How _dare_ you educate me on the toxicity of one of my favorite ships and make me look at it from an *adult* perspective instead of letting me go with the "ignorance is bliss" flow!!🤣
It's so interesting cause one would think that since Dean is like a rebel, thank his friends would we like also toxic and everything... But how they interact is literally the definition of positive masculinity and I loooove it...
they only kept Mason cause he was British, hot and messy. Dean had too much chemistry and was too much of a good solid boyfriend which provided no drama lol
Yeah, Disney, like many studios, doesn't see solid, stable, non-angsty relationships as that interesting. Idk if that kept up after I stopped watching it, though.
bro how did y'all like dean so much. he was cool but couldn't offer her anything, we saw them together and it just wasn't it. bout that British part they kept mason cause everyone liked him cause he had other rolls and didn't need wowp anymore. but they added him cause he was British tho, they wanted to help him with his VISA
@@DiDy1912exactly like there’s a reason her and dean didn’t work 😭 he was gorgeous ofc but alex had an expectation of him in her mindset that he wasn’t like in real life
@@6lyssa907 im sayin dean was ofc the handsome one but he was dry asl. and the fact mason was a wolf helped the situation cause he understood how weird that world was.
@@6lyssa907well her and Dean actually fitted better because they just naturally had chemistry and Alex was able to really be herself around him. She never really had deal with as much as with Dean than Mason.
@@izzywoods794 that is actually a great point. It's bad when both people are constantly pressuring the person they're fighting over to choose and are being constantly rude or annoying
28:12 the moment where Dean’s friends are like “should we look?” and Dean says “no” so they all cover their eyes was just so cute i can’t believe i ever thought mason was better than dean
Honestly that's why the whole thing with the necklace was meaningless. They act like you can't love more than one person. Mason still has feelings for Juliet which is not abnormal for an ex (even if it has been 300 years lol). But that doesn't cancel out his love for Alex. The real problem is that he said it😂. You don't tell your ex you'll always love her in front of your new gf. And the necklace growing red doesn't cancel out the fact that that happened. Basically finding the necklace changed nothing so it never needed to happen.
@@Lely238-njusgsvwvhajdkjf Justin, Alex, and perhaps Max would have annihilate Mason right there on that spot... I mean, when the Russo siblings work together, they are unstoppable
@@gnomansland I think it was more of an “in the moment\” kind of thing. like he didn’t really “love” Juliet. it was just a shock seeing someone who you’ve had an intimate love for like that after a long time. I do believe he did love Alex.
Oh my god Dean is waaaaaaay more romantic than mason! Like, when Alex looked all dirty (trying to get him to break up) he thought it was from depression and didn’t hesitate to try and help her! I can’t believe younger me didn’t like him that much… it was a way cuter relationship
it's because the writers in sitcoms have to do methods from you to not grow close to other ships except the main, toxic ones. In this case, not having dean all the time because it's clear he would overshadow the Mason+Alex endgame they want
@@eva.8018 Almost certainly. I can't recall but there are strict rules on that and honestly I'm all for it. If you can't demonstrate a relationship without kissing you have a crappy writers room
The part where Alex is crying and being comforted by her mum, Selena said she was going through a breakup at this time and just allowed herself to be sad over it for this performance and I think you can really tell
Even though I don’t think Nick Jonas nor Justin Bieber was a bad boyfriend to anyone because of how misunderstood the Jonas Brothers are, I think the sadness from Alex Russo felt a lot more real because Mason’s what I would like to call a “Princel” (some young man who thinks he’s a hero even when he forces certain women to love him as more than a friend and is like a Disney Prince before Eric as in he has no personality other than entitling himself to the princesses regardless of whether they give him consent or not. I know Prince Charming became a much more three-dimensional character as of post-2006 starting with A Twist in Time (which is one of my favorite movies from a (mostly) underrated animation studio when it lasted like DisneyToon Studios, Prince Phillip slayed a dragon like Maleficent to save his (and every other good guy in the movie) world and Florian… well… (if we’re lucky that the 2024 Snow White didn't suck even though it very likely will) might have his Cinderella 3 Prince Charming moment… but that still doesn’t give them the right to get away with everything. I know I digress, but Mason Greyback really reminds us of an old-fashioned stereotype of young men we're supposed to like because despite that we’re supposed to like them, they do stuff that minorities would get punished for).
@compassrose1466 does not change the fact he was emotionally abusive to Selena and owes her an apology And no he wasn't a child. He was a teenager and knew full well what he was doing. And even after that he dated her in 2019 then ditched her for Hailey. So imo, still a terrible person ans still emotionally abusive
I can’t believe Alex even thought of getting back together with Mason after he ate Dean. Like I’m sorry but if you EAT someone I care about just out of jealousy you are out of my life forever
@@nataliaperez6203 oh yeah, they broken up already at that time and when Alex saw Mason's thoughts, she came back for her... Then they broke up again after the Wizard of the Year award episode, which for me is also the all time low for Justin's character
Wait, why do I not remember that? ! I remember Dean coming back for an episode and them having a slight bit of beef, but I don’t remember Mason literally eating him. I guess it was just too traumatic lmao.
‘Only calling the person by their last name’ is literally the cutest trope, especially when they end up getting married and call each other the same last name. Alex and Dean would have been perfect for that.
@@haileyharmon5298 As a little experiment I just watched that clip after not seeing that episode for over a decade and yep, I remembered more from their goodbye than Alex and Mason's lol.
Less than 5 minutes into the vid, but going over how they met makes me realize how much I missed "Artist Alex" in the second half of the series 😢. It gets a bit swept under the rug cuz obviously they had a lot more focus and lead up to the Family Wizard Competition, which was interesting, but still- that part of her character sorta falls to the wayside
@@amberwingtundrawing776 I hated it so much - this also kind of bleeds into why I hate Star vs. third season a lot more than most people because I got flashbacks to Wizards of Waverly Place.
A lot of cool & meaningful plot lines get dropped at the end because they changed director, he took the show in his direction and completely changed the tone. Even the actors themselves have spoken out about how the shift sucked and they feel like they missed out on a lot of closure on storyline’s.
I wish there was more context for Dean's back story. When they were in the car he said "my uncle raised me with manners" not "my dad" which I thought was really interesting.
I’ve actually never realized how much better her and Dean were together. They had the chemistry and the communication (which yes Mason and Alex had chemistry but like very little in common) and the banter is so solid! I feel like it’s a relationship I really overlooked when first watching this show
dean was dry af and slow he also almost didn't show any emotion. I think that's what Alex liked about mason he had a ''normal'' brain, he really loved her and even that jealous part she low-key liked if you watched the episodes. also mason was way better in expressing his emotions and being romantic
@@DiDy1912Dean wasn't dry, it was his first girlfriend (or at least semi-serious one).. He always heard Alex out whenever she voiced a concern to him and tried his best. Mason expresses how he feels in a very negative and overtly-jealous way. Don't get me wrong, my boyfriend gets really jealous too, but he doesn't make scenes about it in public and he would've been there for me at that event because that's what you do for a partner. Through thick and thin, you show up. I notice a lot of the time his "efforts" aren't really wanted and done with his interest still mainly in mind. Did he even ask Alex if she wanted that meal? I mean, I get he was trying to do a nice gesture for her, but make her something she actually likes and don't criticize her eating habits. Also, two hours for a salmon? Yeah, that's definitely way overcooked. 😭
I hated Mason throughout the show. I thought they were cute in his first episode but between being wayyyy too old for Alex, telling Juliet he loved her, attacking Justin and Juliet for no reason, swallowing Dean whole, ruining Alex's award ceremony out of jealousy over something stupid, being incredibly passive aggressive at her once they're broken up, refusing to respect even the most basic boundaries, trying to "open her heart" with Harper's training wand which is basically the equivalent of trying to roofie her with a love potion, and last but not least pushing a man off of the Leaning Tower of Pisa to his death for showing interest in Alex, I gotta say he is the worst Disney boyfriend of all.
I agree with you about everything except one thing. He really was an ass throughout most of that entire series. I don't know why she kept forgiving him, I guess because plot. Lol. But what do you mean he was way too old for her? Weren't they in the same grade?
@@libertymartin5167he’s at least 316 years old technically, i don’t think that should matter though as he’s physically, mentally and psychologically 16/17.
@@lululemon8427 I mean yeah i feel like this shouldn't be looked at the same way as human relationship that would be 25 and 16. Because technically he is the same age he's just been that age a long time.
I was so upset by how they wrote Mason in the last season, honestly. He never respects Alex's wishes when he tries to win her back and she says no, and he moves in to be her neighbor which is really sus. I loved them in the previous storylines, and I wish the writers had just ended it on a good note.
he was never forcing her to get back with him. she asked him to move on even though she wasn’t over him in the first place, which is what he was gonna attempt to do and then everything happened. She made the conscious decision to get back together. he didn’t hold a gun to her head and demand to and he was never abusive towards her. plus he already lived in that apartment before her and Harper moved in.
