be remotely accurate. And quite frankly, no matter how curious any of us may be, it’s none of our business. If they wanted us to know the “obviously more to the story” part of the story, they’d tell us.

And now. I guess I could have handles the two asks separately. But anyway. I’ve already talked about how I think Chim did already know that 4 o’clock was about that incident. So check the interview analysis I linked above for my discussion on that topic. I’m going to be going through my analyses soon and updating them, but that answer will do for now.

anonymous asked

You talked about Tae calling Chim on his live but what your thoughts about Tae caling during Ji / kook live. Chim was so unprepared and Kook was laughing about Tae calling and I guess Chim’s reaction to it. Chim didn’t seem to be in the flirting mood. I just wanted to know your thoughts on it.

I believe I have talked about this before somewhere, but I’m not entirely sure. So the live you are referring to is the kimbap making one (x). So, I’m going to reference the Mandago Incident in this answer, and I did an analysis on this live before. I’m going to link to the analysis I made. A link to the last mandago live can be found in that analysis. (x)

During the last mandago that we got, I really got the feeling that Chim wanted to do a live with Tae, but Tae didn’t want to join him. We have Chim being all sour and pouty and even down right petty in that last live, and I sort of got the same vibes from his behavior when Tae called during the kimbap live.

We know that Chim keeps saying he want to do a vlive with Tae, but it never happens. What the real story behind their lack of a live together is, we may never know.

I have a theory about this one, but it is just a theory. It’s probably not even remotely true, and there are thousands of other possibilities than what I’m about to say in regards to this live.

I think that it’s possible that the Ji / kook kimbap making live was supposed to be a vmin kimbap making live. Or vmin / kook, but I’m leaning further away from that option for this analysis to make a little more sense in relation to the mandago one (which I compare it to).

This analysis is assuming (1) that the kimbap making was supposed to be Chim’s live originally (2) he originally invited Tae to do the live with him (3) Tae refused (4) Chim wanted to do the live, but not alone (5) He asked Kook (6) Kook accepted, and they did the live together.

That’s a lot of assumptions to make for a logical analysis, but it’s seriously the vibe I got from Tae’s phone call.

Let’s look at the key points from the mandago live:

(1) Chim wanted to do Mandago (2) He wanted to do with Tae because it’s their thing (3) Tae didn’t want to come (4) Chim invited Kook instead (5) Kook came

After Kook joined the Mandago live, it didn’t take long before Tae joined as well. As stated in my analysis, you could make the argument that he wanted to eat as well (because they had food), but he ended up bringing his own food. He didn’t have to join the live to eat if he already had food on his own. I think he was upset because Chim was doing “mandago” without him. Even thought it ended up not really being a mandago live and more of Eat Jin.

Chim’s behavior in both lives really seems similar to me. So I sort of got the feeling that Tae was originally supposed to be part of the live but refused. Then when he saw that Chim was with Kook instead, he got upset. He called Chim, and Chim got upset. A “if you wanted to be in the live, why didn’t you just do it” sort of upset. Like, if Tae didn’t want to do the live with him, why is he calling during the live? Knowing they’re live? You get what I’m saying.

And, no. I’m not saying this is a Ji / kook vs vmin thing. And I’m not even trying to imply any sort of unhealthy level of jealousy here. I just think (if this theory is remotely correct) it shows how Chim is being real with us. He’s not just pulling our leg and saying that he wants to do a live with Tae but he really doesn’t and it’ll never happen. I think, again - if my theory is remotely correct, this shows how Tae doesn’t want to do a solo vmin live with Chim. Even if this theory is correct, it’s possible that Tae would have called regardless if Kook was there or not. Because, based on the theory, he was initially invited, but he didn’t want to be there in person. Alone. With Chim. For whatever reason.

Again, relating it to my theory, I think Tae either called because (1) If Kook was going to be there, he would have joined. Because that would have been a third person, keeping it from being him and Chim alone. So when he saw Kook there, he wanted to make himself part of it somehow. Or (2) He would have called even if it was just Chim because he’s more okay with talking on the phone than being there in person. 

