Dave’s arc regarding Bro is about an abused child coming to terms with the fact that his guardian was abusive even if he wasn’t 100% a piece of shit all the time, while Rose’s arc regarding Mom Lalonde is about an abused child coming to terms with the fact that her guardian wasn’t 100% a piece of shit all the time even if she was abusive. But a lot of yall have trouble comprehending such nuanced portrayals of abuse and instead interpret these arcs to mean that Bro was the literal devil incarnate who couldn’t have possibly have cared about Dave in any capacity whereas Mom Lalonde was just a sweet lady trying her best and Rose was a problem child who was too harsh on her
on one hand, i think her propensity for tantrum throwing is interesting. she lives her life in a constant state of repressed frustration, and only lets it out on things that don't seem to matter. at least, not to the outside observer. it's always the little things. that's just how it is. when you face a million tiny injustices every day, any one of them could be the straw that broke the camel's back. even if that straw is born of kindness - like someone lovingly making food for you that you just cannot stomach right now.
again, she's a very strongly written child. she lacks agency in ways children often do, and reacts to it exactly the way a child would. especially one that's as deeply repressed and closeted as june.
i feel this is an aspect of her writing that's often overlooked, because a sizable chunk of readers are teenagers who have not unpacked that. and, unfortunately, even more lack experience of or even basic knowledge about transmisogyny, how it operates, and the effects it has on trans youth
on the other hand, she's literally cutes. it's cutes. she's cutes. you literally agree with me.
several consecutive rent-lowering gunshots since we are in a dire dire fucking state right now
Damara Megido did nothing wrong, and is a direct victim of a misogynistic cowardly cheater and an abuser who manipulated her position of privilege to make Damara's life hell for no coherent reason; everything she did was justified and directed solely at the architects of her own mental ruination.
Rufioh Nitram is a misogynistic cowardly cheater and a spineless bastard whose problems are consistently all his fucking fault. He repeatedly slings shit in the direction of the girlfriend whose life he ruined, and then proceeds to try and prey upon her younger descendant because he objectifies her in his mind.
Mituna Captor is a grown-ass adult man, he is fully capable of giving consent and very proudly has sex, very often and is in a genuinely happy and supportive relationship. He is not a child, his disability does not make him a child, and Cronus is textually his sexual and emotional abuser.
Kankri Vantas is a pathetic, ideologically incomprehensible bootlicker with no genuine principles beyond fellating the upper caste and supporting his own inflated ego; he is also a textual misogynist and Latula's stalker, and explicitly ableist when he tag teams with Cronus to bully Mituna.
Meulin Leijon is not upset about her deafness. To take a character with genuine pride in her disability and a love for her way of interacting with the world and turn it into a tragedy is outright ableism. She is also textually being emotionally manipulated by Kurloz.
Porrim Maryam is more than her sex life, she outright says that she is more than her sex life and boiling her whole characterisation down to her being a slut is literally just misogyny and goes against everything she stands for. She is 19, she is not your hentai MILF, for fuck's sake.
Latula Pyrope is not a gnarly coolkid and you have fallen for her facade if you think so. She is textually struggling with a lot of self-worth issues, mental health problems she can't confront and puts on a mask purely to cover up these things. She is more than the stereotype she claims to be. Fucking Knight of Mind, people!
Aranea Serket did not turn into a conniving villainess overnight, her desperate quest for relevance was the result of milennia of being ignored and overlooked by the people she was meant to call her friends, compounded with sweeps of isolation pushing her to a mental nadir.
Horuss Zahhak is textually, actually, genuinely real-world racist and belittles Damara to her face by calling her Japanese a pathetic peasant tongue and barely even humanises her in their interactions. He is also deliberately ignoring Rufioh's pleas to end their relationship - he is no saint in this arrangement.
Kurloz Makara is not your soft boy for your wholesome yaois and his relationships with everyone have an inherent power imbalance. Kurloz is a noted manipulator, and is literally attempting to bring about the fucking apocalypse by conspiring with the main antagonist. He is not a good partner.
Cronus Ampora is a horrible, horrible man who is written on purpose to be a horrible man and has no redeeming qualities by intention of the text. To have this misogynistic, abusive, eugenicist pedophile even glance in the direction of redemption is to defy the character his purpose.
Meenah Peixes is not hypermasculine, and she is not butch. Meenah is incredibly girly, and proud of it, and the masculinisation of her character by the fanbase is a direct byproduct of the racism they display when confronted with a black-coded character who displays even the slightest hint of aggression. Let her be her hyperfeminine self.
Buckle up, this is a really long one. For everything that's posited, I can provide textual evidence; that being said, I'm not going to be including the textual evidence within the essay itself, because it's already long enough as-is. As such, please feel free to ask for clarification or sources on any assertion, and I'll do my best to provide.
Before we begin, there's some things to discuss about how we're going to be approaching classpect in the following essay. In numbered list form for our short attention spans:
1. There is a concept Hussie talks about multiple times in his book commentary, "personality alchemy" - the idea that there are these "platonic ideals" of certain characters, which can be mixed and matched with others, in order to create new characters. The examples he gives are of how Eridan was a proto-Caliborn, how Kanaya has shades of Jade, how Nepeta was a proto-Calliope, and how Sollux and Eridan have shades of Dave in them. Classpecting is fundamentally a form of this personality alchemy:
2. Class describes the character's arc and emotional hurdles, while Aspect describes the character's base personality traits by which this arc is experienced.
3. For example, all three Seers struggle with hubris: Rose's need to be the smartest person in the room led to her being manipulated by Doc Scratch, Terezi's obsession with meting justice led to her engineering a situation where the only option was to kill Vriska, and Kankri's desire to be seen as a spiritual leader amongst his friends led to him furthering their divisions and harming them.
Then, when their pride is shattered, they cope by inflicting willful self-blindness: Rose turns to drinking herself stupid (the opposite of Light's sway over knowledge), Terezi gets down with the clown (the opposite of meting out Mind's justice, as it's a Gamzee W), Kankri goes celibate (Blood L) despite his clear romantic feelings for certain teammates.
4. As for Aspect: note how all three Life players share the personality traits of optimism, stubbornness, and obstinacy. All three Breath players share an immaturity and naïvety, and are quite frankly irresistible to people for some reason. All three Light players share a need for the spotlight and a tendency toward long-windedness and persnicketiness. So on and so forth.
What's interesting is, if you start analyzing characters that share Classes and Aspects, these specific types of similarity crop up over and over - all our Knights struggle with insecurities and facades, both our Bards have a crisis of faith. All three Breath players have an aspect of immaturity and childishness to their characters, and all three Light players are deeply concerned with appearing intelligent and feeling important.
5. As a result, this guide is NOT intended for classpecting real life people, because we are complicated, we contain multitudes, and we don't have arcs. This is primarily an analysis of what Class and Aspect mean in Homestuck based on textual evidence, because I genuinely believe that you can basically figure it out if you read carefully.
6. Duality, and the idea of "equal and opposite," are major themes within Homestuck - Prospit and Derse, Skaia (described as a crucible of birth and creativity) and the Furthest Ring (the literal afterlife). Which classes are involved in an Active/Passive split, and opposing Aspects, are the same way. This is the primary method I used to determine the Active/Passive pairings and opposing Aspects. After all, as Callie describes, both Thieves and Rogues are classes "who steal" - so, too, do I try to unify Classes by a common theme, even if they diverge wildly in how that theme is expressed (as Thieves and Rogues do). In the same way as the opposite of "up" is not "apple," but "down", because "up" and "down" are both fundamentally concerned with relative vertical position, so too can be defined concepts like Breath and Blood, Hope and Rage, Light and Void - as well as the reasoning behind Class pairings like Heir and Page, Maid and Knight, and Seer and Mage.
7. Descriptions for both Class and Aspect are left deliberately vague and up to interpretation within the comic itself, and this is by design: the actual manifestations of an Aspect can vary wildly given the Class, and even individual person, that it's tied to. Calliope even makes note of the fact that, under the right circumstances, someone can manifest effects that appear to be the opposite of their aspect. She's also careful to couch her language in "may" and "can" - because these concepts are intentionally somewhat nebulous and malleable. As such, while this guide certainly lays down what can be gleaned and inferred from the text, do note that Homestuck runs on a soft magic system, and as such, nothing stated is firm, 100%, must-always-be-this-way - just an overview of what we've seen.
8. There is often great overlap between Aspects, Classes, and Classpects - which Calliope herself notes. Heart and Blood are one of the most salient, as they both have a fixation on relationships, and Calliope mentions that under the right circumstances, a Classpect may even be able to manifest what appears to be the opposite of their Aspect. Again, Homestuck operates on a soft magic system, so this is a feature, not a bug.
ASPECT
There's a little less to say about Aspect, not because it's less complicated, but because "base personality traits" are much more nebulous compared to Class's sway over character arc. Still, Aspect represents the fundamental way a character is, and thus, color every interaction that character has. There's a reason Ultimate Selfhood is sought through Aspect, not Class - Aspect is the core of the character's being, what makes that person that person.
That all being said, Class has major sway over how an Aspect manifests, and certain classes can even invert the Aspect and even the character's role in the party. As such, these descriptions must be parsed carefully in relation to Class. Moreover, due to the soft magic system, there is at times overlap between unrelated Aspects, which can also be exacerbated by Class - Heart and Blood being the most obvious in this regard. Still, overall, you'll find the Aspects to be fairly distinct from one another.
Please also note that every Aspect can deal with its literal counterpart by default - Light players can wield lasers, Breath players can wield the breeze, et cetera. Because this kind of goes without saying, and because the non-literal stuff is more interesting to discuss, I'm not really going to go into too much detail about the literal qualities.
Finally, something interesting to note is that nearly every Aspect follows its own Hero's Journey cycle - full actualization for each one usually means reaching around to its opposite Aspect, and taking lessons from them - for example, Breath players need to learn maturity and responsibility, while Blood players need to learn relaxation and whimsy. Thus, an Aspect at its worst manifests in two ways - either a toxic overabundance of the Aspect's worst traits, or such a dearth of the aspect that it begins to resemble its opposite. Only by reaching into the opposite, however, can the player be tempered and reach full maturity - can they become more of who they are.
SPACE / TIME
Space and Time are both concerned with physical reality, goals, and the way one approaches them.
Space is associated with "the big picture" - with recycling, reproduction, and the interconnectivity of all things. The aspect also presides over the enjoyment of the journey over the destination - Space players serve as reminders that the present moment is as important as the end goal. Space is often a more passive Aspect, being the stage upon which the story is set. They're the hosts of the party, and the one who marks the ending.
