EARLY MORNING NOT-MEME

[exceptfebruary]

This one is really simple:

WHAT IS YOUR CHARACTER'S RELATIONSHIP TO THEIR FATHER?

You can also talk about mother/lusus/creator/whatever if your character doesn't have a father, but ANYWAY

Father's Day is on the 17th, let's talk about DADDY ISSUES.

Comments

warning: this is long. because look at that icon.

[bedeviledspider]

BEN REILLY WOULD HAVE BEEN A GREAT FATHER

like, okay, realistically things would have been tough. both he and Elizabeth Tyne were wanted criminals and being on the run from the law 24/7 is no way to raise a kid but they could've made it work

and just thinking about it hurts my heart

because Reilly's actual, living father figures are all pretty much universally terrible. MORE ON THAT IN A MINUTE

We don't really know what Reilly thinks about his birth father. Curse you for playing things so close to the chest, Spider-Son! Clearly, it matters to him that Ben's legacy is preserved -- that's why he trolls around "testing" May all the time. He wants to be sure she's worthy of wearing his Dad's old webs. He's proud of his old man, that much is for certain: when he does talk about the Scarlet Spider it's in very positive terms. But I think, never having had the chance to meet him, he sees Ben as more of a hero than a father. Does that make sense?

Especially because, when listing his "fathers" to Zarathos, the first name that spills out of his mouth? Matt Murdock. I think this says a lot about Matt's role in his life. Sure, Matt's dead. It's not a typical father-son relationship. But what little we see of them in canon says a lot, I think: they're comfortable with one another. Buddy-buddy even. There's a trust there that Reilly will never be able to get from any of his other fathers. And, in the end, it's Matt he chooses to emulate by following his footsteps in both his public and vigilante careers.

Then there's Kaine. Who is the closest thing Reilly has to a father who is actually, you know, ALIVE. I think Kaine genuinely wanted to be a father to Reilly -- why else take the child in, attempt to cure him, and raise him? Unfortunately, Kaine self-sabotages himself, because he's oh-so-good at that. Not only does he get his nephew transformed into a demon, he walks out on the teenager after doing so. And when he does finally see his nephew again? He beats the crap out of him. Great parenting, Kaine! Though the two slowly rebuild their relationship over the course of the various Spider-Girl series, even becoming regular team-up buddies and snark-hurler-at-ers, I don't think Reilly can ever bring himself to fully trust Kaine again.

And finally there's Zarathos. Who seems to consider himself Reilly's Dad because he turned him into a demon against his will. Because periodically trying to hijack your "son"'s body is the loving, fatherly thing to do! Sure! Reilly, on the other hand, is having NONE of it and refuses to give in to any of Zarathos' whiny rants about how he's the worst son ever.