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spaceorphan18 · 3 years

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What effect do you feel Kurt’s friendship with Rachel had on his relationship with Blaine?

This is a really fascinating question! Thank you!

It’s interesting because I don’t think Rachel had all that much impact on Klaine for better or for worse. Let’s dig in!

Season 1 - clearly zero impact.

Season 2 - I’d argue zero impact. I’m not sure how much of a friendship I see in season 2 Hummelberry. Things I can think of off the top of my head

In Special Ed before competition Rachel and Kurt have a heart to heart, and Blaine comes by. But there’s really nothing about Blaine there.

Silly Love Songs, Kurt discusses his feeling for Blaine, but Mercedes gives out advice while Rachel talks about herself.

In BIOTA, Rachel dates Blaine, and mostly that makes Kurt dislike Rachel more, but on the positive side, Blaine is able to figure out that he is gay and no bi, which is neutral for Kurt.

In Rumors, Rachel is pro-Klaine, and wants Kurt not to cheat on Blaine with Sam, which again, is more of Kurt thinking she’s crazy.

And in New York, Kurt mentions going to New York with Blaine, to which Rachel has no objection, but again, is mostly thinking about herself.

So my conclusion is - zero effect in season 2.

Season 3 - Is tricky! Because I think it’s misleading. Kurt has duel roles during this season -- the first being Rachel’s new BFF-slash-sidekick, the second being one-half of a romantic pairing, and because Rachel is now the main character, guess which one takes precedence. Due to that, Klaine’s screen time is cut down to focus on other things, and it’s easy to blame Rachel, but I still don’t think she has a bad effect on Klaine, is mostly positive.

I’m hard pressed to remember any early instances of Rachel having anything to do with Klaine -- she seems happy that Blaine has transferred, happy about having Blaine be her co-star, happy that Klaine gets their own Bachelor Chalet, and happy to bring Blaine movies and soup when he’s out for his eye injury.

During Dance With Somebody -- she even gives Kurt some relatively good advice about not being a dick to his boyfriend, even if said boyfriend seems distant and unresponsive.

During Prom - she encourages both of them do the anti-prom with her, it’s mostly for selfish reasons, but she seems rather content that both of them are her gay bffs.

I’d say she has a rather positive influence in season 3, even if we’re personally annoyed that her presence takes away from Klaine.

Season 4 - Which I suppose people think has the most negative effect. But I think I’d argue it’s not nearly as bad as it seems, and Rachel’s a relatively supportive friend, despite the narrative still using Kurt as Rachel’s emotional prop. (Though that is not as bad as it is in season 3.)

Despite the continuing parallels found between Finchel and Klaine in season 4 (this started in season 3, after the show decided to drop paralleling Finchel with Wemma), Rachel has little to no say around the time Kurt and Blaine break up. She neither condones or condemns Blaine for cheating (not that she would have any leg to stand on in any kind of condemnation).

I’d also add that any kind of issues Klaine had before the break up due to Kurt being wrapped up in NYC had really nothing to do with Rachel - and more to do with Kurt, as an individual, moving in a new direction in his life.

During Glease, again, Rachel plays a (minimal) part in being Kurt’s supportive friend. While she is wrapped up in her own (melo-)drama, she does act supportive to Kurt when they get back to McKinley. And has little to know commentary on Blaine, and of that, is mostly reflective of her own situation.

During Thanksgiving -- she wants Kurt to be an adult with her - and while this may seem disconcerting to a Klaine fan, Kurt is in a place where he’d rather go along with her crazy cause it’s easier than trying to deal with his shit. But interestingly -- Rachel’s attitude is ‘fuck our exes’ let’s seize the new day, and that’s about it. Meanwhile, Kurt isn’t opening up to her, at all, about Blaine - and uses Isabelle as a sounding board. It’s Isabelle’s advice whom he really takes, and ends up confessing his real feelings to Blaine by the end of the episode.

