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After all the events that took place at Motufetu, Maui wants to talk to Moana about everything that happened to them. But not even he could have foreseen how much she'd be in denial about all of it...

(Set at the very end of Moana 2.)

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part three of my splash animation analysis. source. Part one. Part two

maui catches his hook, then even before he finishes shouldering it, he looks back to moana

its a face that got an interesting mix of sheepishness, mild embarrassment, incredulity. like some part of him might be expecting her to laugh at him, or comment something snide. a bit of wounded pride, a little part of 'i couldve done that myself you know,' a little bit of 'yeah she totally saw that little snafu'. he looks like he's considering making a joke, or daring her to say anything-but he's also smiling. old maui might have pouted more, heck, stuck-blind pull maui did pout two seconds ago.

maui settles the hook on his shoulder, his shoulder infinitesimally relaxing into the familiar weight. the famous eyebrow raises even more crisply, and his eyes are lighter. his smile seems slightly less of a sardonic grimace and more self deprecating. eye contact has been established- he can see she's not laughing at him, although her smile can be read as somewhat smug. her expression is more than a little fond, and hasn't changed much since her success at pulling them into the background.

which is kind of sad, actually. a bit of a fail on the animator's part not to have her react at least a little to him getting bonked into a sharkhead. she seems to be patiently waiting for him to join her for the last pose. maybe it happens too fast- lord knows it was hard enough for me to get distinct screenshots of his transformation sequence.

charitably, it could be a sign that she is used to his little gaffs and doesnt snark about them as much as she used to, doesnt feel as if she needs to poke holes in his ego or humble him. they're both a bit more mature, a bit humbler.

and then, the squeal worthy head tilt.

its hard to see in still images but watching the animation

that little head tilt, the eye brows, says so much.

acknowledgement that she got the job done, acknowledgement of their teamwork, in her competence. he looks at the audience like "thats moana for ya" or "well, she is the main character after all." or even just a simple thanks, not just for the assist but for not laughing.

smiling openly, warmly, without pride, with good humor. he doesnt rush to get up from landing flat on his butt, but neither does he sulk and refuse eyecontact with the viewer. he completes the pose from the chest up, gazing directly at the camera til the end. he's not pretending to be perfect. he's not ashamed.

and the fact he looks at moana first, before he checks the audience's reaction <3 *sighs in happy shipper contentment*. he takes his cue from her steady, nonplussed sincere smile. theres mirroring happening here, despite maui sitting. likewise she doesn't turn to address the audience again until after they lock eyes. she's taking his cues too.

their eyes meet, then turn to us in a fourth wall break of understated joy. "hey friends" it seems to say. "we're glad youre here. thanks for coming. "

we the viewer get to share in their moment, and its beautiful.

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"Look, I get it... no one likes sucking at their job." "Why are you even here?" "Because... Because I've been low before. And... I couldn't see a way forward. And then someone came along... Someone who I underestimated. And she lifted me up..."

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Because of you I'm a better me and I didn't even think that was a possibility! (Moana 2, 2024)

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Maui torturing coaching Moana (Moana 2 - 2024)

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Reunion (Moana 2 - 2024)

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There's a Hooked Wayfinder community here on Tumblr, started by @bookdragon247! If you've never joined a community before, feel free to do so! It's where we can ship in peace, share non-polished posts, talk fanfics and fanarts, just have a bit of a chat, share our thoughts, meta and more!

(For those of you encountering this post without context or tags - Hooked Wayfinder / Moaui are the shipnames of Moana and Maui.)

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"We can draw the storm, Maui. It's the only way." "Go as fast as you can. Ah… Look, I can pull up a million islands. But if you're not there to land on them then…" "See you out there, Maui." "See you out there, Moana."

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Moana and Maui - Moana 2 (2024)

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BIG SPOILERS FOR ACTUAL MOVIE

Okay so I really like the idea of Maui and Moana. I know it’s kinda weird, considering she’s like 16 in the first movie. But in the 2nd she’s aged up to 20 I believe. and it’s clear that they kinda haven’t seen each other in years, and yet THEY CANT STOP THINKING OF EACH OTHER. Maui’s tattoo loves reminding him of her. and he clearly has her wandering his head. not to mention, she’s tattooed on his heart!!! he knows she’s grown up and when they meet up, he smirks at her when she tries to hug him and teases her by not letting her. also when she palms his chest to high five his tattoo, his tattoo seems to get shy or like he got embarrassed, or like Maui might get mad at him kinda like “uh oh” as if he’ll get jealous so idk… and maui clearly wants to say something then moni gets in the way. Plus he’s too busy trying to tell her she might die, BUT YALL when they’re fighting, he’s so worried for her. and trying to protect her and the others only because she’d want that. Cuz like before when he meets the crew he kinda plans for them to die until he realizes she’s with them. And don’t get me started on the nicknames and PRINCESS?? I get the joke but omg- I felt my face heat up too girl. He’s so focused on her and when he thinks she dies he’s crying and singing and clearly is glad, but he best part is when he smiles when she’s back. and the first thing he did after yk becoming mortal and passing out was to figure hour where she was and save her. She’s basically his reason to live and now that she’s immortal with him, they’re practically made for each other. They’re only gonna have each other after everyone dies and I think it’s romantic. Also I never shipped them in the 1st movie I never considered it, I just realized I loved their playful nature in the 2nd and how she constantly thinks of him plus she’s aged up and a adult and she’s immortal soo and I really love mortal x immortal stuff🙊🌸

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СВЕРШИЛОСЬ!!!!

Мои хорошие!

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I had never shipped moana with maui before I was in love with their whole besties dynamic

But this movie is making me reconsider they're way too cute together to not ship them omg

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Just my fav besties, your honor.

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I wanted to say that Maui in this movie stopped saying her name and started using affectionate nicknames, which really got to me.

and exactly in that scene he says: ``I didn't know I had changed my clothes, otherwise I would take off this set of old sheets.´´

AAAAAHHH why would he care about changing his clothes to please a Human friend?

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Can I get a Cheehoo is such a vibrant song from Moana 2 - the animation (and song itself!) is a ton of fun!