#the same way that mizi hyuna and till do

[snownorites]

Some disjointed thoughts on Sua and her sister that I had yesterday cause I've seen some people on twt being really adamant that Sua was in the "loved before anakt" category and I don't think that's what the point of Heavenly Garden is personally

For one, I don’t think she's actually looking out for Sua here. (using WhataFruit's translation)

I think her intention was to make Sua feel bad about herself. The word choice is extremely deliberate: "you're so unkempt" "that is unseemly" "you're already dumb enough as it is". That last one is obvious but those first two I think are super important to understanding the kind of competitive environment "being" a doll must have fostered. She's trying to put Sua "in her place" here and make her feel like she doesn't actually deserve any of the favouritism Nigeh gives her because she's "stupid" and can't even play her part properly.

And Sua has every reason to believe what her sister tells her. Outside of her cruelty she's so nice, so gentle, she even plays with her and tickles her. Ofc Sua would assume that she has the best intentions and to me that's the point of why her sister acts that way. It's not about affection or love really, it's something closer to bullying. This way every insult, every instance of belittling however small stays with her and hurts her. Her pity of Sua may be "genuine" but it seems to be more mocking? Saying that she loved Sua to me feels a bit like buying into the performance.

The framing of the comic to me is also very interesting because the contrast between Mizi and Sua's sister is telling us that we need to consider their affects on Sua in relation with each other. Sua did not feel loved before she met Mizi.

Her saying this is supposed to show that her sister was all she ever knew in terms of human connection. "Back then" as in before meeting Mizi.

Sua thinks that her sister was actually the pitiful one all along but something really interesting is that it's not because she finally found self worth or because she knows that her sister was wrong about her being unkempt or "stupid", it goes right back to love. Her sister is pitiful because she didn't know love.

That heavenly garden, Mizi, loving and being loved. If Sua felt love before anakt I don't really see why it'd be framed like this.

And the thing is that love is a super big theme in Alien Stage. You could very well argue that this is just how her sister shows love and since we don't have her pov the way that we do Io's or Ivan's there's absolutely no way to refute that the same way there's no way to prove that. But to me including Sua in the same category as Mizi and now Till feels really disingenuous. Mizi and Till felt loved before anakt and carried forward that love in all their actions. Sua did not and her actions reflect that.

I think that Sua's feelings of self hatred are a pretty important thing to also consider when analysing anything to do with her (and I'll probably have to do a seperate post about that because this is already so fucking long lmao) People don't pay enough attention to this and how a lot of it comes from the bullying she experienced

Before Mizi, Sua was objectified by everyone around her, humans and segyein alike. And maybe her sister was different and we'll see that in another comic but to me heavenly garden's intention is to reinforce that this bullying wasn't just the very overt kind that's shown above. Like with the new Till comic, all the material we get builds onto each other, Heavenly Garden gives context to just how sinister the bullying was.

And I don't say all this to say that people are wrong about her sister potentially loving her, maybe she did, but Sua did not feel loved or experience that love. It's weird that I'm seeing more justification and rationalisation of her sister's behaviour than people actually taking Sua's narrative into consideration and trying to understand how her sister fits into it.

[a-star-that-burns-brightly]

[ content warning: discussion of in-canon sexual abuse ] Maybe it’s just because I’m not too active in the ALNST fandom and mostly observe from afar, but I think this fandom brushed aside way too quickly the fact that Till was sexually assaulted. I have never seen anyone talk in depth about like, what that actually means in terms of his arc and the storytelling of his character. Which I find deeply, deeply upsetting because holy fucking shit.

This man right here has been told, basically his entire life, that not only is he himself not worthy of being treated as a human, but that his body is not his body, but a piece of property that can be owned. And whoever owns his property can use it for whatever, and however they wish. Now, dehumanization is nothing new or unique in this world, obviously. The very concept of Pet Humans is dehumanizing by nature, leaving all six of our main characters as victims to it, even those who are more well-off like Mizi. But Till is a specially fucked up case almost distinctly unlike the rest, because he is actually treated like a fucking dog.

(x) Ivan: If you keep rebelling like that, they won’t ever remove your collar you know? Till: This annoying bastard… — Ivan: I told you so, didn’t I? You didn’t listen? Till: This annoying bastard... (translation courtesy of @leiikos on youtube)

(x)

An unruly animal who needs to be leashed up and put in it’s place. Animals, as is common knowledge, are not on the same level as a human being. But they are ordained to follow the commands of those above them. And if someone (thing) isn’t doing as it is told…

It deserves to be taught better. But I’m getting ahead of myself. This is the mindset that has followed Till his entire life by the ones who were supposed to take care of him. He is not human, even less human than the existing inhuman. He is a pet, even more so than the other pets, an animal. A thing. Property. Something to own. And the best thing about owning something?

You gain the ability to do whatever you want to it. Till’s body was not his from the start. It was used as something to toy around with, experiment with, to train and train and train, presumably for his whole life. His body, his skin, his flesh and bone and blood, it was all nothing more than a plaything. So what if he screams? Just ignore it. Or don’t. If this competition has taught us anything, voices have the most value of all. On top of it being reinforced that Till is not deserving of humanity, he is also not deserving of his bodily autonomy. People are free to do whatever they want with his body because it’s not his body, it’s theirs. And that brings us, finally, to the scene itself

He can’t sing her song, he refuses to. This isn’t the first time he’s refused to do something, far from it actually. What was once an innocent puppy with dilated hope in his eyes has grown into an angry, disobedient mutt. And we know what happens to an animal that refuses to do what they’re told. But there’s something interesting about dogs, or rather about the ones they descended from, the wolf: When the circumstances call for it, they will bite the hand that’s supposed to feed them.

And here is where I intrude to remind you that this is the only time we see anyone physically fighting back against the aliens in the confines of Alien Stage. We see Hyuna and Mizi fucking up aliens in All In, but that was after they had escaped from the cage. And you could make a case for Mizi trying to escape the grasp of the guards that grabbed her in Ruler of My Heart, but from what we saw she didn’t actually lay a hand on them and more so just tried to force herself out of their grasp. though if you disagree with me on that that's fine Here though? Till has this bitch’s face grabbed into his palm with a bottle in hand ready to smash it directly in between it’s eyes. I consider this to be the first act of physical violence shown against the aliens within the uncomfortably tight enclosure. And it’s triggered not because of anything personally done to Till, which on its own could probably fill a list that reaches the ground. But because of the prospect of Mizi being dead. Till knows that this place is shit, that his life is shit. Said so directly on his profile.

