#mypovclaudecharacterization

[mysticdragon3md3]

👑🦌☯️🦩

I read that article and had to rant

about why Claude is significant to the story.

Maybe it's just my Claude bias talking, but I always get a little irked when people act like Claude was just an afterthought, tacked-on route. Even though everything in the development points to that, even when the people criticizing Verdant Wind simultaneously say they love Claude, it still bothers me. Because I think that Claude has a very important function in the overall story. It's just that his importance isn't in relation to the story's plot, but to the story's THEMES. In my opinion, Claude's main story purpose is to contrast El. We know from that Nintendo Dream article/interview that Silver Snow was written first, then all the other routes were based on it, with the game developers admitting in the article that they favored El. (Explaining why they turned her into a Mary Sue, warping many characters, out of character, just to fawn over her.) But with the developers turning the story to center around El, I think that it was very important to contrast her in terms of themes. Dima opposed El mostly in terms of plot, whenever his story wasn't showcasing an emotional relationship/character drama. But I think that Claude more directly contrasted El's themes and ideologies. Claude demonstrates all the ideals that El discards as naive. One of the big reasons she starts the war is because she doesn't have faith (in other people enough) in diplomatic methods to change systems. Claude meanwhile, does the tedious work (negotiation, cooperation, trusting peers, convincing, patience, Hope dependent on others/humanity/people as a whole) that she is too impatient for, and instead exchanges for forceful domineering, power grabs, and monopolizing authority as quickly as possible. It's ironic, because though El's bad decisions fundamentally come from (fear, impatience, and) lack of faith in others, she and Claude share the same flaw: weak trust in others. But whereas El runs from her lack of faith in others' capacity to become good (by only trusting herself to rule the entire continent, and not share power with peers---other nation leaders---who could rival her power and make her feel threatened), Claude instead works through his same Weakness, by forcing himself to make/practice connections with others, until he is finally comfortable enough to share his vulnerabilities and true self/dreams. Though I will admit, their versions of that Weakness of "lacking trust in others", in not exactly the same. They have the same Weakness, but in different inflections. While El shows trust in people on an interpersonal level, Claude must practice and gradually come to trust others on an interpersonal level. And while Claude has absolute faith in people as a whole, El has no faith in collective peoples as a whole (unless they are subordinate to her).

It's Claude's style of leadership, as demonstrated in Verdant Wind, that is a rebuttal to El's fundamental premise (of asserting domination over everything to protect vs her fears). And I think that's very important.

[mysticdragon3md3]

1:12 PM 9/4/2023 ramblings

I find it so endearingly ironic, that despite all of Claude's dreams being these things that the cynical would call "unrealistic"---end to racism, multicultural acceptance, conflicts resolved through talk instead of war, etc.---he is repeatedly, canonically, and self-proclaimed a practical realist. He chases ideals so high that most other people would dismiss as too naive, but in the same sentence, he'll describe himself as rooted in practical facts, results, and logic. I think it gives him a lot of credence. I can believe that Claude has actual, practical plans towards his lofty goals. He's not just chasing overly-idealistic dreams through imaginary means. He gives the sense that he might actually really be capable of doing it, because his plans aren't just fanciful dreams. And it's such a refreshing change from characters who talk about utilitarianism, but because of that mentality, have given up on idealistic dreams. But Claude will use utilitarian practicality to chase idealistic dreams. It really gives a sense that if he is able to hold onto ideals so tightly, despite the practical restrictions of the world, he would inject that same idealism into his methods too.

(Which is what separates him from the Emperor. Once again, I am pushing Claude's narrative function being more about contrasting El's methods vs being so much about narrative character drama like the other lords.)

But that's another thing about Claude, so much of what makes his character endearing seems like things that are implied or that Intelligent Systems depended on the audience/player to have reached naturally, without being told to. 

