#a little squire of irondeep

[greatvaluegirlfriend]

murph said “i know what’ll make the irondeep arc hit” and made a little serpent that said “nom nom nom” and yknow he was right

[sideblogdotjpeg]

Extremely small spoilers for the c3 ending warning

But I think a really fun bit of Sol's character that I kinda didn't notice until the final episode is that ever since Irondeep (or maybe even before?), Sol has just been learning how to sew and crochet. And I have extreme respect for Murph letting Sol use that knowledge in the final episode to redistribute the magic of his displacement cloak amongst the party. I just really love those kinds of small character details in fantasy - the hobby they pick up randomly that slowly becomes more and more of a skill as the story progresses.

YES ! sols background knitting/crochet hobby (theyre used kind of interchangeably) is one of my favourite little quirks of his to think about... and if you keep track of its offhanded mentions, it actually weaves (hehe) a really sweet mini-story about sols character !

(teeny tiny mini essay under the cut, because i. have. thoughts)

so! a minor um actually is that sols knitwork is actually brought up pretty much at the VERY start of his character intro;

"...I'm wearing a homemade sweater that is in the same pattern as the standard issue synth knight sweater, but that one didn't fit me, so ive crafted my own as a replica - the sleeves are a little long, i'm still working on it, i like to knit in my spare time to quell my thoughts a bit..." (ep 1)

so we establish 1) he likes to knit, 2) knitting is an almost meditative practice, a very physical-based method of dealing with his thoughts, 3) he wants to fit in with his cohort of synth knights, even though their 'standard' has excluded and rejected him 4) he takes on this rejection without any bitterness, and instead with an optimism that his own personal inadequacies can be overcome by trying his darn best, 5) he's a cute frog in an oversized sweater

it's a pretty small & overall NOT important line that doesn't mean anything, but you COULD interpret it as the introductory, basic threads of meditative practice, community, belonging and identity that return as pretty major elements in sol as a character!

other, pretty major encounters with the knitting/sewing motif:

ep 7: Callie "we're sort of entwined now, right? i mean, our fates are somewhat braided at this point" + sol "if you're saying that we're friends then yes!" (this isn't a sol knitting moment, but good GOD 'our fates are braided' + them later discovering they're peregrine + sol sewing peregrine patches - we LOVE unintentional foreshadowing)

ep 27: Before the king durretar fight, sol gives everyone a peice of black yarn to wrap around their arms, a symbol of the living will they made to each other. Later in the ep, he holds up the band just before he goes down

ep 39: Right before he leaves to return to irondeep, sol gives swag "a little bracelet of yarn, just so we can feel connected" (literally FUCKING RUINOUS when you think about this being THE LAST TIME THEY SEE EACH OTHER FACE TO FACE and all the other moments sol gives his loved ones threads/bracelets. god. actually ruinous)

ep 53 (short rest!): This requires maybe a bit of context... but essentially, its caldwell describing sol's conflict of wanting to save the people he loves VS the growing reality of his inability to do so as, "no matter how big and thick and fluffy a sweater he knits, it always unravels itself"

ep 57: sol plants a piece of thread on the two ice swags (red and purple) as a way to tell them apart

ep 61: sol takes the black band from the king durretar fight and weaves it into a design that he made of the peregrine symbol/callie's sigil so that they can all wear it as a team (and one for a squire too, of course!)

ep 72: sol shreds his displacer scarf & patches up everyone's track jackets with it, to share the protection magic (this does end up saving calder's life i think.... THAT'S THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP BABY.)

finally, also in ep 72: galactic swag returns the night sky to the faewild, and sol comments "now that's knitting..."

I think. All in all. It's like. sol is this guy who, perhaps more than anything else, longs for family, home & community. He found this in launchpad and mothership, and their promise that if he could just work hard enough to prove that he meets their standards, then he CAN fit in and be worthy, and belong, and be part of something big. And over the course of campaign 3, he finds this with duck team.

