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madamelokiofasgard:

lovelystrumpet:

SHIT. I hadn’t consciously made the connection between the fact that Loki is always overlooked and ignored when he speaks and the fact that he’s put in that muzzle at the end of Avengers. I always thought that bit was a link to the bit from Norse mythology where he had his mouth sewn up as punishment for teasing some dude (details elude me right now).

But this.

This makes sense.

And makes so many more feels. 

It’s like the ultimate insult to him.

someonecertainly:

I feel like this entire phenomenon of “SHUT UP LOKI NOBODY WANTS TO LISTEN TO YOU”, besides the sort of mean chuckle at his expense that makes me feel guilty, is fascinating. With giant angst potential that explains a lot about how Loki looks at himself and why he snaps.

No, seriously. Imagine that this sort of thing has been going on for hundreds or thousands of years. Whenever Loki opens his mouth to speak, or share an opinion, or make a suggestion, or voice an objection, there’s a good chance he’ll basically get told he’s insignificant or irrelevant or reprehensible or just flat out wrong. Stop talking. Yeah, he’s a manipulative little shit, but seriously. His words are his biggest source of power. He’s not an up front fighter—his forte lies through persuasion and the ability to reason people into the decisions that suit him. And he’s perpetually being told “YOUR ABILITIES ARE WORTHLESS, GTFO WE DON’T WANT YOU”. So even the thing he thought he was good at is being undermined.

Extra bonus points if you incorporate canon mythology and the “sew his lips up” punishment. I mean just DAMN. Physical pain and the approval of his father in that sentence aside, that literally, physically denies his right to assert or defend himself. He completely loses his voice. He’s basically having it hammered home that people would rather not hear him at all, would rather pretend he’s not there, and he can’t even count on his family to disagree.

It’s just unbelievably fucked up.

ALL THIS

And i’ll explain the mythos portion with his lips being sewn.

What happened was…yes, he cut Sif’s hair (wife of Thor in the myths for those that do not know) as a prank.  Although in many ways it was him calling her a slut—ANYWAY.  

He cuts Sif’s hair.  Thor threatens his life and limb and—not wanting bodily harm done to himself—he tells Thor he shall go to the dwarves and have them make a fine wig for her made of spun gold as it will be better than before and fitting a goddess.  Thor agrees.

Well, the dwarves are reluctant at first.  Basically going “why the hell should we do this for you/her, what to we get out of it” and Loki, using his charm and wit, reasons with them saying “why…you get the thanks and praise of the Gods and of the Aesir, isn’t that wonderful?”  and they agree because damn they want to impress the Gods and make some truly amazing stuff.

So what happens is, they don’t just make Sif a golden wig that will attatch and become natural on her head, they make a fantastic ship for Freyja and Gunginr for Odin.  This is amazing shit that Loki has procured for the Gods.  not just Sif’s golden hair.  Well, he thanks them but before he leaves—thinking he must really make up for it and bring them more awesome stuff—when he happens upon two other dwarves he enters into a wager with them.

Because they claim to make even more amazing stuff than that which he has already procured, he says basically “alright, if your stuff proves more amazing than these gifts, you may have my head.  The Gods will decide which gifts are better made.”  They agree.

Now, seeing as they are working quite fast and Loki does NOT wish to lose his head, he does try to sabotage it a bit by becoming a fly and stinging one of them in the eye as they forge Mjolnir, which is why it has such a short handle.  Well, they do suspect him but follow him back to Asgard to protect their interests.

Unfortunately the Gods, while very impressed and happy with these extra gifts Loki made sure were made, did find Mjolnir the better gift.  The dwarves demanded his head, he—using his cunning and not wanting to die—said they could have his head but no part of his neck.  Finding they could not take his head without damaging his neck, they demand to sew his mouth shut. 

The Gods freaking AGREE, after what he just did for them.  And they fucking LAUGH as his mouth gets sewn shut.

Yes, he pulled a prank but he more than made up for it AND THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN FINE WITH HIM BEING BEHEADED AND LAUGH AT HIS PAIN.  

