Hugs and Weapons

Doctor Who (Steven Moffat specifically)

Sherlock (Steven Moffat specifically)

Actually Steven Moffat is basically just this sentiment given human form.

A version of this happened with The Magicians, tbh. Though instead of expectation: men, reality: women it was expectation: smug nihilists, reality: mentally ill queer folks.

Arguably Game of Thrones.

If we broaden it outside of television…I think Star Wars falls into this, at least the sequel trilogy. Maybe the MCU as well. And I can’t help but think of every band that’s ever complained that their fanbase is mostly women. 5 Seconds of Summer comes immediately to mind.

In general, most white male creators seem to have this massively entitled mindset where they want–and think they deserve–the time, attention, and enthusiasm that creative fandom (i.e. the side of fandom more dominated by women) is known for.

They want our eyes for ratings, our word-of-mouth for free publicity, our metas for social media buzz, and our spending power for merch and cons. But they don’t want us. And they don’t really want the responsibility of telling a story to a thoughtful, engaged audience, regardless of that audience’s demographic makeup. They just want to be praised for whatever schlock they cough up.

Mind you it is perfectly possible to make the switch in marketing, but execs would rather throw it all out than have something that doesn’t perform well with male viewers. For example the Rey merch was not expected to be popular, for some reason, there had to be public outcry to get merch of one of the main 3 protagonists. A PROTAGONIST. The fact that she wasn’t a huge part of the 1st launch says a lot already.

And what happened when female fans got too invested in the Sequel Trilogy? The entire writers room didn’t necessarily lash out, but they sure forgot how to behave.

Young Justice

Paul Dini: Superhero cartoon execs don’t want largely female audiences

#WhereIsRey (initial)

#WhereIsRey (ongoing)

Simply, they’re trying to assert a particular worldview via fiction, and upon getting confronted with something else, begin foot stamping. It’s not just men wanting male attention and gatekeeping. It’s that the fiction in the first place was an attempt to curate dominance and whoopsie! they miscalculated.

I’d also love to hear your thoughts, as I literally wrote it for communities like ours to read, so, thanks.

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZTdQuxw52/

but y'all. the way he said "brutus is an honourable man" - each and every time it changed just a little. it was the full condemnation Shakespeare wanted it to be. it started off slightly mock sincere. barely trying to cover the sarcasm. by the end...it wasn't a threat, it was a promise.

This is probably a woefully incomplete list, but off the top of my head here are sources that have been on my go-to list:

Fix the News

Good Good Good

The Good News Network

Reasons to be Cheerful

50 States 50 Fixes

Project Drawdown Solutions Explorer and Global Solutions Diary

Storymap's 100 Climate Solutions Stories

Yes! Magazine

Grist

The Optimist Daily

Mongabay

Happy Eco News

Wild Hope PBS

Simon Clark

I also get plenty of stories just from following a lot of folks who post about good news on Bluesky and Tumblr. Or I stumble upon stories out in the wild since over my years of running this blog I've become pretty primed to look out for good news stories.

Critical Role Foundation via Twitter: LET'S CALL OUR REPS TOGETHER 📱

Hey, Critters! Calling your representatives may sound intimidating, but it doesn't have to be! We used 5 Calls to contact ours, and so can you!

The site and app make the process fast, easy, and effective: providing important updates on current issues and bills, customizable call scripts, and your elected reps' contact info, all in one place.

If you live in the U.S., let your elected officials hear your voice on the issues that matter most to you, at home and beyond. For our international Critters, every bit of encouragement for your friends stateside helps. 🌍

Source: Discord's official statement

Ethical problems of surveillance aside, Discord cannot be trusted with your information. There was already a data breach of 70,000 users' government IDs in October of 2025.

The support email listed on Discord's website for contact does not work. Instead, flood their system via submitting support requests via this form.

Discord also has an account on X, so if you have an account you can go put them on blast over there.

CANCEL YOUR NITRO, LEAVE 1 STAR REVIEWS IN THE APP STORE, SEND AN ANGRY SUPPORT TICKET, AND BLOW THIS UP ON EVERY SOCMED

Hit them where it hurts: their wallet, and their reputation. We can reverse this attempt at fascist surveillance.

DO NOT GIVE ANY APP A SCAN OF YOUR FACE OR ID. It's NEVER safe, NEVER secure, and WILL be used to harm you.

Bad dog. Chatterbox. 1910.