#and I love soft post-canon katya/sofia fics

[release-the-sheep]

okay I've been enjoying the goncharov resurgence very much but I just saw something that caused some Thoughts. somebody posted a post-canon Katya/Sofia fic where they run away from it all and basically live happily ever after (very on board so far) but they tagged it with "idk could be canon-compliant, katya lives change my mind" and I. hm. Katya lives, yes, agreed. but the other thing. hold the phone.

SETTING ASIDE for a moment (we will return) the fact that for this fic writer it's probably Not That Deep, let me be pedantic for just a sec.

It always irks me a little bit when people tag something as "canon-compliant" that has no regard for canon's themes, or its aesthetics, or both, or etc. For me, "canon-compliant" is a little more than "doesn't completely change or break the timeline and setting of canon", it has to be (or at least make a visible effort toward being) in the spirit of canon. Disclaimer: this is entirely my problem. but again it got me thinking and I wanted to share.

Anything made about this movie where anyone (other than Sofia, for obvious reasons, but even her) gets out alive and unharmed and can start fresh somewhere safe and far away is not only against the spirit of the film, it is ANTITHETICAL to what I would argue is the main theme: the sensation of being trapped and the impossibility of change and evolution within the constraints of an artificially static sense of self (a mouthful, but it is JWHJ0715 so what else can we expect). the POINT is that they can't escape! that is what is being said about the dangers of being in the Family! you have to be one unchanging person to survive in that world, whether you want to or not! that's WHY Joe dies (and why it's so sad that he does, he was so close!). that's WHY it hits so hard when Katya shoots Goncharov and misses. THAT'S WHY ANDREY AND GONCHAROV ULTIMATELY KILL EACH OTHER HOLY SHIT like you can't ignore it! the tragedy of the thing, the greek myth levels of unalterable fate and destiny, the axis everything turns on, is the fact! that! no! one! gets! out! it can't be canon-compliant if that goes away, I'm sorry!

but sheep, you say, let people have fun. yes. I know. that's why I'm here too. I usually avoid the "canon-compliant" stuff in this fandom precisely because everything is so doomed and dour - as it should be - and when I'm engaging with fic I'm looking for the escape, too. I'm gay and want Katya and Sofia to have their fairytale ending. I just think this writer got a little caught up when they tagged "idk could be canon-compliant". it also made me think more thoughts, namely about this tag not being That Deep. it's really a testament to how masterful JWHJ0715 and Scorcese are as storytellers. one of the marks of a really good tragedy imo is getting the viewer so into the story that they forget it's a tragedy (despite how many times you tell them, ahem Father Gianni as a character, ahem clock symbolism) and begin to imagine a happy ending. when people use this kind of tag it is typically a melancholic wish that canon weren't Like That™ so it could instead be Like This and if you squint and do a bit of interpretive gymnastics it can be read Like This, and everything can be okay. and I just wanted to highlight a) how good this film is for pulling that off and getting that reaction and b) how much I love what people create from that reaction. it's just not in any way ever even a little bit "canon-compliant" lmao.

#no hate to this author! I haven't named them here but it's a wee fandom and now that I've pointed out the tag you could probably find them #be nice #goncharov (1973) #unreality #jokes out of the room. not only does this movie not exist the fic I am talking about doesn't either #I love this fandom and I love what we do here on this tumbled blue website #and I love soft post-canon katya/sofia fics