tillthenexttimedoctor:

lookforastar:

tillthenexttimedoctor:

“Don’t call me that!” (inspiration)​

↳ companion piece to “We were a cultured, learned society.”

The underlying post that inspired this is even more chilling
with the gifs because look at Charlie’s face after he says “hesitate.”  His eyes go from a glare at Corakinus to a
look of condescension/contempt at Quill before turning to April.  He’s so certain he’s right because he is the good and moral Rhodian Prince.  To be fair, Charlie legitimately has the
moral high ground here (and later in the gym when Quill suggests killing April
again) because April is an innocent,
but he gives her that look.

That look that says she’s dangerous–that she’s immoral and
he is not.

But Charlie’s morality is just as dangerous–if it not
more–because he his blinded by it.  To
him, Quill is a violent terrorist deserving of punishment and, as such, he can
dismiss any of her opinions or actions that are contrary to his.  It allows him to dismiss her entirely.   He sees her as his responsibility–something
he needs to keep in check and ensure behaves. 
It reduced her from a person to thing. 
 Charlie can justify it because it’s
for the best–violence is not the answer. 

Unless, of course, he needs to use her as a weapon.

He sees himself and his decisions as the moral right, so if
she is fighting for him–defending him–then any order of his is
justified.  The danger of this is exemplified
in his response to her “I have no choice but to obey, Master.”  The only thing that gives him pause is that
she calls him “master” because he
doesn’t seem himself as that.  He doesn’t
give a second thought to–or even acknowledge–the fact that he has has ordered
her to die for April because he doesn’t see it as problematic.  Charlie sees saving April as the good and moral thing to do and sees Quill as
nothing more than a means to achieve that.

And none of this is problematic to him because he is doing the right thing. 

#this sounds very anti-Charlie but it’s not meant that way #he’s not intentionally cruel #but he has been shaped by his privileged upbringing #and he’s deeply flawed #even if he can’t see it #because he’s never had to see it #he doesn’t want to see it #he can’t acknowledge that Quill is enslaved to him #because it will morally compromise him #will morally compromise his people #so he convinces himself that it’s what she deserves #that it’s what’s best for her #because he knows best #after all when the shadow kin attacked #she saved him because she had to #whereas he risked his own escape to save her #the terrorist who attacked his people

(via @lookforastar​)