22 April 2015 - 29 April 2015 - Part One
Notices
If you have meta to submit or rec, please comment to this post or to the screened Submissions Post. If you'd like to give us blanket permission to link your meta please comment to the Blanket Permissions Post. If you have feedback or questions, check out our FAQ, Contact the Mods, or PM/email. If you'd like to volunteer to link-find or mod, please comment to the Volunteers Post.
General Fandom
A Proposal: mostlyvalid (Tumblr) - "Sometimes, in fandom, we just want to write id-tastic fic that rolls around in tropes that might be viewed as problematic. But we don’t want to address the problematic side of things in this particular fanwork; we just want to roll around and wallow."
topic:fanfic, topic:warnings
Diversity in Comics: What About Disability?: chipreece (Tumblr) - "Almost nobody talks about the inclusion of characters with disabilities."
fandom:comics, topic:diversity, topic:disability
Untitled: greenbergsays (Tumblr) - "Two of my favorite topics, really, but one of my all time favorite things is the handling of interspecies relationships in fanfiction."
topic:relationships
Journalfen server status: not so robust: snacky (DW) - Information on the current status of Journalfen
topic:journalfen
Christopher Nolan Mad Me Hate Comic Book Movies: Tyler Coates (blog) - "I enjoy action movies just fine, and I’ve seen my fare share of comic book adaptations in recent years. But honestly, I’ve gotten really tired with the genre. The reason? They feel so much less fun than they used to be."
topic:comics, topic:movies, topic:adaptations
Ta-Nehisi Coates on the Importance of Comics: Abraham Riesman and Ta-Nehisi Coates (blog) - "But why are superheroes resonating so strongly? And are they worthy of the attention? These questions are important enough to compel Ta-Nehisi Coates to take a timeout from kicking off national conversations about race and politics, don his fanboy cape, and go in search of the answers."
topic:comics, fandom:comics
The Ebooks-Trees fic- and ebook-scraping business: Diane Duane (Tumblr) - "And lo and behold, there are four of my books (well, three really, they got A Wizard Abroad twice) still there. So now I get to DMCA them again."
topic:copyright, topic:scam
e-books-tree.com Update: anthfan (Tumblr) - "However, someone else has said that ebooks-tree has removed all the Ao3 user names and are changing the titles to make them more difficult to search/find your stories and prove that they’ve been stolen."
topic:fanfic, topic:copyright, topic:scam
Untitled: various anonymous folks (DW) - Discussion of having read rape fic as a kid.
topic:fanfic, warning:rape
Untitled: solvola (Tumblr) - "But for some reason, some very mysterious reason, only same gender relationships in fiction are expected to be slow-burning, exemplary, and exceptional. They can’t just happen, they need to "make sense", nobody has short or random romances, and it’s all very "partner for life in the long-term.""
topic:relationships
THIS NEEDS TO BE A MEME OKAY: rydra_wong (DW) - "All you scent/fandom geeks: what scent or selection of scents should one watch to wear your show of choice? Pick your olfactory playlist!"
topic:fandom, topic:perfume
Why do we mock teenage girls who love One Direction when Top Gear fans are just the same?: Elizabeth Minkel (blog) - "The online mockery of fans of Zayn Malik, who left One Direction the same day Jeremy Clarkson was fired, would never be levelled at grown-up sports or Top Gear fans."
topic:fandom, topic:sexism
How to praise writers and influence fics: icybluepenguin (Tumblr) - "But maybe readers don’t know what to say. Maybe you’re new to Tumblr, new to reading fan fiction, shy, or just not sure how to say what you want to say."
topic:feedback
How to Enjoy Fandom: kalloway (DW) - "There are three basic 'rules' to enjoying time spent in fandom and they're very simple"
topic:fandom
Untitled: marta-bee (Tumblr) - "In a long story there will be things that "displease" you. And in a world where people are coming at the same basic story from different positions, there will be bits that I don’t like."
topic:fanworks
Untitled: marta-bee (Tumblr) - "Reading this meta by someone who I didn’t end up agreeing with reminded me that we were starting with the same show and actually applying rather similar methodologies."
topic:meta
The Significance and Possibilities of DC Super Hero Girls: Janelle Asselin (blog) - "This is a big deal not just in terms of comics, but in terms of licensed products for kids. But is this kind of gendered initiative what we need? Or is it, as some have stated, "pandering"? Unsurprisingly, I have a lot of thoughts on this matter."
topic:merchandise, topic:sexism
On Privilege, Casting, and Loss: Squid, Inc. (blog) - "The subject of "loss" brings me closer to my actual point: a significant proportion of white male rage over changing the gender and race of superheroes can be connected to a sense of loss."
topic:diversity, topic:privilege
Sexualized Saturdays: Wait, Are You Saying I Accidentally Bestiality?: pantydragon (blog) - "Why does no one think of these human/non-human relationships as bestiality? In the context of non-human but sentient races, what defines bestiality, and does the concept even apply? Which people may we acceptably bang and why may we bang those people and not others?"
topic:sex, topic:sexuality
The Old Guy Action Comeback: I’m Getting Too Old for This Sh*t: Ryan Britt (blog) - "So, what’s the deal? Is there a bizarre cultural obsession with old guy comebacks?"
topic:age, topic:movies
Message Fiction: Politics in Sci-Fi and Fantasy Literature: The G (blog) - "And then there are, of course, questions of: (a) quality, i.e. "is this message being conveyed effectively"; and (b) alignment, i.e. "do I like or agree with the message conveyed." Unfortunately, readers often confuse (b) for (a)."
topic:sciencefiction, topic:fantasy, topic:politics
Why Minority Settings in RPGs Matter: Whitney Strix Beltran (blog) - "Most gamers unconsciously gravitate to the straight white male as our hero, our role model, and the baseline for play."
fandom:gaming, topic:diversity
Fandom inspires a mystic world of pop-culture tarot: Aja Romano (blog) - Image heavy. Discussion of tarot as it relates to fanart projects.
