Aisha and Roy, The NoTP — Pt. I: Nice Guy? So What? *UPDATE*

A series of posts about so-called “nice guy” Roy? Yeah, sorry. The love triangle has been on my mind again lately, so I wanted to get my thoughts out.

First things first: I’ve never liked Aisha and Roy, not even in Winx season five. And I wasn’t alone — most Winx fans hated them. Even with all the lamenting that she didn’t choose him, she and Roy aren’t a popular pairing. They’re usually last in Winx couple rankings, even if she and Nex are included.

That’s how I know the only reason the Winx fandom still talks about Roy is they hate Nex. They didn’t root for Roy until the love triangle. It’s telling that they had to hate someone else more before he looked like an attractive option. It means he wasn’t good enough on his own.

So why did the Winx fandom hate him in season five? To be fair, part of it was the timing. He debuted immediately after Nabu’s death, so the pain was fresh for both Aisha and the fandom. It was too soon for Rainbow to give her a new love interest.

But that was far from the only reason.

Nice Guy name tag

Nice Guy? So What?

Some fans defend Aisha and Roy by praising how “nice”, “respectful”, and “gentlemanly” he was.

…That’s it? That’s all they want from an Aisha love story: Aisha/Nice Guy? Then why does it have to be Roy? There are plenty of other nice guys in Winx Club.

How about Mark from Winx season four? He was nice, but he was also confident, energetic, and fun-loving like Aisha. Plus, he had a talent: he played guitar! She obviously liked him, too, but she wasn’t in love with him. After all, she was dating/engaged to Nabu.

How about Palladium or Avalon? They’re nice.

…Wait, that’s creepy. They’re too old for her.

Okay, how about Andy? Rio? The smoothie guy from Calavera? Literally any Specialist who isn’t taken? Or one of the guys in this screenshot (they look nice):

Do you get my point? How did being nice make Roy “the one” for Aisha, especially if tons of other guys are nice, too? And why should she settle for a guy just because he’s nice? Is that really all she should want in a relationship?

As for us Winx fans who hate Aisha/Roy, why should we prefer him just because of one trait of his character? Would you tell someone to eat a pear instead of a carrot because “pears are sweet”? So are cookies, cakes, donuts, candy, and bags of sugar. That doesn’t mean they’re better for you.

When you compare things, you can’t just focus on one element. You have to look at the whole picture. (That’s why this is gonna be a series of posts. I have several reasons why I didn’t like Roy.)

The “Roy was nice” argument also has a nasty implication. When people say it’s the reason Aisha should have chosen him, it suggests he was entitled to her as a trophy for good behavior. Who cares about her right to choose? He was such a nice guy that she owed him a relationship.

Hooray for true love.

The Real Meaning of “Roy Was Nice”

Whenever Winx fans say, “Aisha should have picked Roy because he was nice,” what they really mean is, “Aisha shouldn’t have picked Nex because he’s mean” (or whatever they think he is). Those same people often call Nex “a copy of Riven” and exaggerate any flaw they see in him. They’re sure Aisha would never date “a guy like him” — whatever that is in their minds — and the couple’s relationship will (or should) inevitably fail.

Here’s the one thing they don’t consider. What if Rainbow knows Aisha wouldn’t date that type of guy? If so, what if Nex isn’t supposed to be that type of guy? What if it’s all a misunderstanding — of his character, that is?

Try watching Winx Club without the anti-Nex goggles, and read any books, comics, or articles that feature or talk about him. When you do, you’ll see that the Winx fandom’s interpretation of his character is not what Rainbow intended. Need proof? Here’s some:

  • His character description calls him “friendly” (amichevole), a word the fandom would never use to describe him. In fact, most of their descriptions are negative, while most of Rainbow’s are positive.
  • In an article on WinxClub.com, Aisha called both Roy and Nex “nice”. Oops, there’s that word. Guess Nex is boyfriend material, after all.
  • Comic #131, “La Prova di Nex” (Nex’s Test), shows him meeting Aisha’s parents. King Teredor thinks he’s “nothing but a braggart” at first, but Queen Niobe, Bloom, Stella, and Aisha herself defend Nex. Aisha even tells him, “Once [my dad] gets to know you better, he’ll love you.” Does that sound like a horrible guy to you?

Bottom line: Rainbow didn’t mean for Nex to be an a-hole. It’s just that the fandom labeled him as one, and now they refuse to reconsider.

