Y'know I as a fan hate that we don't get to see who died but also I understand it's a nice way to leave it up to interpretation...BUT VI BETTER BE ALIVE I SWEAR TO GOD
Also something something every act of violence within this show is mostly senseless apart from Kantje's. Sorta. Zombie's abusiveness towards his children, Mysti's killer being someone random, the detective's attack on Ivory, and there's probably more that I'm blanking on, are all senseless actions done for no reason other than to kill or hurt someone.
A lot like the rabbit within the mother's poem. It was killed by a hunter, but not a hunter that hunts for food. The farmer still had the rabbit's body to bury, and while yes, the rabbit would steal the farmer's crops, the farmer understood the rabbit only needed to eat. The farmer understood that the rabbit was doing it because it was scared and hungry.
While in the context of episode 10 the rabbit was there to represent Mysti, the same episode we learn that Mysti was killed by some random person is the same episode we hear the poem. However, in my eyes, I would like to argue the poem's symbolism and story still passes onto episode 11.
Episode 10 the hunter was meant to represent both the killer and Zombie, the killer who killed for no reason, and Zombie who abuses his children and workers for no reason but to get money. Along with that, the hunter also partly helped represent the systems that hurt middle and lower class workers. (You could also argue that Bormethius is represented by the hunter)
The farmer represented many different people in that episode, Zolister, who genuinely cared about Zombie's workers, Pyro, who lost Mysticat, and Ivory, who "replaced" Mysticat, who was blamed for her death because of very poor timing.
Now, in the context of episode 11, Kantje seems to almost represent everyone.
Kantje feels regret and sadness for the deaths of innocent people, the farmer. Kantje, killed for no reason but cash, the hunter. Kantje, though, killed because he was scared and hungry, the rabbit. While the rabbit never kills, it still harms the farmer's farm.
Kantje's actions were partly senseless, killing and harming many is not a way to get food on your plate, however, he was made to think that it was just going to start a fire in the kitchen. That everyone will be fine and safe, that they'll all just laugh about a strange kitchen fire a few days later and Kantje will have money again.
Of course, that's a silly thing to believe. Gas doesn't work like that, and the man that was paying him doesn't seem like a...great person.
But that's how it is. Animals are foolish creatures, the rabbit is not a greedy or gluttonous creature, but it does not understand what it means to keep some crops untouched or to gather the crops cleanly. The farmer's crops were torn, nibbled, and gone, they were to be eaten anyway, but the rabbit does not understand how they were supposed to be eaten.
Everyone dies anyway, but no one deserves a cruel death. Any death suffered by anyone in that manor would have been cruel, fire is not a nice way to go.
Kantje was wronged by the people he was working for, both by the Hemlockes and the man who forced him to kill. His actions were senseless, but he was a hungry, scared, poor man with nowhere to go.
Anyway, I love Whitepine, this was such a good series. I love how it wasn't scared to have queer characters as well as tell a story about classism. That's something we need more in minecraft spaces, I really want to see a story told through minecraft that isn't afraid of "uncomfortable" or "unconventional" topics and themes. Especially as the minecraft youtube space grows more and more homophobic and sexist as we continue to only support sexist and homophobic creators (and continue to spit sexist and homophobic ideas) I love to see a story about classism, queerness, and a story with a woman (and a trans woman at that) as the main character.
