Reyookah's comic is beyond hilarious because the reaction MTFs have to it is unanimously confirming that a lot of them are gross panty-stealing creeps with no empathy for women or the deceased and have been a scourge on the internet for a long, long time. The main difference between the two camps of response are really just a matter of "Wow, OP really understands the teenage transfem experience back in the prehistoric era of 2007!" and "OP is such a blistering, wicked transmisogynist because she can't stop exposing the truth about what young trannies are like!"
In terms of optics, neither of these sentiments should be expressed, but in terms of comedy I can't get enough. Please tie your own nooses a little bit tighter, troons, I haven't yet heard an ACK.
Dude, I saw that one! It was viscerally disgusting, and people were just responding to it like it's normal and good and reasonable. I feel like the author was intending for you to empathize with igor or whatever the fuck its name was, but reading about gore and online abuse rings, and how this is apparently central to the character's transgender identity is a pretty disturbing little fucking insight into how they think!
"This is a real mask-off moment" and "They said the quiet part out loud" are stupid little buzz-phrases that people like to spit out nowadays, but I mean, fuck buddy, you really don't get a much clearer vision of the MTF brain than that. A psychotic freak who uses the internet way too much, is into sado-masochism and crossdressing, and is traumatized from beatings by his father.
Is this the queer art that they all say needs to be treasured and supported for showing off the LGBT lifestyle? Because I don't know if there is a less flattering way to depict trannies than this. (Other than perhaps troonjaks)
I just don't get the Roman helmet in it
It's not a Roman helmet, it's a Spartan helmet, and this does matter.
In terms of design, the helmet may represent a strong outer masculine "shell" for the protagonist to hide within while also serving as an anonymizing mask (as the protagonist's face is never revealed, which may be the artist's way of implying that the protagonist has not yet discovered his "true self" - or his real face).
Spartan, as an ethnonym, refers to the people of Sparta, but it can also be used as an adjective, Spartan, in reference to the attitudes and customs of the Spartan people. Traditionally the Spartans were understood as brutal, austere, efficient warriors. Their society was centered around the military, from a young age they separated all boys and young men from their families and sent them to live in the barracks as soldiers.
The character's primary representation with a Spartan helmet, but with a changing face can be interpreted in, I think, two different ways.
1. The character is born with these Spartan characteristics, brutish and nasty, and is yearning for a femininity to replace this birth nature, he is represented by the face of a woman when he is online playing as someone else. However, he is still wrestling with his birth characteristics, and gets drawn into disgusting fetish and abuse circles online which he will have to come to grips with. (Troon interpretation)
2. The character is something of a shapeshifter, metaphorically, a chameleon on the internet. He goes around roleplaying as a woman, taking on many different aliases and backgrounds, but ultimately, it's in service of his twisted fetishes created by his toxic relationship with his father. The feminine alter egos are a shell to cover up and hide his true Spartan personality that he is ashamed of. (Psych ward interpretation)