Some tropes are better left unwritten: the omegaverse edition
It is, alas, a lamentable truth of our present age that omegaverse, so steeped in pseudoscientific absurdity and regressive social constructs, has insinuated itself into the heart of modern entertainment, defiling the printed pages of books, the fevered scribblings of fanfiction, the illustrated panels of comics, and the staged passions of dramas. Vast sums of money and countless hours of human endeavor are lavished upon its propagation, whilst BL/gay works of true merit are suppressed by censorious hands and condemned to wither in the dim corners of public consciousness
Though my heart swears fealty to BL/gay narratives, it shudders, nay, rises in rebellion, at the mere invocation of "futanari" and its progeny, gender bender and omegaverse chief among them. These, I maintain, are inimical to the values I hold sacred, and provoke in me a persistent discontent for four irrefragable reasons:
1. Their homophobia,
2. Their exploitative mimicry of opposite-sex characteristics,
3. Their dogged adherence to a pro-birth ideology, and
4. Their blasphemous misbranding as BL or gay content
I will give a quick rundown of my reasoning
*The homophobia*
-2 points
Society has made a deity of procreation. It kneels before the cradle as before an altar, not to adore the life within, but to venerate the future cogs and pistons that life shall supply to the great engine of commerce and control. The child is a promise of continuity; of goods consumed, of taxes paid, of orders obeyed. Thus are those chaste and unfruitful unions between members of the same sex held in contempt and branded with infamy. By the sovereign decree of nature, and save that the body be preserved from the violating touch of technology, gay relationships feed not the insatiable maw/ravenous belly of the state, nor replenish its dominions with fresh subjects to be bound in servitude
The natural deviation from the established norm provokes society's irrational wrath, which manifests in the abhorrent desire to feminize male characters or masculinize female characters. The men are feminized through the imposition of female anatomy (e.g., vulva, vagina, uterus) and capacity for pregnancy, while the women are masculinized through the imposition of male anatomy (e.g., penis, testes) and capacity for impregnation
Characters are warped into paradoxical feminine-masculine hybrids at best, caricatures of the opposite sex at worst. Prisoners of their bodies, their worth is degraded to that of a factory-grade "impregnating" and/or "birthing" machine. The omegaverse forces of pheromones, heats, and ruts further strip them of the freedom to carve their own paths and relationships. They're unable to break free from the stifling straightness/heteronormativity that defines their everyday interactions
This dystopian perversion of human bodies proves society's true intention: to erase non-straight/non-procreative relationships and maintain its iron grip on conformity
*The fetishistic appropriation of opposite-sex physical characteristics*
-2 points
People pursue what they can't have in an effort to fill a perceived void in their lives. They've at times coveted the womb's capacity to bear life (womb envy) and the penis's association with dominance (penis envy). Moved by the envy, they appropriate the appearances that resemble those of the opposite sex. Their minds wander to a fictional combination of male and female characteristics within a single form; a futa, an omega, or a Frankenstein's monster of sorts
They turn from the truth that the characteristics separating men and women aren't blemishes or shortcomings to be "fixed." Each male or female body is complete in its own right
*The pro-birth ideology*
-2 points
The contention that omegaverse is but a figment of imagination, a whimsical flight of fancy, does little to nullify my objections against it. Beneath the surface is a troubling fetishization of the pregnant form that espouses a pro-birth ideology. Omegaverse contributes to the sociocultural paradigm that sanctifies birth and ascribes it a revered, near-spiritual status
I take the opposite stance that birth holds no inherent beauty. Pregnancy is a grueling, unsightly process that exacts a heavy toll on the body, compromising the well-being of the being that endures it. Furthermore, "procreation" is an egregious imposition of the highest order, an act that binds a new helpless being to the chains of life's trials, tribulations, and uncertainties. Its media glorification is irresponsible and an affront to the very notion of morality
"Not to be born at all
Is best, far best that can befall, ...
