For a series where the slavery started off as kind of a joke, and moreover a series that's been largely aimed at children since its revival, I sincerely believed that actually whipping a character on-screen would be too grim for AvA. I never thought they'd go there.
Like I pondered the possibility that it'd happen, conceptually, to the character. But I never thought the show would actually depict it.
There are only so many contexts a whip can be relevant in; they have connotations. When the whip is turned against a person in distress, the atmosphere becomes blatantly cruel. There's no way to sugarcoat it, there's no blurry lines. Whips bring suffering. Their mere presence agitates, let alone the actual pain they inflict.
It's a level of dehumanization that's so much more easily and instantly identifiable as terrible than some other stuff that has been done in the series, or even to this character.
And it's especially deplorable that it was done to this character, given Chosen's history.
We don't actually know if he's been whipped in the past, he might not have been, but. Whether he was or not, the implications regarding power dynamic that are inherent in the presence of a whip are unmistakable. He understands, on some level, what is happening and what it means, even if his understanding doesn't approach from the same direction that Victim's does, or that the viewer's does. The scene pauses for him to react, after the whip is cracked. He sees significance in its presence.
There really aren't many ways to interpret a fearful person being mercilessly attacked with a whip. Especially if he's got a halter around his neck allowing his attacker to control his ability to distance himself from the harassment, which carries its own implications.
I see merit in the idea that Victim was trying to tame Chosen like a wild beast, and I'm willing to believe that that's the understanding which Chosen or Victim or both have of the situation. But as a viewer I cannot completely separate what's happening on-screen from the banal idea of a slave being punished. Horrific, contemptible, violating, disparaging, unjust, inhumane abuse.
And it's happening to Chosen, who already threw off the shackles of his own slavery years ago. And it's happening under the hands of Victim, emulating the actions of his own abuser...who happens to have been Chosen's abuser as well.
We only saw the beginning and the end of Chosen's enslavement; we don't know what all he suffered while oppressed by the animator. We don't know what Victim knows, of what Chosen has suffered.
Tools have never been used to restrain a character by the neck before, in this series. Strangulation is always done by hand, to win a fight, never to prevent them from leaving it.
Whips haven't appeared at all before now, in this series, much less been used against the characters. And then, of all the characters they could've picked, they pick the one with a history of slavery, a concept that shares a heavy correlation with whips.
It's messed up. It's so much more messed up than I thought the series would be willing to go.
can we talk about the irony of Victim wanting to get to Alan and completely brushing off the one stick who probably has the most to offer him in that regard?
dude did not give Orange's existence the time of day for the entire episode. Even finding out he had powers they hadn't known about, he just didn't have time for that right now
makes me wonder what he thinks Chosen has that Orange doesn't, in regards to the animator
I'm finally watching the episode! These are my stream-of-consciousness thoughts through my initial viewing. This isn't thought-out refined analysis, these are just the thoughts as I have them the moment they appear in my head.
They're getting better at the 3d running/walking animation.
Green being the one to notice details, like in The Village.
Civilization!
Green only drew one but then he just has three more? Cartoon magic or stickfigure magic? Or just saving time on a meta level.
This looks like a nice little toh that's a white-filled head, they're ALL white-filled heads (all look like freehanded circles though)
For a given value of "white," I guess, but they're all very light colors. And they all have head accessories. Interesting...
Okay it's kinda funny that nobody would talk to them and the truck is right there. Did they think the color quartet were giving handouts or something? None of them stopped to listen long enough XD
Ooh, so these are some kind of simulation chambers? Looks like they've simulated a desktop art program.
Hmm, so Orange's ability to just have whatever he wants manifest into existence with the stroke of a pencil is unique to him; these guys try the same motions and all they get are regular lines. (Also if Orange can do all that outside then why are they doing these experiments in the simulation chamber? Is it just for safety or can they not do it outside? Shady could use his toolbar outside just fine...)
Orange's drawings were alive, almost from the first line it seems. Before they even took their shape. These ones aren't.
I don't like how coldly they're treating my boy :(
you.
and then they don't even interact?? okay, so...Victim is pretty single-mindedly focused on whatever is about to happen with Chosen, and whatever it is doesn't involve Orange so Orange is irrelevant to him rn. Why bind him then? Where's he going? :(
he went in. by himself. I'm...not sure how to feel about that. surprised? it's not like the thing had a door. though looking at that control-display, it does look like there's something within the chamber itself that's also containing Chosen. Or is that just the bounding box? I think it's a bounding box actually. So this is also a simulation chamber. (this is giving me all sorts of questions about how the artboard recognizes the toolbar icons as graphics while the tools still retain their functions as tools and I'm gonna stop before I spiral)
oh, it did have a door
WAITAMINUTE why is Victim's bounding box 2d and Chosen's 3d???
