What a healthy relationship y'all have

I've been looking back at old posts and

Platonic!klaine could've been so nice

@useless-fanfictions

Boy do I!

I was thinking they meet like in canon, and then there's two possibilities

A)

They start dating like in canon but respectfully break it off when Kurt transfers back to McKinley

No hard feelings, they simply go back to being friends

Blaine does not transfer to McKinley, they still go out for coffee and such as friends

B)

They never start dating in the first place

They realize they are looking for different things and were more in love with the concept which ended in them mistaking friendship for a crush

oh good lord 😦

(thanks for the tag @jar-jar-ate ! 😂)

Oof all three?? Djkdjdkd i wouldn’t say no tho 👁

we could be in a throuple 🥰🤩

I’m not upset

Hell yeah

BUT THEN I REALIZED IT WAS THIS PHOTO OF BARRY ALLEN

Which I only took this photo because I wanted an accurate representation of my last few braincells.

Angry 2009 Melchior

Yikes

Thanks for the tag! <3

But we aren't ready for that conversation yet. Not only did he sexually assault him, but also guilted Kurt about it which led to them having sex for the first time under false pretenses. He also literally admitted that he preferred when Kurt felt bad about himself in their relationship because he wanted to feel better than him.

That's only the tip of the iceberg, but you guys are so wrapped up in your fantasy of Blaine as this perfect dreamboat that you can date by treating Kurt's character as a self-insert that you can't even see it. As if being in a relationship with an abusive person is something to strive for as long as your abuser is conventionally attractive and has a halfway decent singing voice. If someone romanticizes Klaine and Blaine to the extent that a lot of you do, it would make me seriously question associating with them at all.

Do you all disregard how Blaine saved Kurt’s life? Do you ignore what Kurt was going through in early season two and how Blaine’s impact onto his life had changed it for the better? 

I wasn’t going to write any of this because I believed that the questions/thoughts couldn't be proven and were only generally accepted headcanons or things we all just accept about the show, or at least, not factual in the laws of canon. In other words, I didn't think I could really prove that Blaine had such an impact on Kurt's life (even though I truly thought so before any proof) and so I wasn't going to ask these questions because I know you all wouldn't agree with me.

But then @celery-elliry ​ reminded me of the episode 4.10 “Glee, Actually” where the beginning of the episode stars Artie and how different his life would be if he hadn’t been in the chair. One of the first few people he runs into is Kurt, while he’s being thrown into the lockers and actually harrassed by Finn, Mike, Jake, Sam, and Puck. And when Artie tries to stand up for him, he gets bullied and forced to back down. Then the following dialogue happens between Kurt and Artie. 

Artie: “Kurt, didn’t you graduate?”

Kurt: “I should’ve, but I couldn’t bear coming to school more than twice a week because of all the bullying. All the homeschooling set me back a year.”

Artie: “What does Blaine say about all of this?”

Kurt: “Who’s Blaine?” 

[3:03-3:48] this is a link to a YouTube video with the actual scene I'm referring to

I know the point of the episode is to share about what it would be like if Artie hadn’t been in the chair, however, I’m putting a spotlight on this actual scene because the point of this post is that Blaine is really bad to Kurt, right? This scene would be a hypothetical “what if” within canon had Blaine never been a part of Kurt’s life. And so we see within this episode and this dream of Artie’s just what Kurt’s life would have been had he not met Blaine (and in relation, not transferred to Dalton Academy - which I'm not sure how anyone could twist his meeting with Blaine not being a direct association to his transfer). 

And yes, some may argue that Finn, Sam, Mike, etc. wouldn’t have been bullying Kurt in reality (duh), but there is an absences of Karofsky for a reason. He WAS bullying Kurt as bad has Kurt got it in this dream state, I could even argue that he was getting it worse from Karofsky. Which means that Kurt would have gone down those same paths (not to mention the numerous times during early season 2 that Kurt said how scared he was to be going to school - this is coming from a kid who sang and dance with those who used to throw him in dumpsters, he's been through too much for Karaofsky to have scared him that bad unless he was being bullied far worse than any of us saw) had he not met Blaine Anderson.

And maybe now some of you are wondering, why I'd make this post anyway because their beginning isn't brought up in the OP's post. I am using the original to ask these questions because I have seen this post like four times on my dash (in like 5 minutes of scrolling) and also because of the attack the person made on all Blaine/Klaine fans. You want to know why we "romantize" him or their relationship, or why we are "so wrapped up in our fantasies" is because some of us don't take for granted the fact that Blaine saved Kurt's life (not saying you all do, I don't know actually, hence the post).

Again, I’m not here to cause drama or start shit. I’m not here to convince you all that Klaine was 100% perfect all of the time (because they really weren't, but Blaine was never abusive - and I guess you're right: we ain't ready for that conversation). My goal here is to ask you guys to remain civil and help me understand your side/viewpoints. All I see is so much hate for Blaine and Klaine (amongst other ships yes) and I never really understand it. Why does it have to be one or the other? Why label someone or an entire relationship 'toxic' or 'abusive'? I actually don't understand.

