We're back with episode 3! Bloom returns to Alfea, where all of her friends are waiting for her, wondering where she was π If only they knew where Bloom was all this time, hahaha π
I hope you enjoy the new episode and see you later for the discussion! π₯°
Spoilers ahead
I had to bring our boys back after such a long time! Technically, they aren't very relevant to the story, but I think we all enjoy it when they make a short appearance :) I love showing the kind of relationships the girls have with the specialists in subtle little ways. Helia, who immediately goes to Flora, holding her close to him. Riven, who is more distant but listens to Musa even when she scolds him. Timmy, who sort of brags about his smart girlfriend putting a tracker on Bloom, haha. I think these kinds of episodes are sometimes a nice break from all the drama and tension. I want to draw Valtor and Bloom every episode, if I'm honest, haha, but for the sake of pacing, I decided to add this episodeβa little downtime after the roller coaster of events, even though this episode is also not without its heavier points.
One thing that always bothered me was that the situation between Brandon and Amentia was so quickly put aside. Not once did they discuss how horrible it actually was, and I wanted to address this shortly in ETI. There is a parallel between Bloom and Brandon's storylines here that I think would have been very interesting to dive further into! Sadly, Brandon's story falls a bit outside of ETI's scope, but I thought even a small mention like this wouldn't diverge the story too much and would actually fit in nicely with Bloom's storyline.
I think because Brandon is a man, they didn't really pay too much attention to how the events with Amentia could affect him. He is a specialist, trained to be strong and handle difficult situations, but I don't think that justifies moving on so fast. If the roles were reversed, those episodes would have been received very differently, I think. It was, in fact, highlighted multiple times how uncomfortable Brandon was with Amentia's advances, and the only reason he didn't run is that they would hurt Stella. But they also brushed past Bloom's experiences, so I suppose it's not unusual that they did the same with Brandon π
Don't get me wrong, I loved these episodes! I think it's amazing that they created this storyline where the gender roles were reversed. That the forced marriage 'trope' got completely turned upside down, and it was a man being forced into a marriage rather than a woman. Winx truly was so progressive for its time in some ways! I only wish that it hadn't been brushed aside as quickly as it was and had a little more depth.
I just wanted to give it a small moment in ETI and show that it did affect Brandon, and that even though he's a man, that's okay. It created a beautiful moment to show just how much he and Stella love each other and how Stella was able to pull him through it. π₯Ή While ETI is about Valtor and Bloom, I will always take the opportunity to highlight the other relationships when I can π₯°
And of course, now Bloom realizes that she has someone new who is pulling her through it all, someone who she never expected to be there for her when it gets dark. Someone very different from Sky...
See you next month with episode 4! THE blue dress is coming, fairies! π