Dislikes: Everyone, including Guardian Urak (translation courtesy of @kh47uo on twitter)

But he stays regardless because Mizi is there. If Mizi is dead, Till has absolutely nothing to lose…Right?

I can almost imagine him thinking: There’s nothing you can put me through that’s worse than every other way you’ve hurt me. …But there was. Oh there was.

A final, disgusting message to the pet to put him back in his place. Back on his leash. Making sure he will never forget where he stands for the rest of his days.

And that is really what the sexual assault of Till represents to me. It is a cruel reminder to Till that fighting back is impossible, having hope, being free, it might as well be a fool's fantasy. He will always be less-than-human, less than anything. His body will always be the property of the ones that were supposed to protect him, claimed, and then used used used until it’s worn out and dead.

And the aliens chose to exemplify that fact in the most direct way they possibly could.

So what if he screams? Just ignore it. Or don’t. If this competition has taught us anything, screams have the most value of all

[alien-til-i-stage]

so something i dont see much online is how similar hyuna and luka actually are.

When we meet Hyuna, we get introduced to how upbeat and her free spirited personality, both in how she acts and in the song.

This in particular speaks almost in entirely of freedom and the desire for it. She sings about living her life for her and “a bird set free”. As obvious from her being rebel, everything points to how she desires freedom from the aliens and control over how she lives her life. We can also see this in a comic where she says the reason she enjoys singing is because on the stage she’s the one in control.

Already from a young age, control is something she has wanted, over her own life and her performances. And for her saying this, I think its even more interesting if we look back at All In. The majority the song takes place both in a bar where Hyuna is singing or the mission both Hyuna and Mizi are doing.

We already know that Hyuna likes to sing to feel the control over the stage when she’s there but I find it interesting that, yet again, the entirety of the episode was her demonstrating her freedom and control. There were even moments with her on stage remembering Luka and Hyunwoo and continuing to frantically continue singing as if trying to run away from them.

This could mean that rather than her just singing out of enjoyment of her control, she’s on that stage for the control. Almost like she’s desperately clinging onto that feeling to remind herself that she’s not weak, to run away from her helplessness as a child. Another reason for her to be on as many missions as she was shown to be, maybe another way to prove to herself she has the control and power now, not the aliens.

we can continue to see mentions of her trying to escape her memories in the song “Drunk and Party” as she says “I don’t wanna go back, everybody listen.”

Essentially Hyuna uses her own stage as a way to regain her control as well as her missions. Which is where Luka comes in.

In the same comic where Hyuna speaks about control on the stage, we see Luka as an adult on the stage as well, most likely during the 49th season.

It looks almost like hes remembering Hyuna’s words from when they were both children, which indicates that Hyuna’s reponse effected him.

In an interview about round 5, someone asked why Luka imitated Sua, and here is the response that was given.

Its told that Luka does this, not to win, but to feel control and dominance. Unlike Hyuna, who has many ways to feel this way and demonstrates it in almost every way of her lifestyle, this is the only way for him to do so. He is literally a puppet except for when he’s on stage.

The reason for Hyuna’s response being so important to him is likely that Hyuna’s attitude about singing effected his own. In the comic, kid Luka seemed curious about Hyuna finding control on the stage, showing that at that point Luka didn’t view the stage the same, so its likely that after their talk, Luka began to view the stage as a way to control.

This is how the two of them are similar, yet opposites. They both desire control and dominance in their lives and dedicate themselves to it, yet while Hyuna lives a life where she can easily do that, she feels no need to hurt others in order to do so, rather able to choose to help them as a way to feel powerful, but Luka doesn’t have that same choice. He lives life as a puppet, with no other way for control. His only way to feel in control is on the stage, so he takes his chance to and hurts the other contestant, purposely trying to hurt them as much as possible just because he can.

I truly believe that had their situations been reversed, where Luka was instead the purpose who got to leave while Hyuna stayed behind, theres a chance they couldve had completely different lifestyles. I also believe that they also, in a way, represent each path Till could take. If he were to stay in alien stage for the next season, would he turn out like Luka, someone who hurt others to feel in control, or if he was able to run away and become a rebel would he distract himself from his pain and constantly chase after that feeling of finally being free?

idk i just really like hyuna and luka

[tabsters]

Official Alien Stage Covers I Think Would Be Cool If They Happened

thought too much while I took a long shower hot enough to cook me alive while listening to every alien stage song

NUMBER 1:

if wiege ends up being a duet between luka and hyuna (it probably will [PLEASE say its a duet between hyunaluka vivinos]), then that makes 3 songs for our three main duos. since mizisua covered cure and ivantill covered my clematis, what about a hyunaluka cover of cure and my clematis? and in turn, a mizisua and ivantill cover of wiege? a total of nine songs and some serious mashup potential between all of them.

NUMBER 2:

an Ivan cover of sweet dream and a sua cover of black sorrow. THE SIBLINGS EVER. I think it would be so cool if Ivan covered sweet dream (there's already a fanmade English version here), and it would complete the trinity of sua, luka, and Ivan as being "the perfect ones", since luka already has a cover of sweet dream. and a sua cover of black sorrow is just a personal need because I want more black sorrow and I want more sua.

NUMBER 3:

a mizi cover of all-in and a hyuna cover of unknown (till the end). till, mizi, and hyuna have already been established as "the rebellious ones" to contrast the other three's perfection in the eyes of the aliens. mizi's cover of all-in could be a representation of her getting over her grief and her fully embracing life in the rebellion. I think a hyuna cover of unknown (till the end) could be an AU for what if she reciprocated Luka's love for her (but hopefully we'll find more out about hyunaluka in wiege. COME ON VIVINOS PLEASE.)

