#and obviously this isn's an american show but the current discourse of ~violence is always bad~ and shit is so infuriating and it is

[llycaons]

going off that point, man this isn't going to be very comprehensible and feel free to disagree but here goes

the interesting thing about the juniors being buddies and JL refusing zidian and lsz not reacting to the reveal about his heritage with anger (for what he'd lost) but gratitude and joy (for what he'd regained) is that it's not...overly moralized? it's one of the more refreshing and authentic parts of the show (and I AM talking strictly show universe here)

instead of having a hackneyed blanket statement of "REVENGE IS WRONG ALWAYS" or "DON"T STOOP TO THEIR LEVEL" or demonizing people who do go after justified revenge, we just see how these two kids eventually want to get along and whose actions are a natural reflections of their characters and upbringing. jl and lsz aren't especially on the moral high ground for refusing/giving up on revenge, but the fact that they do gives them peace of mind and it allows them connections with people they cherish and than they otherwise would have gotten. and wwx isn't demonized for his (quite vicious) revenge either, it was a little horrifying but moreso for how he did it than that he did it at all. nhs seems to be a bit of a morally gray character, I can't quite decide how I think the show wanted his actions to be read. and jgy and xy's pursuits of revenge were most notable for how extreme and out of proportion they are - xxc himself allowed that xy was entitled to his anger towards the man who destroyed his finger as a child.

like...the fact that jl and lsz being more interested in their own lives and refusing symbols of violence as a choice isn't shoved in our faces and it's more presented as a natural result of the differences between the juniors and their seniors' generation is really nice. it's a rather minor facet of the story compared to wwx's journey, but I think the fact that it's relatively understated actually helps the narrative sink in better because it's actually woven into the story and has clear outcomes for characters the audience can follow...show and not tell etc. anyway I think it's an unusual exploration of revenge