x—x

all complaints to lin plz. 

NOTE: all of this mostly only(?) goes for guys. in terms of girls. I am actually a huge fan of serious, reserved girls bottoming and girly, flashy, baby ones topping. cuz it's so sexy and also I'm the girly flashy baby one in question so I would like to myself represented ideally. also I'm just generally a fan of flashy tops.

if we're going to be talking about what in my brain makes me enjoy someone as a 1/0. it's ummm. The Same Things Really. actually maybe not. but BASICALLY THE SAME REALLY. I think some people care about D/s as deciding for t/b, and I don't. and also I prefer there to not be D/s, I just want D no s. like D, as in Desperation, and also D, as in Domination. why would there be submission wtf.

we have to do this case study style because I don't actually, like have leftright criteria like ash does. but if I did, it'd be like >guy who has it/is worse Tops< (??what does that mean? it's situational.) anyway, I feel like the place to start, is examination of perfect 0.5 of world [TO ME].

KIRIHARA AKAYA [0.5]

not only am I kiri 3pick, but I'm Allkiri/kiriAll enthusiast. I'll think about him with anyone in tennis who breathes near him. I don't care. kiri to me is literally Most Perfect of World in every way.

I have to note here that kiri is a 1 not because he's domineering and sexy [preferred top traits], but because he is pushy and shortsighted. which is still perfect and lovely and sexy(?) and wonderful TO ME. <<<kirihara love lens effect. like I said I have so much love in my heart for kiri that he CAN have 1 rights from me!!!! two way appeal of boyish boy meaning 0 but boyish boy also meaning 1.

perfect 0 traits

>MASOCHIST
>GUY WHO ENJOYS MISTREATMENT AND ERASURE >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> so TRUE!!!!
>messy appearance. he literally hits everything I like on the surface of a 0.... messy black hair, [presumably] guy who dresses messy...
>JOCK
>ASSHOLE
>BOY
>guys who would rather injure themselves violently to the brink of death than think about emotions >>> this one is actually this specific. it's very important to me that 0s would rather die for someone many times, than think about why they're dying for someone like this.
>BRAT
>heart on the line
>DESPARATE (for love)
>one degree away from cat-like
>FANGS
>DELINQUENT [passing]. kiri is unfortunately only delinquent-passing. but that's enough FOR MEEEE.
>truly earnest underneath all that
>DOG

perfect 1 traits

>MAIDEN. literally unfollow me Right Now if u don't think maidenism is a 1 trait. kill yourself. you don't deserve my lady/maiden/girl knowledge/lens/school of thought. you will literally never understand it EVER.
>sadist ... technically not as much as he is truly a M, but what matters is that He Thinks He Likes It.
>power high. again like, Not Really, but again, He Thinks He Likes it. and that's why he can top <3
>guys who would cry during sex <3 this is actually a subset of maidenism but I wanted to point it out which is why I included it here
>asshole but NOT REALLY ACTUALLY...
>guys who suck at emotional communication >>>
>BRAT
>ARROGANT
>PATHETIC
>DESPARATE (just generally)
>PUPPY
>FANGS
>one degree away from cat-like

I hope that explained Just So Much.

if not.. other couples that were handmade for me:

well... my leftright thesis is pretty much just: 1s>0 and 0s>1s. my perfect 0 of world is lee yohan from payback, who's the sexiest motherfucker in the world, and my perfect 1 of world is seo yoonseul from the third ending. hopefully that covered everything kiri did not manage to cover<333 also I feel like these two are the perfect example of reverse>reverse. which is the concept that in any other story/pairing they'd be the reverse position, which IS the basis for 1s>0s and 0s>1s.

gin & rum from H&H Roman company
they are the reverse>reverse in question. no for real my first read through I was like 'oh so the twist is that Gin is actually the 0 when they fuck'. also are CHILDHOOD BEST FRIENDS TO COWORKERS TO LOVERS IN AN OFFICE. really fucked up in my opinion that nevermind being the main couple and also face of the webtoon they are actually not the main couple and get the least screentime. there's no words. anyway perfect dynamix TO MEEE. idiot sexy puppy top + serious level-headed brunnette ... some of us ENJOY serious characters especially serious 0s. the problem with that is literally just people think that serious==neurotic when they should just open their eyes and realize serious==conscientious AND/OR serious==EARNEST. anyway.