NUMBER 4:

an Ivan cover of blink gone and a hyuna cover of blink gone. I think that these two are going to be the most likely covers, because of what studio lico did with ruler of my heart. mizi and luka are not a duo, so a sua and hyuna cover of ruler of my heart was released—by doing this, they're reuniting the duo (idk if I'm making sense). in the same way, I think an Ivan and hyuna cover of blink gone will be released in order to "match" with till and luka.

NUMBER 5:

this isn't really a cover idea but I really want to know what the song luka sang in round four was. (also, sources apparently differ on whether round four actually happened or if vivinos decided to just not show round four in order to make the audience sympathize less with him).

[nutler--kleinja]

My depiction of the title “CURE” for alnst round 6.

the meaning of this “Cure”, isn’t really a cure. It’s not a direct one, but in actuality, it’s a very twisted cure; a way of realising everything wrong.

The “Cure” for ivan, was finally clearly expressing his feelings for till. Letting go of all his worries for the one he loves, and that way, he’s “cured” through death. he sacrificed himself for till, and he finally got to do something for him, and let him live as he wants.

That way, he could finally find the “cure” of his “sickness”, being his unrequited emotions for till. That way, his quote “shallow emotions” could be let go.

As for till, his cure, was letting go of Mizi and realising what ivan did for him.

it is quite obvious how much he likes mizi, though for him, it’s a less “deep” type of love, like Ivan’s. it’s more a “she’s so sweet, I want her”, type of love; or maybe, the thing he could be in love with was the concept of being loved. i want likes so ill be writing more about this is another post lmao ill send the tumblr link in the comments

By finally understanding that Ivan had liked him, he could finally realise the true extent of their relationship; even if you can’t tell clearly, it seems obvious to an extent that he’s very close to ivan, with this drawing from vivinos being the outright proof if it.

Many a time, there is something where people are in denial of their feelings, or don’t even realise their presence i can relate she was so nice and sweet too i miss her and that could be the case with till.

his “illness” was never understanding how much he really loved ivan, because Ivan’s form of expressing his emotions was through physical violence(beating him up), being obsessive, or just weird in general. So, it would be natural that because of this, till consciously tries to make an effort to dislike ivan can relate again

There’s a common trend in eyes with alnst.

Mizi and Sua in round one, who were singing for the sake of living with one another, had a passionate and innocent look in their eyes, almost glowing. You can see the light in their eyes.

Till in round 2 had a crazed but, yet again, passionate look in his eyes, showing how he was singing for his obsession or infatuation with mizi.

ivan in round 3 had a calculative yet as i said before, passionate look in his eyes, because of his love for till, while having to appease the audience he was performing for.

however, Luka in round 5 had a dead look in his eyes, to show how he didn’t have anyone to sing for.

Mizi’s eyes in round 5 had a glow, but the look in her eyes was dreamy and dazed, showing how she was still thinking about sua’s death.

Hyuna’s eyes in all-in didn’t have the usual glow to it, yet it was still lifelike in a way, showing how she was singing for herself and herself only.

Ivan’s eyes in round 6 were yet again, calculative, much more dead this time, but there was still a hint of light in it, showing how he was singing this last song for till’s sake, for him to win.

On the other hand, till’s eyes in round 6 were dead and misty, showing his suffering after mizi’s death, without any will left.

yet, after ivan’s death, till’s eyes had a distresssed look to them, yet at the same time, he had a glow of how he looked in round 2, when he was fighting for mizi.

His “cure” was realising everything about ivan, and hopefully in round 7, trying his best for him, so he himself could live on for the sake if ivan.

It’s less of an actual direct positive meaning of cure, but more of a roundabout way of passing the message; of a realisation of their own emotions, and finally letting go.

[premier-amour-mm]

Omg, Vivinos uploaded this picture yesterday and that makes me think that the next video is right around the corner.

Ofc, I don't think they're gonna show immediately round 7 but focus more on Luka and Hyuna's relationship first. Ofc we got some clips of their childhood in "All-in" and in the little comics Vivinos posts once in a while, but I believe they need to show us a clearer view of what actually happened. Yes, (spoiler warning) I'm refering to that incident with Hyuna's brother obviously and, yes, I do believe he's dead dead. However, I can't find myself agreeing that Luka killed him…I JUST CAN'T GUYS. Like, no, he's not a little yandere who wants Hyuna all to himself, I think there's way more to his character than that. Maybe his methods of getting what he wants are a little bit problematic (I'm looking at you "Ruler of my heart" mv), however, I feel he has good intentions for doing what he did (I'm mostly talking about his trying to get on Mizi's nerves in order to start beating him and, then eventually for Hyuna to come to her rescue…yes, in my opinion, it was kinda planned by them beforehand- or I could be wrong- Luka getting surprised about Hyuna's sudden appearance and actually having attempted to get Mizi trapped/killed by the aliens). Additionally, I have to question myself WHY would he kill Hyuna's brother in the first place. They must have been a little close too and clearly Hyuna and her brother couldn't be romantically (right? RIGHT.) . Yes, I know I can't expect them to have the same (or even any) morals with the humans who lived on Earth, but…AAAAAAA, idk 😭.

That's the problem actually, the more we analyse it the more will we realise that we know almost nothing about their backstory. Everything could be interpreted differently if you look at each perspective. Maybe Luka isn't a bad guy with just his methods being questionable or, on the other hand, he maybe crazy and one of the villians. I DON'T WANT to believe that. I want to believe that sth more is behind what happened between him and Hyuna's brother and that it was all just a misunderstanding.

Btw, I'm also looking forward to round 6's aftermath. Not just Ivan dying ofc…but Till's full reaction over this. I'm looking for some of his character development maybe…? Like, from his viewpoint, Till thought Ivan was a guy who was just "obsessed" with him and maybe he considered him a kind of a creep (even though deep down I think he regarded him as his friend), however -come on- how oblivious can he be? Ivan literally died for him. JUST LOOK AT TILL'S SURPRISE/ DEVESTATED FACE when he realised what Ivan had done. That makes me wait for him to realise how much he cared about him and, idk, start to develop feelings for him now and even ackowledging that he can't ever have Mizi or/and that he doesn't love her that way anymore? IDK, I just want the next video to be uploaded so baddd. Hehe, a Luka and Hyuna duet would be very much appreciated STUDIO LICO.

