In an effort to build a space for queer people like myself, every Sunday (or when I’m feeling spicy) I’ll be posting interviews, opinion pieces, listicles, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community from a Latina perspective. Welcome to Queerly Not Straight! Enjoy and leave a comment below if you have a suggestion for what I should cover next.
P.S. I, Lyra Hale, do not give any site permission to copy or repost my work in any form. If you are reading this on any site besides Fangirlish, it has been stolen.
Wesper has arrived thanks to Shadow and Bone season 2 and the complaints are already rolling in. Some feel like it was too instalove, making it so their “book slowburn” had been tossed out the window. Others felt like Jesper and Wylan didn’t have any significant problems, making their romance easy. And then there were some that were just plain ol’ bored with them because shouldn’t relationships be hard work, right?
That’s where I come in.
I don’t remember the books well if we’re being honest. But even then, so what if Jesper and Wylan had a love that felt a little instalove? Too often we get heterosexual couples that take one look at each other and the world has stopped. Or they feel like everything has changed for them in that split second before the swooning begins. Basically, it’s cheesy, it’s tropey, and people eat it up all the time. Maybe Wesper can have the same thing without waves of people complaining that it just isn’t realistic.
This is Shadow and Bone that we’re talking about here, where an old fart who doesn’t want to get therapy is out to keep the world divided with a big evil wall of stuff and things. I think we’re past the point of realistic. And even then, again, we see heterosexual couples do this all the time with the bond between Wesper being an easy kind of love. You know, the kind built on understanding, patience, and kindness that we would want in our daily lives. That kind of love.
If anything, I think Wesper is a more realistic love that fits the mold for the kind of world we live in in 2023. They met, had a roll in the hay or whatever. Then things got awkward, misunderstandings happened, and they fell apart. And when Jesper and Wylan did fall together again, they talked, it felt natural, and they got together. There were no grand declarations. Just two people who like being around each other and want to continue nurturing whatever is between them.
Wesper not having dramatic moments like Inej and Kaz or Alina and Mal also doesn’t take away from their relationship. It’s just a different kind of relationship. One where they aren’t the drama. And that’s ok. It’s more than ok, making it so we have something sweet and tender, where morning cuddles are a thing. And these two would be perfect for those cozy novels in the vein of Legends & Lattes and other comfort books like Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea.
Personally, Shadow and Bone‘s Wesper in season 2 feels like the real-life personification of why I love the Fluff tag on AO3. Everything is chill. There are no big bads. And the biggest drama is based on the steps the couple in question take to get to know each other better, deepening their bond. I’m ok with that and I hope more people take the time to give Wesper that grace. Because we need more moments of queer joy. A joy where things work out and their love makes it through one day and stronger into the next. And a joy that shows LGBTQ+ people that we can have this.
We as LGBTQ+ people can have the cuddles, look fondly at our partner for rambling about the things they love, and not be the drama. And it’s shows like Shadow and Bone that help to shout it from the rooftops for those who don’t believe we can or are just some passing fad. So, let us enjoy Wesper for what it is (a relationship grounded in honesty and tenderness) and look forward to what they have in store for the future.
What do you think of Wesper in Shadow and Bone? Let us know in the comments below!
Queerly Not Straight posts every Sunday with opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community (and occasionally about the Latinx community since I am Latinx.)
