Overanalyzing Heated Rivalry

I haven't had a tumblr in near a decade and this gay hockey show has forced me back here. I have too many thoughts on it and want to share my love of this show. So here I am, Overanalyzing Heated Rivalry.

I'll go scene by scene until I finish the whole show going every little detail. I'll also be posting fan theories and such.

I've watched/read a lot about the show so I might not remember exactly where I first heard an idea so sorry for that now. But I will try to credit.

Anyways, here we go!

Scene Breakdown:

Episode 1 Scene 1 (First Meeting)

Episode 1 Scene 2 (International Prospect)

Episode 1 Scene 3 (Draft)

Episode 1 Scene 4 (Gym)

Episode 1 Scene 5 (New Years Phone Call)

Episode 1 Scene 6 (International Prospect pt.2)

Episode 1 Scene 7 (CCM AD)

Episode 1 Scene 8 (Shower)

Episode 1 Scene 9 (Sealion)

Episode 1 Scene 10 (1410)

Episode 1 Scene 11 (Right Up the Butt)

Episode 1 Scene 12 (Rookie Season Face-Off and French Interview)

Episode 1 Scene 13 (All-Stars Assemble)

Discussion:

Autism

Russia

Disordered Eating

Once again this is just my read on the show and any input is more than welcome. Sorry it's been a while, got caught in hollanov fic writing hell. X X

31.44 - 33.40 Emotional Support Footsie

The first thing to note is that while they are both on stage it is Ilya who has someone messing with his mic set up. This could be a subtle indication about Shane being used to such interviews so he didn’t need the help.

The next thing is the layout of their name cards. These were personally made to sit next to each other and simulate a face-off. That means this interview was planned beforehand.

Something the announcer confirms by saying the league isn't subtle in its attempts to set them against each other.

What's interesting about this is that they are rookies here. They should not have the kind of publicity worthy of centering the entirety of All-Star around. But yet here they are.

Once again I think the fact that we are never outright told they are the best hockey players (along with the reporter's line calling both their rookie seasons "legendary") is another example of the show trusting us to pay attention. We never need in your face exposition, because of this the viewer doesn't feel babied and it makes the overall experience of watching this show feel more mentally stimulating.

Another thing I noticed, that probably doesn't mean anything, is that the All-Star logo looks nearly identical to the locker room shot in scene 8.

Let's talk about Ilya's name. So far every character except for his father and brother has said his name incorrectly. Everyone is saying Ill-y-a (three syllables) but it should be Ill-ya (two syllables) it's nothing major but it sure has to be annoying. I'm not sure if he's bothered to correct anyone but I feel like even if he did most people wouldn't bother to correct themselves. (It feels to me like what happened to Kamala Harris.)

This scene does a great job of showing us the problems Ilya is facing when it comes to language. It's a great little nod to the fact one of the biggest themes of this show is miscommunication or the lack thereof.

The first foot tap happens before Ilya ever speaks. It is both Ilya seeking comfort through physical connection (the way Shane and Ilya communicate best) but also him giving the most subtle permission for Shane to take over whenever possible.

I also want to quickly point out the camera work in this scene, while it's not extremely wobbly it also isn't hyper stable. It feels like something shot by actual journalists. Along with the background camera flashes.

Now Ilya's short answer to the question of a 50 goal campaign being simply, "Yes" makes him seem stand-offish/cocky/like an asshole. This is what the vast majority of viewers will believe. Along with the way he seems annoyed at even having to talk to the press makes Shane come off looking like a media darling.

It's interesting because we've seen Ilya relax and charismatic when press is involved. I think the difference here is the stakes. This is a much larger event than an after game local sports news interview. If he mispeaks here he will be forever judged for it. Also the questions being asked here are much more verbose.

At this point most of Ilya's vocabulary would be basic (beyond some hyper specific hockey terms). He can get along just fine in casual conversation but he also has to continuously consciously translate. In normal conversation there would be shorter sentences with pauses for him to reply. He wouldn't have to remember a paragraph all at once before responding.

In casual conversation with people he's closer to or stranger on the street he also would be able to ask them to say something again, or ask for a word's meaning. But there is no way his pride would ever let him do that here.

No one here is considering that he has been in the country for less than a year, so asking for clarification would just have them thinking he’s uneducated.

Ilya also probably feels a lot of negative things about himself here. Why am I having such a hard time with this when Hollander speaks his second language easily? Is probably bouncing around his mind somewhere. And with how his father called him lazy, and Ilya later calls himself that, there might be a bit of, Why was I so lazy when learning English?

Now I don't think the first reporter was being malicious but I do think the second one was at least a little bit. I don't watch sports so I could be wrong but this seems more like the kind of question asked to PR, Management or the Coaching staff and if not them, then at the very least a captain. Especially since this is All-Stars and not a Boston press conference.

Asking about their season is understandable but this seems like an inappropriate place for this question. Again I could be wrong and this might be a normal thing to ask rookies at a league event but it seems strange to me.

I also wonder if questions, in this setting, would have been screened beforehand and if so the league has failed Ilya here, more than I already think they have, by not having a Russian translator.

In past posts I've praised Hudson Williams micro-expressions many times but Connor Storries is doing just as good a job here. I want to point out, for the most part, Connor doesn't need to do such subtle work when playing Ilya because his character is more prone to expressing his feelings more openly. The fact he does it so masterfully here shows Connor's range.

About the expression in the above gif: This scene could have easily been over played and still worked but going with this near invisible route here gives us insight into Ilya on a deeper level.

What makes this actual expression work is that we feel a sense of tension without an obvious clenching of Ilya's jaw. There the slightest furrow to his brows and the flickering back and forth of his eyes indicate that he is trying to follow what is being said.

But the moment he gives up trying to follow along we are back to a wide view. We lose the intimacy of being able to see his expressions up close.

His discomfort is obvious by the way he adjusts his collar as if trying to get air on a sweaty neck due to nerves.

Shane here while following along easily also seems bored. It's clear that Ilya doesn't want to be here but I also think Shane doesn't want it either. Neither of them seem to enjoy the PR side of being a professional athlete.

I think most of Ilya's problem is just his language barrier and would probably enjoy it more once he has an easier time with English but Shane, who has much more PR interaction, never finds a sense of ease.

Now Shane taking over here to outsiders might seem like a continuation of their rivalry but it's really a case of silent support. A good way to show that outsiders will see things one way, but to Ilya and Shane it’s something else. Which basically explains their whole public relationship.

I like that Shane double checks it's okay for him to take over and waits until he sees Ilya's nod. It's a different form of consent than we see later in the sex scenes but it's still asking a partner for permission to take control in a situation.

