Well, that bothers me.
Dec. 29th, 2010 05:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
perpetual_motionI read a "Top Ten Slashy Marvel" moments thing today, and I came away pondering. Two things really pinged me hard on the list.
First Problem: While naming Billy and Teddy sharing a Bed in "Avengers: Children's Crusade" made the person's top ten, there was a lot of hemming and hawing about how the poster felt the relationship came off as kind of borderline abusive because Teddy threatens to kill Billy and Billy's note when he leaves on his Grand Superheroic Mission (tm) was, in the poster's opinion, like reading a letter from someone who's internalized the abuse.
My Issues with This: First, the poster hemmed and hawwed about actually taking a stance on the thing. "Oh, I thought it came off as kind of abusive, but oh, I don't think the writer meant to, so I don't want you to think that I really think it's abusive; I just kind of think it came off that way, but I don't think the writer meant to, and they're all cuddly, and that's cute, although I think they came off as kind of abusive" (paraphrased, obviously). Look, if something bugs you, fucking nut up and own it, okay? Don't wish-wash all over the place with "Maybe, but maybe not, but maybe." You can be squicked by something and admit that it's a personal twitch. And you can do it in a sentence. Watch:
"I felt like the interactions between Billy and Teddy were borderline abusive, but I don't think the writer purposely wrote it that way; Some of the language they use isn't language I want used in one of my relationships, but I don't think it's an intentional or even cloaked attempt to set up an abusive relationship."
Ta-da.
Second, Teddy is freaking out on Billy because Billy is wanting to go find his birth mother, the Scarlet Witch who is--and this is no exaggeration--a reality-altering mass murderer who killed all but 198 mutants because she was have a total mental breakdown after she and her robot husband couldn't have children.
I'm not actually making up any of that.
So, anyway, Teddy threatening to kill Billy for being an idiot? Makes sense. I threaten to kill The Husband on a nearly daily basis. And for a lot less than wanting to track down his birth mother who created he and his twin from the power of her reality-altering mind (yes, really). If the poster of the list thinks Teddy threatening to kill Billy to stop him from being THAT stupid, she must think I'm an absolute wretch of a wife intent on keeping my husband in a blanket of fear. This is The Husband, by the way, who responds to such threats by doing whatever he was doing a second time to see my, "angry badger face." Yeah, we're terrible for one another.
Second Problem: The poster flat-out states that she only started reading "X-Factor" after Rictor and Shatterstar kissed on-panel, and further states that she has no plans to read any other X-books because they don't have a gay couple in the plot.
My Issues: Okay, look, I know slash is a kink, all right? I'm a slasher. Have been for a long time, but shit like that? That's what makes people think we're all fucking weird, okay? If you picked up "X-Factor" because of the brou-ha-ha surrounding the kiss, that's fine. People get into comics in a hundred different ways. But to follow it up by stating you're not reading any other books with X-Men in them because of the lack of teh ghey? YOU'RE PART OF THE FUCKING PROBLEM. Okay, sure, you may not ask actors what they think of the porn written about their characters, and you may not got all frothy-mouthed at the idea of someone not getting your big gay ship, but you are still THE PROBLEM. Because rather than say, "I don't read any other X-Men books because I don't find them interesting;" or "I don't read any other X-Men books because I got soured during Chuck Austen's run;" or "I don't read any other X-Men books because I've never picked them up," you say "I don't read any other X-Men books because they don't have teh ghey."
There are slash goggles, and there are slash goggles. Loosen them up a little, for fuck's sake.
First Problem: While naming Billy and Teddy sharing a Bed in "Avengers: Children's Crusade" made the person's top ten, there was a lot of hemming and hawing about how the poster felt the relationship came off as kind of borderline abusive because Teddy threatens to kill Billy and Billy's note when he leaves on his Grand Superheroic Mission (tm) was, in the poster's opinion, like reading a letter from someone who's internalized the abuse.
My Issues with This: First, the poster hemmed and hawwed about actually taking a stance on the thing. "Oh, I thought it came off as kind of abusive, but oh, I don't think the writer meant to, so I don't want you to think that I really think it's abusive; I just kind of think it came off that way, but I don't think the writer meant to, and they're all cuddly, and that's cute, although I think they came off as kind of abusive" (paraphrased, obviously). Look, if something bugs you, fucking nut up and own it, okay? Don't wish-wash all over the place with "Maybe, but maybe not, but maybe." You can be squicked by something and admit that it's a personal twitch. And you can do it in a sentence. Watch:
"I felt like the interactions between Billy and Teddy were borderline abusive, but I don't think the writer purposely wrote it that way; Some of the language they use isn't language I want used in one of my relationships, but I don't think it's an intentional or even cloaked attempt to set up an abusive relationship."
Ta-da.
Second, Teddy is freaking out on Billy because Billy is wanting to go find his birth mother, the Scarlet Witch who is--and this is no exaggeration--a reality-altering mass murderer who killed all but 198 mutants because she was have a total mental breakdown after she and her robot husband couldn't have children.
I'm not actually making up any of that.
So, anyway, Teddy threatening to kill Billy for being an idiot? Makes sense. I threaten to kill The Husband on a nearly daily basis. And for a lot less than wanting to track down his birth mother who created he and his twin from the power of her reality-altering mind (yes, really). If the poster of the list thinks Teddy threatening to kill Billy to stop him from being THAT stupid, she must think I'm an absolute wretch of a wife intent on keeping my husband in a blanket of fear. This is The Husband, by the way, who responds to such threats by doing whatever he was doing a second time to see my, "angry badger face." Yeah, we're terrible for one another.
Second Problem: The poster flat-out states that she only started reading "X-Factor" after Rictor and Shatterstar kissed on-panel, and further states that she has no plans to read any other X-books because they don't have a gay couple in the plot.
My Issues: Okay, look, I know slash is a kink, all right? I'm a slasher. Have been for a long time, but shit like that? That's what makes people think we're all fucking weird, okay? If you picked up "X-Factor" because of the brou-ha-ha surrounding the kiss, that's fine. People get into comics in a hundred different ways. But to follow it up by stating you're not reading any other books with X-Men in them because of the lack of teh ghey? YOU'RE PART OF THE FUCKING PROBLEM. Okay, sure, you may not ask actors what they think of the porn written about their characters, and you may not got all frothy-mouthed at the idea of someone not getting your big gay ship, but you are still THE PROBLEM. Because rather than say, "I don't read any other X-Men books because I don't find them interesting;" or "I don't read any other X-Men books because I got soured during Chuck Austen's run;" or "I don't read any other X-Men books because I've never picked them up," you say "I don't read any other X-Men books because they don't have teh ghey."
There are slash goggles, and there are slash goggles. Loosen them up a little, for fuck's sake.
