![[sticky entry]](http://s.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/entry/sticky_entry.png){kind=small}
And, lo, here we have the Subscribe to Filters poll.
I tend to post a lot of things locked and filtered. Some security decisions I make myself, but most of my filters are content filters. The divisions are as follows:
( Filter descriptions and poll )
Bristly day
Mar. 11th, 2010 11:13 amI am, unsurprisingly, extremely short-tempered lately.
This is mostly manifesting as swearing viciously at other drivers on the road and also my current client for fairly small lapses. But it is also possible that this is why I have finally decided that, yes, Kishimoto did change his mind halfway through and that Itachi being a Sekrit Gud Guy is a very poorly done retcon.
Particular indications: the fact that, even well into the changover between the two series halves, Itachi is still telling Sasuke to live on hate and make it his cause. You can attempt to explain this as Itachi's effort to turn Sasuke away from him and toward the village, but encouraging revenge in particular just does not fit with Itachi being sane albeit anguished and rational enough to lay a false trail. That's a fantastically self-centered statement and fits perfectly with Itachi being genuinely psycho.
But, of course, a personal enemy like that didn't fit with the change over to the Cosmic Issues plotline, so while Kishimoto was busy totally overturning the momentum of the first half and making Naruto into the One True Hero and Sasuke into a nutcase in service of this, he also decided to tie up the dangling villain by making him a secretly angsty demi-hero. This without any of the actual rationalization or explanation required to carry it off.
Doubleplus fail, Kishimoto.
This is mostly manifesting as swearing viciously at other drivers on the road and also my current client for fairly small lapses. But it is also possible that this is why I have finally decided that, yes, Kishimoto did change his mind halfway through and that Itachi being a Sekrit Gud Guy is a very poorly done retcon.
Particular indications: the fact that, even well into the changover between the two series halves, Itachi is still telling Sasuke to live on hate and make it his cause. You can attempt to explain this as Itachi's effort to turn Sasuke away from him and toward the village, but encouraging revenge in particular just does not fit with Itachi being sane albeit anguished and rational enough to lay a false trail. That's a fantastically self-centered statement and fits perfectly with Itachi being genuinely psycho.
But, of course, a personal enemy like that didn't fit with the change over to the Cosmic Issues plotline, so while Kishimoto was busy totally overturning the momentum of the first half and making Naruto into the One True Hero and Sasuke into a nutcase in service of this, he also decided to tie up the dangling villain by making him a secretly angsty demi-hero. This without any of the actual rationalization or explanation required to carry it off.
Doubleplus fail, Kishimoto.
Branding versus searing
Mar. 6th, 2010 03:52 pmThis is coming out of several conversations I've had lately, which finally reached critical mass. Have some thoughts about website design.
Marketing departments the world over, plus a lot of individuals with sites and blogs, are wedded to the importance of branding, on a web site. I can understand why. If you're offering any kind of product at all, well, you want people to know at a glance who provided it.
( Alas, this passion for recognition tends to run away with people's brains. And hide them. )
Marketing departments the world over, plus a lot of individuals with sites and blogs, are wedded to the importance of branding, on a web site. I can understand why. If you're offering any kind of product at all, well, you want people to know at a glance who provided it.
( Alas, this passion for recognition tends to run away with people's brains. And hide them. )
One theory of aging in Bleach
Feb. 28th, 2010 01:56 pmBecause this has been bouncing around my head for a while, gaining bits, and it's about time to write it down.
I'm not entirely sure that character age is one of the things KT thought all the way out, but I think he had at least a basic idea of how this was supposed to work; what little info we have on aging in Soul Society does suggest a certain shape of rationale, and he's consistent about it.
( Spoilers, obviously )
So there's my theory, based on what we've seen so far. Of course, this suggests that Ichigo's appearance in spiritual form may settle at late teens or early twenties while his material body keeps aging, which could be fodder for all kinds of interesting future-fic.
I'm not entirely sure that character age is one of the things KT thought all the way out, but I think he had at least a basic idea of how this was supposed to work; what little info we have on aging in Soul Society does suggest a certain shape of rationale, and he's consistent about it.