More than half the shit Loki did was so he wouldn’t die and because his life was in danger.  Without provocation from himself.

Imagine, being in his position.  

When you’re smart and cunning—hell it’s your best attribute when everyone around you is all about war and death—you use what you’re given. Hell, in the beginning, when he became Odin’s blood-brother, he constantly helped. And throughout his time, when they did not know what to do in dire situations, Loki was the only damn one who knew what to do because he’s fucking smart.  

Giant in disguise trying to deceive the Aesir and working too fast on the wall “LOKI, DO SOMETHING”, becomes a mare and lures away the stallion helping the giant.  Not only spares the gods from this monumental problem, brings Odin Sleipnir.  Is mocked for his efforts.  And it’s a constant theme, even when he is not responsible: LOKI, DO SOMETHING —often threatening his life—and he does it, and is mocked for doing what they asked, despite the rewards he brings them which is more that what they asked for.

Have you ever had that?  People asking things from you because you’re smart and you are awesome at what you do…and when you do it you are either chastised for doing it, go unappreciated at all, or are condemned for ‘taking to long’?  (i know i have) And this is what Loki’s life is like.

He’s smart…and that fucking scares people.  They get after him for being “sly”.  People would call him a cunning liar but are all to willing to accept it when it suits them and then condemn him afterward.  How frustrating that must be.  He’s being used.  He becomes a fucking scapegoat.

They hate him for being smart.  they hate him for being a frost giant (LOL ALL THE GODS ARE DESCENDED FROM THE GIANTS, ODIN IS HALF GIANT).  They threaten and use him.  His “treachery” only comes when his life is in danger, or when he is threatened (yes, even by the gods themselves), but in the end he always makes it up to them and they just…turn their noses up at him.  He is something to be ignored and used and then mocked.  Of course he fucking snapped.  

Wouldn’t you?

Every single one of the Gods has done terrible things, so during the feast when he confronts them and demands to be seated among them (Odin only gives in because they were blood brothers once).  He calls them out on their shit and they don’t like it.  They hate to see their ugliness thrown at them, they hate that he’s right.

They punish him by turning one of his sons into a wolf (Odin does this) and FORCES that child to maul his brother and kill him.  He uses the entrails of Loki and Sigyn’s son to bind him to rocks and then make a snake drip poison on him.  Thank goodness for loyal and loving Sigyn to be there for him.

Can you imagine her strength?  To sit there at his side every day, standing in the blood of her sons?  

Do you not see how poor his treatment is?  Of course he goes against them.  He was used and mocked by even someone who had been his friend.

You want more proof of his mistreatment.  Let’s go to his children (and i hate seeing this constant sexual deviance joke because of his animal children. Don;t forget he’s a damn shapeshifter.  He was a horse when he was with a horse and it saved the entirety of the Aesir, what he did.  He was not a snake or a wolf and have these children, nor did he sleep with either.  They were the children of another giant Angrboda.  no deviance…simply children of a shapeshifter (which makes me think they themselves could as well). 

You know what the Aesir did with these?  ”MONSTERS, THROW JORMUNGANDR INTO THE SEA, BIND THE MONSTER WOLF, CAST THAT DISGUSTING GIRL DOWN AND MAKE HER RULE THE DEAD BECAUSE SHE LOOKS IT”.  His children were condemned, found ugly, cast out, mistreated.

If all you do is mocked and ignored.  And your children are shackled and cast out and killed by people you have always helped…yeah…you snap.

And i know some are going to bring up Baldr…and i really get sick of the same damn story.  Look, there are 3 separate stories concerning that.  One is the one repeated ad nauseum.  Loki and the dart and Hodr the blind god of darkness.  

But there are 2 other tellings of this story, one of which Loki wasn’t even involved at all, in any shape or form.

Another of which actually seems more likely—to me—given his constant mistreatment.

