#Anti Donna Paulsen

[inthenameofallthingsholy]

I made suits Barbie posters! (No spoilers im on season 8 PLEASE-)

sorry for the anti katrina shit she’s just kinda on my nerves rn

[blush-and-books]

I love this!!!! I also feel like she gives Child of Divorce energy a bit and I really like the hc of her parents relationship contributing to her issues with stability (the darvey stability/loyalty pairing makes me INSANE)

I also think her sister is roughly 10 yrs older and I wonder if she's a half sister or if she's closer to mom bc Dad seems closer to donna somehow?? To your point about Harvey seeing Donna's loyalty to her dad clearly but not his own, CRAZY!!!!! She also seems to have a kind of lack of trust in her mom after her childhood had these disappointments, personally I'm a Jim Paulsen Anti (lmao) but I think it's fascinating how both Harvey and Donna have these blindspots when it comes to their dads.

Also interesting that you think it was an on again off again relationship!!! I just love hearing ppls thoughts bc I think the way Donna's parents were mentioned and incorporated in the show was disjointed in a way Harvey's parents obviously weren't (they were so core to his character from day one) so I like thinking about how we can piece together the canon bits we have into something semi coherent.

okay i think about this a lot but what do you think donna's relationship is like with her parents and her sister and do you have any conception of the timeline of her parents separation and what do you think the sister's deal is

i mean like…. i was wholly convinced donnas whole thing was Child Of Divorce like when she talked about her mom and her moms boyfriend coming over (in 4x15 intent) like i always assumed donnas parents were long divorced. and in s5 when her dad is in legal trouble and theres all those flashbacks about her dad like theres no mention of her mom (or her sister for that matter) so it seemed like her mom was out of the picture

but also harvey mentions donnas parents staying at his condo in s1 which implies they were together before the show started

one thing i really really liked though is when harvey tells donna “you cant see your fathers faults cus youre putting him on a pedestal!” i was like DAMNNNN GIRL LOOK IN THE MIRROR!!!! I LOVE THE FACT HARVEY CAN SEE IT IN DONNA AND HE CANT SEE IT IN HIMSELF!! LIKE THATS WHAT HARVEY DOES!!! HE WORSHIPS HIS OWN FATHER AND NEVER SAW HIS FLAWS!!! anyway i just loved how they’re the saaaaameee there

im gonna say.. im gonna make the decision and say. i think donnas parents were separated for a long time, like years. and maybe even had an on again off again thing for a long time. like im gonna say they separated like when donna was in high school, like he lost all their money they started arguing and didn’t stop and on top of having to move and go to a new school and being 14, donnas parents separated which was really really hard on her (im gonna talk about this later, but i think her sister is like 7-10 years older and is out of the house so donna couldn’t even really talk to her while all this is going on)

and ok the important thing is. her parents never got divorced they only separated and started seeing other people. but also sometimes still seeing each other -> and like being a young adult, like donna was in high school and later college and witnessing that whole mess of her parents dating other people and each other, and maybe wanting to get divorced for real but never taking the plunge…..really messed donna up and gave her her issues with intimacy and commitment (in her friendships and her romantic relationships)

but! but!!!! we also have to remember that donna wanted her parents back together!! donna worships her father and wants her parents to be happy (meaning together!) so like idk what donna thinks about her father as her mothers husband yknow like she does ask her mom “did you regret it, trusting him?” about her mom trusting her dad with their money despite the fact he lost it all…idk where i was going with this the point is that they get back together and donna loves that, and tells harvey the story as some grand romantic story

okay back to her sister. i think her sister is much older than donna like she was out of the house most of donnas life. like if her sister is say, 8 years older than donna she would have left for college when donna was 10. and even before that yknow to have such a dramatic difference in age when donna was still a kid growing up her sister was in high school and probably not around that much… so i dont think theyre all that close

[laufire]

I did a ~selective viewing of some Suits episodes to do a refresher before jumping in and finally watching the last season... I'm determined to do it because I want to see where a lot of these people's stories went (Louis, Louis/Sheila, Samantha, Katrina, Alex...).

But just the premiere has made more aware than ever of how much I LOATHE Donna. And Darvey. Neither can be on screen without me making this exact face:

[ID: the queen on Brave making a disgusted involuntary expression at her food’s taste.]

I hate her Karma Houdini ass more than ever istg. She massively screws up like once per season, yet nothing happens to her as a consequence, because she's Awesome TM and people aren't allowed to disagree or dislike her, ever (that investigator who refused to work for the film when Donna was a bitch to her and then refused to be convinced to talk in their favor... where are you babe ilu. Same to Anita Gibbs and oh so many

delightful antagonists. Hardman deserves to ruin her life for what she did to Robert, period. The bf she just cheated on should get to be a bitch at the very least).