During Sadie Hawkins -- she’s encouraging him to go on a date with Adam -- and while this doesn’t sound Klaine friendly, not only does she completely miss the cues that Kurt isn’t over his break up, her advice isn’t actually bad, and reminiscent of what Brittany is going to tell him in season 6 -- that he can’t just sit around and wait for things to work out with Blaine, he needs to continue on with his life.

During Glee, Actually -- she is sadden to hear that Kurt won’t be trying to reconnect with Blaine over the holidays, because even as self-involved as she is at this point, she is probably aware of how much Blaine means to him (still) and even broken up and semi-dating another guy, Kurt probably still doesn’t shut up about Blaine.

If there’s anything post Glee, Actually, I’m completely drawing a blank. Santana takes over the Klaine commentary during the I Do era, and Rachel is pretty absent during the end of the season stuff.

So... while I think she doesn’t have much of an impact on the Klaine love story in general, I think she’s trying to be a good friend to Kurt while he goes through his shit. And even though she’s framing everything through her own issues with Finn (and Brody), I do believe she has his best interests at heart. The other interesting thing to note here, though, is that Rachel is not the person Kurt confides in about Blaine - Isabelle is, and even Santana has picked up on stuff with Kurt more than Rachel.

But it’s important to note that while Kurt ends up knee deep in Rachel’s shit, Kurt plays his own heart very close to his chest, and how he feels for Blaine is not something he really shares with other people -- as very evident by this season.

Season 5 - Again, I don’t think Rachel plays that big of a part in any of the Klaine narrative.

During LLL, she makes sure she and Santana are there for the proposal -- and she’s supportive to both Kurt and Blaine in this.

I’m struggling to see where, if at all, she plays any kind of part in the Klaine narrative for most of the rest of the season. She is relatively supportive of him in his individual career moves, but really has nothing to say about Blaine. Even in the AU Christmas episode -- Santana is the one whom he discusses his feelings over what happened, and his feelings about being ‘broken up’ with Blaine.

Elliott takes on more of a role within the Klaine narrative in the meantime when he’s around.

Even in the NYC arc, Kurt doesn’t really talk to anyone (other than Elliott) about his problems with Blaine (while Blaine has Sam to talk to). And in fact -- he and Rachel are more at odds than not during this run. Blaine isn’t involved much at all.

So.... Rachel has little to no impact on the Klaine narrative here.

Season 6 - I’d say that Rachel is rather a positive influence for both of them at the beginning of the season (and then the writers kinda stopped caring about involving her in it).

In the premiere, Rachel is a good friend to both of them -- she is not negative towards either one of them during their discussions, and tries to emotionally support each of them while they deal with their emotions. She’s actually, surprisingly, a pretty good friend.

And... that’s about it unless I’m forgetting something huge. I mean, she does go looking for them in HL pt 2. But mostly, she’s a non-entity in their story. Sue, Brittany, Santana, Dave, and Walter have more influence on either of them than Rachel.

So... Rachel is has nearly zero impact, and is positive in general towards both of them.

Conclusion -

So, yeah, there are aspects of Hummelberry that I do find frustrating, especially during season 3 and 4 when Kurt becomes Rachel’s emotional prop instead of a character, but! She’s usually positive towards Klaine, is friends with Kurt and Blaine, and is supportive of whatever incarnation they’re in.

Mostly, though, I’d argue that Kurt keeps his relationship with Blaine very separate from Rachel, and she is not who he confides in for emotional support with those issues a majority of the time. I think Kurt is smart enough to know what kind of friend Rachel is, and seeks emotional validation, for the most part, from other people when it comes to Blaine. And despite the fact that as written, Hummelberry seems lopsided -- I think ultimately, she tries to be a good friend to Kurt when the writing allows it.

So, there ya go :)

#readyrex #that's how s.o. sees it #interesting right?

