#about Angrboda 'yelling AT Atreus'

[bellaaldamas]

Hurt/Comfort parallels

inspired by a conversation with @stupidrant

[stupidrant]

RANT INCOMING!

I have to talk abt this as this has been in my mind for months and this i think is the only safe space to talk abt the fandom and their weird antics towards the characters/actors and overall games.Im not against criticism but theres a line between criticizing and going overboard with hating.

One thing i dont understand abt the god of war fandom is that they complain about alot of things not being “accurate” and thats doesnt make sense to me bc when has gow ever been accurate? I thought it was obvious from the beginning that SMS wasnt going for that and never truly will. Its always their own interpretation. They also have this weird hatred / ignorance towards atreus that i also dont understand? Yea he was a little annoying in the first game but thats understandable as hes… a kid. Ragnarok expanded his character pretty well imo and i feel like alot of these people for some reason cannot get past him in general? Maybe because they are afraid of him taking over the series and “forgetting” kratos (idk why thats in their minds LOL) or they just hate him just because. I feel like the fandom wants kratos to forever be this god who destroys things and whatnot and its all so weird. like they never gave him a chance. thankfully he has fans but majority hates him. Dont even get me started on how they treat angrboda. Its really so ridiculous to me that they can be so hateful for no true reason. they call her a bitch for yelling at atreus when all the women in the game get annoyed or disappointed in him atleast once. And they dont understand that she has only known this prophecy shit for her whole life and she couldnt do anything outside bc of the threat. ofc shes angry bro LOLL its also in her name like i dont understand 😭.  Atreus helps her get out of that mindset and assures her she can do whatever she wants now. Laya is so strong idk how she does it :( I also noticed they treat thrud as this “replacement” of angrboda bc they dont like her either cuz shes black or bc they hate her and everything related to atreus but as long as he has a character they can like thats not angrboda its fine. Its all so weird bc theres no competition between the two. There never was. I dont think they actually like thrud for her character they just want to be weirdos and i feel kinda bad for her and mina bc they really dont give a fuck. Im so shocked chris sunny and others even INTERACT with this bullshit of a fandom they are all really strong bc id say fuck all of you and go 😭 im not against criticism at all and i try not to take this shit seriously but its hard when you see a insane group of people take alot of this shit to the next level. this fandom is a bunch of whiny babies who hold onto their precious destroyer too much. The hate everyone has gotten recently is just so stupid and they often times try to make it their goal to hate. I see that SMS is trying to diverge their fandom to a broader audience and they are taking a bit more risks esp with atreus and i love that despite the backlash against him, they continued with his character regardless. I hope they do the same thing with the other characters as well and expand them no matter how much these people want to hate and act all high and mighty. I can understand certain critiques like the ending being too fast or maybe they couldve done blah blah better and whatnot but i think alot of people are overreacting and being ridiculously nitpicky with alot of things when it comes to ragnarok. 

Last thing and also kinda random thing SMS is very wrong for what they did to TC Carson and i acknowledge that completely and i hope they never do smth like that to any of the current cast either bc i would be fucking pissed if so LOL

[silvergoldraeven]

Okokokok so (assuming) you’re an avid heimes shipper, I’m rlly curious, so like, how do you think (in your resurrection au) kratos would feel if Hermes came back to life out of nowhere and started dating Heimdall??? LMAOO

OR EVEN, WOULD, your au Heimdall even ever be into Hermes at all????? Due to his redemption and all??? KSJDKDJ I can’t stop thinking abt it😭

oh ive thought about this A LOT. like an ungodly amount. i actually at first made a character for Heimdall as a love interest but scrapped it cuz i didnt want it to be a Heimdall x oc thing ya know. then my dear friend (@medievildead) got me Hermespilled- and now i have. better ideas. they wouldnt work with what im actually going for with res!AU cuz itd add sooooo many things and its just. ough. but!

