Run for your life before he brings the funkopops
now theres the real red flag
I don’t know. That fight option looks like it could be fun too… TEST YOUR MIGHT!
shitheads who idolize assholes are funny when they cry
I used to worry about what women would think when they saw my home, but it turned out that none of them ever see it at all so I might as well be true to myself and collect all the My Little Ponies.
My (now) wife freaked out coming to my apartment the first time. Turns out, she’s a huge Rush fan:
In my living room at the time:
All I hear is “Eeeeeeeeeeeeee!”
70% sure she just married me for the TV.
“Honey, will you marry me?”
um, I dunno…
“If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.”
She, for sure, did mot married you for your cable management.
That’s an awesome TV.
Has she now learned the rest of the alphabet?
I think she started with Y-Y-Z. :) Sorry, Rush joke…
I’m guessing D was learned early on
The other 30% was the Dreamcast.
Edit: Where can I get a TV exactly like that? I assume you had to hunt for years and/or restore?
I was looking for an original to restore but there are problems doing that:
-
They are FULL of paper capacitors. All of which have to be replaced.
-
Once you do that, the set is still black and white and has no modern inputs, coaxial and dipole only.
So in my research, I found a tiny company in Dousman, WI who bought the Philco Predicta license. Not sure if they are still making them, keep in mind this was all 25 years ago. Was $2,500 + freight shipping.
God, they’re so beautiful.
Another lemmy gold.
Thanks for allowing me to learn cathodic TV this old was still manufactured in the US in 2018.
-
If you got money and really want something like it there’s eBay as an option potentially.
You’re looking for a Philco Television
Good luck! If you don’t have money to light on fire you might just have to accept the dream won’t become reality.
Some people also make art pieces either with or just as smaller reproductions. So that could be an option if you want something just aesthetically pleasing but still will be pricey.
Edit: I know that eBay link isn’t the exact same model but I’m like 99% it is a philco TV on the album cover
I was so excited until word four.
Dude but that’s a pretty kickass TV.
Holy cow. That TV! Actually awesome, seems uniquely aesthetically pleasing for the era it seems to originate from.
What can you tell us about that TV?
The origjnal is a Philco Predicta from around 1958 or so. The Philco brand existed for years and years, first as a maker of radios, then as a maker of televisions.
The retro-futurist Predicta line ran for just 2 years, 1958 to 1960.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Predicta
It definitely gained a hold though and has been featured in both the Sims and Fallout games:
In the 90’s, the brand was acquired by a tiny company called Telstar who hand-made reproductions using Phillips parts, that’s who made mine in 2001.
25", full color, with composite, component and S-Video inputs. It even supports 480p video!
Maybe it was her first time seeing moving pictures? 😏
Those damn talkies ruined movies!
Yo PSOE1&2? I’d have married you too.
There’s Rush fans, and there’s deep cut Rush Power windows Fans
3 CD towers, but I’m counting only 2 CDs in them. Nice setup though
Yeah, bought them as speaker stands.
Working Man live in Rio… My lord
PSO? Fuck yeah.
That TV is sweet.
My husband was worried about bringing me to his apartment for the first time when we were dating because it was filled with tarantulas, scorpions, and snakes. Did not bother me in the slightest and I really got into keeping them too. I did put my foot down on centipedes though because fuck that (too fast, too hot).
Too… hot…?
“Hot” in reference to snakes means venomous, and I know some centipedes have venom, so my assumption is that.
Yea I meant venomous. Hubby was trying to woo me on the idea of keeping Vietnamese centipedes. Serious look them up on YouTube if you want some nightmare fuel. We used to breed Deathstalkers so I’m not opposed to keeping hots but I’m also a safety oriented person.
My mate accidentally stepped on one of thous in Laos once and killed it. All i heard was a loud crunch.
Is this it?
nightmare fuel
Don’t kink-shame.
They’re like a hundred degrees, centigrade.
If you ever change your mind, you can just move into my place. Nobody invited the centipedes, yet every spring those creepy bastards find their way in.
Thats scolopenders right. Are there venomous centipedes?
They’ve got toxicognaths to shoot you full of venom with.
That dude is way too happy in that video. But that’s pretty close to the same pitch my husband gave me.
Y’all have vinegaroons? I kept one for a while. They’re amazing to “terrorize” children with.
