sometimes I see people calling Aziraphale selfish in an accusatory way, as if it's a flaw that needs to be smoothed out, as if it isn't a trait that is at once defiant and emancipating, as if his selfishness isn't mostly wielded in an empowering and kind way, as if it's categorically bad to want things for yourself, to enjoy them, to have and keep them, as if selfish isn't the most revolutionary thing an angel can be
Just finished Time Bastard and I can’t get over how Ted and Pete’s romantic arcs parallel each other but their fates are polar opposites.
Like, they both fall for girls who they see as ‘too good’ for them, and they’re both challenged with accepting themselves as they are. The difference is Ted changes himself to be loved by Jenny, but that’s what drives her away and gets her killed. Pete, on the other hand, accepts who he is and refuses to change who he is just so he’s ‘good enough’ for Steph, and that authenticity was what made Steph fall for him in the first place.
Ted inadvertently ruins his life because he couldn’t accept himself, but Pete’s self-acceptance helps him get the girl (and low key saves his life, but that’s just a theory, A FILM THEORY)