To my memory, the elevator being broken leads to non-magical people being able to see the button for the magical floor and they explore this floor they didn't know existed. Mr. Laritate lived in the building too and he got bit by a zombie while exploring the floor.
i was rewatching wizards fairly recently and yes, i was kinda taken aback by how much my nostalgia for alex and mason clouded the mess of their relationship lmao. but i also was surprised at seeing harper and justin's evolution, how they went from sister's best friend who has a crush on him and creeps him out, to friends who like to hang out, and also her being confident about her crush mixed in there, to her getting over him and becoming more like a sibling to him, like by season 4 she was so ingrained the family she was treating him like a literal brother, the way alex does but less intense
Yeah when I rewatched it a couple years ago I was like wow this guy sucks actually. And as a kid, I didn't like Harper that much because of her obsessiveness but as an adult she's probably my favorite character. She went through a lot of growth and development.
Okay but Mason doesn’t look like a human when he’s wolfed up. I am shocked that nobody was concerned that Mason being out in public would expose werewolves to the mortal world
That was always my favorite part about dean showing up. His possy would always be gassing him up like he was so amazing and dean wasn’t egotistical about having a possy lol.
harper is literally the only one who loved alex for exactly who she was, INCLUDING HER OWN PARENTS. she should’ve ended up single and starting a life with HARPER (platonically)
Can you please make a video on Alex and Justin's relationship as siblings?? It's probably the most complex brother and sister relationship that Disney had at the time.
@@juicebox7372 right Alex and Harper's friendship as it's wholesome moments like all friendships, but I don't think it's something that should be highlighted or revered.
I kind of felt bad when Alex turned Dean down in the fourth season. Besides him giving Alex all of his wood shop assignments as romantic gifts, Dean was a good fit for Alex. I actually forgot about how sarcastic they were with each other, which makes me love them even more. Dean and Alex never got a proper goodbye. You'd think after the card gift that we'd see them together more, but instead Dean's next appearance was the couple's break-up which makes me really sad.
@@kieranstark7213 I myself am polyamourse and just never got this whole “love triangle” trope TV’s push, if Alex enjoys both guys just let her date both then lmao
After seeing how Alex learned her lesson about loving Mason despite his appearance, you’d think he’d learn his lesson about admitting to his parents that he loves a wizard way sooner!
I don’t think “loving despite appearance” is a good message anyways. If you’re not physically attracted to them you’re doing a disservice to yourself and to them. All this stuff is always catered towards young girls to be okay with settling
Yeah should have let him explain but she didn’t understand because Masion told her very soon before that the funny part is every one but max doesn’t forgive masion and max acts like there best friends max is very funny
@@idontevenhaveapla7224 that wasn’t really cheating though. Don’t get me wrong he’s definitely a red flag but that instance doesn’t really qualify as cheating because nothing physical happened
This video is making me realize that dean should have been end game. At least through their college years. Their moments are so sweet and I get they needed to figure themselves out first, but he always treated her nicely and tried being better for her. I still like her and chase as a transitionship and wish they met earlier.
If she stayed with Dean she would have to give up her powers like her dad did. Humans and wizards can't be together unless she is powerless. Since she Is the lead I think they wanted her to win the family wizard competition.
@@mewtwomotherfuka i didn’t say she would be. I think she would go the Stevie route, but not be evil, and ask people to advocate for non-wizards and wizards being together without losing their powers. Than another fight (in the right way) to forgo the competition because it breaks up so many families.
I’m just amazed that most people were actually perfectly cool with it without any evidence that there was good inside him because he felt like if Sonic the Hedgehog were actually unlikeable because of his possession issues.
Around this time the twilight series was building up hence why they had to cash in on the werewolf and vampire thing, it’s not actually surprising knowing that.
@@kieranstark7213 which is weird cause Jacob wasn’t even the bad guy. Bella and Edward were toxic and gross and they romanticized it. everything other than their relationship was good.
@@Narra0002 yes!! justin and juliette were so good. its a shame since hannah montana and sonny had good romances (hannah and jake had issues but at least I enjoyed it before they made him into a cheater and then she got with jesse who's more interesting than mason)
I was rooting for her and Dean to be together. I didn't like Mason. Lol tbh when I was younger I remember also wanting her to be with that slayer guy. Mason was too annoying to me. Plus he was super possessive.
@@B1NG0B0NGO It's been a long time since I've seen the show but wasn't Dean kinda shown to be something of a different guy compared to others Alex dated before? Like the dude obviously had the appearance of a bad boy but was a good person, hell I loved how he said how if he were to date someone he always wants to make a good impression on the family first and then the dude appears like a jerk and when he comes back in the show and literally says "YO RUSSO LET'S SMOOCH!" I was so annoyed by that episode.
I think it's says a lot that everytime Selena Gomez pitches a WoWP sequel she always has Alex be happily single. Shows that even the actors could feel how... lets say "off" the relationship was
DEAN really was great when i was a kid he kinda annoyed me but now when i watch him he is my favorite, he really never was a bad boy more of an italian young man who has been conditioned to be closed off emotionally, and alex allows for him to become more vulnerable, more character growth than mason really ever had and honestly mason could have been considered a character who regressed
The nested Alex and Dean breakdown inside the Alex and Mason breakdown was such a lovely intermission of an already great video! Of the two options here, I prefer Alex and Dean over Alex and Mason. It mostly comes down to Mason getting really annoying toward the end whereas Dean never really got bad for me. As you teased at the end though, Harper >>>>
I agree, Mason was too unstable and progressively became insecure and played too many games. Them constantly choosing the each other only when there’s another possible love interest or some external thing keeping them apart, the only reason why they stay together is just to prove they can. I’ve been in that relationship when I was 16. My boyfriend was so kind at first and was sweetly protective of me. But he became grossly insecure and controlling, emotionally abusive and I became combative and jealous. Our immaturity brought out the worst in each other but we stayed together because we “loved each other so much” we constantly fought for the relationship that caused all our fighting. If you’re constantly fighting and breaking up, there’s not something to be fixed. It’s something to be finished.
I honestly think Alex and Dean were the better relationship, I think they had a great level of communication and mutual respect, something Mason and Alex just don’t. I prefer the honest slow burn to the quick infatuation, I think that’s the difference between something genuine and sweet vs something that can become toxic because it’s not built on a solid foundation. Alex and Mason are together because they fight to be but they’re fighting every reason to not be. Meanwhile Alex was really confident in her relationship with Dean and he always made a genuine effort to do the right thing for her. The constant jealousy, self sabotage, break ups and makes ups, etc, it’s so immature and yes they’re young but Alex’s character is not one to stay in something that’s so negative. I feel like she would’ve chosen herself a lot sooner.
I feel like Mason's disrespect when she wanted space should've been the end, I don't think his violence is okay but she'd feel like she has to accept it cuz he's a werewolf and can't control outbursts, but he actively chose to go everyday to the elevator to bother her, that wasn't an occasional outburst, that can't be excused by impulsivity
If she stayed with Dean she would have to give up her powers like her dad did. Humans and wizards can't be together unless she is powerless. Since she Is the lead I think they wanted her to win the family wizard competition.
not to mention how respectful dean was when she wanted to break up, you can tell he didn't want to but he loved and respected her enough to let her go because it was what she wanted.
55:03 I like during this episode when the wizard giving Alex her award stood up for her decision on choosing neither of them. Alex: “I choose… neither of you.” Almost everyone: “WHAT?!” Wizard giving award: “I believe she said she chooses neither of them.”
They were so toxic but I ate them UP as a kid too! I think it's probably because the show tried to frame all the stuff that Mason did as romantic? Like the episode where he was at his MOST clingy and annoying (literally trying to trap her in a small space with him) is where they get back together. Like you, I still like them overall, but as an adult I can see how yikes some of it was. A suggestion for a couple to do next, or in the future, is Kim and Ron, solely because I think they're my favorite Disney Channel couple lol
I was always a Team Dean person, though I grew to like Mason. But watching this made me realize not only how gross a lot of Mason's behavior was, but how he just didn't seem to get Alex at all. They both liked art, sure, but he never seemed to understand what she actually wanted from him, or respect her boundaries. And she was always very clear about it! Dean isn't "book smart," but he always seemed really well clued in to what Alex wanted and was mostly emotionally intelligent (other than the group date thing, but he's a teenager, he's allowed a couple of mistakes). Even in his character's retconning later, he's more respectful than Mason. I might not be #TeamDean for endgame, but definitely over #TeamMason.
Re Chpt. 3: it's actually NOT Alex's first kiss. In a S1 episode where Justin tries to get his first kiss with a girl he likes, with the assistance of Alex and a spell that rewinds everything by 10 seconds (that they cast a bazillion time cuz Justin keep fumbling the ball), it's revealed near the end that Alex has never had a first kiss- despite her teasing Justin all throughout the episode. In the final scene, Alex kisses a random guy in front of Justin and his now girlfriend so that "Now you've got nothing on me", to curb the teasing he began once he found out
I think what caitlin meant is that it’s Alex’s first kiss with someone she likes. That kiss in season one was just to prove Justin wrong that she has never had her first kiss. But that just a theory, A WIZARD THEORY!😂
Idk. Most people associate the first kiss as the real one and one that actually meant something. I don’t think kissing to prove a point really counts imo
Disney really just loves making couples that keep saying how in love they are and how good they are with each other without actually showing it. I guess we as kids just assume they are perfect and cute together in between the episodes so that Disney can just use the episodes they are actually in as the main point of conflict and we eat it up bc we have been brainwashed into thinking they were perfect together
This is the truth. Most definitely, they were manipulating our emotions via implications & our own sense of the on & off relationship that may seem romantic to a kid, like the characters have to fight to be together.