So again, I’m asking for anti-klainers to reblog this and give me an answer or just message me! I’m not here to make a public scene, I am genuinely curious. When you are hating on Klaine and Blaine, do you disregard all of the good that this relationship meant to Kurt?

Abusers can and will still do or have done nice things for their victims, a few good deeds do not excuse the abuse and it's harmful and dangerous to spread a mindset that says otherwise

Blaine didn't save Kurt's life. Yes, he was definitely important for emotional support at the time, I won't deny that. It's the glee club however that really helped Kurt. We know now that he was su/c/d*l in season 1, joining the glee club really helped him come out of his shell and find genuine self esteem and confidence in himself and his abilities without having to overcompensate through a mask of arrogance. The Black and White sequence in Glee, Actually isn't just about Blaine's impact on Kurt but mostly about the impact the glee club as a whole had on each member and all of McKinley. Blaine was important, yes, but he is not the one and only person who helped Kurt

In fact I'd say that out of everyone in Kurt's inner circle of friends, Blaine has hurt him the most. Public humiliation, false accusations that turn his friends against him, cheating on him, s*x*a/ as/au/t.

The good of a relationship never excuses the abuse of it. My boyfriend can't hit me and get away with it by giving me a flower the next day (this didn't happen on the show, I'm just using an example)

To somewhat answer your question, most of us are former klaine/Blaine stans who either halfway through the show or on a rewatch realized that he isn't such a good guy after all

Some of us he reminds of their own abuser/s, or Klaine of their own toxic and/or abusive relationship/s

Seeing people constantly play down and even romanticize what went down is terrifying. I know if I had seen this a couple of years ago I wouldn't be here right now. I would've said nothing and it would've been the end of me.

I know it's not that deep for everyone, some people just don't like him because, but I can only speak for my own view that I know I share with a few people here.

Again, I'm not attacking you or accusing you here, I just wanted to share my point of view and maybe let some people know that by excusing and defending Blaine's behavior (and in some cases victim blaming Kurt) and attacking (not what you're doing) those who don't, they are in a way invalidating survivors and their experiences

I guess my thing is that I don't see him as an abuser (and this is coming from someone whose had/having abuse in their lives) and so it's hard for me to get all of the hate. You did make some good points, but I suppose we'll have to agree to disagree. And I was never arguing whether or not he was abusive in my post, but that's because I was trying to ignore that debate and/or move around it? (If that makes sense??) I don't know. I was trying to ignore it because I know how back-and-forth we could go, over-analzying every little detail in their relationship trying to prove our points, so I just wanted to ignore that. But that's bad on my part because the whole point of the original post is about it.

The question I do have for you, @no-cheetoman , is you say that it was the glee club that saved Kurt's life (and yes, I do agree in the black and white sequence, that's what it was about) but it's hard for me to rationalize the glee club being the one to help build Kurt's confidence, like himself, take him away from the edge, etc. when they were still bullying and mistreating him more often than you're claiming Blaine ever did (yes on an individual level, perhaps Blaine's got them beat, but that just show how much closer he was to Kurt than any of the people he'd known for years was). I supposed it could be the both of them, Blaine and the Glee club, that helped him through all of that, but that's one boy versus all of his supposed "friends". I hate the way they all treated Kurt, so that might just be my biases coming out, I'll admit it there.

And it is interesting that most anti-Klainers (nowadays anyway) are ex-klaine fans. I'm not sure I'd ever become an anti (that's just too much negativity for me tbh), but you have given me things to think about. My opinion on them and on Blaine hasn't changed or anything, I do still not see him as an abuser, however, they are a lot more imperfect than I gave them credit for - and you guys are helping me realize it.

And I am not meaning to play down this supposed abuse that Blaine did or victim blame because that's wrong on some many levels. I just want to clarify one more time that I just don't see it as abuse. And not to give more excuses for it, but Blaine was 14-15 when he came into the show, he's young and immature and his actions are meant to be twisted because they're that flimsy. These are all dumb kids and people often times treat them like adults and that's not always fair. And not that mental health is an excuse if it were abuse, but Blaine had/has some issues from his family and parents - that shit can fuck a person up for a long time. And so odds are, Blaine didn't really know how to show his love because he never really got any at home. Everytime he felt Kurt pulling away (with Chandler, moving to NY, etc.) he always lashed out and made things super big and dramatic (and I have soooo much more to say on the cheating storyline but that is definitely for a different post at a different time) that almost always ends in Kurt getting unintentionally hurt (except in season 5b when he caught on and understood Blaine's feelings way quicker than Blaine did even, because they'd been growing together). My point here is that I can't see past all of these things that boil down to Blaine being an emotionally stunted child enough to call him abusive - so I don't or can't see it. But never have I argued that they are 100% perfect either, because I know they're not.

