Doloriano

Doloriano is the het ship between Dolores Madrigal and Mariano Guzmán from the Encanto fandom.

Canon
Mariano was chosen by Abuela Alma to be the husband of Dolores' cousin Isabela. First hints of Dolores' attraction towards him are displayed when Abuela asks Dolores to inform the family of his plans for the engagement and how Mariano wants to contribute to the Madrigal family ("He wants five babies"). Notably, the usually perky and gossip-happy Dolores seems solemn and uncomfortable when she's asked to talk about his feelings for another woman.

Dolores's crush on Mariano is confirmed in the "We Don't Talk About Bruno" musical number, where Dolores tells Mirabel about her uncle Bruno's prophecy for her: The man of her dreams will be betrothed to another woman. With her receiving the gift of super-hearing at the age of five, Dolores most likely heard Mariano every day of her life. She found out that he is a kind momma's boy who enjoys poetry. She fell in love with him from afar, while he had barely any idea of who she was at the time.

After the Casita is destroyed and has to be rebuilt by the family and the townsfolk (Mariano being one of the first people in line), Dolores finally works up the confidence to confess her feelings to Mariano. Her cousins Mirabel and Isabela (who never wanted the engagement in the first place) were playing matchmaker for her. Mariano, being a hopeless romantic, immediately accepts her. When they happily strut away, he jokingly proposes to her, which she kindly rejects, telling him to "slow down".

Moments

 * During her second verse in "We Don't Talk About Bruno", Dolores is seen looking longingly at the arriving Mariano from the window.

Quotes
"[Bruno] told me that the man of my dreams would be just out of reach, betrothed to another..."

- Dolores.

Fanon
Doloriano is a very popular ship within the Encanto fandom, being the third-most popular ship in the "Encanto (2021)" tag on AO3 (only being beaten by Félipa and Julistín in that order). It is also the most popular ship for both characters, despite Mariano being a bit of a bicycle (due to being the only major character who isn't related to the family).

Generally, people appreciate that Dolores genuinely loves Mariano for himself, instead of just going after him for his looks or pulling the same "Love at First Sight" nonsense that the earlier Disney movies are still somewhat infamous for. Additionally, many like that Dolores' habit of eavesdropping is not painted as her being a stalker. It is heavily implied that her super-hearing ability is permanent and that she can't turn it off.

Mariano is also appreciated for being a genuinely sympathetic and funny take on the "Disposable Fiancée" cliché, as he is depicted as a human being deserving of love instead of merely being an obstacle.

The ship is also popular for fans who want to write "Next Gen" fanfic while being completely canon-compliant. The "He wants five babies" line is often referenced and fanfic writers had a field day making five Madrigal OCs each. Dolores is often depicted as a somewhat strict, but loving mom, since her kids literally can't hide anything from her.

A lot of fan content depicts Dolores taking Mariano to her room, which is often imagined as being soundproof. What they do in there tends to vary, but it's often just Dolores wanting Mariano by her side when she relaxes (with her often being headcanoned as neurodivergent) or Mariano getting a chance to get to know her better.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

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