Stella - Fans give HelluvaBoss far too much credit.
When starving for rep, people will eat anything. The phrase goes, “Beggars can’t be choosers”. But stop insisting mud slop is chocolate cake.
Talking about Stella with the fandom is extremely awkward. Most hate her because of headcanons and projections. Those alone are why they claim she’s “scarily realistic”, not the writing itself. When you speak to them about the character they start talking about their own experiences as if those are part of the show.
When “Stella is terribly written” comes up, the fans love going into diatribes explaining what domestic abuse is to the audience as if we don’t know, and their explanations alone, they think, make Stella suddenly become “well written”.
You ask the fans, “how is she well written?” And they say “well, she’s a woman who is abusive to a man.” The fact female abusers are underrepresented in media means stellas mere existence alone is enough to warrant undivided praise. Standing ovations happen at cons where Bryce Pinkham cites his lines divorcing the character. Despite this conflict being completely shallow.
Stolas fans are extremely insistent that she must remain one note and pure evil. Because to them, in this “powerful story” she’s carrying the fate of male DV victims on her back. So if Stella is humanised, the fear is that male victims of domestic abuse won’t be believed, and their abusers have ‘apologist rhetoric’ (Stella being legitimately done wrong) may hurt them!…Despite “Stella” being nothing more than a cartoon swan. They give this webtoon incredible amounts of social power. And medrano I think, loves and relishes in that power. She doesn’t have to lift a finger and actually write a character, backstory, arc, relationships, likes/dislikes, a plan of villainy, a dynamic, or a story, the fact Stolas exists, is gay, and is a victim to a woman, is enough. Enough for a grand standing ovation.
Let me explain with an example
In this scene of Stella and Via where her mother takes her phone away. The sole dialogue to via is “sorry sweetie, no talking to that deadbeat” that’s all. But twitter users started saying - Via cries like stolas does, Stella hates that. Abusers sometimes bully their children for having traits of their victims. So via has to hide her tears so her mom doesn’t abuse her. They imply they have experience with it, which makes Stellas writing is so realistic.
…..That’s great and all. People are allowed to relate and have comfort characters. But none of that is in the show. Stella just took her daughter’s phone. That’s all she did and said to her. But when someone points that out, they get accused of doubting someone’s real life abuse experience. The one they’ve imagined as also being in the show.
When I see posts like this of mine now I completely die of embarrassment
