#this is about both shen yuan and airplane bro but it also fits the bg3 squad I suppose

[tossawary]

Yes, I can be frustrated when plot tension seems to arise solely from characters communicating poorly or refusing to speak to each other at all. Sometimes, the reasons for it don't seem very good or even true to character when they pale in the face of some other threat. Sometimes, it gets drawn out too long and it feels like things would be more interesting if we just moved on to whatever could happen next; I do really like it when characters come together and attempt to solve problems as a team.

And yet, on the other hand, there are situations where I can't agree when someone says, "UGH, why don't they just TALK to each other?!" Because it's like... it's the trauma, bro. It's the shame and the fear and the desire for privacy and control. It's the violence of this world and the LIFE-THREATENING risks of vulnerability. It's potentially another character having a knife to their throat. It's the precarious situation of NOT KNOWING that you're a character in story and that this other character is a decent person who will react with understanding and compassion.

"UGH, why didn't this character just hand someone else their heart and the power to destroy them on a platter?" "UGH, why didn't this character confess to something that has been repeatedly shown to be murderously reviled by most people in this world?" "UGH, why didn't this character just TALK to people when they've been burned before and no one has demonstrated that they're trustworthy, and also they're being threatened to keep them silent?"

Again, miscommunication plots often drive me up the wall, especially when they seem so repetitive. Everyone has a limited tolerance for certain story elements and story elements can definitely be executed poorly. It can be fun to mix things up with characters who throw their issues on the table and demand that someone try to fight them on it, with characters who are open about previous issues but are struggling not to backslide, and with characters who are TRYING to talk it out but can't find the words or the right people to listen. There are many ways to do communication plots! There are many good reasons to complain about these plots! And it's all to personal taste anyway, so I don't begrudge anyone their venting! I can be petty too!

But... also... "UGH, why didn't this character suddenly overcome all of their personal issues in order to effectively spill their guts to someone they have good reason to think wants them dead?" BRUH, COME ON and put yourself in their shoes, PLEASE.