I may be a tad hyperfixated
Ok so like, Starline has 100% become my defacto comfort series and because of that I’m thinking about it nonstop, all the time, every day, so I have a lot of things that I have to share about it
The two listener characters in either entry, Skipper in SL2 and Breckett’s spouse in SL1 (who I’ll be calling Hops because I’m a comedic genius) are left pretty blank character and backstory wise for obvious reasons, but there are still a few things we can deduce about them (us?) that I wanna write down so I don’t forget
I’ll be putting down things we know about Breckett and Hakir as well just for the sake of having it all in one place (and also because they’ve pretty firmly made themselves at home in my mind palace)
I’m splitting this up into two parts because I need to relisten to Starline 1 before I finish that part of this, so this post will only cover Hakir and Skipper
Hakir:
-Hakir’s full name:
Hakir’s full name is Hakir Ven Krolist.
Not exactly groundbreaking information, but it’s only brought up like once or twice in the whole series so I’m putting it here anyway
-Hakir was a sentinel during or before Starline 1
This is mostly just a timeline thing.
Hakir was a sentinel at some point which means he had to have signed up before the war.
However he’s a red diamond, meaning he was dishonourably discharged and fought against them during the war.
-Hakir was about 15 during Starline 1:
In Starline 1 it’s established that a lot of people who sign up to work for the sentinels do so because they don’t have any other choice, needing to help provide for their families or just provide for themselves the moment they come of age.
Hakir was a Sentinel and it’s very likely he joined when he came of age.
In Starline 1 Breckett also says that he was only 13*[SEE END FOR CORRECTIONS] when the Sentinels ruined his life, the fact he says “only 13” means that he was either a child, a teenager, or a very young adult (we can probably remove child from that lineup purely because Breckett seems to have left home soon after that and I doubt a kid would’ve made it very far).
From this we can deduce that it must be pretty common for intergalactic races to come of age somewhere around 15 years old, probably a bit earlier or a bit later depending on species because if they didn’t he would have clarified what stage of their life his race is in at that age.
Meaning that from now on 15 is the assumed age that a species is considered an adult at.
It can’t have been that much time since Hakir’s discharge from the sentinels because he’s still in tip-top fighting shape by Starline 2 so he obviously isn’t like 50 by then
Assuming he joined the Sentinels as soon as he could to help provide for his family, he would have joined at about 15 years old and have been discharged soon after because of his behaviour.
-Hakir is in his late 20’s to early 30’s
In the Starline 2 trailer’s description it says it’s been 15 years since the events of Starline 1
meaning that Hakir must be around 30 years old, give or take depending on when his species is an adult.
-Hakir is not very trusting of other people:
Hakir is fairly distrustful of people and quick to close himself off, in fact it’s a fairly large part of his character.
He’s initially distrustful of Trailblazer, very quick to turn on the Director after it’s not how he imagined it. (even if the distrust toward them is justified)
Hell, he didn’t even trust Skipper, the soon-to-be love of his life before they’re put into a life or death situation, and being locked into two different rooms together (the prison in episode 1 and their shared bedroom thereafter.
Hakir is understandably very closed off, and his trust and love for Skipper just goes to show how much they love each other.
-Hakir is still close with his family:
Both when explaining the naming system of his species, and when talking about his and Skipper’s relationship moving forward it’s clear that Hakir is still very close with his family.
-Hakir wants Skipper to step on him:
Need I say more?
Skipper:
-Skipper isn’t their real name:
Ok let’s get this out of the way first
Skipper is almost 100% a nickname or a pseudonym they go by because so much of their work is illegal.
It's just like how Mindflayer's listener character gets nicknamed Rook eventually. (Also sidenote, but Lorraine, Harph, and Rook have the fucking strongest polycule vibes in all of fiction istg)
Maya calls them “Skipper” when speaking to Hakir as well, meaning it’s *definitely* what they use for work.
There’s never any sort of clarification on whether it’s their first name or last name or what the rest of their name is.
It also makes sense from a storytelling perspective to have it be a nickname rather than an actual name since it lets us better project our own traits onto Skipper.
All this to say that Skipper is definitely not their real name, and just one of those nicknames that’s so good everyone calls them that rather than their real name.
-Skipper is really skilled when it comes to combat
Both before and during the series their fights with Hakir show that their abilities are at least equal to that of someone who definitely has both training from the sentinels and combat experience from the war.
From this it’s pretty obvious that Skipper is incredibly skilled with combat and that it’s something they enjoy immensely.