Its players reflect these tendencies, often being feminine, with penchants for life-giving acts such as gardening. Their personalities tend towards frivolity and silliness, finding it difficult to stay on-topic or bring full gravitas to serious situations. Perhaps a better word would be "distractable;" when the aspect is so concerned with all things in connection with each other, it's easy to lose track of details, and it's easy to enjoy things simply as they come. Space players tend to be kind, patient, and forgiving, which is a strength as much as it is a flaw; it's easy for malicious actors to take advantage of this compassion, or for the Space player to find themselves in a poor situation by being overly permissive. They can easily be painted over by stronger personalities, and tend to struggle with romantic relationships, as they attract many with their kind and giving natures, and few are naturally so considerate of the Space player in turn.
"Passive" is a good word to use; at a toxic overabundance of their Aspect, Space players are trampled underfoot. They become enablers, servants to dark forces, or so lost in their own worlds that they neglect the one they live in. With their Aspect "inverted," a Space player becomes a demon of poor prioritization. Distracting not just themselves from their true purpose, but others, too, the Space player will wreak havoc by overemphasizing unimportant topics and ignoring important tasks. This superficially resembles Time, in that the Space player will become fanatically dedicated to their task, but note that the poor prioritization is still Space-esque at its core.
Still, within this nadir is a valuable lesson: the strength of self-assertion, and the determination to see a goal through. These will allow the Space player to weed their garden, separating good from bad, allowing it to flourish like never before.
Time, in contrast, is associated with "the little things" - with details, minutiae, and processes. Time presides over the struggle toward something greater, the endurance of hardship with an eye on the prize - the destination over the journey. Time players are the ones keeping track of the tasklist, marking off each item as it reaches completion; they are the tireless workers keeping the whole engine running.
Time players, thus, are ones whose lives are marked by struggle. They are highly goal-oriented; in contrast to how Space players can easily move from goal to goal, task to task, Time players feel bound to see things through to the end, finding satisfaction only when they've achieved their desired result - and only until they come across the next goal in their journey. A Time player isn't happy without a goal to work towards, a craft to polish, a prize to win - but this driven nature can easily be its own downfall, as it leaves little room for the player to admit to their own shortcomings, or ask for help from others. Moreover, their focus on minutiae can leave them blinded to the bigger picture, and it's easy for a time player to fall to despair, able to do nothing more but spin their wheels. They're prone to directionless anguish, frustration, and resentment towards the seeming futility of their actions, becoming destructive and defiant even when it doesn't serve them to do so.
At a toxic overabundance of their Aspect, Time players become explosively destructive. The ultimate "goal" of all things is death, with which Time is associated, and accordingly, Time players have a penchant for aligning themselves with futility and entropy, struggling so hard that their thrashing leaves a trail of annihilation in their wake. With their Aspect "inverted," Time players detach entirely - they can become so fed up with struggle that they simply opt to lay their weapons down and let the end take them. It's very easy for them to come to the conclusions that either everything matters, or nothing matters. This superficially resembles Space and its big picture thinking, but note that its framework of struggle, and whether or not a goal needs to be pursued, makes it a Time concern.
But the inherent meaninglessness of existence is, in itself, an important realization to make - that whether or not anything "matters" in the grand scheme, things can still be worth doing, worth caring about, and worth investing in. This realization allows the Time player to attack their goals with renewed vigor and greater clarity, which in turn means that the party becomes an efficient, well-oiled machine.
BREATH / BLOOD
Breath and Blood are both concerned with directionality, interpersonal relationships, and autonomy.
Breath is the Aspect governing freedom, liberty, and independence; it is a force that breaks shackles, clears out social norms, and refutes "the rules," whatever those rules may be. Breath players can't be tied down, whether by physical bonds, societal rules, or even the ineffable forces of the narrative itself. They are leaders of example, pioneers, and trailblazers, opening new paths for their teammates to follow.
Breath players are goofy and gullible, often with hearts full of childlike whimsy, naivety, and even immaturity. They are friendly and well-meaning, fond of simpler things, and easily swayed by others. They approach the world with a sincere and innocent good-naturedness, like a baby animal before it learns to be fearful of danger. Something about this sincerity seems to make Breath players irresistible to others, and they often find themselves the subject of romantic attraction. However, in this childishness is also the great pitfall of many Breath players - their natures are naturally conflict-averse, and egotistical the way a child can be, failing to see beyond themselves. They can be incredibly callous when not considering the consequences of their actions, or the viewpoints of others.
At their worst, Breath players are irresponsible and callous. They'll shirk the consequences of their actions, blaming anybody but themselves, or simply choose not to care who they hurt in order to get what they want. They may even choose to stop making choices for themselves, leading to the "inversion" of their Aspect - a voluntary loss of freedom and independence, derived from an Breath-like aversion to responsibility, which superficially resembles the bondage of Blood.
But if they are able to overcome these tendencies, a Breath player will learn what true responsibility looks like - responsibility for themselves, their choices, and the effect they have on others. Armed with this, a Breath player's ability to break bonds can be focused into a clear force for good, clearing away all obstacles and harmful societal standards, leading the charge into something new and beautiful.
Blood, in sharp contrast, is the aspect that governs bondage, contracts, and interdependence. It is a force that binds. Under Blood's sway are not only romantic entanglements, but familial, friendly, and societal ones as well. This aspect sees overlap with Heart, but the division is this: Heart concerns itself with feelings, and Blood concerns itself with compatibility. Blood players are diplomats, forces that remind us all that we are more similar than we are different, and that that similarity should bring us together when we are on the verge of pulling apart.
Blood players, reflective of their Aspect's association with bonds, tend to be neurotic and obsessive. They have a tendency to over-examine and overthink, constantly fretting over the infinite and infinitesimal variables that influence the shape of society and interpersonal relationships. However, this judgmental nature stems from a deep well of idealism and empathy; Blood players can't help but care about others and wish for the best for them. In a way, this makes them one of the most mature members of the team, being concerned with its overall well-being. Unfortunately, their prowess does not extend inwards, and their assessment of themselves is usually direly incorrect - all the worse because Blood players always feel responsible for those around them. Blood, being the Aspect concerned with interdependence, is the weakest one when all alone.
Thus, it's easy for the Blood player to wind up controlling - desperate to make sure everyone is moving according to their vision, they'll become iron-fisted dictators, with a "my way or the highway" approach to social interactions. It's easy for them to wind up pariahs of their own making, becoming so critical of others, or so adamant about enforcing their own will, that they inadvertantly sever their ties - something that superficially resembles Breath's independence, but is truly a result of Blood's neuroticism.
But with that space and separation can come great clarity. Blood players must learn to relax their grip, and allow people room to breathe - including themselves. Once able to grasp that sometimes bonds must be forged with a soft touch, Blood players' natural empathy shines through, allowing them to build something so much kinder and greater than the sum of its parts.
LIGHT / VOID
Light and Void are both concerned with knowledge, ontology, and "narrative relevance".
Light (as well as its counterpart) are perhaps best understood through the lens of "narrative" - this idea that, of all things that do and don't exist, and all events that do and don't happen, only the ones put to page are "relevant". Thus, Light is associated with knowledge and luck - that is to say, it's associated with the knowable, the objective, and the concrete, and the ability to determine "important" events. Light players have read the book they're participating in, and able to serve as luminary guides from one plot point to another, lighting the lampposts for others to follow.
Light players, naturally, are erudite and educated, possessing keen intellects and cunning minds. They are fond of knowledge itself, of markers of status and prestige - whether that's wealth, the adulation of the masses, or a massive library. They harbor a desire to be important, to be seen, to be acknowledged, and are happiest when they are looked up to. Conversely, they deal poorly with being looked down upon. Their confidence transmutes easily into hubris, and they struggle with having that pride challenged. As such, they tend to be volatile and unpredictable, quick to retaliate against those who threaten their egos, or obsequious to those whose acknowledgement they desire.
Their desire for the limelight can quickly spell disaster - they can become incredibly cruel, harsh, and egotistical in their pursuit of narrative significance. They forget, in their obsession, that they, too, are fallible and flawed, and the inevitable reminder can come very harshly. Light players struggle with moderation, and as such, when they feel shame, they'll often take drastic measures to cope with it - deliberately darkening their own influence or intellects, removing themselves from the "story" entirely - something which superficially resembles Void's penchant for the background, but which is firmly rooted in Light's obsessive need for drama.
But in experimenting with narrative insignificance, Light players can reach an epiphany - in their absence, others may shine, and that can be a wonderful thing. Light players, then, can learn to shine not just for their own sakes, but for the sake of others, allowing them to weave a story even more brilliant than any that can be weaved alone.
Void, in contrast, is the blank spaces between the words. That which is secret, subjective, unknowable - these are Void's domain. It's associated with taboos and hidden things, sexuality and pleasure. It's also associated with the empty canvas - the blank space before creation, and the oblivion to which creation is eventually destined for. Thus, it stands for infinite possibility, though the collapse of those possibilities into a reality removes that reality from Void's domain.
Thus are Void players ever cosigned to the background, though this generally suits them fine. Void players are very self-possessed. Where Light players tend to exaggerate and complicate, Void players are honest and simple, preferring straightforward solutions. They don't tend to think very hard, instead letting intuition and emotion guide them to where they want to be - which makes them one of the more stable personalities on a team. However, this simplistic, feelings-driven approach often leads to pleasure-seeking behavior, poor impulse control, and overindulgence in vice, and from there, to irrelevance, with which Void is so closely interlinked.
Void players are especially prone to vice, and at their worst, will become so drunk on pleasurable activities that they pursue them to the active detriment of the party's goals or the Void player's self-improvement - making them the ultimate irrelevant character. They can also very easily drag others into their mélange, with a forcefulness that resembles Light's illuminating guidance, but which is ultimately rooted in Void's pursuit of personal pleasure.
But there's a lesson to be learned in Light's domain: how to bring themselves into relevance and greatness. A Void player, once they learn to pursue not just personal pleasure, but a greater satisfaction for the collective whole, can drag the Void behind them, kicking and screaming, to where it'll be of use.
MIND / HEART
Mind and Heart are concerned with what it means to be a sentient being, with identity, and with why we do what we do.
Mind is the Aspect associated with logic, rationality, karma, ethics, and justice. To a Mind player, they "are" because they "think". They are keenly aware of the consequences of every action, and well-versed in cognition and behavior, such to the point of manipulating others with ease. Deeply concerned with the "effect" of cause-and-effect, Mind players are always cognizant of debts and credits, where justice is owed and where it has been over-meted, and their subtle machinations culminate, like well-placed dominoes, in grand and explosive finales.
Mind players are schemers - it's in their nature. They have a tendency to view the world as a puzzle or game, with themselves and the people around them as pieces on a board, and set as their standard rules the laws of ethics and karma - owed debts and overhanging credit - guilty and innocent. Mind players are wickedly cunning, and have an high success rate with every scheme they commit themselves to, but the grand downfall of all these tendencies is that they tend to lack in a sense of identity, and have a poor grasp on their own emotions or desires. While they may know how to provoke a desired reaction, they don't know how to change someone's mind. They often find themselves grappling very painfully with their own selfhood, with feelings of emptiness, inadequacy, or uncertainty.