Also, what are your guys' specualtions about the next video?? I'm really looking forward to reading your opinions

[redrandomposts]

WEEPING BC I READ YOUR RESPONSE WHILE I WAS ON THE WAY HOME FROM AN ERRAND LMAO

imagine hyuna manages to catch ivan before he runs away, but she doesnt stop him bc she saw how miserable he was while he was at base and maybe he can find another human settlement where he can be happy at least ? so she provides him w a radio for emergencies and some provisions and makes him promise her that he'll at least send a message every once in a while so she'll know he's safe.

ivan was long gone when till finds hyuna standing by that one window facing the rising sun. till looks a lot more frazzled than hyuna has ever seen him, and thats saying something.

(he just remembered the end of r6 and theres two lifetimes fighting for dominance in till's mind)

till asks hyuna if she has seen ivan.

hyuna remembers the ever-present broken look on ivan's face every time he sees till and every time till pushes him away with cruel words and even crueler fists.

hyuna tells him no.

----

of course hyuna does tell the adults in charge of ivan's departure. they inform the other human settlements to look out for ivan and they move on with their lives.

while theyre saddened by ivan's departure and wish they couldve gone with the kid (he was twenty, barely an adult !), theyre at least comforted by the fact that he wasnt chaining himself down by his guilt anymore.

----

as days go by, hyuna notices the changes in mizi, sua, and till.

she never personally told them that ivan left but someone mustve told them nonetheless.

theres a new tension between the formerly-inseparable mizi and sua.

(mizi remembers the moment sua lost her life in front of her and, knowing what she knows now, wonders why sua kept her ignorant until the very last moment.

"i wanted to preserve your happiness."

"by making me lose you?"

"...")

till ... hyuna doesnt know what goes on with that kid. one moment hes watching both his friends like hes afraid theyll disappear in the blink of an eye, the next moment hes writing lyrics and music like a madman and searching for ivan like a man starved.

hyuna doesnt get it. with how much sua and till practically shoved ivan away, they shouldnt be this affected by his departure, right ?

ah, whatever. that's their problem now.

----

at first, ivan sent her check-in messages maybe once or twice a week. the most he's gone without any contact has been two weeks and that was because he had trouble finding batteries.

and then his last message came in.

the first thing she hears is static and gunshots.

finally, ivan's voice comes in. he doesn't sound so good.

"--oona, noona im sorry--"

"ivan, what-"

"--n't know how but -- found m--"

static. gunshots. a pained noise. more static.

then, silence.

hyuna needs to get a rescue team out there as soon as possible. she has his coordinates, she can-

"was that ivan ?"

fuck. how long has till been standing there ?

"hyuna... was that ivan ?"

----

anyways :> hyuna gets a rescue team for ivan and they manage to get him back to base in one piece but hes hanging on for dear life lol. imagine he got shot in the same damn places he was in the past life and bleeding out from the mouth too.

till sees and is immediately gut punched into a harrowing flashback and panic attack and hyuna wonders just how she was saddled with such troublesome juniors.

i, too, got possessed it seems LMAOOOO

— 🌦️

do u need a tissue for your tears, 🌦️?

imagine there's a spy rebel that was promised a lot from the aliens and sent ivan's signal to them, so the aliens are able to track him...

till is beside ivan's bed, sifting through hastily-drawn sketches from the middle of the night, lyrics that seem more like chicken scrath, and melodies that's played repeat in his head.

ivan looked the exact same as he had in round six. blood spilled, a slight smile when he caught sight of till—till didn't deserve it. he didn't deserve the heartfelt smile, the bleeding heart ivan gave to him, the all the ivan put to him but never got back.

he painfully remembers the night of their escape, too. ivan was stressed beyond relief, and when they made it out, he looked to the sky as if expecting something. till hadn't recognized it then, but he does now; the look in ivan's eyes resembled heartbreak, sorrow, grief, mourning.

till looks down at ivan. in the past decade since they've escaped, he's never seen him so relaxed.

[shakingparadigm]

The thing to me is that i dont know what to expect anymore. After round 3 everyone first conclusion was probably that ivan would die for(or bcs) Till so i was waiting for something to subvert my expectations but no they played it straight.

“Luka vs Till is no competition”” They wouldnt do romh twice” now im not so sure.

Also I see the doomed toxic yaoi but I cant with how good my boys look 😭 Till in black or jacked + fingerless gloves, mullet ,maybe little bangs, ivan in white full coat , slicked back hair. They look so good.

Ivan's hair being slicked back was the only correct answer after we saw Till's long hair down. He looks so damn good actually. I know he died but at least he served one last immaculate outfit before eating shit.

Dude. I was the exact same. Ivan dying in this way was genuinely the most predicted outcome of ROUND 6, so I thought... surely it couldn't be so easy... VIVINOS must have another card up their sleeve! Yeah! The card up their sleeve was the same card they were fucking holding in their hand already because they PLAYED IT STRAIGHT. I laughed myself silly after watching the video because it just made sense. We expected something more complicated, more devastating, more drawn out than Ivan just straight up dying this round. VIVINOS set up the possibility of a jailbreak and we ended up getting too comfortable. Just because Mizi was successfully rescued doesn't mean lightning will strike twice. Ivan dying was a massive blow, yes, but an underrated frame that holds the same amount of devastation is the shot of Hyuna and Mizi hiding, Hyuna bleeding from the side. They were there. They tried to save them and they couldn't make it. They failed. And they don't even know that they failed yet because Hyuna was shot. If they played Ivan's death straight, they certainly subverted expectations with Mizi and Hyuna's jailbreak. They weren't even a part of the main video. They didn't even make it to the stage itself. And honestly, that's realistic. Of course things end up going wrong, that's just how it is. The hope for a jailbreak made the pain twice as impactful when Ivan starts getting shot. There's a sense of hopelessness watching it. They saved Mizi before her execution, surely they can do the same now, right? Where are they? We really got too comfortable with the idea of a rebellion rescue, we failed to remember that in the end, they're only human.

