why are people so hyped up over the darkling asking alina if she’s sure before kissing her because “omg consent is sexy 😍😍” i think it’s also very sexy to not melt a stag’s antlers into someone else’s collarbone without their consent and in doing so robbing them of control over their power
Exactly…
These are some excellent tags
This. Their whole relationship is how breaking consent is horrible and abusive, and not only being physically able to say “yes”, but the importance of having all the information needed for that yes to actually mean something.
We got the kiss consent scene not because he respects Alina, but because as we aren’t in Alina’s head, we aren’t able to see how much she is into him unless she says so. Which is great, because we see how far his deception goes, and how consent goes further than saying yes. Only people in the same position can actually consent, and the Darkling never treats her as his equal.
He isolates her, breaking any relation she has outside the Little Palace, like literally her best friend was sent by him to spy on her. He lies to her about his motivations and his past, because he knows it is the only way she would willingy follow him. Alina was attracted to Kirigan, but not to the Darkling.
As soon as she realices who he truly is, that illussion of choice dissapeared and she loses her agency and freedom because of him, basically transforming her into an slave, and yet he has the audacity to speak for her feelings and say that she will eventually will forgive him because he will be the only one left for her.
I’m really happy to see this relationship in tv because they protray him as a villain, while a lot of shows have similar behaviours of the Darkling being romantized.