-Skipper is in their 20’s:
In episode 1 Argus says that Skipper started doing smuggling work the moment they were old enough to fly a ship (almost definitely 18), he also says they’ve only been at it for a few years with Smuggling work meaning they’re, at the very youngest, 20 years old, but more likely somewhere between 20-25
A lot less deduction than Haki’s age huh? :3
-Skipper was a child during Starline 1:
Again just more timeline stuff, but Starline 1 takes place 15 years before Starline 2, meaning that Skipper was somewhere between 5-10 years old
-Skipper cares about other people's well-being a lot:
Making sure to keep Hakir off the bottle, getting him to drink water instead of coffee when he's hungover
Early on in the series Skipper begins to show a lot of concern for Hakir’s wellbeing even though up to this point they’ve been pretty bitter rivals.
Whilst there’s an argument to be made that it’s only because they’re working together now, the turnabout in behaviour is far too quick to just be in self-interest, especially if they harboured genuine resentment toward Hakir.
They make sure to keep Hakir sober when possible, probably already aware of his destructive drinking habits from their shared history.
And the night after they sleep together when Hakir suggests drinking coffee to deal with their hangover Skipper tells him to drink water, he responds with a stutter and a slightly more submissive tone as well which means Skipper was firmly ordering him to drink water rather than just suggesting it.
-Skipper is very trusting of other people:
Trailblazer and Breckett even though they were both connected to the director (there’s not even any indication given that they’re upset with the director which implies they understand and forgive it)
Skipper is very innately trusting of other people, after meeting trailblazer they’re very quick to trust him despite Hakir’s objections, and it’s only because of them that Hakir is willing to give Blazer a shot.
They also don’t seem to harbour any resentment towards The Director (at least not that’s shown) which seems to imply that they forgive him.
On top of that their relationship with Hakir is built up very quickly expressly *because* they’re willing to bury the hatchet and put their full trust in him right off the bat.
-Skipper is a smartass:
There are a few different times when Skipper makes a snappy remark or a quick-witted joke, and in episode 8 (Hangover) Hakir straight up calls them a smartass.
On one hand this is mostly just Skipper being a funny person in general, but on the other it seems like it might partially be a bit of a persona they put on to bolster their own confidence considering the fact that in a lot of situations they’re actually rather
-Skipper is highly intelligent:
Skipper is a very clever person, they’re an incredibly skilled hacker, have good combat awareness, quick on their feet, and being smartass requires that you actually be smart.
-Skipper is very unserious:
Skipper is pretty much constantly making jokes or acting silly, even in dangerous situations like when they were trying to dock the director's ship and make a joke about Iron-Man.
Barring scenarios where they’re in mortal peril, Skipper is always ready to make light of a situation, and this functions as a bit of a grounding force for the people around them like Hakir since he’s a lot more stable mentally and emotionally when they’re around.
-Skipper is a total nerd:
Beyond the obvious Iron-Man reference it’s made pretty clear that Skipper is a bit of a geek.
The main thing is their knowledge with computers and hacking, getting interested enough in computers and stuff to even start hacking already has the dweeb alert blaring at full volume, but beyond that, committing fully, learning how to code and then subsequently learning how to hack is massive nerd activity.
-Skipper does smuggling work because they love the danger, freedom and adventure that comes with it:
Skipper could pretty easily land a job somewhere with their m4d hax0r sk1llz (god I'm sorry, I shouldn't be allowed near a keyboard) and there aren't exactly a lack of places to find work with the entire universe at their disposal, so it's very likely that they do smuggling work because it's fun rather than because it's profitable (though it probably is, Hakir mentions some jobs Skipper stole from him would've made him rich) and the only reason someone could find this kind of work enjoyable is if they love the danger, freedom, and/or adventure that come with it.
-Skipper is very confident in themselves and exaggerates their confidence further with faux-egotistical behaviour:
There are 2 or 3 times in the series where Hakir tells Skipper that they shouldn't let something “go to your head”. The fact that this is repeated tells us that this is common behaviour from them.
Skipper is either actually overconfident in themselves or they pretend to be for the sake of being funny.
The odds of them being genuinely egotistical are incredibly low for a few reasons, but what springs to mind is the night where they sleep with Hakir, because before they're willing to go through with it they voice concerns that it's just a fling rather than anything more.
It’s obvious that at this point they've already developed feelings for Hakir, and they're concerned enough that he won't be interested in them that he'll just leave again afterward.
This kind of insecurity isn't the type of thing one would expect from someone who would be totally full of themselves.
