The Splendid Incoherence of FE4
Sep. 29th, 2012 09:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mark_asphodelI have to seriously side-eye anyone who praises the writing in this game. So many of the second-gen characters are just ridiculously incoherent.
Let's say I have a plot-bunny about Arthur, and since it's not pairingfic and doesn't revolve around the oh-so-important issue of his paternity[*], I decide it's worth writing. So let's delve into Arthur. He doesn't have all that much dialogue, so let's just skim over his handful of scenes to get a feel for the guy.
Well, he shows up riding with Fee, who gave him a lift out of Silesia. Since this is FE4 and there's a chance Fee might not be Levin's daughter and therefore Silesia's princess, she's deliberately vague about this "father" person that went missing on her. But we "know" in light of later canon that she's Levin's daughter and therefore Lady Fee, Princess of Silesia... which means Arthur-- raised a Silesian-- doesn't know that he's hitching a ride with the princess. His princess. And that he's also unable to connect the dots regarding aaaaaall the shit that went down with King Levin going missing and Prince Sety disappearing thereafter and poor Queen Fury dying alone. And that makes Arthur look not especially bright. Fee agrees with us there, but that doesn't mean it's good writing.
Oh, but it gets better. Come the final chapter, Arthur and Fee have another little talk if you pair them (I don't)**. In this, Arthur vows to go back to Silesia with Fee... except that, technically speaking, he can't. He inherits Freege by default, and if he doesn't go to Freege he goes to some other duchy in Grandbell or whatever (Velthomer, Dozel, Edda...). The only way Arthur ever goes back to Silesia is if he is Levin's son and heir... but he's not. Levin is like Tiltyu's #4 choice in "canonicity" in FE4, and FE5 shot that ship down hard.
[And if Arthur is the Prince of Silesia, his entire introduction makes No Fucking Sense.]
I'm starting to think that the only way to enjoy writing FE4 'fic is to just kind of skim canon and write what "feels" good, 'cause trying to hew 100% to canon as given results in a mess. There is a fair amount of mess that can be resolved with just a bit o' handwaving, but some of it just can't work no matter how you try to tweak it.
* Arthur does not appear to give a flying flip about this particular issue, FWIW. Unlike Lester&Lana or Faval&Patty (or Levin!Sety&Fee), he cares first, foremost, and only about his mother's side of the family.
** There's a Chapter Eight talk too, but it sucks.
Let's say I have a plot-bunny about Arthur, and since it's not pairingfic and doesn't revolve around the oh-so-important issue of his paternity[*], I decide it's worth writing. So let's delve into Arthur. He doesn't have all that much dialogue, so let's just skim over his handful of scenes to get a feel for the guy.
Well, he shows up riding with Fee, who gave him a lift out of Silesia. Since this is FE4 and there's a chance Fee might not be Levin's daughter and therefore Silesia's princess, she's deliberately vague about this "father" person that went missing on her. But we "know" in light of later canon that she's Levin's daughter and therefore Lady Fee, Princess of Silesia... which means Arthur-- raised a Silesian-- doesn't know that he's hitching a ride with the princess. His princess. And that he's also unable to connect the dots regarding aaaaaall the shit that went down with King Levin going missing and Prince Sety disappearing thereafter and poor Queen Fury dying alone. And that makes Arthur look not especially bright. Fee agrees with us there, but that doesn't mean it's good writing.
Oh, but it gets better. Come the final chapter, Arthur and Fee have another little talk if you pair them (I don't)**. In this, Arthur vows to go back to Silesia with Fee... except that, technically speaking, he can't. He inherits Freege by default, and if he doesn't go to Freege he goes to some other duchy in Grandbell or whatever (Velthomer, Dozel, Edda...). The only way Arthur ever goes back to Silesia is if he is Levin's son and heir... but he's not. Levin is like Tiltyu's #4 choice in "canonicity" in FE4, and FE5 shot that ship down hard.
[And if Arthur is the Prince of Silesia, his entire introduction makes No Fucking Sense.]
I'm starting to think that the only way to enjoy writing FE4 'fic is to just kind of skim canon and write what "feels" good, 'cause trying to hew 100% to canon as given results in a mess. There is a fair amount of mess that can be resolved with just a bit o' handwaving, but some of it just can't work no matter how you try to tweak it.
* Arthur does not appear to give a flying flip about this particular issue, FWIW. Unlike Lester&Lana or Faval&Patty (or Levin!Sety&Fee), he cares first, foremost, and only about his mother's side of the family.
** There's a Chapter Eight talk too, but it sucks.
no subject
Date: 2012-10-01 05:04 am (UTC)そうか･･･ラナ、母上のためにも
そして、まだ見ぬ父上のためにも
俺たちはがんばろう▼
It actually says "the father we have not yet seen," which I think has a slightly less certain air.
no subject
Date: 2012-10-01 09:21 pm (UTC)Ah, fuck it.