#and Ahab wants to destroy The Narrative but by trying to do so he only plays into its hand

[starbuck]

okay so. the whale is The Narrative.

[katieskarlette]

In defense of Illidan/Maiev

If you’ve ever wondered why anyone would ship these two, or rejected the idea as ridiculous/gross/stupid/an abomination against nature/the reason aliens don’t visit us/a sign of the apocalypse... this post is for you!

I’m only one fan, I don’t claim to speak for other shippers, and I’m not trying to win any converts, but I wanted to clear up some misconceptions and questions I keep seeing about the Illidan Stormrage/Maiev Shadowsong ship.

TL;DR version:

They are both complex, gray characters with a lot in common.  The appeal of the ship comes from watching two very similar, strong, evenly-matched characters play off each other.  Their banter is snarky and fun, and there are intense emotions connecting them.

It is possible to ship them and keep them in-character.  Maiev is a resilient, no-nonsense character who has proven herself capable of matching Illidan in wits and tenacity.  Her awesomeness is not in any way diminished by being in a relationship.  They are both badasses separately, and they would continue to be just as badass if they were a couple.

Yes, they canonically hate each other.  The “enemies to lovers” trope is as old as time and remains popular for a reason.

It’s not the kind of relationship you want to model IRL, and that’s okay because it’s fiction.  Playing a Death Knight doesn’t mean I’m going to pick up grave robbing as a weekend hobby, either.

It’s totally understandable that the ship isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.  You don’t have to ship it.  Just please don’t be rude to people who do.

[Long version -- with funny pictures -- below!]

Argument #1:  “Shipping Illidan/Maiev trivializes her character, reducing her to arm candy or playing into the horrid trope that a woman who isn’t all sunshine and flowers 'just needs to get laid.'”

That’s not at all how I see their dynamic working.  Maiev has very valid reasons to be a fireball of fury and vengeance.  Her character is not, never has been, and never will be, anything resembling demure or passive.  There’s not a force in the cosmos--demon hunter dick included--that could change who she is at a fundamental level.  And who she is, is badass, self-sufficient, determined, brash, brave, stubborn, hot-headed, unyielding, unforgiving, clever, stoic, deadly, and awesome.

I can understand why people would dislike the idea of Illidan/Maiev if they’re imagining her turning into a lovesick teenager who doodles “Mrs. Maiev Stormrage” in her notebooks.  But that’s not even close to how I imagine the ship working.

Even putting aside the fact that night elves are a matriarchal society, it’s against Maiev’s very nature to stand back and defer to Illidan on anything.  The only reason she would ever voluntarily stand in his shadow would be to launch a sneak attack on him.  In fact, she is the dominant one who sees Illidan as her property. 

She is extremely possessive of him.  She was enraged when Tyrande released him from prison (and, yes, killed a number of her personnel along the way, which admittedly didn’t help her mood any.)  She refused to accept Malfurion’s decision to pardon Illidan and grant him exile instead of imprisonment.  She bristled at the thought of Akama or the players landing the killing blow on him.  She even stashed away his body in a vault for years so she could continue to be in control of him in some way.  Illidan is hers to do with what she sees fit.  His fate is in her hands alone, as far as she is concerned.

I would even argue that Maiev is the stronger person.  Where Illidan has stumbled and failed time and time again, she has proven herself consistently competent.  It’s not about her “needing a man” or some rubbish like that. It’s about the fact that she’s just about the only one who can see past Illidan’s grandstanding, stand up to him, and call him out for his reckless, morally questionable schemes.  Illidan could use a voice of reason standing by to tell him when he’s getting in over his head.

Wanting Maiev to pair up with someone as capable and badass as herself is a compliment to her character, yet I often see it framed as “shippers want her to be tamed/domesticated/broken by a man.”  Nothing could be further from the truth.

[Image sources:  Illidan fanart | Maiev fanart]

If they hooked up absolutely nothing would change except maybe slightly fewer death threats, and more sneaking off to work out some of that tension between the sheets.

Argument #2:  “Maiev is too good and righteous to be associated with a villain like Illidan.”  (Or, “Illidan is way too cool for a 'cr*zy b*tch' like her.”)  “All they have in common is being cooped up in the same prison for ten thousand years.”

There’s a tendency among people who dislike the ship to either gloss over or magnify one character’s flaws to make the other seem incompatible.  

This is nonsense.  They are both deeply flawed, conflicted, gray characters.  They can be bloodthirsty and ruthless, but neither is evil incarnate, either. 

The point is, they have a lot common.  So much so, in fact, that other characters remark on it in-universe (Malfurion in WCIII and Akama in the recent Illidan novel.)

