I don’t know why I’m scared to post this since I don’t really send asks yk T-T Anyway, I’ve been looking through your blog regarding 14 days with you, and I gotta say, I agree with a lot of your takes! Like the post where you talk about Ren and his flaws.
I won’t lie I’m actually kinda relieved that someone else has similar thoughts that I do, because it’s kind of hard to find posts about this game that actually give nuanced discussions about it.
Especially as a person who previously used to like 14 days with you, (I’ve been following the game ever since Day 1 came out, so I’ve kinda been in the know about it-)
In your rant you ask what is Ren’s appeal, why enjoy him, why have headcanons, and you also state how ‘the creator has made this blank slate character that objectively isn’t that great’ And I don’t mean this as a call out the creator but: There actually is evidence to back up this claim.
A while ago when I followed the creator’s blog, an anon asked sai/the creator what she thinks makes Ren stand out against other yandere’s or what makes him special. To which sai responded something along the lines of: “Ren is essentially just the "classic possessive yandere"... There isn't much more to him other than that ghsjghs”
Honestly this response kind of confuses me, because on one hand Sai acknowledges and admits that Ren is a cliche stereotypical yandere, but also very much tries to make him not like other yanderes- (By mixing both together the end result is, a little convoluted)
Now to me, personally in my opinion I am the type of person who enjoys many different flavors of yandere’s, both on the dark and on the slightly softer side (that duality and range is really what draws me into the community, so in a sense I don’t really mind softer yandere’s aswell)
But when I think about Ren’s appeal, exactly who does he cater to? (I don’t want to sound mean when I say this.) But I feel as if Ren comes off as the type of yandere character that certain people like and cling onto, and use as an excuse to say stuff like: “Oh this yandere character is better than other yandere’s cause he respects consent and the player’s bodily autonomy!” I know that sounds harsh, but it makes a bit of sense (I mean shamefully so when I was new to the yandere trope I had that mindset until I changed)
I know because I have seen some (key word, some) people compare him to Sol or other extreme yanderes and say shit like: “Oh well at least Ren respects consent and doesn’t like abuse the mc!!” (To which I just want to facepalm, because..really guys? That’s the bare minimum I fear..acting as if he didn’t do other bad stuff)
Now I am not here to police other people’s interpretations of how yandere’s should be, every yandere is different because some creators have a limit on what they want to write. (Which I think that’s fine, setting boundaries for what you allow yourself to write is healthy.)
But my main issue with Ren’s character is how his creator portrays him as a sort of moral yandere because he doesn’t sexually assault the mc, he respects their consent, he wouldn’t force them to anything they don’t want! While at the same time confirming that it is canon that he murders people, wouldn’t have an issue with torturing them, and he would he totally fine with gaslighting and manipulating them. You see the problem?
This to me comes off as the creator kind of insinuating, “I draw the line at Ren physically abusing or physically assaulting the mc, but I can excuse the murder! He may be a manipulative, horrible person who does bad things and you’re not supposed to like him, but at the same time you kinda areee”
Now when I say this, I’m not trying to suggest the creator supports these things, I believe fiction should be a safe space to explore dark topics, I like a lot of characters who are deemed as bad or problematic, but that doesn’t mean I would want someone like that in real life (I feel like that’s just common sense)
Because of this, it does seem like the creator wants to explore darker themes with Ren since they dub 14dwy as a yandere visual novel, but at the same time they also seem hesitant I suppose to write darker aspects of Ren’s character because it’ll make them look like they’re ’romanticizing it’ (god I hate that word…) so they try to turn things around by making Ren supposedly respect consent because to them it’s like: “No guys, Ren may be a yandere, but he isn’t that type of yandere, he’s different!!” (Though when it comes to yandere’s, I feel like non-con or dub-con is essentially inevitable)
The issue I have with Ren is the creator tries to balance the line of delving into Ren’s darker and more twisted and toxic aspects while at the same time softening him despite him being a yandere.
I don’t know where I saw it, but I saw a dev one time being up this point in regards to yandere’s in the vn community, (now they weren’t referring to sai at all! they were just talking generally) But they said something along the lines of: “Their argument for it I think is usually something among the lines of "No no, their game is a horror game and they're not trying to romanticize it."
“All while they're creating attractive stalkers, whom you can date and have sex with in their game and whom often times get at least one "good ending."
“The moral panic is so so deeply ingrained in a good chunk of fandom culture, it geniunely baffles me a lot of the time.”
Which you know kinda proves the point of what I said above. If the developer really wants to develop Ren’s character, they should just let him be a bad person and let his toxic aspects shine through. If they want to give him softer traits and make him attractive, so be bit. If they want to make him more unhinged and psychotic as well so be it.
I don’t know why the dev is acting as if Ren is this better yandere because he doesn’t sexually assault, or drug, or beat up the mc unlike other yandere’s, because personally it just makes them look a little hypocritical. It comes off across as: “He may be a yandere, and he may kill and torture and gaslight the mc and other people, and he’s not actually a softie guys, don’t forget, he’s actually deranged. But he’s not like other yandere’s, he won’t mutilate his darling or physically harm them, but don’t forget he’s still manipulative!!”
“Also by the way did I mention you can have sex with him in Days 1-5!!”
Do you get what I mean? Like the dev tries to soften Ren, but also reminds the players he’s not actually soft, and he has dark layers underneath, while also proclaiming he loves the mc and wouldn’t hurt them. (Like please pick a side) Ren is just as bad as any other yandere, and it bothers me how the dev tries to act like he’s morally better than other yandere’s while also bringing out how he is still a bad person, so they don’t look like a hypocrite.
