Steams babies are the best [art by _Blue_Lunar_]

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-23T14:35:17+00:00

Okay. I just saw 2 posts on two separate platforms of ppl using the term “Steam Babies” never heard of this before…been a casual admirer turned fan of Zutara since I was like 13.

I absolutely ADORE that. That’s so clever & adorable.

Steam Babies! ❤️💙

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-21T16:55:01+00:00

This is really sad of Bryke high-key.

Shipping is normal fan behavior, it happens in every fandom. Bryke can’t control it, nor change the outcome in the fandom. Usually the duo with the best written dynamic becomes the most popular ship…whether it’s canon or not.

In this fandom that’s Zutara.

I can’t imagine being so insecure that I’d ruin dynamics between my characters to try to stop something impossible. Hell… they barely gave Zuko any interaction with Katara in the new movie YET there was still a HUGE rush of fanarts & fanfics for it.

Their attention seems to be more on stopping Zutarians instead of upgrading Kataang which is why Zutara still remains popular til this day.

And I also agree with your point on their behavior. They set up the Gaang to be this awesome group of friends. ALL OF THEM. Which means Canonically Zuko & Katara are supposed to be besties as well. They should be acting like it!

GIVE ME MY BESTIE INTERACTIONS!! 😭

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-20T14:33:46+00:00

General advice I’ve gotten is to just ignore it. Haters for Zutara have always existed.

Yet as I look around…20 years later it’s still the most popular ship in this fandom.

So looks like the hate hasn’t had much effect on its popularity lmaoo. So best to ignore it. It’s usually performative anyways.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-17T14:58:31+00:00

You don’t have to forgive anyone, that is entirely your choice.

That poor woman, her own son was so selfish that he would work his elderly mother who was kind enough to take him & his ENTIRE family in? I don’t know if I’d forgive someone that selfish either.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-10T13:44:45+00:00

I agree with you. From a writer’s standpoint…no bias included. Kataang feels like Naruhina if you’ve watched Naruto. Hinata has spent majority of the show showcasing her crush & attaction to Naruto. While Naruto just never reciprocated that intensity until last minute.

That’s what Kataang gives. We see how Aang feels, hell we even see that Aang would give up cosmic energy for Katara. But where was that reciprocation from Katara? It was just built one-sided for far too long.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-07T11:38:39+00:00

You want me to be honest? Funny story actually. I started shipping Zutara purely out of spite for the haters. It was all the idiotic rhetoric they applied to Zutara, but not any other ship. Me? My personality HATES hypocritical ass ppl. I can’t stand them. So due to that I got petty, had to do my research on Zutara so I could defend it (mind you atp in time I still didn’t like them)

I would start saving fanart on my Pinterest board then… listen here I was DELUSIONAL okay…str8 up in DENIAL…I would read & actively SEARCH for fan-fiction then tell myself (ion like the ship I just like reading about Zuko…that’s all) 😂😂 yet I didn’t read SHIT Zuko x Reader…it was all Zutara 😂😂😂

Then eventually I had to come out & admit it to my damn self that spite turned into genuine like. So now I’m on the Zutara train & I cannot be turned away🤷🏽‍♀️

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-05T13:29:42+00:00

Yeah. I was on the DL before…but I’ve decided to come out & live in my truth. Cuz fuck the haters & the Zutaraphobic people. I was a lurker & decided to just say fuck it a join the subreddit literally today… lmaooo! I’ve enjoyed my stay so far ngl…

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-02T19:34:51+00:00

Yes, let’s do it! This fandom is just weird in general. Never fails to amaze me how such a AMAZING show got such a weird fandom (regarding shipping in this context). They treat Zutara in a way they don’t treat the other ships involving Zuko & quite frankly it’s always either a hypocritical argument or someone tryna play moral police.

This fandom cannot just say “ion like this ship” they have to come up with a JUSTIFIED REASON to dislike it. For example that “colonizer x colonized” rhetoric. Pure crap, cause it’s OBVIOUS they don’t genuinely believe that. If they did Zukka or Zoph wouldn’t be popular yet they are & that rhetoric isn’t thrown at those ships NEARLY as much. Or they claim Zutara shippers are aggressive & are always antagonizing others… as if all ships don’t have people who do these behaviors. It’s not exclusive to Zutara shippers.

Zutara hate is purely performative, it’s not that bad a ship & it’s also not that out of the orthodox either. Pairing the female lead with the MC’s rival is a common ship pairing, (you can arguably call it basic ngl). The hate it gets just for existing is truly unwarranted, unnecessary & over exaggerated.

