Pretty sure shark boy is gay and has an unconscious thing for Akizuki.

And when he's turned into a girl, he/she will get helped by Akizuki and will fall even harder.

Also, stop trying to shoe in gender politics in a manga (who's trans, who's an egg, who's a woman or not..). It's rarely the actual topic of this kind of genderbender/genderswap manga. Japanese authors are not playing by your rules.

Akizuki seems pretty obviously like a trans-esque character: if they really had a solid male identity, being turned fully into a girl temporarily would make them not want to do that again, and they'd especially flee when learning about the PERMANENT GENDER LOCK TO GIRL. No romance is worth lifelong gender dysphoria. Instead, Akizaki is anxious but also a fully willing participant and is growing to be comfortable with transition more and more. This is not a character tied to being a man lol. Actual men would not take this bargain. If you think you're a man and would take this bargain, you should discuss this with your therapist and start thinking deeply about your gender identity, because there might be some stuff about yourself you haven't realized before lol.

Also, stop trying to shoe in gender politics in a manga (who's trans, who's an egg, who's a woman or not..). It's rarely the actual topic of this kind of genderbender/genderswap manga. Japanese authors are not playing by your rules.

There's been explicitly trans manga and trans mangaka for decades some of it translated and on this very website. Just because you don't know it doesn't mean it's not out there. This dumb trope that queer identities as we know them in the West don't really exist in Japan is very silly and very easily disproven by obvious evidence. And those real existing groups of people in Japan more and more are actually influencing art like the gender bender genre, as authors become more informed about the real possibilities they were only imagining before.

last edited at Jan 17, 2024 3:53AM

Considering his hesitance to try out things like bras, I don't really see how that's to be taken as "he wants to be a girl." There's clearly no active desire to be one? He's probably some degree of genderfluid though. He seems more to me like Tanaka-kun from Listless than any other actual transfemme characters, since he just kinda "rolls with it".

That being said, it's of course fine to read into the story whatever you want, I just don't think this was ever the point of the manga and grasps too much at straws.

I did want to say that sharky boy looks like he has a big thing for Akizuki, he's kinda adorable. I don't think he needed to be affected by the genderbender as well tbh, but it'll probably go as Nya-chan said it would, smells like unnecessary drama to me but I'm hoping something fun will come out of it

Also, stop trying to shoe in gender politics in a manga (who's trans, who's an egg, who's a woman or not..). It's rarely the actual topic of this kind of genderbender/genderswap manga. Japanese authors are not playing by your rules.

You are half-right half-wrong. We don't know where the author is going with this type of story. But it's interesting however the story continues.
Personally I won't be disappointed whatever the author decide to do.

In the other hand, we all have different perceptions about certain manga topics, and where to express it or share with others if not on the forum particularly made for such kind of discussions?
There will be always trans people who can identify with gender bender manga characters or recognize the struggles as real.

I really like your comments and insights you are giving about works here, but quoted part of your comment made me a little bit sad.
If you act sharp like this it gives impression like you want to shut up particularly trans people and make them stop to comment and share their point of view (which I think is rare).
You should not call it "gender politic" in manga tagged by word gender (bender) where is expected of people to guess gender and give their opinions.

Well, I'm not sure why I'm writing this when I even did not feel called out by you.
Maybe the reason is just because I have different opinion.
I WOULD like to see more comments about guessing the gender of the MC, and more gender related comments.

So, simply said, I am encouraging what you discouraged.

And it's nothing personal against you, I highly respect your opinions here, so allow me to oppose your statement simply as someone who doesn't hold any animosity toward you.

last edited at Jan 17, 2024 4:38AM

Random little girl who is probably Shishizaki's little sister or cousin, no!!!

But yeah, this seems a bit much. I was already really interested in the relationship and story before adding a new guy geta turned into girl drama.

Did anyone else think of Akizuki being coded as neurodivergent when the bullies brought up how he doesn't look people in the eye and comes off as emotionless? I'm not saying that's true, but it felt like a possibility.

