On Wed, 23 Jan 2002 23:46:23 -0500 "Dana Shilling" dshilling@worldnet.att.net writes:
Ummm, no spoilers or anything, but the current-in-US-season of a show with a protagonist who isn't always terrible nice either has him getting completely sappy about a baby.
Which, of course, had nothing to do with starting this train of thought in my mind in the first place :-)
Actually, I think of Snape in the Harry Potter books as an Avon avatar. Rereading them after book four, I also came to the rather horrifying conclusion that Snape is trying to have a positive impact in the lives of two of the kids who have the most difficulty with him, Harry and Neville. So, you can imagine how I think Avon might manage as a father on his own. I think, teamed up with someone like Cally (or Lily Potter) to provide balance and point out emotional realities, he'd be OK. But do _not_ let him do this on his own.
As for Avon's own background, I think Avon had a father with Blake-like, heroic tendencies who was killed when Avon was young. I think Avon's feelings towards his father are mixed. On one side, I think he saw his dad as this heroic figure who had stepped in and saved him a time or two when all seemed lost. On the other side, I think he has these feelings of resentment and anger - his dad died because of his commitment to the cause. Emotionally, it felt like abandonment for the cause.
I think this is there in his relationship with Blake and with Hal Melanby. With Blake, the negative part is a lot more prominent - he keeps telling himself not to trust someone like this, that they _don't_ stick with you, etc. With Melanby, who's older than him (easier to unconsciously think of as a father figure) and who saved his child and protected her (and then helps save and protect Avon), he's able to relate to the things he loved and respected in his father.
Yes, I can just imagine how this made Avon feel when _he's_ responsible for creating the situation where Melanby dies trying to protect Avon from the situation Avon's involvement in Blake's rebellion has helped create (ie, Servalan as an enemy trying to acquire Orac, Blake and Avon's secret weapon). I'd guess this effected his later relationship with Dayna. He's not going to abandon her but he's not going to encourage her getting too close to him either.
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