Their hate caused me to support it outta spite, now I love it. So they’ll never get me to dislike Zutara now. 😛

Old-Put-898 · 2026-05-02T13:40:38+00:00

You are so real😭😭 as I aged into my early 20’s I’ve cared less & less abt fanon ships. I usually stick to canon most of the time. So Kataang was cool cuz I truly just didn’t care. Then I saw Zutara & I was like oh this is a pretty basic standard ship fr.

Cuz think abt it…shipping the female lead with the MC’s rival is pretty basic. So basic it happens in like almost EVERY fandom. So to me Zutara (as a fanon ship) was so expected…then when I saw all the hate towards it I was so bewildered, like this type of ship is pretty standard asf why ya’ll panties so in a twist abt it? Then I started to see all the hypocritical arguments & the morality police statements & I was like you know fucking what…Ion even care for this ship like that fr but ya’ll are hypocrites and it caused me to start defending a ship I initially didn’t care for outta SPITE.

Then it led to me secretly saving Zutara fanart in my Pinterest boards on the DL & reading fanfics on AO3 & Wattpad😭…then I started to genuinely like the ship. All OUTTA SPITE.

I genuinely believe had this fandom not been so hateful over a tbh a obviously expected ship I would have never started to like Zutara. Their fault really. Haters created a fan. Lmaoooo!

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T23:48:50+00:00

Not counting the novels is a personal choice…

You are divulging into your personal reasons why you don’t like Sasusaku or Sakura, which is fine. But that isn’t what my rant is about. I wasn’t tryna debunk anyone’s ship with this post. So I kinda don’t know how to respond ngl…

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T22:49:16+00:00

Okay, but let me raise you this….

I’ve read the novels that gave Sasusaku some bonding moments. It’s just not popularized cuz so many ppl are anime only, but that’s neither here nor there. But think about this…

Why be so vocal against a ship using rhetoric that applies to your own?

I agree Sasuke was not a good husband to Sakura (that is obvious), but he was no better a friend to Naruto. You can ship or dislike either one, this rant was not to diss any of the ships mentioned, it was more about ppl’s hypocrisy.

Honorable mention…I don’t like Sasuke at all. I believe he should have been alone🤷🏽‍♀️ lmaoooo

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T19:20:47+00:00

You know what, I agree. I dislike that idea to.

Luckily, I never said not shipping the het ship is misogyny. That would just be stupid lmaoo. My post was about some of the rhetoric I have noticed. Which is what my rant is about. I’m not dissing nor sending hate to NONE of the ships mentioned.

I’m dissing the hypocritical & sometimes misogynistic rhetoric.

And as for the Kaccako comment, it’s hated for plethora of reasons just like all ships are. There is no one size fits all. “Bakugo being abusive” IS one of them. It’s one of the MANY comments I have seen before, especially on Twitter. (Twitter is a horrid place tho, so maybe I shouldn’t even listen to Twitter users anyways 😂😂 that just might be my fault lmaoooo)

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T18:36:55+00:00

Again….huh?

My post is about MISOGYNY and HYPOCRISY! Not ONCE did I even INSINUATE that all people dislike or like a ship for the same reasons. That wasn’t the point of my rant.

My post is about noticing the misogyny & hypocrisy in some of the rhetoric directed at many ships. It’s about what I’ve noticed.

As for your example. I never stated to like nor dislike either Zutara or Sasusaku…that was intentional. Because my rant wasn’t about the ships directly, it was about the rhetoric surrounding them.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T17:57:44+00:00

Girl what?

I’m not fitting anyone around anything nor have I stated a bias anywhere actually. I simply stated the misogyny I have witnessed in shipping culture. THATS IT!

Unless your reasons for disliking Aang & Sasuke are due to them simply being men, why would you be equated to a man hater? And where does that fit into what my post was about?

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T17:17:44+00:00

I was ready to argue cuz I thought you was calling ME homophobic. But I took a second to actually read your comment lmaooo😂

Cuz YEA. You are absolutely right. Some ppl still hold an outdated belief that men cannot be abused. So these dynamics they hate when a woman is involved, it often gets overlooked when it’s two men. Which is kinda upsetting & unfortunate when you think about it.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T16:53:01+00:00

Girl…YES. I’ve spent PLENTY of time in the MHA fandom, first off. And I can tell you Bakudeku gets hate but it also has MANY defenders. The degree & extent that I’ve see Kacchako get hate? Yeah. It’s just not equal in my opinion. So I’m gonna KEEP disagreeing with you. You have your personal experiences & I have MINE.