Shane's answer here sounds like a well edited PR-approved statement. The fact Shane came up with this off the cuff indicates the level of media training he has been through.

A thumping, driving music starts when Shane says the line, "She (Yuna) wants us to be back in the playoffs regularly." Another subtle indication of their rivalry being reinforced.

When Ilya adds in his, "What he said." The words seem almost floaty(?) and he seems zoned out until his name is called, as if he turned off his brain for the entirety of what Shane said but also trusted Shane to give an answer he could easily agree with.

We get background laughter. The journalists have obviously missed the entire interaction and think, "Ah Rozanov being Rozanov again. What a menace/punk/asshole ect."

The scene ends with them bringing their feet together for the rest of the interview (since there have only been two questions so we can assume it continues after we cut away). They have just formed a team dynamic on how to handle such situations. And Shane is taking the lead here, giving Ilya someone to lean on.

Ilya is all alone in this country and has only been on his team for a short time. Shane is the person he has known longest and knows him on a deeper level than anyone else. Shane might not know the most about him but he is currently the person closest to Ilya.

33.40 - 35.25 Y'all Aren't the Least Bit Subtle (Hunter Knows)

I would love to know how long Scott Hunter has held the accuracy record for and how long it had been between him and the last person to get a better view on just how much of an accomplishment Ilya and Shane make here.

Another thing to note is that this is about accuracy, something I would assume you only get better at with age (practice). So the fact they both broke the record at 19-20(?) is amazing.

Shaving a whole second off a <8 second record is an insane jump. That's like super human levels of good. And since this is about how much you practice we get our first hint of just how dedicated (obsessed) Shane is.

Saw this is a post by @hearteyesilya This is the kind of details that make HR so good. These tiny things that make the characters feel real.

Despite my feeling about Yuna Hollander, Shane Hollander loves her and she is a huge driving force in Shane's career and love of hockey. He likely grew up watching hockey in his mother's lap.

His love for hockey and her are linked and it is probably a big reason behind his hesitancy around acknowledging he was gay and telling her.

When Shane beats Ilya's record he has only held it for "less than a minute". In that time he felt on top of the world only to have the rug pulled out from under him.

But even though he looks annoyed (most likely more at himself than anything else) he doesn't get angry and instead goes out of his way to talk to Shane.

Something to note about the above two gifs is that in the first one Ilya is three people away from his position in the second gif where he is right next to the American's team box.

It also only took a short amount of time between Shane skating over to his team and him sitting down for Ilya to move seats.

He was eager to talk to Shane here and made his team mates move so he could do so. He might be upset he lost but he isn't letting that get in the way of possible time with Shane.

I don't have much to say about the majority of this interaction beyond that it's a nice change of pace for their relationship. So far all their interactions have been intense but here there is a playfulness we haven't seen before.

Even though they are competing at this moment they are also delving into the first stages of friendship in this conversation.

We also get a line about Shane not drinking another hint to his self imposed restrictions.

I know the line, "No boring Canadians, no stupid Americans, so..." is just a silly chirp but there is also some truth behind it. Most European players in the NHL (MLH) come from Slavic or Nordic countries. Most Slavic countries (according to a little research) would be able to understand (with only a bit of difficulty if any) Ilya when speaking Russia and most of the European NHL (MLH) are from Russia to begin with.

This means Ilya is on a team that he can relax into his mother tongue and not have to worry about being understood. After what we saw in the interview this had to be extremely stress relieving.

These are also people who will understand his struggles of moving to a new country and having to navigate American/Canadian society.

The Slavic/Nordic countries share more similarities culturally than either do with North America. The jokes and references you make in everyday life between these two sets of people are wildly different.

This is Ilya's first time being with a group of people who understand him as he wants to be understood, who he can tell jokes to without having to explain nuances and references, in months.

Ilya's face here is so fond, this is the first joke (at least that I can remember) Shane makes. Once again this is friendship building.

Now I'm not sure if Scott knows for sure that they are in any kind of relationship but I do think he knows they at least get along. There is no way he didn't hear Ilya give Shane his room number.

And I think him bringing up being next to Rozanov in a few lines is proof of that.

He has also just seen them be friendly despite Rozanov just loosing to Hollander so at this point he knows the media spin is bullshit on some level.

Personally I prescribe to the theory that Scott Hunter at least suspects. Though that is more speculation than anything concrete.

We also get Scott calling Ilya an asshole. Since Ilya has only been on a team for less than a year and Scott has only likely played 2-3 games against him so far. (Their teams would play against each other 4-5 times a year.)

Scott already having his opinion of Ilya being an asshole formed here is interesting. Either Ilya really is that much of an asshole on ice and we never see it because we are focused on Shane and Ilya rather than how he behaves around other teams. Or that has been the media spin.

I think it's a bit of both. The media using stereotypes (Russian's bad) and Ilya's clipped communication while contrasting against "Good Boy Shane Hollander", and that he does like to chirp make him seem like a much bigger asshole than he actually is.

Last thing to note is that despite Scott basically warning Shane that he is right next door to Ilya, and the look of suppressed panic, Shane still goes.

Master List

Previous Scene

Next Scene

Discussion: Autism

Discussion: Russia

Discussion: Disordered Eating

I was curious how many players during Shane's career (first season of the show, 2011-2017) were of asian descent. I looked into the statistics of Yuna's statement during the CCM ad in Episode 1.

At the time of Yuna's statement there were 7 active players of asian descent in the league out of 736 players, a little under 1%. By 2017 there were 8 active player. And there were only 19 players in the NHL before Shane was drafted, one started playing the year before Shane.

Before Shane's career there were a total of 107 POC players.

19 - Asian, 28 - First Nation/Native, 6 - Latin American, 7 - Middle Eastern, 68 - Black.

And there have been a total of 212 POC players ever.

43 - Asian, 40 - First Nation/Native American, 8 - Latin American, 9 - Middle Easter, 112- Black.

To put this all into perspective there have been a total of 8676 NHL player since the NHL was founded in 1917 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. In the entire history of the NHL 2.44% of player have been POC. 0.49% of those players have been of Asian descent (0.19% of whom have been Japanese).

So yeah, the NHL (MLH) really is that white.

It's okay for a character to mess up and be selfish at times. It's healthy. It's the kind of human messiness we need more of in media. Characters recognizing their mistakes and growing from it is part of all the best stories.

It's okay that Ilya is selfish at times. It's okay that Shane is too.

And please don't erase all of the hard work that went into making Ilya a Russian character instead of a character with a Russian accent by ignoring his realities when it makess Shane look a bit bad.

