2023-09-22 3:24:05 ¶ ●

naturally this makes the Alternian incestuous slurry the ultimate sign of a stagnant race incapable of evolving, though that much was probably obvious already: but the quadrants, too, whose association with “romantic destiny” and the “one true pairing” makes them the perfect tool for recreating the same conflicts generation after generation, play into this exact same structure themselves.

supposedly this is why love “beyond the four quadrants” is so important to breaking free of these cycles… though how exactly the First Ship differs from the concept of a one true pairing isn’t clear to me. is it because Meulin and Kankri never cared for each other on Beforus? is love that “transcends the grid” not the same as love that transcends selves? it would be certainly interesting if the Ultimate Self was purely nature while the Ultimate Quadrant was purely nurture.

on a barely related point, I’ve been wondering if the Disciple being a double agent would mean that “transcending the grid entirely” actually indicates love and hate simultaneously, making her both the Signless’ lover and his worst enemy all at once?