When's the last time we had a tender moment?
By
Arilou,
Posted on: 2012-01-20 08:20 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
*cue Billy Joel*
Technically speaking, Statesman's final thoughts are meant as a tender moment. Whether it's effective is personal taste. Enough people found it effective for it to qualify.
Penny is so bubbly and Jim Temblor is so morose that they don't really express "tenderness" all that well but I think there are moments in those arcs that could qualify.
I guess I can't really think of many deliberately uplifting emotional moments in the game. It's difficult to write that in this medium because you have to get the player invested into the characters at some level. Sefu Tendaji is one of those stories, I'd agree. I don't know about Captain Deitrich because *I* took his death hard. In fact, I was really surprised at just how much I was affected by the death of Tendaji; far more than I was by the death of Statesman, frankly. That's topic drift, though...
The point being that to get that emotional impact, I had to first play through the whole first half of the RWZ story and encounter Tendaji multiple times and become familiar with his character (meaning his sense of honor and loyalty, not his avatar) and build that attachment to him over the course of several missions without even really realizing it was happening.
"Tender", I think, requires that you somehow achieve that investment into the characters in order to really put yourself into either their shoes or into the shoes of the people affected by their fates. That's why the "tender" moments are few and far between. Most story arcs are relatively short and they typically try to achieve some kind of sense of achievement.
I think the Clockwork King in the Lady Grey Task Force has a pretty tender moment. This is funny, but I am also serious. If you look at Penny's story arc and some of the things she said. The King is a freak, in so, so, so many ways. But he has also found a connection that he is desperately trying to hold onto. So very human. He has a few gears lose though, lets face it. I think the writing for this was spot on, and the effect was pitch perfect. With the intended/predictable/and fully realized effect that everyone who runs the LGTF makes Snarky comments about poor old King. (Including me, he is an easy target, I take the cheap shot each time)
Also, in First Ward there is that guy at the end (I am horrid with names). I was just complaining in a few threads the other day what a freaky creep he is. And he is, I'll stand by every statement. He comes across as a 14 year old stalker in a 50 year old wizards life. It aint pretty. But the writer's there were trying to do the same thing as with King. I'm not gonna give them a pitch perfect on that one though. I say tone deaf. That thing fell flat. Fail.
But King, for as much as I love to say Snarky things while he's gleefully rubbing his metallic mits together, is a tragic character. Written wonderfully well, and with real understandable drives for a human connection that he will risk anything to maintain. As he so obviously slips away into the depths of his madness. And that is about as tender as it gets.
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On the one hand, I want to say... Yeah, that's kind of the real trick to it. If you can get your players to care about your characters, then they will be much more responsive to the drama that surrounds them. All too often the story fails to provide people for us to care about, so it tries to compensate with turning the drama up to 11. But just because you can bake a in 30 minutes at 375 degrees, that doesn't mean you can bake that same cake in 15 minutes if you go up to 750 degrees. In much the same way, increasing the scope of the drama doesn't really get players more invested if they don't care to begin with. In fact for me, it's had the opposite effect.|
Originally Posted by SlickRiptide
"Tender", I think, requires that you somehow achieve that investment into the characters in order to really put yourself into either their shoes or into the shoes of the people affected by their fates. That's why the "tender" moments are few and far between. Most story arcs are relatively short and they typically try to achieve some kind of sense of achievement.
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On the other hand, though, I'm more than convinced you can have a tender moment between two characters the audience doesn't care about and still have it come off as a tender moment. Perhaps an unappreciated one, granted, but nevertheless... For me, what strikes me so much about Sefu's death isn't really Sefu's death at all, but rather Deitrich's reaction to it. As I said - that's when I felt her character transcended her original writing as the yelling but ineffectual executive and leapt off the page, as it were. I didn't care about her before that moment, but I've grown to respect her as a character since, not to mention respect the writing behind her.
