HI! Do you still think that Yurio has a thing for Yuuri??? Hope you'll have an excellent day <3
Thank you for this ask! I do definitely think Yurio still has a thing for Yuuri. I imagine you are asking this in response to the recent reveal of the manga and WTTM video, so Iāll give you my take on those.
First, hereās some quotes from September Scanlationsās translation of the manga:
ā[Yuri Plisetsky] proved himself as he gave his āloveā to everyone.ā
āThis time I lost to Katsuki in the free skate. Even though I won, it still pisses me off. If Iām gonna skate feeling all torn up inside, then I feel like I may as well skate to a totally different song.ā
āIn this mad, mad world, all I have to do is just keep on showing everyone that one moment that I, and no one else, chose.ā
āAnd if I canā¦I trustā¦that what I love is the key to my salvationā¦ā
āThis new exhibition program of mine is gonna blow everyoneās socks off. Especially you, Katsudon. Get a damn good look!ā
The word loveĀ recurs a few times in this manga, and I think it directly correlates to Yurioās Agape, which was his theme for this season. If we recall from episode 12, Yurio lists a long string of people before his final performance. These people are all a part of his Agape in some way. He lists his grandpa, Yakov, Lilia, Yuuko, and Yuuri Katsuki. He doesnāt list Otabek. Otabek may have helped him reach his Agape, but Otabek isnāt part of his Agape. So if love is the key to Yurioās salvation, he means being more honest with himself and showing the people who are his Agape his true self.
Itās also important to note that he specifically mentions that he wants to impress Yuuri with his WTTM performance. Heās already won the GPF, so it isnāt about scoring higher than Yuuri. Heās displeased that Yuuriās free skate was better, and he wants to show that he can make a meaningful performance too. At this point, Yurio had no idea that Yuuri would bring a surprise of his own. He just wanted to show his true self and express himself on the ice honestly like heās admired Yuuri for doing. He finally discovered why Yuuriās performances were so captivatingāhonesty, baring your love for the world to see.
So this is Yurio directly responding to that. He even threatened not to perform in the exhibition gala if he couldnāt get a new performance choreographed for it. And as he describes to Otabek how heās still pissed off even though he won, we see that this is indeed a direct response to Yuuriās free skate performance.Ā
What was the key in Yuuriās performance? Honesty. Pushing his limits. Making his program as difficult as Viktorās. Yurio envies all of that, and he feels like he canāt compete unless he can put his own honesty into his performance. He canāt even wait until the next season. He needs to show Yuuri now while heās still here at the same event.
So heās all ready to prove himself to Yuuri whenā¦Viktor makes a surprise appearance in Yuuriās exhibition program in matching outfits. Even though they call it theĀ āmaster-and-apprentice version,ā anyone who saw the infamous proposal (everyone who interrupted Yurio and Otabekās chat in the restaurant) would know that itās more than that.
Just look at Yurioās face and how Otabek looks concerned for him.
Yurio immediately jumps to bring Otabek onto the ice in order to directly compete with Yuuriās surprise. He isnāt doing this just to shock the audience more. His performance wouldāve been enough for that. Heās doing it because heās jealous of what Viktor and Yuuri have and that Yuuri is still only looking at Viktor.
Howās he supposed to prove himself to Yuuri if all he cares about is watching Viktor? So he brings in his plan to make Yuuri look at himāa desperate attempt to make him jealous of his new friendship with Otabek, maybe even play it up to look like a little more. Just so he can catch Yuuriās eye and get him to see the new program that is a true expression of himself. Sure heās been dying to perform his own thing all season, but Yuuri is who inspired him to finally do it.
Yurio wants to impress Yuuri with his performance of WTTM by showing him his true self and how heās not a child anymore. With all the sexy moves and his outfit, itās clear heās trying to say that heās grown up now, that people should stop treating him like the fifteen-year-old newbie.
Was it mature of him to add Otabek into the performance? Not at all. Yurio is purely fueled by his emotions here, something he has struggled with the entire season. Thatās what brings him as far as WTTM goes. Spite. Anger. Jealousy. Heartbreak. All his feelings rolled into oneāthis is his madness.
Does this performance mean that Ota//yuri is canon? No. The manga made a point to mention they were friends repeatedly. Nothing they did displayed anything beyond friendship. Besides, theyāve only known each other for three days. They wouldnāt be dating that fast. And with the months of development we got for the main pairing, it would be a disappointment to have the secondary pairing jump into things so quickly. Now I do think Otabek and Yurio might have canon crushes on each other, but once again, we canāt prove that. Ā And the way I see it, Yurio was just using Otabek as a tool to make Yuuri jealous.Ā
They might become canon eventually, because oftentimes the friend that helps you overcome your old crush becomes your new crush, but I donāt see anything they did in the manga or video as proof of their canonness. WTTM was a performance and Otabek went along with it as his friend. A lot of their moves are what you would see in rock concerts, so theyāre just emulating the performances theyāve seen for music they both enjoy. Yurio added in the sexy aspects to show everyone else that heās not a child anymore. It could develop into something real, for sure, and that would definitely make a great storyline, but I donāt believe theyāre there yet (though I do believe the yoi staff is leading it in that direction).
So my conclusion here is that yes, Yurio is still hung up over Yuuri. This happens shortly after the anime ended, so there definitely wouldnāt be time for Yurio to get over his crush, even with the appearance of a new potential boyfriend. He still needs time for that, but after he heals, maybe he could have something with Otabek. Who knows.
Disclaimer: Yurioās crush on Yuuri is open for interpretation. Itās a popular theory based on many of his actions throughout season one. Donāt like it? Thatās fine. Yuri on Ice left many things up for interpretation and the staff is very secretive in their interviews, so pick the theories you like and go with those. Also, I think itās important to note that you can still believe the Yurio Crush Theory and ship Ota//yuri. Like I said earlier, the friendship could develop into more and help Yuri get over his crush. Or they could just be really good friends. However you see them is totally fine with me.