Thus, a Mind player at the worst zenith of their Aspect is heartless and cruel. Leaving no space for empathy or even personal feelings in their plans, the Mind player will plot for an ending as heartless as they are. But a Mind player is never truly without emotion, and ignoring their own feelings causes them to manifest in terrible ways - Mind players have a tendency to seek toxic, codependent relationships, hoping to find external validation, subjecting themselves to the wishes of others, which can appear like Heart's fixation on feelings and desire.
But in recognizing their own need for emotional validation, and the importance of their own feelings, a Mind player can realize that there's an entire dimension to the game they've been playing that they've been ignorant of. When a Mind player learns to temper their schemes with empathy, compassion, and kindness, how much more success they'll see - and how much happier that grand finale will be!
Heart, then, is associated with feelings, motivations, intuition, the soul, and the self. To a Heart player, they "are" because they "feel" like they are - and they're keenly aware of the multitudes that are contained within themselves. Deeply concerned with the "cause" of cause-and-effect, they're drawn to desires, those of themselves and of others, especially where strong feelings are concerned. Heart players are gifted with an intuitive understanding of those around them, both their good and bad qualities, and are tasked with the grand task of bringing out the best.
It stands to reason, then, that Heart players have a firm grasp on who they are and what they want. For the same reasons, it's difficult for a Heart player to truly hate or condemn another person, because they are so adept at understanding them. However, this understanding comes with a price - because the Heart player is so aware of themselves, they can't escape their own worst traits - nobody self-loathes as accurately as a Heart player can. Nor can they ever truly be untruthful with another, making them poor manipulators. Capable of presenting a different facet of themselves as the situation calls for it, certainly, but just as it's impossible to lie to a Heart player, who always knows how someone really feels, it's impossible for a Heart player to lie to themselves.
With this sincerity comes vulnerability. Heart players wear theirs on their sleeves, and at their worst, this can make them demanding, needy, and sensitive - so eager to connect with others emotionally that they'll cramp themselves to fit others' desires. But they can't ever keep this up for long; Heart players have a tendency to withdraw from others after being hurt too often, finding it easier to be alone and silent about their feelings than to deal with the pain of rejection. They may even work to manipulate others, preying on their emotions and desires to force them to act in their worst interests. This superficially resembles Mind's cold logic, but unlike Mind's cool rationality, Heart's aloofness is a mask, an attempt to avoid pain by pulling away.
But this isn't purely a negative, because a Heart player can learn a healthier form of detachment, and separate out healthy and helpful desires from harmful and detrimental ones. Given this clarity, the Heart player becomes the team's emotional core, able to raise up each teammate's best qualities, while helping them deal with their worst, enabling everyone to be the best possible version of themselves - which the Heart player knew them to be all along.
LIFE / DOOM
Life and Doom are concerned with outlook, with journeys, and with trials and tribulations.
Life is an aspect concerned with healing, growing, and improving. It is associated with beginnings, optimism, and positive emotions. The very essence of Life lies in its healing abilities, in this idea of overcoming the odds and triumphing over hardship and difficulty. Life is action, movement, and motion, and its players can scarcely hold still. Life will find a way - and Life players harbor the same immutable belief; they are the most stubborn weeds in the garden, the cockroach that survives the apocalypse, and the beating heart that refuses to stop.
Life players tend to be optimistic and confident. They are self-assured individuals, with a stubborn belief that good things are on their way, and any hardship they face is not only temporary, but something that can be overcome. They can find the silver lining in any cloud, and enjoy themselves under any circumstance. They love to nurture, to care for others, though this love has a tendency to be one-sided. Indeed, Life's stubborn nature is its players' greatest pitfall; their persistence easily becomes obstinacy, and their confidence can become condescension. Their self-assured nature easily becomes egotism, and they can have great difficulty grappling with those who don't share their views - even coming to oppose those who bring emotional pain and suffering that can't be easily fixed.
It's very easy for a Life player to decide another person isn't worth their attention, and opt to leave them behind - after all, Life has to move forward, no matter what it tramples in the process. At their worst, they're stubborn to the point of not listening to anyone but themselves, confidence becoming blockheadedness. This focus on forward progress without looking back can even cause Life players to become harmful to others, so focused they are on their own growth that they don't notice that they're choking everyone else out. This may resemble Doom's death in its worst case - arresting everything else, eventually blocking even their own path with unruly, out-of-control fecundity.
Thus, a Life player needs to learn to more gracefully accept Doom's influence - to pause, slow down, and consider viewpoints that are negative, unpleasant, or difficult. A Life player, endowed with moderation, will be able to cultivate a bountiful garden, rather than an unruly jungle - a place for all to flourish and live in plenty, never wanting for anything.
Doom, then, is the aspect concerned with death, with rest, and with endings. Doom is associated with suffering and with negative emotions, with peace, with sleep, and with dreams. Doom players have a natural penchant for prophecy, and are often dual dreamers, able to take advantage of both Skaia's oracular clouds and the Horrorterrors' voices over Derse. All things must eventually come to an end, and not all times will be good; in these troubling times, Doom players shine, as they are the guides who call the murk home, and know best how to navigate rough waters, course-correcting until the storm passes.
Doom players tend to be deeply pessimistic. They experience, to a much more magnified degree than others, negative feelings and impulses, and it's difficult for them to see the world without seeing its flaws, first and foremost. They are not healers, but commiserators, those who understand greatest that sometimes there's no way to deal with tragedy but to simply sit with it and wait for it to pass. The counterpoint to Life's insistence on breathless positivity, Doom is a reminder that pain, grief, sadness, shame, and guilt are not unnecessary things - in fact, excising them can lead to terrible consequences. Doom players are the universe's martyrs, often taking it upon themselves to course-correct, to sacrifice themselves in order to give others a chance to continue on, to avert a terrible fate.
Unfortunately, this tendency also brings with it a tendency for Doom players to wallow in misfortune, or worse, to take themselves out of the picture, giving up entirely on seeing a better ending. As if energized by their own sense of futility, a Doom player at the "inverse" of their aspect may seem to echo a Life player's focus on forward progress and motion, actively spurring their team on towards an untimely demise.
A Doom player must learn to harness this sense of progress for good, rather than harm. A Doom player, once able to grasp the joy of life even in the greatest depths of despair, will be able to fill even the darkest hours with peace, meaning, and hope.
HOPE / RAGE
Hope and Rage are concerned with permission, and are the lens by which we define reality.
Hope is described by Hussie in the book commentary as being "framed as the most powerful aspect" because it is, literally, an aspect that defines reality. Its specific ability is lies in reducing the "fakeness attribute" of something, thus making it "real". Hope is associated with convictions, with idealism, with faith, order, holiness, and, of course, with magic - which Hope turns real. Hope is permission itself - a reality-breaking ability to look at the world and decree that it must be another way, a way in which the Hope player believes it ought to be.
Thus, Hope players tend to be hard-headed zealots, with no self-awareness whatsoever. Their inclination towards powerful beliefs makes them very difficult to dissuade from a path they've set their minds to, and their specific suite of abilities makes them terrifyingly likely to make their vision come true. Hope players are usually not particularly cunning, nor particularly intelligent, nor even particularly empathetic. Given the Aspect's focus on conviction and faith, it's usually very difficult for Hope players to notice anything occurring beyond their own minds and feelings. Thus are Hope players hopeless optimists, hopeless romantics, and hopeless in general - often great sources of embarrassment to their teams, as their naked sincerity is painful to witness. However, their ability to define reality does not leave them when their beliefs are faulty (which they often are, given Hope players are not particularly introspective, either), which is what makes a Hope player so dangerous.
A Hope player can easily be set on the wrong path - as convicted as they are, and as difficult to shake from that conviction as they can be, Hope players can easily march down a path of destruction, if not persuaded with a deft touch and gentle guidance. In the event that their faith is broken, Hope players easily become despondent and lost, floundering and wishy-washy, which superficially resembles Rage's self-consciousness, but is truly just a lack of direction.
But Rage has a powerful lesson to teach Hope players - that of questioning themselves, interrogating their own beliefs. Once their convictions have gone through rigorous scrutiny, revised into the best, brightest versions of themselves they can be, a Hope player is a worker of miracles - speaking into existence a beautiful future on faith alone, proclaiming that how they see the world is how the world shall be.
Rage, then, is the power of denial. If Hope reduces the "fakness" of a thing, then Rage reduces its "realness". Rage, too, is a means of defining reality, in this case taking a torch to the aspects of reality that it rejects. In more passive Classes, this works in subtler ways, stoking others towards destructive fury. Rage is associated with anarchy, chaos, revolution, destruction, anger, and nihilism. A Rage player will not suffer a world that does not satisfy them, breaking it to pieces, such that something new can take its place.
Therefore, Rage players are prone to harboring anger and resentment, discontentment with the status quo, and faith only in that what currently exists must somehow be dismantled. However, unlike Hope players, who can't help but be pathetically sincere, Rage players are incredibly self-conscious, and often try to mask and hide their embitterment and anger. This, ironically, leads to further ostracization, as others can tell they're being inauthentic. This only further compounds their sense of alienation, and drives them further into smoldering resentment. This makes Rage players sound volatile and dangerous, and they are - but the same fury that moves them is the fury that ignites revolts and tears down oppressive regimes, a necessary and vital well of energy and momentum. It takes careful handling to ensure that the team's Rage player can channel this energy towards righteous causes, rather than marking all as a target for their destructive ire.
In the worst-case scenario, the Rage player turns that rage out indiscriminately, deciding that there is nothing worth fighting for - only unpleasant things to be brought to ruin. This is Rage at its toxic overabundance. Conversely, a Rage player can retreat so harshly into their mask that they allow others to dictate their beliefs, taking them to heart - an action motivated by Rage's destruction (this time, turned inwards) that superficially resembles Hope's convictions and faith.
The true path for a Rage player is a healthy balance - to allow themselves some of Hope's sincerity, and by doing so, to become more sincere and true. This will let them release the pressure of their mounting ire, such that it can be converted into productive, rather than destructive, energy - the heralds of a revolution, razing away the faulty, corrupt old systems such that something better and new can take their place.
CLASS
As previously stated, Class governs a character's character arc - the character's starting circumstances, whether their conflict is primarily internal or external, and what major aspect of their Aspect becomes a hurdle for them to overcome.
In the same way an Aspect's sways tie into the character's base personality, the character's Class abilities tie into the kinds of struggles they face, and have great influence on how their Aspects manifest.