What's worse, her last stunt not only didn't have negative consequences for her, but it caused MY MAN ROBERT ZANE to be disbarred and damage his reputation (likely irreparably, though I’m hoping that’s not the case and I’m going to choose to believe it even if it’s post-series) to save her and Harvey's asses.This in turn harmed the firm that Alex and Samantha just put their names on, hurting Samantha’s reputation as Robert’s right hand, and caused Louis to lose control of the firm. But none of them are allowed to even be mad at her for it, because It’s Donna. Samantha is within her fucking rights to tear into her but she must make peace with her; it must be understood that Louis worships the ground she walks on (although thankfully lately it’s just words, as he relies far more on literally everyone else -Sheila, Katrina, his therapist, Alex, Robert, Harvey...), Robert can’t be mad and instead must be seeking ~redemption, etc.

One thing that made me FURIOUS though, it’s her call to Rachel at the beginning of the episode. Rachel, her so-called closest friend, and the daughter of the man whose life she just ruined. And she calls her and leaves a message in her voicemail (which I’m choosing to believe as Rachel not picking up because as far as she’s concerned, they’re not on speaking terms), to cheerfully inform her that’s she’s finally worn down the man she obsessively obsessed about for over a decade to fuck her a second time. Hoo-fucking-ray. What the fuck is wrong with her that she calls Rachel to tell her that, right now??

Which leads me to what I can’t stand about the situation. It’s not like the show is pretending that Donna and Harvey are the Ultimate Romance, the writing is consistent and all (LOL at the fact that Louis caught them the morning after, saw Harvey in last night’s clothes... and thought they’d being working all night because the idea is so unthinkable lmao. And some narrative choices are VERY ON POINT, like the fact that things happen in Donna’s appartment and not Harvey’s -where everything about his romantic life has been front and center-, or how Harvey isn’t even allowed to be mad that Donna was still involved with another man without his knowledge when they slept together, something that to the Harvey we knew in the show, would’ve made him feel like shit and angry as hell), but the narrative of Harvey Finally Sees How Awesome Donna Is And That She’s Always Right And Should Be In Charge of Every Facet of His Life... jfc. I hate it here!!

They are living proof of the fact that I hate the Relentless Pursuer trope no matter what genders involve it, I guess, but at what cost. AT WHAT COST I SAY DDDD: I feel terrible for him ugh.

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

I dont even know the character but if your Donna rants are as amusing as your Dumbledore rants, then Id love to hear them

Your kindness is much appreciated, anon. Honestly, Donna Paulsen isn't nearly on the level of someone like Albus Dumbledore. She would probably hate him. Hard to say, given how different their worlds are. Still, there are many different ways for a character to frustrate the audience. Donna isn't a horrible person. She's just...very annoying.

The main issue is that she is one of those characters that the show simply refuses to call out on her nonsense. In fact, it really, really wants you to like her, and attempts to portray her as this flawless superhero, this total badass...and it does this mostly through her own mouth. Half of her lines are just her stating that she's "awesome" usually because she figures things out or already knows things about other people. She always acts like she knows everything and tells other people what's right and wrong. So it's sort of like BBC's Sherlock in that sense. This would already be something that could get old after a while, but what truly kills Donna's likeability is how she totally doesn't actually meet that standard, like, at all. She massively fucks up all the time. At least once per season. It would be one thing if she grew from these incidents, or her portrayal changed because of them. But this doesn't happen. Every time, the show either A) treats her as the victim, B) tries to argue that she was right, or C) goes with the interpretation that yes, she was wrong, but it's a one time thing, and shouldn't be held against her with all of the good that she's done. Seriously, the line "One mistake in thirteen years." Comes up in Season 7 and I have to say...really?

In Season 1, she goes behind Harvey's back on the Cameron Dennis case, a betrayal that upsets him so much that he considers firing her. All she says in response is "You're welcome." In Season 2, she shreds that document and gets fired for it. She never accepts responsibility for this and to the end, keeps insisting that she did it for Harvey. In Season 3...eh, I'll give her a pass on the whole Stephen thing. He fooled everyone. But Season 4, oh boy. The Liberty Rail fiasco is one of her worst outings, especially considering that at the end of it all, Harvey got her out of it...and then she left him and went to work for Louis. And all because *checks clipboard* he wasn't sure if wanted to be more than friends? She literally just hires herself back as Harvey's secretary when Mike gets caught. "You saying you're coming back to me?" Uh Harvey, you do realize that you get a say in that? In Season 6, she has the whole "The Donna" storyline, which is...probably the worst arc on the show. It is just so beyond pointless. It reeks of seasonal rot. In Season 7, she gets herself appointed C.O.O. by using reverse psychology and asking for a Partnership she knows she can't have, and causing all kinds of drama...instead of just, y'know, asking. Then she kisses Harvey while he's dating Paula. And has the nerve to criticize how he reacts, and the choices he's made in his relationship. In Season 8, she breaks privilege for personal, selfish reasons...and gets away scot free. Harvey doesn't even care that she betrayed him at this point, he just minds that she "lost faith in him." And this? This is what ultimately gets them together? Please.