...oh. so...Chosen's fire registers as a separate graphic from him, then. good to know??
wait what the- just altering the visual is enough to affect his ability in producing that power??
why did we just cut to the hunter sharpening their spear? don't like that. not while you're stealing all my boy's natural defenses.
that one lingering second after Chosen's lasers die out but before he turns around to face Victim is haunting. Bro's been trapped and depowered again.
Okay nitpick but Victim's head isn't changing shape every frame and it's driving me up the wall. Did he have some work done between the last installment and this one?
I can't tell if I'm supposed to laugh or not at Chosen just standing there and tanking all of Victim's hits, and honestly I like that I can't tell, the dissonance is fun. But putting that aside...Chosen just let the dude have at him like it was no big deal. He didn't actually fight back until he decided he'd had enough. I suppose he could've just been confused about why this guy was attacking him...but he doesn't even block or dodge. He doesn't defend himself, his hands aren't even up, he's not even really in a fighting stance, and it takes him a bit to even retaliate. Even after the first one, his body language is just "bruh why." Which. Is an interesting attitude to have when he's trapped and depowered and being punched by a stranger.
Chosen finally counters, and it cuts to the control panel outside, looks like they're about to raise some setting. I've gotta take a break for a meeting, here's my thought: Victim never left the art program, in AvA1. In a very literal sense, he spent his whole life in it. It's where he found all the things that enabled him to fight back. In a weird way, it makes sense that this is where he's powerful, that this is where he's comfortable fighting. (and I know my personal headcanons are about to get blown outta the water but I'm really glad that I was on the right track in regard to this idea. though something I hadn't ever imagined was that he'd rely on other people to supply those advantages instead of obtaining them himself)
Meeting over, back to the episode! (I wonder if the title of this episode refers to the white chamber Chosen is in or the actual bounding box. Given that the mere appearance of a bounding box in Wanted was enough for many of us to clue in to Victim's involvement, even before he appeared in-person at the end of the episode, I'm leaning that direction. Amazing that it only happened once in the series before Wanted and it was already enough of a legacy to make him recognizable. I'm now realizing that in AvA2 the first thing Chosen did even before attacking the cursor was destroy the bounding box. Also realizing that the bounding boxes in this chamber aren't visible, unlike in the test-chambers in the previous scenes.)
interesting...each of Vicitm's limbs are separate graphics with their own bounding boxes, which is how they looked in the Bloop animation course that Alan made, but it isn't how he was in AvA1. Though he was recognized as a single graphic just a few scenes ago, so that might not mean anything.
why, stop, dude we get it you're strong now you've proved your point stop beating him up-
oh good Chosen's still got his own strength, he's fighting ba- what- okay what, can't take what you dish out??
Ooh, I don't think we've seen Chosen actually throw fire like that (instead of just blasting and halting blasts) since the early episodes.
okay, nice to know that Victim actually can dodge on his own
...don't like how little time it took Chosen to start feeling exhaustion...
...don't like how much trepidation the lasso is giving me. that feels like one of the crueler things to use against Chosen; not because we've seen it used against him before (only Victim and Orange have used it themselves, and only Victim has had it used against him, and good grief Orange and Chosen still don't know how Victim is connected to Alan-) but just because...I really don't want him bound and leashed again, he's been through enough of that. still, I had predicted that we'd see him using the lasso at some point in AvA6. I'm not happy I was right. (man, back before we knew Victim would make a proper return to the series I used to love the idea of him using it again. it's like the clearest example of him outwitting the animator and taking his tools for his own use.)
NOT THE NECK- they've never gone there, I don't like this-
oh what they actually- I was not expecting that. whips haven't appeared in the series before. oh I really don't like this.
God he's crawling back- why-
I had to pause. either the group outside just did something with the controls that Victim wasn't anticipating, or...Chosen felt threatened enough to turn his powers on himself and encase himself in ice as a defense. fuck. someone get him out of there. no flight, can't fight, man was pushed far enough he literally resorted to freeze. The Chosen One. I don't think that's ever happened before.
Fuck, that's just too much, I can't even bring myself to feel excited about seeing the duplicates again. though it is good to know that my headcanon about him needing to be in an art program in order to duplicate himself ended up being accurate. we'll see if my headcanon about it being one Victim with five bodies (as opposed to being five Victims) holds up. if they even have a way to show any difference.
[sighs, pulls AvA1 up in another tab] yep, they're all there. lasso, hammer, extended thumbtack (though it doesn't look like a thumbtack here, which is interesting), whatever that chain-accordion thing is, and the ninja star. why are you doing this? man literally froze himself immobile to get you to stop torturing him, just leave him be.
...haHAHAHA! Oh that felt good, that made me smile. Hopefully this means Chosen has recuperated a bit.
the animation of Victim on fire was so nice I completely missed Chosen breaking the ice XD going back to catch that made me realize that the other Victim duplicates literally just...stood and watched the one burning...
don't let yourself get backed into a corner-
OH he escaped the hold, nice-
I didn't realize until the lasso came back that he'd gotten rid of it when he broke the ice :( but before that he actually uses his fire-breath again, which is always nice to see. interesting to see it concentrated in a thin stream instead of just roaring out like usual.
oh yikes why- him on fire-
...don't do it, man...
