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mobisharksona · 21 days

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Kieran is autistic and you can't change my mind!

Okay, I KNOW that I'm not the only one who holds this headcanon...but I wanted to do an analysis on Kieran anyway, especially since my best friend @sinnohanvulpix said she'd love to see me do one. Credit to her for all the screenshots used btw. The GIFs on the other hand were either found on Google Images or created by me using gifrun.com and these YouTube videos:

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I did not use my own footage for this at all...as proof here's what MY character in the game looks like...he has my real name but I tried to make him look like Orange which is why he has the orange eyes 😅

(Sorry for the bad quality btw...taking pictures of my Switch screen is hard 😅)

Okay, now without further ado, let's get started with the analysis!

First, Kieran has a CLEAR special interest in Ogerpon, he admires and looks up to her, he was obsessed with the story of the ogre, he was always trying to go to her den and meet her, he has a meltdown when Ogerpon chooses the player over him, etc. Carmine even says that Kieran "really really REALLY likes the ogre" and that made me think, "Ah! Special interest!"

And then at the end of the Teal Mask he gains a new special interest in getting stronger to beat the player...and he hyperfocuses HARD on that...to the point of it being detrimental to both his physical and mental health, as he was doing nothing but training during that time...he barely ate, barely slept, just trained...and that is not healthy. It's a rare example of media showcasing a special interest being unhealthy and absolutely CONSUMING one's life, and the consequences do actually show for it.

Kieran is very introverted and doesn't know how to make friends very well. I actually think the player is his first friend considering his surprised reaction when the player says they consider him a friend, and following this, he quickly becomes a bit...too attached to the player, as he doesn't quite understand how friendships work.

(This is also such a neurodivergent way to say "I'm so happy I finally have a friend")

He also struggles socially, as is a requirement for autistic people to qualify for a diagnosis. Kieran specifically has a hard time reading social cues, he struggles with making eye contact, he has clear anxiety when talking to people as proven by his little stutter he has at times.

(This is an adorable screenshot 🥺)

He also struggles with social and emotional processing (and might have alexithymia as well due to his sudden huge outbursts of emotion), and he also struggles with initiating conversation as well, as seen when he tries to talk to Penny at the League Club. They both have no idea how to even start a conversation with each other and it's honestly pretty adorable seeing the two quiet adorkable kids trying their best to hold conversation. I get it, you two, initiating conversation is really difficult for me too.

Also the way they try to start the conversation by talking about the weather...that's really funny and ironic to me because that's what NTs do all the time. NTs always use the weather as a small-talk conversation starter but NDs like me (and Kieran and Penny too apparently) just don't get that stuff.

(These two are so neurodivergent it's great and I love them both 🥺)

Kieran also has four in-game animations that I personally see as stimming. The first one is him tapping his fist against his hip when he's thinking or nervous.

(Focus your attention to his hand here and you'll see it.)

The second one is him playing with a strand of loose hair, usually when he's nervous.

(The little nervous side glance at the player is relatable and adorable 🥺)

The third one is a more agitated stim that he only does ONCE in the entire game...and that is tapping the front of his foot on the ground. I do that myself when I'm agitated or impatient, somehow it's comforting, especially since for some reason I really like the way my shoes sound when I tap them on the ground... especially since I got my brand new Infernape-themed shoes, they sound extra satisfying because they're brand new.

(This is not the way most people tap their foot...I've never seen an NT do it like this...only other NDs such as myself and one of my brothers)

The fourth and final one is, unfortunately, a stress stim...Kieran runs his hands very fast through his hair and it also looks like, to me anyway as someone who has self-injurious stims myself, that he is digging his nails into his scalp as well while doing that. I do something similar myself, though on top of running my hands through my hair and digging my nails into my scalp, I also pull at my hair...yeah... self-injurious stims are no joke...and I'm kinda glad Kieran's autism coding brings attention to that aspect of autism...at least in my eyes as someone who does those things myself.

(He's in so much stress here, poor kid 😔)

Another aspect of autism that I'm surprised and kinda glad that Kieran exhibits as an autistic-coded character is meltdowns and shutdowns. Kieran has actual meltdowns in the game! This is something we have never seen in such an in-your-face way in any Pokémon game, and as someone who regularly has meltdowns myself, it hit me in the feels whenever I saw him having them. His first meltdown is in the Teal Mask when he steals the Teal Mask and runs off to Loyalty Plaza where he battles the player. He yells at Carmine and the player for treating him like an outcast...which is unfortunately something that happens to a lot of autistic people, myself included. Kieran screams at the player and Carmine for for lying to him while doing his stress stim, before running up to the Lousy Three's shrine and punching it, without any regard for his safety, which is also something autistic people may do during meltdowns...I know I have no regard for my safety during mine. After that's all over he gives the mask back to the player and goes home, leaving the player to talk to Carmine alone, who says that she's worried and thinks it's just "teen angst". When I saw that I was like, "...Uh, Carmine...I don't think it's just that, I think your brother is neurodivergent and really needs a lot of help and support because he's struggling a lot right now..."