Well, now we're at Till vs Luka. Can't say I'm shocked. I'm just gonna sit back and see how everything unfolds from here. I'll try not to make castles out of playing cards next time.

[ayakashiz]

Thoughts on Alien Stage FINAL Round

This is gonna be more of a word salad of my raw, biased feelings after watching R7 (with some leftover R6 thoughts) rather than a coherent, comprehensive analysis. Till’s death so far has been the most devastating to me, because I fail to see the meaning or reason behind it, story wise. Sua’s death was a catalyst to shatter Mizi’s rose colored glasses and open her eyes to the cruel reality of their world.

Ivan’s death was the climax of his character arc, both meant to show us his mask finally breaking and a release of his true emotions, and to be a turning point for Till to move forward (I will get back to this). It was also a sobering reminder of the dangerous and unforgiving system the characters live in, shattering the false sense of security built up during All-in and therefore raising the stakes for the upcoming rounds. 

Even Hyunwoo’s death had a similar effect as Sua’s on Hyuna. It fundamentally changed her, exposed her to the ugly side of Anakt Garden and Luka’s true nature (also a direct product of said abusive system).

But who or what did Till’s death change? What did it tell the audience that it hadn’t been told before and what purpose did it serve the plot? His death traumatized Mizi and brought her back to reality, but we had seen that before with Sua. It highlighted Luka’s absolute command of the stage, his power-play and the joy he gets out of asserting dominance over his competition; but that point had already been made very clear in R5. He even used the exact same tactic to win.

I love tragedies, and the beauty, the climax of tragedy is the catharsis it provides. It’s defined as “the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions”, and this is what R6 managed to accomplish perfectly. Granted it still left me with many unanswered questions, but the purpose was clear. 

Till’s death in contrast left me feeling empty. It lacked buildup and catharsis, and in my opinion it stripped the previous round of its initial impact in the overall story (bear with me).

I was excited when I heard about vivimeng’s interview where they stated (very paraphrased) something along the lines of Alien Stage being a story about love and grief, and how the living are affected by those that they have lost. 

We see the way the grief of Mizi possibly being dead affects Till to the point he loses the will to keep fighting for survival in R6, and then we see how shocked and horrified he appears while witnessing Ivan’s death, not as a concept or possibility but something tangible happening right in front of his eyes. This sets the audience up to wonder how that grief (and Ivan’s actions) will affect him, how it will make him question his assumptions about Ivan’s goals and intentions, because they were never able to understand each other in life.

And don’t get me wrong, I did love the way his trauma from Ivan’s death was shown in such a raw way in R7, the memories of him filtered crimson red and Ivan’s hypocritical mocking of Sua coming back to bite him, because unlike what he assumed Till did care, so much so that it ironically contributed to his demise.

What I didn’t like was that, because R7 happened immediately after R6, Till never had time to sit with that grief, never even had time to process it. He didn’t get a chance to look past the visceral image of a friend dying in front of him and question why Ivan acted the way he did, why he decided to throw the round. (Even if Luka’s provocation scene still went the exact same way, it would have hit so much harder if we had some context as to why Till’s reaction is so strong to the point of a nosebleed, beyond the obvious shock and stress of a life or death situation.)

I would have loved to see Till do some introspection, even if it concluded in anger, frustration and confusion. And possibly regret, in some form. Regret is an overarching theme in Blink Gone’s lyrics, full of cheerful proclamations of living in the moment and forgetting the burdens of the past, while Till is clearly still haunted by it. And yet, such regret isn’t shown anywhere. 

This would have been the perfect moment to learn about Till’s POV of the meteor shower scene. Sure, it was an event that affected Ivan more deeply, but I find it very hard to believe that Till (arguably the one who was tortured the worst being in segyein captivity) doesn’t reminisce about it, doesn’t ponder about what would have happened had he made different choices, especially after Ivan’s death. Even the lyrics of the song “the dark crimson air embraces us, lifting our spirits, and the fiery thrill blazes out to the sky” are a blatant callback to it, so I’m surprised none of it was utilized visually or narratively.

Of course, it’s a short video and perhaps challenging to cram everything into a single round but alas… that wouldn’t have been an issue if Till hadn’t been killed off right away. 

Another regret to explore could have been how he was never able to get close to Mizi when he had the chance. He expresses this in his yearbook message to her, and we know he wants to, but his own shyness and perhaps inability to see Mizi eye to eye rather than put her on a pedestal was ultimately his biggest self-imposed obstacle. I would have also loved if Till lived long enough to realize this. Grief (over Ivan and Sua respectively) could have been a vehicle for Till and Mizi to truly connect as friends. I was really looking forward to how their relationship would develop once Till was able to look past his idealized version of Mizi and see how she has grown from that bubbly, sheltered little girl he knew in Anakt. He witnessed some of this in R5, but I don’t think it ever truly sank in.

Overall it was such a missed opportunity to show us Till's perspective and inner world outside of his adoration of Mizi, which is the only POV we ever get from him (I know we might get a comic with his thoughts the same as Ivan and Sua, but this will no longer influence the main story or be acknowledged by the remaining characters either way).

And while the same could be said about Ivan’s character, and I definitely have many questions left about him (which I hoped would be answered via Till), it makes more sense for his POV to be so Till-focused because the nature of his love is obsessive. Through Ivan’s POV we also learn a lot about his inner world, how he sees himself in comparison to others, his self hatred, how his fascination with Till stemmed from finding in him what he thought he himself fundamentally lacked, how he carried a strong desire to connect and be acknowledged by Till but his ability to form attachments in a normal way was stunted from the way he grew up, how he regretted this as an adult, how his near-death experience cemented his masking and complacency as a survival mechanism and how this very thing that helped him survive ultimately kept him isolated, etc etc. A lot was shown about him as a character in two MVs.

And even if Till’s feelings for Mizi had a more innocent, boyish nature (as stated by vivimeng), I would have liked to get a deeper insight into how they began, how and why Mizi became his light and muse and driving force. Of course it’s easy to come to a conclusion, but this is something I wanted to learn from Till himself. There’s also this whole untapped potential and exploration of his most brutal, explosive side, the one capable of turning his former classmate into a sacrificial lamb with zero regret for the sake of expressing his feelings, the one wild enough to risk death or punishment breaking an alien guitar just to get Mizi’s eyes on him. The genius. The mad artist.

