my thoughts on yaoi and by that i mean charles/erik
I'm in a very X-Men mood tonight. Or really, a Charles/Erik mood, since that is my main interest in X-Men in the first place. Not that it's not a cool premise in general with lots of neat stuff going on, but those two, with their irreconcilable philosophies, their old friendship, their longstanding opposition of each other but continued respect, tinged with bitterness and wistfulness, were always my favorite part. I've always thought that Magneto is a great villain and that the two of them are great arch-enemies. (Of course, I must admit, my knowledge of them comes only from the movies.)
And I only just now really realized how similar they are to Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker... Interesting. I mean, the similarities are pretty undeniable, when you think about it. There's the fiery one, full of potential, traumatized at a young age (they even were both particularly damaged by losing their mothers tragically), oppressed (one was a slave, the other a Jew in a Nazi death camp). Erik and Anakin are passionate and full of a self-righteousness that is both dangerous and kind of inspiring. Then there's the more controlled, mild one in each pair -- the privileged one (they even both have posh British accents), who is maybe a bit too cold early on, a bit too smug and distant and judgmental, but who nevertheless grows to become very wise and humble, haunted by the thought that maybe they could have stopped this great person they knew from becoming such a monster. They both even become teachers (although while Obi-Wan goes into hiding, shutting himself away and reaching out only to Luke, Charles establishes a school that serves as a refuge for hundreds of people). And then the monster-character kills the mild-character. More or less. (Although, they both sort of "live on" actually.)
Fascinating! Ah, tropes.
And yet, I like the idea of Erik and Charles maybe having had a relationship (romantic/sexual) at some point (or at least the potential for a romantic relationship), but I don't like the idea of Anakin/Obi-Wan. Probably just because of their age different and uneven power balance. Obi-Wan is sort of like a big brother to Anakin but also sort of like a father. When they meet, he's 25 and Anakin is 9, so.... Yeah, no, I just don't see that pairing. Plus, Anakin's crazy-obsessive-doomed love for Padme is a huge part of his character from the get-go and remains part of him always.
Whereas Erik... never has any love-of-his-life like that. I mean, he hooks up with Raven, sure, but that seems more like a, hey, I think you're awesome so let's have sex, thing. I dig that you're blue and super-powerful. Free love between free mutants. This actually just makes me think even more that Erik could have been attracted to Charles. He seems to be attracted to people for being powerful and distinctive. Plus, he's played by Ian McKellen in the other three movies. (And then there's his fabulous pink regalia at the end of "First Class.") Magneto is down, I believe. And Charles? Movie-Charles, at any rate, seems like a big flirt as a young man and then practically asexual as an old man. (Though, I mean, he's always shown with his students, so of course his sexuality isn't a part that role.) No major relationships, at least in the movies -- I mean, okay, there's this thing with this woman Moira in "First Class" but it's hardly developed at all and he just wipes her memory at the end, come on. His "goodbye forever" to her is not nearly as fueled by angst and passion and confusion and regret as his "goodbye forever" to Erik. CONCLUSION: Erik/Charles is a totally plausible thing.
That being said, I can also see it as having been just a lost opportunity. Maybe they both felt drawn to each other but never acted on it. Or maybe unrequited on one side (and that could run either direction, as I see it). And simultaneously, I can see it as just a platonic thing. Which is nonetheless very compelling.
(It's funny how there are some slash pairings you can see, and some you can't. And some you like seeing sometimes, but don't really believe. Like, hmmm.... Examples.... For some reason, I totally believe Glitch/Cain in "Tin Man." In my head-canon, Glitch is super into guys and super into Cain and Cain is persuaded into recognizing that that is a good thing. After, you know, he has some time to accept his wife's death and stuff and decide to move on with the here and now. The fact that Glitch is played by Alan Cumming probably plays a large role in why I see it that way. But House/Wilson? I liked it, but I never really believed it. Same for Dan/Rorschach. I can believe them sometimes, but. Idk. I'm aware that I'm bending things. Re-envisioning it in a way it wasn't intended to be seen. In "Tin Man," though, for some reason, Glitch and Cain was the only relationship I saw happening. And I know the writers kind of intended DG/Cain to be a possibility... but they did it so half-heartedly, it just wasn't there at all. In an interview, they seemed like, "Oh, well, that works," about the Glitch/Cain thing. I'm not sure what makes some of these click and what makes some seem like a stretch.)
But back to the matter at hand. Erik and Charles. I don't always see it, but it's one of the more believable pairings out there. They're like Grindelwald and Gandalf Dumbledore, which is practically Harry Potter canon, even if it's only alluded to.
And man, the fact that with them, you see their whole lives played out... That they're old men for most of the action in their canon. It just adds this feeling of depth to it, for me. These layers of regret and understanding (or lack thereof).
Whatever. They're tragic and I love them. And I am mostly so enthusiastic about them right now because I just read a very nice fanfic called Undone, by yahtzee63. (It's two chapters. The first chapter is emotional!porn (and I don't mean that the emotions are so intense, it's like porn -- I mean it's porn, and it's emotional) and the second is more plot development and character analysis, etc., and it's perfect.) The basic premise is this: Professor Charles Xavier, when he "dies," somehow transfers his consciousness into... his old (well, young) self, back in 1962.
[ETA: Actually, there's also this fic which I've just read: Possible Worlds. Same premise, more or less, which makes it hard to resist comparing them. I'd have to say that I like this "Possible Worlds" one even more. I think it feels much more realistic and true to the characters, much as I enjoyed the other fic I recced earlier.]
