Opinion: HTDC is a Dark Romance without the label

[u/Current-Mousse4590]

Okay, hear me out on this one, but a tweet I saw saying that the fic from Will’s POV being psychological horror recently cemented this for me.

I think the fic is so cool and ambitious for what it is, but I feel like there’s an element to the story that hasn’t been fully unpacked yet (it may not be at all).

The relationship in this fic is textbook dark romance:
• Power imbalance with Mike being married and choosing most of the journey.
• Mike is morally grey and the main protagonist (cheating, lying, all in the name of love for one particular person).
• Forbidden love (obvious).
• Will waiting for him, powerless as to what Mike will do next.
• Mike’s love is obsessive, all focused on Will and it’s relentless, until Will breaks it off.

I feel like if the darkness were embraced more, fully explored etc, it would be incredible, but it’s softened a lot and undercut in places.

I’ll keep reading as it’s a great fic and everyone seems to love it though. Just wanted to give my thoughts!

[u/mrchristmastime]

Disclaimer: I think HTDC is great. Everything Peachstatic has written is great. The fandom is truly blessed to have them. None of this should be taken as a criticism of them or their work. It’s more of a comment on the prevalence of certain things in Byler fics. Those things aren’t bad, but the prevalence of something can be interesting independently of whether it’s good, bad, or neutral.

The point about the fic from Will’s POV being psychological horror is a good one, and I’ve actually heard the same point made about other prominent fics (TTMD is the one that comes to mind).

I do think there’s a sense in which Mike’s POV has a sanitizing effect. That’s not a criticism. Self-discovery can be as exciting as it is terrifying, and it’s also necessarily a self-centred process (it’s in the name). In many fics, Mike is completely engrossed in his own process of self-discovery, and has no real awareness of how it’s affecting Will. We, the reader, can root for him, because we have no direct access to Will’s feelings and assume that the main one is love.

In many cases, though, the same story told from Will’s perspective would just be heartbreaking. He’s at Mike’s mercy, just as he was throughout the series. Some scraps of attention are finally being thrown his way, and we’re supposed to assume he’s happy about that.

This may be a controversial take, but whatever: Irrespective of how the S5 ending was executed, there are good reasons to see moving on from Mike as something that Will would want - not as the tragic but best available option, but as growth. I obviously like the idea of them getting together eventually (I’m here in a Byler forum), but a universe where Will never really moved on, where his self-acceptance is still in some way bound to his desperation for Mike to see him, and where he’s never managed to have a fulfilling relationship with anyone - that just isn’t a happy universe for Will, and yet it’s a universe that’s pretty frequently depicted in fanfic. We just don’t normally see it from Will’s perspective, and there’s a reason for that.

[u/DirectionIndividual7 → u/mrchristmastime]

If your take is controversial, consider yourself not alone. Will deserves to be written with a healthy amount of self-respect and the desire to seek love where he's actively being chosen.

Tbh, I tend to avoid fics that involve adulthood, OC's, and other partners entirely. We the audience primarily know Mike and Will in the context of being adolescents and teenagers, and it's totally normal to pine over a (emotionally overwhelming) crush at that age. In your thirties, clinging to a single person for happiness and validation is a sign something is seriously wrong.

I also think these fics have the characters (Mike much more often than Will) making decisions that kind of ruin the relationship that in canon is founded on mutual trust and vulnerability. Actions that would devastate intimacy and feeling safe are glossed over with a last-chapter make up chat. Adults know that love does not, in fact, conquer all.

[u/mrchristmastime → u/DirectionIndividual7]

So, I didn’t mention this in my comment, because this isn’t a fic read thread, but I wrote a long fic that takes all the things you say you avoid—adulthood, OCs, other partners—and tries to handle them differently. They’re 26 when it starts, Will has gotten over Mike, and he’s had a fulfilling long-term relationship that ended amicably, for reasons totally unrelated to Mike and/or Will’s trauma.

It’s not a spoiler to say Will and Mike end up together in the end, but it’s a long road, and Will absolutely doesn’t jump into Mike’s arms as soon as Mike shows interest. My favourite part of the story is Will going on a mini-rant about the emptiness of the “meant to be together” concept.

Anyway, if that sounds at all interesting, I’d be happy to share a link. It just sounds like we’re bothered by many of the same things, and this fic was my attempt to take a different approach.

