possible spoilers for iw – it’s so not the clusterfuck that tlj is, ok, the worst of it is probably just the lack of spotlight that team wakanda got compared to what trailers suggested. there’s no rude dismissal of any chekov’s gun, no groundwork for the gaslighting genocidal villain to have a redemption arc, no changing any of the beloved heroes into an antagonist (illogically or not), no dismal outlook in the ending (especially when you just know it’ll all get reversed). iw is not tlj.

Infinity War spoilers alert

It does seem to be a better put-together movie than TLJ (not a high bar). However, I still object to the undermining of the hopeful ending of Thor: Ragnarok and playing genocide for the *shock* and *drama*, not to mention most of the Black heroes being killed.

Can I ask something about The Handmaiden? Hideko/Sookhee are often depicted in very symmetrical ways, and some reviews I’ve read argue it’s fetishistic and render them into symbols of female similarity. The director said this balance is to avoid the need of a “male” role, and also to overcome social hierarchies between them, especially the Japanese/Korean power imbalance at the time. They are really distinct characters, so I wondered if it’s a good idea to critique this without cultural context?

Female similarity? Idek what that means because the two are SUCH different characters lmao. Like… one is literally a thief and the other is a rich noblewoman? Maybe it doesn’t carry over to Western audiences, but their bearings are vastly different due to their class and culture differences, and they speak and intonate differently too. They react differently to situations, with just one memorable example being Sook-Hee leading the destruction of the porn collection, something Hideko could not dream of starting after being brutalized into compliance all her life.

One part that strikes me about that scene is Sook-Hee hitching her skirts up and stomping on submerged books exactly like a Korean woman doing laundry–like she’s trying to wash out the memories of Hideko’s abuse at her tormentor’s hands. I cried watching that familiar mannerism being used as a gesture of righteous rage, empowerment, and liberation. If these reviewers don’t have the cultural knowledge to catch onto these specificities then I am not interested in their hot take. Yes, anyone can watch and enjoy the movie, but it’s imperative for those who would commentate on it to know the limits of their knowledge when it comes to a Korean movie made by Korean creators for Korean audiences.

And yes, it’s a potentially very problematic dynamic for a rich Japanese lady and a Korean commoner to fall in love, and Park Chan-Wook took every care to put them on even footing in their relationship and play around with traditional gender roles like the fucking national treasure he is. But that doesn’t mean they’re uniform, indistinguishable characters. The people who say their depiction flattens female characters or whatever don’t know what the hell they’re talking about and are missing huge chunks of nuance. Even worse, they seem to be implying the dynamics between female characters have to be unequal if they are to be distinct characters and not be sexist or whatever, which uh. How about no.

@filmsoundtracks do you want to comment on this too?

I mean either way you look at this, it’s a big deal. This is the first female director for Star Wars and it’s a black woman

I know it’s AWESOME!! I mean, look at a pinned tweet on Vic’s account. Just look at it.

why do you do this? you get nothing out of this. you’re a grown woman. maybe you should act your age!

Errrrr do you say the same to the grown Reylos in your fandom or do you think Finnrey is somehow unworthy compared to Reylo? Don’t answer that, I know what your answer is.

why do you do this? FinnRey isn’t canon. Nor ever will be.

Fuck off. 😊 Trust anti-abortion assholes to be annoying in fandom too.

Have the the official SW social media accounts like the sw tumblr always been lacking in Finn content or is it a new, post-TLJ development?

I haven’t really followed the official SW social media accounts. Anyone more knowledgeable about this than I am? I know there was considerably less Finn in the promo materials for TLJ than for TFA, so I wouldn’t be surprised if social media reflects the same trend.

reylos are fake mad and deconstructing your innocuous picture that everybody on tumblr has made for their own respective ship which usually pokes fun at the opposite/problematic ship. this behaviour is getting really old. you’d think they’d be fingering themselves to that “sex scene” in TLJ now that the bluray is out but…..

Awww the poor dears. You’d think it wouldn’t take much to touch their own erogenous regions, but they just have to reach much, much farther. I guess the famed sex scene and vagina imagery just aren’t as satisfying as advertised.

Now excuse me, I have this Finnrey pornography called “The Force Awakens” to rub off to, not to mention the good bits in TLJ.

Katara: if you even think about hurting Aang I’ll fucking kill you where you stand Zutarians: awwww true love!!!

The dynamics are eerily like the Reylo erasure/dismissal of Finn and Finnrey. Zutarans take scenes and episodes that are actually pro-Kataang (see also: The Southern Raiders) and twist them into being about their ship. Reylos are just Zutarans who grew up to be English majors, it seems.

Creepy adult predators forcing kids to RP NSFW scenarios are all too rampant in fandom. I’m still recovering even though it happened years ago. I didn’t know what happened until I was an adult, when I came to the realization that I was being groomed by self-proclaimed “fandom moms” and popular gatekeepers; I thought that by associating with them and writing NSFW scenarios, I’d be “cool” too. They knew me, a high schooler, had limited access to the net yet still exploited me. It’s horrible.

God, I’m so sorry that happened to you. I wish there had been an adult who had known what was happening and stepped in. And here’s yet more reason to side-eye self-proclaimed “fandom moms”–too often they’re using their age, knowledge, and perceived cool factor to exploit minors. If you call yourself someone’s mom, here’s pro tip: NEVER EVER GET ANYWHERE CLOSE TO GETTING SEXUAL GRATIFICATION FROM THEM. EVER.

Kids in fandom, if you’re in this situation or know someone who is, please tell someone and get help. It’s not cool or okay for a minor to be simulating sex with adults–in every single case I’ve heard of, and I’ve heard far too many, it was hurtful for the minor involved. Adults in fandom, let’s watch out for the kids. Stand up for younger fans. Know that this is not remotely okay, and intervene if necessary to protect them. Fandom should be safe and fun, and nothing is less safe and less fun than grownups preying on children.

Nice writeup but disagree on Winn and wonder if you’d classify her as a villain if she were male. Opaka backed the wrong horse in feckless Bareil and Kira was an asshole for letting her sex drive get in the way of wanting the best Kai for Bakker. Also Berman confirmed the pah wraiths “violated” Winn before the end, so yeah, kind of a bad take.

Um? This is the woman who was confirmed, over and over again, to have put her ambitions ahead of the good of others, of Bajor, or indeed the universe. She also ummm tried to assassinate her opponent (Bareil)? Which would make anyone a villain? But that’s not close to all of it, you even brought up the pah wraiths yourself–i.e. her last arc in the show, where she was going to burn Bajor down and kill the Prophets because they liked Sisko better than her. I’m not sure what Berman meant by violation, certainly Dukat raped her by deception and no one deserves that. Here’s some news, though: suffering a wrong does not in itself make you a good person.