#the doylistic reading of eliot being Like This because of his prior career paths is one I very much subscribe to

[wolves-in-the-world]

@werewolfsmile hey. good tags:

#eliot is not immune to the culture of the environments he's been in #like the military and crime syndicates etc etc #and i find it so interesting that he's the character pushing for emotional growth from others right from the start #(see the end of the nigerian job)

#it's like he knows he's doomed #cursed for all he's done and the blood on his hands #but it's not too late for nate #or sophie or parker or hardison #he can push them and stretch them and help them grow into better versions of themselves #and when they do grow it's like a quiet relief for him #he'll never achieve the peace that they are reaching nor does he deserve it #but he gets to see it in his family and that's enough

#until one day he realises that he's been changing and growing too #and his family view him as worthy of redemption. of forgiveness. #and that's not who he is he made his peace with that fate along time ago he knows he's cursed #but #for the first time in a long time #he wants to see himself the way his family sees him #and so eliot starts the journey of learning to forgive himself

the thing about eliot spencer as a character, right. the thing about him.

(and as always your mileage may vary on my analyses so if we disagree that's cool actually)

is that he is in fact a slightly emotionally constipated idiot who is occasionally sensitive about his perceived masculinity and gets defensive about emotional intimacy around other men (largely hardison, who's much more comfortable expressing affection and embracing a softer kind of masculinity), but eliot displays enough emotional awareness and sensitivity and respect for women etc etc that anyone who's been subjected to that era of television will put on rose-tinted glasses without even looking twice.

(and he is, don't get me wrong, incredibly emotionally aware for a professionally punchy guy with enough trauma to sink the titanic. it still startles me to see.)

on top of which we have the layers and the accessories and the excellent hair with the secret braids and the way he barely has an ego and he's good with kids and protective of his team without taking it too far and some of us never stood a fucking chance.