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fireemblems24 · 3 years

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Why I Never Really Talk About Claude

Because there's nothing to say. As much as I hate to say it.

NOTE: I love Claude, and this is in no way meant to say anything bad about him, but Verdant Wind and how it handles him. I didn't tag him, but I want Claude fans to give me their amazing meta analysis and help me indulge in his character. So if you see this - no hate. Please send love.

Gronder Field was obviously a huge turning point for AM and Dimitri - and trust me, I'll definitely get to that - but ironically it was also an eye-opener for VW.

This game is four routes, and at first I tried to give all four their dues, but lately I've talked almost exclusively about CF and AM. With CF on hold until the other routes are also at their final chapter(s), it's become more apparent how little I mention SS and VW.

SS is obvious. It lacks a strong central figure. Rhea is MIA. Edelgard has no presence. Claude and Dimitri weren't supposed to be big characters here, and they aren't. Byleth is too much of a non-character (by design) to pull the weight of a route on his own (my SS is M!Byleth).

But what about VW? What happened?

Initial Impressions of Claude

Claude's writing, before any other character, got my attention. Edelgard I was already biased towards before even opening the game, fueled by her stark difference in design/unit type than other FE leading ladies and knowledge that her route had a split. Hilariously, Dimitri's the one I paid little attention too. But once I actually started the game and heard the characters talk and such, it was Claude who stood out the most.

Claude was witty, promising, and mysterious in a natural way and not the "yeah, sure" way I felt towards Dimitri's "darkness." 😅Edelgard turned out exactly how I expected (and not in a bad way); it was Claude who proved unexpected. It was his prologue dialogue I enjoyed the best, his class introductions that made me laugh.

But sadly that interest burned out.

Edelgard continued to demand my attention throughout part 1. I didn't always agree with her, but I did stay invested in figuring out what her deal was, what she'd do next, etc . . . She surprised me, intrigued me, made me want to discuss her ideas.

Dimitri blindsided me. He tore at my heartstrings without even trying. Ever since the Lonato rebellion, Dimitri got my attention and never let it go. His empathy and stark contrast with his revenge, the truth about his darkness, and so, so much more took him from "there's a third guy" to hands down favorite.

But what did Claude have going for him? Looks? Sure. A fun personality? Definitely. But what about plot, conflict, growth? Throughout part 1, I wanted to know more about what Edelgard planned behind the scenes and her ideals. And during that time, my heart ached for Dimitri as I watched a battle he kept losing and felt so conflicted about his desire for revenge.

What did Claude feel? What did he want? I still kind of don't know. Lack of prejudice between borders? Me too! But what does that have to do at all with what's happening in the game? Nothing. Nothing at all.

Gronder Field

Gronder Field made it just how apparent Claude and VW feels like an awkward third wheel.

During the cut scene, Dimitri and Edelgard had parts that made me (or would've made me) desperate to know what on earth was going on with them. Why is Edelgard invading everyone and, once again, trying to kill her classmates? If she's sad about it, why did she start this war? WTF happened to Dimitri? WTF is going on in the Kingdom? If I wasn't in the middle of it, I'd plan to get to CF and AM asap.

Claude says nothing interesting. Nothing intriguing. It's a throwaway line any character could've said about how this is such a bad class reunion. Honestly, it feels like he got dumped with the lines they needed for advertising because the other two were too caught up in having an actual storyline.

Throughout the game, there's moments that would've made me desperate to play CF and AM, but Claude really hasn't gotten the same treatment.

Claude Deserves Better

The thing is, I like Claude. Writing this reminded me what a fantastic impression he made initially. I love his drive for knowledge, the almost idealistic world he lives to create despite his world-weary character, and how he seemed far more mysterious than the other two (and still is frankly), and didn't get used as a tool to pander to the player self-insert nearly as much either.

But he's been given nothing to work with. Rhea, Edelgard, and Dimitri all have desperate stakes in what happens. Claude doesn't. Or it feels like he doesn't. Even more of the students and faculty have more going on than poor Claude. Things are desperate, emotional, full of conflict, growth, and action. This is what makes someone connect to a story, but Claude feels so disconnected that it's hard to invest.

VW feels less like a cohesive story that could stand on its own and more like a series of battles strung together. Claude has neither Edelgard's strong motivations and active presence nor Dimitri's strong motivations and dynamic development.

It's in the details too. In CF, people are fighting for Edelgard and the Empire. In AM, people are fighting for Dimitri and the Kingdom. In SS, people are fighting for Byleth, Rhea, and the Church of Serios. In VW, people are fighting for . . . Byleth.

I mean, even in FEH Claude doesn't get special treatment. It seems Legendary Edelgard got a giant advertisement video for her release, and Legendary Dimitri got his own mini-foreging bonds with full voice acting. Legendary Claude got nothing. Maybe he's not as popular are the other two (I've stayed out of the fandom outside of my blog for obvious reasons - so I don't really know), but maybe the reason he's less popular (I'm assuming) is because there's a lack of emotional resonance compared to the others.

