Guardian fandom friending meme!!!

[china_shop]

Our lovely fandom continues to grow beyond our wildest expectations! Comm membership has just hit 100 98 (and we got impatient)! *shameless champagne and ballooooons*

A few small notes and reminders:

1. The Welcome/Intro post and the Fannish Resources post are still alive and kicking. Feel free to drop in at any time and say hi, or give us all your resource links (even the ones that might seem really obvious)!


2. Lurking is also totally fine, of course! *waves to lurkers*


3. Please tag your posts to the comm so other users can easily find what they’re looking for. In particular, it would be great if you could use the canon: drama and/or canon: novel tags, since it’s not always obvious to us mods which should apply, including for fanart or vids that use drama visuals but draw on novel elements. This is our current list of tags, and we’ll add more type tags as the need arises.


4. You can find the full (updated) comm rules on the profile page.


5. Feel free to promote sid_guardian on your journal or elsewhere. (Here's a graphic and text.)

And now, without further ado...

Since some of us are new to Dreamwidth, and some of us are new to Guardian, it seems like a good time for a Dreamwidth friending meme. Come and meet new people! (Re)Populate your DW circle!

To participate, just copy the text below, paste it into a new comment and tell us about yourself. (All information is optional.) Then read through other people's comments and say hi / follow them as desired.

<strong>About You</strong> <strong>DW username:</strong> <strong>Languages:</strong> <strong>Offline location:</strong> <strong>Other online locations:</strong> (ao3, twitter, tumblr, pinterest, etc.) <strong>I like:</strong> (het, slash, femslash, gen, other, poly, all of the above) <strong><i>Guardian</i>-specific stuff</strong> <strong>Drama, novel or both?</strong> <strong>Fannish about canon, actors, related shows, RPF or some combination of these?</strong> <strong>How long have you been in the fandom?</strong> <strong>Where can we find your fanworks, if any:</strong> <strong>Other points of interest regarding your <i>Guardian</i> fannishness:</strong> <strong>Posting habits</strong> <strong>How long have you been on Dreamwidth? Where were you before that?</strong> <strong>What do you post about:</strong> <strong>Your other fandoms include:</strong> <strong>Post frequency:</strong> <strong>Access policy:</strong> <strong>Anything else we should know about you?</strong> <strong>Random Guardian</strong> insert <i>Guardian</i> pic/gif/novel quote/thought/link of your choice here!

Post a link to this friending meme

<a href="https://sid-guardian.dreamwidth.org/49079.html"> <img border="0" alt="Guardian Friending Meme" src="https://china-shop.dreamwidth.org/file/132456.jpg"></a> <a href="https://sid-guardian.dreamwidth.org/49079.html">镇魂 | Guardian Friending Meme</a>

(Many thanks to teaotter for prettifying the banner pic! <3)

Comments

[likealeafonthewind]

Hi everyone! It's so nice to meet you all. I tend to lurk in a fandom until I feel like I have something to contribute but I love Guardian to pieces and I'd love to engage in more discussions and flailing about it.

About You
DW username: likealeafonthewind
Languages: English, some Spanish, some Chinese (Cantonese, spoken only, but I want to learn how to read it). I'm trying to learn Japanese now, and I want to learn Korean.
Offline location: US (east coast)
Other online locations: likealeafonthewind, anecdotalist, Ally on Discord, likealeafonthewind on Mastodon, lalotw929 (though it's been years since I've made any vids)
I like: In Guardian, I'm (so far) exclusively slash but generally, het, slash, gen, and poly are fair game. It depends on the fandom and which characters and couple dynamic I gravitate towards.

Guardian-specific stuff
Drama, novel or both? Both!
Fannish about canon, actors, related shows, RPF or some combination of these? For now, I've been reading and writing fic for canon only, but I do love watching behind-the-scenes stuff and interviews. I haven't gotten around to watching BY and ZYL's other shows but I want to.
How long have you been in the fandom? Since end January, so I'm still pretty new.
Where can we find your fanworks, if any: There's no Guardian stuff yet, but if (when) I finish the fics I'm working on, they'll be posted on my AO3.
Other points of interest regarding your Guardian fannishness: I LOVE worldbuilding and I've been spending a lot of time metaphorically talking my friend's ear off on Discord about Guardian worldbuilding.

