Irony: identifying with a fictional character to the point of discomfort while denying and decrying others' identities.

YESSSSS someone FINALLY said it!! The internet always seems to jump right to "they're gay" if they don't show opposite gender attraction and completely disregard asexuality. I feel seen, thank you 😊

@FinntasticMrFox

19 күн бұрын

🖤🩶🤍💜

@jackieroberts2625

16 күн бұрын

As a fellow ace, i approve that message

@kenonerboy

11 күн бұрын

Hey mister ace, im your opposite, so i gotta ask do u count characters that are child friendly or never show interest in women in the show as ace? What about mascots?

That Kevin Conroy cameo got me right in the feels 🥲🏳️‍🌈❤ Thank you for this! As an Ace batman fan, so much of this resonated with me personally.

I just summarized your Ace Batman argument to my ace partner over the phone during our lunch break, and her response was “Batman’s first and only love is Gotham. Or justice. Yeah, probably justice.” 😆💜

@Superlad9494

13 күн бұрын

Well when asked he did used to say "I'm married to Lady Justice" ...because even Wonder Woman is out of his *League* and the only one of his friends he ever brought to meet his "wife" was Zatanna...while trying to undo the Wonder Pig incident.

People deny the homoeroticism in Wonder Woman, and the creator of the character very deliberately and purposefully put it there. He was in a polyamorous triad. He told his writing successor on the book that all his Amazons were lesbians. DC Comics has stated she is bisexual, canonically. Yet people still insist she is 100 percent straight. When Frederick Wertham wrote his book saying that Wonder Woman was full of homoeroticism, her creator, Dr Marston, started having WW exclaim "Suffering Sappho!" Just to make it clear that it was intentional.

@nihilasta2661

15 күн бұрын

Omg how did I forget the Suffering Sappho line..... I wish they’d just give her an actual canon girlfriend that we see the whole thing play out. She’s been around long enough, give her some gay love already

@stationarywanderer7910

15 күн бұрын

@@nihilasta2661 Agreed!

@Superlad9494

13 күн бұрын

​​​@@stationarywanderer7910about the straight thing... That was a CCA mandate even though the writers of the comics didn't want to do so, so they decided "self-censorship" was the better way to go. The rules were.... 1. No attacking anyone's religon or race. 2. All Ladies are side characters unless they are a heroine- side addendum, if they are Batwoman (Kathy Kane) and Batgirl (Bette/y Kane), Kathy's only capable if Bruce is in dispose after her initial debut, then she turns into Lois in a Batsuit because she's not Wonder Woman or Aquawoman (Mera used the name regularly in the silver age, but only ever sparingly uses it now* I think her young adult novel title makes a better codename for her, Tidebreaker) so she can't have her full capabilities (glad we learned this was a farce Post-Crisis to beat Bruce at his own game to figure his identity out for Spyral, but stopped carring about it out of love for him, then dumped him and Alfred pointed out the irony to Nightwing within Wally's top speed.), Batgirl on the other hand as a counterpart to Robin could have more capabilities, but she would be a bit brash due to her taking her crush a bit too far, but eventually she decided being Batgirl (and later Flamebird, taking the name up from Jimmy) and a proper hero was more important, although she still did like Nightwing, after all she was the first to just like him for him and not just being "Rich". 3. All characters are kids...superheroes are big kids, sidekicks are little kids, most villains are teenagers or adults playing a game and if you need help figuring out how to do it ask a seven year old. 4. Everyone's presumed straight.

@Superlad9494

13 күн бұрын

​@@nihilasta2661 they tease it with Dr. Veronica Cale and possibly Dr. Barbera Anne Minerva aka the third Cheetah...off and on...that makes Steve...a beard...like it was recently revaled about Rose Canton and Molly Mayne for Alan Scott.

Batman being an ace person working through some stuff is a reading I very much like lol

@bbrbbr-on2gd

17 күн бұрын

I feel he's more demis*xual, with trust issues.

"Humanity over comfort." ❤️

that cameo is incredible, Kevin Conroy is incredible

This is a very special remake and that was so special of you to share that cameo with us. What an incredible gift your friend gave you. Thank you for sharing. :o)

4:55 Either this guy never interacted with his father or he has a Sigmund Freud thing going on. What was going on back then that being concerned for your adopted father is considered homosexual?

That Kevin Conroy video is so sweet! What a gift

Gracious, did I cry like a child. You'll probably figure out where 🌹

I remember seeing that gift video of Conroy being shared on social media years back & it bringing me to tears. Finding out it was for you specifically has made my month honestly. That vid prompted me to come out. I long thought being bisexual meant that I just didn't have to engage with that part of myself & hide behind the mask of heterosexuality, no matter how much it hurt. Your gift helped change my life for the better. Thank you so much for sharing it with us then & now. Also, thank you for this video in particular. It puts into words many things I've felt about how people engage with fiction.

Engagement for the engagement god!

This is a very strong essay. Your closing comments in particular provide the outline of some deep and powerful insights about which I look forward hearing more. Your Kevin Conroy message…words fail me. But thank you for sharing (or, I guess, re-sharing) it here. The more I learn about Conroy, the more my respect for him grows. And it’s clear that if he were around to see you behaving so boldly, he’d be very proud.

Thank you for sharing your Kevin Conroy clip. I started crying the instant he started talking, and didn't stop for a while🥲 I'm pan, but I kept my queerness hidden for most of my life. I looked to comic book characters as my role models, and as a safe way to experience and process my own emotions and trauma. In how we all shared an experience (being queer), the cameo clip Mr. Conroy made for you, allowed me to hear Batman say that he was proud of me too, and that felt really good❤

You know, Fredric Williams is onto something with Catwoman turning young boys gay. Just look at me, a Selina Kyle fan and a trans lesbian. It's totally the fault of comics.

I just finished the video, and you really touched my soul. Lately I've been trying to grow as a person to better understand the world and everyone around me. That's why I want to thank you for allowing everyone to hear what you have to say on this video and superb channel of yours, it is valued highly what you do.

@FinntasticMrFox

19 күн бұрын

Thank you so much 💙

"wow this is a cool video with some interesting points and is that Kevin? oh i’m crying now" i’m new here, hadn’t seen the original but i’m glad you remade this. Batman meant so much to me growing up, i wouldn’t have been able to articulate it all at the time, but seeing such a lonely person wear a mask of masculinity he only took off around other weird outcasts got that confused little egg through a lot. i’ve never read any comics, my connection to him comes mostly through the DCAU, so Kevin is extremely special to me. i didn’t know about his queerness until after his death, or interpreting the timeline differently, i didn’t know we was gay until i knew that i was. he got me through a lot, and it meant so much to me that what i go through being closeted he went through too, and it meant so much to learn that and realize he was with me, helping me through it the whole way. i miss Kevin a lot; i’m really glad to see people make queer analyses of Batman - and i’ve made my own too - it’s so cathartic to see that expressed that i can barely put it into words it had never occurred to read him as ace, which is strange considering that’s what i am, but i really liked it

I think that part of my enjoyment of Batman as a child was (aside from just being a very popular character) that fact that he speaks to a deep sense of pain that I felt from unrecognised gender dysphoria. Likewise with Wolverine, but also because I struggled a lot with controlling my anger at the time. As an adult (not sure if it was before or after my egg cracked, possibly before) I really got into Power Girl and read her 2009 solo series, because she is absolutely goals. What I would not give to be a jacked and stacked woman with superpowers.

That Cameo broke me. My son came out a few months ago (he's 10) and that message is a powerful one. I'm going to have him watch that in the morning. Thank you for sharing it.

So glad you got to meet Kevin Conroy before he left too soon. 🙏 I’ve always been a longtime Batman fan myself, and I love learning new things about the character from LGBTQIA+ perspectives. We need more of that in this day in age. Speaking of, I’m in the process of writing scripts for what I hope turns into an online web series. Basically, it’s Star Fox meets Batman with explicitly trans/queer characters as the main focus. 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈

I once posted on tumblr that i had a headcanon that Batman is an aroace man. I cannot express enough how little I've actually engaged with literally any DC IP; I've never read a Batman comic or seen a DC movie that i know of. I ONLY know Batman from the surface-level, pop-culture image of him emblazoned on the public zeitgeist. Even with this limitation, I could easily read that similarity between Batman and myself, and it interested me! I was sort of hoping to connect with DC fans, maybe learn a little about Batman and who else might read him that way. The amount of anonymous hatemail I got in response this post was absurd. I know it was at the height of the ace discourse, but still. I found myself being bombarded by people who HATED that I wanted to see Batman as anything other than a cishet guy. I sort of thought this experience had killed any interest i ever had in DC for good... it's really really nice to see an actual Batman fan, and a queer man like myself at least in some important ways, argue for a similar reading. Thank you

@FinntasticMrFox

19 күн бұрын

Superhero comics have *always* been a way for the reader to see themselves and feel stronger in doing so, and it’s so sad that some fans choose to gatekeep instead of see the joy in sharing interpretations. I’m so sorry you had that experience, but I’m glad this helped reignite that connection for you. 💙

@sfkeepay

18 күн бұрын

Just voicing support for your comment. I’d also like to mention, and please forgive me if this is already obvious, redundant, or reductive, that Sherlock Holmes has a very compelling asexual vibe. It’s been explicit in all but name even back in the original novels and stories 100 years ago, and is full display in the excellent 1980’s and 2000’s television series. There are some very solid videos on the topic here on KZread as well.

I did not think this one would have me sobbing, but here we are. Wonderful job, as always.

@FinntasticMrFox

19 күн бұрын

🫂

Comics are human stories that reflects the world which means it can be anything the artist or writer make it to be.

Love the Nightwing jacket.

I have been working on a essay about batman for over a year, and I think this is what I needed to finish it, ill be referencing this for sure.

I love Morrison's Batman and Robin run!!

Can I take that whole theme of needing to put on a persona around regular society and only feeling safe to drop that persona around trusted people as neurodivergent? Like, Batman is often a hop skip and a jump away from being autistic

@Superlad9494

17 күн бұрын

That is an angle that while it does certainly apply to Bats, I've often felt that way about Supes. You can actually even show it as the difference between a public school kid and private school kid...like their kids.

Batman discourse hell yeah

Incredible work, as always!

The cameo almost made me tear up NGL this is a phenomenal video

*feeds the algorythm*

We queer people are used to having to create representation where it isn't intended or is just an implied hypothetical. Straight cis people are used to being explicitly and exclusively represented. That must be super hard to deal with.

imo this was a perfect follow-up to the sin squad's intro to subversive queercoding in The Lego Batman Movie. as always love how articulate you are. plus you rock that nightwing jacket so well!

First watched your channel for Batman content... glad it’s back with a “vengeance”

Wowzers 🥲 thank you so much for sharing that Kevin Conroy message. I feel like us as a community always need to hear those words, so perfectly articulated. ❤🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ (I’m also a fan of the ace Batman reading, as an ace Batman stan ✨)

Batman is the most ace character possibly ever, though somewhat not aro

It's a clever idea, but Batman can't be gay - over a certain level of wealth, people are just straight no matter who they like to sleep with. 🤷‍♀

@FinntasticMrFox

17 күн бұрын

…this comment got me good.

The original version of this was one of the reasons I really got into Batman a couple years ago and now I'm writing a fanfic featuring Batman as an aroace trans man. Batman and superhero stories in general have been a huge part of my process of accepting my relationship to masculinity (I'm transmasc and nonbinary) and how I can be masculine and asexual at the same time.

i loved this! as a queer kid who's favorite superhero was always batman, i always felt his undertones of asexuality but never heard anyone else say it out loud! Thanks for putting it into words!

So sad that most people that should watch this, probably won't. And if they did, they would probably only get angry, because they're so stuck in their world view and can't imagine "wasting their time" on anything that challenges it.

This is one of my favorite videos from you so far. And that Kevin Conroy cameo was so cool. Definitely the best gift right there ❤

The outpouring of love that came after Kevin Conroy's passing makes me sad that I didn't have all those years with him being my Batman as well but I am so grateful he got to be that for so many many others. So many queer siblings had him as their only lifeline and I know for him that made all those years of closeted fear and rejection worth it. To bend but not break. To have maintained such gentleness...he truly had the biggest and most resilient of hearts

gosh this was an amazing video, and i really hope you're getting all that ad money (there were quite a few) bc you deserve it!!

Absolute banger, I missed the penultimate version so thank you for betting on this release bringing more eyes to the topic!

That Cameo made me tear up while washing dishes. The world was a better place while Kevin Conroy was around

I'm still a batman hater lol 🙈 but wow what a fantastic video! I can't believe i relate to him, you captured the queer experience of aceness. Its so hard for people to realize we have to wear a mask of heterosexuality too. The video makes me reflect on how isolating it must be to be an ace man or gay ace man. It was sad to hear one of the authors center being gay on sex, I wonder how hard it is it for ace men to find somewhere to belong safely. As an ace person myself I'm so aware of how dominated ace conversations and spaces are by cis ace women. This video is so valuable!

Remember when someone made a black queer woman Superman to try and "own the left" and then just made a banger of a picture besides using AI. Almost as if all of those exist separately already. I grew up with superheroes, but I have a better connection with DC. I've been lonely for most of my life being too weird to have any friends. And the CW shows helped me a lot with loneliness. There is a huge cast of characters of a found family that will reliably be there the next week. Probably why my two favorite shows are Marvel's Agents of SHIELD and DC's Legends of Tomorrow. Both of them have a found family that sticks together to the end. This is exactly why queer people in fiction is important. It's not to indicate kids or push beliefs on anyone, it's to give kids someone they can look up and feel seen in. Majority of us know what it's like to be all alone, and wouldn't wish it on others. I know for sure I have. I finally found a group of people who care about me 19 years into my life. While I'm the only trans woman in the group, they give me a sense of connectivity and safety my family could never give me. I am literally camping with my family right now and I feel so much like the odd one out. I just know next weekend being with friends I'll be safe though and will be able to connect to others unlike now. I want to tell stories to give those the joys that I have received throughout my life of media. Not in a preachy way, but in a just having characters exist for fans. Like how Percy Jackson does it.

This video was beautifully done. I love the message you put across and the way it transcends the specific cultural example you used to convey the message.

Great video, great work. Also : I love that jacket ;)

This was a wonderful video! As a prospective ELA educator that is also a comic book collector, I have been developing a comic book superhero focused unit that aims to empower students. I hadn’t considered the empowerment provided by identity-affirming interpretations that can prioritize certain characteristics over others. I’ll definitely feature excerpts in my class!

Listening to your jacket squeak made me snort. 'Cause I get that. Dude, that cameo about made *me* cry. I'd never thought of Batman as being biromantic asexual before. My brain's gonna chew on that for a while. Like a tasty snack that stays with you. Like garlic bread.

Yeah, „rich, charming playboy hiding behind a mask, and only feeling himself when he dresses up and goes out at night“. No, totally, straight what, do you mean?

excellent work

How am I just realizing that Swole is Canadian? Like, SUPER Canadian. I've been watching him for months and it just glossed right over my head. Maybe because he just sounds like home, so it didn't even register.

Okay, I cried during the Conroy Cameo. I have a whole bunch to say on this, but my computer bricked and my phone keys barely work. Soon.

This is so good. Eyeliner on point btw.

This was awsome. I'd love to see a vid from you talking about your love for nightwing and why

"How come someone can be an expert on a fictional character?..." . . . Hey, wait a minute!

good one, fleshed out a lot I had only faint awareness of and introduced brand new info for me, not to mention the wonderful presentation as always

I was going to wait to see what you had to say, but I had a pretty strong reaction to the thumbnail. I thought “Batman isn’t gay! I truly believe, if you really look into it, he’s asexual like me!” So I was pretty happy when you brought it up.

This was so great, thank you

Loved the first version of this video, and I love this one, too. I hesitated to click on this one for a moment because part of me was afraid you'd changed your stance on the asexual read, and while it's 100% okay to change our reads on fictional stories (!) there's part of me that always gets sad when an aspec reading changes or gets disproved by canon or author statements, what have you. It's so rare to find it, and the original version of this was the first video of yours I'd watched, and what enticed me to give you a follow (the video itself was really good and you articulated your feelings so thoughtfully, which has remained true in each subsequent video on every subject you've tackled), and I got over it fast enough and clicked it to see what new things you had to say. And you kept the asexual reading, and it made me a little emotional. Then the Kevin Conroy video played and it hit different this time, but no less hard, and I'm so glad to have had this come up in my alerts today for a lot of reasons.

I absolutely love this take never thought of it this way. 💙 love that your a comic fan too love the channel keep it up!!

Lovely work as always

0:07 I take offense to that! I need no comic book to make me gay. I did that myself thank you very much. The fact that I have a thing for catwoman (women with pixie cuts are my kryptonite) is simply a manifestation of that!

I just wanted to say thank you for talking about your experience in who you are and how you had something to identify to help you through a tough time. For a lot of my life I always found myself being attracted to girls but more so for boys so as I got into high school i realized that I was bi but tried to think that I was curious until my attraction for guys grew stronger. Then I subconsciously without realizing that I am bi but couldn’t admit verbally until a year later because of my own internalized homophobia and insecurity that I didn’t live up to being masculine and a typical straight guy

Damn what a great Cameo! He really went above and beyond for you. What a truly wonderful gift

I wasn’t expecting you to discuss the asexuality of batman but I’m so pleased you did!!!!

I have never thought of Batman's sexuality before, so thank you for making me think of it. Also, I'm so happy your friend got you that message from KEVIN CONROY. I teared up a bit from that, and it was not even aimed at me, lol. But your discussion of him as asexual made a lot click in my head, and I really liked that take on him and the nuances it adds

The joy of reading: you can try on different identities, go on different adventures, and not actually be that character, even if you enjoyed moments of the "try-on." You can also agree and take on some of the aspects of characters. The brain can be so complex. Give it some credit. ❤

Also being on the spectrum made it harder for me to accept having another label put on top when I struggled with one. I think reading fan fiction of male fictional characters in LGBTQ relationships helped me realize that I like men and when I came out to my mom and sister which was hard at first where I almost burst into tears. They accepted me and told me that they love me and will continue. Now I feel confident in my two identities and am in a relationship with a guy 😊

Okay, the gift gave me teary eyes.