That being said, a character - and their Class - are always subject to their Aspect, as their Aspect is tied fundamentally into who they are. Thus, it can be said that a Light player will always have an affinity for knowledge and provide Seer-esque guidance even when not in a Seer role, a Doom player will always have prophetic abilities even with a non-prophetic class (note that Mituna, an Heir, still had prophetic visions, despite those generally being the realm of Mages and Seers), and a Life player will always have a penchant for healing, even paired with a destructive Class like Prince or Thief (the Condesce, after all, could still extend life; a Prince of Life would likely manifest not as one who causes plants to wither and die (this would actually suit a Prince of Doom), but one who destroys in the way of nature overtaking an abandoned shack, or a forest breaking down a body).
This means that when a character's Classpect inverts their Aspect, it doesn't mean that they suddenly become a hero of the opposing Aspect - rather, it means that, at their very worst - at the nadirs of their character arcs - they will lean so much into their Aspect's worst traits that it will superficially appear as the opposite, when all it really is is an absence of themselves. Dave, a Time player, usually so attentive to detail (despite his disaffected facade, he's always paying rapt attention to Karkat's rants, and noticing all the clues pointing to his destiny of defeating LE), at his lowest emotional point (arguing with Grimbark Jade after sobbing about his lost childhood whimsy), states that he doesn't think Lord English is that big a deal, and never even did anything directly bad to him or his friends - when he was literally directly haunted by LE via Cal his entire childhood. Similarly, Rose drinks herself stupid in order to cope with her mother's death.
Note how, superficially, this almost appears to be an invocation of Space's "big picture thinking," its passivity and permissibility, or how Rose's case appears to be Void's tendency to indulge in vices and pleasure - but they're not. Time's worst traits superficially resemble Space, Light's resemble Void, and vice versa - Grimbark Jade is the Condesce's taskmaster, and Porrim at her worst was as much of a nag as Kankri, trying to do a Time player's managerial job. Horuss and Equius at their worst won't shut up and won't stop talking over their partners. So on and so forth.
Finally, Calliope tells us a couple things about Active/Passive pairings. The first is that Calliope introduces the idea of paired classes with the idea that both Rogues and Thieves "steal" (and later, that both Princes and Bards "destroy"). This presents the idea that both classes can be roughly summed up with the idea that every pairing can be summed up with a common theme.
The second is her description of what makes a Class Active versus Passive - that Active Classes move their Aspect to benefit themselves, whereas Passive Classes allow their Aspect to be moved in order for others to benefit. In a way, they're like active and passive voice in grammar (to tie in with the way Classes and Aspects are so tied to ideas of narrative and character arc) - an Active Class performs their Aspect, and a Passive Class allows the Aspect to be performed "by others" (the famous piece of advice regarding telling the two apart being that a sentence written in passive voice can have "by zombies" tacked to the end of it - eg, John is attacked "by zombies", as compared to active voice - John attacks).
Thus, the Class pairings, along with their basic themes, are as follows:
KNIGHT - / MAID +
"One who controls."
Knights and Maids are paired together through two key factors: the first is that they both hold leadership or managerial roles; the second is that both classes carry the connotation of serving a Lord. Fittingly, they are both struggle with the control of malicious forces - Knights with prophecies indicating their role as heroes, Maids with direct usurpation by malicious forces.
PAGE - / HEIR +
"One who inherits."
Pages and Heirs are paired together because they both fundamentally deal with the great inheritances placed before them. Pages can come into incredible, limitless power - but they must struggle and work hard for it; Heirs begin the game in societal comfort and wealth, and must learn to defect from their decadence.
THIEF - / ROGUE +
"One who steals."
Thieves and Rogues are highly adaptable, as Thieves are capable of fantastic on-the-fly adaptation, whereas Rogues have an infinite toolbox at their disposal. They are both provocateurs, shakers of the status quo, though the Thief does so for personal gain, while the Rogue does so to right injustice.
MAGE - / SEER +
"One who guides."
Mages and Seers are tied together by the gift of prophecy and future sight. Seers are privy to the endless branching paths that the future may take, while Mages are gifted with the ability to outright determine a future that will certainly happen, appearing to be prophecy.
WITCH - / SYLPH +
"One who changes."
Witches and Sylphs are individuals blessed with great magic, but poor judgement. Sylphs heal and nurture, but are drawn to those with strong desires, and enable them to cause great harm; Witches, meanwhile, possess strong emotions, which they often use as moral guidance, for better or worse.
PRINCE - / BARD +
"One who destroys."
Princes and Bards are representatives of society - the one who determines its course, and the one who recounts its passing. Princes suffer from a toxic overabundance of Aspect, and are prone to spectacular meltdowns, whereas Bards are always poised for a crisis of faith. Both are responsible for catastrophic failures - but also breathless victories.
INDIVIDUAL CLASSES
KNIGHT
"One who controls [Aspect] or controls using [Aspect]."
Knights are frontline warriors, rallying points behind which the party falls into line. Although they are often leaders, just as often, they are logistical planners, strategists, or simply the team's beating heart. They are almost always thrust into positions of narrative significance, often carrying grand destinies or even outright heroic prophecies on their shoulders. The are the party's rallying force, its center, and a guiding light - the one to lead the charge, behind which the party will follow.
The primary character struggle a Knight will have is with crippling insecurity. Knights are prone to self-loathing and imposter syndrome, and will often adopt a façade in direct opposition to their aspect (ie, their fundamental personality) in order to cope with their feelings of inadequacy. Thus, their relationship with their aspect becomes love/hate - though they're naturally drawn to their aspect, and even naturally skilled at utilizing it, they have a tendency to become their own worst enemy, as their insecurities make them push their façades, and their façades distance them from their aspect.
"Controlling their Aspect" means that the Knight has easy access to their Aspect, wielding it like a tool or weapon - for good or for ill; "controlling using their Aspect" is what grants Knights their leadership abilities, able to dictate how others ought to act in accordance with the Knight's Aspect - whether their understanding of their Aspect is high or low, whether their advice is good or bad.
Therefore, at their worst, a Knight will fall prey to their insecurities, retreating into their facades, rejecting their Aspect, which will allow disharmony or misuse of it to proliferate throughout the team. They may even wind up deliberately twisting their Aspect's presence within the team so that they never have to be confronted by it; these distortions ripple outwards and eventually culminate in major catastrophes, all on account of the Knight's negligence.
But at their best, a Knight is a shining beacon and guiding light; when they come to terms with themselves, and allow themselves to be comfortable in their own skin - when they no longer allow themselves to be ruled by their insecurities and anxieties - they ensure that their aspect is harmonious wherever it appears throughout their party, and can wield it expertly as a weapon, as if it were their own flesh and blood.
MAID
"One who allows control through [Aspect] or allows [Aspect] to be controlled."
Unlike Knights, which take positions of frontline prominence, a Maid is a managerial presence in the backlines, though no less crucial for the smooth functioning of a party. Just as the invisible hands of the hired help keep a household running, the Maid will be called upon to provide vital services to keep the game stable, even if those services are more noticeable by their absence than their presence. Maids are often the party's unsung heroes or even shadow leaders, tugging at invisible strings, fingers on the pulse.
A Maid's primary character struggle will be that of escaping oppression. Maids tend to start the game in positions of subjugation or subservience, especially to malicious forces, and their abilities often end up being exploited to serve their masters' ends. Therefore, one may even have the impression that a Maid is ruled by their aspect, held prisoner and slave - at least until they're able turn the tables.
"Allowing their Aspect to be controlled" means that Maids are capable of directly dispensing their aspect unto others - a Maid of Time can dispense time unto foes, pausing them in their tracks; a Maid of Life can grant so much life that they can revive the dead. Their boons are great and direct, straightforward in a similar manner to Knights. "Allowing control through their Aspect" grants them their uncanny managerial abilities, as their aspect dictates the realm in which nothing occurs without the Maid's knowledge or permission, a realm made available to whomever the Maid's allegiance lies with.
Thus, at their worst, the Maid becomes a saboteur. Exploited by malign forces, their abilities to allow control over others through their aspect, or control of their aspect, makes them perfect vehicles by which their aspect can be hijacked or usurped, and made to turn against the party, and they often find themselves placed into these positions through no fault of their own. It takes the party banding together to shake off the forces that would keep a Maid in bondage.
However, at their best, Maids ensure that the party can never go too far off the rails. There is a place for everything, and everything will be in its place; a Maid is a supply line, a safe haven, and a promise that everything will be neat and tidy when the party returns from war. When the Maid belongs to themselves, their homestead becomes a fortress, and nothing occurs under the Maid's watchful eye without their express permission.
PAGE
"One who works to inherit [Aspect] or inherits [Aspect] for themselves."
Pages are a class defined by promise. As the name suggests, a Page begins weak, but has the great potential to develop into one of the most powerful players in the game. The exact nature of a Page's powers are vague, not because they are insignificant, but because they are so great that it's difficult to encompass them all. At the apex of their arcs, Pages are capable of miraculous feats, overpowering even Lords and Muses - if only they could reach that point and stay there.
A Page begins the game weakest of all, reflective of their long journey of growth. Where most classes only fall into deficit of their Aspect at their lowest emotional points, Pages begin their arcs in deficit - exhibiting character traits opposite to those their Aspect normally encompasses. Moreso than any other class, a Page must learn to grow into their Aspect. Weak-willed, naive, and easily hurt, Pages require careful nurturing if they're to come into their own.
"Working to inherit their Aspect" describes the endless journey of growth the Page must undertake - one with many missteps, backslides, and setbacks along the way. Still, they "inherit their aspect," meaning that their full potential, when realized, is overwhelmingly great - practically becoming their Aspect in humanoid form, capable of utilizing it to its glorious full potential.
However, their nature defeats them, and even if they can attain this state, the Page usually can't stay there for long. At their very worst, the Page's deficit of their Aspect's better qualities can turn the Page into a gravitic well of misfortune - an albatross about the party's neck, the centerpoint, if not inciting incident, of a massive disaster, as their team is sucked in by the Page's natural weakness.
But this is only true as it contrasts to a Page at their best - having grappled and won with the greatest of all weakness, a Page is poised to come into the greatest of all strength. Shown kindness, compassion, and support, a Page at full power reflects a party at their best. A Page at full strength is breathtaking to behold, an unstoppable force of nature, their Aspect made manifest.
HEIR
"One whom [Aspect] grants inheritance or inherits [Aspect] for others."
Heirs, in contrast to Pages, start the game strong. They usually belong to the upper echelons of their respective societies, a position of great wealth, leisure, and comfort, and are set to be inheritors of even greater wealth. Similarly, their Aspect comes to them as if of its own will - it is powerful, but difficult for the Heir to control, reflecting the wealth and status they've enjoyed as birthright.
An Heir's main challenge is that of examining their privilege, and learning where they wish to spread the gift they've been given. Because of their positions of sheltered comfort, Heirs are not particularly world-wise, and often harbor massive blind spots to the suffering of others and the ills of society. As such, they tend to be fairly aimless, given great power but no strong motivations, and have a tendency to simply indulge in their Aspect without contributing great help or hindrance to their team at all.
