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ceaselesslyborne · 2 years

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Recent Reads

1. The Disaster Tourist: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

An interesting and thought provoking plot that introduced and explored a range of perspectives on what, I hope, is the no-longer-shadowy world of disaster tourism. I was impressed with the simplicity and ease with which the protagonist and reader were quickly immersed in vividly precarious world. It was both strange and disturbingly real. It was somewhat predictable, but there were a number of well developed characters considering the length of the story, and though I’m not normally a fan of ambiguity, it made a pleasant change to confront a protagonist whose fate/motivations/character are never explicitly revealed or judged. The reader is left to draw their own conclusions, to evaluate their own opinions.

2. Redhead by the Side of the Road: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

A slow one, but poignant and, for me, definitely one that resonated personally. A powerful, bittersweet, but ultimately hopeful ending, which honestly... I needed. The characters made the novel, and though I don’t think this book is for everyone, I found warmth and humour and understanding in Tyler’s words that make me want to read more of her work.

3. Things we Say in the Dark: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

A really fun seasonal read with a unique and compelling and clever structure. I genuinely can’t choose a favourite story/section; I found the collection to be very cohesive and consistently strong. Logan is a skilled writer easily able to inspire fear, dread, anxiety, disgust, and a host of other heart-pounding sensations. I chose to rate it as I did purely because I felt the tropes and tone were too familiar, though I suspect this has more to do with me becoming slightly desensitised and needing to increase the diversity of my reading choices - or at least switch more frequently between genres. That being said, I really want to read more of Logan’s books!

4. The Death of Vivek Oji: ⭐️⭐️

Struggling to articulate exactly why, but this just... didn’t sit well with me. There was some wonderful explorations of themes such as loyalty, honesty, identity, and family, but it was heavy. Bleak. I understand that stories like this are important, necessary, and that we cannot always have happy or even hopeful endings, but I’ve read too many similar tragedies. There was no payoff for the emotional investment, and it’s difficult to invest in the first place when you know the fate of the protagonist from the beginning, and the protagonist seems... content with that fate? Maybe I just read this at the wrong time. (Pro tip: don’t read sad books when you’re sad!)

5. Ghosted: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Some wonderful character development throughout, and definitely made a significant emotional impact. I do feel that the story drew on slightly longer than necessary, but the reader was kept guessing and I was happy enough to follow the clues and reflect on the myriad relationships and characters offered.

6. White Ivy: ⭐️⭐️

I was disappointed by this book, which had such a promising premise, and started so strongly! Yang is, no doubt, a skilled writer, but it was challenging to persist with a story in which none of the characters seemed to have any notable, let alone likeable, traits. The pacing felt off, and I found myself wanting to skim through most of the book whilst other significant moments seemed to be passed over without making the impact they could have. Though it wasn’t a bad read, it didn’t feel like anything new or remarkable.

7. Earthlings: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ok, so this book is definitely not for everyone, and anyone picking it up expecting another Convenience Store Woman is... in for a shock™️! Please research content/trigger warnings before reading! Heartbreaking and heartwarming and disturbing and, yes, gross, this will satisfy your need for something strange. It was a good palette cleanser (or warper) after some underwhelming and sluggish recent reads, and left me with a not-unpleasant out of body sensation wondering wtf I’d just read. Simply put, this was my jam.

8. Our Wives Under the Sea: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First, a very unrelated note: I read and finished this in the course on one stormy, muggy night which definitely set The Mood™️. I’m not quite sure how to discuss this book. Armfield has captured the sea itself: something vast and unfathomable, changeable, consuming, incomprehensible, and primordial. Dreamy and viscerally, elementally haunting, Our Wives is surreal, horror adjacent, but hits in a very tangible way. I personally loved the style, and the dual perspective and relatively short chapters made what could have been a slow read a very easy one. Through a fantastical lens, Armfield invites us to explore ideas about relationships, communication, trauma, and grief, loss, and reality. A lot is up for interpretation, and I think you could find something new in this book with every re-read.