( Spoilers, obviously )
So there's my theory, based on what we've seen so far. Of course, this suggests that Ichigo's appearance in spiritual form may settle at late teens or early twenties while his material body keeps aging, which could be fodder for all kinds of interesting future-fic.
[Fic] Keeping Up with the Vongolas
Feb. 25th, 2010 01:18 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: All Your Wishes, Choice, Katekyou Hitman Reborn
Characters/Pairings: Gokudera, Hibari, Ninth gen, Squalo, Tsuna, Xanxus, Yamamoto
Summary: Tsuna goes to Italy to get settled in his new job, and brings Yamamoto and Hibari with him. Settling in goes fine, but he finds his job is bigger than he'd thought it would be.
Meta: Drama, I-3
Wordcount: 8753
( Keeping Up with the Vongolas )Tsuna stepped out of the car and tugged his jacket straight. He still wasn't used to the suit.
Oh so broken
Feb. 24th, 2010 08:05 pmSo, academic publishing in the humanities. ![[personal profile]](http://s.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
melannen's post reminded me tangentially of everything that most pisses me off about it, and since I'm already grumpy over other things, I shall proceed to rant.
1) There's no money to the actual producers. Not a red cent. You're lucky if you get so much as a complimentary copy of the issue your article appears in. One thing you can be dead sure of is that you will never, ever receive cash compensation for any article, and damn few books. You don't get paid to do peer review, you're expected to put in hours of extra work for free all for the sake of having a "professional credit" to stuff into your CV (eg "I was stupid enough to love a field where half my labor is uncompensated"). Half the time even the journal editors don't get paid. Typesetting and so on is increasingly outsourced to underdeveloped areas where minimum wage is only a dream, which brings us to the next point.
2) The for-profit companies (Gale, Springer, etc.) who have been buying up the journals for decades are making money. They are making money by cutting production costs even further while increasing the subscription prices and selling individual articles for five to ten bucks apiece through online outlets like Amazon. See above re the author never seeing a cent of this. And even the university libraries are becoming unable to pay subscriptions.
3) The writers, as a matter of course, sign over every single right we have to the work. The publisher can re-publish or sell it anywhere they like, hell they could probably make it into a movie, but if I want to republish my own damn article in a new anthology I have to get Gale's permission. If I want to use my own article in my own class, I have to get Gale's permission and quite possibly pay a "nominal" license fee; you know, for that article I was never paid anything for.
When the publishers in question were purely academic concerns, subsidized by crumbs of their university's budget, all this free labor made more sense. It was for love and discovery and bragging rights; it had a whole lot in common with fandom, actually. But once the for-profit companies came into it the whole thing turned into bare-faced exploitation, and I swear half the academy can't even see it. Possibly because they don't listen to the librarians, who have seen the prices going up and the access going down first hand. Among the half who can see it, there is still a sad degree of resistance to moving over to open-access web-journals, and thereby back to our previous position of crumb-subsidized labor of love that, extra bonus, anyone who wanted could read, thus getting us and our work out from under the control of Gale et al.
It just frosts my cookies, you know?
melannen's post reminded me tangentially of everything that most pisses me off about it, and since I'm already grumpy over other things, I shall proceed to rant.1) There's no money to the actual producers. Not a red cent. You're lucky if you get so much as a complimentary copy of the issue your article appears in. One thing you can be dead sure of is that you will never, ever receive cash compensation for any article, and damn few books. You don't get paid to do peer review, you're expected to put in hours of extra work for free all for the sake of having a "professional credit" to stuff into your CV (eg "I was stupid enough to love a field where half my labor is uncompensated"). Half the time even the journal editors don't get paid. Typesetting and so on is increasingly outsourced to underdeveloped areas where minimum wage is only a dream, which brings us to the next point.
