Essay Contest Prompt #3
Better late than never, huh? Here's my submission for the sasa_hq essay contest.
Topic: "Kara and Lee's other relationships, before and during the series, have strengthened/weakened Kara/Lee because..."
Author: wisteria_
Spoilers: Through "Revelations"
Word Count: 1,827
Kara and Lee are stubborn. Jealous. Competitive. Guilt-ridden. Dysfunctional. Able to hurt each other like nobody else can. Able to forgive each other when it really counts. Unable to live without each other. Kickass viper jocks. Talented at wreaking havoc and collateral damage, both physical and emotional. Best friends and quasi-siblings. Each other's touchstone. Deeply, profoundly in love.
I've chosen to write about those they've loved - and hurt - along the way, and how those relationships have affected the two of them together. My focus is on Zak, Dee, and Sam, because those are the key people in their lives; while other partners such as Baltar, Gianna/Shevon, and even Leoben have played a part, I'm leaving them out because they're ultimately not as relevant to the ongoing Kara/Lee arc. While the original sasa_hq challenge called for a formal, five-paragraph essay, that's not really my meta style. ;) I've had fun putting this together, and I hope you enjoy reading it!
Kara/Zak
As tragic as it was, without Zak's death the entire series might have been very different, as he's the reason for Starbuck's posting on the Galactica and Lee's estrangement from his father. Speculating about their actual relationship is difficult given the lack of canon evidence. Technically, we don't even have verification of which brother met Kara first. Although we don't know what they were like together, their influence on Kara and Lee today is very clearly delineated at the start of the show, but the impact becomes more subtextual as time goes on.
During the first season, Zak is nearly a living presence between Kara and Lee as their friendship deepens along with professional/personal conflict and increasing sexual tension. Kara's confession of her role in Zak's death is the first moment where we really see beyond her hotshot façade, and those early scenes set the stage for the first two seasons: Kara makes a real (or perceived) mistake, Lee lashes out, and Kara barks back while internally retreating in guilt, establishing a cycle. The sexual tension comes to a head in "Scar". By this time, however, Zak's memory isn't as clear of an influence; they've created plenty more guilt, repression, and dysfunction on their own. In fact, Zak isn't even mentioned again until the field scene in "Unfinished Business", when Kara asks Lee if his brother is the reason he has held back all these years. It's a jarring line because by now Zak almost feels like a footnote, and it makes both the characters and viewers question just how important he still is to their lives.
While I'm thrilled to hear Zak's name again, I've always found that dialogue problematic for reasons that would prompt a whole different meta analysis - but right now I'll stick to the Zak issue. Hearing Kara attribute Lee's reticence to his brother's memory is a surprise because it implies that she believes it's the main reason why he hasn't made such a move before (she seems to still see the "Scar" almost-sex as purely physical). It makes us question whether she knows Lee as well as we think she does, because we viewers are aware of so many other possible reasons. Plus, the line comes directly after she asks him if he's sure that she is what he really wants, leading to two interpretations: "you want me as a connection to your brother", or "you want me in spite of it". Obviously, it's more complicated than that - and perhaps even a combination of the two - but Kara can't perceive it that way. In the next line, Lee confirms that Zak was a factor, along with many other problems that have nothing to do with his brother.
One key thing to remember is that Kara is an only child; she doesn't know the romantic loyalty codes between siblings. (I'll admit that even I don't really understand them, as they've never been an issue for me and my sister!) Lee knows them all too well, though the fear of betrayal seems to have faded enough by now that he quickly moves past her question and tells her that the evening's epiphany is more about his realization of how much he needs her. Regardless, Zak did love her first, and this is one of the many factors holding Lee back.
Does Zak's memory strengthen or weaken Kara/Lee? Both. Their shared bond initially brings them together, and it proves that Kara is capable of deep love and deep guilt. It also cements the familial bonds among Kara and the Adamas. Conversely, it does feed a dysfunction that expands in so many different directions as the series progresses. In the end, though, I think the benefits are far greater than the flaws.