It’s like love bombing / degrading the audience in that cyclical abusive manner… they make the couple seem SO in love, then during the episode present drama & conflict, & they make up at the end all sweetly. Then this continues this circle on & on so that we’re always clutching our seats, waiting for the reprieve at the end.
I can’t be the only one who can’t get over the fact that Mason literally TRIED TO KILL ALEX’ BROTHER ANS SOMEHOW SHE STILL WANTS TO BE WITH HIM????????? Like okay he’s a werewolf,, but most people would fall out of love in a heartbeat over this, it’s absolutely crazy!!
dean in general just had so much more chemistry with alex than mason ever did, they had so much tension and banter and it felt way more real. i often find that when show just tells me how the characters feel it's hard for me to believe. but with dean they showed us they liked eachother.
I loved Dean and Alex specially when we knew how Dean actually is like instead of the presumptions of the whole school about his image. And then they write him off. 💔 Back then, I understood that they were setting up Alex to be paired up with someone like her unlike Dean who's a regular human/mortal because she's gonna be the family wizard in the end.
I actually checked and even though she dated JB during the last seasons I think she was referring to Nick Jonas because they broke up around the time the episode aired
Alex and Mason are so toxic… I don’t understand what Disney Channel’s thing with toxic ships, but it’s not a good message for the young kids who watch.
That is true idk when I was a kid I watched this show religiously but all the relationship drama and stuff went over my head idk maybe they think that’ll happen with every kid
I would argue against that. Due to the fact that they present toxic relationships e.g. Teddy /Spencer or Miley/Jake so children grow up knowing that cheating is bad. However, it is of course just as important to show healthy relationships. Is a difficult balance.
I recently watched the Wizards of Waverly Place Podcast where in one the recent episodes, they explain that they fired the showrunner for the first 3 seasons and Disney took over for the last season. It's why the last season feels so different than the previous seasons. The former showrunner also revealed what his ending for the show would have looked like and what he would have done in Season 4. He had a really good response explaining how Mason and Alex were going to be endgame and he was going to show how Alex and Mason made each other better. Basically it would've been a healthier realationship.
Yeah, except the part where Mason was fighting Justin (to be fair... Justin shouldn't have been too stubborn and mess with him) he wasn't really toxic. It was season 4 that went to the extreme. It's so sad bc I like them both together but seeing it from another perspective makes me uncomfortable.
I find it odd how Mason doesn’t have any friends (unlike Riley and Dean). I know Mason’s supposed to be new at their school but it would have made him more likeable and look like less of a predator if his sole focus wasn’t Alex 🤔
I haven't watched these episodes of the show but is it ever explained why he was suddenly going to her school? He's apparently a 100 yearold werewolf but he was just going to highschool?
Yeah so that’s why they gave them the boot because Alex would have had to give up her powers for them with Mason she would have to have powers but Alex and dean was way better
Also I think that Lucy kinda looks like Juliet so Alex could also be a little upset that he’s “moving on” to not only her roommate, but to someone that looks like the girl he confessed feelings for during their relationship. Like for me that’d be a little back burner thought in my head
I think they broke up because Mason treated Juliet like shit the same way he did with Alex centuries later in the 2010s by forcing himself onto other girls without their consent and possibly enslaving people of colour.
This video just made me realize the trend of Disney shows where the girl starts with a love interest, then the actors grow up and when the executives see the love interest not being so cute as they were when they were younger, they resolve the previous love story and introduce a new, more handsome actor to play a new love interest.
For years I felt dumb for not seeing why people like Alex with Mason so much. I always thought Dean and Alex should have been endgame. I felt so sad when they completely messed up Dean's character.
I recently rewatched the show and I noticed how kinda actually a bit toxic their relationship is. Alex is very manipulative either way, but making him obsessed with her because she doesn't agree with his passion for dog painting? And then he sees an ex-girlfriend and immediately confesses his undying love for her, completely neglecting Alex. But then she dates him again, but as a dog, because the necklace says it's true love?
9:25 Also weird; if that was 300 years ago, that means that Mason is not only much much older than his new High School girlfriend, but that he also has much more dating and relationship experience. The way he acts, the things he does, especially how manipulative he becomes (and how he eats a separate High Schooler out of jealousy) is extremely, extremely worse when you remember that this is a young teenage girl--wizard or not--that he is, essentially, preying on. EDIT: Man, I really had never seen or did not remember 90% of this relationship, but god... I struggle to even call it that. This is the most toxic, fanfiction drama thing I've ever seen outside of actual fanfiction. I only tangentially ever considered Mason as a character from this show on even the most basic levels, he was just never a character that I cared about or one I was meant to, but he's insufferable. He is a fully adult, hundreds of years old toxic manipulative piece of shit. He is an awful, awful person, an 'attempted' murderer, a teen predator, and a sick, obsessed individual.
What I don't understand with the two of them.. why they NEVER considered doing the Twilight, and turn her into a werewolf IF she were to loose the Wizards Competition
My theory regarding the immortality thing is that Mason being a “purebred” is meant to explain it. Two pure werewolves have to reproduce together, and they get immortality, or some semblance of it. Whereas a mutt, like the one Justin went out with in early season 2, is a normal human who got infected by another mutt. Either way, it’s all just a weird extension of the wild magic world racism that exists.
Dean for the win! Both times alex broke up with him he truly accepted it for her even though he was hurt and still wanted to be with her. He didn't really have any jealousy issues. And I just like their banter better, they felt more natural. He also just respects her waaayyyy more.
One thing about Dean and Alex that rubs me the wrong way is that she would alter/create dreams for him...to what she wanted him to dream of. which is like...one of those mind-magic/powers things that is very shaky and is a violation of someone's privacy since it's done without consent/knowledge. and I know she's young...but it's still yikes.
I really liked Alex and Dean a lot. Their chemistry was different and I loved their sarcastic convos. I didn't hate Mason, but I just didn't really like it? Idk I couldn't really get into them when I was a kid. Justin and Juliette's relationship was top tier. Literally loved them sm and I don't think they get talked about enough. They had their ups and downs, but they weren't unhealthy.
The beginning seasons of wizards feel much more heartfelt at times, which is maybe why I’ve always loved alex and dean sm. The episode about alex’s journal was always one of my favorites. However i agree that alex + mason’s story is much better for an endgame, with alex fighting for them to be together through the wizard competition.
Damn I feel like going into this video I thought Alex and Mason were gonna be my OTP like when I was 12 but now looking back at Alex and Dean, I’m reconsidering. They have such insane chemistry, she is so much herself when she is with him, and he is so sweet and kind to her. Mason is great and he’s a nice boy and he’s very cute and whatever but I feel like their relationship is really superficial and needlessly complicated.
i think disney channel has a major problem in how it portrays men not taking no for an answer as a romantic and heroic show of loyalty rather than for what it is - creepy and borderline predatory behavior. we’ve seen it with mason, diggie from liv and maddie, and i’m sure there’s more examples that i’m forgetting. teaching young girls that if a man frequently ignores your boundaries and tries to force confrontation with you, it means that he’s just madly in love with you and therefore “deserves” a chance, and not that he’s an entitled creep is beyond dangerous.
The logic of whether they can be together always really bothered me: she can only be with him if she is a wizard, because as a wizard she can defend her own life when her werewolf boyfriend inevitably tries to murder her. It's better than him successfully eating her, but isn't a healthy basis for any relationship.
I have a headcanon that Season 4 Mason was under the influence of Gorog. When he moved in, Gorog used some kind of angel of darkness influence on him to aid him in his eventual plan to lure Alex (and the rest of the Russos) to his evil side. We know angels of darkness make people behave badly, and Mason's worst characteristics come out when they're IN the apartment building. Or, y'know, bad writing. :P
Glad someone else mentioned the manipulative vibes around Mason giving Alex the necklace and basically forcing her to reveal her feelings to him without her knowledge.
Dean was never gonna happen, this was decided with how Stella went and how they chose to maintain the status quo. Since it was already established that magical people and non magical people can't get married/be in a relationship without the magical person losing their magic. They can't be together unless she decides to lose her magic. She was always gonna be the sibling that won, since she was the main character.
I always really liked her relationship with dean, I wished they would have kept him as her love interest. Although, I feel like they’d have to do a whole thing dealing with Alex being a wizard and the “a wizard and a mortal can’t be together” thing. So I feel like bc they already had the idea of alex winning the wizard games from the beginning they wanted to pull away from dean. Which makes sense, dean wasn’t really in the later plot. If he was they’d have to change a lot of the story
Honestly as a casual fan of this series I never really cared about the romance in the show. But Jesus Christ, Alex's relationship with Dean, while not perfect, is leagues above what the relationship between her and Mason is. Alex and Dean actually have chemistry with each other, they try to treat each other well and seem to genuinely care about each other. Alex and Mason is just toxic, they're not fun to watch together.
