So, like I said in my casual review of S2, I absolutely love Raphael x Isabelle.
At first I really didn’t like the two of them together-- they started off in a really bad way. They were mutually swept up in addiction, and there was gross, manipulative behavior on both sides. So, despite how much I loved the vampire-aesthetic beauty of them together, it was pretty damn toxic for two of my favorite characters. It seemed to bring out the worst in them, and I wanted it to stop for both their sake’s.
But then things began to change.
Despite the blood-drinking, Raphael and Isabelle started to talk. They began to open up to each other. They fought their mutual addiction, and both of them became more vulnerable and emotionally intimate with each other than I’ve seen either of them be with anyone else. And on top of that there was acceptance, affection, self-sacrifice, support, and yes, romance.
A lot of my favorite ships involve characters who I can imagine to be on the ace spectrum like me. It’s just... more relatable to me, and it’s comforting, and I’m hungry for that representation. With Raphael’s character I don’t have to imagine it-- it’s already there, and that is so, so important. And Isabelle’s acceptance of him is everything, too.
Overall I find their relationship beautiful, sweet, angsty, complex, and so important. I just love it. There is still so much story to tell between these two and I really, really, really hope they’re endgame somehow. I want so much more development between them next season.