#love is nowhere near enough to sustain a successfull partnership

[oaxleaf]

jmart's relationship dynamic is actually so interesting because it takes a situation that could so easily be unhealthy - in fact, it's pretty much impossible to have a completely normal relationship under these circumstances - and does the very best it can with it. there is so so much that could go wrong in a relationship where you're both traumatized as hell, have been together for three weeks tops when the literal apocalypse starts, that apocalypse brings an incredible power dynamic to your relationship, and one of you seems determined to fulfill his martyr complex. i think it's a little bit silly to expect them not to argue. aside from the fact that a little bit of conflict is probably healthy, you cannot seriously think none of it would come up? you cannot seriously say you would be happy for none of it to be discussed?

and yet, i feel like they, for the most part, do an incredible job of communicating. it takes a bit of coaxing, but they talk about a lot of their issues, set up boundaries that they then follow, and when things do boil over they actively search each out to apologize. season five makes a really strong case for how good of a couple they could have been if only the stakes had been lesser and they'd gone through less trauma - the tragic irony of course being that that trauma is precisely what made them grow so close in the first place - and it think it's overall some really good relationship writing. a good balance between their individual characters, how those two interact, and how they interect with their current circumstances both as individuals and as a duo

#it seems like we're largely past the 'jmart is unhealthy' stuff #but still #i think they are an incredibly healthy couple in how they both actually put in the work for the relationship #love is nowhere near enough to sustain a successfull partnership #and i think the show does a great job of showing how it's the plot that gets in the way #not their actual compatability or ability to be good to one another #tma #the magnus archives #jonathan sims #martin blackwood #jmart #jonmartin