Imagine the following - you're watching newsreel footage of the aftermath a great disaster when you see something as simple as a dirty ragged mother tending to her dirty ragged son out in an alley while rescue workers run about. You don't know who these people are, you don't know their names, you've never seen their faces, but this doesn't prevent theirs from being a sweet, tender moment. Obviously, it's possible that that's just me, but when I see something that shows me these are real people trying to get through a real disaster, going through real emotions, I'm compelled to care about them even if I want nothing beyond what I'm seeing. That goes for fiction as well as real life.
In a lot of ways, we tend to see super heroes and super villains as just a collection of powers and adventures, but this serves the iconise them to such an extent that they stop feeling like real people. To me, it is those simple, basic, tender moments that give the bombastic fiction and high drama the grounding I need to actually believe them in a visceral sense. It doesn't need to be a bombastic scene backed by a symphony orchestra. In a sense, it's the very simple things that define the very simplest of human emotions, and THAT is what gets me invested in the drama at hand.
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Originally Posted by Blue_Centurion
I think the Clockwork King in the Lady Grey Task Force has a pretty tender moment. This is funny, but I am also serious. If you look at Penny's story arc and some of the things she said. The King is a freak, in so, so, so many ways. But he has also found a connection that he is desperately trying to hold onto. So very human. He has a few gears lose though, lets face it. I think the writing for this was spot on, and the effect was pitch perfect. With the intended/predictable/and fully realized effect that everyone who runs the LGTF makes Snarky comments about poor old King. (Including me, he is an easy target, I take the cheap shot each time)
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But again - this exchange happens in a loud, bombastic, flashy scene of combat, to the best of my memory done as a battlecry, and it really doesn't need to be this way. I get that the Clock King's role in that TF is a tragic one - he's putting it all on the line for this girl that may not really want his help out of sheer terror and desperation, and while that is a moving concept, the scale of the action scene kind of undermines it terms of affection. Loud action and explosions simply drown out the subtler emotions more often than not. I actually think the way Penny talks about him to be much more powerful, simply because here's a kid talking about an obvious monster like he's her friend, and she's neither stupid nor deluded about it. That's actually brilliant.
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Originally Posted by Blue_Centurion
Also, in First Ward there is that guy at the end (I am horrid with names). I was just complaining in a few threads the other day what a freaky creep he is. And he is, I'll stand by every statement. He comes across as a 14 year old stalker in a 50 year old wizards life. It aint pretty. But the writer's there were trying to do the same thing as with King. I'm not gonna give them a pitch perfect on that one though. I say tone deaf. That thing fell flat. Fail.
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But again, all of this happens mostly off-screen, and we have just the tail end of it, delivered as one loud declaration in the middle of a fight scene. To my eyes, this is something that should have been built up over the course of the guy's story arc. I'm sure there were a few D&D nerd jokes that could have been swapped out for character development, to give the guy some more personality than... Just a stalker fan, essentially. It's a good idea, but it just seems squandered on a last minute out of nowhere face-heel-face turn.
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Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.
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Strangely, though a have run the LGTF quite a few times, slow and fast, there is not a lot more to it than the cutscene. remember, CityofX used to do a lot of "you got that right" storytelling. There idea of developing something into the plotline was to have one character say something once about it. Most of the Clock/Penny drama is from her plotline. Sure, the LGTF is a major moment. But only by understanding Penny do you understand Clock. You have to see him through her eyes. And that won't happen if you just run the LGTF X times. There, he is a baddie, he has trapped the girl, you smack him down. There are subtleties to her comments that are only understood if you have read her story.
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Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
Sadly, I've only ever run the Lady Grey TF twice, and both times we stealthed much of that mission (against my will, might I add) so I'm really not entirely certain what happens in there. However, based on what I've seen between Penny and the Clock King in Faultline, I can take your word for it. Penny seems like a good kid while the Clockwork King seems like a spurned monster who's given up on the world, but found someone who isn't sickened by him and is trying - albeit in an awkward, stilted way - to keep the relationship going and protect the girl from harm.
