Today I'm thinking about manga versions of Maxie and Archie, because it's something... I even dont have words for it. Like. Holy fucking shit.
In the beginning, of course, they're confront each other - that's the classic, they're rivals after all, standing for different things and all that things. They're different. They're opposites. They're still strongly exist in each other lives, because of their conflict.
But then
This happens. And this IS beginning of the end, because of course they're working together - and at the moment it looks like it is only for benefits for their goals, nothing else. They will destroy each other when they will get to finish.
They're fucking irritating(/pos), it almost feels like they're drawn to each other, in any scenario, their destiny is to meet, to exist in each other lives. None of them exist alone (and when one of them do exist alone, it means that something went terribly wrong).
AND THEN THINGS JUST GO EVEN WORSE (/pos)
This panel. I don't know where to start.
Do I need start with that they're realizing they work together perfectly? Do I start with that this making them thinking they needed to work together from the beginning? Do I start with that two men, who, up until this point, was fighting with each other and conflicting, hating each other, founded in each other the best partner they ever could have? Do I start with that they're probably the best persons in each other lives?
It is already very emotional (at least for me), but with how story goes on, they're connecting more and more, becoming even more emotionally fucked up.
AND THEN THERE IS EMERALD ARC???? CAN WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT EMERALD ARC???????
There is so much going on in emerald arc I barely can find words for describing my emotions.
This is the fucking tragedy. Because, what do you mean, they're put in situation where is only one of them can leave alive for some more time? (Remember how I said that if only ONE if them exist it means that some shit is going to happen something going to go really terrible. It either them both exist or them both don't).
What do you mean Archie is literally killed Maxie, just for chance of living a little longer?
And this is tragedy, because Archie, in the end, loses again. And now, not only he does lose in literal sense - he didn't achieve his goal, after all. He loses everything he had - his team, his life, and most importantly, he loses his only friend. He is all alone now.
Ah yeah can we talk about
This?
It's just one phrase. It has so much in it.
Not only he calls Maxie friend, not only he confess that Maxie probably the only one person which Archie was thinking as a friend, but also like.
Consider this: this isn't oras archie yet. This version of archie is cold, closed and gloomy, genuinely intimidating person. He doesn't care about his team members, it is kind of okay for him to use them as tools (which, ironically, shows even in this interaction with Maxie: after all, Archie still killed him for a chance of living a bit longer. And Archie acknowledging that he betrayed Maxie. He betrayed his only one friend). He is a cold person, but it almost seems like Maxie managed to warm him up a bit, just a little bit. This is actually incredible and, again, endlessly emotional, and I still can't stress this enough. Holy fucking shit.
Just imagine Archie at this point. Imagine, because, the best person in his life always was his rival. His rival, and maybe, even friend.
And I told about this before, but can we talk about that in distorted world they became one? It's just so symbolic. Like, Archie and Maxie from beginning were opposites, they was supporting opposite things, their goals was completely opposite. But they can't choose only one of this, because everything around them is a combination of different, sometimes opposite things. Like even the land and water in Hoenn! Exactly this combination of land and water create Hoenn as we know it, and how they know it. And they, people, who choosed only one of these things, in the end, became the one themselves - isn't this ironic? Isn't this funny? Isn't it symbolic in some way? (I also fucking love how this fusion explain in some way why when oras hits, Maxie is more like original Archie, and Archie more like original Maxie. They had explored each other minds I'm sure of it)
And finally, ORAS, part that I love the most.
Not only they both was given chance of living again, but this is literally their peak. They're working together again - and by that I mean they're working perfectly together.
They even acknowledge it themselves:
And this is so good in contrast with Ruby and Sapphire arc - back then, they too, realized and started to think they're work perfectly together, but it still was mixed with some evil fucked up shit, but here? They're working together because they (ironically), have the same goal. And they're helping each other.