topic:fanworks
Lara Croft isn’t good enough - video games need more real women: Suzanne Samin (blog) - "To me, more realistic video game characters overwhelmingly benefit a group of gamers. That group is women."
fandom:gaming, topic:femalecharacter, topic:representation
Magical Mondays: Really, Do Not Sign That Contract: Lady Saika (blog) - "Although the idea of a contract in real life is ostensibly meant to protect both parties’ interests and hold both parties accountable, this is almost never the case in fiction. When a contract shows up, you know it’s bad news, and if it’s a magical contract, just, like, don’t even read it. Instead of reading it, run."
topic:magic
Specific Fandom
The 100
Untitled: dedalvs (Tumblr) - "Unless I’ve misunderstood the situation, I don’t see how they wouldn’t all speak English after 100 years."
fandom:the100, topic:language
Agents of SHIELD
Be White or Explode: Noah Berlatsky (blog) - "Agents of SHIELD starts out as a black superhero story."
fandom:agentsofshield
Stealing Your Relics for Your Own Good: Noah Berlatsky (blog) - "Second episode of Agents of SHIELD, just as racist as the first? Somewhat improbably, yes."
fandom:agentsofshield
The Americans
Pre-finale links:
jae (DW) - Collection of links to essays and articles written before the finale.
fandom:theamericans
Post-finale links galore!: jae (DW) - What the title says. Lots of links to articles and essays about the show.
fandom:theamericans
Ant-Man
Untitled: copperbadge (Tumblr) - "Well, the movie is the nexus of a lot of super problematic shit Marvel has pulled for decades, so there’s a lot to hate."
fandom:mcu, fandom:marvelcomics
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Untitled: captain-foulenough (Tumblr) - "I don’t usually do this, but I think that Age of Ultron requires a trigger warning for anyone who is struggling with fertility/infertility."
fandom:mcu, topic:infertility, topic:warnings
So I saw Age of Ultron last night: alasse-irena (Tumblr) - "…and it deserves a looong reaction post dissecting my thoughts on it. I have a lot of opinions, but this got long enough when I was only talking about Steve and Tony and Natasha, and not even touching on the plot, or the Maximoff twins or anything. It is also very rambling. There will be spoilers under the cut, so click no further unless you want them."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron: iamshadow (DW) - "On the whole, I loved it. I was worried it was going to be too grim, and it wasn't."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron Party Post!: endeni (LJ) - "So, this is the place where, during the critical gap between April 22 and the US release in May 1 (and possibly after, yay!), those of us who have seen the movie already get to squee about it without fear of spoiling anyone else."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron: selenak (DW) - "Non-spoilery version: I liked, though didn't love it the way i did the first movie."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron: schneefink (DW) - "It's pretty much exactly like Avengers, except on a larger scale. Entertaining, but only as long as I don't think about it. Actually I liked it less than Avengers even when watching it for the first time, because it had some wtf moments that interrupted the experience."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
’Avengers: Age of Ultron’ is bloated and untidy, but just entertaining enough: Gavia Baker-Whitelaw (blog) - "The opening act of Avengers: Age of Ultron gives fans exactly what they wanted after The Avengers in 2012: the whole team fighting together as a unit, then going home for a party at Avengers Tower."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015): marina (DW) - "Warning: although the first Avengers is probably still my favorite MCU movie, I didn't enjoy this one much."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Batgirl
Lest We Forget: Batgirl. Bat GIRL. Bats, Comics, and Girls: Marcy J. Cook (blog) - "What DC got wrong was the tone on a couple of covers. Look at how spot on the Catwoman cover is, or Aquaman’s or Superman’s faux wedding. Then look at Batgirl’s cover, and to a lesser degree Wonder Woman’s cover. The tonal difference is stark."
fandom:dccomics, topic:femalecharacter
Black Panther
Why The Black Panther Is Marvel’s Answer to Batman: Drupkins (blog) - "The highly anticipated film may finally alert the public to one fundamental truth about the Wakandan superhero. For all intents and purposes, the Black Panther is Marvel’s answer to Batman."
fandom:mcu, fandom:marvelcomics
Buffy
Untitled: fanccubus (Tumblr) - "Poor little Dawny. I know there are still people who hate her introduction to the show, but think of this: you’re thirteen. You don’t quite know exactly who you are, and you worry about being too fake, or being too real, or being too anything other than exactly average."
fandom:btvs
Untitled: muchbuffy (Tumblr) - "Buffy and Drusilla: Angel created Drusilla as a living-dead reminder of the corruption he’s capable of. A trophy, for the great accomplishment of twisting such a good soul into the dark creature she became.
And he wanted to do the same with Buffy."
fandom:btvs
Dusted 29: Hellmouse: Dusted (podcast) - "This week, Buffy returns home, the dead rise, and we finally arrive at Joyce The Human Being! It’s time for "Dead Man’s Party" (3.02)"
fandom:btvs
Dusted 27: Remedial Duct Tape: Dusted (podcast) - "This week, we begin season three with the just a little Sunnydale and a whole lot of Buffy in "Anne" (3.01)."
fandom:btvs
Untitled: apprenticebard (Tumblr) - "Honest question- do we know how Spike heard that Willow flayed someone alive?"
fandom:btvs
Just what did the gypsies curse Angel with, anyway?: tei-lj (LJ) - "Um yeah so I actually have finished S5 of Angel, but instead of writing about any of that for some reason I wrote about souls? Specifically, Angel’s soul vs. everyone else’s soul, and whether what the thing we have now seen him gain and lose several times even counts."
fandom:btvs
Untitled: apprenticebard (Tumblr) - "Unpopular opinion but, every creepy fuckery Edward Cullen does… Angel did it first."