Also please don't reply that mangaka could never think in your "western" ways about non normal people. "The West" did not invent variations in people and it's pretty racist to imply all Japanese people can't have independent thoughts about being gay or autistic or anything b4 being shown it. But they also obviously have the internet, so.

Why majority of you are seeing male MC as trans woman?
This gender bender situation clearly shows that he is becoming trans man

I don't think any definitions are clear in this particular scenario. The way I understand it (I'm agender by the way), trans men are those who were assigned female at birth, but identify as male. So that wouldn't quite fit this particular character. At the same time, it would be strange to just call them a regular cis man during the body swap episodes, because their experiences aren't those of other cis men. You could call them a trans woman if it's revealed that they identify as female (meaning: assigned male, identify as female), but they wouldn't be a regular run off the mill trans woman either.

In essence, language falls short here, there are no words to describe this type of scenario.

I was going to address the "gender politics" thing but I guess other people already made very good arguments in that regard. Simply put, it's an internet forum topic about a gender bender story, you should expect discussions of gender. If you don't like this part of the debate you can simply ignore it. Talk about the stuff you're interested in, instead.

cecile posted:

I was going to address the "gender politics" thing but I guess other people already made very good arguments in that regard. Simply put, it's an internet forum topic about a gender bender story, you should expect discussions of gender. If you don't like this part of the debate you can simply ignore it. Talk about the stuff you're interested in, instead.

Tbh, I don't find this manga particularly interesting.

I didn't like that much their previous series (Koi to Uso) either. I dropped it at some point, because it was boring.

Their MCs are supposed made to be likable, but I just find them boringly "proper".

About the gender thing, the MC isn't a trans woman by any definition. It's not like he was uncomfortable being a guy before.

When you talk about a trans girl in manga, I would think about the MC of "Hourou Musuko". She was very obviously a girl from the start and I have no problems with that. It's a really good portrayal of a trans girl.

But here, it's not obvious at all. Take a "normal" person and change their gender by magic.Suddenly, they're supposed to have been wanting it all along?

It's the problem with "magic" genderbending. It's not a choice, it's imposed magically on the character. They just have to accept it.

Other manga have tackled the subject of "magic" gender change much more intelligently, like "Until I become me", or "Shishunki Bitter Change", where the change itself is not something natural for the characters and they struggle with it and their identity and it's the whole point.

Here, the MC is like "Oh, I become a girl when I kiss and it may become permanent. Okay. if I can be with my beloved I can accept that". Zero depth. I couldn't care less if they're a trans woman or just thoughtless.

When you talk about a trans girl in manga, I would think about the MC of "Hourou Musuko". She was very obviously a girl from the start and I have no problems with that. It's a really good portrayal of a trans girl.

Never read that one. It's about a kid, right? Is it any good?

I default to skipping stories where the entire focus is "a trans person's journey" because of all the stereotypes and violence. The very best portrayal of a trans kid I know is the movie "Tomboy", which wasn't even intended as a movie about a trans kid, but a lot of afab trans people relate to it. It's super cute. Is Hourou Musuko in that vibe, or does it veer too much into the stereotypes?

But here, it's not obvious at all. Take a "normal" person and change their gender by magic.Suddenly, they're supposed to have been wanting it all along?

It's ad hoc and silly, but it's not impossible. Not every trans person knows they're trans from the get go, some people only figure that out later in life. I was 22 when I figured out I was agender (actually, when I figured out agender was a thing at all), that's much later than our high school protagonist.

And when I read that line "getting to date you and becoming a girl, that's killing two birds with one stone" all I could think was "damn, that egg". But I'm not sure that's where this mangaka is going with this plot (probably not, right?)

Here, the MC is like "Oh, I become a girl when I kiss and it may become permanent. Okay. if I can be with my beloved I can accept that". Zero depth.

I wholeheartedly agree with you there. It's why I thought about dropping this series as well. Sticking around for now to see where this is going.