Glasses Cloth and Playlist
first of all, GWAK JONGPILLLLLL... legend writer artist author of world TO ME. cat-like-but-actually-a-snakeboy 1. that's the appeal. na jaemin archetype. I just recommend this as a BL lolol. as love 1s who are internally extremely desperate and feminine and outwardly -.-

rojiura pussycat
cw rape, attempted rape
okay I can't explain this one. but I can TRY. I'm at the point of media literacy where I read something and I think of the potential rather than actuality.
on the surface, this is a pretty mediocre story, but examining it closer, it's really delicious as a wolf eats boy thing. as in like, super dicey sleazy older guy preys on a younger high schooler who is too young and too dumb to know better. which is never really delved into because it's pretty tame. also, I don't like delinquent x honour student because it's so bad and not harmonious to my preferences but this is literally the ideal form of it. TO ME. which is why it can have a spot on this list because it can be sexy and this is how it IS sexy.

eunsuk & junggu
john is literally a believer in 1s should be 0s/0s should be 1s theory. MY ICON. I actually don't have anything else to say. eunsuk is perfect 1 to me because (a) Feminine, (b) default bottom, (c) DESPARATE. literally going to have to come out as a josou-seme liker at some point, but not today!

*long notes ver

I was telling lin the other day, that when I have a het ship, in my mind they literally never kiss or touch sexually ever. and that's the Peak of romance. TO ME. and then she laughed at me. how is it my fault my ideal romance is two people who only touch hands like once and for the other 100% of the time make brief eye contact.

anyway, that led to some reflection. I don't think I understand what a romantic relationship is. anyway some of my top ships from the past few months. sorry if I sound crazed but writing this out is making me realize how batshit I truly am.

atotez

warning: this whole section is just [insane people things to say]
APPEAL: this is a het ship. how can two boys be a het ship? THEY CAN. atobe is a girl and if you don't get it u don't get it.

APPEAL: the most unhappy toxic het ship you will ever ship in your whole life. you know how in like gone girl, she commits murder and pins it on him and then they have to get back together to clear their names. it's literally like that. when you marry a boy because he is the best tennis player in the world and you need to own all the best tennis players in the world. and you think it's true love, because to you, possession is love.

APPEAL: how can a ship that is TWO BOYS be so steeped with all the complexes that comes with toxic girlboss branded feminism? ATOBE IS A GIRL. before you try to think, or perhaps not think, just think. atobe literally being born into so much privilege that she doesn't understand how the patriarchy affects her because it doesn't, but at the same time, it still literally does! girls who are stuck in a box!!! which is why she doesn't own a strap and she and tez will never be 'happy' at any level because it's literally just about Appearances and Love, is technically A Tennis Contract. literally don't ask me how I got all this out of ATOBE, but I did <3

yukiaka

APPEAL: lady and dog

APPEAL: narrative foils to narrative parallels to narrative reflections. I really am just saying words, but it's not about their actual relationship as much as it is what they see in each other and what they mean to each other and how all of that is unsaid and sparsely communicated and culminates to THE YUKIAKA CHAPTER. if youre a ykakist you know which one it is.

APPEAL: these people are not kissing or having sex though like I wouldn't mind. the VISION and THE APPEAL is that yuki is kiri's unreachable dream. like it is so important and romantic because it is tragic first love!!! you didn't realize you Loved him at the time! being so caught up in beating him/filling his shoes/etc etc that you never realized WHY you were chasing after him!!! if kissing happens, then it's very much like a single kiss out of pity, or Promise. not actually out of Love/Attraction but like, older figure is relenting. does anyone knowww this trope.

