REMEMBER HOW VIKTOR SKATES STAY CLOSE TO ME TO YUURI IN THE ABSOLUTE FIRST SCENE
AND THEN HE GETS THIS SMILE ON HIS FACE
THIS IS THE SOFTEST VIKTOR
especially when you consider how sad he looks while skating the same program at Worlds, because although it might be an artistic choice I also think it’s meant to highlight the deep longing Viktor feels for someone to be close to
NOT ONLY DOES HE GET TO PAIR SKATE THIS PROGRAM WITH THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE HE ALSO FINALLY GETS TO PERFORM IT KNOWING THAT HE’S NOT ALONE ANYMORE BECAUSE YUURI WILL NEVER LEAVE HIM
this smile saved my life
I just had a thought: what if Victor performed this for Yuuri then after that shot of Yuuri being determined, he gets onto the ice with Victor to skate with him and that’s the origin of the duetto
Alas, Yuuri and Viktor hug 0 times in this episode. Even though both of them clearly need a hug. Who allowed Yuuri to look like that? Why didn’t anyone stop him? This is oppression.
Viktor is naked in this episode and he flies to Japan to hit on a cute boy, so it’s okay.
HUG COUNT: 0
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT 45837
EPISODE 2
Yuuri and Viktor do not hug in this episode, but not because Viktor isn’t trying. He is employing all of his tactics, including: seductively displaying his nipples, sleeping, Makkachin, gently touching Yuuri’s mouth, assigning him the sexy program, and asking Yuuri to sleep with him.
Viktor’s seduction tactics are garbage but I (and Yuuri) still love him.
HUG COUNT: 0
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 203920
EPISODE 3
Okay folks this is where it gets good. There are two (2) hugs in this episode! First up, Yuuri hugging Viktor (and asking him to watch him) right before he performs Eros. Second, Viktor hugs Yuuri right after the program (though he then he gives Yuuri a long lecture.) Third, Viktor puts his arm around Yuuri while they’re on the podium. Is this technically a half hug at best? Yes. Am I including it? YES.
This episode contains a second incidence of Viktor touching Yuuri’s mouth. And an incidence of Viktor showing Yuuri his dick.
HUG COUNT: 3
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 3943243
EPISODE 4
Alas, Viktor and Yuuri don’t technically hug in this episode. But on the other hand, 1. BEACH SCENE 2. Viktor stretching Yuuri naked while a man thanks god in the background (what a mood) and 3. Yuuri running into Viktor’s room in the middle of the night to play the music for him.
HUG COUNT: 3
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 57489762
EPISODE 5:
Viktor, while hugging Yuuri: seduce me with everything you have. bring the audience to their knees. Viktor, while hugging Yuuri: your lips are chapped let me caress them with my 800 lip blam Viktor, while hugging Yuuri: it’s amazing you got such a high score when you slammed your face into the wall!
Like is it any wonder that this episode ends with Yuuri making a public confession of his love????
This is also the episode with the hug fake-out but I’m not taking points off for that, because I’m biased.
HUG COUNT: 6
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 748950923
EPISODE 6
Viktor is naked again in this episode. Viktor is naked a LOT. I should have made that a count.
This is a hug-heavy episode, possibly because that’s just what happens when Chris is in the vicinity. Naked hug at the hot pot place! (Forehead touch!) Hug at the kiss and cry! Viktor hugging Yuuri while Chris has an orgasm on the ice!
HUG COUNT: 9
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 8375840961
EPISODE 7:
I’m choosing to count Viktor taking a nap on top of Yuuri as a hug. Fight me. On one hand, this is a pretty scanty episode for hugs. ON THE OTHER HAND…
…the hug we DO get is, in fact, perfect. (”hug or kiss” you fools it’s both)
HUG COUNT: 11
KISS COUNT: 1
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 90438857631
EPISODE 8:
There’s minimal hugging in this episode because Yuuri is too busy casually ruining Viktor for all other men. Also because Viktor’s busy indulging his foot thing.
HUG COUNT: 11
KISS COUNT: 2*
VIKTOR’S THIRST COUNT: 198475826534
EPISODE 9
sobs quietly for a thousand years. they’re so happy and in love.
HUG COUNT: 13
KISS COUNT: 3
EPISODE 10:
the only hug in this episode is in the banquet flashback but WHO GIVES A FUCK! THEY’RE ENGAGED NOW!
HUG COUNT: 14
KISS COUNT: 3
VIKTOR’S THIRST: ∞
∞
∞
∞
EPISODE 11
Plot twist: Yuuri’s anxiety was the villain of YOI all along! The only hug here is in the flashback, but it’s a really cute flashback, so I guess that’s okay.