54:32 you’re right ofc. Trust is crucial in any relationship, but especially romantic ones. If they don’t have that now, Idk when they will. This video was great and has opened my eyes to how toxic Alex and Mason were/are. I wish Dean and Alex were endgame. Can you do Justin and Juliette next?
It's really a shame how the show kept messing with Mason and Alex--the reason I, and others, really liked their relationship at first, is because it seemed like it was gonna skip the nonsense and get to the point. So many relationships, at the time and afterwards, would drag their ships on and on and on just to have the pay-off happen when the show is almost ending, never exploring how they're like as a relationship. Disney Channel usually wouldn't do this, but Alex and Mason still felt especially to the point in a way that felt less rushed and more refreshing...And then they played into the cliche of them breaking up way too many times 😒 I always preferred Alex and Dean. Because I've always found the set-up of two flirty, snarky troublemakers as a Disney Channel couple more intriging and entertaining as a dynamic, but also, their progression as a relationship was so much better and more natural. Y'know, until the show just...stops wanting to write for them. I like Malex's cute scenes, the chemistry was always there, but given how it turned out and how enjoyable Alex and Dean were, I still feel like Malex ruined them. Anyway, about naming you ships I'd like for you to tackle! For one, I'd love to see you tackle the Hannah Montana love triangle in its own video--the love triangle was advertised like crazy and felt so HUGE and DRAMATIC at the time, and I think it's interested how little discussion it stirs up nowadays. Also, Cody and Bailey, 'cause I distinctly remember little me going from liking to disliking the ship in real time 💀
I feel like mason's character change coincides with when twilight started getting popular and girls across America started romanticizing toxic possessive relationships. I remember watching the show as a kid after reading the series and thinking they were making him more like a twilight werewolf than the more "classic" werewolf he started as.
I feel like this is a ship built mainly on how likable both actors are and nostalgia. Once you really stop to look at it there really isn't enough cute moments to support how annoying it gets later. Even as a kid the apartment EPs annoyed me enough to change the channel when they came on.
Austin & ally would be a interesting video! they were one of my favorites shipp as a kid, but even then i didn't like the love triangle with the summer camp guy lol
It irked me sm when she moves out to the magical floor and he wouldn't take rejection. She didn't want him at that time because she wanted to be single and live her life alone with harper but he wouldn't stop and eventually used magic on her to get her to like him (which did backfire but still) then he uses her roommate to make her jealous. Messing with that poor ghost girls feelings. Love Gregg Silken but they should've made his character more likeable.
you should talk about the other tropes of a new girl going after a taken guy 💀 it's so annoying to constantly see shows have a new girl who not like others suddenly have a crush on a guy who has a gf who leaves his gf for her but was already cheating basically on his gf for the new girl. it's very weird and toxic and overdone.
Twilight werewolves are 'shifters' that's a completely different monster. To be fair, Twilight vampires have more in common with the original Fae/Fairy stories than vampire stories. You should never use that book series as reference for any kind of monster
I just finished watching Keyan’s two-part Wizards series this morning, and considering I haven’t watched this show since it first aired back when I still thought I was straight, I was unsurprised to realize I actually shipped Stevie and Alex.
It just makes me happy that *even as a(n of course, partial) fan of Wizards, Keyan would be aware of how a decent sitcom of the late 2000s would go downhill in the later two seasons.
Coming back and seeing how this story plays out and them bringing up Harper makes sense since we just found out from the Wizards podcasts that Alex and Harper were gonna have a spin off show living together. Which explains why maybe Alex and Mason storyline didn’t properly close off because he was supposed to be in the spin-off as well.
Honestly it feels like every time Mason showed up on screen the writing just took a nose dive. (Except the hat line in the season three finale that is comedic gold).
How _dare_ you educate me on the toxicity of one of my favorite ships and make me look at it from an *adult* perspective instead of letting me go with the "ignorance is bliss" flow!!🤣
this fr..
😂😂😂
😂😂😂😂
Like let me be delusional in peace ☹️
I love the fact that Dean says “I thought you guys broke up”, like hey I didn’t mean to steal anyone's girlfriend.
Can we just talk about how supportive Dean's friends are?
Like, friendship goals
We all need friends like that😂
Right effing goals
It's so interesting cause one would think that since Dean is like a rebel, thank his friends would we like also toxic and everything...
But how they interact is literally the definition of positive masculinity and I loooove it...
they really remind me of Paxton and trent from never have i ever 😭😭😭
they only kept Mason cause he was British, hot and messy. Dean had too much chemistry and was too much of a good solid boyfriend which provided no drama lol
Yeah, Disney, like many studios, doesn't see solid, stable, non-angsty relationships as that interesting.
Idk if that kept up after I stopped watching it, though.
bro how did y'all like dean so much. he was cool but couldn't offer her anything, we saw them together and it just wasn't it. bout that British part they kept mason cause everyone liked him cause he had other rolls and didn't need wowp anymore. but they added him cause he was British tho, they wanted to help him with his VISA
@@DiDy1912exactly like there’s a reason her and dean didn’t work 😭 he was gorgeous ofc but alex had an expectation of him in her mindset that he wasn’t like in real life
@@6lyssa907 im sayin dean was ofc the handsome one but he was dry asl. and the fact mason was a wolf helped the situation cause he understood how weird that world was.
@@6lyssa907well her and Dean actually fitted better because they just naturally had chemistry and Alex was able to really be herself around him. She never really had deal with as much as with Dean than Mason.
Miscommunication and love triangles are the worst and most annoying tropes ever.
Love triangles are good when it’s an actual love triangle and not a line with a disconnected dot thrown in. Both guys or girls need a fair chance😂
Counterpoint "It was all a dream"
@@izzywoods794 that is actually a great point. It's bad when both people are constantly pressuring the person they're fighting over to choose and are being constantly rude or annoying
love triangles are great wym
@@NoThankUBeQuiet Counter-Counter point: Amnesia tropes
28:12 the moment where Dean’s friends are like “should we look?” and Dean says “no” so they all cover their eyes was just so cute i can’t believe i ever thought mason was better than dean
I always loved that part! Dean was my main ship as a child!!
YES I LOVE DEAN😭
(My ten year old voice) BUT HES AN ARTIST 😭
@@Wonderoddity NO LITERALLY 😭
Alex should have had Juliette put the necklace on mason. Then we know if he really telling the truth lol
YAS IMAGINE. Would have started a bigger fight tbh
Honestly that's why the whole thing with the necklace was meaningless. They act like you can't love more than one person. Mason still has feelings for Juliet which is not abnormal for an ex (even if it has been 300 years lol). But that doesn't cancel out his love for Alex. The real problem is that he said it😂. You don't tell your ex you'll always love her in front of your new gf. And the necklace growing red doesn't cancel out the fact that that happened. Basically finding the necklace changed nothing so it never needed to happen.
Lmfao
@@Lely238-njusgsvwvhajdkjf Justin, Alex, and perhaps Max would have annihilate Mason right there on that spot... I mean, when the Russo siblings work together, they are unstoppable
@@gnomansland I think it was more of an “in the moment\” kind of thing. like he didn’t really “love” Juliet. it was just a shock seeing someone who you’ve had an intimate love for like that after a long time. I do believe he did love Alex.
Oh my god Dean is waaaaaaay more romantic than mason! Like, when Alex looked all dirty (trying to get him to break up) he thought it was from depression and didn’t hesitate to try and help her! I can’t believe younger me didn’t like him that much… it was a way cuter relationship
I didn't even notice him as a twelve year old.
Lmao
it's because the writers in sitcoms have to do methods from you to not grow close to other ships except the main, toxic ones. In this case, not having dean all the time because it's clear he would overshadow the Mason+Alex endgame they want
it was so precious!! i felt so terrible for dean when alex was essentially missing the fact that he was clearly sad about her wanting to break up
Yeah same 😅
You just made me realize that Alex and Mason only had one kiss, which is very surprising
Surely they had more kisses, we just didn’t see them? But yeah, it’s surprising we only saw one
I think Disney channel has a strict rule of only including one total kiss per season/movie. Something like that.