We did have one for a bit. We did a whole arboreal tank set up and even got it to molt twice. They are amazing to watch.
Oops I was wrong we had a whip scorpion not a vinegroon. Husband just corrected me.
If people can’t love you because they can’t accept that Fluttershy is best pony then that’s their loss.
You still have us. Brohoof /)
Best pony? But that’s not Rainbow Dash!
That’s a funny way to spell Cheese Sandwich.
Maybe I’m just your basic bitch*, but it’s Twilght Sparkle for me. I just like her look; last time I had my hair dyed it it was modeled after her mane / her anthro’s hair. I didn’t really like the show, but I only watched a few episodes.
* is that word gender-neutral in context, or should I be using “bastard” or something else?
No clue. Everyone can like what they like IMO. And I’ve liked Weird Al for like 40 years lol.
Discord got me hooked. Cheese Sandwich made me realize there was never any going back now.
Y’all are crazy. Grown adults going on about silly ponies.
The real G.O.A.T. (and I don’t mean Grogar) is Pinkie Pie. She’s fun, chill, suprisingly powerful, and got real backstory depth.
I’m a married man in a great relationship. Our office is covered with My Little Pony merch and posters.
She thought it was weird, but she liked it because it was weird.
Being anti-brony is a symptom of toxic masculinity. The Internet went after that fandom in a way I haven’t seen since furries.
You gotta admit part of it was probably deserved.
Like the fact that people were trying to create imaginary friend ponies using Buddhist meditation techniques, the existence of Cupcakes (and all attendant media), and the popularity of “clop” flooding Google images such that a lot of little kids probably saw pony porn while looking for pictures of Twilight Sparkle to trace….
I saw this as someone with a homemade Applejack perler bead on my refrigerator.
It is endless amusing that this whole thing started because some journalist lambasted Friendship is Magic for using Flash, /co/ got intrigued, and then the rest is history.
Sounds like all the same reasons people hate on furries. “You ruined ny childhood!” Bitch, you searched without Safe Search turned on! Rule43 is a curse for many.
The thing is that stuff has always shown up, even with safe search on. It’s sorta like you can image search any given Pokémon and there will be something lewd almost immediately.
I do think adults who enjoy children’s content have some responsibility in making sure that stuff isn’t as easily accessible. There had been an online adult My Little Pony fandom before bronies, which was far less toxic.
How would you explain this to a kid? Also - blue boards are supposed to not be technically SFW but lol that just means not porn
I just learned a lot about the pony fandom
I think it beats Henry Darger’s Vivian Girls. Darger totally would have posted to /mlp/ if he was alive though, so it balances out.
Might as well collect what you love…as long as you don’t keep them in jars it should be fine.
Don’t kink shame!
Every person I know including me is like “nah my place is way too messy, laundry everywhere, can’t meet there” so you just end up splitting a hotel for a bang
Joker poster beside other comic book posters: Stay, they’re probably cool. Joker poster beside grindset posters: Refer to counselling and taxi home. Joker poster beside Joker 2019 Poster: RUN TO FUCK
This display used to be the first thing you would see when you walked into my home.
The only reason I moved them was because I replaced them to make room for my two massive bearded dragon tanks. 😎
Any future partner better match my energy LOL
My girlfriend is EXTREMELY jealous of all your peepees and ouiouis
They are the result of years of slowly obtaining them. They are pretty much the only thing(s) of value that I own! Really love them a lot. 💕
If she doesn’t have a Peepy of her own yet, it’s your obligation to get her one! 🫵 And if she already has one, she needs more.
I suddenly got a hankering for some peanuts…
Feed him.
Lol that Thanos poster is lit
You ain’t lying, not sure I agree with the sentiment, but fucking great execution.
Found the source: https://comicartprints.square.site/product/king-thanos/357?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=false&category_id=3
Also here: https://www.instagram.com/joshbrolin/p/BgM6aYCB2Jq/
Not sure why he’s praying, you’d think a titan wouldn’t have time for that sort of thing
To show off the stones. Also it’s another common biggie smalls pose.
He’s about to tell you something that’s going to be difficult for you to hear.
Nothing’s difficult for me to hear! I have the best hearing in the world! My ears are so strong, people always tell me
Praying? Look at how he is dressed… He is clearly about to go in for a 2 handed karate chop.
We used to call that Kirk-fu.
