Sigh… let’s talk about J.

Before I start, trigger warnings for mentions of SH, drugs and suicide here. If these kind of topics are triggering for you, please dont read this. Take care of yourself.

Hi. Kev here. Frankly, this isn't something that I really want to talk about, but the amount of posts recently talking about how artists portray J is honestly really starting to get on my nerves, and as the person who may have inadvertently popularised 'jangst' on this subreddit, I feel the need to share my own opinion. I hate getting involved in drama, but frankly some of the opinions regarding this topic have left an incredibly bitter taste in my mouth and i feel the need to discuss them. You don't have to agree with anything I say here, but please, at least take some time to think about the points I make.

If you've been living under a rock, recently there has been a lot of drama surrounding 'Jangst', specifically artworks in which J is involved in suicide, SH, drug abuse, etc. Now, I can not preface this enough, IT IS PERFECTLY FINE TO FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE ABOUT THESE ARTWORKS. These are very serious subjects. HOWEVER, I personally draw the line at creating callout posts and attacking artists for making these kind of works. To properly explain this, let me explain why I personally resonate with and draw angst.

For me, and I'll bet a very large portion of other artists drawing angst of J, this kind of art is very much a coping mechanism. Projecting onto characters can be very comforting and therapeutic. I've seen SO MANY PEOPLE say that artists do this to J simply because they hate her character, and to be honest I feel that that could not be further from the truth in most cases. J is actually one of my favourite characters in the show, implying that people simply want to 'get revenge' on a character and make them suffer to me feels like blatant mischaracterization of the majority artists who draw angst.

I do dislike when people draw this kind of art simply because they think it’s ‘edgy’ or ‘cool’ because this very much glorifies what are In actuality incredibly distressing things to go through (And YES I’m speaking from experience), so if you’re doing that, then please stop. However, you can never know if this is the case or not usually. You DON'T, and likely will NEVER know what an artist is going through.

Please never assume why a person might be drawing angst, and PLEASE, NEVER attack an artist for making these kinds of works. I understand making posts asking about why this kind of art is so popular, but honestly, could you not just search the subreddit for this BEFORE creating a space to foster hate?

You may think I'm overreacting, but I'm honestly very passionate about angst and J as a character. Her story is incredibly tragic. Me and many others find solace in that, we can sympathise with her pain, and we chose to express that through art. I've seen people say pretty disgusting things about these artists. You don't know what's happening behind the screen. We're people too. Please try to understand that. No artist EVER owes YOU a reason for why they draw what they do. Honestly, I'd be willing to discuss in more depth as to why I sympathise with J and also V, but that doesn't mean any other artist would be.

Please if you don't like a piece of artwork, just scroll. It's really as simple as that. There is always an audience for angst, if you personally don't fall into that audience, that doesn't give you any right to hate on these artworks. It's fine to dislike them or feel uncomfortable with them. It's fine to express that civilly. However, making comments about artists along the lines of "What the fuck is wrong with you" isn't okay. Honestly, this applies to angst of any character.

TLDR: In my opinion, most artists draw 'Jangst' as a coping mechanism, not to hate on J (Which is one of the most common reasons I've seen for hating on this kind of art). This kind of art can be genuinely helpful for people who are struggling, and YES I am speaking from experience. Never assume why a person is drawing what they are, and NEVER attack them or try to deprive what could very possibly be a coping mechanism from them. It's far easier on all of us if you just scroll on. It's okay to not like the art or the subject matter. Please just leave these artists alone.

I understand one post from a random person is unlikely to change much, but frankly, I’d love it if we as a community could stop being so hostile regarding this topic.

Before I start, trigger warnings for mentions of SH, drugs and suicide here. If these kind of topics are triggering for you, please dont read this. Take care of yourself.

Hi. Kev here. Frankly, this isn't something that I really want to talk about, but the amount of posts recently talking about how artists portray J is honestly really starting to get on my nerves, and as the person who may have inadvertently popularised 'jangst' on this subreddit, I feel the need to share my own opinion. I hate getting involved in drama, but frankly some of the opinions regarding this topic have left an incredibly bitter taste in my mouth and i feel the need to discuss them. You don't have to agree with anything I say here, but please, at least take some time to think about the points I make.

If you've been living under a rock, recently there has been a lot of drama surrounding 'Jangst', specifically artworks in which J is involved in suicide, SH, drug abuse, etc. Now, I can not preface this enough, IT IS PERFECTLY FINE TO FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE ABOUT THESE ARTWORKS. These are very serious subjects. HOWEVER, I personally draw the line at creating callout posts and attacking artists for making these kind of works. To properly explain this, let me explain why I personally resonate with and draw angst.

For me, and I'll bet a very large portion of other artists drawing angst of J, this kind of art is very much a coping mechanism. Projecting onto characters can be very comforting and therapeutic. I've seen SO MANY PEOPLE say that artists do this to J simply because they hate her character, and to be honest I feel that that could not be further from the truth in most cases. J is actually one of my favourite characters in the show, implying that people simply want to 'get revenge' on a character and make them suffer to me feels like blatant mischaracterization of the majority artists who draw angst.

I do dislike when people draw this kind of art simply because they think it’s ‘edgy’ or ‘cool’ because this very much glorifies what are In actuality incredibly distressing things to go through (And YES I’m speaking from experience), so if you’re doing that, then please stop. However, you can never know if this is the case or not usually. You DON'T, and likely will NEVER know what an artist is going through.

Please never assume why a person might be drawing angst, and PLEASE, NEVER attack an artist for making these kinds of works. I understand making posts asking about why this kind of art is so popular, but honestly, could you not just search the subreddit for this BEFORE creating a space to foster hate?

You may think I'm overreacting, but I'm honestly very passionate about angst and J as a character. Her story is incredibly tragic. Me and many others find solace in that, we can sympathise with her pain, and we chose to express that through art. I've seen people say pretty disgusting things about these artists. You don't know what's happening behind the screen. We're people too. Please try to understand that. No artist EVER owes YOU a reason for why they draw what they do. Honestly, I'd be willing to discuss in more depth as to why I sympathise with J and also V, but that doesn't mean any other artist would be.

Please if you don't like a piece of artwork, just scroll. It's really as simple as that. There is always an audience for angst, if you personally don't fall into that audience, that doesn't give you any right to hate on these artworks. It's fine to dislike them or feel uncomfortable with them. It's fine to express that civilly. However, making comments about artists along the lines of "What the fuck is wrong with you" isn't okay. Honestly, this applies to angst of any character.

TLDR: In my opinion, most artists draw 'Jangst' as a coping mechanism, not to hate on J (Which is one of the most common reasons I've seen for hating on this kind of art). This kind of art can be genuinely helpful for people who are struggling, and YES I am speaking from experience. Never assume why a person is drawing what they are, and NEVER attack them or try to deprive what could very possibly be a coping mechanism from them. It's far easier on all of us if you just scroll on. It's okay to not like the art or the subject matter. Please just leave these artists alone.

I understand one post from a random person is unlikely to change much, but frankly, I’d love it if we as a community could stop being so hostile regarding this topic.