I Am Currently Bouncing Off The Walls Thinking About Spider Forging His Own Path And Creating His Own

Anyone who reblogs this post will have their user written on a poster saying "We Stand With Palestine" that I hope to put up somewhere in the village I live in, or the town that the village is next to.

James Cameron has written Neytiri and Spider's relationship before...

Recently I went on a kick of rewatching old sci-fi movies, including the James Cameron ones of course, and I noticed an interesting little pattern in JC's storytelling:

In Terminator 2 we have our protagonist Sarah Connor. In the first movie she was almost killed by the first terminator, so in the second movie, when she meets the new terminator, she's understandably distrustful of it even though her son, John, trusts it. However, the new terminator proves itself to be loyal to John, so she realizes she doesn't have to be distrustful and even comes to rely on it in the end.

Then in Alien 2 we have Ellen Ripley. In the first movie, Ripley was almost killed because of the android Rook, so in the second movie, when she meets a new android, Bishop, she's understandably distrustful of him even though the other human characters trust him. Just like the new terminator, Bishop proves himself to be loyal, and Ripley realizes she can trust him and they become friends by the end (and stay friends for the rest of their lives because I like to pretend Alien 3 didn't happen 😭)

Now we have the Avatar sequels and Neytiri. In the first Avatar, Neytiri was almost killed by Quaritch, so in the second movie, when she's around his son, she's extremely distrustful even though her family members trust Spider... hmm I wonder how James Cameron is going to resolve that conflict? 🤔

Obviously, Neytiri/Spider's relationship is more complicated and ugly than Ripley/Bishop and Sarah Connor/the second Terminator, but the story beats are still lining up the same. We don't know the conclusion to Neytiri and Spider's relationship conflict just yet, but looking at James Cameron's other works, I think he may be setting up to follow the same pattern as Alien 2 and Terminator 2.

Having a main protagonist realize she was wrong about someone and change her views on them is a story beat James Cameron seems to enjoy writing, and it's one that works really well. Giving a character flaws and having them grow and change is what creates compelling character arcs!

Avatar co-writer Amanda Silver even commented on the narrative purpose of Neytiri disliking Spider in an interview: "Neytiri is a fully fleshed-out character. She’s got flaws. So it’s okay to let her have flaws, we think. And that’s where Jim was coming from."

All this is to say that no, we are not going to see Neytiri murder Spider in Avatar 3 like many young fans hope, that would be a horribly depressing conclusion for her character arc; to never be challenged on her biases and never have to reflect on her views and grow. I for one am really excited to see how James Cameron and co resolve their conflict since their relationship has a lot more bad blood than the other two examples did!

in other news i can’t be the only one weirded out by the theories and fanart that make Varang and the Mangkwan seem like evil, animalistic beasties, right? it’s weird, right? like the theories that they eat people or are going to torture Neytiri/the kids or cut off people’s huru or limbs, that’s weird right? i’ve even seen theories on discord speculating that they’re somehow biologically “less intelligent” and “more brutal” and i. woah perhaps we should unpack this

Atwow side of TikTok is VERY different from here. For example, they heavily loathe Spider. You cannot say a single good thing about him or defend him on there or you'll be torn to pieces in the comments by people who enjoy bullying a child, regardless of said child being fictional or not.

To those "fans" in particular: Do you honestly think what he did was bad? Sparing an unforgivable man's life? Plenty of heroes do that in media, and those are usually ADULTS.

You have to remember: Spider is not from Earth. He was born and raised on Pandora. He only knows balance, peace, and serenity. He's never once ever dealt with Reddit and the 10 Best Satisfying Revenge Stories that we have here on Earth. All he knows is Eywa and the balance of life.

From what I understand, Spider saw that Neteyam was dead and as a teenager, probably wanted this terrible night to be over. No more death. He saw Quaritch, still alive, and remembered this man protected him and saved him from literal TORTURE.

And besides that, Eywa is a protector of balance. I theorize that with Neteyam already dead, Quaritch needed to live to regain that balance. Eywa is not done yet with Quaritch, and I'm intrigued to see what she has in store for him. To be clear, I'm not defending Quaritch. I don't like Quaritch. He's unforgivable in my eyes.

But Spider? Fuck yes, I'm defending him because he is still a CHILD.

If I, someone born on Earth, were in Spider's place, I would've done A LOT worse, and it would've been intentional if I had been put through the same amount of pain and trauma he was put through. I would've been the quote below:

“A child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth” - African Proverb

Spider is nothing like that. If he were born on Earth, maybe he would've been, but he was born on Pandora. He loves his friends, the Na'vi, and was very clearly distressed whenever the Na'vi, his friends, and their homes were under threat. He begged and pleaded for the Recoms to spare the Ta'unui Clan and their village once they started to kill their ilu and set fire to their homes.

