kashishmusings

[kashishmusings]

I am a fan of dead beat sister Mai and I also believe that Mai giving up Tom Tom in Return to Omashu is supposed to parallel her finally refusing to do so with Zuko in The Boiling Rock. It really isn't hard to reconcile the two.

Mai might not have had any love lost for Tom Tom, but that doesn't mean she appreciated having to give him up like that. He's still her brother and she doesn't necessarily hate him or wish him harm. And Azula knows Mai's family dynamics pretty well, she wouldn't have pulled the whole thing if Mai really was that uncaring about Tom Tom: it was supposed to prove Mai's loyalty to Azula and to the Fire Nation. Mai didn't have to be a simpering doting elder sister for the hostage exchange situation at Omashu to work.

An authoritarian state asks for complete submission, even that of your family, and Mai is well aware, and dare I say, not a fan of it. Yes, she wasn't too broken up about Tom Tom later either when her mother was crying: because for her, she did what was expected of her. Her parents, even though they're worried and crying, do not reprimand her for not bringing Tom Tom back. They're a cog in the imperial war machine that is FN and they know their place. And they made sure Mai knows hers too.

She might be quiet and never voice these opinions but there's so much resentment she harbours under the surface: for her parents, for Azula. I think she's, at most, indifferent towards Tom Tom. Mai wants to be treated with respect, that she never is. You might think, "when did anyone disrespect her?"

Well, being forced to conform and being ordered around and stripped of autonomy and most of all, not being taken seriously is insulting! It's one of the many forms misogyny manifests in in general. And with FN, since it's an authoritarian state with an established hierarchy, that's how the power structure manifests too. I think so many people misunderstand Mai because they don't take into account the society she was born into.

So many girls who have an upbringing similar to hers have such low sense of self!—I think it's incredible that throughout this all, Mai has somehow managed to cling to her self-esteem. Of course she conforms and bends herself into what's expected of her but it doesn't mean she appreciates it! Even her rebellion is either quiet in a way she can get away with (disobeying Azula she isn't around) or it finds acceptable avenues (accompanying Azula on her mission). There's always that undercurrent of resentment with her and I honestly love her for it: it means she knows she deserves better. (I think more women should be like her).

It feels like people on this site have never seen this elder sister younger brother dynamic where the younger brother is the child the parents always wanted. They don't even try to hide their favouritism, worse, the sister is asked to be just as dedicated as her parents to the said brother. And she's considered a monster if she isn't (whoa, reminds me of ATLA fandom, y'all are gonna make a bunch of boymoms for sure). God forbid women have less than positive emotions ever. I've seen girls as young as five-years-old being asked to compromise and prioritise their brothers over their own well being and happiness.

So, don't tell me Mai being an exception to the sacrificial elder sister trope isn't refreshing.

Besides, Mai is only indifferent to Tom Tom? Even if her parents weren't the "male heir is everything" kind and Mai wasn't fucked up by it... Even then, with the kind of age difference between her and Tom Tom, it's normal for them to be a little distant.

I don't care what the fandom thinks. And I don't care if misogynistic losers who think women are incapable of negative emotions and if they have them then there's something wrong with them (it's understandable for men though UWU) don't like Mai for it. I would forever defend dead beat sister Mai.

"She didn't like her brother waaaa—"

Well, good for her.

So thank you very much avatar comics, I'll take my dead beat sister Mai. I love her without reservations. You can keep your motherly one with you.

And no, it doesn't dilute her character development from Return to Omashu to The Boiling Rock if she isn't a doting sister! She still has a sense of familial loyalty underneath all that resentment (she wouldn't bend herself into a "big blah" otherwise).

[kashishmusings]

You basically read my mind with the tom-tom situation and how boiling rock parallels it as far as mai is concerned!

Honestly Avatar is such a politically charged show that no actions the characters take can be divorced from the broader cultural and political context in which they exist. The 100 year war defines the lives of these kids and it IS empowering that different characters in different capacities choose the role they would play in this war instead of going with the flow and sticking with the status quo

Once I figure this app out more I will talk about how Mai choosing Zuko in the boiling rock was very much a political choice and an act of great defiance against the Fire Nation.

[kashishmusings]

[kashishmusings]

His hair is cute but it makes him look like he's 12 so I edited it with some panels showcasing him with different hairstyles

[kashishmusings]

Once I figure this app out more I will talk about how Mai choosing Zuko in the boiling rock was very much a political choice and an act of great defiance against the Fire Nation.

[kashishmusings]

little phantom of the opera crossover/au

[kashishmusings]

kiss it better

[kashishmusings]

Once I figure this app out more I will talk about how Mai choosing Zuko in the boiling rock was very much a political choice and an act of great defiance against the Fire Nation.

[kashishmusings]

maiko is a super small fandom but most fanfic that comes out of it is just *chef's kiss* perfect. I love how mai is explored in maiko fics, how she's fleshed out and cared for and just overall how the maiko dynamic is written. This might be an unpopular opinion but from what little I have read, maiko fics have some of the best characterization of Zuko in the fandom.