9. Becoming My Sister: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Okay, so on the scale of ‘normal’ to ‘introduced to V. C. Andrews at a wildly inappropriate age by a mother who clearly had no memory of the book she’d just given her daughter, and no way to anticipate the oncoming obsession’, it’s pretty clear where I fall. Personally I’ve never been disappointed by an Andrews book, and this one was no exception. The writing is witty and thrilling and subtly eerie, and Andrews is absolutely fantastic at drawing the reader into the grip of twisted, claustrophobic family dynamics. Her characters are lifelike, haunted and haunting. She has a singular understanding of the pain and beauty of girlhood, womanhood, and coming of age. I would almost describe this as a ‘guilty pleasure’ read but honestly I’m not sorry. No shame.

10. Ghosts: ⭐️⭐️

Such a promising premise, and so many elements I can usually connect with, but... I think this is just a story I’m tired of reading. It was vague/disconnected and judgemental in a way that reduced the impact of the book overall, at least for me. There was little to humanise or identify in the protagonist (or indeed most of the characters), and I felt the most interesting aspects of the book were not given the focus they deserved, both of which meant key emotional moments fell flat for me. I think for the right person, at the right time, this is a beautiful and moving story; that person just wasn’t me.

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alternativamenteuguali · 2 years

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Mulini

#susie yang

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contedivaldoca · 2 years

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Se lasci depositare, l'acqua fangosa diventa limpida

“Ivy”, S. Yang

#ivy #susie yang #letteratura #citazioni

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wowa-bublord · 4 months

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IM TOO LAZY TO PUT IT INTO A FORMAT BUT. HAPPY NEW YEARS. heres my favorite things that ive drawn :D (the moomin oc in the third image was made by @smokeys-house !!)

#my art #chara #asriel #adrie tag #scamp tag #yang xiao long #luz noceda #snufkin #moomin #mabel #flowey #cassandra jones #casey jones #asgore dreemurr #susie deltarune #ralsei fanart #kris fanart #art compilation

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peridotite · 2 years

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Have you seen this art of Yang and Blake as Susie and Noelle deltarune? Thought it might be of interest to you. https://twitter.com/haxxorblue/status/1528589770519191552?t=k3eyuev1bX3EAwJKmXkRMg&s=19

OH I HADNT and i love it. thank you anon

#susie yang is everything #dreamy honestly #asks for sami

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stolenslumber · 4 months

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the day after my finals were over i read an entire book over the course of like three sittings in one day omg i havent felt that kind of rush in years............

#crazy how being freed from the shackles of thousands of pages of case law can make u actually want to read again #the book was white ivy by susie yang if anyone is curious #it was p solid i gave it like a 4 out of 5 on storygraph #nothing extraordinary in the writing but mc was interesting in like a twisty dark way and it touched upon some Truths abt being asian #in a private school in america #somewhat niche experience but yk ://///#also kinda surprising twist towards the end #a little heavy on some stereotypes and a little light on Not investigating some other problematic aspects of like......#Being An Asian Woman Dating A White Dude #but still overall enjoyable and inward-looking and i blasted through it so i thought it was well-paced for what it was #ANYWAYS ive been staring at some fic documents over the last two days so we'll see if those go anywhere before my next semester starts #(the next semester is like. insultingly soon.)

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fandom · 1 year

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Ships

If it's not canon, at least there's always fanfic.

