dent-de-leon:

Yeah, this is something I’ve always seen differently from the majority of fandom I think. The thing is, though Lance and Keith are closer now, and their bond was certainly headed in a much better direction–they still have some issues to work out. Through no own fault of their own, even when they do open up, and they both really struggle with communicating their needs. And yeah, I have talked about this quite a bit in respect to the scene where Lance goes to Keith for advice. 

The main problem there is that Lance is struggling with his own insecurities. Really, that’s the issue. But rather than just directly addressing that, both Keith and Lance kind of tiptoe around it. And, though he was clearly trying to understand and work out a solution, Keith’s answer isn’t much help. He basically says things will work themselves out, and not to worry about it. So we have Lance who’s worried about the team but also this is very much a more personal issue, and he’s trying to pass it off as if it’s not. But then we also have Keith giving a very abstract, almost dismissive answer. “Stop worrying about who flies what, and just focus on your missions. Things will work themselves out.”

For examples of better communication, I would cite a lot of Keith’s conversations with Shiro, where they’re clearly more comfortable with opening up and expressing their needs. The fact that Keith’s first impulse is to make a joke that things must be really bad if Lance is going to him for help–that says a lot about their dynamic. In terms of open communication and comfort, they’re just not quite there yet. And for a better example of dealing with Lance’s insecurities in particular, we have Allura. She very firmly reassures Lance by directly citing the qualities that mean he’s meant to pilot Red and she’s the one who really encourages him to be part of the team again. It’s a very clear, descriptive, and resolute answer, which was more than what Keith was able to put together–because while he clearly cares, there’s this disconnect there with him and Lance. 

Consider also when Lance tries to comfort Keith about Shiro’s loss–because I always see people cite it as the epitome of good counsel, and it makes me sick. Lance, like everyone else–with the exception of Allura–never discusses how much Shiro means to Keith. Instead, he makes the moment about him, and how he feels. “…we all miss Shiro. I remember what a thrill it was to meet him when the two of us carried him out of that garrison hospital.” Again, Lance is trying here, but it clearly doesn’t hit the mark. For Keith, Shiro was never just some thrill. That was a very personal rescue mission, the first time he’d seen the person he loved most in a year. There’s a clear disconnect in what Lance is saying and what Keith is feeling here.

Even more heartbreaking, like Pidge and Hunk, Lance never speaks about Takashi the person, but Shiro the heroic paladin. They refer to him as a “legend,” a level of idolazation that is so very far removed from Keith’s very intimate connection and doesn’t take into account Shiro’s personal character at all. Lance also tells Keith, “But you know that he would be the first one to tell you to move on,” and honestly? Look at Keith’s face. 

This isn’t someone who’s comforted. He’s gone his whole life firmly believing Shiro is the one person who never gave up on him, and now he’s just being told to let them go and move on. And he’s being told that by the person who basically called him heartless for not being onboard to go back for Allura no less. There’s a lot of reasons here why Keith wouldn’t be able to take any measure of solace in hearing this. 

After all, if this was truly comforting to Keith, if Lance really honestly understood Keith’s situation and the depth of his loss, he never would have maliciously accused Keith of using Shiro’s absence just to put himself in charge and completely trivialize the importance of their intimate relationship. Let alone do so in the very next episode:

It especially hurts when interpretations of Lance singlehandedly saving Keith in this moment were headcanons that came off the heals of tons of other k/l fans being excited Shiro was gone because now Lance could step in and “fill” that void. And it’s painfully obvious to me people who see it that way are very much unaware how much this kind of loss takes its toll. How utterly irreplaceable someone like Shiro is to Keith. Allura understands, though. She’s the only one in this scene who does, the only one who takes about Keith and his feelings and how much Shiro means to him and actually brings him some sort of comfort: 

So yeah. While it’s nice that they are making that effort to reach out to try and connect, I definitely think they have some communication issues to work through. And I really hope that they do.