#I feel so much for Wilhelm

[the-words-we-sung]

First impressions after watching season 3

So after being super patient all day yesterday, I finally managed to get back home and binge watch season 3 last night \o/ I'm just gonna put a few of my first thoughts here for now, I'm gonna need to rewatch everything to have more detailed and coherent thoughts 😁 But first of all, I wanna thanks Amber 💜 (@amailboxlemur) for being the best spectator and companion to my live reactions 😂 It was super duper nice to be able to share these with you while I was watching and going through all the emotions 😱 So I liked the season!! It was a lot a lot but I really enjoyed it!! It made me cry, it made me laugh, it made me blush... All the rainbow emotions 💜

Here is my reaction at the end of episode 5, and I think it sums up pretty well my feeling at that moment :p

So a few randoms comments (I will write more about each episode after rewatching them, which I intend to start doing tonight because I neeeeeed to watch it all again):

[It's not spoiler-free so don't read if you haven't watched the season yet!!]

⁂ Simon was incredibly sad this season and it broke my heart. Seeing him cry just made me cry. He was so lost and broken, I really can't wait for the last episode to see him get better (yes I'm an eternally optimist person so I believe he will be happier!!)

⁂ I wasn't expecting the Micke/Sara storyline but I think I liked it! It gave us a new perspective into the Eriksson family dynamic and I felt so so bad for Sara at the end

⁂ I loved to see Simon being truly angry at his sister!! Baby boy is so used to being nice and forgiving, so it was really refreshing to see him actually be mad and stand his ground about it!!

⁂ Wilhelm Wilhelm Wilhelm. My poor boy is a mess! He was so hopeful at the beginning, thinking he could finally have it all, but yeah it was obviously not gonna be smooth sailing. He's such a messy, broken, angry teenager this season and my heart cries for him. He ends up hurting Simon quite a lot but I cannot be truly mad at him. He's a broken boy trying his best :(

⁂ Which leads me to his family: arghhhhhh. So I was hoping that we would get some more info to understand Kristina at least a little bit, but she's just truly awful this season. And the Duke is not better. I hate them for how they behave with Wilhelm. And on a more personal note: I always saw my own mother in Kristina, but this season it's even more flagrant, and gosh does it make me mad for Wilhelm. His lashing out at them at the end of episode 5 was as painful as it was good to see. I've been in his situation. I've yelled like him too many times to count. So I hurt for him. He deserves so much better. Nobody should have these kind of people as parents :(

⁂ The Erik stuff made me so sad!!

⁂ The whole school situation was a bit frustrating at time but it was interesting to see the characters reacting to it all. Felice is a queen and deserves so much better than her "friends". And Vincent can rot in hell 😠

⁂ They're all incredible actors!! And the show is beautiful as usual. I am slightly disappointed with the music (no song captured me as well as the ones in season 1 and 2, but maybe I just need to watch the episodes a few times for that to happen ^^)

⁂ All the cute scenes between Wilhelm and Simon were just the best. Seeing them be silly boyfriends was the best. And yeah, the chemistry is still chemistrying hard between Edvin and Omar :p

I'm gonna stop my list of first reactions there, but I'll continue in more details episode by episode! Overall I think I like this season, though the ending killed me and the week to come is gonna be the longest week ever ^^' I am not really worried about the last episode. I trust the show. I do believe Wilmon will be endgame. And I think not everything will be wrapped up neatly but I do think the ending will be satisfying. So can't wait \o/

[misfithive]

Rojda on Edvin and Omar’s Chemistry

[justfriendsbestthings]

they’re boyfriends you know

[suffarustuffaru]

hi i made a tier list of how homophobic rezero characters are

hello in the spirit of valentine's day and the very welcoming community here on rezero tumblr i decided to make this with the help of my lovely mutuals.

[antianakin]

"TCW is a serious show that really delves into the horrors of war."

[billfarrah]

@unfortunate17 and I were discussing Wille’s anxiety and how we don’t feel like Wille’s reluctance to partake in public speaking was a result of his anxiety, but rather his history of being forced to speak and say things he doesn’t mean and follow a script in order to preserve the reputation of his family and control the public’s perception of him. He was forced to follow a script three times in season 1 - the first when he had to apologize on TV for a fight he was not sorry about, when he had to read a written speech to his classmates regarding his brother who had just died, and when he was forced to lie about the video leading to the destruction of his relationship with Simon.