... For when youth passes with its giddy train,
Troubles on troubles follow, toils on toils,
Pain, pain for ever pain;
And none escapes life’s coils
Envy, sedition, strife,
Carnage and war, make up the tale of life" (Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus)
Our society's imperfect. There's no reason to fabricate an alternate pro-birth society burdened with greater cracks and fissures than ours
In the event that one's gripped by a desire to nurture a child, I believe the commendable path towards parenthood would be to consider adoption and provide a secure, loving home to an existing child that's been unfortunate enough to journey through life
*The branding*
-2 points
I believe the capacity for pregnancy is exclusive to women. Men can't experience it, or they'd cease to be men. It's thus incorrect to label as gay or BL the "straight" interactions of fictional characters capable of pregnancy. They belong to a different category
TL;DR The drama earns 2 points for trying, and loses 8 for its omegaverse themes and reluctance to commit to a gay storyline
Though my heart swears fealty to BL/gay narratives, it shudders, nay, rises in rebellion, at the mere invocation of "futanari" and its progeny, gender bender and omegaverse chief among them. These, I maintain, are inimical to the values I hold sacred, and provoke in me a persistent discontent for four irrefragable reasons:
1. Their homophobia,
2. Their exploitative mimicry of opposite-sex characteristics,
3. Their dogged adherence to a pro-birth ideology, and
4. Their blasphemous misbranding as BL or gay content
I will give a quick rundown of my reasoning
*The homophobia*
-2 points
Society has made a deity of procreation. It kneels before the cradle as before an altar, not to adore the life within, but to venerate the future cogs and pistons that life shall supply to the great engine of commerce and control. The child is a promise of continuity; of goods consumed, of taxes paid, of orders obeyed. Thus are those chaste and unfruitful unions between members of the same sex held in contempt and branded with infamy. By the sovereign decree of nature, and save that the body be preserved from the violating touch of technology, gay relationships feed not the insatiable maw/ravenous belly of the state, nor replenish its dominions with fresh subjects to be bound in servitude
The natural deviation from the established norm provokes society's irrational wrath, which manifests in the abhorrent desire to feminize male characters or masculinize female characters. The men are feminized through the imposition of female anatomy (e.g., vulva, vagina, uterus) and capacity for pregnancy, while the women are masculinized through the imposition of male anatomy (e.g., penis, testes) and capacity for impregnation
Characters are warped into paradoxical feminine-masculine hybrids at best, caricatures of the opposite sex at worst. Prisoners of their bodies, their worth is degraded to that of a factory-grade "impregnating" and/or "birthing" machine. The omegaverse forces of pheromones, heats, and ruts further strip them of the freedom to carve their own paths and relationships. They're unable to break free from the stifling straightness/heteronormativity that defines their everyday interactions
This dystopian perversion of human bodies proves society's true intention: to erase non-straight/non-procreative relationships and maintain its iron grip on conformity
*The fetishistic appropriation of opposite-sex physical characteristics*
-2 points
People pursue what they can't have in an effort to fill a perceived void in their lives. They've at times coveted the womb's capacity to bear life (womb envy) and the penis's association with dominance (penis envy). Moved by the envy, they appropriate the appearances that resemble those of the opposite sex. Their minds wander to a fictional combination of male and female characteristics within a single form; a futa, an omega, or a Frankenstein's monster of sorts
They turn from the truth that the characteristics separating men and women aren't blemishes or shortcomings to be "fixed." Each male or female body is complete in its own right
*The pro-birth ideology*
-2 points
The contention that omegaverse is but a figment of imagination, a whimsical flight of fancy, does little to nullify my objections against it. Beneath the surface is a troubling fetishization of the pregnant form that espouses a pro-birth ideology. Omegaverse contributes to the sociocultural paradigm that sanctifies birth and ascribes it a revered, near-spiritual status
I take the opposite stance that birth holds no inherent beauty. Pregnancy is a grueling, unsightly process that exacts a heavy toll on the body, compromising the well-being of the being that endures it. Furthermore, "procreation" is an egregious imposition of the highest order, an act that binds a new helpless being to the chains of life's trials, tribulations, and uncertainties. Its media glorification is irresponsible and an affront to the very notion of morality
"Not to be born at all
Is best, far best that can befall, ...
... For when youth passes with its giddy train,
Troubles on troubles follow, toils on toils,
Pain, pain for ever pain;
And none escapes life’s coils
Envy, sedition, strife,
Carnage and war, make up the tale of life" (Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus)
Our society's imperfect. There's no reason to fabricate an alternate pro-birth society burdened with greater cracks and fissures than ours
In the event that one's gripped by a desire to nurture a child, I believe the commendable path towards parenthood would be to consider adoption and provide a secure, loving home to an existing child that's been unfortunate enough to journey through life
*The branding*
-2 points
I believe the capacity for pregnancy is exclusive to women. Men can't experience it, or they'd cease to be men. It's thus incorrect to label as gay or BL the "straight" interactions of fictional characters capable of pregnancy. They belong to a different category
TL;DR The drama earns 2 points for trying, and loses 8 for its omegaverse themes and reluctance to commit to a gay storyline
Was this review helpful to you?