2) The for-profit companies (Gale, Springer, etc.) who have been buying up the journals for decades are making money. They are making money by cutting production costs even further while increasing the subscription prices and selling individual articles for five to ten bucks apiece through online outlets like Amazon. See above re the author never seeing a cent of this. And even the university libraries are becoming unable to pay subscriptions.
3) The writers, as a matter of course, sign over every single right we have to the work. The publisher can re-publish or sell it anywhere they like, hell they could probably make it into a movie, but if I want to republish my own damn article in a new anthology I have to get Gale's permission. If I want to use my own article in my own class, I have to get Gale's permission and quite possibly pay a "nominal" license fee; you know, for that article I was never paid anything for.
When the publishers in question were purely academic concerns, subsidized by crumbs of their university's budget, all this free labor made more sense. It was for love and discovery and bragging rights; it had a whole lot in common with fandom, actually. But once the for-profit companies came into it the whole thing turned into bare-faced exploitation, and I swear half the academy can't even see it. Possibly because they don't listen to the librarians, who have seen the prices going up and the access going down first hand. Among the half who can see it, there is still a sad degree of resistance to moving over to open-access web-journals, and thereby back to our previous position of crumb-subsidized labor of love that, extra bonus, anyone who wanted could read, thus getting us and our work out from under the control of Gale et al.
It just frosts my cookies, you know?
Tangenting off a very helpful and thoughtful post on my dwircle this morning.
So. Analogy. Let us say that online discussion is quite like nuclear fission in some ways. A neutron (thought) is introduced. Among the nearby uranium (readers) it strikes one causing fission which results in new elements (a reaction) and, often, some more free neutrons (comments or another post).
The more uranium (readers) present, the greater a chance of reaction. This can be a benefit of link comms. If a post is linked, the number of readers will likely be far greater than it would otherwise, increasing the chance that the fission process (thought, response, thought) will become self-sustaining. Energy is produced, light and heat for everyone. The same thing, however, can also be a drawback.
The fission process can be controlled, as in a reactor, or uncontrolled, as in a bomb. A link comm that is selective in the neutrons (posts) it lets pass (links to) may function as a working reactor, with the control rods (link collectors) passing only some neutrons (thoughts) and absorbing others (flames, drama, pure dogmatism, etc.). A link comm that is not selective in the neutrons (posts) it lets pass (links to) will produce an uncontrolled reaction, overwhelming the coolant (common sense), and leading to a melt down. In the worst case, two pieces of uranium (posters) will collide directly causing a massive explosion.
Of course, the analogy has another step, not directly related to the link comms. In fandom, as in many other areas, the new elements (the reactions to posts) are very radioactive (intensely emotional). As in the actual reactor process, I have yet to see any suggestions or process for safely containing or disposing of these byproducts, so I suppose we just have to live with them. It's real life everywhere.
This is somewhat tongue in cheek, but not entirely. The people running link comms are not responsible for any idiocy on the part of their readers, but neither is what they create a neutral location. Shooting a neutron gun repeatedly at a critical mass of uranium is an action which should be known as such or else not performed.
So. Analogy. Let us say that online discussion is quite like nuclear fission in some ways. A neutron (thought) is introduced. Among the nearby uranium (readers) it strikes one causing fission which results in new elements (a reaction) and, often, some more free neutrons (comments or another post).
The more uranium (readers) present, the greater a chance of reaction. This can be a benefit of link comms. If a post is linked, the number of readers will likely be far greater than it would otherwise, increasing the chance that the fission process (thought, response, thought) will become self-sustaining. Energy is produced, light and heat for everyone. The same thing, however, can also be a drawback.
The fission process can be controlled, as in a reactor, or uncontrolled, as in a bomb. A link comm that is selective in the neutrons (posts) it lets pass (links to) may function as a working reactor, with the control rods (link collectors) passing only some neutrons (thoughts) and absorbing others (flames, drama, pure dogmatism, etc.). A link comm that is not selective in the neutrons (posts) it lets pass (links to) will produce an uncontrolled reaction, overwhelming the coolant (common sense), and leading to a melt down. In the worst case, two pieces of uranium (posters) will collide directly causing a massive explosion.
