So, I really like Morganth as a character. But for the people who love her, I need you to explain why she takes up all the real-estate in your brain?
Reasons Morganthe takes up all the real estate in my brain:
The slow narrative burn of how Arc 2 revealed her backstory on how she became shadow queen. The sudden influx of reveals of what Happened while the player character is so clearly set on not doing anything else other than fighting her and beating her for good despite being show multiple avenues other than that is... its some of the best tragedy written in the game, to me personally at least.
Honestly just extending from the above, but the general character foil between The Wizard and Morganthe's lives has always been fascinating to me; both apprentices under Merle Ambrose, both having studied at Ravenwood, though having vastly different outcomes with one being Idolized and the other more Demonized, but both basically being used as pawns for causes so much larger than them as individuals. Spider also calls us the CHILDREN of Light & Shadow, as to say the both of them were always a part of the "Grand Prophecy", and not that one or the other should or should not have been the 'chosen one'. It was all just a misreading of the reality of what the Prophecy was- Spider's escape plan. They both were always just pawns.
The part in the game where the Arachna literally say they Groomed her to be a weapon of mass destruction. And like, I have no idea if this was intentional by the writers at the time, but to me the language used to describe her experience, especially within Khrysalis, is so applicable to certain kinds of abuse that i'm so curious if the writers at the time wanted to talk about that subject, but used allegory so younger audiences could engage with it more directly. Honestly there's so much allegory throughout Morganthe's life- being at all divergent in an educational setting and instead of receiving proper support, you're penalized for when you try to handle things by yourself, the general sense of not having an identity, a home, being outlasted or abandoned. (And, in light of the mr. beast silliness, i think trying to talk about heavy things that do happen to children/teens (like abuse) are absolutely the level of maturity that Wizard can and should focus on).
Additionally there are some very fun parallels between Spider and Morganthe that I quite enjoy Pondering, specifically themes of abandonment and being literally/figuratively trapped. Again, cycles of harm, abuse, etc. Abolute Crime this was no expanded upon in Arc 3.
She's the girl failure of all time. I love that she loves magic but it seems to constantly reject her, but she's so determined to find herself within a world that feels like it wasn't designed for her. Which like, the Spiral was in part created to (try) and eliminate shadow magic from the first world.
Ontop of that, I love that she is ANGRY!! Even before being turned into the shadow queen, you see this progression of her emotions, at first 'submitting' to malory and not challenging his plan despite her saying she doesn't want to go through with it, then actively questioning Merle's stiff stances on uses of magic before her banishment (not saying she wasn't in some wrong for experimenting with it herself, of course, but the point is she's thinking more for herself her than just doing what someone else is telling her to), then in her third memory, she's so pissed and explosive over not being able to control astral magic, and more openly tries to defy the arachna before they decide she's worth keeping alive. I love when female characters are complicated and messy because yea she SHOULD be with all this stuff going on, i love how dimensional she is.
Telling Malory she couldn't live on without him if his plan to overthrow King Art went awry (a plan she was already reluctant about in the first place). Guessss whooo diessssss
Begging Merle not to take her magic (deck/wand) while banishing her, also stating that "I can't live without my magic". Like her brother, that is also taken from her. wonder what the writers could have possibly implied about her mental state by using that kind of dialogue twice within one quest line of each other. such a mysteryyyyy
DO NOT!! Get me started on her 4 versions of herself in the shadow palace and how 3 of them match the colors of her memories. Thats such a can of worms i cant go into it on the stop right this second but wowowowowowoWOW makes my brain explode. Lowkey plural/system rep. TO ME....
"Her laugh could melt a winter's heart" okayyyyyy Sir Maloryyyyy break my heart why don youuu
"you, child, are the brightest star I've ever meant" OKAYYYY MERLLEEE!!! BREAK! MY! HEART! WHY! DONT YOU!!!
She;s a lesbian (to me) and i love her.
This was a bit of a word vomit of things that were coming to mind and honestly there's probably more things i could list, but yeaj. Love that spider lady. Think she's Neat. Also love the characters surrounding her story, like Taylor Colridge from Khr pt 2 is still one of my fave characters in w101 point blank because he was also taken in by the arachna and tested/experimented with, and was so wildly used, which imo lends to the theory that the prophecy was just a big ploy for Spider to get out that ended up working out. . UGH!!! Character of all time....
