#head boy thuaphu is the best boy

[fadelbison]

I’ve been prompted by @kittyann to give my opinion on the KanThua relationship but little did she know that she’ll hearing from the ‘Thua has never done any wrong’ club vice president (the president being one Sir Kanlong who’s been nothing but whipped boyfriend for the last 10 episodes). So consider this your warning lol.

But here is why I think Thua and Kanlong have been set up by the narrative to act/react in exactly the way they did. Let’s start with the easy bit: Kanlong accepting Thua for all that he did and proudly declaring them as boyfriends.

Kanlong and Thua have a special bond, it’s been established multiple times in the show. Their friendship isn’t particularly physical or suspicious so the narrative implies that all the teasing they face from the very get go comes particularly from this close bond they already share that everyone is aware of from before the show starts.

Kanlong next sets himself up as Thua’s caretaker by becoming Bruce Wayne [almost directly as a result of realizing that Ayan was starting to take that place when he spies on them at the Cafe For All] and his primary concern with this curse coming back has always been the way it will affect Thua. He is seen on multiple occasions to warn Thua against gaining the wrath of the curse [don’t hang out with Ayan, don’t go to the protests! Don’t join World Remembers!].

And then there is:

1) Kanlong has once already chosen Thua over everyone else. He says fuck it to BOTH the Prefect Club who were collecting names of protesters AND to the curse which we know he genuinely believed in and chooses to stand by Thua.

2) The way he inadvertently sets up this challenge for himself by saying this and Thua’s realization that Kanlong will one day find out Thua's true nature and will have to ask himself the exact same question:

So, I feel like going into Ep.11 we know that Kanlong’s love for Thua would be tested and STRONG evidence suggesting that Kanlong’s love will prevail, that he will see Thua for all he is and still find someone worth loving.

But what about Thua? How could he betray his friends? How could he out Akk so publicly while knowing what that struggle is like, while being bullied for it himself. [Thua defense squad firing away under the cut]

Well I think we should take his words for face value in this and if you sit with a little, in a way that the editing for ep.11 didn’t allow then you can realize two things:

1) He was betrayed first. Can you believe the audacity of this bitch to come out here and threaten Thua like this? Ayan knows what he's doing here. He's telling Thua that he won't stand by him if Thua continues with this line of questioning. He's telling Thua he's choosing Akk.

AYAN - the boy who lives in light, who is passionate and believes in justice in such a compelling way that has stirred even Thua who believes in keeping his head down, the boy Thua let in, the boy he confided in about his mental health - is saying this to him.

Thua was second to shout 'release the students', Ayan was the first - Thua is following Ayan, Ayan is the reason he cares so much, that he feels so much responsibility. All that whispering they did in the beginning was more than just posturing for Akk and Kanlong to feel jealous over. They're partners and exposing the crimes of the prefect club was their shared goal.

How is he supposed to take this?

Thua KNEW that Kanlong was Bruce Wayne and STILL gives Kanlong that ultimatum - come to the protest to see me (or don't and stick with the prefect club). I repeat Thua was ready to sacrifice his ride or die, the guy who helped him get through his father’s death, the guy he was in love with over the protest.

And Ayan has the audacity to choose Akk.

[Who is Akk even to Ayan? Is there any evidence that Thua has seen that suggests that Akk is anything but a hot piece of ass to Ayan?]

How is he supposed to interpret Ayan holding his pin in support of Akk while Akk was getting the award other than as a betrayal to their cause? How is he supposed to interpret Ayan falling for Akk as anything but his moral demise?

[And isn't Thua right? Hasn't Akk corrupted Ayan? Hasn't Ayan given up on making Akk tell the truth the second they become boyfriends?]

And it's powerful that he doesn't hold himself to a different standard than he does Akk and Ayan. In fact, he insists that Kanlong should abandon him because it's what he believes Ayan should have done to Akk.

2) Outing Akk was not on his agenda and Akk’s sexuality and his crisis over it came second to Thua’s real agenda: protecting The World Remembers gang. He says as much and I have no reason not to believe him

People who say Akk and Thua had stooped to the same levels has really lost sight of the fact that Akk almost runs the protestors over with a car. He endangers their lives time and time again and suggesting that Head Boy Thua did the same thing is an insult to everyone's intelligence.

Thua has thrown red ink over their heads and a sinister looking banner. He has taken their doll outside and lit it on fire. Thua is flashy for sure and he’s so good at it that he’s managed to scare the gang more than Akk ever has.

[Which is I think why he was so shaken up after lighting the dolls on fire – I don’t think up until that point he’d realized that there are unintended negative consequences to his actions. I think he’s had to contend with the fact that the things he’s doing is compromising him and his own values and he still chooses to go through with it because it was the only path he saw to justice]

But my dudes, Thua lit a bonfire while Akk was about to commit arson [lighting a HUGE fire INSIDE an occupied building?? He was endangering himself, Ayan, the guards, TEACHER SANI]. Thua’s actions by design came with 0 chances of bodily harm to the gang or anybody else.

Is it possible now to understand the righteous anger that Thua must have felt when he had his little outburst? They were going to end the day with the protesters being silence AGAIN, with Akk who’s avoided being charged with voluntary manslaughter by the skin of his teeth being rewarded by not JUST the corrupt system BUT ALSO the one who was supposed to fight against it.

Does his hostility towards Akk not make sense? Does his bitterness towards Akk and Ayan's relationship not make sense? When Akk can look so determined and shamelessly ask him this question - do you not feel Thua's anger a little bit?

[Answer: It's YOU! and your stupid BOYFRIEND! That's why Head Boy Thuaphu is in this mess!]

How does he NOT bring up Akk and Ayan’s relationship? When it’s the direct cause of Thua losing his biggest ally. When it’s the reason why he’s hurting, why he was abandoned, why justice was abandoned. How can Thua see Akk as anything but a cunning siren, not worthy of sympathy?

I'm glad everyone sees that it was wrong of Thua to forcefully out Akk but what about the other gay dudes? The visible ones that were being bullied and targetted BY Akk and the administration. Or have we forgotten WHY he outs them:

But here’s the thing, he does see Akk’s pain and even as he’s ready to metaphorically set everything on fire he takes the out Wat gives him and he backs down.

Thua was never out to get revenge on Akk even though he had every right to do so – we really need to keep in perspective that Akk almost ran over the protesters with a car and no amount of mental breakdowns and being repressed will change the absolute horror of those series of actions. So when Wat appeals to that side of him: let Akk go and we’ll back you up on helping the protestors - a particularly skillful negotiation that Wat does in the fly of the moment - Thua takes it and leaves.

Thua to me is an incredibly compassionate individual, wicked smart and a very effective activist and his dedication to the cause transcends personal desire and gain. Thua put his ideals, his own view of himself, his position at the school, his love - everything - on the line to protect the World Remembers Gang. This is how strongly he believed in the protestor’s rights and their cause. Ayan wishes he could be half the revolutionary that Thuaphu is.

At the end of ep.11 we as the audience are posed with the same conundrum that the narrative poses to Sir Kanlong: Can you really see Thua for all he is and still not find someone worth loving?