#yknow 'it's not just pointless grimdark nonsense because it feels GOOD it feels SATISFYING' where it really just sounded like

[annabelle--cane]

tags from @hotdrinks

a) so true imo. over the years there's been a lot of fandom meta commentary about new fans coming into tma without knowing how to engage with horror, usually with a "these darn kids just don't know how to behave themselves" flavor, but there hasn't been as much talk about people not knowing how to engage with tragedy. a lot of conversations I've seen from march 2021 to now give me the impression that a lot of people's idea of a good tragic ending is one where all characters reconcile amiably, take responsibility for the wrongs they've done, get their just desserts, and fix all their problems in a way that feels good and fair, just with some of the aesthetics of tragedy thrown in there for seasoning. obviously not Every jmart disliker is like that, but that is very much the vibe I've gotten from a lot of Posts and Takes.

b) LELAND is always right about everything forever

my problem as a nuancepilled s5chad is that I am really compelled by all the ways jon and martin keep winding up hurting each other and the ways in which their relationship is dysfunctional, but unless I am very clear in my intent then I get people who think they agree with me coming into my notes/inbox to say "yeah, it's a bad/poorly written relationship and they're just bad for each other," which isn't quite what I'm trying to say.

I think these are two very unwell people with intensely varying levels of self-awareness, but they also have a strong, heartfelt commitment to each other and appear to really enjoy spending time together, and if, for example, the safehouse period had stretched on forever, they would have had a successful if sometimes very emotionally taxing relationship. I think they both royally screwed up a few times during the apocalypse, and that that was basically inevitable given the environment, and that they showed a willingness to communicate, reconcile, and change. but also they were ultimately the center piece of a tragedy narrative so they were never going to have the chance to actually Become Healthy.

idk, I see where "they're a toxic couple and need to break up" as a take is coming from and I respect having it, but to me it feels the same as saying that romeo and juliet were a toxic couple. nah mate, the tragedy isn't that they're bad for each other, it's that they could have worked out under almost any other circumstances, but they live in a world where that was never going to be possible.