In my opinion Wille’s fear of public speaking in season 2 is not related to general or social anxiety - as I do not believe Wille has social anxiety at all and is not shy at all despite some people in the fandom tending to believe he is - but rather a fear of being perceived, because that is ultimately Wille’s main struggle in the series - not being with a boy, not being in love with a gay, not being queer, but being perceived by others and feeling forced to live up to a certain standard or expectation when all he wants to do is live his life truthfully and without people having opinions about the things he does.

What’s so powerful and beautifully written about the scenes with Boris is that even though Wille is made to see a therapist by his mother, the Queen, who is the one who persuaded/forced him speak out when he didn’t want to, Wille’s sessions with Boris are the first time he is told he doesn’t have to say anything if  he doesn’t want to, and the confidentiality of their sessions and Boris’ position as an unbiased professional allows him to be more honest with not only himself, but with another person without feeing like he is being judged or forced to feel or believe something he doesn’t.

We see in season 1 episode 4, when Wille goes off script and speaks from the heart about Erik, and in season 2 episode 6 when he once again goes off script, that Wille really has no issues with speaking to a crowd, but only when he feels he’s being truthful and honest and in control of the narrative. His fear of speaking in the class presentation, in my opinion, has a lot to do with how out of control of his own narrative Wille felt throughout season 2 as a result of the lie at the end of season 1 and the events of season 2 - he is perceived by his classmates now as having denied being a part of the video, as if it was something to be ashamed of, he is perceived as being interested in Felice when in reality he’s desperately in love with Simon. He just wants to exist and stay true to himself and it scares him to do it in front of an audience, and that’s what makes it so powerful when we see him slowly begin to accept how he feels about himself and the circumstances of his life through the sessions with Boris, and how that results with him re-taking control of his own narrative at the Jubilee at the end of the season, and that’s just beautiful writing.

[controversialhottakes]

Apparently these are unpopular opinions but I don't want Wilmon to be endgame and I don't want Wilhelm to abdicate. (I think the show might be heading down the Wilmon endgame + abdication route but I can't imagine them doing it in a way which would feel satisfying to me personally.)

All I could think about throughout the whole season was how unsuitable for each other these two are. They're so different, and I don't just mean their backgrounds, I mean every single thing about them. Their personalities (this one is huuuuge), their values, apparently even their interests since after 3 seasons I can't really name a single thing they both genuinely enjoy (maybe rowing? or was Simon there for a reason? can't remember), unless we count sex which... fair but a rather shaky framework if a long-term relationship is what you're after.

What do they even talk about? Other than Simon hating the system which Wilhelm is at the very centre of. Or the fact that they don't understand each other because Wilhelm is too privileged and Simon is too big a socialist. And while I hate the phrasing I do agree with the sentiment wholeheartedly because it's actually absolutely 100% true. What we have here, ladies and gentlemen, is a conflict of interest. Plain and simple.

One thing that was very clear from the very beginning is that Simon doesn't understand what a relationship with a crown prince entails and that he's really not the kind of person who'd want or should be in such a relationship. He cares too much about other people's opinions, which isn't necessarily bad in and of itself, but people are going to have a lot of opinions if you're dating someone in the public eye, especially the future king, and they're going to be nasty af. Because they can. It's just the reality, nothing you can do about it.

I know a lot of people say that he didn't get media training and so on and so forth. And it is very true and valid. However, a lot of this boils down to his personality. You don't need media training to know that reading comments is a bad idea, let alone replying to them. To me, it's just common sense, and I know he's only 16, but even though it's been a while, I do still remember being 16 and my mindset (on this subject) has not changed since then. Especially if you know you're going to take it to heart, you shouldn't even be looking at the bs people post online.

Simon doesn't fit into Wilhelm's world not because he's poor. He doesn't fit into Wilhelm's world because his personality and values simply don't work in this context. How do you even begin to solve a problem like this? You just can't.

Simon has a very strong personality and even stronger beliefs. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, it's admirable, but this creates so many problems that are virtually unsolvable. If you watch the series (not just the third season, it's been shown consistently), Simon needs Wilhelm to agree with him. And he wants Wilhelm to do it openly and preferably to feel about it as strongly as he does. Which simply isn't going to happen. In order for this to work, Simon would have to change his entire personality and that would be just awful.

