#spulia

Have fun out there, and let's continue supporting each other in spite of this toxicity!

[Response #1]

Not sure why you felt the need to comment with those two quotes, considering neither of them changes the fact that Watanabe, the creator and driving narrative force behind Cowboy Bebop, confirmed that Spike likes Faye. And before you can say something disingenuous like, “Spike also likes Jet, Ed, and Ein!” (as I’ve seen you do on other people’s posts), you and I both know he means “like” in a romantic sense, hence why he mentions Spike “pursuing” Faye -- something he would never do with Ed or Ein. To pretend otherwise is willfully obtuse.

Also, Jet loving Spike in no way contradicts the fact that Faye loves him, too. Jet has been Spike’s partner for more than three years, so it’s unsurprising that he understands Spike better than Faye, who’s only know him for several months. Multiple people can harbor feelings for the same individual, just like they can experience attraction toward more than one person in their life. This belief system you prescribe to (and continually try to shove down other Bebop fans’ throats) is extremely immature, narrow-minded, and lacks any semblance of nuance, but I guess this narrative is just too complex for some people.

[Response #2]

But it is disingenuous, because you’re deliberately refusing to acknowledge or interact with the part of Watanabe’s quote that doesn’t support your narrative. He literally says that Spike’s not the type of man to pursue a woman he’s interested in/attracted to, and when the interviewer asks if he’s talking about Spike’s relationship with Faye, he says “of course.” That could not be any more straightforward. I’m not “reading what I want” into the quote, I’m reading it exactly as it’s written, to the letter. You can copy/paste your Julia manifesto all over the internet, but it doesn’t change the fact that Watanabe, the final word in all things Cowboy Bebop, has gone on record saying Spike has feelings for Faye. He never follows up on these feelings, but they’re there. You’re so dogmatically attached to your own interpretation of the show, you deliberately ignore the creator’s own words, yet when there’s a quote you think supports your view, like Nobumoto’s, you use it ad nauseam.

I, meanwhile, am happy to engage with all sides of the discussion. Nobumoto refers to Julia as “Spike’s woman,” which we already know to be true. She’s not giving us any new information here. Spike loves Julia very much. Many fans would argue he loves her too much, considering the one-dimensional, idealized version of her that exists in his memory leads him to make a lot of rash, potentially deadly decisions. But I digress. You won’t find many -- if any -- Spike/Faye fans arguing against the fact that Spike loves Julia and, as a result, won’t allow himself to travel down a similar path with anyone else. That doesn’t negate the fact that, were he to finally reckon with his past trauma, he could, nor does it mean he isn’t attracted to other women.

You yourself admit that Spike displays interest in both Elektra and Katerina, yet only as a means of discrediting his connection to Faye. First off, you’re contradicting your own childish “one true love” narrative by pointing this out, and second, you’re once again being disingenuous by pretending that Spike’s initial reaction to Faye isn’t just as flirty as his reaction to Elektra or Katerina. In fact, “Honky Tonk Woman” is brimming with sexual tension. It’s only once Spike really gets to know Faye in subsequent episodes that their dynamic changes to the combative bickering most fans know and love.

I don’t know what it is about the Spike/Faye pairing that disturbs you so greatly, but your fixation on a ship you don’t even support is, quite frankly, extremely weird. I suspect the real reason you feel the need to comment on every Spike/Faye post you see is because you view it as a threat to Spike/Julia, which makes sense. It’s by far the most talked about, most popular ship in the Cowboy Bebop fandom, and for good reason. Aside from you and your five burner accounts, no one’s really talking about Julia, because no one cares. Cowboy Bebop is about so much more than romance, but that fact seems to have sailed over your head entirely.

I’ve said my piece, and you seem utterly incapable of engaging in an intelligent, nuanced discussion, so this will be the last I have to say on the matter, regardless of whether or not you respond with more of your copy and paste devotional pamphlets (which I know you will). Anyone who’s been in the Bebop fandom for more than five minutes knows you run multiple Spike/Julia spam accounts and have been banned from the Bebop subreddit for harassing other fans. None of your unsolicited comments are going to change mine or anyone else’s opinion about this ship.