The Heir's Aspect is practically an independent entity. Being one whom "their Aspect grants them inheritance" refers to how the Heir starts powerful, able to summon their Aspect to perform great, miraculous acts. However, it is highly intuitive and difficult to control. The Heir's challenge lies not in attaining great power, but in attaining control over, and the ability to direct, their existing abilities. Once they do, they can "inherit their Aspect for others" - Heirs become a conduit through which their party can experience their Aspect, making it a usable pool of wealth for them all to draw from. However, because of their comfortable positions, many Heirs end up dallying, finding no pressing need to do so.
But this dallying hides a ticking clock. An Heir's inheritance will come to them, one way or another, and if they aren't ready to receive the great responsibilities that come with such great power, then the power will eventually consume them. An Heir with no clear direction will eventually become lost to their Aspect, entirely removing both from play. Like how wealthy inheritors simply become part of the status quo, so, too, does an Heir disappear into their Aspect, fixing it in place.
Thus, Heirs must learn where they have been blind, where they have been foolish, and what it means to be underprivileged. Then, once they turn their energies towards addressing those injustices - to taking responsibility for building a better future - when their wealth comes to them, they'll be able to distribute it where it's needed most. An Heir, fully-realized, brings their Aspect to heel, and makes it a resource available to their entire team, as if welcoming them all into the family.
THIEF
"One who steals [Aspect] or steals using [Aspect]."
Thieves are, as the name suggests, greedy - much of their arc revolves around a desire to amass wealth, though what's considered "wealth" varies based on the Thief and especially their Aspect. They tend to be callous people by nature, capable of ignoring or trampling over the feelings of others in order to take what they want, in the hopes of filling an emotional void the Thief may not even be fully aware of.
The Thief's playstyle is one of careful resource management. Reflecting a natural tendency to take "wealth" from others, Thieves are unable to use their Aspect without first "stealing" it - a subtractive act which leaves the victim bereft of the Aspect, weakening them in the process. Because of the finicky nature of these abilities, it takes great cunning to be a Thief, and the Class both demands and requires the player to be adaptable, flexible, and quick on their feet, able to effect complicated schemes and engineer the perfect situations for their powers to have the greatest effect. Thieves aren't necessarily strong, but they have a very high victory ratio, because they're experts at turning a situation to their own advantage.
"Stealing their Aspect" refers to the fundamental way in which the Thief class is played, this resource management game; "stealing using their Aspect" reflects how the Thief often becomes a malignant force within the party, viewing their own teammates as caches of wealth to plunder. Thieves are naturally prone to hurting others for their own purposes, craving drama and attention, and being of such callous dispositions that they're able to perform extreme acts of cruelty given the right motivations.
Thieves often become a target of ire within the party, disruptive forces whose quest for personal wealth and fulfillment comes at the cost of those around them. At their worst, they can bring so much heat down upon their own shoulders that the party feels the need to treat them like an enemy, which is disastrous for party harmony. Moreover, it's disastrous for the Thieves themselves, as Thieves seek wealth to compensate for some emotional emptiness, and making enemies of their friends only serves to deepen their ennui.
Thus, a Thief must be taught that true happiness and fulfillment doesn't come from the struggle for wealth, but from the building of something better with those they care about. A Thief, thus turned to heroic purposes, becomes the party's pinch hitter - an adaptable spy, an unpredictable maverick, an element of surprise - and above all, a reliable ally, capable of turning any tide in the party's favor.
ROGUE
"One who steals from [Aspect] or steals [Aspect] for others."
Rogues, on the other hand, call to mind such figures as Robin Hood, stealing from the rich to distribute to the poor. Rogues are at their best when they're agents of a well-planned heist, as they possess an unlimited toolbox - their own Aspect - to play with. Their Aspect is a treasure trove, just waiting for the Rogue to plunder it and share its riches - if only the Rogue can figure out how.
Rogues are forces of revolution. They naturally carry a rebellious spirit, one which bristles at injustice, takes a stand against authority, and questions the status quo. Their ideas are unfocused, however; they know they must rebel, but usually don't start with a clear idea of against who or what. They know that their society is injust, but they don't know how to address that injustice. They know there are villains, and may even know these villains' identity, but they don't know how best to defy them. In a similar way, they're often lost as to how to utilize their Aspect beyond its most basic applications, and usually require external assistance in order to bring out its full potential.
Rogues' true potential lies in "stealing from their Aspect" - an additive act, rather than a subtractive one, as a Thief's stealing is. Rogues are capable of removing their own Aspect's sway over another entity, allowing it to exhibit the characteristics of the opposite Aspect; a Rogue of Void can create things out of nothing, a Rogue of Heart can tease out behaviors and actions. They can also "steal their Aspect for others," allowing them access to their own Aspect's suite of abilities as well. This allows the Rogue incomparable flexibility, their abilities - like their dispositions - rebellious and subversive.
But their rebellious spirit, coupled with their lack of understanding as to who their real enemies are, is dangerous when left unchecked. Rogues often suffer from a failure to start, giving up on trying to understand the deeper implications of their abilities, and of the society they can't seem to find contentment in - but they can also suffer from a worse fate: rebellion without a cause. Rogues' free spirits can lead to them bucking the status quo in ways that actively harm others, performing acts of taboo or poor taste just because that rebellious energy needs to be put to use somewhere. These can have disastrous knock-on consequences, as some things are taboo for good reason.
Thus, Rogues need to be guided - to make connections with others, and come to a greater understanding of the world at large. Once they know their target, and what needs to be done, the Rogue makes sure there are no obstacles along the way - no safe is uncrackable, no prison inescapable, and no problem unsolvable, so long as the Rogue is there to work their magic.
MAGE
"One who guides [Aspect] or guides [Aspect] for themselves."
Mages are prophets, of the "always correct" variety - or so it seems. In actuality, Mages don't "predict" the future, they "choose" it - in a setting where the future is mutable, the Mage's ability is to speak into existence a future they desire, to tip the scales of causality and collapse possibilities into a single definite course. Their Aspect is the lens through which their "prophecy" occurs, a realm in which they command the fabric of reality itself.
As if to karmically balance this incredible power, Mages are afflicted by deep and terrible sadness. They start the game miserable, having been subjected to the greatest injustices their Aspect can offer, tormented by guilt, shame, and self-loathing. Their worldview has been shadowed with a lens of suffering and anguish, and so, too, is their view of the future. Mages usually begin the game having already set several prophecies into motion, and these early prophecies are usually obstacles that the party must overcome.
Mages "guide their Aspect" - this refers to the way their prophecies, that is, their chosen futures, always come true. Their visions may be limited to the sway of their Aspect, but it remains a powerful ability nonetheless. "Guiding their Aspect for themselves," then, outlines the Class's Active nature - the futures the Mage picks must be ones the Mage believes will come to pass.
Unfortunately, Mages have a tendency to pick ugly futures. This isn't out of malice or anger; this is because Mages start the game sad, and without intervention, grow sadder. They're prone to spirals of negativity, self-loathing, and depression, and as their outlook dims, so, too, do their forecasts. Mages suffer, but even suffering can grow familiar - can even appear comfortable or desirable, if the Mage suffers long enough. It's easy for them to grow so accustomed to misery that misery is the only outcome they can see - spelling doom for the rest of the party, one prediction at a time.
But a Mage whose party shows them kindness and forgiveness, compassion and empathy, can pull them out of their misery. How beautiful, then, the future appears! A Mage who believes in a brighter future is a force to be reckoned with. When a Mage can bring themselves to say, "and everyone lived happily ever after," you had better believe they did.
SEER
"One who who is guided by [Aspect] or guides [Aspect] for others."
Seers, meanwhile, are the true future-sighted, able to see the myriad paths the future could take. Like Mages, their Aspect serves as the lens by which their vision is colored; the Seer can sense, with fine accuracy, which paths are closest to the sway of their aspect, and which paths will take them further away. As if gifted with a guide to the game, their intuition is tied directly to the mechanics of SBURB, and they serve as the party's guides, a role indispensable in a game with so many moving parts.
Seers will struggle with blindness, first by hubris and ego, and then by self-harm. Seers begin the game quite full of themselves, proud of their prowess in their Aspect - usually arrogantly so. When this pride is inevitably shattered, Seers have a tendency to deal with their feelings of shame and guilt with willful, self-induced blindness - as if flipping a switch, they become ashamed of the pride they once placed in their Aspect, and seek to place as much distance between it and themselves as possible. There's comfort in ignorance, even if it renders the Seer useless.
Seers are "guided by their Aspect" - able to sense its presence, they gravitate toward it, and towards futures with it in abundance. And, in the same way, they "guide their Aspect for others," lighting the way for others down the path of greatest reward. Seers truly love their Aspect, no matter how much they may misplace their faith in it, and seeking it out is a great joy for them.
This is why a Seer at their worst is so tragic. By inducing intentional blindness within themselves, they are functionally deadening the strongest part of their soul. No matter the temporary relief this brings to the sharp, jagged pain of shame, it invariably deepens the Seer's suffering, as they deny themselves not only their own joy, but their ability to help others - another act which inherently delights them.
Thus, a Seer needs to be made to deal with their shattered ego head-on, to accept their own shortcomings, to become at ease with the idea that they don't have all the answers. Once their vision becomes clear, and their view becomes honest, the party nevermore has to fear becoming lost or straying from the path - the Seer will see to that.
WITCH
"One who changes [Aspect] or changes [Aspect] in others."
Witches are the winds of change, tweaking reality all around them until it suits their desires. A Witch is presence that commands both fear and respect, and their Aspect bows down before them, reduced to a mere minion in the Witch's presence, ready to attend to all their needs. In a way, the Witch's powers are straightforward - they can manipulate their Aspect as they desire, changing its qualities as they see fit. "How they see fit," then, is where the issue lies.
Witches are usually of "outsider" status, never truly being part of the society from which the rest of the party descends. Free from the same rules and common sense that govern the others on their team, Witches instead operate on a value system heavily reliant on their own emotions. What a Witch deems to be correct, to be true, or to be righteous, are often based not in any objective measure, but in subjective, emotional bias - and they're emotional creatures, indeed. Prone to fits of great anger, Witches can be benevolent one second and malicious the next, and their abilities let them imprint, to a greater degree than any other Class, their desires onto the world that comes after them.
Witches "change their Aspect," as in, the crux of their abilities lies in manipulating the qualities of their Aspect in their surroundings - extending, shortening, magnifying, shrinking, growing, removing… so on and so forth. It's a fearsome power. They also "change their Aspect for themselves" - their Aspect is hapless but to obey their desires; Witches change the world to suit themselves, and their feelings of how things "should" be often become how things "are" in short order.
