zaryxn

[zaryxn]

Why I love Ricky and why it grinds my gears when I see somebody slander him. Essay by SunnySun (Part 2)

| Part 1 (Character traits and development) | Part 2 (Design and relationships) |

In part 1 we looked over the character development and all the traits Ricky expressed during the first arcs of the manga.

But for now, to rest a bit after me basically retelling the debut, I will tell you a little story which kinda fits into the reason why I never judged Ricky, even during his introduction.

(Besides me being a casual enough media consumer that I went “You are the character archetype that starts of as an asshole but is actually a tsundere sweetheart that will fall for either the MC or one of her friends” when I first saw him in screenshots for the anime.)

When I was in school, around the same age as our kiddos, I had a frenemy. Let’s call him Arty. If translating our relationship onto SH characters, he would be Ricky and I would be Shaun, but not quite. Arty was a rich kid with a lot of friends and fancy things he loved to brag about. And I was a normal girl who liked to draw during class. And he would pick on me constantly, to which I would bite back and so on until our respective friend groups would have to jump in to keep us from throwing hands. He was really annoying to say the least, but we were classmates so we had to get along somehow. That was until some things in my country happened and our now very small class of – at one point – 8 people just had to get along out of necessity.

I bit down my childhood grudges and tried to be kinder towards Arty, with small things like just greeting him in the morning. And he returned the same kindness back. Slowly we started to get along and by the 9th grade, after which I went to college, we were friends. And he even asked our mutual friend about how I was doing! The same person who would pick on me over everything when we were kids.

So when I first saw Ricky, I was reminded of Arty and decided to give him a chance too.

That’s not where the parallels end though.

What actually made me try and be kinder to Arty in the first place was thing that happened that week. I won’t go into detail, but he shared something personal with me, something he didn’t want to share with his friends to not seem weak in front of them. He shared something vulnerable with me – a person who constantly fought with him. Sounds familiar?

Ricky and Shaun had a moment like this too. The boulder scene, where Ricky literally cried and begged Shaun to look after his master thinking he will die. Thinking back on it, I think this is the moment that Ricky became my fave, though I didn’t know it yet.

The thing that solidified him as my son, however, is the FREAKING BANGS. Ahem, sorry. I guess this is the best time to talk about character design.

He looked like a generic richboy, though really cute with those downturned eyes and long lashes of his. Note here – downturned eyes are usually reserved for cute and innocent characters (Emi and Ram have those too), so just this tiny detail is already unconsciously bringing us to give him a chance despite the… less than stellar first impressions.

Malfoy wannabe – very strong vibe that fooled even characters in-universe (looking at you, Shaun). And it definitely fooled the readers, as after chapter 103 came out people were really freaking confused.. They were expecting some nobleman’s son, but he was just a little village boy with cute little bangs and a cute little vest. Imagine this was how he was from the start? While his initial personality would’ve given the same impression, just his bangs alone would’ve made him have a different vibe. Hmm.. emo rich-bitch?..

And if you know me, you also know how I feel about his bangs. I made a whole collage of just panels with them for hells sake.

Now with the personal reasons out of the way, let’s return to psychoanalysis, this time focusing on Ricky’s relationships with others.

As I mentioned, he tries to be condescending to everyone because this is what Patrick asked of him. He gets flustered very easily and tries to get the higher ground back by using the legendary “no u” card (which more often than not fails). In later chapters we see that he feels bad for making an off-hand comment about Emi and he’s happy to see that Ram is alive and well.

As Kate put it:

And while most people don’t concern him at all, two in particular are the most important to him – Patrick and Lou.

His relationship with Patrick is really highlighted during chapters 29-30, 66, 97 and 101. Patrick relies on Ricky, almost hides behind him, and is openly distraught at the thought of losing him. He calls Ricky “indispensable” and “exceptional”, asking for his advice and opinion often.

Ricky in turn is extremely loyal, going as far as to swear on his master’s name when accused of lying. He is willing to do anything to keep his master’s status high, going as far as to analyze every possible suitor for him (though we do meme a lot about his true intentions in picking Louise as the best option, lol)

They have a very trusting relationship, once again brought up in 97 and 101 (Patrick literally said “there’s no way Ricky is lying”).

And I would like to use this segment to once again bring up Morph-Patty protecting Ricky from other morphs bc it was extremely cute.

Speaking of protectiveness, Patrick also immediately stopped his argument with Kate in 97 bc he saw that it made Ricky really uncomfortable.

And as I start discussing the relationship between Ricky and Lou, I must admit, in the name of fair analysis, that I am a shipper. However, for this part I will not be using the shipping glasses, only my regular prescriptions ones. Got it? Got it. Let’s go, we’re almost done.

They didn’t see eye to eye at first, with Ricky still trying to go by his master’s wishes and Lou being… well, pokerfaced af. But then chapter 29 came along and started shifting everything. As I mentioned, Ricky was genuinely concerned when Lou fell and cut her leg, going as far as to bandage it for her. (Making her ask “are you worried about me?”) After that, if you notice, he closely follows the map and checks every unsturdy looking thing before they move forward.

