PJO Meta (1 Of ??)

PJO Meta (1 of ??)

DISCLAIMER: I don't mean to offend anyone. I am a ship and let ship person. Please note that criticism =/= hate. Lastly, if you're a solangelo shipper who doesn't wish to hear any criticism regarding their ship, please scroll away.

Ever since it's first appearance, solangelo has been a massive fan favourite. I, however, don't have a favourable opinion of the ship. Here is a brief explanation of my reasons for the same. (I apologise for my inarticulation)

Characterization:-

Nico-

Honestly Nico's writing in the trials of Apollo was terrible even by the usual character assassination standards- in the hidden oracle, he legitimately read as a gag charater who served no purpose apart from being "Will Solace's Goth/Emo Boyfriend". Things were hardly better in Tower of Nero, where he was basically just "Will Solace's traumatized Goth/Emo Boyfriend" who happenes to be lazy PTSD rep.

Will Solace-

Can't say much. He was never a character of his own, and probably never will be. His substance as a character is comparable to the quantitative mass of an electron in Kilograms (9.11x 1/10³¹) i.e, negligible.

Nico's Healing Arc (or lack of the same )-

After what was essentially two series worth of fanfic-esque trauma bombing, Nico should have received a proper healing arc. Unfortunately, there was no such arc for him (courtesy of solangelo), because Rick has this earth-shattering, inspired-by-Disney idea that relationships can fix everything. So guess what? Nico's years' worth of emotional baggage, pain and trauma simply volatalize into oblivion .

Some shippers may argue "Oh but he got better off page"-but that it is bad writing per se; Nico's struggles, grief, fears, unhealthy coping mechanisms etc. are more pivotal and relevant to his character than a nascent, one dimensional relationship with an insignificant side character. He is much more than just his sexuality, after all.

Cliché and one dimensional:-

Solangelo is firmly rooted in the "opposites attract" trope, which is simply unrealistic in nature.

Also, newsflash: "Opposites attract" is a law specific to physics and chemistry; It's all fun and games till people who are poles apart sit down to take serious decisions, or share opinions. Friction between them can be rather intense.

(Oh! wait... I think Nico was described to be a Nitride anion {or was he Azide? No, I think he was Nitride} and Will was a Tungsten cation. So, they are basically Tungsten Nitride... Boy! They have so much chemistry between them/s)

Anyways, I totally understand why people prefer jasico, valdangelo, percico, nicobaster etc...

Random PJO Meme (7 of ??)

DISCLAIMER: This is an absurdist portrayal of an opinion. It is not a personal attack.

The PJO Fandom when they realise physical disabilities, mental illness, neurodevelopmental disorders etc are conditions people in real life struggle with, and are not cutesy quirks:

(I wish people would atleast do some research before throwing around serious diagnoses and medical conditions left, right and center.)

PJO Headcanon (2 of ??)

I headcanon that Hazel, Nico and Reyna love playing games like Uno, Pictionary and Ludo together when they meet (usually in New Rome on someone's birthday).

PJO Meta (2 of ??)

DISCLAIMER: This post reflects a subjective opinion and should be treated as such. If you don't wish to hear criticism regarding Rick's "diverse representation", please scroll away.

Hot Take: I don't think Nico was good queer representation, and here are my reasons for the same.

Internalized Homophobia

Let me start by saying that his internalized homophobia was well-handled in House of Hades and early Blood of Olympus.

The part of his Pov, where he recounts a tale from Plato about romantic soulmates and wonders where that leaves him, is a moving, poignant, critique of heteronormativity.

Nonetheless, it becomes hard to take his internalized homophobia seriously after it simply sublimates affer meeting Will Solace - He develops an infatuation for the latter and the rest is history.

I am not saying that he should struggle with self-acceptance for the rest of his life. I am simply suggesting that he should receive proper closure for the same. i.e, won't it be much better if he learns that homoromantic attraction is completely normal, natural and healthy? Instead, the narrative never even mentions his struggles with self-acceptance after his meeting with Will, let alone give him proper closure.

His Feelings for Percy

On a similar tangent as the aforementioned argument, Nico having feelings for percy started out as a good thing. It gave Nico's character and actions an extra layer of depth.

However, his love (yes, love) for Percy - simply disappeared to make room for Solangelo (which, with all due respect, is a subpar ship). The OoC confession did not help anything either. Nor did the fact that he got over his years-long love in a moment, somehow.

Coming Out:

I do not think this requires a great deal of explanation. Most readers unanimously agree that it's not okay to drag a severely traumatized teenager through another incredibly traumatizing event, esp. when other alternatives were present.

For eg- he chooses to come out to Hazel because he can't take the weight of his feelings any more. This could have also been an important moment for their relationship.

Lastly, outing your queer character (by forcible outing) in such a way is obviously very problematic.

Ostracization

Nico was clearly set-up to be the outcast all the way from the Son of Neptune to the House of Hades . The "He pushed everyone way" plot point did not make a concrete, tangible appearance until Blood of Olympus.

His ostracization arc is important as it is directly tied to his internalized homophobia and is significant to his presence as queer representation. Yet, by having this poorly retconned to "it was all in your head"(unsurprisingly, for solangelo), Rick did a dis-service Nico as a character and as queer rep. (The pushing everyone away schtick could have worked. Just not the way it was in canon.)

Conclusion

Since so many indispensable aspects of Nico's identity as a gay character are poorly handled, it becomes very hard to lake him seriously as good LGBTQ+ rep.

PJO Meta (3 of ??)

I've been thinking a a bit about how both Jason and Nico are canonically implied to have abandonment issues/trauma, and how Nico's unhealthy possessiveness might be linked to said trauma. While the canon laughs his possessiveness off as a gag,:

it could actually make fanon!Jasico interesting - like, imagine Nico being clingy and possessive of Jason, the latter picking up on it, eventually understanding why he the former is so clingy and possessive [because Jason himself has abandonment trauma].

It could be a challenge in their relationship which they resolve in a healthy way...

This was just an idea don't know how good it is but yeah, I find it intriguing.

Note: Nico's possessive nature is not healthy, and I don't condone it. He should've received proper resolution for the same.

PJO Meta (4 of ??)

DISCLAIMER: No hate towards solangelo shippers. If you’re a solangelo shipper who doesn’t wish to read any criticism regarding their favourite ship, please scroll away.

Times Canon!Solangelo made me squirm in discomfort:

Key points to note: this is more about writing than about the characters’ actions. Pre-romance references have been included as well

In this excerpt from Nico’s PoV, will publicly belittled the former’s mental and emotional state. The worst part is that Nico never receives an apology for the same.

In this scene, will is disclosing sensitive information about Nico’s disorder and past to someone Nico is not close to (Lester/Apollo). Now that’s seriously very icky. Plus, he didn’t even seek Nico’s consent regarding the same.

Rick’s writing has always had a good bit of ableism in it, and this part certainly counts. Using mood disorders as some schtick for romance…seriously? It doesn’t help that Nico has had actual mental health issues throughout both the series (this just makes it worse than it already is).

The subtly toxic nature of their relationship is somewhat polar. Being so miffed about your partner for “staring” at someone isn’t healthy. Possessiveness isn’t cute just because it’s a gay ship. Also the way this scene tries to pass this off as a gag is just messed up. Come on Rick, you ruined Nico’s character already. Atleast let his abandonment issues be forgotten instead of making a joke out of them. ( A character’s abandonment trauma being badly handled in their relationship…rings a bell. See also: Annabeth and the judo flip scene)

I’ve got more moments, but they aren’t as concerning as these four+ I’ve had more than enough solangelo for today.