OH HE OWNED THAT, LET'S GO!!! Great thinking, Chosen! (heh, nothing about this situation remotely resembles that time Chosen grabbed the cursor and forced it to click him free, but I was reminded of it nonetheless. something about the tool being turned against the user, but in such a different way than Victim does it.)
OH HE- ...oh...I was gonna say oh he learned, he adapted enough that he predicted them flipping his fire and he used that- but then they just nullified it immediately...
Victim don't snap the rope like that, we don't need any more implications we already know you're planning to put him in a world of hurt, why can't you just leave him alone now, what are you trying to prove
hh, back to Orange I guess...
MATH SPOTTED, MATH SPOTTED-
oh! they're bringing him to the- okay that makes sense, if it only works when he does it then obviously the next step to figuring it out is gonna involve him.
wait was he- could he not move when the bounding box was picked up?? (also neat that he immediately got worried once he realized he's in a bounding box, dunno if that's because of what happened in the last episode or if it's just because...he spends a lot of time in an art program so he'd naturally be familiar with what they can do and what it means to be inside one)
...well, nice that they at least get his attention before picking him up
oh now you're being friendly, sure. yeah Orange ain't having it.
okay, [picks up pencil] [instant notetaking] was funny XD
aaw, it's swimming around him
oh it knows what the eraser means
...wait it wasn't an electric eel in the last episode-
hexagons- and the power flickered
okay Orange stumbling around trying to stay out of its way makes it clear that he isn't controlling this thing once he's finished drawing it, it's acting on its own. it...it really feels distressed.
hah, they're all cowering. losers.
oh, back to this.
...did you have to make it so personal, Victim?
a chair
...okay not sure why that happened, could Chosen not just...lean forward? I rewound to watch it again and realized he's exhausted again after the slow-mo ends (is that from the slow-mo itself or just his exertion from the fight before the slow-mo?) and he...doesn't even struggle when Victim lifts him by hand with a lasso to the neck. is...is he just ragdolling now? is he at the point where that's his best option for minimizing conflict?
...he is. he's ragdolling. fuck. (damn you cc!Alan for introducing ragdolling in a comedic short-)
...no? no what?? no, he doesn't know anything about the animator? (which we know isn't true, but why would he deny that?) or no, he isn't going to answer?
don't tie him up, please...
oh now he starts struggling?
...back to ragdolling. good grief, the way they animate his legs just swinging even though they can still touch the floor...
...heh, I appreciate his spirit, especially at this point, but...Chosen you kinda just put yourself in a worse position.
...oh, what is that? I don't think we've seen anything like that before. It's got the floppy disk that's used as the "save" icon in many applications, but it looks kinda like a headset.
...a VR headset specifically, I guess.
OH WHAT- okay rad animation, but WHAT
...oh fuck, I've always wondered if there was a way to see the data that would be a stick's memory. FUCK what are they gonna use this for
wait they're bring Orange here?! Or are they just passing on their way back to the cell? but why are they going back to the cell, was the eel too much for them??
...wait, what? signal lost, I assume because Chosen dislodged it enough to disconnect, and then...instead of picking up where it left off it jumps all the way back to Showdown?? was...was Showdown just on Chosen's mind? or is this the memory of him recalling it right before flying to alanspc to entreat Orange's aid? ...or...are memories from beyond the sky-barrier not compatible? that doesn't make sense...
what's with everyone's reactions to Second's powers?
...I forgot Orange's cell is in here. whoops.
oh this is how he finds out??
hands first ("I did that??") and then his eyes ("Chosen was right??")
...and of course. I expected they'd lock him down with extra security as soon as they realized, but. poor guy.
(dammit I purposefully refrained from making a "dark mode" joke, you didn't have to go and put it on the damn control screen)
...and even after that (which, judging by Victim's reaction, even he hadn't known about Second's powers), the animator is still Victim's priority.
oh, this isn't just any clip of the cursor's involvement in Showdown, this is specifically while Yellow was rendering the cursor in.
and then they immediately pan to Yellow which means that observation is actually gonna be relevant, FUCK-
OH FUCK THE WANTED POSTERS
("earnings growth," so they actually do have a business element to them)
aaand the security cameras caught them peeking out of the truck, they literally just started printing the posters and they've already located Yellow-
that fight is mesmerizing. we haven't seen one like this before, as far as direction and setting. plus it's really interesting to see how the four respond. I might look deeper into that later. also that was a cool transition.
and Yellow is dragged off. The story has never had one of the quartet singled out in-universe by the plot like this before. they aren't even apprehending the others.
...of all the sticks to have a lighter, I never thought it would be Victim.
to be continued. good grief.
I have to eat before work so I'll think on all this and say more later.
