The Tangent - Ep. 1 - Remembering Queliot
Added 2024-07-02 19:00:07 +0000 UTCWelcome to The Tangent, a brand new podcast(ish) series where I use any current hyperfixation as an opportunity to reveal more of myself, tell a story, have a discussion, and sort out the eighteen chattering voices in my head. Not every topic will be queer and/or fandom related, but this one sure is.
If you don't know the full story of what happened to The Magicians fandom and Queliot shippers, you do now. In this episode, I take you through my firsthand experience of the build up and fall out around a ship that could have gone down in queer rep history instead of detonating in people's faces and slowly fading into obscurity. If you were there at the time and know what we're about to get into, I hope there's validation in hearing it all laid out by someone who gives a shit. We sure as hell weren't validated at the time.
I felt the song at the end encapsulated both the story and the ship quite well, and now I'm hoping to find equally fitting music moments for future episodes. <3
*Trigger Warnings: Discussion of suicide and suicidal ideation.
**First episode publicly available, subsequent episodes for Tiered Patrons only.
Comments
Love this idea I can listen to Brittany on my way to and from work xx
BambiiIvy
2024-07-16 13:38:53 +0000 UTCSame! I was watching the first season, making the effort to get into it, and then—oh. NEVER MIND.
Basingstoke
2024-07-03 19:35:44 +0000 UTCMasterfully done! "I'm sorry they hurt you. I understand." And then I died. I look forward to the next episode! <3
mwfangirl
2024-07-03 17:37:17 +0000 UTCNot sure I can watch this one….. everything with The Magicians STILL…… 😑 me lmao (after what happened with Q I got ALOT triggered)… but you can be ABSOLUTELY sure I’ll be tuning in for every other episode, this is EXCITING 😍…. But also who knows, I may cave in a couple says and watch this one ❤️❤️
Stephanie Carroll
2024-07-03 17:16:45 +0000 UTCThis was amazing!! <3 You should definitely do more of these! <33
Mari-Emm
2024-07-03 15:42:26 +0000 UTCThis was AMAZING. Thank you so much for sharing this personal journey into queer fandom with us. I never personally waded into this particular fandom because about the time it got on my radar and started getting me really hyped the season 4 finale happened and I saw all the absolute garbage the show runners spewed out in the aftermath. So I just couldn't do it. I can't even imagine how much it must of hurt people who were already deeply invested. And Good Omens is my everything. That show is, and I'm not even being hyperbolic, a lifesaver. It also brought something hopeful to me when I needed it most. I am looking forward to future episodes of this podcast because, again, this first episode was excellent. ❤️❤️❤️
Stara Herron
2024-07-03 14:42:17 +0000 UTCIt's strange because The Magician sounds exactly like the type of show that would've drawn me right in, but it never registered in my radar for some reason. I'd like to say that I feel for the fans who got betrayed like that even if I can't relate, but that would be a lie. While listening to this, I couldn't help but remember my own experience with queerbait and Bury Your Gays shows and movies, and especially with Teen Wolf. I was only 17 back then, and so, so excited to finally see a potentially canonical bisexual character being actually important and multi-dimensional, instead of the bisexual being a promiscuous episodic tertiary character used for "humor" or to create trouble. I related to Stiles so much, even if I didn't completely understand why back then (turns out bisexuality, nerdiness, a feeling of inadequacy, abandonment anxiety, and being socially awkward weren't the only things we had in common—hello ADHD, tell me who invited you my mind palace and why so I can royally kick their ass, please)—. I was devastated when I got to season 3B and then season 4, so much that I had to wait almost 10 years to feel ready to watch the rest of the show even as I was consuming Sterek fanfics like I needed them to survive. It was like feeling seen and accepted, only to be told that I had been wrong all along. That my feelings and experiences had no meaning, and that they should be tucked away forever or I'd risk sounding crazy and, to put it in Tyler Posey's words, that I was "weird, twisted". The fact that there were actual queer people who should've known better in the production team only makes the wound sting harder. Teen Wolf, Sherlock, Supernatural, etc., etc., etc. So many damn etceteras. It's happened way too many times, and nowadays I just feel... numb, when it's time to go again. It's like a trauma response where I just go in expecting to be hurt, so I always brace myself for the pain. I just try to have no expectations anymore, so when I'm proven wrong in all these new amazing shows I just... OFMD, Good Omens, even DBD (who is still not there yet), and a lot more wonderful shows that I haven't had the chance to watch, and Danmei as a special mention since I'm focusing on Western shows right now. At the risk of sounding like a grandma at the ripe old age of 29, kids these days have no idea how good they have it, and I'm so happy for them. Truly. I really hope that this next generation won't ever have to go through what we did when it comes to queer media. The Powers That Be might think that we're exaggerating or being dramatic about fictional stories that have nothing to do with real life, but these kind of betrayals really, really hurt, and can have a huge impact on our lives when the only think we crave is to be seen. Especially when they happen when we're already down and using media as a crutch. This was a bit depressing ngl, but it's nice to know that I'm not alone, so thank you for talking about this. This was an incredible start to what I'm sure is going to be an amazing podcast, and I can't wait to hear what you're going to talk about next time!
