#but lemme tell you i am gonna hunt down the other person who likes X Files omfg adjkasjdh | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale · 4 years

Text

TWDG: The Final Season | Character Discussion | 1/2

Part 1 | Part 2

“Everyone’s counting on me to step up. Be the leader they need me to be... I really want to be that for them.”

So.... let’s talk about Marlon.

I mean, let’s really talk about him. Ever since I started this blog, some common questions I get revolve around Marlon- “How do you feel about Marlon?” “Do you think he deserved a redemption arc?” “Why do you think he was sent to Ericson?” “In your opinion, is Marlon a bad person?” and many others.

Some ask with expectations that I’ll express a distaste or hatred for him, while others ask with a more sympathetic approach. If you know me, if you’ve been here for a while, then you know that I do indeed like Marlon as a character, and today I want to talk about him from my perspective while playing this game.

And with that comes a seemingly unnecessary disclaimer, but one I feel I need to add in order to make it abundantly clear: I will be discussing MY thoughts, experiences, and feelings about Marlon within TFS and give my take on his character. Because we’re not the same person, you may have a different opinion or perspective on his character, you may disagree with something I say, and that’s perfectly okay. You’re entitled to your opinion as I am mine, and I do encourage you to join in on the discussion and express your thoughts about Marlon, but I also want to let you know that you can do that without attacking me or anyone else.

Really, this is pretty much me looking at Marlon’s role and arc within TFS, discussing points of his character that I find interesting, exploring the why’s and how’s of his actions, maybe coming up with a couple theories as to why he was sent to Ericson, and basically giving a lot of personal opinions of him. It’s a discussion meant in good fun, that’s all I’m saying.

Before we dive right in, I do want to thank @pi-creates for providing me with most of the screenshots used in this. I appreciate the help! If you haven’t already, go check out Pi’s blog for some of the best screenshots and model swaps in the TWDG community! Thank you, thank you!

[First and foremost, y’all are sleeping on Ray Chase’s performance as Marlon and it really shows]

“Looks like I was announced as Marlon, the central focus in this first episode of The Walking Dead Season 4 coming in a few weeks. I've been playing this series since the beginning, and it was a real honor to be a part of the canon. I hope you enjoy!“ - Ray Chase’s Twitter account | July 26, 2018

I want to start this off with praising Marlon’s voice actor, Ray Chase, for doing such a perfect job of bringing Marlon’s character to life. Every emotion and infliction feels genuine, and there’s isn’t a single moment where I don’t “see” Marlon, y’know? I mean that in the sense that every line delivered is believable and doesn’t break my immersion with, “Oof, they really used that take?”

I know we throw praise upon Melissa, Tayla, Sterling, and Gideon [and for good reason, they’re all fantastic, too!] but even with them there are a couple of lines that I notice have a lack of flow or sound just a bit off. I’ve played TFS how many times? And not once have I had that issue with Ray Chase as Marlon, so bravo to this man. Credit where credit is due, his performance is damn near flawless.

Especially in the confrontation scene at the end of Done Running. I’ll get into that scene as a whole later, but just looking at the performance and the intense, impactful emotion brought to that scene, just..... *chef kiss*

Thank you, Ray Chase.

[What’s up with your haircut, Marlon?]

“Uh, I look cool... I say, I look cool.”

Lemme talk a little bit about Marlon’s design- I think he looks great.

I love the little details in the Ericson varsity jacket he wears... including the fact that it looks just a tad bit too snug on him. Like, either the boy doesn’t have another jacket or he’s grown so attached to this one that he’s not willing to admit that he’s outgrown it a bit.

I’ve had a lot of people point out that it’s nice to see a teenage character in these games with actual acne since most media pretends that acne just doesn’t exist, and I agree. We all know that if this were more realistic, then everyone would have terrible, greasy, dirty skin but... y’know.

And y’know what? I like the mullet! It’s unique! And I choose to believe it’s a representation of Marlon’s past with bad decisions he’s too stubborn to admit were bad decisions... I mean, he’s had it since he was a kid and hadn’t grown it out or cut it off [to our knowledge, I suppose] sooo... there’s that.

Or maybe he does actually think it looks badass. Either way.

Hell, my biggest complaint about Marlon’s design is that I wish they kept more to this concept art attire:

Because Marlon looks super good in this concept art. I love the headband with the mullet and his clothes actually look more comfortable... but like, it’s fine. He still looks great in the game, his little jacket’s cool, bringing back the mullet...its fine. I’m just sayin’. He looks great.

[Marlon’s introduction in TFS]

“It's our little kingdom. I just do what I can to keep the peace. Wasn't always like this, though. There used to be a lot of us, but...you know how it goes.”

Let’s talk about how Marlon’s introduced.

We get our first look at him after Clementine and AJ crash their car during the walker attack. A bunch of arrows come flying, hitting walkers attempting to get ahold of them, and as Clementine glances over she sees a figure pulling AJ out of the car. And even though you can tell it’s Marlon, this closer shot from Pi-

-100% confirms that it’s him. Not that you had any doubt, but still.

What’s interesting, though, is that while snooping around for some insight about Marlon from the writers/devs, wandering around reddit, replaying the game myself, and even glancing over the all-knowing wiki that’s never wrong ever, it seems agreed upon that Marlon wasn’t alone, despite no one else being specifically mentioned to have helped Clementine and AJ.

Which makes sense that that’d be the case, but I did come across a handful of people who are pretty adamant that he was alone, which is an interesting take, though I disagree.

I’m pretty sure most people do, too. I mean, Marlon says, “It's good we found you when we did. It wasn't easy getting you two out of that wreck, and walkers were on the way.” So I don’t even think that was the writers’ intention of it being solely Marlon who saved them.

What’s funny is I came across a post Instagram [I know, the most legitimate source for info and thoughtful opinions] that was surprisingly trying to redeem/defend Marlon rather than chastise him by claiming he’s a hero who saved Clementine and AJ by himself.

The thing is, they’re both unconscious after the wreck, so unless Marlon has super-human speed to grab AJ, zip around the car to grab Clementine, and then uses super-human strength to carry both of them AND their belongings all while killing any threatening walkers coming after them with his bow... I’m gonna have to press [X] Doubt.

