The Tumblr not-announcement :(

I saw the post about staff allegedly being moved off Tumblr and onto other projects/departments/whatever. If it's legit (it does seem pretty Tumblr-flavored and is certainly going to happen eventually), then ... I'm trying not to be an alarmist, it's not (probably) like the lights would go off immediately, but I do think it will happen sooner or later. Just personally speaking, current Tumblr is where a lot of my online interactions and conversations happen, even now. And Pillowfort seems pretty desperate and Dreamwidth, though beloved, is often very quiet—and I simply refuse to use Elon Twitter—so I don't know what I'd do next for fandom tbh. Certainly not Discord.

Looking back, I was fairly reluctant to even be on Tumblr at first (I went there to find Skywalker art and gifs) and I still prefer journal-style fandom (like Dreamwidth!) by a mile, pretty gifsets or no. (Though if Dreamwidth made image uploading less of an inconvenience, I'd just park here forever.) And I had relatively few interactions on Tumblr, too, until I started getting to know people in various then-highly active fandoms. It's definitely become quieter and slower since then, but still.

I had thought the warning signals were getting louder this year. But still. :(

Tumblr crosspost (26 August 2020)

I did a bunch of stressful things, so now I have time to be petty!

I’m thinking about Faramir, as usual, and I just feel like people don’t appreciate that he has to stoop to kiss Éowyn’s forehead.

I mean!!! You don’t normally stoop to kiss the forehead of someone just a few inches shorter than you. Usually, they’d have to be much shorter. And Éowyn is a tall woman, even if she’s not as tall as most of the Riders. In all probability, Faramir is really, really tall—even for a Dúnadan.

Tolkien did say that Denethor is very tall and looks like an ancient Númenórean, and that Faramir takes after him, so it’s not really surprising, but—!

And I know I’ve talked about it before, but AND. AND Faramir and Éowyn’s hair mingles in the wind even though he has to stoop to reach her forehead! He must have really long (“raven”) hair, too! And on top of that, he has a “fair face” like Boromir’s.

It’s such a look and it’s just … so tragically underappreciated. ;_;

#i'm not saying that faramir is underappreciated mind you #but his aesthetic is!!! #hmm that's probably not fair—fandom is actually super into that aesthetic but only for elves #i'm just petty and want it for MY fave #ANYWAY

Tumblr crosspost (26 August 2020)

For once, Quora sent me something relevant to my interests:

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I reblogged my post here and added:

uhhhh

There have been some great Stewards throughout the years (most notably, Ecthelion, father of Denethor) but Stewards just weren’t good enough no matter how hard they tried.

WHY DID I LOOK

Tumblr crosspost (26 August 2020)

It’s obviously not the worst part of that wtf take on the Stewards, but “most notably” Ecthelion? Over Mardil? Boromir? Cirion?

Pffft.

#but ecthelion liked aragorn so that makes him the best steward of them all #>_> #tbh cirion is probably the best ruler gondor ever had

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This is probably funny only to me, but it’s like…

Arvedui: And in conclusion, Isildur didn’t give up the kingship, so as current heir of Isildur—may my father rest in peace—I should be king of Gondor and—

Araphant: Stop telling people I’m dead!

Arvedui: …sometimes I can still hear his voice.

#i'm sorry but claiming the throne as heir of isildur while his father was alive is just ... #i guess i respect the sheer audacity if not much else #(this actually bothers me less than claiming the throne via fíriel but I MEAN) #i'm just imagining the council of gondor morphing into the edgar allen poe meme when they got arvedui's message

Tumblr crosspost (27 August 2020)

I reblogged a post about how redemption arcs are not equivalent to "having a character arc," like a basically good person becoming an even better one, or whatever the fandom purity brigade was going on about. I tagged it:

#thiiiis #if they haven't done anything all that bad it ISN'T REDEMPTION #and it is fine to dislike redemption arcs as a trope! but i reallyyyy wish people would just say so #instead of trying to twist the term beyond all recognition #like... people who think darcy has a redemption arc or whatever the fuck

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Tolkien on Cirion and Eorl:

On the part of Cirion the love was that of a wise father, old in the cares of the world, for a son in the strength and hope of his youth; while in Cirion Eorl saw the highest and noblest man of the world that he knew, and the wisest.

❤️ ❤️ ❤️

Tagged:

#eorl thinking cirion is the noblest and wisest man in his world ;_; #anyway they would be super happy to know that cirion's heir and the sister of eorl's would one day marry #and i am one hundred percent sure that their legacy loomed very large at the wedding

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Honestly, now that I think of it … if there’s any of the pre-LOTR non-Silm stories I’d love to see given a full treatment, it would probably be the story of Cirion and Eorl and the Battle of the Field of Celebrant.

#it might be too similar to the ride of the rohirrim but..... do i care? no #hire me amazon #...actually don't hire me bc it's amazon but ... y'know. SOMEONE who appreciates gondor and rohan the way they deserve #if it gets to the third age at all #probably going to be the last alliance which is pretty cool too #but all the pieces that go into play to make the field of celebrant work out is just - !!!!!!!! #super cinematic imo

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Speaking of Faramir’s canon appearance, I feel like Boromir’s also doesn’t get quite the appreciation it merits?

• There was a tall man with a fair and noble face, dark-haired and grey-eyed
• His fair and pleasant face was hideously changed
• "Where now is Boromir the Fair?" (Legolas)
• "His head so proud, his face so fair, his limbs they laid to rest"
• "His face was more beautiful even than in life." (Faramir)

Is he attractive??? We may never know

#i think there's this thing where ... boromir is more of an eorling type temperamentally and it gets kind of extended to his appearance #to the point that he's not treated as a /real/ dúnadan #but he is! tolkien emphasizes this in his description of boromir's height but also just... generally #he may not have the superpowers or temperament but he is still a númenórean in appearance and history BYE #gorgeous hulking númenórean boromir is very important okay #(just imagine f!boromir... anyway)