sotanaht wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 9:11 pm
I for one and VERY glad this happened. The last thing I wanted was some hamfisted attempt to "redeem" clovis to the readers via some gay romance.
As bad as it is to say it, I kinda have to agree. We
needed a canon example of just how evil he really is. And as stated by Muon, his evil is real, not some cut-rite cartoon villain. By his words, both last page and this one, make painfully clear that Clovis had some seriously genuine feelings for Brutus. His shudder in panel 2 is proof enough, even without the words or facial expressions he's been making. I don't really know just
how much it's affecting him emotionally, I just know it's hitting home.
HARD.
He's not just some stereotypical villain, as Alvin-Earthworm seems to campaign for. He clearly had some serious reservations about his actions, and this shows his level of character in a way that could not well be shown otherwise. From his perspective, he
HAD to. There was just no other option. Everything he's done up to this point; all the people he's hired, the jobs he's done, the crimes he's committed.. they've all been for the sole explicit purpose of his own self-indulgence and his own personal vendettas. His emotional side sees Brutus as the closest he's ever had to family, while his crime boss side sees that side as weak; something that can be easily manipulated. It was his own emotional attachment that likely forced him to enter the manor in person, and he realized that the presence of one single person made him put himself in
that much danger. That person obviously had to go, in his mind. Self-preservation: Remove any source of enemy leverage. He knows how many enemies he has. He's been suppressing those emotions so long that when they finally surface, he's forced to silence them. He's a true psychopath, not just some generic villain. He doesn't need to be redeemable to be a good villain, he just needs to be understandable, and reasonable from his own standpoint, which I feel Clovis has covered very well.
On the subject of Brutus being revived, I suppose that would depend on exactly what Clovis did to him. And no, "Poisonous Friendship" more likely refers in the same vein as a toxic relationship rather than a friend administering poison, though that may or may not be the case here. If it was a simple spell to steal his life energy, Brutus would feel like he's losing energy (Hungry, tired) and would painlessly collapse before he knew what hit him. I mean, it
could be poison, or brain damage, or nervous system effects... But my money's on energy drain. If that's the case, it depends on when Reni comes in, and how quickly she can get there, assuming the spell doesn't last after she heals him. Energy can be restored, but if the drain is still there, he'll only collapse again. Would Reni even be able to heal that, with her limited world experience?
Also, we have reason to believe that Clovis knows there's a dragon at the estate, with how he's been watching it. But does he know where she is right now? Does he know she's on her way? Would he assume she'd be the primary prison guard? He might, and if that's the case, his first course of action here would be to ensure that he cannot be revived, and leave as fast as possible. But if not, he might just barely escape with his life, using all his tricks to evade a pursuing dragon. For the story's sake, though, I'll assume he just knows their timeframe.
Text wall. Sorry. Got carried away.
As for a character death, I'll add in that one instance in that book I read in high school (Very specific, I know. I forgot the name.) where there were two characters, a tall, strong, dumb guy and a relatively normal one. The normal one was forced to kill the big guy by other people, did so while the guy was smiling, and pulled the trigger with tears in his eyes. To save himself, he reported that it was self defense to gain their trust. Sad, brutal.. but not an unreasonable circumstance. There was just no other option there. Anyone remember that book? I'm curious now.
