And with this update you've officially made my Friday. Thank you!
As much as I love when you focus on Charles and Erik (and Raven) in the apartment (and I do -- I could read about them forever), I love that this section brings the powerful reach of the outside world to the foreground again. It serves as a reminder that the outside world is not going anywhere and that Erik straddles the line carefully, but it always threatens to topple him. Is it any wonder Erik makes the decision he does? As we've noted before keeping Charles in the apartment isn't done out of malicious intent. Of course Charles wants to be free, to choose to stay or leave, and I think Erik can appreciate that. But with the world the way it is, Charles WOULD be threatened/attacked on the outside. He IS protected inside the apartment. It's not an ideal situation but for now it's the most logical and practical one. When Charles (in other sections) laments what's happening I don't see it as him not getting it, but him very much understanding what's going on. Just like Erik can let down his guard and be himself in the apartment, Charles can voice his concerns and resignations. They both know what can and cannot be changed at the present moment but they can also talk about it -- it's a way for them to still assert the parts of themselves not beholden to the restrictions of the rest of the world.
I'm glad you're giving details about what's going on politically on an international scale. The apartment is this small sphere in the middle of something much larger and very precarious. The uprising in Japan, the mutants there fighting under a "Magneto" banner so-to-speak is fascinating -- yes Magneto has become the leader (symbolically and in flesh and blood), but the political instability of the world cannot be ignored. If Charles's existence and his relationship with Erik were to be discovered it could be disastrous -- Erik would be seen as weak and a traitor by the more fanatically minded mutants (and an unstable situation could grow worse). At the same time Charles could be used against him -- an Achilles Heel that either humans could try to exploit in their attempts to fight back or that power hungry mutants could use to dispose of Magneto. It's chilling to say the least.
Of course this is all balanced out with the final scene between Erik and Charles in the apartment. It's a simple conversation, but I like that it pushes both of them further along. Charles reaches for an answer, trying to make sense of what his life is, what their life together is, because all he has of the outside world is what seeps into the apartment (even if it is brought in by Erik). It's still something abstract just beyond his reach. And Erik, for all this confused emotion and feelings (and I love the bit as he realizes he loves Raven, but not the way he loves Charles, what makes Charles different from her and all the more perfect for him), sums it up in a word I doubt he ever thought he'd ever to describe himself -- happy.
The final image of them makes me smile and breaks my heart because it's beautiful but also breakable.
Re: FILL: Everyday Love in Stockholm 139/?
As much as I love when you focus on Charles and Erik (and Raven) in the apartment (and I do -- I could read about them forever), I love that this section brings the powerful reach of the outside world to the foreground again. It serves as a reminder that the outside world is not going anywhere and that Erik straddles the line carefully, but it always threatens to topple him. Is it any wonder Erik makes the decision he does? As we've noted before keeping Charles in the apartment isn't done out of malicious intent. Of course Charles wants to be free, to choose to stay or leave, and I think Erik can appreciate that. But with the world the way it is, Charles WOULD be threatened/attacked on the outside. He IS protected inside the apartment. It's not an ideal situation but for now it's the most logical and practical one. When Charles (in other sections) laments what's happening I don't see it as him not getting it, but him very much understanding what's going on. Just like Erik can let down his guard and be himself in the apartment, Charles can voice his concerns and resignations. They both know what can and cannot be changed at the present moment but they can also talk about it -- it's a way for them to still assert the parts of themselves not beholden to the restrictions of the rest of the world.
I'm glad you're giving details about what's going on politically on an international scale. The apartment is this small sphere in the middle of something much larger and very precarious. The uprising in Japan, the mutants there fighting under a "Magneto" banner so-to-speak is fascinating -- yes Magneto has become the leader (symbolically and in flesh and blood), but the political instability of the world cannot be ignored. If Charles's existence and his relationship with Erik were to be discovered it could be disastrous -- Erik would be seen as weak and a traitor by the more fanatically minded mutants (and an unstable situation could grow worse). At the same time Charles could be used against him -- an Achilles Heel that either humans could try to exploit in their attempts to fight back or that power hungry mutants could use to dispose of Magneto. It's chilling to say the least.
Of course this is all balanced out with the final scene between Erik and Charles in the apartment. It's a simple conversation, but I like that it pushes both of them further along. Charles reaches for an answer, trying to make sense of what his life is, what their life together is, because all he has of the outside world is what seeps into the apartment (even if it is brought in by Erik). It's still something abstract just beyond his reach. And Erik, for all this confused emotion and feelings (and I love the bit as he realizes he loves Raven, but not the way he loves Charles, what makes Charles different from her and all the more perfect for him), sums it up in a word I doubt he ever thought he'd ever to describe himself -- happy.
The final image of them makes me smile and breaks my heart because it's beautiful but also breakable.