Mystery girl turned chainsaw man into chainsaw girl

Akizuki seems pretty obviously like a trans-esque character: if they really had a solid male identity, being turned fully into a girl temporarily would make them not want to do that again, and they'd especially flee when learning about the PERMANENT GENDER LOCK TO GIRL. No romance is worth lifelong gender dysphoria.
Instead, Akizaki is anxious but also a fully willing participant and is growing to be comfortable with transition more and more. This is not a character tied to being a man lol. Actual men would not take this bargain.

I agree and disagree with some words you said.
Actually, I would agree if we are not talking about this manga particularly.
Where is supernatural element in your analyze?
We have Akizaki presented as cis male who is not transitioning, but finds himself supernaturally and occasionally turned into girl, ONLY by shape.
I also must ask you, how do you know what an "actual man" would do in that situation in which is Akizuki now?

As I said, this manga is like observing two different lifetimes of same person at once.
First "life", the character is cis male.
Second "life", he BECOMES pre-transitioned transman (his awareness is still awareness of himself as a man, but body is of a girl).
And author mixed up everything at once that we can observe both lines of the story together.
So, premise of the manga is that before he became trans, he was cis first. It's very interesting premise, very unusual.
It is a very important hint which is leading to the truth. Something to think about, why some people don't have their original bodies?
It's direction how you have to start to think to find the answer, start to understand what world is hiding.

You said Akizaki is more and more comfortable with transition. Where we have in reality "transition" from cis male to transman? (he doesn't identify as a girl to say it's transition from male to female, and he is not comfortable with it)
Also, you might be right regard future chapters, it depends on take of the author and their goal. If it is yuri ending situation is already predestined.
I'm not excluding opinions of others, but I have right to set up another theory however strange it is, or even if it won't go till the end of manga.

Anyway, I'm observing this story very metaphorically, especially because it includes supernatural element.
What and how I see is not what someone else sees, but I like to read about different opinions, not expecting of people to agree with me.
Your points are interesting, and I would like to know bases for them, as I asked above.

Actual men would not take this bargain.
If you think you're a man and would take this bargain, you should discuss this with your therapist and start thinking deeply about your gender identity, because there might be some stuff about yourself you haven't realized before lol.

Please don't belittle struggles of people you don't know and question their identities, even as a joke.
Chances to hurt someone AND yourself are equal, just trust me I know what I'm speaking.

And, do you really think situation in manga is about choice? Some "bargain"?
Akizaku might be put into position that he has some choice, but it also could be buying a time to stay with the girl he likes until something miraculous or resolving happens again.

If you ask me the same question what would I do, my answer is I would accept gender bender situation but not permanently, just temporary. And only if it is of worldwide importance.
And I must have great reasons to accept, only if I would prosper as real me in this "bargain" and never again experience the same.
Do you think it will really change my gender ID and awareness of myself?
I'm telling you, turn me into the frog, I will still be aware and completely sure of myself who I really am. And I will dig for my life to return back in my original form.
"Shapeshift" means nothing, essence is always the same, unchangeable (even for fluid people, they will be fluid as they are).

(after mentioning "the frog" it gave me some idea. Do you (or anyone) find this story very similar to some modern version of Frog Prince, with a little different outcome of the kiss?)

cecile posted:

I was going to address the "gender politics" thing but I guess other people already made very good arguments in that regard. Simply put, it's an internet forum topic about a gender bender story, you should expect discussions of gender. If you don't like this part of the debate you can simply ignore it. Talk about the stuff you're interested in, instead.

Tbh, I don't find this manga particularly interesting.

I didn't like that much their previous series (Koi to Uso) either. I dropped it at some point, because it was boring.

Their MCs are supposed made to be likable, but I just find them boringly "proper".

About the gender thing, the MC isn't a trans woman by any definition. It's not like he was uncomfortable being a guy before.

When you talk about a trans girl in manga, I would think about the MC of "Hourou Musuko". She was very obviously a girl from the start and I have no problems with that. It's a really good portrayal of a trans girl.

