Even More Of My Quirky Asexual and Aromantic Headcanons
 |
| Image description: An iconic scene of Boromir from The Lord of the Rings film series. Today, Boromir reminds us that one does not simply... headcanon only a few quirky aspec characters. That's right, I'm back at it again with *even more* characters who strike me as potentially on the asexual and/or aromantic spectrums. This is my last post before I take a brief break for Thanksgiving and I wanted to have a little fun, so I hope you enjoy this short list of my quirky aspec headcanons. |
So, instead of doing any of those things in today’s post,
I’m once again returning to a favorite topic of mine to have a little fun
before my brief Thanksgiving break. For the past two years now, I’ve discussed
characters that I headcanon as aspec but who might be considered “quirky.”
Whether it’s because the media they’re featured in is not widely known or
because they come from a larger piece of media where any aspec tendencies they
may have are somewhat buried, I tend to have a lot less evidence for these
characters than others. Thus, rather than write about them on their own or use
them as examples in other posts, I like to group them here in these lists and
take a more lighthearted look at their stories.
Today, I’d like to add three more characters to that roster.
Once again, these characters will come from extremely diverse media – and will
be extremely diverse in and of themselves. They may be misunderstood side
characters, characters that don’t have much screentime, or part of a larger ensemble, but they each have an aspect that makes me think they could
potentially be on the asexual and/or aromantic spectrums, or at the very least
have those “vibes.” As always, these are just my personal headcanons rather
than fact, and are mostly done as a fun way to share some of my own thoughts on
the characters in a lighthearted away. So, let’s dive into my slightly shorter
than usual list, but one that is hopefully still as fun to read as it was to
write.
Boromir from The
Lord of Rings
 |
| Image description: Boromir, as portrayed by Sean Bean in Peter Jackson's film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings |
To start this post off, I absolutely must apologize to you all, dear readers. I have failed you all continually over the past nearly four years in the fact that I have not yet discussed Boromir on the blog, despite him literally being the blog’s header. I literally see him every time I open my own blog, and yet it has taken this long to not only discuss him, but to include him in one of these darn lists. I don’t know if I just sort of forgot to include him because there were other characters that seemed to fit those previous posts better or if I subconsciously knew I’d just get to him eventually, but the fact that I haven’t included him sooner is a crime.
In all seriousness, Boromir from The Lord of the Rings
series is actually a character I’ve headcanoned as aspec for a while. But more
than that, Boromir is one of my favorite characters from the series, which
might sound a little odd on the face of it; after all, Boromir is likely seen
as a meme king at best and perhaps one of the most fallible characters in the
tale at worst. However, the realness of the character is part of the appeal for
me, because Boromir is not a bad person, just one who makes mistakes that turn
out to be major ones.
Peter Jackson’s film adaptation does a lot for the character
in this manner, but it’s not just movie Boromir for me. As I’ve mentioned
before on the blog, I actually read the Lord of the Rings series for the
first time during a summer that became very difficult and emotional for me, and as such I remember sobbing as I read Boromir’s death and subsequent funeral scene. In
general, I have something of a soft spot for characters who know only one way
of life and who make mistakes based on this limited viewpoint, only to have
their eyes opened somehow and then spend their journey trying to atone. In Boromir’s
case, that journey is rather short, and his atonement comes in fighting bravely
to the death, but I see shades of that in Boromir’s character enough that I am
deeply attached to him.
Admittedly, the reasons I headcanon Boromir as aspec are a
little superficial, something I usually try to avoid when making these
headcanons, but which are irresistible to me here. Furthermore, a lot of the
reason why I can make these headcanons at all is because Boromir’s life is cut
short during the journey, so I have the latitude to imagine him however I want.
But more than the funny things I ascribe to him – such as his “I don’t want to
be here” vibes throughout part of the journey being entirely too relatable to
this aspec person at least – I think part of why I want to believe Boromir is
an aspec character is precisely because he’s not perfect.
Any regular reader of the blog knows that I often complain
about how non-sexual and/or non-romantic characters in media, or characters with “aspec
vibes," tend to be portrayed in very stereotypical or tropey ways. There
is very little depth to them or, when there is, that depth is often ignored for
the sake of pushing them into what are generally considered more “normal”
relationships. But to me, the fact that Boromir has flaws and makes mistakes is
part of what makes him a deep and interesting character. While I don’t let know
if the world is ready for aspec villains (something I’ve discussed previously),
I would love to see more aspec characters who are flawed, but nevertheless good
people at their core, which is exactly what I think we see with Boromir. Therefore,
it is my most sincere hope that writers can draw from his example to make aspec
characters that manage to combine his sassiness with his strength, and his
mistakes with his heart, while including some great representation too.