fandom:btvs
Buffy Rewatch S3E16: apprenticebard (Tumblr) - "Willow goes on about how crazy Faith is, Buffy pretty much flinches when Faith touches her, and Giles won’t even ask for her help when the bronze has been taken over by vampires and it’s full of civilians. Yet, nobody apparently cares about what Anya has done in this episode alone?"
fandom:btvs
Captain America
Untitled: synecdochic and others (DW) - A long, detailed thread about back pay and taxes and such as it would affect Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes.
fandom:mcu
Castle
Untitled: castleramblings (Tumblr) - "Do you think Castle's character has room to grow in the sharing with Beckett area?"
fandom:castle
Columbiana
Waiting for Alan Rickman: Noah Berlatsky (blog) - "Except…somewhere, somehow, something goes horribly wrong. Cattaleya, the good guy (or in this case good gal), wreaks horrible vengeance on slimy evildoers just the way she’s supposed to…but somehow the prime evildoers, the guys we’re supposed to love to hate, are brutally blindsided not by our heroine, but rather by a series of viciously sodden subplots."
fandom:columbiana
Daredevil
more from 9 eps in…: laporcupina (Tumblr) - "Non-spoilery things I like about Daredevil beyond Matt Murdock’s voice."
fandom:daredevil
NOC Recaps Daredevil: AKA Law & Order Hell’s Kitchen: Eric S.B. (blog) - "I brought this up in my recap for "Into the Ring," but "Rabbit in a Snowstorm" is where we really get the Law & Order: Hell’s Kitchen portion of the show."
fandom:daredevil
Daredevil, Catholicism, and the Marvel Moral Universe: Leah Schnelbach (blog) - "The other thing that I love is how the show’s brutal world is informed by the particularly Catholic morality of its hero."
fandom:daredevil, topic:religion
Oh, My Pop Culture Devil of Hell’s Kitchen: Is Daredevil the Religious Hero We’ve Been Waiting For?: Lady Saika (blog) - "It goes without saying, then, that I tuned into Daredevil with some trepidation on the religion front. Matt Murdock is probably one of the most devoutly religious Catholic characters in comics (that I’m familiar with, at least). Would his faith make the jump to the screen?"
fandom:daredevil, topic:religion
Okay, Internet hive mind…: sholio (DW) - "In the episode in which Foggy and Karen have their "date" (1x06, I think), there's a part of that scene in which my interpretation seems to be 180 degrees off from the prevailing fandom interpretation, at least based on what I'm picking up from fic, which is pretty much 100% going with this other version. So I would like to see what you all think."
fandom:daredevil
Daredevil/Batman v Superman
Daredevil v Batman v Superman: Getting Angst Right in the Superhero Genre: Petra Halbur (blog) - "This begs the question, what did Daredevil do right and what is Batman v Superman doing (or rather predicted to do) wrong? In other words, when is angst compelling in a superhero story and when is it grating?"
fandom:daredevil, fandom:dccu, topic:superheroes
DC Comics
Doing the Krypton Crawl: Jaz Jacobi (blog) - "But Superman’s journey from Man of Tomorrow to lame old-timer represents a complicated trail, the character walking a razor’s edge between the ephemera of junk culture charm and the drive to make superhero stories-and likewise their creators and devotees-seem "mature.""
fandom:dccomics, topic:history
Doctor Who
I know what the Midnight entity was…: whatwecanfic (Tumblr) - "Ok so I had an epiphany the other night and I’m pretty much 100% certain I know what the mysterious creature in Midnight was."
fandom:doctorwho
Tim’s Take On: Episode 276(Doctor Who: World War Three commentary): Tim Drury (podcast) - "World War III almost breaks out but thankfully the Doctor was there to prevent it as my coverage of the 2005 series reaches Doctor Who: World War Three."
fandom:doctorwho
World War Three: Neil Parryman (blog) - Liveblogging of a watch of the episode in question with someone who hasn’t seen it before.
fandom:doctorwho
Should Doctor Who Abandon Continuity?: James Baldock (blog) - "Continuity never used to exist in Doctor Who (Terrance Dicks has said on more than one occasion that ‘History is what you can remember’). And then it did, and it’s impossible to really maintain it properly - but it still seems to matter, and as a result many fans are obsessive about seeing patterns in things that aren’t there."
fandom:doctorwho
The Randomizer: Paradise Towers: louisedennis (LJ) - "Paradise Towers is the first story that really has the stamp of Andrew Cartmel's style as script editor - a sort of angry whimsey with a tendency to ask the audience to join the dots themselves to fill in the backstory (though that is not so obvious here as it would become in later stories)."
fandom:doctorwho
Dragon Age: Inquisition
Pixelthreads: Dragon Age: Inquisition and the Politics of Dress: Megan Patterson (blog) - "And in the game of politics, what you wear and when is as important as with whom you choose to ally yourself. Dragon Age: Inquisition occasionally seems to understand this: there’s at least one dialogue with Vivienne where you discuss as much. But the game never really seems to understand how to implement it into an integral part of the gameplay."
fandom:dragonage
Ex Machina
Ex Machina (2015): starlady (DW) - " I think it was Kate Elliott on Twitter who made a comment about it last year that tipped me off, and I have to say, it's one of the best and most stylish SF movies I've seen in a while. I would highly recommend it to just about everybody."
fandom:exmachina
Sci-Fi Films Need More Big Ideas Like Ex Machina’s: Geeks Guide to the Galaxy (podcast) - "The new science fiction thriller Ex Machina, written and directed by Alex Garland, is one of the year’s most intelligent and thought-provoking films, full of heady concepts like the Turing test and Mary’s Room."
fandom:exmachina
The Fast and the Furious
One Last Ride: Why Furious 7’s Ending Had Us All In Tears: Desiree Rodriguez (blog) - "One of my roommates, however, didn’t quite get it. "You cried over a Fast & Furious movie?" he asked, brows furrowed in honest confusion. What followed was a good ten to fifteen minutes of playful ribbing and jokes. All of which boiled down to one singular incredulous question on their part: why would you cry over a Fast & Furious movie?"