Shit, you’re right!
yea but without the stupid text
I think as a guy you should never express interest in anything because it’s going to be problematic tomorrow.
That sounds exactly like what someone who once faced consequences for one particular thing would say.
Why are you so in to problematic things?
He listed the highly inappropriate and unpopular movies that nobody ever heard of Full Metal Jacket and Fight Club.
I think someone spends too much time reading posts on the internet.
edit: i was right, yep, menslib subreddit reader.
Oooh fight club? So edgy. That’s that indie flick with complete unknowns Brad Pitt and Edward Norton.
I dunno’ about OP, but quite a few things become “problematic” purely by association with dinguses. Sure, the sigma workaholic crap is problematic by itself, but the new Joker movie (NOT the sequel) _ was_ actually a good movie. It was all the weirdos who turned him in to some idol that made it cringe. (kinda’ like in the movie, even though the character himself enjoyed the recognition)
Personally, I tend to really like flawed characters or tragic back stories and whatnot, and he had both. They could have had a really awesome sequel to show why going down the path of idolatry would be a terrible one, but nooo they had to do a weird “musical” where it turns out he’s not even the joker. Too bad everyone else had to ruin it, even the creators, so I can kinda’ relate to things getting ruined by external forces.
Kinda’ like the US getting fucked by Trump despite every effort to get everyone I know to vote otherwise… Or how people like Johny Somali are giving Americans an even worse reputation as tourists. Some things that are supposed to be good really do simply get ruined by others, because too many people are judgemental guilt-by-association assholes.
Because other people decided they were problematic after I got into them
Like did you evolve your entire personality around the disturbing characters? Or did you watch them a couple times, quote a few lines here and there?
There is a line and if you are worried people don’t like you anymore because of these movies you probably crossed into the former. The movies are not problematic, but unfortunately the way some people get into them is.
To emphasize: This is not automatically your fault because you enjoyed watching a show.
Media is full of things like this and there a few people that take fandom too far. They are characters and we are intended to hate the characters. Should we feel empathy as we watch their journey? Yes but empathy shouldn’t forgive the crimes they commit. We can feel a connection to their pain but take the lesson and instead of idolize, try to do better.
The workaholic sigma grindset BS is totally problematic, and definitely hints at the wrong kind of Joker idolization, though personally, I like a good warning of bad choices type character. The Joker could’ve been that if the sequel didn’t crap all over the very notion.
It’s also why I (used to) like Rick from Rick and Morty. He’s a terrible, miserable person, despite being capable of almost literally anything. He’s a great warning that happiness doesn’t come from things or power, but personal choices and outlook.
Fuck that. Fuck that entirely.
It’s true. A lot of my favorite movies are considered red flags just because enough dude bro dipshits misinterpret them.
When people online are this vague and hand-wavy, you know 99% of the time they’re downplaying some really stupid stand they took about that something a date or friend didn’t like one fucking time and they can’t let it go.
Or they don’t have friends at all, and just read all the manosphere self-victimization forums.
Edit: he got lost down the menslib rabbit hole of over analyzing everything until reality itself loses meaning and you begin to think breathing is problematic to someone, somewhere.
Or they don’t want to deeply engage with something where everyone is shitting on them? Jeeze, you armchair psychologists are just as bad as Redditors…
They’ve explained in other posts how they properly interpret Fight Club, yet here you are, assuming the worst.
I am not saying I am a victim. I am just expressing frustration with something. Shit like this is why those places got popular.
While I disagree with your gender-oriented spin on this completely, and I don’t think it’s nearly as common as the picture you paint (never heard anyone roasted for liking Fight Club), it does occasionally happen.
I watched the first few episodes of MLP: FIM at a friend’s house by happenstance, and within about a week of airing I told a few people “Surprisingly, it’s actually a pretty good show.” Then the controversial fans came out and I completely stopped talking about the show to protect myself. Literal years later I found out my mom had been loudly proclaiming to anyone who would listen, including distant family, that I was a “brony”. It soured a few tenuous relationships with people who didn’t know me well enough to know it was an absurd label.
Such as? Let’s see what you got
Fight Club and Full Metal Jacket to name two.
I’ve never heard of Fight club being a red flag. Probably it could be one if you’re overly obsessed with the movie, and express it with a focus on the toxic masculine parts of the movie, but in that case the issue is you being a red flag.
