A Defense of Benny Gecko
Benny is more of a capable leader and person than people give him credit for.
Seeing as no one challenged his position as head Chairmen for 7 years and even then he only loses the position if he’s caught, killed or forced to leave. Yes, it’s also likely House wouldn’t have allowed him to be killed but he sure as hell would of found a way to remove him if he was causing too much unrest within The Tops power structure. Even Swank and Tommy don’t outright dislike him and more so are concerned with his recent secretive and shady behavior, emphasis on recent.
Taking all we know into consideration, Benny likely knew the future direction that he wanted to take Vegas but was so caught up in the plans to acquire Vegas that he didn’t think of how to make his dream a reality. Something he admits to in canon. I see this being used as the main argument that Benny doesn’t know what he’s doing at all but I see it more in the same vein as you can’t really plan something from nothing. The transformation of Vegas is a sensitive thing that he can’t really work on until he has it. The only reason he ran to the Fort prematurely is the Courier who was causing so much of a stir he would’ve likely been found out much faster, making all that planning for nothing if he didn’t take that chance.
Benny is careful (well a lot more careful than he is regularly depicted in fanon), the Courier being able to trace him was dumb luck on their part and his hair being noticed at the Fort is a realistically small oversight that even Caesar is disappointed in because he admits Benny got farther than he should’ve been allowed by his legionaries. The fact he can plan an ambush on the Courier or tries to quickly and concisely clean up lose ends that don’t lead back to him shows he’s not just acting on impulses or in the moment decisions. Or rather he’s quite good at thinking them out, whether they work depends on how you play really. This is all to say it’s 100% believable that Benny could lead an independent Vegas (house was basically setting him up to do that). If he had known explicitly that House was setting him up to replace him, he likely would’ve bought more time by getting in closer, learning more of the system to then flip House’s edge to his favor. Again something he was doing already but likely without the knowledge of House’s feelings on him personally.
No matter what, Vegas’ future was tied to Benny; House’s plans for him, having to get the chip and if he had somehow succeeded. It’s also interesting that of all the people vying for control of the dam/Vegas, Benny’s plans are the only ones actually oriented towards a new future, not a recreation of something long past.
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i got souyo brainworms again and i gotta share some thoughts i have
this ones a long one so ill put a 'keep reading' thing here just in case yall dont wanna scroll past a wall of text
basically some headcanons about a healthy mix of chad narukami and normal yu, injecting loads of gap moe into this guy
(and it eventually devolves into some weird semi-story because my brains really spiralling here)
okok so, hear me out, chad narukami isnt that bad as an idea...? maybe as a more calm iteration, just another layer to yu
in the p4 manga, we get to see some of yu's backstory. (its been a while since ive read it so i might get some details wrong but) his parents are very busy people, always working and moving around, so yu's always moving around with them
because of this, hes a very independent but also lonely kid. poor guy doesnt talk much with his own mom and dad, and he never really have a good enough chance to form lasting friendships
so when he moves to inaba and starts making friends there, hes like 'oh i really want to keep these guys around...' so he starts putting up a bit of a persona (hah), some cool, unfazed guy that everyone can rely on thinking thats what people might like more. to his credit, it works pretty well, but its a bit stifling for yu himself. hes never had this many friends though, so he'll keep it up
we all know yosuke admires him quite a fair bit as is, just as a dependable friend and a strong leader. he looks up to yu in these aspects, thinking hes basically the perfect guy. (and lets never unpack that thought.) talented, charming, 'gets all the ladies', that kind of stuff
at some point its just the two of them, maybe walking home from school or something, yu gets pretty comfortable and his facade slips a little. maybe he says something completely silly, or heavens forbid theres a stray cat along the road! ("awww look at the little guy, cmeree, pspsps- oh- ahem- uh, its pretty cute...") it surprises yosuke quite a bit. he's thinking about it a lot as they part ways, it was... definitely a new side to his partner, but its also not a bad thing...
after that, yosuke starts noticing more small things about yu. whenever he invites anyone to share his lunch, its always something they like. whenever the IT are talking, he makes sure no one feels left out. he likes cats, a lot more than hes willing to show, and he loves nanako a whole lot too. his partner's... a bit of a softie under that calm and collected vibe, isnt he?