HUG COUNT: 15
KISS COUNT: 6
VIKTOR’S THIRST: 💔
EPISODE 12:
world record: broken
medal: won
retirement: canceled
bury me with stammi vicino when i die
HUG COUNT: 17
KISS COUNT: 6
VIKTOR’S THIRST:
❤️Y🧡U💛U💚R💙I💜❣️
❣️
❣️
*I’m counting kisses to Yuuri’s skate/hand/ring as well as them kissing their own rings in synchrony
Some less-explored aspects of Viktor Nikiforov’s character that I will love and protect until my dying day:
Finally learned how to be a young and careless person at age 27
Was absolutely 100% willing to jump straight into a “Married for five years with a dog” type relationship with Katsuki Yuuri the moment his feet hit the ground in Japan (Viktor “U-haul” Nikiforov)
Arrived in Japan assuming that he and Yuuri were already in a relationship and, once realizing his error, didn’t pressure Yuuri into ‘Keeping his promise’ or something similarly creepy
Literally is such an affectionate person and lets exactly zero (0) stereotypes regarding Eastern European men apply to him
He never raises his voice in anger to anyone??? ever?? I love it
Is an extremely competitive person but probably also the most sporting person in the entire fuckin show? Like even Yuuri can sometimes be a bit of a sore loser but Viktor’s like, Yuuri you better inspire the fuck out of that smol multi-colored skate child. Hell yes I’m proud of Yurio, that’s my boy, that’s my actual son.
Is a masculine person who gives ZERO FUCKS about perceived gender
NONE of his compliments to Yuuri are overtly physicality-based? He showers Yuuri in compliments about his stamina, about his ability to wow the crowd. He tells him how sexy he is but it’s entirely because of how Yuuri’s CONFIDENCE makes him sexy. Viktor is, at every moment, using positive reinforcement to make Yuuri see himself in a kinder light.
Is literally always unashamedly high key about everything.
Victor ‘I only know how to socialize if I’m putting on a front’ and ‘when we’re out with other skaters, I only talk to Yuuri’ Nikiforov is at least borderline an introvert if not fully one.
People think Victor is some kind of outgoing partier but when he goes out by himself for fun he literally goes to a ramen bar by himself and just sits there drinking and eating. When they go out to eat, they go in a small group. When Victor is at the Sochi banquet, he’s clearly both bored and uncomfortable.
I think there’s sort of a misunderstanding about introverts in that people think if someone likes attention and performing they’re extroverted, but performing in front of an audience and normal social interaction could not be more different. Just because Victor is comfortable with and enjoys the attention he gets on ice, doesn’t mean he’s a really social person.
Faking it is so exhausting.
Victor genuinely loves his fans and appreciates his sponsors, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t hard dealing with so many people.
I figure after big events where Victor has a lot of one on one interaction he probably just wants to build a pillow fort and stay in it with Makkachin for hours. Yuuri’s appearance in his life makes this a lot better, because he’s not very social either, so they can lean on each other in situations where they have to be.
i don’t want to be That Bitch but man it makes me really sad how many people in this fandom seem to see Being Extra™ as victor’s one and only character trait.
like “lmaoooooo omg victor is like so totally extra all the time and he’s a huge flaky diva who is always acting out lmaoooo how wacky and funny that little drama queen is” like don’t get me wrong those posts are fun and i reblog em a lot myself, but at the same time that’s like. not him at all?
the main reason we see him being “Extra™” in the show is because by the time we catch up with him he is at his breaking point.
he has given all of himself for literal decades to a career that he knows is drawing to an inevitable close as he ages. he’s been so disciplined and made so many sacrifices and neglected himself and his emotional needs terribly and for nothing. for a roomful of medals and trophies gathering dust in his empty apartment.
by the time we catch up with him he has decided to break free of that self-imposed isolation. by the time we catch up with him he has finally, finally, allowed himself to truly live and pursue the love he has been denying himself for so long.
you don’t get to where he is in any career field without being an absolute workaholic, and the exuberance and drama we see from him is largely because he’s a workaholic finally allowing himself to have fun and enjoy his life.
i’m not trying to say victor’s life pre-yuuri was a Bottomless Pit of Despair or anything, just that… he is not the chaotic shallow flaky diva-mess that so much of the fandom seems convinced he is. or at least, he’s not just that. there is far, far more to him.
he is a serious and dedicated athlete. he is kind and supportive to the people who look up to him. he is slightly introverted and hesitant to let people in, but unbelievably loyal to those few who are truly close to his heart. he’s patient and sarcastic and lonely and goofy and flawed and wonderful, and it does him a disservice to act like he’s just this silly wacky dramatic child and nothing else.
victor nikiforov is Extra™, yes, but he’s also so much more than that.
you know what my favourite thing about Yuri!!! on Ice is?
it’s the fact that the big plot twist wasn’t
Makkachin dying or Victor being revealed to be a playboy who would then break Yuuri’s heart etc.
the big plot twist was instead that before even having a conversation with his idol, Yuuri got absolutely wasted, stripped, had a dance battle with Yurio, pole danced with Chris whilst pouring champagne down their bodies and danced with Victor… then drunkenly asked for him to be his coach and gave him his home address whilst dry humping his leg
So since the topic of Victor and his characterization came up today, I have a few thoughts on the subject I’d like to share.