We are not told with too many reassurances that Claude's S Support isn't him "abandoning Byleth". The developers trust that the audience/player, after going through everything with Claude, will believe in his dream so much, that him leaving is just another step towards his dream. It should be inspirational to watch him go off, and start his battle all over again. And if you love Claude, then you should also believe in his dream, and be eager to see him continue with success towards his dreams. His story should already have given a sense of trust in the bond with him, that his leaving during this scene doesn't feel like a separation and definitely not like breaking-off. How can you go through that story with Claude and not already have full faith that he'll come back? There should be no question at that point.

Also, strangely, during Claude's private talk with Byleth, where he discusses his speculations about El's similar goals and a hypothetical Fodlan without Rhea, the SENSE he gives off feels much more important than any one thing he says during the conversation. Claude gives off a sense and an strong implication, from the overall conversation, that he is willing to hear Rhea out. He considers what Fodlan might be like with her gone, and how that could practically benefit his dream, but he always ends such speculation with the sentiment that it would be better to find her alive. He doesn't talk like he definitely wishes for her to be found dead. After each consideration of Rhea's absence, he TWICE concludes with the sentiment that it would be more useful for her to be found alive. Claude has questions he wants to ask her; he says "the best thing" is to "hear what she has to say". He says that El's methods are too bloody, for the world, for reasonable public support, and presumedly also too much for him. How can he be assumed to be so easily in favor of even Rhea's death, after multiple times disagreeing with El's methods, particularly because of its "bloody" violence? Claude doesn't conclusively state that he personally wishes for Rhea to be alive, but he certainly gives a strong sense of that implication, and it's up to the audience to trust that as his true feelings.

Claude doesn't outright say he believes in non-violent conflict resolution, but so much of experiencing his characterization is dependent on that sense being strongly conveyed implicitly. And in my opinion, because it becomes a strong implication, instead of a settled claim, it feels more prevalent in the audience's mind, as a suspicion. Because it is a conclusion that the player/audience can come to realize on their own through repeated implications, it lives on more strongly in the brain as a suspicion, waiting for pay-off, validation, and closure. Maybe this is where the trust in Claude, to constantly pursue non-violent conflict resolution, comes from, despite his lack of concrete statements.

The closest he comes to stating his preference for non-violent conflict resolution is supported by the multiple times he describes El's methods as too bloody, "excessive", and destructive. Also in how he repeats multiple times that finding Rhea alive would be more useful, despite the hypothetical advantages of her death.

His implied dedication to non-violent conflict resolution can also be found in his other conversations, where he describes his dream of multicultural acceptance and says "If you really look, all you'll find are people who you can get along with, if you only try." And indeed, Claude is described as often trying to get along with even confrontational parties. He is often attending Leicester Roundtable Conferences, where he has to use persuasion, rather than the threat of violence, to get even antagonistic Leicester nobles onto his side. This, despite the story already setting precedents for Leicester's individual factions' armies having skirmishes during the story. House Riegan's army has canonically gone to battle against House Gloucester's army, because of internal Leicester conflicts, and yet, Claude continues to try to make the Roundtable Conferences work for him. (And that skirmish was mostly for show, with all parties trying not to actually kill each other.)

Claude gives a strong sense of resolving conflicts not through war, violence, or force, but rather through talking, persuasion, and convincing the opposition that his side is more sensible. But Claude never SAYS these things directly nor concretely. Instead, we see him bring Byleth as a representative of the Church, to Roundtable Conferences, to silently guilt the more religious nobles onto his side, rather than threaten them with force, despite the precedent for internal skirmishes.

We see his Support conversations with Lorenz, wherein Lorenz is just dismissive, condescending, and distrustful towards Claude for so many of their Supports, but Claude always meets him with cheer, plays along, and refutes Lorenz's concerns with facts and logic, to the point where Lorenz eventually learns to trust Claude's judgement wholeheartedly. (Though did you really have to insult Claude's "poem", Lorenz? C'mon. But Lorenz did admit in the same Support scene that life without Claude would be dull, so I'll let it slide as harmless teasing.)