Don't ignore the subtle choices that were made to make Shane autistic and then blame any "flaws" on his autism. Let my boy be flawed and autistic. Don’t ignore when Ilya crosses a line and Shane doesn't know how to appropriately handle it.

Don't ignore that not disagreeing with something the other characters says/does/plans doesn't mean they fully agree.

I am begging you, don't rip the complexity the show adds to the characters just because it changes the narrative from the book.

Hell, doing that is why you're all currently mad at RR. Let them be flawed and damaged. Let them grow and heal together.

Once again this is just my read on the show and any input is more than welcome. This post is going to deal with racism. Not being POC myself my point of view might be mostly worthless and if I say anything off please let me know. I am trying to be respectful here but if my words come out wrong I am so sorry about that.

29.30 - 30.06 Let's Get Ready To Rumble!!!

It is mentioned in the Draft Scene that the Metro's have "Broken Barriers" before but historically the first POC player (Willie O'Ree '58-'79) on a national team was actually on Boston's team (Bruins) and played his first game against Montreal.

Based on surface level looks between the two teams (who would have 23 players each but only 29 actors are visible between the two teams) there are only two POC (maybe three because we can't see J.J.) and they are both on the Metro's line.

I bring this up to highlight how very white the MLH is so when I talk about it in the next section it makes sense. (Based on NHL stats 97-90% of players/officials are white and 83% of the entire organization is white. I did the math for the percentage of POC players in this post.)

We get another indication of just how good Shane and Ilya are as players in this scene.

There's only 43 seconds left of game play and the score is tied. If either team wants to win they need to send out their best players.

We also get told through the series that Metro/Raiders are arch rivals. Winning against each other probably means more to both teams/fans than winning against any other team.

So to have two fresh rookies take point in the final face-off of the game lets us know just how much weight their teams are already putting on them. 

There are some really cool things happening in the audio track here I want to talk about. 

When this scene first starts and we have the score banner across the top of the screen the audio is slightly muffled as if we are watching this game playing on a TV at home. 

We also can hear a large crowd chattering, letting us know just how big this game is for both teams and fans. These aren’t bottom of the ranking teams with only a small but dedicated fan base. 

At the line, “Are they going to give the people what they want?” the crowd suddenly starts roaring. These two fresh face rookies are already well known for their supposed rivalry and prowess. 

Side note: We never see much overt evidence of Ilya and Shane’s rivalry because to them there isn’t one. It is only in moments like these, when we have an outsider’s view, that we see just how blown up the narrative around them becomes. 

Back to the audio. As we zoom in on Shane and Ilya at the face-off we also get an audible zoom (a zooming sound effect). All the noise of the other players and fans is suddenly gone. There is still background noise but it’s empty and echoing. It makes it feel like Shane and Ilya are all alone in this huge space. 

We get a cool repeated scene, the director in the CCM Ad calling Shane’s name then to Yuna calling it in scene 7, and now the announcer saying Ilya’s name and Ilya taking the announcer’s place to say Shane’s.

Another interesting thing to point out is that this is the first and only time Ilya says Shane’s first name in front of him until the Tuna Melt Down in episode 4. (If I’m misremembering please let me know).

Ilya is allowing himself an emotional closeness he doesn’t allow when they are in private. Since they are in public there is already a built in distance so saying Shane’s first name is safe.

@devussie commented this amazing nugget. "Will you disappoint them (the Asian community) (your brand sponsors) (your family) (your team) (hockey/the league)?" And I swooned. This all this. It might not be exactly what Ilya means but it's what Shane hears.

And while Ilya is watching Shane’s face during the face-off Shane doesn’t make eye contact and is already looking down at the ice when he replies with, “No” to Ilya’s playful chirp.

It wouldn’t be wild to say Ilya was in part momentarily distracted by looking at Shane. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that was why Shane won the face-off (he is so good he could have won either way) but it is something to think about. 

This could also be part of his Autism or not wanting to look at the man he has sexual desire for.

Their silent bubble is broken by the crowd and the referee’s whistle as the puck drops. The quiet world between them will always be interrupted by others and their career. 

30.06 - 30.36 He Just Wanted to See His French Boy Speak

Once again we get a really cool prop choice to show this interview on a period appropriate TV. It grounds us in this world and makes us believe this interview was recorded in 2010.

There is also the MLH league Network logo in the corner of the recording, this isn’t just some small local news outlet. 

I also think the choice to have the glare of the light on the screen from Ilya’s hotel room lamp is brilliant. Having the glare makes this scene feel real, it’s not overly polished and fake like a lot of media these days is. We feel like we are in the room watching with Ilya.

Now a couple of notes on Shane’s French here (I asked the good people of tumbr what they thought of his accent). Apparently Shane, while being perfectly understable, has an extremely thick accent. But he is also following a pretty fast paced interview perfectly fine. 

Montreal is a bilingual city and most people (71%) speak Québécois French (a regional dialect) as their first language. And 80% use it as their main language. 

So while Shane has more leeway (56% speak both English and French) he would still have to rely on speaking his second language most of the time. (For comparison only 0.3% of Americans speak Russian. Boston has the 14th biggest Russian community in the states at 7,262 people which is a little over 1% of all people in Boston proper.) 

Shane also looks just as sweaty as Ilya did in the scene 11 post, once again selling the believability of this world.

Now onto the interview itself. Shane has a “good boy” canadian image to maintain so he has to step lightly. Anything “arrogant” he says will be used against him. And it will only fuel their supposed rivalry. 

(I’ve heard this but I’m not 100% sure if it’s true or not, so correct me if I’m wrong.) Hockey is a sport where players are expected to direct any attention they might get as an individual back on the team. You’re not supposed to be the star player but just a piece of the puzzle. So a lot of Shane’s dodging, beyond wanting to keep his reputation intact, could be for that reason. 

As the interviewer asks her question about Tiger Woods and Serena Williams we can see Shane close off and his smile falls. 

While his answers might have been redirecting the conversation before his tone and face had slight giddiness to it. He is proud he bet Ilya and scored (even if he can’t say it), but instead of continuing to focus on Hockey in the interview the reporters asks an invasive question that Shane isn’t allowed to be upset about.

The comparison to Tiger Woods and Serena Williams here is extremely telling of the type of racism Shane faces throughout his life.

Both Tiger Woods and Serena Williams are at the top of their sport and it's important for visibility and representation to recognize they are both POC in predominantly white sports.

But that visibility, the fact they are so well known outside of their sport, is in-part a product of racism. They are spoken of so much, by people not even interested in golf/tennis, that they’ve become part of pop culture. And for the most part they are being recognized for being “anomalies" rather than for being incredibly talented. We don't have this same level of player name recognition in other sports that have more diverse players and fans. (Though this could also be in part because neither golf or tennis is a team sport.)

