#boeing only friends

[tiistirtipii]

Only Friends + Textposts part 13/?

[vegasandhishedgehog]

Besties we finally got GramYok but at what cost 😔

[wen-kexing-apologist]

What the Fuck Is Boeing Doing Here?

Listen. 

I know that I don’t have to write an essay at the end of every episode of Only Friends. But you see, I have decided I need to either hit or break the number of essays I wrote for Moonlight Chicken. 

So, I want to talk about Boeing and the narrative purpose he serves. Mostly because there seems to be some contention around whether Boeing was introduced too late in the plot. But he wasn’t. Why?

Photo from @chicademartinica

Because Boeing serves as external pressure, not internal.

The final relationship boss if you will

Only Friends appears to have a four act arc. 

Act 1: We meet the characters, the couples are introduced to one another, they fuck, they establish some modicum of a relationship, and we see the aspects of their characters that are going to cause the tension points. 

Act 2: The couples engage in Chronic 20-Year-Old behavior and fuck up their relationships internally by: cheating, secretly recording, blackmailing, commodifying, misunderstanding, etc etc. 

Act 3: Everyone does everything in their power to ruin their own relationships further by trying to set a record for Most Number of Impulsive Decisions Made in One Sitting, thoroughly fucks their life and relationships, stops, thinks, “hmmm, well, I’ve tried everything else, I wonder if talking might help?” and starts resolving their relationships. 

Act 4: With the internal tensions resolved, make up sex had, and tenuous peace beginning to be forged between all couples, it is time to put their ability to weather external pressures to the test. 

gif by @25shadesoffebruary

Which is why we meet Boeing for the first time with Mew and Top, because Top and Mew have not fully reached a resolution when he arrives. Mew has decided he wants to give Top another chance, but we know Mew is having difficulty moving past his anger at being cheated on. Boeing comes in, pokes at the potential weakness/fracture points of Top, and is denied. So he turns to Mew, whose cracks have not been healed enough. 

The external pressure seems to have taken a hold, and the beginning of TopMew Round 2 is under threat of not taking off, because Boeing as an outside player has found a wound he can press in to. In Episode 11, Mew is once again, set on a course, (whether or not it is the one he would have ultimately chosen for himself without added suggestion remains to be seen), acknowledges that he doesn’t think that he is going to be Top’s last boyfriend, and does decide to try to move past his hang ups and start over with Top. 

Top and Mew have passed the test of external pressure. Boeing has served his purpose, he has poked and prodded, manipulated and made out, and Top and eventually Mew saw through it. 

gif by @moonkhao

So Boeing goes wandering towards his next victims, Sand and Ray. And again, we have a situation where one person in the couple is more susceptible to Boeing’s manipulations. In this case, Sand is the one, unsurprisingly, who is more likely to fall for Boeing’s flirting, though Ray is far more volatile of a person than either Mew or Top is. Which means that Boeing is in for an external pressure application treat because the thicker he lays it on with Sand, the more reactive Ray is going to become. 

Ray has a lot of changes going on in his life right now, he’s making some breakthroughs in therapy, he’s starting rehab, he’s waking up more to the ways that Sand has twisted himself in knots to help him and all the ways he has failed Sand in return. And Sand, our favorite wet blanket, is physically incapable of maintaining a single boundary with anyone that gives him positive attention. Which includes Boeing, and we knew this was a potential outcome because of how pissed Sand continues to be about the fact that Boeing left him for Top. Sand has never gotten over Boeing, it’s part of why he cares so much that Top “stole” him. 

Say what you will about SandRay’s opening in Episode 11 feeling a bit rushed, we want, or at least I can assume Jojo and co wanted some moments of peace and happiness between Sand and Ray to give them just a moment of stability. Because, I don’t think they are ready for the test of external pressure. They got this brief moment where they are happy, sappy, and in love, planning for the future, yada yada, but the fundamental internal issues between Sand and Ray, namely Sand’s inability to maintain a boundary and Ray’s inability to tolerate a boundary have not been worked through. Ray’s jealousy and ownership of Sand have not been worked through, Ray’s alcoholism has not been worked through, Sand’s compulsive caregiving have not been worked through. 

gif of Ray saying he won't be jealous, you know, like a liar by @firstmix

And in comes Boeing, calling Ray Sand’s friend, trying to get Sand to take him home with him, trying to talk to Sand alone. Flirting with Sand, reminding him that Ray isn’t his type, being physically affectionate. Boeing, once again, is serving as the external pressure testing the weak points in SandRay’s relationship, in this case Sand’s simpdom and Ray’s possessiveness. 

Ray’s method of getting between Sand and any other potential romantic interests has always been to suggest a threesome. To throw out a claim on Sand’s body, and to get right with Sand exploring other sexual options while Ray is still there able to watch, participate, and/or control the sexual encounter. It serves as a great way for Ray to stake his claim, to make people who thought Sand was single (when he is) feel like they are invading a relationship, etc. and up until now it has worked. 