Byler Will Byers & Mike Wheeler, Stranger Things

Steddie Steve Harrington & Eddie Munson, Stranger Things

Destiel -2 Dean Winchester & Castiel, Supernatural

Blackbonnet Blackbeard & Stede Bonnet, Our Flag Means Death

Ronance Robin Buckley & Nancy Wheeler, Stranger Things

Buddie +2 Evan Buckley & Edmundo Diaz, 9-1-1

Lumity -5 Luz Noceda & Amity Blight, The Owl House

Nandermo Nandor the Relentless & Guillermo de la Cruz, What We Do In The Shadows

Geraskier +11 Geralt of Rivia & Jaskier, The Witcher

Piltover's Finest Caitlyn Kiramman & Vi, Arcane

Hannigram -1 Hannibal Lecter & Will Graham, Hannibal

Supercorp -5 Kara Danvers & Lena Luthor, Supergirl

Ladynoir +10 Ladybug & Chat Noir, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir

Huntlow Hunter & Willow Park, The Owl House

Adrienette +15 Adrien Agreste & Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir

Bakudeku -12 Bakugou Katsuki & Midoriya Izuku, Boku no Hero Academia

Wangxian -3 Lan Wangji & Wei Wuxian, Mo Dao Zu Shi

Ineffable Husbands +8 Aziraphale & Crowley, Good Omens

Symbrock +12 Venom (symbiote) & Eddie Brock, the Marvel universe

Dreamling Dream of the Endless & Hob Gadling, The Sandman

Daemon x Rhaenyra Daemon Targaryen & Rhaenyra Targaryen, House of the Dragon

Marichat +11 Marinette Dupain-Cheng & Chat Noir, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir

Tomgreg Tom Wambsgans & Greg Hirsch, Succession

Wolfstar -3 Remus Lupin & Sirius Black, the Harry Potter universe

Patpran Pat & Pran, Bad Buddy

Jayvik Jayce & Viktor, Arcane

Kathony Kate Sharma & Anthony Bridgerton, Bridgerton

Raeda +49 Raine Whispers & Eda Clawthorne, The Owl House

Merthur +7 Merlin & Arthur Pendragon, Merlin

Stucky -19 Steve Rogers & Bucky Barnes, the Marvel universe

Harringrove +37 Steve Harrington & Billy Hargrove, Stranger Things

Lumax Lucas Sinclair & Max Mayfield, Stranger Things

Narumitsu +9 Phoenix Wright & Miles Edgeworth, Ace Attorney

Drarry -12 Draco Malfoy & Harry Potter, the Harry Potter universe

Imodna Imogen Temult & Laudna, Critical Role

Jonmartin -18 Jonathan Sims & Martin Blackwood, The Magnus Archives

Twiyor Loid Forger & Yor Forger, SPY x FAMILY

Catradora -29 Catra & Adora, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Elmax Eleven & Max Mayfield, Stranger Things

Hualian +15 Hua Cheng & Xie Lian, Tian Guan Ci Fu

Percabeth +19 Percy Jackson & Annabeth Chase, the Percy Jackson universe

Cockles -15 Misha Collins & Jensen Ackles, actors

Jegulus James Potter & Regulus Black, the Harry Potter universe

Superbat Superman & Batman, the DC Universe

Villaneve Villanelle & Eve Polastri, Killing Eve

Nick x Charlie Nick Nelson & Charlie Spring, Heartstopper

Solangelo -6 Will Solace & Nico di Angelo, the Percy Jackson universe

Dreamnotfound -43 Dreamwastaken & GeorgeNotFound, streamers

Satosugu +41 Gojo Satoru & Geto Suguru, Jujutsu Kaisen

Thasmin Thirteenth Doctor & Yasmin Khan, Doctor Who

Drukkari Druig & Makkari, Eternals

Sasunaru +26 Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto, Naruto

Suselle Susie & Noelle, Deltarune

Eddissy Eddie Munson & Chrissy Cunningham, Stranger Things

Sterek -11 Stiles Stilinski & Derek Hale, Teen Wolf

Tarlos -18 TK Strand & Carlos Reyes, 9-1-1: Lone Star

Spirk +14 Spock & James Kirk, Star Trek

Fexi Fez & Lexi Howard, Euphoria

Jopper Joyce Byers & Jim Hopper, Stranger Things

Jikook -45 Park Jimin & Jeon Jungkook, BTS

Chenford +38 Lucy Chen & Tim Bradford, The Rookie

Sambucky -59 Sam Wilson & Bucky Barnes, the Marvel universe

Zukka -47 Zuko & Sokka, Avatar: The Last Airbender

Obikin +36 Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, the Star Wars universe

