Replaying VtMB again for the zillionth time and I really can't help but gush about the opening cinematic and how Much there is in it. It does a lot to subtly establish the setting and dynamics going on in Kindred LA.
The meeting to announce the fledgling and the sire's fate takes place in a theatre, the orchestral pit a physical barrier between LaCroix and the rest of LA. He is giving a speech with all the pomp and show a Camarilla Prince is probably expected to, and barely anyone can give half a shit about what That pathetic man has to say. Just about every important Kindred you encounter throughout game is there, which I love. Velvet is blowing a kiss at Strauss; Isaac is boredly checking his watch; Therese is shifting uncomfortably in the front row; Jack is in the shadows glowering out at the stage; Damsel, Nines, and Skelter are grumbling amongst themselves; Gary and Ash can even be seen when everyone is leaving. Their disdain is palpable. He never earned their respect; he's never gotten his hands dirty, because there's always some desperate underling looking to pay off debts or claw their way up the tower and do the work for him. He's just another figurehead that they're waiting to finally get ashed either by his own people, or some lucky Sabbat bastard.
And it really sets the scene of a recently muscled in Camarilla pressing their weight down on an LA that just about survived the siege of the Kueii-jin. The third major conflict in the city in about 60 years (initial revoult, sabbat siege being the others)(Nines was there for all of those, something important to note imo). The Anarchs have thinned ranks, no Revolutionary Council, and a 'leader' who believes the Anarchs having a leader is completely antithetical to their cause and so refuses to use that title in any meaningful capacity; they were in no place to effectively fight back against the Camarilla swooping in to try and stamp out the Free State for good. And yet, when the sire is executed, the people look at Nines for what to do next, and he is spurred to speak out amidst a crowd of apathy.
Maybe some of this is coincidence. Maybe it's just recycling assets. I still like it, and think it holds weight in the story.