Let me start by saying that I’ve read a lot of Victuuri fic. A lot of it. Mostly canonverse fic, because I’m pretty meh on AUs and it takes a pretty special AU to woo me away from canon and canon divergence. As such, I’m intimately familiar with how the YOI fandom tends to write Victor in a canon setting in particular. And I feel like a lot of the time… we miss the mark. Rather drastically, as a matter of fact.
What do I mean by that?
Simple: I think a lot of the way the fandom portrays Victor is still heavily influenced by first impressions.
This is true of many characters in many fandoms. I’ve been around the block a time or twenty and seen a lot of fanon characterizations, both good and bad, and I’ve seen this pattern repeat over and over. First impressions are a big deal, both with fictional characters and with real people, and it can be hard to let go of that. And that’s not always a bad thing, sometimes the impression a character makes on a fandom after two or three episodes is perfectly accurate. And sometimes it’s not, and writing based heavily on first impressions without taking subsequent characterization into account ends up being very flawed and out of character.
And then there’s Victor. And the thing about Victor is that, with the way the narrative of YOI is structured, in the first quarter of the show, we as the audience are deliberately led to believe false things about Victor. It’s all part of the setup for the big twist, it’s all part of the surprise. We’re intentionally being directed to make assumptions about him, without any real evidence that those assumptions are accurate to his character. Almost none of what we “know” about Victor based on the first quarter of the series is really accurate— especially because the vast majority of it is coming from other people talking about Victor, and not from Victor himself.
Here’s what is “revealed” about Victor based on the first three episodes:
he’s selfish (according to Yakov)
he’s impulsive (revealed by Victor’s seemingly sudden decision to coach Yuuri)
he no longer feels he can surprise his audience, and this may be part of why he left skating (according to Yuri)
he’s forgetful (according to Yuri and also himself)
he’s a desirable bachelor “playboy type” (according to Minako and Nishigori)
And as we later learn, all of these things are untrue to some degree, except possibly the forgetfulness thing, which I’ll come back to in a moment. So let’s take a look at these “facts” about Victor, shall we?
So since the topic of Victor and his characterization came up today, I have a few thoughts on the subject I’d like to share.
Let me start by saying that I’ve read a lot of Victuuri fic. A lot of it. Mostly canonverse fic, because I’m pretty meh on AUs and it takes a pretty special AU to woo me away from canon and canon divergence. As such, I’m intimately familiar with how the YOI fandom tends to write Victor in a canon setting in particular. And I feel like a lot of the time… we miss the mark. Rather drastically, as a matter of fact.
What do I mean by that?
Simple: I think a lot of the way the fandom portrays Victor is still heavily influenced by first impressions.
This is true of many characters in many fandoms. I’ve been around the block a time or twenty and seen a lot of fanon characterizations, both good and bad, and I’ve seen this pattern repeat over and over. First impressions are a big deal, both with fictional characters and with real people, and it can be hard to let go of that. And that’s not always a bad thing, sometimes the impression a character makes on a fandom after two or three episodes is perfectly accurate. And sometimes it’s not, and writing based heavily on first impressions without taking subsequent characterization into account ends up being very flawed and out of character.
And then there’s Victor. And the thing about Victor is that, with the way the narrative of YOI is structured, in the first quarter of the show, we as the audience are deliberately led to believe false things about Victor. It’s all part of the setup for the big twist, it’s all part of the surprise. We’re intentionally being directed to make assumptions about him, without any real evidence that those assumptions are accurate to his character. Almost none of what we “know” about Victor based on the first quarter of the series is really accurate— especially because the vast majority of it is coming from other people talking about Victor, and not from Victor himself.
Here’s what is “revealed” about Victor based on the first three episodes:
he’s selfish (according to Yakov)
he’s impulsive (revealed by Victor’s seemingly sudden decision to coach Yuuri)
he no longer feels he can surprise his audience, and this may be part of why he left skating (according to Yuri)
he’s forgetful (according to Yuri and also himself)
he’s a desirable bachelor “playboy type” (according to Minako and Nishigori)
And as we later learn, all of these things are untrue to some degree, except possibly the forgetfulness thing, which I’ll come back to in a moment. So let’s take a look at these “facts” about Victor, shall we?
He’s been neglecting life and love for over two decades. Life and
love. Both of these things. This is a man who’s completely tickled pink
by the fact that he’s even allowed to eat what he wants now. Freaking katsudon, of all things, is a fresh and exciting experience for him, and Hasetsu’s little ninja house is a thrilling novelty.
Forget
this image of him as a man of the world who spends all this time having
one flings and one night stands and has done extensive leisure travel.
Victor’s twenty-eight years old and he’s only just starting to live his
life; that false first impression we’re given of him is deliberately
misleading.
Victor outright tells us he hasn’t really lived yet. If he were off having whirlwind sex romps on foreign beaches and sipping champagne in the hottest clubs around, I don’t think he’d feel that way. Living a luxurious life doesn’t necessarily mean he’s really been living it. Gucci luggage means nothing about the person carrying it–ask every Japanese workaholic salarywoman who takes -5 vacation days a year but owns brand-name luxury items like wallets and purses.
Plume de Lynx 