To me, this is the thesis of Alien Stage. For each duo and in more ways than one.
For Ivantill, Till might never have loved Ivan romantically, though we do have indications he may have. Either way, he didnât love Ivan the same way Ivan loved Till. He didnât obsess over Ivan the way Ivan did Till. He didnât want to accept Ivanâs sacrifice the way Mizi accepted Suaâs sacrifice, but Ivan forced it on him. Tillâs love was different from Ivanâs, but does that really matter? It was love, too.
Interestingly enough, Luka has both Hyuna and Hyunwooâs hearts. Despite everything, Luka lived. Hyunwoo initiated the fight between them, and Luka reacted violently, which led to Hyunwooâs death. Luka was shot at, and Hyuna took the bullet, killing her. Luka has lived in spite of everything because of their deaths. Hyuna loved Luka, but her sacrifice was one made partially out of revenge. Luka may have loved Hyunwoo when they were friends as kids, but he still killed him. He may have loved Hyuna, but he still hurt her. But it was love. Nonetheless, it was love.
And, of course, Mizisua. Mizi didnât love Sua in a way that propelled her to sacrifice herself for Sua. Suaâs love was the kind that made it impossible for Sua to live without Mizi. If you recall their mental strengths, Suaâs is extremely low while Miziâs is strong. Mizi knew Sua couldnât handle if Mizi died. Mizi underestimated just how much Suaâs death would ruin her, but she was willing to bear it so Sua didnât have to bear losing her. She might not have been willing to die for Sua, but she gave Sua a gift, too. She let Sua give Mizi her sacrifice. And thatâs love. That was love.
Even Miziâs monologue about Hyuna is riddled with the weight of this theme.
Mizi is bitter because Hyuna fought for so long for humanityâa wider concept than Mizi can perhaps even comprehend, having lived isolated and then in ANAKT her whole life. She fought for something that seemed to mean so much, and then she threw it all away for Luka, a man who Mizi seems to loathe and whom she thought Hyuna loathed too.
Mizi is angry because Hyunaâs love, Hyunaâs sense of justice, required sacrifice. For humans, and for Luka. Miziâs lingering bitterness over Suaâs decision transfers to Hyuna, because why? Why does your love demand you to die for it for nothing?
But it wasnât for nothing.
Because even though Sua sacrificed herself for Mizi, and Hyuna risked her life to save her and then died for Luka only ended in Miziâs death by her own handâLuka either dying and being replaced or continuing to be imprisoned by the aliens for entertainmentâ
Even if Hyunaâs love for humanity and belief in their freedom only led to children in museum displays rather than stagesâ
Mizi still destroyed the competition that ruined her and Sua. She still cemented Ivanâs sacrifice by saving Till.
Hyuna still got her justice. She stopped running. Even if Luka remains trapped, his life still means something.
They all loved each other and the world differently, but it was love too. And itâs never for nothing.
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