I stopped caring about Harvey and Donna's "will they/won't they" in Season 5. It was definitely the season that gave them the most development, before hitting the damn reset button by having Donna hire herself back. Because every "will they/won't they" ends the same way - yes, they will, in the last few episodes or the finale. Harvey and Donna's relationship in Season 9 was wholesome, sure. But it was too little, too late. In general, Donna has a lot of issues about her contributions to the firm. She feels unappreciated, clearly, because half of her lines are just her demanding other people (usually Harvey) recognize what she's done. Even after she found out that he paid her salary and even gave her raises that no other secretary got. There's definitely something to be said about Donna being led to believe she was more important than she is. That clearly affected her and they could have done something interesting if they explored it more. But I think all of the examples I provided are proof that she can be selfish. She loves to dig in her heels and insist that she's put Harvey first again and again for years. Trouble is...I can remember a lot of times she said this, but not that many times that she actually did it. Her actions speak louder than her words. She just feels like a very clear example of a character who the story really wants you to like, and practically instructs you to. Rose Tyler also comes to mind. Yet I don't feel like Donna came close to earning the pedestal that she was placed on.

The other characters made mistakes as well, but they were treated as human beings, not superheroes.

[ninetyninemangoes]

Donna Paulsen has done more damage to that law firm than anyone else on the show. How many times has she screwed up and had everyone else sacrifice and cover for her? She never takes responsibility for her own stupidity and selfishness.

Also I miss Jessica!

[heytheredeann]

(Warning: anti Darvey and anti Donna. If you are a fan of either of those, you won’t like it.)

Tbh the main reason why I can’t stand Darvey is that Harvey is totally not into it. And the reason why I am so mad about this kiss is that Donna jumped him as a last resort in the hope that a True Love Kiss will make him come to his senses and realize that they are soulmates.

Donna knows how she feels, and in spite of all the denial and how she refuses to take the hint, she also knows that Harvey doesn’t want her. Her reaction? Kissing him to see if he changes his mind.

“No” doesn’t mean “Take me, I’m just stupid” because he is a guy and she is ‘awesome’. Not letting him finish his sentences whenever he tries to say “I don’t want to be with you” doesn’t mean getting consent.

If Harvey was a woman and Donna was a man people would be losing their shit over this. Donna has always been super-intrusive, and as much as he did take advantage of the chance to lean on her, she wanted him to, she never took any of the chances she had to leave him (except when she went to work with Louis. He had accepted it and surprise surprise she chose to go back), she found hope into being useful to him, it helped her hiding in her delusion that he would someday see the light, and now that he realized that he couldn’t just leave things as they were without Donna demanding more, he tried not to rely on her anymore and as a result... she became even more invasive. And obsessed. She tried to cut herself a role into Harvey and Paula’s relationship when she came to his office. She kissed him in spite of knowing a) of his issues with cheating b) that he didn’t want that. Because he HAS to love her. He HAS to realize that they are soulmates. There’s no other option for her, they are MADE for each other and Harvey is just “not ready” to accept it, he’s being stubborn so in her mind Donna HAD to move things along, to MAKE him see.

I’ve seen people forever labelling men as Rapists, Abusers and The Literal Worst for less.

Harvey is not stupid, fucked-up or even simply wrong for not wanting Donna. He doesn’t owe her romantic love. Nobody owes romantic love to anybody. But Donna is wrong, fucked-up and imo pretty disgusting for not accepting “no” as an answer.

[redgoldblue]

Anyway Donna and Harvey slept together once in the first like, year of their friendship, woke up in the morning, looked at each other, went ‘okay fun times. Felt like I was having sex with my cousin. We’re never doing that again.’ and then they didn’t.

[novemberhush]

I just got a flashback to that time in 'Suits' when whiter than white Donna said she was "black on the inside" and I cringed so hard I think I did myself an injury.

[rainovermyhead]

“I want you in my life”

[kiddstellas]

suits

my favorite female character: donna paulsen for sure but also scottie and jessica

my favorite male character: harvey unfortunately ljhgfdsa

my favorite book/season/etc: i never really rewatched the whole show so i’m bad with this but season 3 and 4?

my favorite episode (if its a tv show): the one that comes to mind is when harvey tells donna ‘you know i love you donna’ and then (i think it’s the next one or later in that one???) she quits and is like ‘i love you harvey’ THESE BITCHES

my favorite cast member: patrick is fun but also gabriel, the two of them supreme

my favorite ship: darvey, mike/rachel, scarvey

a character I’d die defending: SCOTTIE MORE PEOPLE NEED TO LOVE HER

a character I just can’t sympathize with: i’m blanking but but daniel hardman yeah what a bastard

a character I grew to love: louis lkjhgfdsa he’s like your annoying cousin that you want to smack at every chance but when someone else does it you’ll go to war

my anti otp: katrina and the intern i forgot his name lmao the married one just no dude

[happypeacenut]

Ever since I began watching the good kind of television (not to sound anti-national but it was American), TV shows took precedence over movies in my life. They had longer and more stories to tell. They could experiment with characters, settings, relationships, and if you’ve watched Supernatural then you’ll know, even form and structure. Most importantly, they felt never-ending. You could curl up in bed with one that had a solid 5+ seasons, and it was escapist heaven. Alas, all good things, including good television, must come to an end. And this week, it was Suits, the series finale of which aired on Colors Infinity in India on September 26.