Ladrien +28 Ladybug & Adrien Agreste, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir

Dinluke -42 Din Djarin & Luke Skywalker, The Star Wars universe

Bumbleby -50 Yang Xiao Long & Blake Belladonna, RWBY

Shadowgast -33 Caleb Widogast & Essek Thelyss, Critical Role

Sonadow Sonic & Shadow, Sonic the Hedgehog

MileApo Mile Phakphum & Apo Nattawin, Actors

Klance -32 Keith & Lance, Voltron: Legendary Defender

Kanej -38 Kaz Brekker & Inej Ghafa, Shadow and Bone

Yennskier Yennefer of Vengerberg & Jaskier, The Witcher

Sashannarcy Sasha Waybright, Anne Boonchuy & Marcy Wu, Amphibia

Loustat Louis de Pointe du Lac & Lestat de Lioncourt, Interview with the Vampire

Batcat Batman & Catwoman, The Batman

Codywan +7 Commander Cody & Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Jancy Jonathan Byers & Nancy Wheeler, Stranger Things

Kiribaku -54 Kirishima Eijirou & Bakugou Katsuki, Boku No Hero Academia

Harlivy -11 Harley Quinn & Poison Ivy, the DC Universe

Kinn x Porsche Kinn Theerapanyakul & Porsche Kittisawasd, KinnPorsche

Soukoku Nakahara Chuuya & Dazai Osamu, Bungou Stray Dogs

Jargyle Argyle & Jonathan Byers, Stranger Things

Korrasami -52 Korra & Asami Sato, The Legend of Korra

Stolitz Stolas & Blitzo, Helluva Boss

Damianya Damian Desmond & Anya Forger, SPY x FAMILY

Spideypool Spider-Man & Deadpool, the Marvel universe

Dramione -43 Draco Malfoy & Hermione Granger, the Harry Potter universe

Zutara -61 Zuko & Katara, Avatar: The Last Airbender

Mileven Mike Wheeler & Eleven, Stranger Things

Marcanne Marcy Wu & Anne Boonchuy, Amphibia

Zelink -55 Zelda & Link, The Legend of Zelda

Sasharcy Sasha Waybright & Marcy Wu, Amphibia

Griddlehark Gideon Nav & Harrowhark Nonagesimus, The Locked Tomb series

Tomdaya Tom Holland & Zendaya, actors

Johnlock -45 John Watson & Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock

Jily -9 James Potter & Lily Evans, the Harry Potter series

Calliette Calliope Burns & Juliette Fairmont, First Kill

Malex -19 Michael Guerin & Alex Manes, Roswell, New Mexico

Serirei Serizawa Katsuya & Reigen Arataka, Mob Psycho 100

The number in italics indicates how many spots a ship moved up or down from the previous year. The ones in bold weren’t on the list last year.

#year in review #ships #tumblr2022

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belle-keys · 1 year

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The Ultimate Dark Academia Book Recommendation Guide Ever

The title of this post is clickbait. I, unfortunately, have not read every book ever. Not all of these books are particularly “dark” either. However, these are my recommendations for your dark academia fix. The quality of each of these books varies. I have limited this list to books that are directly linked to the world of academia and/or which have a vaguely academic setting.

