#because Guang Hong's bio says he admired Phichit and wanted to be noticed by him

[rainbowravioli]

(1/10) Hey, I've been thinking about something in regards to Yurio's character development and stuff that got cut from the story, and I want to know what you think, so I'm just going to anon spam you for a minute, if you don't mind? I'm sorry if it actually bugs you! I'm also sorry if I was actually over-thinking it. I just wanted someone else's thoughts on this because it wouldn't leave me alone.

(2/10) Okay, so Kubo said Yurio was the first character they created but he couldn’t pull the plot because his story is too tragic, and with the time constraints, they decided to just focus on the love around him that helps him grow. At first I thought, “Okay, that’s just part of the creative process, stuff can absolutely change before the final product comes out.” Then I realized they left too many hints of this backstory in and it causes a problem.(3/10) We know his family is poor due to the state of his grandpa’s truck (I believe someone on Tumblr pointed out it’s so old, you never see those models in Russia anymore) and the fact Yurio has been the sole provider of his family since his rookie days (via official bio). We know his parents aren’t heavily involved in his life because of the flashback in episode 2 or 3, his grandfather being the only family we actually see, and the only relative he thinks about during his Agape struggles.(4/10) Surely if he had a good relationship with his parents (or, if they were loving but are dead/gone and he missed them), then he would think of them more, right? And if he’s the sole provider of his family, then that means if they are around, they’re not working for whatever reason. Now THIS is the part that gets me, him being the sole provider of the family.(5/10) If they had left the “sole provider” bit out, we could assume Yurio either has a poor or stuck-in-the-past grandpa that he’s closer to than his parents because they’re not around much. Not all parents are that close to their children for one reason or another, or really get their children’s interests (Yuuri family is supportive of him, but it’s canon they don’t understand figure skating either). He wouldn’t think of them because they aren’t on the same page.(6/10) But the “sole provider since his rookie days” bit adds a whole ‘nother layer to his character. It tells us straight up he comes from a poor family where his parents either can’t or won’t work, his grandfather definitely doesn’t work because surely he would help out (his child and) grandchild if he could in that situation, and gives a new reason for his bad attitude and why he skates. Remember how Otabek said 10y/o Yurio had the eyes of a soldier? (7/10) Without this context we can just rub it off as a normal determination to win and Otabek’s love of war analogies. But with it, it gives us more insight. He probably had those soldier eyes and threw himself into skating hard without complaint until he made a name for himself because that’s the only way he knew to keep his family afloat. He needs to get to the top not just for himself but for his family’s financial stability. He’s such a brat partially because of the weight on his shoulders. (8/10) Unless you want to tell me he’s been washing dishes in a restaurant in his free time since he was 10 or so, I don’t see any other way he could be providing for his family. Anyway, if this had been fully incorporated into the story, I believe the way Yurio built new relationships and learned to rely on others would have been more impactful. (9/10) He’s basically been alone and worked hard for the sake of something that shouldn’t have been his responsibility in the first place, now he’s learning to open up more, to let agape in. The contrast between himself at the beginning and the end would have been more insightful. I can get why they would decide against this, though. There simply wasn’t enough time for it.(10/10) Leaving it at Yurio being a brat who might not have the best relationship with his parents, and simply wants to win and prove himself is fine. I think they tried to keep on this route by establishing that pre-Yuuri, he never took practice seriously. But by leaving the “sole provider” bit in his bio, it stays a part of his final character design, and it feels like a crucial part of him was left unexplored.

That’s a very good and interesting point you bring up anon! I never addressed that part of the official bio (also, correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought it said ‘main’ provider, not ‘sole’ provider, which carries a different weight) in my Yurio narrative breakdown though because…it never came up in the actual show. 

And it’s a shame, because like you said it would give an extra dimension to Yurio’s character and his motivations. It also adds nicely to the Victor parallel. We really don’t know a lot about Yurio’s family situation, but what we do know is very telling. His mother wasn’t/isn’t around. Apart from that reference Yurio never thinks of his parents. his grandfather is the only person he associates with unconditional love (and the only person who we see emotionally supporting Yurio in his skating). The only person Yurio was concerned about finding out he was in Japan was Yakov. Lilia tells him to pack his things, makes absolutely no mention of notifying his parents about coming to live with her. 

So yeah, Yurio’s family situation is not great. But it’s one thing to have that, and it’s another to have Yurio shoulder the responsibility of being the main provider for his family. Note I’m using main provider here, because sole provider really doesn’t fit with the way Yurio acts in the series. That’s a much bigger responsibility and pressure on his shoulders. If his family was depending solely on his skating to survive, Yurio wouldn’t slack off his training the way he does before feeling challenged by Yuuri. You can’t have both, “he had the eyes of a soldier because he was fighting for his family’s survival” and “I don’t have time to focus on training I’m on my phone what family?” at the same time, it doesn’t make for a consistent character. 

You’re right though, that if this had been fully incorporated and acknowledged in the story, Yurio’s agape narrative would be much more impactful and it would just add more depth and complexity to his character overall. It’s a shame they didn’t explore it. It would have been so easy to do that too. Just have Yurio think about it. I mean, Yurio already thinks a lot about his motivations to win in the show, it wouldn’t be hard to add that he was thinking about providing for his family too. As it stands, I can’t even fully acknowledge that detail as canon, part of the official bio or not, because it’s something that goes against the way Yurio is currently written a lot of times. 

He’s still a great character, and his current background works but yeah, wish they could have kept that detail in.