Besides, I like the idea of it being vague. I like to think that was the intention. “Who was Marlon with? A hunting party! You fill in the blanks!” That sort of deal.

With everything that we know about Marlon and the safe-zone, it does lead to questions about why he and whoever felt they had to go outside it to see what was happening. Marlon points out in his conversation with Clementine that they “had to work fast. I don't know what would've happened if we hadn't seen the smoke...” And later Violet mentions an explosion, so I think it’s safe to say that they heard the explosion and followed the smoke to the location.

If you don’t know about the raiders and the twins [like it’s your first time playing] then you probably assume that Marlon and his group were being kind in rescuing them, which I don’t doubt but it does make you wonder about things from Marlon’s perspective, y’know?

This is one of those “shhh, don’t think, just go with it” moments. If I had to give a reason, I’d say that the group he was with didn’t think twice about checking it out and even if Marlon did protest, he didn’t have much choice but to follow. Then, seeing that it’s Clementine and AJ, I believe he genuinely wanted to save them.

“All alone with the kid? Not a pleasant thought. I've seen some rough scenes. But that one would've been up there.”

We get our second and more official introduction to Marlon after Clementine escapes her dorm and confronts Tenn... and it’s pretty fucking good. I mean, everything from him being hidden in the shadows with his bow drawn, to the clear concern yet sternness in his voice as he assures Clementine they’re not going to hurt her and to put the knife down, to his sympathetic apology for scaring her is just an A+.

One thing this season does exceptionally well is introducing its characters. Marlon has such a confident yet chill way about him when you first meet that it’s actually disheartening to think that in two hours he’s gonna be pulling a gun and MURDER....

Sigh.

Let’s not jump that far ahead yet. I’m not ready.

What I find appealing about this next part is Clementine’s reaction to seeing the inside of Ericson for the first time and how taken aback she seems by it. I also love how easy and comfortable it is to talk with Marlon as they’re walking through the yard even though we just met him.

I enjoy that you can tell he’s trying to get a better idea of who she is without pressuring or overwhelming her and doing his best not to offend. And even when Clementine questions if he doesn’t think she can handle herself, he’s decent about apologizing and explaining that’s not what he meant. But he’s also not afraid to be upfront about AJ’s behavior since they brought him here, either.

He does come off as annoyed when talking about AJ being a handful. We don’t know how long Clementine’s been passed out or how long they had to deal with AJ after he woke up, so who knows how much of a little terror AJ was before they either dumped him with Louis or Louis decided to take him to the music room to chill... where he then bit Ruby.

Anyway, the first impression I got of Marlon is that he’s genuinely friendly, trying to help Clementine and AJ even if AJ’s been a nuisance, and he’s confident in the system he has in place for them. He is rather forward and proud about being the school’s leader when first telling Clementine.

Having played through the whole season several times and knowing how Done Running ends, it’s interesting to look at Clementine’s first conversation with Marlon with that all knowing perspective- knowing what he did to the twins, knowing that Brody’s involved and that Marlon’s going to eventually kill her, going to try and frame Clementine for the murder, knowing that he was planning on giving Clementine and AJ away...

I can definitely look at this conversation with a more skeptical lens and say he’s more so trying to sell the idea that he has everything under control in this kingdom for kids and he’s a proper leader with a system in place despite being so young with no adults around. But hey, that’s the natural progression- Ericson is a perfectly chill safe haven and the Ericson crew get along swell... except no, the cracks slowly begin to surface as the episode goes on until all hell breaks loose with Marlon at the center.

[Rosie is best girl]

“You said dogs brought back bad memories. I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were so scared of them. But I swear, Rosie's not as frightening as she seems...See? She's harmless. She just needs to get to know you, is all. Here. I'll show you. Do you trust me? “

I’ll be completely honest- the thing that initially sold me on trusting Marlon the first time I ever played this episode was his relationship with Rosie.

If you know me, then you know that I love dogs. I have a pup named Piglet that I adore, I’ve grown up with dogs my whole life, and I have a huge appreciation and soft spot for animals. I’m one of those people that can’t stand others who are mean or cruel to harmless animals. It’s different if you’re hunting for food or if an animal attacks you and you’re defending yourself... but I’ve known people who have gone out of their way to hurt animals. I’m out in a country area with a lot of dangerous roads for wandering animals, and the amount of people I’ve driven with who’ll swerve to hit a squirrel, a cat, a dog because they enjoy it is too many. After those incidents, I cut those people out of my life. If you don’t have that love and appreciation in your heart, then I want nothing to do with you.

So when I saw that Rosie, while the school’s dog, is more portrayed to be Marlon’s dog above everyone else, I remember thinking to myself, “Okay, I trust him. He clearly loves this dog, wouldn’t mistreat her, and that’s a step in the right direction.”

While I wasn’t skeptical of him and his intentions before, it really was that natural relationship he held with Rosie that kind of sealed the deal for me- “I like Marlon! He’s probably going to die because he’s the leader and they never last but when it does happen, I’m gonna be super upset about it.”

And well, to be fair... I was super upset when he died, just more so than I originally planned because there was also that element of betrayal mixed into the pain, y’know?

Speaking of trust and Rosie- My second favorite Marlon scene is the office scene. But let’s talk about the Rosie bit specifically. After Tenn leaves and Rosie comes in, she scares Clementine and brings back those traumatic memories of when Sam attacked her.

Marlon comes in and cools the situation, and I love the way he talks to Clementine in this moment.

I love that he doesn’t immediately turn to Clementine like, “What’d you do?” but recognizes that she’s afraid of Rosie due to her previous experience, one that he remembers her mentioning. He also knows how well trained Rosie is to recognize scents and people, which explains why she’s behaving that way- she doesn’t know Clementine.

I feel like I’m using this word a lot, but Marlon’s approach to helping Clementine with her fear of dogs feels so genuine. He holds his hand out and waits for her to accept, and if she does, he walks Clementine through what to do, beginning Clementine’s bond with Rosie.

“Get down on her level. Let her get your scent. It's okay. She's not gonna hurt you.”

It’s incredibly sweet and humanizing to see Marlon like this.

The best part about this scene, though, is that you can reject Marlon’s offer and he won’t be upset.

“No problem. I'm not gonna pressure you.”