The main reason that I even made the post was that with the 2nd paragraph of the OG post, it was an attack on Klaine/Blaine fans. I wasn't attacking back (or at least trying not too, I'm not sure how I came off) but I hate how much it's one or the other, or how judged people can be if they ship or like certain characters. I see it from all sides (Kurt, Blaine, and Sebastian are my favs - meaning my fav ships are Klaine, Kurtbastian, and Seblaine and they are all literally pitted against each other and it's exhausting).

I typed all of this out yesterday, but for some reason it disappeared when I hit post so I'll type it again now

We can definitely agree to disagree! There's really no need for a feud or anything like that, not just between us but like in general

What I meant with the glee club playing a bigger part in Kurt's development is that being part of the group, good and bad, learning who he can and cannot trust, made him more confident in the process. Being around people with common interests on a regular basis, working towards a common goal, making friends, and learning to help himself rather than rely on others. While Blaine did play an important role too, I think that being in the glee club did more especially early on. I agree, they weren't always nice to him. Quite the opposite actually, but it helped him learn how to handle that sort of stuff and learn to stand up for himself. It wasn't all Blaine's "Courage." message, that was just what reminded Kurt of it

I find it interesting what you said about Blaine and his mistakes earlier in the show, and I agree for the most part. Most early season (2-3) things listed by antis are just Blaine being young and making mistakes. I think they're listed because looking back you start to see a theme and that starts at Dalton. On their own I agree though, they're not that bad

The only early season thing that is really black and white to me is the scandals parking lot scene. That's s*xu*l as/*ult by its very definition, and it shouldn't be excused or romanticized, no matter Blaine's age or level of drunkenness.

That's really my main problem, especially as a survivor myself

About what you said about antis, I'm not sure I'd consider myself that personally but I use the term because it's easy haha. I wouldn't say I'm filled with hate and negativity, I just like to post my thoughts somewhere people who enjoy them can read and interact with them and people who don't can easily avoid them. That's why I tag every single content post on this blog as anti and lol, so it's easily blacklisted. I mostly post things to get them out of my head, to cope (since Blaine heavily reminds me of several of my past abusers), or just to talk about something frustrating I noticed. None of my posts are ever meant to cause anyone harm, that's why I'm talking about a fictional character

I think that's all, I hope I didn't miss anything

Thank you for this calm kinda conversation, I was really worried I'd get attacked

But we aren't ready for that conversation yet. Not only did he sexually assault him, but also guilted Kurt about it which led to them having sex for the first time under false pretenses. He also literally admitted that he preferred when Kurt felt bad about himself in their relationship because he wanted to feel better than him.

That's only the tip of the iceberg, but you guys are so wrapped up in your fantasy of Blaine as this perfect dreamboat that you can date by treating Kurt's character as a self-insert that you can't even see it. As if being in a relationship with an abusive person is something to strive for as long as your abuser is conventionally attractive and has a halfway decent singing voice. If someone romanticizes Klaine and Blaine to the extent that a lot of you do, it would make me seriously question associating with them at all.

Do you all disregard how Blaine saved Kurt’s life? Do you ignore what Kurt was going through in early season two and how Blaine’s impact onto his life had changed it for the better? 

I wasn’t going to write any of this because I believed that the questions/thoughts couldn't be proven and were only generally accepted headcanons or things we all just accept about the show, or at least, not factual in the laws of canon. In other words, I didn't think I could really prove that Blaine had such an impact on Kurt's life (even though I truly thought so before any proof) and so I wasn't going to ask these questions because I know you all wouldn't agree with me.

But then @celery-elliry ​ reminded me of the episode 4.10 “Glee, Actually” where the beginning of the episode stars Artie and how different his life would be if he hadn’t been in the chair. One of the first few people he runs into is Kurt, while he’s being thrown into the lockers and actually harrassed by Finn, Mike, Jake, Sam, and Puck. And when Artie tries to stand up for him, he gets bullied and forced to back down. Then the following dialogue happens between Kurt and Artie. 

Artie: “Kurt, didn’t you graduate?”

Kurt: “I should’ve, but I couldn’t bear coming to school more than twice a week because of all the bullying. All the homeschooling set me back a year.”

Artie: “What does Blaine say about all of this?”

Kurt: “Who’s Blaine?” 

[3:03-3:48] this is a link to a YouTube video with the actual scene I'm referring to

I know the point of the episode is to share about what it would be like if Artie hadn’t been in the chair, however, I’m putting a spotlight on this actual scene because the point of this post is that Blaine is really bad to Kurt, right? This scene would be a hypothetical “what if” within canon had Blaine never been a part of Kurt’s life. And so we see within this episode and this dream of Artie’s just what Kurt’s life would have been had he not met Blaine (and in relation, not transferred to Dalton Academy - which I'm not sure how anyone could twist his meeting with Blaine not being a direct association to his transfer). 