Of course, the analogy has another step, not directly related to the link comms. In fandom, as in many other areas, the new elements (the reactions to posts) are very radioactive (intensely emotional). As in the actual reactor process, I have yet to see any suggestions or process for safely containing or disposing of these byproducts, so I suppose we just have to live with them. It's real life everywhere.
This is somewhat tongue in cheek, but not entirely. The people running link comms are not responsible for any idiocy on the part of their readers, but neither is what they create a neutral location. Shooting a neutron gun repeatedly at a critical mass of uranium is an action which should be known as such or else not performed.
[Fic] Withdrawal
Feb. 8th, 2010 02:50 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Katekyou Hitman Reborn, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Yamamoto/Gokudera
Summary: Yamamoto is only concerned for Gokudera's health. Gokudera really doesn't appreciate this at all. Written for the Drabble Game prompt: TYL!Gokudera, quit smoking.
Meta: Fluff with Swearing, I-3
Wordcount: 538
( Withdrawal )"I am going," Hayato said, low and deadly, "to kill you."
Yamamoto just smiled, the bastard, cheery as if Hayato had offered to take him on a fucking picnic. "Okay."
[Fic] Naked Truth
Feb. 8th, 2010 02:49 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Bleach, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Byakuya/Senbonzakura
Summary: Under the stress of dealing with Muramasa, Senbonzakura could do with some reassurance. So could Byakuya. Written for the Prompt Battle prompt: Byakuya/Senbonzakura, behind closed doors.
Meta: Porn with Romance, I-4, light D/s
Wordcount: 1379
( Naked Truth )As they returned to Muramasa's suspiciously ill-concealed hiding hole, Byakuya turned away from the mindless chatter of the swords. He could only stand to listen to their foolishness for so long, and today had been more than enough.
[Fic] Benefits of Friends
Feb. 8th, 2010 02:48 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Bleach, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Renji/Ichigo
Summary: Ichigo doesn't exactly ask Renji for a favor; fortunately Renji knows what he means anyway. Written for the Drabble Game prompt: Ichigo, clueless and curious.
Meta: Fluff, I-2
Wordcount: 473
( Benefits of Friends )Renji blinked and looked over. "What, you've really never...?"
Ichigo couldn't help bristling. "That's perfectly normal, you know!"
[Fic] Under the Sky
Feb. 6th, 2010 05:30 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Choice, Katekyou Hitman Reborn, Sugar and Spice
Characters/Pairings: Xanxus/Squalo
Summary: Part of the Sugar and Spice arc of Choice. Xanxus doesn't like the way most mafia men drool, but she does like the way Squalo approaches her. Written for the Porn Battle prompt: Xanxus/Squalo, genderswap.
Meta: Porn with Characterization, I-4
Wordcount: 1739
( Under the Sky )It wasn't unusual for Xanxus to storm into her office, possibly destroying things in her path depending on how much of a snit she was in, but today her lips were tighter than usual and her glare was sharper. Squalo took his feet off the table, getting ready to move if he had to, and tossed the file on the latest Leone sprig aside. "Something up, Boss?"
[Fic] Between One Moment and the Next
Feb. 6th, 2010 05:29 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Bleach, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Aizen/Ichigo
Summary: Inspired by iss. 388 of the manga. What if that moment between Aizen and Ichigo had taken a darker and more personal turn? Written for the Porn Battle prompt: Aizen/Ichigo, touch.
Meta: Porn with Mindgames, I-4
Wordcount: 470
( Between One Moment and the Next )The fingers resting so casually on his chest froze him for half a breath, and maybe that was what made the difference.
[Fic] Tools of Persuasion
Feb. 6th, 2010 05:22 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Katekyou Hitman Reborn, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Hibari/Dino
Summary: Unadulterated kinky porn featuring bondage, object penetration and spanking. Hibari decides to fuck Dino a little differently than usual. Written for the Porn Battle prompt: Hibari/Dino, Dino's whip.
