not an art post but for fellow izzy enjoyers: here’s some outfit refs in mostly ok lighting and various angles plus some details like the ring and tattoos (i can’t tell if the little one on his bare hand is a spade or an arrow…..)
I’ve been thinking about whether Izzy is manipulative - yes and no, still pondering - and that led to how Izzy interacts with others, and then trying to suss out how Izzy functioned as a First Mate at all. So thoughts I’ve had:
First and foremost, in command Izzy functions as part of the Edward-and-Izzy unit (aka Blackbeard). He’s not equipped to function on his own, but neither is Edward. The difference is that Edward can hide that fact for longer because he’s the one with the instant charisma whose issues trip him up later, while Izzy cannot take control of a situation for the life of him but probably doesn’t suck once he has it and a clear goal. This is, I think, the root of why Izzy struggles so much on the Revenge. Edward effectively abdicates his role as unquestioned top of the hierarchy, which cuts Izzy off from the source of his authority.
And while Edward can keep riding charisma / the Blackbeard mythos / his relationship with Stede to stay on top anyway, Izzy is left to fend for himself in his personal hell.
Izzy Hands is Kylo Ren: Or, An Informal Exploration of Fandom’s Proclivity Towards Minimizing and Sympathizing with White Male Violence
i brought this undertaking upon myself by putting this thought out there (and getting cursed with the knowledge that this take makes izzy/ed reylo) without my full intent to write the post. my being cursed is my own fault, my own cross to bear, my own self made misery. however, i’m going to make this analysis EVERYONE’S problem now because jokes on all of us, i wrote the post.
notes for readers: this meta is just under 6500 words. i have tried to divide it into thematic sections determined by bolded lines. sometimes i will reiterate previous points with expanded discussion because i always have more to say. big thanks to @dragonzair@plotdesignerand@twelvemonkeyswere
so to get the ground work settled: obviously izzy hands is not identical to kylo ren, given that he is not the fallen son of heroes, nor directly a key figure of a fascist empire. however, in the context of our flag means death and its fandom, particularly the portion that favors izzy and takes him at his word without examining the underlying context of his scenes and dynamics with other characters, there is a LOT of similarity between the ways that the two characters enact violence, and in the way the fandom response is geared towards sympathizing with these two characters for said violence while also and minimizing their responsibility for it.
There is so much happening in the notes of this post that I already need to address whoo boy! Thank you for engaging, people, and also, let’s get right into it. I just went ahead and copied the text because I hate screenshots and they make anyone using screenreaders have difficulty anyway, so! responses under cut to avoid clutter dashes. yes i am long-winded. i love to talk. i will be deleting these replies after the response, because i don’t like a cluttered notes section.