And yes, some may argue that Finn, Sam, Mike, etc. wouldn’t have been bullying Kurt in reality (duh), but there is an absences of Karofsky for a reason. He WAS bullying Kurt as bad has Kurt got it in this dream state, I could even argue that he was getting it worse from Karofsky. Which means that Kurt would have gone down those same paths (not to mention the numerous times during early season 2 that Kurt said how scared he was to be going to school - this is coming from a kid who sang and dance with those who used to throw him in dumpsters, he's been through too much for Karaofsky to have scared him that bad unless he was being bullied far worse than any of us saw) had he not met Blaine Anderson.

And maybe now some of you are wondering, why I'd make this post anyway because their beginning isn't brought up in the OP's post. I am using the original to ask these questions because I have seen this post like four times on my dash (in like 5 minutes of scrolling) and also because of the attack the person made on all Blaine/Klaine fans. You want to know why we "romantize" him or their relationship, or why we are "so wrapped up in our fantasies" is because some of us don't take for granted the fact that Blaine saved Kurt's life (not saying you all do, I don't know actually, hence the post).

Again, I’m not here to cause drama or start shit. I’m not here to convince you all that Klaine was 100% perfect all of the time (because they really weren't, but Blaine was never abusive - and I guess you're right: we ain't ready for that conversation). My goal here is to ask you guys to remain civil and help me understand your side/viewpoints. All I see is so much hate for Blaine and Klaine (amongst other ships yes) and I never really understand it. Why does it have to be one or the other? Why label someone or an entire relationship 'toxic' or 'abusive'? I actually don't understand.

So again, I’m asking for anti-klainers to reblog this and give me an answer or just message me! I’m not here to make a public scene, I am genuinely curious. When you are hating on Klaine and Blaine, do you disregard all of the good that this relationship meant to Kurt?

Abusers can and will still do or have done nice things for their victims, a few good deeds do not excuse the abuse and it's harmful and dangerous to spread a mindset that says otherwise

Blaine didn't save Kurt's life. Yes, he was definitely important for emotional support at the time, I won't deny that. It's the glee club however that really helped Kurt. We know now that he was su/c/d*l in season 1, joining the glee club really helped him come out of his shell and find genuine self esteem and confidence in himself and his abilities without having to overcompensate through a mask of arrogance. The Black and White sequence in Glee, Actually isn't just about Blaine's impact on Kurt but mostly about the impact the glee club as a whole had on each member and all of McKinley. Blaine was important, yes, but he is not the one and only person who helped Kurt

In fact I'd say that out of everyone in Kurt's inner circle of friends, Blaine has hurt him the most. Public humiliation, false accusations that turn his friends against him, cheating on him, s*x*a/ as/au/t.

The good of a relationship never excuses the abuse of it. My boyfriend can't hit me and get away with it by giving me a flower the next day (this didn't happen on the show, I'm just using an example)

To somewhat answer your question, most of us are former klaine/Blaine stans who either halfway through the show or on a rewatch realized that he isn't such a good guy after all

Some of us he reminds of their own abuser/s, or Klaine of their own toxic and/or abusive relationship/s

Seeing people constantly play down and even romanticize what went down is terrifying. I know if I had seen this a couple of years ago I wouldn't be here right now. I would've said nothing and it would've been the end of me.

I know it's not that deep for everyone, some people just don't like him because, but I can only speak for my own view that I know I share with a few people here.

Again, I'm not attacking you or accusing you here, I just wanted to share my point of view and maybe let some people know that by excusing and defending Blaine's behavior (and in some cases victim blaming Kurt) and attacking (not what you're doing) those who don't, they are in a way invalidating survivors and their experiences

I've seen a lot of anti Kurt posts lately, all of which are just so blatantly wrong I feel like I have to address it

This is gonna be a long post and I'll throw in some comparisons to Blaine here and there while I'm at it

The main points I see brought up in anti posts are his "constant negativity/pessimism", "narcissism", "emotional abuse/gaslighting", "hypocrisy" and "predatory behavior"

Negativity/pessimism

This one isn't too unreasonable, I can see how someone would get this impression from watching just a few episodes.

However this is not the permanent or even primary state of his character. Yes, he can be pretty down at times, but with all the shit that happens to him that's not surprising.

I doubt anyone would be in good spirits when they're constantly physically and emotionally abused by bullies at school, attacked for their identity or being twice faced with the possibility of losing their one remaining parent.

And despite all of this Kurt is still hopeful. He's determined, he keeps on dreaming and working towards his goals. He's never given up.

Narcissism

Another point that isn't too far off at first glance, but if you've seen more than two episodes it falls apart.

Yes, Kurt can be arrogant (look at S1) at times, but it's very clear from just watching him that it's all a facade.

In season 1 especially he puts on this act of being better than everyone around him, having his nose up when he walks into a room and shooting judgmental and disapproving glares around.

But we've seen him drop that mask (episode 2 of season 1 if I'm not mistaken? His talk with Mercedes by the lockers. I couldn't find a gif of him walking off afterwards, but you can see him put his walls back up as he leaves.)