fandom:thefastandthefurious
Firefly
Point/Counterpoint: Does Firefly Still Matter?: Katharine Trendacosta and James Whitbrook (blog) - "Welcome to a new feature: Point/Counterpoint, where we debate, vehemently, angrily, over issues of extreme importance. Today: Does Firefly still matter?"
fandom:firefly
Forever
Forever, Season 1, Episode 21: The Night In Question: Sparky (blog) - Episode summary with some meta comments at the end.
fandom:forever, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones
Good, Bad, and Ugly Parents of Game of Thrones: Nate Jones (blog) - "But for most lordly parents we've seen, caring about a dynasty isn't the same thing as caring about the actual people who make it up."
fandom:gameofthrones
Game of Thrones Discussion, S5E2: Boxed in: Laura Fletcher, Corrin Bennett-Kill, and Cheryl Collins (blog) - "Open the windows and join us for a discussion of "The House of Black and White" with three fans with different perspectives: Laura Fletcher, a casual fan of the television and book series; Corrin Bennett-Kill, a dedicated fan of the book and TV series (she has read all the books four times!); and Cheryl Collins, who does not read."
fandom:gameofthrones
Myth, History and Game of Thrones: fenzel (blog) - "The characters in Game of Thrones definitely map onto different mythological traditions and historical events, but it happens in various complex and interconnected ways."
fandom:gameofthrones
Boiled Leather Audio Hour Episode 38: Boiled Leather Audio Hour (podcast) - "BLAH is back with two, count ‘em, two topics! This go-round, Stefan & Sean tackle the new "Alayne" sample chapter from The Winds of Winter and the first two episodes of Game of Thrones Season Five."
fandom:gameof thrones, fandom:asoiaf
Tailgate, Little Bastard: Johnny (blog) - A large collection of links to reviews, interviews and meta about season 5
fandom:gameofthrones
"Game of Thrones" politics: War makes for strange bedfellows, indeed: Steven Attewell (blog) - "The central difficulty of feudal politics - whether we’re talking about Europe after the partition of the Carolingian Empire in the 9th century and the rise of the modern nation-state in the 16th and 17th centuries, or Japanese history between the Genpei War in the 12th century and the end of the Sengoku Jidai - is that a system based on a liege lord distributing landed power to a military caste in return for their loyalty breaks down when fiefdoms become jealously-guarded inheritances instead of gifts that can be distributed and redistributed at will to keep vassals eager to gain favor and avoid wrath."
fandom:gameofthrones
Deconstructed: High Sparrow: Stefan (blog) - "We're officially in new territory with a whole host of storylines now. Sansa and Littlefinger, Jaime and Bronn, the whole northern storyline and soon enough the Watch as well - so far, the season proves that it can stand on its own, a feat many doubted it was capable of given the mixed track record it enjoys in those areas. But let's see for ourselves how things stand this week, shall we?"
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
High Sparrow Open Thread: Johnny (blog) - "This open thread is for all viewers, including book readers who may want to compare the show to the book."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
High Sparrow: Philip Sandifer (blog) - "But if you were to suggest a generalized pattern for a season, the third episode would be a point of drastic acceleration."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones producers explain changing Sansa’s storyline: James Hibberd (blog) - "Showrunners talk about that huge twist - that was very different from the books"
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Return to Westeros: "High Sparrow" Review: MadameAce (blog) - "So far I both love and hate this season. As Game of Thrones will be finishing up before A Song of Ice and Fire, it makes sense to me that the show would start deviating from the source material."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones Discussion, S5E3: What’s in a Name?: Laura Fletcher, Corrin Bennett-Kill, and Cheryl Collins (blog) - "Join us for a discussion of "High Sparrow" with three fans with different perspectives: Laura Fletcher, a casual fan of the television and book series; Corrin Bennett-Kill, a dedicated fan of the book and TV series (she has read all the books four times!); and Cheryl Collins, who does not read."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones, Season 5, Episode 3: High Sparrow: Sparky (blog) - Episode recap followed by some meta at the end.
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Review: High Sparrow: ghostlovesinger (blog) - "That said, "High Sparrow" gave us relatively little to complain about and much to get excited for, weaving together quality performances and concluding on a vital and compelling cliffhanger."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
The Many Men of Brienne of Tarth: Nate Jones (blog) - "With no set of instructions to follow, the men of Westeros are forced to take Brienne largely on her terms - one of my favorite GOT litmus tests is to figure out which ones can see her for who she really is. Pod does, of course."
fandom:gameofthrones, topic:femalecharacter
Gintama
Untitled: notthepajamas (Tumblr) - The author lists points about Gintama canon, both factual details and calling out problematic points.
fandom:anime, fandom:manga
Good Night, and Good Luck
Good Night, and Good Luck: attack on McCarthyism simplifies but satisfies: Alex von Tunzelmann (blog) - Evaluation of George Clooney’s film about Edward R. Murrow and Joseph McCarthy from a historian’s point of view.
topic:movies, topic:history
Gotham
The Ogre is Groot: Gotham’s "Under the Knife": Thom Dunn (blog) - "Leave it to Gotham, a show which has dreadfully mishandled all of its female characters, to build up towards a "climactic finale" about a misogynistic serial killer-and make the audience actually wish that his latest victim would die and go away for good."
fandom:gotham
Grey’s Anatomy
[Title redacted because it’s a spoiler]: Rachel Wong (blog) - "For weeks, the hashtag #WhereIsDerek trended on Twitter, aprompting fans to wonder if Derek was cheating on his wife."
fandom:greysanatomy, warning:spoilers
Grimm
Grimm Season Four, Episode Nineteen: Iron Hans: Renee (blog) - Episode summary with some meta commentary at the end.
fandom:grimm, warning:spoilers
If you have meta to submit or rec, please comment to this post or to the screened Submissions Post. If you'd like to give us blanket permission to link your meta please comment to the Blanket Permissions Post. If you have feedback or questions, check out our FAQ, Contact the Mods, or PM/email. If you'd like to volunteer to link-find or mod, please comment to the Volunteers Post.
