FINALLY SOMEONE WHO RESPECTS THE FACT THAT NEIL LIKES TO COVER UP. ANYTIME SOMEONE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY!! ššš¤
I noticed that Neil's body positivity in Fandom is focused on him being sexy and showing skin and wearing crop top, skirts, and skinny jeans, rather than on his personal comfort. I think this comes from the newer body positive concept that one has to be sexy to feel powerful and one has to be fuckable to be worthy.
Neil is attractive, but he is no longer conventionally attractive. And he likes it that way, because with the face mutilation, although people stare at him now, he doesn't look like his father.
That being said, he still doesn't want to show more of his scars. He can't hide his face and wear mittens all the time, but he can still wear long sleeves when he wants to or even just wear baggy tee shirts and looser jeans.
The scene where Andrew bought Neil clothes for Edens, he made sure they were actually his size, but still fully covered his body and would be comfortable. They're black cargo pants with many pockets and are practical, the long sleeve shirt has rips but has fabric underneath, the boots are heavy and practical and Neil thinks about keeping them. Andrew didn't dress Neil up to objectify him at Edens, he gave Neil those clothes because Edens is an alt club and Neil learns when they get there that he definitely would've stood out more without them, and Andrew dressed him conservatively compared to the rest of the club attendees.
I personally really don't like the idea that Neil has to overcome his truama by putting it on display or prove that he's not bothered by his scars by showing them off all the time.
As someone with scars on my torso and back, the truth is? People will look at them and make comments. I've gotten a lot of comments over the years about it, anywhere from "I mean... They're kinds cool if you think about it!" To "wow your skin looks like a ballsac". I've had ex roommates ask if someone held me down and did it, just point blank. I've also had people assume how I've gotten them and I've also had people just openly ask about them, curious. Its not unusual for me to wear a tank top and notice the person isn't making eye contact with me 50% of the time because they keep accidentally looking at one of my scars instead.
And the thing is? Medically speaking my scarring is considered very mild. Sure, there is a lot of it, but its mild. Neil has severe scarring, neil asks the FBI if he even still has enough face left for the press to recognize. When I see people play down Neil's scars or try to write them off as "actually attractive and add to his features" or "interesting" it annoys me. I also see neils scars reduced a lot in art, which also I personally find offensive. People are allowed to do what they want, but as a person with scars I'm not a fan.
If people with scars want to write about him finding them sexy and showing them off, or getting all those steroid shots and creams, or not having keloiding? go ahead project how you want, it's just not for how I see Neil and not for my personal taste in body positivity.
I want Neil to have more scars than me and my friend. We were always the most scarred people we knew, him more than me, but it was still considered pretty mild from a medical perspective.
Personally, I want Neil's scars to be bad and objectively startling and "unattractive", not "interesting" and "actually make him hotter". Because Neil doesn't want his scars to make him hotter, he's just greatful he looks that much less like his dad now, and that he's still alive. Neil doesn't care about being fuckable or hot or sexy, so why would his body positivity reflect those ideas?
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