@@eva.8018 yeah but they could have done it in season 4 after getting back together
@@growingupwithdisney they probably had some other character kiss in that season, that's what I am saying
@@eva.8018 Almost certainly. I can't recall but there are strict rules on that and honestly I'm all for it. If you can't demonstrate a relationship without kissing you have a crappy writers room
The part where Alex is crying and being comforted by her mum, Selena said she was going through a breakup at this time and just allowed herself to be sad over it for this performance and I think you can really tell
Even though I don’t think Nick Jonas nor Justin Bieber was a bad boyfriend to anyone because of how misunderstood the Jonas Brothers are, I think the sadness from Alex Russo felt a lot more real because Mason’s what I would like to call a “Princel” (some young man who thinks he’s a hero even when he forces certain women to love him as more than a friend and is like a Disney Prince before Eric as in he has no personality other than entitling himself to the princesses regardless of whether they give him consent or not. I know Prince Charming became a much more three-dimensional character as of post-2006 starting with A Twist in Time (which is one of my favorite movies from a (mostly) underrated animation studio when it lasted like DisneyToon Studios, Prince Phillip slayed a dragon like Maleficent to save his (and every other good guy in the movie) world and Florian… well… (if we’re lucky that the 2024 Snow White didn't suck even though it very likely will) might have his Cinderella 3 Prince Charming moment… but that still doesn’t give them the right to get away with everything. I know I digress, but Mason Greyback really reminds us of an old-fashioned stereotype of young men we're supposed to like because despite that we’re supposed to like them, they do stuff that minorities would get punished for).
@@kieranstark7213 pretty sure it was after she broke up with justin beiber
@@kieranstark7213 um Justin was emotionally abusive
@@Neros_lightHe was a child and grew up. People can change.
@compassrose1466 does not change the fact he was emotionally abusive to Selena and owes her an apology
And no he wasn't a child. He was a teenager and knew full well what he was doing. And even after that he dated her in 2019 then ditched her for Hailey.
So imo, still a terrible person ans still emotionally abusive
I can’t believe Alex even thought of getting back together with Mason after he ate Dean. Like I’m sorry but if you EAT someone I care about just out of jealousy you are out of my life forever
esp for no reason like Dean was just trying to win her back with games and stuff
they were already broken up
@@nataliaperez6203 oh yeah, they broken up already at that time and when Alex saw Mason's thoughts, she came back for her... Then they broke up again after the Wizard of the Year award episode, which for me is also the all time low for Justin's character
Mason did what.
Wait, why do I not remember that? ! I remember Dean coming back for an episode and them having a slight bit of beef, but I don’t remember Mason literally eating him. I guess it was just too traumatic lmao.
something about the way Dean calls her Russo most of the time is soo 😭😭😭😍
Dean: I’m Italian-American! It’s just what I douse!
‘Only calling the person by their last name’ is literally the cutest trope, especially when they end up getting married and call each other the same last name. Alex and Dean would have been perfect for that.
YES😭
I love it! I’ve seen it in other shows and still enjoy it
It’s giving Peter kavinsky and Laura Jean from to all the boys
I was so much more heartbroken that Juliet turned old than Mason going full wolf.
Me too.
@@haileyharmon5298 As a little experiment I just watched that clip after not seeing that episode for over a decade and yep, I remembered more from their goodbye than Alex and Mason's lol.
Less than 5 minutes into the vid, but going over how they met makes me realize how much I missed "Artist Alex" in the second half of the series 😢. It gets a bit swept under the rug cuz obviously they had a lot more focus and lead up to the Family Wizard Competition, which was interesting, but still- that part of her character sorta falls to the wayside
So much of the human world stuff got ignored later on. it kinda stinks since its like half of the series purpose
@@amberwingtundrawing776 I hated it so much - this also kind of bleeds into why I hate Star vs. third season a lot more than most people because I got flashbacks to Wizards of Waverly Place.
Yeah after the mural it just disappeared forever. It wasn’t wizards of Waverly place, it was just “wizards” 😂
That was my favorite time of her character
A lot of cool & meaningful plot lines get dropped at the end because they changed director, he took the show in his direction and completely changed the tone. Even the actors themselves have spoken out about how the shift sucked and they feel like they missed out on a lot of closure on storyline’s.
I wish there was more context for Dean's back story. When they were in the car he said "my uncle raised me with manners" not "my dad" which I thought was really interesting.
I’ve actually never realized how much better her and Dean were together. They had the chemistry and the communication (which yes Mason and Alex had chemistry but like very little in common) and the banter is so solid! I feel like it’s a relationship I really overlooked when first watching this show
it's due to how sitcoms are set up, you feel inclined to go with the main ship over the filler one which is typically the better one
dean was dry af and slow he also almost didn't show any emotion. I think that's what Alex liked about mason he had a ''normal'' brain, he really loved her and even that jealous part she low-key liked if you watched the episodes. also mason was way better in expressing his emotions and being romantic
@@DiDy1912Dean wasn't dry, it was his first girlfriend (or at least semi-serious one).. He always heard Alex out whenever she voiced a concern to him and tried his best. Mason expresses how he feels in a very negative and overtly-jealous way. Don't get me wrong, my boyfriend gets really jealous too, but he doesn't make scenes about it in public and he would've been there for me at that event because that's what you do for a partner. Through thick and thin, you show up. I notice a lot of the time his "efforts" aren't really wanted and done with his interest still mainly in mind. Did he even ask Alex if she wanted that meal? I mean, I get he was trying to do a nice gesture for her, but make her something she actually likes and don't criticize her eating habits. Also, two hours for a salmon? Yeah, that's definitely way overcooked. 😭
I hated Mason throughout the show. I thought they were cute in his first episode but between being wayyyy too old for Alex, telling Juliet he loved her, attacking Justin and Juliet for no reason, swallowing Dean whole, ruining Alex's award ceremony out of jealousy over something stupid, being incredibly passive aggressive at her once they're broken up, refusing to respect even the most basic boundaries, trying to "open her heart" with Harper's training wand which is basically the equivalent of trying to roofie her with a love potion, and last but not least pushing a man off of the Leaning Tower of Pisa to his death for showing interest in Alex, I gotta say he is the worst Disney boyfriend of all.
I agree with you about everything except one thing. He really was an ass throughout most of that entire series. I don't know why she kept forgiving him, I guess because plot. Lol. But what do you mean he was way too old for her? Weren't they in the same grade?
@@libertymartin5167he’s at least 316 years old technically, i don’t think that should matter though as he’s physically, mentally and psychologically 16/17.
@@lululemon8427 I mean yeah i feel like this shouldn't be looked at the same way as human relationship that would be 25 and 16. Because technically he is the same age he's just been that age a long time.
I was so upset by how they wrote Mason in the last season, honestly. He never respects Alex's wishes when he tries to win her back and she says no, and he moves in to be her neighbor which is really sus. I loved them in the previous storylines, and I wish the writers had just ended it on a good note.
he was never forcing her to get back with him. she asked him to move on even though she wasn’t over him in the first place, which is what he was gonna attempt to do and then everything happened. She made the conscious decision to get back together. he didn’t hold a gun to her head and demand to and he was never abusive towards her. plus he already lived in that apartment before her and Harper moved in.
“Due to the elevator being broken, Mr Lariatate turns into a zombie.”
I’m gonna need HELLA more context to that sentence.
To my memory, the elevator being broken leads to non-magical people being able to see the button for the magical floor and they explore this floor they didn't know existed. Mr. Laritate lived in the building too and he got bit by a zombie while exploring the floor.
@@idizzle2286 you the real mvp. Thank you!
i was rewatching wizards fairly recently and yes, i was kinda taken aback by how much my nostalgia for alex and mason clouded the mess of their relationship lmao. but i also was surprised at seeing harper and justin's evolution, how they went from sister's best friend who has a crush on him and creeps him out, to friends who like to hang out, and also her being confident about her crush mixed in there, to her getting over him and becoming more like a sibling to him, like by season 4 she was so ingrained the family she was treating him like a literal brother, the way alex does but less intense
For real I remember Mason being cool rewatching season 4 he sucks so hard I can't stand him anymore
@@dannyphantom3090 once wizards vs vampires he lost my respect
Aw
@@dannyphantom3090 LMAO
Yeah when I rewatched it a couple years ago I was like wow this guy sucks actually. And as a kid, I didn't like Harper that much because of her obsessiveness but as an adult she's probably my favorite character. She went through a lot of growth and development.
I'm still not over the fact that she got back together with him AFTER he ate Dean like???
Okay but Mason doesn’t look like a human when he’s wolfed up. I am shocked that nobody was concerned that Mason being out in public would expose werewolves to the mortal world
he looks like a human he's just hairy
Bruh Dean is presented as the bad boy and he couldnt be more of a good boy lol
Fr he’s genuinely just a good dude
Dean's possy is so gay for him its hilarious i love it
If it’s not revealed the two ended up dating after he and Alex broke up I’m gonna be so sad fr
That was always my favorite part about dean showing up. His possy would always be gassing him up like he was so amazing and dean wasn’t egotistical about having a possy lol.
Thats how any healthy male friend group is most of the time 😌
@@hangeloarias7580 to me theres a difference between being literally gay for your bros and just being besties lmfao
@@liallialcroctrust me there is a major difference
harper is literally the only one who loved alex for exactly who she was, INCLUDING HER OWN PARENTS. she should’ve ended up single and starting a life with HARPER (platonically)
I mean Alex was terrible to Harper at times as well
Harper is an enabler though Alex's family are right to get upset when she messes up at least somewhat
(romantically)
finally someone gets it@@from-skz
She said that too in the sequel movie
Can you please make a video on Alex and Justin's relationship as siblings?? It's probably the most complex brother and sister relationship that Disney had at the time.
