#saltybug rants

[thesaltyoceanwaves]

What about Ladybug, is there any conflict you think she can be blamed for?

Anon, I truly had to sit with this one and think about it, and I came to this conclusion:

I have no idea how to answer this.

What I mean is that I know what the show wants me to think is her fault: not trusting Chat Noir enough or treating him as a proper equal. Not being sensitive to his feelings. Making decisions without him.

The problem is that the show undercuts itself two ways:

1. Ladybug affirming that Chat is her partner, they are a team, the other holders aren’t there to replace him, etc.

2. Having her be wrong about everything because she “needs to learn a lesson.” So even if she’s being a perfect angel or is being blatantly wronged… the episode’s problem is still somehow her fault.

With Chat we have the exact opposite problem - basically, nothing is his fault ever (except for like, once or twice), and he doesn’t really have to change. Even when he neglects his duties and ignores boundaries.

Do you see the issue?

[thesaltyoceanwaves]

Adrien reminds me of this one "friend" I had I college. I thought we were friends and he even called us "bros" at one point so I thought we were cool. But after a while, when our schedules no longer lined up and I wasn't seeing him as much, and people started talking about him, I realized that probably wasn't the case. He dominated conversations I wanted to be a part of, not recognizing I or someone else wanted to talk. He would lie to make himself look good (telling me and a mutual friend that he was going to come to an event we were hosting, only for us to learn that he told two of our other friends that he WASN'T coming) and he would "pretend" to care about what I said (he asked me if I was doing NaNoWriMo, and it was like the moment I opened my mouth to say yes, he stopped paying attention, stared out the window and nodded along to what I was saying). I don't think any of this was malicious, but it still upset me and bothered other people because we felt used. 

At least in S3, I think this is the same case for Adrien - he claims Marinette is a good friend, but his attitude and behavior don't really reflect that. He does a couple of nice things like getting her medicine or giving her advice but compared to the attention other girls have been getting from him, it just rings hollow to me :/ And I'm not saying Marinette is "owed" his attention or interest but from a narrative standpoint, it's kind of a problem if he doesn't ask about her hobbies, ask to hang out, etc while still calling her a "good friend".