#matthew bindup

[edwinspaynes]

"[Matthew's] hair had grown long since the winter, almost touching his collar. He had been training hard and no longer looked too thin."

- Chain of Thorns

I am obsessed with long-haired Matthew and really hope he grows it out to be shoulder-length during his travels. Imagine the power of Matthew with a luscious mane. He could experiment with so many hairstyles!

[belle-keys]

we still don't know why the carstairs owe the herondales...

[lurkinglurkerwholurks]

Book recs: DC-specific

If I'm going to make official book recs specific to good dads and found family and all the things we love about BatFam, it makes sense to first start with actual DC things. I've talked about these books before, but here's another look at books I own and enjoy.

Anatomy of a Metahuman

This is a collection of scientific notations and hypotheses written by Bruce Wayne about various metahumans in his world, from Superman to Bane. It's intriguing, as grounded in real-world science as a thing like this can be, clever in its references to comic canon (which, in-text, is just "real life" for Bruce), and nails Bruce's voice.

I would not be surprised but would be delighted to learn that S.D. Perry and/or Matthew K. Manning wrote fic, because they get our boy's interiority so well.

The DC Book of Lists

This is maybe the least voicey of all the books on this list because there is not a narrative and therefore there is no point of view. This is the Guinness Book of World Records for comic geeks. It is an exhaustive compiling of DC across universes and story arcs and refresh after refresh. It makes me worry for the author's sanity, but in a mildly approving way.

My Buddy, Killer Croc

This book has my entire heart. It is a graphic novel for tweens about a Gothamite child who adores Killer Croc. Absolutely 100% hero worship of both Waylon James the wrestler and Killer Croc the rogue. Batman and Bruce Wayne both make appearances that are wonderful and in line with what I love about him/them, and Killer Croc is still a villain. He still causes harm, but he's also given depth and it's a thrill to experience him through the eyes of the one person in Gotham who stans him.

Wayne Family Adventures

Obviously I love the bindups of the Webtoon comic series. Books one and two are out now (November 2023) and books three and four are on their way. If you are somehow unfamiliar with the series, WFA shows the daily life shenanigans in the DC universe, largely centered on the Manor and Gotham but sometimes branching further afield. All your faves make an appearance and so many of the storylines feel so freshly plucked from fanfic tropes that I feel Seen.

--

There are other books out there that I want to try or that I have tried and don't feel strongly enough about to recommend, but if you enjoy the kinds of fanfic I also like and want to try DC-approved published works with those same vibes, start with these.

[matthew-bindup]

14 June 2023: Matthew Fairchild novella bindup was not officially announced today.

[edwinspaynes]

for the record, i colloquially refer to matthew in everyday conversation 'my scrunkly lil guy.' i also privately call the upcoming matthew bindup 'the plant that ate dirty socks gets a girlfriend' after the iconic piece of children's literature by that name

i’ll never understand people who can’t make fun of their faves a little. like yes i love this character and would defend them to my grave but also they’re stupid sometimes and they do dumb things and imma make fun of them for it

[edwinspaynes]

My biggest desire is for Matthew to just get a wonderful but balls-to-the-walls insane love interest. Like, I want him to make himself better so he can thrive, but I want them to make him worse in all the best possible ways so he can thrive even more. The only thing that could make a Matthew bindup even better than its inherent greatness is if Matthew became half of the most chaotic fucking duo known to man.

[belle-keys]

Matthew Novella Bind-Up Theory and TLH (slight tin-foil)

I wanna build on an awesome theory made by @fair-but-wilde-child cus I’m 1. Always down for TSC theories and 2. part of the Protect Matthew Squad and, their theory combines both of these passions of mine.

I never allowed myself to consider the possibility that my biggest wish may actually come true, and that is that Matthew might get a bind-up novella. Lots of people have all the receipts from Cassie about the Matthew novella so I won’t like repeat all of it, but the prospect seemed too good to be true for me!!! So like, I shut down my own hope with a single dark blanket of anguish which was: Matthew needs to like, live for a long time, if he’s gonna be the MC of a novella bind-up. I mean, I know Simon himself wasn’t immortal yet he got TFTSA but that was set in 2007 and all the historical shorts were told as flashbacks. If Matthew is living in 1903 then flash forwards would be awkward, right?

However, Matthew living would make so much sense in a way. Remember, Cassie specifically said that the Family Tree leaves out Shadowhunters who either became mundanes or Downworlders. And there are many allusions to Matthew becoming, ahem, immortal, in addition to the fact that Cassie may well indeed choose not to finish his character arc in its entirety in Thorns. (I don’t think it’s impossible by the way, but I want a good ole excuse for more Matthew content... I find Matthew’s emotional arc seems like it needs more page-time, and this is, after all, the same problem that led to Simon getting TFTSA i.e. him regaining his memory required time and growth which a novella bind-up allowed him to have.)

