y'know, despite the show's attempts at wishy-washiness or the 'both parties were wrong' trope with Catra and Adora, and the fandom clearly buying it, there was still an aspect that even the writers weren't entirely willing to overlook:
that Catra made her choice.
hell, in s5, Catra literally says:
"no, she doesn't. she chose her side, i chose mine. she means nothing to me."
many times throughout the series, the show reinstates that Catra made her choices to be a bad person, to hurt and kill people, to choose destruction over restoration, and taking away the other person's choice by domineering with her own.
people can pretend that it was Adora's fault ( whether solely or 'too' ) all they wish, but the show has direct texts that Catra chose her life to get worse and worse. that no one took that decision away from her, but that she took a moral decision Adora made as a personal slight against her for no reason other than because it wasn't what she envisioned for her own future.
not her and Adora's future. her future.
Catra has made it painfully clear that what Adora actually wants never mattered to her as much as taking over the Horde and demanding respect and power. though the show caters to her Mary Sue-ness a lot, Crimson Waste is a perfect example of her demands.
rather than empathizing and trying to understand the situations of those outlaws, bandits, and ex-soldiers, Catra instead domineers by claiming that her life was so much more difficult than those who literally have to steal and fight, likely kill, to survive every single day, be adult, teen, or child.
rather than of forming compassion and respect to those around her, Catra instead mocks and patronizes people who are almost exactly like her ( Tongue Lasher ) or puts fear in them to force respect. she becomes not only like Shadow Weaver, but like Hordak as well.
the show continues showing case after case after case of Catra asserting herself in making the morally corrupt choices of supporting the source of war, committing universal genocide, committing the death of a monarch, stealing towns and civilians, all because of one person not doing exactly what she wanted.
so many stans believe that she wasn't in her best state of mind to actually make these decisions, but even if she wasn't, Catra still has literal blood on her hands, has put fear into so many people, destroyed countless lives through the crimes of war, and completely shattered Adora's concept of self through acts of severe physical, emotional, mental, and psychological abuse.
taking away her autonomy ( which is exactly what the fandom at large is doing by saying she didn't actually choose anything ) doesn't take away the fact that she is a war criminal. a remorseless war criminal.
there's only so much intention ( whether or not it's there ) can make up for. and there's no intention in the entire goddamn universe that can make up for what Catra did.