Meta: Porn, I-4
Wordcount: 1118
( Tools of Persuasion )Dino moaned a little, low in his throat, as Kyouya pushed his knees wider against the cool, rumpled sheets. Tonight promised to be something special.
Discourse of the kimono
Feb. 5th, 2010 04:45 pmI think I've finally pinned down something that makes me twitch about the things one can find in English regarding the history and wearing of kimono. And this one is actually not the spectacle of white girls wanting to be geisha or otherwise appropriating culturally specific ceremonials, though that makes me twitch pretty damn bad. No, this one is subtler: the stunning class bias encoded in nearly every text, to the point that only one in fifty or so will even mention that the kimono styles they are all talking about are solely what the upper class wore in any given period.
When you read that site about jyuuni-hitoe, or that book about the history of kimono, or that message board about how to wear kimono today, and they all talk about "the history of kimono" or "the types of kimono" nary a word will you find about the fact that all these fashions and rules and standards and layers were exclusively those of nobles or the warrior class. Or that there were a lot more people than that walking around with clothing on that was, of necessity, far simpler and more utile, and that they are just as much part of this clothing history.
And I don't know if a similar erasure is part of the Japanese discourse of kimono. I suspect it is from the little snippets I've seen but a bit differently shaped--more part and parcel of the post-Civil War arrogation of warrior-class privileges to the general populace. Compare with the way everyone in the US will say they are middle class, blue collar and white, taxi driver to CEO.
Of course, the part of all this that amuses me mightily, from an historical perspective, is that the modern wearing of kimono, despite having been frozen by largely ceremonial use, has still managed to steadily inch its way further and further toward the working class and even peasant mode of clothing: one layer, simple ties. It reminds me, albeit reversed, of the way the merchant class got around the sumptuary laws: put the good stuff on the inside. Or, in this case, reduce the layers and ties on the inside by using clip-ons and decorations that are stitched in place.
But is there any mention of this, or even of the fact that people existed who were not wearing twelve layers of silk according to the season? Vanishingly little. Argh.
When you read that site about jyuuni-hitoe, or that book about the history of kimono, or that message board about how to wear kimono today, and they all talk about "the history of kimono" or "the types of kimono" nary a word will you find about the fact that all these fashions and rules and standards and layers were exclusively those of nobles or the warrior class. Or that there were a lot more people than that walking around with clothing on that was, of necessity, far simpler and more utile, and that they are just as much part of this clothing history.
And I don't know if a similar erasure is part of the Japanese discourse of kimono. I suspect it is from the little snippets I've seen but a bit differently shaped--more part and parcel of the post-Civil War arrogation of warrior-class privileges to the general populace. Compare with the way everyone in the US will say they are middle class, blue collar and white, taxi driver to CEO.
Of course, the part of all this that amuses me mightily, from an historical perspective, is that the modern wearing of kimono, despite having been frozen by largely ceremonial use, has still managed to steadily inch its way further and further toward the working class and even peasant mode of clothing: one layer, simple ties. It reminds me, albeit reversed, of the way the merchant class got around the sumptuary laws: put the good stuff on the inside. Or, in this case, reduce the layers and ties on the inside by using clip-ons and decorations that are stitched in place.
But is there any mention of this, or even of the fact that people existed who were not wearing twelve layers of silk according to the season? Vanishingly little. Argh.
Life =/= bling
Feb. 2nd, 2010 12:31 pmI've cast off from the latest round of perorations over m/m and/or slash vis a vis appropriation and queerness. The soapboxing has clearly shot any actual discussion dead. But something I saw at the con this past weekend reminded me of it.
There was a booth in the dealer's room that had a big rainbow flag up behind it. Now, normally I'm pleased to see the flag wherever it's shown, but not in this case. Because that booth was selling doujinshi and appliqued across the flag was the acronym "YAOI".
That. That right there is the line getting crossed. Because yaoi doujinshi in very particular are not about celebrating diversity or about gay pride. The vast majority of yaoi is direly heteronormative and doesn't even make a pretense at representing the shape or variety of gay culture (either in Japan or anywhere else they may be set). Printing "yaoi" across a rainbow flag is one of the most stunning examples of not-getting-it that I've seen in a long while, and something I have no hesitation to call both disrespect and defacement.