Some people do consider it a red flag, because there are idiots who misinterpret the movie and enough of them that interpret it as pro “toxic masculinity” that it’s scared a few people off. (Kinda like how 2019 Joker is a great film, but enough weirdos think it’s an endorsement of their weird behaviors.)
Like it’s a gay man’s satire of masculinity (and about the homoeroticism inherent to fascistic movements). It’s a joke. Notice how the narrator never wants to fuck Martha - that he spends late nights roaming, looking for other men to engage physically with. The fights are a cruising metaphor.
Fincher makes it even more obvious with the casting. Like yeah Helena Bingham Carter is hot, but we’re all here to gawk at Edward Norton and Brad Pitt.
Those are insanely popular movies.
I’ve only seen academic critique and of course more cerebral criticisms because of how they were reflections of their time, like many movies.
If you had actual people in real life attack you for liking these movies, either you were being weird about them and not listening to someone’s academic takes because you don’t understand them or you met a nut. Otherwise I think it’s bullshit and you just wanna be oppressed for liking [POPULAR THING]
I dunno’ man, cruise these comments. Plenty of people attempting to assume the worst even from those movies. Some people are just toxic judgemental assholes, even here on Lemmy.
Agree
I just don’t tell people I like them.
what the… then, how could you possibly be attacked for liking them?
Are you just creating things in your mind to feel bad about???
How do you interpret and discuss Fight Club and Full Metal Jacket in conversation? I like both of these movies and have never had anyone respond negatively when I’ve discussed them.
When you talk about Fight Club, are you talking about it in a way which might suggest you think fight clubs are a good idea?
I’m trying to figure out who would have a problem with Full Metal Jacket.
I’m trying to figure out who would have a problem with Full Metal Jacket.
The same kind of person that would fuck somebody in the ass and not have the goddamn decency to give him a reach-around!
It’s how other n people talk about it. They act like Hartman and Tyler were awesome bad asses and not the unhinged assholes they were.
If you talk about both of those movies in a way that acknowledges Sergeant Hartman and Tyler Durden are not people we should emulate, I don’t think many people would consider those red flags.
People who think that the those movies are red flags have probably met people who think that we are supposed to look up to those characters. If you make it clear that you are not one of those people, there’s not really a problem.
a bit strange but I don’t really see the problem tbh. Are these references I’m not getting? I recognize joker and thanos.
The Thanos poster has been “alpha-male”-ified and the joker is a cringe incel reference. The fact you don’t know is a good thing.
How is joker an incel reference? O.o
He’s one of those pseudo icons or idols of weird guys who think being edgy or “deranged” is cool.
Honestly I am somewhat confused too. I think the joker movie joker is kinda incel ref because he is kinda an incel and kinda hates women (I don’t remember the movie too well)
That seems to be the dark knight joker tho. So idk.
And honestly dark knight joker is amazing. Like I like the movie because the joker is a great villain in this movie.
I think even calling Phoenix’s Joker incel is bit of a stretch. I’ve also only seen it long ago in theater, but I recall there was only a small part his imagined romance but it was only small contributor or result of his mental issues, and his hate was more so on the people abusing him, didn’t really strike me as a woman hating incel in any way
This is correct but if you check the media coverage (even before the movie came out) there was def this narrative being pushed. I think it’s because libs were uncomfortable with how the movie portrayed class struggle so they latched onto this aspect
I am not arguing that he is and I don’t think the people calling it a incel ref are saying that he is. I think they are saying that he is weirdly deli about a woman and is popular with a lot of incels because he is relatable for them. (Hating society is a way and kinda delulu about women)
Also I want to repeat, I might misremember stuff.
I don’t think the joker hated women at all in Joker. As far as I remember his attitude to both genders is the same.
Maybe I misremember but he was kinda delulu about a woman, no?
He was delusional about many things. It was an entire character trait. He fantasized about telling good jokes, too.
Yeah, but again. I think the people that see joker was a incel ref, aren’t necessarily saying that joker is an incel, but rather that incels like joker.
I didn’t enjoy the joker movie, I don’t intend to argue about the movie but to provide my understanding of the why.
And my joker is Heath ledger, anyway.
Are you typing delulu because you can’t spell delusional? Or is this a new cool trendy thing I’m too old to know about?