All these desires for connection are expressed through the small things he knits for the people he loves. It keeps coming up over and over again, sol trying to stitch pieces of himself into his friends. Have this yarn, and this thread, and this bracelet, so you can remember you have someone to fight for and someone fighting for you (i have THOUGHT about this being kind of like a Lady's favor to a knight.... i've THOUGHT about this...) In ep 39, he gives swag a mushroom with the stated purpose that it might let sol know if swag dies. In ep 41, he tells hardwon that "there haven't been many people that I've met that have stuck around and meant something to me". I think you could interpret.... sol's habit of giving little knit gifts to his friends as maybe kind of a manifestation of that worry. that people are going to leave him, and he's going to end up alone again. so the thread of the living will comes back over and over again... no matter where you are, dead or alive, we'll be connected somehow.

You can also interpret all of this in the context of his childhood! in the waterpark ! A place where he was cold, and in danger all the time, and alone, and nobody made any 'big and thick and fluffy' sweaters for him. That the way he responds to this is... by making sure the people that he loves never ever have to feel like that. Here's something to keep you warm, and to remind you that i Know you, I Think of you, and i Love you. Sol just wants to protect all his friends by knitting them up in a big comfy sweater (and by the finale, in a way, he does!)

anyway ! those are my um. my. very minor thoughts about sol & knitting. i think about it a normal amount i promise. it is really REALLY a very fun bit about his character and it is. wonderful to see it evolve over the campaign.

Also since I accidentally went whole hog and wrote a full essay. Um. more sol knitting mentions that I personally find very delightful, although less relevant to this specific analysis:

Ezry arc: "i haven't had a chance to knit in a while, that really mellows me out" < sol's explanation for nearly punching a salamander to death because he kind of reminded him of a completely different salamander guy who had the audacity to go to the movies with albin, once. Really cute because awww he knits to mellow out. and also. god sol is fucking Insane. frog who is for sure possessive a normal and healthy amount

Living Woods arc: the living woods arc has sooo many cute lil sol knitgifts. sol gives calder a reversible beanie that has the initials CK (for calder kilde) and KC (for kalder cilde)... he says he was making it for calders birthday! (i didn't check this particular moment for accuracy, but i DO rmb calder saying smthn to the effect of "this is the nicest thing anyone's ever got for me") ..... this also has the famous callie crochet bra + i THINK sol's knit boots for calder

Irondeep arc: sol makes the infamous knit hammer cover with pompoms for kenna. (he later also makes i think.. a cloth for kenna to clean her hammer? he's trying guys....)

Tsunare arc: callie asks sol to make a gunk bindle

Ice knife arc: EVERYBODY IS REALLY MEAN TO SOLS KNITTING. SOMEBODY DEFEND HIM HE DOESNT DESERVE THIS....

Faewild arc: after calder gives himself a crop top , "i will Happily be your tailor"

Conclusion? this frog loves his friends!!!!!

[stone-stars]

Transcript:

