Shallan

The third and final chapter of my Plance fic that took far too long to update is now up!

Once again, Infinity Train has proven that apparently Owen Dennis has complete and unfettered access to my journal. Or maybe he's seen my memory tape.

Man, this is such a good show.

One of my favorite things to explore is the way Adrien has been affected by growing up in an arguably abusive household. Normally I think about behaviors he's learned as a defense mechanism (timidity, selflessness, submission, being endlessly good-natured), but this is a good example of learned behaviors that involve imitating something harmful, instead of reacting to something harmful.

So I was watching the English dub of Sentibubbler, and there was a scene that I remember made me feel uncomfortable when I saw it the first time:

I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was.  Then, later in the episode:

And that punched me in the gut.  It scared me.

I don’t think I can write out a whole essay on this rn, but I needed to throw it into the void.  What I can say is that Chat Noir demolished something because he was angry.  I’m not saying that he was angry at Ladybug necessarily, but the situation didn’t go his way, he felt like he wasn’t being heard, and he hit something so hard that it shattered.  And I’m saying he learned that from somewhere.

Alright, here's a survey question for my fellow Plance shippers. Which plot thread do you prefer:

Lance starts flirting with Pidge as he slowly realizes his feelings for her, and she finds it extraordinarily confusing

or

Lance never flirts with Pidge, because he sees her as a friend instead of just a girl, which highlights how unique their relationship is to him

kal doodle

I feel a need to bring this back in the wake of the canonical representation of Adrien as a princess and Marinette as his knight in shining armor

Gender Roles in Miraculous Ladybug

Miraculous Ladybug is filled with excellent subversions of gender stereotypes. And no, I'm not just going to say it's feminist, because what I'm talking about is much broader than that. The show is filled with characters that refuse to fit the standard roles their gender lays out for them, both for female and male roles.

Let's start with the most obvious example, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, or Ladybug. It's pretty clear that her character and function in the story revolts against stereotypes of femininity: she is a woman—well, a girl—but she leads her team, which is a traditionally male role. She is the decision-maker, the rationalist, the realist, the one who catastrophizes before she hopes—this is stark contrast to the traditional expectation that women follow and comfort, holding the team up with optism and joy. She is the head, not the heart (that's Adrien). She is driven, strong, determined, and self-assured.

Adrien, too, subverts stereotypes—perhaps more than Marinette, although it's not something you notice immediately like Marinette's subversions. (This is because we're familiar with the patterns of feminist characters, but not the anti-sexism found in Adrien.) At heart, Adrien is arguably the most clasically "feminine" character in the show. On the surface, it's easy to see—he is a model, objectified for his beauty, something that has been done to women for all of history and is still being done today. But it runs deeper, too. He is submissive, mild, willing to bend to other's will—both his father's and Ladybug's, as well as the desires of other people in his class like Chloe and Lila (both of whom are, interestingly, women). His kindness and sensitivity, as well as his role as the heart and support when suited up, all mirror traditionally feminine traits and roles.

And yet, despite all this subversion, neither of the main characters are simply a rebellion against stereotypes. It's clear in Chat Noir's tendency to flirt and his function as a protector, but it's especially evident in Marinette, who doesn't just subvert female stereotypes—she also fulfills them.

Marinette is a leader, a thinker, a pessimist, but she's also interested in fashion and art, both of which are considered feminine. More than that, she's incredibly kind, exemplifying that women can abandon the negative feminine stereotypes of submission and obedience without sacrificing the positives like kindness and selflessness. And finally, she's clearly not a "strong independent woman who don't need no man" because she wants a man. No, she doesn't need a boyfriend, but she wants one. True feminism doesn't mean women throwing aside all romantic relationships, it means not pressuring women either way, into or away from romance. Marinette can be strong and independent while still loving someone and wanting to be loved back.

The characters in Miraculous Ladybug are not governed by stereotypes. They were written to be good, nuanced characters, not feminist characters. Marinette has both feminine and masculine traits, proving that traditional "feminine" values are just as valuable as "masculine" ones. Adrien has both, but far more feminine than masculine traits, demonstrating that masculinity is not superior, and that toxic masculinity is just as harmful as classic sexism.

Miraculous Ladybug didn't say "We need to stop forcing women to be feminine," which is a common and harmful misinterpretation of the feminist vision. It didn't say "We should let women act like men!" or "Femininity is bad! Let's leave it all behind." It said, "Stereotypes—both for men and women—are harmful, and we should let people just be people instead of defining them by their genders." It created a world where there are no traditionally feminine and masculine traits, there are just people traits, and anyone can be anyone.

been listening to hadestown and I'm just the tiniest bit in love with Orpheus

Also finished this postcard. The hyperfixation is real.

Honestly? Agreed. I'm trying to write a recovery sequel to the fic I wrote last night where Adrien actually loses his arm, and . . . I don't know, a prosthetic just doesn't seem right. I hesitate to call it a cop-out or anything, but losing an arm is not the kind of problem a character should "solve," it's the kind of problem a character should "overcome."

Actually, I went on a rant about this to my sister one time while we were discussing character arcs, so I think I can explain why a prsothetic is a bad idea narratively. It sort of is a cop-out, in terms of story. Adrien losing his arm presents a challenge he has to overcome as a character; through overcoming it, he will grow. But if his problem is solved quickly, it's easier for him to pretend he didn't lose his arm. No, obviously it's not like all the challenges are gone—I don't know anything about prosthetics, but I doubt they're perfect replacements for original limbs yet—but the issue has in part been "solved" before he could grow. In terms of character development and story, giving Adrien a prosthetic would be a bad move.

And it's also just bad disability representation, I think? I mean, I hesitate to discuss that aspect of it because I'm not disabled and I don't know anyone who's disabled. (So if I'm misrepresenting anything, please tell me.) But I think it's similar to trying to "fix" an autistic person by making them not autistic—it's toxic, damaging, unjustified, and helps no one.

waitwaitwait i just had an idea

what if plagg can give adrien some kind of substitute for his arm?? like one of those prosthetics but magical? and so to all the civilians, chat noir never lost an arm, because it's covered by the suit.

but if adrien just suddenly lost an arm, no explanation, what would he do?? marinette and gabriel probably know his identity, but what about everyone else?? further cause for identity shenanigans?

tbh!! Despite all of the other “blonde boys that fuck up their right arms and have dead moms and are child soldiers/heroes” having magical or high-tech robotic arms, I actually prefer that Adrien never gets one! I saw someone mention that Max could theoretically build him one, and other people have mentioned miraculous wiz biz, but I think it’s still interesting to have a disabled character whose disability isn’t solved fictitiously.

As for his identity, I imagine that whatever event involving Hawkmoth removing Adrien’s arm landed Gabriel Agreste in prison or death lol. So with no more supervillain to fight, it might not be as much of a concern if people figure out his identity.