Lavinia Swire
from Downton Abbey
Another misunderstood character – one whom is probably a bit strange to like as much as I do – comes from the British period drama Downton Abbey. I’ve discussed Downton Abbey a few times on the blog, usually to complain about how its non-aspec characters are nevertheless portrayed in ways that are problematic from an aspec point of view. But one character I haven’t had an opportunity to address yet is Lavinia Swire, a supporting character who only appeared in the show’s second season. Like I said, I actually really like Lavinia’s character, although I get the impression that many people actually don’t. I think that’s quite a shame, because not only is Lavinia actually a great character in my opinion (for reasons I will elaborate on), but I feel a case can be made for her being somewhere on the asexual spectrum.
Unlike Boromir, I don’t think Lavinia is misunderstood for
any kind of major mistake (although she does have one in her backstory);
rather, I get the impression that a lot of people just find her boring, bland,
and uninteresting. This isn’t exactly surprising, because that is, in many
ways, what the show is attempting to portray. At the end of the show’s first
season, the main pairing of Mary and Matthew have hit a rough patch. Due to
circumstances, Mary waffles slightly in agreeing to marry Matthew, even though
she loves him, and he takes it as a sign she doesn’t actually care about him,
only about securing Downton’s future. In season two, while the first World War
is in full swing, Matthew returns to Downton with Lavinia a little while later,
and everyone immediately begins to assess the woman who is “Mary’s
replacement.”
Usually, I would consider this type of plot absolutely
horrible. Compared to Mary’s fiery determination and commanding presence,
Lavinia is shown to be somewhat quiet and mousy, not nearly as striking or
determined. In fact, nearly everyone in the house comments on this fact –
ostensibly to try and make Mary feel better – and so we as the audience are
supposed to think so too, thus setting Lavinia up for a fall or, at the very
least, to be humiliated. But I think we also see rather quickly that Lavinia is
actually a lovely person, despite not being like Mary. And, even more
incredibly, Mary does not share the opinions of the other characters, which
offers the audience a chance to rethink their opinions too.
Rather than view Lavinia as her rival, Mary actually likes
Lavinia a great deal, which is something I’ve always really appreciated. As my
complaining on the blog suggests, Downton Abbey sometimes has a history
of taking the easy – or, at the very least, stereotypical – route when it comes
to Mary’s character. As such, it would have been very easy to have her despise
Lavinia as her competition. But she really doesn’t. In fact, she deeply cares
about and even comforts Lavinia when no one else will, and in ways that no one
else can, since she often understands the other woman’s feelings.
To that end, I wouldn’t have been surprised if the show had
decided to have Lavinia actually be a schemer or a gold-digger, just so we
didn’t have to feel sorry for her. But that’s not the case either. Instead, Lavinia
obviously loves Matthew deeply, and she demonstrates this many times. Not only
is she devastated by the thought of anything happening to him, but she’s
perfectly willing to take care of him when he’s injured during the war. Beyond
that, Lavinia loves Matthew enough that she knows he belongs with Mary, and
thus feels that (spoilers!) her own death later in the season spares him having to make the hard choice or tie
himself to her to keep his promise.
To me, Lavinia is far from a boring character; she’s
actually a character I really like and whose tragic end always makes me quite
sad. But it actually took me until my third rewatch of the show to really
cement my aspec headcanon for her in my head (yes, I complain about the show
and yet I’ve watched it multiple times – I don’t claim to be someone who makes
sense). In the episode where Matthew is injured, the doctors believe he will
never walk again, which also means he can never sire children or even consummate
a marriage, which is not something that crossed Lavinia’s mind.
Admittedly, it’s not something that crossed Mary’s mind
either, as she says when Lavinia tells her about it, so this isn’t
automatically a ticket to a perfect aspec headcanon. Rather, to me, it’s the
fact that Lavinia clearly doesn’t care about it. The show clearly wants to
portray this as a great sacrifice on Lavinia’s part, but from my own point of
view, I see it less as a sacrifice and more that Lavinia is actually more
determined than anyone realizes, and she knows this is what she wants. To her,
consummating her marriage and having children with Matthew is less important
than just being able to be with him because she loves him. More on this in a
minute.
Eventually, it turns out that Matthew’s injury is not
permanent and he makes a full recovery, meaning Lavinia doesn’t have to care
for him for the rest of his life. Ostensibly, they can have a “normal” life –
but in a reverse of Matthew letting Lavinia go because he thinks he can’t make
her happy, Lavinia does likewise for him, in a manner that I think is actually
quite interesting. She confesses to Matthew that she’s been feeling a sense of
trepidation for a while and does not see herself as qualified to be nobility.
In fact, she actually felt as though it were her calling to be there for him and
care for him when he was injured, rather than as lady of the manor. This
strikes me as especially interesting when we consider the fact that Matthew’s
injury being permanent also would have rendered him impotent.
As always, I’m taking a lot of liberties here with my
interpretations, especially given Downton Abbey’s period setting. But
personally, I can’t help but feel like Lavinia really would have been better
suited to caring for Matthew had his injury remained, rather than being his
wife and the mother of Downton’s heir. The fact that she wants to marry Matthew
despite the injury meaning he can never be a “true husband” (there’s that term again) makes it seem to me like she truly doesn’t care about those things.