Posting habits
How long have you been on Dreamwidth? Where were you before that? I set up this journal in 2013, but I've only used it sporadically until recently. I'm still on Tumblr, kind of. Before that, I was on LJ.
What do you post about: Usually fannish stuff but also writing stuff
Your other fandoms include: Oh god, I started engaging in fandom since 1996 and I've been in so many fandoms. Some of the big ones for me are BTS, Voltron (Legendary Defender), Star Wars (prequels), Star Trek (reboot), 1D, BBC Merlin, SGA, Inception, BBC Sherlock, MCU, LOTR, X-Men, James Bond (Daniel Craig era).
Post frequency: Variable, and when I do post, they tend to be long but I put them behind a cut.
Access policy: Most of my posts are open but I'll give access to mutuals for the rare locked posts.

Anything else we should know about you? I keep my RL and my fandom life strictly separated so I won't talk about things like my job and none of my RL friends know that I write fic. I haven't done meet-ups in the past and I still don't feel comfortable doing that now. But who knows, maybe in the future it'll change.

It's my dream to one day be able to write professionally.

I'm a fandom Old (or at least, I feel that way in some of the newer fandoms, but I think I'm just feeling Old in general even though I'm not actually that old) and I subscribe to the ship-and-let-ship mentality and not knocking down the 4th wall. I try to avoid fandom and ship wars. I'm just here to have fun and get away from RL stress. If fandom gets more stressful than fun, I'll check out for awhile (that's only happened a couple of times in the past, luckily).

Random Guardian
insert Guardian pic/gif/novel quote/thought/link of your choice here!

From the novel:
Zhao Yunlan: I have many other things, but you probably wouldn't like them. There's only my heart. If you won't take it...then never mind.
Shen Wei: I'm taking it.

[demitas]

Hello fellow Mastodon friend! <3 *adds*

[likealeafonthewind]

Hello! <3

[galaxysoup]

I hear you on the worldbuilding front!! I think one of the reasons I enjoy Guardian's worldbuilding so much is that it sets up a lot of cool stuff, but also leaves plot holes and plenty of room to explore it and fix it and wrangle with it, and let's be real, that combination is like fannish catnip. :D

[likealeafonthewind]

Yes! I usually get more involved and active in fandom when there's a lot of room in canon to play around in. And when there are others who are interested in thinking about how to explain things in canon too.

[qikiqtarjuaq]

Re: world-building, I've been chatting on discord about Dixing, and like their whole system of government and what a society would be look without regular sunlight, because so much of the show leaves it up to our imagination. (Why is the King an indentured bureaucrat? What are the 'ordinary people' jobs in Dixing? What does it mean that they seem to link their currencies to Haixing?) It's kind of fun to try and make things work within the show's framework. I'm on discord too (Qik#1337) if you ever want to talk to me about these days!

[likealeafonthewind]

I'm now struck by the question of how is it possible for both Dixing and Haixing to have evolved into such similar societies over the course of 10k years when they were completely separated and had access to different natural resources. Like...my only comparison for Dixing and how the people there could have evolved over time is maybe deep sea creatures? Wouldn't their skin be super pale if they never had to deal with sunlight? Wouldn't they have evolved to have large pupils to better see in the dark? Breathe in lower-oxygen conditions? Maybe have lungs that have evolved to be able to filter out the toxic fumes that would kill someone from the surface? But instead they're just regular humans who are somehow able to survive both underground and on the surface and evolution doesn't seem to have affected them or made them better adapted to their own surroundings?

And yeah, the only 'ordinary people' job I can think of was that bartender. The rest of the people in Dixing seemed to just be hanging out doing nothing. Which...doesn't quite gel for a society that puts so much value on efficiency that they bound their King to the desk to keep the whole thing running smoothly. Unless we didn't see the actual workforce of Dixing? Maybe they had people working off-screen like in mines or something and the people we saw wandering about were the upper class? Or maybe they're the ones whose powers haven't activated yet? Like, as soon as a Dixingren's power activates, maybe they get assigned to the job that best suits their power and before that, they just hang around?