And he doesn’t. He doesn’t get annoyed, he doesn’t press, no questions asked, and he doesn’t say anything to make Clementine feel bad for her decision. He respects that she isn’t ready to get close with Rosie.

The reason I love this is because how many times have we made decisions in this game, big and small, and had the other characters get annoyed or try to guilt us? “Oh, you don’t want to bond with the dog? Rosie’s the best, everyone loves dogs! What’s wrong with you?” None of that here. That’s something I appreciate about Marlon in this moment.

It shows that when he wants to, he can listen and understand those around him... something he clearly struggles with when it comes to certain members of Ericson.

I’ll swing back around and talk about that entire scene in a bit, but one last thing about Rosie... can I just say how heart breaking it is to hear her whine at Marlon’s funeral? Solidifying that she was definitely Marlon’s dog more than anyone else’s? And the way Rosie lays on his grave several times in episode 2?

Oof.

[Ericson’s perception of Marlon prior to the final confrontation and after]

“...when the world went to shit, he bailed. All the other adults did. Left us behind to fend for ourselves... Now it's just us kids left.”

I want to touch on how the Ericson crew seem to view Marlon as a leader before and after the final confrontation.

When looking at and discussing a character, it’s important to not just focus solely on them. You can gather a lot about a character based on how others respond and perceive them.

Not everyone expresses something towards Marlon within Done Running. Y’know, like Omar or Ruby, for example. Though we do get a bit more from them after Marlon’s death, their perception of him is different now that they’ve learned what he’s done and witnessed his murder.

So we don’t know how Ruby, Omar, Willy or Mitch viewed his leadership prior to those events, y’know? It’s safe to assume that they’re fine following him as a leader since they’re background characters at this point and make no objections to his leadership at any time before the confrontation. But, after learning the truth, they turned against him.

Then things get complicated when Marlon’s murder traumatizes them.

What a mess.

But for this section, there are two characters I want to get into specifics about. They’re worth talking about because they further Marlon’s character, but they’re not the most important, y’know? Characters like Louis, Tenn, and Brody will get their own sections.

The one I find most interesting among side characters is Aasim. Right off the bat, you get a feel for what his relationship is like with Marlon:

Marlon: “How'd it go out there?”

Aasim: “How do you think it went?”

Brody: “Be nice, Aasim.”

Aasim: “The safe zone's nearly dry. I could barely find enough for tonight. We're gonna have to scout out further if we want food for the winter.”

Marlon: “We'll talk about it later.”

Aasim: “Bullshit, we should talk about this right now-”

Marlon: “I said later, damn it!”

So... they’re not exactly besties. The game makes a clear point that Aasim is more vocal in his disagreements and concerns towards Marlon than the others. They even reiterate it when you talk with him later:

“He keeps pulling back the safe zone. We have fewer and fewer places to hunt. Which means we're gonna have fewer and fewer things to eat.”

No one else opposes Marlon like he does, not counting Brody in the basement since that’s a whole other thing and Brody will get an entire segment to herself later.

It’s pretty clear that this isn’t the first time they’ve had this conversation, but because Marlon’s in a place of power, Aasim doesn’t have much choice but to go along with it. Because no one else is speaking up, he doesn’t have anyone to back him up, and you can tell he goes with it reluctantly. He also voices annoyances when it comes to how Marlon treats Louis if you go hunting.

Knowing this, you can infer that Marlon doesn’t want to hear what Aasim has to say, and he doesn’t appreciate someone questioning his leadership. When Aasim steps in Marlon’s path and says, “Bullshit, we should talk about this right now-” what does Marlon do?

He shoves his shoulder into Aasim’s as he pushes past, and in a louder, commanding tone, replies, “I said later, damn it!” which leads to Aasim glaring after him... but he doesn’t pursue. Marlon has a hard time with someone like Aasim and his response is to shut him down rather than stop, listen to his concerns, and address them.

That’s something Marlon struggles with as a leader- control and listening. Control over his temper and anger, listening and addressing the concerns of the people he swears to protect.

The reason I bring this up is because Aasim is our first indication that the image Marlon was giving off previously isn’t as spotless as he wants us to believe. Aasim plants a seed of doubt, y’know? He gives an argument that the player can get behind.

“Yeah, why not extend the safe zone? If food is really as bad as you say it is, then what other choice is there? Just be extra cautious so no one gets hurt,” which can then lead to thinking, “Why is Marlon so insistent about the safe zone? Is he hiding something?”

Once that seed is there, it grows.

Now as for how Aasim’s view of Marlon changes during and after the confrontation, you can see that he’s one of the few that wants to hear Clementine’s side to things, and he steps forward after Louis/Violet intervenes.

Then after Marlon dies, Aasim is... well, he’s rather neutral? And I say that meaning he’s more in a middle ground between Louis and Violet, who are on extreme opposite ends. Aasim isn’t okay with Marlon’s death, nor is he okay with AJ killing him, but he can see that kicking Clementine and AJ out isn’t the best solution. Hence why he voted for them to stay.

You can see he’s still angry at Marlon for what he did during the funeral scene, but the game doesn’t care to show more beyond that. Which, in my opinion, was a missed opportunity on their part.

And because I’m me, I also want to add that this perfectly sets up the idea of Aasim taking over once Marlon died and the writers shot themselves in the foot for wasting him like that. Good job.

Now let’s talk about Violet. People love when I do that.

Marlon and Violet don’t interact too much prior to the confrontation. The most we see them together is during the card game, and they’re chill. Violet makes fun of his hair, he says he looks cool, they’re decent to each other, it’s all good. They’re on friendly terms.

Which I do find it interesting that she seems like she’s chill with Marlon, but she has such a hard time with Brody. Granted, that’s because she was supposed to go with them but asked Brody to cover her, and then when the twins died, she felt guilty. But you’d think that she’d also have some issues with Marlon, given that he was also there and, like Brody, unable to save them.

You could argue that because Violet and Brody were friends before it had a stronger effect, whereas she and Marlon weren’t ever that close, so it didn’t strike as bad, y’know?

Though this does kind of get explained later if you choose to stick with Violet through ep4. Well, sort of? A little? She tells you:

Violet: “...I remember how Marlon described it, what we were gonna turn Ericson into. It's not the way any of us pictured it.”

Clementine: “How did you picture it?”