Even during the Academy, Claude acts in ways that all point to his preference for non-violent conflict resolution, despite not specifically, outright claiming that philosophy. Instead, he tries to bribe Dimitri on the battlefield into yielding. (Even though that proved to be just as much a distraction tactic, as his fake rat scare with El, both instances still prove Claude will take the practical advantage of winning through less effort, and thus less violence, over any warrior's pride in resolving conflicts through physical battle alone.)

Even after a scene where Claude tells Byleth that Rhea's xenophobic policies are to blame for Fodlan's (and Almyra's) prejudices, he still says in a later scene that the Tenants of Seiros may not necessarily be interpreted as advocating isolationism. He implies that the Tenants can be bent to allow for multicultural exchange. Claude doesn't directly say that he's grown to give Rhea the benefit of the doubt, but like so much of FE3H's narrative, the audience/player is expected to come to new conclusions based on observable character actions, more than through what they say in specific statements.

Claude gives this implied SENSE of dedication to non-violent conflict resolution, despite not actually declaring it as his ethos.

There's been so much talk about how FE3H's story requires critical thinking skills, reading between the lines, seeing past surface statements, and questioning the given narrative, I think my brain just zeroed in on the one topic in this regard that I care most about: Claude von Riegan.

[mysticdragon3md3]

This is my reminder there are 2 posts attached to this 1.

I had heard second-hand, that fans of the Emperor would make-up fictional "reasons" for why she or her route was the best for Fodlan/Byleth. But honestly, I couldn't fully believe people would make arguments with the general fandom, based on fictional headcanons. …And then Twitter plopped it, unprompted, onto my TL. WTF It's almost 3am, and I'm too tired to coherently deal with all these nonsensical, deluded ideas. ...But I can't go to sleep again, after seeing such nonsense. ...I wrote for almost 3 hours...the hell... x_x;

Summary of my private posts:

Fearmongering, particularly over imaginary issues, is a really convenient manipulation tactic, especially to start wars, and the Agarthans used it effectively. I don't understand the need to rage against Byleth not being physiologically human. I don't understand the need to "restore Byleth's autonomous personhood", "disregard godhood", and "reclaim Byleth's humanity". BYLETH ALREADY HAD THOSE THINGS.

[mysticdragon3md3]

This is my reminder to look at my journal file 9:19 PM 7/30/2023 or private post #post20230730a2125.

I tried really hard not to publicly post a reaction to a Tweet, but I have to at least include the bare bones summary for my redirection post. ...I just couldn't keep the bones bare. x_x;

Yes, Claude does represent fluidity, but he has standards…which often lead him back to his repeated thematic function of contrasting against El. Claude especially contrasts against El's overly-rigid Resolve and disregard for methods (costs of war). FE3H Claude's fluidity was about him being able to challenge his own assumptions and pivoting from his mistakes, not in a willingness to take advantage of anyone, ally with anyone, and disregard methods, for the sake of his ultimate goals. That's what El does. If you want a protagonist who valorizes "doing anything regardless of costs, and taking advantage of anyone, for the sake of their ultimate goals", then you want El, not Claude. Anyone (to paraphrase the referenced Tweet's absolutist implications) who doesn't see how Claude's persistent concern for methods and the cost of less imaginative methods, like war, is what contrasts him vs El, is missing the point of Claude. Claude represents the imagination to see more solutions than just the tragedy of warfare as an option. This ties into his dream of seeing more options to the world than just differing people who believe it impossible to understand/accept each other. FE3H El waved the cost of allying with the Agarthans. FE3H Claude cares about HOW things are done, who gets hurt along the way, and therefore, who he allies with. He cares about trying to get even hostiles and antagonistic parties to become his friends, because that is what will make the world in his dreams come true. That's the thematic reason for Leicester's Round Table Conferences. But of course 3Hopes Claude allies with El: They are similarly flawed in their narrowed perspectives, which disregards considering the costs of methods/warfare. 3Hopes even has plot points in Golden Wildfire, specifically about Claude getting chewed out for his methods, which disregard the cost of lives. This is not what makes him "cool". This was a flaw that Golden Wildfire had 3Hopes Claude grow out of, so he could have a more explicit character arc. That disregard for methods and collateral damage was 3Hopes Claude's FLAW and what differentiated him from FE3H Claude's much more admirable paragon-like Strength. It is much more difficult to care about all things, including methods, side effects, and antagonistic or even discriminatory parties. Which is why FE3H Claude not disregarding such things, for the sake of his ultimate goals, is what made him so Strong.