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There's another tender moment and it comes at the end of Protean's arch when your "alternate self" dies in the end. At that moment "your death" turns things real for the character of what the ultimate sacriface is. Your alternate willingly give up his/her life, the question is, is your real character able to do so. That's what I get from the story's climatic ending.
Current active characters: Dragon Maiden (50+3 Brute SS/WP/PM), Black Widow Maiden (50+1 Night Widow), Catayclasmic Ariel (50 lvl Defender - Kin/DP), Quantumshock (50 lvl Elect/Energy/Energy), American's Defender (38 lvl Tanker - SD/Mace), Spider-Maiden (15 lvl Corruptor - RB/PD) & Siren Shrike (15 lvl Defender - Sonic/Sonic). My entire stable.
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Your synopsis is spot on for all three, nice job. Of the three storylines, Pia Marino's had more of an impact on me. The build up to saving Wretch, having him thank you, then turning around and saving Ghost Widow and her thanks that was the icing on the cake for me. |
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
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*Captain Deitrich breaking down after Lt. Tendaji's death at Nemesis' hands. It's not JUST a tender moment, no, it's also a heavy one, but we see a hard woman finally crack and show some humanity. We see the affection she had for her colleague and friend, we see that there is a real person behind the façade. It's sad, yes, but it's also moving in a very big way, and the resolve Captain Deitrich leaves with is commendable. This is the the point where she stops being a character and becomes a real person. It's not a big plot point, but I personally find it quite moving *Indigo reminiscing about Melvin Langley after his rescue, talking about how nice it is to meet someone who isn't trained to kill or turn into a monster or such. The entire time, Indigo holds up a demeanour of disconnected sarcasm and disconnected humour, almost as though the horrible work of a spy is fun. It's in that one moment of affectionate aside, however, that she finally reveals that she is human after all, and that her job really is that hard and that horrible. It's not even a big thing, noting about love or even friendship. This is just one woman forced into a tough job who shows a private, personal emotion. And honestly, I think it's very sweet. *Pia Marino and Ghost Widow accepting their fates. Pia is perhaps one of the most believable characters in the game, going from disconnected worry, to anger and revenge, to acceptance and coping with her grief. When she finally realises the fate of her former friend and her brother, her training to not show emotion fails, and we see the person behind the red helmet, and it's a woman who has lost her family. And though it is a sad moment, it still shows the affection that Pia has for her brother even in the face of impossibility. "It all hurts too much, indeed." Ghost Widow, in turn, is proven to be an outright tragic figure, living an existence against her will, forced into her life as a servant of Arachnos, with only Wretch, the abomination who understands her pain. Like two wounded souls, they try to heal each other's minds as best they can "trapped in [their] strange half-lives." It shows affection, if desperate such, born out of adversity and damnation, and I personally find it to be quite pretty. ------ |
Tender moments or moments of levity do enhance the story and give the reader (in this case the participant) a moment to reflect, laugh, morn, or take a deep breath. Situations that are fast paced, full of tension, conflict, or full of tragedy sometime need to have a moment that can disarm or give pause allowing a moment of respite.
Current active characters: Dragon Maiden (50+3 Brute SS/WP/PM), Black Widow Maiden (50+1 Night Widow), Catayclasmic Ariel (50 lvl Defender - Kin/DP), Quantumshock (50 lvl Elect/Energy/Energy), American's Defender (38 lvl Tanker - SD/Mace), Spider-Maiden (15 lvl Corruptor - RB/PD) & Siren Shrike (15 lvl Defender - Sonic/Sonic). My entire stable.
Betraying Scirocco.
I hate that the game makes you do that. Sure, he was endangering the fabric of reality...but he just wanted to be free.