My point about those two names is, could you off the top of your head name the current worlds best baseball player? Probably not. And I think most Americans wouldn't be able to either. And baseball is a much bigger sport than either golf or tennis so why are those two names part of pop culture? Because racism.

All their achievements, and every move, are linked back to their race. They aren't allowed to just be the best in their field, they are the best POC player. And saying it like that diminishes their accomplishments. You could be the best POC player in a sport and still be the 100 best player. They are the best and just so happen to be POC and the latter shouldn't be brought up at every turn or used as a preface for their talent.

I'm not saying that being POC shouldn't be acknowledged but I think it should be up to that player to choose when and how to bring that up in a conversation, not by interviewers and random strangers. Especially like in this interview where it seems like she is looking for a headline.

Throughout the series it is never Shane who brings up his race but always other people. And while it might help others who "look like him" see themselves in hockey it isn't fair to force him to take on that role.

But the media would and it would constantly be brought up by announcers and sports analysts (some probably in good faith). People with no interest in Hockey would bring him up too. They would talk about how groundbreaking he is and then not bring up the fact he is a beast at hockey. 

Especially when you consider that if Shane was likely to hint at negative reactions to his race in the league, management and officials would likely drum him out. He is too new here to "raise a stink". He has yet to become so famous and well known that silently kicking him out of the league becomes impossible.

The reporter asking this isn't just being subtly racist but also risking his career. If this question wasn’t about his race she would have brought up the greatest hockey players in history. Hell, it would even be a cute place to bring up Scott Hunter’s name. But no, this white interviewer wants to make this win about him being “Asian, or Asian-Canadian”. 

30. 36 - 31.44 Stop Interrupting Alexei! 

I mentioned Shane’s accent earlier so that I can mention Ilya’s reaction here. Since Ilya doesn’t speak French he doesn’t know Shane’s accent is just as thick as his own. He is also watching an interview with no subtitles so has no idea what is being said. And I’m not sure he would even catch the implications of the final question if he were.

And yet Ilya still says “Mister Hollander… Kak éto, byt’ ideál’nym?” (Мистер Холландер… Как это, быть идеальным?) “Mr. Hollander… What is it like, to be perfect?” while sulking in his hotel room. (Once again thank you @ilyasaysitbetter for their translation and explanation. Seriously, their insight is so interesting.)

Now there is an interesting aspect of the difference between the on screen translation vs what is actually said. The official translation says, “How does it feel to be perfect?” The interesting word is “feel”. Ilya doesn’t ask “how it feels” (what is it like emotionally), he asks “what is it like” (how does it affect you). 

So much of Ilya and Shane’s problems are rooted in not knowing and understanding each other’s struggles. They could have easily bonded over having to rely so heavily on their second languages. They could have bonded over the “Russians are bad” (present in a lot of action media) and “Good Canadian boy” stereotypes. They could have bonded over parental expectations. There are so many things they could bond over, but because they refuse to talk (mostly on Ilya’s part) the only thing they connect over is their sexual attraction and hockey. 

The next line is also an interesting misalignment of words spoken and the translation. The translation says “Fucking perfect. Thanks for asking.” Which is sarcastic in nature (more like something Ilya would say). Where the actual words are: “Prósto otlíchno. Spasíbo, shto sprosíli.” (Просто отлично. Спасибо, что спросили.) “Just excellent. Thank you for asking.” which is more polished, closer to a media trained answer and something Shane might say. 

The next line also doesn’t contain the word “fucking” but is instead, “Eshchó na frantsúzkom.” (Ещё на французском.) “And in French, too.” 

I think it’s important to notice the lack of cursing here, because while yes, Ilya is obviously annoyed he isn’t upset to the level of cursing over it. 

Ilya here is jealous at how easy Shane seems to have it. He’s not struggling with language or being PR friendly. He doesn’t have to worry about misstepping (at least Ilya doesn’t think he does).

We get a jump to Ilya standing while on the phone to Alexei. I think we don’t get the beginning of this conversation because it would probably be the same performative script we get in The First Call with Alexei. The first bit doesn’t matter, it’s worthless. This is the moment the conversation first catches all of Ilya’s attention. 

According to @ilyasaysitbetter this is perfectly what a soviet era home in Russia would look like. There is nothing out of place to let us know this is a recreation. There isn’t anything out of place to distract us from the show and perfectly depicts Alexei’s home life because of this. 

Also by lighting alone we can tell the time difference before it’s brought up later in the scene. 

Now I did some digging and Tyler Seguin was the Boston Bruins (the real life analogue of the Raiders) first round draft pick of 2010 his signing bonus was 90k and made a base salary of 900k his first year with performance bonuses. Gabriel Landeskog (who was rookie of the year in 2011-12) got a 92.5k signing bonus and only made 832.5k a year.

The minimum salary for a rookie is 500k and the maximum is 900k. 

Landeskog and Seguin both had 2.650m performance bonuses. This bonus happens after hitting certain conditions so likely isn’t given out until the end of season (but i could be wrong on that, I couldn’t find anywhere that mentioned it). 

Hockey players are paid 13 times a season.

So assuming a middle ground between Seguin and Landeskog, Ilya likely had paychecks of 65k with a 90k lump sum at the beginning. 

We also know Ilya had some kind of deal with CCM at this point, unlike Shane, we never hear about any other brand deals. 

In 2010 the estimated monthly cost for a single person to live in Boston, excluding rent, was 1.4k.

But that figure is wildly under what Ilya likely spent. First off is security concerns. Ilya is a professional athlete in Boston which is currently rated the best city for sports in the U.S. He can’t live just anywhere. This means living in a likely upperclass neighborhood (though probably only an apartment) though there is a chance of billeting or sharing with another rookie. 

The West End where TD Gardens (the Boston hockey rink) is the most expensive area of Boston to live in. 

And while we don’t know if Ilya as a 19 year old was doing much cooking (because eating out all the time adds up fast) we do know he liked to party (at least in the off season).

There is also the fact that he probably moved to America with very little and probably spent a good chunk of his early paychecks and bonus on buying furniture, clothes, ect. 

Now we come back to his conversation with Alexei, which is mostly translated as it’s spoken but if you want to dig in deeper check out this post by @ilyasaysitbetter. 

Alexei asks for 20k, Ilya is obviously shocked. But by the way Ilya doesn’t question the amount itself and instead asks “For what this time?” makes me think the shock is less about the number and about another large or similar sum, that he already sent being gone. 

