Tell me I have daddy issues one more time

rex-clypeus:

Whenever I have to listen to someone explain why they’re father/son to me, I’m hardly ever given a chance to talk about how I see it. Often they’ll jump the gun, call me on my supposed moral crimes or occasionally point at me and tell me I have daddy issues.

Well, no.

The reason I can’t see Hank and Connor as Father/Son, personally, is because I can’t imagine being a parent who relies on my foster child to pick me up at every turn. I can’t imagine violently pressing them against a wall or hitting them across the face like Hank does/may do. I can’t imagine having to be saved by said, newly adopted child, or rely on them to be my supporting pillar, from my abuse of alcohol to my suicidal tendencies. That would be unfair to the child if that were the case. As Hank, I also really hate this new guy, he’s better than myself at my job, more than my equal at it. He may as well just be my replacement, he renders me useless and I generally dislike androids and I tell him to fuck off more than often enough. As the person I am, currently deeply depressed and self-debilitating, I wouldn’t want to be seen as a role model. I will, however, care if he is hurt, the way I project it – because that’s my human defect. I will also rely on his investigative skills, if he proves useful, because, fuck everything. Fuck this case, fuck Fowler, FBI, AND Reed.

Connor, to me, doesn’t fit the mold of a foster child. Hank doesn’t try to shape Connor like one either. Connor will mostly act on his own, more like an errant, overconfident rookie who needs to be held on a leash. He’ll listen to orders occasionally because Hank outranks him as a human and lieutenant, or by the players choice, but Connor isn’t naive. He isn’t a child or someone who needs any more/less guidance than Hank.

As an android who has never felt any pain or known sadness or joy or anger, but merely, see the parameters of task priority by calculations based on my masters’ input, I don’t judge by emotions. That doesn’t make me naïve, that merely makes me seem less human to you or like a child. You project the role of a child on me because I’m not as emotionally developed as you are and because I can not always read the air in social situations. However, I can compute clear-cut pre-constructions of tasks I am able to execute. I can tell you what chemicals are under your shoes, I can tell you so much more than you will ever know in facts, because you’re limited when it comes to absorbing information, and I am not. I am trained in arms and I am strong – perfectly capable physically. But once I go deviant, once I start to understand that I am alive, once I can reflect on myself in others and feel what they feel – my task priorities are jumbled. I am no longer sure in which order I need to perform them anymore, and I start relying on the spontaneous input from my peers. I need them, then. Just like anyone in a state of confusion – and not really as anyone’s child.

In the empathic routes, they support each other, need each other. They start out at two extremes and meet in the center as two equals. And by equals, I mean as two perfectly capable adults with different backgrounds and defects of their own, but they make up for it together.

Though, if I were to angle myself a bit, I could maybe see the father/son relationship. That is if I wanted to see a problematic and dysfunctional one at that. I’m sure that’s not what people mean when they say father/son, but that’s the only way I can see their relationship as such. One that needs a lot of patching up. Because as a parent, you’re supposed to uplift your children, they’re not an emotional tourniquet you adopt when you need it. The parental/child relationship implies there needs to be a bit of parenting as well, and I don’t see it.

Well… Okay, there IS another way I can see the parent/child relationship. And that is Connor in the parental role. Hank always acting irresponsibly, drinking too much and moaning, protesting tasks like a child whereas Connor does what needs to be done, just like a good father with extremely heightened intelligence and computing powers who needs to keep the cart rolling.

Yeah.

I’m not even going to go into why I ship them romantically because I think my art speaks enough for that as is.

I don’t vent a lot, but I vent now.

rex-clypeus:

The various ideas people who are anti-HankCon have, just blows my mind. Half the time, these people haven’t even played the game or felt their hands shake or their hearts jump at the intense choices you sometimes have to make, holding the controller.

I’m fine with your opinions because we’re all allowed to interpret the fandom as we want, but I’m not fine when it is brought to me or to people I care about, in narrow and disrespectful manners.

As your reasoning to why you shower other people with hate or unmeritedly and harshly accuse them of moral crimes;

Don’t tell me:

I can only see these two as Father/Son, when;

As Connor, you have the entire spectrum between the extremities of villainy to adorable puppy-android. There are multiple paths you can take, either to become a murderous, cold terminator who eventually may be the cause of Hanks various deaths. Or to overcome machinery and turn into a powerful (~~attack puppy~~) ally of his.

Their relationship starts out rough. Hank may well take to violence (even kill Connor) out of anger because he doesn’t see Connor as a human. Much less a human child. Or son.

They’re co-workers in crime investigation. Connor is fitted with super-human investigative properties, his integrity isn’t something you can just reduce or infantile. People can be socially awkward and need guidance, even as adults.

The gradual process of deviancy, if you go empathic!Connor, is something that happens throughout the game. Connor isn’t just suddenly “born” with self-awareness.

Though you are free to interpret it as such a relationship, by the end of the game, if you have managed to get yourself a caring relationship with Hank.

Or if you enjoy abusive and hateful father/son dynamics and want to project that onto the machine routes, instead. To each their own?

Puppy means you see him as a child!!

No, it is an affectionate term.

Puppy means we see him as a loyal partner who, in this case, has a sweet and pure mannerism.

– seem to care for their mate unconditionally.

– follows their mate around everywhere.

– would protect their mate from any danger.

– takes orders from his hierarchical superior (at work) mate unless ~~machine-instructed~~ otherwise. (I’m so funny)

It’s “pedophilia” and “incest”;

Don’t trivialize the arguments about “pedophilia” and “incest”. There are so many things wrong with using these as arguments in this fandom.

Definition of Pedophilia: “a psychiatric disorder in which an adult has sexual fantasies about or engages in sexual acts with a prepubescent child”. (Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary) – Connor is modeled after a human male in his 30s.

Definition of Incest: “sexual intercourse between persons so closely related that they are forbidden by law to marry; also: the statutory crime of such a relationship. “ (Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary) – Connor is an Android. Hank is a human. They aren’t exactly closely related, at least in terms of genetics.

He called Connor “son”!

And I may affectionally call an older person “Uncle” without having to be related by blood or to see him as such.

Other examples: Granpa, Pops, Granny, Auntie, Sis, Bro.

The disparity in their physical age is too large!

There’s no such thing when it comes to an otherwise (if depicted as such) wholesome and equal relationship. The only thing you have to deal with then, is your own prejudicial bum.

It’s gross because -insert shallow reason-.

Then maybe steer clear, if you can’t handle looking at an older male somewhat passed his “physical prime” (in the eye of the beholder).

…or if you can’t handle things being a bit “gay”.

…or if you are convinced and disillusioned by aforementioned arguments as being the complete and entire universal truth.

I’m not the type to get upset easily, or take offense, but when hate is misguided or fueled by misconceptions and prejudice or even ignorance, and when it affects other people who are not deserving of it, I get pissy, in my own space and corner mostly. So I want to clear things up.

Also, I struggle a lot with English. It’s not my native language but I hope my concepts were clear.

Anyway. If you want to interpret their relationship as father/son dynamics, be my guest, but please don’t tag my art with that, it then gets personal for me, it’s like you’re falsely labeling my Tumblr content and turning me into a villain for drawing ship art between what I consider as TWO EQUALS.