I might do an actual analysis of the kimbap live, but we’ll see. It’s easier to talk about a theory here than to actually analyze because there’s not a lot to go off of without making assumptions.

related to this, anonymous asked:

Why do you think vmin won’t do a vlive together?

With some other saying that them not doing so makes it hard for us to see that they are really friends.

So, my idea on why they won’t do a vlive together is a little different than what I’ve read around. I think the reason it doesn’t happen is simply because they don’t want to, but not for any particular reason other than taking the time to do it. I’m going to explain.

We can make the argument that they are comfortable with each other and don’t want to have to be too careful. But I think that’s a copout for thinking a little deeper about it and making it more realistic. Yeah, it’s possible that they’ll have to watch themselves while they’re live, but what makes that different than any of the other members?

Ji / kook can have a live together, look into each other’s eyes, tease each other, and all kinds of things during vlive, so...why is the case different for them than with vmin? I don’t really think that them having to “watch it” has anything to do with them not doing a live together. It’s not like they’re really going to “forget about the camera” and accidentally make out or something. Even if they are in a relationship. They wouldn’t do that.

My honest belief, until I’m given reason to believe otherwise, is because they simply don’t want to. Vlives are often done from the studio or some other place where they work (if not hotel rooms). We don’t get random vlives of them living day-to-day life or going to Lotte World. So this means that most vlives we get are planned for work, or done during down time from work. But it’s always related to work somehow.

I really think that Tae and Chim are best friends and enjoy spending time with each other the same way any other friends do. When they are together, that’s their time, and they probably don’t want to share it with us. Because they share a lot of things with us, and I’m sure they have things (like their friendship or time together) that they want to keep for themselves. Despite Chim acting like the more private one, yet wanting to do a vlive with Tae, I think this is why Tae refuses. Because, although he doesn’t seem to be shy about expressing his love for Chim, he wants to keep their private time private as well. 

And that’s all I think it is. And, honestly, if that’s the case, we can relish in the fact that we don’t get vmin lives. Even if getting one would be nice. It’s nicer to know that they want to keep their private time private because their friendship is important to them and they don’t want to make it about us. And. Who knows? Maybe the mandago thing and the dumpling incident all have a part to play in this. Because maybe the publicity put on their friendship at the time is what caused those kinds of strains to happen. And to avoid something like that again, maybe that’s why they won’t go live.

But. I think it’s possible we’ll get one eventually. I haven’t given up yet.

anonymous said:

HI. I would just like to remind your readers about 2020 Festa: Unit Interview @12:31 VMIN was asked: What do you want to say to each other? Tae somehow refused to answer and just said: "WE ALWAYS SAY IT TO EACH OTHER." There's NO NEED to say what they feel for each other openly. No explanations whatsoever. As Chim said in Bon Voyage 2, not us, not even the members can fully understand what they feel about each other.

Remember what I said about no theory being good enough to be truth behind vmin? This anon gets it.

a mix of asks relates to

I don’t know why people keep saying Tae is sad or that vmin are fighting. They are fine. Nothing’s wrong.

I don’t know what’s more harmful. Assuming someone is sad all the time. Or assuming they’re fine all the time.

There are times when Tae is obviously down, and he shows it. I think he doesn’t try so hard to put on a fake happy face for us, and I think that’s wonderful. It’s okay not to be okay, and we really don’t have a lot of icons out there that let us know that. They may tweet and talk about mental health and the importance of it. But celebrities that actually show their mental status or even talk about their own level of happiness is far and few between. People think they’re happy all the time, and those that do say they’re not often get attacked because “why wouldn’t they be happy? They have fame, money, and everything?”

If you don’t see that Tae might be sad at a particular moment, or don’t think that vmin has a moment of tension, I guess that’s fine. But to say that it never happens is obviously false. Everyone gets sad sometimes, and everyone has tension with their closest friends.

That being said, those who go overboard and act like Tae is never happy or that vmin hate each other...yeah. That’s a bit much and needs to stop. Tae’s emotions are dynamic, and vmin love each other.

another mix of asks relates to

Do you think vmin are intentionally trying to friendzone themselves because they don’t want us to get suspicious? Or do you think they want us to know that they are only friends and shipping makes them uncomfortable?