This is confirmed by a line in his first call from Russia, where he says to Alexei that he has no more money and his bonus is done. 

And of course Alexei when asked replies with, “For fuck you.” This dismissiveness shows just how little he thinks of Ilya while saying that he thinks he deserves this money. 

Ilya doesn’t fight it at all, he is used to being treated this way. And while he says “This is the last fucking time.” We, but more importantly Alexei knows this is a lie. He placates Ilya, he’s gotten what he wants so all is good in his world.

The moment he is slightly inconvenienced by the fact he will have to wait for the money he blows up once more. It’s not enough to get what he wants but he also wants it on his time table. 

Side note: Two things I love about the audio here is that depending on who we are focused on, the other's voice sounds like it’s coming through a phone. It’s not something you notice but if it wasn’t there you sure as hell would. 

Next audio thing is that we can hear Ilya’s niece crying in the background when we are viewing Alexei’s end of the conversation. Without ever directly addressing it we get an understanding into Alexei as a father. His daughter is crying and Alexei is extorting his brother. What also is important here is that we can also hear her crying when we are Ilya’s side of the phone call. 

Her crying is a constant reminder that she is there. From the funeral scene in episode 5 we know that Ilya cares for her and when interacting with Alexei she is probably always a background thought. 

And I don’t think this is a purposeful manipulation on Alexei’s part but Ilya’s emotions are being manipulated here. 

Back to the conversation itself. (@ilyasaysitbetter hasn’t yet gotten to this section so I’m going off subtitles again and will change or add things later if needed.) “You always have some bullshit excuse, Ilya.” The way Ilya just covers his face and redirects the conversation is another sign that this line has been said many times before and we see Grigori using similar language when Ilya tries to explain himself.

Saying it is midnight is a perfectly reasonable explanation but his brother acts like Ilya is just making up reasons not to do what he’s told. No matter what Ilya says to try to explain himself in these situations it will never be seen as the truth. So why bother trying. 

The next section of the exchange is the first time we get hint something is wrong with Grigori. By Alexei saying, “What the fuck is up with you and Dad? Jesus fucking Christ! He is fine!” We know that this isn’t the first time Ilya has asked and been brushed off. 

Alexei’s screaming here only upsets his daughter further and her crying grows louder. 

“We can live without you. Go fuck yourself, Ilya.” You can only hear something like this for so long from people who are supposed to love you before you start thinking it yourself. I honestly think Ilya has already passed that point. Sending money to his brother is a way to make sure Alexei can’t live without him. This is Ilya’s way of showing his brother that he is important. 

With how Ilya’s head is positioned we can’t see his eyes and any possible reaction to Alexei’s statement. This show does such a great job showing us how characters feel through facial expressions alone that I think this is a purposeful choice. We aren’t meant to see (understand) how Ilya feels because he doesn’t know how he feels either. 

A lot of the time in the first three episodes it feels like Ilya doesn’t know what/how he should feel, though I think this is one of the more obvious ones. And when he does he usually does his best to push them down or distance himself from them. 

Of course we know the significance of their father asking Ilya to pick up bread on their way, which is confirmed in later episodes, but this is the first noticible signs of dementia. 

What’s interesting is that Ilya, the son who actively has avoided his father’s calls at times has noticed something is wrong and is trying to do something about it. 

By the look on Alexei’s face he has also noticed it on some level but doesn’t want to face what it means. 

Now I hate Alexei as much as the next person but I don’t think we should overlook the fact that he is the one who will have a front row seat for years of his father slowly losing his memories. 

And again while I hate Alexei he also grew up under Grigori Rozanov, he also lost a mother. He stayed in Russia while his little brother became successful in America. He likely had to see his brother talked about in the news and by high ranking members of society while being constantly compared to him. He has a huge inferiority complex that he masks with a superiority complex. 

This does not excuse him but it adds to his character. And one of the things I love about this show is how complex all the characters are. 

There is nothing Ilya can say once Alexei has said, “Well, he is stupid!” The conversation has been completely shut down. Trying to open it back up would just be banging his head against a wall. 

Another dagger to me is that Ilya says, “Good night, Alexei.” He could have just said bye or hung up without another word. There’s a longing in telling his brother “Good night”. They grew up together and he probably said this line hundreds of times before. 

But once again this small connection Ilya was holding out (like using papa instead of father in scene 5) is ignored and basically spat upon. 

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Discussion: Autism

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Discussion: Disordered Eating

Settling a debate.

So enjoy my yapping lol.

With the culture of the NHL and what we've seen in the show, even if Shane was diagnosed with ASD, I don't think anyone would properly attempt to accommodate him besides Hayden, Ilya, Rose and his family — even with Shane's family there is still conflict.

I could be projecting because I'm Autistic and this has happened many times. But to me, Shane's conversation with Yuna and David (it's always the Rolex Wimbledon convo >_< ) is the start of a meltdown. David and Yuna (mostly Yuna) see Shane as being combative, his feelings and opinions are dismissed as Shane just having an 'attitude' instead of them trying to actually understand why he's uncomfortable and disinterested in going which he very clearly communicated. Yuna says "this isn't like you" but that's because Shane is masking for work but also for his friends and his family.

Shane's high masking because he HAS to be. He is not allowed to be anyone else other than Shane Hollander — Asian Canadian Sports Prodigy and Generational Talent ™️.

Shane has been made into a commodity, which is just absolutely devastating. As Yuna says "we're just the parents, you're the main attraction" and again in Ep 1 "lots of kids are going to see themselves in you", "Shane is the youngest NHL Rolex ambassador".

The Metro's director also says that the Metro's are "breaking barriers" and are doing it again by having Shane on the team. Shane is supposed to be marketable and being Autistic, Asian and Queer is too overwhelming. Being Autistic could also be used as another marketing tool. "Shane Hollander — NHL's Asian Canadian Gay Autistic Sports Prodigy and Generational Talent ™️ "

If this happens it's another mold that Shane would be forced to fit into. He would also have to deal with abilist micro-agressions. As you mentioned, people viewing Autism as a superpower. But there's also the other side of that, people questioning if he should be in the NHL (because Autism is a developmental delay and developmental delays are a disability).

The Metro's already bully Shane because of his rigid lifestyle and routines. Knowing that Shane is Autistic would give them more ammunition and reasons to ostracize him. Because gay slurs have been completely normalised (and I would say encouraged), there's no way players wouldn't be calling people re*tards and sp*zes. Which would definitely reinforce the view that being Autistic (and gay) is a negative thing.

With Shane's deep internalised shame about his sexuality, the constant bullying/micro-aggressions he receives/hears and needing to be perfect for marketability, I think Shane would also feel a deep sense of shame about his Autism. It's ANOTHER thing that makes him "not normal".

