#parallels and such vs the fandoms typical bad faith theories

[dykedvonte]

I find the line "I have to believe our worst moments don't make us monsters." Fascinating because it comes from Anya, and I feel she really proves it the best.

For obvious reasons most people are in the "Anya did nothing wrong" camp and for good reason but there is a single action that I don't think she did well and it was her suicide. Specifically her method.

Realizing that Anya took Curly's painkillers was horrifying to me. As a Nurse I have no doubt that she'd know how terrible dying from overdose is. She had access to a gun which is well known for having a far more instant and far less painful death. And despite everything falling apart around her, knowing how bad Jimmy was, she still left Curly alive.

I don't think I thought about it much like that at first but the longer this game has sat with me the more horrified I am by the action. Curly is man who has been horribly disabled and is completely unable to help himself and he is very much a human being who does not deserve to be anywhere close to that amount of pain. Those painkillers were one that the few things that could give him any amount of relief and Anya took them.

She could have shot herself and left the painkillers for whoever was left to help Curly. She could've shot Curly and then taken the painkillers. She could've shot them both and quickly put an end to their misery, yet she didn't. Anya had a great amount of her agency stripped away from her, to the point that she didn't deem life to be worth it anymore and ended it, right next to a man who couldn't make that choice for himself even if he wanted to.

It is easily her most horrific choice and yet, she's still an angel.

(Please don't take this as Anya slander, I genuinely love her so much. I just find this to be an incredibly interesting thing)

I do subscribe to the idea that Anya realized that Jimmy was hitting Curly when giving him his medicine but didn’t intervene. I also don’t think her taking the pills from Curly as monstrous mainly because (while she knew he suffered worse with out them) she likely also knew they were basically bandaids on a bullet wound.

I have this sort of belief that that statement can only really apply to Jimmy in the inverse. Like some statements in the games aren’t meant to apply to all characters and not in every context of every action they do. It’s the idea that no one should be responsible for Jimmy’s actions but himself but they are forced to by him or the environment. Everyone is experiencing their worst moments but no one is a monster outside of Jimmy due to his inability to take responsibility and how he escalates the severity of the situation through his bad choices. Even then it’s not one moment that makes Jimmy a monster it’s the culmination of every moment that prove his inability to be anything but in this scenario.

With Anya you must remember she did have the code to the gun. Yeah, she could’ve broken it open but who’s to say how easy or how long it would’ve taken. Not to mention, there’s this misconception that she wanted the gun to kill Jimmy which isn’t true. She wanted the gun to defend herself in the case he got aggressive which is an important note of Anya being the only proactive person on the ship vs reactive. Locking the door, knowing there was no way in was likely a duel mercy for them both. A person in his state would die relatively soon without constant care and she has ample time to pass. It’s a hard decision to make for herself and someone else but it was the easiest even if it caused more damage than it was ever meant to cause.

It’s a sort of parallel to how Curly made choices he thought would help Anya and everyone but ultimately doomed them all further. Jimmy got what he wanted in both scenarios of crashing the ship and wanting Anya gone. What happened on the Tulpar will go down as a tragedy if they are ever found, a mystery if not but certainly not in a way that Jimmy wanted. Anya and the pregnancy are effectively gone but he’s still facing the repercussions for it.

There’s this idea that it’s controversial to say that Anya was anything but perfect and while I don’t think she did anything wrong, she certainly didn’t make the best choice in telling Jimmy but that again was because of the situation and environment she was in. We don’t know why she didn’t wait on Curly after their conversation in the cockpit, we know that was the plan and we know Jimmy finding out through her alone was the catalyst to the crash within like the next hour, yet you can’t really blame her. We don’t know why Jimmy came to medical nor what anyone else was doing. It can be considered her one mistake but then again we can’t blame a reasonable action on someone’s unreasonable response.

I think that’s a big aspect a lot of people look over in the characters actions. Most of them are normal, reasonable, human. But the systematic responses to them and Jimmy’s are unreasonably harsh and punishing.

This has gone off in a tangent from what you originally posed but I genuinely think of what might do happened if that confrontation happened with Curly there and away from the cock pit. I assume it’d happen in medical or even utility, hell, an area away from anything sensitive but what if? If the ability to do something awful wasn’t at Jimmy’s finger tips, if there was more than one voice in Curly’s head during that moment, what would’ve changed?

When I look at Anya I see her as having the best responses to anything happening during the events of the game but the environment, systems against her and even the other crew mates to an extent made it so it would inevitably backfire on them and mostly her hard.

[perfectackeracy]

Hey, what do you think about the theories/speculations/analysis which are made/shared by AndrewAllStars on Youtube? I feel like this man is on the warriors side and is making some valuable points for his viewers (in comparison with other snk youtubers with a high sense of justice and a -v-e-r-y- reasonable points /pure redditors, I guess/).

I haven’t heard of this guy until you mentioned it.

I’m gonna give my opinion after viewing his chapter 100 predictions and his warrior batch death predictions. That’ll allow me to say something on the matter as well.