If he were anything like the proverb, I wouldn't blame him for going after all the adults who wronged him. Clan leaders, Na'vi, humans, Hell, especially his foster family. Every single one of those adults failed him, and here's a link to another post that highlights that. So yeah, if he wanted to go after them, I'd probably cheer him on.

I can't fathom hating Spider and defending Neytiri all in the same breath. You're allowed to defend both because both characters went through traumatic stuff (it's not a competition), and both characters had their reasons when it came to their choices.

Another note: I better not hear that these same "fans" decided to go after Jack Champion for his portrayal of Spider or I will lose my fucking mind. It's ACTING.

Had this idea that Ronal would take kindly to Spider because he’s a child aimlessly trying to find family and I feel she’d take pity and show compassion. Also with Ronal’s animosity with Neytiri - she’d prob feel some solidarity with Spider. It’s a bit hypocritical cause Ronal literally calls the Sully kids demons for being half human but idk she’d prob have a change of heart seeing such a young kid being held hostage by the RDA, abandoned by the Sullys, and the scientist at hell’s gate.

Oh yeah in this version the RDA cut his hair and gave him clothes, washing away any Na’vi evidence.

Not going to finish these WIPs, the inconsistent art style is killing me

Old fanart of my favourite boy (I would die for him istg)

Teleports behind you and puts this in your hand

Hello spider socorro fans. I uh...I came back w the milk.

On a slightly more serious note, apologies for my absence!! Trying to graduate hs. And I also kinda....lost interest in the Fandom. I'll try to post more but now I'll also be drawing so that's exciting!! Maybe pick up the old aus, maybe do a few revamps if I can stomach looking at my old writing.

Spider is 10000% for killing RDA. he doesn't even think about it. he went straight for maximum damage without a second thought. twice.

...

So, I've been having thoughts about Spider wielding Chaos magic.

Crazy, right? In a galaxy where blue people exist and humans have found a way to colonize planets, red magic wouldn't be too farfetched.

That would be absolutely wild—Spider awakening as a Chaos witch in a moment of extreme pain and trauma, unleashing a force that he never knew existed. It would make him a terrifying and awe-inspiring figure on Pandora, a force of nature devoted to Eywa and the planet of his birth. Throw in Kiri, and you've got two overpowered siblings.

Anyway, here's a drabble:

Captured by the RDA, Spider endures days of torture as they demand the location of the Sullys. They push him past his limits—electric shocks, water deprivation, beatings—until something inside him snaps. It’s not just pain that fuels the transformation, but sheer, unfiltered rage. He had spent his entire life being nothing but a pawn to everyone. A demon to the Na’vi, a prisoner to the RDA, an afterthought to the humans of Hell's Gate. No more.

The air distorts. The room trembles. A deep crimson glow seeps from Spider’s fingers, crackling and sparking like liquid fire. He doesn’t think—doesn’t even understand what’s happening—before an explosion of red chaos energy erupts outward, flaying the RDA soldiers alive. Metal warps and melts, bodies twist and contort, their screams merging into a sickening cacophony of agony. Blood paints the walls.

Quaritch barely has time to register what’s happening before he bursts apart, his entire form breaking down on a molecular level.

Spider stands at the epicenter of the carnage, breath heaving, eyes glowing a deep, menacing crimson. His feet leave the floor as he ascends, floating weightlessly, surrounded by swirling tendrils of chaotic energy. He looks down at the ruin he has created, the shredded remains of his captors, the metal reduced to slag.

And for the first time in his life, Spider feels powerful.

He doesn’t run. He doesn’t hide. He flies, the red glow of his magic cutting across the Pandoran sky like a falling star of crimson.

The Omatikaya stare in shock as he arrives, his form wreathed in pulsing red light. He doesn’t wait for their judgment. He knows what he must do. The RDA has taken everything from him, from the Na'vi, from Eywa, from this world. Jake Sully had done what he could, but these demons were relentless in their pursuit for more. Never again.

With a single whisper, the forest bends to his will. The skies darken. The very fabric of reality trembles as he vanishes in a flicker of crimson energy, reappearing in the heart of Bridgehead City.

And then, with a single motion of his hand, he tears it apart.

Buildings collapse. Mechs crumple like paper. Soldiers scream as the very air around them shreds them into nothing. There is no mercy, no hesitation—only raw, undiluted vengeance. The Wrath of Eywa.

Spider doesn’t stop until the RDA is gone. Until their machines are dust, their weapons are ruins, and the very land they corrupted is cleansed by his power. As the last embers of destruction fade, he stands amidst the wreckage, his red eyes burning like twin suns. He is no longer just a stray human, no longer the son of a demon.

He is the harbinger of chaos.

And Pandora is his to protect.

I love the idea of Tsu’tey adopting Spider so here are some headcanons I have of that old grumpy guy raising his little son.

