Seth Gordon Spent All His College Athlete Years Believing His Team Was Worthless And Would Never Amount

you know what’s painful? before the final match against the ravens when neil says that he can see how much matt loves his mom and that “sometimes he was still surprised at how blatantly that love was returned” 

like?? 

mary did her best to keep neil alive and they had a complicated relationship but, ultimately, neil loved her

this quote hurts though, because neil obviously didn’t really get that love reciprocated - yes, in her own way, mary loved him and tried to keep him safe and as happy as possible given the circumstances, but overall his life on the run was full of pain and fear and his mom added to that

so of course it’s weird for him to see randy love matt so fiercely and so openly, but my heart still aches for him

the foxes love neil bc he’s like a lil stray that they feel like they need to take care of half the time and are terrified of the other half, but like... he’s such a Bitch™ to literally everyone else. not even just his considerable amount of enemies but... the cheerleader that he shot down, bee, basically every exy player that isn’t on his team, the doctor in baltimore, etc etc etc. i love him for it, but i also know that if i met him irl he would tear me to shreds

@jensen57 @jingerhead @twirlingflurry This is all your fault. Enjoy the novel.

I will start this off by saying, write whatever the hell you want. I don't have to interact with it. But also really think long and hard about why you are writing them that way. Why do you need to change these characters so completely to enjoy them? So yes write whatever you want, but also think a little when you do.

This is all in reference to this post for context. Now I will rant.

I hate to be mean but I think some of you need the actual slap in the face that is there is no justification for this whatsoever. Whatever "oh he's overcoming his trauma, oh he's friends with her because this and that, oh it's because he's allowed to now," bullshit you want to come up with is worthless to anyone who has any grasp on the characters and their personalities.

Neil avoids Allison for pretty much the entire series. He barely even likes her. The only time they interact in canon is when it is actually necessary for them to do so. The one time they're ever alone is when he has to ride with her and they literally do not say a word to each other. He never seeks her out, even for the coverup in TRK. Wymack sends him. On top of all of that, she is also the person who outed him and Andrew to their entire team against their will not even 2 days after a very traumatic event solely to win money. And you can argue that they don't really care because they don't acknowledge it at the time, but I will calmly direct you to the scene at the cabin when it is brought up again at a much less traumatic and stressful time and both him and Andrew react very negatively to it.

Neil also hates shopping, and gossip, and drama. So tell me where exactly their personalities and interests line up. And listen I know that she is a deeper character than that but I am speaking solely to these situations where they also tend to erase her personality too. And I am all for hc's where she cuts his hair or her and Nicky (who canonically enjoys it) shop for him. But please explain to me where exactly "Neil's bestie Allison picked him up for a goss sesh and then they went to the mall." fits into canon. Literally one example. AND very very importantly. Neil isn't gay, he is demisexual. GBFs are already a harmful stereotype, so maybe don't erase an ace characters identity and his canon character in general to fit him into the role of one. Like seriously what the fuck.

Getting into that more, since when has Neil been this hyperfeminine allo "sassy bitch" who blushes when someone looks at him. I will say this, I think a lot of us in the fandom recognize that it has grown a lot in the last year and there are a lot of young fans now who probably should not have read it. But they did, and now they're here. And now Neil goes skirt shopping because they fit his slender waist and long legs oh so well. Oh wait, Neil's 5'3. Oh wait, Neil's a man. Oh wait, since when did he ever express anything but anxiety and discomfort about showing his scars. Sorry, I just forgot that the entirety of canon and Neil's characterization exists for a second there. On that note, the word blush (or any variant) doesn't exist in canon outside of describing 1) exertion (you know from the sport they play that requires strength that might, just maybe, mean Neil is muscular) and 2) Maria Hemmick being a horrible person. And then I read one of these posts and someone looks at Neil and he flushes red. Since when. I feel like I don't need to explain how that is ooc.

In that same vein, what is with the characterization of Andreil as a whole in these. Andreil is just such a special ship. They go against pretty much every relationship norm. They fit so well together because they are so similar. Neil is just about as emotionless as Andrew throughout the books in case anyone forgot. But because they've turned him into this hyperfeminine caricature Andrew now needs to fit into the strong manly uncommunicative toxic boyfriend who will Defend At All Costs and like mf growls now. People don't growl so what the fuck is with that. In reality, Andrew lets Neil handle his own problems. Because Neil can handle his own problems. I don't know why I need to stress that when it is canon and obvious. He doesn't need Andrew to throw someone out the window because they looked at his scars wrong in the crop top he and Allison bought. As you can probably guess he doesn't because that would never actually happen if he were in character, but I'll reiterate it here anyways for the sake of ranting. They also fucking talk to each other. I don't know where y'all got the idea that Andrew never asks questions or like says words to Neil when he is so serious about consent (as he should be) and half the reason anyone bet on them being a thing in AFTG was because Neil is the only one he talks to most of the time.

On to other topics.

I like Matt in canon. He's an interesting character who has overcome a lot. But I cannot stand him in fanon most of the time. He literally acts like the fucking dog from UP half the time and that is the only way I can describe it. Yes, he is friends with Neil. Yes, he is also kind. You know what he also is? He's a recovering addict. He's a flawed person just like every fox. He's a traumatized person just like every fox. He has an actual personality and life outside of being nice to Neil. Maybe consider giving him that next time.