Now, the Gods know about Ragnarok already, they also know that Baldr is supposed to be the one that is to lead in the new world to come after Ragnarok, that he shall rise and be a king in this peaceful new world (oh look Jesus, parallels).  Now, in knowing this, Odin wants to be sure it happens and that Baldr is safe.  The only place that is to be safe is Helheim, so he gets into a plot discussion with Loki to make sure Baldr dies and is safe there until after Ragnrok and Loki agrees.  Does he know this will inevitably lead to being hated more?  (i think so)  And if that is the case, Loki is willingly sacrificing himself in this act of treason (much like the lost Gospel of Judas in that Jesus conspired with him to make sure all this came to pass).

So Loki makes sure it is done…and for his doing just as he is asked, like always, he is hated and punished.  This led to talks at the feast and that led to his punishment and being bound and tortured and his children killed.

Of course he was angry.  Of course he snapped.  When all you do is seen as unimportant, or lies, or when asked for help, punished and mocked for your efforts.  Hate grows in that.  Resentment grows.  You lose it.

Keep in mind that his wife is the goddess of Fidelity (Loyalty) and is known for her compassion and love and protection(she created a safe haven during ragnarok for children and other goddesses).  Why would such a woman be with such a man.  She is not weak.  She was known as the one he loved.  Loki may be a trickster, he likes his games, but as his mistreatment continued, the darker the tales got.  That happens when you’re mistreated.

I know i went off topic and into mythos completely, but it is mirrored here in this Loki…constant mistreatment bred hatred and resentment and desire for revenge.  He loves Thor and he loved Odin (when he fell into Odin sleep, you can’t convince me that wasn’t the look of a boy afraid for his father).  He was not only mistreated constantly though, having all this knowledge of his heritage (abandoned by one father and seen as political gain by the next) unhinged him.  And then—on the scene that SHOULD have remained—he is handed Gunginr, the key to the kingdom, basically.  An emotionally unstable boy whose entire life has basically been turned on it’s head…was just given all power to rule.  That’s not safe.  That’s not smart.  i’ve no doubt that Frigga believed in him and loved him, but that was NOT a good idea.

Can you imagine being in his place?  You don’t just…shrug off what happened—especially not after hundreds to thousands of years living a certain way.  How would YOU like to learn  you are actually the monster you were brought up to hate?  Even if Odin didn’t teach him that, the rest of his damn society did.  Thor sure as hell did.  ”I’m going to kill all the monsters”.  I mean SHIT.  How  that must have felt to Loki.  remembering that.  He remembers that, he saw how his brother fought against the Jotun, saw the hatred and desire to kill.  That would fuck anyone up.  Imagine the HATE he must feel for himself.  That’s internalized racism.  He hates every damn thing about himself.

He wasn’t just mistreated.  He’s come to internalize and believe this shit and it’s made WORSE by how he was raised in the society he was raised.  He HATES everything that he is.  That’s why he decided to destroy Jotunheim, why he lured Laufey into Asgard to destroy him in front of his mother.  That’s basically him saying “See?  I AM Aesir.  I am NOT one of these monsters.  I will kill ALL the monsters to prove that i am not one.”  Irrational maybe, but he’s already fucking snapped.  he hates what he is and he’s trying to prove himself worthy to be an Aesir.

And then the fight with Thor.  This is a lot of internalized aggression.  He thinks Thor must hate him for what he is, that they can never be equal “all i ever wanted was to be your equal” and he never can be.  He is the damn golden son.  He was never meant to have the throne, though he never wanted it “i never wanted the throne” but he was raised to try and get it.  But no matter how brash Thor was and how intelligent Loki was, no matter WHAT he did, he could NEVER sit on the throne of Asgard.  Because he was a monster and he resented that treatment and he threw it at Thor because he was angry and frustrated and broken.

