#aitada

Ok so firstly we have Dr Ivo Robotnik and Ainosuke Shindo; both antagonists within their stories, both incredible in their own rights being the best in their fields, and both are mad geniuses. They are both primarily referred to by their nicknames by the other characters (Eggman for Robotnik and Adam for Ainosuke), both are primarily associated with the colour red, they both unique hairstyles, and both share a love for dance.

They also both have an obsession with a blue haired teen (ok very different types of obsession tbf but it’s funny to me).

Next we have Agent Stone and Tadashi Kikuchi, who are both also very similar; they are both employed under the previously mentioned characters, they are loyal to a fault to those characters even if they don't always treat them best, both of them almost exclusively wear suits throughout their entire screen times, and, if I share my own opinion, they both also have extremely pretty eyes.

Now onto the similarities of them as couples.

Both Robotnik and Ainosuke are shown to manhandle Stone and Tadashi at various points, leading to accusations from their respective fandoms of physical abuse.

However, in both cases, most fans recognise that Stone and Tadashi don’t just put up with the ‘abuse’ but seem to actively enjoy it, leading to kink-shaming towards Stone and Tadashi for their unconventional relationships with their bosses, but it's generally accepted as they match each other's freaks to a dangerous degree.

Stone and Tadashi also both only seem to smile when around Robotnik and Ainosuke, taking on more neutral or even annoyed expressions when around anyone else.

With both ships it’s also apparent that they have years of history together. With Tadaai they have known each other since childhood and had a falling out in their teens which is the catalyst for the entire plot of sk8 and what led to Ainosuke becoming unhinged.

While it's clear Stobotnik don’t have the same kind of messy history with each other, it still seems true that the two have worked with each other for some time considering how comfortable they are with one another, with Stone being the only human being Robotnik actually tolerates and allows close to him.

Robotnik and Ainosuke also both have very difficult relationships with their families, with Robotnik having grown up as an orphan, never knowing family until his grandfather entered into his life in sonic 3, and Ainosuke having a family but being physically and emotionally abused by them from a young age.

In both cases their family also cause a break in their relationships with Tadashi and Stone. Robotnik fires and turns his back on Stone in the 3rd movie, choosing to believe his grandfather over Stone after Stone urges Robotnik not to trust his grandfather after discovering he had been deceiving them the whole time.

Ainosuke and Tadashi’s relationship also breaks down due to Ainosuke's family, as Ainosuke’s father burning his skateboard results in Tadashi refusing to speak up for him in his defence, causing a split between them that’s lasts for nearly a decade.

Another similarity is the use of pet names and insults within their relationships as both Robotnik and Ainosuke use previously derogatory terms towards their other halves as a term of endearment during the emotional climax of their stories.

Ainosuke often refers to Tadashi as ‘dog’ using it throughout the whole show almost entirely as an insult, seemingly to remind him of his place within their relationship, until the end of the final episode where it takes on an affectionate meaning as he uses it in what comes pretty close to what fans consider to be a marriage proposal.

With Robotnik he had previously referred to Stone as a ‘sycophant’ (a person who acts obsequiously towards someone important in order to gain advantage) in the 2nd movie, however in the climax of the 3rd film he instead refers to him as a ‘syco-friend’ shortly before he sacrifices himself to save the world, changing a previous insult to acknowledge his own softer feelings towards Stone . In both cases this use of previously derogatory terms are used to signal a change in their relationships and the mending of them.

Robotnik similarly uses unconventional words of affection when talking to Stone, taking his compliment of Stone's latte's from the 1st movie and turning it into as close to a love confession as we could possibly get from these two.

To make my final point I'd also like to point out that with both ships the climax of their stories is reached when one realises what the other means to them. Robotnik saves the entire world and sacrifices himself simply because he knows that Stone is there on earth and that he’s the only person that ever truly cared about him, sacrificing himself for Stone.

With Ainosuke his story reaches a climax when he remembers what it’s like to have fun when skating again and the realisation that the whole reason he used to enjoy it so much was because he had Tadashi by his side and that he had always been there by his side the whole time.

Basically I really love both of these ships and they're all I could think about these last few days.

In conclusion