I didn't catch that they linked their currencies! Interesting. But also, how??? They've been separate societies for thousands of years. I doubt Haixing even had the same currency for that long. Maybe there's actually been a robust black market going on all these years, which is how they both seem to be more or less at an equal development stage.

Though I don't recall seeing any cars or bicycles in Dixing, so how did people get around besides walking? Did they have to find a willing teleporter and pay them to take them somewhere that was too far to walk to?

I'm Ally2902 on Discord! I'm actually a member of the Guardian discord server but it's too active for me to keep up with so I just lurk.

[qikiqtarjuaq]

Yeah, when Zhao Yunlan first visited Dixing, Shen Wei did mention that they had better night vision, and they had a completely different concept of time because day/night didn't exist! Shen Wei also mentioned that the 'peasants' so to speak were generally without powers, and that it was unpredictable when a Dixing person's powers would manifest.

The part that confused me was definitely the whole jobs thing. The rebellion 10k years ago was caused by the meteor ruining their underground resources, so where do they get their food and materials from? What exactly is the king reading/writing 24/7? Is one single guy handling all the budget/resource allocations? I would be curious to know how they're supporting what looks like a bunch of freeloaders wearing masks, making trouble in bars. :P

And yeah, when Zhao Yunlan went to the 'fortune teller' a.k.a. Din Dun who had the Dixing register, it looked like they used the same currency/money. And obviously Dixing had the resources to send people like Shen Wei up (and give him a credit card or something I guess to buy him a nice wardrobe)? I have to think there is probably some kind of sanctioned trade between Dixing and Haixing. Gems and things like that seem like good candidates.

Anyway, I've sent you a friend request on discord! Feel free to talk to me if you have any more thoughts on Dixing and general world-building :D

[likealeafonthewind]

Oh, I forgot that he said that about having better night vision.

where do they get their food and materials from?

I have a headcanon that's not supported by anything else besides Ma Gui and Fu You saying that the hallows were created to help all of Haixing - that when the hallows activated in the past (and sent Zhao Yunlan back to the future), it corrected the damage that the meteor caused to Dixing. (Although it doesn't make sense to me that the meteor would have *only* caused damage to Dixing and not Haixing too, but anyway.) On another note, have we ever seen a Dixingren eating? Besides Shen Wei and Lao Chu (who, it could be argued are just eating for politeness' sake because they're with the others), I mean. Perhaps they don't *have* to eat. Or perhaps they don't eat the same foods. Because even without the damage that Dixing sustained from the meteor, they wouldn't be able to grow the same types of fruits and vegetables without sunlight and would they have been able to raise livestock? That girl with the ability to grow plants should have been one of the most valued members of their society - they should have set up a greenhouse and had her in charge of it, along with someone who could create light.

What exactly is the king reading/writing 24/7?

Lol, no idea. I know it must take a lot of work to run a kingdom but is there really enough to keep someone busy 24/7 for over 10k years?

I like the idea of a sanctioned trade! Maybe set up as part of the treaty? Where the Dixingren agree to live underground as long as the resources they need to survive but can't get in Dixing can be brought in from Haixing.

[firestar]

Hm, there's Ding Dun who was operating out of something like a street stall or something? So maybe other people have similar set ups.

[likealeafonthewind]

True. For some reason, I got the sense that his street stall was sort of an under-the-table not-quite-legitimate business but I might have read it wrong. Also, wasn't he the initial head of the party who was sent up to Haixing and found Shen Wei? How'd he go from that, to being a thief, to being a fortune teller? He's had a hell of a life.

[firestar]

Oh, his was definitely under the table but that doesn't mean there can't be legit ones. You know, ones run by people who aren't shady as fuck. XD

[asya_ana]

*waves*

I could have sworn I replied to this, but maybe I was just chatting with you elsewhere. Hooray for Merlin, XMFC, Inception! We like a lot of the same things. I feel like I wrote everything you said about RL/fandom and fandom. 100%.

Yes to worldbuilding! I wish we'd seen a lot more of Dixing, but I suppose the budget got in the way. That's what fic is for? To that end, thanks for all the work you did on the wiki (I think it was you?) It's been helpful to me.

Love that quote from the novel. Did we flail already about the audio of BY reading it?