APPEAL: when it's TRUE LOVE because he's the one you entrust with your dream [beating tennis without tenimuho] but it's not true love because it's just not.

APPEAL: kiri thinks yuki is a girl. does not realize he is the maiden of the dynamic.

fujikiri

note: this isn't even like, a true tennis ship of mine. however, it just is one I think about A Fair Amount.

APPEAL: that manga cap of fuji damsel holding kiri.

APPEAL: [insane people things to say] the way fuji would let kiri fuck him and be dead fish pillow princess about it because he's just waiting for it to end, just so kiri stops being annoying about it, and then later, because kiri is annoying and teenage boy about it and telling everyone he fucked fuji, fuji fucks him just so kiri realizes he wasn't being serious that time and also isn't into kiri, and that's when it gets bad for kiri For Real. what can I say I'm an Allkiri/kiriAll enjoyer. and fujikiri is literally the Best place to indulge in it.

APPEAL: MISTREATMENT AND ERASURE CAN BE SO PERSONAL ACTUALLY... fuji who does not care at all about kiri and treats him with neutral politeness and takes some degree of responsibility for him due to room201 bond, however not only is kiri so stupid and also fuji so princely, but obviously kiri is not understanding of the neutral face of politeness and it's. you see how this plays out. SOMETIMES A DUDE BLINDS U AND PRINCESSES CARRIES YOU AND ACKNOWLEDGES YOUR EXISTENCE TO THE BAREST DEGREE AND YOU SWOON... what can I say kiri is simply a mistreatment and gaslighting enjoyer! guys who are mean to you but are nice to you but are mean to you >>>

APPEAL: something something they are parallels of some sort surely. and also the deliciousness of settling for second place. and never being good enough to catch up to the person u seek. etc etc.

iantheharrow

APPEAL: NARRATIVE PARALLELS AND FOILS >>>>>>> also I am notorious ianthe 1pick. so obviously I want IANTHE, who has been denied it all, to HAVE all that she wants.

APPEAL: toxic love[less] marriage that will not end in divorce even though it should because one of you is the toxic abuser in question and the other believes that she deserves to suffer.... TASTE!!! TASTE!!! FLAVOUR!!! bitches will say they want true toxic relationships and true toxic love and then ship harrowgideon. IT WILL NEVER EVER BE HARROWIANTHE!!!!

APPEAL: when you are both deeply pathetic and horrible people and all your imperfections and flaws are reflected and exaggerated in the other and IANTHE STILL WINS. idc idc that tiktok about how marriage is about winning and the whole point of harrowianthe is that Ianthe is the superior one, that her life sucks and all but harrow's sucks worse, and also Ianthe will get everything she wants even if she will not be happy because it is impossible for someone as horrible and miserable as her to be happy. WHICH IS WHYYYYYYY she wins because no matter how horrible and miserable she is, harrow is more horrible and more miserable <3333

APPEAL: okay honestly they probably do have some really terrible hatesex but the whole point is that it's TERRIBLE because they're like. the same brand of deeply virgin extreme loser repressed scholar who has never felt the touch of a woman.

APPEAL: DIVORCEES. who are not actually divorced<3. the loveless marriageisms again, except we return to the point LOVE IS POSSESSION WHICH IS NOT LOVE AT ALL.

getogojo

APPEAL: ON THE TOPIC OF DIVORCE...

APPEAL: I think I would've never gotten this off on it if it wasn't about the TRAGEDY!!! something something you think you are someone's first and they are your first and You Both give each other up.

APPEAL: they can't touch romantically because one of them is DEAD. this whole list is like Ok damn some of us are Abstinence Fucker 100000. honestly there is something so romantic about never touching any person ever because you've devoted your whole life to one person and you guys don't even touch that much to be honest. or you know that person is dead.

