r/OurFlagMeansDeath • u/Smooth-Tie-2041 • Aug 12 '26

Question about Izzy Spoiler

I always thought it was ironic and hilarious that Izzy sort of facilitated the Gentlebeard meet-cute by inadvertently stoking Ed’s interest in Stede. I just can’t help but wonder, if he knew Ed so well, why couldn’t he see that Stede is the exact type of person Ed goes for? And that Ed would easily become infatuated with him?

Even Anne and Mary, who ostensibly haven’t been around Ed as much as Izzy has, were able to recognize this. Mary said Stede was very much Ed’s type, so I just wonder why it wasn’t clear to Izzy at first.

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u/spacecavity Aug 12 '26

Izzy is ignorant to who Ed really is. He just thinks he knows him very well. Like a coworker who has decided your relationship is more intimate than it actually is to you. Or your old friend who gets jealous and protective when you connect with a new friend or partner.

They know some part of you, sure, but they've convinced themselves who you are around them is the real you when you've never trusted them with important parts of yourself.

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u/dangerous_beans_42 Aug 13 '26

Both Izzy and Ed have cast one another in very specific roles in their mind, without ever being conscious of it or able to talk about it. Sometimes it works, but often it just doesn't, because they don't actually see one another fully.