We've seen him vulnerable, and so we know that all of this is him building up walls to protect himself. By pretending he's better than everyone, and pretending the bullying and harrasment doesn't bother him, maybe he'll convince himself at some point? That's the big idea behind it all. This is a child trying to protect himself.

He does value good skincare and fashion, but taking care of your body and aiming to look your best presentable self doesn't make you narcissistic or self obsessed. You're allowed to value and take care of yourself.

Emotional abuse/gaslighting

Oh boy here we go...

This one couldn't be farther from the truth.

Aside from that time he offered to give Rachel a makeover in season 1 (which was just a misguided child acting manipulatively through jealousy), I can't recall a single canon instance in which Kurt said or did anything that could possibly be misinterpreted as gaslighting or emotional abuse, and it makes me question if the people bringing it up even know what gaslighting is.

Gaslighting means to deliberately twist facts (adding false details, leaving out important details, making up events or insisting events never happened in the first place) to make the other person doubt their own perception of reality.

Oh, so kinda like when Blaine decided to move out and then later insisted Kurt asked him to?

Let's point out the guilt tripping too while we're at it.

"I was drunk"

"I needed you and you weren't there"

"I thought you were done with me"

Blaine is a professional at deflecting and shifting the blame. And in the end he always manages to make Kurt feel guilty enough to the point where he apologizes for things Blaine has done.

Hypocrisy

When? Where? How? Again, I can't recall a single canon instance.

Maybe this is referring to times his opinions changed over time? That's called character development.

Blaine on the other hand seems to be the mayor of hypocrisy town, his double standards are so blatant its not even funny anymore.

Sure he can text a guy who's made no secret of his intentions of getting into his pants for months, even going out for coffee (and eventually giving away confidential information), but Kurt receiving cheesy pick up lines via texts is cheating.

Him cheating on Kurt while they've been long distance for two weeks is ok because he needed someone, but Kurt having a good-looking male friend isn't because Blaine feels threatened.

He has one set of standards for himself, and then a completely different one he holds Kurt to.

Things are ok because he said so. Things are wrong because he said so. He dictates the standard. That's hypocrisy.

Predatory Behavior

This is the one I have the biggest problem with, because it's blatantly twisting the canon and erasing context and circumstance.

First of all I have to agree that Kurt's behavior towards Finn in season 1 was creepy. I agree that it's problematic - or that it would be if they weren't kids.

What we're seeing here isn't a gay man preying on a straight man. This is a misguided child making a mistake, one that he pays for later on.

Does he ever show any behavior of that sort again? No. It's called growing up.

We've all had a one sided crush on someone at some point, and while Kurt definitely took it too far at times I think it's very hypocritical to label that childish foolishness as preditory.

I'm not sure I'd call this predatory either, but are we forgetting about the infamous scandals parking lot scene? The one where Blaine drunkenly tries to take advantage of Kurt, trying to make him have sex in the back of a car with him and only stops once Kurt breaks free from him after telling him to stop multiple times?

That's sexual assault. Which he then tried to blame Kurt for, in a very guilt-trippy way ("I'm sorry for wanting to be spontaneous and fun"), and when Kurt went to apologize (which he shouldn't have to, he was the victim) Blaine shifts the blame on having been drunk. Off of one beer, yea, sure.

That's all I have to say for now.

here might be a controversial opinion...

I’m not sure he is any more creepy than Rachel...or Quinn...or Finn himself or Jesse or any other the others....

he is pretty much on par with them, if not a little less

the only reason it is ‘creepy’...is because he is Gay

All the creepy Kurt behavior is perfectly fine when it is a boy to a girl or a girl to a boy...in fact, it is often encouraged.

Now..someone might bring up his getting the parents together bit...

but anyone who thinks he expected his dad to basically move in a new dating interest in six to ten weeks is bat shit crazy...and the few times it is ‘said’ is sarcastic..like dripping with it. Any sane woman would run the fuck away from that and any sane child would have been tossing massive tantrums or calling the family lawyer.  And any sane man would have been super sus if she was the one to come up with the plan.  The only hope of it not being super creepy and bat shit crazy is if maybe Kurt introduced them in like the fall (prior to the ‘huge’ crush)...and even then, you might have five months because although the dating of the shows at the end are June....cannon they are march and April at the latest.  Regionals (and cheer nationals) are march and maybe first week of April activities.

And adults acting that way is way creepier than a kid.

My big issue with implying that Kurt was predatory is that he literally never does anything to Finn. He doesn’t feel him up. He doesn’t proposition him. He doesn’t actually even flirt with him. Let’s compare Kurt’s behavior to Santana’s the same year. She decides that she needs to bring her rep up and that having sex with Finn will do that for her. So she literally virgin-shames him into having sex with her. Kurt longingly looks at Finn. Santana pushes him to have sex. And who is predatory?