But Boeing is the external test of Sand and Ray’s relationship. And Boeing is a chameleon that can slide in to anyone’s personality. And Boeing has no issue with sex or intimacy with total strangers, especially if it brings him closer to what he wants, as we know from him making out with Mew. So Ray takes the bait, offers a hangout with the three of them, and takes Boeing and Sand back to his house. Ray is, however, extremely insecure about his relationship to Sand, as we can see from the preview that Ray is buying in to Boeing’s External Issues Test. He wants to know if Sand has gotten over Boeing, he wants Sand to kiss Boeing, I do not yet know how that whole thing is going to end (though I for one hope there is at least a threeway make out if they don’t end up with an actual threesome) but considering that Sand seems pretty pissed in the preview, I don’t think it is going to go over swimmingly (haha get it? swimmingly, cause they…nevermind).

gif of a truly pining Sand made by @sunsetandthemoon

What I personally think Boeing is going to do with Sand and Ray’s relationship is expose the part of their internal struggle that they have not addressed yet, and that is either going to tear Sand and Ray apart (for you know…the three hours Sand is able to stay mad at Ray before Ray makes puppy dog eyes and Sand succumbs to his masochism once more). Or potentially, highlight the issues and allow Sand and Ray to talk through where the rough points in their relationship are (haha, can you imagine?)

Regardless of whether or not Sand and Ray pass or fail Boeing’s external pressures test, Boeing will have done his job exploring the strength of Sand and Ray’s relationship and will move on to testing the fractures in Boston and Nick’s relationship. Which, honestly, I think Boston and Nick have the strongest chance of passing with flying colors because they have been working through their internal problems extremely, extremely well the last few episodes. But we shall see what actually happens in the finale. 

Anyway, all of this to say, that if you think Boeing should have come in to this story earlier, I personally think you have misunderstood the purpose Boeing serves to the plot. He should not have been introduced while the group was still intact, because there were too many other moving pieces of internal dynamics issues that needed to be worked out without a random stranger coming in and trying to fuck with it. As we head in to the finale, we need to understand how the characters get to the end point of the story.

And I think we can only really do that, when we see how every couple holds or crumbles under the pressure of the outside world, now that they have that talking things through like adults actually may be a valid method of getting what you want out of a relationship.

Who knew? 

gif by @sunsetandthemoon

[fanfictionroxs]

Awww he brought our resident Harley a Poison Ivy 😍

[ikarakie]

“how about you guys kiss?” no one move he is doing gods work

[bl-bracket]

Horny on Main Round 1: Boeing (Only Friends) vs Payu (Love in the Air)

[Submitted Reasons Under Cut]

Boeing: "he shows up at the end of the show and manages to kiss like nearly every main character. he’s here to fuck around (literally and figuratively). can’t believe we didn’t get an onscreen threesome between him, Ray, and Sand"

Payu: no propaganda submitted

[1stthingsfirst]

i normally hate third act conflicts but with boeing i'm just like

[glamgoblin]

Mond’s really getting typecasted as the guy that breaks up couples and wants everybody’s ex

[hiskinndbodyguard]

“I’m willing to be the bad guy here… I want to know if I still have a chance” as if you haven’t been the bad guy since you arrived???

[absolutelyarealperson]

Most of me loves that Boeing just came in, flirted with everyone in sight, kissed most of them, then dipped. But I have to say that "Bad life" line kind of left me wanting his whole tragic backstory.

[pastelcheckereddreams]

I know it's Ray's power play move but. A threesome between Sand, Ray and Boeing would be hot. I'm just saying.

[fanfictionroxs]

Oh yaaassss THIS IS what I've been waiting for! You better give me mad jealous possessive Ray losing his mind over someone even looking at Sand! And this is his ex! Double danger! Aahhhhh

Let Joker!Ray retuuurrnnnn!

[technicallyverycowboy]

”You’re not going to make it anyway.” BOEING YOU’RE PERFECT.

[autisticbokutoenthusiast]

effect on plot aside which do you vibe most with

[bl-bracket]

Horny on Main Loser Bracket Round 2: Charlie (Pit Babe) vs Boeing (Only Friends)

[Submitted Reasons Under Cut]

Charlie: "we’re always talking about Babe’s need to get fucked in order to race but not enough about how eager and willing Charlie was to be the one doing the fucking. he was ready to be an alpha boytoy ready to serve. let’s not forget who started the mama/papa roleplay"

Boeing: "he shows up at the end of the show and manages to kiss like nearly every main character. he’s here to fuck around (literally and figuratively). can’t believe we didn’t get an onscreen threesome between him, Ray, and Sand"

[1stthingsfirst]

They’re supposed to be competing but I just want them to kiss