i am not saying this is like the absolute peak of tucker writing (i think joe relies on "haha this character is stupid" way too much for jokes in general and it can make a lot of the characters seem less competent) but i do think peopleās criticism that the reds and blues, especially tucker, are too trusting of the blues and reds, pointing at this scene in particular as proof kind of baffle me bc. did we watch the same scene.
Tucker: They haven't given me one single reason not to trust them, Dylan.
Dylan: Then explain why they're keeping us in the dark about everything.
Tucker: They're not! Look, they left me in charge of planning the campaign against the UNSC!
Dylan: That's a video game.
Tucker: What? No! It's a tactics simulator. Advanced military stuff.
Dylan: That's a video game, Tucker.
Cut to reveal Halo Wars 2 playing on Tucker's screens.
Tucker: ...Huh. Well, I guess that explains the micro-transactions.
Dylan: They're distracting you, Tucker! And where are Carolina and Wash? I heard they'd joined up with us?
Tucker: They're out gettin' some grub.
Dylan: She told you that?
Dylan: So you're seriously telling me that nothing about this place smells fishy to you?
Tucker: Well, of course it smells fishy.
Dylan: Figuratively, Tucker! Figuratively fishy! Almost all the doors around here are locked, I can't find a single computer that's networked...If they were being so open why all the secrecy?
Tucker: I wouldn't want a bunch of random people wandering around my house either! They might steal shit! Or walk into my masturbatorium!
Dylan: Ugh. What if it's more than that? What if there's stuff they don't want us to see? Ya'know, I don't need your help. I just thought you'd wanna know.
Dylan starts walking away.
Tucker: He has a networked computer. I've seen it.
Tucker: Just let me know what you find, okay?
like i dont really understand how ppl can say "this scene is so ooc for tucker hes smarter than that" when it is so clearly him trying to ignore the fact that thereās things that are wrong.
tucker just had church die in his arms in part because church did not think he was capable of handling a battle on his own merits. temple looks just like church and is gassing up his fighting skills.
tucker ātrustsā temple here because he desperately wants to trust temple here. he wants this situation to be true. he wants a guy in light blue armor to tell him that heās really super very capable and talented and attractive. tucker is vulnerable and temple is saying all the right things to make him choose to ignore the red flags because ignoring the red flags hurts less than having to acknowledge how badly he misses church and is struggling with his self image. because to admit that what temple is saying is what he wants to hear he has to answer the question of why he wants to hear it
but very crucially tucker does not actually unquestionably trusts temple here. tucker operates through a layer of repression and cognitive dissonance to purposefully ignore feelings that hurt him and cover them up with bravado and humor. so when dylan asks valid questions that he cannot answer without acknowledging that hurt he dismisses them and deflects with jokes and boasts.
but then he points her in the direction of finding things out and asks her to tell him what she finds.
because even though he isnāt ready to face that hurt himself yet, he still knows that itās there and that someone needs to.