I disagree that any of Kurt's behavior was inappropriate. It was unwelcomed because he was a guy crushing on another guy, as @pixiealtaira mentioned as well. It was because his interest in another guy was unacceptable that his actions were viewed differently from the girls. Rachel flat out seduced him while they still thought he was the father of Quinn's baby. The most outrageous thing Kurt did was to give Rachel a "Sandy" makeover to make her less attractive to Finn, who was crushing on her inappropriately while he had a pregnant girlfriend. Santana aggressively virgin-shamed him into having sex with her. Both of things happened the same year that he had the crush on Finn.

On an unrelated note, my Klaine comfort fic is the Untitled series by rainjoy which started an AU after ss2 where Kurt was in an all-male theater troupe and Blaine realized he was nobody after coming to NY so he became a doctor and supported Kurt’s career all the way. I really wished they went that way for Blaine instead. Kurt was the icon for gay kids when Glee started and they didn’t need to add another gay main character who hogged all the spotlight. Being gay didn’t add anything to Blaine’s character, he could have been straight and his storyline wouldn’t be any different. He should’ve stayed a side character / supportive boyfriend to Kurt, he already had the Warblers as his stans anyway.

Thanks for sharing this! I was a big klainer on my first watch too, until TFT

But even then I found myself making excuses for what Blaine did simply to have them get back together, because I wanted Kurt to have a relationship.

Much like you I didn't even know about or consider other ships until we got to New York and Blaine cheated on Kurt.

I think a lot of us Kurt fans kind of ignored all the bad about Blaine because who else did Kurt have?

sidenote: I find it very unrealistic that no more than three (four if you count Mercedes, and like 6 if you count the NYADA guys in Tested) people ever showed interest in him. Like have you seen the guy? He's a regular model over here, a literal angel with elven beauty, he should've been drowning in date requests

The show somehow convinced us that Kurt needed a romantic partner, and had the characters hammer that in. Slowly but surely no one cared about Kurt anymore in that sense, like how they all assumed he was cheating in Rumours or IWDWSB, or how everyone was on Blaine's side when he actually physically cheated on Kurt.

Kurt used to be so much more than an accessory and personal cheerleader to Blaine. Like you said he was an icon, a voice for many at the time. Making him dependant on a second party just doesn't sit right with me. It's just not who he is. He's always valued his independence and individuality, and on the show we've seen he doesn't do well when it's taken away from him like at Dalton.

I think the show might've pushed Blaine so far to take Kurt's place. It's no secret that rib had favorites, and one of those was darren.

I'm still offended by how they thought they could convince me Blaine was a better dancer, singer, actor and all around performer than Kurt when darren has an average if not limited vocal range (no shame in that, just stick to your genre or take lessons)

Don't make your characters more or less talented than your actors!

I agree with your last two points too. The story with Blaine was that there was no story. He was planned and written as a minor side character who then took on a life of his own due to the popularity of the actor. They didn't think his character through, like anything else on this show.

His impact on the gay community? Straight passing gays will always be more successful than those who do not pass. And oh look at that! The actor is straight, what a coincidence!

For me, I REALLY became jaded with the show in Season 4 (I didn’t actually start actively hating Blaine until the S4/5 hiatus, and I’ve talked about that before)... Because the show BASICALLY broke its own promise.

See, Kurt’s S1 plot was coming out and coming into his own, and lack of shame... His S2 plot led to him having a boyfriend... and his S3 plot was somewhat about the standard coming of age “life experiences” stuff.

But the thing is, throughout ALL of that, in all THREE seasons, he was constantly being told he’s “too gay” or just unattractive.

Burt and Finn (among others) enforce this idea of Kurt being too gay, especially in most of S1 and in Duets... Blaine pushes the idea of “don’t stand out too much” in S2... and Sebastian pushes the idea of Kurt “giving the gay community a bad name” in S3.

To varying degrees, Finn, Santana, Puck, Sue, Blaine, and Sebastian all enforce this idea of Kurt being unattractive, mostly for his looks, but also for some combination of naïveté and his personality in general...

And to add to that, his first three seasons were basically this undercurrent of “I’ve gotta get out of this place”, most notably in S2 where he briefly DOES, both to Dalton and when he and Rachel paint the town red in New York.

Off the back of THOSE plot threads, there’s an implicit contract being drawn up with the viewer. That you’re going to pay all of these things off, and that Kurt is going to get out into the world, and realise his own worth and attractiveness.

And honestly, Season 4 actually TRIED some of this.

The Break-Up was a necessary episode for that plot. Kurt gets a job in fashion AND ends up at NYADA... His dress sense starts varying more. He doesn’t aggressively layer his clothing as much, and his style becomes less actively transgressive and more just expressive...

And he starts dating Adam. Adam who actively compliments Kurt, and doesn’t let Kurt decline those compliments.

... The INFURIATING thing is that that’s where it ends. Kurt ends up back with Blaine in the middle of the season, effectively. They get shoved back together at the wedding, and then Adam is pretty obviously pushed aside by the narrative...