But here, it's not obvious at all. Take a "normal" person and change their gender by magic.Suddenly, they're supposed to have been wanting it all along?

It's the problem with "magic" genderbending. It's not a choice, it's imposed magically on the character. They just have to accept it.

Other manga have tackled the subject of "magic" gender change much more intelligently, like "Until I become me", or "Shishunki Bitter Change", where the change itself is not something natural for the characters and they struggle with it and their identity and it's the whole point.

Here, the MC is like "Oh, I become a girl when I kiss and it may become permanent. Okay. if I can be with my beloved I can accept that". Zero depth. I couldn't care less if they're a trans woman or just thoughtless.

Your disinterest in the story is obviously coloring how you read it and how much you pay attention while doing so, because you're missing some pretty crucial details all throughout this latest chapter where the MC is constantly thinking about their gender and being nervous and experiencing new things. They even have a moment of gender euphoria after the bra scene.

While I can understand not being interested in a particular story for whatever reason, I don't understand continuing to read it and comment on it. For example, I find the zombie genre almost universally boring as dirt, it's all the same exact "man is the real monster" beats repeated forever. While I might occasionally give a zombie story a try when they're popular, I never bother actually commenting on them just to confirm to everyone "yeah this sucks and is boring I don't care if any of these people live or die". Because if somebody IS enjoying the zombie story, they probably want to have a discussion with people at the very least paying the same level of attention with the same level of investment to notice things so they can talk about them. If you don't care about something, why would you care enough to bother commenting?? Surely there's something else around that DOES spark your interest. Wouldn't it be better to go talk about that instead?

Gabinomicon posted:
If you don't care about something, why would you care enough to bother commenting?? Surely there's something else around that DOES spark your interest. Wouldn't it be better to go talk about that instead?

Sure, let's all circle jerk (or schlick, your choice) in peace and never interact in any meaningful way.

This is the internet man, you'll have to bear with opinions you don' agree with.

To comment on a manga and say it sucks (or rules) and why you think so, is what this forum is for.

Shutting down dissenters by telling them to go away is rude.

Why majority of you are seeing male MC as trans woman?
This gender bender situation clearly shows that he is becoming trans man

I don't think any definitions are clear in this particular scenario. The way I understand it (I'm agender by the way), trans men are those who were assigned female at birth, but identify as male. So that wouldn't quite fit this particular character. At the same time, it would be strange to just call them a regular cis man during the body swap episodes, because their experiences aren't those of other cis men. You could call them a trans woman if it's revealed that they identify as female (meaning: assigned male, identify as female), but they wouldn't be a regular run off the mill trans woman either.

In essence, language falls short here, there are no words to describe this type of scenario.

Thanks for responding and explaining some of your points of view.
It's really hard to define MC at this point if you go by definition.
Especially when supernatural element is included, and AFAB and AMAB elements are completely useless.

Also, to explain myself better, I did not say MC IS trans man, he BECOMES transman (in pre-transition state), according to his mindset and his self awareness, and it happens supernaturally.
It means, physical transformation is complete (including their genitals), and we can't call it transition or compare it with trans girls.
That's why I'm stating it's closer to transgender man.

By logic and how situation functions in reality, MC indeed should be trans girl, so I really understand you and others who are stating that MC is trans girl. But according to the other details from the story and what I'm saying here, it's not the case (at least not for now)

However, I was reading other your comments and I agree with you that at this point we really can't know how story will go, and we should give it a chance.
And I, as you, also figured out about myself later in life, simply not knowing for "possibility" until I saw first trans girl singing, changing voices from female to male, and it immediately clicked. All my pieces of puzzles fell into right places at once.
That's why I adore trans girls as my first inspiration and initiation.
And I'm sorry that I don't know much about agender people, but I hope to learn more, and I will be interested in your future comments, especially about gender.