Thus, a Witch who has been swayed toward evil entities and nefarious ends is a truly dangerous opponent - and it is unfortunately easy for this to happen. Witches' social isolation means they tend to trust their emotions, and a force that flatters these emotions can easily win a Witch's trust. By the same token, those that fail to flatter the Witch are often considered enemies, even if they're benevolent forces. A Witch's morality can thus become warped and topsy-turvy, which has grave consequences for the world that the Witch then shapes.
Therefore, a Witch's struggle lies in learning to see beyond their own emotions, to take in the opinions and assistance of others even when it seems superficially unpleasant, to move beyond the childlike rejection of that which is uncomfortable. Once able to see a more nuanced form of right and wrong, once able to tell evil from good, Witches can build even utopia.
SYLPH
"One who allows [Aspect] to change others or changes [Aspect] for others."
Sylphs are nurturers and healers; they bring to mind fey folk whose very footsteps cause plants to grow. Wherever they go, whatever they touch, all becomes suffused with the Sylph's Aspect, which flourishes under their careful cultivation. Sylphs adore their Aspect, and their Aspect adores them; Sylphs generally feel at peace with themselves, surrounding themselves with what they like.
A Sylph's main challenge - or rather, the main challenge that Sylphs wind up posing the rest of the party - is that Sylphs are enablers. They're attracted to those with strong wills and extreme dispositions, amused by the havoc they wreak and pleased by their attention. Sylphs love to pick out favorites and lavish them with care and attention, excusing any wrongdoing on their behalf and shielding them from consequences. At the same time, those who don't strike the Sylph's capricious fancy find themselves discarded in the Sylph's mind, shut out from the boons the Sylph can provide.
A Sylph is "one who allows their Aspect to change others" - this almost always manifests as healing, as it's an additive ability (that is to say, the Sylph can grant more of their Aspect to someone). "Changing their Aspect for others," on the other hand, explains this enabling nature of theirs - the Sylph will intervene to make the world into a playground for their favored individuals, even to the point of turning other, less "interesting" teammates into playthings for the Sylph's beloved.
Thus, while the Sylph themself isn't particularly prone to wild mood swings and acts of malice, their influence can still cause disaster by allowing unscrupulous individuals to flourish - even encouraging their worst tendencies. A Sylph's touch is subtle, but that subtlety only lends it an insidious quality, as the Sylph quietly works against the good of the many for the cruel, selfish pleasures of the few. At their very worst, the Sylph can deem themselves their only favorite, and render everyone else a minor character in their one-man show.
Thus, Sylphs must be challenged. They must be made to reckon with the fact that favorable treatment is not necessarily kindness, and that bias can easily become harm. When a Sylph is able to grasp the difference between bias and doing good, and tune their approach toward that greater good, uncolored by bias and personal preference, then there is no place safer, kinder, and more conducive to growth than the Sylph's embrace.
PRINCE
"One who destroys [Aspect] or destroys using [Aspect]."
Princes are the most anxious, psychologically anguished members of a party. They suffer from a toxic overabundance of their Aspect - its traits are taken to an extreme, and not only the Prince, but those around them, are made to suffer for it. Princes are naturally set on a path of self-destruction, the culmination of their uncontrolled accumulation of their Aspect, and their meltdowns are spectacular, taking their Aspect - and whoever is unlucky enough to be in the same room - with them.
A Prince's challenge, therefore, is as simple to understand as it is difficult to overcome. The Prince needs to learn how to calm down, relax, and find inner peace. Princes are terribly prone to circular thinking and downward spirals. Their natural inclination is to feel anxious and responsible, like they carry the weight of the world, and this causes them to act out in extreme and aggressive ways. Eventually, others pull away, put off by the Prince's intensity. This only deepens the Prince's malaise, and Princes are - pushed by this hovering sense of urgency and catastrophe - willing to employ drastic, desperate measures to enforce compliance with their wills. They wake on their moons early, reflective of their driven natures. They're determined to a frightful degree, and no sacrifice is too great, no work too dirty, if it means achieving what they see as the greater good.
Princes "destroy their Aspect" in this way - by presenting their Aspect at its worst, they make others take distance, ruining it for everyone else. Their hard wills, intense emotions, and unshakeable drive to do what (they feel) needs to be done - at any cost - is their source of power. Thus, Princes "destroy using their Aspect" - their toxic overabundance of Aspect lets them channel it into a pure, annihilatory force; what they lack in the delicate utility of the other classes, they make up for in raw, ruinous power. Princes can easily deal the greatest damage in a combat scenario, their ability to destroy overriding nearly everything that would stand against it.
Thus is the problem with Princes. They're ticking time-bombs of anxiety and frustration; when they finally go off, they carve a path of destruction, before ultimately self-destructing, leaving no trace of their Aspect behind. Not only that, but it's very difficult to defuse the bomb early; Princes have finicky, aggressive, and complicated personalities, and tend to react poorly to straightforward attempts to calm them down and reason with them. They often appear to be their own worst enemies, marching inexorably toward their own destruction.
But Princes not only can be saved, but must be saved. They must be saved because kindness and compassion must exist for their own sake, and a Prince rescued from their own worst tendencies is living proof of the truth of that sentiment. A Prince, given the peace they need to reorient their priorities, will not rest until they see a brighter future realized. They will be the first to rise, and the last man standing, banishing - as if by royal decree - all obstacles, all enemies, all misfortune, and all ills.
BARD
"One who invites destruction through [Aspect] or allows [Aspect] to be destroyed."
Bards are the wild cards of a party, responsible for both improbable victories and catastrophic defeats - sometimes both in a single session. The methods by which a Bard works are a mystery to even the Bard themselves, which make it easy for the party to dismiss their powers - and, by extension, the Bard themselves. After all, who would expect there to be consequences for something so ridiculous as a Bard?
Bards are usually targets of abject ridicule by their teams. They can't help it - they're religious types, or at least types that hold great, lofty, ridiculous beliefs near and dear to their hearts. A Bard's primary struggle invariably winds up being a crisis of faith. Bards begin the game with a positive, "correct" faith in their Aspect; however, something will inevitably occur that shakes the Bard's faith in this viewpoint to its core. In this state, Bards are incredibly fragile, and it's very easy for them to succumb to whispers of cruelty and destruction, for their beliefs to warp, and for the Bard to come to serve the worst aspects of the society they represent.
A Bard "invites destruction through their Aspect" - their powers are subtle, but have catastrophic effects. Bards are instinctively drawn towards causing the first flap of a butterfly's wing, which cascades into a grand, impossible karmic backlash. They "allow their Aspect to be destroyed" by being the conduits for the forces of their faith - whatever faith they hold - to wreak unimaginable consequences across the game.
Thus, a Bard must not be allowed to fall into darkness. The cost is too great. They must be treated with kindness, patience, and sincerity, and given a chance to re-establish their faith in a better, brighter future. If this can be done, then at the party's direst moment - in their darkest hour - they will find that kindness paid back a thousandfold, as an innocuous act by the Bard that no one remembers balloons into a miracle.
Once you start analyzing homestuck from a transfem perspective its so hard to stop because it's so deeply ingrained into the story and almost every character. Like, June constantly had masculinity pushed onto her by her father, despite his good intentions. Dave has had masculinity imposed on her by bro from day one. Her entire character arc is about learning to understand that you don't have to live up to those standards, you don't have to be the hero just because that was what you were raised to do, you don't have to be a guy! Jake literally says "I don't want to be a man!". Those exact words! In a situation where she's being told to "be a man, punch Jane, do what a real man would do" and she doesn't! (Also linking in with the theme of masculinity=violence=heroics=other peoples expectations of you, hell that main villain of homestuck is an ultra masculine aggressive representation of the patriarchy and stagnation.) Tavros is pressured by Vriska to be more heroic, manly, to live up to standards set by her ancestor; the summoner. Equius enforces and believes in the hemocaste system and tries to live up to her castes standards of strength and power (think that scene where she insists that she be the one to go outside and investigate and refuses to bring Nepeta with her. she wants to be the "protector"), even though doing this makes her unhappy and forces a distance between her and the ones she loves (accidentally hurting her lucus, making Nepeta stay behind, etc). Eridan wants to mimic their ancestor by orphaning and roleplaying as dualscar, while hiding their real interest, magic, away while trying to cover up their enjoyment of it by insisting that magic isn't real. Gamzee has her autonomy taken away from her for most of homestuck, used as a tool by various forces, most notably Lord English, the literal embodiment of masculinity, to comment violence and murder. Karkat has an immense hatred for herself, especially over her blood color, something that she was born with that keeps her from truly interacting with the world and fulfilling her dreams like she wants to, and also struggles with being weak, unleaderlike, unheroic. She wants to be strong, and live up to those ideals, but she's just not able to. Even for characters that are already women, femininity is not innate. It has to be sought out, worked for. Vriska so desperately wants to be like mindfang, but can't quite ever get there. Rose believes that her mother's housewife routine, aka overperformance of femininity, is to mock her. Later in the story she starts drinking as a way to get closer to her mother, to understand her, to be more like her. (Roxy does the same with her drinking, except with Alpha Rose in the place of mom). Roxy also talks about "feeling like something empty inside of her has been filled, like her life finally has a meaning and a purpose" after creating the mother grubs egg, something that has deep connections to motherhood and femininity in Homestuck. A large part of Kanaya's arc is connected to the mother grubs egg as well after its destroyed in front of her. Her connection to motherhood, and in turn femininity, is gone, and for the rest of the comic her main goal is to get back. Calliope struggles with her self-image (as a reminder, she looks exactly like her twin brother, who turns into the literal symbol of masculinity) and hides behind her trollsona when interacting with her friends because she believes that her looks will disgust them or scare them away. Jade's body has permanent additions to it in the form of bec's features, features that she didn't ask for and were given to her unknowingly. (shes canonically transfem in hsbc! and if you say anything about a dog penis I smite you). transfemininity is just baked into Homestuck from top to bottom, which makes sense now that we know hussie was an egg at the time of writing it, as their feelings about gender are very very clear once you take a closer look at the reoccurring themes in the story.