Violet: “I guess I couldn't. I just listened to what Marlon said. How it would be a home, a real one. But I couldn't really wrap my head around it.”

And when she talks about people who cared about her that she pushed away, she does list Marlon as one of those people, which is super interesting given all the loathing she’s done towards him after the truth came out.

It could be that in the past, she saw Marlon as the leader and why would he lie? He’s the one who stepped up, promised that they’d made Ericson into something special, into a brand new home... what reason does she have to distrust him?

So when she finds out the truth... well, that betrayal completely shatters everything she has for Marlon, going as far as for her to believe that AJ was justified in what he did and shit talking Marlon in front of his mourning best friend.

So her reaction to Marlon after this makes sense, but what does this tell us about Marlon himself?

Again, depending on how you view him, you can look at this idea of Marlon being kind to Violet and them being on friendly terms after what happened to the twins a few different ways- Marlon was manipulating Violet solely for his sake, or Marlon felt guilty that something he did hurt her this bad and tried to make Violet feel better, or both.

I think it was both. After the twins died, we all know the amount of guilt Marlon carried with him, so having to be confronted with the fallout of that in the form of someone like Violet... he had to be careful. I don’t doubt that he cared about Violet or that he tried to reach out to her, but he also had to protect himself for the sake of maintaining his leadership and control of Ericson. So, of course, he had to lie to her which manipulated her feelings about him and the situation.

I believe Violet recognized it, too. When she says they should’ve asked more questions about what happened, I think that’s her being more pissed with herself for trusting Marlon and not questioning him further, for taking his word for it.

I’ve come across theories suggesting that Marlon actually manipulated Violet into placing blame onto Brody rather than him, which is why she is on friendly terms with him but not so much Brody. And that’s a valid interpretation. There isn’t any solid evidence of this within the game to suggest either way, but I can definitely see how someone would come to that conclusion. Especially after the confrontation.

Now let’s touch on Violet if you appeal to her, because Marlon does something that makes me go “Hmmmm...”

Clementine, when she appeals to Violet, say, “Violet you have to believe me.”

To which, Marlon immediately steps in and says, “You don't. You met her, like, two days ago!”

He doesn’t even give her a chance to speak.

With Louis, he’s so overly confident that he has him completely wrapped around his finger that he doesn’t feel the need to say anything. He feels he has control over Louis. But with Violet, he feels his control might not be as strong, so he needs to remind her that she just met Clementine, whereas she’s known him for years- something he uses against the whole group.

And when Clementine tries to talk to her, Marlon takes a low blow and it’s super shitty.

“Don't let her get in your head. Hey, what would Minnie want you to do? She was my friend, too. So was Brody.”

He’s desperate to crawl out of the grave this situation has put him in that he’s willing to go this low, doing everything he can to make sure Violet doubts Clementine... and y’know, whose to say this is the first time Marlon is using Minnie to manipulate her? And when it doesn’t work, he gets frustrated like “Violet being difficult. Why am I not surprised?” which could suggest that it hasn’t always worked.

It goes back to what I was saying- Marlon tried to get close to Violet and she never let him. She was difficult to be around after the twins died due to her grief and Marlon struggled with that.

When he finally comes clean, this is where the real shift happens with him and Violet. You can see the hatred burning on her face every time the camera pans over to her now that she’s felt betrayed by him and his actions.

Right before Marlon dies, if you choose to say nothing, Violet will step forward and start saying that he doesn’t get to stay, but gets cut off when AJ shoots him.

All in all, Violet is a big case against Marlon and a showcase of how far his manipulation as gone within Ericson.

[Marlon’s office and foreshadowing of motivations]

“Whenever someone goes outside the safe zone, bad shit happens. People die or disappear. I just... I could really use the help, Clementine. Taking care of these kids, it's not easy. I'm worried that if I don't figure something out, if...if I don't fix our food situation... I can't lose anyone else. We've already lost so much. Friends, siblings... I can't let another kid die. It could break us.”

Swinging back around, let’s talk about the rest of the scene in the office.

First off- it’s implied that Marlon uses the office as a bedroom given the mattress on the floor and some of his personal belongs laying about. Like the photo he keeps of him and Louis.

The bed isn’t for Rosie, we assume, since we later see her sleeping outside while chained up. This might be just because they wanted Rosie present for the confrontation scene but didn’t want her loose, so they put her outside when you’d think that she’d sleep inside with everyone else.

Or, maybe she just prefers to be outside when the weather’s nice, or they keep her as a guard in case something were to happen, that way she can alarm them.

Anyway, why does Marlon potentially sleep in his office rather than in a dorm? Or does he have a dorm that he’ll sleep in, but keeps the mattress there just in case?

Well, a show of authority, for one. Even if he does keep a dorm room, it’s likely that he made the office his own as a way to be like “The headmaster is gone, this is my office now. I’m in charge.”

Which makes sense.

And when you think about what Louis tells us about Marlon having all these sleepless nights and tough calls, it’s not hard to imagine him spending late nights in his chair going over different plans and stressing over the food situation/safe zone, as well as letting the guilt of the twins weigh on him to the point were he’s too exhausted to even leave.

Moving on to the actual conversation between him and Clementine. He does show a vulnerable side to her, which I like. He can feel the pressure he’s under and sense the loss he’s suffered. But...like before, looking at this knowing what I know, it’s not hard to see certain things in a different light opposed to what you’d see as a new player.

What’s interesting, though, is while I do enjoy this conversation and the bits of insight it gives to Marlon’s character, there is this subtle, slightly off undertone of the whole scene after the Rosie bit.

At this point, we’ve talked with Aasim and he’s planted the seed of doubt.

We’ve heard the story about the twins. Violet came and talked to us about it, we could visit their graves and learn that they died at this time last year. Anyone who has played any game or heard any story can pick up on that the twins are important. They’re not going to use these girls as some throw away lines. They’re going to come back one way or another.

We’re literally living in their dorm. The dorm that Marlon put us in. They’re heavily connected to Tenn and Violet, two important characters I previously discussed. Then, Violet comes barging into our room and talks about them some more.

It makes the gears turn, y’know?