There's so many ways this could go. So Many. (x0k if youre reading this im encouraging you to make a version with your Hermes AU c:)

But i'd like to imagine that Atreus one day just comes home wearing the like ancient Greek travelling outfit and Kratos looks him up and down, goes silent for a few minutes before asking where the fuck and who the fuck he got that from. Atreus just happily going "from this really nice man, had flaming hair, weird little voice but he was cool and- oh there he is-" and just points over to Hermes crawling out of the bushes and yelling "where are my fucking shoes Kratos?!"

i think thats funny, i think that should be canon. Hermes existing and following Atreus home to Midgard opens up so much place for angst with Kratos and Atreus but im not here for that, im here to make 2 people worse. mostly Heimdall, reverse therapy now that Hermes is here /hj

Hermes joining the gang is just like like the Thor scene but Loud and hes like "i brought olives :]" and Kratos lets him in just for that trade tbh.

Kratos asking how tf hes even alive and Hermes replies with "im bugs" without elaborating, we never find out how he's alive.

Uncle Hermes is definitely my fav trope so him bonding with Atreus over atheletics and mischief, mostly bullying Heimdall. Hermes locked eyes with Heimdall and immediately decided that he was a worthy opponent. so their relationship starts with Hermes and Atreus bullying the shit out of Heimdall, who's self growth is really being tested on a daily basis. when Atreus leaves again Heimdall is left with just 1 shithead insisting on making his life harder (but oh so affectionately).

i think Heimdall would actually be more likely to fall for Hermes cuz he finally got that giant stick out of his ass, would probably find his japes and overall mischief endearing, after he warms up to the Greek god.

Hermes is canonically really good at cooking too if im correct so him helping Heimdall with cooking,,, cute. so cute. Hermes teaches Heimdall Greek dishes and Heimdall teaches him Nordic dishes but Hermes usually just goes "this has no flavour" which in return makes Heimdall call him a slur of some kind in offense.

Heimdall showing off Gulltoppr being like "this is my great and loyal beast, he has never left my side for anyone, neither in life or death. he will never be loyal to anyone els-" camera turns to Hermes giving a purring Gully tummy rubs :3

unrelated (sorta) but i think Angrboda and Hermes would actually get along really well.

Hermes being the god of travel drags Heimdall around the 8 realms c o n s t a n t l y. Heimdall hates it, especially since Vanaheim would probably be Hermes' fav realm. but he usually plans a 'surprise' picnic so Heimdall isn't too upset about it :3

Hermes constantly throwing apples at Heimdall. infront of everyone. its funny. most people dont get why Heimdall turns completely red every single time.

if Kratos still has Hermes' boots like he did in the gow 2018 trailer and actually gives them back, Hermes would probs lend them to Atreus occasionally for travelling like the good uncle he is. or as i like to say, buncle. Atreus' bug uncle c:

Hermes would definitely flirt with Heimdall constantly before they start dating just to annoy the living shit out of him which Atreus would find extremely entertaining but once these 2 fuckers start dating they turn their attention back to bullying Atreus. rip my man

Heimdall giving his bf bifrost legs. Hermes deserves bifrost legs. he'd look So Gay. not sure how that'd work but its canon now.

overall i just have many unhinged (normal) thoughts about these 2, too many to put into words but this hopefully gets the point across c:

[bellaaldamas]

@kratioed great theory about the Yule Cat (especially about her being given to Gryla as a therapy pet by Angrboda and Freya), need to look into that and into mythological background of Gryla in general. As for Angrboda and Gryla, the narrative deliberately left the room for various possibilities for how their relationship could progress post GowR. We know from Angrboda directly as well as from her paintings that Gryla showed affection for her granddaughter before and even after she became stricken with grief (the mural where little Angrboda and her grandmother are baking bread together and Angrboda's tearful story about Gryla leaving her food even after denouncing her). However, we also know from Angrboda herself - who casually let those details slip when she was trying to give Atreus comfort by opening up about her own deceased loved ones - that Gryla's relationship with her son and, particularly, daughter in law (Angrboda's parents) were not entirely idyllic. In that vein, Angrboda mentioned her mother and grandmother "fighting" and her mother seeking comfort in the nature of Ironwood to bounce back from that.

