fannish5: Love Triangles

[selenak]

List your five favorite love triangles.

This is quite tricky, because "least favourite" is far easier. Love triangles so often aren't depicted well. Or not in a way that make them interesting to me. However, here are some I'm genuinenly fond of, even if, in the best tradition of love triangles, I cheat a little now and then - but hey, nobody defined the nature of the love in this question!

1) Elizabeth Swann/Will Turner/Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean): way to go, Disney. Back when CotBP hit the cinemas, I would not have predicted this particular triangle to a) exist and b) work for me, but it does, and here is why: all three participants have strong emotional relationships with each other, not just two of them with the third. When Jack in the third movie gives up his chance at immortality, he does it for the usual variety of motives (among which self interest is definitely one - he has rethought just what being captain of the Flying Dutchman would entail a lot in this film), but he doesn't do it either for Elizabeth or Will, he does it for both, because he cares for both of them. They, for their part, care for him. And if they started out seeing each other on pedestals (and not really knowing each other that well - mid-trilogy you could make a case for Jack knowing both a bit better than they know each other - ), these have crashed down by the time the trilogy wraps up, and yet the affection survived and grew stronger. This is one fandom where I can definitely see an OT3 as canon.

2) John Locke/The Island/ Benjamin Linus (Lost): WHAT? I defy you to deny this does involve fanatical devotion and obsession, rivalry turning into something far more complicated, terrific chemistry and immensly watchable tv. (As opposed to the other triangle on that show which shall not be named.) My Lost 0T3 of great acting, manipulation, and scariness. *hearts*

3) Jack Bristow/ Sydney Bristow/ Irina Derevko in season 2 of Alias: like I said, the question doesn't say the love has to be romantic in nature. S2 of Alias had Sydney torn between her Spyparents, Irina busy trying to build a relationship with Sydney while messing with Jack (and discovering it hadn't all been business back in the day), and Jack sinking to lows (framing Irina early on) and rising to heights motivated by his feelings for both women. Also, there was family bonding via shooting, but what do you expect in a season that starts with a mother shooting her daughter for her own good? *hearts*

4) Gregory House/ James Wilson/ Lisa Cuddy (House): like I said in more than one review, this season just reaffirms the message from earlier seasons that any House/ just one person ship is doomed. (Leaving aside the House/Vicodin OTP problem.) He'll never be contend with either Wilson or Cuddy (or Stacy, or whoever). If he has Wilson, he'll pester Cuddy. And vice versa. Wilson and Cuddy, for their part, are genuinenly fond of each other and resigned to the fact they're unable to live without House in their lives. So clearly, OT3 is the only way to go, and right now, it looks like canon obliges.

5) Aeryn Sun/Talyn/Bialar Crais (Farscape): another parents and child triangle. Well, sort of. But Aeryn and Crais are Talyn's parents, no offense to Moya, who is Talyn's other mother. They're also former Peacekeepers, former enemies with all reasons in the world to hate each other, and understand each other a little more than is comfortable. In a two parter full of strong moments, my second favourite scene in Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (favourite will always be the John and Scorpius "so close" scene with John giving Scorpius the code) is Aeryn saying goodbye to Crais (and Talyn), with all their history, bad and good, between them, her hand on his cheek and that single gesture saying more than many words. And Talyn, oh, Talyn, you messed up teenager of a living ship, but with these parents, WHO WOULDN'T BE?

Comments

[12-12-12.livejournal.com]

I'm scrolling past the Alias section without looking, because I'm planning to start watching it in the fall hiatus (!). But I'll echo your love for Locke/The Island/Ben. :-)

I also generally dislike love triangles, as a rule: partly because I always feel bad for the odd one out, and partly because they often reduce the "point" of a triangle to a character whose entire purpose in life is to choose between the two others. Also because sometimes the love triangle is a blatant form of wish fulfilment on the part of the writer/creator. The triangles that work avoid these traps, IMO.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

I'm looking forward to reading your Alias impressions, then, being still very fond of the show despite some last season annoyances. I was just in like, not in love through most of the first season and at a very late point in it fell in love, and never quite fell out of it, plus it does contain one of my all time favourite characters on tv, who is decidedly not the one played by David Anders.

Odd one out: see, that's why many triangles don't work for me, either. If it's an "A and B are meant for each other, and then there is C whom B likes but doesn't love as much" situation, I feel bad for C. If B is reduced to being "the one who has to choose between A and B", then again, doesn't work. The ones which do work are the ones where A and C also have a relationship with each other that goes beyond both of them being interested in C, and C in turn is emotionally invested in both of them, not in one.

[12-12-12.livejournal.com]

Arvin Sloane, right? I remember the actor from E.R., where he had a small recurring role. He was excellent.

I agree that the emotional setup you describe for A, B, and C is a necessary condition for a triangle to work, but I have such a knee-jerk reflex against triangles that it's not sufficient. There also has to be something extra...for example, the Trio in the Harry Potter books satisfies those requirements, but I will be forever grateful to JKRowling for not making them a triangle. SO GRATEFUL. In fact, I think I'd have a hard time naming a triangle that did work for me. Scarlett/Rhett/Ashley, perhaps.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Yes, and hey, that would be a reason to watch E.R. (All of the actors cast in the First Generation roles, who would be right at home with the Kinky Elders of Heroes, in Alias are fabulous - Victor Garber, Ron Rifkin, Lena Olin, Amy Irving, Isabella Rosellini etc. - but Ron Rifkin is really outstanding. I noticed for the first time in a mid-s1 two parter and never stopped with the admiration.)

I hear you on JKR not making the Trio a romantic triangle. Mind you, that didn't stop part of fandom from doing so, but to each their own. Scarlett/Rhett/Ashley - have I ever linked you to my post on GWTW?

[12-12-12.livejournal.com]

I think I've actually read that post--and I've enjoyed Yahtzee's GWTW meta too. :-) I pretty much followed the same trajectory as you, loving Rhett/Scarlett on the initial reading, then souring on Rhett as I got older. I eventually ended up thinking that Scarlett was too good for either of them, but Yahtzee has made me see good points in Ashley that I was unable to recognize before.

[nolivingman.livejournal.com]

You're right - least favorite is easier. I should have made it "Talk about 5 love triangles" because there are certainly some I could launch a screed about.

I don't know if you've seen this week's House (though what I'm going to say is very non-spoilery and is more of an impression than any kind of specific plot), but it finally sold me that House/Wilson/Cuddy should be played as a love triangle, where both the guys sort of want to be with her but they can't really pair up because that would leave somebody out and they don't want to hurt each other but they do want her. I was kind of down on House/Cuddy when it started, but played as a triangle with Wilson, it totally works for me.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Yes, I've seen it. And you know, I'm not joking that House/Any Single Person (whether it's Wilson or Cuddy or Stacy or Whoever The Show Or the Fandom Comes Up With) is doomed, mostly because of House. Wilson/Cuddy also wouldn't work as a pairing because while they're very fond of each other, respect each other and are clearly the two adults in that hospital, they need a passionate pain in the ass like House in their lives. (Which is why Wilson/Amber did work.) Plus as you said, they'd both see House as left out. But Wilson/Cuddy/House? Would totally work, and I think in a platonic way, this is what we're getting. (Platonic only because I don't think they'll actually put a threesome arrangement on screen in this show.)