Alyus The Amazing

Dexter: Resurrection and the Conspiracy Comfort Fantasy — First Impressions Now, if you’re reading this and you haven’t finished New Blood —what are you doing? Go watch it. Don’t get mad at me for spoilers, you’ve been warned. Before we jump into Dexter: Resurrection , let’s do a quick recap of New Blood . After faking his death, Dexter reappears in small-town Iron Lake, New York, living under a new identity and trying to be normal. Spoiler: it doesn’t work. Old habits die hard (pun intended), and Dexter eventually goes back to his old ways—this time while reconnecting with his teenage son, Harrison. Things spiral fast, and it all leads to a brutal ending where Harrison kills Dexter in what’s supposed to be a tragic but redemptive finale. …or so we thought. I went into Dexter: Resurrection curious about how the show would justify bringing Dexter back (again). Two episodes in, I’m noticing something unsettling beneath the glossy murder montages: this reboot leans heavily on the idea ...

  56 Years Since Stonewall: Still Here, Still Loud, Still Proud Today marks 56 years since a bunch of drag queens, trans women, queer youth, and everyone else sick of being shaken down by cops decided enough was enough. We may never know who threw the first brick on June 28, 1969 - or whether there was even a single “first brick” - because Stonewall was never about one person. It was a collective middle finger to a system that tried to keep queer people silent, invisible, and ashamed. Since that night, we’ve kept fighting, kept dancing, and kept surviving. Some milestones worth remembering: 1970: The first Christopher Street Liberation March, the spark of Pride 1973: The APA finally admits we’re not mentally ill and removes homosexuality from the DSM 1978: Harvey Milk’s assassination, which turned grief into a rallying cry 1981: AIDS devastates the community, but queer people organize care when no one else will 1987: ACT UP is born, demanding action while the government...

  10 Years Since Obergefell v Hodges: Love Won, And It’s Not Going Anywhere Back in 2015, the Supreme Court finally recognized what most of us already knew: same-sex couples are perfectly capable of marriage, drama and all. Obergefell v. Hodges confirmed that love is love — and that basic rights like hospital visits, taxes, and joint Netflix accounts should never be exclusive to straight people. Ten years later, we’re still here, rings on fingers, filing joint returns, and raising kids who know that freedom should apply to everyone. Sure, there are folks trying to hit rewind on equality, but spoiler alert: we’re not going back in the closet, and we’re not handing over our hard-won rights. Obergefell matters because nobody is truly free if we aren’t all free. Our neighbors’ rights protect our own, and that solidarity is what keeps this democracy breathing. So yes — celebrate a decade of marriage equality. Smile at every wedding you see. Cheer for the love stories that would ha...

  Transitioning and Gender Therapy: How to Stay Safe and Get the Care You Deserve By Alyus Vasquez Originally published August 14, 2019 – Updated May 31, 2025 for clarity and accessibility Why Licensing Matters in Transgender Therapy If you’re seeking therapy as part of your gender transition, you deserve to feel safe, affirmed, and respected. Unfortunately, not every provider advertising themselves as a “gender therapist” is properly licensed—or ethical. The truth is, there are clinical standards for working with transgender clients. Anyone who tells you otherwise is either misinformed or misleading you. Licensed mental health professionals—especially those with LCSW, LMHC, or similar credentials—are required to follow state regulations, clinical best practices, and professional ethical codes. Before you open up to a therapist, verify their credentials . You can use the ASWB License Verification tool to look up social workers by name and ensure they are licensed in your s...

  The Body Knows It’s strange, isn’t it—how we can tell when a single strand of hair, not our own, clings to our skin. It’s weightless, nearly imperceptible, yet our nerves tingle with its foreignness. Our brain maps us so thoroughly, so intimately, that even the smallest inconsistency sounds an alarm. Like the brush of a spider leg on bare skin, we react before we can think. Instinct kicks in. We swat it away, we shiver, we know it doesn’t belong. It’s not logic—it’s survival. That’s embodiment. Not something mystical—something primal. Animal. We know where we end and the world begins. We know when something is on us, and when something is not us. We know our bodies—not because we looked in a mirror, but because we live inside them. So when I say something is missing between my legs, I don’t mean it metaphorically. I mean it the way you’d know if a finger went numb, or a tooth fell out, or your voice came out of someone else’s mouth. And when I say my breasts felt foreign,...

Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty; Murray Close/Warner Bros.   Why I Wrote This Letter to John Lithgow When I heard rumors that John Lithgow might be cast as Albus Dumbledore in a future Harry Potter project, I felt heartbreak instead of joy. As a trans man who has admired Lithgow’s work my entire life, the idea of him aligning with a franchise whose creator has caused so much harm to the trans community felt personal. This letter is not a take-down. It’s a respectful, heartfelt plea - from one artist to another. I wrote it because I believe in accountability, but also in compassion. Because I know how much good Lithgow has done through his roles, and how important it is that we continue to tell the truth, even when it’s hard. Below is my open letter. I hope it reaches the heart it was written for.  

 Benevolent Misogyny in Pop Culture: How "Nice Guy" Syndrome Reinforces Sexism Men who claim to love and respect women but are actually misogynistic often fall into the category of benevolent misogyny —a subtler, more insidious form of sexism masked as admiration or protection. Basically, the rom-com version of a red flag. It’s the sweet-talking, door-holding, woman-"respecting" guy who somehow always ends up making the decisions, hogging the spotlight, or flipping the script the second a woman steps out of line. It’s not always loud or aggressive. In fact, that’s the point. This brand of sexism wears a polite smile, quotes a Rupi Kaur poem, and still manages to treat women like supporting characters in its personal growth narrative. These men may outwardly express support for women while still upholding patriarchal values that limit women’s autonomy, reinforce traditional gender roles, or subtly devalue women’s voices. This subtle form of sexism has been a stap...

A Feminist Book Review of Slewfoot: Witches, Patriarchy, and a Sexy Goat Demon? Before We Begin: A Warning for the Faint of Heart (and Those Who Like to Be Emotionally Prepared) This review contains major spoilers for Slewfoot by Brom. If you haven’t read it yet, do yourself a favor—close this tab, go buy the book , and let it consume your soul before coming back. Trust me, you’ll thank me later. (And no, I don't get paid for the links on my blog.) That said, Slewfoot is not a gentle book. It’s dark, brutal, and drenched in blood—so before we dive into feminist rage, horned demons, and Puritan nightmares, here’s your content warning buffet: Trigger Warnings for Slewfoot Misogyny & Gender-Based Oppression – Welcome to Puritan New England, where women aren’t exactly thriving. Religious Abuse & Fanaticism – The church is less about salvation and more about controlling women and outlawing joy. Witch Hunts & Violence Against Women – It’s as bad as you’d expect...

  Before We Begin: A Word of Warning  Alright, listen up, dear reader—I’m about to gush hard about To Shape a Dragon’s Breath , but before we dive in, I have to give you a spoiler warning . Yes, that’s right, this review will contain major spoilers , deep analysis, and possibly some yelling (the excited kind). So if you haven’t read the book yet and you prefer to go in blind, stop right here and do yourself a favor: go grab a copy, devour it, and then come back so we can scream about it together. Need a link? I got you: Buy To Shape a Dragon’s Breath here!  and no I don't make money on this link. If you’ve already read it (or if you’re a chaos gremlin who loves spoilers), then buckle up, because we’re about to break down why this book is an absolute 10 out of 10 masterpiece of feminist, queer, and anti-colonial storytelling. Let’s get into it. The Burden of Being “The First” You know that classic story where a scrappy protagonist stumbles into a prestigious scho...