THESE TWO SCENES ARE NOT EVEN REMOTELY COMPARABLE AND I AM GOING TO PROVE IT TO YOU

So today we’re going to highlight the significant differences between the past Pines twins’ and the present Pines twins’ relationships. And nowhere do I think the contrast is more defined than in the two scenes that, ironically, people seem to believe are reflections of each other. In reality, it’s the exact opposite. Rather than provide a point of comparison, they reveal to the audience just how much different the two twin relationships are, and ultimately why Dipper and Mabel have a fundamentally healthier relationship than Stanford and Stanley ever did.

So let’s really break this down and have a look-see:

Point #1: One twin is offered an incredible opportunity that will separate them. The other twin overhears and is devastated. What’s important to note here is that Stanford and Stanley are seniors in high school, while Dipper and Mabel are barely 13 years old. Two very different stages of life, two very different levels of maturity, and codependency is more vital to the younger set than the older (we will elaborate more on this later). But as things stand in the scenes themselves, things are pretty cut and dry here on both accounts, not much to discuss.

This is where the similarities end

Let’s move on:

> Heh. Joke’s on them if they think you wanna go to some stuffy college on the other side of the country.

> Look, Stan, I can’t pass up a chance like this. This school has cutting edge programs and multi-dimensional paradigm theory.

> Beep boop. I am a nerd robot. That’s you. That’s what you sound like.

> Ford’s apprentice? Seriously?

> Look, I was thinking and… this is a huge opportunity for me.

> When we turn thirteen, the summer ends, and I have to leave everything behind. You’re the only person I can count on and now you’re leaving me too!?

> I don’t know, maybe I’m making the wrong decision. I need to think about this.



Point #2: Okay, this is where it gets interesting. Both Stanford and Dipper are offered big opportunities. Stanford is immediately excited by what this could mean for him while Dipper has some well-founded reservations before Ford talks him into it (Ford is clearly trying to project the opportunities he didn’t get to experience onto Dipper, but that’s a debate for another time). But let’s look at Stanley versus Mabel:

> Stanley is clearly upset, and after what he overheard the principal say about him, he has a right to be. He has a right to feel upset that his brother is being given an opportunity so far away from him. This, however, does not excuse his actions. What does he do once he and Stanford can converse privately? He tries to talk him out of it. He downright makes fun of him. He tells him that this isn’t really what he wants, he wants to go treasure hunting – which is not true, it’s just what Stanley wants his brother to want. This isn’t a good thing. This does not make Stanley look sympathetic, it makes him look way too co-dependent on his brother for his happiness. And at the stage they are in their lives here, it makes for a sibling relationship that lacks communication and understanding. And while Stan ultimately didn’t mean to damage Ford’s project, it doesn’t change the fact that he went over to the school and took his anger out on it anyway.

> Mabel does the complete opposite. She’s also heartbroken, and after having a heart-to-heart with Stan over how her brother will still be with her no matter what – only to find out her brother won’t be with her – she has every right to be. But she doesn’t question whether this is something Dipper will really want, because she knows this is something he would love. She has no doubt in her mind that Dipper would want Ford’s offer and in her mind she has accepted this, rather than try and tell him that she knows better and knows he doesn’t really want this. That is something that Dipper discovers for himself, which is as it should be. It baffles me that this scene gets so much more criticism than the other one because there is clearly a greater understanding and stronger line of communication here. Dipper enjoys investigating the paranormal and Mabel accepts this. Mabel enjoys the arts and being silly and Dipper accepts this. Neither tries to change for the other and neither expects the other to change for them.

Point #3: Now let’s look at the aftermath of Stanley’s and Mabel’s choices:

This was no accident, Stan; you did this! You did this because you couldn’t handle me going to college on my own!



Mabel! The rift must have cracked inside her backpack. She must be in danger. I have to go find her.



> You can tell, you can just tell that this is something that has been building up between Stanford and Stanley, and Ford’s frustration has all culminated into this one moment. As much as he loves his brother, he wouldn’t put it past him to sabotage his big opportunity that he would be going at alone, and thus putting their treasure hunt on an indefinite hiatus. Even look at Stanley afterwards:

Look, this was a mistake! Although if you think about it, maybe there’s a silver lining. Huh? Treasure hunting?