During the boss fight Gryla mentions her daughter in law several times, both in a way to indicate grief over the latter's passing (when Gryla agonizingly inquires whether it was Angrboda's mom's destiny "to go/die so young") and to express anger and disdain towards her (Gryla exasperatedly notes in the same monologue she doesn't believe it was her son's destiny to "marry that absolute fool"). Gryla, likewise, yells that she should have thrown Angrboda to the wolves right after she pulled her out of her mother. Thus deliberately hitting where it hurt the most and belittling both her granddaughter and daughter in law in attempt to get back at Angrboda for destroying the source of Gryla's magical addiction (the cauldron).

From that, it can be inferred that while Gryla's harsh words were partially a product of her current unstable state of mind twisted by trauma and loss there was still a part of those outbursts that referred to preexisting issues between Gryla and her late daughter in law. Which Gryla had presumably projected onto her granddaughter.

If there is any kind of follow up on that in the future games - and given how impeccable a continuity GowR provided when it came to parallels and callbacks to Gow18 (down to direct quotes highlighting the changes in characters and their mindset) - the narrative could (and should) delve further into Gryla's relationship with her daughter in law in the past. That would allow for Gryla working out those issues to finally build a healthy dynamic with her granddaughter. And, no less important, to provide Angrboda with a support system the latter had been deprived of for years. In part because Gryla chose to bury herself in her anger and grief. Instead of recognizing that her granddaughter needed her the most after being dealt an even rougher lot in life, having been orphaned at such young age and having to shoulder an impossible responsibility for the sake of their people's legacy. Said responsibility became far greater when Gryla disowned her (per Gryla's own words she told Angrboda to never come back to the house and that's the reason Angrboda had to reside in the Tree House) and started stealing souls of the animals that Angrboda had to take care of and fend for every day all on her own (no matter the enormous physical challenges it entailed which made even Atreus, trained as a warrior since early childhood, feel weary and overwhelmed). Not to mention Angrboda noting that Gryla subjected her beloved Jalla to abuse of some kind as well; traumatic enough for Jalla to be initially wary of Atreus.

It is no random - as the screenshots above indicate - that Gryla did not try to intentionally hurt Angrboda physically but had no qualms doing it emotionally, aiming for all the sore points (Angrboda's mother, her only being good with her paintings which depicted but did not actively influence or change the future - which Gryla clearly took issue with in regards to Angrboda's father who did not try to change the fate of their family - her being "nothing" and Loki/Atreus being destined to forget her). If there were projection issues involved (concerning both of Angrboda's parents) and the once bottled up resentment towards Angrboda's mother came springing out and became amplified by Gryla's mental illness and addiction it is definitely worth looking into in future installments.

Moreover, the nature of addiction and how harmful it is to the people around - especially those that the addict is or is supposed to be responsible for (such as children and grandchildren) - is perfectly shown in the boss fight sequence. Gryla performs potentially deadly acts several times that could have most definitely hurt Angrboda as much as Atreus, even if she does not mean it. First when Gryla attempts to attack Atreus when he is standing right next to Angrboda who is shielding him with her body and then tells him to run.

It happens again when Gryla is performing her attacks using spells to light up the kitchen floor. Atreus, while evading the attacks using "platforms", yells for Angrboda to be careful and watch out because she is just as exposed to the potential harm from those attacks as he is.

That's why the Ironwood scenes post Ragnarok where Angrboda notes Gryla not merely being incapable of doing anymore damage to the animals (due to the lack of cauldron) but actively helping Angrboda with foraging for food for them can indicate several directions Gryla's development would go.

As I am strongly opposed to the idea a child should ever prove their worth to their parent or guardian - let alone to the one who subjected them to abuse or neglect - the most compelling and fitting scenario would, indeed, be a parallel to Kratos and Atreus's dynamic in Gow18. Which from where I'm standing is one of the most respectful and well written versions of "estranged parent's redemption" plot.

Gow18 never transferred the responsibility for bonding and mending of Kratos and Atreus's relationship onto Atreus. Even when Atreus himself was at his worst and nearly slid into self destruction and uncontrolled violence it was shown to be a direct result of Kratos's mistakes and dishonesty towards his son. Kratos's long term unwillingness to tell Atreus of his divine background and the fact that Atreus, partially, was a god too, was what caused Atreus to have to process those revelations and those changes at a rapid pace. He, furthermore, had to do it in relative loneliness because while Kratos was physically there for him he was still distanced from his son emotionally (as they had not had enough bonding time after Faye's passing yet by that point).