Friendzone what? Like. What?

Regardless of what Tae and Chim are together, they are still best friends. The one thing that we confirm about their relationship is indeed that.

I really don’t think they ever say “he’s my best friend” in a “no-homo” kind of way, and that’s sort of what both scenarios presume. Two men can call each other “best friends” without having an implied “no-homo” label onto it.

And let me talk about this “no-homo” thing, okay? I’m not sure how many lgbt people are asking this question, but from my own lgbt perspective “no-homo” was always a little offensive to me. Like, why can’t you just give your bro a hug? Or why can’t you just say “I love you” to a friend? Are we really to the point where people have to say “no-homo” because they don’t want to give someone the wrong idea?

Honestly, my best straight male friend hugs me and tells me he loves me all the time, and he sometimes says “no-hetero” when he does it. And I love him to bits and pieces in a completely no-hetero kind of way because he started the joke because he realized how offensive the other statement was. At least, how much it bothered me regardless of how any other lgbt people felt about it.

Anyway. My point is, regardless of what kind of relationship vmin have together, I’m sure they say “he’s my best friend” because they are best friends. Regardless of any other labels they could have, they are best friends, and that’s what they want to let us know. I don’t think it has anything to do with dumbass “friendzoning” or “no-homo” shit. I don’t think they have some ulterior motive by simply stating that they are best friends.

And. Honestly. I if I asked my sister who her best friend is? She’d say her husband (or me lmao). If I asked my best friend who her best friend is? She’d say her husband (or me lmao). If I asked my straight male best friend? He’d say his wife (or me lmao). So. Again. My point is. Your significant other can be your best friend, and referring to them as such doesn’t mean you are friendzoning them.

It doesn’t mean that vmin is a real couple. It doesn’t mean that they’re not a real couple. It just means that, if they are, they’re obviously not going around introducing each other or talking about each other as boyfriends.

[gotgifsandmusings]

Quick asks roundup

I’m going out of town this afternoon for labor dabor, and probably won’t be around much during the weekend. Thought I’d answer a few asks below--just a grab bag, with a vague focus on S7. Should be able to do a video one of these next week, and Julia and I are eyeing a UBS podcast episode pretty soon too.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: Have you read David Benioff's book City of Thieves? I'm curious how it compares to GoT.

I haven’t, no. I’m not sure if that’s something I want to subject myself to (it has been mostly positively received from what I know, though not across the board) when there’s so much I’ve been putting off reading as it is.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: Is cerseï pregananant in the boox?

She’s actually gregnant.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: Just read your criticism about Fair Game and wholeheartedly agree. You touched on the core of why your (and Julia's and Caroline's and Jess' and Turtle's) GoT analysis are so great: they understand the intersection of narrative flaws and social issues. Sure, some people may complain that they don't want "SJW" stuff, except, y'know, you don't stop being a feminist when you write a review. As you say, media is not produced in a cultural vacuum. Sadly, I admit I feel reluctant to...... Actively criticize GoT with people around me because the ones who dislike it also dislike ASOIAF and fantasy/sci-fi ("The show is bad because GRRM is a bad writer who isn't really character-driven, but it's not surprising since genre stuff is awful"). That sucks :(

Yes, exactly! This is in reference to this piece by myself and Julia, btw. That’s really depressing about that perception of genre fic, especially given what Martin does being so unique. I’ve never particularly understood that attitude; I want to read about cool places and stuff happening as much as I want to read about weighty character journeys, and why scoff at any that pull off both? Though Julia has a piece on that too. 