Lee/Dualla
Analyzing them independently of Kara/Sam is quite tricky, since their relationship and marriage are a direct result of Kara choosing Sam. Instead, I'll briefly look at the marriage itself. From the beginning, Lee saw Dee as a backup - the one he could have as Kara continued to rebuff him. He nearly says as much when he proposes to her. Their marriage is ultimately a failure for so many reasons, and his choice to stay with her in "Taking a Break" certainly weakens the Pilots' relationship, though they manage to rebound into a shaky friendship. The dysfunction brings out some of Lee's bad qualities, such as settling for a wife he doesn't love as he should, and insisting upon fidelity at the expense of what he truly desires. On the other hand, it does have some deeper (if negligible) benefits for Kara/Lee.
No matter how understandable her motives, Kara's betrayal on New Caprica was downright cruel, leaving Lee at an emotional nadir. When Dee comes to pick him up, she says she loves him so much that she's wants him for as long as she can have him, despite her knowledge that he loves Kara. She takes him back after the affair because he begs her to, and for a while they almost seem happy. Of course, she does leave him for good during the Baltar trial - and for rather ridiculous reasons - but at least for a while Lee knows that his wife did love him deeply. Yes, it doesn't make one whit of difference during the year on New Caprica, but later on it's something. And hopefully the lessons he learned about himself in that time will pay off when Kara and Lee do finally get together for good.
Kara/Sam
It's no coincidence that Kara falls for Sam a few days after her bitter fight with Lee on the hangar deck, in which their sexual tension and romantic jealousy were first brought into the open. She has been rejected by the most important man in her life, and this leads her to latch onto this new man who really seems to care for her and who is unaware of her past and all her flaws - especially since she can control how he perceives her. As with Lee and Dee, Sam is the one that Kara thinks she "can have"; she still feels that Lee is off-limits, despite his later overtures. This definitely weakens Kara/Lee, as Lee begins pining in earnest (I don't buy his claim in UBEX that he never realized his feelings until that night.) Kara's fixation on Sam is the big buzzkill when she and Lee attempt to sleep together in "Scar"; however, this isn't necessarily a bad thing because the two of them weren't ready to be together at that point - and despite Kara's "casual frak" assertion, Lee saw it as a prelude to a romantic relationship. Soon we have the rescue, the sex on New Caprica, "Unfinished Business", the affair and the choice, her death, and the final five. You know the drill.
So. Did her relationship with Sam strengthen or weaken Kara/Lee? Obviously the latter, for many reasons. In fact, those reasons have been discussed here so often that you could probably recite them along with me! Rather than listing them, I'll take another approach.
Setting aside any value judgments on Kara/Sam independently of her and Lee, I do think he was good for her in some ways. I've seen many valid arguments against Sam, and I'll agree to an extent. He doesn't challenge her the way Lee does. He puts up with her negative traits and sometimes encourages them. On the other hand, she was at her nadir after New Caprica, and her emotional health devolved as the season wore on. She chose Sam that morning because she felt he was more "safe"; she felt that she didn't deserve Lee's love, and she feared what might happen if they were together. Her marriage to Sam wasn't very healthy and always bore the threat of failure, but it did help teach her that she could be with a man without destroying him, and that she could love and accept love even if she didn't yet what to do with it. And Kara needed to learn that before she could begin to consider a healthy relationship with Lee. In that sense, Sam was an important stepping-stone.
Kara/Lee in the present and future
One of the most interesting aspects of season four is that romance has taken a backseat to everything else in Kara and Lee's lives. While the brig kiss was gorgeous, it didn't really carry through once she was back on the Galactica. On the other hand, the show didn't present any threats to K/L. Lee is divorced, with no further contact that would suggest a reconciliation with Dualla. Despite sleeping with Sam, Kara no longer appears to have a romantic relationship with him; the end of "Revelations" implied that she will forgive him for being a Cylon and accept him as a friend, without necessarily being in love with him. If anything, romance seems to be irrelevant to both Kara and Lee right now. I'll admit this is a bit refreshing after so much 'ship melodrama over the past few seasons, though I don't think it's gone forever. I've often said that they needed to get their own lives sorted out (especially Kara) before they stood a chance of having a healthy relationship. I like to think that the quieter tone of this half-season has given them a chance to do so. In "Revelations" we saw them back at a comfortable friendship, with a subtext that implied that they might already be together offscreen. Either way, Zak and their former spouses no longer appear to be a threat to the Kara/Lee relationship, which is a good sign. I'm one of the rare optimists. ;) I do think Kara and Lee will end the series together and in love, though I'm not confident they'll live to enjoy it - or anyone else, for that matter. Whatever the case, I'm just glad that I've been able to watch this fascinating relationship play out!