His second meltdown is also in the Teal Mask, when he wants Ogerpon to go with him but Ogerpon wants to go with the player...Kieran can't process that and doesn't understand how to take Ogerpon's feelings into account, instead demanding the player to battle him for the right to be Ogerpon's partner. He collapses on all fours after being defeated again, and it gets worse...he looks like he's crying while the player battles Ogerpon in order to catch her. After the player catches her, Kieran wonders why he can't be like the player, and runs off crying, locking himself in his room for the rest of the story. The end of the Teal Mask has him doing his stress stim while being consumed by a new special interest in a very detrimental way...that interest being becoming so strong that no one can defeat him...including the player.

Kieran's third meltdown is in the Indigo Disk, after the player defeats him in the championship match. That meltdown is a full-on cutscene, where it is CLEAR to see his spiraling mental state through the visuals, and he holds his hands on his head like he has a headache while trying to process the fact that he lost to the player AGAIN (which is also relatable as someone who struggles with processing difficulties myself...it really does give headaches and it is one of the worst feelings when I just can't process what's going on around me or the emotions I feel or anything really)...he collapses to his knees and looks like he's breathing very hard as he is so upset and distressed at this loss. It is definitely one of the most heartbreaking scenes for me because this is a CLEAR CUT MELTDOWN in my eyes and it hits me in the feels like a TRUCK to watch that cutscene.

Also, in the Terapagos fight, Kieran has a bit of a shutdown for a bit, standing there frozen, thinking he's useless and can't do anything right (which is relatable as I have regular shutdowns as well, and I also constantly feel like I'm a failure of a human being who can't do anything right)...but let me tell you, when the player finally gets him to snap out of it and convinces him to help and he opens his eyes revealing that the light is back in his eyes as well as visible tears...I cheered (and teared up myself). My boy was back, and I was so happy.

(When I first saw the tears I was like, "NOOOO don't cry Kieran! 😢)

Also in the Indigo Disk, Kieran seems completely different and "no longer like his usual self". His autistic traits are (mostly) nowhere to be seen as he becomes much more serious, angry, assertive,and aggressive. I personally see this as a persona he puts on by masking, which is common for autistic people to do. I myself can't mask, but Kieran definitely seems to be masking here by putting on this persona in order to get stronger and seem stronger as a person as well. This is NOT his real self, this is a FACADE!

We see him start to drop the mask again in Area Zero when he says it seems like they're in a spy movie or something and how cool that is, but once the crack in his mask is pointed out he immediately puts it back on.

After everything in the under depths ends, and you go back to Blueberry Academy, he drops the mask again completely, and goes back to his real, adorkable, relatable self...and stays that way from then on, which made me so relieved and happy.

(This is my favorite cutscene in the entire DLC because of how adorable it is and also how neurodivergent Kieran is being here while apologizing for all he did 🥺)

In conclusion, I think Kieran is a great example of an autistic-coded character who has many relatable traits, and also does a good job showcasing some of the more "unpleasant and challenging behaviors and traits" (NTs use that terminology a lot, not me... that's how NTs unfortunately view NDs a lot of the time) of autism. I used to be afraid of him during the post-Teal Mask pre-Indigo Disk era but that was my trauma and PTSD talking (I talked about the emotional rollercoaster Kieran's story arc took me on in another post from last year after I finally worked up the courage to play the Indigo Disk...feel free to check that out too if you'd like). Now though I can wholeheartedly say that I love and appreciate Kieran a lot as a character, and his relatability is definitely a big part of why he is a big comfort character for me now (please Pokémon put him in Pokémon Masters EX, PLEASE I will literally cry from joy if he gets added to the game)!

Hope you all enjoyed this autistic person's analysis of yet ANOTHER autistic-coded character in Pokémon! I know I had A LOT to say but that just proves how relatable Kieran is, and I love him for that. Let me know what you think and if I missed anything in the comments below!

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mobisharksona · 26 days

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My Take on Kieran from the Pokemon SV Teal Mask DLC/his Pain/Trauma (obvious and major Spoilers to the Story under the Cut):

Carmine is seen throughout the Game insulting/not treating Kieran kindly. That has tremendous Effects on his Confidence and Self-Esteem (stuttering, not confident enough to talk to others, etc)

When he sees you, the Protagonist, he immediately places you on a Pedestal, basically idolizing you and thinking you can only do right/are not capable of making Mistakes (which is a very bad Thing to do, because when you put People on a Pedestal and think very highly of them, any Mistake they'll do will shatter the perfect Image you built of them and you will grow to resent that Person because of that. Instead of unyielding Love and Admiration for them, it will turn into bitter Hatred and a Grudge forms.)