!!!!
I rather see Alex and Harper's friendship review... I think their friendship is actually one of the most wholesome ones in Disney History
@Alexis Cando I entirely disagree and I believe that your memory of how that relationship was is completely skewed
@@juicebox7372 right Alex and Harper's friendship as it's wholesome moments like all friendships, but I don't think it's something that should be highlighted or revered.
@@trishaewhite-king Why?
I kind of felt bad when Alex turned Dean down in the fourth season. Besides him giving Alex all of his wood shop assignments as romantic gifts, Dean was a good fit for Alex. I actually forgot about how sarcastic they were with each other, which makes me love them even more. Dean and Alex never got a proper goodbye. You'd think after the card gift that we'd see them together more, but instead Dean's next appearance was the couple's break-up which makes me really sad.
I was just thinking “why not just let her date them both” the entire time while that sagment was playing
@@danielmendes8975 Good thinking! Just like how her brother Justin could be a ladies’ man, Alex could be a mens’ lady!
@@kieranstark7213 I myself am polyamourse and just never got this whole “love triangle” trope TV’s push, if Alex enjoys both guys just let her date both then lmao
@@danielmendes8975Obviously cause not everyone is polyamourse.
@@BratzRockAngels I mean, it would be nice to see that on a disney show for once
After seeing how Alex learned her lesson about loving Mason despite his appearance, you’d think he’d learn his lesson about admitting to his parents that he loves a wizard way sooner!
I mean, did she really? Literally immediately turned back to pretty British boy after the "lesson"
@@frankfort332 RIGHTTT. like you’d think Alex would be more understanding since she wasn’t as accepting of his werewolf/human stage.
I don’t think “loving despite appearance” is a good message anyways. If you’re not physically attracted to them you’re doing a disservice to yourself and to them. All this stuff is always catered towards young girls to be okay with settling
Yeah should have let him explain but she didn’t understand because Masion told her very soon before that the funny part is every one but max doesn’t forgive masion and max acts like there best friends max is very funny
Both Teddy and Alex’s moms both told them they’d find someone better they’d be with forever but then they both end up with cheaters 💀
I mean Mason isn’t a cheater but I get your point
@@incrediblekeenan1751 Come on... Juliette???
@@idontevenhaveapla7224 that wasn’t really cheating though. Don’t get me wrong he’s definitely a red flag but that instance doesn’t really qualify as cheating because nothing physical happened
oh my gosh i forgot what a secret sweetheart dean was, this poor boy thought she was depressed.
This video is making me realize that dean should have been end game. At least through their college years. Their moments are so sweet and I get they needed to figure themselves out first, but he always treated her nicely and tried being better for her.
I still like her and chase as a transitionship and wish they met earlier.
College?😂
If she stayed with Dean she would have to give up her powers like her dad did. Humans and wizards can't be together unless she is powerless. Since she Is the lead I think they wanted her to win the family wizard competition.
@@mewtwomotherfuka ok. See what you are saying, but I do see a storyline where they try to give up that rule.
@@gabrielleduplessis7388 maybe. But alex becoming the professor of wizard tech wouldn't work.
@@mewtwomotherfuka i didn’t say she would be. I think she would go the Stevie route, but not be evil, and ask people to advocate for non-wizards and wizards being together without losing their powers.
Than another fight (in the right way) to forgo the competition because it breaks up so many families.
Now, Mason has officially gone into harassment territory. No means no
I’m just amazed that most people were actually perfectly cool with it without any evidence that there was good inside him because he felt like if Sonic the Hedgehog were actually unlikeable because of his possession issues.
Around this time the twilight series was building up hence why they had to cash in on the werewolf and vampire thing, it’s not actually surprising knowing that.
@@eddiebanks3583 And making the werewolves the unintentional bad guys too (in Twilight’s case, though, it would have to be Jacob Black)
@@kieranstark7213 which is weird cause Jacob wasn’t even the bad guy. Bella and Edward were toxic and gross and they romanticized it. everything other than their relationship was good.
@@ajaiy You saying that when Jacob insisted on Bella even though she said no over and over, and when he forced a kiss on her.
Can your relationship really go into a downward spiral if your relationship was never good in the first place?
exactly. i love the show and Alex but her romances were so dull compared to the other Disney shows.
@@yohanedescends4683 especially compared to Justin’s relationships. They stole the show imo
Ig not
@@Narra0002 yes!! justin and juliette were so good. its a shame since hannah montana and sonny had good romances (hannah and jake had issues but at least I enjoyed it before they made him into a cheater and then she got with jesse who's more interesting than mason)
@@yohanedescends4683 off topic but where is ur pfp from? it's so cute!!
Is it bad that I kind of wanted to see more of her and Dean??🫢
Not at all, I'm right here with you!
Did they like.. ruin deans character just to write him out bc istg.. he seemed so ooc during the ep where Alex goes into his dream -
I was rooting for her and Dean to be together. I didn't like Mason. Lol tbh when I was younger I remember also wanting her to be with that slayer guy. Mason was too annoying to me. Plus he was super possessive.
@@B1NG0B0NGO It's been a long time since I've seen the show but wasn't Dean kinda shown to be something of a different guy compared to others Alex dated before? Like the dude obviously had the appearance of a bad boy but was a good person, hell I loved how he said how if he were to date someone he always wants to make a good impression on the family first and then the dude appears like a jerk and when he comes back in the show and literally says "YO RUSSO LET'S SMOOCH!" I was so annoyed by that episode.
Is no one talking about how Riley just disappeared like he never existed? The guy Alex was hard crushing on early season 1?
I think it's says a lot that everytime Selena Gomez pitches a WoWP sequel she always has Alex be happily single. Shows that even the actors could feel how... lets say "off" the relationship was
DEAN really was great when i was a kid he kinda annoyed me but now when i watch him he is my favorite, he really never was a bad boy more of an italian young man who has been conditioned to be closed off emotionally, and alex allows for him to become more vulnerable, more character growth than mason really ever had and honestly mason could have been considered a character who regressed
The nested Alex and Dean breakdown inside the Alex and Mason breakdown was such a lovely intermission of an already great video! Of the two options here, I prefer Alex and Dean over Alex and Mason. It mostly comes down to Mason getting really annoying toward the end whereas Dean never really got bad for me. As you teased at the end though, Harper >>>>
I agree, Mason was too unstable and progressively became insecure and played too many games. Them constantly choosing the each other only when there’s another possible love interest or some external thing keeping them apart, the only reason why they stay together is just to prove they can. I’ve been in that relationship when I was 16. My boyfriend was so kind at first and was sweetly protective of me. But he became grossly insecure and controlling, emotionally abusive and I became combative and jealous. Our immaturity brought out the worst in each other but we stayed together because we “loved each other so much” we constantly fought for the relationship that caused all our fighting. If you’re constantly fighting and breaking up, there’s not something to be fixed. It’s something to be finished.
I agree
I honestly think Alex and Dean were the better relationship, I think they had a great level of communication and mutual respect, something Mason and Alex just don’t. I prefer the honest slow burn to the quick infatuation, I think that’s the difference between something genuine and sweet vs something that can become toxic because it’s not built on a solid foundation. Alex and Mason are together because they fight to be but they’re fighting every reason to not be. Meanwhile Alex was really confident in her relationship with Dean and he always made a genuine effort to do the right thing for her. The constant jealousy, self sabotage, break ups and makes ups, etc, it’s so immature and yes they’re young but Alex’s character is not one to stay in something that’s so negative. I feel like she would’ve chosen herself a lot sooner.
I feel like Mason's disrespect when she wanted space should've been the end, I don't think his violence is okay but she'd feel like she has to accept it cuz he's a werewolf and can't control outbursts, but he actively chose to go everyday to the elevator to bother her, that wasn't an occasional outburst, that can't be excused by impulsivity
If she stayed with Dean she would have to give up her powers like her dad did. Humans and wizards can't be together unless she is powerless. Since she Is the lead I think they wanted her to win the family wizard competition.
not to mention how respectful dean was when she wanted to break up, you can tell he didn't want to but he loved and respected her enough to let her go because it was what she wanted.
@@mewtwomotherfuka that’s fact
@@mewtwomotherfuka That could have created quite a storyline!
Alex:that’s just fairytale stuff
Me:that’s coming from a literal wizard
The fact the lady yells out Russo really shows that Alex throws water balloons often lol
55:03 I like during this episode when the wizard giving Alex her award stood up for her decision on choosing neither of them.
Alex: “I choose… neither of you.”
Almost everyone: “WHAT?!”
Wizard giving award: “I believe she said she chooses neither of them.”
