LR, Y U no like Ron?

I get asked this more times than I care for. Because it makes me have to repeat myself. So I'll say it here so I can link to it in the future…

Actually as these conversations progress I find that more than half the time, almost nearly ALL the time, the true question being asked is "Why don't you like K/R?" So I'm going to address both.
I preface the following:

These are my feelings. I am more than willing to discuss and even debate them. I shall not argue them. Discussions are good. Debates are healthy. Arguments are neither. I shall do everyone the courtesy to not degrade them for their shipping and pairing preferences. I ask the same in return.

First off, I freakin' love Ron. He is a true and loyal friend. Understand, there is nothing more romantic than a friend who is there for you and has your back no matter what, come Hell or Highwater. For those who follow the bible…

Proverbs 17:17
A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need 
Proverbs 18:24 There are "friends" who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.

For Kim Possible, that is Ron Stoppable.

Fact is, I like Ron better, it seems, than the creative team which penned him in the show.

See, they took a decently Oddball yet fairly competent character in early season1 and devolved him into the Butt of Every Joke. A Buttmonkey. Check it: in Oct 31st, while Kim was skirmishing with Shego at Big Daddy's, Duff Killigan setups up a shot with an exploding golf ball to take out Kim with Shego as collateral damage. Ron sees this, can't get Kim's attention, grabs a waiter's tray and "freestyles" it like a frisbee to intercept the bomb just inches from the girls deflecting it to explode a safe distance away.

That, right there, was a Ron who was a worthy potential partner and boyfriend material.

However, then the writers needed someone to butt nearly every joke. And I don't mean running gags such as losing his pants, although even that sort of thing gets old, I mean, if there was a joke in need of someone to be on, Ron was elected. Cue his devolution. Latter part of season1 and after, Ron went from that fairly competent companion to blithering idiot with more phobias than Monk –aptly named considering Ron's chief fear. Sure he pressed on regardless –until Odds Man In when he was needed to butt the joke of fearing everything– as Joss paraphrased Ambrose Redmoon, true courage is doing despite one's fears. Still, would it have really hurt the Creatives to have shifted the jokes onto others? Jokes have their places in stories. The Headlining characters should not be immune to them either. However there comes a point where even a Comedy Relief character becomes painful when too many are heaped upon his head. Frankly, with Ron at her side, Kim's missions became cases of "three steps forward, two steps back".

Seriously, take off the Ron-colored glasses and re-watch the episodes. See how many times Kim could have wrapped up a mission on the spot were it not for Ron falling on her or otherwise tripping her up. Aside, I mean, from the need to pad an episode out to 22 minutes. Even in Graduation, just before Ron saw Kim unconscious and life in danger, prompting him to Godhead… it was Ron's fault Kim was in that position.

Back in Team Impossible, when time for Kim to face down the trio, she asked Ron if he was ready

Ron: uhh, yea, uhh, umm, define 'ready'.
Kim: You're prepared to not get in the way.
Ron: Oh, yeah, ready!

However, in Graduation, Ron steps up to face Warhok with bravado… and promptly gets smack away. Where he flies bodily into Kim, knocking her out, for the aliens to discuss interior decorating tips featuring her spine.

Personally, I'd have rather seen a 3rd part added, where Ron did not get in the way, yet sees the need while Kim is being hard pressed by Warhok and Warmonga to hold her own, to overcome his anxieties –and don't get me started about his bitching about his future to aliens instead of fighting them– and tap his Monkey Kung Fu –not necessarily the MMP– to the level he had while Evil in Stop Team Go. Then he could fight at Kim's side, he and she tag-teaming along with Shego, and if you must, Drakken. Then when over, Kim could look to Ron and declare him no longer worthy of being her sidekick… but instead from then on he was to be her partner. In everything in life. Fly into the Sunset.

Of course, I'd also have reworked a few aspects of Season4; reducing Ron-as-buttmonkey. Such as Sensei openly presenting Ron with Hana as in need of training ("Which even the teacher may learn from, Stoppable-san"). Kim willing to help Ron with her. Ron telling his objecting parents he was going to take care of her, and they relent by opting to adopt her. ("I always did want a girl at some point.") …but then I'm also in the camp which has Hana his daughter by Yori…

Point of all that is: The Series Writers made Ron unworthy of being Kim's Romantic Partner. I fully blame them for how I feel about K/R as non-viable. Yet I love the Hell out of Ron.