The Festival / Chapter 100 Theory (Attack on Titan / Shingeki No Kyojin)

About the “dramatic changes” in Paradis’ cast, I disagree: I know it’s the main motor to argue the soldier trapping Pieck and Porco could be Connie, but even after 3 or 4 years, Reiner and the others are still recognizable: Reiner and Zeke changed haircuts, Eren began letting his hair grow after the revelations, Hange wore an eyepatch... 

Sasha and Connie at 16 years old - Ch. 90

That leaves them 3 years to grow up. Doesn’t leave much room to change facial structures unless Eren can manipulate facial shapes now.

I also want (and think) the actor to be completely irrelevant to the case. Why? because they’re all actors. What good would it do for any of the SC members to infiltrate as an actor, knowing fully-well these people have performed for a while, and getting inside the police would be much more efficient. Also, the popular theory about Jean being the actor comes... from a spin-off. The same spin-off who would ship Eren or Annie with anything that moves and distort the characters. 

The soldier’s timing is a little too convenient for Eren for him to be attached to Marley: Pieck knows he’s suspicious, Zeke too, and Magath ordered the report of any suspicious activity (the soldier’s) to General Calvi. It’s more likely to be an enemy rather than some surprise soldier who protects Pieck and Porco. Eren being the wounded soldier made sense: same greasy hair, same nose, and he’s stubborn enough to do something like that.

Andrew thinks Eren’s bluffing instead of being deadly serious, using the argument Eren grew up. Honestly, Eren wouldn’t care at this point: if his intentions were anything but belligerent, he wouldn't need to keep Reiner at bay. If he sought for cooperation, why not inviting him before the festival in a dark place?

Agreed on Annie and Bertolt getting closure: Papa Leonhart being completely delusional about her return could point out she is staying in the crystal till her power is transmitted through paths, or eventually be broken for another user to eat her.

He made a good parallel between Eren and Willy: one’s intentions being detailed, while the other’s aren’t (even though if you read the manga thoroughly, they aren’t that hard to guess). Willy told the truth and nothing but the truth in his “extra note”, while Falco took a while before figuring out “Mr. Kruger”’s intentions aren’t that good. 

He took note of Reiner and Zeke being concerned for their kind and Humanity. I appreciate that. He did a good job sorting the fandom’s popular theories into five categories. 

The Wallidan Theory is too absurd for me to buy it: it requires the SC agreeing with a full-war scale vision, and considering the EMA separation coming in play, this isn’t a likely scenario. Besides, you need some special knowledge about Marley to occupy a position without being suspicious. Eren could pass as a nobody with amnesia, because it mirrors his father and because he can regenerate his eye and leg easily. Having too many people showing up with no personal record looks a tad suspicious. Relying on the very same people (Zeke and Annie) who killed SC personnel in the past feels like an insult to the many fallen soldiers.

The brother theory belongs in the same absurd branch, for the same reason. If Zeke and Eren were in cahoots, he wouldn’t rat him to Magath, and Willy would simply make a word about how dangerous Paradis really is. Instead, the two of them got the coded message “watch over my little brother and make sure he gets caught”. Plus it just wouldn’t fit with the theme of Eren’s enemies being people he’d never aspire to become (Reiner, Zeke, etc...).

The Marley-Yeager plan sounds weird in the sense it’s easily contradicted with the current facts. Besides, while Eren became sneakier over the years, he’s not exactly very subtle in his intentions. Someone like Zeke could easily figure what he intends to and his letters most certainly reek of a Grisha smell. And good thing pointing out many fans still wish a “Good vs. Bad” into the manga.

The nuclear theory... lol. People are putting way too much faith in Armin (I hope it’s only that Discord server). His titan form is quite weak compared to the regular Wall Titans. And the only shifter who was able to trigger nuclear explosions through transformation was Bertolt, thanks to his marksmanship abilities. 

Moving on to the second video...

Will the Warrior Cadets Survive? (Attack on Titan / Shingeki No Kyojin)

The characterization on Gabi is spot-on. However, I disagree about her being a straight parallel to Eren. Isayama sought inspiration from Ellen for her design, but personality-wise, she’s more akin to a younger Reiner with talents. The two had the same goal and same pride they derived from their parents. Their backgrounds are also similar: being raised in the idea that Paradis is an island full of devils who must be stopped. As Andrew said, Willy’s speech might make her confront her views if she survives. If she was similar to Eren, she’d still stagnate in her development.

Nothing to say about Falco, there. Zofia however only shares the taciturn attitude and the blonde hair with Annie. Personality-wise, Zofia is closer to a lightheaded Pieck. 

If Eren titansplodes, that means Falco might leave his life. In that case, the remaining warriors have no choice but to flee the scene in the panic: they’re without weapons. 

I really don’t think Eren will feel any compassion whatsoever for someone who’s dearly attached to the person who destroyed his hometown nine years ago. After all, he didn’t bat an eye when he ripped another person dearly attached to the one he hates. 

The Armored Titan falling into the hands of Falco under pure convenience (Gabi dead) would wreck his purpose down, as it is with any of the characters who made it to a certain point in the story. He’d get the Armor, but at what price?

Verdict: this guy’s kinda refreshing. While he exposes typical Reddit-tier theories, he doesn’t seem to buy into them? Nice rec, anon.