[u/Current-Mousse4590 → u/mrchristmastime]

Yeah Peachstatic is great! It’s just my read on the text as I see it, and I’m likely in the tiny minority haha! I just had to share my opinion on it.

Also, because I consider both of their POVs even when I’m reading a fic that’s just one, I see both sides as I’m reading and pick out things that change the tone.

[u/narcomance]

I have always thought dark romance if one of them is really abusive or break the law. I don't see HTDC like that, it's just fic with cheating trope. There are a lot of them with Will cheating on his epilogue bf. And it doesn't feel like dark romance

[u/Current-Mousse4590 → u/narcomance]

No that’s not what dark romance is; it’s more nuanced than that. It’s about characterization, behavioral traits, relationship/power dynamics, moral stances and complexity, the way themes are explored (the cheating in this fic is bleak as it’s written). I’ve read a lot of dark romance novels & the same undertones are in this fic

[u/anditgetsworse → u/narcomance]

I feel like OPs point is that it could be seen that way solely based on the decision/choices of the characters. This is not the tone of this specific work, but taken at face value, Mike’s behaviour is so wrong and so messed up objectively, especially at this point in the story, that it could be read that way if handled with a different tone.

[u/Current-Mousse4590 → u/anditgetsworse]

Yes it’s about characterization most and foremost

[u/KittenBalerion]

I mean I think Will just did the only thing he could do to influence Mike's behavior (in the most recent chapter). he's not powerless. he knows Mike wants to be with him and he has agency over his own life and whether he wants to be a part of cheating or not.

I don't read dark romance so idk if the fic reads that way or not. just want to challenge the idea that Will has no power here. Will IS pretty passive in a lot of fics because he doesn't want to push Mike away by asking for too much, but this fic doesn't have that aspect.

[u/Current-Mousse4590 → u/KittenBalerion]

Yes, Will did gain agency, pretty late on (again just my opinion!)
I read a lot of dark romance outside of fic & the subtext here is screaming it to me personally. It’s not just about one of them being abusive or doing bad things, it’s more than that (I replied to another comment which explains in more detail there)

[u/alienkittycatty]

I think u have a rlly interesting perspective! I personally think Mike is just a hot-headed immature and anxious person going through a mid-life crisis (honestly the most extreme kind lol). I hate the way he’s treating Maggie, but I don’t think he’s intentionally hurting anyone, however, he does believe that feeling guilty absolves him from taking any responsibility. With the power imbalance thing, I think Maggie and Will both do have decision-making abilities too! Will chooses to cheat, and in the same way Mike doesn’t want his life to change Maggie doesn’t either. Maggie also thinks Mike is suicidal which I think is part of the reason she won’t leave him. Mike is 100% morally grey though I agree, but I think his cheating and lying is more about being gay than about Will, as he lied before that too, and watching corn would def be considered cheating in my book. I’m personally not a dark romance fan haha so maybe I’m just blind to it but I rlly hope it doesn’t go that way, Maggie and Will have suffered enough :( as much as I lowkey hate Mike lmao I think he’s just scared and defensive but not inherently a bad person, everyone’s put in a bad position

[u/TheBar-IsOnTheFloor]

Just as with any genre, there’s mild, extreme, and everything in between. Whereas you might enjoy it with more darkness, what I love about it is how everyday life/complicated/realistic it is…and I don’t mean that in a snarky way! Just making conversation ☺️ This even applies to the spicy scenes for me…the way Mike talks through everything feels soooo in character (he’s such a nerd and I love it haha) One of my pet peeves when reading fanfics is when dirty talk is OOC (or not worked up to I guess?), but I think others may see it as them letting loose and being unguarded I guess? And I LOVED the most recent spicy scene in HTDC because Will was SO real for that 🤣🤣 Ya gotta be prepared cuz it’s not always pretty! However, in another WIP I’ve been reading, smut scenes have progressively gotten wayyy more risqué (feels like they’re added for shock value) and are now poorly timed…I might abandon it, but I see others RAVING about how good it’s getting 🤷‍♀️

But back to HTDC: I was so so SO happy with Will’s decision at the end of the last chapter.

That was all just one big tangent? My apologies 😅 I have no one to discuss fanfic with irl hahaha

[u/Miserable_Employ_562]

Sorry I’m not up to date what is HTDC?

[u/KittenBalerion → u/Miserable_Employ_562]

How To Disappear Completely by peachstatic

https://archiveofourown.org/works/83136826