I agree with all of this! (My Autism Post)

I'd go even further and say if it was known he was Autistic as a teen he would never have been allowed to captain his team in the two prospect cups. And this would probably continue into the MLH and Olympic teams.

Also, especially as a teen, other people would try to get him to purposefully meltdown. To "see him freak out." I'm pretty sure it would have gotten so bad he would have quit hockey altogether since such things would be encouraged as "chirping".

Actually learning to ignore chirping is probably a good part of how he learned to mask. Also probably another reason he picked hockey to obsess over (beyond it being his family sport), he is allowed to "meltdown" a little on ice since it is a violent sport. When, if it was off ice he would be scolded or looked down on for his emotions outbursts.

I actually think if it was known there would be no way he was draft pick number 2. I think he would be far down the list no matter how good he was. And he would definitely be far more otherized in locker rooms. Instead of the weird guy who doesn't date or go out and drink he'd be the pitiable r*tard who couldn't get a date and shouldn't even be invited out. And with how bad I've heard the Metros are in book two, if Shane did somehow draft with them in this world where it was known he was autistic he would be a complete outsider. They would still play him just as much, he really is that good, but they would consider any wins to them "handling" him and any loss (even if he barely played) to having to accommodate him.

He also wouldn't be captain or first line, he would probably be second line. And his autism would always be "playfully teased". The only "upside" I can see is they wouldn't bother trying to hook him up/ask about his hook ups or push him to come out with them. And they would probably act like he was a burden if they did take him out (groaning over having to watch over him, make sure he didn't die ect).

My little cousin is very high up on the scale (but also still high masking) but when they were little they were in a lot of behavior therapy. Some of it was necessary (forcing them to walk with flat feet instead of tippy toes with weighted vests) and some of it completely unnecessary to force them to be more "normal".

But at the same time they were never really accommodated for (noise canceling headphones, weighted blankets, ect). Though part of this could be because less was known then of how to help and by the time it was they were high masking enough that it wasn't thought to be needed.

I can see, Yuna at least, having a therapist like this hired (if they knew he was autistic) until he was as high masking as we see in the show. After my analysis of the Right Up the Butt Scene I don't think David would have willingly hired the same kind of therapist. But when Shane was growing up that was probably all there was.

As for accommodation, I do think David would do anything he thought would help but I don't think Yuna would see a need. By the time such accommodations were common knowledge he would have already learned to mask so she wouldn't think to buy things to help, especially when it would mean confronting that fact that being diagnosed would affect his public image.

I can also see an argument for the Hollanders having Shane tested and then choosing not to tell Shane (it's something that happened to a lot of kids of his age group).

I also think most of his brand deals wouldn't have signed him in the first place if it was widely known. It would make him a liability to them since Autistic people have such bad representation in the media

Also there is a good argument that Yuna would wield Shane's Autism as another thing to be visible about (like she starts to do in episode 6 with his sexuality). And she would book him with brands specifically related to autism (special toys/weighted blankets ect). And while that would help him accommodation wise it would infantilize his image. She also would likely be far more controlling. I can see her moving to whatever city Shane ended up in and living across the street and visiting all the time.

I think the only ones to accommodate him would be the Pikes and Ilya. But I think the Pikes would infantilize him a bit. Not all the time but if they thought they were helping him they would. Like, if he was overstimulated it public I can see Hayden saying, "Hey bud, you need me to pull out the noise canceling headphones?" And not realizing how degrading that would feel.

He would be doing it to help but I think it would piss off and embarrass Shane. It would probably only push him to mask harder and draw a greater wedge in their friendship.

Where I think Ilya would just pull out the headphones without a word and absently offer them. And just a shake of his head would have Ilya putting them back away. He would probably talk just as much as before but he would lower his volume. I also think Ilya would normalize such items (the headphones, stim toys, weighted blankets) by using them himself. And I don't even think using them would be performative but more to see how they would help and just finding a liking to some of them. Noise canceling headphones can be good for everyone in the right circumstances and weighted blankets are nice in general.

But that said I think it would be the Pikes who were more likely to notice his Autism. I don't think it would even occur to Ilya and any media he did see, being so over the top, he wouldn't connect to Shane's quirks. I think Hayden and Jackie would go on a reading/buying spree and just start using that knowledge on Shane without discussing it with anyone. And when Ilya does finally pull one of them to the side to ask what the fuck they are doing he finally is clued in.

I also don't think anyone would be willing to have a discussion with Shane about it, even Ilya. I think he would have to ask to be told why they are doing all this before they tell him their theory.

And as for Rose, as much as I like her I think she would accommodate him but I don't think she would have ever gone in for a romantic relationship. Well, at least not until years of friendship passed and only if Shane made the first move. Where I think even if it had been widely known during his junior years Ilya would still have gone for it with Shane. Probably still in the same way. Though I do think he probably would have treated the sex differently at first.

I'm not trying to act like Ilya would be perfect. With how little was known about autism and how mental health is treated in Russia I think he would have had hang ups. I think it would have been far more likely for Ilya to be the one always servicing Shane and acting like Shane shouldn't get him off after. I can also see him having some shame over lusting over Shane (partially because of how the media doesn't let autistic characters be sexual). I think it would take Shane basically having to punch him in the face for treating him like that in an AU where it was known for him to let Shane be the cock slut we know he is.

Once again this is just my read on the show and any input is more than welcome.

26.36 - 27.06 If He's a Goalie, You're Trying to Score

First thing I want to point out is the amazing prop work in this show when it comes to period appropriate technology. The props masters really go above and beyond and it helps immerse the viewer in the time the show is set.

Another nice little touch here is that Ilya looks like he is just finished with a game/practice. His hair looks matted down like if he has been wearing a helmet and his skin is slightly shiny with sweat.

The music (Une Journée Parfaite by DUMAS) is light and playful and is a good indicator that what Ilya says is supposed to be teaseing and so is Shane's "What a fucking asshole.”

But the lyrics of the song are also telling. It’s about living and suddenly finding the thing you didn’t know you were missing. A map with no reason to use it, an invitation with no destination, time but nothing to spend it on, sound with no picture, a book you're missing the first pages of. They are all things that are useful in theory but without a reason to use them they are pointless, they are incomplete.

Whether they know it or not Ilya and Shane have just given each other a reason both romantically and professionally. 

You can also debate that the fact it’s in French (not a language they share), is a metaphor for the fact that though they have both been “completed” they don’t understand it yet. Or that maybe being in French (a language Shane does know) that he has on some level already realized this but if he told Ilya, Ilya wouldn’t understand.

