Mon-El Appreciation Week Day 5, continued …
Favorite platonic relationships -
Apparently I can’t stop with today’s theme
MONWINN!!!!! My favorite hero nerds in space!!!
I think Winn is probably the first friend Mon-El ever had who just liked him for him, and not because of his status or what he might be able to do for them (how many people do you think were constantly sucking up to the royal family on Daxam?). And Winn’s also the first person he meets on Earth who isn’t like, “ugh, he’s a Daxamite.” They’ve also TOTALLY discussed their disfunctional family backgrounds at length (we got that one little throwaway line about it in Distant Sun).
One of the things I love about their friendship is that they never try to change each other and are just buddies as they are. Mon-El is a jock and an idiot puppy, and Winn is a tech and science nerd.
The only reason I am able to stomach the current situation after S3 at all is because Mon-El and Winn are our blundering around space together superheroing (and Mon-El at least has his best friends with him after making an impossible choice and walking away brokenhearted, again).
(Oh and also, I love this trio, because Winn is the only one who made a real effort with Imra when she showed up, and he’s absolutely going to stick his nose in the middle of all their arguments and I love this)
And THESE TWO killing me with every scene.
The way Mon-El and J'onn’s friendship organically evolved was one of my favorite surprises of S3. I love that J'onn knows something is going on and is the one Mon-El finally spills his guts to in ‘Both Sides Now.’ J'onn is Space Dad for a reason. He’s older than the rest of them, he’s (most of the time) wiser, he has seen so much loss and grief and so many changes. And because of all of that, he’s the one who’s best-equipped to meet Mon-El where he’s at at this moment (“I’m quite familiar with the marital spat.”).
J'onn talked to Mon-El throughout the season like another grown-up now instead of just “this puppy” who’s kind of bouncing around maaaaaybe not always listening, which kind of makes me both proud and nostalgic/sad. But at the same time, he’s not above calling him “young man” and lecturing him.
Plus, you don’t think Space Dad gives just anyone the keys to the car, do you?