General Fandom
A Proposal: mostlyvalid (Tumblr) - "Sometimes, in fandom, we just want to write id-tastic fic that rolls around in tropes that might be viewed as problematic. But we don’t want to address the problematic side of things in this particular fanwork; we just want to roll around and wallow."
topic:fanfic, topic:warnings
Diversity in Comics: What About Disability?: chipreece (Tumblr) - "Almost nobody talks about the inclusion of characters with disabilities."
fandom:comics, topic:diversity, topic:disability
Untitled: greenbergsays (Tumblr) - "Two of my favorite topics, really, but one of my all time favorite things is the handling of interspecies relationships in fanfiction."
topic:relationships
Journalfen server status: not so robust: snacky (DW) - Information on the current status of Journalfen
topic:journalfen
Christopher Nolan Mad Me Hate Comic Book Movies: Tyler Coates (blog) - "I enjoy action movies just fine, and I’ve seen my fare share of comic book adaptations in recent years. But honestly, I’ve gotten really tired with the genre. The reason? They feel so much less fun than they used to be."
topic:comics, topic:movies, topic:adaptations
Ta-Nehisi Coates on the Importance of Comics: Abraham Riesman and Ta-Nehisi Coates (blog) - "But why are superheroes resonating so strongly? And are they worthy of the attention? These questions are important enough to compel Ta-Nehisi Coates to take a timeout from kicking off national conversations about race and politics, don his fanboy cape, and go in search of the answers."
topic:comics, fandom:comics
The Ebooks-Trees fic- and ebook-scraping business: Diane Duane (Tumblr) - "And lo and behold, there are four of my books (well, three really, they got A Wizard Abroad twice) still there. So now I get to DMCA them again."
topic:copyright, topic:scam
e-books-tree.com Update: anthfan (Tumblr) - "However, someone else has said that ebooks-tree has removed all the Ao3 user names and are changing the titles to make them more difficult to search/find your stories and prove that they’ve been stolen."
topic:fanfic, topic:copyright, topic:scam
Untitled: various anonymous folks (DW) - Discussion of having read rape fic as a kid.
topic:fanfic, warning:rape
Untitled: solvola (Tumblr) - "But for some reason, some very mysterious reason, only same gender relationships in fiction are expected to be slow-burning, exemplary, and exceptional. They can’t just happen, they need to "make sense", nobody has short or random romances, and it’s all very "partner for life in the long-term.""
topic:relationships
THIS NEEDS TO BE A MEME OKAY: rydra_wong (DW) - "All you scent/fandom geeks: what scent or selection of scents should one watch to wear your show of choice? Pick your olfactory playlist!"
topic:fandom, topic:perfume
Why do we mock teenage girls who love One Direction when Top Gear fans are just the same?: Elizabeth Minkel (blog) - "The online mockery of fans of Zayn Malik, who left One Direction the same day Jeremy Clarkson was fired, would never be levelled at grown-up sports or Top Gear fans."
topic:fandom, topic:sexism
How to praise writers and influence fics: icybluepenguin (Tumblr) - "But maybe readers don’t know what to say. Maybe you’re new to Tumblr, new to reading fan fiction, shy, or just not sure how to say what you want to say."
topic:feedback
How to Enjoy Fandom: kalloway (DW) - "There are three basic 'rules' to enjoying time spent in fandom and they're very simple"
topic:fandom
Untitled: marta-bee (Tumblr) - "In a long story there will be things that "displease" you. And in a world where people are coming at the same basic story from different positions, there will be bits that I don’t like."
topic:fanworks
Untitled: marta-bee (Tumblr) - "Reading this meta by someone who I didn’t end up agreeing with reminded me that we were starting with the same show and actually applying rather similar methodologies."
topic:meta
The Significance and Possibilities of DC Super Hero Girls: Janelle Asselin (blog) - "This is a big deal not just in terms of comics, but in terms of licensed products for kids. But is this kind of gendered initiative what we need? Or is it, as some have stated, "pandering"? Unsurprisingly, I have a lot of thoughts on this matter."
topic:merchandise, topic:sexism
On Privilege, Casting, and Loss: Squid, Inc. (blog) - "The subject of "loss" brings me closer to my actual point: a significant proportion of white male rage over changing the gender and race of superheroes can be connected to a sense of loss."
topic:diversity, topic:privilege
Sexualized Saturdays: Wait, Are You Saying I Accidentally Bestiality?: pantydragon (blog) - "Why does no one think of these human/non-human relationships as bestiality? In the context of non-human but sentient races, what defines bestiality, and does the concept even apply? Which people may we acceptably bang and why may we bang those people and not others?"
topic:sex, topic:sexuality
The Old Guy Action Comeback: I’m Getting Too Old for This Sh*t: Ryan Britt (blog) - "So, what’s the deal? Is there a bizarre cultural obsession with old guy comebacks?"
topic:age, topic:movies
Message Fiction: Politics in Sci-Fi and Fantasy Literature: The G (blog) - "And then there are, of course, questions of: (a) quality, i.e. "is this message being conveyed effectively"; and (b) alignment, i.e. "do I like or agree with the message conveyed." Unfortunately, readers often confuse (b) for (a)."
topic:sciencefiction, topic:fantasy, topic:politics
Why Minority Settings in RPGs Matter: Whitney Strix Beltran (blog) - "Most gamers unconsciously gravitate to the straight white male as our hero, our role model, and the baseline for play."
fandom:gaming, topic:diversity
Fandom inspires a mystic world of pop-culture tarot: Aja Romano (blog) - Image heavy. Discussion of tarot as it relates to fanart projects.