But absolutely, as we said, it’s asinine to ignore the ways culture shapes media and vice versa, and often the reason the writing is so poor is because it’s so sensationalist or reliant on shitty tropes and stereotypes. “Just enjoy it (or critique) without focusing on social issues” is the ultimate sign of privilege, and it drives me crazy because it’s tossed out as an appeal to “objectivity.” IF YOU’RE IGNORING PEOPLE’S EXPERIENCES YOU’RE ALREADY NOT BEING OBJECTIVE.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: I'm curious why you guys interpret Cersei's internalized misogyny as nothing to do with gender dysphoria. All because Cersei doesn't break down during her period doesn't mean you must read her as cisgendered. She treats femininity like her least-favorite subject in school, not like part of herself. You're welcome to read her story as about women internalizing misogyny, but her thoughts feel familiarly trans, and outright denying that reading closer-to-earths her

This is really interesting, and my assumption would definitely a result of my own distance with that experience. Are there any metas on it? I haven’t really considered this before (I’ve seen the case argued for Brienne), and I’m not very convinced Martin had much intentionality here, but that’s a reading of her character I’d definitely like to learn/think more about.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: How can Euron "Crow's Eye, Terror of Pentos" Greyjoy come across as such a wimpy villain that I'm missing Ramsay? Hell, effing Joffrey could have torn that cuddly pooh bear a new one.

But...he’s the storm. You weren’t quaking in your boots when his fleet armada magically descended on Yara’s?

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: I haven't seen anyone else comment on this, but did you notice Cheryl says "You expect me to command our troops to fight beside foreign scum?" almost immediately before telling Jaime she's bringing the foreign Golden Company from Essos to fight beside their troops? Do you think the writers ever make it to second drafts or do they just knock out the first on the back of a Hooters napkin over Natty Ices and fist bumps and say, nah, we're good bro?

A showpologist would tell you it’s clearly demonstrating what a horrible hypocrite she is and actually rather cutting commentary.

It’s really, really hard for me to imagine a world where Operation Capture a Wight received a look-over. A whole lot of what they do feels thoroughly unedited.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: Hey, I really appreciate all your GoT analysis. 1) Is Cheryl's assistant actually Ezri Dax? 2) Did you see Linda's episode review where she called D&D "smug idiots?" 3) Is it possible to enjoy GoT as schlock? I can't and don't, but It is certainly bad enough and dumb enough. Thanks!

Thank you :)

1) According to wikipedia, Ezri Dax’s actor is currently starring in “Corrupt aka Trust No One” and “Where’s my Baby”, but I’m glad you made me look her up, because the resemblance there is quite uncanny. The maid is played by Sara Dylan, and has actually been a consistent, recurring character since Season 2. Apparently her name is “Bernadette” because why not.

2) Was it her newest review? I do listen to those in the background of work when I’m doing spreadsheet kind of stuff, so I may not have caught that exact phrase, but I did hear the part where she basically said “just don’t even bother writing a plot. Only write battles because everything else is terrible.”

3) I mean, the people enjoying GoT are watching schlock, so it must be possible. I happen to think the ardent defenders/honeypotters aren’t the majority, and most people turn it on to watch dragons for 60 minutes, then talk about how cool the dragons looked the next day at work. It’s just that GoT comes with a stamp of “SMART ADULT SHOW” for reasons that will never cease to amaze me. So yeah, totally, but for me, I have a hard time enjoying something when the more you think about it, the worse it gets.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: I would bet my right hand that someone in the GoT writers' room probably rewatched season 1 which is why there's so many callbacks to it like Arya's "that's not you", Dany's infertility, Bran's "I told you not to trust me", etc etc. Like it just seems so obvious that they realized they ran out of content and decided to just revisit past seasons to make themselves seem smart and like they planned ahead so much.

Oh 100%. Season 1 was this year’s Lord of the Rings, which they had obviously binged before last year. I love it because then all the critics are like, “ohh my god it’s so well-planned and deep.” But no. It’s essentially grinning into the camera going “remember when?”, completely on par with Gendry’s boat joke.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: The writers gave up 3 seasons ago, but it feels like no one was really trying this year. The cast looked bored. The wigs were trash: Dany's fire-proof wig is also boatsex-proof and freezing wind-proof. The costumes were either too anachronistic for a so-called prestiege Medievalesque Drama or straight up uninspired: Cersei's modern office wear, Dany and LF are shopping at the same department store, Lyanna S dressed up for a college roman-themed party. I guess the special effects were ok.