It was 2011. And of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams) walked into the hotel suite where Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) was conducting associate interviews for Harvard attorneys. The rest, as they say, is history.

Now I know if either of them were reading this, they’d love how I slipped in the Casablanca reference in there. In fact, they might even argue over which one of them would be Humphrey Bogart (Harvey) and which one would be Ingrid Bergman (Mike). And that right there, the instant chemistry between Harvey and Mike, which eventually evolved into bromance, and finally brotherhood, to this day remains the heart of Suits for many. They’ve got that Tony Stark-Peter Parker vibe!

Suits started off as a cocky S.O.B, much like its primary lead, Harvey Specter. In fact, rarely have I seen a show’s trajectory share so many traits with its characters. In Season 1, Suits was fierce like Jessica Pearson (Gina Torres), impatient like Louis Litt (Rick Hoffman), incredibly smart and sassy like Mike Ross, intuitive like Donna Paulsen (Sarah Rafferty) and determined to prove itself like Rachel Zane (Meghan Markle).

People began watching Suits because Harvey’s alpha male was sexy, and his Batman and Robin act (banter et al.) with associate Mike Ross was fun. They watched it because they found Jessica and Donna to be formidable women that every man respected and every woman wanted to be. They watched it because Mike and Rachel’s love story was as hot as it was beautiful.

And now, eight years and nine seasons later, as we bid farewell to the firm that we’ve known by many names—Pearson Hardman, Pearson, Pearson Darby, Pearson Darby Specter, Pearson Specter, Pearson Specter Litt, Specter Litt, Zane Specter Litt, Zane Specter Litt Wheeler Williams, Specter Litt Wheeler Williams and Specter Litt Williams Bennett (final for five years at least)—it is incredible to see how these characters have evolved with the show’s storyline.

When we get to Suits Season 9 Episode 10, it’s the final lap of Samantha Wheeler (Katherine Heigl) v. Faye Richardson (Denise Crosby). Despite Faye’s treacherous traps, the team manages to sidestep and pull one last con. In the end, it requires the best closer in town, Harvey Specter, to step into the ring. And since happy endings are a binding precedent when it comes to series finales, you know this means Faye is gone and all’s fine with Pearson Specter Wheeler Williams. Or is it? Because there’s a twist right around the corner. And the promos will tell you, as are two weddings and one childbirth!

It’s the bittersweet ending of your dreams, as you watch Harvey and Donna make a move to Seattle to be with Mike and Rachel, leaving the firm in the hands of some old and some new blood. It is a testament to the Season 9 storyline, about people facing the consequences of doing whatever it takes to win a case, that the naming partners we see at the end of the show are all at least willing to play by the book. But of course, the real moments worth focusing on has to be Mike ‘interviewing’ Harvey, putting his eidetic memory to excellent use by recreating his own interview all the way from Season 1! I dare you not to shed tears as you smile over this!

And then you’ll wish you had someone holding your hand like Donna held Louis’ as she bid goodbye.

In fact, I’ll go so far as saying that Harvey Specter may be a slick closer, but when it comes to series endings, fan service is the best closer in town. No matter how rushed and hurried or ridiculous your final season may appear, if the last ever episode is piled up with fan service moments, then you’re let off the hook. All a fan really wants is to have enough chances to relive it all and say goodbye. And that’s exactly what show creator Aaron Korsch gave us.

The final few episodes were brimming with callbacks to the earlier seasons. Dr Lipschitz (Ray Proscia) came back, Harvey teased Louis by calling him the Prince of England (a subtle nod to HRH the Duchess of Sussex, perhaps?). And all the casual ways Mike, Harvey and Donna brought up Mike’s fraud tied it all up in a nice bow. It felt nostalgic to revisit some of the badass lines Harvey has dropped over the years in the span of the last two episodes!

“Harvey’s maybe the best closer in the city. But I’m the best everything else.” (Louis Litt)

“I don’t play the odds. I play the man.” (Harvey to Louis after he got Faye to back down)

“When your back is up against the wall, break the goddamn thing down.” (Mike quoting Harvey to Robert Zane and Samantha)

“Life is this. I want this.” (Louis to Ted Tucker, when he was pretending to be Harvey)

via GIPHY

“What are your choices when someone puts a gun to your head? You take the gun, or you pull out a bigger one. Or, you call their bluff. Or, you do any one of a hundred and forty six other things.”

(Mike quoting Harvey back to Harvey)

For a show that’s about the cut-throat world of corporate law, Suits somehow managed to reiterate the ideas of friendship, loyalty and family with its extremely well-developed characters and their ever evolving relationships with each other. The final episode showed just how much they’ve evolved. It did feel like only Louis got to evaluate how far he had come with Dr Lipschitz in the episode. But you wouldn’t need a shrink to tell you how there was more love and respect than ever before between him and Harvey. Louis quoting A Few Good Men and Harvey letting him be the Goose to his Maverick (Top Gun reference he’d once shared with Mike) made my heart full!

via GIPHY

Even though she was new to the show, watching Samantha finally be rid of her baggage and ready to play the game with her new family and her old mentor, Robert Zane (a brilliant Wendell Pierce) by her side was touching. And so was Katrina Bennett (Amanda Schull) finally getting her due! It was reassuring to know that she and Alex Williams (Dulé Hill) would be there to keep Louis and Samantha in check.