APPEAL: love being moral failure <3

kaejean

APPEAL: Narrative-------- [the crowd is mouthing along the next words at this point which is making it hard for op not to feel embarrassed]

APPEAL: People who are In Love but Not In Love but In Love. loveless marriage 2.0 except the lack of love is not about simmering hatred or internal complexes, but self-imposed distance on both sides<3 the coworkerisms of it all. people you know better than yourself but only because both of you are like so dedicated to the same thing, rather than to each other.

APPEAL: the way it's like kaeya is devoted to jean, but jean is devoted to mond AGAINST jean being more fond of kaeya personally, while kaeya holds her at a distance and a much less personal light. idk how to explain this point. work-life balance but twisted and sick.

APPEAL: people who never ever touch because they're both repressed and if they do touch it's either very knightly or very coworkery. WHEN YOU ARE THE LADY AND SHE IS THE KNIGHT AND YOU ARE THE KNIGHT AND SHE IS THE LADY. crazyyyyy

trying to think of couples who actually do touch and the outliers are. almona. um. ummmm. I have to explain that it's not that I don't think of my ships having sex, it's that I think about them Not Having Sex. like I will truly be like 'and the Absolutely Nothing Happens.' and that's it. well I guess kirifuji have sex but that's like just twice. I completely forgot to mention dr but I'm so sick of writing this post already and also I think I make it obvious what drives dr for me. in um. every other post. 

anyway damn it really is true that sometimes u don't care about the relationship you just care about how it reflects on each half's character and arcs....bitches who are only into shipping for THEMATIC IMPLICATIONS and NARRATIVE PURPOSES and PERSONAL COMPLEXES... you cannot go anywhere with me.

was thinking about this a while ago but I never got to post it. fave ship names in the style of 'otp: [...]' with some fa links for keeping

genshin

 scholar's tea club - mona/albedo
they are both genius scholars, they have tea together.
in general, @_047358586959 is literally my life. I think they capture albedo's gentleness + showcase mona's many charm points [smugness, fluster, confidence, etc] really well. also, how private and quiet the more intimate ship art is soooo... It's Literally Like That.
there's also this tweet, which is just funny and shows the #slay of them. and this because bitchy scholarism is bitchy scholarism!!! 

in your shadow 
to me, this one encompasses um ALL the knights. but is especially emphasized with jean/amber/kaeya which is just the Best triangulation. unfortunately have no fanart to provide but artofmimih's jeankae visions align pretty well with mine <333 

in the tianqian's office - ningguang/keqing/gangyu
what if we were three girls... and we were in an office... 
THIS. and also this [nsfw]. sorry for not being woke at all about ganyu, sometimes I simply do not think about things deeply. 

the soft west wind - venti/xiao
I need to write out everything as fic because my fanon and widely accepted fanon are not the same. for one: Xiao is a maiden. anyway name is derived from the vanessa/xiao parallels I made up [namely, chained birds, would-be warriors, freed but Not]. 

middle school anime club - fischl/bennett/razor
this is the whole reason I made this post. I need everyone to look at this fanart. it's the most perfect representation of them in the world. this is the reason.

dreamies

FIRST LOVE - mahae
this is technically not mahae. 300_bx is um. I think they will make me revert fully back into markhyuckism with their work. THISSSSS [everything, this, and this, and this (lin's pick)] is what markhyuck is supposed to look like. the problem imo with fanon is that fanon interpretation of ships is so trope-based but half the time that trope is based off who is taller. what 300_bx understands that no one on markhyuck ao3 understands is that mahae's most perfect trope is class clown delinquent x innocent good boy class prez .... LIKE JUST LOOK AT THE IMMACULATE VIBES THEY ARE PRESENTING!!! look at that haechan. people lichterally refuse to accept that haechan is Boyfriend and Boy and Boyishly Charming and never acknowledge that it's the most attractive handsome epic part of him [aka why renhyuck is doing so much for haechanism]. and then EVEN WORSE, they don't understand what makes mark appealing. mark's appeal is the innocent schoolboy look!!! the inherent eroticism of it!!! no one says it so I will say it. and 300_bx literally understands!!!!!

star, sun, star - dr
these drawings make me loose my shit everytime I see them. and then seeing them for the first time and then the next day op is defending me on the internet really smartly... <3 <3 
excavated this tweet god it's so fucking funny everytime I see it.