And with Marlon being very insistent that they stay in the safe zone, it’s not hard to question the story about the twins. I went through and skimmed a couple play throughs on youtube to this scene and a lot of them were theorizing that the twins weren’t actually dead or something wasn’t right, some cracks are starting to show. Why else bring it up? Marlon being the one to push the dangers of the safe zone and everything with Aasim... it’s not hard to pick up that he might be hiding something.

The thing I find fascinating about people’s perception of Marlon is how they interpret his motivations when it comes to Clementine and AJ, and that can be tracked back to this scene.

We all know that he’s planning on giving them to the raiders if they come back. It’s a hard fact. Brody warned us before she died, and dialogue during the basement scene backs it up.

But the question I’m curious about is... when did this motivation begin?

When did Marlon decide that he would give Clementine and AJ to the raiders if they ever came back?

Because the text doesn’t tell us anything until Brody’s death, I feel like we all have a different moment where we believe that became Marlon’s secret motive, y’know?

In all my digging, I’ve read posts about this idea, people giving their thoughts on when they think Marlon secretly turned on us, or if he was ever really on our side.

One has people theorizing that Marlon saved Clementine and AJ with the intention of giving them away from the beginning.

So he saw taking these two in and earning their trust as an opportunity to save everyone else at the school [the people he cares about] rather than have to sacrifice anyone else like they did with the twins. Clementine and AJ were just a means to an end if the raiders came back.

Which is a rather sinister way to look at it and puts quite a negative spin on Marlon’s actions towards them - like how he’s willing to let them stay at the school not out of kindness but out of bad intentions, and every kind thing he ever did was to win over their trust so he could lure them out into the woods and do a trade if necessary.

The line “Take this. I don't want you gettin' lost.” gets pointed at a lot due to how Marlon says it, the infliction of it, and it’s theorized that the hidden meaning behind it is “Take this, if you get lost then I can’t make the trade.”

Same thing with “Just remember to stay in the safe zone. We need you to come back home in one piece.”

Which isn’t a wrong interpretation of this. You can totally look at this conversation between Marlon and Clementine as Marlon subtly foreshadowing his turn, or betrayal, at the end of the episode.

“...It's how we've kept ourselves from unwanted attention for so long. Well... For the most part, anyway.”

“I can't lose anyone else. We've already lost so much. Friends, siblings... I can't let another kid die. It could break us. Sorry. I'm just... There's a lot of pressure.”

“What, did you think I was gonna throw you out?“

Then there are the middle ground people who believe Marlon didn’t save Clementine and AJ with that intention in mind, but it started to appear as an option to him either a bit before or during the office scene. Y’know, it came as a passing thought that ended up lingering until he acknowledged it as a solution to a potential problem.

Again, pointing at the dialogue from before- him suggesting that he’ll do whatever it takes to keep his community alive... just like he did before.

And while he gets along with Clementine and AJ [or as some would suggest, he appears to be friendly], they’re not his family. He isn’t close to them the same way he is the rest of the school. and if he has to give anyone away, it’s going to be them, whether he wants to or not.

Marlon didn’t want to give Sophie and Minerva away, and he’s carried that with him up until this point. We see it manifest to a breaking point that lead to Brody’s death and, eventually, his own.

Finally, there are the people who believe that the idea of giving Clementine and AJ away didn’t occur to him until after the incident with Abel. After Brody panicked and told him about getting robbed, then Clementine claiming they met a man with different colored eyes who wanted food, and the realization that the raiders could be back.

This is where I personally stand when it comes to this idea. I believe that Marlon didn’t decide on this until he heard about Abel, and solidified it during the fight with Brody down in the basement.

But what about the dialogue in this scene that potentially has double meanings? Well, I believe that’s the writers suggesting Marlon’s turn and motivations rather than Marlon himself, if that makes sense. Like I said before, you could take nearly everything Marlon says as some sort of foreshadowing or suggestion of what happened to the twins, what his true intentions are with Clementine and AJ, and what will happen to him at the end of the episode.

That’s the thing- Marlon doesn’t ever go on a mustache-twirling monologue about how he knew he could use Clementine and AJ as trade if the raiders came back and that’s the real reason why he saved them, nor do we see him come up with the idea on the spot.

Hell, Marlon never admits to the player that he was going to do that. The most he says is, “Shut your fucking mouth! I made the right call. I saved the lives of everyone in this fucking school! If they came back... I'd do it again!”

Brody is the one who told us everything, and every time Clementine throws it back in his face, he tells her to shut up and threatens her with the gun.

But from what I’ve tried to gather about what Marlon and Brody talk about in the basement before Clementine gets down there...

Marlon: “Why can't you just do what I ask you to do?”

Brody: “Because we caused all this, and now we have to deal with it!”

Marlon: “I am dealing with it!”

Brody: “By tradin' more of us away? That's not fixin' the problem, that's runnin' away from it!”

[I’ll come back to this full conversation later when I go over the basement scene by itself. It gets pretty dark.]

Which.... yeah. So, I’m not trying to say Brody was lying or anything just because Marlon never flat out admitted it to us the player, I’m just saying that we don’t know for sure when he made up his mind about this since the game never gives a clear suggestion for the sake of his dramatic turn from friend to antagonist.

Did he have this idea from the start or did he come up with it during this conversation?

We don’t know, but it’s interesting to look at the different views surrounding this question and how it applies to Marlon’s character. Because yeah, if you truly believe that Marlon had this intention from the start, it makes all of his actions in this episode pretty scummy. And again, that’s not wrong because there isn’t an answer here.

I choose to believe that maybe the idea came as an unwanted thought in the beginning, but manifested into something real when he heard about Abel. He shared his plan with Brody, who didn’t want to go along with it.

And y’know what... let’s finally get into the basement scene and Brody...

Continued in Part 2/2

#twdg marlon #twdg character discussion #twdg clementine #twdg aj #twdg louis #twdg violet #twdg aasim #twdg ruby #twdg mitch #twdg willy #twdg omar #twdg brody #twdg tenn #twdg sophie #twdg minerva #marlon character discussion #twdg #long post

61 notes · View notes

triptychexe · 4 years

Text

TITLE: Dinner Party SUMMARY: The 1st and 2nd Generations of Triptych unite with the help of drugs and alcohol. GENRE: friendship, maybe slight comedy, slight romance, slight angst PAIRINGS: General Gen 1 x Gen 2 interactions. Yen x IM, Yen x Asa, Nia x Johnny, mentioned Cal x Ame. WORD COUNT: 3.3k

WARNINGS: Recreational use of drugs and alcohol, swearing, being intoxicated, mention of vomiting.