Then there was Odin.  WHEN YOUR FUCKING CHILD IS HAVING AN EMOTIONAL CRISIS, IS UNSTABLE AND IS HANGING OVER THE GREAT ABYSS OF NOTHINGNESS, ONLY HANGING ON TO THE HANDLE OF MJOLNIR BEGGING THAT YOU UNDERSTAND “I COULD HAVE DONE IT FOR ALL OF US” YOU DO NOT FUCKING SAY “NO”.  THAT IS NOT HOW YOU TREAT SOMEONE GOING THOUGH SHIT LIKE THAT, ESPECIALLY DANGLING OVER THE BIFROST.   YOU PULL UP YOUR SONS, YOU HOLD YOUR SON, AND THEN YOU SAY NO AND LEAD HIM BACK AND TALK WITH HIM AND REA-FUCKING-SSURE HIM THAT HE IS STILL LOVED AND THAT HE IS NOT A MONSTER.

Loki was unstable, he needed fucking support and help and to fucking know that he was not alone.  That’s how you treat someone who is suffering like that.

But no.  That’s not what fucking happened.  And Loki fucking let go.  THAT WAS A SUICIDE ATTEMPT.  Do you not understand that???????

Because of the constant mistreatment and the internalized self hatred and the obvious fucking neglect and wrong move done by his father Loki snapped fucking completely.  He didn’t intend to fucking live.  But because he did he was truly broken now.  It is obvious to him that he wasn’t wanted or loved because of this.  And while he still hates what he is, he has decided that “FINE, i’m a monster then.  I’ll carve out my own fucking destiny as the monster i am, that they obviously all know me to be.  They always hated me, they won’t fucking mourn.  It was clear to me when Odin said ‘no’ that i am not needed or wanted or valuable enough to them.”

Even if they did mourn.  Yes it’s true, Vikings feast for the dead.  But that does not excuse the mistreatment shown him, or the lack of understanding, or what Odin said.  It doesn’t make up for those words causing him to basically let go and attempt suicide.  And i Guara-fucking-tee you that hardly anybody at that fucking feast (outside of his “family”) actually gave a shit about him being gone when it is clear that he was never treated right.  Probably said ‘it’s a shame, he went crazy, oh well’, and didn’t actually give a fuck about him being dead.  Tradition to feast, yes, but it doesn’t mean they actually fucking have to care.

You want to know why i stay at his side and fucking support even the awful things he did?  This is why.  i understand how all that feels.  i understand that neglect and mistreatment and self hatred and believing the awful things said about me.  i understand it.  I broke several times, only i was damn lucky to have someone to pull me out of that.  He was not.

(Sorry, that got long, touching on Myth and Marvel both.  i have feeling on all that is Loki in all forms.)

(via stormraven24)

Led Zeppelin took the blue print drawn up by traditional blues bands like The Rolling Stones and exaggerated everything to Olympian proportions. […] Consequently they needed a frontman who could match the ambiguous sexual presence of Jagger and magnify it accordingly. Robert Plant, with his mane of golden curls, prominent genital display and powerful, high-pitched rock scream, took over from Jagger as the new, improved rock frontman for the sexually ambiguous 1970s. 

[…]

While the “tight trousers” and “visual emphasis on chest hair and genitals” is undeniably masculine, what Frith and McRobbie fail to take into account is the gender ambiguity inherent in placing the masculine body on display. While rock frontmen like Robert Plant are undeniably marked as masculine, at the same time they are presented as objects of visual desire in a way more commonly associated with the feminine.1 Plant’s physicality on stage deliberately emphasises this almost feminine sexual allure. He is described by one male reviewer as “breathtakingly beautiful, rather like a choirboy possessed by the spirit of Gene Vincent,” while his movements are coded in feminine terms as moving “in curves with the emphasis on his hips” (Kent, 19).

[…]

Therefore the only way in which the genre could provide a coherent model of powerful masculinity was not to oppress women, with the intention of raising their own status, but to exclude women altogether. In his distinctive vocal style and ambiguous star image Robert Plant becomes a kind of drag king, expressing dominant masculinity and feminine desirability in one. Hard rock, as a genre, provided a musical reaction to the increased flexibility of gender roles in society, nullifying the threat of female involvement by creating a homo-social world in which men not only made the manliest men, but also the most feminine women.

The massive, and enduring, success of Led Zeppelin is no surprise when you consider the dual functions that they perform. At the same time as providing a model of masculinity more rampantly sexual than ever before, their music contains this sense of sexuality within the safe fantasy of a homo-social world, an all boys club where even the voice of women is produced and controlled by men.

