everytime i open tumblr, the world rolls a d20 and if it succeeds im forced to see someone trying to argue that bramblestar isnt abusive or that squirrelflight is the one that perpetuates the abuse, actually

i like bramblestar/claw. but i can also recognize that while he isnt a villain, he sure as hell does bad things. the main issue i have with him is that his actions have been written so consistently that it has become a facet of his characterization. theres no longer the excuse of: "here goes erin hunter with another inconsistency!" once is a mistake, continuing on from 2005 to the release of thunder is... not a good look. it started in the new prophecy when he was angry at her for being annoying and continued through hawkfrost, the secret, omen of the stars, squirrelflight's hope and as recently as thunder. (i dont remember what happened in avos)

the main issue for both squirrelflight enjoyers and bramblestar fans is squirrelflight's hope. im not going to sugarcoat it, bramblestar is straight up manipulative, controlling and dismissive in this book. when i finished reading it for the first time, it caused me (and probably others in the fandom) to look at their relationship in previous books from a new perspective. yeah, she'll play a role in their conflict but does that mean she deserves the shit she goes through? no.

one other point i dont like about bramblestar is that the writing surrounding him never calls him out for what he does, in-universe and in the writing. it always finds a way to skirt around him and never places him at fault. at the end of squirrelflight's hope when he apologizes to her in the medicine den, he says:

" WE should never have let things get so bad." shifting some of the blame onto squirrelflight as if she played an equal role in the events of the book. yes, they held different positions on the sisters that drove them into opposition but this comes after he uses his superiority in an attempt to silence her and take away her independence.

i get it, i like him too, but you can like him without feeling the need to justify him to yourself, or try to downplay his actions by saying "he wasnt THAT bad". but as soon as you try to say these things, you begin to contribute to the issues that surround bramblestar.