I Cried In Ep 1 - Tumblr Posts
La Pluie Meta Round-up
Since many of us have decided to stop being normal about this show, I wanted to get a little more organized about tracking the great meta inspired by the episodes every week. Some of y’all are putting in work to write these amazing essays digging into the text and subtext of this show, and I want to make sure I’m not missing any of it, as well as have a central place to track my own. I thought this might also be a useful resource to others, especially anyone coming to the show late (please join us, this is the perfect moment to get into La Pluie).
So without further ado, a round up of my favorite essays and posts to come out of the fandom on this excellent show. I will plan to update this each Saturday with the previous week’s meta as we go through the final four episodes. I tried my best to find everything but y'all know how faulty tumblr’s search and tag functions are, so if you think I missed something important, let me know!
First, the most crucial essay about La Pluie that everyone must read
We Must All Get Gayer and Louder About La Pluie Immediately (@bengiyo)
Second, a round up of some of the essays exploring the structure and intent of the story
Note: these may contain random spoilers for some episodes but are not specifically about any given episode
Four schools of thought on soulmates (@shortpplfedup)
Intentional subversion of the soulmate trope
Interrogating the romance genre (@chickenstrangers)
La Pluie and the subversion of second lead syndrome
La Pluie and the subversion of the faen fatale
La Pluie: On the Lore
Locations of La Pluie (@colourme-feral)
Name meanings in La Pluie (@recentadultburnout)
Narrative determinism versus genre determinism (@ginnymoonbeam)
On the subject of consent in recent bls (@williamrikers)
Romance tropes don’t work in real life (@heretherebedork) NEW
Romantic idealism in La Pluie (@ginnymoonbeam)
And finally, episode specific reactions and predictions
Note: These are spoilerific, starting at episode 4 aka when we all started really losing our minds over this show
Episode 4
Defying destiny (me and @bengiyo)
La Pluie Ep 4 And My Love Of Emotionally Available Characters (@bengiyo)
You (Yes, You!) Should be Watching La Pluie
Episode 5
La Pluie Ep 5 Stray Thoughts (aka birth of the Tai’s Dad is queer theory) (@bengiyo)
What we know about Patts (plus Shan and Ben’s vindication)
Working out the colors in La Pluie (@respectthepetty)
Episode 6
Hands in La Pluie Ep 6 (@wen-kexing-apologist)
La Pluie meets Nora Roberts (@syrena-del-mar)
On suspicion of Patts (@ginnymoonbeam)
Patts Was Going to Blow Tai. Tai Wanted It. Why That Matters. (@bengiyo)
You need to be watching La Pluie
Episode 7
Hands in La Pluie Ep 7 (@wen-kexing-apologist)
La Pluie: Maybe we will get a happy ending after all (@neuroticbookworm)
On the bed scene in Ep 7 (@ginnymoonbeam)
On the make out session in Ep 7 (@shouldiusemyname)
Episode 8
La Pluie and the Exploration of Romance, Competence, and Queerness (@bengiyo)
La Pluie: Do you still believe in soulmates?
La Pluie: The most important thing is that we really love each other
The Language of Love in La Pluie Ep 8 (@wen-kexing-apologist)
Third Child Syndrome: Birth Order Theory in La Pluie (@syrena-del-mar)
Episode 9
La Pluie and The Kind One (@sunshinechay)
Soulmate Skepticism vs Romanticism in La Pluie (@neuroticbookworm)
the divine in me; the divine in you (@liyazaki)
The Kindness is the Point (@bengiyo)
The ultimate message of La Pluie
To love is a choice (@heretherebedork)
What matters is CHOICE (@shortpplfedup)
Episode 10
A Jungian Perspective on La Pluie (@syrena-del-mar)
A Logical Love Doesn’t Exist (@fadelikeclouds)
break your own chains (@liyazaki)
Diving into Tai’s mind: Actions do not speak louder than words (@fadelikeclouds)
La Pluie: A Masterclass in Conflict Writing in Romance
La Pluie Breaks the Soulmate Bond
La Pluie: Not All Gays Are Great (@bengiyo)
La Pluie the Soundtrack (@shouldiusemyname)
Lomfon thoughts (@rocketturtle4)
On Tai’s isolation (@sunshinechay)
On villainising Patts (@shortpplfedup)
Pee Peerawich Can Fucking Act (@wen-kexing-apologist)
Revisiting episode 8
Similarities between Lomfon and Tai (@iguessitsjustme)
Tai and Patt’s incompatible conflict styles and Tais’ conflict avoidance (@ginnymoonbeam)
The Depths of Inner Turmoil (@syrena-del-mar)
The Soulmate Label (@indigostarfire)
Understanding the Core Four of La Pluie (@neuroticbookworm)
Episode 11
Balancing Self-Absorption and Love in La Pluie (@syrena-del-mar)
Checking in on the colors (@respectthepetty)
Connection (@wen-kexing-apologist)
Communication (@shouldiusemyname)
Even though they’ve separated it doesn’t mean they’ve failed (@chinzhilla)
It isn’t destiny- it’s freedom (@liyazaki)
La Pluie and the Aftermath
La Pluie: Thoughts on the Queer Subtext and More Patts Reflections (@bengiyo)
On Tai as a middle child of divorced parents (@slayerkitty)
On Tai’s special treatment within the family (@shortpplfedup)
Parenting in La Pluie, Episode 11 (@neuroticbookworm)
The narrative is letting Tai be unlikeable (@sunshinechay)