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asagimeta · 5 years

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Batwoman: Don’t Believe All The Negativity

So Batwoman premiered tonight

It's about an out-and-proud lesbian, played by an out-and-proud lesbian, with several major cast members- INCLUDING the main love interest- being POC, and it's very gay, this is not your "Power Rangers- let me quietly hint at being gay for One Scene and never mention it again" type of representation, there's lots of kissing, "I love you"s, goofy initial carvings, and serious issues like homophobia in the military and lying about your sexuality to avoid persecution

This is Tumblr bait if I've ever seen it so imagine my surprise when I barely get a few scrolls into the tag and already see people hating on it for not being queer enough because Sophie is married to a man

Hahahha..... I'm pissed

Allow me to advise ya'll to sit down as I explain why this is the OPPOSITE of a problem

First of all I cannot believe that on TUMBLR of all websites I actually have to explain to people that being in a heterosexual relationship- even married- does not automatically cancel out your queer ship

Shows have been putting their charectors through divorces and widowing for decades and it isn't going to stop now, in fact, I'll be THOROUGHLY surprised if The Husband makes it to see the end of the season

But I digress

We'll come back to shipping later because right now I'm going to tackle the biggest problem I have with these "You guys are making her straight!!!!" posts I keep seeing: CLOSETING. DOES NOT. ERASE. QUEERNESS.

I cannot believe I actually have to say this at the home of ships like Destiel, Sterek, and whatever the fuck legion of ships that Voltron produced but being in a straight relationship does not make someone less queer, ESPECIALLY if the relationship is fake, and ESPECIALLY if they have been ALREADY CANONICALLY SHOWN TO BE QUEER

Look I ship Destiel and Sterek and Supercorp too but "closeting" is a THEORY for these ships- with Sophie, it's CANON, she was in a canonical relationship with another girl where she kissed her and said she loved her and planned a future with her and the only reason she's not still with that woman is because was threatened to be kicked out of the military for it, I cannot process how the home of "They're in a straight relationship because they're closeted" is actually trashing this

But even THAT'S irrelevant because I can already hear some of you screaming that you don't ship any of those things but listen to me: Closeted charectors are just as important as out-and-proud charectors are

We live in a world where people are STILL being murdered for their sexuality every single day, where kids are still being sent to conversion therapy, still being kicked out of their houses, still being forced to be in straight relationships out of fear for their LIVES if they aren't- and fear for their jobs, their families, and everything else

I bought my first pride flag yesterday and hung it up today and legitimately my first thought was "gee, I hope this doesn't attract any crazy Trump supporters who are going to light my house on fire" but I did it anyway because I have supportive parents and have NEVER made my sexuality a secret and anyone who talks to me for ten minutes is PROBABLY going to hear atleast 1 "lol I'm bi" joke and I haven't been threatened with bodily harm for it YET so I figure I'll atleast probably live through the night

Other people aren't that lucky

For as important as it is for out people to have our Kate Kanes, it's JUST as important for closeted people to have their Sophie Moores

Please don't take away from the fact that the CW is trying to give that to people just because it means The Ship isn't happening Right Here Right Now

Please don't try to take away Sophie's queer identity because of being closeted

This plot development gurantees us atleast a season of Sophie exploring her identity and circling back to the question of "Do I really value being a member of something that's going to hate me for who I am over the woman I love?", we're going to have a season of her exploring what her identity means to her and we're going to get a really great juxtaposition between one lesbian who's out and proud and telling the story of pining for a lost love and how to navigate Queer Problems being out, and another who's closeted and afraid and in love but doesn't think she can return and how to navigate Queer Problems being closeted

That's GREAT??????

Why are ya'll complaining??????????

That's not something that we get very often???????

Also by arranging Sophie's story this way the CW is trying to AVOID giving us the same problems we always complain about like tokenism and Burry Your Gays, let's be totally honest here, if Kate and Sophie started off in a happy relationship and stayed that way through the beginning of the show, then for Conflict Reasons something way worse was going to have to come along and ruin that- like, you know, probably death? Or cheating, or a petty fight, or Sophie being evil....

