my actual genuine take: George/Shannon in episodes 1 and 2 is perfect actually. No notes. I would not change a thing about it I don't think. It needs to be there and it needs to be that way. If the rest of Umineko knew George/Shannon was bad, then episodes 1 and 2 would be fucking gut-wrenching: written by a girl who is both so desperate to be loved and also whose views on love and sex and romance are so fundamentally fucked that she is either incapable of seeing or willfully blinding herself to the red flags; this is her beautiful and perfect and loving romance and she is so happy in it and she is going to be happy and just ignore George's internal thoughts on Shannon during their date and everything else.
Because George can provide what Sayo so desperately wants: a way out. He promises a family, children; the set dressings of a normal, safe life where she can be loved. These are all things she wants as well. He's so much more mature compared to other boys her age, because he is older. He's kind. He pays attention to her. She's so desperate for it. Of course she fell for him.
There's a fundamental flaw in its very premise: she cannot provide him the family he dreams of. The family she dreamt of as well. But this is, to her, A Sayo Problem. There's no problem with George. Definitely... definitely not.
The problem is that the rest of the game... doesn't do enough to question George. It pokes at the idea of him, but not nearly enough. It recognizes, perhaps, that there is some sort of flaw in the relationship, but it doesn't quite seem to grasp what that problem is or the severity of it. It tells us that George has changed and become better without really showing it; the problem is that there really is no way for George to change or become better that can excise the fundamental rot in the roots: That George, age 17, began romantically pursuing a girl he thought was 10.
And like - okay, I think it is admittedly difficult to interrogate it and thread the needle when its very existence as a romance is structurally important. Because Sayo was in love with him, wrote the most idealized version of herself as she was, the alter that shares her name, in love with him - to remove it kneecaps the structure, fails to understand its emotional and thematic significance. You have to thread the needle. Where do you find the space to interrogate it?
Episode 3 is so much about grief. It's the first forgery; the first story not written by Sayo, the first story written after her death. It's the one where both Shannon and Kanon die on the first twilight, and the rest of the episode lingers on the fact that George and Jessica are grieving. Their love is enough to resurrect Shannon and Kanon, if only briefly, if only as ghosts. George/Shannon is, therefore, extremely thematically important. It is difficult to interrogate. It does have George thinking "maybe Kinzo was relatable and right for that whole trying to bring Beatrice back thing and maybe I want to do that with Shannon", which. Uh. Given the context of who Sayo is, how she was born, I wish I could safely say I believed this was a criticism or interrogation of George.
Episode 5 is written without love. The cousins other than Battler are killed first twilight, and both Shannon and Kanon are never allowed to be anything more than furniture. George/Shannon is completely irrelevant and unable to be touched on.
Episode 6 is so much about telling this dead trans girl who felt so fundamentally unlovable "you would have been loved. No matter what you chose, you would have been loved." George/Shannon is, therefore, extremely thematically important. Despite that, it perhaps cuts the deepest to the heart of George's flaws - but even then it does not quite understand them, promises us as best it can that he's gotten better.
And, like... there's space left, there's other episodes, I didn't analyze 4 and I can't speak for 7 and 8 yet, but. It does become difficult! But I think the game could have managed it still. And it's frustrating to know that it never quite does, because if it did I would be chewing on this and batting it about in my cage forever. I'm still chewing on and batting it about my cage even now.