Dark Academia staples:

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

Dead Poets Society by Nancy H. Kleinbaum

Vita Nostra by Maryna Dyachenko

Dark academia litfic or contemporary:

Bunny by Mona Awad

The Idiot by Elif Batuman

These Violent Delights by Micah Nemerever

White Ivy by Susie Yang

The Cloisters by Katy Hays

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Lake of Dead Languages by Carol Goodman

A Separate Peace by John Knowles

Black Chalk by Christopher J. Yates

Attribution by Linda Moore

Dark academia thrillers or horror:

In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Ghosts of Harvard by Francesca Serritella

Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth

They Never Learn by Layne Fargo

The It Girl by Ruth Ware

Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian

Dark academia fantasy/sci-fi:

Babel: An Arcane History by R.F. Kuang

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

The Betrayals by Bridget Collins

Dark academia romance:

Gothikana by RuNyx

Alone With You in the Ether by Olivie Blake

Dark academia YA or MG:

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

Crave by Tracy Wolff

Wilder Girls by Rory Power

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Dark academia miscellaneous:

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou

Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia A. McKillip

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hauntingofhalstead · 21 days

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Obsessed with the idea of Bobby Glass masterminding Eddie Horniman’s entire criminal arc so Susie can have a partner who he considers worthy of her time.

Eddie has a lethal intelligence about the criminal world that is hidden behind his coat of aristocracy, and because of this Bobby sees him in a light of respect. Not only a valuable asset, but Eddie is someone who could be provide balance to Susie’s ying as her yang. Susie is a damn great leader and he knows how capable she is. Everyone in the world, criminal or otherwise respects Susie Glass. She doesn’t need someone in her life, but she deserves someone. Someone who can give a different perspective on things.

Bobby Glass never thought about it as anything more than a business ploy until Jack started mentioning about the new man in his sister’s life and how close they had gotten over the short amount of time. Suddenly, Bobby finds himself amused by the idea of “rightful double act” the pair’s become. He sees it himself the first time he observes Eddie and Susie together, and how they can have an entire conversation without saying a single word.

And if anyone asks if the meetings he sets up between himself and Susie and Eddie there on after has any ulterior motives — whether it’s a way for him to help them smooth things over when they hit a rough patch?

Well Bobby is old friends with pleading the Fifth Amendment.

#the gentlemen netflix #eddie x susie #horniglass

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library-love-affair · 2 years

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“All her life she had sought something she couldn’t name. Love? Wealth? Beauty? But none of those things were exactly right. What she sought was peace. The peace of having something no one could take away from you. Had she ever been at peace for a single minute in her life? She was tired of the struggle to achieve… She was tired of trying. More than anything she longed to rest.”

-Susie Yang (White Ivy)

#book quotes #Susie Yang #white ivy #bookblr #books and literature #book blog #booklr #bookish #bookaholic #booknerd #bookworm #books

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citsune13 · 5 months

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Been having a hard time with art and finally really getting back into it. I did the expression meme by MagicalPouch and had my friends suggest characters.

Names below the cut

Left to right, top to bottom are-

Megamind, Drome (OC), Gabbie (OC), Rainbow Dash, Jazz Fenton, Mikey

Tret Clover, Pablo (OC), Blake Belladonna, Weiss Schnee, Purple (AU), Yuri

Sydney (OC), Kierian (OC), Danny Phantom, Foxglove (OC), Megumi Fushiguro, Major Armstrong

Audrey, Telescope (OC), Susie Cambell (AKA. Alice Angel), Penny Polendina, Ruby Rose, Jax

Kierian (OC), Yang Xiao-Long, Trash (OC), Ochaco Uraraka, Josh (OC), Donnie (AU)

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ceaselesslyborne · 2 years

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02/09/22

First September library selection! Looking forward to introducing more seasonal gothic/spooky reads and, of course, some real horror as autumn gets fully underway.

- CJ

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duskwingmoth · 10 months

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"Your choices don't matter."

This is and will continue to be the most-misunderstood line in the game. Even now in June 2023 with ample evidence, many players seem to believe that Deltarune is a game that disregards player agency and their decisions, despite the Player still being the single most powerful entity in its universe.

The confusion is understandable, as I do believe it's an intentional red herring, and certainly with regards to the outcome of Chapter 1's events it holds largely true. Nonetheless, people seem to overlook the fact that Ralsei, mere minutes later, has this to say:

"I believe your choices are important, too!"

