Quasipunzel

Quasipunzel is the het ship between Quasimodo and Rapunzel from the The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Tangled fandoms.

Canon
Quasimodo and Rapunzel come from different films and, as such, they have never met. However, Rapunzel appears in the film Ralph Breaks the Internet and Quasimodo makes a small cameo on the film reel that encircles the Sorcerer's Hat at Oh My Disney. This means that Rapunzel would be at least somewhat aware of Quasimodo's existence, although it is unclear if he actually exists inside the world of Ralph Breaks the Internet or if she would only know of him as a fictional character. They both are also characters in the video game series Kingdom Hearts, and share a mutual friend in Sora. Quasimodo is featured in the game "Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance", and Rapunzel appears in "Kingdom Hearts III".

Quasimodo and Rapunzel share many similarities. In fact, their films follow very similar narrative beats and character arcs. They are both characters that were taken in at birth by a cruel, and vindictive guardian. They are lied to about their real parents; Quasimodo is told that his mother abandoned him, and Rapunzel is told that Mother Gothel is her true mother. They are locked away within towers, shielding them from the outside world. Quasimodo has a passion for woodcarving, and Rapunzel has a passion for painting. They use these artistic habits to help sate their longing for the outside world, and to pass the time within their confinement. ThHowever, they still both yearn to experience life outside the walls of their towers, and each escapes to experience it without their guardian knowing. They fall in love along the way, although Rapunzel's romance with Flynn Rider ends much better than Quasimodo's crush on Esmeralda.

When they tell their guardians about their newfound loves, both Mother Gothel and Frollo react poorly. They use gaslighting and other manipulative tactics to try and sway Quasimodo and Rapunzel away from their newfound freedom. Mother Gothel tells Rapunzel that she's naive, and that Flynn is only with her because of the promise of the tiara. Frollo tells Quasimodo that people like Esmeralda (and like Quasimodo's mother) are incapable of truly feeling love. In the end, both Frollo and Mother Gothel fall to their deaths, ensuring freedom for Quasimodo and Rapunzel.

Fanon
Quasipunzel is considered a rarepair in the Disney fandom. This is because The Hunchback of Notre Dame is considered to be an "underrated" film, whereas Tangled is one of the more popular Disney movies and fandoms. This ship is greatly overshadowed by the canonical New Dream, although it still has a small number of fans. Most people enjoy it for the numerous similarities between the characters, from their tower confinements to their love of art. During the COVID-19 lockdown, many people compared Rapunzel, Quasimodo, and even Elsa's lives to the current conditions in the world. Some fans prefer to see Rapunzel and Quasimodo as friends, due to them each having a canonical love interest in their films.

This ship currently has 2 works on AO3. Most of the fanwork for Quasipunzel seems to exist in fanart and fanvids.

Fandom

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