As I mentioned, there is a certain romanticism about opposite gender friends who are there for each other no matter what. For what I consider a prime example of this, see the lead characters in the show In Plain Sight. Sure there was sexual tension between Mary and Marshall, but it was made evident they were not going to end up "hip-to-hip" in that fashion. Yet they were fiercely loyal. Each ready to drop what they were doing to be at the other's side at a moment's notice. They knew each other inside and out. in the final season with only a couple episodes left, Marshall –engaged with a fiancée– took Mary aside and said to her (going from memory here):

"Mary, You've got to stop calling on me. Because I will always be there for you. No matter what, no matter where, I will drop whatever I'm doing to come to you. For any reason. I have a fiancée and I love her dearly, but If you call, every time you call, I will leave her to come to your side. And it is not fair to her. So please, Mary, you've got to stop calling. You've got to let me go…."

I cannot begin to relate to you the Feels that engendered in me. For me, that defined my vision of Kim and Ron. Best Friends Since Pre-K, and nothing will keep them apart.

They will be together forever. Side-by-side.

Just not romantically involved.

Okay LR, why the H not?

Setting aside my professional diagnosis as a Sex & Relationship Therapist of Kim & Ron-as-a-Couple, even though fictional and which is another entirely long discussion… I got One Phrase. I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it:

By marrying Ron, the Girl Who Can Do Anything will become Stoppable

Yeah, yeah, I know what's next: 
But She doesn't have to take his last name, or he could take *her* last name!

While true this could happen in the US –I emphasize America because that is where the show is set, so American values must be addressed, all due respects to cultures which do not emphasize what I'm about to say– Thing is, Kim Possible is the property of Disney's family-oriented side of the business. It is targeted to youth. So despite a few "got past the censors" moments, Family-Oriented Traditional American Values shall prevail. Kim's parents are the traditional 50's stereotypical nuclear family parents with the addition of Ann being a career brain surgeon. In other words, she is Donna Reed with a scalpel in one hand and a carving knife in the other. She has time for her career AND cooks dinner with only a couple times mention of pizza and Chinese take out. And my impression is the Chinese was James' doing, meaning Ann can balance cooking with career, Rocket Scientist James needs to order dinner. Granted he is also presented as a tad absent-mined, so probably forgot it was his turn that episode.

By marriage, Ann is a Possible. She did not keep her last name, following instead the American tradition of taking on her husband's surname. Ron's mother likewise took on her husband's name. Well, as far as we can tell. I suppose there *is* enough wriggle-room in canon that his father took his wife's name. Although I'm fairly certain if that was true, the show would have told us. So, in following KISS, I'll Keep it Simply Simple by going with Mrs Stoppable took the last name of her husband.

So we can presume BOTH Kim and Ron were raised and instilled with these values. Yet they live in a world where Names Have Meaning. They were created that way. You know the story of how they were dreamed up, "Kim Possible, she can do anything" "Her friend is Ron Stoppable, he can't do *anything*!" –Sorry to those who keep wanting to insist Ron's name is an allusion to "unstoppable"… that was not what the Creators had in mind. 

So, Disney Family Values; American Family Traditions; Names Have Meaning… and why not? If Kim truly loves Ron, she should take on his name according to the tradition of her culture. Remember, she is also a Role Model. Little girls are her fans (Blank Slate). What kind of message would she be giving to her country's youth, indeed the youth of the world, if she did not take on her man's name? Gossip would fly, "She must not really love him". Yet otherwise, in a world of Names Have Meaning:

If Kim marries Ron, the 'Girl Who Can Do Anything' will become… Stoppable.

Further, I'll put to you the majority of "Kim Stoppable" stories feel… off. Not to mention they tend to peter out incomplete. One has to wonder if the very nature of Names Have Meaning have a play in that. Yeah, I admit to a handful of writers who manage to pull it off, but they also tend to correct the issues I have with the way the writers did Ron. So no need to list them, I probably already read them too.

So, who, if not Ron? What guy would you hook her up with?

Within the show? No one. It is a sad commentary that the show has no good males suitable for Kim… yes, aside from Ron, but I covered that, please go with the flow here. Really, who can you name? 

Josh Mankey? Please. Personally I think he was dropped from the show once the Writers discovered that in addition to his name rhyming with 'monkey' to twig Ron's neuroses, it had *another* meaning: "worthless, rotten, or in bad taste, dirty, filthy, or bad". In a world where Names Have Meaning, would you really want to have Kim hook up with much less marry him? Who else? 