Gabinomicon posted:
If you don't care about something, why would you care enough to bother commenting?? Surely there's something else around that DOES spark your interest. Wouldn't it be better to go talk about that instead?

Sure, let's all circle jerk (or schlick, your choice) in peace and never interact in any meaningful way.

This is the internet man, you'll have to bear with opinions you don' agree with.

To comment on a manga and say it sucks (or rules) and why you think so, is what this forum is for.

Shutting down dissenters by telling them to go away is rude.

"Shutting down dissenters" LMAO, that's cute. It's a valid question to ask why you're even here and complaining about a work that seems to be going over your head.

E.g.: "Here, the MC is like "Oh, I become a girl when I kiss and it may become permanent. Okay. if I can be with my beloved I can accept that". Zero depth. I couldn't care less if they're a trans woman or just thoughtless."

That's not at all what happens. The MC is both visibly conflicted about it, and at the same time has an internal monologue about how they're telling a white lie. And add to that how they've spent three chapters now depicting the MC trying to process these rightfully confusing emotions and thoughts.

Are you paying attention? Is this a circle jerk, or are you just getting upset when people interact with you by asking you questions?

And I, as you, also figured out about myself later in life, simply not knowing for "possibility" until I saw first trans girl singing, changing voices from female to male, and it immediately clicked. All my pieces of puzzles fell into right places at once.

It's a funny feeling, right? Like "oh, dang". Gave me a week of anxiety and panic attacks (not fun), but it worked out in the end. I'm in a better place than I was before that.

(after mentioning "the frog" it gave me some idea. Do you (or anyone) find this story very similar to some modern version of Frog Prince, with a little different outcome of the kiss?)

Are you talking about a specific fairy tale or just the general concept of kissed frogs turning into princes?

While I can understand not being interested in a particular story for whatever reason, I don't understand continuing to read it and comment on it.

Oh god oh god okay... breathes. I'm not sure how long you've been on these forums, but this kind of is the rule more often than the exception. If it bothers you, then I beg you to never look at the forum threads for works by Momono Moto or the older ones by Kodama Naoko.

And I'm sorry that I don't know much about agender people, but I hope to learn more, and I will be interested in your future comments, especially about gender.

Hmmm... How can I explain this simply? Agender folks generally understand the concept of genders and say "no, thank you". I don't feel comfortable considering myself either gender. It doesn't suit me. So I can choose to dress however I want, and change my body to fit any image that makes me feel more comfortable (hormones and some surgeries are okay). I don't even tell people I'm agender most of the time (they can read me however they want, so long as they respect my preferred pronouns), but I'll never be comfortable saying "I'm a man" or "I'm a woman". I'm really neither.

Agender and bisexual. My motto is "if forced to choose, I don't."

uwuwu posted:

Gabinomicon posted:
If you don't care about something, why would you care enough to bother commenting?? Surely there's something else around that DOES spark your interest. Wouldn't it be better to go talk about that instead?

Sure, let's all circle jerk (or schlick, your choice) in peace and never interact in any meaningful way.

This is the internet man, you'll have to bear with opinions you don' agree with.

To comment on a manga and say it sucks (or rules) and why you think so, is what this forum is for.

Shutting down dissenters by telling them to go away is rude.

"Shutting down dissenters" LMAO, that's cute. It's a valid question to ask why you're even here and complaining about a work that seems to be going over your head.

E.g.: "Here, the MC is like "Oh, I become a girl when I kiss and it may become permanent. Okay. if I can be with my beloved I can accept that". Zero depth. I couldn't care less if they're a trans woman or just thoughtless."

That's not at all what happens. The MC is both visibly conflicted about it, and at the same time has an internal monologue about how they're telling a white lie. And add to that how they've spent three chapters now depicting the MC trying to process these rightfully confusing emotions and thoughts.

Are you paying attention? Is this a circle jerk, or are you just getting upset when people interact with you by asking you questions?

Why should I justify myself for being here and commenting? Do I ask you why you're here? Because you have opinions.