The issues surrounding representation and who and how don't always lend themselves to simplification, but I think one point does boil down very consistently:
My life is not your bling.
And if that thought makes me or anyone else uncomfortable to think while standing in the middle of an anime convention ninety-eight percent of which is distinctly not-Japanese-at-all, well it should. The lack of that thought and awareness is one of the reasons there are large sections of Western a/m fandom I don't engage with, that and the lack of the related awareness, "Liking it doesn't make you Japanese".
Kind of like having two dicks on the page doesn't make it gay. So get those grubby paws off my damn flag.
Informational note: if this is picked up by any of the link comms I will probably limit commenting to my circle, having no interest in hosting general idiocy.
There was a booth in the dealer's room that had a big rainbow flag up behind it. Now, normally I'm pleased to see the flag wherever it's shown, but not in this case. Because that booth was selling doujinshi and appliqued across the flag was the acronym "YAOI".
That. That right there is the line getting crossed. Because yaoi doujinshi in very particular are not about celebrating diversity or about gay pride. The vast majority of yaoi is direly heteronormative and doesn't even make a pretense at representing the shape or variety of gay culture (either in Japan or anywhere else they may be set). Printing "yaoi" across a rainbow flag is one of the most stunning examples of not-getting-it that I've seen in a long while, and something I have no hesitation to call both disrespect and defacement.
The issues surrounding representation and who and how don't always lend themselves to simplification, but I think one point does boil down very consistently:
My life is not your bling.
And if that thought makes me or anyone else uncomfortable to think while standing in the middle of an anime convention ninety-eight percent of which is distinctly not-Japanese-at-all, well it should. The lack of that thought and awareness is one of the reasons there are large sections of Western a/m fandom I don't engage with, that and the lack of the related awareness, "Liking it doesn't make you Japanese".
Kind of like having two dicks on the page doesn't make it gay. So get those grubby paws off my damn flag.
Informational note: if this is picked up by any of the link comms I will probably limit commenting to my circle, having no interest in hosting general idiocy.
Ignore that! I don't add students to the personal account until after a class is over!
Except very much by accident. *is very red in the face*
Pay no attention to the teacher behind the curtain...
See, this is what happens when you have multiple accounts and forget which one you're in.
Except very much by accident. *is very red in the face*
Pay no attention to the teacher behind the curtain...
See, this is what happens when you have multiple accounts and forget which one you're in.
[Fic] Six Pomegranate Seeds
Jan. 8th, 2010 02:19 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Bamboo, Pine and Peach, Card Captor Sakura
Characters/Pairings: Eriol, Touya/Yukito/Yue
Summary: Yue has a wish for his future; Touya is a little startled and a lot enlightened.
Meta: Romantic Drama, I-4
Wordcount: 2071
( Six Pomegranate Seeds )Family gatherings were always pretty lively. With three magicians, four magic creatures and a ghost, Touya supposed they couldn't be anything else, and he was pretty used to it by now.
[Fic] A Better Trap
Jan. 6th, 2010 02:36 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Kuroshitsuji, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Ciel/Sebastian
Summary: Sebastian and Ciel tease each other a lot. Sometimes Ciel gets the better of that game, and sometimes Sebastian likes it when he does. Featuring demon-esque bondage kink.
Meta: Mind-Porn, I-4
Wordcount: 618
( A Better Trap )Sebastian was a demon who appreciated artistry, and that was why he liked his current master so much. To be sure, Ciel's early efforts had been a bit rough. It had taken a year or two before Ciel realized that simple physical feats wouldn't trouble Sebastian and turned his ingenuity to devising more subtle traps and conundrums.
[Fic] A Good Show
Jan. 6th, 2010 02:23 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Kuroshitsuji, Standalone
Characters/Pairings: Ciel, Sebastian
Summary: Sebastian stays with Ciel for his perfection--by demonic standards.