Sorry if this is a bit of a ramble! I went in without a plan and this ended up wayyyy longer than anticipated lol. hopefully it still makes sense
to be honest i think the reason jujus affect the alpha kids differently than the cherubs is just because the cherubs have the concept of a nuclear family intertwined with their very existence, whereas its not as necessary with humans. like, a family forces you to live with and interact with your family members, but the cherub species seems to take that to an extreme. you have someone who you are forced to not only live with, but you also share a body, and one of you is supposedly destined to kill the other. (of course, i doubt this like, a natural thing that just Happens, but given one's situation and exposure to prior knowledge, it may feel like it comes naturally.)(i gotta brush up on my cherub species lore tho.) and to destroy the weaker counterpart, while freeing yourself, just continues the cycle. so callie discovers that this isn't the only possibility, but as a result, she is killed by caliborn. cycle continues, yada yada. callie *is* revived, but she needs to wear a ring (marriage!) + the creation of a new universe = continuation of the family tree
now while this is obviously reflected in humans, it is not so extreme, which is why their behavior changes so drastically. something i find interesting is that roxy in particular has a spiral in her hair, similar to the ones that represent the cherubs. while she wasn't raised with "family values" or the expectation of being a sort of housewife like jane was, her earlier appearances show her acting the most like one of these stereotypical housewives. as they play sburb, though, along with quitting drinking, roxy manages to cut back on her other behaviors like flirting with dirk. for her, this makes trickster mode more of a relapse. while jane and jake never spoke about getting married and having tons of kids before trickster mode, roxy did! she even decided to start drinking again during it.
going back to the whole housewife thing (i'm unfortunately obsessed with usamerican 1950's imagery/symbolism), trickster mode sort of reminds me of the "american dream". all of your problems are solved, you can live happily and be married and have kids, the end. it's that easy!
anyway i think the spirals represent, like. nuclear family, family unit, cycle of abuse, whatever you wanna call it. :p
Anyone ever think about how Rose has probably watched CSEM of Dave? I do. Rose's semi-ironic predation of him through the lens of making him her patient, a notebook full of observations of him that she may or may not actually have. It's more intimate than any way he might feel about the fact that random people on the internet have probably jerked off to videos with him in them, in which he may or may not have been fully clothed. I don't think either of them understand how wrong the situation with Bro is here, and I wish it's something that had come up more seriously between them later on.
This is more parallels with Rose and Terezi too. Terezi watches Dave and so does Rose, probably. Of course, all the patron trolls watched their designated humans at specific points in their childhoods, but when Terezi does that specific attention is put to how cute she thinks he is as a toddler, being fed by a puppet. Dave annoys Terezi by telling her how he's going to remove his glasses for Rose as his dream self, which Terezi won't be able to observe. They each have had a different kind of intimate view of him.
I think the most acknowledgment we get of Dave's Canonical Puppet-Based Sexual Trauma post-Act 3 is when he claims that Rose got off easier just having an alcoholic mom because at least her mom never "shoved a puppet in her face." I really wanted to see it boil over properly, maybe have them both come to an understanding of how they both minimized the pain each one was feeling at the time because they were busy repressing their own. I've seen people say sometimes that Dave would have been better off with Mom Lalonde, and that while Bro should never raise children, Rose could have handled him better, but I'm not sure about that. I think Dave would have become horribly codependent with his mom, and probably had a much worse time dealing with her death than Rose did. And it should go without saying that being raised by such an awful misogynist would have massively fucked Rose up, probably make her feel like she has something to prove to everyone she meets. Which she already sort of does. But like, worse. That should be another post though, or maybe a fic.
Anyway also:
Minutely turning a big dial that says "Rose's capacity to rape somebody" on it and constantly looking back at the audience for approval like a contestant on the price is right.
Would you be open to talking about some of the gamz black coding outside the stereotypes? And actually what are some of the stereotypes cause I’m sure I missed anything outside of ‘the way he talks’ ‘is in a gang (cult)’ and maybe a smidge of ‘neglected by (goat)father figure / got into drugs early’. Gamzee is a character I really enjoy so this isn’t like a ‘prove it’ ask it’s like a ‘I want to see what you seee’ ask. You don’t have to ofc. But I do love your Gamz interpretations!
Lowkey I end up seeing most the trolls as black or mixed because of the Hair. I just imagine most of them having a specific hair texture as trolls and translate it over for humans. Except Equius. Who I hc as a White Native.
It's all good. Whenever I talk about this stuff it's literally always meant to be me wanting people to see what I'm seeing, not to change minds about their interpretation. My anger usually bubbles, not because I'm being told a different concept of seeing Gamzee but because it always comes with an undertone of undermining or misconstruing what I'm saying or just straight up being ignorant. I may lose my head on people who don't mean to be rude or anything due to these experiences so I can say it's sometimes my fault. Usually I catch myself and just stop responding or apologize.
It's why I choose to not have public conversation about it and just talk and that's it. Thank you for being interested in my thoughts though, I'm really not trying enforce stuff on to people, especially when it comes to Homestuck. I just think we as people should be aware of the racism in all media and talk about it critically, especially anti-blackness.
I really appreciate this ask and how its worded btw because honestly, I've had too many experiences where people are so vague I feel like I'm in danger or make the assumption that the other being hostile and rather not interact further to find out. Thank you for being specific, It's something I need when it comes to these types of talks. 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
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Here goes some explanations around the black-coding:
• The biggest thing that creates the black coding around Gamzee (and the Makaras in general tbh) is the prevalent theme of vodou. Vodou is an exclusively black religion that comes from Haiti, It's basically Catholicism and sometimes even Christianity mixed with a multitude of religious/spiritual African practices due to the mix of different African tribes in one place and the forced practices of Catholicism. Vodou is what was demonized in a racist panic due to enslaved black Haitians fighting and gaining their independence from the Colonizers whom settled and stole the land, which is what creates the demonized depiction of Vodou we see in media today! What makes Vodou exclusively black is because it's about giving respect to your ancestors. If you're not black, what ancestors are you respecting? Definitely not the African/Black ancestors, that for sure.....
• The reality of the culture that the Makaras practice is also a big one for me. When Gamzee was first introduced in the comic we are told Gamzee's different and weird and a part of a cult. It is confirmed later by Equius that Gamzee is an odd one amongst the purples, in a conversation they have on Trollian. But when Hiveswap comes around it is confirmed that Gamzee isn't necessarily different from other purples in that variant so what exactly makes him different from the other purples? And even than as the game keeps depicting the purple bloods we actively are exposed to how REAL their religion actually is. Even in the original comic Gamzee and Kurloz perform Vodou and it is working, it's working in their favor. If all there is to the purples are "culture vultures" why exactly is the culture that is either made up or stolen referencing them repeatedly even in its most pure form, in the death of Karako?
• Kurloz's whole "evil" Vodou priest writing doesn't help with any fightback towards the clear coding around Vodou. Kurloz's design also represents a lot symbolism and references to the Lwa, Baron Samedi, a figure in Vodou. Baron Samedi also tends to be represented by the colors black & purple and skeletons are a huge theme with this Lwa as well. Baron Samedi is the Lord of the Dead and if you understand who he is as a Lwa a lot of what he represents is very prominent in the Makara's writing.
• I just don't think you can write vodou so culturally into a characters storyline without it being black-coding. That's literally impossible and it feels disingenuous to brush it off like that just because "ICP!!".
• ICP is brought up repeatedly as an explanation to Gamzee's character by other fans, especially to brush off claims of Gamzee's black-coding. Though I completely understand why it is brought up and it makes sense to people who use that as an explanation, it falls short once you look at the text around ICP in the writing of Homestuck. There are two ICP's in homestuck. ICP that we all know as the band and ICP that is specifically prevalent in troll/purple blood culture as Messiahs. (I will call them band!ICP & Messiahs!ICP for less confusion) Messiahs!ICP aren't the same as band!ICP which is confirmed in the original comic as well. If you understand ICP outside the context of Homestuck you would also know that ICP's whole entire theme is just pirated black culture. Them as a real band stealing from black culture and Gamzee being so offended by it? Yeah, I think you understand my point here, i dunno how to end this paragraph because I want to say more but I hate ICP so my brain just blows up when talking about em.
• When we get to Kurloz as a character. Aranea describes Kurloz as being talkative AND mentions spirituality which automatically connects Kurloz to religion in some way before the night terror the facepaint also implies something similar to what Gamzee practices on Alternia? Beforus doesn't HAVE Doc Scratch, if the clown religion's main source is Doc Scratch/Lord English? Why exactly is Kurloz participating in something that shouldn't even exist? It's because the clown religion was always real. The one on Alternia is simply corrupt by The Condensce and Doc Scratch/Lord English which we know are working together running the Alternia through Dictatorship, with The Condensce being the face of it.
• I don't really like using Hussie's word to validate my stance around characters since they generally have a history of backtracking, changing canon info, jokingly saying things are canon etc. etc. She also just doesn't really give yes or no answers either which I can understand. People use his word all the time to validate their stance so I'mma go ahead and do it too. Hussie LITERALLY said that Gamzee getting angry at the ICP video Dave sent him was synonymous to someone getting angry at their culture being appropriated or made fun of. ICP appropriates black culture.... You get my point.....
• Another thing I found out is that people believe afros are a black stereotype which... ngl... bothered me. Gamzee has an afro, so does Kurloz, they actually have similar hairstyles which is confirmed with their general sprites. Their talksprites just have a style gap and were drawn by 2 different artists. I'm aware that anyone of any race can have kinky curls/afro-textured hair but the word afro is literally african/black centered so I just can't take this statement of "Afro is a black stereotype." seriously. I might also be a bit bias cause I'm a black person with a big ass afro lol.
• How Gamzee's written in the epilogues...... 💀💀💀
(Note: If it was like, one or 2 black stereotypes on the Makara's. I wouldn't be so adamant on the black coding but having ALL OF THIS mixed together to makes it impossible for it to not be that. Racial-coding whether it's done good or not, is still racial-coding. At some point intention doesn't matter especially with how much is written around them (as I pointed out) and as well as the racism that is actively IN the comic.)
(Another note: I don't believe all purplebloods as a whole are black-coded. Tbh that concept really bothers me in the same way of making all tealbloods Jewish bc of the stereotypes written into Terezi 's character. To me it's just weird but I dunno. I'm just one person, things are way more complicated than that in real life to me so maybe that's why? Idk lol. I used to be VERY for it but after thinking about it for a long time it just bothers me.)
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Here comes my personal reading of the Makara's/Mostly Gamzee lol, this specific part isn't me pointing out canon writing but using canon (and as well as reality/personal experience s) to support my reading and so that others can understand what I'm saying:
~~CLOWN CHURCH~~
Let me start with my understanding of the clown church.
I DO believe the Alternian version is a cult but just like most religious cults they're usually always based on a real religion. The Alternian version of the clown religion was washed out and weaponized by the Condensce who then also weaponized the purples with the powers (chucklevoodoos) that is known to their caste. She saw how powerful many aspects of this faith was and took advantage of it. This was all heavily influenced by Doc Scratch/Lord English whos character feels synonymous to many aspects related to colonization, of course, with many other things mixed in.
To me it mirrors how the demonization of vodou started but instead of demonizing it to keep people away and demonizing the people that practice it, she weaponized the clown religion throughout her society to create fear towards it, in favor of using it to have control over Alternian society.
The Clown religion was originally something reminiscent to Vodou but warped and erased in a similar fashion done in real life. But instead of it being an erasure, it was a complete rewrite and weaponized.
I believe Kurloz practiced the original version of the religion but was completely led astray by Lord English.