I too wanna jump on the trend. LOL. I’m keeping the list to ships I still agree with… rather than ships I genuinely can no longer stand lmfao. sorry if this isn't the most coherent tho LOL.

I actually just jotted down the names first, and then I realized some things were uh… patterns. I feel like some of these choices make it seem like I dislike most popular accepted pairings for most fandoms. which is untrue. I only dislike ships if they’re bad. I’m not receptive enough to be blankly fed maincouple and go for it. there’s also a fair amount of ships where the fanon version is Bad but the Canon version is good.

common standing
— people who are friends, people who understand each other or make efforts to understand each other, even if those efforts are somewhat futile. bonus points if there’s a third person who triangulates their complexes. bonus points if there’s a gap. bonus points if a distance seems uncloseble but they’re closer to each other than to others. bonus points if that’s unintentional.
— I just think the best ships are reliant on strong friendships or strong foundations. and, I think past that, there needs to be a common tie that links the two together that isn’t just — they have history. they’re kind of blankly by each other’s side. like whether it’s because they’ve both been left behind, or because they want to be together — a connection matters. as so, it’s titled ‘common standing’.
— bonus points for lowkeyness. bonus points if it’s not the person you thought you’d be stuck with. bonus points if it’s not the person you want to be stuck with.

*note: a lot of het ships I like and think should be romantic, I ship because they’re written with the goal of the two only being friends which is What makes them Good.

jason/nico

bro if you don't think jasico should've been Canon Unfollow Me Right Now. like, okay, sorry to be a jasicoist in 2021 but this should've been both their endgames. everything was there!!! there was something seriously personal in jason being the first and only person to reach out to nico — and that wasn’t even in the typical protag to series outsider way where He’s Still Thinks Nico Is Weird Though. he genuinely was the first person to be nice to Nico and mean it!!! it was seriously so treacherous the way rr wrote their bond to just fizzle out….UMMM no it wouldn’t. solangelo was so rushed in last minute while jasico had a WHOLE FUCKING BOOK to go off on. IDK. The First Person To Be Nice To You CAN be something so personal and romantic!!! further criminally underappreciated aspect is that while sure, jason is perfect golden boy whatever dude, he's lame and boring, but social freak nico is among the coolest characters in the series so like. the flavour! the excellence! the teamwork they had! the bond! what if both of you had to stand down against Motherfucking CUPID. the whole thing with the west wind meeting them and then fighting cupid of all gods.... and these two DIDN'T end up together? they were just too ahead of their time. I'm upset.

piper/leo

sorry for not being your feminist queen by being like And... PIPER didn’t need a man! but this probably was the most feminist option that wasn’t like lesbianism for her [she ends up Bi so #slay anyway]. this is the only good het pjo ship because they were written to be *only* friends. also shared jason inferiority complex and general insecurity re… everything. Idk a while ago I was like Huh Aren’t they kinda narrative parallels...and you know, if you have a hazy memory of these books like I do, THEY ARE. plus being the sidekicks to jason’s main character … I guess it’s classic ronmione precedent but that precedent exists and is perfect for a reason!!! also, biggest thing, is that neither of them see each other as who they want. which compounds on the whole jason’s sidekick leftovers and their own outsider complexes soooo much because they don’t #win.

harryluna

there’s this gifset of them from the sixth movie where harry takes luna as his date to the slugclub. and there’s obviously a moment either preceding, or after where someone goes ‘luna?’ and harry goes ‘luna’s cool. I like luna.’ and another one where in the fourth movie, luna dresses in a lion head costume for harry’s quidditch game … all this to say!!! they should’ve been the canon straight endgame!!! justice for weird girls!!! etc!!! again the whole angle of like, this is not the person who harry thought he’d end up with or who he thought he wanted compounding on all his complexes, but in the end — it’s luna!!! they’re friends!! even if she’s not cool quidditch girl like ginny is, she’s helped on his adventures, he still sees and appreciates her charms. not to be unfeminist and make this about harry, but piperleo is about piper To Meeee! but, luna is one of the best examples of harry’s kindness and receptiveness because even to the other ‘outsiders’ he befriends, she’s the weird one out and every single time, he’s like ‘no luna is cool’ … obviously luna understands harry well enough, and harry even if he doesn’t understand her, is still willing to try!!! something about luna showing the best of harry's best traits...idk!

