@Billzilla2000 @Meth0d @Endominus
Oh boy, I absolutely had to get in on this discussion because I've been on every which side of this, so I'd like to share my perspective. So I am clinically diagnosed with CPTSD due to an abusive background. It involved a bunch of crap that lead me to develop really bad codependency. For those of you who don't know or understand codependency, people with codependency tend to struggle with setting healthy boundaries (or any boundaries,) tend to want to "rescue/save/fix" or "mother" people (we're often the caretaker sorts with a bad tendency to meddle,) and we also tend to struggle a lot with people pleasing (often from a root fear of abandonment or rejection.) Lastly, codependents often feel a strong need to be needed, (and this usually comes through as a feeling of needing to be useful/not a burden.) So Gojou is 100% a codependent sort, Marin is
not. She is dependent on him, she is not codependent. Just wanted to clarify that. She's the opposite where she doesn't people please at all, as she is self rooted. What she is though is
perfect codependency bait. She cannot sew, she cannot cook, and even though she loves cosplaying, she doesn't have much experience with cons (as seen when she didn't know how to end the photoshoot.) What she is doing, unknowingly in her case, is using
weaponized incompetence.
Adding more onto this from my perspective, I've been in a lot of abusive relationships because codependents tend to draw people with a lot of narcissistic traits, but I luckily got out of that hell loop and wound up with an amazing husband. After lots of therapy, I've learned how to set healthy boundaries and how to better communicate, but also how to have a healthier balance with my partner so that I don't inadvertently end up picking up too much of the mental and emotional load of the relationship (and also inadvertently letting resentment build up, only to break down over it later when I inevitably get overwhelmed.)
So while, yes, in a healthy relationship you don't typically keep score of how much each person has done for the other, unbalanced distribution of responsibilities
aren't the same thing. Like no one goes, "What did I do for you? Well I introduced you to Jen, and now you two are besties!" "Well I learned your favorite dish recipe from your mom to be able to make it for you!" Those kind of things aren't tracked. But things like the
mental and emotional burden of a relationship are supposed to be balanced/equal. Because if they're not, eventually that will cause tension, because eventually it does wear down on a person, even if that person wanted to do the task or whatever. Say a person wanted to be the stay at home parent, but then their partner left that responsibility entirely up to them, stating they were too tired from work to help. Even if that's the set up they agreed upon, eventually the stay at home parent is going to reach their limit. So you have to balance it. That's the issue here. There's zero balance between Marin and Gojou. Marin doesn't add anything to the scales. It's completely lopsided.
Think about it. The whole start to the manga was that Marin can't sew, so she can't make her own costumes to cosplay. But she makes money, right? Why didn't she simply take sewing lessons? Once she befriended Gojou, why not then at least attempt to learn sewing from him, or continue to try to learn how to sew in the meantime while paying Gojou until she does learn? Why not use cosplays bought online or something, especially for cons that are coming up fast and pay Gojou to tailor them so he doesn't have to make one from scratch on a time crunch? Why not do anything to lessen the burden she's placed on him and do anything to reach a point where she's not dependent on him? I think it's been shown pretty clearly that she's not considerate of him at all, at least and most importantly, through her actions.
Back to her weaponized incompetence and Gojou's codependency. If Gojou had healthy boundaries in place, when Marin asked him to make her cosplay, he should have been able to say, "While I would love to help, unfortunately I simply don't have the time and resources to do so." (Given that he has to practice his doll making at least 3 hours a day on top of school work and such.). And if Marin didn't use weaponized incompetence, she should have been able to say, "I suck at sewing, but I really want to learn so I can do more cosplays. I would love it if you could teach me, at least to get me started, not indefinitely. I'll of course pay you for your time." Or say, "I suck at cooking, I know, and I appreciate you offering to make me meals, but like with the sewing, I should really learn to do this for myself." ..but then the story would have never taken off, lol.
So yeah, I don't think most people realize that their relationship started
because they're both unhealthy and the relationship was unbalanced from the start and could only get more toxic as it continued if it didn't change from how it initially started and evolved into a more balanced one.
I know some people might disagree with me, but I actually like Marin's character. She's spoiled, self centered, and irresponsible, so those around her pick up the slack for her...but they do it because they love her, and they love her because she's a genuine person whose actions aren't from malice, but from a sort of pure inner child. She's selfish because she's immature and I think that's a great representation of a teen. What's insidious about these sort of relationships is that you have to stop enabling her for her to get better, which involves those around her to develop better boundaries - as someone who hasn't had to take responsibility for herself, Marin wouldn't have the self awareness to even know where to begin improving her character. So while people might want Marin to change, the change actually needs to start with Gojou. I do hope he finally expresses his own desires in the next arc and I do think the mangaka has set that up for him, so I'm excited.