There's been speculation on the direction the writers are taking the relationship between Chandra and Nissa ever since the wrap-up for Battle of Zendikar, when a lot of people noticed an unusual closeness between the characters. It was certainly suggestive, but could also have been just the emotional intimacy that comes from sharing a life-threatening experience. If you ask me, however, the latest story seems to step over the line between "maybe" and "definitely". I just can't see any way how else to explain their thoughts, feelings, and reactions toward each other - and this is in first-person from both perspectives! The only odd thing about it is that neither one seems to be aware of what they're feeling or why. But I firmly believe this story pretty much cements Chandra as bisexual, since she also spends some time oggling a shirtless Gideon with Liliana.
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These kinds of discussions are always tough for me. I get that there are lots of people/groups looking for representation and that interpreting/reinterpreting characters is a long standing way to do that. On the other hand I don't like the need we seem to have for every character in everything to be romantically involved with someone. Chandra, sure, is probably bi or perhaps "doesn't care enough to differentiate" but can't Nissa just be asexual rather than closeted or "broken"?
It may just be me, but I don't want any romance amoung the Gatewatch.
Jace & Liliana already have a sordid past together, and that makes reading the Gatewatch articles painful enough; so far I haven't seen anything that suggests that the current writing staff could handle romantic stories without resorting to cheesy, tweeny-fanfics. I love me some romance in my fantasy novels, but only if its done well - with respect, cleverness and purpose.
If Wizards could write an actual Gatewatch story that doesn't make me cringe I'd be far more willing to let them have a go. As it stands at the moment though; I heavily believe any attempt on Wizards part to smash faces between any members of the Gatewatch is a sell-out of the characters and simply a ploy to make more money in order to appeal to wider audiences that crave that sort of Twilight fan fiction.
But eh, that's just my thoughts on the subject.
I have no issue with Chandra/Nissa (two of my favorite Planeswalkers!), but only if it makes sense and has a point. Shoving two people together just to sell cards is despicable, so hopefully Wizards avoids this territory for as long as possible.
I don't think it's exactly what people think. Chandra is attracted to the stillness of Nissa's mind, something she hadn't really experienced before. Could there be more? Sure.
Eh. Don't want it on cards becaue I can't see a romance being converted into card form without massive, massive, massive shoehorning and general sketchyness. (Then again, OGW exists.)
That said... let the ships sail!
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"It is better for all the world if, instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for crime or to let them starve for their imbecility, society can prevent those who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind. The principle that sustains compulsory vaccination is broad enough to cover cutting the Fallopian tubes... Three generations of imbeciles are enough."
--Buck v Bell, 1927. This case, regarding the compulsory sterilization of inmates at mental institutions, has -- somehow -- never been overturned. Just a wee PSA for ya.
Regarding Chandra's sexuality, it seems like she's just attracted to whoever she happens to find attractive at any given moment, regardless of gender. Out of everyone in the Gatewatch, I think she's the most likely to be bisexual/pansexual.
As for whether she has a crush on Nissa, it's really hard to say. That could be the case, or she could've just been acting weird because she was nervous and didn't want her friends to think any less of her. Remember, her teammates are basically the only friends she has right now. They're the only people she cares about, platonically or otherwise. It makes sense that she'd be awkwardly self-conscious around them, even if there weren't any romantic feelings involved. The story did imply that Chandra might think of Nissa as more than just a friend, but it also implied that she might still be attracted to Gideon, and maybe have feelings for Liliana too. Hell, given how fickle she is, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up getting crushes on all of her teammates at some point.
I don't think that Nissa has romantic feelings for Chandra, though, or for anyone else. I could be wrong, but I've always thought of her as being asexual. I just can't think of a single instance where she displayed even the slightest signs of being physically attracted to anyone, or showed any interest in sex or romance.
Gideon, Jace, and Liliana all seem to be mostly straight, though I wouldn't be too surprised if any of them were bi. Any feelings that Gideon had for Chandra seem to have faded by now, though.
I keep waiting for them to at least acknowledge Gideon and Chandra's history, but it seems to have been completely dropped. The thing with the most recent story and Chandra's new relationship with Nissa is that if it were a male and female interacting this way their romantic feelings would be canon by now, and if it were two males all they'd have to do is look at each other too many times for people to ship them.