Tsu’tey’s injuries from the Great War caused him a lot of mobility issues. He often wakes up in pain from stiff joints and muscle spasms. To help, Spider will crawl over him and lay on whatever limb is hurting him to most in the morning because his body puts off a lot of heat and relaxes his muscles. He’s like a little heat pack.

Spider originally did need to wear his mask constantly, but over time, through constant communion with Eywa, she changes his lungs to be able to breathe the air. He doesn’t tell anyone though, because it happens years into him realizing nothing he can do will make most see past his humanness. Tsu’tey, however, finds out after seeing Spider lift his mask to shove a large piece of fruit in his mouth that he specifically told Spider not to eat.

Spider’s English is abysmal. He barely has the patience to sit through the normal lessons he gets from Mo’at and some of the other elders who like him, let alone enough to go to Hell’s Gate to learn about Earth. Mo’at scolds Tsu’tey for slacking in teaching Spider his native language, but he isn’t too worried about it.

Tsu’tey’s biggest mistake as a parent (in his mind) is letting Spider believe his hiss was intimidating. It was the best thing in the world for Tsu’tey when Spider was a baby. But then came a stint of time where Spider would hiss openly at anyone when annoyed which just made his reputation among villagers worst. The kids who made fun of him got bitten, mask be damned, which does not help his case.

Despite his short stature, Spider can actually fight and hold his own against fully grown Na’vi. Tsu’tey teaches him how to strike fast and hard, going for weak points in Na’vi anatomy and focusing on their legs and feet, places Spider can reach easily and do a fair amount of damage. This does mean Spider gets into a larger number of fights with other Na’vi adolescents compared to canon.

Spider is still best friends with Lo'ak and Kiri in this AU, much to Tsu'tey's dismay. He likes them well enough, Lo'ak is kind of loud and Kiri has an unnerving tendency to stare directly into his soul when talking, but overall they're good kids. He does wish they would stop eating him out of house and home though.

In canon, Tsu’tey has a brother named Arvok, who lives with them. Tsu’tey also takes in Tarsem, whose entire family died in the fall of Home Tree. He and Arvok are best friends, so it makes sense for him to live with them. The boys are like Spider’s brothers, but they pull out the "We're your uncles" card whenever he’s not listening to them or when they want to get out of doing chores.

Regardless of who you ship Spider with, Tsu’tey would find a fault in them. Neteyam? Too obedient to his parents, he needs to rebel more. Lo’ak? Too rebellious, he will get Spider killed doing one of his hair-brain stunts. Kiri? Eywa help him; she’s too much of everything. Any of the Metkayina kids? It’s laughable you’d even think for a second he’d let Spider marry into another clan.

Spider has an ikran in this AU cause I say he does. He finds a baby ikran abandoned during one of the trials he attends with his father. She’s the runt, too small and weak to fly with her family away from their nest back to their rook. Spider takes pity on her and nurses her back to health, hiding her away so no one knows because it’s technically illegal to raise an ikran. She imprints on Spider and the rest is history once Tsu’tey finds out she exists. He’s adamant they cannot keep her but one look from their combined puppy eyes breaks his will.

Tsu’tey and Spider’s ikran have the same relationship as those dads who say they hate the dog and then the dog becomes their best friend. When Spider gets kidnapped, Tsu’tey spends several nights awake with only the ikran for company, praying and begging Eywa to bring his son back to him.

Spider overall was a pretty healthy child, but there was one time when he got very sick and slipped into a coma. The scientists genuinely thought he wouldn’t make it for a while. This is the first time Tsu’tey has ever contemplated suicide, something that is forbidden under Eywa’s laws. He cannot imagine a life without Spider. The second time is after he’s taken by the RDA, but seeing Spider’s friends rally to try and get him bad makes him push the thoughts away.

After the battle at Three Brothers Rock, Neteyam lives but is mortally injured. The combined knowledge of Norm, Max, Ronal, and Mo’at is the only thing that keeps the boy from being paralyzed for life, but he’s essentially got the same disabilities as Tsu’tey now. And he’s a shell of himself. Tsu’tey doesn’t really have time to focus on him, though, because Spider is in just as bad shape as Neteyam, but mentally. After weeks of seeing both boys break down physically and mentally, Tsu’tey comes up with an idea. He gives both boys the task of planting and raising a plant together. Almost everyone thinks he’s crazy for this, but after a few weeks of watching their efforts to make this tiny plant bloom, they see that their moods have improved. Neteyam does his physical activity more to get outside and care for the plant, and Spider uses the plant as an outlet to air thoughts he knows would devastate his family.

When asked how he knew making them care for a plant would help, Tsu’tey simply replies by saying that the only thing that saved him after his injuries was Spider. Carrying for another helpless creature forced you, in turn, to care for yourself. His son saved his life.