Taashs So Hot It Hurts

Okay, let's talk about the coming out scene, because people are saying Taash was the one out of line.

Shathann is a sympathetic character. That does not make her a good person. She saved her child from a life of servitude by leaving the country she loved and tried to preserve that culture in her child. I respect that. I also wish there was a way to encourage Taash to embrace both sides of their culture.

BUT.

From the moment we meet her, Shathann criticizes literally everything her child does. Taash runs an errand for her, and Shathann criticizes their posture, pronunciation, gender presentation, AND sexuality, completely unprovoked, yes, in one fucking conversation. Shathann invites Taash over for dinner and then makes Taash cook that fucking dinner. And this has happened before, as stated in the dialogue. Taash is so affected by this behavior and probably worse they have endured their entire life that they say "you don't get to tell me who I am" at a simple question about their heritage, out of pure instinct.

Now to the actual scene.

Taash invites their mother to their new home and prepares a dinner for her, which Shathann immediately criticizes and has Taash make vegetables to go with. Can you imagine inviting someone into your home for dinner you prepare only for them to shit on it and ask you to cook more. And Taash does so, with a grunt. I'd be like bitch you're in my house, I cooked, eat. But they just do it.

Then they say it. "Im nonbinary." Shathann asks what that means, completely fair, and Taash explains that it means they're not a man or a woman.

Shathann asks if this is because she criticizes their gender presentation. Now listen. I have a parent who thinks nearly everything "wrong" with me is a reaction to their actions. It pisses me off. So Taash is getting reasonably frustrated, and insists that's not why. VALID. They were asked a question and they answered.

Let's talk about the Qun and gender identity. Yes they have a word for people who identify as a different gender than they were assigned. But this is implied to apply to trans men and women, not nonbinary people, so Shathann is asking Taash if they "just" identify as a man, because that's something Shathann can better understand, something more convenient for her to process. Sort of like when trans people come out to someone and are asked if they're "just gay."

No. And Taash says no. They have explained who they are. If Shathann was just having a hard time processing it that would be one thing, but she basically talked over Taash and tried to suggest that they were just a man, which they are not. Taash is being vulnerable. Taash doesn't even HAVE to tell Shathann this, but they want to, they think she deserves to know.

And what Taash says next is not purely to do with this one conversation, as explicit in the text. "why am I never enough for you." Never. Not now. We have seen Shathann critique Taash in every scene they share, and that's with a whole other person present who is not in the family. We don't know what happens in private. Shathann signed her child up for a fucking war without even talking to them about it. What Taash says is the build up of years of being talked over and criticized for everything they do, provoked by offering themselves to that person in a vulnerable position only to be talked over and criticized more.

"Why am I never enough for you."

And Shathann does not answer. She doesnt say "of course you are." Even if she disagreed with Taash's identity, which would be shitty, she could still affirm that they are enough for her. She doesn't.

She fucking leaves.

Maybe she thinks that's what Taash wants. Maybe not. But if someone asks you something like that, you affirm them. You say they are enough. Especially if they're your fucking child. But no, this conversation is too inconvenient for Shathann, she's not getting her way like she did when she signed Taash up for a war without their consent, so she just leaves. She could've said "I don't understand, but I love you." She couldve said anything. But she just left.

I'm sad she died. Im glad she accepted her child in the end. But no, Taash was not in any way out of line in this conversation.

Shathann was.

I think where the “you’re just mad people are critiquing a game you like” crowd gets me the most is that I’ve read all their critiques. I was legitimately surprised on my first run that some people took Veilguard so personally and were vitriolic so I went through and read what they were saying because I was like “what did I miss?” That’s my first instinct when something confuses me is to dig. (Oh hey I applied this to the game too! Crazy!)

And when I started breaking down what they were saying was when I started getting annoyed because their arguments were either in such bad faith, reductive, or just plain wrong. Like Orientalism in the game? Fair! But I have not seen talk of that get anywhere near the amount of traction as “Solas should have torn down the Veil and him and Lavellan should have had elf supremacy together and they didn’t so game bad.” “I missed a bunch of stuff then blamed BioWare.” Or “I didn’t like how it played out so writing bad.” Or “They didn’t say the Maker enough and I counted.” That last one is my favorite. Oh and “the language is too modern” and they’re specifically talking about Taash because they don’t want to admit nonbinary people make them uncomfortable.

But wow I don’t see that energy from the other side at all. I don’t see them even trying to understand or read why people like the game. I try to encourage people to read your meta write ups as well as my own and they either just want to pick a fight because I have the audacity to love the game rather than hear me out or step outside of that negativity for like two seconds. Here we are two months later and they’re still acting like Veilguard broke into their house and beat them up and stole their sixty bucks then took a piss on the old games.

Half the queer fandom being frothingly mad at the idea that the game unapologetically uses the words "trans" and "nonbinary" for their characters... While the other half compares Mary Kirby to JK Rowling for confirming what some people already suspected about her demisexual character though it's not verbally stated onscreen...

Like... Like.

I'm laughing through my tears.

If you are any sort of queer writer? Writing from an authentically queer perspective? Don't forget! There's no actual right perfect acceptable way to do rep and that is obviously YOUR FAULT. Whatever you choose, everyone knows you did it with malicious intent and could've done better but chose not to. And that's on you, babe! Prepare to be demonized by your own community until you die

Leliana at the Battle of Denerim when I make her wear heavy armor so she can survive the Darkspawn

Ahh, I remember the day when I decided that my Rook and all of my future Rooks were going to romance Taash.

I love the little slap Taash gives to their thighs as they rocket up from their seat during Thedas' Funniest Home Videos. It's just a neat little bit of animation.

I was forwarded a DISSERTATION on how Neve isn't a real relationship for Lucanis, “because she doesn't validate Spite”, and truly, genuinely:

I need y'all to stop whole ass making shit up to protect your blorbo from this character, who is actually better than you in every way, and go see a therapist.

some of you have never united Ferelden against the Blight and it shows

I don’t understand Taash hate

I don’t know if I’ve said this before but I occasionally see people say “oh Taash is rude and mean, and they don’t respect others yet expect respect with their pronouns”

The respect part especially gets me because correct me if I’m wrong Taash never demands respect from anyone except maybe the Dragon King and their mom. Even with their pronouns, I don’t even think they do as much as correct anyone even in the scene with Isabela when they get it wrong

They’re not even rude either because like a lot of times when they’re talking about what other companions do, for example Emmirich’s “death mage stuff” and “corpse stuff”, it’s very clear, or very clear to me, they are saying it like that because they don’t know anything about it, the same way I would call what an IT guy does “computer stuff”

(Also used Emmirich specifically as an example because I’ve noticed Emmirich girlies, no offense to Emmirich girlies, get really defensive about anything that’s even sorta negative towards him. Seen it with Taash and Harding’s interactions with him but this is off topic.)

And if Taash is too mean of a companion for you to even consider liking them??? Bro this the game being criticized for everyone being too nice if they’re too mean I think you’d go into cardiac arrest hearing any companion dialogue from the previous 3 games. Not specifically someone like Morrigan or Fenris literally any of them

Honestly the way Taash acted in Veilguard reminded me of how Karlach acts in BG3 except Taash is just a lot more chill and less energetic

Also to say Taash has the worst story in the game is insane when Harding’s exists (no disrespect to Harding I just think that her questline sucks)

Back on the Emmirich topic except it’s on topic with Taash, Taash being weirded out or cautious about the shit Emmirich does is literally the most normal reaction to Necromancy.