-Skipper is actually very soft in private
In the scene where Hakir and Skipper are making out drunk and about to sleep together, Skipper needs to be reassured that Hakir is actually interested in them and that it’s not just a one night stand.
In the hangover scene they gently reassure Hakir that they enjoyed their night together even though he thought it was a bit of a disaster.
and finally
In the scene where the two of them have accepted their fate and are lying in one another’s arms ready to die together, Skipper is happy being held and comforted by Hakir about their fate rather than being the one doing the holding or comforting.
All this points to the fact that in private Skipper is actually a huge softie despite their confident and jokey exterior when it comes to how they act in public.
-Skipper isn't close with their family:
Ok so this is a big one. I can't remember in which episode this is, but Hakir says that maybe when Skipper and their parents are on good terms again they could introduce Hakir to them.
This tells us a few things, namely:
Skipper and their parents are on bad terms, the fact that they might be on better terms at some point in the future means that it's over something that can be forgiven, and the fact that they might introduce their boyfriend means they’re still close enough to care about what their parents think which means their relationship isn't totally shattered, just fractured.
In the first episode Argus mentions that Skipper “started the moment you were old enough to fly a ship” with their career in smuggling which means the second they could they left home and put as much distance between them and their parents as possible.
From this we can then deduce that whatever caused the fallout between them and their parents was incredibly severe despite the fact they seem willing to forgive.
Which means that it’s probably that Skipper is queer in some way (which is pretty obvious looking at their character, kinda fruity)
All this to say it's pretty likely that it all played out as follows:
Skipper discovers that they're queer in some way during their teenage years.
They choose to come out to their parents
Their parents are NOT accepting, but aren't bad enough to create a permanent divide between them
Skipper leaves home the second they can and starts with their current career
The Exciting Conclusion!
From all of this information we can actually narrow down a lot of things about each of the characters into more concise profiles starting with
Hakir:
Hakir is a very closed off and cautious person, his initial reaction to just about anyone is to keep them at an arm's length unless absolutely necessary.
Once you get close enough to him to break through his hard exterior though he’s a fairly chill guy.
He has a hard time keeping himself mentally or emotionally in check alone, but Skipper helps to keep him happy, healthy and enriched.
He’s a little bit rough around the edges, but Hakir is consistent and reliable, nobody better to have on your side when the chips are down, just be sure to support him and he’ll be there to help.
Skipper:
Skipper is an incredibly trusting and caring person, they put the safety of others before their own and care deeply about anyone close to them to the point they’re willing to forgive huge mistakes or misjudgements of others.
They put on a persona of independence and confidence both as a way to deal with the hardships that they face on a regular basis, and to ground others around them in times of need.
In more private situations like with close friends or Hakir they drop the act and show that they’re actually a lot softer and are more willing to be doted on than in public.
They’re super sharp, but never use their intelligence to degrade or diminish other people’s abilities.
Fun, caring, and calming. What more could someone want?
I'll be releasing the Starline 1 version sometime soon, so be ready for that when it drops!
*Edit: So I started my relisten of Starline 1 and uhhhhh
I may be stupid
Breckett actually says that he was only in his 30's when the Sentinels came, his use of "only" indicates that his species is still fairly young at 30 years old.
This could mean that Breckett's species might live for far longer than humans do if 30 is still young, maybe even hundreds of years, or that maybe the advancements made in modern technology have extended the lifespans of all species to the point that 30 is still very young. (I choose to believe the second one purely because it means Breckett and Hops get to grow old together, and if they don't get a happy ending then my heart wil shatter)
I also want to bring attention to the fact that the translator might have a part in this since we know it has a tendency to embezzle details a little bit. Like when Breckett makes food from his homeworld and we hear him call it squid, but he also clarifies that it's not a type of seafood.
So there's a very good chance that when Breckett says he's 30 he might not be using human years, he could be using his homeplanet as a reference for how long a year is or it could be some other intergalactic constant we aren't aware of.
Not to mention the fact that there's probably a whole slew of space terminology that doesn't have any equivalent in any human language yet.
And if the translator is meant to function off of a wide set of data from a bunch of different sources like a neural network of some kind the fact that it only has one person as reference for how all of the English language works would probably cause a few issues.
All this to say I've basically just debunked my entire argument for Hakir's age and he could be any number of years old.
I'm sticking to my guns though because I've already implanted it into my brain as canon and if they have similar lifespans then they're far more likely to die at around the same time and not need to mourn their partner's death for like another 100 years. I still think that Hakir is around 30 and no one can convince me otherwise.
Plus this all comes with the bonus headcanon that everyone in the future gets to live far longer which is always nice.
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