Topic: "Kara and Lee's other relationships, before and during the series, have strengthened/weakened Kara/Lee because..."
Author: wisteria_
Spoilers: Through "Revelations"
Word Count: 1,827
Kara and Lee are stubborn. Jealous. Competitive. Guilt-ridden. Dysfunctional. Able to hurt each other like nobody else can. Able to forgive each other when it really counts. Unable to live without each other. Kickass viper jocks. Talented at wreaking havoc and collateral damage, both physical and emotional. Best friends and quasi-siblings. Each other's touchstone. Deeply, profoundly in love.
I've chosen to write about those they've loved - and hurt - along the way, and how those relationships have affected the two of them together. My focus is on Zak, Dee, and Sam, because those are the key people in their lives; while other partners such as Baltar, Gianna/Shevon, and even Leoben have played a part, I'm leaving them out because they're ultimately not as relevant to the ongoing Kara/Lee arc. While the original sasa_hq challenge called for a formal, five-paragraph essay, that's not really my meta style. ;) I've had fun putting this together, and I hope you enjoy reading it!
Kara/Zak
As tragic as it was, without Zak's death the entire series might have been very different, as he's the reason for Starbuck's posting on the Galactica and Lee's estrangement from his father. Speculating about their actual relationship is difficult given the lack of canon evidence. Technically, we don't even have verification of which brother met Kara first. Although we don't know what they were like together, their influence on Kara and Lee today is very clearly delineated at the start of the show, but the impact becomes more subtextual as time goes on.
During the first season, Zak is nearly a living presence between Kara and Lee as their friendship deepens along with professional/personal conflict and increasing sexual tension. Kara's confession of her role in Zak's death is the first moment where we really see beyond her hotshot façade, and those early scenes set the stage for the first two seasons: Kara makes a real (or perceived) mistake, Lee lashes out, and Kara barks back while internally retreating in guilt, establishing a cycle. The sexual tension comes to a head in "Scar". By this time, however, Zak's memory isn't as clear of an influence; they've created plenty more guilt, repression, and dysfunction on their own. In fact, Zak isn't even mentioned again until the field scene in "Unfinished Business", when Kara asks Lee if his brother is the reason he has held back all these years. It's a jarring line because by now Zak almost feels like a footnote, and it makes both the characters and viewers question just how important he still is to their lives.
While I'm thrilled to hear Zak's name again, I've always found that dialogue problematic for reasons that would prompt a whole different meta analysis - but right now I'll stick to the Zak issue. Hearing Kara attribute Lee's reticence to his brother's memory is a surprise because it implies that she believes it's the main reason why he hasn't made such a move before (she seems to still see the "Scar" almost-sex as purely physical). It makes us question whether she knows Lee as well as we think she does, because we viewers are aware of so many other possible reasons. Plus, the line comes directly after she asks him if he's sure that she is what he really wants, leading to two interpretations: "you want me as a connection to your brother", or "you want me in spite of it". Obviously, it's more complicated than that - and perhaps even a combination of the two - but Kara can't perceive it that way. In the next line, Lee confirms that Zak was a factor, along with many other problems that have nothing to do with his brother.
One key thing to remember is that Kara is an only child; she doesn't know the romantic loyalty codes between siblings. (I'll admit that even I don't really understand them, as they've never been an issue for me and my sister!) Lee knows them all too well, though the fear of betrayal seems to have faded enough by now that he quickly moves past her question and tells her that the evening's epiphany is more about his realization of how much he needs her. Regardless, Zak did love her first, and this is one of the many factors holding Lee back.
Does Zak's memory strengthen or weaken Kara/Lee? Both. Their shared bond initially brings them together, and it proves that Kara is capable of deep love and deep guilt. It also cements the familial bonds among Kara and the Adamas. Conversely, it does feed a dysfunction that expands in so many different directions as the series progresses. In the end, though, I think the benefits are far greater than the flaws.
Lee/Dualla
Analyzing them independently of Kara/Sam is quite tricky, since their relationship and marriage are a direct result of Kara choosing Sam. Instead, I'll briefly look at the marriage itself. From the beginning, Lee saw Dee as a backup - the one he could have as Kara continued to rebuff him. He nearly says as much when he proposes to her. Their marriage is ultimately a failure for so many reasons, and his choice to stay with her in "Taking a Break" certainly weakens the Pilots' relationship, though they manage to rebound into a shaky friendship. The dysfunction brings out some of Lee's bad qualities, such as settling for a wife he doesn't love as he should, and insisting upon fidelity at the expense of what he truly desires. On the other hand, it does have some deeper (if negligible) benefits for Kara/Lee.