It wouldn’t have been easy for Harvey to give up what he did, or to make a lifelong commitment in such a split-second decision. Over the latter course of the show, we’ve seen Harvey being told he’s gone soft. But we finally understand that it is his priorities and what he values most in life that has been changing for him. It helps him forgive his mother and realise his true feelings for Donna. He preferred to work alone at first and cared only about winning. Now, he was ready to move cities to work with his closest friend on cases that helped those in need. Harvey Specter had started caring.

Okay, I’ll admit, I wish some things were different. While it was a beautiful ceremony, I’m not too sold on the impromptu Darvey wedding, more so because Harvey and Donna should’ve known how pissed Louis would be to miss their special day. It’s not Harvey’s style. I’ve made my peace with the fact that there would never be another Meghan Markle appearance, and it makes it easier to then imagine that Rachel missed both Louis and Donna’s weddings. But I would've loved to see Jessica Pearson make an appearance at the event. Or if not that, then maybe a phone call to Harvey, while he was spending his last few minutes in his office. She was his mentor, and he was leaving the firm just as she had, in service of the greater good of the firm. Not even Mike would understand what that felt like.

And finally, I would’ve loved to know what Harvey and Donna’s ritual was with that can opener! Of course, we can’t get what we want. And that’s probably a good thing too. Can you imagine the tears that would come with that? The finale did seem to be moving at a doubly fast pace, patching arc endings wherever they could. And while it wasn’t exactly seamless, it was satisfying because it gave the fans enough reasons to smile and get mushy over it.

[missbrunettebarbie]

(I probably shouldn't go into such discourse because nothing good ever comes of it, but I am bored and argumentative so here we go)

I agree with @eyes-painted-with-kohl with two exceptions:

1. Shipping Drama is not just an afterthought for why Mai is hated, it is the very first reason why she sparks such passion in antis (mostly Zuko/Katara shippers).

When a female character is hated in 99.9% of cases it's because she gets in the way of fandom's preferred ship (Caroline Forbes in TVD/TO, Daenerys Targaryen in GOT/ASOIFA, Lana Lang in Smallville and many, many others. Hell, I hate Donna Paulsen from 'Suits' because she ended up with Harvey, so don't think I am above it). Just look around at all the fandoms here. If you can find even 1 exception, I applaud you, but I can't. And anyway the exception proves the rule.

And yes, there are Reasonable Reasons to dislike this characters, but:

a. You find said reasons after you realize you hate the character

b. dislike =/= byrning hate

Shipping isn't the only think that can cause this 'burning hate' reaction, but it's the one I've seen most often.

2. Not as important, but I disagree with the idea that Mai is more deeply flawed than other characters. Because, let me tell you, if I was in her shoes, I would have been 10× worse. (Plus, I don't think the protagonists are some shining beacons of moralty either. I think they hmget a free pass because we see their POV more often and understand them better)

Hi, I finished watching atla. It's a good show with interesting characters. But I wonder why Mai is hated. I mean, she saved zuko and co. at the boiling rocks. She believed in him. The brief eye lock they had after zuko locked Mai says so. I just want to know your opinion.

Why Mai Is Hated

(Disclaimer: This is not an even-handed analysis of Mai’scharacter because that was not the question asked. The question was, Why is Mai hated? The following essayattempts to answer this question, and only this question.)

We’re introduced to Mai as abored teenager who hates being uprooted to Omashu. So great is her indifferencethat when a plague has reportedly struck the city, she merely offers her dadfire flakes and looks bored. Her little brother is kidnapped soon after, andshe casts her mother a disdainful glance when the latter breaks down in tears. Maithen joins up with Azula willingly, again because she is bored, and the princesstries to exchange Mai’s brother for Bumi before reneging on the deal, which Maiagrees to without even a hint that she is worried for her brother during orafter the fact.

At this point, Azula tells Maiwhat she needs her and Ty Lee for: tracking, capturing, and imprisoning GeneralIroh and Zuko according to the Firelord’s wishes as expressed in “Siege of theNorth Part 2.” Per the wanted poster Azula brandishes at the royal guard in“The Avatar State,” Zuko is wanted deador alive. Despite being teased for her crush on him, Mai shows no signs of conflictat her mission or trepidation on Zuko’s behalf.

Azula: (to her men) My brother and my uncle have disgraced the Fire Lord and brought shame on all of us. You may have mixed feelings about attacking members of the royal family; I understand. But I assure you, if you hesitate, I will not hesitate to bring you down. Dismissed.