Obviously, Kratos and Atreus's relationship never reached such drastic crisis as that of Gryla and Angrboda. But much like Atreus, Angrboda had to process and work through her traumas on her own, in her case being completely alone both emotionally and physically. For awhile my headcanon has been that in the upcoming installments Angrboda might go further in trying to defy fate and does something to alter Atreus's destiny to keep him from a potentially fatal danger (which she would see in her dreams or depict via one of her paintings). As the result, Angrboda changes her own destiny in unexpected ways and gets hurt or winds up in some form of life threatening peril. Atreus, upon finding out about it, goes to Gryla for aid and they would have to team up for Angrboda's benefit.

This scenario can lead to Gryla either fully healing or dying to save her granddaughter. Like you say, there might be a confession from Gryla that she is proud of Angrboda, in this case on her, Gryla's, deathbed. However, it would be a very cliched scenario which SMS so far managed to avoid with other characters (Kratos in particular). Since Angrboda already endured a series of massively traumatic experiences linked to the loss of loved ones adding more trauma and loss, at this stage of her life, would veer into "break the cutie" trope territory which is trite and sexist (and which I hope to never see in Gow series, especially where Angrboda is concerned).

Thus why I hope that Gryla getting better is both a hint that A) her and Angrboda's relationship would eventually be fully restored and that B) Angrboda now has the chance to leave Ironwood for some time to travel with Atreus (previously she cited the need to tend to her animals as the main reason why she could not go with him; now with Gryla doing part of the work with obtaining food this is no longer an issue).

Admittedly, I would have preferred for Kratos, Mimir and Freya to have an adult talk with Gryla after the main events of the game when they visited Ironwood. Their visit, though genuine, showed how much Angrboda is lacking her own support system which would prioritize her needs first and foremost; and how it was mainly SHE who comforted and cheered them up rather than the other way round. It was Angrboda who assured Kratos that he gave Faye a beautiful resting place. Likewise, it was she who paid her respects for Freyr by telling Freya that her brother's sacrifice won't be forgotten.

While Mimir and Freya thanked Angrboda for her invaluable aid (and acknowledged the high level of her magical and painting skills) Mimir did so as a prelude for his - rather tactless - remarks about Angrboda and Atreus's romantic feelings for one another, as he was poking and prodding (Kratos and Freya had to stop him twice). Per Mimir's own admission later, he wanted to "check" on Angrboda's "intentions" regarding Atreus (even though there was no one to check on Atreus's intentions regarding Angrboda because she, unlike Atreus, doesn't have any adults to be fully and unequivocally on her side and to care for her).

To Mimir and to Kratos it's Atreus's needs and well being that comes first (which is natural). Whereas Angrboda, even though their appreciation of her is earnest, exists as a useful ally and a potential source of happiness and fulfillment for Atreus as his love interest (rather than her own person with history and experiences). Thus, they determine her value based on what she can give and what they can receive from her.

That's the reason why a heart to heart talk between Kratos and Gryla, as two once estranged guardians for their child and grandchild respectively, was sorely lacking (to me) in GowR. Especially after a conversation about being better for their children occurred between Kratos and Thor - and in the midst of a battle where they were rivals, no less (that despite the fact that Thor and Odin were the aggressors in that situation whereas Gryla never was; and by the point Kratos and co arrived in Ironwood she was no longer an abusive and animals torturing addict either).

However, if this kind of interaction happens in the upcoming installments it could be even more profound and meaningful, now that Kratos, Mimir and Freya will have the chance to further bond with Angrboda in Atreus's absence.

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐋𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐆𝐑𝐘𝐋𝐀 & 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐑𝐁𝐎𝐃𝐀 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐊𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐒 & 𝐀𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐔𝐒

A little reminder that Grýla had never once addressed her own granddaughter's name and instead used "girl" to not only degrade Angrboða but as an attempt to detach herself from her sole family member while keeping her granddaughter at a distance, this familiar dynamic between Grýla and Angrboða closely resembles the relationship between Kratos and Atreus back in 2018.

𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐓 𝐔𝐏𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝟗/𝟒/𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑: Credits to @/averagehellraiser for the screenshots!

While Grýla had cared for Angrboða from afar, Kratos does the same for Atreus before and throughout the occurrences in God of War (2018). The only difference lies in the death of Angrboða's parents, especially Grýla's son, causing the rift between them at a time when they could have found solace together and healed through their shared grief. By contrast, Faye's death strengthens the bond between Kratos and Atreus, allowing them the opportunity to reconcile their strained relationship.

[stupidrant]

imagine a sunny day in jotunheim, in angrboda's treehouse. atreus has been on his travels and brings back souvenirs not only for his father, but for angrboda as well. it's been maybe two or three years since ragnarok. atreus has been quite busy finding clues about the giants outside midgard, sometimes it lead to dead ends, sometimes he succeeded, sometimes he's gravely injured while on his journeys and he has to postpone the travels so he can go heal himself. but it's an ongoing process, and still many questions lingering. he doesn't give up!

here's the thing, though... neither atreus and angrboda have confessed to each other yet. but everyone around them are screaming inside that for the love of skadi, JUST SAY IT ALREADY!

one sunny day in jotunheim, atreus appears with new pigments from far off lands that will help angrboda's paintings pop even more. angrboda is overjoyed, because the pigment she's been using doesn't fit the new piece creating. she was so frustrated and annoyed that no matter how she mixed the colors, it never worked or didn't look as appealing. an artist takes their craft seriously! atreus knows this of course.

that's why he's there, because he knew it's the perfect gift for her and also... an excuse to simply see her. be with her. angrboda catches him looking at her for a while. "all good here, champ?" she jokes. "of course, i'm just enjoying the view. i missed you a lot. more than anything."

that made angrboda's heart jump out her chest. she feels the same way, thinking about him when he was gone, wishing he came back. this one time she heard the yggdrasil portal opening and got so excited over the premise that maybe atreus is back, she damn near ran to greet him - but it turned to be just lunda. ('now, why are you so disappointed in seeing me, missy!' no offence lunda, it's. complicated. well not really but you know; UNSAID WORDS & EMOTIONS GALORE.)

"i, uh... missed you too. it's so amazing to see you again, atreus..."

words are failing them hard, how do you even begin with describing just how they're feeling. but maybe they don't need words. they both try to speak, but the tension is thick, the heart rates are going up, palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy, mom's spaghetti-

so they get closer. and closer. until they close the gap between. he has his arms around her waist, and hers are draped around his shoulders. their first kiss together, and it was purely magical. it was steady, sweet, wonderful.

until it deepened and they tumbled down. oh it's going for another territory. word to nelly, it's getting hot in HERE.

however...

they stopped. both of them. heavy breathing, their faces completely flushed.

"h-hey, atreus, um... this is very great but i don't feel... ready for this yet." "no, yeah, no, totally! i understand...!" they got up immediately and dusted themselves off.

a small moment of awkward silence. "angrboda... was it- was this okay with you? you don't feel weird about this, do you...?" "no! not at all! i liked it, but um... i, uh. i've never been... you know... with a guy-"

"OH WELL LOOK AT THE TIME I HAVE TO MEET MY FATHER BY THE SEA. TALK TO YOU LATER!"

"WOW THAT'S GREAT I ALSO JUST REMEMBERED THAT I HAVE TO FIND MORE PLANTS. FOR GIANT STUFF."

"I LIKE YOU!"

"I LIKE YOU TOO!"

"I MEAN MORE THAN LIKE!"

"SAME HERE!"

"BYE!"

"OKAY, BYE!"

meanwhile, somewhere around yggdrasil, ratatoskr was tending to the tree until he heard a young man scream. it was atreus. yelling while he was running laps around the path. currently at his 56th lap and at this rate he will hit 100.

"young master atreus! what is going on-" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA ICANTBELIEVEITICANTBELIEVEITIDIDTHAAAAT!!" "young master atreus, get a hold of yourself!"

back in jotunheim, angrboda is also screaming. but it's muffled by a pillow. and she's rolling around the grass, kicking her feet, laughing and giggling. her wolf and fox friends are looking a little bit concerned. but she doesn't look hurt, and she's clearly happy, so they're not alert. they won't rip the guy she was seen with into pieces, thankfully.

but oh. it's finally happening.

