Ivypool and Dovewing – Who Is Better? by Mousefur

Mousefur shares their opinion on the ThunderClan sisters, Dovewing and Ivypool.

Ah, the Ivypool and Dovewing argument, a tale as old as time. Fans say that Ivypool is better, no wait- Dovewing is better! Ivypool! Dovewing! Well, I wanted to give my own take on it and what I think of both she-cats. Warning: There will be spoilers. Let’s begin.

𝗜𝘃𝘆𝗽𝗼𝗼𝗹

Let’s start with Ivypool. A lot of people say that she spied in the Dark Forest, and I agree that that is a pretty good thing she did. However, Ivypool did it out of jealousy. She also showed signs of being jealous of Dovewing, even before knowing her sister had powers. Here’s an excerpt from 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦.

“It’s not because Firestar likes me better, or anything,” Dovepaw reassured her sister. Jayfeather heard her pad over to Ivypaw and try to give her ear a comforting lick, but Ivypaw jerked away from her. “It’s just that I was the first cat to think about something blocking the stream.” Jayfeather felt guilt flowing over her as she remembered that she was keeping her special senses, and everything she knew about the prophecy, a secret from her sister. Ivypool distanced herself from her sister out of jealousy, despite Dovewing not having control over the prophecy. She also disapproves of Dovewing leaving to go with Tigerstar 2 in Shadowclan, which is unreasonable. Dovewing shouldn’t stay in Thunderclan just so that Ivypool won’t be mad.

𝗗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴

Next we have Dovewing. Some common reasons Dovewing is disliked are:

• She’s a Mary Sue
• She replaced Hollyleaf
• She left Thunderclan and went to Shadowclan
• She didn’t treat Bumblestripe well

Let’s tackle the Mary Sue claim first. According to Urban Dictionary, a Mary Sue is a character that is 100% perfect, and has absolutely no flaws. When looking at Dovewing, is it fair to say that she is a Mary Sue? Here’s the thing: Dovewing does not get everything she wants. Mary Sues solve everything, have everything, and get everything, and Dovewing simply does not fit the bill. She can’t tell anyone but Lionblaze and Jayfeather about the prophecy, even though she wants to (see exerpt above). Dovewing has no control over her powers, and when she loses them, she feels powerless.

Secondly, she replaced Hollyleaf. First of all, Hollyleaf never had a power, so she could never be the third cat. Hollyleaf not having powers as an intentional plot twist. She also couldn’t be a Hollyleaf replacement, due to not being as close to Jayfeather and Lionblaze, or having a similar personality.

Thirdly, we have how she switched clans. Dovewing switched clans to be with Tigerstar 2. That was the best choice she could have made. Tigerstar 2 was her mate, and she had his kits. Dovewing wouldn’t have kits with the Shadowclan tom and not let him raise them. Some may say that she abandoned Ivypool, but Ivypool is an adult. She doesn’t need Dovewing, and has her own things to deal with. Bramblestar didn’t have a problem with Tawnypelt left, and they were apprentices then.

Lastly, she treated Bumblestripe badly. Dovewing was pressured by other clanmates to be with Bumblestripe. Bumblestripe is also not a good mate. In the Shattered Sky bonus scene, he asked Dovewing if they should have kits, right after Purdy dies. He also calls her a traitor when she joins Shadowclan, despite her not being able to control who she loved.

That’s all I have to say about these two sisters! Feel free to leave your opinions in the comments. In conclusion, neither Dovewing nor Ivypool are better than the other, since they deal with different struggles.