The only Thing that brings him Comfort through all the Pain is Ogerpon. It basically became his Hyperfixation which you can see when he comes up with these wholesome Scenarios in his Head (hoping to meet Ogerpon one Day and become his Friend, invite Ogerpon to his Home, etc). He also sees Part of himself in Ogerpon, so because of that he thinks he would have a special Connection with this Pokemon.

Then you come along. At first, everything seems fine, but soon Things begin to turn negative. You lie to him (probably against your Will) as he tests you, so Part of his Trust is already once again shattered and his Self-Esteem worsens once again (he thinks you and Carmine laugh behind his back without having any Evidence for it. His Head tells him that this is the Truth).

Then, the only Source of Comfort turns away from him… and to you (it's like your Hyperfixation walking right up to you, only to push you aside and give someone else the Attention you always craved), so that is taken away from him as well. On top of that, the Person he once considered his Friend is understanding themself well with the one Person who always antagonized him… his Sister, Carmine.

His entire Environment is crumbling apart, so he tries to fight the Force that is destroying it… only to lose over, and over, and over again (without anyone telling him that the Person he is facing off against is considered a Champion in one Region, while he himself only has average Knowledge about battling. He was doomed to lose from the Start)

He is shown as this shy, meek Character at first, but if you pay Attention to the Details, you can quickly tell how his Frustrations, his Despair and his Anger are building up, bottling up within him (he punches a Shrine made out of Stone with his Fist (not thinking clearly and reacting based on his Emotions as he regrets doing that Moments later on, seeing how his Expression changes into a pained one and he shakes his Hand in Pain), he falls down to the Ground and pounds his Fist against the Floor, the Light in his Eyes vanishes, he clenches his Fists when thinking about you… but also mostly stays silent all the same, rarely shouting out in Anger.)

And to top it off… he seems to be a Child without Parents, only having his Grandparents around him, one of which has kept the true Story of Ogerpon hidden from him for many Years now.

Carmine assumed at some points that Kieran acted weirdly due to Hormones, since Kieran is in his Teen Years… and we know how irrational and emotional Teens can become due to Hormones.

It doesn't end there for him, however. As one of my best Friends pointed out while I was talking to him, Kieran's School Life doesn't seem great either. Remember how all giddy Kieran gets when he hears you considering him to be your Friend. That shows how he doesn't have any Friends at his School at all. It's no wonder how he considers himself to be an Outsider and how he asumes Carmine and you exclude him from Stuff even if there is once again no Proof for it.

One last Detail I think I noticed is how Kieran sabotages himself, whether he does it intentionally or not. He is clearly frustrated that Ogerpon prefers you over him. Yet, he abandoned Ogerpon when Ogerpon needed help the most (meanwhile, the Protagonist was always there for Ogerpon, so it makes Sense that Ogerpon would flock to them more than it would to Kieran). Instead of listening what others have to say and let them talk, he keeps running away before he can gain Information/their Side of the Story, twisting his Perception of others further. He is also always the one that demands to battle with you, despite Part of him knowing that he will lose.

To sum it up: Kieran is seemingly a shy and meek Boy who already had some Troubles in his Home-, Social- and School Life, resulting in his poor Self-Esteem and dwindling mental Health. Then he places the Protagonist on a high Pedestal (possibly due to Trauma and/or Loneliness) when they come along and idolize them, only for that Person to unintentionally and inevitably destroy everything he held dearly to him and turn his Life upside down.

Also, while I can't assume that he hates the Protagonist's Guts now and harbor a Grudge against them (since that would be kinda hypocritical considering he thought Carmine and the Protagonist were laughing behind his back without having any Evidence to back it up), it wouldn't be too surprising if it turned out that that was the Case, even if it is just a tiny Part of him that does so.

So, what exactly does all of this mean for Part 2 of the DLC?

Well, I think that maybe someone is going to take Advantage of the Situation and manipulate Kieran, as Kieran's mental Wellbeing is basically down the Drain at this point. The only Thing he, and possibly by Extension his Hatred, cares about is tearing us down. And considering how chaotic his Emotions must be right now, he won't think clearly about what he is doing, as proven by his past Actions… therefore giving others an Opportunity to manipulate him.

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If anyone wants to add something onto this, feel free to do so. Also, if this Post feels scattered or weird, it's because I copy and pasted my Thoughts and Ramblings I had between me and my best Friend on Discord onto this Post, so that's why it might be all over the Place- uwu Please remember that I also played the DLC in German, so if some Things are different, then Parts of the Translations weren't the same as the English one- :^Pc

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