There was such a huge buildup of Till being a wild card, the one to finally threaten Luka’s unshakable number one place because of his unpredictability, the one pet to challenge the status quo. I wish the trauma of Ivan’s death had awakened some of that madness, too. 

Rather, the progression of his emotional state struck me as a bit confusing (at least before Mizi showed up). Nothing had changed for the better after R6 and on the very contrary, things had just gotten exponentially worse. Not only was Till already in a depressive state over Mizi, he just watched Ivan die, assuming R7 took place only hours after R6. And yet at the start of the MV he appears very much in control and fairly unbothered up until Luka’s taunt throws him off balance and the reality of his weakened mental state comes through.

There was no narrative progression to how he went from point A at the end of R6 to point B at the start of R7.

I’m not sure if the intention was to show Till being in denial and trying to drown out his feelings but not only did it not come across as intentional but that would also be such an un-Till thing to do. He’s officially described as the most sensitive and emotional of the cast, and he isn’t good at or I think even capable of masking or hiding his feelings to the degree Ivan does.

It also feels like a step back for Mizi’s character development. She spent weeks (months??) with the rebellion and now knows how to use guns and grenades, what it takes to sneak past security and the risks of being seen. Yet when she reached for Till’s hand in the crowd she was back to R1’s blind optimism, rather than the anxiety she showcased before setting off to the rescue attempt.

Even if she had managed to pull Till off stage before the bullet got him, they would still be alone and unarmed (or not nearly sufficiently armed) in a crowd full of segyein. It was far from a victory yet.

I do LOVE how there was a role reversal though, with Mizi fiercely trying to protect him the way Till spent his whole childhood doing, refusing to leave him behind even if that compromised whatever Hyuna’s main plan was (which has been confirmed NOT to be a rescue mission from the start). I reckon also that she was probably so desperate and relieved to see the last of her friends still standing after losing everyone that for that moment she lost sight of the harsh lessons she had learned previously.

There are many wonderful things about the MV too. The art direction is INSANELY good, the use of the flashing colors of the stage to match with Till’s emotional state, the incorporation of the instruments, the beautiful quality of the animation that keeps getting better with each release, and the way they managed to make it so emotionally gut-wrenching despite the absolute banger that is the song. 

I’m glad that Till at least got to die in the arms of someone he loved and felt safe with, being cradled with the gentleness he was deprived of his whole life.

That said, the episode still left me feeling quite empty and disappointed, personally. I’m disappointed that Till’s character was discarded so early. Even if he was to be killed off in the end, I would have wanted them to postpone it a bit longer, give us a bit more time to watch him grow and learn about him and make his death something more meaningful than shocking. 

I’m disappointed that his death was the last nail on Ivan’s coffin, because Till was the only other character who could have carried his memory and give the audience a different perspective from Ivan’s extremely black and white, biased one. I’m disappointed that those answers that the audience was eager to learn were just left as a footnote on Patreon, which makes me feel like they never really planned on elaborating on it in the main story. Though who knows, maybe we’ll get a comic or supplemental material in the future.

I know the series is unfinished, and a lot can still change. I’m still deeply invested in finding out what will happen, especially since Hyuna is one of my absolute favorite characters (who now I’m also terrified for).

Many of my opinions may change with the new releases, but this was my impression now, with Blink Gone as a stand alone MV. I also wanna reiterate that I’m extremely biased because Till is a character very dear to me and I feel like he brought so much life and spunk to the story, so it just seems a little bleaker without him in the picture. 

To be honest the more I marinate on the thought, the more I’m inclined to believe that Mizi was always intended to be the last one standing, and that the plot just took a turn different than my expectations. Either way I’ll be along for the ride and wait for all new updates on Friday.

I refuse to put on my ‘Till is alive’ tinfoil hat because I just cannot handle more heartbreak, lol. But there was that tidbit of information about Sua having a loyal fanbase demanding her revival, so that tells me it is possible in the ALNST universe. There’s also that ‘joke’ comic on Patreon with Mizi spoiling the whole plot (iykyk). So we might actually get to see at least some attempt at Sua’s revival. Who knows!

Anyways I have yapped even more than I did after R6, so I’ll leave it here. If you made it this far, feel free to share your opinions or predictions!

[almond-tofu-chan]

oh and DONT GET ME STARTED on how selfish ivan had to be to do what he did

one thing is certain is that for one reason or another, till wanted to die during round 6, or at least intended to. he stopped singing deliberately, he was trying to lose to ivan. and it was when he stopped singing that ivan went into panic mode and did... that

see i dont think ivan planned that at all. he was definitely planning to go the same way as sua, deliberately lose while not making it look intentional. he didnt expect till to throw like that and so he panicked

and obviously the kiss was selfish. there were surely other ways to lose points rather than forcing himself onto till (and ivan didnt even look like he enjoyed it either fwiw, neither of them looked happy) but maybe a part of ivan saw a chance to get that affection he had always wanted?

BUT ALSO, what does he expect till to do now? he has to go up against luka next, and ill be honest, short of literally beating him to death, i dont think till has what it takes. ivan was the prime candidate for beating luka, but now hes gone and left till to go up against him, all because he couldnt bear to see him die. for all he knows, till will still die, he just didnt want to have to be around to see it. how fucked up is that.

and they were SO CLOSE to being saved!! mizi and hyuna were in the building, they could have saved them they were so! close!! godammit!!!

istg if i get autistic enough i start writing entire essays, i am losing my goddamn mind rn AUGH

[alnst-hyunaluka]

I have to admit I'm a little weirded out to see people put Luka's cruelty in the same level as the aliens, even saying things like he's just as guilty as the aliens are.

And I just have to remind myself that lots of people are very emotional right now after Till's loss, and I understand that, I also understand that right now it's easier to direct all the vitriol to him because he's the one we're seeing being awful, instead of the aliens, who despite everything, are at best, a looming backgroung figure so far.