KevAaron just kinda spontaneously appeared out of the depths of hell and I don't know how to shove it back in there. I have met young fans that ship it exclusively (yes, instead of Andreil). I'm fairly certain people just went "ah here is a character we haven't tried to ship Kevin with yet" and ran with it. They never once have direct dialog in the entire series, despite living together, being in the same group, being on the same team, and partying together. Apparently they "have similar trauma" but like guys.. if that is the only link you have for a ship I have very very many questions. Especially if you're going to bash KevThea for the same reason (I don't ship KevThea either pls don't come for me I'm just making a point). If you feel the need to break up KateAaron's happy, healthy canon relationship to shove a character into an mlm ship that has absolutely no bearing in canon and basically requires it to be written ooc please reconsider that ship. 

I will end this by saying, in the nicest way possible:

If you need to change so much about the characters to enjoy them and the series, did you really enjoy the series?

Guys this isn’t an aftg account BUT I can perfectly sum up Andrew and Neil in two quotes from my kids at work

Andrew: “Congratulations, you’re a liar. “

Neil: “My favourite colour is none of your business.”

back on my bullshit

n e ways

do you want have headcannon for the foxes cursing habits/how they curse/ everyone’s fave curse word (this totally includes abbie and dadmack too btw)

ilysm, thank you for another ask!

ooo this is fun! (it got very long very fast hahah sorryyy). here’s what i’ve got for you:

(coarse language ahead, obviously)

dan mostly swears at people. by this, i mean she doesn’t usually swear if she stubs her toe or is running late, only if someone pisses her off

her favourite ones are asshole and motherfucker, but she’s also fond of dick

kevin isn’t picky with his swear words - he’ll use whatever gets the point across

however, he loves swearing in french, and his fave french curse is “putain à la merde”, which loosely translates to fucking shit

andrew opts for fuck and fuck you most of the time. in english, because he usually wants everyone to understand him if he swears

that said, he doesn’t often have to swear - his stare says it well enough

matt curses not only when he’s mad, but also when he gets excited (so basically, he swears a lot)

his faves are holy hell/fucking hell and frick frack crack-a-lack (bc of the looks the foxes give him when he says it)

aaron’s favourite english swear words are bullshit and moron, but he especially enjoys the casual german curse word “scheiße” and uses it very often

seth goes right for the throat. he’s not afraid to use the f slur or c*nt, especially around the foxes (two swear words that i’m nervous to even type out LMAO) 

in more public settings, he opts for jesus christ and shit

allison loves saying bitch/son of a bitch (bc people call her a bitch all the time so she just turns it around)

worth noting that she swears at inanimate objects more than at people - her curling iron when it burns her, her phone when she drops it, anything she bumps into, etc

nicky, like aaron, is fond of german curse words. his are generally more colourful though, since he learned more german slang and bc swear words are the first thing he got erik to teach him

in english, nicky likes kiss my ass and damn. he also enjoys making up random insults sometimes, like calling someone an untied shoelace or a stale piece of bread. medicated andrew found this very entertaining

renee doesn’t swear - she destroys people with condescension and passive-agressiveness

before she was born-again, she was fond of using fuck (twinning w andrew xoxo)

neil will use literally anything, in any language. typically he morphs his curses to fit whatever culture he’s currently immersed in. some examples:

america: fuck/fucker

britain: wanker and prick

france: merde, salope, and va te faire enculé (shit, bitch, and go fuck yourself)

germany: flachwischer and du fickfehler (~fuckiwit/motherfucker and you mistake*)

wymack always mixes it up. flying fuck, pain in my ass, what the absolute shit, goddamnit, etc. he doesn’t have a favourite; he likes them all

abby’s pretty tame, usually. her most frequently used are crap, what the hell, and christ. if she stubs her toe, she normally says frick. wymack thinks it’s adorable

*i don’t actually speak german, besides very basic beginner duolingo stuff, so those translations are just what i found on random websites

Apparently this is a Broadway play, but all I can think of is Katelyn 😂

HAHAH you know what, you’re absolutely right and i love you for bringing this up. i also feel obligated to add your tags to this post, because they’re iconic

i feel like we all just forgot that kevin’s on nicky’s List™?? okay a) this is further proof that kevin’s hot af b) does kevin know??? that nicky wants to bang him???? and c) nicky what a waste of a choice, kevin would never

i have seen the phrase "book hangover" in reference to that feeling after you first read AFTG for the first time. so i ask the fandom, how long was everyones' hangovers for this wrecking-ball of a series?

mine was just about 12 months i think

you said i could send more asks (and i just thought of this so) what do you think of the extra content? ive seen a lot of mixed views but everyone mostly disregards it so i was just wondering what parts you liked and what parts you didnt

sorry for two asks in a row but xfjrsfbjgrukgv i’m curious

 yeah, seriously send them whenever! they always make me happy :)

as a general rule, i accept the things that are set pre-canon and most canon-timeline stuff (why andrew’s afraid of heights, that kevin noticed andreil first, renee’s past, etc). the stuff that i don’t love (mostly post-canon), i tend to view as headcanons rather than stuff that would happen in the canon universe. like the no renison, no jerejean, twinyards growing apart - i don’t vibe with those, but i respect that other people might

some of the post-canon stuff that i do like is the cats, robin, how andreil navigates intimacy (besides the no hugging), and andrew sleeping w his back to the wall, among others. i also don’t actually mind the no marriage thing for them, and i’m passive about the no “i love you”s

idk! i’m pretty indifferent about most of it. i was just excited to have more content from the author! i pick and choose what i want to consider canon, and i just disregard the rest :) 

my guy matt is such a speedy driver that andrew didn’t even catch up to him on the way to the mountains like... oh my ajm, driving with matt would be a mix of wholesome, chaotic, and absolutely terrifying