ห . ๊ท ๐ชผ . ๐ฆนหโ Today I bring a theory that I will call this "Power and sacrifice", in reference to Jester and Columbina, it is a theory that I have been thinking about quite a bit since the 2nd and I tried to close the biggest plot holes of The freak circus lore with these.
ใ โฆ ๐ช๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด - If you are unfamiliar with the game "The Freak Circus" or haven't yet played Day 2, I suggest you don't read this theory because it may contain spoilers and easter eggs. โฆ ใ
With the warnings already given, it is at your discretion whether to read this.
My theory is based on the fact that Jester controlled Harlequin and was one of the potential causes of Columbina's death.
(I want to clarify beforehand that I'm not saying Jester is evil in this theory, as I consider him a morally ambiguous character or I am doing this because I hate him or sm like that.)
We know from day one, it is made very clear to us that none of them had any alternatives to continue living, they were starving to death and Columbina was the "savior" with her death.
I'd actually like to talk beforehand about Jester's abilities, which is mind control.
We've seen that he has a great range and potential, controlling not just one, but multiple humans at once. How does that give us any assurance that it doesn't affect monsters as well? And before anyone says, "Oh, he wouldn't be capable of doing that to his own family!" let's remember that Columbina was his family too and he ated her too.
Now, going with Columbina, in the blue tent we encounter her spirit who wants to tell us her story (perhaps even to warn us of the danger indirectly).
She shows us her perspective of that night, making it clear that she was terrified because they were going to let her live, but definitely not out of affection or pity; they were going to use her in ways that terrified her.
She even asks Harlequin if he would save her, which makes things peculiar because Harlequin sounds confused. Why?
But coincidentally, before that scene, Jester talks about "feeding" Harlequin, which makes no sense. What was he going to feed him if they had no food? Remember, they were starving.
Things get even stranger because it strikes me that Harlequin talks about her being weak, but the conversation doesn't make sense, since everyone was talking about hunger, and then Harlequin's attitude suddenly changes abruptly.
But I'm going to point out Harlequin's statement that "she's the weakest of them all" which really caught my attention because of the contradiction in his not actually caring about the strength or weakness of others (otherwise, he will respect Pierrot more, to be honest).
The only one who truly cares about how weak or strong someone is is Jester himself, who even sees humans as inferior to them but shouldn't be underestimated simply because they are the majority.
But he sees humans as weak (referring to one of Neko's comics), and unlike Harlequin, he's very aware that he's no match for Pierrot and less Harlequin (but Harlequin does not care).
This makes me think that, besides checking that Pierrot was still alive, he also made sure that Pierrot was unable to intervene. Since we've seen that Pierrot makes it clear many times that he would be perfectly capable of stepping in to defend those he cares about, and he was the last to eat.
In addition, I was struck by the scene where Harlequin seems to awaken to his senses and cry (it's a very quick flash and it was too difficult to take the picture)
Then he laughed nervously, not as if he'd enjoyed it, but as if he were just now realizing what he'd just done.
How is that possible? He sounded so sure before of what he was going to do.
And something I decided to do with some help from my good friend. We compared the colors (yes, colors are very important to me; sometimes they can even give clues).
What caught my attention was the color palette; it could be a simple coloring detail. But coincidentally, they're similar to the color palettes of Columbine and Jester.
Then, we recall, Jester apologizes to Harlequin.
But if he wasn't at fault, why would he apologize?
At which point Columbina interrupts, saying that Jester didn't really feel guilty.
And Columbina mentions that everyone has created a shield commemorating that day.
To which:
โข Pierrot blames Harlequin for all of this.
โข Harlequin says that it was a sacrifice.
โข Jester, in the other hand, mocks Pierrot and Harlequin in his "tragic love story" blaming Harlequin for all of this.
Even in the act, Jester's mind control is more noticeable, when we move on to the scene where the "poison" is mentioned and make more noticeable like he is pulling a string.
also...
Columbina mentions that she is afraid of what is inside Harlequin, as if there were something cursed about him that shouldn't be there, as if she could see that Harlequin was not the same.
And here I'm going to highlight two of the quick flashes that caught my attention.
And it is here that it seems Jester is offering her as food for others.
As well as Harlequin, which catches my attention because he always appears biting her and tearing off her arm, and you might wonder why I want to point this out.
Combining a little bit here, the easter egg.
Jester is coincidentally eating from the same side where his arm, got torn off.
Finally, this got me thinking, where it's mentioned in Columbina's easteregg, that she must have heard someone, coincidentally showing Jester's eyes.
(We are not the same. You and I. I didn't want to. But our fate was cursed. I should have listened to him. It was my fault.)
We know that Jester controls everything, but what if Columbina refused to obey him when he gave her an order? And that this is what unleashed her fate.
