Snowflake Challenge 2017: Day 10

[lebateleur]

Day 10

In your own space, share your love for a trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme. (More than one is okay, too.) Tell us about it, tell us why you love it, give us some examples and recs. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

By far my favorite trope is the antagonist's redemption. Give me a character who seems like an asshole until that critical reveal, and then rake them over the coals as they try to right things; you will have my rapt attention. Think the Winter Soldier remembering flashes of Bucky Barnes, or Cho Hakkai trying to nice his way out of who he slept with and how many people he's killed, or Sugiura Shiho's Blood or Chigusa learning humanity, or Zuko questioning whose side he's really on, or Snape bullied and shafted and snarling at everyone while fighting the good fight solo...the list goes on.

If you then write me a plot arc where that character reconciles with their former nemesis, I will eat out of your hand. God, I have such a thing for people at each other's throats working their way through misunderstandings and shitty circumstances and external threats and realizing the other has decency and worth and that they need them. Thor and Loki, Mulder and Krycek, Snape and Harry, Attolia and Eugenides, Jane and Mr Rochester, Elizabeth and Mr Darcy, SHIELD reuniting, every one-shot Naono Bohra's ever written, the glorious cluster of an Akitsuki Koh or Mizuno Tohru novel... I want the antagonist brought low, and then the protagonist taken apart when they're forced to reevaluate everything they've ever thought they knew about how horrible the first character is. Let's wallow.

It's a fine line to walk, though, because there really does need to be transformation, redemption, and catharsis for it to work for me. (Hence my eternal gnashing of teeth at the typical Kdrama story where the lead chooses the abuser because she knows he means "I love you" when he's humiliating and degrading her. No bueno. Nor does having the character die at the end, a la Snape, do anything for me--that's not redemption, it's authorial cowardice.) But show me two characters coming together and softening each other's edges where they couldn't do it on their own, and yes, please. Every time.

これで以上です。

Comments

[franklinbadger]

I really enjoyed reading this - thank you!

[lebateleur]

And thank you! It was so much fun to write.

[i_am_zan]

Cho Hakkai trying to nice his way out of who he slept with and how many people he's killed, - Yes this!

This is quite enlightening. I love this kind of thing too, but I'm blind to what they are - until it happens.

[lebateleur]

He's the dictionary example of my love for this trope. And while Japanese fans were mostly into 38, to me it's Hakkai and Gojyo that really complement each other's missing sections.

[i_am_zan]

Hakkai and Gojyo that really complement each other's missing sections. - Yes this exactly! Whilst I can see the appeal(probably not the right word) of 38, I couldn't really see it happening really, but yeah 58. *sighs* I still love 'em.

[spikedluv]

Yes, this! The Winter Soldier remembering Bucky and Steve! *my heart* In a much 'lighter' way (because there was no horrible fall from a train) Zero from Hit the Floor (a silly basketball soap opera) does this for me also. He doesn't kill anyone, but he is an ass, and then there's actual character growth which is a beautiful thing to see.

[lebateleur]

Yes! His confusion during the climactic scene in Winter Soldier--gah! I know it's coming and it still does it for me every time. And thank you for the Hit the Floor rec! This is something I will have to check out. ^^

[spikedluv]

That, plus the scene in the vault, plus the scene in the museum . . . The look in his face when Steve says 'I'm with you 'til the end of the line' is just *my heart*

Oh, you're welcome! TBH, the show isn't all that, though there are a surprising number of familiar faces, like Dean Cain who it took me a while to recognize. Zero (and Jude) don't appear until s2, so while I'm usually a complete-ist I skipped s1. (Currently, there are only 3 seasons, and since VH1 hasn't announced a 4th yet, that's probably the end, but they did a very satisfying (imo) 'summer special' that tied up all the loose ends from the S3 finale, so no worries about cliffhangers if that's a concern for you).

This is my Hit The Floor tag which contains a lot of GIFs and fanvids (which is how I discovered the show in the first place). This was one of the first vids I saw, and it remains one of my faves: https://youtu.be/3z_VHJZvZQQ (I have a stupid smile on my face because I watched it again. *g*)

[lebateleur]

Yes, all of those, yes. The museum scene...the expression in Bucky's eyes. Confusion, disorientation, fear, and then cold menace. I know they have to keep the movies family friendly, but my mind spins out an alternate plot progression where he goes out and starts planning some damage against the people who did this to him, all the while having to evade all the military and government people who are looking for him now. But then Steve is also trying to find him...