Here are some of my ideas about Matthew's fate if it's not a quintessential one:

1. Matthew leaving the mainstream Shadowhunter community: I’m not saying he’s becoming a vampire per se, but remember how Matthew waltzed into our lives in Nothing But Shadows claiming he didn’t wanna be a killing machine and wanted to enjoy life and art and poetry and not die young fighting demons? Yeah, it’d be peak literary irony if that turned out to be true. I know my baby loves Shadowhunting but the irony would be such a wow if this happened.

2. Matthew and Dorian Gray, Addie La Rue, Magnus Bane, all the hedonists: Matthew wants to live life and enjoy it and experience. He’s got the same wiring as these afformentioned characters that can’t be tamed by mundaneness. Like he’s going to Paris and likely will stay at L’Hôtel where Oscar Wilde himself died (and maybe will speak with his ghost!!!). Matthew becoming immortal isn’t, yunno, impossible. Imagine a novella with Matthew and his adventures throughout time, cus it’d thematically make sense if it happened to the “larger- than-life” character.

3. Matthew breaking the Law: I’ve said in one of my theories that the whole truth potion thing isn’t gonna just go away by the end of Thorns with no strings attached. Like, in the same way the yin fen issue wasn’t completely resolved at the end of Clockwork Princess for Jem, and his story had to stretch over a century for that to be fixed, I think that Matthew breaking the Law is gonna have some major repercussions. Plus the whole message Ty found at the Scholomance from 1904 seems sus, even if it’s just a date. (I don’t like the idea of Matthew in that grimy old place but whatever, it’s still possible).

4. Matthew and the Fae: Matthew keeps evoking imagery of the Fae, like remember when he was just making Fae buddies and the evil fairy called him the “fairest of children” and shit (love the pun)? Yeah, that’s a thing, but also this post made by Cassie is just so telling that there is one last novella bindup that’s gonna link TLH and TWP. Remember, the whole point of TDA and TWP is dealing with the Faeries and the Fae courts. And Matthew’s emotional arc in TLH is defined by his relationship with that pesky Fae. I find it hard to believe he isn’t a potential link. The Fairchild family’s symbol is that of fairy wings, don’t forget that.

Furthermore, I'm pretty sure there's gonna be a link between Matthew and Ty- maybe the Scholomance especially since Ty found that note dated from 1904 on the walls as OP mentioned. Plus Cassie teasing that Ty has something to do with her special project makes me think this is plausible.

Major issue with these theories and a counterpoint @fair-but-wilde-child brought up that I love to death:

How tf is it that Tessa, Jem and Magnus don’t know/have never brought up that this important dude is secretly alive?

What if Matthew’s adventures are based around him being in Fairie. Like what if, say, Matthew gets sent to the Scholomance against his will but he escapes somehow into Fairie. Imagine he spends like, a year in Fairie and gains a lot of wisdom and falls in love and some shit and then boom! He gets fricking rescued by one of TWP characters (imagine him being found by Ty or something). He thinks only a year has passed but it’s been a century. This solves thee “why don’t Tessa or Jem or Magnus or Catarina or Ragnor” know anything issue. Heck, maybe Matthew chooses to live in Faerie under some bargain and his friends let him go? Maybe it’s a secret only James and the squad know about? That is... tragic, but it’s a very tinfoil possibility that can explain his so-called “immortality” which makes a novella bind-up more feasible.

[edwinspaynes]

I'm probably in the minority here, but I kind of hope this doesn't happen (and am glad that Cassie has said she's keeping Jordelia out of the Matthew bindup).

I think that, yes, eventually it would be awesome for them to travel together! But for Matthew, a big part of this Voyage - and a big part of what will emotionally cleanse him - is getting some space from James and especially Cordelia. I worry that meeting up with them midway through would derail some of his progress in cleansing himself of Cordelia, much like having a small bit of alcohol at the Christmas party set his recovery back.

Maybe in a couple of years, yes, they could have an awesome time going to one of their favourite countries and sightseeing. I'd love for the three of them + Matthew's LI to take a group trip with Thomas and Alastair, too (since I maintain that that 6-person group is probably going to be inseperable until they kick off).

But for now, the person Matthew most needs to focus on is Matthew, and I think part of that is resisting Cordelia a little bit even when the separation from both her and James hurts a bit.

No one can tell me that when Matthew as well as James & Cordelia are on their big voyages respectively, they won’t meet up someplace in the world at least once. Like maybe not in Paris and not immediately but you really think they could bear to be separated for that long?

[khaleesiofalicante]

Another thing about Matthew bindup novella is that it could also explain why we never get Matthew's point of view!