Kenna (Murph): I've heard you bringing up like, family and stuff a lot? And… I don't-- I don't totally know how to say this, but do you think that I could show you something through like your spores thing? Do you think it works like that? Sol (Caldwell): I mean, we can certainly try, I'm not really sure what all it's capable of, but… yeah! Let's give it a go! Murph: You hop off the treadmill, you see Kenna walks up, puts her hands on your head, um, and then rests her head against them. And you feel a sudden [whoosh, snaps] jolt as you are pulled into one of Kenna's memories. [The Gunslinger's Girl plays softly in the background] Murph: And you see Jaina Bronzebeard, looking over some kind of city plans in her study in like the Irondeep Castle, she's looking all stressed out. And then you see… Kenna enters the room. You see Kenna is wearing like, civilian clothes, just like a regular tunic and no plate mail. And Jaina goes-- Jaina (Murph): Shouldn't you be out in the yard sparring? Murph: And Kenna looks down. Kenna: I'm.. I'm leaving Irondeep. My… My father's been sending me money, and I-- I bribed one of the couriers and they… they told me where I could find him. So I'm-- I'm gonna go to Ezry. And I'm gonna look for him. Murph: Jaina puts down her work and nods, and sort of crosses her arms and thinks and goes-- Jaina: Well has, um, has he reached out to you at all? Or… or are you the one that is doing all the work? Murph: And Kenna looks down again, kind of not wanting to answer. And Jaina gets up from her desk, walks around, and kneels next to the young squire. And goes-- Jaina: I will not tell you what to do. If you choose to go to Ezry to look for him, I will charter the airship myself. But I-- I wanna tell you something. I have had two little sisters in my life. One shared a family name with me, and the other did not. One liked jewels in her beard and music and dancing, and the other liked hammers and plate mail and sparring. Murph: And she sort of pats on Kenna. Jaina: And she wanted very much to be a knight. I would hate to see her throw that dream away. And I would hate to lose another sister. Murph: Kenna just breaks down crying and buries her face in Jaina's chest, and Jaina brings her in, kind of holds her for a moment, and then Jaina pulls back and makes eye contact with her, and goes-- Jaina: The gods do not decide who is and isn't family. Murph: And you [whoosh, music ends] come out of the trance, and see Kenna standing there, kind of awkwardly and teary eyed. Kenna: So, yeah, that's… just, I thought maybe… Sol: No, yeah, no, that's-- Kenna: Yeah. Sol: I know that you call yourself a squire but… I can see it, everyone can see it, you've got a knight's heart beating proudly under that iron. Kenna: Thank you for saying that, Mr. Bufo! And-- Sol: Just call me Sol. Kenna: (laughs) That's gonna be a hard habit to break Mr B-- Sol. Sol. [Caldwell laughs] Murph: And you see she goes over to her like, pack, and she goes-- Kenna: Anyway, I-- I found some old books in the equipment bags. Murph: And you see she pulls out a copy of The Boy Wizard and his Frog Pal. And she hands it to you. Sol: Oh! Oh gosh, this old thing. Kenna: Hey man, I know the monsters weren't real at Launchpad, but I thought the main characters were very believable as brothers. Sol: You're right. Thank you for reminding me, you know, no matter how much we loose, we gotta hold on to what we have and we gotta… double down on those connections. I'm really glad that we got to meet you. I'm really glad you're here. Kenna: Thanks big bro! Murph: Um, gives you a big hug.

[stone-stars]

[Video Description: An animatic of Sol and Kenna's conversation from Naddpod c3e54, where Kenna shows Sol a memory of her and Jaina Bronzebeard. Full transcript/description under the cut.]

[Kenna and Sol are in a room of Calder’s house. Kenna lays on a couch while Sol runs on a treadmill, blasting music from a crystal.] Caldwell: Kenna’s trying to sleep and I’m just ignoring her. Murph: Yeah, as you’re working out, you see Kenna-- yeah, she’s laying in bed, but is just kind of like, staring up, and she keeps like, making motion like she’s going to talk to you, but she keeps like… kind of stopping herself. Sol lifts the crystal, pointing to it: Sorry is the music too loud? I can turn it down a little bit. Kenna, sitting up: Yeah, um. Yeah, Mr. Bufo, why don’t you turn it down, I think, um-- Sol: I’m just trying to get a little workout in before bed, you know. Kenna: Yeah. Sol: I wanna make sure I’m at my best for everything we’ve got going on tomorrow. Kenna: Of course, of course, but um… Mr. Bufo, I’ve, um… I've heard you bringing up like, family and stuff a lot? And… I don't-- I don't totally know how to say this, but do you think that I could show you something through like your spores thing? Do you think it works like that? Sol: I mean, we can certainly try, I'm not really sure what all it's capable of, but… yeah! Let's give it a go! Murph: You hop off the treadmill, you see Kenna walks up, puts her hands on your head, um, and then rests her head against them. And you feel a sudden [whoosh, snaps, the camera zooms in on the mushrooms on Sol's head] jolt as you are pulled into one of Kenna's memories.