The more I keep writing about how Claude thematically functions to contrast El, I know someone's going to say I split Claude and El too much on ideologies, because I ship Dimiclaude. But it's the reverse: I ship Dimiclaude BECASUE they are so ideologically in agreement. I got into the DMCL ship because "ooh, cool fanart", but the more I delved into them, who they are, and their dynamic, the harder I shipped them, because they are so ideologically in agreement. And I DON'T ship edelclaude BECAUSE the more I think about them, the less they agree. In fact, when I do enjoy some edelclaude, it's because of their fanon interactions on an interPERSONAL level. She's awkward and trying to stay dignified; he's much more emotionally intelligent, confident, worldly, and kind of a playful prankster: It's funny; it's adorable. But when I think of their larger stances on war (that leak into other interactions/beliefs), I just can't see El and Claude together on anything, besides the ends---which El seems to think "justifies the means". But I think that's another important way that Claude contrasts her. Claude doesn't think the "ends justify the means". He represents the more difficult option of caring about the means and doing the more difficult work of negotiating and convincing people, even hostile parties, into understanding and accepting each other.

[mysticdragon3md3]

Here I was, trying to avoid fandom discourse/drama from Twitter, then Tumblr's algorithm suggests a fandom discourse rant to my Dashboard. Maybe it's time to go browse Instagram instead.

.

.

.

I'll, admit, when 3Hopes came out, that was a messy state for my perception. I don't remember too much and I doubt I got the whole story. I don't even know if I still hold most of the views I had from my initial reactions to that story and characterizations. I was pulling multiple all-nighters, watching whatever out-of-order playthroughs I could scrape up, because it wasn't even technically released in my time zone yet. That sleepiness may have askewed my opinions of the story. But also, I am pretty dumb, and I wouldn't think myself exempt from bad opinions. So I keep praying no one found my initial reactions to 3Hopes and isn't writing some rant over an opinion or 5 that I don't hold anymore. But still, even those posts are all important documentation of my fandom experience to me, and I don't want to make my blog no longer about that, even the messy parts, just because other people happen to be digging through my nonsense blog, looking for a fight (that I don't want).

So I'll admit it: I remember writing some posts or 3 about 3Hopes Claude "still being in-character" and "still the same Claude". But apparently there's a whole racist section of the fandom who eagerly wished for Claude to adhere to some kind of stereotypical perception of "brown man bad"???? I may be a brown girl, but I am EXTREEEEEEEMELY sheltered, so I didn't even know about stereotypes about "brown people assumed to be scheming/untrustworthy," etc., until a few video essays and the Claude fandom ranting about certain parts of the FE3H fandom being racist about him. I had no idea. And I don't want to go looking for exposure to its specifics, so I just take everyone's word for it. But I seriously thought that any headcanons about "dark Claude" that I came across were no different than "dark AUs" and "dark fics", about angst and emo tragedy. Y'know…like dark "what if"s…Were people really taking that to racist degrees?