I’m very, very hesitant to call out costuming because I know Michele Clapton is like, making up these immaculate honeypots and ordering the finest fabrics from Lithuania to pull everything together. But...yeah, as a viewer everything was kind of clearly ridiculous (Euron’s jacket), and EVERYTHING WAS BLACK with the exception of Deadpan’s coat, that was, I’m sorry, objectively hideous. The reason people fawned over it was because it was actually contrasting the blah they had been seeing all season.

As for the cast, I mean...I think these guys are decent actors who get into their roles when they can. But who could get into anything happening at this point? Stuff happens, don’t question it. The directing was probably fine (I don’t know enough about that stuff), but when the script is fundamentally lazy and uninspired, it’s going to bleed into everything.

Anonymous said to gotgifsandmusings: (Regarding episode 7) So the only leak that didn't come true was "Cersei's" bed of blood prediction and I'm wondering if she'll miscarry next season because morally evil incest women like Cheryl don't deserve babies while morally good (with the help of our friendzoned Saint T🙏) incest women like Deadpan get to conquer infertility and birth a Targ with the help of Jonny Cardboard's magic seed. That would be one boring Aegon 2(3?) infant. Thoughts?

Honestly, I can’t make heads or tails of why she was even pregnant. Larry didn’t need that to stay on her side at all, and the only thing I can think was that it added an extra TWIST for us. Haha, viewer! You thought she might have actually wanted to fight the threat because of her unborn kid and how many times we’ve told you her only redeeming quality is her motherhood, but now she’s EVHUL and even idealized motherhood can’t save her!

I guess it’s...kind of trope busting?

I kind of agree though, I don’t see them letting a BAD woman give birth and mother. At the same time, I don’t see how enough time can even pass where this would be a relevant plot-point to anything. So...I just, I don’t get it. I’ve gotta figure out how to structure my sexism & s7 analysis, and going back and revisiting Cheryl is probably going to be one of the most confused parts of it. I see many paths for how this unfolds, and none of them are really too promising.

Alrighty, gotta cut it here for today. Everyone have a safe labor day weekend (I guess there’s no heightened risk for non-Americans, but a safe weekend all the same), and I’ll talk to you guys later!

[gotgifsandmusings]

Ask roundup! Boy was this such a special season.

[gotgifsandmusings]

Well, lots of distracting things later, here’s that ask roundup!

[ask-alessa-tessa]

Asking Round-up + rules

Hello, guys! It's about time to gather asks! Please send asks in and make sure to follow me to see if you get answered!

-Alessa Fallofel

I also wanted to come in and tell you what NOT to send. Please do not send

1. STUPID ASKS.

2. PERSONAL OWNER QUESTION ASKS, or anything pretty much aimed for the owner/hostess of our blog.

3.ANYTHING NOT RELATED TO CHARACTER ASKS IN GENERAL. (Out of char asks.)

If you follow along with one or all of the things above that you are told to NOT be asked, your question will or will not be featured in our ask blog.

Thank you for your cooperation.

-Tessa/Tessy

((tessa is only kidding you can send the mun asks when the time comes -mun))

[jerry-styloff]

Other Anons

I don't really want to let these debates get legs and keep growing, but I wanted you to know I heard what you said:

Anon #1 - Harry = Beyonce.  Yes to everything you said about the boys' careers after 1D winds down.

Anon #2 - I so want to use a term for your description, but let's just say it's a term you used to describe 3/5.  I hope you understand what I mean by that.  I agree with you, too, and the 3/5 comment made me laugh out loud.  : )

Anon #3 - Gif anon.  I think you're right.  Keeping in mind that Harry's only 20 and has a lot of time left to develop.

Anon #4 - Snick anon.  They are definitely still close.  I think you're absolutely right, they just keep it more private.  For anyone wanting to criticize Snick to me, I have one response.  Harry's mom, Anne, is very fond of him.  And I respect Anne's judgment.  (Not directed at you at all - just to anyone who wants to start anything.)

I feel like I said "You're right" a lot in these responses!   Here everyone - have a cute picture of Harry and Jeff: