Userparadoxx - Radiation Zone - Tumblr Blog

......So originally I wanted to make just a sketch of the hug scene but mhmgkhllgkh here we are haha

Based on Mistakes on mistakes until

+ close ups of their eyes because I sprinkled them with the tiny extra details

jesus no

I wasn’t put on this earth to cater to everyone and to never make a noise!! I was out here to be annoying, to take up space, to talk people’s ears off, to never shut the fuck up about what makes me happy!!! I talk too much and that’s okay!!

TEEHEE silly video I made with @userparadoxx and I's ocs!!!

Trope Discussion: Blind Characters Covering Their Eyes

The majority of the projects I am asked to beta include blind characters who cover their eyes. Modern characters wear sunglasses. Other characters wear blindfolds for older settings. The story usually justifies the decision in some way, but I always ask: why?

I also neglected to include this in my post on Things I Want to See More of / Less of in Blind Characters. I don’t think I considered it at the time. However, unlike my post on blind seers, I think this trope actually causes some harm in subtle ways and I usually encourage avoiding it. I’ll discuss why in this post.

What’s Wrong With Blind Characters Covering Their Eyes?

Keep in mind that blind characters are not so common. Because they aren’t very common and because not everyone in your audience knows a blind person in real life, the way the character is represented could lead audiences to believe that is how blind people are. This, coupled with a general lack of information given in everyday life, allows writers or artists to unintentionally influence how real life blind people are perceived.

Sure, blind people create blind characters as well. However, we don’t usually get as much exposure or opportunities. We could be held back by other barriers, such as poverty. This means it can be hard to counteract tropes we don’t like or that activity harm us.

Blind characters covering their eyes is potentially harmful for a few reasons.

One reason is that it is assumed that all blind people always cover their eyes. This means that in real life, blind people are not as easily recognized even when they have a cane. The white cane is supposed to be what alerts others that a person is blind. Instead, people get confused about why a blind person isn’t wearing sunglasses if they’re blind. This leads to unnecessary explanations, lost time, refusal to help, and sometimes hostility. Wearing sunglasses helps some blind people communicate blindness more easily. They may feel forced to adopt the stereotype.

Another reason is that it unknowingly touches on the pressure some blind people face to cover their eyes. This could be because they are self-conscious about them or because of pressure to make other people feel more comfortable. This pressure could originate from the way their eyes look or move, or even due to lack of eye contact. Sometimes, stories present these ideas as normal for blind people, which increases the idea that blind people should be ashamed of their eyes or that they should prioritize the comfort of others for something superficial.

Where Did the Stereotype Come From?

While I am not sure about the exact origins, the stereotype probably comes from a few sources: shorthand symbolism and abled actors playing blind characters.

-Shorthand symbolism could be used in art or plays to indicate a character’s blindness.

-Because films and shows are so popular and more easily consumed, audiences are more often exposed to blind people on the screen. Actors who aren’t blind often wear sunglasses to make them appear blind to audiences who would perceive eye movements as breaking character. The actors in live-action material often wear sunglasses to hide their eyes. Why blind actors aren’t hired initially is another story.

This page discusses the sunglasses trope in films.

-Some blind people who wear sunglasses for any reason may also simply be more recognizable as a blind person as opposed to blind people who don’t wear sunglasses. This means others may not be aware that blind who don’t wear dark sunglasses exist.

The Sunglasses Stereotype

I should mention here that blind people are simultaneously expected to wear sunglasses as a signifier of blindness while also accused of faking for wearing them. The rationale is the idea that blind people can’t see the sun and therefore would never need sunglasses. This, of course, depends on the stereotypes that all blind people are totally blind, which is not true. Most sources I have found over my time writing this blog state that less than 10 to 15% of blind people are totally blind, which means about 85 to 90% of blind people have light perception or some residual vision.

When Should Our Characters Wear Sunglasses or a Blindfold?

Many writers have characters cover their eyes because it feels right. Some assume the character would feel uncomfortable with the way their eyes look and that they prefer to hide them. In order to write this trope well, you must understand your reason behind it.

Let’s examine why blind people wear sunglasses in real life. This page is a good one to read and was very helpful in constructing this post.

Light sensitivity, or photophobia, occurs when people have sensitivity to light, usually sunlight. Blind people can also expirience this.

Sunglasses are used to shield their eyes from the sun when outdoors and from big windows when indoors. Some sources state synthetic lighting is not usually an issue and others state some people may want to wear their sunglasses indoors.

For characters who aren’t modern, the equivalent of sunglasses would probably be a blindfold or eye patch.

Blind people like fashion just as the next person. They might enjoy wearing sunglasses occasionally. However, they don’t wear them all the time.

Blind people might also want to protect their eyes from dust or injury, whether they can see or not. This can be accomplished with sunglasses or regular glasses.

How Do We Write Blind Characters Covering Their Eyes Respectfully?

This is one of those tropes I prefer people avoid. I say “avoid” because I want to come across it less which means way less people need to use it.

Think about why you want your blind character to cover their eyes.

Is it because it simply feels right to you? Is it because you believe it will help audiences understand or accept that your character is blind? Is it because you can’t imagine your character any other way? Is it because your feel deep down that your character’s eyes would make other characters uncomfortable?

Think about where this idea comes from and whether you really want to use it.

If you have decided it makes sense for your character to cover their eyes, here are some tips for you to do it well.

1. If they use sunglasses for fashion, have the blind character go without the accessory periodically throughout the story. Consider avoiding them covering their eyes when they are first introduced, as first impressions can be memorable. Your blind character should not be the only one who happens to wear sunglasses as part of their style.

2. If they are sensitive to light, do research on photophobia. Consider where the character is when covering their eyes. Do they mostly wear sunglasses outside and near big windows? Do screens bother them? Make it clear in the story.

3. I always suggest having more than one blind character in a story. This is important for moments such as this. Having a blind character who doesn’t cover their eyes shows that not all blind people cover their eyes. This, in addition to a writer understanding exactly why their character covers their eyes, will help immensely.

This trope is a problem when no reference to the alternative is made, usually because the writer doesn’t understand what they’re writing about. They haven’t considered the reasons blind people cover their eyes and therefore aren’t aware that not all blind people do so. Having more than one blind character in the story shows more than one experience, including covering or not covering eyes. Showing different experiences eliminates the idea that blind people “just do” certain things. It makes people think.

If you want audiences to think, you first need to ask: why?

When writing marginalized characters, remember that their marginalization decreases the amount of accurate information available about them. Audiences don’t have as many resources to check. They may even lack the inclination to do so at all. This could be because of a desire to maintain biases or simply because they don’t consider blind people much outside of entertainment or pity. Surprisingly, some people are even actively resistant or hostile to the idea of taking time to learn about the experiences of blind people.

This means your story could be more impactful than you realize.

When you’re writing, ask yourself the question: why? You might realize that it makes for a richer, more informed story.

like to charge reblog to cast

SOOOOO SPECIAL SURPRISE

THE FIRST CHAPTER OF ENTRAP’S STORY IS UP!!!!

SO UHHHHH GO CHECK IT OUT!!! LEMME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!!!!

Palestinians are still alive! Not all hope is lost despite the brutality that already has happened and we cannot in any circumstance allow it to continue! We have to keep fighting!

The Israeli and Western media want you to feel helpless. Even as more "liberal" news sources like the New York Times begin to realize that they cannot wholly convince us that Israel is right, they cherry-pick their stories to manipulate consumers and make us feel removed from the brutality Palestinians are still being subjected to every day. They want us to feel like we have no power. They want us to think that this is over, and there is nothing more we can do. It is not over! We still have power and we need to use it!

I don't care if you are on the scene providing aid, you are donating from across the world, or you just wake up every morning and pray that the Palestinian people have seen another day. But you have to keep doing it. Israel is trying to wipe Palestine off the map, and we cannot fucking let them.

DO NOT GIVE UP! FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA, PALESTINE WILL BE FREE!

The eepers

I used to talk about this a lot but 

IDW Prowl is probably one of the most complex characters in the comics and I absolutely hate it when hes reduced down to “the asshole character”

Cause like

Yeah sure hes got a bit of a stick up his ass

But I feel like people just end there analysis of him there

Has he committed a lot of war crimes and done unethical stuff

Yes

But so has literally EVERYONE else in this universe

Starscream is literally the pinnacle of war crimes

The comics make a point calling out even Optimus for his questionable actions and orders during the war with the Dinobots saying he makes them do the dirty work for him

Megatron literally commits genocide and yet his story ends with an alternate version of him going free and exploring the universe with the LL

The literal war lord was treated better and is looked upon more positively than Prowl and I think it just came down to how fucked Prowl got by the writers

Because while Megatrons redemption was all in your face and you got a shit ton of flashbacks that try to justify the eventual atrocities he would commit you don’t get that with Prowl

Even when Prowl is absolutely in the right you constantly have it disregarded by characters making jokes about him overreacting (being mad OP is sending the space tyrant away with free reign of his own ship isn’t overreacting btw-) and as such you start to think of him as a genuinely irrational character when hes not

Prowl is bad at keeping the relationships he forms yes 

But he is not always at fault for that

While his relationship with CD ended poorly Chromedome is also shown to be kinda of a dick sometimes and commits his fair share of fucked up things such as when he literally ATTACKS PROWL AND FORCES HIS WAY INTO HIS MIND TO PROTECT HIMSELF FROM THE CONSEQUENCE OF HIS ACTIONS WHEN PROWL THREATENS TO TELL REWIND ABOUT THE SHITTY STUFF HE DID IN HIS PAST

This leads to Prowls inevitable snowball out of control when this attack leads to an opening for Bombshell (I think its been a while since I read the comics) to use his tech to mind control him forcing him into combining with the contructicons

Something we learn is an immensely intimate thing with their minds being kinda melded 

This was something Prowl did not want 

And when all was said and done and he was calmed down he still had to live with that gesalt he was forced into with them following him around like fanboys

Nobody ever even really stopped to check in on him 

And as such he understandable went a little bit insane

He had just faced an immensely traumatic invasion of his body and mind and on top of stress form feeling like everything was out of his control and like he couldn’t stop the bad things from happening alongside bitter emotions being brought back up with a return visit to Earth and reunion with spike AND the fact that he feels like Optimus doesn’t trust him and like hes just letting Starscream do whatever he want (something that understandably freaks him out seeing as how he spent 4 million years fighting Starscream) he just kinda snaps

He trys to destroy the space bridge so that no one else can leave or get through and so he can regain some semblance of control

Is it wrong

Yes

But he was not in a good state of mind and no one was helping him at all 

And immediately following his arrest afterward Prowl is confronted by OP who is supposed to be his friend and when Prowl doesn’t say the right things to him to placate him Optimus’ response is to punch him out a window and beat the shit out of him

And not being given any room to breath this is immediately follow up my him getting kidnapped by Tarantulas who is very obviously an impactful and negative part of his past

Prowl just has bad event, one after the other, happen to him over and over again and not only does no one check up on him afterwards to see if hes okay but everyone actively makes fun of him for being understandable unstable

Prowl is a fucking tragedy and not many people seem to be able to see beyond what characters in the comics think of him

LITERALLY

Idk how I got here but I’ve been having a lot of thoughts about IDW Prowl and at this point I will defend him to the ends of the Earth. The frequent mischaracterization I see in the fandom upsets me so greatly because hes a really complex character and I would have hoped that the fandom who somehow justified Megatron could analyze his character properly but NAHHHH he’s just the asshole guy no one likes (I LIKE HIM. I DO.)

Earthspark has been absolutely incredible about characterization and I haven’t even watched it, just clips. If they fuck up my man I’m going to be so upset.

IDW, both the readers and writers, did my boy Prowl so dirty. So much nuance was just lost on the fan base, he's such a complex tragic character that seeing all of you reduce him to "that asshole" really upsets me.

Earthspark did so incredibly well with the little nuances of all their characters, especially the Decepticons! I'm so incredibly hopeful that they're gonna treat Prowl right and give him a good story.

What people usually think IDW Prowl is like: cold, calculating, an asshole, has a stick in his ass that has replaced his emotions entirely, survives through Logic and Rationality.

What IDW Prowl is actually like: angry 45% of the time, frustrated 55% of the time, an asshole, incredibly paranoid, simultaneously gives no fucks and also too many fucks. Is sustained only by spite and angst.

Reblog to kill it faster

Something that I kind of think about is the possibility that Leo is the type of person that argues simply just to argue with someone while Donnie is the type of person who argues simply just because he wants to prove someone wrong himself.

I used to talk about this a lot but 

IDW Prowl is probably one of the most complex characters in the comics and I absolutely hate it when hes reduced down to “the asshole character”

Cause like

Yeah sure hes got a bit of a stick up his ass

But I feel like people just end there analysis of him there

Has he committed a lot of war crimes and done unethical stuff

Yes

But so has literally EVERYONE else in this universe

Starscream is literally the pinnacle of war crimes

The comics make a point calling out even Optimus for his questionable actions and orders during the war with the Dinobots saying he makes them do the dirty work for him

Megatron literally commits genocide and yet his story ends with an alternate version of him going free and exploring the universe with the LL

The literal war lord was treated better and is looked upon more positively than Prowl and I think it just came down to how fucked Prowl got by the writers

Because while Megatrons redemption was all in your face and you got a shit ton of flashbacks that try to justify the eventual atrocities he would commit you don’t get that with Prowl

Even when Prowl is absolutely in the right you constantly have it disregarded by characters making jokes about him overreacting (being mad OP is sending the space tyrant away with free reign of his own ship isn’t overreacting btw-) and as such you start to think of him as a genuinely irrational character when hes not

Prowl is bad at keeping the relationships he forms yes 

But he is not always at fault for that

While his relationship with CD ended poorly Chromedome is also shown to be kinda of a dick sometimes and commits his fair share of fucked up things such as when he literally ATTACKS PROWL AND FORCES HIS WAY INTO HIS MIND TO PROTECT HIMSELF FROM THE CONSEQUENCE OF HIS ACTIONS WHEN PROWL THREATENS TO TELL REWIND ABOUT THE SHITTY STUFF HE DID IN HIS PAST

This leads to Prowls inevitable snowball out of control when this attack leads to an opening for Bombshell (I think its been a while since I read the comics) to use his tech to mind control him forcing him into combining with the contructicons

Something we learn is an immensely intimate thing with their minds being kinda melded 

This was something Prowl did not want 

And when all was said and done and he was calmed down he still had to live with that gesalt he was forced into with them following him around like fanboys

Nobody ever even really stopped to check in on him 

And as such he understandable went a little bit insane

He had just faced an immensely traumatic invasion of his body and mind and on top of stress form feeling like everything was out of his control and like he couldn’t stop the bad things from happening alongside bitter emotions being brought back up with a return visit to Earth and reunion with spike AND the fact that he feels like Optimus doesn’t trust him and like hes just letting Starscream do whatever he want (something that understandably freaks him out seeing as how he spent 4 million years fighting Starscream) he just kinda snaps

He trys to destroy the space bridge so that no one else can leave or get through and so he can regain some semblance of control

Is it wrong

Yes

But he was not in a good state of mind and no one was helping him at all 

And immediately following his arrest afterward Prowl is confronted by OP who is supposed to be his friend and when Prowl doesn’t say the right things to him to placate him Optimus’ response is to punch him out a window and beat the shit out of him

And not being given any room to breath this is immediately follow up my him getting kidnapped by Tarantulas who is very obviously an impactful and negative part of his past

Prowl just has bad event, one after the other, happen to him over and over again and not only does no one check up on him afterwards to see if hes okay but everyone actively makes fun of him for being understandable unstable

Prowl is a fucking tragedy and not many people seem to be able to see beyond what characters in the comics think of him

[MAJOR MAG 200 SPOILERS] CW: BLOOD, CHARACTER DEATH, STABBING, GORE, EMOTIONAL FEELINGS

Statement Ends.

[It’s called Watcher’s CROWN for a reason. Hence the outfit. Also, I am so sorry.]

I finished the series and REALLY wanted to draw all of these scenes as soon as possible. I decided not to draw the scene that everyone and their mother has drawn.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

I used to talk about this a lot but 

IDW Prowl is probably one of the most complex characters in the comics and I absolutely hate it when hes reduced down to “the asshole character”

Cause like

Yeah sure hes got a bit of a stick up his ass

But I feel like people just end there analysis of him there

Has he committed a lot of war crimes and done unethical stuff

Yes

But so has literally EVERYONE else in this universe

Starscream is literally the pinnacle of war crimes

The comics make a point calling out even Optimus for his questionable actions and orders during the war with the Dinobots saying he makes them do the dirty work for him

Megatron literally commits genocide and yet his story ends with an alternate version of him going free and exploring the universe with the LL

The literal war lord was treated better and is looked upon more positively than Prowl and I think it just came down to how fucked Prowl got by the writers

Because while Megatrons redemption was all in your face and you got a shit ton of flashbacks that try to justify the eventual atrocities he would commit you don’t get that with Prowl

Even when Prowl is absolutely in the right you constantly have it disregarded by characters making jokes about him overreacting (being mad OP is sending the space tyrant away with free reign of his own ship isn’t overreacting btw-) and as such you start to think of him as a genuinely irrational character when hes not

Prowl is bad at keeping the relationships he forms yes 

But he is not always at fault for that

While his relationship with CD ended poorly Chromedome is also shown to be kinda of a dick sometimes and commits his fair share of fucked up things such as when he literally ATTACKS PROWL AND FORCES HIS WAY INTO HIS MIND TO PROTECT HIMSELF FROM THE CONSEQUENCE OF HIS ACTIONS WHEN PROWL THREATENS TO TELL REWIND ABOUT THE SHITTY STUFF HE DID IN HIS PAST

This leads to Prowls inevitable snowball out of control when this attack leads to an opening for Bombshell (I think its been a while since I read the comics) to use his tech to mind control him forcing him into combining with the contructicons

Something we learn is an immensely intimate thing with their minds being kinda melded 

This was something Prowl did not want 

And when all was said and done and he was calmed down he still had to live with that gesalt he was forced into with them following him around like fanboys

Nobody ever even really stopped to check in on him 

And as such he understandable went a little bit insane

He had just faced an immensely traumatic invasion of his body and mind and on top of stress form feeling like everything was out of his control and like he couldn’t stop the bad things from happening alongside bitter emotions being brought back up with a return visit to Earth and reunion with spike AND the fact that he feels like Optimus doesn’t trust him and like hes just letting Starscream do whatever he want (something that understandably freaks him out seeing as how he spent 4 million years fighting Starscream) he just kinda snaps

He trys to destroy the space bridge so that no one else can leave or get through and so he can regain some semblance of control

Is it wrong

Yes

But he was not in a good state of mind and no one was helping him at all 

And immediately following his arrest afterward Prowl is confronted by OP who is supposed to be his friend and when Prowl doesn’t say the right things to him to placate him Optimus’ response is to punch him out a window and beat the shit out of him

And not being given any room to breath this is immediately follow up my him getting kidnapped by Tarantulas who is very obviously an impactful and negative part of his past

Prowl just has bad event, one after the other, happen to him over and over again and not only does no one check up on him afterwards to see if hes okay but everyone actively makes fun of him for being understandable unstable

Prowl is a fucking tragedy and not many people seem to be able to see beyond what characters in the comics think of him

Resources For Writing Deaf, Mute, or Blind Characters

Despite the fact that I am not deaf, mute, or blind myself, one of the most common questions I receive is how to portray characters with these disabilities in fiction.

As such, I’ve compiled the resources I’ve accumulated (from real life deaf, mute, or blind people) into a handy masterlist.

Deaf Characters:

Deaf characters masterpost

Deaf dialogue thread

Dialogue with signing characters (also applies to mute characters.)

A deaf author’s advice on deaf characters

Dialogue between deaf characters

Mute Characters

Life as a Mute

My Silent Summer:  Life as a Mute

What It’s Like Being Mute

21 People Reveal What It’s Really Like To Be Mute

I am a 20 year old Mute, ask me anything at all!

Blind Characters:

The 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Blind Characters.

@referenceforwriters masterpost of resources for writing/playing blind characters.

The youtube channel of the wonderful Tommy Edison, a man blind from birth with great insight into the depiction of blind people and their lives.

An Absolute Write thread on the depiction of blind characters, with lots of different viewpoints and some great tips.

And finally, this short, handy masterpost of resources for writing blind characters.

Characters Who Are Blind in One Eye

4 Ways Life Looks Shockingly Different With One Eye

Learning to Live With One Eye

Adapting to the Loss of an Eye

Adapting to Eye Loss and Monocular Vision

Monocular Depth Perception

Deaf-Blind Characters

What Is It Like To Be Deafblind?

Going Deaf and Blind in a City of Noise and Lights

Deaf and Blind by 30

Sarita is Blind, Deaf, and Employed (video)

Born Deaf and Blind, This Eritrean American Graduated Harvard Law School (video)

A Day of a Deaf Blind Person

Lesser Known Things About Being Deafblind

How the Deaf-Blind Communicate

Early Interactions With Children Who Are Deaf-Blind

Raising a DeafBlind Baby

If you have any more resources to add, let me know!  I’ll be adding to this post as I find more resources.

I hope this helps, and happy writing!  <3

*thinks about soundwave*

*wonders why soundwave doesn't like music in IDW1*

*thinks about how tarn and soundwave used to work together*

*thinks about how tarn used music to kill, torture & traumatize*

*thinks about soundwaves original bio quote* "Cries and screams are music to my ears."

*thinks about how being a sound system in a war & using music as a weapon would cause you to associate music with hurting others*

*marvels at how context can flip a sadistic quote on it's head*

IDW1 may be over but my thoughts on it continue to linger and by god i will tie toghether all connections that dare cross my mind.

soundwave goes from seeing human life as worthless and inferior to being open hearted with humans and wanting to protect them. i love him and his character arc

“how would it work if Cybertronians had disabilities” “What if there were disabled Cybertronians”

THERE ARE

THERE ARE

loosing my mind at how some things that are So good can be So niche why can’t we just be a hivemind

Just one example, my favorite example, is:

Shattered Glass Soundwave!!!

He’s gone through Multiple reformats varying between with his consent and,,, not. The latest of which took place when they didn’t have many materials

So they used half earth metals half Cybertronian ones

As it turns out? Those two things don’t mix very well. His joints are Horrible. They lock up randomly, the worst of which being the door to his tape deck.

He physically isn’t able to dock his cassettes reliably because they might get stuck in there.

What does he do to fix this? So glad you asked!! He has his own assistive aids, in this case: a portable external carrying case

It was made and personalized to work specifically for him and his situation

I love him