This gives us a really NUANCED reason for why there's a story of pining and trying to get back to eachother here

Much like Alex and Maggie in Supergirl, the writers were clearly trying to take care to give us what we needed from a plot standpoint WITHOUT shoving gross stereotypes and tropes down our throats or making one person out to be The Bad Guy in the relationship, because yes you can read Sophie that way, but I think anyone who's ever been closeted can probably sympathize with her about this, esepcially as we don't know the nature of her home life, yes she signed the Gay Lie Document so she could be in the military but we don't have any indication that that was her only reason for giving Kate up so easily

For all we know, going home with Kate may not have ever been an option to begin with

And it's really hard to blame someone for risking their life and the life of their partner for wanting to be Out, especially if they were raised to believe that queer = bad, but I'm getting off topic

Instead of doing what alot of superhero stories do and fridging Sophie- making Kate's reason for doning the cowl to be revenge for her dead lover, they gave us somethin much tamer, something that will last all season but without lowering the number of main queer charectors on the show, they used the same trope that The Straights always use about becoming a superhero For Love but they did us one better because The Girlfreind isn't dead like she would have been in.... SOME.... stories....

But I promised to get back to shipping and here we go-

Aside from the fact that they're priming The Husband to get killed off early on just by virtue of existing (an unimportant charector who will greatly emotionally impact the love interest and create an opportunity for her to pursue the main protagonist, possibly even becoming a hero or a vigilante in her own right for revenge) there's also the fact that Sophie is hardly Kate's only chance at a relationship

If I'm not mistaken, they've already cast Renee` Montoya, and Maggie Sawyer already has an established charector in the Arrowverse too, so if the actress ever wanted to dip her toes back into the superhero waters, she could appear for a bit of time as well- wich would also be prime subplot territory for the next crossover, considering her history with Alex Danvers on Supergirl

So even IF they damned poor Sophie to Straight Hell for the rest of eternity- and I HIGHLY doubt that- do you really think that a show on the CW that opened with a love story is just going to let it's lead go without a love story for the foreseeable future...?

They're giving us a queer-lead show, wich means that it's going to be open to the same "UGH" romance moments that every other show on TV has, they're probably not going to give us an easy ride just because this one is gay like we get out of the background relationships in other shows where the leads are straight and I honestly appreciate that

Sure, I'd love if Kate got the Yuri On Ice treatment where she was able to maintain a steady romance through the entire show with only very short-lived, very easy-to-resolve conflicts ever denting it- I'd love that for alot of shows actually, imagine all of the plot that could get done if the relationships weren't being killed off or broken up every five minutes- but I appreciate as a queer person that she's probably going to get a gallery of love interests just like every STRAIGHT protagonist gets and I'm happy for her, in that respect

But my point in all of this is just that... guys... we finally have it

We have a show lead by a queer actor playing a queer charector who isn't going to get straight-washed or muted down the line because issues of homophobia and her sexuality are coming up in the very first episode.... and ya'll are complaining because her love interest is in the closet and married to a dude to stay that way as if that ever stopped any ship on any show ever??? Really?

TL;DR: Batwoman is great and if she and Sophie WERE in a happy and stable relationship ya'll would just complain about the show being "boring" and not actually working to examine queer relationships so I guess there really is no winning with the people on this website

#Batwoman #Sophie Moore #Kate Kane #lgbtq+#Batwoman spoilers #DC #Arrowverse

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itslmdee · 6 years

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Leverage: Reading Parker as Asexual

This meta is a brief overview on Parker from "Leverage" and why I think she can be read as asexual. Admittedly, I didn't think about it too much until after the show was over, being more concerned that Parker's developing relationship with Hardison didn't detract from her overall screen time or characterisation. I need not have worried on that front, and I'll mention their romance again shortly. Afterwards though, I started to think that Parker can be easily read as being on the asexual spectrum.