Now, I also understand that he's a little bastard, we have word of Vivinos that he didn’t even need to provoke Mizi because he would have won anyway, he did it for the power trip, he provokes his opponent to have a sense of power over them because that's the only place where he can have any sort of power, he is the "prince" after all.

And I think people forget too easily that Luka is also a human pet, that he is at his handler mercy and that since he's a full lab baby, he's is absolutely replaceable, sure he is a past winner of the Alien Stage, and maybe than afforded him better care and circunstances that the others, but at the end of the day, who is the one holding the leash? It not Luka, that much is certain.

I do believe this is part of the reason why they made him cover the "sweet dream" song.

And, wether Luka did what he did or not, someone was going to die, Luka is not an actual prince or leader of the aliens, he's just their current favorite toy, he doesn't have any actual power to change the outcome of the rounds, hell, him aiming to become a twice-winner is not his ambition is Heperu's, I really doubt Luka has any say in whatever that guy decides over his life.

In fact, when you think about it, in a super twisted backwards way, during round 5, Luka indirectly made enough time for Hyuna to storm the stage and save Mizi, we don’t have round 4 song because Vivinos said that it ended too quickly, probably because all of the craze of Luka's fans, Mizi would have faced the same fate if Luka didn’t decide he wanted to have his power trip.

Does this justify him? Nope, obviously not, in fact as many have pointed out, it's likely he'll die or watch Hyuna die in the next installment, maybe finally facing some karma, who knows?

I believe that so far, him being portrayed as the bad guy is very much on purpose, that once the story focuses on the humans and rebellion, we will finally get to see the awfulness of the aliens.

[vanillaflavouredyoghurt]

I'm going insane over round 6 so I'm on tumblr so i stop pacing around my room

Something I'm really loving about alien stage is how everyone is selfish in a way, and Ivan's actions in round 6 are showing this SO well

Ivan kisses Till in his last moments and the way I see it is that he knows he's never going to be with till and he just wants till to live and remember him, even it's negative, and if he's going to die he might as well get to do something he's probably always wanted to and kiss till. It's a really bad thing to do, and I think he knows it, but he's doing it because he's selfish, it's the last selfish thing he'll ever get to do. He also does it so Till wins the votes and it's just so emotionally compelling to me how HUMAN he is.

If you look at the other characters you can also see that they're all selfish in a way. Till leaves ivan alone because he wants to be with mizi, even if he can't. Sua sacrifices herself for mizi because she doesn't want to deal with the grief of losing her. Luka wanted to be with Hyuna (I think) and hurts/kills her brother so he can have that. Hyuna wants revenge, and rebels against alien stage for that reason.

Most of them are doing something that can be considered selfish ( I can't think of anything for mizi) because they're all so human. This is sort of why I disagree when I see people hating on ivan for the kiss. It's definitely bad but no one is really good, and ivan sort of does it for till (and himself at the same time ig)

Anyways that was some of my thoughts about round 6 there may be more

[fujoshi-yappings]

Hi! I guess that Ivan would meet Till, Mizi and Sua again in the au where everyone is a time traveler. Guess they would also find that Ivan is suffering from amnesia and is in some sort of weird codependent relationship with Luka.

Mizi and Till would probably hate Luka for it.

+1

Luka kinda gaslighted amnesiac Ivan into their relationship. Part of Ivan knows something is wrong but he is starved for any positive human relationship. And Luka is the closest to it he could have in this time. Ivan knows he is being manipulated but he accepts the manipulation

Mizi and Till hates Luka for the memories they had in their previous life. Where he used Sua's and Ivan's death against them. They hate him more after seeing Ivan (he looks smaller than the Ivan in their past memories). They believe that Luka is manipulating Ivan. They're not exactly wrong.

Till also misses Ivan in all ways that matter. He did a lot of contemplation in the rebel base and the memories he loved to remember where those with Ivan. He also wants to know what Ivan truly feels regarding Till after the memories of the kisses and sacrifice. Which is why it's hard to see the current Ivan glued to Luka the way Ivan used to do with Till. Luka keeps smirking at his direction and Till wants to punch him but hesitates because Ivan would glare at him for daring to hurt Luka-hyung. (But at the same time Ivan will bonk Luka's head and tell him to stop antagonizing others and Luka will just pout and then Ivan will pepper his head with kisses) Till is jealous

Ivan doesn't like going near Mizi, Sua and Till. While there's a tiny part of happiness that Ivan didn't understand, the larger part of him wants to avoid them. It's not just because of Luka, Ivan gets headaches everytime he spends too much time with them. This Ivan doesn't like pain because Unsha and even Luka ingrained it to him.

Till and Mizi definitely wants to cry seeing Ivan avoid them. Sua feels strange at that. On one hand, she had always wished that Ivan go away. However, it was strange to see Ivan not even wearing a mask of humanity in interacting with them. Mizi had given Sua an equivalent of verbal beating so Sua did a lot of reflecting. She will admit that she had been unfair to Ivan in both lifetimes when Sua had also depended on him for a reality check and she can't even apologize for her wrongs when Ivan doesn't remember.

Hyuna kinda pities him for being the object of Luka's obsession.

[alien-til-i-stage]

hear me out.

in the very back, maybe solei ( @solei-eclipse ) (mostly bc solei was a very big and important oc in the alnst community i noticed) and the winner of 39th season.

Then in the middle, closer to the front, are luka, hyuna and hyunwoo.

and then in the front ivan, till, sua, and mizi.

bc bc bc like how everyone in the 39th season would be way in the past way before luka and hyuna were even born. And a lot of the characters mirror or are like the og mizisua or ivantill or hyuluka, so it also plays into the theme of the song.