touka/kaneki/hide

for a trio with such little meaningful canon interaction, just throughout the series the willingness to search for the other, fight for the other, wait for the other... idk it really was just super moving everytime you read it. I think when you read through the story, the relationships feel very unfair and wasted because of how one-sided it is. but, and this is something I feel is better conveyed in the art than the actual story, but the unyielding kindness and endless forgiveness they all had for each other just at some point makes the relationships feel so warm. prime example is touka through out :re. and like the way haise cries when he first has coffee from :re is the emotion that feels carried out through all of their moments. no idea if I explained that well but yeahhh.

bokuto/kuroo

when I say guys who are friends. I have this curse where all of my ships get uh, brozoned by fandom at large because friendship is the most romantic thing ever to me and friendship is not romantic to the masses who think friendship is just friendship. sorry for not needing romantic juxtaposition to value dynamics. IDK if you’ve read any bokuto and kuroo interactions then you get it. also find it hilarious that like… bokuaka/kuroken are thought of as closer pairs which is due to team proximity, but they’re actually best friends/better friends with each other. THE HAPTICS you know!!! it is not about the person you end up spending the most time with, but the person you seek out regardless of distance! [and school rivalry!]. best hq ship To Me Til This Very Day. sorry for liking Guys Who Are Just Dudes. I Will Never Change. I Will Never Improve.

best friends
— you’re like how the fuck is this different from ‘people who are friends’ just trust bro. honestly, mark lee just put it the best way ‘even ten minutes away from him makes you miss him’
— I feel like the only way to explain Best Friends is like. the kind of ship that needs no other characters or ecosystem or whatever. the world is just consumed by the concept of the other person.
— I don’t know! like just as a shipper, as also on the narrative level... it’s Just About These Two. like they need to be beside each other at all times. any conversation they have with someone else feels like a waste of time. they don’t need anyone but the other person. the universe becomes so small. the feeling is so all-consuming.
— it’s also like. okay if you’ve had a best friend you’ve been homoerotically connected with then you know. that’s just all it feels like. not to get personal but like, for like half my high school career, I’d walk into a store and my first and only thought would be ‘what would _ like from here?” this shit makes you be so insane it’s not a joke.

iwaoi

:,) idk if it was actually supported in canon but every iwaoi fic represented iwaoi Like That. tho it is canon that oikawa’s genius could’ve been drawn out more by a better ace but he wanted iwacchan. Or something like that. ALSO THEIR LITTLE END STORY….

dan and phil

not to be like I was a Phannie in 2014/2015 possibly 2016 but like, I was. I think it’s like obvious why people were phans.

markhyuck

it’s so interesting. Because this is something you grow out of. like it’s this singlemindedness that very teenhood based, and like mahae have grown out of it. which is obviously not a bad thing, and is honestly a necessary step to having better friendships and relationships. but it’s still bittersweet, no? everytime I’m like was markhyuck ever really all that and I remember them and they wereeee… I think like… it got really popular to push all the pining onto haechan’s side, but what that narrative misses out on is that hc was mark’s best friend also!!! the in love with your best friend factor is only applicable if you’re BEST FRIENDS.

star, star, sun
— either about reaching one person, or catching up to them. whatever ideal you have is clouded with them.
— making another person burn. I don’t know. I feel like it’s the best way to put it. you’re not interested in something until this other person.
— this is where most narrative parallels/narrative foil pairings tend to go.