That this successfully reflects the delicate balance of attraction and fear brought about by the burgeoning sexuality of their predominantly adolescent fanbase accounts for their success during the 1970s. That these same adolescents should continue to look to Zeppelin as a model of fully formed masculinity well into middle age not only reflects the undeniable quality of their music but also the continuing uncertainties surrounding contemporary masculine identities, and the constant struggle for reassurance.

I now really, really want some good meta on Dean, his musical preferences, and, possibly, his sexuality.

• They only trust Parker with an important grifting job after she’d shown she could assume a role with the bank job.
• Nate and Eliot enjoyed the same movie. Hardison never heard of it, but when he said the title, Nate and Eliot recognized it instantly—even though it was an obscure French film and, apparently, a reboot of something earlier. This is also an early indicator of Eliot’s own geekiness since the movie was sci-fi.
• Eliot thinks Hardison’s work is cool from the first season. For an example, see the paintball gun in the St. Nick episode.
• Nate also remembers the name of the girl Eliot chatted up the previous day. I do not ship N/E, but I am starting to understand how others have. I think this is a better indicator, though, of Nate’s memory—a trait he shares with Parker.
• [Nate] “No, Parker, sleeping is not a hobby.” [Except, for Parker, it maybe is. She sleeps while she waits for a building to clear so she can rob it. She is paranoid (as we learn even better later on), so good, safe sleep maybe is something she indulges in as a hobby, rather than a necessity.]
• In the scene with Nicolas at the party, Parker is stiff each time she repeats a line or sentiment Nate has fed her, except when she talks about the families and the kids. That emotion, that caring is real. Parker is a very guarded person, but this episode breaks down one of her walls bit-by-bit. I love how the process is gradual. First, she just identifies the orphan by his behavior. Then, she remembers being a foster child, being pushed to smile and then again taken away. Then she stabs a guy when he suggests that only the brave/pretty ones survive, that not all children deserve to survive. It is easy to think Parker is only upset about herself at this point, but don’t forget the psychic episode a few seasons down the line. She is furious at this point because she has terrible survivor’s guilt and this horror of a man is suggesting that her little brother just wasn’t good enough to live.
• They all expect Parker to have fled. This team has glimmers of their later cohesion, but they don’t all trust one another yet. Amy called the team Eliot’s family, but they aren’t there yet. They didn’t expect Parker to come back. Nate really only realized what his team could do the previous episode. The slow-build of trust and friendship is something I love about this show. And, even better, they can operate without one another. They take vacations apart. They eventually split up. They aren’t co-dependent messes who need one another. They are competent, amazing people who, yes, have their issues and are all a bit broken inside, but they heal and grow together into independent people who choose to work together, who become a family that can live together or apart and it doesn’t matter, because they’re bound no matter what.
• In case it isn’t utterly clear. I love this show.
• [Hardison] “No, it’s a trust thing. He just needs to know you’re gonna go along with the game plan.” // [Parker] “Yeah, yeah, I get it. We’re a team.” // [Hardison] “Little more than a team. Just saying.” [Hardison has always seen the potential of the group before anyone else. He bought them an office. I think it is nice how Hardison is the one who makes their first and last home/headquarters. Nice symmetry.]
  