Re: Wilhelm abdicating. You don't make a decision like that at the age of 17. Because this is literally life-changing and there's no going back. His brother just died. His mother is having a nervous breakdown. His father is absolutely helpless. You work through all of that first.

Correct me if I'm wrong but it's only been a couple of months since the accident. Oh and now Wilhelm finds out that his brother was human and not some perfect Disney prince. And he gets front row seats to his always-unnaturally-composed mother's descent into literal madness. Just imagine how terrifying it must feel. This boy is going through a lot, this is not the time to be making huge decisions.

I genuinely believe that Wilhelm would make a great king. Keep in mind that for 16 years, it never occured to him that he might have to do this. This was dropped on him like a bag of cement, together with the news that his older brother, whom he worshipped, was dead. All things considered, he's doing great. Come to think of it, Erik's death is the root of 99% of Wilhelm's current problems. Like he said, he never got to grieve and now on top of that he thinks that his brother was an arsehole and would have hated him for dating another boy. But I think Wilhelm finding out about what happened at the initiation is actually going to help him heal.

Wilhelm abidicating just feels too much like giving in, like he was running away from his problems which is a bit OOC. And it would feel like he was doing it for Simon which is such a bad idea on so many levels. I can't put into words how stupid it would be and, as impulsive as he can get at times, Wilhelm doesn't strike me as the kind of person to just completely fail to think of consequences of his actions when it comes to something this big. I can't for the life of me explain why, but he does come across as rather level-headed and sensible, specially for a 16/17-year-old going through what he's been going through. Certain... incidents... aside (the rifle... yeah, the hell were you thinking? you need to chill out and let it go). Season 2 was peak recklessness, he seems a bit more mellow and settled now. Although breaking up with Simon might turn out to be the final straw, yikes...

[cosmicdenro]

'rhm and wilhelm trying to hang out but their duties getting in the way so much so their relationship deteriorates throughout the months but in a way that makes them prone to jealousy of others getting to spend more time with the other and unable to figure out what the other even enjoys enough anynore as a gift' for tonight sir?

[fredtheengels]

i’m not here to do discourse but king wilhelm truthers are the funniest people how do you misread a show that badly

[whenitisreal]

O U R revolution...

There’s a shifting point, long before the speech even. Wilhelm is terrified to his guts to go up there and stand in front of everyone. But then, his eyes find Simon’s and something changes. 

There’s still fear, but that gives him the strenght he needed. ‘It’s not only about me, it’s also about him.’ Jan-Olof somehow deprived Simon of his own voice, forcing the choir to sing the classic Hillerska song instead of his own, the one he wrote about Wilhelm, about their love. Wille is reclaiming power.

When Wille finally goes on stage, fixing up the mic, then his cards. The cards being rather like a script somehow. One that represents the Royals voice, one that is not his own. That inner struggle appears right here. The silence feels so heavy in that moment.

There are 2 paths Wille can choose : His parents, the Royal family; which means following the traditions way, one where he play pretends and keep everything bottled up. Or the second path, Simon; which means following his heart, one where he can finally break free and just BE who he is.

Even though Wille is back to him, it’s as if Simon could feel exactly the battle he was going through. He’s taking a deep breath, as if, that would allow Wille to take one too, to find back some calm in the midst of that storm.You got this.

Wille’s words echo even more, as Simon appears, behind him, as if he was right by his side. Even what is supposed to be home, the castle, his family, apart with his brother who he has now lost, Wille never truly felt like he could be who he is, rather always who THEY expected him to be. Until he arrived at Hillerska, until he met Simon and his whole world widened. 

Simon, from the very beginning, always embraced who he was. As Wille told Boris, Simon awakened something in him. The door he used to keep under lock, he was now opening up, finally letting himself feel. He could be just Wille, not the Prince or the Crown Prince. Because Simon made him feel safe enough. The place Wille didn’t even want to go to in the first place now feeling like a shelter, like a home. 

Home. That’s where again Wille is instinctively reaching towards, not looking in front of him, but rather choosing to turn behind, to Simon. Or almost. Because, no matter the cost, that’s the only path for Wille. One where he’s finally with Simon.

It feels like a scream from the heart. This speech, this script is the path you want for me, but it is not the one that I WANT. Wille finally breaking free and owning his voice.