Along the way, Mai also helpsAzula hunt Team Avatar to exhaustion and capture the Kyoshi warriors so thetrio can infiltrate the Earth Kingdom. Unlike in Zuko’s character journey wherehe learns to understand and empathize with the Earth Kingdom denizens duringhis time with them, the most Mai ever says about the people she encounters isthat their bright colors make her nauseous and it’s amusing when one of the DaiLi almost wets his pants out of fear. Eventually, Mai and Ty Lee help Azula andZuko topple the last standing bastion against Fire Nation world dominationwhile Iroh is hauled off as a prisoner.

Azula, who wants to make sureZuko is kept under control, decides to set him up with Mai in order to keep aneye on him. The couple catch on at a suspiciously timed dinner and decide toescape for a fun evening out on the town. They run into Zuko’s ex-girlfriend,which annoys Mai even though she and Zuko are not dating and, as far as weknow, were never actually together. So she pretends to be a knife thrower froma circus and flings an ice dagger through an octopus atop the unwilling Zuko’shead. Mai then encourages Jin, a complete novice, to throw her own lethalprojectile at Zuko, causing him to land in the fountain and endure publichumiliation. This is supposedly revenge for when Zuko knocked Mai into thefountain … as a child … to save her from being burned at the hands of Azula. Iam not sure why this warrants a payback, but it makes sense to Mai. Oncethey’re alone, Zuko understandably shouts at Mai that she could have gotten himkilled. Mai laughs loudly at this and brushes it off.

Once back in the Fire Nation, Maistarts dating Zuko officially. This mostly involves her ignoring or yawning atZuko’s inner turmoil and scoffing at the gifts he brings her, except for therare occasion when she tries to distract him from his problems by makingunreasonable demands on his servants.

They quarrel constantly untilZuko leaves the Fire Nation and Mai meets him again at the Boiling Rock, whereshe lambastes Zuko for ripping out her heart even though he pretty obviouslykept her in the dark for her own protection. She then says that she doesn’tknow Zuko, which is true, as he locks her in a cell moments later so he cansave the people in his life he has a genuine connection to—and who, thoughformer enemies on the opposite side of the war, have thrown fewer things at hishead than Mai has.

Suddenly Mai betrays Azula forZuko. Why? She loves him. Why does she love him? We never find out, since theonly things she ever says about his character are negative. Ty Lee saves Maifrom her impending execution and Mai later pulls some strings to get them bothout of prison. Once she makes her way to the capital, she announces withoutpreamble that she is Zuko’s girlfriend again, pokes him in the chest, and warnshim to never break up with her again.

In the comics, we discover thatthe “don’t ever break up with me again” rule applies only to Zuko and not toMai, since she dumps him in the very first series. However, let us be fair toMai: Zuko did keep the truth from her, twice, and the first time she sought asolution to the problem by getting the Kyoshi warriors to be his bodyguards.But going behind her back to talk to his evil father is the last straw for Mai.It’s such a deal breaker that she leaves the palace when Zuko is facingmultiple assassination attempts and is borderline suicidal.

Mai’s stalwart stance against notgoing behind your partner’s back to talk with an evil father will last untilher next comic series, when she goes behind Zuko’s back to talk with her evilfather. This and her refusal to turn her father in result in thenear-assassination of Zuko and his entire family, including his little sisterKiyi. Kiyi is later kidnapped because Mai’s father is still on the run and shehas refused to come clean. When Mai finally admits her aiding and abetting of amurderous traitor, she reacts to Zuko’s dismay by yelling at him and neglectingto apologize for endangering him and his loved ones.

Pleasenote that Mai’s redemptive deed in the show was her saving Zuko’s life from amurderous tyrant and that her actions here completely cancel that out.

Mai has meanwhile been dating KeiLo, a nice young man whose affections she uses in order to spy on her fatherfor Zuko. Why she used Kei Lo against her father for Zuko’s sake, only tobetray Zuko for her father’s sake, is never explained. The three of them andAang later wander the catacombs trying to find clues that may lead to Kiyi’smysterious kidnapper. But what isquite apparent is Mai’s utter contempt for Zuko during this journey. Shedeprecates Zuko’s dating style in front of her current boyfriend, insultsZuko’s ancestors, obliquely asks when Zuko will die by inquiring whether he’sreserved a grave for himself, and implies that Zuko has weird friends. Why shefeels entitled to remark on this, when she’s had a total of one real friend herentire life, is anyone’s guess. She caps it all off by saying that, thanks toZuko, she needs all future romantic relationships involving her to beemotionally imbalanced in her favor.

In the end, they fight againstMai’s father, he is captured, and Mai praises him for his bravery … even thoughhis actions consisted of hiding in the shadows and kidnapping children, whichseems like the pinnacle of cowardice. The comic ends with Mai and Zuko smilingat each other, Zuko holding his little sister in his arms (whom Mai hadendangered), and Mai holding her little brother in her arms (whom Mai had alsoendangered). Isn’t family bonding time great?

Where this intensely annoyinglove triangle is headed in the comics is uncertain, although to be honest, KeiLo/Zuko is the only healthy pairing that could result from those threecharacters. Certainly Mai and Zuko don’t resume a relationship after this, althoughthe fandom presumption is that, somewhere down the line, the pair willinexplicably marry.

