Mal/Evie

[[File:Malvie bisexual icon.png|thumb|right|Malvie bisexual icon (Jun 2016) by xTheUnknownOnex, featuring their Wicked World selves.|alt=icon of Mal, on the left, and Evie, on the right, from the 3D animated show 'Wicked World'. The background is the bisexual flag.]]
 Mal/Evie, also known by the two portmanteaus Malvie or Mevie, is the femslash ship between Mal Bertha and Evie Grimhilde from the Descendants franchise. They make up half of the Core Four, and are the daughters of Maleficent and the Evil Queen respectively.
They appear together in the mainline trilogy of films, the animated series Wicked World, the tie-in books, and the animated special, among others. The pair have been shipped since the first film, though its sequel in particular offered a substantial amount of shipping fuel, especially in the form of the musical number Space Between. 
They are canonically best friends, and many fanworks have them as Friends to Lovers. Angst and Hurt/Comfort are relatively common, usually linked to their childhood on the Isle. Many Malvie fics also include Jaylos, often as a secondary or background pairing.
Their actresses' shipname, both platonic and romantic, is Dofia; a portmanteau of Dove Cameron and Sofia Carson's forenames. Both actresses have acknowledged Malvie, and apparently read fic of them during their time as the characters.
==Canon==
Mal and Evie are members of the Core Four, a set of four Villain Kids (VKs) originally chosen to travel to Auradon, where Disney's heroes live, from the Isle of the Lost, where all the villains reside. According to the tie-in novels, the two were initially enemies/rivals before becoming friends.
Throughout the main series, the pair are best friends. They are roommates at their new boarding school of Auradon Prep, and initially plan on stealing the Fairy Godmother's wand along with Jay and Carlos. In the end, they decide to be good, and Mal gets with Ben, whilst Evie gets with Doug.
When Mal returns to the Isle, after the pressures of being the new King's girlfriend get too much, Evie travels to the Isle to bring her back with the others. Initially, Mal tells her she won't be coming back, but after hijinks, Mal ends up back anyway and decides to stay.
After her eventual engagement to Ben, Mal decides they should shut the barrier to the Isle, so no one else can go in or out due to safety concerns. Evie assumes Mal was the one to say no to the idea, and feels betrayed when she reveals the truth later on in the film as she's the most passionate about getting the other VKs out of poverty. Mal eventually chooses to destroy the barrier completely, and their relationship recovers.
Mal is heavily associated with the colour purple, Evie with the colour blue.
==Fandom==
One appeal of Malvie is that they are seen as contrasting and complementing each other. From a simple perspective: Mal's slightly edgy, selfish, cool demeanor vs Evie's kind, compassionate, flirty demeanor. Both however offer opportunities for nuance and exploration in fanworks, as both grew up on the Isle of the Lost in poverty with parents generally accepted in the fandom to be abusive. 
Evie is somewhat of a fan favourite in the Descendants fandom, and is often seen as some variation of cinnamon roll, and as result much of the fandom wants the best for her. Mal, on the other hand, is a much more controversial character in the fandom, making much more dislikable decisions in canon. 
The pair are seen as smitten for each other in the Malvie fandom, with Mal's hard demeanor softening in Evie's presence. Evie is also frequently the only one Mal comes to to talk to or inform about certain things, such as the identity of her father or the decision to close the barrier.
===Shipname===
Both Malvie and Mevie are used fairly commonly for the pair, with neither seemingly taking precedence over the other. Some fans have pointed out that 'Malvie' is also the name of a French magazine whilst 'Mevie' is often corrected to 'Movie', when trying to find content for them. Early on it seemed Eval was another contender.malvie?? eval ????
===Shipping Fuel===
====Space Between====
The song Space Between and its sequence in Descendants 2 is one of the biggest sources of shipping fuel for the ship, for several reasons. For context, the catalyst for the song is that the pair will be separated as Mal feels more at home on the Isle, and Evie vastly prefers Auradon, to the extent she'd had Ben promise her she wouldn't be left there. However as soon as Mal told her she was staying, Evie offers to stay too. 
The song itself is a ballad and duet - the only one in all three films - that has Mal and Evie singing to each other about how they'll always be there for each other no matter the distance between them, and making references to being in each other's hearts. 
[[File:Oh this this is gay.jpg|thumb|left|Oh this-this is gay meme (July 2019) by camscendants featuring the iconic forehead touch in Space Between.]]
The scene itself also includes the two reaching for each other's hands across a railing, several instances of staring into each other's eyes, and the iconic forehead touch. One chorus is also accompanied by a montage of scenes of the two throughout the previous film, something that also happened for the canon ship Mal/Ben in the first film during the song If Only, a song in which Mal sings about her conflicted thoughts on her canon feelings for Ben.