They were so toxic but I ate them UP as a kid too! I think it's probably because the show tried to frame all the stuff that Mason did as romantic? Like the episode where he was at his MOST clingy and annoying (literally trying to trap her in a small space with him) is where they get back together. Like you, I still like them overall, but as an adult I can see how yikes some of it was. A suggestion for a couple to do next, or in the future, is Kim and Ron, solely because I think they're my favorite Disney Channel couple lol
You ate them up like mason ate dean
They are super toxic but honestly I love them together nonetheless haha😂
I was always a Team Dean person, though I grew to like Mason. But watching this made me realize not only how gross a lot of Mason's behavior was, but how he just didn't seem to get Alex at all. They both liked art, sure, but he never seemed to understand what she actually wanted from him, or respect her boundaries. And she was always very clear about it! Dean isn't "book smart," but he always seemed really well clued in to what Alex wanted and was mostly emotionally intelligent (other than the group date thing, but he's a teenager, he's allowed a couple of mistakes). Even in his character's retconning later, he's more respectful than Mason. I might not be #TeamDean for endgame, but definitely over #TeamMason.
Re Chpt. 3: it's actually NOT Alex's first kiss. In a S1 episode where Justin tries to get his first kiss with a girl he likes, with the assistance of Alex and a spell that rewinds everything by 10 seconds (that they cast a bazillion time cuz Justin keep fumbling the ball), it's revealed near the end that Alex has never had a first kiss- despite her teasing Justin all throughout the episode. In the final scene, Alex kisses a random guy in front of Justin and his now girlfriend so that "Now you've got nothing on me", to curb the teasing he began once he found out
I think what caitlin meant is that it’s Alex’s first kiss with someone she likes. That kiss in season one was just to prove Justin wrong that she has never had her first kiss. But that just a theory, A WIZARD THEORY!😂
First *meaningful kiss
Idk. Most people associate the first kiss as the real one and one that actually meant something. I don’t think kissing to prove a point really counts imo
@@danivictoria But, didn’t she kiss Dean around season 2 ? She really liked him too
@@johanaforever965 why do people always forget about Dean OML he was my favorite
Disney really just loves making couples that keep saying how in love they are and how good they are with each other without actually showing it. I guess we as kids just assume they are perfect and cute together in between the episodes so that Disney can just use the episodes they are actually in as the main point of conflict and we eat it up bc we have been brainwashed into thinking they were perfect together
This is the truth. Most definitely, they were manipulating our emotions via implications & our own sense of the on & off relationship that may seem romantic to a kid, like the characters have to fight to be together.
It’s like love bombing / degrading the audience in that cyclical abusive manner… they make the couple seem SO in love, then during the episode present drama & conflict, & they make up at the end all sweetly. Then this continues this circle on & on so that we’re always clutching our seats, waiting for the reprieve at the end.
I can’t be the only one who can’t get over the fact that Mason literally TRIED TO KILL ALEX’ BROTHER ANS SOMEHOW SHE STILL WANTS TO BE WITH HIM????????? Like okay he’s a werewolf,, but most people would fall out of love in a heartbeat over this, it’s absolutely crazy!!
Controlling someone's dream is definitely manipulative and concerning
dean in general just had so much more chemistry with alex than mason ever did, they had so much tension and banter and it felt way more real. i often find that when show just tells me how the characters feel it's hard for me to believe. but with dean they showed us they liked eachother.
I loved Dean and Alex specially when we knew how Dean actually is like instead of the presumptions of the whole school about his image. And then they write him off. 💔
Back then, I understood that they were setting up Alex to be paired up with someone like her unlike Dean who's a regular human/mortal because she's gonna be the family wizard in the end.
An analysis of Zack/Maya's relationship from Suite Life on Deck and Sonny/Chad from Sonny with a chance would be good choices for the next videos.
12:23 the fact Selena was going through a real life break up at the time on filming her crying scene makes that scene hurt so much more
Which breakup?
@@newyorkcity6454 one of the many JB break ups. She explained it on the “Wizards Of Waverly Pod” when she was on
@@jayekisses oh I didn't think she used to do Wizards of Waverly place while she was dating him
I actually checked and even though she dated JB during the last seasons I think she was referring to Nick Jonas because they broke up around the time the episode aired
@@newyorkcity6454 o ok. It makes that scene way harder to watch now knowing that Selena was actually hurting
Alex and Mason are so toxic… I don’t understand what Disney Channel’s thing with toxic ships, but it’s not a good message for the young kids who watch.
That is true idk when I was a kid I watched this show religiously but all the relationship drama and stuff went over my head idk maybe they think that’ll happen with every kid
I would argue against that. Due to the fact that they present toxic relationships e.g. Teddy /Spencer or Miley/Jake so children grow up knowing that cheating is bad. However, it is of course just as important to show healthy relationships. Is a difficult balance.
Sadly in both those examples they girls get back together with the guy that cheated on them.
@@nnyltiaksenraek4857 in the case of Spencer and teddy the actors started dating irl so I think that’s what influenced that
They were not as bad as spencer and teddy
I recently watched the Wizards of Waverly Place Podcast where in one the recent episodes, they explain that they fired the showrunner for the first 3 seasons and Disney took over for the last season. It's why the last season feels so different than the previous seasons. The former showrunner also revealed what his ending for the show would have looked like and what he would have done in Season 4. He had a really good response explaining how Mason and Alex were going to be endgame and he was going to show how Alex and Mason made each other better. Basically it would've been a healthier realationship.
Yeah, except the part where Mason was fighting Justin (to be fair... Justin shouldn't have been too stubborn and mess with him) he wasn't really toxic.
It was season 4 that went to the extreme. It's so sad bc I like them both together but seeing it from another perspective makes me uncomfortable.
The healthier relationship is officially my head cannon now, didn't know that was a thing that was supposed to happen
I've always loved Alex and Dean 🥹 thank you for talking about them
They should have been endgame
I find it odd how Mason doesn’t have any friends (unlike Riley and Dean). I know Mason’s supposed to be new at their school but it would have made him more likeable and look like less of a predator if his sole focus wasn’t Alex 🤔
He is a warewolf and dean and Riley were mortals
I haven't watched these episodes of the show but is it ever explained why he was suddenly going to her school? He's apparently a 100 yearold werewolf but he was just going to highschool?
Yeah so that’s why they gave them the boot because Alex would have had to give up her powers for them with Mason she would have to have powers but Alex and dean was way better
Also I think that Lucy kinda looks like Juliet so Alex could also be a little upset that he’s “moving on” to not only her roommate, but to someone that looks like the girl he confessed feelings for during their relationship. Like for me that’d be a little back burner thought in my head
bro when i first saw the episode i turned it on in the middle so i initially thought Lucy was Juliet and i was SO mad at Mason for the audacity
why would she be mad about it at all in the first place if she wanted him to move on? that’s the whole point.
bro I literally forgot mason and juliet dated and that was a whole thing 😭
I think they broke up because Mason treated Juliet like shit the same way he did with Alex centuries later in the 2010s by forcing himself onto other girls without their consent and possibly enslaving people of colour.
this whole video is giving me whiplash 😭 I forgot so much of this 😂
This video just made me realize the trend of Disney shows where the girl starts with a love interest, then the actors grow up and when the executives see the love interest not being so cute as they were when they were younger, they resolve the previous love story and introduce a new, more handsome actor to play a new love interest.
For years I felt dumb for not seeing why people like Alex with Mason so much. I always thought Dean and Alex should have been endgame. I felt so sad when they completely messed up Dean's character.
I wouldn’t say he was messed up. Yeah he changed a lot from where he started but he’s still the same guy at the core
I recently rewatched the show and I noticed how kinda actually a bit toxic their relationship is. Alex is very manipulative either way, but making him obsessed with her because she doesn't agree with his passion for dog painting? And then he sees an ex-girlfriend and immediately confesses his undying love for her, completely neglecting Alex. But then she dates him again, but as a dog, because the necklace says it's true love?
most sitcom relationships are toxic, they almost always prioritize jokes over character writing
9:25 Also weird; if that was 300 years ago, that means that Mason is not only much much older than his new High School girlfriend, but that he also has much more dating and relationship experience. The way he acts, the things he does, especially how manipulative he becomes (and how he eats a separate High Schooler out of jealousy) is extremely, extremely worse when you remember that this is a young teenage girl--wizard or not--that he is, essentially, preying on.
EDIT: Man, I really had never seen or did not remember 90% of this relationship, but god... I struggle to even call it that. This is the most toxic, fanfiction drama thing I've ever seen outside of actual fanfiction. I only tangentially ever considered Mason as a character from this show on even the most basic levels, he was just never a character that I cared about or one I was meant to, but he's insufferable. He is a fully adult, hundreds of years old toxic manipulative piece of shit. He is an awful, awful person, an 'attempted' murderer, a teen predator, and a sick, obsessed individual.
What I don't understand with the two of them.. why they NEVER considered doing the Twilight, and turn her into a werewolf IF she were to loose the Wizards Competition
now that could’ve been fun
Why did Dean always have different name tags that were never his actual name? 😂
I think its to show he's "cool" in that he wears random mechanic workshirts from his family's shop. Quirky fashion!
alex and dean could've been the disney version of Harvey & sabrina
I like Harvey and Sabrina °-° ... But yeah. =_=)
One of my favorite ships ❤ ❤
My theory regarding the immortality thing is that Mason being a “purebred” is meant to explain it. Two pure werewolves have to reproduce together, and they get immortality, or some semblance of it. Whereas a mutt, like the one Justin went out with in early season 2, is a normal human who got infected by another mutt. Either way, it’s all just a weird extension of the wild magic world racism that exists.
