real talk tho the fact that edelgard literally thinks fodlan is the entire world is bonkers lmao
like no joke she refers to fodlan as “the world” in both games (more than once in houses) and treats what happens in fodlan like the events of the entire world
imagine being so narrow minded that you won’t even deign to acknowledge anywhere outside of fodlan but then get mad at BaD dragon lady for having a lot of precautions in place regarding fodlan
Something I hadn’t really thought about in much depth before prior to seeing this post on Twitter from a JP fan.
It’s a really good way to see things from Dimitri’s perspective. Once the war was over and things were stable, he put his weapons and armor down and interacted with his people like a normal person. It’s a huge contrast to the other endings where they don’t do that.
Granted, I don’t blame Claude for retaining that image from the war. Coming from Almyra, they value strength and results. It makes sense for him to keep that image going and keep up a strong appearance, but I also feel like after how he grew up that he wouldn’t feel safe without that image and also the layer of safety that armor/war clothing would provide.
Even then though I think it says a lot about their different mentalities; how Claude feels the need to keep up this strong appearance to be respected and to feel safe, but how Dimitri doesn’t care about how he looks to others and doesn’t mind being perceived as weak, etc (and because he knows he’s not, there’s no real need to keep up that kind of image in Fodlan the way it’s more necessary for Claude in Almyra).
Having non-war clothing in his ending too makes Dimitri come across as more approachable. Even if Claude isn’t distant and cold, having that image of authority and power still put a wall between him and commonfolk and makes him less approachable. It’s ironic in the sense of their academy days, how Claude was the approachable and carefree one and Dimitri came across to people as less relaxed and easy to talk to.
Obviously in Edelgard’s case she has to keep up that image of herself because if she looked weak after conquering, plenty of people would act on that (Matthias go brrrrr and not just because he lives in the northernmost reaches of Faerghus). Now that she’s started a war and conquered, she can’t really ever be approachable and at ease in front of the commonfolk or anyone who isn’t part of her inner circle. After all that, there’s no going back and she has to maintain that appearance.
In comparison, Claude has to keep a bit of a barrier between himself and others if he wants to achieve particular changes. He can’t suggest such large reforms for Almyra or its relationship with Fodlan unless he gives off the impression that he’s capable of managing such large changes. It’s not an aggressive or violent show of authority, but he needs to have a strong show of authority to be respected and followed in Almyra. And again, it wouldn’t be as necessary in Fodlan, but he would probably still prefer to look the part to feel safe.
Dimitri doesn’t really need armor to protect himself because of his physical strength, which helps him a lot in dropping any intimidating appearances. Also, in AM Dimitri said he longs to part of the group and I think that shows a lot in his ending in a different form (i.e. the commonfolk being around him instead of his friends). In this way too I also think Dimitri could enact change by knowing what his people want and how well they’re faring in their own areas of Faerghus/Fodlan. He can also speak to them to hear their thoughts on what he should do, so he’ll know what changes to make throughout Fodlan based on what his people think and feel.
When you make change as a person in a position of power, you often won’t get the opinions of the people whose lives you’re changing. Most often, people in power make changes that either benefit their own views/feelings (ex. Claude makes good changes, but they’re based on his personal feelings and are his personal and specific wants, so he aims for power to enact his desires specifically. In Claude’s case it’s not a bad thing, but essentially he takes power for his own goals. That is to say, “I want this and I can get it if I have power”).
For Dimitri, he doesn’t really have an explicit desire for authority or power. He only wants his position as king so he can make necessary reforms. In both Fodlan games and in Heroes (in a sense an extension of his character as best as is possible in Heroes), he tends to express daydreams about being a person of a lower status, such as a farmer. He actively thinks about what his life could be like as a person just living day to day with no influence.
That helps him to feel more able to speak with these people and learn about them to see what they want from authorities. His whole purpose as king is to dedicate his time to his people and fix things that are wrong or going wrong. In both games he spends lengths of time around the commonfolk (even dangerously so in Hopes according to his supports with Yuri, i.e. being king and having no guard with him whilst going into the more dangerous common areas simply because he wants to see with his own eyes and know what the living conditions are like there). He’s also really not fond of paperwork and being stuck in his quarters doing official work. When it has to get done he’ll do it, but he doesn’t enjoy it. What he does enjoy is mingling with his people and not being surrounded by rules, laws and official proceedings.
Basically, Dimitri’s whole purpose for wanting for the title of king is to learn what the masses want in life and to make those changes happen. He doesn’t do things based on what it sounds or seems like people want (ex. well it looks like the masses are having trouble with xyz, based on this second or third hand account I’ve heard from someone and haven’t seen in bulk for myself). When he aims to make change, he wants to do it in a way that benefits the most people while still finding ways to benefit the people who are not “most”.