There are no words for what this community, and the friends I have made here mean to me. Please know that I care for all of you, yes, even you. If you Twitter, I'm MrThan. If you're Unleashed, I'm dumps. I'll try and get registered on the Titan Forums as well. Peace, and thanks for the best nine years anyone could ever ask for.
I haven't tried it out on Beta, but apparently part of this year's Valentine event will involve helping various NPCs hook up.
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Aaron walker's death makes me sad and angry every time. There have been times where I have intentionally not played any Warden arc after his because I do not want his icon to phase out. |
Originally Posted by BrandX
Aaron Walker dying.
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In the Ricochet's final crusader mission where we can either escape the gas filled station or go back and rescue Rothstein and get you both out. I rescue Rothstein and his dialogue touches me. It's someone who has lost everything and doesn't care if he lives or dies. I save him and it's Richochet's response who makes me think that she's Praetorian Clamor.
Wardog's unfolding history also touched me. His life was peeled away leaving a methodical anger ridden husk. I was sad when I killed him...but he had to die.
The flashback in First Ward where you withness the creation of an Apparition. It was a visceral and almost untenable experience. Not being able to stop it, I almost rebooted my machine because it was just horrible and cemented Tillman's monster status beyond what I learned just levelling up and badging in Praetoria.
Most recently: Matthew Hashaby learning his wife was alive and then putting himself through hell to save her.
I see when your Clone dies in your behalf as quite a tender moment.
They die so you may live, that is about all you can ask of a hero.
Of the three you give, Sam, I'm afraid I only recognize the one involving Wretch. And given how long ago I must've done it along with my notoriously spotty memory, it must have been very well done to leave such a lasting impression.
I take it that Tendaji's death is in the RWZ arc and I'm not sure I've ever progressed that arc far enough to witness the event in question. However, my recollection of him seems to be as 'that annoying guy I have to save' so I'm not sure if I would be touched by any moment involving his death.
Whether "tender" or not, though, I like moments when they make me care about an NPC.
Goodbye may seem forever
Farewell is like the end
But in my heart's the memory
And there you'll always be
-- The Fox and the Hound
Interestingly I had the opposite reaction to Dietrich during the RWZ arc.
Now the character I did this on was a villain, but between the writing and his backstory there was a connection with Sefu. I actually ended up liking Sefu, because here for the first time is a Longbow Agent that isn't all gung ho and frequently wonders when Longbow crosses lines.
than Nemesis makes his move and being the villain every single Nemesis soldier in the following mission is dead. So now we have the confrontation with Dietrich after the events, and she breaks down. I wanted to stab her repeatedly. My reaction was "oh now you realize Longbow goes to far, it only took the death of someone who is far better than you will ever be. NO you don't get to breakdown, if you weren't such a blind soldier that represents everything wrong with Longbow this whole mess could have been avoided. But NO, you're to stupid to realize how abhorrent longbow is."
So no Dietirch was not a tender moment, it was in fact a rage inducing moment. It's too bad we didn't have multiple options when that was introduced because Longbow would have lost another high ranking officer that day.
But back on topic to tender moments,
the Ms. Francine story from Westin Phipps. It's a very tender moment and probably results in the most voluntarily failed mission in the game.
Also the story arc with the Bane scouts that actually split from the hive mind.Specifically the two orphan siblings. Unfortunately that arc is from Phipps and ends tragically.
I fear we're drifting into "sad" or "dramatic" moments more than tender ones. I get that most of my examples have been a mixed bag, but that's largely because that's all the game provides. Even back in the day it was stingy with its positive reinforcement. However, I'm really not talking about heavy moments that that seek to make you cry, so much as the little ones where something small seems purpose-designed to make you smile.
I don't discount that Aaron's death and the other-dimension double's death are heavy, dramatic and very well moments, but I'm not sure I'd consider them "tender," per se. In Aaron's case, I might actually relent and count it, just because the guy is a good sport right until the end and he is quite very personal in his last few words. However, the double's death, though tragic and unpleasant, comes off as preachy to me. That double goes out not with a personal moment of a relationship forged in war and more a motivational speech. There's a subtle difference there.