Anyway, I don't want people to think "hoping for dark Cluade" was what I meant. When I said 3Hopes Claude "is still the same Claude; he just stumbled along the way", I meant that he still has that compassion, that same warmth, and his dream. …Though maybe by 3Hopes, his dream has been compromised, and I was very likely in denial---even WHILE I was writing essays about how killing Shahid was devastating to Claude BECAUSE it forced him to doubt his ideals/dreams. I still thought that after such internal conflicts, Claude eventually got back up from that stumble, to strive towards his dream again. …Even if he wasn't doing it as well as in FE3H. (Still really disappointed Golden Wildfire Claude killed Rhea at the end, vs talking her into peace. Isn't he supposed to be the silver-tongued negotiator? The alternative to Edelgard's "war for enough control to weed out those who do harm" and Dimitri's "war to re-stabilize after the initial conflict"?) And I do agree with that video essayist or whoever said Claude's characteristic curiosity to find the truth, was degraded in 3Hopes, leading him to make decisions based on as faulty knowledge as FE3H Crimson Flower Edelgard.

But despite plot points that reflected badly on Claude's 3Hopes character, especially in contrast to his FE3H characterization, I still stand by some of my initial reactions to 3Hopes: I like how Golden Wildfire really showcased Claude's angst. I know half of his decisions were bad and if he had better information (like his original FE3H curiosity for truth), he likely wouldn't have felt so trapped into such bad options. But I'd be lying if I said it didn't make GW Claude interesting. Not a better character, but interesting. 3Hopes Claude wasn't a better person than FE3H Claude, but he was interesting. Interesting, if your tastes are in emo tragedy---the tragedy being the "dramatic irony" of the audience knowing that such actions weren't necessary, but the character thinking they have no other choice than to do the painful, cruel, or more evil thing. Code Geass is one of my top 3 personal favorite anime, after all. It's just my thing. (Which is why I am continually astounded at my disinterest in Edelgard, after everyone kept comparing Crimson Flower to Code Geass.) I KNOW that narrative trick of focusing in on the anti-hero's angst over enacting bad decisions is just a trick to get us to overlook their negative actions. But damn it, it's still pretty effective on me. I like the angst! What can I say? That on-screen emotiveness really grabs my sympathy. I can't help it, even if it's just suckering me into sympathzing for an anti-hero while they do actions as bad as Code Geass's Lelouch. (I've always assumed Crimson Flower did the same trick for Edelgard, but sorry, I'm not going to take the time for Crimson Flower, when, despite how much I like angst, I also much more prefer happy ending paragons, like FE3H Claude.) 3Hopes Claude is an interesting "what if", but I still idolize FE3H Claude, while 3Hopes Claude is just "oh, that sad AU".

I like 3Hopes Claude's purple outfit, but I'm still reluctant to buy any merch of him, because I'd much rather remember FE3H Claude's shining example of hope. When 3Hopes was previewed, I put 3Hopes Claude on my WonFes bingo wishlist; after, I took him off and kept my multiple wishes for FE3H Claude figurines. I totally get why FE3H Claude fans dislike 3Hopes Claude. If I was sold on a paragon of Hope in the first game, I too would be disappointed to be suckered into a messy anti-hero story. But I will take solace in him having a similar warmth in his 3Hopes Support cutscenes. (And I did like 3Hopes showing Roundtable Conferences and Claude as king, initiating including commoners into the Conferences.)

But again, I'm still confused over the idea that Claude is EITHER "funny ha-ha meme lord" OR "super serious paragon with only super serious themes/insights about war". I love Claude because he is BOTH. If he was just a stalwart paragon, I'd be just as disinterested in him as Academy Dimitri. (Though I did eventually come to love Dimitri too, though secondarily.) I love Claude because of his warmth and playful compassion, on top of his ideals and his exemplary striving to live according to his ideals. But I also love how he casually inserts all his big, compassionate ideals for a better world, into so many of his interactions, even at the most minute of instances. And he's able to do that BECAUSE of how casually he treats Compassion as the everyday, ubiquitous thing it should be. He injects his ideals for a better world into every small decision, because of how open and warm he is, in his playful, rather than formal mannerisms. I think Claude's playfulness makes him more trustworthy than stiff or intimidating. It makes him the type of leader you CAN bring objections and input to, regardless of rank. And I think that approachable trustworthiness also helps better facilitate the world of understanding, regardless of race/nationality/religions, that he's trying to make on a grand scale. So I don't get these Claude fans who hate Joe Ziega for having fun with his character. (I couldn't believe it when I found that corner of Twitter.) But I also don't get people who think Claude is ONLY JUST a "ha-ha funny meme lord". I mean, we can joke about Claude being funny. Because he IS funny and charming. But are there really Claude fans who only take him at that face value and don't see his depth? I haven't been running in those circles, so I'll take critiques of the fandom's word for it. Sounds like such people are missing out on a great perception of Claude.