Also, in his ending image the kids around him are very happy. The situation Dimitri is in isn’t just his preference of preferring to be with the commonfolk and knowing what their lives are like. The people around him are happy and/or content. In contrast, Claude’s ending is more of a discussion and people listening to him/taking in his ideas, so it’s mainly Claude in a situation of “this is my proposal” and they’re hearing him out. Edelgard’s image has being terrified or looking like they’ve given up hope (so the situation is basically Edelgard imposing her rules and laws on people who are unwilling and dislike the change/situation). Claude’s ending is more neutral as far as other people’s shown reception of him in power (they aren’t against him but they aren’t implied to be Living Their Best Life, they’re just going with it and understanding/seeming to be reasonable, which is not a bad thing, but again, seems more neutral), while Edelgard’s ending is portrayed in a far more negative, unhappy light (and literally has Hubert in the background looking to be pleased with the situation/people’s fear and/or scheming). Dimitri’s ending expresses a mutual happiness and fondness, where the people are happy and he’s able to also get what makes him feel happiest and most content (which is effectively seeing his people happy/living well).
In Claude’s case we don’t really see the result of his plans and reforms unfortunately. With Dimitri and Edelgard’s ending images we see the emotions brought on by their changes and how they rule, but this is why I say Claude’s ending image is neutral: there’s no emotion in it in one direction or another, but rather in the middle of the process that would lead up to emotions. It’s not to say his leadership is bad, but that his ending image doesn’t portray emotion from anyone involved in what’s being expressed. In a way, it reflects the three routes as a whole: Claude’s ending is more neutral and open to results, Dimtiri’s is passive and results happen as they happen and are not forced, and Edelgard’s is aggressive and aimed for/intentional. In Claude’s route, we don’t really know how things will play out after everything is said and done, and I think his ending image expresses that quite accurately. That doesn’t mean things went well or badly in the future, because from what I take away from that image is that we don’t know that and are not necessarily supposed to in entirety. Claude’s goal was to begin the change and that’s what we see - him enacting the beginning of that change. In that way, we see all the endings of the lords getting what they wanted/what the route was about. Claude hoped for “someday” because he knew things wouldn’t change right away since his situation involves two foreign nations becoming friendly, and he hopes for even more than that (people in general from all across the world getting along).
Again, Claude needs to keep up the look of someone with authority so he can make sure all of these things happen or at least begin to start turning the wheel in that direction. For Dimitri that’s not necessary for what he wants, and he’s able to passively achieve what’s best for Fodlan (no armor, no shown discussions, no authoritive stance, etc) and the people living there. The adults seem to respect him, but they aren’t keeping a distance from him or behaving politely the way you would expect people to have to in the presence of a ruler. The kids aren’t being taught to respect him though (they’d presumably come to do so in time but they’re just kids in this image), and are instead just kids being kids how they would be with anyone. Dimitri seems to be viewed by the kids as just some cool adult who they have fun with - something a kid could do with any adult who could be so much as a family friend or a kid’s favorite uncle coming to visit. He’s not being treated with awe and as some kind of legend by the kids, but instead someone they know and are familiar with. They’re not shy around him either, so the picture is likely suggesting he’s around the commonfolk frequently and they recognize their king. He’s not seen in the standard way you’d view a king, but as one of their own (which again, is essentially something Dimitri wants but never something he actually presses for or attempts to make happen, instead often doing the opposite unintentionally because of his feelings about himself - so again, a passive situation. It happened, but he wouldn’t have pushed for it or aimed to make it happen).
I know this is super long for just a few simple images lol. I just really like the way they portray his ending, especially in contrast to the other endings. He’s a people’s person - that is, he’s not distant from the ordinary citizens and there’s no wall of authority in any manner between himself and them and they interact with him the way they would with anyone else they cared for. The lack of armor and the happiness says a whole lot imo about his reign. He doesn’t have commonfolk dress, but I think that also says a lot that he’s clearly royal and the people are not being made to see a royal explicitly as a ruler making their laws, but just “some guy”. He’s clearly royal but he’s interacting with his people no differently than they would do with each other. I think his people would really respect that and appreciate him for that, because they don’t have to bow down when he approaches and they don’t have to treat him with extra respect and formality. If they choose to that’s wholly a decision for them to make as individuals, and if they want to treat him as “some guy”, they’re allowed to.
No fighting, no in depth law making, no whiny nobles! Just his people being happy and feeling safe - and when people are happy and safe, they’re not going to want to target him or take out their troubles on him in a violent way. If people are unhappy and feel like the fault lies with the person at the very top, they might target someone like a king. If anyone during Dimitri’s reign is unhappy with him/his leadership, they’re not so unhappy that they they feel the need to target him for assassination. The general public won’t have a direct desire to want him dead. Some people may not care one way or another, but there’s no active desire for his death from the majority of people (like there’s always gonna be some person or another, you know? But nobody like, I have a personal grudge or beef with him and my life troubles are all attributed to his leadership).
