I’m going to start pinning some older posts to the top of the page, because I think there is a lot of really good…

I’m going to start pinning some older posts to the top of the page, because I think there is a lot of really good content here folks should be aware of. My old Cobra Commander mediakin thing is pretty good (if I do say so myself). 

I feel like I haven’t been honest with all of you. It’s time I stop living a lie, and just ‘come out of the closet,’ as they say. 

I am a mediakin. Specifically, I am the fictional character Cobra Commander. I have always been Cobra Commander, and I will always be Cobra Commander. 

Being Cobra Commander has never been easy. The lie that is my human body grew-up in the 80’s, and GI Joe was very popular among my youthful peers. Everyday I had to watch as they pretended to be Real American Heroes, storming my fortresses and destroying everything I had worked so hard to build. Sometimes, during their play, they would mimic my signature raspy voice, causing me to scream to myself, “Stop appropriating me!” 

Halloween was a particularly torturous time. On the one hand, it was infuriating when someone would wear a costume of me (let’s just say I know how black people must feel when Al Jolson is on TCM). But on the other hand, it always hurt when one of them decided to be Storm Shadow instead because he’s “really rad.” That stuff is painful, you know? It’s like, “Am I not rad enough for you? Is there something wrong with me?”

But those are the big, obvious things. The part that really sucks about being Cobra Commander are the daily micro-aggressions I have to deal with. For one thing, almost no one considers me the true leader of Cobra, even though I AM DEFINITELY THE TRUE LEADER OF COBRA!!!! It’s not Serpentor, it’s not Destro and the Baroness, and it’s certainly not those weirdos in Cobra-La (apologies to any Cobra-La-kin who may be offended). Here’s another: there is no continuity in my background between the various animated series and the comic books published by Marvel. I’m not sure why I’m so surprised – the powers that be in this country have been erasing the history of marginalized groups since the very beginning. Just ask the Native Americans. Or the werewolf-kin. 

Still, I hold out hope things will get better for me. There are some positive signs out there. Joseph Gordon-Levitt being tapped to play me in the first live-action GI Joe movie was pretty cool, especially since he’s totes hot. I’m also finding lots of support on tumblr, where there is a very active and supportive mediakin community (big shout-out to my girl, RRainbow321 – who is actually Levar Burton – and her recent Kickstarter triumph. Butterfly in the sky, girl – fly high). 

So, there you have it. I am Cobra Commander. I am not ashamed. I am ready to live my life without fear. 

It would be awesome if you could refer to me by my preferred pronouns from now on:

cobr/cobrim/cobrimself

Finally, if you’re struggling with being otherkin, let me give you some advice: Before people can really know who you are, you have to know yourself. Knowing yourself is half the battle. 

Love and Peace.