redgreen

redgreen is the ORIGINAL rivalship of all time. TO ME. redgreen seriously perfect because green is an asshole and red seems nonreactive AF but is also competitive enough to beat his ass and take champion from him. and then fuck off to mount silver afterwards because he's that fucking depressed over it and needs to repent. THERE'S NO WAY IT'S NOT GOOD. it's about the mutual hateship that has Layers underneath it. which is green hates red, and red doesn't hate green, he just wants to not be hated by green. IT'S VERY DEEP. and okay I admit all of the fun is in the fact you only have FR/LG to work off of, BUT there's nothing like hating someone because they made you the most short-lived champion of all time, but they only did that because they wanted to be acknowledged by you. LIIIIKEEEEEEE. green's longstanding immaturity + refusal to not be a dick is also a huge part of why it remains good even post 'reconciliation'. sometimes people literally don't need to grow up and mature and become agreeable. sometimes it's about being two fucked up halves of a misshapen relationship!!!
redgreen is also... LOL very indicative of how I like t/b dynamics in specific iterations of rivalships... I explained what I thought about this exact dynamic to lin and she laughed at me for the next hour of our call. how is it my fault I also think t/b dynamics are also about winning and the loser needs to be the winner to balance it out.

ushishira

this ship fucks so hard because shirabu doesn’t value ushijima as a person, but only his strength. and he changes the trajectory of his whole volleyball career for that strength. NOW THAT FUCKS. THAT FUUUUCKS!!!! love it when characters are so consumed by their ideals. also hilarious because I think ushijima did like shirabu as a person which shirabu obviously didn’t give a fuck about. I love it when people are not on equal standing at all.

kenhina

okay if you read the last page of ch.305 and didn’t fucking go This Whole Time…. It’s Been A Love Story… [also do want to say, this nekoma match is where the series ended for Me because I thought it was narratively fitting] then like you have serious problems. You have no idea how to read. Etc. KENMA THINKS VOLLEYBALL IS FUN. BECAUSE HINATA MADE IT FUN FOR HIM. THAT’S LITERALLY TRUE LOVE RIGHT THERE!!! + the fucking knife + cage imagery later on. OH YEAH. OH YEAH. they could also be a fair fit for the common understanding section but they're here because chapter305 and the few chapters after Are the Sacred Kenhina Texts. TO ME.

roleswap
I thought this was more complicated to explain than it is but it's not. I just like when boys are girls. also these aren't like 'formative' ships, they're Recent ships that I believe very deeply in. I don't think any of them really need explanation LOL. though this category has a fair amount of celibate work wife/work husband dynamics also.

• jaime/brienne - inversed genderswapped beauty and the beast. the knight x lady [who is a lord] dynamic. jaimebrienne is everything. just Everything.
• shinobu/giyuu - work wife/work husband slay. NARRATIVE PARALLELISM SLAY ALSO!!!
• jean/kaeya - work husband/work wife slay WITH genderswapped social standingisms and repression on every single side to make up for it. jeankaeya is simply the best mondstadt ship.

final notes
you're like 'damn. where is renhyuck though' it has come to my attention while writing this. I was originally going to put renhyuck in the 'star, star, sun' section but then I realized they fit every section. which the best ships obviously fit more than one section [kenhina notably]. but to fit All. I won't bother explaining it because if you know u know. and if you're like ? about them fitting /best_friends, I would like to direct your attention to ridin' and hot sauce era renhaech.

other ships that are very characteristic/explanatory of my tastes but were not 'formative': hori/miya, yaguchi/mori (blue period), yaguchi/takahashi (blue period), nyu/kyu, [all the jjk ships that I like], lyx/yy, yukimura/kirihara, fuji/kikumaru

there's a fair amount of 'platonic' ships that fit into ^^^ but it might've gotten confusing if I included them. in saying that. when I ship things romantically, my end vision for them might not be #established_relationship in the usual sense. I like acknowledgement and mutual exclusivity, but they don't have to actually be romantically involved or particularly intimate [why the 'celibate' in workplace romance is there]