I don't think Jester are the kind of people who appreciate disobedience.
And that her disobedience was seen as a betrayal towards him.
Again, let me clarify that I'm not saying Jester is a villain (so please Jester fan, don't come for my ass). They were in a critical situation, and Columbina probably wasn't doing much to improve it, which led to extreme measures.
She was going to live (not well), and they were going to die.
There weren't many options for survival. It was a critical "eat or rot" situation.
๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น๏น
If you think something is missing from my theory or I haven't made something clear, feel free to question me o((>ฯ< ))o
I hope you like this theory; I'll be releasing another theory about Columbine soon.
โหเฟ ๐ง๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ, ๐บ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐ ๐๐หโ ๐ฆโนโก
I had some inconsistencies in my head, and this theory answered many questions. It's really interesting to see what kind of plot twist awaits us in the end.
Actually, for me, art with The Freak Circus is my first experience with y/n characters. And I don't even know, it feels so strange to just draw a gray figure, so in the sketch I allowed myself this liberty :D
Maybe leave it like this?...๐ซฃ
And again, for the umpteenth time, I think: "Hmm, should I draw the Jester or Columbina, or maybe the Doctor or Pierrot?"... But I still end up drawing him... I can't get into the rhythm to draw anyone else :p
(yes you read that right, I am in fact doing this)
Harleyquinn -
Harleyquinnโs coping mechanisms are deeply rooted in survivors' guilt and self-hatred. From what we see in the Columbina mirror in Ticket Takerโs tent - which for the sake of this essay I am gonna assume to be the truest version of the story, due to (what we assume to be) Columbinaโs spirit herself telling us this story - the circus cast one by one were captured/surrendered themselves to the human captors in the past.
Columbina being the first to be captured and prepared for โshippingโ. Harleyquinn seems to be the centre of this story, him being the perpetrator of Columbinaโs death and all that.ย
But we overlook some parts of this story before that final decision. Before that, we see each of the cast get captured one by one, Columbina being the first, then Pierrot (those two are up for debate, whether Pierrot was first or not, for now we will assume Columbina was) ,Jester, and so onโฆ Jester first says after Pierrot gets captured โMaybe heโll be the first to fall. And then one by one weโll wither away in this pit Harleyquinnโ (in the scene Harleyquinnโs letters - specifically A,Q,R,L,E - are jumbled because of Jester saying his real, now forgotten, name from back then) once Jester decides to surrender to be there for Pierrot, Harleyquinn responds with โ...Wait.โ. Then Columbina asks Harleyquinn โWill you save me?โ to which the response is โSaveโฆ?โ
With those two short sentences we can figure out that he in that moment was scared and confused, not knowing what to do in their desperate situation and not having control of it. That last part will be important so remember it.
Once โthe moonless nightโ comes that was talked about in Harleyquinn's puppet show, every one of the cast comments on their desperate situation, saying they are hungry, afraid and Pierrot assumingly close to death by the words Jester says - โI canโt move. Is Pierrot still alive?โ (the words were once again jumbled due to them calling each other by their dead names). Harleyquinn in that moment has an idea, a sad but desperate idea. He breaks his cage with his last remaining strength, kills Columbina and says to the others that they should eat her.
For a first time player, they might assume that Harleyquinn is the villain in this, that he shouldnโt have done that and that he is a monster in both senses of the word. But letโs decipher this nowโฆ Yes, what he did was cruel and unforgivable. But it was an unfair situation. If Columbina wasnโt killed, she would have experienced a fate worse than death, being used for her body and tortured by the humans. If Harleyquinn hadnโt broken his cage and said to everyone to eat her, they all would have starved and would have died there. Making Columbina have to witness it all, and losing all that remained of her family and her last remaining hope/chance for protection. Harleyquinn, unlike what players think, did not enjoy this. No one would enjoy having to kill a friend, who he had actually had real romantic feelings for, if Jesterโs show is to be believed.
Once we see Harleyquinn rip her apart and kill her:
He is visualised to be crying with a smile. He might have gotten into a manic episode after what he did, repressing his feelings and trying to justify them in that moment.
This is a stark contrast to the visuals we see in Jesterโs tent:
In this we see everyone else crying except Harleyquinn. Which may hint at the fact that everyone else saw him as a villain and still havenโt forgiven him for what he did.
After that Harleyquinn tried repressing his emotions as a coping mechanism. Making sure he was wearing a mask (a metaphorical one) 24/7, so he can have control of everyoneโs emotions, for them to be predictable, for them to be expected, to have control. After everyone blamed him for Columbinaโs death he started, instead of feeding himself with positive emotions, to feed himself with only negative ones. He started yearning for everyone to hate him because that is a feeling that he has gotten used to, one he believes is best for him, blaming himself also for what he did, having a kind of survivorsโ guilt for what happened on that day.