Again and again, like how alien stage is constantly going on and the same things happen over and over just basically in a different font.

and then ivan, sua, till, and mizi at the front bc they are the present do you guys get my vision please tell me you do-

[k9punkout]

Ofc now I need to ask Mizi for the ask game-

MIZI MY BABE MY GIRL MY EVERYTHING

1. Why I like them

the thing i love most about mizi is her resilience.

imagine you were told that the sky is blue your entire life, and all you've ever seen was a blue sky, and you're looking forward to something you've wanted all your life... and then that thing finally comes and it's nothing like what they told you it was going to be and all of a sudden the sky is neon orange and all your friends are dead. me personally i would never get back up.

but SHE did. she kept going, she found strength in her pain and anger in her grief... but most of all she didn't let that anger consume her. that's what makes her the most admirable character in the show. not only did she find it in her to FIGHT, but she did so with hope and with love. with the intention to save, not to destroy.

i also loved the way she displayed optimism in anakt garden. she was so cheerful it became a flaw.

she was overly nice and smiley towards everyone because she was afraid of being judged, her guardian was always kind to her, she was well liked and never hurt by the segyein. there's no need to focus on anything bad when you have a life like that. especially if you want people to view you as a happy, funny, lovable girl.

so naturally, deliberately, she looked to the bright side. brushed off the subtle signs, the dead pixels in the corner of the screen, the small hints that something may be wrong. and oh, how she suffered for it. oh, how her loved ones suffered for it.

it's so tragic it's so perfect it's just.

2. Why I don't

i don't like how despite all this, she doesn't succeed in saving anyone. how she's probably blaming herself for getting herself and hyuna recaptured. how she has to lose EVERYTHING before she can actually change ANYTHING.

she deserves sm better why would you do this to that sweet girl

3. Favorite lyric

"Hope withered in the abyss."

4. Favorite frame/screenshot

THESE TWO. god we dont talk about mizi's breakdown ENOUGH and like. UGHHH the loss of reason in her eyes, the way she's drooling like a crazed animal, the way she was forced down like a rabid dog. the fact that she never cowered, not even with the gun to her head.

5. Favorite outfit

probably her rebellion outfit. it's badass but she makes it look so cute

6. Favorite official art

there are many way to interpret this one but no matter how you see it, i find it so awesome how flawed and human mizi looks in contrast to her perception of sua.

(personally, i view this as a moment of utter weakness for mizi in which she pleasures herself and thinks of sua (hence the positions, her expression, and the accentuated curves in comparison to many other arts), and i think that raw desire paired with guilt and grief is such a perfect portrayal of the mess mizi was left in after sua's death)

honorable mention to this one:

love the "drunk on love" expression on her face. the way she's pushing back her hair to reveal her cracks, almost as if she's saying: "this is me in my entirety. this is what you've done to me. look at the shambles that i am in and return to me, love me like this, love my pain just as i have loved yours."

7. Favorite canon fact

probably that she wanted to be till's friend and was admiring him from afar. like wdym these two IDIOTS were both staring at each other like "man, they're so cool.... i wish i could get closer to them, but they probably don't have enough time for me..."

8. Favorite straight-up-not-canon headcanon

it happens rarely, but not never: mizi sometimes feels hatred for sua because she lied to her. because they were never truly on the same page, and she was unaware of this until it was too late.

9. Favorite song/cover

the mizisua cure cover actually has me dying every time i hear it like the PAIN IN HER VOICE THE FACT THAT SHE SINGS ALL ALONE OH MY GODDDD.

10. Song I want them to cover

all in mizi cover guys please please hear me out guys ple

[alnstkinkmeme]

Till trauma exploration, sexual/abusive Lukatill, romantic Ivantill, reincarnation AU, angst

tags : ooc (till fucks but for sad reasons), till w a pussy, underage substance abuse, unhealthy coping mechanisms, luka and till hatefuck while drunk and ivan sees the very end of it, ivan kinda suffers too, heavy ptsd, past sa/sexual abuse (in the alnst universe), just more sad the dove has been shot and its not coming back, also mizi suffers a bit too, could also be abo for added suffering (as in when till and luka hatefuck till could be in heat, gets pregnant, and then erases it all while ivan is losing his mind), undealt with trauma everyone was reincarnated, modern times setting. the main four grew up as childhood friends, no memories of alnst, till still has a crush on mizi as a child but realises pretty quickly she's very much into girls when they were all around 13 and found mizi and sua kissing everything goes by fine, nothing out of the ordinary. not until one night when they were second years in high-school where till and mizi both remember everything, and not just remember, they can see it as if it was yesterday. they can feel the sensations. specifically for till, he can see ivans death, smell the rain and feel the kiss he and ivan shared, and worse than that. he can feel what urak did to him, every sensation and smell and touch is fresh in his mind. during alsnt everyone was so on edge wondering if they would make it to the next day, dealing with traumatising situations everyday, so they never really had the time to sit down and process their emotions or trauma. that meant that till was immediately sent into a downward spiral.

it starts with cutting class (ivan notices but doesn't comment), then moves on to worse things fast, smoking, drinking, getting a fake id from luka due to his rich kid bullshit privilege (in exchange for the id he gave luka a blowjob, luka said it as a joke but till ended up doing it). till uses the fake id to go to clubs to try and numb his mind enough to not have thoughts, he loses his virginity to a guy probably old enough to be a slightly young uncle in a dingy bathroom stall. he without realising it sought the horrible feelings arak gave him during his abuse, it was all he knew and it was so fresh in his mind it felt like everything he ever experienced before he remembered immediately disappeared. he continues to sleep around, with both men and women, he felt actual pleasure more so with women as they had the same downstairs equipment so they were able to please him a lot better. he became good at sex, he never fully enjoyed it though, it was simply to numb himself further. ivan notices things pretty quickly, from tills breath smelling like nicotine and cheap booze, to marks all over his collar bones and neck that he tried and failed to cover with bandaids or concealer. the heavy eyebags under his eyes and the biggest thing, him distancing himself from everyone and everything. time skip something something they make it to college, tills behaviour doesn't stop and his friends (mainly ivan) have had enough bystanding and want to stage an intervention. that intervention ends in a lot of yelling, fighting, mizi being completely silent the entire time due to her having a pretty good understanding of why till is doing this (she probably would've spiraled too if she didn't have mizi), hyuna and ivan are having the biggest reactions, ivans mask fully gone and his worry and anger at such a bad breaking point he cant control his emotions. hyuna is pissed in a big sister like way, she's over protective of till and basically is his big sister. somehow some way till ends of physically fighting ivan, hyena tries to get him off and ends up getting elbowed in the face. and luka is just standing there, looking down on till. [Please read the rest on the meme! Tumblr won't post it all]

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