Meta: Character Sketch, I-3
Wordcount: 279
( A Good Show )Sebastian stood in front of his mirror and adjusted his cuffs minutely. Aesthetics were important. He was currently a butler, and a proper butler was always perfectly turned out.
The difference between manga and comics
Jan. 5th, 2010 05:57 pmActually, this is a lot broader than that, but that was one of the places this post started. The other was Rana's comment on a different post, words to the effect that the fan-cultures in question seem to divide themselves based only on some very fuzzy Orientalism.
I agree that fuzzy Orientalism is the most regrettably common way Western fans of similar media from different national/ethnic groups (eg comics and manga) express their differentiation. That particular expression is generally a lot of hot air, yes.
But I also think there are real fan-culture differences, touching on though not always rising directly from the mother-culture differences of the sources. This is my attempt to articulate the ones that I've seen. Warning: generalizations ahead, though not baseless ones.
ETA: To elaborate, this post is based on my own and my circle's experiences in various fandoms; unfortunately I managed to phrase things rather more generally and universally than I quite realized at the time. *rueful* None of the following is actually meant to be a Declaration Of How Fandom Is Everywhere. That said, the experience in question is not a narrow one, and I think the following is representative of a significant section of manga (and anime) fandom participants.
( Let's look at this. )
Now, what I would be interested to know is: do the same kinds of differences show up in the Western fandoms of Western and Asian TV? Or of Western bands and Asian bands? And do they manifest in gaming fandoms? That last especially interests me, since the game sources seem to be the most self-aware of the trans-Pacific trade.
ETA: As per suggestion, I would like to point out that I have not been present for the bulk of wrangler discussions on associated issues. These are thoughts going off in a different (somewhat) direction, so please to be not be bringing other fights in here. I am an unaligned polity.
ETA some more: Will not be replying to further comments on this one because work has descended for the term. Talk among yourselves if you like.
I agree that fuzzy Orientalism is the most regrettably common way Western fans of similar media from different national/ethnic groups (eg comics and manga) express their differentiation. That particular expression is generally a lot of hot air, yes.
But I also think there are real fan-culture differences, touching on though not always rising directly from the mother-culture differences of the sources. This is my attempt to articulate the ones that I've seen. Warning: generalizations ahead, though not baseless ones.
ETA: To elaborate, this post is based on my own and my circle's experiences in various fandoms; unfortunately I managed to phrase things rather more generally and universally than I quite realized at the time. *rueful* None of the following is actually meant to be a Declaration Of How Fandom Is Everywhere. That said, the experience in question is not a narrow one, and I think the following is representative of a significant section of manga (and anime) fandom participants.
( Let's look at this. )
Now, what I would be interested to know is: do the same kinds of differences show up in the Western fandoms of Western and Asian TV? Or of Western bands and Asian bands? And do they manifest in gaming fandoms? That last especially interests me, since the game sources seem to be the most self-aware of the trans-Pacific trade.
ETA: As per suggestion, I would like to point out that I have not been present for the bulk of wrangler discussions on associated issues. These are thoughts going off in a different (somewhat) direction, so please to be not be bringing other fights in here. I am an unaligned polity.
ETA some more: Will not be replying to further comments on this one because work has descended for the term. Talk among yourselves if you like.
[Fic] Sweet and Spicy
Jan. 5th, 2010 01:20 pmCross-post from my archive.
Fandom/Arc: Bamboo, Pine and Peach, Card Captor Sakura
Characters/Pairings: Touya/Yukito/Yue
Summary: Touya keeps trying to draw Yue out, and Yue wrestles with his fear of losing again.
Meta: Drama with Romance, I-4
Wordcount: 2297
( Sweet and Spicy )Touya was enjoying a very nice afternoon, lying on the couch with a book in one hand and Yuki dozing against his chest. Yuki had finished his writing for the day, making three chapters of his second novel to send along to his agent tomorrow. The day was just cool enough to make Yuki's warm weight feel extra nice. In fact, it was just about a perfect afternoon.
So of course it was interrupted.