• I think Nate realized Hardison’s artistic skills when he saw the portrait of Old-Nate. It was then, I think, that he decided to see what else Hardison could do. And, Hardison? Just kept exceeding expectations.
• Sophie loves a good death scene.
• Sophie also knows how to write. She understands how a story is constructed.
• I love how no one can bear to tell Sophie how terrible an actress she is. Also, her being able to act when it is part of a con is a great bit of foreshadowing for the last episode of the series.
• This episode starts the Hardison/Parker relationship arc. He has been attracted before. They even kissed in just the third or fourth ep (non-aired order), but this is the episode in which a relationship is very first possible. Hardison reveals the truth about his childhood; and Parker removes another layer of her wall. “You put these kids in the system, and odds are? They’re, they’re gonna turn out…like me.” Parker doesn’t think she belongs with normal people (see, later, her ‘real family’ comments). She knows she’s broken. Hardison’s reply (“I like how you turned out.”) is a wonderful bit of reassurance that she isn’t only part of a person, that she does belong. That exchange is the moment that my idle I think Hardison likes Parker thoughts became full-on shipping. Again, I love how the show handled both the slow-burn leading up to their relationship and then the established comfort and negotiation afterward.
• Nate promises to return for the other kids, but how many promises have Parker and Hardison been made that were later broken? I think Parker’s decision was made due to two comments in this conversation. First, Nate’s aside about kids no one cares about. Then, second, his promise to return. Had he not made that promise, I don’t think Parker would have gone back.
• Parker going alone foreshadows the Archie ep.
• Parker doesn’t need Eliot to protect her. Unlike Sophie, Nate, and Hardison, she can fight her own battles.
• Parker uses her body to shield the kids.
• [Hardison] “You don’t work alone anymore; we’re a team.” // [Parker] “We’re a little more than a team.” [And she doesn’t put herself in danger by trying a job alone again until the Archie episode.]

• Sterling has changed so much.
• Eliot has a nephew!
• Sophie recounts the Lost Heir scam and how great it can be when pulled well—this will be relevant later on when she feigns to be royalty at the auction.
• Someone needs to write up a comparison between the bank episode and the Eliot-Parker-Hardison ep from the last season.
• I keep waiting for Nate to say “I’m not a thief” over and over again, and it isn’t happening. Was this not as large a part of season 1 as I’d thought?
• The episodes make so much more sense character-wise when you watch them in the intended order, rather than the aired order. (For reference, that order is 1, 2, 7, 9, 8, 4, 3, 5, 6, 11, 10, 12, 13).
• Eliot’s “We be the cavalry” is in the bank episode.
• Crossovers that need to happen: Sophie is Penny’s acting coach; Eliot’s nephew marries Jensen’s niece (and they all go to the wedding).
• In any crossover or AU I write or read, Parker had better be the best thief. Nate calls her “the world’s best.” Her planning skills are a constant from season 1 and I love that. She has an incredible memory. She can read a situation quickly and plan accordingly. This just all gets hidden by her social issues and initial unwillingness to trust anyone else (the ep with Archie is an extremely important one for Parker’s arc).
• Parker is always protective of Christmas—even in season 1 with the statue of St. Nicholas.
• Hardison’s forgery skills are apparent from season 1 as well, not just with the IDs, but with the St. Nick statues. He is extremely artistic, but he defines himself (and lets others define him) by his technical skills. Nate doesn’t let him be only a geek with a keyboard, though. I remember watching the auction ep and wondering why Hardison forged the book—I’d fallen into the same trap of not seeing all he is.
• None of the characters are only what they appear to be. Each one is layered, but each layer is natural for the character and it is fantastic.
• Family is important for Eliot, even from season 1. Besides the very casual aside about his nephew (and if I misheard this, please let me know), he did not hesitate to help Amy’s father. Also, he returned time and time again for Amy, only letting her go when he thought she’d moved on.
• This is really the best television show I’ve seen in terms of characterization and character arcs.
• In the bank ep of season 1 (1x5, 8th in order), they did a great (if maybe heavy-handed) job of establishing the judge’s character. Within only a few lines of dialogue, I wanted him taken down and hard. He slaps the bank worker’s butt and then ignores her look of surprise and anger/hurt. He doesn’t know the bank manager’s name and asks for the worker’s phone number. Then, when told the worker is 19, he asks if she has a younger sister. 
• I love in the bank ep how the judge’s initial speech about how he owns the town and how the only truth that matters is the story that gets told foreshadows his downfall.
• Nate always ran complicated games, scams, and schemes. Sterling always waited, quiet, patient, and unyielding. They competed with one another. Nate was open, friendly, and invited Sterling into his home. Nate also had the better job and office. Sterling put people off a bit. He was secretive. He kept secrets Nate only eventually learns because Sterling needed his help and even then, Nate figures it out; he isn’t told. In season one, Sterling treats Nate like he’s the same guy who worked for IYS. He goads Nate and it is almost like he is trying to push Nate back into the correct position for the two to begin their little games and competing once more. I want a meta about the evolution of their friendship from pre-canon to post.