topic:fanworks
Lara Croft isn’t good enough - video games need more real women: Suzanne Samin (blog) - "To me, more realistic video game characters overwhelmingly benefit a group of gamers. That group is women."
fandom:gaming, topic:femalecharacter, topic:representation
Magical Mondays: Really, Do Not Sign That Contract: Lady Saika (blog) - "Although the idea of a contract in real life is ostensibly meant to protect both parties’ interests and hold both parties accountable, this is almost never the case in fiction. When a contract shows up, you know it’s bad news, and if it’s a magical contract, just, like, don’t even read it. Instead of reading it, run."
topic:magic
Specific Fandom
The 100
Untitled: dedalvs (Tumblr) - "Unless I’ve misunderstood the situation, I don’t see how they wouldn’t all speak English after 100 years."
fandom:the100, topic:language
Agents of SHIELD
Be White or Explode: Noah Berlatsky (blog) - "Agents of SHIELD starts out as a black superhero story."
fandom:agentsofshield
Stealing Your Relics for Your Own Good: Noah Berlatsky (blog) - "Second episode of Agents of SHIELD, just as racist as the first? Somewhat improbably, yes."
fandom:agentsofshield
The Americans
Pre-finale links:
jae (DW) - Collection of links to essays and articles written before the finale.
fandom:theamericans
Post-finale links galore!: jae (DW) - What the title says. Lots of links to articles and essays about the show.
fandom:theamericans
Ant-Man
Untitled: copperbadge (Tumblr) - "Well, the movie is the nexus of a lot of super problematic shit Marvel has pulled for decades, so there’s a lot to hate."
fandom:mcu, fandom:marvelcomics
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Untitled: captain-foulenough (Tumblr) - "I don’t usually do this, but I think that Age of Ultron requires a trigger warning for anyone who is struggling with fertility/infertility."
fandom:mcu, topic:infertility, topic:warnings
So I saw Age of Ultron last night: alasse-irena (Tumblr) - "…and it deserves a looong reaction post dissecting my thoughts on it. I have a lot of opinions, but this got long enough when I was only talking about Steve and Tony and Natasha, and not even touching on the plot, or the Maximoff twins or anything. It is also very rambling. There will be spoilers under the cut, so click no further unless you want them."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron: iamshadow (DW) - "On the whole, I loved it. I was worried it was going to be too grim, and it wasn't."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron Party Post!: endeni (LJ) - "So, this is the place where, during the critical gap between April 22 and the US release in May 1 (and possibly after, yay!), those of us who have seen the movie already get to squee about it without fear of spoiling anyone else."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron: selenak (DW) - "Non-spoilery version: I liked, though didn't love it the way i did the first movie."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron: schneefink (DW) - "It's pretty much exactly like Avengers, except on a larger scale. Entertaining, but only as long as I don't think about it. Actually I liked it less than Avengers even when watching it for the first time, because it had some wtf moments that interrupted the experience."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
’Avengers: Age of Ultron’ is bloated and untidy, but just entertaining enough: Gavia Baker-Whitelaw (blog) - "The opening act of Avengers: Age of Ultron gives fans exactly what they wanted after The Avengers in 2012: the whole team fighting together as a unit, then going home for a party at Avengers Tower."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015): marina (DW) - "Warning: although the first Avengers is probably still my favorite MCU movie, I didn't enjoy this one much."
fandom:mcu, warning:spoilers
Batgirl
Lest We Forget: Batgirl. Bat GIRL. Bats, Comics, and Girls: Marcy J. Cook (blog) - "What DC got wrong was the tone on a couple of covers. Look at how spot on the Catwoman cover is, or Aquaman’s or Superman’s faux wedding. Then look at Batgirl’s cover, and to a lesser degree Wonder Woman’s cover. The tonal difference is stark."
fandom:dccomics, topic:femalecharacter
Black Panther
Why The Black Panther Is Marvel’s Answer to Batman: Drupkins (blog) - "The highly anticipated film may finally alert the public to one fundamental truth about the Wakandan superhero. For all intents and purposes, the Black Panther is Marvel’s answer to Batman."
fandom:mcu, fandom:marvelcomics
Buffy
Untitled: fanccubus (Tumblr) - "Poor little Dawny. I know there are still people who hate her introduction to the show, but think of this: you’re thirteen. You don’t quite know exactly who you are, and you worry about being too fake, or being too real, or being too anything other than exactly average."
fandom:btvs
Untitled: muchbuffy (Tumblr) - "Buffy and Drusilla: Angel created Drusilla as a living-dead reminder of the corruption he’s capable of. A trophy, for the great accomplishment of twisting such a good soul into the dark creature she became.
And he wanted to do the same with Buffy."
fandom:btvs
Dusted 29: Hellmouse: Dusted (podcast) - "This week, Buffy returns home, the dead rise, and we finally arrive at Joyce The Human Being! It’s time for "Dead Man’s Party" (3.02)"
fandom:btvs
Dusted 27: Remedial Duct Tape: Dusted (podcast) - "This week, we begin season three with the just a little Sunnydale and a whole lot of Buffy in "Anne" (3.01)."
fandom:btvs
Untitled: apprenticebard (Tumblr) - "Honest question- do we know how Spike heard that Willow flayed someone alive?"
fandom:btvs
Just what did the gypsies curse Angel with, anyway?: tei-lj (LJ) - "Um yeah so I actually have finished S5 of Angel, but instead of writing about any of that for some reason I wrote about souls? Specifically, Angel’s soul vs. everyone else’s soul, and whether what the thing we have now seen him gain and lose several times even counts."
fandom:btvs
Untitled: apprenticebard (Tumblr) - "Unpopular opinion but, every creepy fuckery Edward Cullen does… Angel did it first."
