Henry/Olivia
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Henry/Olivia |
| Alternative name(s): | Henlivia |
| Gender category: | het |
| Fandom: | Fire Emblem |
| Canonical?: | Yes (player determinant) |
| Prevalence: | popular |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Henry/Olivia is a possible romantic pairing in Fire Emblem Awakening.
Canon
Olivia is a dancer who joins Chrom's Shepherds during the last stretches of the Mad King's War. She's extremely shy and awkward, but determined to do her best for the people she loves. She is not only a dancer and a gifted singer, but good with a sword; she is the adoptive daughter of Regna Ferox's West Khan Basilio, and despite her middling to poor starting stats she can become a very gifted warrior.
Henry is a cheerful and creepy dark mage who was raised in a fearsome orphanage (Japanese version)/sent to a sadistic magic school (English) following the death of his only friend, a wolf he would visit and had come to regard as more his family than his neglectful parents. He was originally a member of the Plegian army, but his bloodlust and love of battle prompted him to join the Shepherds, longing for a chance to keep fighting and spilling blood.
Henry and Olivia's supports focus on them caring for a wounded puppy together, before Olivia becomes convinced that Henry needs her help in learning to express sad feelings instead of smiling all the time. Henry insists she's crazy, but lets her "help" him anyway; in their marriage support he reveals that he just wanted an excuse to spend time with her. If they marry, he will become the father of Olivia's son Inigo.
Fandom
The pairing gained popularity among fans almost as soon as the support translations came out online, fans being drawn in by the shy Olivia trying to aid the damaged Henry. It became one of the most loved Awakening ships overall, only slightly behind Chrom/Avatar. Some fans also like Henry as Inigo's father due to both characters using a smile to cope with their issues (Henry's past and Inigo's crippling shyness). Fans who stuck with the pairing or came to like it through the English localization enjoyed the cute dynamic of Olivia's sweet but misguided attempts to help Henry, and him taking her efforts with a bemused smile.
Fic for the pairing is more or less evenly divided between fluff and angst, with the occasional hurt/comfort or tragedy thrown into the mix. Many of the multiparts and drabble collections also heavily feature Inigo and the traits he inherited from each parent. For the most part, though, Henry/Olivia is either a background ship or one of many in an AU or retelling of Awakening's story.
Henry as Inigo's father is especially popular in Lucina/Inigo fics.
English vs Japanese controversy
Henry's character underwent some rather significant change in the localization. Japanese Henry was creepy and childish to the point of understanding little about life beyond his experiences, and was more open about being broken on the inside due to his troubled past. The English version is more cheerful and gifted with bad puns, making light of his past and insisting he's more or less okay aside from a few abandonment issues. For the longest time, fandom believed this was especially highlighted in the Henry/Olivia supports; where the Japanese conversations were said to be beautiful and heartwarming, the English version was focused more on Olivia's misguided attempts to help Henry when he didn't need it and had a more comical edge.
This angered a lot of fans who had been shipping Henry/Olivia since the translations were posted online, and they would post impassioned rants or meta[1] about the differences and sometimes why they believed the Japanese version to be superior.[2]
At some point, it was alleged that the original translations were inaccurate and that the Japanese supports were not actually changed too much in the localization.
Eventually, Henry/Olivia was met with backlash from fans who found the pairing overrated or felt like outcasts for not shipping it.[3] Some fans actually preferred the localized supports, feeling the Japanese ones were fake and saccharine-sounding.[4] [5]
Fan works
Fanfiction
Fanart
Tumblr
References
- ^ Differences between the Japanese and the English Henry
- ^ Fire Emblem shipping confessions: "I felt the Japanese Henry x Olivia support was much sweeter."
- ^ Fire Emblem confessions: "I hate how NOT shipping Henry/Olivia gets you from weird looks to borderline bullying/shunning in this fandom."
- ^ Fire Emblem shipping confessions: "I can only ship English Henry x Olivia."
- ^ Fire Emblem shipping confession: "I like Henry/Olivia better in the American version."