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View Full Version : Tarquin and Malack's moirallegiance



CaDzilla
2014-08-27, 09:21 PM
Tarquin and Malack seem to be a textbook case of a moirallegiance. For those who don't read Homestuck, I'm referring to a from of troll romance from Homestuck where two people keep each other in line. Tarquin calms Malack down in this panel (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0854.html) and Malack seems to be the only one in the VL who keeps him from breaking down. The other members we've seen either ignore his problems to get favors or insult him.

Peelee
2014-08-27, 10:17 PM
Tarquin and Malack seem to be a textbook case of a moirallegiance. For those who don't read Homestuck, I'm referring to a from of troll romance from Homestuck where two people keep each other in line. Tarquin calms Malack down in this panel (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0854.html) and Malack seems to be the only one in the VL who keeps him from breaking down. The other members we've seen either ignore his problems to get favors or insult him.

Or they work together as a team, just like the OotS, and Malack is a bit more diplomatic than the others. Like how Durkon is more diplomatic to Elan than Belkar. No troll or romance necessary.

Bird
2014-08-28, 12:16 AM
Interesting idea. Out of curiosity, what are you thinking of when you write that Malack helps keep Tarquin from breaking down? Certainly, the other VL members didn't help much when Tarquin was losing it at the end of the last book, but I'm not sure how much better Malack would have done.

Aedilred
2014-08-28, 02:38 AM
Yeah, we don't really see Tarquin start to lose it at... pretty much any stage, until Malack is already dead. Until the gate blows he's pretty much in control of the situation the whole time, or at least thinks he is.

Of course, that might be telling in itself. The knowledge that his best friend is perma-dead (and, while he'd never openly admit it, that it was largely his fault) might be one of the reasons Tarquin loses all sense of perspective and ends up going to pieces quite as badly as he does pretty quickly after finding out.

Murk
2014-08-28, 04:37 AM
It's been a long time since I've read all that stuff, but isn't a moirallegiancethingy actually a form of romance? Y'know, not just a friendship where two people keep eachother in check, but actually a romantic relation. Just like not all relations where two people like each other is a romantic relation, this doesn't seem so either.
(However, if you have a form of romance based on something we humans associate typically with friendships, I'm not sure how I would see the difference, so maybe Tarquin and Malack did have a romantic relation?)

Oh, the possibilities!

Socksy
2014-08-28, 05:16 AM
They have a pile of terrible hardcover novels to lie on together. Tarquin doesn't even read them any more, and has resisted all Malack's attempts to move them both to a pile of blankets or something.

(The first thing I thought of when I saw this thread was them together on that horn pile Gamzee has...)

Also, Laurin <> Miron anyone? When he saved her from the Snarl I thought I might burst from squealing! He loves her and they are adorable precious cuties AND HE SEEMS TO CARE ABOUT HANNAH AaAaaaaahhh

CaDzilla
2014-08-28, 06:51 AM
It's been a long time since I've read all that stuff, but isn't a moirallegiancethingy actually a form of romance? Y'know, not just a friendship where two people keep eachother in check, but actually a romantic relation. Just like not all relations where two people like each other is a romantic relation, this doesn't seem so either.
(However, if you have a form of romance based on something we humans associate typically with friendships, I'm not sure how I would see the difference, so maybe Tarquin and Malack did have a romantic relation?)

Oh, the possibilities!

It is a form of romance, but of the platonic variety. It's the diamond section of the 4 quadrants

Jaxzan Proditor
2014-08-28, 08:37 AM
It is a form of romance, but of the platonic variety. It's the diamond section of the 4 quadrants

It don't think it would be romance then; it would be a form of love.

CaDzilla
2014-08-28, 08:55 AM
It don't think it would be romance then; it would be a form of love.

It's troll romance. Due to the way their society works, It's considered a form of romance

Jaxzan Proditor
2014-08-28, 08:58 AM
It's troll romance. Due to the way their society works, It's considered a form of romance

I see. I don't know the source material, but I'm pretty sure you have platonic love and romantic love, not platonic romance.

Glodart
2014-08-28, 09:07 AM
While the other members of the Vector Legion seem to care about Tarquin less than Malack does, I highly doubt a romance was involved. Simply the fact that Tarquin was into women nulls it. Also, Malack's age and living status deconnects him from life. It is simply a good friendship amongst Evil people. The fact that they are Lawful helps cement an inter-dependence

Socksy
2014-08-29, 04:30 AM
In the source material there is a type of romance which amounts to "Very close friends who keep each other in line and look after each other and are generally really f-ing cute together".


[T]he pale and ashen [quadrants] would be more closely likened to platonic relationships by human standards.

The moirail is obliged to pacify the other, to function as the better half. The two partners in a strong pale relationship will serve to balance and complement each other's emotional profiles, and thus allow their other relationships to be more successful.

It's often ambiguous especially among young trolls whether a bond formed between an acquaintance is true moirallegence, or the usual variety of platonic involvement. Furthermore, romantic intentions of a more flushed nature can often be mistaken for paler leanings, much to the frustration of the suitor.

A Tad Insane
2014-08-30, 11:06 AM
It's probably as close as two non-mspaint-trolls who don't find the other attractive can get. Pale relations always struck me as the ultimate romantic mutual friend-zoning, as tack says you only can have one, it's maintained as a relationship (one character even dumps their moirail) and all the feelings flow between two moirails (all of them). Also, trolls, not reproducing via intercourse, generally don't have gender as part of their sexual preferences (as they don't know what being gay is, and think it's stupid)