Neither. It was a new cool trendy thing.
@remindme@mstdn.social 1 day
How is the joker an incel reference? Great movie
Incels scorn society and the world for making them ugly, no powerful jawline, no American Pie sex adventures in high school, and no nice suits to wear to their minimum wage jobs. To incels, they are the forgotten scum of the earth.
Well, The Joker is a film about an abused, poor, and lonely comedian getting his face kicked in by teenagers about a month before rising up, killing a late night tv host, and vengefully breaking Society down into chaos and misery.
So, they just think The Joker makes them look cool. That’s really it. Every time they think about shooting up an elementary school, they also think about Arthur Fleck gunning down Murray Franklin.
Alright
The truth being somewhere in-between.
Full npc vs full crash out antihero
The movie itself isn’t a problem, But the kind of person that fancies the joker and Thanos *as role models are. It’s one thing to appreciate the dark side it’s another to idolize it.
The movies aren’t the problem.
Yeah, I’m not really into comics that are only funny to people who are terminally online.
has been “alpha-male”-ified
How so? The crown and gown?
The text behind him in the poster.
The crown and gown just make him look like Biggie.
What’s the orange skull doll?
Kaws, one of those pop art figures that ended up getting merchandized to hell and back.
Made me think of the "saw"movie, but I 'm unsure
flee, otherwise it is like punching the wind: useless
I am old, please explain. :?(
The posters are red flags for “nice guys” and other very problematic people
I must be way too old. Being a nice guy is bad? Fuck, I’ve been living under a rock. Is this about “incels” or this sigma thing?
Edit: Lol, why the downvotes? You guys aren’t nice!
Being a nice person isn’t bad but “nice guy” is a term for someone who presents themselves as nice and polite (but only to people they’re attracted to) and expects romantic attention in return for being nice. Basically, they think the fact that they put so much effort into being nice they deserve that romantic attention. They’ll often talk about how nice they are.
Of course, anyone who needs to repeatedly tell you they are nice tend not be.
Ok. Thx. I am not from the US and in my 40s. This whole thing of labeling people into categories is somewhat foreign to me. I mean my generation over here did this as well to a degree (and I admit I never got it), but it appears this has become much more dominant thin (at least at the other side of the pacific).
I also tend to aggressively ignore things I deam stupid. But my children will be teenagers soo, guess I’ll have to put some time into researching these kind of things.
Bro yall labeled people too quit acting like it’s so :pinches nose: unthinkable! I don’t even know where you’re from and I know that’s bullshit.
Here we are. Adapt. Take responsibility.
This, and, speaking for myself, I once thought that’s literally how you attract someone because that’s what my mom taught me. “be nice to women, find a nice girl, ???, marriage.” in that order. But I was nice to everyone, not just people I liked.
The one time I ever talked about how nice I thought I was, was when I was 18 and the girl I liked called me creepy when I was being nice to her all the time showering her with compliments and ttying to hang out with her. I went on this little rant, out of frustration, on FB in a status update about how women were bitches for not liking me and calling me creepy when I’ve just been trying to he nice to them. Yeah, at that point, that status update wasn’t exaclty being nice to anyone.
Actually that was probably when I took a look at myself and realized just being nice isn’t gonna cut it, and my mom’s advice was shit. THEEEEEN, a few years later I heard about Nice Guys™
It’s okay I’m now 32 and I have seen the light, it’s just took me until a couple years ago to figure it all out
Cool Matt
Yessir! ❄️🔥🪛🔧🪜
You apparently have been living under a rock because there is a world of difference between someone who is nice and also a guy and someone being a “nice guy”.
Also the posters are red flags not because they reference nerdy things but because they show an unhealthy obsession with fictional characters who, though charismatic, are evil people who justify their violent actions with straw man arguments about power and corruption. The words on the Thanos poster put an especially fine point on that part.
Nice guy and “nice guy” are two different things
It’s just a bunch of memes. Let the guy decorate his apartment how he wants.
If I walk into a woman’s apartment, and one of the first things I see is something like “can’t handle me at worst”, and I <3 Dylan, posters I am probably going to end the pursuit of this relationship. I would do this because I have seen this common thread with people who do this. That common thread is that they have personality disorders, or are otherwise unstable. Pattern recognition is a survival instinct. Pattern recognition can be wrong, but this isn’t seeing faces in wood grain. This is seeing aspects of people’s personalities that they, themselves, value to the point where they spent money to display it on their wall.
