[Light Fingers Ending Spoilers]
One thing I really appreciate about the LF endgame is that there is no simple and direct, morally correct way to deal with Poor Edward for the player character. Every option is designed to have some aspect reflect poorly either on the pc themself or in the opinion their companions.
Shoot that man execution-style for his various heinous crimes? You do it while he's cowering and completely incapable of harming you even if he wants to, not even to save his own life. According to the text: "It is neither satisfying nor glamorous, but it's an ending." Feels bad, man, even if he deserves it.
Ask Clarabelle what to do, given that she has suffered most? Clara shoots him execution-style and says "I think most of all, I resent that he made killing him the only option." Maybe it was the only choice, but nobody feels validated--not even the woman who deserved revenge most.
Ask the Hybrid what to do? A more Misery child will eat Poor Edward alive, and while that is a banger of an ending, well. Could anyone present not feel even an ounce of pity? And isn't the pc to blame for raising the child as little more than a monster? The more human child will spare Poor Edward, making him fall in love with the Orphanage, but he will be separated from the original object of his desires until the first dose of moon milk wears off. This is, of course, forced imprisonment and isolation--and again, while earned, is justice (or revenge?) that you and three other people are enacting on purely personal terms. Similarly, the pc can perform the same action to make Poor Edward drink the moon milk and bind him to the Nightmare Orphanage. Merciful, perhaps, in the grand scheme of things, and indeed termed "a kind fate" by the text, but there is still an element of force.
And then, of course, what could be considered the peaceful--or, at least, nonviolent--ending. "If he truly loves you, he will accept that he cannot possess you. ...he must agree to remain on this side of the mirror. And you will bind him here... so there is no escape." The pc shamelessly creates a double-standard: Poor Edward may not possess them, but they will keep him as a prisoner to visit at their leisure. They do pose this as a question, asking if Poor Edward accepts these terms, but with the influence of the moon milk, it is difficult to say whether he was capable of refusing the offer. More humane, perhaps, than killing the man, but not free from scruple.
None of these is a straightforward ethical decision; no ending reflects a clear moral superiority. Endlessly delicious writing here.