Honestly, it makes me irritated. Claude has so much potential as a lead character. There's so much to work with, but the game just doesn't play to his strengths, doesn't connect his desires and goals to the plot, ignores Almyra, and has him remain distant from everyone - including the plot. He deserves better.

Claude Fans, I Need Your Help

That said, I know, for fact, I am overlooking parts of his character. Claude fans, please help! Send me your analysis of his characters, what you admire, what his faults are etc . . . (please just no spoilers post Gronder, if you let me know I need to read it later, I'll like it go back to it).

I'm playing all 4 routes at the same time, which means I'm doing monastery weeks back-to-back-to-back-to-back - which means lots and lots of supports all at once. It's impossible for me to retain all that information. There are definitely Claude moments I've overlooked and forgotten.

I also know, for fact, that when you love a character, you can write an entire essay off of one line of dialogue/scene (yes, I've done it 😅). Please send me those essays. I want more Claude love on here, because I'm quickly remembering how much I loved Claude.

#fire emblem #fire emblem three houses #fe3h #fe16 #not tagging him because I don't want anyone to see this and think it's hate #it's not #I really like Claude #but I don't want anyone to see the title and get upset #after the game I'm going to ask everyone to send their opinions and meta and essays on all 3 leads plus rhea anyways #and I'll def tag there because it'll be a totally neutral post

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gascon-en-exil · 4 years

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@capriciouscorvid said

So, as far as popular(ish?) m/m supports for Claude go, how do you feel about him paired with Lorenz?

It’s not a bad ship by any means, but the thing is that it’s pure fanon. Unlike Ferdibert and all the Lions pairs (and like Linspar, which stands out purely by allusion to actual developed couple Ike/Soren) there is nothing romantic that can be pulled out the Claurenz support line and ending unless you’re presupposing that it’s there. There’s nothing wrong with fanon-only pairings - the shift in online fandom to demand canon representation on all fronts is something I find obnoxious and usually unrealistic, and everyone knows how I feel about Avatar S ranks as “validation” in FE specifically - but when it comes to talking about queer content I think it’s important to distinguish what’s actually there in the source material and what’s being read into it purely by fandom popularity.

Long before release everyone wanted Claude to be not straight. He’s just too charming and fun and there were all sorts of rumors floating around that he was a bi option for m!Byleth. I remember being among those who were thinking the three house leaders would all be old friends à la FE7 and so Dimiclaude would be an opportunity to update a pairing like Elihec with modern presentation elements and attention to subtext. But Claude’s no bi option, and Dimitri hasn’t met him prior to the start of the game and exchanges about five sentences with him total across the whole story. His supports with other men are sapped of any erotic subtext, whether that’s the other character’s fault (Raphael is just wasted bara potential all around) or his (...but Lorenz is an uptight fem twink who even takes design cues from the last game’s uptight fem twink, and their support line is 90% politics and 10% Lorenz learning to be less judgmental while his fellow tea and dick aficionado over in the Eagles is being tenderly courted by Nosferatu - how embarrassing for Lorenz).

That’s just the reality of Claude, however; he’s the only house leader whose identity depends on a specifically biological legacy for more than simply his right to rule. It’s rarely acknowledged in fandom because to do so would be to admit that Claude has imperialistic ambitions that rival Edelgard’s without her desire to dismantle existing governments (or claim to anyway) and handpick her own successor, but he comes off as a man who’s looking to establish a dynasty over Almyra and Fòdlan too if he can get it which he actually does in some of his endings. And who knows how far the arms of his heirs will reach, claiming legitimate descent from both Alymran royalty and one of Fòdlan’s Elites as they press their influence into Dagda and beyond? F!Byleth is unquestionably his best wife politically speaking since she hands him Fòdlan on top and their children can now also claim descent from a goddess - which as far as self-insert romances go is a hell of a lot weightier than Edelgard being supernaturally hot for teacher to the point that it makes her selectively less competent or Dimitri rmonologuing a reenactment of La Belle et La Bête with a clumsy attempt at psychological realism while all the men in his life look on in quiet indignant bewilderment. There’s also Claude/Hilda, which alludes to Quan/Ethlyn in Crimson Flower so heavily that it’s not at all a stretch to assume that they’ve got a kid stashed somewhere safely in Alymra who’s going to come charging back over the Throat two decades later declaring Fòdlan’s liberation and its rule as their birthright. Claude/Edelgard also has interesting political dimensions for similar reasons, although I fully understand that the characters are ironically too similar to work well even in a purely strategic marriage. Megalomania and mild xenophobia aside, Edelgard is an emperor; why would she lower herself to be Claude’s queen?

I feel like I got wildly off topic, but that’s my essay on why I believe Claude is straight - or, at least, his long term goals render a relationship with another man insufficient for his needs. Go nuts with it in fanon, but I’m not seeing it as a reasonable outcome for the character as presented by the game. I very much doubt a C-A support line with a new male character is going to change that. Now, if only there were another male house leader with an established circle of close male companions, hailing from a land with a tradition of enshrining intimate bonds between men in legend and prizing heterosexual marriage primarily for its ability to produce Crest babies which the aforementioned leader wishes to change during his reign....

#Fire Emblem #FE16 #Fire Emblem Three Houses #Claude von Riegan

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