Many YouTube reviewers mention the homoeroticism of the scene.Extortion for Dummies | Descendants 2 - "Also these two are just roommates, I swear.recapping disney's weird descendants movies*Disney Descendants 2 and 3* - one GOOD, one BAD - "eliminate that space between... your faces."
Space Between is sometimes compared to songs from the second High School Musical film, as both films are the second in a trilogy of Disney Channel Original Movies directed by Kenny Ortega. The two songs most frequently compared are I Don't Dance, a song also known for its homoeroticism, and Gotta Go My Own Way, the break up ballad between main couple Troy Bolton and Gabriella Montez.'Conversation between me and my friend from last night'
Overall, fans often view the song as filling the typical 'romantic love ballad' conventions seen in other similiar media, and is generally considered incredibly gay.
Some shippers seem to have been convinced of the ship as a result of this song:
Even as the years have passed, folks discovering or re-discovering the films are still coming to this conclusion seemingly of their own accord:
Even folks less familiar with the context of the scene in-universe sometimes assume they're a couple:
Fanvids using the song in wider fandom are fairly common, and though some are for platonic relationships, many are for romantic ships.The Space Between - Robin/Alice (Curious Archer)Catradora - Space Between | She-Ra AMV (Catra x Adora)Space Between AMV| Korra | Asami | TLoK
====Other====
There are several other moments that have fueled the ship:
*"Oh My God, They Were Roommates"
*The first Descendants film features Evie giving a makeover to Mal, who then stands in front of a mirror before Evie leans her head on Mal's shoulder. This was arguably one of the key Malvie scenes prior to the sequel's release.
*Another key scene from the first film has the pair talking about how Mal thinks boyfriends are overrated whilst lounging on Evie's bed, mere seconds after complimenting how a dress Evie made brings out her eyes.
:
*The opening number of Descendants 2, Ways to be Wicked, is a daydream sequence of Mal's in which Evie is imagined as somewhat of a seductress.
*Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, and China Anne McClain are the main singers on a cover of the song Kiss the Girl from The Little Mermaid on the Descendants 2 soundtrack. In the lyric book, Kiss the Girl is accompanied by an image of Mal and Evie.'Kiss the girl…' - Tumblr post (Dec 2023) by malviewenclair
*The pair canonically say "I love you" to each other in Descendants 3, though officially it's platonic.
*After several of the characters are turned to stone in front of Mal in the third film, she is arguably most affectionate with Evie, stroking a hand against her cheek.'Like just kiss her already' (Aug 2019) by camscendants
*Though there are several typical smaller acting choices - looks, winks, facial expressions, Mal's fingers touching Evie's back or hair - that have contributed to the ship's popularity, one in particular in Descendants 3 involves Evie dropping to the floor as part of a dance sequence. Mal watches her do so out the corner of her eye, all while her tongue moves to the corner of her mouth.
*The novels offer moments such as Evie wearing some of Mal's old clothes.
*In the animated special Descendants: The Royal Wedding, one scene has Malvie beneath a heart.
*Various other moments throughout the series.malvie moments during descendants musical numbers'here’s your daily reminder that this is Evie’s bed Mal is comfortably parked on in that scene, not her own'
====Elsewhere====
*Sapphic singer Jojo Siwa danced to Ways to be Wicked whilst competing on Dancing with the Stars with her female dance partner Jenna Johnson whilst dressed as Mal and Evie.
===Common Tropes & Themes===
*Hurt/Comfort & Angst - Fanworks involving the VKs often explore various concepts relating to child abuse and poverty whilst growing up on the Isle, and this is especially true for Evie, with further emphasis on sexual violence. In Malvie H/C fanworks, Mal will often comfort Evie over her experiences. Other angst is often inspired by the canon falling out they have in Descendants 3, especially for fanvids.
*Canon Divergence - Though some fanworks have the two get together post-canon in some capacity, others have them romantically involved earlier. Certain romantic scenes and songs often get adapted so they're about each other rather than their canon love interests, most notably If Only and One Kiss.how ‘one kiss’ should’ve went Space Between AU fanworks often end in kisses.
*Past Bal and Devie - Mal and Evie's canon love interests, Ben and Doug, sometimes appear in fanworks. In post-canon fanworks, they are often their exes.
**Dove Cameron's queer song Boyfriend will occasionally be used in fanworks to indicate Mal - or occasionally Evie - would be a better boyfriend than their canon love interest.Boyfriend - Dove Cameron [Español + Lyrics Mal & Evie (Descendants) 💜] (Feb 2022) by milipereiro
*Dragon!Mal - Mal can canonically turn into a dragon, and this sometimes shows up in Malvie fanworks.
