Hey man, love your theories and analyses! Can I ask you, and sorry if you've already talked about this, what differences do you see between the Shiro Keith interactions and the Holt siblings interactions? I'm interested because you mention how intentionally (?) different they are. Thank you!
Ok, sure! Let’s go through this:
There’s a huge maturity gap between Pidge and Matt that we see right away. Pidge is very easily excited and eager to show everything off to Matt, and people joke that she’s trying to show off in front of her big brother. With Shiro and Keith, it’s clear they’re on the same level. They’re both paladins and leaders. Keith never acts like a younger sibling the way Pidge does in front of Matt. Because he’s not
Going off the clear distinction between these two dynamics, its important to look at the difference between Matt inspiring Pidge and Shiro training Keith. Matt does his best to lead by example–because he’s the older sibling, so he has to be a good role model for his little sister. Understandable. However, that’s not what happens when Shiro decides to train Keith as his successor. He doesn’t say This is how I became the Black Paladin, and if you work hard like me, you can reach my level. No. Instead, he tells Keith that he already has that potential and argues that he could take up Shiro’s mantle alone and be a great leader. Shiro’s not trying to set an example for Keith. He already sees that greatness in him and just wants Keith to realize it. Furthermore–when Matt tells Pidge to study hard, she immediately does. When Shiro tries explaining what Keith has to do to prepare being a leader, he outright cuts him off and refuses to acknowledge it
Pidge and Matt do this back and forth, good-natured teasing thing a lot. Matt will claim he’s so cool and Pidge well be like, Uh, not really. Siblings tease each other all the time, so it’s expected that they like to push each other’s buttons every now and again. But we never see this kind of behavior from Keith and Shiro.
Matt and Pidge also often seem like they’re speaking their own other language, they have little nicknames, pet peeves, inside jokes, secret code, and can go on and on like they’re right back at home and nothing’s changed. It’s what you’d expect from people who grew up together
With Keith and Shiro, it’s never so simple. They don’t have dorky nicknames or secret pass codes or look at one another and just go “stop that, you’re annoying me.” Their interactions are never so carefree and familiar. There’s a noticeable gravity and distance there, a sense that–while they’re closer to one another than anyone else, both are still holding back and tiptoeing around this…whatever it is they have. That’s not how characters with a brotherly, platonic relationship behave
Going back to Matt and Pidge, their seamless familiarity does come with this notion they’re always on the same wavelength. To the point where Hunk groans and goes, “Oh yeah, you guys are definitely related.” Again, Shiro and Keith don’t have that kind of dynamic. Not at all. None of the paladins ever comment on them being like brothers or way too similar–let alone annoyingly so
There’s also the fact that there’s a level of intimacy you see between Shiro and Keith that is not at all like the familial love you see expressed through the Holts. Literally any of Shiro’s or Keith’ Longing Gazes would look immediately out of place if you tried to argue their dynamic was purely brotherly. Like, compare Matt being proud of Pidge and Shiro’s face when Keith tells him he’s going to make it. There’s a clear difference
Speaking of intimacy, let’s look at the first hug we see for sheith turns out and the way the first hug between Pidge and Matt goes. Again, one is framed and presented as distinctly romantic and intimately private, while the other is clearly familial:
And I’ve talked about this a lot before, so I won’t waste more time going into it here, but–the way Pidge reacts to losing Matt is distinctly different to how Keith grieves Shiro. The way Keith continually carries a torch for Shiro while everyone else tells him Shiro would want him to move on–it’s very characteristic of someone mourning a lost lover. No one tells Pidge Matt would want her to just give up and get going. Keith’s grief-stricken outbursts about how no one else cares about Shiro the way he does also supports this. Pidge isn’t in a position where she feels like she has to justify why her loss is so deeply personal the way Keith does, everyone just gets it. But Keith going out of his way to do so–and spiting everyone else in the process–sounds like a character who’s lost their lover.
There’s also this sense of desire and desperation about Keith’s feelings for Shiro that are nowhere present with Matt and Pidge. Keith’s constant fear of losing Shiro and desperation to be with him are far more characteristic of unrequited love
We’ve gotten snippets of Pidge’s backstory since the beginning, but with Shiro and Keith, the writers are always holding back. As if there’s something more to their dynamic they’re trying to keep very secretive about. And given all the parallels between sheith and zaggar already, I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a prekerberos flashback about Keith falling for Shiro and mourning his disappearance
I could go on and on about other things–about all the parallels between sheith and zaggar as opposed to Matt and Pidge, about how plenty of people on the staff have supported sheith in a romantic context and therefore can interpret it that way, about how Keith and Shiro’s intro felt like the way to introduce two love interests–but I’ve talked enough already, so yeah. Long post short–they’re two completely different character dynamics, and when people claim sheith can only be platonic or brotherly, it’s always really confused me. I just can’t see it. Especially when compared to two characters who are siblings
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