- Apr 29, 2023
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People who are seeing each other, however it starts, still go on dates though. Basically any activity, out and about, with the people in the relationship, can be a date. Even chore dates (shopping/errands) are a bit more than fucking someone at their work, or calling them for a hookup. Ian and Lena walk in the park at least. Go on a mini-beach vacation, hit the club together. No one else even takes her out to a movie or dinner (forgot, rich guy takes her to dinner to grill her about Nitzche), the most cliched of dates. Even Ian seeing Lena at the life drawing class is closer to a date than everyone else, iirc. (haven't played the recent Stan route) I think the point stands that all Lena's male LIs are not treating her well stands.It's not like anyone really dates these days. The modern version of meeting people is through dating apps whether there's conversation/sussing each other out before anyone ever meets. I'm sure some people do it the old fashioned way of meeting, asking for a number, and calling to arrange a date, but it's becoming increasingly atypical.
Besides that, the majority of men that Lena does meet/know aren't in positions to date her. Axel comes with baggage, and when they finally do sit down to meet properly, it's over coffee where he apologizes. Mike is a no-go because he's in a relationship, so he wouldn't explicitly date Lena. Jeremy at least puts up a front of not fucking around with Lena because of Ian and Louise, although he's easy to break. Even if they want to, their circumstances prevent them from dating Lena. Unless you're suggesting they just dump their girlfriends or come clean to the conflicted parties, in which case yeah, but then there's no story. Eva isn't the first writer to abuse a lack of communication to create narrative tension.
But there is one guy outside of Ian who tries to date Lena. Stan, although he's too shy to do it for most of the current story. Lena has to take the initiative to invite HIM out, and perhaps that's a commentary of the changing gender roles in modern dating. But he does ask Lena to a movie date later on. It can become sexual but it's Lena that nudges it in that direction, and that's also true of Ian. Lena is the one to invite him to her room, there's no pressure from Ian.
At least lampshade that shit by them not wanting to be caught out, while on a date.