(Though it did take FE3H Claude a bit of Growth to understand his dream is best facilitated through emotional bonds, beyond his unfazable facades in the face of criticisms/antagonism---FE3H Claude only had LITTLE more to grow in my opinion. I still maintain that FE3H Claude had already mostly actualized by the time he reached Fodlan. That's another instance of how he narratively serves as contrast to Edelgard and Dimitri. In this case, specifically reflected in how much less he NEEDED Byleth to emotionally stabilize him. Again, for you Claudeleth shippers, I'm the type who idealizes WANT, over NEED to be in a relationship. And an already-actualized partner is way more ideal than someone who needs you to fix them, in my opinion.)

.

.

.

Did I just waste an hour and a half on my stupid venting??? Ugh. See, this is why I try to avoid even glimpsing fandom discourse. Whether it emotionally devastates me on a socially anxious, parasocial level, or if it gets me heated on a "ruin my mood for the rest of my day" level, I still end up wasting so much time, just writing, processing my feelings. And I can't just not process my feelings! Gotta vent that stuff from festering! Anyway, I'm off to Instagram now, to look at cute art, and hope that THAT algorithm won't push discourse my way when I'm not looking for it.

[mysticdragon3md3]

Remembering my claude characterization headcanons for my personal fandom records.

Not to say i dislike reading fics about claude working past his emotional walls, but i still headcanon claude as already mostly emotionally actualized by the time he came to Fodlan. I still think of him as already mentally developed and stable, like Date Masamune 2009. That's why he didn't need byleth to emotionally hold him together, compared to the other lords.

Not that he was 100% fully psychologically Grown at the beginning of FE3H. But i think he had the Strength to be aware of his remaining Weaknesses and to proactively work on them. That's why he kept reaching out to his Golden Deer until they became true friends. I imagine some part of Claude was still scared of emotional connection, closeness, and trust, but he wasn't mired in his Weaknesses. I've always headcanoned that claude inherited Tiana's defiant personality. And i think Claude is defiant against being ruled or stagnated by his Weaknesses, just as much as he is defiant against all the ugliness and hopelesses that the world tried to break him with. He shows his Strength/Growth in how he handles being confronted with his own Weaknesses. So many of his Supports have him confront a mistake or assumption he has made or a blind spot he didn't know he had, but instead of being frustrated or defensive at the reveal of an emotional/cognitive dissonance, he maturely, immediately tries to improve. Claude is emotionally mature, even when evaluating his own flaws, and he doesn't run away from it.

Maybe that's why he's able to not take himself too seriously.

Another thing to note for my personal fandom records:

I know I've written before about Claude having so many serious themes or something, but please dont mistake me for those Claude fans who are upset when he's taken as anything less than SUPER SERIOUS. I was surprised to run into a corner of Claude Twitter who hates "meme lord" Claude, and playful Claude, and they hated Joe Zieja for having fun playing Claude. I'm not with them. I love playful, funny, memey Claude! I just think that Claude can be multi layered enough to contain serious themes, but also have the Stength to not be bogged down by them.