And yeah, wow, that vid. It put a stupid smile on my face too and I had to extrapolate what was going on. Consider me fully intrigued. I will be looking into the show shortly. ^^

[spikedluv]

my mind spins out an alternate plot progression where he goes out and starts planning some damage against the people who did this to him, all the while having to evade all the military and government people who are looking for him now

My favorite kind of post-Winter Soldier story!

That vid! *watches it again* I'm glad you're intrigued! I apologize for the show in advance *g* but (imo) Jude and Zero are worth it. (Also, there are clips of just the Jude/Zero scenes on youtube and other places if you want to dip your toes in without having to commit to an entire season. I'd be happy to give you the link, or you can just search youtube.)

[lebateleur]

Oh, yes, links please, when you have a moment. Curated reccing is always the best reccing. And I've got the series on my watchlist for this week. :)

[spikedluv]

Here are some links to various places where you can watch the Jude/Zero clips (all are streaming, like youtube):

~The Hit the Floor post @ Gay Storylines Archive on Tumblr

~Moonstruck-Me's HTF page at Daily Motion.

~All About Strength's playlist starting with #1 [youtube]

~Elma's playlist starting with #1 [youtube; just season 2 clips, though]

I hope you enjoy it!

[naye]

Oh. Redemption. Yes. Hakkai is one of my favorite examples - and Zuko's journey is amazing and so so much fun.

I feel the tendency in western storytelling is that "bad guys" can't be redeemed without paying with their lives, which is unfortunate. Far more interesting to see them living to cope with the consequences. Preferably while slowly learning to make friends they want to protect and support. Mmm. Yes. Good stuff!

[lebateleur]

Far more interesting to see them living to cope with the consequences.

YES. THANK YOU.

Killing the redeemed "bad guy" is an utter cop out. It sidesteps all the work that character has to do to maintain their goodness in mundane settings, and in the face of others' skepticism. To me, that's much more difficult--and more interesting--than making some grand, possibly impulsive gesture during a crisis. There's so much more vulnerability needed, for one. And your point on making friends, precisely.

[kiki_eng]

Hence my eternal gnashing of teeth at the typical Kdrama story where the lead chooses the abuser because she knows he means "I love you" when he's humiliating and degrading her. No bueno.
Yes. This. (I drop a lot of shows because of this, like, that wanker doesn't deserve you, no.)

But, yeah, redemption is amazing. I love all of that emotional work and work in general that's part of that.

[lebateleur]

I drop a lot of shows because of this, like, that wanker doesn't deserve you, no.
Yes, yes, exactly. Thank you. I feel like such a wet blanket for not being able to tolerate this sort of stuff when so many people I know do, and enthusiastically at that.

And you're right, I think it is the work aspect that makes it so appealing, because it shows the character really means it and will sacrifice to follow through.

[apgeeksout]

Oh, man, all of this! ♥ This is part of why I'm a little disappointed with how sloppily Seth's face turn is being booked. I'm being deprived of my chance to wallow in his misery and loneliness and newfound sense of shame!

I wanted him to suffer alone for a while longer! /0\ Like, he's had his epiphany, and starts hustling to make amends, but none of the other babyfaces readily trust him.

After HHH made KO his new chosen one, I was really excited for Roman/Seth enemy-of-my-enemy tag-partnership-of-convenience times... and we've sort of gotten that, but it almost feels too easy. There's so much really delicious emotional stuff (Seth's redemption and how much it hurts to realize how thoroughly he's burnt his bridges; Roman's repeatedly-deferred unfinished business (unhealed chairwounds!) from Seth's turn and how much it's fucking him up that it's still so easy to fall back into their old patterns, etc.) that I feel like they're glossing over instead of lovingly dwelling on.

[lebateleur]

Yes! Overall, both shows have vastly improved over where they were even three years ago, which I suppose is just a fancy way of saying they hit more of my kinks. Ironically, this is in some ways more frustrating because the shows get so close to where I really need them to go, but never all the way there. I want Roman needing to ally with Seth but hating himself for it, because he badly wants to forget what Seth did but is too guarded to let himself get burned again. And Seth, who's been schooled in true loyalty a la SHIELD and "loyalty" a la The Authority, isolated and penitent and desperate to regain what he had, trying all the while to cover it up with his typical bombast. Then work that into a cycle of Seth making increasingly grand gestures to prove he's learned his lesson and Roman not buying it because the sweeping gestures are just so obviously the same old bluster.

Meanwhile, Dean watches from the sidelines, satisfied that Seth's getting his comeuppance but still jealous of the convenience reunion and conflicted over what it's making him feel. You could take these dynamics and milk them for so long.

TL;DR: You're right, they need to lovingly dwell on the reunion buildup far more than they are.