ireallyhatecornnuts:

thequixoticbedhead:

andythanfiction:

By any remotely sane standards, Castiel is nothing to be trifled with.  A literal angel of the capital-L Lord of the order Seraphim with an entrance that is absolutely the most memorable in the series, he strides past demon traps and across iron, exploding lights and not even flinching at a full blast of rock salt and a demon knife in the chest before calmly showcasing a twenty foot wingspan.  He can push back against a Horseman while wounded, smite demons with a touch of his hand, and gank a diner full of Mother Monster’s hippest new backup dancers with a single gesture.  His true form is a Lovecraftian horror the size of the Chrysler building, he’s millions, maybe billions of years old, with a list of superpowers that would be impressive in the Marvel universe, and even if he does happen to be wearing a thirty-something radio ad salesman, he wears him - and his trench coat - damned well.   

Overall, it’s a fairly decent set of credentials, and that’s not even remotely a full list.  So there really is no arguing that he’s a certified badass, and that’s something that Dean generally respects.   During seasons 4 and 5, he definitely seems to.  Yes, he nicknames and snarks and sometimes snaps at Cas – especially at the beginning when, perdition-raising notwithstanding, they are basically antagonists - but no more so nor in any particularly different tone than he does anyone or anything else.  Besides, for Dean Winchester, snark is right up there with breathing, and the apocalypse kind of puts everyone on edge.

All that changes with season 6.  They’re post-apocalyptic, and while Cas has his unknown thing going on in Heaven, he’s still around when called.  What’s more, he makes it clear very early on that it’s no longer any form of obligation; it’s because he has a “profound bond” with Dean and WANTS to be there and to help them.  And it’s right about then that Dean’s manner of addressing him takes a radical shift.  

Sissy.  Child.  Baby in a trench coat.  Quite a few others, including several times - notably and repeatedly after he sees Cas get an erection in response to porn and kiss the smoke out of Meg - junkless.  His whole attitude and tone change. He’s demeaning, infantilizing, and borderline out of character, completely inconsistent with the way he talks to or about any other friend or ally he supposedly respects.  So why the sudden need to not only tear Cas down, but specifically and repeatedly desexualize him?

…

While I definitely think some of these points are more speculation than something purposefully written into the subtext of the series, this is one of the most coherent and detailed analyses of the more painful aspects of Dean and Cas’s relationship that I’ve ever seen.  Filed away under “headcanons.”

Definitely, definitely go read the whole essay. 

plungemagazine:

The submissions window for issue 2 of Plunge will run from March 1st through June 10th. The theme for this issue is Chase(d).

Submissions information is on the website.

We accept short stories, poetry, and non-fiction in all genres, so long as the work relates to the theme and, even more importantly, features queer women.

amazonpoodle:

Right, so Aja (bookshop) wrote an article for the DailyDot called “The crumbling of the fourth wall: Why fandom shouldn’t hide anymore”. I was pretty troubled by a number of different parts of the article, and had some trouble articulating them at first, so I sat down to write a ramble and ended up writing… a lot. Um. 

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Certain shows, films, and stories are far more enjoyable when involved in fandom. Even if the work in question doesn’t have a large community with whom to celebrate and complain, fandom teaches that consuming a work means engaging it. If a story does not turn in a direction you like or if a character suddenly acts in a way you do not understand, you can write fixit fic or a character piece exploring motivations, make a gif set ridiculing it, or do whatever you like to make the story work in your head. Then you can do it again, but in a different way, exploring all the angles and possibilities. The flaws of the original work do not necessarily weaken the work, but rather can and do enable further enjoyment, understanding, and engagment.

Anyone have any recommendations for some good tumblrs with comics-related meta and news?