😭😭😭😭😭

[stupidrant]

what are your headcanons for little Hel? :3 do you think she'd be shy and a tad bit awkward or full of energy and mischievous? i like to think she'd be exactly like both of her parents 🤭❤️

theres this fanart someone made earlier this year that showed her half dark, half light skin with calliope's hairstyle and i havent been able to think of her any other way 😭 i also think her face would be a perfect combination of atreboda( upper face angie, lower face tre) personality wise, exactly how you described: UNRULY yet very curious like her father lol she'd def have atreus, angrboda AND kratos' anger when shes upset (lord can you save the 8 realms @_@) hel loves home but traveling is where she goes really crazy. getting yelled at is almost a daily thing poor angie 😭

i could see her carving little wood cravings and statues whereas angrboda will help her with coloring and atreus outlining it. she would probably (slightly) favor kratos, freya and mimir over her parents LMAOOO i also read a fanfic once that she would call freya grandma and initally, freya wouldnt know how to feel about that due to faye and other circumstances but over time, she will embrace it 🥺 being around family makes her hyper and want to stay with them for long periods of time but she cant always do that and she gets upset behind it everytime 😩 playing with fenrir or jormie = total mess in all the realms and suddenly its everyone’s problem 😖 lunda gives her all sorts of gifts (and candy but dont tell anyone..) for free whenever she sees them 🥹

[bellaaldamas]

Already posted it in replies but feel like reblogging as well, as to counter this lazy trolling the OP had the misfortune to stumble upon.

Does this troll mean Angrboda was "rude" when Atreus had his juvenile (though perfectly understandable in the psychological context of the situation) tantrum AFTER nearly eating her alive in his wolf form? Which is when she was able to tend to him and comfort him using soft touch and gentle words alone (when even Kratos - Atreus's father - had to resort to violence twice to tame him). After which HE lashed out and yelled at her unfairly and when she answered back she immediately regretted raising her voice, admitted it was "mean" and offered more comfort. As well as proposed to take Atreus's mind off of the prophesies and instead focus on what he wanted and would enjoy learning (his giant heritage Angrboda volunteered to guide him through).

Or was it when Atreus made a "romantic" gesture of plucking the flower from Angrboda's territory where she engaged in a physically daunting and hard labor daily to look after every living thing. And because of years of isolation (to the point where her only surviving family and the only other person in Ironwood - her grandmother - wouldn't even speak to her and would directly express regret Angrboda was even born) Angrboda didn't originally get the implications of this act. But when she did she lovingly kept the flower among her paintings and other treasured possessions.

All of which happened after she showed Atreus fireflies, told him how "glad" she was he came to Ironwood, trusted him with putting giant's soul into the Serpent when Atreus himself admitted he had no idea what he was doing, directly offered him to stay as long as he liked and opened up to him about the death of both of her parents (thus reopening an old wound solely to help Atreus feel better about his own emotional turmoil). The latter served to encourage him to not push his father away, after a yet another horrific traumatic event Angrboda had to endure when her grandmother told her she was "nothing" and no one including the person she cared about (Atreus/Loki) would "ever remember her".

But maybe if Angrboda backed Atreus against the wall (twice), had a sword to his throat, doubted every step he took, lashed out at him because of an honest mistake telling she should have never trusted him, punched him in the face, called him a "killer just like his father", tried to chop his head off (as he lay defenseless on the ground) or insulted said father and his motherly figure like Thrud did she would've been the perfect potential romantic partner for him according to trolls. They intentionally promote toxic thinking and twist facts to justify their lack of critical thinking and knowledge of canon.