Will Du? He has a stick so far up his butt he can't bend enough to consider Kim as worth his time.

Drakken? Please, the writers devolved him as much as they did Ron. He went from fairly threatening threat to a coward ready to curl up thumb-sucking fetal, and in the Finale, turned into a literal pansy. Plus, he is far too old for Kim. Be like dating her father. As it is he and Shego are likewise wrong: He is still much too old for her, their personalities don't click, and her face during the vine-wrap? When I've had that expression on my face, I was looking for a phone to call the police. But D/S is another discussion….

Junior the high school student; came off as slovenly. Any of the other students? Vinnie, Big Mike, Brick? No, no, and no. None were *shown* to have values suitable for Kim. Although I do like Big Mike as another loyal friend to Kim and by extension the rest of the cheerleaders.

SSJr? Too vain. Frankly I don't even like him for Bonnie, and I cling to the Graduation End Credits, where it was shown Camille Leon had taken her place, as a lifeline just for me directly from the Writers as a "maybe they *aren't* together after all". Really, in my book, Bonnie deserves better. I'm certainly not going to inflict him on Kim.

Prince Wally? Kim's *mom* was ready to bitch-slap him, Kim would end up killing him.

Barkin? You don't really want to entertain that even long enough to dismiss it, right? Riiight?!

Synthodrone Number 901. Duh, not real. Even if he were flesh and blood, he still would have been fake in his attentions on Kim as a ploy.

Ned? Not even.

OUTSIDE the show? Just by way of examples and ignoring their pairing ships? Hmm… Danny Fenton. Dick Grayson. Tim Drake. Sokka. Zuko after his Heel Turn; even during his crisis of faith. Hell, give Jake Long a couple years, and even as a younger guy I could see him with Kim. Just off the toppa m'head.

But why Kigo? Why make her a lesbian?

As mentioned, the sheer dearth of suitable guys in the show doesn't leave her with many candidates. Plus, *I* pick up on very strong lesbian or at least bi-curious vibes. Which I attribute to the majority of the writers being men trying to write a woman. Yes, I'm aware there *were* women writers, but not nearly as many for I don't know how many of the episodes.

I *do* happen to love Kigo. The dichotomy of Good vs Evil, Opposites Attract, and Moth to Flame is enticing. Many a story already exists where people on opposing sides fall in love. Criminals and Crime-fighters falling in love is a *staple* of storytelling in books, movies, television, and across the internet in both prose and graphical arts. James Bond is constantly making enemy girls fall in love with him. Batman and Catwoman have been doing the Fatal Attraction Tango for like over fiddy years. So Kigo, as much as some do not care for it… and hey, nothing wrong with that, I do not begrudge anyone their pairing preferences… it is still a viable storytelling trope.

However, I *also* like the idea of Kibo. Kim and Bonnie. WTF? Why?? Bonnie is more of a natural choice than Shego. If Kim is enticed by the Bad Girl, Bonnie is basically a Shego-lite, and while "High-school Evil" is not truly evil –despite select fanfics to the contrary– Miss All That Goody Kim will not have to wrestle her conscious about hooking up with Evil-Evil. 

I even like the idea of Kim and Tara. Although I personally see Tara as Kim's separated-at-birth twin….

As for Ron, in my stories I'll be rewarding his loyalty with a bevy of other ladies the show hinted he could have hooked up with. Chief among them Yori. I *do* like the idea of Zita. In addition to Yori's… and Hana's… appearances fitting perfectly within a timeline where she could have conceived, carried to term, gave birth to, and Hana the right age, all according to internal chronology, to be her and Ron's daughter, Zita also disappeared conveniently long enough to have had a child by Ron. So I ALSO like the idea of Ron in a tri-polyamourous relationship with both Yori and Zita. 
There are more I've picked out for him, but that's enough for this discussion. Point being: I like Ron, and I'll be seeing he Gets Him Sum.

To sum up; despite the poor efforts of the writers, especially in Season4 which did Ron no favors in how they portrayed him as a poor boyfriend…

I like Ron. He is fiercely loyal.

I like Kim and Ron. Best Friends for Life.

I do not like Kim with Ron. Not every relationship should go beyond Friends.

Remember: Discussions. Debates. No Arguments. No Flames.