I like how the Knight of Khonsu put it. Having the occasional tender moment of personal affection helps give a heated action story some breathing room in which we can step back and have a good look at the full scope of the drama. To my eyes, it reminds us of what we're fighting for, and it reminds me that life isn't just bitter battles and the horrors of war. While I may be cynical about most things, story and characters are not among them, and such tender moments that give me reason to care about these people help greatly.
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Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.
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Rescuing Praetorian Yen (Though the moment after isn't so tender)
Faultline Arc in general by the end
Aaron Walker dying
Seeing Metronome get resurrected in Siege's body
Statesman's death
Hopefully rescuing Katie in the future
Master Midnight's death was bittersweet. However, I didn't like First Ward's generic turn into "LOL MAGIC"
http://www.virtueverse.net/wiki/Shadow_Mokadara
Well, I don't usually kiss and tell...
Also, Sam, next time ask in a PM (Muhahaha...... kidding...).
It's not so much of a moment, perhaps, but having the new starting contact (Is it Mathew Habashi?) reunited with his wife and having her stand next to him via the phasing tech, is touching... perhaps not a tender moment, but I figured I'd mention it so that I could make a few jokes beforehand.
@Zethustra
"Now at midnight all the agents and the superhuman crew come out
and round up everyone that knows more than they do"-Dylan
and round up everyone that knows more than they do"-Dylan
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D'oh! Forgot that one! :P
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Originally Posted by Electric-Knight
Well, I don't usually kiss and tell...
Also, Sam, next time ask in a PM (Muhahaha...... kidding...). It's not so much of a moment, perhaps, but having the new starting contact (Is it Mathew Habashi?) reunited with his wife and having her stand next to him via the phasing tech, is touching... perhaps not a tender moment, but I figured I'd mention it so that I could make a few jokes beforehand. |
http://www.virtueverse.net/wiki/Shadow_Mokadara
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Oh, that reminds me! Something Agent G says is actually pretty cool in that regard. It's less a "tender" moment and more of probably a comedic one, but I still like it. After the battle for the PCM is done, the world is saved and some laws of physics have been broken, the man who has thus far been deadly serious announces he's going to get a "shave-ice" from Yin's Marker, because Wu Yin makes his favourite.|
Originally Posted by ShadowMoka
Faultline Arc in general by the end
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It's at the same time goofy and actually pretty cool. Yeah, it's out-of-character goofiness from a serious character wanting something unexpected, like nachos or Pong or something. On the other hand, though, it also shows me a guy whose job forces him to be very serious, very tough and, as they say "be paid to worry." It's nice to see that there's a real person behind the sunglasses, and that person just so happens to like shaved ice? Well, to each his own, I guess.
I admit, I chuckled at Agent G's off-duty plans, but more than that, it made me smile. And that counts for a lot in my book.
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Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.
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Tender and heartwarming moments hmmm?
As already mentioned "O Wretched Man" goes straight through heartwarming into near devestating. Still, there's a lot of love there.
"I lost my Daddy" Penny Yin's arc in faultline ends with one of my favorite lines of dialogue (YoudiditYoudid itYoudidit). I not only get to save the day but I get to make someone happy because of it.
The final mission of the Warden storyline in Praetoria where all of the people you've saved (rescued, ect) are there to see you off and wish you well.
Oddly enough, the very first arc in the new Atlas. You get to save Matthew AND his wife, and they seem happy about that.
Those are just a few that come to mind. I'm sure that someone will think of others.
Writer of In-Game fiction: Just Completed: My Summer Vacation. My older things are now being archived at Fanfiction.net http://www.fanfiction.net/~jwbullfrog until I come up with a better solution.