fandom:btvs
Buffy Rewatch S3E16: apprenticebard (Tumblr) - "Willow goes on about how crazy Faith is, Buffy pretty much flinches when Faith touches her, and Giles won’t even ask for her help when the bronze has been taken over by vampires and it’s full of civilians. Yet, nobody apparently cares about what Anya has done in this episode alone?"
fandom:btvs
Captain America
Untitled: synecdochic and others (DW) - A long, detailed thread about back pay and taxes and such as it would affect Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes.
fandom:mcu
Castle
Untitled: castleramblings (Tumblr) - "Do you think Castle's character has room to grow in the sharing with Beckett area?"
fandom:castle
Columbiana
Waiting for Alan Rickman: Noah Berlatsky (blog) - "Except…somewhere, somehow, something goes horribly wrong. Cattaleya, the good guy (or in this case good gal), wreaks horrible vengeance on slimy evildoers just the way she’s supposed to…but somehow the prime evildoers, the guys we’re supposed to love to hate, are brutally blindsided not by our heroine, but rather by a series of viciously sodden subplots."
fandom:columbiana
Daredevil
more from 9 eps in…: laporcupina (Tumblr) - "Non-spoilery things I like about Daredevil beyond Matt Murdock’s voice."
fandom:daredevil
NOC Recaps Daredevil: AKA Law & Order Hell’s Kitchen: Eric S.B. (blog) - "I brought this up in my recap for "Into the Ring," but "Rabbit in a Snowstorm" is where we really get the Law & Order: Hell’s Kitchen portion of the show."
fandom:daredevil
Daredevil, Catholicism, and the Marvel Moral Universe: Leah Schnelbach (blog) - "The other thing that I love is how the show’s brutal world is informed by the particularly Catholic morality of its hero."
fandom:daredevil, topic:religion
Oh, My Pop Culture Devil of Hell’s Kitchen: Is Daredevil the Religious Hero We’ve Been Waiting For?: Lady Saika (blog) - "It goes without saying, then, that I tuned into Daredevil with some trepidation on the religion front. Matt Murdock is probably one of the most devoutly religious Catholic characters in comics (that I’m familiar with, at least). Would his faith make the jump to the screen?"
fandom:daredevil, topic:religion
Okay, Internet hive mind…: sholio (DW) - "In the episode in which Foggy and Karen have their "date" (1x06, I think), there's a part of that scene in which my interpretation seems to be 180 degrees off from the prevailing fandom interpretation, at least based on what I'm picking up from fic, which is pretty much 100% going with this other version. So I would like to see what you all think."
fandom:daredevil
Daredevil/Batman v Superman
Daredevil v Batman v Superman: Getting Angst Right in the Superhero Genre: Petra Halbur (blog) - "This begs the question, what did Daredevil do right and what is Batman v Superman doing (or rather predicted to do) wrong? In other words, when is angst compelling in a superhero story and when is it grating?"
fandom:daredevil, fandom:dccu, topic:superheroes
DC Comics
Doing the Krypton Crawl: Jaz Jacobi (blog) - "But Superman’s journey from Man of Tomorrow to lame old-timer represents a complicated trail, the character walking a razor’s edge between the ephemera of junk culture charm and the drive to make superhero stories-and likewise their creators and devotees-seem "mature.""
fandom:dccomics, topic:history
Doctor Who
I know what the Midnight entity was…: whatwecanfic (Tumblr) - "Ok so I had an epiphany the other night and I’m pretty much 100% certain I know what the mysterious creature in Midnight was."
fandom:doctorwho
Tim’s Take On: Episode 276(Doctor Who: World War Three commentary): Tim Drury (podcast) - "World War III almost breaks out but thankfully the Doctor was there to prevent it as my coverage of the 2005 series reaches Doctor Who: World War Three."
fandom:doctorwho
World War Three: Neil Parryman (blog) - Liveblogging of a watch of the episode in question with someone who hasn’t seen it before.
fandom:doctorwho
Should Doctor Who Abandon Continuity?: James Baldock (blog) - "Continuity never used to exist in Doctor Who (Terrance Dicks has said on more than one occasion that ‘History is what you can remember’). And then it did, and it’s impossible to really maintain it properly - but it still seems to matter, and as a result many fans are obsessive about seeing patterns in things that aren’t there."
fandom:doctorwho
The Randomizer: Paradise Towers: louisedennis (LJ) - "Paradise Towers is the first story that really has the stamp of Andrew Cartmel's style as script editor - a sort of angry whimsey with a tendency to ask the audience to join the dots themselves to fill in the backstory (though that is not so obvious here as it would become in later stories)."
fandom:doctorwho
Dragon Age: Inquisition
Pixelthreads: Dragon Age: Inquisition and the Politics of Dress: Megan Patterson (blog) - "And in the game of politics, what you wear and when is as important as with whom you choose to ally yourself. Dragon Age: Inquisition occasionally seems to understand this: there’s at least one dialogue with Vivienne where you discuss as much. But the game never really seems to understand how to implement it into an integral part of the gameplay."
fandom:dragonage
Ex Machina
Ex Machina (2015): starlady (DW) - " I think it was Kate Elliott on Twitter who made a comment about it last year that tipped me off, and I have to say, it's one of the best and most stylish SF movies I've seen in a while. I would highly recommend it to just about everybody."
fandom:exmachina
Sci-Fi Films Need More Big Ideas Like Ex Machina’s: Geeks Guide to the Galaxy (podcast) - "The new science fiction thriller Ex Machina, written and directed by Alex Garland, is one of the year’s most intelligent and thought-provoking films, full of heady concepts like the Turing test and Mary’s Room."
fandom:exmachina
The Fast and the Furious
One Last Ride: Why Furious 7’s Ending Had Us All In Tears: Desiree Rodriguez (blog) - "One of my roommates, however, didn’t quite get it. "You cried over a Fast & Furious movie?" he asked, brows furrowed in honest confusion. What followed was a good ten to fifteen minutes of playful ribbing and jokes. All of which boiled down to one singular incredulous question on their part: why would you cry over a Fast & Furious movie?"