No matter how understandable her motives, Kara's betrayal on New Caprica was downright cruel, leaving Lee at an emotional nadir. When Dee comes to pick him up, she says she loves him so much that she's wants him for as long as she can have him, despite her knowledge that he loves Kara. She takes him back after the affair because he begs her to, and for a while they almost seem happy. Of course, she does leave him for good during the Baltar trial - and for rather ridiculous reasons - but at least for a while Lee knows that his wife did love him deeply. Yes, it doesn't make one whit of difference during the year on New Caprica, but later on it's something. And hopefully the lessons he learned about himself in that time will pay off when Kara and Lee do finally get together for good.
Kara/Sam
It's no coincidence that Kara falls for Sam a few days after her bitter fight with Lee on the hangar deck, in which their sexual tension and romantic jealousy were first brought into the open. She has been rejected by the most important man in her life, and this leads her to latch onto this new man who really seems to care for her and who is unaware of her past and all her flaws - especially since she can control how he perceives her. As with Lee and Dee, Sam is the one that Kara thinks she "can have"; she still feels that Lee is off-limits, despite his later overtures. This definitely weakens Kara/Lee, as Lee begins pining in earnest (I don't buy his claim in UBEX that he never realized his feelings until that night.) Kara's fixation on Sam is the big buzzkill when she and Lee attempt to sleep together in "Scar"; however, this isn't necessarily a bad thing because the two of them weren't ready to be together at that point - and despite Kara's "casual frak" assertion, Lee saw it as a prelude to a romantic relationship. Soon we have the rescue, the sex on New Caprica, "Unfinished Business", the affair and the choice, her death, and the final five. You know the drill.
So. Did her relationship with Sam strengthen or weaken Kara/Lee? Obviously the latter, for many reasons. In fact, those reasons have been discussed here so often that you could probably recite them along with me! Rather than listing them, I'll take another approach.
Setting aside any value judgments on Kara/Sam independently of her and Lee, I do think he was good for her in some ways. I've seen many valid arguments against Sam, and I'll agree to an extent. He doesn't challenge her the way Lee does. He puts up with her negative traits and sometimes encourages them. On the other hand, she was at her nadir after New Caprica, and her emotional health devolved as the season wore on. She chose Sam that morning because she felt he was more "safe"; she felt that she didn't deserve Lee's love, and she feared what might happen if they were together. Her marriage to Sam wasn't very healthy and always bore the threat of failure, but it did help teach her that she could be with a man without destroying him, and that she could love and accept love even if she didn't yet what to do with it. And Kara needed to learn that before she could begin to consider a healthy relationship with Lee. In that sense, Sam was an important stepping-stone.
Kara/Lee in the present and future
One of the most interesting aspects of season four is that romance has taken a backseat to everything else in Kara and Lee's lives. While the brig kiss was gorgeous, it didn't really carry through once she was back on the Galactica. On the other hand, the show didn't present any threats to K/L. Lee is divorced, with no further contact that would suggest a reconciliation with Dualla. Despite sleeping with Sam, Kara no longer appears to have a romantic relationship with him; the end of "Revelations" implied that she will forgive him for being a Cylon and accept him as a friend, without necessarily being in love with him. If anything, romance seems to be irrelevant to both Kara and Lee right now. I'll admit this is a bit refreshing after so much 'ship melodrama over the past few seasons, though I don't think it's gone forever. I've often said that they needed to get their own lives sorted out (especially Kara) before they stood a chance of having a healthy relationship. I like to think that the quieter tone of this half-season has given them a chance to do so. In "Revelations" we saw them back at a comfortable friendship, with a subtext that implied that they might already be together offscreen. Either way, Zak and their former spouses no longer appear to be a threat to the Kara/Lee relationship, which is a good sign. I'm one of the rare optimists. ;) I do think Kara and Lee will end the series together and in love, though I'm not confident they'll live to enjoy it - or anyone else, for that matter. Whatever the case, I'm just glad that I've been able to watch this fascinating relationship play out!