seethem-dancing:

Clay and Quinn from OTH – a show/drama as cliche riddled and cheesy as it can possibly get; yet somehow this show (contrary to 99.9 percents of serialized media these days) managed to attain it’s purpose of being rewarding, giving the characters legitimate justice after the trials of however artificial angst and not letting pseudo-edgy twists and contrived plots bastardize the character driven nature of the story (or the core appeal of the characters themselves) – remain, to this day, one of the most progressive storylines to grace tv screens.

We had a devotedly artistic, inspired woman who left a discontent marriage for no reason other than because SHE wasn’t feeling happy with her husband. She wasn’t vilified by the narrative for putting her own needs above the sanctity of marriage and for pursuing freedom and, eventually, acting on her newly developed romantic feelings.

We had a severely mentally ill male character who wasn’t portrayed as antagonistic, aggressive or used for the sake of ridicule and/or reduced to comedic relief (a strikingly rare case for Western television overall). Clay’s mental issues weren’t ultimately downgraded to a punchline for tasteless jokes nor were they forced to exist conveniently in the background to make his character more “acceptable” and safe for general audience’s consumption (and as someone who’s been struggling with mental illness for over a decade being exposed to a character like that in mainstream media was endlessly fulfilling). He was shown to constantly struggle with navigating his life whenever his illness escalated and caused massive obstacles on a way of normal functioning.

An entire storyline – featuring his son Logan whom Clay almost lost because of his issues and because initially his illness and trauma prevented him from being able to be a father (and the narrative NEVER so much as implied Clay wasn’t entitled to try and become one when he was finally ready. When he was getting help and support he needed from Quinn, Nathan, Haley and the people who cared about him and vice versa) – was dedicated to the challenges Clay faced as a mentally ill man. Both individually and in terms of his professional and romantic life.

Clay and Quinn’s storyline showcased an ongoing process of two people with a baggage of experiences that often cause individuals in our society to become alienated and ostracized learning to walk through life together – as a compatible, mutually supportive couple – WHILE consistently struggling. Knowing there is no and will be no magical “fixing”, sticking and being stronger together and getting the love and care from the friends and family they had created on their own.