Personally I like this added interpretation because Shane and Ilya’s biggest obstacle is actually communication/language barriers.

Ilya's line of, "About time." It's probably a mix of different things, yes it's excitement to see Shane but also to play against him again. I think it's also probably something he has been asked multiple times before and he's just glad the questions will stop. His tone isn't outwardly excited so either he is keeping it under wraps or the last reason (annoyance) is overriding everything else. He seems much more animated about the direct question about Shane.

Things we learn from this interview: This is the first time in three months that they will be seeing each other since the CCM ad and it will also be their first time playing each other.

Without even playing a game against each other yet the media and league has already set them up as arch-rivals.

This is also interesting because they are both rookies so in theory they shouldn't be that important to their teams and the league over all yet. They aren't established players, and in fact haven't even completed a season yet, but Ilya is being interviewed already.

They are being set up to be the next big thing in hockey and all eyes are on them.

We see Ilya chirping Shane in front of the press, it's harmless over all but it also lets us see Ilya's playful and teasing nature. We can also assume anytime Shane is brought up Ilya will take the chance to make a joke which would only feed into the rival narrative.

The joke about being a goalie is that since they are not playing the same position (if Shane was goalie) than he is no longer competition. Another thing to note is that goalies aren't allowed to be captains.

We also get to see Ilya being cocky and this lets us know, since we don't see much of how he interacts with the general public throughout the show, that this is the behavior he will be known for and how he is viewed.

Through the series it's only how the public views Shane that we ever really see. This could be a point about how Shane seems to be the one who really cares about public perception of him. Shane is the one who is against being outed because it will affect his reputation but for Ilya it's about his safety.

Ilya joking that he said 50 instead of 40 is a clever way to let the viewer know that Ilya is always trying to one up not only Shane but himself.

Not only is he competitive with others but with himself as well. He is always striving to outdo himself.

And being as competitive as Shane is, Ilya is basically throwing down a gauntlet here (and I honestly think Ilya is fully aware of what this comment would sound like to Shane and he knows the press will make sure Shane hears about it).

A big part of their dynamic, and why they work as a couple, is that they are both so competitive. And while they hate losing, if they are going to lose to anyone they rather it be to each other. They can even find happiness in losing if it’s the other who wins, because it means there is still room to improve and someone to get better for/against.

If they weren't both so good (if one of their teams never won against the other) this kind of competitiveness would destroy any relationship they could possibly have.

In this short interview we also see Ilya easily charming the interviewers. He is comfortable and charismatic, while that is something Shane struggles with.

Shane smiling when he says "What a fucking asshole." lets us once again see the misalignment between his words and his thoughts. He is charmed by Ilya here.

Another thing to consider is that Shane had to purposefully search for this clip. Ilya isn't famous enough for it to be worthy of being on ESPN (he is one of many rookies on one of 32 teams). This clip he is watching also isn't from any social media (that I can tell) and is probably on youtube. Unless he has been searching for clips of Ilya before this, this interview wouldn't just show up on his for you (of the time period equivalant).

27. 06 - 29.30 Bitches Love Brunch

We can assume, with how Shane doesn't have to ask or look around to find his parents, that this is a restaurant they usually meet up at (and we do in fact see them meeting up here at other times). He also is wearing different clothes from the clip before and doesn’t look sweaty in the last clip so we can assume he watched the interview before his run.

The first thing Shane does is apologize for being late. Now it might just be me but 15 minutes isn’t the kind of late to apologize for. And we know he isn't just saying it as a courtesy since he starts explaining why he was late.

Personally I don't like that Yuna says, "It's just that you're usually on time." It isn't the kind of thing you would say to someone who is usually on time and the first time they aren't they are only late by 15 minutes. David waves it off as no problem but with how Yuna says that line it sounds like a reprimand.

I can understand a line like that if Shane had started being 30 minutes late multiple times in a row but from this conversation we get the idea that Shane is almost always punctual. Her tone also seems slightly put out at having to wait.

Yuna ordering for Shane after he was only 15 minutes late is also really weird. Ordering for your grown son seems really controlling and infantilizing, ordering a drink is one thing but his meal is weird. Especially when he was barely late. It's not like David and Yuna were sitting there for a long time and decided to ordered for themselves. It would have been no problem for them to tell the waitstaff they are waiting for someone else.

It's also weird because they didn't know how late he would be, so ordering without contacting him to know how long he would be risked his food getting cold.

We also see more of their family dynamic when Shane mentions Youtube rabbit holes David seems genuinely interested in it and what his son was watching but Yuna cuts it off and makes it about work.

Shane's words and expression are very preformative here but his tone gives the game away. Just like the Reebok deal he is completely uninterested in the conversation. He also doesn't look at either of his parents here, he is more staring at the table between them so they are in his peripheral vision.

This is also a really strange hand gesture and if I had to guess it is an aborted stim. If it is, it's something he has learned to stop or mask.

The Rolex email: I think the most important thing to notice is the line, "And we believe he will be hockey's most significant ambassador in a generation." What's important about this is that Rolex isn't in any way a sports brand. There is no reason this soon in his career they should be interested in him. Either Yuna is the most talented brand manager ever and/or Shane really is that talented with hockey. Likely a combo of both.

Still signing to Rolex this young, in a sport that isn't that big (it's not international the way soccer(football) is), is a huge deal. I'm not sure what the average brand ambassador for Rolex would make but just with his Reebok and Rolex brand deals along with the eventual pay check of the top MLH player he would never have to worry about money ever again.

Shane also isn’t blowing through money the way some others might but still Yuna pushes him to do more deals when it's clear if you pay attention to him that he isn't interested in this side of the industry.

With how serious he is about hockey he probably doesn’t like anything taking him away from the game. 

Something else to note is that while he gives his mother a few darting glances almost all his eye contact is saved for his father. (If you look at these two gif sets X, X, you can see the clear difference of how he interacts with his parents.) And the only time he does fully focus on his mother is when she is talking about Ilya and then it looks more like he is searching her face for her reaction.

I think David notices how his son is feeling and tries to change the topic in a really tactful way that bridges both conversations by saying, "Is Rolex on Youtube?"

The questions about Youtube also helps date this conversation in a neat way.

Yuna sighs in exasperation at David for changing the topic. And by Yuna saying "I go down those rabbit holes all the time” it is very unlikely David didn't know about Youtube and rabbit holes in the first place so him asking this is to put Shane at ease.

I've seen some people say they think Shane is lying about watching these videos but I think he has genuinely done it and enjoyed it (though it might not be part of why he is late now). He looks too excited about it for me to think otherwise and the way he looks both his parents in the eyes to gauge their interest in the topic is pretty clear to see.

