#ticklish!march

I really go back and forth with these two in terms of ticklishness and who’s more ticklish. On one hand, March just shines with Lee potential. Like a large part of me is all for March just being ungodly ticklish literally all over, like no part of him isn’t sensitive. It fits with his over the top and dramatic persona. He has to do everything at %110 and that includes being ticklish.

And then for Healy, I was initially of the opinion hes not super ticklish, prolly barely at all and if so it’s only in one place. Hes a tough bruiser who beats up people for money, he’s a loner who isolates himself, and he has killed before. Being ticklish just doesn’t match his persona.

… but those are just these characters outward appearance. And what I love about this movie is it shows that these characters, that should fit into one initial box, don’t fit those at all. If you look deeper you see they are multi layered and not at all what they seem. March is a detective and former police officer, but he’s not a good person. He drinks, he’s irresponsible, he fails and makes mistakes, and hes got morally grey ethics. Hes loud and not composed. He lies. He gives up.

And Healy the bruiser is deep down, quite soft. He likes children, yes he beats up people for money but a lot of the times it’s to help those who are more vulnerable, like children and young women. Yes he killed blue face, but he did it to protect his partners kid that he just literally met. Hes loyal to a fault, hes a hard worker and will follow a thread to its completion until hes sure the objective is done. And when Holly begs him to spare the life of the man who tried to hurt her and her father, he listens to her. Hes soft spoken most of the time, quiet and doesn’t talk much.

And that leads me to my main point. These men don’t fit their outward personas and typical character stereotypes, thus why would they for these headcanons about their ticklishness?

So, dear readers, I ask you to consider this:

What if my initial thoughts are backwards. What if March, this ADHD, erratic, clumsy, frantic, dramatic guy, is barely ticklish at all.

And what if his tough, quiet, loner bruiser partner is secretly excruciatingly ticklish.

And it embarrasses and pisses Healy off to no end. Bc it shouldn’t be like this.

When March finds out Healy is ticklish it’s the best day of his life. It prolly happens on accident, an accidental swipe of a hand or grabbing a side for balance, and Healy’s reaction is too strong and potent to not be anything but that conclusion, and March is also no dummy, deep down. He knows exactly what just happened before Healy can even get a protest out (or a threat), and starts exploiting it immediately, much to Healy’s embarrassment. And to make matters worse, when Healy tries to retaliate, using his superior strength to stop the probing hands and add his own, he has to face the humiliating conclusion that he is way more ticklish than holland fucking Marsh, who isn’t even laughing bc of the tickling Healy’s trying to do, but bc of that same conclusion. It shouldn’t be like this. Healy takes one look at March and thinks this ridiculous man cant possible be not over the top ticklish while Healy is. It’s not fair

Anywho, that’s a scenario I really like. But, as much as I think this scenario is funny and adorable…. I mean, just look at Holland March. The man is totally ticklish, I cant not imagine him so.

So a compromise: March is moderately ticklish, and we keep that same hilarious premise/strange power dynamic by having Healy still embarrassingly more ticklish than March. But a key point is, while Healy is more ticklish, March’s reactions are more over the top. Despite him just being moderately ticklish, it doesn’t matter. He’s only ticklish in a few places but he’s so loud and dramatic, flails and screeches and cusses up a storm. Healy might be ticklish in way more places and possibly just all over, but he’s good at keeping his laughter in when he’s really trying. However when he does crack, his laughter is husky, low, and starts quiet but gradually gets louder. It’s more rumbles and round-cheeked smiles than the screeching and screaming that Holland does.

———