[likealeafonthewind]

I think we were chatting on Mastodon right around the time I was answering this, so it probably got confusing. Definitely the point about keeping fan-generated slash content away from the actors was something that came up before I wrote out my answers for this.

I wish we saw more of Dixing, too! But also, I think it would have been more interesting for them to have made Dixing develop a little more differently than Haixing, besides just the lack of schools and hospitals. I mean, they've been around for 10,000 years? What have they been doing? It would have been really neat if they utilized more underground-specific resources in their architecture or culture or something. Like, lava springs or gemstone caves. (I don't know anything about geology, please don't judge me.)

It probably was me on the wiki. I have too much time on my hands that while I could spend doing other things, I prefer to spend on fandom. I'm glad it's been helpful!

Yes, we did! I think, anyway? It was the video you linked to that I pulled the quote from, because I didn't want to trawl through the story again to search for it.

[rheasilvia]

Guardian worldbuilding gives us so much to talk about! It's actually perfectly set up for fanfic - or for meta discussion, of course. I really have to say that the longer I am in Guardian fandom, the more I like the fact that the worldbuilding is not streamlined. :-)

I'm a fandom Old

Me too! Guardian seems to be drawing a lot of fannish veterans out of the shadows. *g*

[likealeafonthewind]

It really is! It's rich enough that there's lots to talk about but enclosed enough that it's not overwhelming (the last fandom I was active in was Star Wars, where trying to make sense of canon was like a full-time job). I love that you can take it in so many different directions.

Yay, I'm glad we're all coming together in this fandom! It's really cool, actually, that some people who I had seen in previous fandoms (namely, rageprufrock) are also here.

[rheasilvia]

enclosed enough that it's not overwhelming

Oh yes, that is a very good point - I'm presently working on some small-scale Guardian data gathering, and I don't think I'd try if there were more material to go through than 40 eps. It's the perfect amount, and I agree entirely that it's a plus for it to be such an open universe, right up to the ending.

It is wonderful to share fandoms with old friends again - and because Guardian is *extremely contagious*, I must say that I've acually had great success with actively drawing innocent fans into the maelstrom. A few eps are usually enough. ;-)

[likealeafonthewind]

Oh! I too have been working on Guardian data mining (mostly because I need to get a better grasp of in-universe mechanics and worldbuilding for fic purposes). What are you looking into?

Actually, phyrry drew me in by linking me to your intro post and I was sold on the first paragraph. This show just hits so many of my fandom buttons.

[rheasilvia]

I have an SID timeline in the works, and some musings on Dixingian biology. Also for fic purposes! :-)

Heee, I am glad I was able to play a small part in drawing you into this fandom. Guardian is like live slash fanfic... it delivers so many things in generous amounts that other shows only hint at stingily. It has spoiled me for other shows! :-)

[likealeafonthewind]

Oh, cool! I've tried to put together a general timeline of events, dating back to when the spaceship first landed on Haixing. And I'm working on putting together something about the Hallows, in an attempt to piece together how they work. Also, Shen Wei's powers, for the Shen Wei masterpost I've been working on (Zhao Yunlan's next).

Guardian is like live slash fanfic

Yes! It's such a lovely slash fanfic too. The only other shows I've watched that have hinted at and delivered on the slash were Torchwood and Queer As Folk (I've only seen the UK version).

[rheasilvia]

Yeah, I have some Hallows data compiled too, but it isn't comprehensive! There are SO many details left to fill in. Luckily, I think that's part of the fun. :-)

Queer as Folk UK was far superior to the US one in my opinion, so no need to branch out there. ;-)

For me, Guardian has all of the explicitly m/m shows I've seen beat by miles. I don't need sex scenes (I mean, I'm definitely not opposed, but it's not what I'm there for); I want to feel the intensity of the emotions, and believe in the love, the relationship. I want those things to be central to the drama. And that's where Guardian really delivers. <3

[mecurtin]

I've added you as I, too, am an Old. But these guys make me feel young again!

[likealeafonthewind]

I think that being involved in fandom (and being around people who are excited about the same fannish things I am) keeps me feeling young.

I've added you back. Hi, new friend!

[green]

Adding you! :D

[likealeafonthewind]

Hello, and welcome to the Guardian fandom! I added you back. :)