kira nerys ily✨🧚‍♀️💙

Just like the anti-Vietnam War protest songs that we associate with the 1960s, or the early nihilism that spawned punk music in the 1970s. But he didn’t *sound* like a punk anarchist; he sounded like a country rock singer. When he released Born in the U.S.A. people completely misinterpreted (or possibly ignored) the lyrics in favor of the tone of the music.

Politicians used his music to promote their ‘Murica Yes! brand, and he had to literally explain that that was not what he was about. He’s over here asking when we’re going to have jobs and heathcare, not stanning the politicians who weren’t helping the people.

It was also kind of a big deal that he had an integrated band, because even as late as the 1980s music was still kind of segregated and MTV was straight up racist. They refused to play and promote black artists and then claimed that were no black artists in the first place. Michael Jackson’s record company had to threaten a boycott of their white artists to get MTV to play his Thriller video.

Plus, the first black/white interracial kiss on TV was in 1968 (OG Star Trek). Also it took us until the 70s to get sympathetic gay characters on screen, and the 90s to get gay characters to kiss onscreen. And all of those firsts were met with outrage.

So keep that in mind when you see Bruce Springsteen not just playing with an interracial band, but engaging in an interracial, gay kiss on stage repeatedly.

https://www.gq.com/story/this-fucked-me-up-bruce-springsteen-singing-about-clarence-clemons

It was a story where… we remade the city. We remade the city, shaping it into the kind of place where our friendship and our love for one another wouldn’t have been such an exceptional thing. - Bruce Springsteen

It wasn’t about showmanship or rejecting bigots or anything it was just. Damn right that was one of the loves of his life and damn right he was going to kiss him onstage

It gets me a little that Bruce has had a divorce, that he’s been married twice, but he loved Clarence for the rest of Clarence’s life and will presumably love him the rest of his own

Clemons said in one interview. “Bruce and I looked at each other and didn’t say anything, we just knew. We knew we were the missing links in each other’s lives. He was what I’d been searching for.” In another version of the story, Clemons says “He looked at me, and I looked at him, and we fell in love.”

I’m having some emotions about it!

“He was elemental in my life,“ Springsteen adds, “and losing him was like losing the rain.”

Not just! I love you pure and deep and true but! I am going to love you like that in front of the whole damn world!

We have fewer narratives about taking risks and making statements for platonic love rather than romantic and supposedly it would be easier to downplay this onstage than romance and! They refused! They fucking refused! In front of hundreds of thousands of people, over the course of years! In the spotlight, in word and deed, I love you!

To all those people out there who are upset, it’s completely justified. TOS and AOS both have legitimate problems. I’m not trying to invalidate anyone’s opinions or tell them they’re wrong, I’m just stating my outlook on it, and that’s all I’m going to say on the matter.

The main reason I have problems with people complaining about JJ Abrams “ruining” Star Trek is this: AOS Kirk and Spock are not TOS Kirk and Spock.

For one thing, they’re younger and less experienced.

In TOS, Captain Kirk had already been part of several diplomatic missions and served on at least one other ship before becoming Captain of the Enterprise. He joined Starfleet because of his father. In AOS, he doesn’t have that. He joined Starfleet on a bet. Sure, both Kirks have the Tarsus IV experience (I think) but all that really did was traumatize them both.

It’s the same thing with Spock and his emotions. In TOS when Spock gets emotional he usually cries, but AOS Spock is fundamentally different. For one thing, his entire planet got blown up, his mom died right in front of him, and he got yelled at about it by a guy who cheated on a test he created, weaseled his way onto a ship, and repeatedly disobeyed his orders, all while acting as smug as possible.

Also, their counterparts are older and (dare I say it) more mature. They have experience. They know each other. AOS Spock and Kirk are strangers. They’re young. Of course they’re going to be different. Most people act differently at 25 than they do at 30 or 40. It’s part of being young.

The other reason is that it’s literally an alternate universe. They are fundamentally different people because they have different childhoods and different experiences than their counterparts. Kirk grew up without a father. I’d imagine AOS Spock’s childhood was pretty similar to TOS Spock’s, but TOS Spock still had his planet and his mother.

As for the small things, like Kirk’s eye color: That doesn’t matter. His eye color does not in any way impact your viewing of either TOS or AOS. Sure, it’s a discrepancy, but again: TOS Kirk and AOS Kirk are different people.

I also want to talk a bit about the hate AOS fans get in a lot of fandom spaces. Sure, you have every right to dislike something, but getting upset when others disagree isn’t a good or healthy response. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and if you don’t agree with something or someone you can just leave the space! Don’t ruin someone’s interest in something because you’re not interested in it, just leave them alone.

Allow me to use a different fandom as an example of this: My Hero Academia, or Boku No Hero Academia.

Most people in the fandom are nice. They’ll have a civil conversation with you about their favorite characters and story arcs. They’ll be perfectly fine with it if you disagree with them.

On the other hand, you get people who go to extremes.

“People who like [character] aren’t welcome on this blog!”

“If you think [arc] was good you should go somewhere else!”

“[Romantic pairing] shippers can burn in hell!”

Etc, etc.

Every fandom has a few of these people, but the MHA fandom tends to have a lot. The hero stans and villain stans often hate each other, making it difficult to not only like both, but have good and thoughtful discussions on popular forums. The people who can’t look past their hatred of a character, or group of characters, or a story arc, to realize that they all like the same goddamn show end up ruining the space for the people who can.

It’s the same thing with Star Trek. A lot of younger people were introduced to Star Trek by the new movies, and many of those who have seen both AOS and TOS (typically AOS first) tend to like them both equally or AOS more. And that’s fine. Just don’t immediately attack someone because they like one more than the other. Star Trek is Star Trek. You’re not “more of a Star Trek fan” if you prefer TOS over AOS or DS9 over TNG because when you boil it down, it’s all Star Trek.

I said it before and I’ll say it again: it’s fine to dislike something. Go off about a character you hate! It’s your blog, you can do what you want! “Anyone who doesn’t like it can unfollow. Their bruised feelings aren’t your concern,” is how @cowboyjimkirk put it, and I am definitely inclined to agree. But stop ruining things for others with your hate.