The focus one second on Boris somehow validates it. “We can’t choose who we are born as, but we can choose how we want to live our lives.” Like this life is his own. And no matter what he’s been taught, Wille is allowed to feel however he feels and lead his life the way he wants to. He is taking control. 

Right after Simon said he wanted to be with him, no matter if they had to keep it a secret or not. All he cared about was for them to finally be together. Yet, in Wille’s mind, it’s just not right. Even more so, after everything Simon had to go through the past months, from the Royal family, from the school, from everyone really. They did nothing wrong but fall in love with each other. It is, HE is probably the most beautiful thing that ever happened in Wille’s life. That’s not something he want to hide anymore, that’s something he can only feel proud of. 

Remember his mother’s words last season: “When you’re young, love feels like the most important thing in the world. [..] What I mean is, is it worth it ?” The answer is clear for Wille : yes! He is certainly aware he just started a revolution among the monarchy, hell, he might even lose the crown after his revelations. But every sacrifice is worth it, in the name of the most precious thing in this world for him : Simon. 

It’s not a maybe, it’s a certainty. He loves this boy with all his heart. 

Wille once again turning, all the way this time to face Simon, so he’ll see it, so he’ll feel it. Moments ago, he was whispering it in a corridor, only for Wille to hear. There, Wille is claiming it to the whole world. “I love you”

The realization on Simon’s face, as he is smiling back.. “oh my god.. he loves me” is absolutely everything. The song that starts playing, so perfectly on point “And you loved me; I could feel it. Cause I loved you. Can’t eclipse it” 

And now, it was confirmed that this scene was supposed to be longer!! So, what happened, right after Wille turned back to the Royals, and the cameras ? I guess Jan-Olof tries to stop everything while the reporters start asking more questions to Wilhelm. 

But, Wille’s sole focus remains Simon. So he finally walks back to him, as the others students from the choir let him go through. Until he finally reach Simon who will probably still be in shock after what just happened. Unable to say a word, but feeling so much, so much love. His emotion rolling down his cheek, as one single tear. 

This time, Wille allowing himself that gesture, to gently caress Simon’s cheek and take away that tear. Eyes locked on one another, as the rest of the world seems to vanish away. The two of them instinctively reaching for each other’s hands, what has always been their source of comfort. 

Not “you and me” anymore, but “WE”. Standing united together, hand in hand, as the rest of the audience and the world cheers for them. Love do always wins. Let’s start OUR revolution now... 

((Simon was supposed to be the one singing his love, through his song, and in the end, it was Wilhelm who sang his love for Simon instead. ))

[youngroyalsconnections]

Wow.

I don't have words to describe what I'm feeling.

[theheadlessgroom]

@beatingheart-bride

Susannah was once more very bashful at his praise of her, cheeks still rosy as she bowed her head as she took another sip of tea, too shy to look him in the eye: As far as she was concerned, it was the least she could do for him. After everything he'd done for her, not only saving her, but making sure she felt safe and secure in her home afterwards? Making sure he was healing comfortably...it really seemed like the very least she could do.

Honestly, in some ways, she felt like she wanted to do more for him than just that...sure, she gave him the salve and baked him muffins, but a part of her wanted to do more...maybe she'd make him dinner one of these nights, one of her days off, as a way of thanking him for that heavenly meal he brought her...

...or, maybe, just maybe...she could make him a sweater.

No, no, she thought to herself, quick to discard the notion, only half-listening to Philippe and Doreen now, the latter telling the former all about her fond memories of August Pace, in the short time he spent in her family's employ. No, even if he didn't know the meaning behind the sweater, she felt, perhaps, shouldn't...

...but she wanted to. She wanted to make something with love for him, something he could wear and treasure forever, that much she knew, deep down in her gut, in her heart of hearts...

...but she couldn't help but wonder just one thing:

Would he even want to wear her love?

[misfithive]

PHONE BACKGROUNDS | Valentines Day

[zee-has-commitment-issues]

Considering the possibility that when Wilhelm was trying to figure out who told August about Simon going to the police, Henry probably crossed his mind. Simon and Wille only talked about August in a few settings, so there wouldn't have been many people to figure it out. But one of those settings was during the group project. They talked about August while working on the project. Henry was in their group. Henry could have overheard them.

