jade's body being puppeteered though multiple dimensions as a necessary evil to callie's desires and jake being loathed so much he's gets hit with the tricksterpop on command and called an idiot all the way through

@holytomater yeah like. We really only have altcallie's word that she's trying to prevent dirk's villainy. Her treatment of two entire jade harleys tells us a lot about that not being entirely accurate.

@SophiaSurname homestuck has a very interesting relationship to character statements vs a character's true intent and i'm really astonished that is so often overlooked!!!

@holytomater altcallie hates jake because she doesnt understand him at all and doesnt know how to write him and she "loves" jade in so much as she sees an opportunity to project into jade all her insecurities without taking anything jade cares about into account. alt!callies fucked up

@dogexmachina now this is an interesting lens to read with... I agree tbh, she only hides her hand under the guise of neutrality much better, but shes not a blank slate

@dogexmachina @holytomater alt callie has jade as her self insert and she shipped her self with dave strider. typical self insert

@worstGirlEva @dogexmachina THIS IS SO DEPRESSING

@holytomater @dogexmachina muses will give everyone a happy ending and ship their self insert with dave strider and be like "can't help being a scorpio."

@holytomater but then again I'm a Jake stan so of course I noticed (but I'd have thought everyone would have too!)

@holytomater Specially with how loud she goes on about really thinking who's telling the story

@aslanZounder tbt when the epilogues came out and ppl swore candy was happier than meat just to find a binary "good" and "evil" option instead of "huh this is all a mixed bag"

@holytomater candy happier? [nervous laughter]
it felt like my personal nightmare

@holytomater @aslanZounder ???????? Candy is horribly depressing i

@Saxx @holytomater @aslanZounder I found candy the harder read. It was pretty soul-wrenching.

@oct2pus @aslanZounder @holytomater same meat was difficult but it had more comedic elements to it. Candy is just soap opera hell over and over. There's funny stuff but the depression really overshadows it

@Saxx @oct2pus @holytomater absolutely!! Meat was a much easier read emotionally!
(I specially suffered through Candy because I read it first, I think)

@aslanZounder see i wish id read candy first because then id be able to get the harder parts (for me) out of the way. Oh well

@Saxx hm having lived it I would not wish it jrbegwjsg
But also I’ll never know the alternative hah

@aslanZounder very true

@aslanZounder @Saxx @holytomater like meat it feels wrenching if you're super invested in rosemary or felt dirk should've been redeemed by the credits. But all damage inflicted was by like, dirk. Candy felt like a lot of self-inflicited damage; things the characters did to themselves.

@oct2pus yeah thats pretty accurate

@aslanZounder @Saxx @holytomater except jade fuck you alt!Callie.

@oct2pus @Saxx @holytomater Yeah but as a,, Dirk enthusiast I find I understand why he does what he does and the humour in the route and lack of proper characterisation(? I guess? of everyone else sort of creates an emotional detachment that makes it a way easier read
And the Rosemary situation also is under that light, where it's all an induced situation with Dirk pulling the strings
But then again, my perception might be influenced by the timing with which I read the Epilogues

@oct2pus @Saxx @holytomater
(which was: I read half of candy when it came out, stopped for a few months, resumed Candy and then read Meat)

@aslanZounder @oct2pus @holytomater meat has explainable reason for why it is the way it is. Candy is intentionally vague

@Saxx @oct2pus @holytomater Yeah that's a great way of putting it!!!