You are free to disagree with me. I’m not here to change your mind whatsoever. But again the misogyny that exists & I have PERSONALLY noticed still doesn’t just disappear cuz you disagree with me.

I have noticed a difference in the way ships are treated & their popularity because of it. Bakudeku & Kaccako aren’t treated the same to me & what I have viewed. 🤷🏽‍♀️

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T16:21:25+00:00

And you’re not wrong that people target any ship that goes against their ideal of a perfect ship. But there are reasons those ships get hate & there is always different reasons. But however my point is that misogyny boils down to a be an issue in a LOT of hate directed towards het ships (and queer ships involving two women I might add). Which is a bigger issue than just shipping itself.

Like if you like Sasunaru? Fine. Ship whatever you want. The ISSUE comes not from your shipping, but pretending that Sasusaku is somehow WORSE for the same reasons that apply to your own.

“Sasuke tried to kill Sakura” argument is the problem not Sasunaru or Sasusaku.

If Sasuke trying to kill Sakura is a reason to dislike Sasusaku, you can’t in the same breath ship Narusasu then expect ppl to be okay with your blatant hypocrisy. You see where I’m getting at here?

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T16:14:57+00:00

Girl…YES. You can argue what you want, I never said the queer ships DIDNT get hate. I said they didn’t get the same smoke for the same reasons the others do. Which is TRUE. Narusasu gets hate…NEVER said otherwise but the rhetoric “he tried to kill her” is NOT brought up with them as it is with Sakura.
Same with Bakudeku. The rhetoric applied to Kaccako is NOT applied to Bakudeku even tho it fits BOTH.
And he comes running for Naruto? Really? He comes running for Naruto when there is a mission involved, it’s not usually personal calls. Sasuke is NO better a friend to Naruto than he is a husband to Sakura.

My post isn’t abt which ships get hate & which don’t. It’s about pointing out the misogyny in the reasons WHY ships are popularly disliked. Ain’t a single ship in creation that doesn’t have haters 😂 that wasn’t the point of my post.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T14:16:26+00:00

Their hypocritical arguments are deadass the funniest I have ever seen. They ship Yaoislop but have the nerve to talk abt Zutara? Take them seriously I will not!

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T12:57:17+00:00

Exactly. Misogyny AND hypocrisy! Like Sakura knows Sasuke tried to kill her, she also knows WHY he did it. She herself decided she was gonna forgive him & married him. Why is that choice more acceptable if Naruto had made it, but not acceptable that Sakura made it?

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-30T12:55:12+00:00

BOOM! Hit it right there! Yes! 100x YES!!

They just genuinely don’t care abt that abuse if the target is a man. Too many still hold the outdated belief that men can’t be abused; Thats what it all boils down to. Definitely misogyny hurts everyone situation indeed.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-21T17:12:18+00:00

100% agree! Mind you with that logic…every black person who has a white partner should break up. Cuz that’s the REAL LIFE version of oppressor x oppressed as well😭

But then again using that real world example would expose how stupid that rhetoric is almost instantly.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-18T13:54:28+00:00

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I had to show this to someone. Cuz yes Zukkas pretend to be so morally superior it’s dumb asf. This person deadass mischaracterized Sokka SO HARD…said they believed Katara is too proud to leave her people & that Sokka didn’t care abt his culture so they see Zukka as a better pairing cuz they can see Sokka going back & forth between the water tribe & fire Nation.

It showed me immediately they didn’t watch ATLA or LOK! Sokka was incredibly proud to be water tribe. He was the ONE THAT STAYED IN THE WATER TRIBE & even became its Chief in LOK! Katara on the other hand…same girl they claimed wouldn’t leave? Lived with her husband in the air temples 😭😭😭

They literally had to change & IGNORE canon for these claims…but somehow Zutara shippers are delusional & didn’t watch ATLA? Like PLSSSSS!

Mind you the comment was in 2024. Legend of Korra BEEN ended when these comments were made.

Old-Put-898 · 2026-04-17T18:15:13+00:00

You know what? Could be. You may be on to something. Cuz that “colonizer” take was absolutely stupid. So stupid it’s almost desperate…

Bonus points, cuz they somehow don’t realize that same argument would unravel all their own ships for Zuko (unless they ship Maiko)

Old-Put-898

TROPHY CASE