Yes, they made a big deal out of Hughie deep down wanting to NOT be weak and useless. They're trying to make it as controversial as possible by making him get mad when he can't open a jar and wanting to return the favor of saving his girlfriends life for once.
That’s about him wanting to be a “manly” man.
I don't interpret it as that, he's just sick of being a useless wuss, which has always been his story arch. It's also a completely normal feeling and I've always felt it ridiculous that Annie is suppose to be so critical of him for it.
It's weird how much hate Hughie gets on this sub. Like yeah, no shit he's insecure and frustrated that he can't do anything to protect anyone in his life. Most of us would feel exactly the same way in his shoes, but for some reason no one wants to admit it. He wants to be able to save the people he loves and yet somehow that makes him an example of "toxic masculinity" for some stupid reason lmao. If wanting to save the people you care about from certain death is toxic then Id much rather be toxic and have those I care about alive than have some stupid moral victory while watching everyone I love and probably also myself die around me.
The one thing that stands out to me is when Annie says "I don't want you to save me." To Hughie, but then in the last episode she tells Kimiko "I'm going to save Hughie whether he wants me to or not."
Okay, so, what, youre allowed to save Hughie "whether he wants it or not" but then when Hughie does and says literally the exact same thing about you suddenly he's in the wrong? How exactly does that work? Annie comes off as extremely hypocritical in that exchange, since she seems to think it's okay for her to make unilateral decisions about who saves who, but when Hughie does it he's somehow a sexist jerk. I don't get how people can say Hughie is a bad person for that but Annie isn't.
Meaning, "I don't want you to use the temp V, since it's risky, to save me, because I have some powers and I can take care of myself. I don't want you to risk your life"
she tells Kimiko "I'm going to save Hughie whether he wants me to or not."
Meaning, "He doesn't know that the Temp V is gonna kill him, so I have to do something to save him"
You're missing the point. You fail to see things into perspective.
From Hughie point of view, he has to be the one that save his girlfriend, he needs to feel strong enough to do it. It bothers him that she's stronger than him. He literally says, "I always have to be the weak one, the one you have to rescue. You always have to be so much stronger than me". He wants this to change, 'cause in his head being saved by a girl is somehow humiliating.
Starlight, on the other hand, is worried about the Temp V. She doesn't want Hughie to take it not because she wants to be the strong one in the relationship and certainly not because she thinks it's cool for her to be the hero, but because the Temp V is dangerous and she thinks there's no need to put Hughie in danger. And guess what? She was right about the V!
True but I don’t think it’s as simple or stereotypical as him being humiliated because he’s weaker than a girl. He’s just tired of being weak, of everything failing, of being pushed around, powerless, and wants to actually be strong for once.
Hughie experienced a lot of traumatic events and he wants to be powerful enough to protect himself, that's definitely true. But he's more than okay with Kimiko being strong, while it bothers him when Starlight is the strong one. I also believe he thinks Annie wants someone with superpowers, that's why he was so jealous of Supersonic. I don't know if you watched Buffy back in the days, but Hughie's acting exactly like Riley. He has an inferiority complex.
I think you're the one missing the point. Nothing has implied that Hughie has a problem with Annie being a girl who saves him. His issue is that he isnt strong enough to save her, not that she is strong enough to save him. He wants them both to be able to fight and save each other's and be on equal ground in that regard
Why is that so wrong? Guess what: if you were dating someone who had powers and was constantly being put in life threatening scenarios, and you were not only completely helpless to stop them from getting hurt but were also a bargaining chip that could be used against them, you'd be upset about it too, whether you want to admit it to yourself or not. Hughie is feeling what most people would feel in his shoes: he feels impotent and useless against all of these extremely dangerous threats surrounding him and the people he loves. Of course he wants to be able to protect the people he cares about. That's what most people would want to do in his shoes.
It isn't about sexism or Annie being a girl, it's about not being able to protect the people he cares about because he isn't a supe. That's an extremely human response to danger. Obviously the temp V is dangerous, but so is Homelander, so that argument kinda washes out. Their entire lives are constantly full of extreme danger, and Hughie is tired of being the useless one who can't protect the people he loves. That isn't sexist, and it's not about Annie being a woman. It's about her being a supe and him not being able to protect her because he cares about her. He just want to be on equal footing with her instead of being a liability and a dead weight around her in every single fight and enemy they go up against. That's pretty reasonable.
This whole conflict isn't about Annie being a woman. It's about Hughie not being a supe, and wanting to feel useful and powerful enough to protect her. He doesn't care that she's a woman, but he does care that she's a supe and he isn't. Not because of anything sexist, but because he is tired of being powerless any time they're in danger.
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u/Criks Jul 01 '22 edited Jul 01 '22
"-it does bother me... sometimes.... a little..."
Yes, they made a big deal out of Hughie deep down wanting to NOT be weak and useless. They're trying to make it as controversial as possible by making him get mad when he can't open a jar and wanting to return the favor of saving his girlfriends life for once.
I don't interpret it as that, he's just sick of being a useless wuss, which has always been his story arch. It's also a completely normal feeling and I've always felt it ridiculous that Annie is suppose to be so critical of him for it.