Dean for the win! Both times alex broke up with him he truly accepted it for her even though he was hurt and still wanted to be with her. He didn't really have any jealousy issues. And I just like their banter better, they felt more natural. He also just respects her waaayyyy more.
I just now got that Mason liked painting people as dogs cuz he's a werewolf.
One thing about Dean and Alex that rubs me the wrong way is that she would alter/create dreams for him...to what she wanted him to dream of. which is like...one of those mind-magic/powers things that is very shaky and is a violation of someone's privacy since it's done without consent/knowledge. and I know she's young...but it's still yikes.
I really liked Alex and Dean a lot. Their chemistry was different and I loved their sarcastic convos. I didn't hate Mason, but I just didn't really like it? Idk I couldn't really get into them when I was a kid. Justin and Juliette's relationship was top tier. Literally loved them sm and I don't think they get talked about enough. They had their ups and downs, but they weren't unhealthy.
The beginning seasons of wizards feel much more heartfelt at times, which is maybe why I’ve always loved alex and dean sm. The episode about alex’s journal was always one of my favorites. However i agree that alex + mason’s story is much better for an endgame, with alex fighting for them to be together through the wizard competition.
Damn I feel like going into this video I thought Alex and Mason were gonna be my OTP like when I was 12 but now looking back at Alex and Dean, I’m reconsidering. They have such insane chemistry, she is so much herself when she is with him, and he is so sweet and kind to her. Mason is great and he’s a nice boy and he’s very cute and whatever but I feel like their relationship is really superficial and needlessly complicated.
i think disney channel has a major problem in how it portrays men not taking no for an answer as a romantic and heroic show of loyalty rather than for what it is - creepy and borderline predatory behavior. we’ve seen it with mason, diggie from liv and maddie, and i’m sure there’s more examples that i’m forgetting. teaching young girls that if a man frequently ignores your boundaries and tries to force confrontation with you, it means that he’s just madly in love with you and therefore “deserves” a chance, and not that he’s an entitled creep is beyond dangerous.
YES, GENUINELY, IT MAKES ME SO MAD.
The logic of whether they can be together always really bothered me: she can only be with him if she is a wizard, because as a wizard she can defend her own life when her werewolf boyfriend inevitably tries to murder her. It's better than him successfully eating her, but isn't a healthy basis for any relationship.
i think about when dean says “ayo russo! i’m back, wanna smooch?” at least once a month
your roman empire
@@caitlinmckillop truly
42:11
Seeing how many time Mason and Alex proved they loved eachother only to constantly have doubts is quite annoying when you see it laid out back to back
I’m not gonna lie the little bit Alex’s mom said really stuck with me my whole life
My parents were never involved in my life so it meant a lot
I have a headcanon that Season 4 Mason was under the influence of Gorog. When he moved in, Gorog used some kind of angel of darkness influence on him to aid him in his eventual plan to lure Alex (and the rest of the Russos) to his evil side. We know angels of darkness make people behave badly, and Mason's worst characteristics come out when they're IN the apartment building.
Or, y'know, bad writing. :P
Glad someone else mentioned the manipulative vibes around Mason giving Alex the necklace and basically forcing her to reveal her feelings to him without her knowledge.
Dean was never gonna happen, this was decided with how Stella went and how they chose to maintain the status quo. Since it was already established that magical people and non magical people can't get married/be in a relationship without the magical person losing their magic. They can't be together unless she decides to lose her magic. She was always gonna be the sibling that won, since she was the main character.
I always really liked her relationship with dean, I wished they would have kept him as her love interest. Although, I feel like they’d have to do a whole thing dealing with Alex being a wizard and the “a wizard and a mortal can’t be together” thing. So I feel like bc they already had the idea of alex winning the wizard games from the beginning they wanted to pull away from dean. Which makes sense, dean wasn’t really in the later plot. If he was they’d have to change a lot of the story
Wow, I feel like the show focussed on the mistakes Alex made, I forgot how much Mason was the problematic one in the relationship
Honestly as a casual fan of this series I never really cared about the romance in the show. But Jesus Christ, Alex's relationship with Dean, while not perfect, is leagues above what the relationship between her and Mason is. Alex and Dean actually have chemistry with each other, they try to treat each other well and seem to genuinely care about each other. Alex and Mason is just toxic, they're not fun to watch together.
Yes. Even as a kid I hated Mason and Alex, and now use them as the barometer for bad TV show relationships.
the fact that Mason went out with Alex's roommate who looked so similar to Juliette is honestly such an ass move
54:32 you’re right ofc. Trust is crucial in any relationship, but especially romantic ones. If they don’t have that now, Idk when they will. This video was great and has opened my eyes to how toxic Alex and Mason were/are. I wish Dean and Alex were endgame. Can you do Justin and Juliette next?
It's really a shame how the show kept messing with Mason and Alex--the reason I, and others, really liked their relationship at first, is because it seemed like it was gonna skip the nonsense and get to the point. So many relationships, at the time and afterwards, would drag their ships on and on and on just to have the pay-off happen when the show is almost ending, never exploring how they're like as a relationship. Disney Channel usually wouldn't do this, but Alex and Mason still felt especially to the point in a way that felt less rushed and more refreshing...And then they played into the cliche of them breaking up way too many times 😒
I always preferred Alex and Dean. Because I've always found the set-up of two flirty, snarky troublemakers as a Disney Channel couple more intriging and entertaining as a dynamic, but also, their progression as a relationship was so much better and more natural. Y'know, until the show just...stops wanting to write for them. I like Malex's cute scenes, the chemistry was always there, but given how it turned out and how enjoyable Alex and Dean were, I still feel like Malex ruined them.
Anyway, about naming you ships I'd like for you to tackle! For one, I'd love to see you tackle the Hannah Montana love triangle in its own video--the love triangle was advertised like crazy and felt so HUGE and DRAMATIC at the time, and I think it's interested how little discussion it stirs up nowadays. Also, Cody and Bailey, 'cause I distinctly remember little me going from liking to disliking the ship in real time 💀
I feel like mason's character change coincides with when twilight started getting popular and girls across America started romanticizing toxic possessive relationships. I remember watching the show as a kid after reading the series and thinking they were making him more like a twilight werewolf than the more "classic" werewolf he started as.
I feel like this is a ship built mainly on how likable both actors are and nostalgia. Once you really stop to look at it there really isn't enough cute moments to support how annoying it gets later. Even as a kid the apartment EPs annoyed me enough to change the channel when they came on.
Austin & ally would be a interesting video! they were one of my favorites shipp as a kid, but even then i didn't like the love triangle with the summer camp guy lol
It irked me sm when she moves out to the magical floor and he wouldn't take rejection. She didn't want him at that time because she wanted to be single and live her life alone with harper but he wouldn't stop and eventually used magic on her to get her to like him (which did backfire but still) then he uses her roommate to make her jealous. Messing with that poor ghost girls feelings.
Love Gregg Silken but they should've made his character more likeable.
you should talk about the other tropes of a new girl going after a taken guy 💀 it's so annoying to constantly see shows have a new girl who not like others suddenly have a crush on a guy who has a gf who leaves his gf for her but was already cheating basically on his gf for the new girl. it's very weird and toxic and overdone.
I know Twilight werewolves aren't true werewolves but I know they don't age unless they stop using their shape shifting abilities
Twilight werewolves are 'shifters' that's a completely different monster. To be fair, Twilight vampires have more in common with the original Fae/Fairy stories than vampire stories. You should never use that book series as reference for any kind of monster
In wowp, it might be more common for magical beings to live longer cause the wizard headmaster was in his thousands
I assumed it’s because of how werewolves only die to silver, maybe because of that they don’t age
So what I'm learning is that Dean was done incredibly dirty by the writers and is, in fact, best boy.
The whole Dean racecar scene and "my uncle raised me with manners" like 🙏🏼🙏🏼
I’ve always liked her and Dean more. Their personalities fit better
i LOVE the kiss scene "kiss me first" "but you have a cold..." simply iconic
I just finished watching Keyan’s two-part Wizards series this morning, and considering I haven’t watched this show since it first aired back when I still thought I was straight, I was unsurprised to realize I actually shipped Stevie and Alex.
Same I knew it was gay before I knew what gay was. ^_^)
It just makes me happy that *even as a(n of course, partial) fan of Wizards, Keyan would be aware of how a decent sitcom of the late 2000s would go downhill in the later two seasons.
honestly I always heard Mason say “i’ve never stopped loving you” not “i will never stop loving you”
the actual wording does seem pretty significant
Coming back and seeing how this story plays out and them bringing up Harper makes sense since we just found out from the Wizards podcasts that Alex and Harper were gonna have a spin off show living together. Which explains why maybe Alex and Mason storyline didn’t properly close off because he was supposed to be in the spin-off as well.
Honestly it feels like every time Mason showed up on screen the writing just took a nose dive. (Except the hat line in the season three finale that is comedic gold).