(alternatively, it'd be really funny if the entire IT knew? like "yeah, hes got a straight face all the time and sparkles fly around him whenever he strikes a pose, but hes got a dedicated schedule for hanging out with us and hes always asking when we're free. hes a big puppy, really.")
anyways, yosuke tries to encourage him to show more of this other side of him. stuff like "c'mon, we'll think you're cool either way!" and yu at first is a little hesitant, so yosuke suggests he just try it out with him
he feels some pride about it, because hes the first to learn about this side of yu! his partner trusts him the most, hes the most comfortable around him! (whats this strange other feeling? hm. dont like that.)
yu takes a little more time with the others, but theyre very welcoming about it nonetheless. specifically, they find it very charming! (making cute shapes in your bento? sewing cute stuffed toys with kanji? playing with literally every single stray cat you lay your eyes on? hell yeag.)
of course the facade doesnt completely shatter, because some parts of it are still true to yu. its just that he'll now crack the dumbest joke youve heard in your life with the same old straight face
(aaand now to derail for the sappy stuff huhuhu)
because yosuke's usually the first to be exposed to whatever new shenanigans yu's up to, eventually he starts getting some... weirder things. he brings some of it up to the other IT members and he looks insane, like:
"what? he hasnt been giving you guys origami?"
"why would he? i mean itd be cool, but thats just his part-time job isnt it? hes probably sick of paper cranes!"
"cranes... haha, yeah..." (as he thinks about the row of stupid paper animals sitting on his windowsill)
yu over time starts getting real sweet with yosuke, and he kind of gets the feeling he should just... keep this to himself...? especially when he doesnt see him acting this way with anyone else, and a small part of him wants to keep it to himself. all of this, just for him.
but that would be kind of gay, wouldnt it? hes not gay, is he...? he gets pretty happy whenever yu smiles at him, whenever he does something for him, but its just because he appreciates him as his partner... right?
eventually it all comes to a head when yu invites him to that... that spot high up in inaba. (ykno the one, its got the railing and shit.)
yosuke's climbing the hill, wondering whats yu gonna tell him, and at the top he sees him already waiting there as the sun's about to set on a nice breezy day
he kinda jokes a bit about it, like "damn did you ask me to come here now for the atmosphere?" but yu's strangely quiet
so they kinda just stand in a bit of an awkward silence before yu clears his throat... and confesses to yosuke.
...
they just. stare at each other for a bit. yosuke's at a loss, heat slowly rising in his cheeks, because what the hell?
and then yu explodes into a flustered mess, bumbling about "hey yeah man you dont have to accept if you dont wanna, i was just saying things yknow? you dont really have to-"
yosuke cuts him off, sighing a little. he tells him its okay, hes kinda had a feeling he felt the same way but he wasnt ready yet... and now his partner's confessing to his face, he cant really put it off anymore, can he?
("by the way, did you plan this? like, the timing and everything?"
"i... had a hard enough time saying 'i like you' with a straight face as it was, i kind of had to..."
"... ah.")
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Klaus is an abusive character. He's got issues, but rather than dealing with them in his 1000+ years of life, he imposes them on others. Even his siblings are victims of his hostile temper like the toxic codependency we see with Rebecca. Imagine not being able to voice your ideas or opinions because the moment you cross this guy BOOM now you are daggered (dead if you're not his siblings), now you're to spend god knows how much time in a coffin till this guy feels like 'forgiving' you (happens mainly because he was getting bored). This clarifies why his (some) siblings disdain him.
Now Now, don't get me wrong! These are the characteristics that make him a good complex villain for Tvd also I get why would people love his character as underneath all his hostile blowup and narcissistic charm, there was an undeniable vulnerability: he wanted to be loved and accepted... Plus his childhood was very traumatic and I feel soo bad for the young Klaus (can I hug that little guy and tell him how's everything gonna be fine or take him away from all this? Then he might have grown up to be a better person), one can still see how much it still effects him. That's why his older brother Elijah kind of feels guilty about what all young Klaus had gone through and expects to bring out the good in him (like we see in The Originals, how he transforms from a villain to a flawed hero because of his daughter- this was what Elijah believed in and that's why rooted for Klaus).
So I'm all for a good redemption arc, everyone deserves second chances. This is why you can love this guy, BUT HOW CAN YOU EXCUSE HIS ACTIONS? It's like they glitter up and cover his actions and consequences with rose petals, ignoring how much hurt he had caused others without feeling remorse for one bit, and then these people would hate on others with the sole justification that "they were annoying". For example, why do these people hate Tyler?? He had such a great redemption arc in Tvd but got sired to Klaus, even after that he tried his best to not lose himself and even tried helping others, went through all that pain just for Caroline, got betrayed by Hayley, his friends were killed, his mother was killed by Klaus with whom love of his life ends up sleeping and that's not even the end... He has every fucking right to be mad but ends up getting punched jfhdhgh. Even Matt.. He's so much better than these murderers but they all wish death upon him. This is hypocrisy at this point.
Thus, I do like Klaus because of how strategic and intriguing he is (the way he gets mad with outrage lmao) and his unpredictableness is a chef's kiss, but this doesn't mean he's your goody two shows that fandom makes him be and disguise his acts to show him like a tortured essence.
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