Nowโฆ I am gonna get into detail about a scene most players find very much uncomfortable. It is the scene where, after following Harleyquinn, he attempts to SA (Sexually Assault) the MC. My personal opinions of this scene can be found on my doodle post but for now I will be purely looking at this scene from a character analysis point of view.
Before we get into this I just want to give a quick disclaimer: Please, do not romanticise this kind of behaviour. SA is a serious matter and not a thing to joke at.
In Day 2 we notice Harleyquinn getting more comfortable, warmer, even, towards MC. Both Harleyquinn and Pierrot in the new update associate MCโs traits to Columbina, still not over her death after all this time and clinging to anything that may remind them of her, even if they do it unconsciously. Pierrotโs trait being her kindness that he associates with MC and Harleyquinnโs being her avoidance of him - again told in Jesterโs show. If we follow the route of not eating any food in the circus on the first day and accepting Pierrotโs wish for MC to come back tomorrow, we get a scene with Harleyquinn the next day.ย
His dialogue towards MC shows how he might have felt every time Columbina was not reciprocating his feelings, as well as that self-hatred of his that thinks he is not deserving and will never get love from another person, only expecting aversion as well as avoidance.
As we see in his dialogue, he is reminded of his time with Columbina when he is talking to MC. Not able to look at the MC without associating his unrequited love, his heart hurting and aching for something positive, for something that is not hate, yet not being able to admit it consciously.ย
Once the player chooses the option to follow him, after he insinuates wanting to have some โintimateโ time with them, yet not telling them directly, he pulls the MC into a tent and pins them to a table.ย
Now I shall explain the following statement with the โID, Ego and Superegoโ theory by Sigmund Freud (I can never escape from him) Simply put: The ID is our wants, the Ego is our rationality and the Superego is our Morals. Itโs a gross simplification but if you want to learn more you can always watch a quick analysis of the theory on YT. Anyway letโs continueโฆ
Harleyquinn in that moment wants to show vulnerability. His ID and Superego unconsciously try to surface but his Ego keeps them at bay, trying not to repeat events of the past but yearning for a way to change history somehow. Every time Harleyquinn is near MC he is contradicting himself - he wants to be accepted yet pushes them away, he wants them to avoid him yet he keeps coming back to them. When he shows parts of his monster form in the tent, telling MC that, that is truly him and yearning for them to acknowledge him, he does it in the dark, where they can only feel and see very little parts of him. He does not want them to see all of him because that would mean getting out of his comfort zone and feeling vulnerable. He needs to have control of the situation. Even if MC shows that they do not consent to this, by picking the option to hit him, he rationalises it by saying to them that they wanted this, they chose to follow him and that he is justified in his actions of passion, in his own very twisted way of avoiding his rationale and emotions.
This is all from my analysis but I want to mention two things:
Harleyquinn, I also want to add, ever since he ate Columbina, has been associating love with hunger.ย
Mentioning devouring the MC as a form of romantic connection. He, in the same way as Pierrot, has formed a twisted way of love due to the traumatic experience that was Columbinaโs death and cannot help but associate his constant hunger for lust or the other way around - his love for starvation.
He has also grown disdain from any acts of genuine affection - once again due to his belief that he does not deserve any positivity and/or is a reaction that shows his vulnerability because it is an unexpected reaction that he cannot control. and from what we have analysed, we know that he does not like not having control of situations.
His reaction to hugging him:
His reaction to holding his hand:
His coping mechanism for this is of course, grossly flirtatious remarks, which he knows the outcome of, which assures his comfort zone.
Thank you all for reading this essay! I honestly have so much more to say but I am just so fatigued from deciphering this man and writing likeโฆ 12 google doc pages of this. I may do more for the other circus characters! Itโs honestly a fun thing to do since it helps more in the writing of my second chapter of my TFC witch fic since I can write the characters better haha!
Have a pleasant day, reader! <3
You all know I just had to draw Quinn being hugged by my sona haha
I was thinking about Columbina's words when we try to give our character her name. (We are not the same. You and I. I didn't want to. But our fate was cursed. I should have listened to him. It was my fault.)
Columbina definitely disobeyed the Jester in some way, and she says she is guilty of something. The question is โ of what?
I have these thoughts, very far-fetched and out of nowhere, of course, but why not? What if Columbina fell in love with a human โ meaning she wasn't in love with Pierrot or Harlequin, but specifically with a human. And she brought him to them (to the monsters). But the human took advantage of her feelings, actually feeling nothing for her. In the end, this human brought other people, and what happened next is told in Harlequin's story.
So my idea is that Columbina didn't heed the Jester's warnings about humans.
What do you think about it?
Yes, I realize it was just a blind guess...๐ฅน๐คง
I want to add to the post with this wonderful insight โ I think it sounds more logical this way๐๐ป
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