something about the bound and fable cast consistently having overall themes of grief and loss in the smp is so tragically interesting, particularly in the fact it's shown in different forms; not just in each character, but also the overall plot that drives the story forward.
fable smp's storyline basically... wouldn't exist if Fable knew how to grieve better. his fear of death, particularly with loved ones, being in his nature as the God of Creation displays how anticipatory grieving is incredibly destructive to not only the person experiencing it and the people around them, but also how time is experienced. When you are constantly worrying about the health of yourself and others, it takes away from the actual time you can spend with them, and any time spent not grieving/with them feels like a waste. this is shown in Fable's need for control over how time affects a person's life and health in destructive patterns, such as the resets. this then creates a domino effect where everyone else who experiences the resets grieve the loss of their lives, sometimes not even remembering what for, and using time that could be spent together attempting to delay tragedy. it's shown how when grief is managed together and can be used instead as motivation to push forward, the issue may be resolved (referencing how the final fight scene is one of the few moments where everyone, besides Fable, is on the same side and feel free enough to let out pent up emotions.)
skybound is similar, but completely different in form: 'This tragedy is inevitable, and currently, there is no possible way to stop it from slowly encroaching on our lives and taking everything away from us. the best we can do is work together.' The mere concept of falling islands without time to process what's happening or what to take with you has an inherent theme of loss, similar to the kind felt when a home is lost due to things like weather or fires. instead of the storyline following a character's lack of emotional processing, it follows a community sharing their grief and slowly learning how to deal with it, and finally letting it go. the islands all finally falling away are almost a direct symbol of the shadow of loss being taken off someone's shoulders and instead moving on to new beginnings.
starbound we don't know a whole lot for yet, but I feel like it might too. I mean, all of the characters have immediately lost their homes and previous lives. My prediction is that it might show grief in the form of regrowth? showing that while recovery isn't linear and will never be the same as before, it can happen when forged and constructed over time. such as how the ships they make will never be the same, but maybe they can learn to call new places home and emotionally adapt to their new lives <3 I can't wait to see how the story pans out
thank you for reading my long rant about how grief affects people in many different forms, I'm a psychology nerd and consistent themes shown in entirely new forms, especially when it's characters haunted by the narrative and some form of grief, are rotated in my brain. it's also helped a lot with personal issues, so thank you to the casts for not only having incredible individual character plots, but also having incredible thematic storylines that were written beautifully 🫶