Also imagine him in the 21st century seeing Jace's eyesand redhead feisty girl and being reminded of James!😭🥺

THANKS FOR THE FEELS ✌🏾

[bemtevis]

have you seen the matthew novella bindup theories? do you think there's any validity to them? curious to hear from someone who doesn't stan him

I haven't seen any posts about it (I have the Matthew tag blocked) but I'm pretty sure the novella will be about him. GOTSM style, maybe?

There's a lot of foreshadowhing to him becoming a vampire and both GOTSM and TBC follow an immortal character, so it would make sense if it was about him.

If CC does write it, I just hope she properly researches addiction recovery, you know? I hate Matthew but he deserves a healing arc as much as everyone else, and I'm scared that CC will make the vampirism cure his alcoholism.

I haven't heard any other theories but you can send another ask if you want to know my opinion about a specific one, Idk

Ty for the ask :D

[edwinspaynes]

Shoutout to Cassandra Clare for writing a spinoff about Matthew Fairchild in the future. Literally my favourite thing ever to happen. She doesn't walk all over his peace of mind. She lets him bejeweled. He makes the whole place ✨️shimmer.✨️

[edwinspaynes]

"No obvious romantic interest" has reverted me back to thinking that Matthew's girlfriend is Esme Hardcastle. I have thought this for years, and only recently changed my tune and decided it's a new character. But nope, I'm squarely back to thinking it's Esme.

After all, why else would we have this little Easter egg? We know how much Cassie likes foreshadowing, especially when it comes to romance:

If my 8-year-long theory is correct, I'll be very happy. Not just for my pride but also for Matthew. I think their chaotic energies would bounce off each other incredibly well.

[edwinspaynes]

All right, you asked me a question and now I have one for you, in a very similar vein: where do you see Matthew Fairchild post-canon? What are your hopes for him? If you were the writer, what would you do?

Sorry this took me a couple of days to respond to! I'm here(ish) now.

I actually am extremely happy with the direction Matthew's story has taken in the canon thus far. Even if I was dissatisfied with some other arcs/writing choices (see: Grace's, Christopher's, Cordelia's in many ways), Matthew's storyline was handled in a sensitive, realistic, and character-driven way that I loved. And, of course, I'm excited to see him going forward. I think that Cassie is going to continue to do an amazing job with his story because she has not dropped the ball on him yet.

This is probably a cop-out, and I'll give more of an answer in a minute, but I just want Matthew to be happy and healthy. That's my only real hope for him in the future. Think that song My Wish : "My wish for you is that this life becomes all that you want it to / your dreams stay big / your worries stay small", yadda yadda. But that's my real answer. I just want a happy Matthew and don't care what form that takes. I am going to therefore be unequivocally satisfied with any story direction in his bindup since Cassie already basically said at a signing that he would get a happy ending.

But if I were Cassie, here's what I would do.

I'm excited that Matthew has chosen to travel, because it's something that's also important to me. It's yet another way that Matthew's values and life goals mirror mine. I think that travel is freedom, and I am happy that Matthew is going to experience that freedom.

I think that in the bindup, I would take him to visit a ton of places all across the world. I don't want him to confine himself to Europe. I'd like to see him in South America, Asia, Africa - everywhere! I think this seems likely to happen, and am glad of it.

However, within the confines of "Matthew gets a partner abroad," I would like to see him not being with said partner 100% of the time. A big part of Matthew's travel should be finding himself. I'd like something where he travels alone most of the time, sees his love interest like once a month or so, and spends a couple of days with them. This would be the short story we see, and they would split up again until the next month, which would be the next story. This would give him ample time for solo travel, meeting interesting people, and taking the reins on his own adventure.

In my ideal world in canon, I probably would not have him meet his partner while traveling. I think he should meet someone in about 5 years, so he can get a grip on his newfound sobriety and freedom. Just, like from a realistic perspective. I think this would be the best thing for him in a realistic scenario.

HOWEVER, I am all for him getting a love interest now since it's something I'm really excited to see in the bindup. As a reader, I'm 1000% here for Matthew's adventure romance whirlwind. And I know that it will be totally fine in Cassie-Clare-Bookland, even if it's not what I think would be best for Matthew in a real life case.

For Matthew's love interest, I actually actively want him to end up with a woman. It's important to me as a bisexual to see a bi person wind up with someone of a different gender for once, and unlike a lot of people, I really trust Cassie to deliver with it. She hasn't disappointed me regarding Matthew before, and I don't see why she'd start now. I also would like to see an absolutely chaotic scapegrace of a girl who rejects Edwardian social conventions and embraces the bohemian lifestyle alongside Matthew.