Kurt never ACTUALLY gets to live that promise of coming into his own, and actually SEEING the world outside his door. Of all of the New York characters, I think he’s the one who has the fewest “out on the town” moments. He’s at his job, or at the loft, or at NYADA... And yes, he does interesting things in some of those places, but we see Rachel and Sam and Santana at auditions for things... We see Sam and Blaine sight-seeing... We see Kurt working and going to school, and occasionally going out on the town when pressured into it.

They never cashed in on the promise of Kurt realising his worth in his personal life. I’m not saying he NEEDED to have a boyfriend... But the way they wrote him as implicitly unattractive for being “too gay” in Lima, the fact they only gave him Adam and those NYADA groupies in Tested... And the fact that they instead used him to reinforce a “being gay can be dangerous ANYWHERE” message in Bash... It hurts.

Ryan Murphy (March 13, 2010)

Paleyfest Glee Panel 
[27:36–28:42]

I think what really got to me was that we never got any of this. We loved Kurt and he never got any of the good things his character was supposed to get. Everything bad we were told wouldn't happen to him did happen. Blaine was not as fabulous as Kurt. He even told Kurt to stop being himself.

On an unrelated note, my Klaine comfort fic is the Untitled series by rainjoy which started an AU after ss2 where Kurt was in an all-male theater troupe and Blaine realized he was nobody after coming to NY so he became a doctor and supported Kurt’s career all the way. I really wished they went that way for Blaine instead. Kurt was the icon for gay kids when Glee started and they didn’t need to add another gay main character who hogged all the spotlight. Being gay didn’t add anything to Blaine’s character, he could have been straight and his storyline wouldn’t be any different. He should’ve stayed a side character / supportive boyfriend to Kurt, he already had the Warblers as his stans anyway.

Thanks for sharing this! I was a big klainer on my first watch too, until TFT

But even then I found myself making excuses for what Blaine did simply to have them get back together, because I wanted Kurt to have a relationship.

Much like you I didn't even know about or consider other ships until we got to New York and Blaine cheated on Kurt.

I think a lot of us Kurt fans kind of ignored all the bad about Blaine because who else did Kurt have?

sidenote: I find it very unrealistic that no more than three (four if you count Mercedes, and like 6 if you count the NYADA guys in Tested) people ever showed interest in him. Like have you seen the guy? He's a regular model over here, a literal angel with elven beauty, he should've been drowning in date requests

The show somehow convinced us that Kurt needed a romantic partner, and had the characters hammer that in. Slowly but surely no one cared about Kurt anymore in that sense, like how they all assumed he was cheating in Rumours or IWDWSB, or how everyone was on Blaine's side when he actually physically cheated on Kurt.

Kurt used to be so much more than an accessory and personal cheerleader to Blaine. Like you said he was an icon, a voice for many at the time. Making him dependant on a second party just doesn't sit right with me. It's just not who he is. He's always valued his independence and individuality, and on the show we've seen he doesn't do well when it's taken away from him like at Dalton.

I think the show might've pushed Blaine so far to take Kurt's place. It's no secret that rib had favorites, and one of those was darren.

I'm still offended by how they thought they could convince me Blaine was a better dancer, singer, actor and all around performer than Kurt when darren has an average if not limited vocal range (no shame in that, just stick to your genre or take lessons)

Don't make your characters more or less talented than your actors!

I agree with your last two points too. The story with Blaine was that there was no story. He was planned and written as a minor side character who then took on a life of his own due to the popularity of the actor. They didn't think his character through, like anything else on this show.

His impact on the gay community? Straight passing gays will always be more successful than those who do not pass. And oh look at that! The actor is straight, what a coincidence!

Kurt is severely bullied at McKinley, physically abused and harrased on a daily basis to the point of showing obvious trauma symptoms (flinching at loud noises for example) and is even sexually assaulted by one of his bullies. He's not allowed to express his feelings and experiment at a young age like any other teen at that time, and being seen with him is treated like a death sentence.

Blaine is just accepted right away. Not that it's a bad thing, the bad thing about it is why he's accepted. And that is, you guessed it, him being straight passing. Wow.

Kurt gets written in as Prom Queen to be publicly humiliated

Blaine gets nominated as Prom King (and wins? I don't remember) based on popularity

Kurt loses the senior president election due to someone else stuffing the ballot box and disqualifying him

Blaine wins with a campaign about hair gel

Kurt has to audition three times to get into NYADA

Blaine just gets in like that

Kurt bad

Blaine good

The show really wanted to cement him as the "right type of gay" to be

Kurt had to struggle and fight so hard for everything he has

On an unrelated note, my Klaine comfort fic is the Untitled series by rainjoy which started an AU after ss2 where Kurt was in an all-male theater troupe and Blaine realized he was nobody after coming to NY so he became a doctor and supported Kurt’s career all the way. I really wished they went that way for Blaine instead. Kurt was the icon for gay kids when Glee started and they didn’t need to add another gay main character who hogged all the spotlight. Being gay didn’t add anything to Blaine’s character, he could have been straight and his storyline wouldn’t be any different. He should’ve stayed a side character / supportive boyfriend to Kurt, he already had the Warblers as his stans anyway.

