I can’t believe I actually have to do this…

So let me pitch you an idea for a scene…

A man named Bruce is having a heartfelt conversation about the past with his father. His female friend, Sarah, has stopped outside of the door with her phone in hand, a picture of a man with a mask on it. Earlier in the series it was established that Bruce had been a part of a gang that wore this sort of mask, this is meant to show us that she found something relating to them. Before she can open the door she over hears Bruce and his father talking, after hearing that his father didn’t care about what had happened years before Sarah continues to listen, instead opting to let them finish their conversation. After a moment she trips falls down on the door, causing it to fall to the ground. She tries to make it look like she wasn’t eavesdropping but neither Bruce nor her father will have any of it.

Bruce takes Sarah onto the porch and strikes her across the face for eavesdropping and not understanding personal space. Sarah, hurt by the fact that somebody close to her would attack her in this way starts to show it, but she has to suck up the pain to give Bruce her information. Bruce continuously and relentlessly yells at Sarah about not wanting to know about his old gang. When Sarah tries to show him the picture he grabs her phone and throws it off the balcony. This, in turn, reveals that they’ve been watched by a member of Bruce’s old gang. Bruce Yells at Sarah about not wanting her help and then runs off.

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Sound familiar? Yeah, I thought so…

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You can’t call yourself a feminists, or progressive, or an egalitarian if you’re not going to view this scene as disturbing regardless of the genders of the characters.This isn’t Blake standing up for herself this is Blake acting abusively toward Sun. She wasn’t wrong to be angry with him, but she was when she started abusing him.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think writing negative personality traits for a character or changing their personality in some way due to trauma is bad. In fact I think the opposite. No human being is perfectly sanct and trauma effects everybody differently. Much like how Yang became depressed, Blake became abusive. By the end of the next volume she’ll more than likely have apologized to Sun for how she’s treated him.

And if you’re a woman who does this to your husband… well shame… shame on you, you’re abusive. Both emotionally and physically abusive.