[Sol is small, floating in space amongst spores. One, a memory, glows nearby. Sol looks down into the memory from above.] Murph: And you see Jaina Bronzebeard, looking over some kind of city plans in her study in like the Irondeep Castle, she's looking all stressed out. And then you see… Kenna enters the room. You see Kenna is wearing like, civilian clothes, just like a regular tunic and no plate mail. And Jaina goes-- Jaina: Shouldn't you be out in the yard sparring? Murph: And Kenna looks down. Kenna: I'm.. I'm leaving Irondeep. [She clutches a paper with information on someone tightly in her hands.] My… My father's been sending me money, and I-- I bribed one of the couriers and they… they told me where I could find him. So I'm-- I'm gonna go to Ezry. And I'm gonna look for him. Murph: Jaina puts down her work and nods, and sort of crosses her arms and thinks and goes-- Jaina: Well has, um, has he reached out to you at all? [Kenna looks up at Jaina, small in the frame.] Or… or are you the one that is doing all the work? Murph: And Kenna looks down again, kind of not wanting to answer. And Jaina gets up from her desk, walks around, and kneels next to the young squire. And goes-- Jaina: I will not tell you what to do. If you choose to go to Ezry to look for him, I will charter the airship myself. But I-- I wanna tell you something. [As Jaina talks, there’s flashes of other scenes.] Jaina: I have had two little sisters in my life. [She looks off to the side, saddened.] One shared a family name with me, [camera cuts to Kenna] and the other did not. One liked jewels in her beard and music and dancing [Gemma, smiling and adorned, then dancing on a balcony with Hardwon.], and the other liked hammers and plate mail and sparring [Kenna swinging her hammer and grinning.] Murph: And she sort of pats on Kenna. Jaina: And she wanted very much to be a knight. I would hate to see her throw that dream away. And I would hate to lose another sister. Murph: Kenna just breaks down crying and buries her face in Jaina's chest, and Jaina brings her in, kind of holds her for a moment, and then Jaina pulls back and makes eye contact with her, and goes-- Jaina, seriously: The gods do not decide who is and isn't family.

Murph: And you [whoosh, music ends. Sol and Kenna fall back from each other in the room as the memory fades away.] come out of the trance, and see Kenna standing there, kind of awkwardly and teary eyed. Kenna: So, yeah, that's… just, I thought maybe… Sol: No, yeah, no, that's-- Kenna: Yeah. Sol, putting an arm around Kenna: I know that you call yourself a squire but… I can see it, everyone can see it, you've got a knight's heart beating proudly under that iron. Kenna: Thank you for saying that, Mr. Bufo! And-- Sol: Just call me Sol. Kenna, reeling back: (laughs) That's gonna be a hard habit to break Mr B-- Sol. Sol. [Caldwell laughs] Murph: And you see she goes over to her like, pack, and she goes-- Kenna: Anyway, I-- I found some old books in the equipment bags. Murph: And you see she pulls out a copy of The Boy Wizard and his Frog Pal. And she hands it to you. Sol: Oh! Oh gosh, this old thing. Kenna: Hey man, I know the monsters weren't real at Launchpad, but I thought the main characters were very believable as brothers. Sol, taking the book and then flipping through it: You're right. Thank you for reminding me, you know, no matter how much we loose, we gotta hold on to what we have and we gotta… double down on those connections. I'm really glad that we got to meet you. I'm really glad you're here. Kenna, grinning: Thanks big bro! Murph: Um, gives you a big hug. Sol: Did you want me to sign this book? Kenna: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. For sure.

*crawling out of the ground* hello guys I made an animatic