~~GAMZEE BEFORE MURDERSTUCK~~
My understanding of Gamzee is that they're a child that is surrounded by something that they don't particularly connect with. Yes, they're a devout follower but they obviously don't even have a grip of what the cult they're apart of actually is before looking into Lil Cal's eyes. It's very similar to how most children blindly follow a religion they're raised with without understanding anything about it.
Gamzee was a child that was not only neglected but also isolated with little to no connection to the violence that Alternian society already assigned to them. Gamzee obviously knew about it but rejected it in favor of a mentality that made more sense to him but still embraced something that he was raised into.
It just feels incredibly reminiscent of someone raised in a culture that is isolating or even hating them for their differences but still wanting to connect to their culture.
Everything about Gamzee's character literally goes against the cult, specifically before murderstuck, it just feels insane to say Gamzee just CHOSE to be the way he is later in the comic.
I do believe Gamzee's a joke character but I also believe when you're reading a story you can't JUST use symbolism, one off lines, and outside sources from the story to understand a character. I do think there are some people who can but most people don't really know how to read into symbolism in a way that will make sense for the entire existence of a character.
Gamzee is a huge victim of this.
Also want to bring up the fact that Gamzee was so docile before murderstuck that no one could have even THOUGHT he would've done something that heinous. Even Terezi decided to go against her better judgment in the clues she found and decided that Vriska was hurting or killed Gamzee even with all the clues pointing to him because that was way more believable than the obvious. Literally no one thought Gamzee would or COULD do this and it caught EVERYONE off guard.
~~MURDERSTUCK AND GAMZEE'S VILLAIN ARC~~
Equius' and Nepeta's murder and in defense of Gamzee:
I personally do not understand why people COMPLETELY demonize Gamzee for what happened. Like I GET it but I feel like if you read the comic and see what said and scattered throughout this storyline it becomes obvious that Gamzee wasn't FULLY in control during. And even then why would I feel bad at a victim mocking and killing someone who bullied and sexually harassed them on a regular basis? Like everyone just forgot what Equius was doing to Gamzee on the regular?
And even then, everything Gamzee did that people tend to say that were only done to mock Equius were things that Equius constantly asked Gamzee to do during those coerced roleplays. If anything Gamzee was trying to make Equius happy ( ALSO A HUGE THEME WITH HIS CHARACTER. People don't realize how much of a people pleaser Gamzee was.) and as well as doing everything they needed to do simultaneously. Gamzee truly is a clown, a jester, and a minstrel.
And as for Nepeta? Nepeta was sadly in the wrong place at the wrong time and Gamzee killing her was simply a cause and effect of her lunging at him. She did not deserve to see or go through that.
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The reasons why the mental break happened:
Gamzee's meltdown had many factors:
-Was going through withdrawals for a bit before he even saw the ICP video.
-Gamzee IS brain damaged. Prolonged drug abuse during childhood does that and that's just a fact.
-The ICP Video that he saw that enraged them. (Also mind you. Gamzee's eyes weren't red, so this wasn't the beginning of murder mode. Matter of fact, Gamzee literally went hero mode.)
-The affect of the ICP video ruining their faith for them. (The messaging between Gamzee and Dave after Gamzee lost it is honestly heartbreaking.)
-Looking into Lil Cal's eyes (We all know that it's canon that Lil Cal can affect someone's mind just by looking at its eyes. I don't understand why that's considered impossible with Gamzee?)
-Seeing the dead gored body of their crush during their mind break. (Mind you, the biggest reason Gamzee had a crush on Tavros at all was because Tavros was literally one of the only people that was nice to him and WANTED to be around them.)
-Gamzee also most likely has a lot of underlying trauma due to the neglect from their guardian and as well as mistreatment & bullying from their "friends". And all those emotions definitely got triggered and intensified by Lil Cal/Lord English.
To me. Most of the people we call Gamzee's friends were never their actual friends to begin with. Including their best friend and eventual moirail. Karkat Vantas.
Gamzee going Murder Mode wasn't a betrayal but an extreme mental break mixed with withdrawal due to stress, mindbreak, manipulation, and the feeling of betrayal on Gamzee's part. You can't hurt and break somebody's heart over and over again and expect them not to snap?
(Note: I do think Gamzee made some kind of choice or deal without fully understanding what he was signing up for. I personally do not think it was to hurt anybody in particular but was tricked by Lord English. There was only a perception of choice you could say.)
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More thoughts around Gamzee's character and how people analyze him:
I find that most people, when analyzing the characters. Tend use a lot of black & white thinking and are usually never nuanced. Most tend to pick lines and phrases in the comic that makes their dislike or like for a character seem valid but throw away the context of the things they pick or never look at the character as a whole.
When it comes to Gamzee, whether someone is for or against him as a character they always end up lacking nuance because they have zero idea of the things that surround Gamzee's character or are biased to the point they deduce Gamzee to an innocent puppet or a monster when neither are true.
Gamzee's character is simply tragic, just like most of the characters are. The only difference is that he became one of the villains, or you could say, under the boot of the villain. Depending on how you want to see it. I personally see it as a bit of both.
People forget how kind he was before murderstuck. People forget how fucked his mind was when all this happened, and everyone forgets how young he actually is and how easily this kid can and will fall under the influence at the quickest comfort. Why else do you think he started calling Lil Cal his best friend and even speaks of a voice TELLING him to kill everyone BEFORE he even did anything?
It just feels like people are purposely being obtuse about his character just because of a few lines and ignoring everything that surrounds Gamzee's character.
~~Gamrezi~~
Hoo boy....
Many Gamzee fans throughout my time being in the fandom have said that GamRezi should've never even happened and I have to agree. The only reason it was written into the comic was because of a gamkarezi fanfiction written by a friend of Hussie. (I can't remember who it was.)
But even so it's still in the comic and I think it's kind of stupid to scrap it out just because I don't like it. If it's canon it's something that should be analyzed.
The relationship between Gamzee and Terezi was abusive there's NO denying that.
The main thing around their relationship is that it's a relationship that NEITHER of them TRULY want to be in. Terezi talks about how much she hates that she's still with him and Gamzee talks about it in a passive way with guilt because he cares about Karkat. One thing I also notice about Gamzee's conversation with Rose about their spade relationship is that he's talking more about how Terezi feels about him rather about how he feels about her.
It feels like the relationship is a form of self harm on BOTH ends.
Here comes my theories.
The abuse that went on in the relationship felt like a mixture of neither actually WANTING to be in the relationship plus it just never being healthy to begin with. I feel like a lot of the abuse Gamzee put upon Terezi was him literally not even understanding what's too far in a kissmesitude PLUS the lack of control of his own mind due to LE, and psychosis.
Terezi being the Seer of Mind, I can see her clocking that Gamzee isn't completely there and staying mainly because she feels like she's responsible in trying to "fix him." It's probably why it took so long for her to even TRY to kill him. Terezi isn't scared to kill, she isn't a damsel, nor is she a perfect victim. But still a victim.
The idea of trying to bring someone you care about back from a state and feeling you're getting close but facing failure over and over again. I can see her giving up and choosing to believe Gamzee's gone. There's one Gamzee now and he's here and he's a bitch. I can really see her thinking that and stewing in those feelings for a good bit. Finalized decision to go "Clown Hunting" was finally her resolution. Of not only freeing herself but Gamzee as well.
Imagine her finally making that decision to kill Gamzee and stabbing him repeatedly and to just be jump scared with a face that she's familiar with. Before the game. A voice that was soft like before.
She didn't want to kill HIM. She was close again and faced with her perceived "failure". BRUTALLY.
A teen trying to take on a responsibility she should've never took on, and most likely pursuing it due to guilt of killing her best friend, Vriska. Desperately trying to keep the people she deem innocent or hold dear protected. She's just as tragic as Gamzee y'all. I love her a ton!
(I actually made a post about how I see Gamzee's corruption which will make my theory around GamRezi make more sense. Here!)
~~GamRezi regarding Aranea~~
(This part is PURELY theoretical.)
Also wanna bring up. I do NOT think Aranea mind controlled Gamzee to abuse Terezi but I do like to play around with the idea and I think about how she may have planted seeds of insecurity for Gamzee to say to Terezi about her blindness. It just feels very suspicious especially with her wanting to heal Terezi's sight beforehand and Terezi rejecting the offer. Aranea's whole thing was that SHE wanted to fix everything and be the hero that defeated Lord English which is why she did the things she did in the first place. I can imagine Aranea trying to heal Terezi's blindness for 2 reasons:
-Wanting to be a hero and FIX people, even the ones who don't want to be fixed (I've met people like that before, get them AWAY from me lol)
-Eliminating the threat that Terezi poses because her blindness actually made her seer powers stronger, which has a possibility of her ruining Aranea's plans.
~~THE AUTHORS NOTES (PERTAINING TO GAMZEE & PERSONAL THOUGHTS AND EXPERIENCES)~~
Everything that is demonized and said about Gamzee in the Authors notes in the physical books either gets debunked within the writing of the original comic or just racism, ableism, or an obvious bias towards victims of drug abuse. It gets incredibly obvious that there's a bias and lazy writing taking place here.
So I won't lie, it hurts to see people just agree with the thoughts of someone demonizing the way me and my family speaks. It hurts to see someone demonize the way I think and understand the world and everyone just agrees with it. It hurts to see the suffering of huge group of people as a joke and everyone just agrees. All these things that get demonized were things I had gone through at some point in my life and It just.... disgusts me that people are just ok with it.
There's definitely a bit of a bias on my part but I guess that's literally what happens when everything you are is demonized by the people around you your whole life and then finally when everything about you is presented in one character, the individual who created the character and someone we all know has pretty bad biases demonizes all those things.
But it doesn't matter cause everyone is all for it.
I really do want to be understanding to everyone's point of view but I just find it all disgusting sometimes.
~~My kudos to Hussie~~
I do understand that I come off as antagonistic towards Hussie and I feel that generally puts most people off cause they assume that I dont have respect for the work that is put into Homestuck as a medium so I thought it'd be a good thing to add this.
As much as I don't really like Hussie as an individual I can't really say that I have zero respect for them as a creator, nor can I blame her for the lazy writing, plot holes, rushing later in the original comic. It makes sense especially with how much they were stressing about it and how the fandom gave them shit for the hiatus' and breaks.
I don't even think Hussie really wanted to finish the comic in the first place but she did. (More of an assumption on my part. But with how the fandom was going and how them as an author reacted. It's kind of hard to think she finished the comic with love.)
I'm incredibly appreciative of the creation of Homestuck, it was one of the only things in my childhood keeping me from killing myself. And even though Gamzee was a joke character and he hates Gamzee.... I really appreciate the creation of Gamzee. It was the first time seeing a character represent so many aspects of myself and I truly love them.
It hurts to see a creator hate something they created so much but it's ok. and it makes sense as an observer of the fandom and Hussie for years now.
~~In Conclusion~~
Ok, I think I'm finished lol. I low-key don't like talking about Homestuck. It stresses me out :')
