sword_logic: Two multiplayer models from Halo 3 standing with their backs turned against a backdrop of grass and rock. The one on the left is wearing white armor; the one of the right is wearing dark gray armor. (S11 au)
sword_logic ([personal profile] sword_logic) wrote2019-09-06 06:04 pm
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red vs blue: knife to meet you

i put on season 8 for background noise last night while drawing, ended up fast-forwarding through a lot of it because what i was really doing was just looking for those wash/maine interactions, and still found the season pretty enjoyable despite how ambivalent i've felt towards it the past few years.

i figured i was overdue for at least a casual watch of this season since, you know, the entire emotional plot of S11 au hinges on season 8, and i do want to make sure i'm doing what i wanna be doing. i did pick up some stuff i hadn't ever noticed somehow – never in about 8 years had i realized that maine actually screams when he's thrown off the cliff? how did i miss this? – but man, that good ol' subtext still got me as fired up as ever. wash makes such a good antagonist, and for very selfish reasons i wish we'd gotten more of that.

the ice fight was another thing that really stood out to me - namely that it still holds up really well even in the face of Shiny New Animation, though it'd be awesome to snap my fingers and see what that would look like with all the fancy new tech and resources they've got now. but what really caught my attention was that there are two times we see wash use a knife on-screen: the ice fight in season 8, and the bridge fight in season 13. interestingly enough, he goes up against an enemy with cloaking in the second half of each fight – and both times, that's when he draws a knife, finds a tell in the cloaking (snow in S8, blood in S13), and then throws the knife at his opponent's shoulder. okay sure i could be grasping at straws here, but i am truly tickled pink at the idea of this being a recurring thing. wash's participation in the second half of the ice fight was a grand total of about 30 seconds, but man, it was good.

and also like, fuck dude, wash held his own against maine with an enraged AI after a grueling fight against agent texas, armed with nothing fancy. yes he has plot armor, but god damn, that's nothing to sneeze at.

also, i'd forgotten about wash saying "i always knew you'd do this... i just can't believe—" after maine picks up the containment unit and, well, glad to know that even after all this time my brain finishes that sentence with "—you'd do this to me." am i correct? probably absolutely not! but boy the imagining is the best thing.

the appeal of season 8 to me is entirely in the spaces between lines. there's so much to be read into and in so many ways, i honestly don't even know where to start because then this would devolve into a ship manifesto where i just scream THEY USED TO BE FRIENDS in increasingly distressed ways. my interest in wash/maine started in season 6, sure, but it planted itself in One True Pairing territory in season 8 and god it felt so good to be reminded why that is.

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anneapocalypse: Ariane Clairière, an Elezen Warrior of Light with light skin, green eyes, and dark blonde hair. (Default)

[personal profile] anneapocalypse 2019-09-10 02:46 pm (UTC)(link)
I think the knife bit in season 13 was definitely meant to be a deliberate throwback to season 8, especially with how much some fans saw shades of the Meta in Locus. They are both really cool scenes, and I think there are more ways in which the latter directly speaks to the former (like Wash no longer fighting alone, the triumph of friendship and teamwork speaking directly to the tragedy of season 8 where you have three ex-Freelancers fighting each other instead of their true enemy).

Sure wish we'd gotten to see Wash use a knife even once in Freelancer! From a watsonian perspective it makes me wonder if Wash's knifework is something he learned after Epsilon—once he was working as a Recovery agent and mostly solo. Wash has always been a deadly shot at mid-range but without a team, he might have had reason to broaden his skillset.

And he is tough as hell in that season 8 fight, no question.

There is something so wonderful about revisiting your OTP Moments in canon, isn't there? :D I'd be lying if I said I'd never wanted to write up shippy canon meta veering into manifesto territory and honestly if it sounds fun to write you should totally write it.
sword_logic: Illustration of an elf wearing dark clothing. He has long, messy black hair falling over his face, and long and pointed ears. His eyes are dark, and he is smiling slightly. (Default)

[personal profile] sword_logic 2019-09-11 04:20 am (UTC)(link)
the season 13 fight as the antithesis to the season 8 fight was something i was thinking of when i watched it, too – especially the way wash and carolina treat each other as allies (when carolina puts a hand on wash's back to duck them both under the other platform... i could wax poetic about that one touch for years. years!) rather than assets. season 8 is two people who happen to have the same goal for very different reasons; season 13 is two people who trust each other and are working together to achieve their goal. man, both these fights are just so good.

i have definitely, definitely thought about writing a good ol' silly ship manifesto, but i think i'll leave it till after i'm done writing S11 au if i end up doing it. a fitting capstone. :B
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