This Yellowjackets Season 3 death encashed on a dated TV Trope about gay characters 

Yellowjackets Season 3 Episode 9 saw the tragic death of Van, which took fans by surprise, as it seemed totally uncalled for in the narrative.

Van is one of the gay characters on the show, who had just started her relationship with Tai, and her sudden death before the finale feels like the show just encashed on a dated TV Trope about gay characters, which is 'Bury Your Gays'. The trope, going back many decades in cinema and literature, was coined when people saw a pattern where gay characters were often killed first without any explanation.

And that is exactly what happened with Van in Episode 9, as Melissa plunged a knife in her chest, claiming that 'IT' would have wanted this.

More on Van's death in Yellowjackets Season 3 in our story.

Yellowjackets Season 3 just pulled a 'Bury your gays' trope by killing off Van in Episode 9

While a character dying in Yellowjackets is not surprising, Van's death has again opened an age-old discussion on how it is so common to kill off gay characters first. This trope, famously known as 'Bury Your Gays,' refers to the immediate and uncalled-for killing of gay or LGBTQ characters when there is no need at all.

Prevalent in literature, cinema and small screen alike, gay characters are often considered more expendable than their straight counterparts and are often the first ones to be killed, often at times when they have just experienced something positive in their love life.

This trope of killing off gay characters first has enraged queer people for decades, as they view this futile death as a punishment for their sexuality. Moreover, these character deaths do not make sense in the narrative because they do not add anything to move the story forward, which is evidence that the writers did not want to write more stories about a gay character.

To name a few other gay character deaths that were uncalled for and not needed in the narrative, the biggest example is Tara in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, who is killed by a stray bullet she took to her heart. Poussey from Orange is the New Black, Maddie and Rana from Corrie, and Lexa from The 100, are just a few gay characters who were killed for no reason whatsoever.

In addition, in the Killing Eve finale, Villanelle was killed off just moments before the series ended. After four years of pining and longing, Villanelle and Eve finally share a kiss, soon after which the former dies, proving how art does not let their gay characters be happy.

Van and Tai were starting to have their happily ever after in Yellowjackets Season 3, before she was killed off

Yellowjackets Season 3 killed Van just when she was starting to live a happy life with Tai. While happiness is a far-fetched concept for the survivors in Yellowjackets Season 3, it seemed like Van and Tai were progressing toward a happily ever after.

As shown in Yellowjackets Season 3 Episode 9, Van finally brings the real Tai to life when she saves her, and the Other Tai loses control of the body. After spending months with the Other Tai, Van finally realised that her real Tai was back. To think that the two could have started to live their lives together, but it was cut short just because she is gay makes one wonder what the scenario would be if Van were a straight woman.

In addition, Van's death was surprising and added nothing to the plot, unlike another death in Episode 9, that of Kodiak, which highlighted how Hannah has also joined the Yellowjackets now.

Also Read: Yellowjackets Season 3 finale: 5 wildest theories about how the season would end

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