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This. I think this one had a profound affect on me when I saw all of those whom I saved or helped waiting for me to send me off. Talking to each one put a lump in my throat, especially when Tunnel Rat speaks to you. She is one character from Praetoria I really liked.
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Originally Posted by jwbullfrog
The final mission of the Warden storyline in Praetoria where all of the people you've saved (rescued, ect) are there to see you off and wish you well.
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Current active characters: Dragon Maiden (50+3 Brute SS/WP/PM), Black Widow Maiden (50+1 Night Widow), Catayclasmic Ariel (50 lvl Defender - Kin/DP), Quantumshock (50 lvl Elect/Energy/Energy), American's Defender (38 lvl Tanker - SD/Mace), Spider-Maiden (15 lvl Corruptor - RB/PD) & Siren Shrike (15 lvl Defender - Sonic/Sonic). My entire stable.
There is a tip mission (can't remember the name at the moment) where you need to rescue a hero that has been transformed into a DE monster...they fight, but beg you to put them out of their anguish. As they die, the last words are very heart wrenching.
�Many things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.�
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Yeah, that one was a HELL of a way to send me off the first time I did it. I'll agree with the others who find that helping Katie Douglass does offer a tender moment or two, just because she's written to be such a personable person, and seeing her right at the end is a very good sendoff. Seeing Tunnel Rat again is nice, too, especially how she's written. The whole time she acts like... The mole man from Atlantis, like this creepy old man, to be honest, but having her overcome her quirks right at the end and admit she's going to miss me was touching. I forget who else is there, but I wasn't disappointed, and I agree that it's just a single moment when these characters are temporarily taken out of the fight to act like genuine people for a change.|
Originally Posted by jwbullfrog
The final mission of the Warden storyline in Praetoria where all of the people you've saved (rescued, ect) are there to see you off and wish you well.
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It also paints a VERY stark contrast to leaving Praetoria as a Responsibility Loyalist. Then, there's almost no-one there to send you off, because your either killed or alienated most of your friends by the end. Compared to the hugs and kisses sendoff of a true Warden, the Responsibility send-off is downright soul-destroying. Even the Power Loyalists get a much warmer sendoff than that, and they're supposed to be the self-interested callous prats. Ouch!
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Originally Posted by jwbullfrog
Oddly enough, the very first arc in the new Atlas. You get to save Matthew AND his wife, and they seem happy about that.
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Honestly, if nothing else comes out of this thread, at least it's making me smile as I read through it, and that counts for a lot
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Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.
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The Power Loyalists going villain side get a better send-off than the Power Loyalists going hero-side.|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
It also paints a VERY stark contrast to leaving Praetoria as a Responsibility Loyalist. Then, there's almost no-one there to send you off, because your either killed or alienated most of your friends by the end. Compared to the hugs and kisses sendoff of a true Warden, the Responsibility send-off is downright soul-destroying. Even the Power Loyalists get a much warmer sendoff than that, and they're supposed to be the self-interested callous prats. Ouch!
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Going villain-side, I got to see all my friends from the Powers division and they say good-bye.
Hero-side... I only got to see the jerk, who I'd have been happier never seeing again. I had hoped I'd killed him.
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And, (in the future) Rescuing Katie AGAIN.|
Originally Posted by BrandX
Rescuing Katie.
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Cuz, if I don't get to, there will be hell to pay.
Yes, "gigity," I know how the title can read, but this is a serious question.
When I look back on the City of Heroes story, I see a lot of drama, and that's not just now. As far back 2004, we've had the Sky Raider story arc where we end up finding Wayne Evans dead, the one where the Freakshow nearly murder Kimberly Kellerman, the one where Mike Thorvald ends up dead in Oranbega and more. Even before the "Who Will Die?" line of storytelling, City of Heroes never really pulled any punches. For all the criticisms we've given the game's writing, the one thing I can't accuse it of is shying away from the heavy stuff.
