Digimon: Friendship & Romance

[branchandroot]

It is, of course, standard practice for fen to promote romantic pairings. I find myself amused that such partisanships are so frequently framed in terms of “evidence” when actual evidence is often sketchy at best. The tendency to find romance in this story, in particular, though, strikes me as an example of people getting into a rut.

In a general way, I’m perfectly happy for everyone to experiment to their hearts’ content with what might happen if character X paired up with character Y or possibly entered into a menage a trois with character Z into the bargain. In this show, though, the writers seem to have gone to more trouble than usual to mix the characters. They make it fairly clear that each member of the team has a close relationship with every other member, each according to personality. I would also say that romantic tension is more than usually absent, up until Frontier where Kouji’s protectiveness of Takuya does rather ring classic Japanese romance bells; after all, it’s not as though Takuya isn’t just as competent to defend himself as Kouji by virtue of even greater strength if somewhat lesser skill. Previous to that, there just isn’t much there.

(Pause while the author ducks the barrage of rotten fruit.)

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Strong Relationships

No, I’m serious. I will happily agree that some of the relationships are set off as particularly strong. The pairings I have the least trouble understanding are the Leader and the Loner. Both Taichi and Yamato, and Daisuke and Ken are highlighted. Plotwise, it’s Yamato’s return in Episode 50, 01, that results in a rather touching emotional scene between he and Taichi; the tear-filled declaration that nothing will ever come between them again is certainly open to future romantic interpretations; and the shot of Garurumon nuzzling WarGreymon, who then heals, is too sweet for words. Visually, you may note that whenever the 02 team is together (after Ken is de-Kaisered, anyway) Ken and Daisuke tend to be side by side, out front of the others; they are, of course, the first to find their way into fusion evolving; and the way that Chibimon and Minomon wake up Daisuke, after Ken has slept over, by wrestling on the bed is, again, just too cute.

Makes me wonder what’s going to be made of Takato and Ruki, in Tamers. Wouldn’t she run right over top of him? A threesome in this instance strikes me as the most likely future outcome, along the lines of their song “Primary Colors”. Not necessarily a romantic one, though. Even in the first few episodes, we see that a separate romantic interest has been provided for Takato, in the person of Juri (sock-puppet girl).

4/14/02 Like I thought. If Ruki’s got a future-indicative match in that season, it’s Ryou who has enough snap to avoid being run over. I have been interested to note the extent to which Ruki and Juri’s friendship is emphasized–definitely the opposites-attract philosophy at work.

At any rate, Sora also shows up pretty strongly as the 01 team’s second-in-command. But, as my nomenclature should indicate, if I had to typecast her, it would be as the Perfect Executive Officer and not the Perfect Girlfriend. Organized, responsible, wants to make sure things are running smoothly–the girl is XO material all the way. She’s the one that, for example, helps the sleepy Mimi to lie down comfortably in Episode 2, 01, and the one who encourages and supports Noriko (the seeded girl Ken is especially concerned for) in Episode 49, 02.

Incidentally, this is why I also understand people who want to pair up Wallace and Daisuke (OVA 3). Except that he’s not nearly as tortured, Wallace serves much the same plot function as Ken does–the loner who comes to understand the power and joy of working with a team. Certainly, the grand old time Wallace has teasing Daisuke by kissing Miyako and Hikari goodbye would fit right into an analysis a la Sedgwick that women form the medium of exchange between men, the occasion for expression of homosocial bonds. (That is, the point of those kisses is to tease Daisuke, not to address Hikari’s or Miyako’s attractions or desires.) Certainly the expression of mischief on his face and the speed with which he takes to his heels afterward, leaving Daisuke steaming in his wake, seems to indicate that his target in the endeavor was Daisuke. That kind of teasing is actually one of the reasons I like this character.

That said, however, I have to point out that all these relationships are presented in the context of a bunch of eleven-year-olds. There are no gestures among the teams that are at all sexual, unless you count Yamato holding the injured Taichi. Very iffy.

And the reason I don’t want to count that as sexual is that I think we, as a community, are starting to miss something.

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Friendships

They’re best friends. While I’m all about the idea that best friends can sleep together, I would like us to keep it firmly in mind that they can also not sleep together. I’m of the personal opinion that one of the most precious things any friend can offer is non-sexual physical contact. I admit this is a product of my own past, but I consider it no less valid for our culture at large, given the general obsession with things sexual.

My mother (who lived through it) has pointed out that the “Sexual Revolution” gave women the right to have sex, but didn’t give them the right not to have sex. I think this is a failing of US culture as a whole, for both men and women. It’s taken the death-toll of AIDS to bring the right-not-to into some currency, and it isn’t nearly as well established as I’d like.

Here is a story that offers us wonderful examples of groups who are very close, who rely on each other in deadly serious situations, who touch each others’ souls, and yet are not involved sexually. In fact, I think the writers did this on purpose. You note that, in 02 when the first group of Chosen children are old enough to have gotten the hormonal wake-up call, Taichi and Yamato, while clearly still very good friends, don’t display the same kind of physical intimacy they did in 01? It’s rather a shame, actually, because they could without it being sexual. But I think that drawing back was intended to make a point. Then, too, while I will be the first to agree with Meimei and Ajora that Episode 50 was a serious acid trip on someone’s part, you note that there were a grand total of two couples internal to the group? Ken and Miyako, and Yamato and Sora; that was it. And all of them had kids, which tends to indicate fairly serious liasons at some point for all of them. Hikari and Takeru, who joke together, work as a team with their noticably paired mon and are generally best friends all through the show, aren’t romantically paired. None of the jogress partners, who must after all match each other’s motivations and desires in order to make the fusion work, are romantically paired. Miyako and Daisuke, who have a lot in common in the way of headstrong stubbornness and who are comfortable enough with each other to fight vociferously over food, aren’t, nor are the common-interest/common-position pairs like Koushirou and Miyako, Miyako and Mimi or Yamato and Ken.

When Taichi and Koushirou are working together in the middle of the movie (and nearly get into a fight–shades of Yamato), when Jyou and Mimi share seasickness, when Yamato and Jyou draw Sora out of her depression in the Cave of Darkness (which is what I call it since it seems to parallel the Dark Ocean), when Daisuke catches Miyako as she trips crossing a bridge (after, I was interested to note, Miyako preempted his attempt to catch Hikari coming the other way; he never did gallantly assist Hikari, but does help Miyako who he’s never in romantic pursuit of), when Daisuke runs on foot after Arachnimon as she absconds with Ken, when Ken (apparently) calls Stingmon to save Iori, when Miyako shakes Hikari out of the grip of the Dark Ocean and tells her she’s the strongest person Miyako’s ever known, none of this is because they’re in love with each other. I’ll allow that they may love each other, but not that it’s romantic. It isn’t that simple.

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This is not to say that I object to the notion that it could be, at some point in the future, but it isn’t in the immediate framework. What people tend to call romantic love and associate with sex, in my opinion, is pretty superficial and evanescent. Friendship, trust, understanding, those are a lot harder to come by and more enduring than mere lust; and while physical attraction can come out of those things, that’s not the premise I see people writing from.

So, let’s try a different side, shall we? Just for kicks. Go on, I dare you.