#six of crows analysis

[burntfork]

“awwww wylan is so cute and innocent!!!!” WRONG he’s a 16 year old boy who was abused and almost killed by his father yet refused to lose his morals despite all of the evils the world threw at him pack it up

[tr7gedy]

if you appreciate living in a state of sanity then do not think about how both jesper and wylan, two boys with gaping wounds of shame in them, fell in love with someone who saw them as unequivocally perfect. and who vowed to convince them of that.

jesper fahey who grew up hiding his powers, who could hardly even bear to voice out loud his grisha identity, who was taught that his shame was a shield.

wylan van eck who grew up teaching himself to mask and to deceive, to stall his father’s inevitable cruelty as much as he could. who was beaten and berated and mocked, who was taught that his shame was a rightful punishment.

and yet they love each other both in spite of it all and because of it all.

jesper thinks wylan is brilliant, wylan thinks jesper is brave. they think of eachother as everything and more.

jesper convinces wylan that his dyslexia isn’t a defect nor an error, that it doesn’t make him any less of a person, any less of the remarkably clever explosives expert that saved both his and everyone else’s asses time and time again.

wylan convinces jesper that his power is undeniably a part of him, and a beautiful one at that. that maybe it isn’t easy, but neither is anything worth having.

and together, they heal and they grow and they forgive. and they convince each other that they aren’t their shame, and maybe they never were.

[whimzzzyarts]

I've seen a lot of people critique the way Matthias died in Crooked Kingdom, and I feel like putting forth some personal input about it.

First of all, I know I have posted many times about being utterly heartbroken and in denial about Matthias's death, but that doesn't mean I don't see the significance of it or that I would go back and change it. It's fine in fanfiction, but in canon, it needs to be done. As much as it hurts. Because, look. Matthias began his journey in SOC as a boy whose mind was wired and twisted by older Druskelle to believe the prejudices Fjerdans have believed for generations. But throughout the duology, we see Matthias have a change of heart and realize the errors of his ways, but without losing his core beliefs, like his religion or his desire to change the ways of every other Fjerdan too. And by the time we reach the end of CK, to the readers, it feels like Matthias's arc is resolved and he and Nina can live happily together, and additionally, the story with the Fjerdans feels resolved too. That is why he needed to die, to help the readers realize why the story with the Fjerdans has to continue. Just because Matthias changed, doesn't mean the country did. Furthermore, the cycle of violence continues and still has a long way to go. Nina finds a way to change it on her own, without Matthias.

And now onwards to the way that Matthias died. Once again, I've seen people complain about how anticlimactic his death feels, but if I'm honest, the sudden and small scale of his death is exactly what makes it hit so hard, and it fits the kind of character Matthias eventually grew to be. In most other books, the main character dies in a grand, huge way. But here, he was killed by a boy who represents the person Matthias used to be, again, referring back to the cycle of violence, discrimination, and brainwashing of the Fjerdans. The small scale reflects the reality of the Crows as a group. Reminders, they are not royalty, they are not powerful rare Grisha or amplifiers, sure they find their strengths, but at their core, they are all ordinary people who are trying to survive. But they are not immune to falling, to getting hurt and killed. And for them, the kill isn't required to be big and super planned out, it could happen in the blink of an eye, in the space of a breath. That is the way things are in Ketterdam, that is what the unforgiving city promises and it is not consistent with its options.

I hope this makes sense.

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

Just a reminder: the Van Eck house is a mansion, and explicitly described as such multiple times. In the UK and the US the modern size expectation of a mansion is a minimum 8000 square feet or 740 square metres in the countryside, though if in a city potentially a minimum of 5000 square feet or 460 square metres. Even if the Van Eck mansion is only 5000 square feet, though honestly considering the worldbuilding of Ketterdam as a city and the descriptions on the house (details like “the first floor dining room” that imply there are multiple dining rooms) it could easily be bigger, that probably means the house has four or five bedrooms (the internet said six but I’ve subtracted one for Van Eck’s office). Taking into account the servant’s quarters on the fourth floor, let’s assume there’s still space for three or four bedrooms in the family’s living quarters (I’m assuming the servants’ rooms to be much smaller than the others). With a couple in the primary bedroom and one bedroom occupied by a child, that house should have at absolute minimum had at least one spare room. But Jan Van Eck still chose to gut Wylan’s bedroom and replace it with a nursery awaiting his new child.

[multifandomconfusionn]

When people talk about Matthias’ death I hear a lot about the inability to escape the past/past mistakes live on. But I feel like another purpose of Matthias’ death is to express that while it is wonderful that Matthias has overcome the prejudice instilled in his childhood, the cycle of violence will continue until Fjerda’s propaganda and grooming of its citizens is ended. Much like how Matthias senselessly killed Grisha, he too was killed without reasoning other than “being a traitor.” This also coincides with Matthias’ dying wish, asking Nina to help other Fjerdans break free from the prejudice that is constantly being ingrained within them.