A video essayist once said that FE3H explored the theme of being mired down and psychologically stuck in one's own past trauma, unable to truly move on from it. ["Edelgard Will Always Lose (Fire Emblem Three Houses)" by BOOFIRE191. See link below.] Edelgard overcompensates her defenses vs her past pain by taking the extreme offensive position, war. Dimitri, we watch fall into the depths of his past trauma, stagnating and decaying him. Then we watch him crawl his way out of his trauma based stagnation. Claude already did all of that in his backstory. He tells byleth how he fought and yelled against his bullies, how he felt alone except for the stars and the hope they gave him for his dream. Claude dreamed not of taking the offensive against his oppressors, to emotionally avenge his past self. His resolve turned instead towards creating a world where even such people came to understand and accept each other. Claude decided his response to trauma would be externally extended compassion and positively constructive proaction. That's why he was already mature, actualized, and Strong by the beginning of FE3H. Claude's story in Fodlan wasn't so much about his internal demons, but the external work he had to do to make his decided dream come true (including the last remaining unexpected ways he still had to Grow).

The more i realize Claude's function in the story was to contrast the other lords, especially Edelgard, the funnier it is to remember all the let's players who thought the Golden Deer had nothing to do with the meat of the story. The reason Claude and Edelgard have so many goals in common was to contrast them. Thru Claude, the story demonstrated the more benign way to accomplish those goals, while Edelgard demonstrated the tragic antagonist method.

[mysticdragon3md3]

My personal interpretations of Claude.

I know that early into 3Hopes, I bought into that interpretation I heard from someone else, about 3Hopes proving that Claude actually did need Byleth just as much as Dimitri and Edelgard did in FE3H. But giving it more thought, that doesn't actually make sense to me. I've settled on a different interpretation of Claude for my own headcanons.

I think that Claude really was the most mentally, emotionally stable and mature lord from the beginning of FE3H. After all, despite his background traumas, he already proved to have chosen healthy reactions, like externalized compassion and his dream to create a world of understanding, diversity, and cooperation. His reaction to everyone in his upbringing treating him like garbage, was not revenge or thinking conquest/domination/retaliation was the answer, but instead, he choose to believe that if people could just understand each other, they could overcome their differences. Everything in his demeanor and FE3H Supports proved he was striving towards that belief in his dream, by practicing patience, sympathy, being open to changing his own mind, meeting even antagonistic people with cheer, and attempting persuasion over confrontation. Claude was doing all right, from the very beginning of FE3H.

Sure, Byleth's FE3H Supports with him proved he still felt lonely, and Byleth's presence likely helped Claude feel some extra support. But Claude didn't NEED Byleth; Byleth was just a blessing. (I don't ship Claudeleth, but I do believe that WANTING someone is more indicative of a good bond than NEEDING someone. So please take that solace.)

That being said, the events of 3Hopes, I think, broke that version of Claude, until he was on the same level as FE3H Dimitri and FE3H Edelgard, in needing Byleth. Someone once said that one of the great features about Claude is that, in contrast to the other Lords, he doesn't NEED Byleth for his emotional stability. But I think that after 3Hopes had Claude kill his brother Shahid, THAT PARTICULAR Claude NEEDED Byleth, as well as his time in the Academy forging closer friendships. That was one trauma too much for him to overcome alone. Likely because it forced him to kill his own family, which he states during that scene, he had always wanted to reconcile with. But also, it forced Claude to act in opposition to his own ideals and personal values. The dissonance clearly made him question whether all his resolutions to solve conflicts non-violently were just naïve and impossible. He was forced to see first-hand proof that not everyone can come to understand and tolerate each other’s differences. That dissonance, destroyed 3Hopes Claude’s ability to hope and strive for his dream without hesitation. Realistically, not everything can be solved non-violently and not all people will be able to understand and accept each other enough to live in peace. But it’s important to try anyway, and that starts with believing. It was important for Claude to be able to BELIEVE in those impossibilities anyway, especially in order to TRY to strive towards them. But killing Shahid introduced true doubt into Claude over his dream, for probably the first time in his life. That dissonance probably broke 3Hopes Claude.