HOW

[mikuhats]

ive thought about this topic soo much and i still have weird feelings about it idk. im hoping in any future installments whether its a game or a comic or a novel or whatever they go into this a little bit more cus honestly im not closed off to the idea that they purposefully didnt go into it. theres so much about atreus and his names that it feels weird that they didnt go into it rly in the game. first like again him introducing himself as loki to angrboda because he's mad at kratos and then later telling angrboda to instead call him atreus. (and also she like starts calling him loki again later which i dont understand? 😭) and then theres the whole "what do i call you?" with kratos. and him yelling at thor "my name is-" before getting cut off (would he have said his name was loki or atreus 🤔) and then the "loki will go. atreus will remain" and just all this. theres so much. and yet they dont really go into it. I feel insane. i need to know if im insane or if theyre going to go somewhere more with it.

I might be looking at it wrong but honestly I wish they went a little deeper into the whole name thing with Atreus. I wish there was a point where he grew a new appreciation for the name his dad gave him. Idk! Like he likes both of his names, but it just feels a little weird that he started introducing himself as Loki bc he was mad at Kratos and then "Loki" becomes the name MAJORITY of people even know him by at the end of the game. Not even rly a critique it's just smthing I wish was like. There i guess

[stupidrant]

this is such a great analysis of their situation 🥹 -Angrboda only gets encouragement from Atreus but never judgment or "pushing" when she doubts herself- this especially shows when she yells at him (or rather at the circumstances) and he responds with "i understand" bc well,, he does. he knew she wasnt angry at him it was just frustration about her position. that didnt stop him from pursuing her and i think that when she realized hes really trying. even more so after ragnarok

i still think it's so funny how in the end of ragnarok when kratos visits jotunheim, angrboda mentions atreus honing his drawing skills and needing discipline and that's where kratos thinks 'yep. future daughter-in-law.'

THE MAN SAID INSTANTLY WENT "I LIKE YOU" I'M CRYING

kratos now having the oppurtunity of seeing his child grow and have a gf warms him more than we could even imagine 🤭 its even better when i see chris and laya interact like thats rlly his new baby now LMAOOOOOOO

[bellaaldamas]

Hope everyone has a good day and remembers that Atreus yelled first (see the first gif). That is, AFTER nearly eating Angrboda alive in his wolf form whilst she still was not scared of him one bit. Instead, Angrboda approached Atreus and made him regain his human form through gentle touch and soothing words alone (when even his own father had to resort to violence twice in order to achieve that). Then Angrboda proceeded to say it was totally fine (thus disregarding her own stress and well being entirely to cater to his) and can happen to anyone. After which Atreus had his outburst. And even though Angrboda had to respond in kind she IMMEDIATELY regretted it and said it was "mean" (though it was a proportionate reaction to Atreus yelling in her face first, as a thank you for comforting and bringing him back) and proceeded to comfort him again. Offering to do anything and everything he wanted to take his mind off of the prophesy.

When Atreus accepted her offer, Angrboda still kept his stress and trauma in mind (while having a wealth of traumatic experiences of her own and being confronted with more, because Atreus decided to go to her grandmother's house there and then, unprepared and going on pure adrenaline). Angrboda, in that vein, proposed to talk about the contents of the mural and his fear of losing his father when she realized he was avoiding the subject by "having fun" with her (because no matter her own misery, the loss of both parents and hardships she still made sure to entertain him and show him the beauty of Ironwood and introduce him to "dangerous" fireflies, saying how "glad" she was that he came there).

Then when Atreus mentioned that his determination to save his father by going up against the destiny itself might seem "stupid" Angrboda instantly reassured him it was not at all. And that she knew he can't "imagine the world" where he would let Kratos get hurt - and opened up about her traumas and losses again to make him feel better (despite mentioning it was too painful for her to talk about that just an hour ago, when Atreus first arrived in Ironwood).

But clearly, Angrboda should have invalidated the death of her own brother ("we're better off without him") and called Atreus's mother figure, a woman who saved his life when he was dying as a child, a "treacherous ex wife". For bonus points, she better have mentioned she should have never trusted him when Atreus made a genuine mistake out of the best intentions (Angrboda's "of course I do [have faith in you]" when he was allying with Thor who must have killed at least one of her parents and slaughtered their whole of people on Odin's orders is so yesterday); and then punched him in the face and called him a "killer just like his father", in between TWO murder attempts. That would have made her a great character and a perfect match for him.

Hurt/Comfort parallels

inspired by a conversation with @stupidrant