But the more I think about it, the more I realise that a particular type of dramatic moment is strangely absent from this game, and often downplayed or summarised - the tender moment of love, affection or even just friendship and camaraderie. Think about it, and think about it long and hard: When was the last tender moment in the game that you can think of off-hand? Personally, I can think of three at all powerful ones, and if you don't want spoilers, skip the asterisk list below:
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*Captain Deitrich breaking down after Lt. Tendaji's death at Nemesis' hands. It's not JUST a tender moment, no, it's also a heavy one, but we see a hard woman finally crack and show some humanity. We see the affection she had for her colleague and friend, we see that there is a real person behind the façade. It's sad, yes, but it's also moving in a very big way, and the resolve Captain Deitrich leaves with is commendable. This is the the point where she stops being a character and becomes a real person. It's not a big plot point, but I personally find it quite moving
*Indigo reminiscing about Melvin Langley after his rescue, talking about how nice it is to meet someone who isn't trained to kill or turn into a monster or such. The entire time, Indigo holds up a demeanour of disconnected sarcasm and disconnected humour, almost as though the horrible work of a spy is fun. It's in that one moment of affectionate aside, however, that she finally reveals that she is human after all, and that her job really is that hard and that horrible. It's not even a big thing, noting about love or even friendship. This is just one woman forced into a tough job who shows a private, personal emotion. And honestly, I think it's very sweet.
*Pia Marino and Ghost Widow accepting their fates. Pia is perhaps one of the most believable characters in the game, going from disconnected worry, to anger and revenge, to acceptance and coping with her grief. When she finally realises the fate of her former friend and her brother, her training to not show emotion fails, and we see the person behind the red helmet, and it's a woman who has lost her family. And though it is a sad moment, it still shows the affection that Pia has for her brother even in the face of impossibility. "It all hurts too much, indeed." Ghost Widow, in turn, is proven to be an outright tragic figure, living an existence against her will, forced into her life as a servant of Arachnos, with only Wretch, the abomination who understands her pain. Like two wounded souls, they try to heal each other's minds as best they can "trapped in [their] strange half-lives." It shows affection, if desperate such, born out of adversity and damnation, and I personally find it to be quite pretty.
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And those are really the only three tender moments in the game that I can think of, at least those that are done with any sense of emotion. I remember all of these off-hand, even the quotes I provided, simply because I find their writing to be beautfiul, but it's strange to me that moments like these are so rare. The first is from I10, the second from I1 and the third from I6. We're looking at I22, and I honestly can't think of any more off memory, and that's... Disappointing, I suppose. We have so many instances of heavy, depressing drama, so many instances of shock deaths, torture, humiliation, destroyed lives and more, especially now with the SSAs, but I just don't recall seeing many tender moments to balance this out. The best we have, aside from the above three, is the literal acknowledgement of a good thing, but that's not quite the same thing.
And I'm not talking about turning the story into ToonTown, where happy happy joy joy happy happy joy is the order of the day, all day, every day. That's really not the point. But there can be tender moments within heavy drama. In fact, I'd go as far as to say there SHOULD be tender moments within heavy drama. Not only does that serve to bring some levity to the situation, but it also serves to make the drama that much more potent.
I've heard that Statesman blames his granddaughter for the death of his daughter - her mother. I get why this is done, but honestly... That would have been the perfect time to paint them both in a positive light and have them forget the petty squabbles that marred their Top Cow appearances. That would have been the moment, a moment of shared grief, where they should have consoled each other. It might have come off somewhat counter to the angst the SSAs are trying to convey, but they would have come off as more believable people, in the end.
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At the end of the day, I'm really not trying to bash any particular storyline or writing, not this time. I just... Miss those tender moments which leave such powerful impressions, at least in my memory. It just feels to me that a storyline which tortures its characters time and time again and never gives them the chance to have a tender moment with their loved ones, friends and families just comes off as depressing. I can deal with drama if I know it's going somewhere, but all drama all the time is very, very disheartening.