Aside from Mai’s selfishness,hypocrisy, refusal to grow, and lack of compassion, the narrative around her isdisjointed and contradicts itself at several critical points. Mai is made outto be the goth girl who’s a wet blanket on her parents’ emotions, until “TheBeach,” where we are told that no actually, it was her parentsoppressing Mai’s emotions the whole time. Mai is willing to sacrifice everything in “The Boiling Rock” to save Zuko’s life, except that wait, she iswilling to throw that sacrifice away for her father in “Smoke and Shadow.” But holdon, isn’t that the father she implied was neglectful and oppressive in the first place? And wait, if it’s actually her brother growing up without a fatherthat she’s concerned about, why was she so blasé about her brother getting previously kidnapped in “Return to Omashu”? And which is supposed to be Mai’sredeeming character trait: that she stands up for love in spite of her better judgment (“The Boiling Rock”), or that she stands up for her better judgment in spite of love (“The Promise”)?

Mai’s motivations are muddled. Isher first loyalty to her father, her brother, Azula, or Zuko? The story givesus multiple answers, which it then doubles back on whenever convenient. Thisleaves herself as Mai’s only consistent priority, which is hardly a firmbedrock for constructing a heroine. Mai is not moving toward a fixed point indevelopment; the plot is dragging her along for the ride, while she exists asan afterthought. A plume, if you will, of smoke and shadow, that is fast losingwhat cohesion it possessed.

[kuriquinn]

I like all of your stories except for Gal Friday. I don't like the CEO and assistant set up and Sasuke seems out of character to me. I'm sorry. I don't really like the idea of Sasuke having previous relationships before Sakura because it is really out of character. I bet Sakura would not have had any relationships before Sasuke because that is how everyone writes these types of stories with the CEO and assistant AU. I guess that is the main reason why I don't like the story. I'm sorry again.

Part Two: I will be reading all your other stories because I think you are an excellent writer. It is just the Gal Friday story that I am going to avoid. I feel childish for doing so but I always defensive when Sasuke is portrayed as that way. I guess its a result of the anti fandom always saying that Sakura is being cheated on or something. Do you sometimes feel there is a type of story you don’t like either because of the premise?

No harm, no foul. I don’t expect everyone to like everything I write. 

And under normal circumstances (read in the canon or any AU version of the shinobi world), I agree with you. Sasuke would not have relationships with anyone else but Sakura, because a) he wasn’t in the mindframe for it and b) even in a non-massacre AU he probably wouldn’t develop a connection with anyone until Sakura. As far as I’m concerned, they’re totally soulmates and would wait for each other.

But considering Gal Friday takes place in our modern world, it would not seem realistic if two adults hadn’t had previous relationships of some sort. Even in Japan, where they’re pretty traditional, most people have had a boyfriend or girlfriend before they start the adult portion of their lives. But the past relationships are not the focus of this story at all. 

As for the CEO & Assistant trope, I totally get why you’re not a fan. I’m actually not a fan either, and when I started this story for SasuSaku Festival, this was the prompt that gave me the most trouble. Because generally, CEO & Assistant make Sasuke some kind of sex god and Sakura a wishy-washy, self-conscious virgin waiting for him to sweep her off her feet. 

But then I remembered the awesomeness of Donna Paulsen from Suits, and the ideas just came to me. So for this story, I subverted that trope by focussing on traits from Sasuke and Sakura that weren’t explored much in the anime: namely, Sasuke’s general clueless nature when it comes to emotions and Sakura’s hyper-competency. 

I’m…not quite sure how any of this leads to Sakura being “cheated on”, but whatever. 

And yeah, there are certain types of stories that I definitely can’t do. Anything involving Omegaverse, non-con, and sadly, I can no longer stomach reading teacher/student fics unless they are very clearly set in a college/university setting. 

Anyhow, hope you continue to enjoy the other stuff. There’s certainly a lot to choose from!

[laufire]

this is just mean, but Elementary was on tv, on that episode from s1 where a secretary murders her boss’ rivals behind his back so he can get better positions (and therefore, so does her), and her name is Donna and I can’t stop laughing about this xDDD

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

You're the first Donna Anti I've seen on this hellsite. (Tho the Suits following is pretty small from what I've seen.) I liked her okay up until The Kiss. Had to give up on her after that.

Okay first of all, I love how you capitalized it and referred to it like that, because it reminds me of how the Potter fandom refers to The Prank from the Marauder era. We all know, we can all well remember. And yeah, I'm 100% down for this incident being immortalized the same way, because what even was that.

I honestly gave up on D*rvey ever happening or being interesting when Donna went back to work for Harvey, because it basically undid all of the growth their relationship went through in Season 5. So when Donna kissed him I just kind of thought, "Huh, so they're finally doing this." But then it still took another season and a half to get there. Like, I just figured it was the will they/won't they finally answering with the "they will" that was inevitable at that point, but instead, we got...the kiss storyline. See, the kiss itself isn't what bothers me the most. What bothers me...is the scene where they talk it out. How Donna reacts when confronted. (A lot of grumbling lies ahead.)

