Maybe I’m just a hopeless romantic, but I have a much higher chance of being infatuated by a piece of media if there are cute characters I can imagine kissing one another. With things like Hades 2, Dungeon Meshi, Baldur’s Gate 3, I’m not alone, with millions of fans simply in it for the schmaltzy stuff. And if not just for that, it certainly doesn’t hurt.
This is where shipping comes in. Shipping (short for “relationshipping”) is an act of pairing two characters together regardless of their canon standing, or whether it would make any logical sense in the story. It’s frequently a reason why I develop an interest in games and anime to begin with; if I’m promised unrequited gay romance or adorable tension between two people who are just perfect for one another, I’m hooked, but it takes a passionate fan to actually make that bond a reality.
Shipping Makes The World Go Round
While there can be toxic supporters of shipping who stand stubbornly next to a single pairing while refusing to accept any other sort of headcanon, for the most part, shipping is beautiful.
There has to be a baseline emotional connection to a piece of media to care about its characters to an extent that you’re willing to romantically or platonically link them together, while the world they inhabit must be nuanced or layered enough to support these relationships to begin with.
Alternatively, you can have unconnected universes where two familiar characters happen to work in the same coffee shop, or one is a lifeguard at a pool who saves their crush just as their time of need arises. On the surface, these are silly situations, but I have seen fans or the original creators turn this into something more time and time again, and it’s all thanks to the irresistible desire to ship.
From Call of Duty to She-Ra, I have seen shipping bring novel-length stories and extended comics to life that take existing personalities to bold new places, mixing together love, tragedy, action, horror, and more. I will never get enough of it, so I want to take a gander at two recent examples and how they approach the art of shipping in distinct and memorable ways.
Nobody Is Safe From Shipping In Hades 2
We all agree that Hades 2 is filled with sexy guys, gals, and non-binary pals, right? Good, I wanted to get that out of the way before I focused on a few specific couples. Having put over 30 hours into the early access build at this point, there are already a handful of characters I hope are gearing up for full romantic arcs, since if they aren’t, I’m going to be relying on my fellow fans to help fill the void.
Princess Melinoe and Nemesis are the most obvious pairing, and are a perfect example of enemies to lovers who begin the game at each other’s throats, but beneath this hostility sits an obvious admiration and care for one another. Nemesis has a grudge against Melinoe, as she was chosen to be raised as a weapon to defeat Chronos and restore order to the world, despite her smaller size, lesser strength, and lacking dedication to the cause.
In every way, Nemesis believes she is superior, but will never be in a position to override this decision. So she decides to help Melinoe whenever she can while simultaneously going against orders to watch over the Crossroads, often sneaking out on runs alongside Melinoe and watching her from the shadows.
I love how Nemesis will appear in chambers that have already been cleared, acting like it’s no big deal that she is protecting Melinoe, or challenges her to defeat more enemies and, if you win, a bunch of coin is now yours. There are even times when she will offer a new item or perk if you let her hit you in the face, a way to vent frustration and showcase affection, with Melinoe being none the wiser. That, or she really does just want to beat the crap out of me.
Either is fine.
Then you have Dora, a talking shade who spends most of the game hiding away in your tent, oblivious to her mortal identity and how exactly she fits into this world. Or Moros, the reigning lord of death who just so happens to catch feelings for the underworld princess. Finally, there is Icarus, who I’m not sure Supergiant is even considering as a romantic option. But his chemistry with Melinoe is perfect.
They have history with each other, one a shade who flew too close to the sun and the other a Princess who was raised to prioritise conflict over any other piece of her identity. Their exchanges are soft, considered, and dripping with flirtatious banter that perhaps I’m reading into a little too much, but a quick search online assures me I’m not.
I’ve already written extensively about how the hot spring scenes are a bold subversion of the traditional fan service we see in so much other media, but they allow the more intimate parts of Hades 2 to express themselves without immediately descending into titillation. It’s great to see characters make themselves vulnerable in both romantic and platonic ways, showing us that this pantheon doesn’t have the same societal hang-ups about sex and nudity as mortals do.
Hades has history with the enemies to lovers trope too, just look at Zagreus and Meg from the first game.
Mel and Nem might have beef together, but they will still help undress one another and take a load off with a helping of bath salts, and if that leads to something more, so be it. Not once is Hades 2 ever afraid to blur the lines between love and friendship, and that’s why fans have taken shipping so far across this universe.
Dungeon Meshi Is Giving Shipping Power To The Queers
My other current hyperfixation is Dungeon Meshi (Delicious In Dungeon), a series that is currently airing on Netflix and has me and the majority of my friends in a weeaboo chokehold. Not only is it a sweet show about cooking monsters and bonding in the depths of a labyrinthine dungeon, it also explores the trials and tribulations of several characters hiding so much beneath the surface.
I’ve written previously about Marcille and Falin, who shared an intimate bathing scene after the latter was resurrected from the bowels of a dragon, and whose dialogue and overall body language speaks to a romantic relationship begging to break free. But what I love most about this pairing is how the fandom is taking to it in such a queer-centric way.
Normally, with anime and manga, we’re used to seeing women - even those in sapphic relationships - sexualised to cater to the male gaze instead of embracing what makes them special. With Dungeon Meshi I have seen countless queer artists depict both Marcille and Falin in wonderful ways, whether it be canon or depicted in an alternate universe. Their relationship is defined by a tragic yet heartfelt reunion where dark magic binds them to an irreversible fate, but there is still plenty of room for sweetness to seep between the cracks.
I especially love it when Falin is shown in her dragon form fawning over Marcille, like she is both an object of desire and prey ready to be claimed. Knowing so much of the art, fics, and headcanons is coming from a queer perspective gives them far more life, or at least a justification when dipping a toe into more intimate waters that anime and manga so often fail to capture.
The comic I link below is somewhat explicit and isn’t afraid to get dark in places, so make sure you aren’t at work or sitting in a crowded coffee shop or something.
The same is true of Laios and Kabru, even if the two men aren’t exactly canon in the show. But they are a perfect match, with fans taking their initial dynamics and morphing them into a ship that most would struggle not to fall in love with.
Yet it isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, there is a beauty to be drawn from the unexpected and macabre, such as this comic, which is as grotesque as it is heartfelt, unafraid to explore romance in a way that not only reinforces Dungeon Meshi’s themes, but the personalities of these characters we’ve grown so enamoured with.
I’ve seen a lot of people see shipping from Dungeon Meshi and jump on the show because of it — the inverse of what we usually see — because fans have done such a brilliant job bringing these characters to life. Sometimes those fan representations diverge from the real thing, but that doesn’t really matter.
Regardless of whether certain relationships or queerness becomes a canon element of the things we enjoy, fans are smart and creative enough to read between the lines or turn subtext into reality, taking a coded character or narrative and turning it into something real. It is a beautiful thing, and shipping will forever be tied to that active approach to fandom.
Hades 2
Hades 2 is the sequel to Supergiant Games' smash-hit roguelike dungeon crawler. This time you'll play as Melinoë, Princess of the Underworld and Zagreus' sister, as she takes on the forces of the Titan of Time.