They're working together perfectly, this is so good for them. And no evil bullshit this time! It's actually best versions of them in some way - because they're working together, for sake both of humanity and pokemon. They working towards happiness and safety for everyone, not choosing and prioritizing only one of them.
And they're talking to each other as if they was old friends, partners, every one of their interactions shines with this somewhat warm feeling. This is so good for them. I would even dare to say that ORAS part was the happiest moments in their lives.
And.. Then end of ORAS hits.
And, again, as classic already, it's a small panel, but how much here is.
First of all, can I point that Archie died two times, and both times he was thinking of Maxie in some way?
And both times is some kind of emotional moment for Archie: first time, he calls Maxie friend (he doesn't call him by name, but. He obviously talking about him COME ON), and second time he ask Maxie, if he would want to work together again, if they will have chance to do so. I just love seeing this progression, how Maxie became more and more dear person for Archie as time goes on, how he became more attached to him. And Maxie does too!
It is such an incredible moment filled with so much emotions, with so much sense. I love how Archie doesn't even say his question fully, but Maxie still understands him. Of course he does, because, I'm sure, even if Archie didn't ask this, Maxie still would think of it. I'm sure if none of them said this, they still would understand this wish to work together again that they both have. At this point, they are incredibly connected together, and they have only each other.
I also love this moment, because when Archie died first time, he was told that, if he will continue like this, he will end up all alone. And Archie agrees to that: he answer in the way that he is already accepted that he is alone now, and he doesn't even have Maxie by his side (I still can't get over that he really highlighted him in this speech holy fucking shit). BUT then, when he appears next time, he appears as ORAS self, and his ORAS self is very different from what he was, not only as a person, but his motivation is different, too.
He changed in some way. And he ISN'T alone, because now, Maxie is by his side again. And I can't stop thinking about how happy it probably made Archie.
And even dying, he is calm, because he isn't alone. He have Maxie by his side. His only friend.
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one more thing about phantom traveler that excited me: the ending scene where sam and dean call john's phone and hear his answering machine.
dean is upset by this confirmation. it's the first time dean has had to really grapple with the truth: that john is intentionally avoiding them, that he's fine, actually, and that he's not in danger. it shatters the illusions that have driven him since the first episode, and this is disappointing. it's a betrayal of the expectations he had for his father.
phantom traveler is an episode about fear—dean's fear, specifically. the A story introduces his fear of flying, but it also gives indications of what else he's afraid of.
the episode hints at the perhaps surprising rigidity of their roles in hunting, with dean as the more active fighter and sam as the more passive intellectual, even when dean is scared stiff on the plane. given further context throughout the season, this can very well be extrapolated to mean that dean is afraid of sam getting hurt. he has to protect sam; that's his job, and taking on the more physically dangerous role and leaving sam in a safer position allows him to ensure that protection.
in other words, dean is afraid of losing sam.
the end of this episode hints at another, similar fear. if the episode is about fear, then dean's reaction to john's betrayal should logically also be about fear. the betrayal here is that john is running away from them, leaving them behind, avoiding them. he's intentionally breaking apart the family unit, and since john presumably doesn't know that sam is with him, that means john is intentionally leaving dean alone.
so dean is also afraid of losing john, and of being alone (aka, without a family).
we've seen this before, and we'll see it again.
dean's desire to be surrounded by his family also informs his fear of being alone, abandoned by his family or separated from them. it informs what he's willing to do to avoid that outcome, by, as seen in this episode, shoving his fear aside to perform his role (and as we later learn about him, by remaining blindly loyal to john, a result of his failure to protect sam from the shtriga).
this is the episode that truly begins dean's narrative arc, pushes him out of his comfort zone both through the A story with the plane demon and through the B story with john's answering machine. dean will not be able to return to the comfort and security of his loyalty and will instead have to confront his fears as they become more and more inescapable. sam's overarching conflict between family and freedom began with the pilot, and now four episodes in dean's conflict has been forcefully dug up and he can no longer avoid the choices he'll have to make.
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