The way they condemn each other for traits they actually share is delightfully ironic.  Their inability to see flaws in themselves while fixating on the same flaws in each other is what makes their interactions so fascinating.  

They both brag about their noble goals (saving the cosmos from the Legion, dispensing justice) while using morally questionable methods to achieve those ends.  

They both have delved into dark magic (he more than she, obviously, but in a Warcraft III optional mission Maiev did not hesitate to use a dark artifact called the Shadow Orb to help her inside the Tomb of Sargeras.  She also freed the player demon hunters from stasis when things got too hairy early in Legion and she thought they would be useful.)

They both make and break alliances for their own convenience without regard to any promises they might have made to cajole aid from others.  (Kael’thas got burned by both of them, poor guy.)

They have both outright murdered people who disagreed with them.  (In Warcraft III Maiev left Tyrande to either drown or be torn apart by undead.  In the novel Wolfheart, she stalked and murdered numerous night elf mages, and attempted to kill Malfurion, as well.)

Illidan and Maiev both operate under their own codes of morality.  You do not want to stand between them and their goals, because they are more than willing to incur collateral damage along the way.   You’re either for them or you’re against them, and if you’re against them you’re irrelevant at best and a liability at worst.

They both think that only they know what’s best.  Admitting they were wrong about something is not an option.

They also have similarly traumatic backstories.  When the Legion first invaded, they had their whole lives ahead of them.  Illidan was working his way up the ranks as a sorcerer, spurred on by the belief that his golden eyes were a sign of a great destiny.  Maiev was vying for leadership within the Sisterhood of Elune.  Neither came from illustrious backgrounds.  They were both fighting tooth and nail to make something of themselves, and were succeeding quite well until the demons showed up and ruined everything.  The bitterness of thwarted destiny and crushed dreams certainly gives them common ground.

And perhaps the most important thing they have in common:  they are both fixated on either other.  

[Above:  A coin you can fish up from the fountain in Northrend’s Dalaran.  Dang, Maiev, get a hobby.]

Their mutual obsession is one part Ahab and the Whale, one part Javert and Valjean, one part [insert superhero of your choice and their nemesis], and one part stalking-your-ex trope.  They can’t stop thinking about each other, talking about each other, talking to each other, goading each other, and getting under each other’s skin with practiced ease.  They know exactly what buttons to push to get a rise out of the other.

At the end of the boss fight in the Black Temple, they both admitted how closely linked their lives had become.

That is a powerful connection, whatever kind of relationship you think they have.

Argument #3.  “They hate each other.  Like, really, really hate each other.  To the point of actual homicide.”

Yes, and?  

“Enemies to lovers” is a popular, long-lasting trope for a reason.  Illidan/Maiev is actually listed as an example in two different places, but it is by far not an isolated case.  For many reasons too complex to address here, this type of narrative resonates with a large number of people.

Remember, this is fiction.  “I am entertained thinking about these characters in a romantic and/or sexual context” is literally all that is required to ship something.  It doesn’t have to be canon.  People ship characters who never even meet in canon.  At least I/M have a strong emotional connection to start with.

I also don’t see many shippers who seriously believe these two are romantically linked in canon.  (At most, maybe some kinky prison hatesex happened.)  Instead it’s often shipped in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way, and the WTFery is part of the charm.

I should note, however, that there were a couple quotes in the Illidan novel that pinged my shipping radar.  See here and here.

Argument #4:  “Illidan’s still in love with Tyrande,” and/or “It seemed like Maiev was in love with Naisha.”

Because people only fall in love once in their entire lives, right?  And it’s impossible to have feelings for two different people at the same time.  And you have to be deeply in love with someone to have sex with them.

Oh wait.

Argument #5:  “It’s abusive and unhealthy!”

No shit.  Again, it’s fiction.  I enjoy watching Godzilla movies but that doesn’t mean I want a kaiju to destroy my neighborhood IRL.

[Above, Maiev and Illidan demonstrate that they are, indeed, fictional characters.]

Argument #6:  “It’s creepy and wrong!”

That’s a perfectly valid opinion.  Thankfully, no one is forcing you to ship it.

[Above:  Not what is happening.]

It’s fine to dislike a ship.  Heaven knows I have NOTPs of my own.  Personally, I practice the Thumper doctrine (”If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all”) when it comes to shipping.  Everyone has different tastes, and as long as the characters are adults and no incest is involved, it’s not my place to tell other people what they can and can’t enjoy.  Fandom is supposed to be fun!

Speaking of which, I had a lot of fun writing and illustrating this post.  I hope it was entertaining, even if your opinions weren’t swayed.

If, after having read all this, you still think I/M is the worst ship ever, that’s totally okay!  Just move along and let us shippers have our fun.  Thanks!