The importance and implication of both lines together goes overlooked, likely because the latter doesn't happen with nearly as much fanfare as Susie's explosive introduction. But the parallel framing gives the game away, as does the dichotomy in Susie and Ralsei's reaction to your role as the "leader" of the Lancer Fan Club.

What Deltarune is telling you with these lines is that whatever Chapters 3 through 7 hold, a defining aspect of the RPG formula is going to be heavily scrutinized and deconstructed, just like player/game morality, repeat playthroughs, and player character agency were in Undertale.

In RPGs, be they western or eastern in origin and influence, a largely unchallenged assumption is baked into their design. You, the Player, will be the final word on any decision that the Party makes, whether it be a party of one or 100 characters. What Kain, Rosa, Rydia, Edge, and every other party member in Final Fantasy IV want out of their lives is irrelevant, and their thoughts and feelings on the next course of action even moreso; they all default to Cecil's decisions, and Cecil can do nothing without you. Therefore, Cecil is entrusting the events of the game to the player that controls him in the overworld and in the battle scene. They will all be in your final party lineup, whether they like it or not.

Later versions of Final Fantasy IV will take this even further, allowing you to subvert the exit of other party members from your control once the finale is ready to commence. Cid, Yang, Palom & Porom, and Edward no longer have the security of irrelevance to convalesce, heal from their wounds and sacrifices and traumas. If you want them to be part of your lunar expedition, you need only speak to them at the Tower of Prayer, and they will hop into Cecil's pocket while another party member (of your choice) is left behind.

Their choices don't matter. Yours do.

As far as we've seen in Chapter 1 and 2, Deltarune is absolutely holding NES and SNES Final Fantasy up as a strong influence, especially IV, with party members entering and leaving your command as the plot and their agency within demands. This makes for interesting gameplay changes and challenges, certainly. What the game is doing with it thematically, however, seems to be going thus far largely unexamined. Final Fantasy IV, after all, was something of a subversive JRPG experience for its time as well, and if there's one thing that's very clear about Undertale and especially Deltarune, it's how much it wants to subvert player expectations, thwarting the flowchart mindset with which a game-savvy person is conditioned to approach video games of similar trappings.

Through the majority of Chapter 1, Susie is completely impossible to control, command, or influence in any direct way. She has absolutely no regard for what Kris and Ralsei think of her actions, ignoring the rules set out by Ralsei and the game's mechanics, and you are expected to merely play around it. When she rejoins and when you do finally gain the ability to command her in battle, it is only because of forces utterly beyond your direct control, and even then, only because Susie made the active decision to submit to your will for the time-being.

Even still, she reserves the right to comply maliciously or revoke her trust in Kris (and your) decisions.

Not only that, but her actual ability to follow certain orders is immediately called into question.

"Your choices don't matter" to Susie. Only Susie's choices matter to Susie. She is the party member who rebels against your controlling influence as the player on the basis of her own whims, taking actions unprompted and departing entirely when being with Kris is inconvenient to her impulses and desires. You, and the game, have no control over Susie thus far.

Compare and contrast with Ralsei, the goodest goody-two-shoes floof you ever did see, obediently and staunchly obeying the laws of the game and its universe. Despite ostensibly being a ruling power within the confines of Castle Town, he immediately, happily, and without argument submits fully to the Player's will, whether you wanted to have that much control over him or not. What he may want, what he may think, what he may feel, he considers secondary to what Kris wants. As we have seen, that too is equally meaningless in the face of what the Player wants.

Even when the laws of physics, relativity, and the very rules Ralsei himself establishes dictate that he cannot be in the Computer Lab with you as far as we are currently aware, Ralsei goes out of his way to return to Kris' side, and take orders from them once again. He does not argue when you deliberately flout his advice and are just as violent as Susie in Chapter 1, and he does not make any attempts to actively rejoin with you when Susie drags him offscreen to parts of Cyber City unknown in Chapter 2. Even when violating the set rules of the game is the consequence, he will follow yours and Susie's directions.