Thanks for sharing this! I was a big klainer on my first watch too, until TFT

But even then I found myself making excuses for what Blaine did simply to have them get back together, because I wanted Kurt to have a relationship.

Much like you I didn't even know about or consider other ships until we got to New York and Blaine cheated on Kurt.

I think a lot of us Kurt fans kind of ignored all the bad about Blaine because who else did Kurt have?

sidenote: I find it very unrealistic that no more than three (four if you count Mercedes, and like 6 if you count the NYADA guys in Tested) people ever showed interest in him. Like have you seen the guy? He's a regular model over here, a literal angel with elven beauty, he should've been drowning in date requests

The show somehow convinced us that Kurt needed a romantic partner, and had the characters hammer that in. Slowly but surely no one cared about Kurt anymore in that sense, like how they all assumed he was cheating in Rumours or IWDWSB, or how everyone was on Blaine's side when he actually physically cheated on Kurt.

Kurt used to be so much more than an accessory and personal cheerleader to Blaine. Like you said he was an icon, a voice for many at the time. Making him dependant on a second party just doesn't sit right with me. It's just not who he is. He's always valued his independence and individuality, and on the show we've seen he doesn't do well when it's taken away from him like at Dalton.

I think the show might've pushed Blaine so far to take Kurt's place. It's no secret that rib had favorites, and one of those was darren.

I'm still offended by how they thought they could convince me Blaine was a better dancer, singer, actor and all around performer than Kurt when darren has an average if not limited vocal range (no shame in that, just stick to your genre or take lessons)

Don't make your characters more or less talented than your actors!

I agree with your last two points too. The story with Blaine was that there was no story. He was planned and written as a minor side character who then took on a life of his own due to the popularity of the actor. They didn't think his character through, like anything else on this show.

His impact on the gay community? Straight passing gays will always be more successful than those who do not pass. And oh look at that! The actor is straight, what a coincidence!

For me, I REALLY became jaded with the show in Season 4 (I didn’t actually start actively hating Blaine until the S4/5 hiatus, and I’ve talked about that before)... Because the show BASICALLY broke its own promise.

See, Kurt’s S1 plot was coming out and coming into his own, and lack of shame... His S2 plot led to him having a boyfriend... and his S3 plot was somewhat about the standard coming of age “life experiences” stuff.

But the thing is, throughout ALL of that, in all THREE seasons, he was constantly being told he’s “too gay” or just unattractive.

Burt and Finn (among others) enforce this idea of Kurt being too gay, especially in most of S1 and in Duets... Blaine pushes the idea of “don’t stand out too much” in S2... and Sebastian pushes the idea of Kurt “giving the gay community a bad name” in S3.

To varying degrees, Finn, Santana, Puck, Sue, Blaine, and Sebastian all enforce this idea of Kurt being unattractive, mostly for his looks, but also for some combination of naïveté and his personality in general...

And to add to that, his first three seasons were basically this undercurrent of “I’ve gotta get out of this place”, most notably in S2 where he briefly DOES, both to Dalton and when he and Rachel paint the town red in New York.

Off the back of THOSE plot threads, there’s an implicit contract being drawn up with the viewer. That you’re going to pay all of these things off, and that Kurt is going to get out into the world, and realise his own worth and attractiveness.

And honestly, Season 4 actually TRIED some of this.

The Break-Up was a necessary episode for that plot. Kurt gets a job in fashion AND ends up at NYADA... His dress sense starts varying more. He doesn’t aggressively layer his clothing as much, and his style becomes less actively transgressive and more just expressive...

And he starts dating Adam. Adam who actively compliments Kurt, and doesn’t let Kurt decline those compliments.

... The INFURIATING thing is that that’s where it ends. Kurt ends up back with Blaine in the middle of the season, effectively. They get shoved back together at the wedding, and then Adam is pretty obviously pushed aside by the narrative...

Kurt never ACTUALLY gets to live that promise of coming into his own, and actually SEEING the world outside his door. Of all of the New York characters, I think he’s the one who has the fewest “out on the town” moments. He’s at his job, or at the loft, or at NYADA... And yes, he does interesting things in some of those places, but we see Rachel and Sam and Santana at auditions for things... We see Sam and Blaine sight-seeing... We see Kurt working and going to school, and occasionally going out on the town when pressured into it.

They never cashed in on the promise of Kurt realising his worth in his personal life. I’m not saying he NEEDED to have a boyfriend... But the way they wrote him as implicitly unattractive for being “too gay” in Lima, the fact they only gave him Adam and those NYADA groupies in Tested... And the fact that they instead used him to reinforce a “being gay can be dangerous ANYWHERE” message in Bash... It hurts.