#anti leyton analysis

[letyourcolors]

Analyzing Leyton in Season 1 (this is a rant, btw)

First of all, I’d just like to point out that I love Peyton, and Lucas was my favorite male character for the first three seasons. That being said, I hate Leyton and this post is not dedicated to their shippers (feel free to read it if you want, I don’t mean to disrespect anyone, I just think you’re not gonna like it lol). Also I do like Brucas but I’m not standing on the ‘they should’ve been endgame’ team, I could’ve easily accepted them not being together anymore (specially because I fully respect Sophia’s position to not wanna do those kinds of scenes with Chad anymore) - if the writers hadn’t done such a terrible job telling us ‘Leyton’ was the Real Thing.

On this post, I’ll discuss Leyton’s construction during the first season of One Tree Hill and I intend to do future posts with the other seasons as well. If you want to check out the next ones, follow the ‘anti leyton analysis’ tag (or just follow me lol I promise you I’m very nice).

Season 1

Okay so, for starters, I’ll just point out that I wasn’t actively anti-Leyton at the beginning of the show, I just didn’t mind them. They did have some cute moments together and I could understand their dynamic, it was belieavable.

(Credit: x)

I also specifically enjoy their bickering, like how when Lucas flirts with Peyton and she cuts him off by being mean (which is sort of her way of flirting back) and the opposite happens as well.

The reason why I didn’t really care for them is because I never saw anything really meaningful happening there. Their interest is nothing more than platonic. Lucas likes the idea of Peyton since he never even talked to her before; Peyton on the other hand is getting out of an abusive relationship and is just kind of intrigued by this guy who seems very different than her current boyfriend, who also happens to be Lucas’ brother (and rival). Their angst only exists because of that specific circumstance.

When there is finally nothing standing in their way and they can just be together, without the teasing, this happens:

(Credit: x)

Peyton has a change of heart only after Lucas is dating Brooke, which obviously hightens her feelings because now it’s forbidden again. To me, personally, that is not a sign of love or romanticism. That is a sign of having your ego hurt - and I don’t mean to shame Peyton, I’m only pointing out the most common human behavior ever. Feeling a little something for someone and having it a million times stronger after you can’t have them is something we’ve all been through and it doesn’t necessarily prove we have a deep connection to that person. So of course there is tension when they talk, in the first episodes she’s with Nathan and later they’re cheating on Brooke. Leyton’s angst is always a result of someone else standing in their way and never of the pure intensity of their feelings.

Even so, in theory, Leyton still seems better than Brucas. I mean, if you only heard the story, you would definitely not be a Brucas shipper because Lucas’ feelings for her apparently do not compare to what he feels for Peyton (even if it’s based on his own idealized perception of her and not on who she actually is, since they barely know each other but whatever). As a matter of fact, he gets together with Brooke right after Peyton dumps him, and that’s not exactly the best place to start off with someone.

The thing is, and that is why I already leaned towards Brucas, they have way better chemistry.

Leyton just always seems off-sync to me. For example, in 1x07, this is Peyton inviting Lucas to Nathan’s party. It’s supposedly a flirty moment and yet their faces:

(You can see the gifs here)

tbh I genuinely thought Peyton had way more chemistry with Haley (and with a lot of female characters for that matter, I didn’t get my hopes up because this show is really straight but Peyton had a very strong gay vibe):

While this is Brooke and Lucas interacting later on that same episode. Brooke is actively hitting on him and he is trying to reject her to go talk to Peyton (but ARE YOU REALLY, Lucas? I mean...

Anyway. 

Now to the kisses. Lucas and Peyton’s first kiss is just very, very uncomfortable, both narratively (she only kisses him in order to piss off Brooke, which is pretty lame) and visually (just LOOK AT THAT). 

I can actually feel a little pain watching this because she pushed his head with such rudeness and it doesn’t even seem like he’s enjoying it, it’s not like ‘wait what- wooooww, I like this’, looks like he’s trying to get away from that, he even pushes his arms back.

But okay, maybe that’s not the best example. Let’s get a moment where there was reciprocity.

I mean it’s fine. 

As opposed to when Lucas and Brooke kiss:

(On the gifset above there are more of their kisses in season 1 which are all incredibly beautiful)

At their first kiss they are so consumed by each other’s eyes we feel like they’ll start ripping off their clothes right there. And then at the pool kiss, they both just look genuinely happy and that is another point that distinguishes Leyton and Brucas so much for me: Brucas just seems very lighter and easy-going, they always look like they’re having a good time together. We also got to see them be a couple and spend quality time together and just enjoy each other’s company.

While Leyton for me was rooted in guilt, tension and awkwardness, we barely never see them just hanging out or having cute moments.

And finally, another point that I will explore better in my seasons 2 and 3 analysis, how could anyone care about Leyton when we had THIS:

Even though the show didn’t focus on Jeyton that much I really like the fact that they’re a slowburn and that their relationship was just rooted in how much they liked being together. Peyton babysitted Jenny just because she wanted to and Jake found comfort in her while he was struggling with being a teenage single parent and later with Nikki trying to steal his daughter from him. Here we have better angsty because it’s not that the characters are playing games and refusing to be together out of pride, it’s not that another love interest gets in the way, and to me it doesn’t feel like it’s about their ego, they simply get more and more attached to each other and enjoy the time they spend together and actually start off as friends which I think is really beautiful.

This is what I have to say about Season 1. Even though I already didn’t ship Leyton at that point (and thought both Jeyton and Brucas had better potential), I could still see that it made sense for the show to place them together on Season 2 and it wouldn’t bother me that much. But then... (Wait for my season 2 analysis)

[roddyretrograde]

honestly love hilarie touching on peyton and her sexual nature, and admitting to nathan she’s only had sex with him. like she doesn’t sleep around, she’s really a serial monogamous. she asks jake and lucas to wait for sex in canon (though she does sleep with jake like the very next episode cause jeyton’s chemistry lbr). she’s canonly a serial monogamous dater, like picks a guy and is all about them and when she’s single she’s like... okay hooking up with people here and there and ghosting them. but she really wants something real and that’s what’s important to her, not the sex part. 

with neyton, she wanted sex cause she was young, and around people having sex young, and super into the new boyfriend she got end of sophomore year, and nate was cute and cocky af which made him hot. and then she uses sex as a tool for them to stay together - like that was why they were good together in her head, cause that means it’s meant to be.

so she asks jake to wait cause she’s !!! crazy about him, and then it happens soon anyways cause again, they’re nuts about each other, and also, she’s learned that sex is intimacy from her previous relationship.

but she also asks lucas to wait too when he’s trying to hook up with her in the afternoon in his room. and she keeps giving him excuses to wait and he’s still pushing. and then after they finally do hook up, peyton goes straight worry mode about all the s4 drama and she probably should have waited longer lbr. cause sex is a big deal to her, and a lot of people. especially at that age!! she wasn’t even 18 yet and she just went through the year from hell it was probably too much too soon. keep in mind lucas was sexually active with brooke like right off the bat - whipcream and condoms - so he thinks rushing is perfectly normal cause honestly i think brooke was lucas’ first girlfriend ever. he doesn’t get why peyton, who had sex with her previous two boyfriends won’t just do it with him. 

i also think that brucas had a sexual love language. they were super touchy, all over one another (which i loved) and honestly i think that’s where leyton don’t match up. they weren’t at each other’s speed and it always seemed off. it was never just a click this is our moment, it was this kinda fumbling sort of thing, with the bedroom, and then the party, and then crashed prom. even in s6 they have hiccups. it just seems like they both aren’t the most comfortable with eachother.