#but Jonathan refuses to say they're best friends and Nancy referred to Steve as her ex boyfriend always

[jonathanbyersphd]

It is a crime that I didn't get to watch Steve be Jonathan and Nancy's third wheel.

[thestobingirlie]

I saw that post about r/nance supposedly not being a betrayal to Steve and sent a follow up ask that brought up that they're breakup wasn't exactly amicable and they were like "I don't think their breakup was any messier than an average high schooler. They dated for a while and weren't good for each other so the relationship ended and Steve just wants Robin to be happy

They also acknowledged their high school experience involved a friend group that dated around with each other and that some people's perspectives might be different to theirs if they had worse experiences with that, despite their initial post implying that people who "hone in" on r/nance are lesbiphobic but whatever

They're tags said that being a Nancy and Steve fan allowed them to view their relationship "critically" which is a funny wording, because they were expressing annoyance at people actually criticizing it

Their initial tags also said "bro code doesn't exist when you and your ex are clearly not meant to be in a relationship"

Like, grl what are you talking about???

I also tried to address their point that if they both had a crush on the same person like vickie I think they could discuss it and either both decide to hold off or let the crush choose (like troy and abed did in that valentines day episode) but I think they thought I was referring to r/nance, kind of agreeing with them, so that was annoying

anyone trying to say stancy had a normal high school break up is insane. what the actual fuck did they have going on during high school?

it’s not that they ‘weren’t good together’, stancy broke up because while at first nancy liked the way steve hid from his trauma, and she was happy to act normally, it eventually started getting to her. she blamed the both of them for her best friends death and wanted to get justice, while steve was too afraid of being killed to do so. nancy also has a fear of being alone after barb’s death, which led her to dating steve despite not feeling about him as strongly as he did her. they finally broke up because steve realised she had feelings for another man (but didn’t realise she and jonathan had actually already slept together), and knew that they couldn’t go back to way they had been acting before.

if they’ve experienced any of that, they need therapy. because this is not normal. it’s pretty drenched in trauma and misery.

and yeah, steve wants robin to happy, with her canon crush vickie. not his ex, with whom he had a pretty explosive breakup that lasted days. and who he still has feelings for.

yeah, it’s kinda funny that they implied anyone that doesn’t like r//nance is lesbophobic when there are different lesbian ships in the fandom. (it actually kinda pisses me off that so much of that side of the fandom seems to think they’re special; if you don’t like r//nance you’re lesbophobic, if you don’t like nancy you’re a misogynist. get a grip, and please look outside your immediate vicinity, there are other female characters!)

i honestly think if you hate stancy and refuse to engage with their actual relationship, to the point that you ignore scenes and try to overwrite them and impose your own feelings onto the characters, you will never be able to understand their characters. that relationship is a core part of who those characters are. and trying to dismiss it as high school drama is getting rid of large swathes of character for both characters.

bro code absolutely still exists even when the two people shouldn’t have been in that relationship? like what? and even if we ignore that bro code, bros before hoes baby. robin is Never putting nancy before steve and steve wouldn’t put his love interest before robin either.

and yeah, if they had a crush on the same person, they’d figure it out. but i think their figuring it out is absolutely just, “wow that girl’s hot. nice! same taste in women.” *highfive*

[nonsensical-ramblings]

This post by @aurorabyler about the similarities between the songs Being Different, The First Lie, and The First I love You got me thinking.

Because it's not just that, it's not just the melodies. It's the fact that I adjusted the tempos a little bit, and that's all it took for the songs to sync up perfectly.

And they're so beautiful together. They really do complete each other. Literally I was speechless when I finally found the right spot in Being Different to sync with the other songs, because I couldn't believe how they were all just identical.

It's overwhelmingly clear that these tracks directly, intentionally, and specifically reference each other. That all of these scenes that the melody appears in are tied to themes of miscommunication/lies, love, subversion of expectations, and queerness/atypical relationships.

...you know what, fuck it, here comes the analysis. Seven characters, four scenes, three tracks, one melody. The four themes I mentioned are typically present throughout the entirety of each scene, but I think they can also serve as a sort of formula- a narrative each scene follows.

When Nancy and Jonathan hook up for the first time:

Miscommunication/lies: They'd been refusing to acknowledge the true nature of their relationship.

Love: They admit their feelings for each other.

Subversion of expectations: Their feelings are requited.

Queerness/atypical relationships: The popular girl fell for the outcast!

When Robin comes out to Steve:

Miscommunication/lies: Robin has been hiding her sexuality, and Steve mistakenly believes he has a chance with her.

Love: Steve has feelings for Robin. Robin admits that she had a crush on Tammy Thompson.

Subversion of expectations: Steve was not expecting this news, but he doesn't get upset.

Queerness/atypical relationships: Robin is a lesbian. Steve wholeheartedly accepts her and still treasures their platonic relationship!

When El kisses Mike:

Miscommunication/lies: El had previously broken up with Mike over the fact that he kept lying to her and making up excuses to avoid her.

Love: El remembers hearing Mike say that he loves her back in the cabin.

Subversion of expectations: She reveals that she heard him say this, and, in return, confesses her own love for Mike. She kisses him and tries to mend their relationship.

Queerness/atypical relationships: Mike doesn't kiss her back or seem to return her sentiment. He stands there, watches her leave, and looks confused. Despite what it may look like on the surface, they are not romantically in love! And maybe he's not as straight as he thought he was...

When Will delivers his veiled confession to Mike:

Miscommunication/lies: Will lies about the painting and uses El's name to cover up his own feelings.

Love: Will is in love with Mike. He wants to confess how much he's struggled without him, and how deeply he values Mike in his life.

Subversion of expectations: Since he uses El's name, his attempt to verbalize his feelings falls short of its original purpose.

Queerness/atypical relationships: Will is gay and in love with his best friend... But maybe this love isn't actually unrequited!

Seven characters, four scenes, three tracks, one melody.

Okay. I'm tempted to believe that maybe the Duffel Bags really are mad geniuses now, because holy shit.