Beyond this specific situation, you know how many times I have seen “it’s just memes” turn into “I am now in favor of an ethno state”? The average person to white supremacist/whatever pipeline created by the social influence of fora for “it’s just memes/jokes” is real, I have watched it happen. Feel disaffected from society? Well I am here to ease you into the idea that it isn’t your fault, it is the fault of women, and brown people, starting with some casual jokes, and memes.
This dude is “hiding his power level” till he gets women back to his place
Then it’s too late
deleted by creator
What’s the appropriate reaction to DPRK Comrade Applejack?
Institutionalization
Already tried it.
Damn I’m sorry
Check what rights institutionalized people in your state have - especially with the administration trying to make list of people with autism…
Oh yeah, human rights are not a thing in mental institutions.
It does not matter what stated and legal rights you have, only what you can secure, and right now that’s ZERO.
Run like the wind!
What’s the yellow figurine?
Kaus:
https://www.masterworksfineart.com/artists/kaws/sculpture/4-foot-companion-2007/id/W-7511
(I don’t know a lot of details, there’s one in my city)
It means something in this context?
Looks like Yotsuba with a skull for a head. Perhaps some 4chan thing?
If you don’t love me at my nerdiest, you don’t deserve me at my I get off eating my partner out.
There’s nerd and then there’s Thanos grindset nerd. I do not acknowledge the latter as being a true subset of the former.
Edit: It was bothering me so I have to point out that I’m making a No True Scotsman Fallacy here. This does not change my statement.
No. Grindset nerds are a cancer that must be excised for the health of the community.
Like the kind of nerd that would let autocorrect replace excised with exercised.
I agree with you, but I can’t recognize that I’m using a fallacy and then let it go undisclosed. I’m that kind of nerd… But yes, burn them out of the community with fire or empathy, whichever strategy works fastest.
Me: “I hope you like Lisa Frank!”
Me: immediately ruining the first impression with a full-size framed reproduction of the painting of Lord Vigo from Ghostbusters 2 looming over the foyer. Visitors are often distracted enough not to even notice that it hangs across from a pirate skull and crossbones flag and a queer villain pride flag.
Then they get to the living room which seems weirdly normal; tastefully matched furniture, a couple of landscapes and a reproduction Matisse on the walls, reasonable quantities of clutter on the end and coffee tables. It’s almost normal enough to make one forget that the Scourge of Carpathia is watching over their shoes.
But then there’s the sign by the bathroom asking guests not to use it for summoning demons. The Van Goku painting of Son Goku from Dragonball throwing a kamehameha in the style of Van Gogh’s “Starry Night”. A strangely ominous black and white photo of llamas hung by the basement door over a sign that reads “A little party never killed anybody”.
No, that first impression was correct. Mine is a house of weirdos. =D
If I walked into your foyer I would immediately consider you a close friend. No one who loves Ghostbusters 2 that much can be a bad person.
What is a queer villain pride flag?
It’s a pride flag specifically for villainous and/or villain-coded queers: https://distressedegg.fun/qvp
Ok, I have an interest in a good faith conversation and realllllly hope we can do so about one of the “What This Isn’t” sections.
Please, bear with me if there is some obvious context that I am missing and understand I’m genuinely asking I’m good faith.
“A place for people who are straight and cis. Really can’t emphasize this one enough. I don’t care how nefarious or well-intentioned you are, you also need to be LGBTQIA+ in some way or another.”
This seems exclusionary to an entire group of allies and people who may find the ability to recognize something in the folks taking part in that community that allows them to be their true selves. It also feels a touch damning personally as someone who strives to practice tolerance and exceptance as a matter of course.
Is this in jest to keep with the villain motif? Is it a brand of humor and irony that I’m not privy to as a person outside of the community? Should I just accept its gate keeping as empowerment and move on?
I also understand you are likely not the author of the manifesto and not beholden to it’s message nor owe me an explanation. This is genuinely a question to expand my understanding of a world outside of my own as a (you guessed it) cis, 40 year old, white gun owner in America.
I am more than happy to engage in good faith! Though, please excuse me if some of my commentary is provocative. That is, in a very deliberate way, part of the ethos.