So do I and they're not the same as yours. I don't see what's complicated to infer here. Moving on to the manga now.

Sorry, but the MCs of this manga have as much personality as doorknobs, the magic gender change is just waved away as a "curse" and some people seem to think that "plot" is interesting because they somehow project on the MC's "conflict", when there isn't even much of one to begin with.

last edited at Jan 17, 2024 1:56PM

Akizuki seems pretty obviously like a trans-esque character: if they really had a solid male identity, being turned fully into a girl temporarily would make them not want to do that again, and they'd especially flee when learning about the PERMANENT GENDER LOCK TO GIRL. No romance is worth lifelong gender dysphoria. Instead, Akizaki is anxious but also a fully willing participant and is growing to be comfortable with transition more and more. This is not a character tied to being a man lol. Actual men would not take this bargain. If you think you're a man and would take this bargain, you should discuss this with your therapist and start thinking deeply about your gender identity, because there might be some stuff about yourself you haven't realized before lol.

gotta disagree here. first off you have confused sex and gender its his sex changing not his gender. and second not everyone cares about gender. while it can be a strong one for some people gender is still just a made up social construct after all. just because someone has a dick or has a vagina doesnt mean they'll always like the same things/behave like each other after all.

i mean for most part the things people think are "manly"or "girly" are just interests/behaviours that are normally associated with that gender. doesnt mean a dude cant like pink or sewing or that a girl cant like football and working on cars.

anyway that kind of stuff may be important to you but that doesnt mean it is to everyone. and it doesnt mean someones trans because they dont care that much about whats between their legs.

im a big 6ft1 dude and would not really care at all if i turned into a girl. why? because it doesnt matter to me. im me no matter whats in my pants. if i wake up with a vagina im not going to be different as a person or in personality the only real change is i wouldnt be able to pee as easy and id need to buy bras. if i had a reason like in the story id 100% do it. that doesnt mean im trans or want to be a girl but ive just never attached any part of my identity to a stupid concept made up by soceity. i do still prefer being a man however the sole reason i prefer having a dick is because i dont want to deal with having periods.

Actual men would not take this bargain. If you think you're a man and would take this bargain, you should discuss this with your therapist and start thinking deeply about your gender identity, because there might be some stuff about yourself you haven't realized before lol.

wrong again buddy my dick is still attached with no desire to be a woman. oh wow its almost like gender is just a concept that not everyone cares about. also just really bad take dude. please learn that just because you think/place importance on something or think a certain way doesnt mean everyone else does.

Is this the TS Revolution prequel

Actual men would not take this bargain.
If you think you're a man and would take this bargain, you should discuss this with your therapist and start thinking deeply about your gender identity, because there might be some stuff about yourself you haven't realized before lol.

Please don't belittle struggles of people you don't know and question their identities, even as a joke.
Chances to hurt someone AND yourself are equal, just trust me I know what I'm speaking.

I don't think that it's reasonable to interpret the comment you've quoted the way you have. I don't think it's belittling. The thing to keep in mind is that there is actually a pretty large niche industry for writing transgender transformation stories like these. The vast, vast majority of the audience for these (or at least the only people I've ever seen open about engaging with that sort of content) are closeted and early or pre-transition trans people. That is, works like that were something they came upon earlier in their lives and it sparked a major realization leading to their interest in transition, though they may not read as much of it later on (some still do).

I've not engaged much with them personally because the majority of them seemed to have coercive components to the story that I found hard to enjoy. But I think for a lot of closeted people that's part of the appeal, in much the same way that a lot of cis women reading het romance stories find coersion part of the charm, as it gives them a way out of taking full responsibility for their horniness; just swap out a set of internalized misoogyny those cis women are working through while reading those books with internalized transphobia for the tg-tf audience.

But, at least for the purposes of this discussion, I'm a cis dude, so those stories never had much fulfillment for me in the first place. They're just kinda there, and leave a bit of an unpleasant aftertaste because of the way the fantasized coercion component play out. Not my bag.