Winter 2018

Soonyoung didn’t think it was possible for things to go south so quickly, but he always believed in the phrase ‘there’s a first time for everything’.

Right after they digested their dinner (graciously cooked by S.O.T), the bottles of alcohol were brought out (graciously supplied by Gen 1). Yen made them all take an oath that they weren’t going to throw up anywhere except for the toilet bowl, and then they all took a shot together as eighteen.

And that was the last moment things were okay.

Standing around the kitchen island, Soonyoung quickly turned into a bystander when Soojin and Yerin started going shot-for-shot with each other.

“You don’t strike me as a shots girl.” Soojin bantered, pouring herself a third shot. Yerin, who clearly wasn’t a shots girl based off the full-body shivers she got whenever she dipped the clear liquid down her throat, slid her empty shot glass across the island.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” Yerin stated back, watching as Soojin poured vodka into the small glass, filling it almost to the brim.

Soojin smirked and held the bottle up to the others surrounding the table. “You boys want any?”

Sol held up a hand and shook his head. Hyunki did the same. Smart boy. He too must have realized that this was more than just two girls taking shots. It was a fight for dominance.

The shot battle was over after about four more shots. By this point, the alcohol had started to hit Yerin’s system, her motor movements slowly starting to lose their accuracy. When Yerin started swaying on her feet, Soonyoung stepped in.

“Hey, Yerin? Maybe it’s time you go sit down and drink some water.” Soonyoung suggested, a gentle hand coming out to take the shot glass away from the woman. Yerin reacted with amazing speed, her hand snatching the glass away.

“No. If she can do more, then I can do more.” Yerin said competitively.

Soojin, who was probably only a little buzzed, shook her head sympathetically. “Hey, this isn’t a competition-”

“Of course it’s a competition! Everything is a competition!” Yerin enunciated each word individually, but the ends of her sentences drooped, as if each word was heavy on her tongue.

Hyunki gave Soonyoung an anxious glance. The poor kid was always slightly awkward when it came to dealing with drunk people. Especially drunk people he didn’t know well.

“Alright, let’s get you some water.” Soonyoung stepped up, placing a testing hand on Yerin’s shoulder.

“Hey, hands off!” Yerin snapped, wiggling away from his touch. “I have a boyfriend, you know.” A smug, triumphant smile crossed over her face once she realized what she said. The leader’s attention trained back on Jin, who was watching the other girl apprehensively. “Yeah, I have a boyfriend. Johnny’s my boyfriend. Remember that. Johnny. Is. My. Boyfriend.”

“I… Okay?” Soojin arched an eyebrow in confusion.

Yerin mimicked the facial expression, only hers was slightly off given her drunken state. “Yeah, so don’t even think about-” “Alright!” Soonyoung gripped Yerin’s arm and started pulling her towards the sink. From the island, Jin and Fin just watched in bewilderment.

“What did I just tell you!” Yerin hissed. “Drink water and sober up before you say something you’ll regret.” Soonyoung advised under his breath as he ran a cup under the tap, handing it to his new leader. He watched as she drained the water, patting the corners of her mouth dry when she was finished. Even though she didn’t seem to be any more sober, he could tell that Yerin was starting to calm down.

Yerin looked over at Fin and Jin, who were eyeing her carefully, as if she were a time bomb destined to explode. Yerin’s cheeks, which were already flushed from the vodka, started to become richer in color.

“Um… I’m just gonna go mingle a bit… I’ll see you guys.” She looked down as she exited the kitchen, hurrying over to a different group of members to chat with them.

“What’s her deal?” Jin questioned, her focus still trained on the other girl. “People are so complex.” Hyunki sighed, taking a shot for himself, instantly gagging at the burning sensation.

Soonyoung shook his head. “Yeah. Complex.”

The last two weeks had been some of the worst Yen had ever experienced. Changkyun and Micha had finally decided to cut things off over a facetime call.

“Are you breaking up with me?” Micha asked, her voice spiking up an octave after Changkyun stated that space would be good for them. “I… Yeah.” Changkyun sniffed in through his nose, looking away from his phone screen. Micha felt her chest burn, even though the rest of her was completely numb.

“So that’s it? You’re going to break up with me over a fucking facetime call? You couldn’t come say it to my face?” Yen demanded, her blood boiling.

“What? Say it to your face so we can have goodbye sex right after?” Changkyun frowned. “Face it, Micha. That’s all our relationship ever is. We don’t love each other.”

The statement shattered Micha’s heart into a million pieces, even though she knew there was truth in his words. Lately the two of them have lost their emotional touch. What they didn’t have they made up physically.

“Plus… I don’t want to be made a fool.” Changkyun’s tone suddenly turned stoney. “I’m not blind, Micha.”

The idol furrowed her eyebrows. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Asahiko?” Changkyun stated it like it was obvious. “What about him?” Micha said defensively.

“You guys act more like a couple than we ever do.” Changkyun stated in an exasperated tone. “And the way he looks at you…” The rapper sighed bitterly. “It’s only a matter of time before one of you does something and I don’t want to be the idiot that watched it unfold and did nothing about it.”

Micha blinked, her jaw open. She couldn’t believe her ears. “So you don’t trust me?” Micha asked. Changkyun looked up at the screen for the first time since he dropped the bomb.

“I just think our time has passed. I think you’ve started to move on and I think I should too.” Changkyun shrugged.

Micha drained the rest of the spiked drink in her cup, letting the slight burn of the alcohol wash away the recent memory. Fighting off the mental replay of Changkyun’s face telling her that they don’t love each other, she pushed her way into the kitchen to refill her cup.

There was a small queue at the kitchen counter where the bottles of booze were as people took turns with the bottles to concoct their own mixed drinks.

The guy in front of her - the name slipping her mind - was pouring himself an extra strong drink using Micha’s favorite brand of vodka.

“Yo, save some for the rest of us.” Micha snapped at the new member. The boy looked up, arching an eyebrow. He gave her a small smirk before gesturing to the cup in her hand with the bottle. Micha held out her cup.