I want first to address my one concern about reading her as asexual; Parker is not what most people would describe as "normal". Her thought processes and reactions to events are not what would be expected under most circumstances.

Sophie: Parker, you do know that normal people just don't walk off a twenty-foot fall, right? Parker: So, all those times I pushed Hardison off a building and he was all "Ahhh!", he wasn't just being funny?

She has not had a stable upbringing having been raised in the foster system, she doesn't even have another name, merely being "Parker", she is a thief by profession, and her social skills are awkward or eccentric depending on your viewpoint. Eliot often expresses his frustration with Parker as "What's wrong with you?!" (To be fair, she doesn't take offence and he does care for her; there's a familial bond between Parker, Eliot, and Hardison, in particular). The last thing asexuals need or want are characters who represent any of the stigmas or stereotypes around the orientation such as being "broken".

However, I'm not too concerned because Parker is awesome. Her team love her, she comes to love and trust them, she is clever, agile, loyal, and, ultimately takes the place of Nate as leader of the Leverage team in the finale episode. Possibly because of her own upbringing she's sensitive to the needs of children. She's well liked by fans (I've never seen hate for her, your mileage may vary):

Fan reaction to her is largely positive, often because of her nontraditional femininity and her unusual socialization. Many fans choose to read her as asexual, non-neurotypical, or a survivor of abuse to account for various aspects of her characterization on the show.

Overall, Parker is portrayed as quirky and eccentric rather than damaged. Her atyptical approach to life is often played as light-hearted, with her casual attitudes to things like falling from heights being contrasted with more usual reactions:

-PARKER: (to Eliot) Really? How’d you get over [your claustrophobia]? -ELIOT: I locked myself in a woodshed behind my house for a couple nights. After that, I was fine. -PARKER: That is so funny. I was scared of the dark and did exactly the same thing! (Flashback showing Parker as a kid being buried alive) (Sophie, Eliot and Hardison stare at her) -ELIOT: That’s not the same thing…What’s wrong with you?

All of the team, in fact, have their own baggage, and so Parker isn't held up as a broken person needing to be saved by their friends. They are a team and they support each other.

Sex is neither a large part of the show, nor is it ignored. There's a heterosexual on-off relationship between Nate and Sophia, Nate's ex-wife appears in several episodes, and Eliot has a few "girlfriend of the week" episodes. Parker doesn't have a boyfriend or girlfriend in her past, and when Hardison has an episode in which he flirts with a woman, she experiences some jealousy, the first sign that she is experiencing romantic affection.

In "The First David Job"/"The Second David Job", the team are trying to replace a famous statue with a fake. At one point, Parker kisses Hardison, pressing him against an alarmed door to cover up the real reason for the alarm. This improvised affection stuns Hardison, who has been giving her admiring glances for a while, but Parker shrugs it off the moment the kiss is over and the job is back on.

Hardison continues to develop feelings for Parker, but she seems not to notice – part of her social skills limitations – and it was debatable at this stage if she would or could develop romantic feelings for him in return.

As the series progresses, Parker becomes more emotionally aware and more in touch with her teammates. However it's only when she sees Hardison potentially romantically involved with another woman ("The Double-Blind Job") that she starts to realise her feelings for him.

I love that the episode featured Parker exploring the feeling of jealousy. Hardison flirting and working with Ashley was clearly driving Parker crazy, but she had no idea why. Further, at the end, Hardison clearly figured out that she was jealous, but warmly gave her space to come to terms with her feelings for him. - x

In fact Hardison handles things so well that the Parker/Hardison relationship, regardless of Parker's actual orientation, deserves meta of its own, as does the subtextual OT3 of Parker/Hardison/Eliot. At no point does Hardison ever demand or expect anything of Parker, letting her find her way in her own time, and ensuring their relationship is based on their wants and needs, not societal expectations.