The point is not that if you're finding the story compelling, you're obviously trans and should seek transition. It's that if the story speaks to you in certain ways it's worth figuring out what those reasons are, and working with people to help you on any journeys of discovery that might come along with it. The goal is not transition but a deeper understanding of what your own self-conception actually is, and that can't be done without exploring some ideas that might otherwise remain covered up in a bigoted society.

That said, it may not surprise you to hear that I'm in this one for other reasons. I find the narrative compelling because I think the idea of a romance where the leads have chemistry and one person is risking a lot, potentially making large sacrifices for the person he cares about, is interesting. What if he falls out of love -- how would his life change in regard to these sacrifices? What if that happens and he finds that the sacrifices aren't sacrifices at all, and for that matter isn't a "he" either? Will he only pursue the romance if there's a way to end the curse?

Like one potential reading of this story so far is that it's taking the sort of jokes made against those dumb chauvinist types -- the guys inspiring the rejoinders like "fellas, is it gay to have empathy toward and be romantically involved with a woman" on social media -- and taking it seriously, asking what love might be like if that's actually how it worked.

As the saying goes, to be loved is to be changed

there is actually a pretty large niche industry for writing transgender transformation stories like these. The vast, vast majority of the audience for these (or at least the only people I've ever seen open about engaging with that sort of content) are closeted and early or pre-transition trans people.

In my experience, the vast majority of the audience for transition movies is gay and pro-lgbt cis people. I mean, trans people are 0,3% of the population, we're rarely the target audience for anything. (even the drug industry doesn't manufacture drugs for trans people specifically, because we're rare and generally poor, so they ignore us).

That's part of the reason why most movies and stuff about trans people are so stereotyped and out of whack, because they're made by cis people for cis people, and these people don't really know what trans people are like outside of stereotypes (hence we get terrible stereotypes like the trans women in Transamerica and Danish Girl, to name a few).

The point is not that if you're finding the story compelling, you're obviously trans and should seek transition.

Oh no no no no. Bad advice. Never tell someone they should seek transition. That's the one decision people need to make on their own, without interference. Not everyone who transitions is happy. Not everyone who transitions can deal with all the shit life throws at us. It's a very individual process. Support them through the process, offer information if asked, but let them make the choice by themselves.

I honestly feel that my life is more worth living now than it was pre-transition, but do I miss the privilege of not having to hide my queerness in order to get a job? Damn right I do.

That said, it may not surprise you to hear that I'm in this one for other reasons. I find the narrative compelling because I think the idea of a romance where the leads have chemistry and one person is risking a lot, potentially making large sacrifices for the person he cares about, is interesting. What if he falls out of love -- how would his life change in regard to these sacrifices? What if that happens and he finds that the sacrifices aren't sacrifices at all, and for that matter isn't a "he" either? Will he only pursue the romance if there's a way to end the curse?

I agree. And sure, all of those questions are interesting. In my case I just like odd magical premises in stories about otherwise regular people. There's no projecting involved (that I can tell), and either way I think psychoanalysis is mostly bull.

As the saying goes, to be loved is to be changed

That's a cute saying. I like it.

last edited at Jan 17, 2024 5:33PM

And I, as you, also figured out about myself later in life, simply not knowing for "possibility" until I saw first trans girl singing, changing voices from female to male, and it immediately clicked. All my pieces of puzzles fell into right places at once.

It's a funny feeling, right? Like "oh, dang". Gave me a week of anxiety and panic attacks (not fun), but it worked out in the end. I'm in a better place than I was before that.

O, yeah, it was "oh, dang" feeling, as you said. But I was amazed and I felt relieved. For me the real shock happened about year ago when I figured out why I'm like this and who I was before. And I was grieving for months for my true self like that I died long time ago... But I made lot of songs. One day I will be able to sing about it in real words, for now all those songs are in made up language.

I'm listening to them constantly.
I can say it's very pleasant when your voice is changed and you HEAR yourself

(after mentioning "the frog" it gave me some idea. Do you (or anyone) find this story very similar to some modern version of Frog Prince, with a little different outcome of the kiss?)