“Tell me when,” The boy said, pouring vodka into the plastic solo cup with a soft splash. Micha let him pour a little more than usual. She figured she’d rather drink it up now before the bottle was gone.

“Jeez, rough week huh?” The guy chuckled, screwing the cap back onto the handle.

Micha huffed. “That’s an understatement.”

“I’m Myungdae, by the way.” The new member introduced himself again. “Micha, right?” “The one and only.” Micha grinned dryly, bringing her cup to her lips. She wrinkled her nose. Maybe adding more vodka wasn’t the move. Myungdae chuckled and held his hand out.

“Here, lemme fix that for you.” He offered. Micha obliged, handing the monstrosity in her cup over.

The boy took a sip of her drink. When he brought the cup away from his face, he gave Micha a playful smirk. “This is delicious.” He teased. “My kind of drink. 90% vodka.”

Micha rolled her eyes, but a smile broke on her face too. “Just fix it, please.”

Myungdae held up his index finger and took another small sip. He smacked his lips together with a concentrated expression on his face, as if trying to pinpoint what exactly was wrong. Then he got to work, grabbing juices and seltzers to add to Micha’s drink. Once he was done, he handed the drink to Micha.

“Try that.” He said smugly. Micha slowly brought the cup up to her lips. Her eyes widened. “This doesn’t even taste like vodka?” She wondered aloud, completely blown away.

Myungdae spread his arms in pride. “What can I say. I’m a man of many talents.”

The two left the kitchen, making room for all the other members on the hunt for a refill. The two found themselves leaning against the wall in front of Micha’s bedroom.

“You know,” Myungdae said, giving Micha’s body a scan with his eyes. “You’re so much prettier in person.”

Micha arched an eyebrow, trying to look unimpressed. “Trying to butter me up?”

“Only a little,” Myungdae suppressed a chuckle, looking over his shoulder. The only people around them were Eunha and Soonyoung, who were in deep conversation about something. Myungdae’s hand dug into his pocket, slowly pulling out a small plastic baggie with fine white powder in it.

Micha blinked. She’s been around drugs before, most nightclubs she went to had drug needles on the floor and people walked around with blood dripping from their noses. She just never thought she’d see coke in her own dorm, a place that was completely separate from nightlife culture.

“Want some?” Myungdae asked. “I think doing a line together would really cement our friendship.”

If it had been any other week Micha would say no, but after what she’s been through these past seven days, she thought she’d enjoy herself. She looked around before leading Myungdae to her bedroom, quickly shutting the door behind them.

“I’ve only rubbed it into my gums before.” Micha admitted, reflecting on the one other time she was offered the substance. Myungdae nodded. “Are you sketch about snorting things?” He asked, tapping the powder out onto Micha’s vanity. His actions seemed a little rush, like he had been waiting for this moment all night.

Micha shrugged, watching Myungdae work. “A little.” “Well, don’t feel pressured to do anything you’re not comfortable with.” Myungdae grinned, taking his credit card out to form a neat line. He looked up at her through his lashes. “You got a dollar?”

Micha gestured to the small change jar she kept next to her makeup brushes. Myungdae opened the jar, taking out a bill and rolling it into a tube. Then he placed one end of it in his nostril, closing the other with his finger, before inhaling sharply, sucking up the powder with ease.

He blinked a few times, swallowing thickly before looking a little more relaxed than he did a few moments prior.

“Here, let's get you-”

Before Myungdae could finish, Micha’s door opened. Micha jumped, turning to see who had just caught them.

Asahiko stood in the doorway, his eyes wide at the sight before him. Micha felt a wave of relief. At least it was her best friend who caught them and not her leader.

“Koko, have you met Myungdae?” Micha smiled, gesturing to the boy next to her.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Asa asked, his voice steely. Micha’s smile drooped.

“We’re just-” Micha started but her explanation was drowned out by Asahiko’s raised voice.

“Are you trying to fucking kill yourself?” Asahiko scolds, his eyes wide.

Myungdae sniffed a little. “Hey, dude. I wouldn’t have let that happen, don’t worry.”

“Oh thanks, that’s really reassuring coming from a literal crackhead.” Asa snipped, coming forward to pull Micha off the ground and away from Myungdae. Micha scooted away, anger flaring up inside her. Now she understood why Changkyun broke up with her. It was all Asahiko’s fault.

“Stop acting like this!” Micha whined, leaning out of Asa’s reach.

Asahiko scoffed, not understanding. “Acting like what?” “Acting like my boyfriend.” Micha narrowed her eyes and shook her head. “You’re not my boyfriend, Asahiko. I don’t need your protection.”

Asahiko’s expression turned to stone. He took a step back, but the distance between them suddenly seemed vaster than just physically. Micha knew she struck a nerve, but she was too intoxicated and too emotionally drained to do damage control.

“You’re right.” Asahiko said flatly. “Enjoy yourself.”

And with that, the Japanese man left, closing Micha’s bedroom door with more force than necessary. Beside her, Myungdae let out a low whistle.

“Y’all got some tension.” Myungdae noted. “We don’t usually fight.” “Not what I meant.” Myungdae smirked to himself before filing another perfect line of white powder with his credit card. He gestured the rolled up bill to Micha. She hesitated slightly before grabbing the dollar.

“What the fuck am I looking at right now.” Eli said in awe.

“I honestly don’t have any words.” Van shook his head. “It’s like a car crash…” Teo frowned. “I can’t look away.”

The three idols sat at the dining table, watching Cal and Ame making out on the couch in front of them. It was an uncomfortable sight to take in. After knowing Cal for most of his teenage years, it was hard to imagine him pulling girls. Or having women interested in him at all. Yet here he was, the most awkward of their ensemble, sucking face with the pretty new member.

“Should you guys like… make it stop?” Teo asked, clearly uncomfortable. “I feel like they shouldn’t be doing this.”

Eli and Van looked between them. As leaders, they probably had the authoritative power to go in and break them up. They could even pull the whole “triptych values our friendly and professional dynamic…” schtick. But the both of them just shook their heads.

“They’re not really hurting anyone.” Van shrugged. “And I’d feel like the worst friend for blowing one of Cal’s few shots with a girl.” Eli admitted.

Teo shook his head. “It’s just wrong. We’re practically co-workers.”