TL;DR

  • Aisha didn’t have to settle for Roy just because he was nice. You can’t use one character trait to justify an entire relationship. Besides, there are plenty of other nice guys in Winx Club (including Nex).
  • Saying Aisha should have chosen Roy “because he was nice” suggests he was entitled to her as a trophy for good behavior. Who cares about her right to choose? She owed him a relationship.
  • People who use the “Roy was nice” argument are really saying, “Nex is mean.” But Rainbow didn’t intend for him to seem that way. The show, the comics, the storybooks, and Rainbow’s own words prove there’s a disconnect between the fandom’s idea of him and how he’s meant to be. In other words, even though the fandom thinks Nex is a jerk, he’s not supposed to be one.

I’ve got more to say, but I’ll stop here for now. Next time, I’ll talk about some of the problems with Roy’s personality. Then later, I’ll share another theory on why “Roy is nice” is the most common argument for Aisha and Roy.

UPDATE: I ended up changing the order of my posts. The second post was actually about the pacing of Aisha and Roy’s “love” story.

To Be Continued
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Aisha and Roy, The NoTP — Pt. II: Going Nowhere Fast *UPDATE* >>
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knight6831
January 16, 2019 3:34 pm

well Nex willingly took on Icy in season 6 which I’ve probably mentioned already sorry but to the best of my knowledge Roy hasn’t done something like since let’s be honest Icy is probably one of the most dangerous foes that the winx and specialists have ever faced

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 3:43 pm

that’s a good point and really?

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 3:44 pm

that no-one remembers what Roy did in season 5

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 4:14 pm

well yeah he was not needed when the winx are way more experienced at saving worlds

Sirenix-winx
January 16, 2019 8:03 pm

Roy nice? He’s manipulative a-hole, i’ve alway seen his “niceness” as
a act. Roy is big instigator, he first tries to make Nex crazy, that he gets mad and aggressive, and than puts the blame on him, and than Roy acts like the victim, and says that Nex
began to instigate hin. A narcissist of his worst kind

knight6831
Reply to  Sirenix-winx
January 16, 2019 9:32 pm

yeah i never understood at all and probably would criticise that if i reviewed the episode that featured that line of dialogue

Sirenix-winx
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 8:16 pm

The weird part also was that when Nex flirted with the Winx, all of the sudden Roy became mad about it. Why? He isn’t their father!

Sirenix-winx
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 8:26 pm

Roy was more the one that treated the Winx like objects. In Season 5 where he said “I should go first, because the waters here are dangerous”. Hello, they are the Winx? They’ve fought every monster, villain there is so far, and you are going to say that this is too dangerous for them? Just because they are woman? Roy, you do not make sense.

knight6831
January 16, 2019 9:51 pm

reading all the comments make me really want to do a crack fic one shot where the Winx put Roy in his place
what do you think?

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 9:58 pm

but would you post it here if i sent it to you? since it would be going up on where i post my fanfics as normal

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 10:14 pm

okay that is fair enough but now would the crack fic work better in a season 5 or 6 setting?

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 10:18 pm

hmm yeah but i’m wondering if Selina or the specialist should get should get involved in some way

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 16, 2019 10:25 pm

well the specialists have seen what the winx are capable of such as the rescue of tecna from omega, Bloom and Sky destroying the obsidian for example

NerdyPrincesses2 Mollz
NerdyPrincesses2 Mollz
January 17, 2019 12:41 pm

Roy is such a nothing character that I find it hard to compare his relationship with Aisha to Nex’s relationship with her. Roy just kind of…existed for no apparent reason. Remember how he didn’t even get aproper exit scene at the end of season six because Rainbow cared that little about him?

knight6831
Reply to  NerdyPrincesses2 Mollz
January 17, 2019 1:09 pm

yeah that’s a good point and i’ve watched roy’s debut scene and he does come off as condescending which Aisha reacts in a manner i’d expect

Will N
Will N
Reply to  Tori
November 23, 2020 3:10 pm

Maybe that first line was meant to show us “Roy isn’t who you think.” Also yeah that’s odd that in season 6 he didn’t get a boomerang to his wrist for daring to even look at Musa from Riven. Speaking of those two…Riven was also near Nex in those confrontational scenes. If we consider Riven to be the male equivalent of Musa, then him being near Nex should have been something of a cue as well. Whenever something concerns whoever is Aisha’s equivalent in the boys squad, Helia and Riven aren’t that far behind. I think that says quite a lot about Aisha’s choices as Musa and Flora are also near her during those times.

