Or: So I Realized Why I’m Not All That Fond of Karkat
Or maybe it’s better to say, why I’m surprised that other people like Karkat
Alex, Mickey, and any other people not caught up with Homestuck: here there be spoilers
Here’s a surprising thing I want to suggest: Karkat, for most of the comic, has very little effect on the plot.
I know this seems a bit weird to think of at first–I mean, he interacts with so many characters, and he’s very close to being a protagonist! But, let’s think for a second. Most of his influence in the story is based on character over plot.
In Hivebent, by needling Terezi he gets to the position of leader of the Red Team, and later the combined team. But his duties boil down essentially to helping the others with their issues, usually romantic in nature. For all his bluster and bragging, Karkat is a nice guy—not a “Nice Guy,” but a decent good person who happens to be male. He is a rarity among trolls, and his personality allows him to keep the team together through the game without letting themselves get caught up in their own personal dramas. He is an archetype that TvTropes refers to as “The Heart.”
It’s an important role, especially with his group of misfits. But it actually has little baring on the plot.
Now, let’s look at him post-Hivebent. And let’s take a few glances towards Hivebent. There’s quite a bit of examples I could use for this part, but I’d like to focus on the four people he has his most significant interactions with: Gamzee, Jade, John, and Terezi. His constant assurances that he is not Gamzee’s friend, his convulted Griefer/White Knight triangle of a relationship with Jade and his past and future selves, his misguided(?) hate-based attraction towards John and later staunch denial of such a thing, and his….everything with Terezi.
In it’s simplest form, KK’s relationship with all the people, and several others (see Kan, Sollux) can be summed up as such:
CG: I HATE YOU, YOU SUCK
CG: WAIT OH SHIT WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU
CG: OH GOD NO NO NO NO NO
Obviously it’s a bit more complex that THAT, but in the simplest form, Karkat can be classified as a Tsundere: harsh and abrasive on the outside, soft and caring within. I usually wouldn’t fall back on overtly simplified character types, especially those of a “TvTropes” vernacular, but this particular term will be significant later on! So, allow me this a moment.
So. For a good deal of the story, KK didn’t really affect the plot in any story changing way, other than his mediating and his…Tsundereness. (ugh, hopefully I won’t have to use this too long)
But then!
Karkat’s biggest role in the story, the culmination of his mediation and “tough love”: the pacification of Gamzee. This was a really good arc in that instead of resorting to killing as everyone else had so far, Karkat followed his ancestor’s footsteps to bring about an answer that DIDN’T have to result in more heartache.
But there’s something about the way he calmed Gamzee. Where else have you seen an emotional, harsh-but-secretly-sweet character calm their friend/ possible love interest (who, based on the dynamics of moirailliegence, Gamzee is) who is going through a breakdown through a tender hug?
Why, just about
just about
just about
just about EVERY SHOUNEN ANIME EVER!
See, this is The Big Secret I’ve realized about Karkat: he has the traits of basically every Shounen Main Female. He is abrasive. He is aloof and sarcastic. Yet he is easy to cry, and easier to care. There are references to his strength, but it’s only really ever seen in passing. He is the glue that holds the other characters together. He has complex love-hate relationships with those he cares about most. His biggest impacts on the plot have to do with helping others. In short, he is a very emotional character, and a very emotion-based character, which is fitting of the character based around the sign of Cancer.
So, what you’re probably asking is: “what was the point of all this Latia?” Like I said before, I don’t hate Karkat, I just don’t like him as much as I do other characters. But, I am very surprised he is a fan-favorite.
Why?
Like I said, Karkat is basically every Shounen Main Female ever. And I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but those girls aren’t exactly
aren’t exactly
aren’t exactly
aren’t exactly POPULAR!
You see, in my years of Liking Stuff I’ve noticed that these types of characters tend to be the least popular (outright HATED( among fans and fanwork (except in porn, haha), and these types of characters tend to be female! Female characters who have turbulent love-hate relationships with others are “bitches,” female characters who cry or are scared are “weak”, female characters who tend to focus on keeping the group together over fighting are “useless.”
So why does no one ever bring these arguments up when the character is male?
Another good example: Mai and Zuko from Avatar The Last Airbender. A popular fancomic once pointed out that their temperments (surly, sarcastic, pessimestic) were very similar, and yet one character was loved by fans and one was usually hated for being the other’s love interest.
Guess which was a boy and which was a girl.
Now, a majority of Homestuck fans are fairly mature, and yet we still have these rather sexist roots that still rear ugly heads. Vriska is an irredemable homicidal bitch, Gamzee is a badass psycho clown with a tragic motive. Feferi is an annoying skank who toyed with her morial, Eridan is a cute tragic woobie killer who can be saved. Jade is annoying and weird, John is cute and lovable. Rose is boring and dull, Dave is cool and funny.
And Karkat is everybody’s favorite Tsundere nubby horned pwecious baby.
Basically, I find it fascinating that AH gave these traits to a boy and made an interesting character. And I find it more fascinating that people were drawn to a more emotional character. And that’s great.
But I just wonder: would people still like Karkatina?
This is the question we must ask ourselves.
e: an addendum!
And like latias writing flow is just so readable and accessible and aaaaaah i love everything about this fuckin post, i hope i managed to do it a small degree of justice.
Flying through Storytelling 