Also something something crush something something faces so freaking close something something thank you animators for bonus 3 seconds if you know you know

Then there’s the shear-giving scene, more on this one later, it’s really important. What I will say for now, it’s Lou thanking Ricky for helping her, despite her mistress’ thoughts on the matter.

After that they both are brainwashed to hell and back. But then comes a funny little wrinkle: revelation of chapter 103, that not only did they know each other before abduction, they were that one couple that’s not together yet, but everyone knows it will happen sooner or later.

So this, combined with Ricky falling for Lou again jumpkicked the breakdown of his brainwashing, eventually leading to ch.97. She is directly tied to his “humanity”.

And now we arrive at another question the user that pissed me off into writing this asked: “What is Ricky’s purpose?”

Well, one is obvious – continue to support Patrick. But what does this mean for the story? If every character has a purpose…

Just looking at the humans, Emilyko is the heart, Shaun is the brains and he shares strength aspect with Lou, and Ram is the inside-woman. What does this leave for Ricky?

Well, this might be a stretch, but hear me out. I think both blondes are the heart. And while Emi takes care of the bigger picture, like turning enemies into friends, Ricky is more focused on helping the ones already on our side. Namely, his closest two people.

I can hear you scoffing at this, but once again, let me finish.

In chapter 102 Lou says this about feeling like a human again “Even though I understand the situation, I think I haven’t actually felt it after all…”

What does it mean to be human? To do something for yourself, not dictated by your shadow-master or even against their wishes.

But wait, Lou has done it already. Twice.

Once, when she gave up her shears as thanks for helping her get to her shadow.

And another time, when she asked for a flower, even though “faces” shouldn’t talk.

Why did she do it? In her own words:

As she is tied to him getting his humanity back, he is tied to her. And I strongly believe that just like the previous two times, he will be key in helping her feeling human again.

But hey, this is just my dumb take. Only Somato knows for sure and all we can do is wait and see.

If you read this to conclusion you are something else, have my respect (unless you are the user that pissed me off into writing this, you can shove your opinion down your throat for all I care, I doubt anything here made you actually think.) Ahem, yeah, I’ll go back to doing something actually productive-

Who am I kidding, I’ll just sit there waiting for any comments on my needless essay, lol

TLDR: you don’t get any. If I could summarize everything in a few sentences why would I’ve written this?

Ok, here you go: I love Ricky because reasons.

[zaryxn]

do i want to believe that louise won't actually be a twist villain, and that she started learning how to treat lou better after the "if you hadn't told louise, louise wouldn't have known" scene in chapter 65? yes.

does the fact that she's standing close to the villains here help ease my suspicions towards her? no.

[zaryxn]

The symbolism of flowers in Shadows House (part 5)

Master post with all the other topics

Ricky, Lou and the blossoming romance

Let me start this off by confessing that i am a filthy shipper. However! I am also able to look past my bias and see things objectively. LUCKY ME, I DIDN'T EVEN NEED TO LOOK FAR

Let's look at the first instance of ~le ship~ (besides the scene above)

"Representing virtue and unity of two people who are committed to each other, white flowers are the perfect way to honor a relationship. White flowers are also used for sympathy. White flowers are the perfect gift for your loved ones looking for some hope and light."

"Camellias, no matter what color, have meanings attached to them like steadfastness, and excellence. It’s a flower that you give if you want to express your admiration or your gratitude to someone. It’s also a flower that you can give to wish someone you care about the best of luck."

"Generally, camellia flowers symbolize love, affection, and admiration. White camellias symbolize adoration and is given to someone who is well-liked. "

"On another note, this white blossom may also symbolize perfection or being without blemish."

~~~

Ok, ok, i see you. This is just speculation, who knows what this flower actually is. It just so happens that it's meaning perfectly describes the scene, things like this happen. Ok.

Let's look at the scene that kinda started this whole flower-analysis train in the first place. Chapter 94 - there should be no doubt that we are looking at tulips.

"The most known meaning of tulips is perfect and deep love. They’re ideal to give to someone who you have a deep, unconditional love for." (*Pterodactyl screech*)

"As tulips bloom at the beginning of spring they also have a meaning of rebirth." (Ricky and Lou have their brainwashing broken in this scene)

"Pink tulips are known for meaning affection, caring, good wishes, and love. Pink tulips are great to send to loved ones, friends and family members to show them you care."

*pterodactyl screech*

Jeez, so many pterodactyls flying around... But I have to agree with them. If this is not canon idk what is.

~~~

Master post with all the other topics

[zaryxn]

I can’t charge my phone,great.

[zaryxn]

Fanart for @visionaryinsomniac,I swear i have so many motivation that i can’t stand it anymore i’m using my last energy to draw it’s giving me headache and i can’t sleep i needa rest this is so bad for my health.

[zaryxn]

This is my (main) oc backstory🥺

[zaryxn]

I wanted to draw something from my childhood