Now, to be fair, this is coming off the tails of Harvey letting his anger out during a meeting, but still. First, Harvey calls Donna selfish, and then she says what she always says, which is "You have some nerve saying that to me, when you know I have put you first for years." Like...actions speak louder than words, Donna, and you really love to say that, usually whenever you fuck up. Which happens a lot. Even if I do believe that statement, It has nothing to do with her kissing Harvey, because that was selfish. She claims that she "needed to know." No, you didn't. What you needed to do was respect Harvey's relationship and boundaries.

"Our lines have been clear for a long time." Is a pretty clear statement, but then Donna just ignores it and says that their lines are blurry. Like, no, maybe yours are, but Harvey seems to disagree, so instead of listing off a bunch of aspects of your friendship, none of which are inherently romantic except maybe the claim that "we flirt" why don't you try to figure out where the miscommunication happened? These two are supposed to be best friends, and it's been thirteen years. Oh and, not too long ago, Donna pushed Harvey to consider becoming more than friends and when he was reluctant, she went to work for Louis! Since then, he has entered a relationship with another woman. What did Donna think was going to happen?

But that's okay, because she actually doesn't want to be with Harvey. Are you freaking kidding me? She kisses him without his consent, and then decides she doesn't have feelings for him? What kind of emotional manipulation is that? What if Harvey had decided he wanted to be with Donna instead of Paula after that kiss, and dumped her as a result? What if he'd dumped Paula out of guilt? Or told her, and then she dumped him out of anger? Or she didn't dump him, but it caused a lot of anger and tension they had to work through. Or what if Harvey decided to keep it a secret and felt terrible guilt for doing so? And all because Donna couldn't sort her feelings out on her own. I like how she says "I didn't feel anything when I kissed you, so you can relax if that's what you're worried about." Yeah, because this is about your feelings, Donna. That's what matters right now.

Ultimately, Harvey does seem to go for one of the options I listed. He points out that he feels like he has to keep this from Paula, Donna says to just go ahead and tell her, because he didn't do anything wrong. For someone who always claims to be inhumanly smart, she really does live in a fantasy world. Paula didn't see the kiss, she doesn't know what happened, and Harvey and Donna have always been close. Of course she'll be upset. I also don't like how it comes out that Harvey felt something during the kiss. "It did affect you, didn't it?" Donna, no, stop, that's not even close to being any of your business, and it so, so not the point. "That's not the same as feeling something." You're not the one who decides that Donna, Paula is! How is it that she's steered the conversation to being about this instead of, y'know, what she's done wrong?

Harvey finally spells it out for her, something she ought to have implicitly known since...well, honestly since before she carried out this stupid idea. That by kissing him while he's in a relationship, Donna forced him into a situation where he felt like he cheated on his girlfriend, and there's nothing in the world Harvey would hate more than that. That was Donna, Harvey's supposed best friend, his eventual wife (gag) putting him in that position, that she knows (or should know) damn well is going to hurt him worse than anything. She knows about his issues with infidelity. She knows how far back they go. She has watched him end previous relationships because of situations like this in the past! In what universe did she think that wouldn't be a problem? And when Harvey calls her out on this...Donna just kind of...ignores it. She downplays it.

She remarks that it was just a kiss. (Y'know, that thing that almost tore Mike and Rachel apart?) Which...again, Donna, Paula is the only one who gets to decide how serious this is. She reminds Harvey that they've done more than kiss in the past...which has nothing to do with the current situation either. She then asks if Harvey has told Paula that they slept together, and that is likewise none of her business. (Semi-irrelevant question, did Harvey not tell Paula about his past with Donna during their therapy sessions? Seems like the kind of thing that would have come up.) When she realizes that he hasn't told her, Donna offers one final middle finger by suggesting that Harvey shouldn't be mad at her, that it's his fault for not telling Paula that he slept with Donna thirteen years ago. Just...Harvey does bite back that he doesn't want her advice, but the moment she even said "If you want my advice" I just shook my head at the screen. Like, no. Stop. You have completely misunderstood the situation and utterly failed to take responsibility for this betrayal. You are trash, Donna Paulson. Glitzy, fancy trash.

She's not evil. She's not even really an asshole most of the time, the way so many of the characters on this show can be. But she oversells herself to an astounding degree, and for whatever reason the characters keep buying - so to that effect, it feels like the show itself is overselling Donna, which makes her flaws that much more pronounced. She's arguably the biggest screwup in the cast. I could make full rant posts like this one about The Liberty Rail fiasco, about the document that she shredded, about the time she broke privilege. But go on, Donna. Tell me more about how kissing Harvey was "one mistake, in thirteen years." Y'know, she's a much more realistic kind of annoying, and I sort of like that? But I also don't like what a karma houdini she is, how self-absorbed she acts. "The Donna" storyline almost felt like parody for that reason, but no...that was a plot-line in the show, that actually existed and aired, and we were meant to take it seriously. Like...wow...

[ninetyninemangoes]

Suits rewatch...

OMG by season 4, Mike and Donna have become unwatchable in their self-absorption and/or self-righteousness.