Like I said earlier, although I think this is just meant to show Lavinia as so in love
with Matthew that she’s willing to do anything to be with him, I can’t help but
enjoy the idea that she was able to make this decision so easily because sexual
attraction was never a factor for her whatsoever, only romantic attraction.
Much like with Boromir, part of why I’m able to make this
headcanon is because, rather tragically, Lavinia dies during an epidemic of
Spanish flu that sweeps through Downton while she’s staying there. The fact
that poor Lavinia does not live past the show’s second season gives me that
leeway to imagine her however I see fit. However, it’s not difficult for me to
imagine a world where Lavinia does not succumb to the flu, and instead lives a
full life – not one where she’s Matthew’s wife, but one that’s just as
fulfilling.
In fact, as is my way, I actually wrote that fanfiction several
years back, portraying Lavinia as aspec. While I will not link it because I’ve
improved enough over the years as a writer to find the quality quite
embarrassing, the concept itself will always be one I’m proud of, and one I’d
like to think exists in an alternate universe of the show. Whatever the case,
I’ll always be fond of Lavinia, and will always enjoy having this sweet,
kind-hearted character in my aspec headcanons club.
Sasappis from Ghosts
While planning this post, I realized that I quite accidentally picked three characters who, although diverse, do share one thing in common – they all, rather sadly, have died. But in the case of this last character, that’s actually the entire point, because he’s one of the titular ghosts in the CBS comedy about a woman who gains the ability to see and communicate with ghosts after a near-death experience. Sasappis – whom everyone affectionately calls Sas – was a member of the Lenai Lenapi tribe during his lifetime, and in his afterlife embodies his nickname with his sassy, dry sense of humor and his love of watching drama unfold.
I often joke that characters with
a dry sense of humor immediately code to me as having aspec vibes (as mentioned
briefly with Boromir), and while Sasappis certainly fits that, I promise that’s
not the only reason why I believe he could be aspec. I actually formed that
impression fairly early in the show during a scene where Sas tries to
convince everyone that he’d had a number of sexual relationships during his
lifetime. The number is almost hilariously large and specific – in fact, as Sas
himself says, “the number is so specific, it’d be impossible to make up” –
making it seem likely that he never had sex during his lifetime at all.
This seems to be corroborated when
Sas discusses a woman he had a massive crush on during his lifetime – Shiki,
another Lenai Lenapi. In one episode, it becomes clear that Sas had a crush on
Shiki from a distance and never did anything about it, to the point where even
just her saying hello was a big deal for him. Like with other characters
I’ve mentioned here, I feel like this is likely supposed to tell us that Sas
was a bit shy and awkward during his lifetime despite his sassy nature now –
the centuries old equivalent of an awkward schoolboy crush – rather than convey
an aspec identity. In fact, Sas even tells the story of how he made the proper
overtures to try and enter into a romance with her, and never heard back.
Again, this seems like it’s supposed to be a humorous example of Sas coming on
too strong and Shiki not being into it. However, I can’t help but feel like Sas’s
shy feelings towards her do give me a bit of an aspec vibe.
Sas’s crush on Shiki is not the
only time we see him involved in romance. In season two, he begins a romance
with another ghost by the name of Jessica, and although the romance is somewhat
short lived (no pun intended), it – combined with his feelings for Shiki and
other factors in the plot – make it seem like Sas is definitely at least
romantic, but could still be somewhere on the asexual spectrum. For instance, I
don’t recall the show ever specifically saying Sas wants to be sexually linked
with Jessica; in fact, it seems at times like he’d prefer if their relationship
could be one of a bit more depth, and that would make me
think sexual attraction is not the motivating factor behind his choice to date
her.
All that being said, do I think
Sas is really aspec? Like most of my headcanons, no, not really. Despite my
little morsels of things that make me think Sas would be a terrific aspec
character, there are plenty of other things that make it seem like he does
experience sexual attraction and even could potentially have sexual
relationships in future. There is a bit of head-scratching lore in Ghosts
that ghosts actually can have sex despite being, you know, ghosts, so
it’s not outside the realm of possibility that Sas may have a sexual
relationship eventually. But even if that does turn out to be the case, Sas is
still always going to be my favorite ghost in the cast. I mean, come on: how can I not
love a snarky storyteller? It’s practically required.
-----------------------------
And so, thus concludes my third
list of headcanon aspec characters. As I said in my intro, these posts are
always so much fun for me to do and I hope they’re a fun read for you too. Once
again, please allow me to say how grateful I am to everyone who reads these
posts and who has supported my blog in any way. I am thankful for you now and
throughout the whole year.
I’ll see you all again on December
1st for my very special last post of the year (apart from my 2023 wrap up –
yes, I can’t believe the year is almost over). Until then, if you celebrate
Thanksgiving, I hope you have a very special day full of gratitude, and remind
yourself of what’s important to you. And, if today is just another day of the
year, I nevertheless hope it’s full of peace and happiness!
With platonic love,
The Asexual Geek
Comments
Post a Comment