Whatever the mysterious forces may be that compel Ralsei to be so rigidly obedient that he will diminish his contributions when you purposefully belittle them, the demonstrable fact is that, in effect, you own him. You are everything he is, and his everything is yours. Will this be reified within the plain text of the game? Who knows. It would certainly be fitting if it was. Though whether that makes for a stronger story remains the opinion of the development team, and they are 100% willing to play with your expectations.

Like, for example, the prevailing understanding coming out of Chapter 1 that "your choices don't matter" was the be-all, end-all statement Deltarune had to make, something that somehow persists beyond Chapter 2's release and collective analysis, and, more specifically paradoxically, in light of the revelation that is Noelle Holiday.

Much of Noelle's life beyond what you can observe as her classmate is left ambiguous. In part to maintain some fun textual mystery for later, but more so that you have a blank slate upon which to work as the unchallenged master of Deltarune's entire universe. A master that likely has experienced Undertale in some form or fashion and is well aware of its conceits and statements, thus likely looking for more explicit, gameplay-defined dichotomies. Think of Susie as Deltarune's thesis, Ralsei as its antithesis, and Noelle as a synthesis of the two opposing ideas. Or, more simply, a question posed to the player:

"What happens when we give you the power to subvert someone's will without their knowing consent?"

In relation to Queen, Noelle is to her as Susie is to you. She does not want to obey her commands or be in her presence because her own desires are not in alignment with Queen's. The thing about Noelle, is that she is far less rebellious, and escapes Queen's control via simple avoidance, instead entrusting you with her agency based on prior familiarity with Kris and the fallacious assumption of shared goals.

Your relative anonymity, and the ambiguity of your desires as a Player are what leave Noelle susceptible to your influence. And you, the Player, may well not be someone who should be trusted with that kind of power.

Thus, Snowgrave.

In a deliberate echo of Undertale's deconstruction of multiple playthroughs and game morality, you can, if you want, turn Noelle into a murderer, a thing she would never become on her own, and thus demonstrate that the rigid rules of Deltarune and what you previously believed it had to say fall limply before your power like wet paper. In the process, you also subvert the supposed control Queen has as the chapter's antagonist, and make an example out of the one character who actively and completely refuses to submit to your will, rendering them both completely obsolete.

In the end, you have final authority on whether Noelle Holiday the character is a person with agency in her own story, worthy of her own backstory and motives, or a set of actions with no capacity to argue with anybody, only perceiving the world through the lens of violence, as most RPG party members are. And it should be stressed; you never have to go through the motions of Snowgrave yourself to "see what happens"; the internet already has your answer. You choose to do this to Noelle and the characters, because you want to do it.

There's a lot to appreciate about Deltarune and its dedication to being a richer experience in every way, but most fascinating are the questions Noelle poses. "How ethical is it, really, that you have the power to veto everything about a character and what they want? Are you okay with this arrangement? Do these cute little pixels mean anything to you beyond what they can do for you?" For the fact that it explores this so thoroughly in under two hours, and for the implication that there's even more musings just like it in the future. I don't know if there's a game that has really interrogated the concept of party members like this, because I've certainly never heard of it. Compared to the well-trodden ground in Undertale's core statement, this is a mental exercise the general audience isn't primed for, possibly one that a lot of game developers haven't entertained either. Certainly not with this large a crowd watching with bated breath.

I'm not a Deltarune theorist by trade, but this is my one that I will openly put forward: Deltarune is not done making you feel uncomfortable with the monopoly you hold over these characters in this way. This is what sets it apart and elevates it to one of the greats in the medium, mark my words. Your choices do matter, and they matter very much.

#deltarune #deltarune thoughts #deltarune theory #chapter 2 spoilers #plenty has been said about kris and their open rejection of your control and likely there's so much more #but i do feel like they are overly centered in the discussion at the moment given the lack of recognition of deltarune's themes so far #long post #i wrote this like half a year ago with the intention of drawing stuff to go with it but at this point i should just set it loose as is

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