Now here's a video that accompanies this fic and discussion very well:
That's... yes, I think definitely, my favorite X-Men fanvid at the moment. I'm working on one of my own right now, but it's not going to come out anything like this, in terms of being... pretty and haunting and emotionally effective. Alas. But that's alright, because this one exists already.
Oh, and what the hell. Here's one of my other favorites from earlier this summer (same vidder, though!):
And I only just now really realized how similar they are to Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker... Interesting. I mean, the similarities are pretty undeniable, when you think about it. There's the fiery one, full of potential, traumatized at a young age (they even were both particularly damaged by losing their mothers tragically), oppressed (one was a slave, the other a Jew in a Nazi death camp). Erik and Anakin are passionate and full of a self-righteousness that is both dangerous and kind of inspiring. Then there's the more controlled, mild one in each pair -- the privileged one (they even both have posh British accents), who is maybe a bit too cold early on, a bit too smug and distant and judgmental, but who nevertheless grows to become very wise and humble, haunted by the thought that maybe they could have stopped this great person they knew from becoming such a monster. They both even become teachers (although while Obi-Wan goes into hiding, shutting himself away and reaching out only to Luke, Charles establishes a school that serves as a refuge for hundreds of people). And then the monster-character kills the mild-character. More or less. (Although, they both sort of "live on" actually.)
Fascinating! Ah, tropes.
And yet, I like the idea of Erik and Charles maybe having had a relationship (romantic/sexual) at some point (or at least the potential for a romantic relationship), but I don't like the idea of Anakin/Obi-Wan. Probably just because of their age different and uneven power balance. Obi-Wan is sort of like a big brother to Anakin but also sort of like a father. When they meet, he's 25 and Anakin is 9, so.... Yeah, no, I just don't see that pairing. Plus, Anakin's crazy-obsessive-doomed love for Padme is a huge part of his character from the get-go and remains part of him always.
Whereas Erik... never has any love-of-his-life like that. I mean, he hooks up with Raven, sure, but that seems more like a, hey, I think you're awesome so let's have sex, thing. I dig that you're blue and super-powerful. Free love between free mutants. This actually just makes me think even more that Erik could have been attracted to Charles. He seems to be attracted to people for being powerful and distinctive. Plus, he's played by Ian McKellen in the other three movies. (And then there's his fabulous pink regalia at the end of "First Class.") Magneto is down, I believe. And Charles? Movie-Charles, at any rate, seems like a big flirt as a young man and then practically asexual as an old man. (Though, I mean, he's always shown with his students, so of course his sexuality isn't a part that role.) No major relationships, at least in the movies -- I mean, okay, there's this thing with this woman Moira in "First Class" but it's hardly developed at all and he just wipes her memory at the end, come on. His "goodbye forever" to her is not nearly as fueled by angst and passion and confusion and regret as his "goodbye forever" to Erik. CONCLUSION: Erik/Charles is a totally plausible thing.
That being said, I can also see it as having been just a lost opportunity. Maybe they both felt drawn to each other but never acted on it. Or maybe unrequited on one side (and that could run either direction, as I see it). And simultaneously, I can see it as just a platonic thing. Which is nonetheless very compelling.
(It's funny how there are some slash pairings you can see, and some you can't. And some you like seeing sometimes, but don't really believe. Like, hmmm.... Examples.... For some reason, I totally believe Glitch/Cain in "Tin Man." In my head-canon, Glitch is super into guys and super into Cain and Cain is persuaded into recognizing that that is a good thing. After, you know, he has some time to accept his wife's death and stuff and decide to move on with the here and now. The fact that Glitch is played by Alan Cumming probably plays a large role in why I see it that way. But House/Wilson? I liked it, but I never really believed it. Same for Dan/Rorschach. I can believe them sometimes, but. Idk. I'm aware that I'm bending things. Re-envisioning it in a way it wasn't intended to be seen. In "Tin Man," though, for some reason, Glitch and Cain was the only relationship I saw happening. And I know the writers kind of intended DG/Cain to be a possibility... but they did it so half-heartedly, it just wasn't there at all. In an interview, they seemed like, "Oh, well, that works," about the Glitch/Cain thing. I'm not sure what makes some of these click and what makes some seem like a stretch.)
But back to the matter at hand. Erik and Charles. I don't always see it, but it's one of the more believable pairings out there. They're like Grindelwald and Gandalf Dumbledore, which is practically Harry Potter canon, even if it's only alluded to.
And man, the fact that with them, you see their whole lives played out... That they're old men for most of the action in their canon. It just adds this feeling of depth to it, for me. These layers of regret and understanding (or lack thereof).
Whatever. They're tragic and I love them. And I am mostly so enthusiastic about them right now because I just read a very nice fanfic called Undone, by yahtzee63. (It's two chapters. The first chapter is emotional!porn (and I don't mean that the emotions are so intense, it's like porn -- I mean it's porn, and it's emotional) and the second is more plot development and character analysis, etc., and it's perfect.) The basic premise is this: Professor Charles Xavier, when he "dies," somehow transfers his consciousness into... his old (well, young) self, back in 1962.
[ETA: Actually, there's also this fic which I've just read: Possible Worlds. Same premise, more or less, which makes it hard to resist comparing them. I'd have to say that I like this "Possible Worlds" one even more. I think it feels much more realistic and true to the characters, much as I enjoyed the other fic I recced earlier.]
Now here's a video that accompanies this fic and discussion very well:
Click to viewThat's... yes, I think definitely, my favorite X-Men fanvid at the moment. I'm working on one of my own right now, but it's not going to come out anything like this, in terms of being... pretty and haunting and emotionally effective. Alas. But that's alright, because this one exists already.
Oh, and what the hell. Here's one of my other favorites from earlier this summer (same vidder, though!):