He wasn't at the table when they talked about it, but he did walk up and interrupt them with Sara. So, maybe, he could have heard. Or heard enough to figure it out. Obviously they didn't think Sara would tell August, and they knew Felice wouldn't have, so that didn't leave them with many probable culprits. It didn't leave them with any probable culprits, actually.

And this wouldn't have been the first time Henry told people something he shouldn't about Wilhelm. Earlier in the season he told people about the Felice thing (or at least he told Walter and that was enough damage). It wouldn't be too far fetched to think Henry would open his mouth again.

Finally, Henry is a member of nobility and The Society. He's supposed to "protect his own." The motto is "once a brother, always a brother" for Forest Ridge, and that mentality certainly carries over to other aspect of his life. The question will always be: does Henry value his status or his friendships more?

And, knowing what we do about Henry, my guess is that he'd value friendship more. He seems overall like the type to value his friends and his relationships. (ie. not talking about the wilmon locker room incident, not telling Alexander it was Wille who threw him under the bus, going to rowing practice even though he's literally not on the team, etc.) We can't prove it, though.

And when presented with that choice in season one, he chose to throw Alexander (his friend) under the bus in order to protect The Society (not that he really had a choice there). Then he continued to protect that secret throughout season two - he didn't tell Alex the truth and he kept being his friend even though they all knew he had thrown the kid under the bus.

So, when Wilhelm was thinking of all the people that could have tipped off August, did Henry cross his mind? He would have crossed mine.

[suffarustuffaru]

ok but im getting emo over heinkel again so im gonna talk about him again because yeah hes yet another sad character in a sea of sad characters and i love rezero for that but like he is a character consistently characterized by one loss after the other. it's a rollercoaster and its going straight fucking down and he is so miserable and absolutely alone and its both his fault and not his fault at all. but the way it starts is - its all out of his control. the more you think about the trajectory of his life the sadder it gets.

imagine you are heinkel and your parents are the sword saint and the sword demon and you come from a long line of knights and sword saints so thats almost definitely where youre headed, right? thats whats expected of you. you are nineteen years old and youre a knight in the royal guard, which was expected of you, and you have a wife and a beautiful baby boy, which was also expected of you, but at least you have so much joy and love for the latter while the former is just another chain on the astrea family line of people who are stuck to knighthood whether they like it or not. but your family is also just another chain because youre nineteen and your mother is still the sword saint and youre playing with fate here because either youre going to be the sword saint or your son will be.

your wife, the only equal you have, falls asleep one day and never wakes up. you are twenty-one years old and a single parent and then you are twenty-three years old and your son's fate is so much bigger than youll ever be. having the worlds love means that your love pales in comparison, doesnt it? everyone knows about your comatose wife because you keep searching so much for a cure that its just another thing to gossip about. every year that passes by she just continues to look the same as she did when she was awake and alive and loved you. (you dont know it yet but your son is going to reach the same age as her, because you dont find a cure for another sixteen years and you know that she wont love you anymore because who does? theres no one left because your son doesnt count.)

and everyone knows about you because of your family. because yeah, youre a good swordsman, but youre not liked by anyone in the knights. youre not a friend and youre certainly not a sword saint or sword demon. your son mind controls someone because he loves you so much that he would do anything for you and looks up to you like youre some hero, but youre just a wreck whos scrambling to keep what little you have. youre twenty-four and you lose your mom because you were too scared to go on the mission you were assigned on, because youre a coward and youre in over your head and you know, because everyone knows, that you dont measure up. you could never be prepared for this. in a long line of people who have to carry the weight of the world, you crumble easily. your mom goes on that mission and dies and your son becomes the sword saint like this was always going to happen. this is what being loved by the world means. you just killed your mom because you just couldnt suck it up and die on that mission instead. on top of that, your dad says that your five-year-old god of a son killed your mom. its just you and your son and the two of you both killed your mom but youre the worlds biggest laughing stock and your son is the up and coming hero and monster. but you still love your son. you really do.

right?

[atlasascending]

Watching young royals for the first time and I just finished all of s1 and e1 of s2 and this show????? My heart is breaking every 10 minutes, but beyond that, Wille really has no one. They took everyone away from him, there is absolutely no one there for him when he needs them. With everything that has happened to him I am worried - I don’t know how s2 ends, but if something doesn’t get better sooner rather than later, I think we’re looking at a spiral