PARKER: “you realize this isn’t going to be normal, right?” HARDISON: “you know, my nana used to say that what’s normal is whatever works for you.”

Up until "The Double Blind Job", Parker has shown no interest in dating, romance, or sex. Even when Parker and Hardison begin dating – which is really more hanging out as a couple instead of hanging out with the whole team – their focus is on a variety of activities they find pleasurable, rather than on sex. The season five opener, "The Very Big Bird Job" confirms their new relationship status:

Sophie: Yeah. We're moving to Portland. No warning. Anything else? Parker: Mm, Hardison and I are dating. Hardison: Yeah. We just got back from a 'round-the-world trip. It was different, like, it's new, and we working it out. [Flashback] (various scenes of Parker and Hardison repelling down the side of buildings)

In the episode "The First Contact Job", Hardison plans a rather more traditionally romantic evening:

(Hardison shows Parker the wording of the warrant ‘CANDLELIGHT PICNIC UNDER THE STARS) Parker: Ooh. Fire. I do like fire.

When the picnic is rained off, Parker is disappointed, but Hardison has a backup plan, an indoor picnic with electronic stars. Clearly Parker appreciates the thoughtfulness.

As such, I'd read Parker as hetero-romantic and/or demi-romantic, since she didn't develop feelings immediately. We never see her show any interest in women, though it could be argued she might be demi-romantic and bi-romantic, and we just never got the chance to explore that angle. I'd also argue, given her lack of interest around sexuality in general, she can be read on the asexual spectrum, possibly grey-asexual or demi-sexual, or asexual willing to have sex to please a partner.

It's been mentioned in previous discussions with my f-list, than Parker clearly loves the adrenaline rush she gets from her favourite hobbies, like bungee jumping. As such, orgasms could be seen as just another way to get a rush, and it's not unlikely that she's willing to masturbate and/or have sex in order to experience the pleasurable high. She certainly doesn't have any hangups about sex as bad or immoral; it just doesn't seem to interest her the way money or planning a heist does.

We never (to my knowledge, at least) get confirmation that "dating" involves sex. It's usually assumed that a romantic relationship will at some point become sexual, because our culture places a high value on sexual experiences. We can only guess, unless told otherwise, that sex does take place. However, given Hardison's deep affection and respect and overall patience, he would never demand or expect a sexual component to the relationship, and any sex that did happen would be undertaken at Parker's pace and with a great deal of attention paid to ensuring her consent.

However, once committed to a sexual relationship, I think Parker would be an enthusiastic participant. It wouldn’t beat the thrill of base jumping or breaking into a bank, but as a fun way to spend time with Hardison, who she loves deeply, she would give it her all.

(notes and references under the ‘read more’

References

http://www.tv.com/m/shows/leverage/the-gimme-a-k-street-job-2485197/trivia/

http://leverage.wikia.com/wiki/Parker

http://leverage.wikia.com/wiki/Alec_Hardison

http://fanlore.org/wiki/Parker_%28Leverage%29

http://hellyeahleverage.tumblr.com/post/471483586/iikrisii-elenitahb-sophie-its-a-good-job

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Leverage_episodes

http://www.tvfanatic.com/2010/07/leverage-review-the-double-blind-job/

http://fuckyeahparkerhardison.tumblr.com/post/28191931967/touchingmetouchingyou-ships-i-sail-parker

http://leverage.whendarknessfalls.net/transcripts/5x03-the-first-contact-job.html

http://leverage.whendarknessfalls.net/transcripts/5x01-the-very-big-bird-job.html

http://www.oregonlive.com/movies/index.ssf/2012/08/catching_up_with_leverage_the.html

Note: This is an unedited repost to this blog of a meta I posted to a personal blog for Asexual Awareness Week 2014 and at my Wordpress account in May 2015.

#asexual awareness week #leverageedit #leverage #asexual headcanons #parker #my articles

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