#and yes it does say something that roy just.. doesnt believe garth when he speaks up Because Yes He Has Roy

[floralovebot]

Speaking as someone who loves all of the fab five, Roy definitely doesn't hate Garth! He just doesn't know how to interact with him.

When they first met, Roy had a lot going on in his personal life and he had a tendency to take it on others. He does this with all of the fab five - in fact, he had a bit of a rivalry going on with Dick at the time because of it. However, throughout his later teens and early adult years, Roy was able to really bond with the other members! They helped him through a lot, he started to really have their backs, he knew he could trust them, etc. It's really important to his characterization actually!

A thing to note though is that this was really only possible because the four of them (dick, donna, wally, and roy) were all on land and could reasonably reach other without having to yknow,, go into the ocean to do so. They also continued to be heroes for years after Garth left. Even though he said some pretty nasty things to the other titans, they were able to get past it and continue to bond with Roy in meaningful ways as he became a better person. But Roy isn't able to do this with Garth because they already aren't as close, Garth isn't an active hero on land, and he's literally always in the ocean (or occasionally Scotland).

Once they become adults, Roy does actually like and respect Garth, but he doesn't know how to interact with him, so he defaults to old "jokes" that he used to use when they were kids (like gillface). As kids, Garth didn't speak up much about not liking what Roy says, and he doesn't call Roy racist for what he says until they're adults! That moment, and specifically how Roy reacts to it, says a lot about how Roy is thinking.

He genuinely thinks this is all affectionate! Even when Garth does say out loud that he doesn't like these "jokes", Roy assumes that it's just part of their song and dance, that Garth doesn't actually care, that he is also just defaulting to how they interacted as kids. And Roy not knowing better isn't about him not liking Garth, it's about the fact that they really didn't bond. Dc never actually showed them getting closer. It was "they hate each other as kids - they don't speak for years - and now they're back in the titans and best friends yippee!!!". Honestly, it's like this for Garth and all of the titans, but the rest of them at least have their history of being the fab five to carry them in their interactions with Garth as adults. Roy doesn't.

So yeah, it's partially Roy's fault, partially Garth's, and partially DC's. At this point, Roy should know that Garth is sensitive and that he wouldn't "playfully" get angry and say that he doesn't like Roy's jokes. Garth should have stood up for himself and had an actual Serious conversation with Roy sooner. And DC should've shown them actually interacting and bonding before dumping them in the same team again.

Also, in regard to Roy belittling Garth for leaving, 1. completely uncalled for and rude but also 2. not really about Garth specifically. Again, Roy was going through a lot, had been through a lot, and his opinion of Garth's actions was mostly inspired by his life, fears of people leaving him, and intense loyalty. He felt like Garth was abandoning them for his own selfish reasons basically. Again, uncalled for, rude, and wrong, but he wasn't saying it just to be an ass. But also again, they literally barely interact after that so Garth continues to think that Roy not-so-secretly thinks he's the weakest member who doesn't deserve to be on the team. And Roy doesn't realize this because he never realized just how bad his words hurt Garth because they literally never made up or talked to each other or bonded DC IM GONNA FUCKING GET YOU

Why does Roy hate Garth so much?

Perhaps a Roy stan can chime in on their perspective, but Roy doesn’t hate Garth necessarily. They’re just not compatible and they don’t apologize to each other after cruel statements.

Now. Roy did essentially call Garth a pussy to his face for trying to take a break from crime fighting to deal with his mental health. And once again I must stress that Roy and Garth were not friends when he said this (it wouldn’t be nice even if they were, but it’s not coming from a place of “tough love”) so honestly I feel all of their interactions after that had an undercurrent of Roy never apologizing for that and Garth being pissed.

Roy teases Garth in a way he doesn’t like and doesn’t really understand. Garth responds badly, and then the bad blood just keeps churning. They’re not people who would be together for long periods of time unless you want to see a fight tbh