This is such blatant and borderline despicable disregard for Ford’s feelings that I don’t even know what else to say about it. It’s the epitome of selfishness. Now yes, Stanley was young here, and of course now he’s made up for it tenfold by proving he can be self-sufficient and is not a selfish person because of a few selfish acts in his past. But the fact remains that this still happened and is still something Ford distinctly remembers.

> Dipper has no ill will towards his sister. Zero. None. Zilch. It’s the truest testament to just how strong their relationship is. Mabel teases him sometimes, she doesn’t always share the same interests as him, and yes, she’s been as selfish as any other 12-year-old girl can be. But never, not once did it ever cross Dipper’s mind that Mabel would shatter the rift on purpose, would do anything that extreme just because she was upset with him. Because she wouldn’t, and she didn’t. That’s just not who she is. There is a faith and trust there that the Stans just do not have. They’re supportive of each other, even after Mabel’s had time to cool down:

Hey, Dipper? I appreciate what you said back there, but if you want to take Ford’s apprenticeship, I won’t get in your way.



Compare that to Stanley’s response above. I think you see my point.

Point #4 and probably the most important: The Age Discrepancy

> If Stanford is seriously looking into colleges, then they are early in their senior year of high school. So around 17-18 years old. Typically the age where a young person is ready to break free and discover themselves, explore different paths. They’re grown, they’ve reached a sense of maturity, they’ve gained knowledge, and they’re ready to put it to the test. For some, they may have even discovered their niche. Stanford has and he’s ready to pursue it. Sometimes that pursuit goes against what your other loved ones might want you to do. And that’s okay. Because that’s what this stage of your life is all about. Experimenting, discovering, making mistakes, starting over, it’s so important to begin embracing your identity. For Stanley to attempt to stifle that so they can live out their childhood dream isn’t good for either of them standing on the brink of adulthood. Especially if it’s a dream that Stanford no longer wants. It doesn’t help that Stan’s abilities were always seen as a hindrance rather than a strength, and it took him until much later in life to realize that was where his skill set lay. For some people, that is the case. And for Stan’s sake, he needed to be isolated from his brother and not see himself as half of two people in order to discover the person he truly is.

> It’s not the same case for Dipper and Mabel. Firstly, they see themselves as individuals, not as halves of each other. Dipper may be jealous of Mabel’s social skills and Mabel may be jealous of Dipper’s academic abilities, but it doesn’t hinder their individual identities because they encourage each other rather than put each other down. Secondly, they’re still children. Children who have literally just crossed the threshold into adolescence. I don’t know what your personal experience was at this age, but for me it was an absolute nightmare. My class, once unified, broke off into cliques, people I thought were my friends didn’t hang out with me anymore, classes got harder, and to top it all off we moved from the city to a more rural midwest area. It was scary. And to be quite honest, I wouldn’t have gotten through it as smoothly as I did without my immediate family’s love and support. Because when you’re that young and going through a lot of change, you need a support group. Or at the very least just one person who you can depend on to be your soundboard, to laugh with you when you do something dumb, to give you the biggest hug when you need to cry, to just listen and be there for you. For Mabel, that person is Dipper, and vice versa. Separating them when all they’ve had is each other to count on, a year before high school, and expecting them to spend their rocky teen years apart is just cruel and would probably have left some major psychological scars down the line.

Dipper has a rather detailed plan of attending a technological college and heading towards a career in media production (a plan that doesn’t involve Ford in any way, shape or form). Mabel knows she’s wired to gravitate more towards liberal arts. They know this about each other. They’re going to grow up someday. And they’re going to go their separate ways to pursue different interests and careers. But they’re not there yet. They still need each other. They still need that time to grow. And because the foundation of their relationship is so strong and the way they balance each other out is undeniable, sticking together through the next 5+ years of their lives makes coping with that transition just a little bit easier.