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However where ever making money is conserned on a glbal market the company looses a lot of money as fast as someone is bisexual or gay. Most probably it will never be anything but hintet at or subtext.
If WotC goes all the way I am very happy, but I doubt it.
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I have dyslexia, no I am not going to spell check for you, yes you have to live with the horrors of it.
I feel like there are seeds for multiple different relationships that creative may be interested in exploring. When the OGW story concluded I seem to remember somebody asking MaRo about possible romantic connections between Chandra and Nissa and he said that they were laying things down in case they wanted to explore them later on. My guess is that depending on how the Kaladesh storyline is received, especially any interaction between Nissa and Chandra, the writers will decide where to go from there. If it is popular and liked by the majority then they may explore it but if it falls flat there are other romantic avenues that can be explored. I don't think WOTC would want to lock themselves into any particular pairing too quickly in case nobody supports it. I for one would support Chandra with any of the Gatewatch except maybe Jace.
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When the Second Sun rests between the horns on the horizon, so begins the Hour of Revelation. Then the Hour of Glory, the Hour of Promise, and finally the Hour of Eternity
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I don't think it's a romantic relationship, but I think it has very good potential to develop in that direction. Chandra and Nissa literally shared a moment of existence. It doesn't get much more intimate than that. It will be interesting to see how it would happen if Creative decides to push it forward. Recently, their track record amounts to a lot of great ideas with very poor execution. This could easily blow up on us.
... and if it were two males all they'd have to do is look at each other too many times for people to ship them.
*coughjaceandgideoncough*
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I for one would support Chandra with any of the Gatewatch except maybe Jace.
Agreed. In the long run, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up in romantic relationships with more than one of her teammates, at different points in time. (Or at the same time! I doubt MtG will ever include an openly polyamorous character, but Chandra certainly seems like the type for it.)
I definitely see the potential for Chandra x Nissa, though it could also be read as Chandra admiring Nissa and getting flustered for acting in ways she thinks make her look foolish in front of her. There's no denying that Chandra and Gideon still carry a torch for each other, though, especially in the recent story articles where they very heavily imply their romantic feelings.
Admittedly I kinda like the idea of Nissa x Jace since they had that mental connection thing during BFZ block. But then I also like the idea of Jace x Lavinia (for some reason, I keep seeing them as similar to Mulder and Scully from X Files) and Jace x Jori En (Jori seemed rather interested in Jace during their brief excursion together). And I could even make a case for Nissa x Gideon, since Gideon is trying so earnestly to be sensitive to Nissa's feelings. However, I think Nissa x Ajani is more likely since Ajani seems like he could easily connect to Nissa through their shared spiritual values (imagine them meditating together).
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
I would like to see many more awkward interactions between members of the gatewatch. After-all it's a team of superish humans from completely different worlds who's cultures are drastically different. And that's my favorite thing about magic, seeing how creatures on different planes function differently. I don't see nissa x chandra happening purely because how hard it is for Nissa to understand Chandra. from how i interpret the lore Nissa wants to help Chandra but she doesn't know how to help anyway other than fighting with her. honestly i don't want their relationship to develop anymore than just two comrades who fight the battle to try to understand each other. I think at least for now we can agree Nissa's one true love is Zendikar and will most likely stay that way for years to come.
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I like that the Gatewatch can be used as an outlet to explore the relationships between different colors, and not always in the most obvious way.
Gideon and Jace have similar goals, but confused ideas about leadership.
Gideon distrusts Liliana, but allows her to work with them (better than against them). Liliana finds Gideon naive and nauseatingly sincere, but is willing to use his invincibility as an asset (as long as he puts on a shirt for goodness' sake).
Jace and Liliana have history and are willing to work together, but their relationship status is complicated and strained with some lingering hard feelings from both ends.
Jace and Chandra find each other exasperating, but are capable of working well together. We need to see more of their interactions as teammates.
Liliana and Nissa haven't interacted much so far, but Nissa doesn't like the Chain Veil and Liliana no doubt rolls her eyes at the tree-hugging elf.
Liliana likes to manipulate Chandra through her emotions, and to some extent Chandra is happy to oblige, but Chandra has also made it quite clear she isn't Liliana's personal flamethrower.
Chandra and Nissa both are able to relate through feel, and show that red and green aren't just about smashing stuff.
Chandra shares Gideon's altruistic streak, and of course they are attracted to each other.