And without Byleth, 3Hopes Claude went on to make some poor decisions in Golden Wildfire, that continued him acting against even his own ideals and the things we admired about him. I recently heard someone say that a person with a quiet, listening demeanor makes you want to tell them everything, and that observation reminded me of Byleth. It's very telling when Shez tries to comfort 3Hopes Claude after killing Shahid, but isn't able to get much out of Claude, and Shez notices and regrets their deficiency. Maybe if 3Hopes Claude was able to talk out his dissonant feelings after killing Shahid, maybe he would have been able to reconcile his actions with his ideals. But because he doesn't get that internal turmoil resolved, he goes on to make poor decisions in Golden Wildfire that seem in opposition to the reasonings and values we love about FE3H Claude. This is likely because he is still struggling to re-align those things within himself.

And personally, I blame meta reasons. Lots of people said FE3H Claude "didn't have a character arc", some people said, "he did have trust issues to resolve, but it was subtle, but that was his character arc", meanwhile, idiots like me were like, "I love a paragon character! He doesn't need a character arc, to me! He just needs to inspire others and be exemplary! But you guys saying he had an arc with his trust issues makes sense, so I will buy into that". When it comes down to it, I'm still suspicious that Intelligent Systems had 3Hopes Claude make BIGGER mistakes with BIG consequences, so that when he decided to rectify his flaws by changing, it would be unmistakably noticeable. All for the drama of a noticeable character arc. Well, we got our "Claude with an obvious character arc" now, and all it cost was irrevocable trauma to our boy. I hope everyone who wanted "a real character arc" for him is happy now.

I was upset with several of the things 3Hopes Claude did, even more than I was upset at FE3H Claude once for not avoiding fighting the Kingdom army at Gronder. (And a second time for not merely taking Edelgard prisoner. But that cutscene needed to share with Silver Snow's storyline, so Verdant Wind sadly didn't get to be more characteristic of Claude's story, I guess.) But I still think 3Hopes Claude is redeemable. In fact, I think allowing him to have character growth and a character arc is all about moving past his mistakes. And if we can all love feral boar post timeskip Dimitri, despite all his faults, then we can still love 3Hopes Claude despite his mistakes.

On the other hand, a Fallen!Claude could be some fun dark AU headcanons, and I think that would be easily extrapolated from 3Hopes Claude. I mean, even after his noticeable growth after his mistake at Ailell (so noticeable that Judith specifically says, "So you've finally decided to rely on your friends a little."), he still barely tried for a peaceful resolution with Rhea. He killed Rhea in the end of Golden Wildfire, instead of a non-violent or even non-lethal resolution with her. To me, that says that 3Hopes Claude may still have a way to go before he regains his semi-paragon level from FE3H, which was a lot closer to his non-violent ideals. But even in FE3H, things Claude said which sounded like metaphorical unification dreams of people coming together in acceptance, could very easily be interpreted as dreams of unifying countries literally through conquest. I could see 3Hopes Claude stumbling further from his values, to "erase borders" through conquest, instead of metaphorical border erasure through multicultural acceptance. That could be a fun, dark AU.

(No one has to agree with me. Everyone is entitled to different interpretations---And personally, I think that's the whole point of consuming media. Please don't start arguments. My mental state is too fragile to get involved in most back and forth discussions. x_x; )

Anyway, I think that's how I've settled on thinking of Claude, in both 3Hopes and FE3H.

[mysticdragon3md3]

I didn't know the game director specifically stated one of the inspirations for Claude. o.o!

Yesterday, I saw a fanart of Claude being Filipino, but turns out there's just a Filipino meme going around "outside, I'm ___, but inside, I'm Filipino." Not sure what it means, but some people got upset over it. Though it didn't look like a serious intent to erase the canon representation. I think someone just wanted to use a meme.

I know there are some people upset when some Claude fans headcanon him as southeast Asian, south Asian, South American, or some other ethnicity, but I think that's just fun and games. Just headcanons. I've seen many people so happy to have brown ethnic representation, I can't really blame people who want to project their own ethnicities onto Claude. Some people accuse such fans of erasing the Middle Eastern/SWANA/Muslim representation. But personally, I don't think headcanons can do that. Regardless of what AUs that fans play around in, I think we all accept that the FE3H canon has given Claude many canonical references to being Persian.