This seems exclusionary to an entire group of allies
That’s intentional, because queer villainy is fundamentally about the building community amid the shared struggle of outcasts rather than bridging the gap between outcasts and wider society.
We have no desire to integrate, to debate the merits of tolerance under an intolerant regime, or to seek acceptance from those with normative perspectives. Our existence stands in direct contravention of those norms and we will not apologize for rebelling against them.
Is this in jest to keep with the villain motif?
No, it’s fully sincere. Queer Villain Pride is a non-cisheteronormative space. Allies can be allies and as individuals we welcome whatever support is offered, but only queer people can be queer villains.
Is it a brand of humor and irony that I’m not privy to as a person outside of the community?
There’s an aspect of that, but it’s mostly centered around our self-styling as villains and the irony inherent to finding power and a sense of aesthetic identity in one’s exclusion from “polite” society. “Evil” but only in the narrowest sense of rebellion against an intolerable status quo.
Should I just accept its gate keeping as empowerment and move on?
That’s likely the healthiest response. Queer Villain Pride isn’t an organized group with membership rolls and the like, there’s nothing preventing a straight cis person from pretending to be one of us other than their own sense of hypocrisy.
Thank you so much for the breakdown. I feel genuinely educated about something new and fascinating.
The concept of intentional exclusion sounds parallel to my experience as a metal head since childhood. There are times when we are the flavor of the day and others where we are being literally chased out of town (good times touring Utah with a band called fuck god in the face immediately after September 11, lol). But it is always a community that welcomes with a bit of gatekeeping. Sometimes a precious thing needs to be polished with a sneer.
The perspective on allyship is also interesting. I am never quite sure where to state my stance without appearing cloy or pandering. There’s an easy line between honesty and rainbow capitalism but it blurs a bit when you’re an individual who empathetically wants everyone to be able, safe and comfortable being the version of themselves they feel inside. Again, I think there’s another parallel between our communities.
The point on humor/irony or “evil” as you framed it is fun as well. In my simple understanding it’s akin to a statement of empowerment much the same as being a bad bitch. Love it. Be the Dr Evil you want to see in the world. Cpt Hammers be damned. (Not that a villain needs permission). I hope one day the status quo catches up to your virtue and you are all able to find new paths of decadent evil to engage in.
Cheers to that community. I will admire from afar and keep my mouth shut about it. Lest I spoil the delicious villainy for my own hetero purposes. But I will still perform in a mask and cape on stage at a crummy metal venue and raise a mental toast in our shared existence.
Have a fantastic day my friend!
Solidarity, my friend! I’m always happy to share with open minds such as yours!
The point on humor/irony or “evil” as you framed it is fun as well. In my simple understanding it’s akin to a statement of empowerment much the same as being a bad bitch. Love it. Be the Dr Evil you want to see in the world. Cpt Hammers be damned. (Not that a villain needs permission). I hope one day the status quo catches up to your virtue and you are all able to find new paths of decadent evil to engage in.
Honestly, I had to come back and respond on the last bit of this specifically, because your well-wishing really hits at the heart of my personal feelings on the matter:
As a person-of-villainous-character, the ultimate apotheosis I seek is to not be merely defeated, but vanquished utterly by the absolution of obsolecence.
As long as queer folks are othered, we will always be villainized and in so doing the queer villain identity will be perpetuated. Those who imagine themselves heroes for opposing the existence or dignity of LGBTQIA+ people cannot reject us in any meaningful sense, for queer people exist regardless and it is their opposition that makes us villains.
So, let us take pride in their scorn and wear their shame as a badge of honor until the day that there is no more scorn and shame to be found.
Had to come back and share a comic that hit me pretty hard recently:
https://www.tumblr.com/welldrawnfish/746506639642951681/to-be-trans-is-to-change-for-the-better
Very cool. Thanks for sharing.
But then there’s the sign by the bathroom asking guests not to use it for summoning demons.
Now I want one. That’s delightful.
Have you considered running tours on Halloween? Throw in a few fog machines and black lights, make up some backstory about evil taking over your home or something, and you’ll have the most creative “haunted house” around.
Nah, having Lord Vigo looming over our shoulders when we give out candy on Halloween is enough.
Damn. Well, if I’ll never get to see it, I suppose I can still imagine it as some far away, legendary place where horror dreams come true.
My eyes, oh God my eyes!