Are you talking about a specific fairy tale or just the general concept of kissed frogs turning into princes?

I think I had in mind the fairy tale, not the general concept.
That situation with boy turning into girl after being kissed reminded me exactly on that story about Frog Prince.
Some variation.

And I'm sorry that I don't know much about agender people, but I hope to learn more, and I will be interested in your future comments, especially about gender.

Hmmm... How can I explain this simply? Agender folks generally understand the concept of genders and say "no, thank you". I don't feel comfortable considering myself either gender. It doesn't suit me. So I can choose to dress however I want, and change my body to fit any image that makes me feel more comfortable (hormones and some surgeries are okay). I don't even tell people I'm agender most of the time (they can read me however they want, so long as they respect my preferred pronouns), but I'll never be comfortable saying "I'm a man" or "I'm a woman". I'm really neither.

I can perfectly understand you and your feelings of not being comfortable (I also have similar feelings but they don't go both ways like with you)
I think and feel about myself as he/him, but I also can accept they/them.
I live in hostile environment and I'm always careful not knowing how the others could perceive me, so I go completely as gender neutral in public because of circumstances (for safety, I only switch to my right pronounces after I see how I am addressed, and maybe we are similar keeping from people, but from different reasons)
Usually I'm not misgendered by strangers (I'm very comfortable being on T for years, without surgeries)
It's not ideal situation for me or real choice, but I can manage. I also noticed that with aging and maturity I don't care much about gender.
Sometimes I really feel sick about all that male and female polarizations and magnetizations infiltrated in every aspect of our life.

I also think that I might be asexual but I'm not sure if I became asexual after having death experience 7 years ago (really paranormal thing), or I was already asexual before it, just experimenting when I was younger or going with a flaw.
That point in my life really changed everything splitting my life on "before and after", and made me a kind of self sufficient hermit.
It's nothing dark in it, really (I mean, I was hurt a lot in my life but I was not destroyed whatever came upon me. It just means I'm stronger than any of those powers, ha ha)
I still can fight back. And resend all those "love" letters...

Thank you for educating me and presenting yourself so clearly that I was able to understand easy everything you said.
You must be very cute being, however you look and feel.
And you are very kind to me. Thank you!

last edited at Jan 18, 2024 5:51AM

Well of this is what we are talking about then so be it

From my perspective the MC seems like a perfectly regular reserved boy. Who has neither shown any indication of not caring about genders nor being obsessed with them.

He lives with his grandpa and isn't very outgoing, desperately wants his romance to succeed, has a decent backbone, not used to being adventurous, bit of an overthinker.

Rather normal on most fronts

there is actually a pretty large niche industry for writing transgender transformation stories like these. The vast, vast majority of the audience for these (or at least the only people I've ever seen open about engaging with that sort of content) are closeted and early or pre-transition trans people.

In my experience, the vast majority of the audience for transition movies is gay and pro-lgbt cis people. I mean, trans people are 0,3% of the population, we're rarely the target audience for anything. (even the drug industry doesn't manufacture drugs for trans people specifically, because we're rare and generally poor, so they ignore us).

That's part of the reason why most movies and stuff about trans people are so stereotyped and out of whack, because they're made by cis people for cis people, and these people don't really know what trans people are like outside of stereotypes (hence we get terrible stereotypes like the trans women in Transamerica and Danish Girl, to name a few).

Movies, sure, but I'm thinking more in terms of short stories and interactive fiction (sorry for not being more clear about this) where there isn't much need for a large budget. It's much more feasible to be financially stable seeking an audience of mostly trans people. I agree that when we're talking about stuff that's working more mainstream you get the issues of stuff like misery/inspiration porn like that. (It's a certain kind of funny to consider that after The Danish Girl that Eddie Redmayne gets cast in the Harry Potter spinoff series and Rowling starts getting public about terfy opinions)