#the person that contributed so much to Ruby's own self doubts didnt mean to hurt her so much but she did!!

[gatheringkeepsakes]

i think it's really significant that Weiss's words we're the last we heard before Ruby - after nine volumes of repression - finally snapped.

[flame-cat]

oscar is overrated change my mind

*rubs my gay little goblin hands together* ok

first and foremost- i can understand why people feel that way. hes honestly very poorly written at the moment, but unfortunately i tend to get sucked into loving the characters with the least actual love from the writers (weeps about my constant yearning for a lance arc that never got fulfilled (vld was a dumpster fire))

i think the reason i like him so much is because of the potential he has as a character. people like him mostly because hes a #goodboy but i also firmly believe- as many others do- that theres far more to him, or at least there should be

hes an interesting character because he came into the series so late, was saddled with a responsibility completely unique to him because he essentially had no choice in the matter. hes also the youngest member of the cast. all of these traits make him very compelling

combine that with how FUCKING CUTE he is and well, you get people like me

so, let me list of the traits i think most accurately summarize oscar pine, at least what we know of him so far

1. he’s adaptable

yeah, that one seems pretty self-evident. his whole life got completely turned around and he handled it like a champ. hes also adaptable in the sense that hes a fast learner and a quick thinker- he learned how to fight in the span of a few weeks and in a month he was fighting griffons by himself. thats IMPRESSIVE. we also see how hes a good tactician and capable of thinking on his feet in the most recent fight with cordo- he literally turned around the whole fight by figuring out the mech’s weakness. even ruby and jaune, tacticians extraordinaire, didnt figure that out

oh, and by the way, did i mention hes a FOURTEEN YEAR OLD FARMHAND with ABSOLUTELY NO FORMAL HUNSTMAN SCHOOLING? my dude landed a crashing airship! oz mightve guided him but he still DID THAT

hes also the one to keep the most level head in times of crisis (more on where that comes from later). hes pretty similar to oz in that regard- if something goes wrong hes quick to put aside any of his personal feelings on the matter because thats not whats important right now. i think hes the only person not to lash out at anyone at brunswick (aside from blake). even when people are yelling at and being cold towards him, he does what needs to be done and tries to help where he can, because throwing a fit wont help anyone, regardless of whether or not the others seem to be taking the same route. when he goes missing in argus, too, he comes back with the decision to just. do what needs to be done. he might not like the situation theyre in, he might have felt scared or angry or hurt by jaunes (and qrows) words and actions, but he pushes that aside because thats not important right now

which brings me to my next point

2. he’s selfless

first of all, while it wasnt much of one, he still had a bit of a choice whether or not to do this crazy thing and go meet strangers to save the world. a selfish person wouldve done everything within their power to avoid it. of course he was averse to it at first- he thought he was going crazy! but like, at the end of the day, he pushes that aside because thats not important right now

(if youre sensing a pattern its because there is one)

it could be argued that his determination not to let oz fight for him, even in a situation that oscar was absolutely NOT capable of handling, was selfish. i would have to say i disagree with that, because who the hell wants some ghost in their head to take over their body and probably wreck it pulling off crazy cirque de soleil bullshit moves that knock you out for three days straight?

which brings me to another thing

3. he wants to prove himself

thats the big reason he does these crazy things. he knows hes the underdog here, knows he inexperienced and small and people look down on him- and even though hes scared he still has a sense of pride, a sense of duty. he wants to prove that he can do this. he will put everything on the line, even if it terrifies him, because its what needs to be done and he wants to prove that it CAN be done

a big portion of that comes from his admiration of the others, especially ruby (which is very sweet by the way- hes still a bit starstruck by everyone). in the scene where he confronts ruby about how shes “okay with any of this”, that was the validation he needed to go through with things despite his doubts because guess what? the people he idolizes are scared too, but thats not stopping THEM. so it shouldnt stop him either

which brings me to my favorite trait that is often overlooked-

4. hes stubborn

this kid is so headstrong. the very fact that he was able to overpower oz’s control over his body just to tell the others he was hiding something is a testament to that- we didnt even know that was POSSIBLE before! there are times where hes unsure of himself, but as his confidence has grown hes shown just how much conviction he has in the things he truly believes in. he wants to prove himself and nothing will stand in his way. his whole life is being thrown out the window for the sake of some eons-old war? fine, he’ll do everything he can to fight for what he cares about. he makes the decision to put others before himself. he won’t let someone else do it for him, he won’t let the people he looks up to make him run away, and he wont give up. ever

thats the biggest thing- he DOES. NOT. GIVE UP. EVER. unless hes convinced otherwise- which is very hard to do- hes GOING to do what he has to. he wont let himself be disheartened or beaten down because he just doesnt give up. if he ever truly loses a fight you bet its going to be because he was dragged down kicking and screaming the whole way, he was taken by a cheap shot, or because he took a hit for someone else (because he would do that, no hesitation, not for a second)

did i mention hes FUCKING FOURTEEN?

hes fourteen, and hes proven hes willing to

1. give up everything he knows

2. give up his IDENTITY

3. literally DIE

for what he believes in

HE. IS. A. CHILD.

and heres where things get really interesting

because, like, think back to when you were 14. the world is scary, you dont know who you are or what you want to be, and most importantly youre just learning about how your actions affect other people. this stage of your life makes you incredibly volatile because, and this is just child psychology, your worldview has just barely expanded beyond the self. the way you perceive the world is still shadowed by how YOUR actions affect others- other contributing factors dont lend themselves to scrutiny easily

that means you blame yourself

a lot

and now think about this- at this stage in your life, if your identity is stripped away from you, if people treat you like youre no one, directly tell you youre not your own person, take your autonomy, and treat you badly? if they hurt you or accuse you of things?

you start to think they might be right

i dont think oscars apparent acceptance of this situation is because he thinks things are ok. its less acceptance and more resignation

he does what he has to because he doesnt matter

he isnt important right now

and ok, you might think this is diving into fanon, and thats fine! you dont have to agree with me

but the facts are there, and the facts are hes pretty much been told over and over again that he, his feelings, and his identity are of no consequence in the face of what “needs to be done”, and hes resigned to that

and frankly, that reminds me a lot of a certain self-destructive blond (who gets a lot more screentime than i personally care for but thats all one)

“If I die buying them time, then it’s worth it. They’re the ones that matter.”

frankly, the fact that it was jaune himself who cornered oscar like that in chapter 8, and it was the very next chapter where his grief and self-destruction met its resolution, tells me that he may be instrumental in oscars eventual admittance to the same thought process

which would be a cool way to show jaunes growth as well- hed be confronted with a mirror of himself and have to show why he was wrong

i really do hope this is the route the writers take, especially if they decide to echo the very same line but this time from oscar. that would be very cool

ANYWAY this was longer than i thought it would be ;w; hope ive successfully converted you to the oscar love corner!