blueturnips
2024-07-03 10:29:27 +0000 UTCOmg this was so cathartic to listen to! I watched The Magicians when season 4 was already out (maybe even season 5). I wasn't really in the fandom space so I hadn't heared anything about the ending. I pulled an all-nighter watching season 4, not being able to stop watching until I would finally see both of them united. I was so happy to finally see a queer main character in a fantasy show. The utter betrayal I felt when I frantically googled to find out if he would return in the next season and found out he wouldn't while I was super tired and exhausted with the sun already rising. I ranted to friends about it but never had the chance to talk to someone who had actually watched the show. To this day when ever I remember that show I can feel myself get actually angry, even though I am a person that usually struggles with feeling anger at all. Feels good to finally hear someone else talking about it, so thank you <3
Erik.Ezra
2024-07-03 02:21:13 +0000 UTCI love the new podcast. A hyperfixation-unburdening with insight and flair, yay! I enjoyed the song; it fit the topic and ship well! I didn’t watch The Magicians until last summer. I foolishly stumbled in, not knowing anything except there was a queer ship. The S4 ‘bury your gays’ turn broke me. I watched S5, but floated through it like Eliot. I want to read the books and rewatch most of the series, but it’s still too soon. I’m glad I missed the show runner nonsense in real time. I’m so sorry to all of you who had to live through it. Like others, I had been curious about your thoughts on Magicians, thank you for sharing. Peaches and plums🩷
slg
2024-07-03 01:15:55 +0000 UTCThank you for doing this. I was wondering what your views of The Magicians was. I had been going through a dry spell with fandoms at the time The Magicians aired and I didn't find it until after it ended. So I was not in the fandom. I fell in love with Eliot and enjoyed the little bit of Queliot we got early on. I found Alice incredibly irritating and wanted to slap her upside the head. Then 3rd season gave me hope which of course was dashed. 4th season was heartbreaking but we did get little bits of Queliot and could hope. But again we get bury your gays. I did watch 5th season because I loved Eliot so much and it was interesting. The one episode that I think of as "the letter" but was called "the Mountain of Ghosts" was heartbreaking. The writers and show runners really did us wrong, not just the fans but the characters, too. I am just so glad we got Good Omens and Our Flag Means Death.
Sharon Garinger
2024-07-02 21:51:46 +0000 UTCThank goodness for the fix-it fics. The craziest part for me when I first watched the Magicians was that the show was explicitly queer, so I figured I could trust them. I mean, they clearly set up that Queliot were going to get together! I wasn’t even that worried when Quentin and Alice got back together, because I assumed that was just to add more drama when Eliot confessed! So much wasted potential…it’s infuriating. I really enjoyed this! Looking forward to the next one!
azazelisawesome
2024-07-02 21:20:20 +0000 UTCGod this is genuinely excellent Brittany. I love the way you’ve presented everything in this format. Maybe I’m being biased because of my personal feelings for The Magicians but who cares! Can’t wait to see what you do next with this. I will be sat 💚🙏🏼
Zandalore
2024-07-02 20:07:57 +0000 UTCThis was so good! Q and El were such a light to me in a lot of really shitty times in my life. Q especially gave me hope when the loss of a close childhood friend brought me into my lowest years. When he went the same way, I didn’t get out of bed for three days. And then got bombarded with how dramatic and unnecessary I was being. Hearing you lay it out the way you did was incredibly satisfying, and this new podcastish content is truly inspired
Katya KM
2024-07-02 19:46:53 +0000 UTCI've never watched the magicians but omg I could relate to your journey so much from (sadly a few) of my fandoms. Also the part were you said 'I understand," had me tearing up, like I wasn't expecting that to hit me that hard but hey xD I look forward to more episodes of this podcast series!
Vol
2024-07-02 19:39:40 +0000 UTCI´m so into this podcast idea! That tease for the next topic got me hooked. Never watched the Magicians but I´m still disappointed because it sounds like it would be my thing, until they ruined it. Honestly, if I was one of the showrunners I would have retconned that finale so fast after seeing the backlash, instead of doubling down. And I feel like, solely based on your retelling, if the death wasn´t permanent that could have worked really well and could have been interesting for the characters to deal with.
Beny
2024-07-02 19:34:19 +0000 UTCOk, so what I'm hearing is I need to watch nearly 5 seasons of a show for the fix-it fic. And I think I'm gonna 😅
BCE
2024-07-02 19:30:26 +0000 UTCi will have to listen to this tomorrow bc "The magiciabs" was also a phase i had 😂😅
Corvins.art
2024-07-02 19:02:27 +0000 UTC
