#meaner in s3 and probably wouldn't have celebrated him getting back with the team. I just KNOW people would have been talking about how he

[bombshellsandbluebells]

the Nate Shelley s3 arc reminds me of the s5 Murphy arc in terms of how much I actually loved it despite it not being widely liked by the fandom and was actually disappointed because it wasn't ugly enough lol

and it's basically the same arc. character with deep-seated wounds and a lack of true self-love has realistic, damaging coping methods and crashes and burns spectacularly by hurting other people around them and isolating themselves because it doesn't matter how good things get for you, deep-seated wounds that don't get addressed will eventually come out one way or another. and it will be ugly when they do.

the Murphy arc was disappointing because it got wrapped up way too easily with Memori getting back together which didn't actually address ANY of Murphy's issues and Nate's was disappointing because it just didn't commit fully to being ugly and didn't let him be enough of an asshole

#with murphy it's like. do the writers even reallly REALIZE what they had written on a character level and how much it made sense and added #to murphy's character or did they just develop a reason for Memori to break up for drama and then didn't care to actually go through the #work of character growth and just got them together at the end of the season no issues #and with nate it's like. yes I DO think the majority of audiences and the fandom would have absolutely villianized nate if he had been even #meaner in s3 and probably wouldn't have celebrated him getting back with the team. I just KNOW people would have been talking about how he #didn't deserve it or hadn't made up for it enough if he had been worse in s3 #which is so unfair when a) this show tries to show how hurt can make people ugly and b) other characters get the benefit of the doubt wa #more than nate. (jamie's a little different bc it's easier to accept asshole > redeemed arcs a little more than likeable > downfall to #asshole > redeemed again bc we see the transition to being an asshole #BUT also. still. jamie did some nasty stuff that people just forget or completely forgive. and he ends up fandom favorite #and it's not that nate needed to become the fan fave or anything #I just wish people would give characters who are realistically ugly and human and complicated more grace #especially when they're not the conventionally attractive fan fave pretty boy you know #or like with murphy it's like all his actual harsh edges got sanded down by fandom. same as with Jamie #so even when he had an arc where he was acting terribly in a self destructive unhealthy kind of way that hurt others #people made it ALL about his hurt uwu other people hurt him!! it was Emori's fault!! he did nothing wrong bc he has trauma!! instead of lik #accepting that hurt people hurt people is more than a simple phrase it is true and human and UGLY when it happens #anyways #why do i always ramble more in the tags and write like a full epilogue in here