The metaphor of unlikely friends is solely for us, the viewer. It basically says, "This show you're watching is like those videos of unlikely friends."

There is also the snake/baby Ilya/Shane comparison. The kind of snake that would be “friends” with a baby (because most parents hopefully aren't complete idiots) are harmless. Many people would look at the snake and might see something dangerous but it isn't. In fact, that baby while looking innocent is more likely to hurt the snake than the other way around.

There is also the argument of Snake(Sin/Seduction)/Baby (Innocence/chastity). We see Ilya being the sexually experienced partner who parties, drinks, ect. While Shane even once he has had sex is seen as pure/innocent by the public.

Once again this is all for the viewers to read into not the characters. It's a really cool and subtle crack in the fourth wall.

Yuna saying, "What you should be watching are the ones about hockey." Lets us know why Shane is so utterly obsessive in his dedication. Yes I think he does love hockey with his whole heart but the fact that the moment he showed interest in/spent time doing something else he was subtly reminded he should only focus on hockey is a bit of a kick in the teeth.

It's the kind of line that reinforces that all Shane should be is a living breathing hockey machine. It's not overt but because it isn’t it’s the kind of thing that would stick in his head. Next time he starts to go down a rabbit hole, or just watch random Youtube videos he would be reminded of his mom telling him to focus on hockey.

David tries to redirect this by saying, "I think keeping up with that snake and baby sounds pretty important." Just as subtly as Yuna was telling Shane to "Worry about hockey," his father is saying "Your interests are valid, it’s okay to relax."

You can also see the difference in his body language between when he is talking to his dad about Youtube and when his mom starts talking about work (Ilya). You can see the moment Shane tenses as he takes in a breath.

I think a lot of Shane's tension here is that if he could keep his parents from ever even thinking about Ilya he would. He wants his public (and public private(shared with friends and family))and private life to be completely separate. But Ilya is part of both so Shane can't compartmentalize him as easily as he could a random lover.

Yuna implies she is watching Ilya just as closely as Shane, if for vastly different reasons. She saw when he first said he would get 40 goals, when it first happened, and she has also already seen the most recent interview, which is likely pretty new.

David also says she was yelling about Ilya saying he'd get 40 goals. If that was all he said, not even something about Shane, and she was "outraged" as David said it is no wonder Shane keeps his relationship from them for so long.

40 goals would put you in the top 17 rookie seasons in MLH history, 50 would be top 5 and the highest ever was 76 (all four under that were in the 50s). So while Ilya is being cocky it's not like he is saying something completely ridiculous. Especially when we know both Shane and Ilya are that good.

We never get a confirmation of their end of season scores but since Ilya is loosely based off Alexander Ovechkin (who scored 52 his rookie season) it's not too wild to say he also hit that 50 point goal and with Shane winning rookie of the year (and him being at 31 points to Ilya's 28 the one time it is mentioned) it's not too crazy to say Shane made even more.

I say this all because Yuna, by not acknowledging Ilya could be that good (even if he is being cocky about it), in some ways diminishes Shane's skills.

Ilya and Shane are constantly neck and neck (there are hints that overall Shane is just a tad bit better stats wise) and Shane is well aware of this. So if his mother thinks Ilya can't even get 50 let alone 40 what chance does Shane have?

I think Shane would take anything bad said about Ilya's hockey abilities personally. Not because he likes him, though that might be a small part, but because by putting down Ilya's skills people are inadvertently putting down Shane's abilities/achievements too.

And before where he was speaking in multiple sentences he drops down to only 4 words for the rest of the scene and even then it's just "Yeah, he's an asshole."

Despite being uncomfortable here his smile is so fond. I think this is more about their competitive relationship, about having someone to match him, rather than any romantic/sexual feelings he has.

I actually think most of Shane's attraction to Ilya at this point is because of the high he gets when in competition with him. Yes, he thinks Ilya is hot but I bet now that he realizes he likes men if it was just about being hot he would easily find someone safer to be with. No, most of the attraction is because Ilya matches him on the ice in skill and determination.

Back to the song lyrics, What is Shane and his accomplishments if he doesn't have someone to compete against. What's the point of working hard to get better if your going to beat everyone anyways.

Shane is competitive. Now imagine playing a sport at this high a level, being that competitive but having no one to compete against.

I don't think Shane would be able to be with another hockey player if they weren't just as good and dedicated as Shane himself is.

More amazing facial acting from Hudson Williams.

Shane does find this line funny, both for the irony of it but also because it's a wild thing for his mom to say.

But then he processes it. This line isn't actually homophobic (at least to me it isn't) it's off color but it also hits far too close to home.

You can see by how shaky his breath is in the last few frames that he is not doing well. This conversation is only 1.14 long and his emotions have been jerked around a lot already.

He is probably already overwhelmed and they haven't even gotten their food yet (which he may or may not already have a problem with at this point).

Shane is preparing himself to sit here for however long and lie about his thoughts and feelings, listen to his parents (mostly his mom) say bad things about someone he if not likes, then respects, while he can say nothing about it. Have work constantly brought up and expectations reiterated.

What should be an easy meeting with his parents becomes an emotional and mental burden. And his father is the only one who sees the stress. But he also doesn't seem to know how to stop it without causing things to get worse. All he can do is redirect things when he notices them and try to ease the tension with jokes.

The last thing I have to say about this scene is when Yuna says, “I’m sorry, but I said it.” David replies with “Honestly!” and how he says her name before that, If you listen closely, and this could just be me, David’s tone when he says those two words sounds actually upset. 

And I wonder if when David in episode 6 says that they have suspected Shane was gay for a while, if he didn’t already suspect here. If his tone while saying that word was because he was unhappy with Yuna even coming close to making a joke like that. 

We don’t see much of him but David seems way more in tune with Shane’s moods so it wouldn’t surprise me if he already had opinions/thoughts and wanted to be as welcoming as possible. 

Personal Note: I did a poll for if people thought Yuna ordering for Shane is weird here. Most said no. I have personal experience around eating disorders that make this topic very touchy to me so it could be coloring my opinion of this scene greatly. Because of that it also affects how I see Yuna Hollander. If you're curious about why my opinions on this are what they are, you can read the comments of this post that lay most of it out. I've tried to step back from it and see what the majority of the people polled see but I just can't. The best thing I can liken it to that might explain why I have such a big problem with it is someone ordering healthy food for another persons because they think they need to lose weight. They're just helping them to stay on their diet plan. Not the same but it’s the same reason I don’t like what Yuna did.

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