Van clasped a hand on Teo’s shoulder, giving the thinner man a body-rattling shake. “Lighten up, Injung. Here, buddy,” Van poured half his drink into Teo’s empty cup. “Let’s just relax, alright? Nothing wrong with a little smooching. Hell, I love smooching.”

“I love smooching too, but I wouldn’t wanna kiss any of your ugly mugs.”

The three boys looked over as Eunha slid into an empty chair at the dining room table. She glanced over at Cal and Ame (who still seemed to be pretty busy) with an impressed grin on her lips.

“Where have you been all night?” Eli asked, glad to see his old friend. “Been wiping vomit off one of the youngster’s face.” Eunha wrinkled her nose at the unpleasant memory.

“Which one?” Van asked in concern. “Sunhee. Her friends are in my room with her now making sure she drinks some water and doesn’t choke on her own puke. Poor girl just doesn’t know her limits.” Eunha said sympathetically before taking a sip of her own drink.

“Anyways, I came over to ask you guys if you’ve seen Yerin.” Eunha asked.

“I haven’t seen her all night.” Teo realized. “Me either.” Eli frowned. “Have you called her?” “Yeah. I’ve checked the whole apartment too.” Eunha’s voice started to sound a bit more anxious.

“I’m sure she’ll turn up.” Van shrugged. “I heard she’s got some steam to blow off anyways.”

Eunha let out a deep sigh, surveying the room around them. Drunk teenagers and old friends were grouped together. Soojin had a particularly large circle surrounding her as she talked jovially with her free hand.

“I guess things are gonna be a bit different from now on, huh?” Eunha bit her lower lip.

“Yeah,” Eli shrugged, a smirk on his lips. “But things were starting to get boring around here anyways.”

Yerin never comes up to the roof, but she felt like it was the only place she could clear her mind and prepare herself for the call she was about to make.

In a drunken state, she claimed that Johnny was her boyfriend. That wasn’t completely true. Yes, they flirted. Yes, they’ve gone on secretive little dates together to get coffee and whatever. But they’ve never put a label on anything. She wasn’t even sure what Johnny wanted out of their connection. If he wanted to date her, shouldn’t he have said something by now? What if he was just stringing her along? She needed answers right now. It couldn’t wait until morning and it especially couldn’t wait after whatever she pulled in the kitchen.

She paced the rooftop as the phone rang, waiting anxiously for him to pick up. Even though it was still winter in Seoul, the alcohol in Yerin’s system numbed her to the true temperature of the winds wiping around her.

“Hey, Yerin? You okay?” Johnny’s sleepy voice asked on the other line. Yerin only now realized how early in the morning it was. They were nearing the 4am mark, and her group mates were still partying downstairs.

“I’m fine.” Yerin nodded to herself. “I’m drunk.” She added as an afterthought. Johnny chuckled on the other end of the line.

“Aw... “ Johnny cooed. “Do you need me to come pick you up?”

“No. I have something to tell you, though.” Nia stopped pacing and looked out over the city’s landscape. In the distance she could just make out the fluorescent ‘SM’ logo on top of one of the buildings.

“Alright, shoot.” Johnny said mirthfully, his smile almost visible in Nia’s mind.

She swallowed thickly. “I told everyone you’re my boyfriend.”

Johnny was silent for a minute. Yerin was starting to wonder if she shouldn’t have made this phone call after all. Yerin’s drunk brain hit the panic button. Yerin laughed flatley. “Nevermind, sorry for waking you up. This was stupid. I made a stupid mistake. I’ll do damage control tomorrow. Goodnight.”

“Woah, wait, Yerin,” Johnny’s voice responded. “It’s all good.”

Yerin held her breath. Johnny continued. “I mean, I don’t mind that you called me your boyfriend. That’s probably the most accurate title you can give me… Kinda like how I’ve been referring to you as my almost-girlfriend for like… two weeks now.”

The confession made Yerin blink in surprise. She wasn’t expecting that.

“You’ve been calling me your girlfriend?” Yerin asked quietly.

“Yeah. I had to tell my mom.” Johnny gave a small chuckle. “I think she started getting worried I’d never find someone.”

A small smile broke on Yerin’s lips. She swung one of her legs around, spinning herself in a lazy cirlce. “I mean, you found me.” “Right. I found you.” Johnny said fondly. “Hey, where are you right now? Do you wanna come over?”

Yerin groaned. “I’d love to, but I’m at a party with the new members. It’d look so bad if I actually left.”

“You’re at a party? That’s got to be the quietest party I’ve ever heard.” Johnny chortled. “Must be a pretty lame party.”

“Oh, no, I’m on the roof.” Yerin shrugged. “You’re what?” Johnny’s voice suddenly sounded more alert. “You’re intoxicated and you’re on the roof?” “Yeah. Is that an issue?” Yerin’s words slightly muddled together. “Uh, yes?!” Johnny exclaimed. “Get off the roof, dummy.”

Yerin rolled her eyes. “I’m fine, I’m fine!” She protested, but even as she said it, she felt the world around her sway ever so slightly.

“Yerin, get off the roof.” Johnny repeated. “Seriously.”

The vocalist smirked. “Who knew you’d be the protective type?” “Not wanting your girlfriend to die makes you protective?” Johnny wondered. Nia ignored his statement, the word ‘girlfriend’ ringing through her brain. “Say the word ‘girlfriend’ one more time and I’ll get off the roof.” Nia baited in a sing-song voice. “Girlfriend. You’re my girlfriend.” Johnny complied. “Now get off the roof.” “Hm. That was nice.” “You’re ridiculous.” Johnny chuckled fondly. “Call me tomorrow, okay?”

“Wait, Johnny?” Yerin quickly asked before he could hang up. “Yeah?” “Why didn’t you tell me about Soojin?”

Johnny gave a short, airy chuckle. “Because when I’m with you, I’m too focused on you to bring up other girls. You take up my whole brain, Yerin. I mean that.”

Nia’s cheeks flushed, a small smile forming on her lips. “Now get off the fucking roof and drink some water. Please.” Johnny said.

Yerin chuckled. “I’m going down now.” “We’ll make hangover eggs tomorrow, okay?” Johnny promised. “Sounds like a date.” Yerin smiled.

“See you, dork.” “See you, loser.” “Goodnight.” “Goodnight.”

24 notes · View notes