Could that mean in regards to Aisha, Musa would be the equivalent of a high tide and Flora a low tide?

knight6831
Reply to  Tori
January 18, 2019 2:02 pm

yeah it seems so

Overdramatic Goddess
Overdramatic Goddess
January 6, 2021 9:39 pm

I’m going to be honest. After Nabu, I think they should have left her single like they did with Musa. I feel like they just had to have someone for Aisha to ‘mend’ her broken heart. They could have just left it as it is. Musa and Riven didn’t work out so they were like okay. She can stay single. Her mother died. Bad ending. She broke up with Riven cause he was focused on getting stronger and not paying a lot of attention to her. Bad ending. Aisha lost Nabu to the Wizards. After she was happy being in a relationship but she was PERFECTLY fine without a lover after and before Nabu. Musa didn’t have to be the only one single. It could be Aisha too. Nex and Aisha are basically too similar. They could have been the first two to have a Winx to Specialists friendship. It didn’t have to become a relationship. Aisha and Roy didn’t work out. So what? I don’t like Aisha and Nex as a couple either. So what if it’s nice guy/mean guy… I don’t care. They should have left her single. Wasn’t it enough after Nabu? Honestly. Aisha and Nabu was the only pairing I’m here for. Because they basically ruined the other couples with he other seasons after sirenix besides Timmy and Tecna and Brandon and Stella. I don’t even want to explain why I really don’t like the others I haven’t listed. I only was on board with those because they were canon and there was no real competition or love triangle.

Overdramatic Goddess
Overdramatic Goddess
January 6, 2021 10:32 pm

I’m not saying that she shouldn’t be with anyone. First, I’m pissed they killed Nabu off. Second. Sure they can be good together, but it’s not something I would be toxic over. And season 8 they bought Riven back I’m cool with that. If they made up some elaborate regain life sequence and brought Nabu back I would have loved to see how that would have played out. But they didn’t. So Aisha and Nex is a pairing that I can accept but wouldn’t fully get behind it. But before you think so, I do not pair Aisha with Roy. He’s super toxic. But did you hear about that new Netflix version of Winx?

Overdramatic Goddess
Overdramatic Goddess
January 6, 2021 11:07 pm

I meant she should have stayed single in season three because I did feel like they just added Nabu to kill him off later. They also kind of rushed their moments and then they add a whole irrelevant love triangle in my opinion since there really was no real competition between Roy and Nex. But if they were to change Nabu a little bit and wait for him to appear later and put Roy in season 3 or 4 for someone for Aisha to kiss then date a while for her to see how toxic he is and her dumping him and then introducing Nabu and Nex that would have captured my attention more on Aisha’s love life. But that didn’t happen. And about the whole heroes coming back to life so they aren’t really sacrificing anything; it’s why I watch anime. If the hero or side hero dies. They stay dead. They just come back as a ghost that only their loved one’s can see or something. And I am not interested in the Netflix version. Looks like a crappy version of Legacies and Riverdale.

Overdramatic Goddess
Overdramatic Goddess
January 6, 2021 11:19 pm

You make sense. But as I said. I’ll get behind the pair. Because it makes the most sense since Roy is toxic and Nabu is, well….. dead. Anime was always popular. People just kept it a secret back then cause they would get teased for it. Even if the people who teased them about it secretly watched it more than their victims.

Overdramatic Goddess
Overdramatic Goddess
January 7, 2021 12:25 pm

I’m not that good at explaining things but he’s manipulative. I guess that’s a way of putting it. He’s kind of controlling over Aisha and the other Winx. I don’t know. I haven’t seen Winx Club in forever. There was no competition because Roy wasn’t really a ‘nice guy’. He just rubbed me the wrong way. So that’s why. If they gave Nabu more effort and kept Roy but didn’t kill him off but made him like the manipulative boyfriend in season 3 or 4 I would have payed more attention

Will N
Will N
Reply to  Overdramatic Goddess
January 7, 2021 11:04 pm

I think what rubbed people the wrong way about Roy was he didn’t realize who he was talking to. I mean who on Magix speaks to the Winx that way? Why did he need to see that three princesses have wings to know that they could handle themselves? Isn’t it a known factoid about the Winx that Bloom, Aisha and Tecna don’t necessarily need magic to defend themselves? Surely the Winx Trading Cards (presuming those were a thing universe after season 4) mention “Aisha survived shadowhaunt, Tecna’s a brainiac and Bloom beat ghouls with a stick” and not necessarily in that order.

Overdramatic Goddess
Overdramatic Goddess
Reply to  Tori
January 8, 2021 8:11 am

I totally agree. He didn’t pay attention to the personality and definitely didn’t think the Winx or Aisha could handle themselves which I’m pretty sure she’s more athletic than Roy anyway. He was too busy trying to ‘protect and show off’ while Nex was kind of showing off and having fun with Aisha. Couldn’t find the right words so I used show off.

Cupcake
Cupcake
February 5, 2022 11:51 am

you are actually insulting Roy and really don’t like that