Like if they want to make him a yandere with dark traits while also making him watering him down and making soft or whatever, they should just own that he’s a dark character and not be afraid of it!! Instead of trying to twist things around with the whole: “Yes he’s a yandere and he does do bad things, but he’s not that type of stereotypical yandere!!”
Once again it just makes the creator look hypocritical, like this is the yandere vn community, of course there are going to be characters who represent dark and fucked up topics, insert so and so character isn’t morally better just because they do the bare minimum of asking for permission before having sex with the mc.
(Sorry if this ask is too long, and if I was a bit harsh, I just wanted to add further to some things you said. I might be missing some stuff but oh well…)
I’m so sorry I’ve missed this and a few other asks I have piling up I needed a little break ;; I started school and hazbin hotel started and just a whole lot of things 😞 please forgive me for having been dead for like the last two months. :,)
First of all, thank you so much for sending in an ask :). You don’t have to be afraid (or anyone for that matter) of coming in to my asks! I really appreciate it!! I agree with pretty much everything you said
This whole thing made me think of how people are afraid of sex. They are afraid of complex ideas and actually don’t understand sexual dynamics. I am deeply entrenched in the BDSM community. Sex to me has a different meaning to most because of that. Sex is more than just “can I fuck? Yeah I can fuck” and I bring this up for a reason I swear. I’ve been fighting for my life with hazbin because of this.
People do not know what sexual assault is. Plain and simple. And this is quite important when it comes to yandere as a lot of it deal with a character who’s idea of love is skewed to the point of bordering or just being insanity. A yandere does not know what a healthy relationship is. They are obsessed to the point of possession.
I know it might seem contrary to what I’ve been saying but I don’t mind a soft yandere. I have one of my own characters who I think would classify in that. But that doesn’t change that they’re still manipulative, possessive and will be forceful if it calls for that.
Ren is.. well he sucks. Like let’s just put it out there. He is not a character he is nothing. He’s a burger with no meat, no buns and no cheese. Just a salad. A bland one. He has no motivations (so far), he has no reason to like mc (so far) and he has nothing that makes him a character. No hobbies no interests no dislikes. Bro just is a vessel that exists.
To bring back BDSM, people are afraid to explore dark things like cnc or forceful acts of sec because it goes against what people have been taught is healthy and… “moral”. But what is moral sex? Why can’t you explore these themes of a character who’s so obsessed he’s willing to break boundaries? I found it so cringe as a person who actually has freaky sex when Ren is like “hey can I do this this and that?” When you’re having real adult sex, you aren’t always going to stop what you’re doing, ask if something is okay, and continue based on the answer. It breaks the momentum. Sex is a lot of times just based on vibes. Of course if something makes you uncomfortable, you can stop and say “hey not like that” and continue on. But also consider this! It’s a work of fiction and in fiction there are no bounds of what o can and can’t do. That’s the point of using it to explore. Because no one gets hurt.
Ren is a walking contradiction. He says he respects your boundaries but then he breaks into your home and takes pictures of you, nude included, and stalks you. Those are nonconsensual acts. He even jerks off to the pictures he got of you (WITHOUT YOIR CONSENT). It feels like a double standard of what’s okay and what isn’t. How come it’s okay for him to gaslight and manipulate but it’s not okay for him to sexually manipulate you?
He’s crazy but actually no he’s not he’s wholesome 🥹 it’s just… look you can have a yandere who’s sweet and nice but all yanderes have this one thing in common. They all break. They will get forceful of it calls for it. Ren is a pussy bitch wimp baby who could get his ass beat.
It is perfectly acceptable to not want to write certain things. I don’t like the sai forces herself to write sex. It seems like she’s uncomfortable with it (p sure she’s ace. Not that you can’t write sex and be ace but it seems like she doesn’t really engage in it or understand the dynamics as she doesn’t seem to engage with it. Which is fine) I don’t like when people force themselves to write or do something they are uncomfortable with. For two reasons, you shouldn’t have to sacrifice your comfort for others. That never ends well. But also, you cannot write a well thought out piece if you do not feel comfortable delving in to those topics. It will come out forced and juvenile. If you do not feel comfortable with the toxic part of yandere, you shouldn’t be writing it. And that’s my core complaint. When people say “soft yandere” it’s not a cute guy who’s nice on the surface and pampers you but if forced will drag you home and lock you in a cage. It’s “erm… pwease stay with me 🥺 it’s okay if you don’t I guess..” like cmon. That’s not a yandere. That’s a loser.
Depictions of what is considered “morally” wrong isn’t bad. You are not a bad person for enjoying noncon. You are not a bad person for “romanticizing” sexual abuse. Rape is a common fantasy, especially amongst women/afab people. The reason people hate it is because they cannot understand why someone would want that.
It’s because of the power dynamics. The enjoyment of giving up your autonomy to, in this case, Ren. To let him take control. Giving up your control makes you vulnerable and it can be scary to have another person or character be the one who takes that power. But that’s the thrill of it. Not knowing what will happen or writing a scenario where Ren is grabbing you harshly and tugging you home. Reprimanding you for going out so late when you know it’s dangerous and then he calms down and pulls the “I just worry about you..” bit. That’s the fantasy and it’s okay to have it. It’s okay to want to be forcefully thrown against a wall and forcefully kissed. That doesn’t making you a rapist for writing and enjoying it.
I kind of went on a tangent so I’ll probably make a post on why his personality sucks later and how he’s just so shit and lowkey it’s so bad it kind of made me pull away from the game for a while 😭 like for once it wasn’t because the fandom sucked but because of the source material.
Anyway I’m sorry I’ve been gone for so long ;; I need to come back and answer my asks and get that chapter one review over with it’s just so daunting aosjskso but I’m still working on it I prommy :333