So many great points in this video. I'm allo and never even considered an ace reading of Batman but it makes so much sense. I'm also bi/pan and a recently cracked egg, so of course that message from Kevin Conroy made me cry like a baby. Thank you for sharing it.

Thank you. Love you💛

I got teary from watching this. The double lige also connects to neurodivergent ppl. 😭

nailed it!

bro kinda sold me

A heart for you

you know this is a very interesting subject make more of these essays for both DC and Marvel (if you want ) i want to know more

0:03 Berserk video when?!?!

@missglucktesbartierchen4143

19 күн бұрын

0:07 Berserk video when?!?!

As an ace woman who sees Batman as ace, this was really validating. I like that other alphabet mafia folks can see it too! I am so glad you didn’t say he’s gay for being a father figure to Robin. That old narrative has always been gross to me. As stated here, he has connections with actual men.

Thank you so much for sharing Conroy’s message to you, Finn! ✨🥰 Batman being asexual seems pretty obvious in hindsight: My first introduction to Batman was TAS, and with any of the scenes with an antagonist seducing Batman I generally would mirror his “your wiles are useless, here”. And whilst Bruce Wayne was known as a womaniser, he seemed to simply play along when approached but actually pursued anyone or initiated anything.

Kevin Conroy depart hits everytime

Wow Jackie is one hell of a friend😮

as a non queer man and a lifelong Batman fan. I really enjoyed hearing your perspective. excellent analysis of the entire Batman mythos , and I think I’m personally going to adopt the asexual Batman reading.

Personally, I think Batman makes much more sense as a lesbian. His relationship with Catwoman has always seemed _extremely_ saphic, to me. He also gets along suspiciously well with Wonder Woman...

@pm3618

18 күн бұрын

sadly if he was a lesbian catwoman would be living in the batcave after the first kiss u_u batman takes it way too slow.

@60sspider-man29

17 күн бұрын

​@@pm3618 cave lesbians >>> carpentry lesbians

@danieldortch8779

8 күн бұрын

Selina may love her high priced condos and luxurious apartments, but her first instinct whenever seeing that sweaty mass of muscles and scars and trauma is to get it on ON A ROOFTOP! She don’t care.

Excellent video! Who is in favour of Finn doing more comic related things? I definitely am!

The comic currently being published on webtoon of batman: wayne family adventures has been my favorite because it highlights how queer/found family batman and batfamily are. And sure, it's a slice of life comic. But if they made a batfamily movie..... i would be there.

Kevin Conroy's death hit me so hard. I was in the middle of my own cancer struggle and damn did it fuck with my head. In remission now and going strong.

@FinntasticMrFox

17 күн бұрын

Glad to hear you’re in remission, I can’t even imagine what that must have felt like as someone going through the same fight. 💙

@cmmosher8035

17 күн бұрын

@@FinntasticMrFox thanks. I appreciate it. You have a good channel here. Honestly as a CIS guy it's given me a lot to think about in terms of my own masculinity.

That was a batace video essay.

Nightwing jacket!!!!!

@ZyllasAthenaeum

17 күн бұрын

Okay now the real comment after watching the whole thing. 1) Ace?!? YES Thank you for pointing this out; this is what I was missing the whole time! No wonder I love him so much. 2) Kevin. MFing. Conroy. I am still bawling at the end of the video from that cameo. My heart.

I love your videos. ❤

now this is my kind of video well done

Thank you so much for sharing your Kevin Conroy cameo. It was so sincere and beautifully sweet

That cameo was honestly the most queer affirming thing I’ve ever heard. It was really beautiful. Thanks for sharing!!!

💖

'your sense of self is too weak to exist without external validation' why murder me so at the end TT_TT I am not even supposed to be target, I am queer as hell

Yeah Bruce is Ace, Dick is somehow the queerest straght man alive, Jasons bi, or at least has a weird thing for Roy and Tim is finally canonically bi, and Damian is still 10 in my brain and feels like too early to parse attraction, but given hes usually like Bruces more violent second comming probably ace too. And no Batgirl has every been straight.

@Superlad9494

17 күн бұрын

Damian is canonically 15 now...but he's really only ever had one girl, Flatline, but he'll never admit it.