[[File:Malvie Stamp.png|right|thumb|Malvie Stamp [F2U] by marshvall]]
*Polyamory - It's generally accepted in fanon that most of the VKs and Auradon Kids (AKs) are queer, with bisexuality in particular showing up frequently in headcanons. As a result, some fanworks involve polyamory between various different characters, including both Mal/Evie.
===Variations===
*Uma/Mal/Evie
*Ben/Mal/Evie
*Mal/Evie/Jay/Carlos
==Interactions with the Cast==
In June 2022, a video by them released, in which Dove Cameron, who is herself queer, states her character Mal was "madly in love with Evie".'Dove Cameron Breaks Down Her Disney Career, Coming Out & "Boyfriend" Music Video | Them' In a later video with Elle in November 2023, Dove further states that Space Between is "so gay" and a "love song for Evie and Mal for sure".Dove Cameron On Now-Cancelled 'Powerpuff Girls' Series & Favorite Tattoo | Ask Me Anything | ELLE
Dove has also revealed that the cast of Descendants used to read Malvie and Jaylos fanfiction together:
They were doing so at least as early as December 2015, the same year the first film released. As a result of this, some fans have pondered whether some of the acting choices, especially in the third film, were intentional on the part of the actors, specifically Dove, such as the 'tongue' scene mentioned above.
===Jaylos Space Between Recreation===
During the Descendants 2 livestream for the film's world premiere, the cast of the film begin to dance to their songs on the soundtrack. When Space Between comes on, Sofia and Dove start to recreate the scene. However as they do so, Booboo Stewart and Cameron Boyce, who play Jay and Carlos (i.e Jaylos), begin to also do their own scene for the song. This Jaylos version heavily plays up the romantic aspect to an almost parodic level, and involves everything from dramatic hand touching, Cameron holding Booboo by the top of his shirt, and a literal dip.
This version of the song provides fuel not only for Jaylos, but also Malvie in the sense that it strongly implies that the cast were, at least on some level, aware of the romantic undertones to the song.
==Fanworks==
===Fanfiction===
*you've left your ghost until tomorrow (Oct 2015) by paperclipbitch
*Far From the Tree (Completed Nov 2017) by Heart_Seoul_Soshi
===Fanvids===
*33 reasons to ship MEVIE | Descendants 1-3 (Aug 2019) by tnyjt
*If Only - Malvie (Mar 2016) by MakaylaTomasi, in which the song If Only is accompanied with a Malvie montage as opposed to a Bal montage.
*Mal - She Likes Girls (Sep 2017) by AwkwardDarkness, featuring the song She Likes Girls. Several other vids also use this song for the couple.She likes girls || Mal + Evie + Ben (Descendants)Mal x Evie —She Likes Girls♡♡
*Mal + Evie | Strangers (Malvie) (Apr 2020) by IzzieGirl
*idfc ; mal & evie [au] (Jun 2022) by moonlightmonsta
*Shut up and dance with the gays! by softdeanoru (2017) (Malvie are one of the queer couples included in this multifandom vid)
===Animations===
*💙 Closing the space between 💜 (Apr 2020) by annoyingmeviestan
===Fanart===
*'mirror mirror on the wall who’s the gayest of them all' (Aug 2017) by polar-biscuit
*'really needed some time off, so I drew my two favourite VK’s' (Sep 2017) by fleeting-ghosts-art
*Mevie Fanart (Jan 2018) by galianogangster, featuring Mal in her dragon form.
*'It was tearing me apart, not listening to my heart' (Jun 2018) by cryptidmax
*Space Between (Apr 2019) by marshvall, featuring Malvie as lions from The Lion King.
*'@ disney cowards make it canon' (Jun 2019) by somelizardperson
*'excited to see my girls again' (Jun 2019) by mxgicdave
====Gallery====
File:Most-high-studios mal-and-evie.png|Mal and Evie (Apr 2018) by Most-High-Studios
===Manips===
*Evie/Mal - No More Space Between (Dec 2017) by Artwra
===Memes===
File:Space between meme.jpg|Meme relating to Space Between.
File:Malvie meme 2.jpg|Meme using screenshots from the first film.
File:Malvie meme 3.jpg|Meme using screenshots from Descendants 2 that aren't related to Space Between.
File:Malvie Meme 4.jpg|Meme using screenshots from Descendants 3.
==Resources/External Links==
*Evie/Mal (Disney) tag - Ao3
*Malvie - Shipping Wiki
*Mal and Evie - Descendants FANDOM wiki
*A Different Kind of Happy Ever After: LGBTQ Fandom and the Modern Fairytale Retelling (Nov 2019) by Nia Le on Flipscreened
==Notes==
==References==
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