Nissa gets along well with Gideon, but feels he doesn't understand her. Gideon does everything he can to be considerate of Nissa's feelings.
Nissa and Jace also haven't had much interaction, but from what we saw in BFZ block they seem to get along surprisingly well for green and blue mages. Jace found Nissa's leyline sensory fascinating, and Nissa most likely finds mental understanding in Jace if not spiritual (he shares her sense of responsibility for the release of the Eldrazi).
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MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
I think that it's just part of Chandra's character because if you think about it red is the color of passion and emotion so it just makes sense for Chandra to be a passionate person.
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Jace & Liliana already have a sordid past together, and that makes reading the Gatewatch articles painful enough; so far I haven't seen anything that suggests that the current writing staff could handle romantic stories without resorting to cheesy, tweeny-fanfics. I love me some romance in my fantasy novels, but only if its done well - with respect, cleverness and purpose.
If Wizards could write an actual Gatewatch story that doesn't make me cringe I'd be far more willing to let them have a go. As it stands at the moment though; I heavily believe any attempt on Wizards part to smash faces between any members of the Gatewatch is a sell-out of the characters and simply a ploy to make more money in order to appeal to wider audiences that crave that sort of Twilight fan fiction.
But eh, that's just my thoughts on the subject.
I have no issue with Chandra/Nissa (two of my favorite Planeswalkers!), but only if it makes sense and has a point. Shoving two people together just to sell cards is despicable, so hopefully Wizards avoids this territory for as long as possible.
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But it certainly seems like there could be something there ;p
-Chandra Nalaar
That said... let the ships sail!
--Buck v Bell, 1927. This case, regarding the compulsory sterilization of inmates at mental institutions, has -- somehow -- never been overturned. Just a wee PSA for ya.
As for whether she has a crush on Nissa, it's really hard to say. That could be the case, or she could've just been acting weird because she was nervous and didn't want her friends to think any less of her. Remember, her teammates are basically the only friends she has right now. They're the only people she cares about, platonically or otherwise. It makes sense that she'd be awkwardly self-conscious around them, even if there weren't any romantic feelings involved. The story did imply that Chandra might think of Nissa as more than just a friend, but it also implied that she might still be attracted to Gideon, and maybe have feelings for Liliana too. Hell, given how fickle she is, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up getting crushes on all of her teammates at some point.
I don't think that Nissa has romantic feelings for Chandra, though, or for anyone else. I could be wrong, but I've always thought of her as being asexual. I just can't think of a single instance where she displayed even the slightest signs of being physically attracted to anyone, or showed any interest in sex or romance.
Gideon, Jace, and Liliana all seem to be mostly straight, though I wouldn't be too surprised if any of them were bi. Any feelings that Gideon had for Chandra seem to have faded by now, though.
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However where ever making money is conserned on a glbal market the company looses a lot of money as fast as someone is bisexual or gay. Most probably it will never be anything but hintet at or subtext.
If WotC goes all the way I am very happy, but I doubt it.
- The Accounting of Hours
*coughjaceandgideoncough*
"You say 'learn from history,' but that does not mean 'learn the same bull***** the people in history learned alongside phrenology and alchemy.'" - The Blinking Spirit
Agreed. In the long run, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up in romantic relationships with more than one of her teammates, at different points in time. (Or at the same time! I doubt MtG will ever include an openly polyamorous character, but Chandra certainly seems like the type for it.)
QFTFTW!!!!!!
Anyway. At least Chandra x Nissa has gone into some sisterly love at least, so why not?
Admittedly I kinda like the idea of Nissa x Jace since they had that mental connection thing during BFZ block. But then I also like the idea of Jace x Lavinia (for some reason, I keep seeing them as similar to Mulder and Scully from X Files) and Jace x Jori En (Jori seemed rather interested in Jace during their brief excursion together). And I could even make a case for Nissa x Gideon, since Gideon is trying so earnestly to be sensitive to Nissa's feelings. However, I think Nissa x Ajani is more likely since Ajani seems like he could easily connect to Nissa through their shared spiritual values (imagine them meditating together).
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
|| UW Jace, Vyn's Prodigy UW || UG Kenessos, Priest of Thassa (feat. Arixmethes) UG ||
Cards I still want to see created:
|| Olantin, Lost City || Pavios and Thanasis || Choryu ||
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.