There’s this little girl in a workshop I help teach for my summer job, and she’s adorable and it’s very difficult for me not to show favoritism around her, especially when she’s climbing into my lap and holding my hand during snack time
but today was the last day of the workshop and she came over to me super shyly (she’s usually not very shy) and her mom was like “she wants to ask you a question!” so ofc I was like “what is it sweetie?” and she looked up at me with the biggest eyes and asked in the cutest little-kid voice possible and asked
“do you babysit?”
and her parents looked at me questioningly and I was actually so flustered I stood there in shock for a solid minute trying to think of a reply before I blurted out “I would for her” and anyway that’s how I got my first babysitting job
I still have a few requests in the inbox, which I’ll get to, but I’ve been meaning to post this for a while...
This is the free hug dealer from my icon! Her real name and backstory are a bit of a mystery, but she wanders dark alleyways at night giving out free hugs and platonic art. Rumor has it that the only person who knows where she came from is a little girl named Clover, who has reportedly been spotted trading supplies with the FHD.
do you think the reason why so much romantic shipping happens is because we aren't shown healthy platonic relationships in media? so people overcompensate and end up shipping characters? i know i sometimes do it because because the source material is very ''no homo'' or just have very little affection towards eachother as friends
I wrote an entire article on that once, actually! I’m not going to publish it here for safety reasons, but the whole thing was basically a rant on how the media is oversaturated with romance, and the vicious cycle that causes it. I tried to keep it short, but I’ll put my explanation under a read-more.
Basically, the biggest market for TV/movies is teenagers, because they have jobs and earn money but don’t have to pay for their own needs yet, so they spend most of it on wants (primarily food and entertainment). Teenagers are at the age where their hormones are just kicking off (and are usually out of balance for a while), so the concepts of romance and sex are immensely appealing to them. Therefore, they’re more likely to watch TV/movies that contain those elements. Companies obviously want to make money, so they cram as much of that content in as they can. Teens like the content, the content does well and makes money, companies make more of that content to make more money. Unfortunately, there’s no easy way to end this, but the cure starts with legally watching non-romantic content, because money is the only motivator Hollywood will listen to.
Since it’s relevant, I’ll make a quick self-promo here: I don’t talk about myself much on this blog, but I’m actually an aspiring screenwriter. One of my main goals is to make shows that depict friendship as something just as important and complex as romance, if not more so. My main series is a completely romance-free show which I’m going to attempt to pitch as a “safe show” for aro/aces (since, as I just explained, trying to pitch a show with no romance is incredibly difficult). I’m hoping that, if I’m ever asked to prove that people would watch a show with no romance, I can use the followers on this blog to prove my point and actually get that stuff produced.
Oh man. Okay, I’m just gonna dive right into it because I have SO many good things to say about this movie. I might have to make a part 2 to this post. But the biggest point of all is how they handled Woody’s leaving the gang, which, if you’d told me that was how the movie ended, I probably never would have gone and seen it. BUT.
As my mom so aptly put it, “I’m so glad they didn’t ruin that last scene with a kiss!” And it’s not because Bo and Woody aren’t romantic counterparts— no, of course they are, that’s been clear since day one. The issue isn’t whether they forced a romance or not. The reason it’s so important they didn’t kiss is because of where they put the focus. If they’d gone out of their way to fully confirm and display that “these two are dating!”, it would’ve made it seem like Woody was leaving the gang for a romantic interest, which would’ve been a HORRIBLE decision that no self-respecting major movie brand would ever use as an ending… oh, wait. (Yeah, I went there.)
But instead, the way the focus is put on Bonnie (particularly with Buzz’s parting words), it’s clear that Woody is leaving his old life behind for a new career. Like the movie says, he feels his purpose has been fulfilled— so, like a lot of great figures, both fictional and real, he turns to helping the younger generation get started in fulfilling their purposes. And that trope never fails to make me emotional, because it’s how life is supposed to work. What do you do after your dreams really do come true? You help other dreamers. (Hm, maybe this is why I love mentor-mentee brotps so much.) The true importance in Bo being there for Woody is that she’s already taken this step in her life, and she’s going to help Woody transition into it like she did. The fact that they have a romantic relationship instead of a platonic or familial one is just by chance.
And then there’s the goodbye. Oh, heck, the goodbye. I cried multiple times during the movie, but that last hug between Woody and Buzz? Can I get a THIS IS HOW YOU SHOW A FRIENDSHIP HUG?! Toy Story has always been the master of friendship, but this proves it to me. I mean, of course the two near-lifelong best friends have such a long and good and satisfying emotional hug, no self-respecting major movie brand would ever leave that out of an ending (…oh, wait), but it still blew me away. How do you animate literal pieces of plastic and stuffing to make a far more meaningful and real hug than Actual Human Actors seem to be capable of? The expressions, the length of it, this is the kind of quality content I pay good money to see in the theatres. And if anyone felt like going with me, I’d see it again in a heartbeat.
TL;DR… Toy Story 4 somehow broke the “no trilogy sequels” curse, as well as easily outdoing one of the biggest franchises out there for a good ending. Well done, Pixar, and thank you for proving that a G-rated movie can be this freaking good.
am i the only one that thinks platonic relationships are stronger than romantic ones? like you be as silly was you want around friends and they won't judge you, but you can't be like that around the person you like because they'll judge you? and you don't have the constant fear of friends leaving you unlike with a partner? because it's just me who feels like this
You definitely aren’t alone in feeling that way! Tbh, I’ve been way less stressed since I gave up the dating scene; even though I still get nervous around people I highkey admire/have squishes on, the anxiety isn’t the same. And while losing friends is way worse than losing a romantic partner (at least for me), it’s so much less likely to happen that you don’t worry about it all the time.