[applecidersstuff]

Kaz's journey to grieving his brother properly will start with Matthias.

Do you ever realize that Matthias is the second loss Kaz has ever experienced? He had witnessed many deaths among the Dregs, but he never allowed himself to get attached to any of them, so he didn't really viewed them as losses. In almost ten years, crows are the first people that Kaz has accepted as his family, and while Kaz and Matthias are hard to call best friends, they are friends. They are on more of the "high school rivals" side of the spectrum, but it doesn't mean they don't care about what happens to the other.

And the news of Matthias's death hits the crew right after Kaz has finally avenged his brother.

So, don't imagine how lost Kaz will be when he realizes that the pain he felt after the swim from the reaper's barge came back, but now it was there on behalf of the big Fjerdan.

Don't imagine how he will freeze when he finds the map of the ice court with Matthias's crooked handwriting or pardon that he never got to use and realizes that it is all that's left of Helvar.

Don't imagine how his thoughts slowly switch from one thing to another, and he slowly realizes there's nothing left from his brother.

Don't imagine how he feels something on his cheek, and when he tries to wipe it off and feels water, he realizes that he's crying.

Don't imagine how, while walking through the Government District, and passing Fjerdan Ambassy, he sees an ash tree, and in his head, he hears Matthias mumbling something. It's some Fjerdan prayer, designed to give peace to the dead, that he was saying on the black veil.

Don't imagine how Kaz approaches the tree and quietly repeats that prayer.

And please, don't imagine how after that the pain in his chest finally disappears. He knows it will be back, but it won't be as bad.

And from afar, Jordie is smiling. His brother had finally forgiven himself for staying alive. He can finally be at peace.

[violets-and-books]

JESPER THOUGHTS TIME BECAUSE IF EVERYONE ELSE CAN DO IT SO CAN I

This is a man who longs to be loved. He longs to be loved and to be allowed to love. This is, genuinely, the first impression of him I got from the books. When Bollinger was revealed as a traitor, Jesper didn't react with anger, as you'd expect from someone who, yknow, had been betrayed. All he said was "Oh, Big Bol... you idiot." And it sounds REGRETFUL. He regretted what Bollinger had done, he regretted being betrayed by someone he saw as his friend. He and Bollinger weren't even that close but he acted so regretful and disappointed

He wants to love. He reaches out so desperately to everyone around him. He reaches out to Kaz so much, everyone's analysed that to death, but he reaches out to EVERYONE. Everything about him is crafted so people will like him. The humour, the flirting, the style, the laid-back personality, it's all a way to present a version of himself that everyone will like. And it takes such a toll on him - we see that with his gambling and his intense self loathing - but he doesn't try to change it. Because he wants people to like him so much

Jesper's childhood was so full of love. His mum loved his dad, his dad loved his mum his mum loved him and his dad loved him. There wasn't a person in that house who didn't feel intensely, completely loved and accepted. Out of all the Crows, Jesper had the healthiest early childhood.

And then his mum died.

And he suddenly didn't feel so loved or accepted anymore. Not because of anything anyone did but because his mum's powers had killed her and her death ripped a huge rift through the family. Colm still loved Jesper but he was afraid for him. Afraid that his zowa would take Jesper from him like it took Aditi from him. So, Jesper learnt to hide that part of himself. He learnt that, in order to be loved, he had to hide parts of himself away. He had to hide his power, the dangerous part of himself, the part his mother had given to him.

Then, when he fell into the Barrel, he had to hide more of himself. I'm fairly certain he was only 15 when he dropped out of uni. He was incredibly young and probably absolutely terrified. And so many of the people around him were strong and apathetic and dangerous. So, again, Jesper learnt and he adapted. He's a master of change, he can create whatever image of himself he wants. He knows how to make people like him.

All because he wants to be loved. Because he wants to love. He trusts and loves people so implicitly, so quickly, he treasures his friends. He loves people so deeply and completely, verging on the edge of blindness. And people just don't give him that love and trust back. He fights for it. Every bullet out of his gun, every quip or insult or fist thrown is because he wants his friends to love him. He wants to be useful and needed and wanted. He's got such a hole in his heart, such a well of emptiness, that he doesn't let anyone see. Because if people know he's weak, if people know he's human, they won't like him anymore. If they know he's more (or less) than the jokes and the empty promises and the easy pick-up lines and the guns and the flash, they won't love him anymore and he will be completely, utterly alone with his thoughts

[sleeplessgoldfinchfixation]

In Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, the POV for each chapter is carefully chosen to reveal or hide particular character knowledge and perspectives during events. 

So the fact that we don’t get a Kaz POV chapter in Crooked Kingdom until the chapter they get Inej back is really interesting. Emotionally, he’s kind of in stasis just trying to form a plan until then, so we don’t need to see his perspective. We know his perspective from seeing it through the other characters: get. Inej. back. damnit.