fandom:thefastandthefurious
Firefly
Point/Counterpoint: Does Firefly Still Matter?: Katharine Trendacosta and James Whitbrook (blog) - "Welcome to a new feature: Point/Counterpoint, where we debate, vehemently, angrily, over issues of extreme importance. Today: Does Firefly still matter?"
fandom:firefly
Forever
Forever, Season 1, Episode 21: The Night In Question: Sparky (blog) - Episode summary with some meta comments at the end.
fandom:forever, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones
Good, Bad, and Ugly Parents of Game of Thrones: Nate Jones (blog) - "But for most lordly parents we've seen, caring about a dynasty isn't the same thing as caring about the actual people who make it up."
fandom:gameofthrones
Game of Thrones Discussion, S5E2: Boxed in: Laura Fletcher, Corrin Bennett-Kill, and Cheryl Collins (blog) - "Open the windows and join us for a discussion of "The House of Black and White" with three fans with different perspectives: Laura Fletcher, a casual fan of the television and book series; Corrin Bennett-Kill, a dedicated fan of the book and TV series (she has read all the books four times!); and Cheryl Collins, who does not read."
fandom:gameofthrones
Myth, History and Game of Thrones: fenzel (blog) - "The characters in Game of Thrones definitely map onto different mythological traditions and historical events, but it happens in various complex and interconnected ways."
fandom:gameofthrones
Boiled Leather Audio Hour Episode 38: Boiled Leather Audio Hour (podcast) - "BLAH is back with two, count ‘em, two topics! This go-round, Stefan & Sean tackle the new "Alayne" sample chapter from The Winds of Winter and the first two episodes of Game of Thrones Season Five."
fandom:gameof thrones, fandom:asoiaf
Tailgate, Little Bastard: Johnny (blog) - A large collection of links to reviews, interviews and meta about season 5
fandom:gameofthrones
"Game of Thrones" politics: War makes for strange bedfellows, indeed: Steven Attewell (blog) - "The central difficulty of feudal politics - whether we’re talking about Europe after the partition of the Carolingian Empire in the 9th century and the rise of the modern nation-state in the 16th and 17th centuries, or Japanese history between the Genpei War in the 12th century and the end of the Sengoku Jidai - is that a system based on a liege lord distributing landed power to a military caste in return for their loyalty breaks down when fiefdoms become jealously-guarded inheritances instead of gifts that can be distributed and redistributed at will to keep vassals eager to gain favor and avoid wrath."
fandom:gameofthrones
Deconstructed: High Sparrow: Stefan (blog) - "We're officially in new territory with a whole host of storylines now. Sansa and Littlefinger, Jaime and Bronn, the whole northern storyline and soon enough the Watch as well - so far, the season proves that it can stand on its own, a feat many doubted it was capable of given the mixed track record it enjoys in those areas. But let's see for ourselves how things stand this week, shall we?"
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
High Sparrow Open Thread: Johnny (blog) - "This open thread is for all viewers, including book readers who may want to compare the show to the book."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
High Sparrow: Philip Sandifer (blog) - "But if you were to suggest a generalized pattern for a season, the third episode would be a point of drastic acceleration."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones producers explain changing Sansa’s storyline: James Hibberd (blog) - "Showrunners talk about that huge twist - that was very different from the books"
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Return to Westeros: "High Sparrow" Review: MadameAce (blog) - "So far I both love and hate this season. As Game of Thrones will be finishing up before A Song of Ice and Fire, it makes sense to me that the show would start deviating from the source material."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones Discussion, S5E3: What’s in a Name?: Laura Fletcher, Corrin Bennett-Kill, and Cheryl Collins (blog) - "Join us for a discussion of "High Sparrow" with three fans with different perspectives: Laura Fletcher, a casual fan of the television and book series; Corrin Bennett-Kill, a dedicated fan of the book and TV series (she has read all the books four times!); and Cheryl Collins, who does not read."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Game of Thrones, Season 5, Episode 3: High Sparrow: Sparky (blog) - Episode recap followed by some meta at the end.
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
Review: High Sparrow: ghostlovesinger (blog) - "That said, "High Sparrow" gave us relatively little to complain about and much to get excited for, weaving together quality performances and concluding on a vital and compelling cliffhanger."
fandom:gameofthrones, warning:spoilers
The Many Men of Brienne of Tarth: Nate Jones (blog) - "With no set of instructions to follow, the men of Westeros are forced to take Brienne largely on her terms - one of my favorite GOT litmus tests is to figure out which ones can see her for who she really is. Pod does, of course."
fandom:gameofthrones, topic:femalecharacter
Gintama
Untitled: notthepajamas (Tumblr) - The author lists points about Gintama canon, both factual details and calling out problematic points.
fandom:anime, fandom:manga
Good Night, and Good Luck
Good Night, and Good Luck: attack on McCarthyism simplifies but satisfies: Alex von Tunzelmann (blog) - Evaluation of George Clooney’s film about Edward R. Murrow and Joseph McCarthy from a historian’s point of view.
topic:movies, topic:history
Gotham
The Ogre is Groot: Gotham’s "Under the Knife": Thom Dunn (blog) - "Leave it to Gotham, a show which has dreadfully mishandled all of its female characters, to build up towards a "climactic finale" about a misogynistic serial killer-and make the audience actually wish that his latest victim would die and go away for good."
fandom:gotham
Grey’s Anatomy
[Title redacted because it’s a spoiler]: Rachel Wong (blog) - "For weeks, the hashtag #WhereIsDerek trended on Twitter, aprompting fans to wonder if Derek was cheating on his wife."
fandom:greysanatomy, warning:spoilers
Grimm
Grimm Season Four, Episode Nineteen: Iron Hans: Renee (blog) - Episode summary with some meta commentary at the end.
fandom:grimm, warning:spoilers