Regardless of love interest gender, I want the person to be kind of a batshit bonkerballs sort that matches Matthew's chaotic energy. I want them to be comfortable in their freedom and their chaos; I want them to have scandalous fun together. I think Matthew needs someone who loves and embraces the crazier sides of himself, the mercurial moods, the fact that "feelings flow from him like blood from a cut." The fact that he's a little impulsive. This is what I deeply want for Matthew, and it's another reason that I'm chill with the idea of him meeting someone on his travels. It'll be another adventurer.

In my ideal world, Matthew would not have children. This is wish fulfillment because I am childfree. But I know he is going to have them and be Clary's ancestor. Though I'm not enthralled about that, I still don't think it will be harmful to his character. I think that he and the love interest will continue to be unabashedly themselves and raise their kids in a rabble-rousing bohemian way. But, if I'm taking creative license, I ain't giving him kids. I'm making one of the twins Clary's ancestor. I don't give a fuck about bloodlines, sorry.

I actually do have a controversial take regarding Matthew. If I were given full creative license over the character, I would give him a lot of distance from James and Cordelia. I hope that he goes no-contact with Cordelia while traveling so that he has time to heal from her and get over her, and I hope that he keeps his communication with James to periodic letters. I know he'll be close with them in the future, which is fine.

But if it were up to me, he wouldn't be. He'd still talk to them, be James's parabatai, but the emotional proximity would decrease.

I always viewed TMT very much as James/Matthew + Thomas/Christopher, but I'd want to bend the shape of this. I think James should become closer with Jesse, and Matthew should become closer with Thomas and Alastair. Not just because I like Thomastair better than others, but because I think that James and Matthew have so much hurt between them. And because, I cannot stress this enough, Matthew needs distance from Cordelia.

I think that Thomas's disposition complements Matthew's well, and I think that he could provide him and the chaotic love interest with a calming presence. I also think that Matthew and Alastair should become really, really close because they can understand each other in ways that other people cannot. Adding Grace to this BFF mix would also make me really happy, though I understand that it's unlikely.

That's where I currently am!

[edwinspaynes]

I really hope we see some of Catarina in the Matthew bindup tbh. Their potential dynamic has intrigued me since the short stories since Catarina spoke of him so fondly. It'd be nice to see even if it's just for a scene or two.

[edwinspaynes]

I've been feeling this a bit lately too.

I've been a TSC fan for over 9 years - a third of my life! And I must admit that I am basically exclusively interested in the historical side of things (TID/TLH/related content). Like, I enjoy the other stuff, but it's not why I'm here. No real brainworms.

TLH is my favourite series, and that group of characters was already my favourite by far at least 5 years before Chain of Gold was released. And Chain of Thorns being complete has been a really odd life shift for me, and I really miss it already.

The Matthew bindup is getting me through. I'm going to be honest about that. The prospect of its release is keeping me going and I've been telling myself that I'll be getting a 600 page book about my favourite fictional character as a mantra. But that still feels far off, and it hurts, and I am sad.

Engagement for fic is low. I'm facing this problem, too.

But I'm trying to focus on the fact that there are many others like me who love these characters, who want these stories desperately. I, for one, would be lost right now if not for people writing Thomastair fic and popping into my inbox to talk about Matthew. I'd be lost if I weren't writing the fic I want to see. And I've like 5 Thomastair WIPs rn lol

So perhaps we persist for ourselves. Perhaps we get excited for our own sakes, and we share content with the people who want it as desperately as we do.

And OP: your fics are some of my favourites. I hope you know that, and I'm very excited for your next stories (especially the Thomastair ones <3).

I'm tired, and I'm a little sad that people seem to have moved on from TLH so quickly after CoT came out. I want to be honest and say it because maybe someone who reads this post may feel the same way as I do. Please, reach out to me even in anon if you do, because I feel like I've been trying to cope with this realization, and it bothers me so much. I realize people were disappointed, or they simply moved on because the series is complete now, and this is probably one of the reasons why the TLH (and TID) part of the TSC fandom seems so dead lately. It makes me sad because I don't easily let go of things that make me feel better and give me inspiration, and TSC (especially TID/TLH) are the series that made me glad to have started writing fan fiction. But this low content/interaction demotivates me from writing more content myself, because if people have abandoned ship, for the lack of a better analogy, why should I produce more content? It feels like talking to a wall, because one of the things I crave while I'm in a fandom, is interaction with other fans. I know I shouldn't let the low interaction stop me from creating what I still have inspiration to create (believe me, I have four pages .doc worth of TLH/TID fanfic inspiration that I itch to write in the future), but I feel tired of putting my effort into something that doesn't seem to interest people anymore.

[edwinspaynes]

CASSIE SAID IN IG THAT SHE HAS A FUN SHADOWHUNTER RELATED ANNOUNCEMENT NEXT WEEK SO CATCH ME 102819 FEET ABOVE REALITY IF IT'S THE MATTHEW BINDUP ANNOUNCEMENT