Post by halogen on Feb 2, 2020 23:27:58 GMT -5
So, I was looking at the "weird quotes" thread on this page, and people were mentioning the time when Lionblaze was thinking how he wouldn't be able to eat honey like normal cats because he was now a powerful godlike being who was separate from them, or whatever. Obviously, this is ridiculous (being invincible does not stop you from eating honey...) but it got me thinking about Lionblaze's psychology and how this is a theme that crops up a lot with his character. He's arrogant, super-ambitious, etcetera, yet he seems to have this almost self-flagellating desire where he believes he has to sacrifice something for his powers, that he has to separate himself from the world. Tigerstar and Hawkfrost know that and use it to convince him to leave Heathertail, and then there's the whole "making himself lose on purpose" thing in the fourth series. Lionblaze always seems to have a combination of an arrogant belief that he's above everyone else and being so insecure (perhaps about how his powers let him win by "default", without having to sacrifice everything) that he feels he has to look for any excuse to sacrifice every luxury and everything that makes him feel happy so he can feel like a real hero, not someone just going the easy way.
Of course, the problem with this is that the Erins don't seem to realize they've done this, in fact they seem to genuinely believe the idea that being more powerful than others means you have to isolate yourself from everything and everyone else because they are just not special or important enough. If they had really thought this through and intended it to be an idiosyncrasy of Lionblaze's they wouldn't have Hollyleaf having the same chain of thought ("now that I have powers I'm too special to do ordinary things, poor me") even though that's clearly out of character for her; Hollyleaf is certainly unhealthily prideful, but her pride is in the idea that she can use her supposed powers to help her society and that she is an exemplary member of said society (in the rare times she disagrees with her clanmates or the code, it's always for her beliefs in helping the forest as a whole, like with the RiverClan incident in Dark River), she's always watching herself to make sure she won't get consumed by personal ambition. You would expect Hollyleaf, if she was consistent, to react to her powers with a mix of concern at the magnitude of them/fear that she will misuse them, thinking about how she can best help everyone with them, and pride for how she's the only one of her siblings, and thus the only one in the forest, who both has great powers and is responsible enough to use them in obedience with the code and with concern for cats who aren't herself (and perhaps being critical of her brothers as a result). But instead, though we do see some of that, we also have moments where Hollyleaf is acting just like Lionblaze ("poor me, I am so powerful I can never live with the rest of the world"), making it seem like the Erins actually believe this. Same thing with Cinderheart, who spouts the same ideas that Lionblaze is always saying to himself - you are just so special, I can't be with you! And what really sells that the Erins actually believe this nonsense rather than making it a character flaw is that they said in an author chat that the mate they intended for Lionblaze was chosen because she is special as well. They literally believe that Lionblaze is so cool and powerful that he must only associate with other special cats with powers and avoid the rest of those peasants, thus why Lionblaze and Cinderheart only get back together once Cinderheart finds out she is super special too.
But if the Erins were more self-aware, it could have made an interesting arc for Lionblaze. That he should be invincible, but he's so self-hating that he's constantly being reckless and pushing away everyone just to feel like he's sacrificing something and not coasting on being the invincible one. He can't just see himself as a cat who happens to be powerful, that would make him feel more worthless because it just means he will always be the boring, useless cowardly one and never have a chance to be a hero, and he's self-aware enough that he knows he shouldn't feel bad about what his situation actually is, since it's such a blessing and it would be overdramatic and whiny to get so upset about something anyone else would want. So instead, he builds this image of his powers and the prophecy of being more than they are, that he is this noble, godlike figure who selflessly sacrifices all chances of happiness, so he can feel justified in his self-pity and feel justified in his baser desires to use his power for his anger and personal vendettas (like against Heathertail) - he is so superhuman(cat?) and above everyone that their morals don't apply! He tells himself he desperately wishes he could be like the rest, that he could work with others humbly as an equal, but of course all of his tragedy is in his own mind and he doesn't actually have to sacrifice anything. And it doesn't help that his mentor figures, the authorities that would normally keep a cat grounded, respectively hate him and will always hate him, no matter what he does (Ashfur) and support his twisted mindset and are manipulatively encouraging him to keep thinking that way (Tigerstar and Hawkfrost). And then when Dovewing comes along, he pressures her into making her life revolve around her powers because he thinks that's the model of sacrifice that everyone in the prophecy should follow, and lashes out against her just wanting to be happy and live a normal life because he sees that as the exact sort of self-pitying for what's really a gift that he hates in himself, while failing to recognize that he's still self-pitying, he's just concocted a fantasy world to justify it.
Of course, the problem with this is that the Erins don't seem to realize they've done this, in fact they seem to genuinely believe the idea that being more powerful than others means you have to isolate yourself from everything and everyone else because they are just not special or important enough. If they had really thought this through and intended it to be an idiosyncrasy of Lionblaze's they wouldn't have Hollyleaf having the same chain of thought ("now that I have powers I'm too special to do ordinary things, poor me") even though that's clearly out of character for her; Hollyleaf is certainly unhealthily prideful, but her pride is in the idea that she can use her supposed powers to help her society and that she is an exemplary member of said society (in the rare times she disagrees with her clanmates or the code, it's always for her beliefs in helping the forest as a whole, like with the RiverClan incident in Dark River), she's always watching herself to make sure she won't get consumed by personal ambition. You would expect Hollyleaf, if she was consistent, to react to her powers with a mix of concern at the magnitude of them/fear that she will misuse them, thinking about how she can best help everyone with them, and pride for how she's the only one of her siblings, and thus the only one in the forest, who both has great powers and is responsible enough to use them in obedience with the code and with concern for cats who aren't herself (and perhaps being critical of her brothers as a result). But instead, though we do see some of that, we also have moments where Hollyleaf is acting just like Lionblaze ("poor me, I am so powerful I can never live with the rest of the world"), making it seem like the Erins actually believe this. Same thing with Cinderheart, who spouts the same ideas that Lionblaze is always saying to himself - you are just so special, I can't be with you! And what really sells that the Erins actually believe this nonsense rather than making it a character flaw is that they said in an author chat that the mate they intended for Lionblaze was chosen because she is special as well. They literally believe that Lionblaze is so cool and powerful that he must only associate with other special cats with powers and avoid the rest of those peasants, thus why Lionblaze and Cinderheart only get back together once Cinderheart finds out she is super special too.
But if the Erins were more self-aware, it could have made an interesting arc for Lionblaze. That he should be invincible, but he's so self-hating that he's constantly being reckless and pushing away everyone just to feel like he's sacrificing something and not coasting on being the invincible one. He can't just see himself as a cat who happens to be powerful, that would make him feel more worthless because it just means he will always be the boring, useless cowardly one and never have a chance to be a hero, and he's self-aware enough that he knows he shouldn't feel bad about what his situation actually is, since it's such a blessing and it would be overdramatic and whiny to get so upset about something anyone else would want. So instead, he builds this image of his powers and the prophecy of being more than they are, that he is this noble, godlike figure who selflessly sacrifices all chances of happiness, so he can feel justified in his self-pity and feel justified in his baser desires to use his power for his anger and personal vendettas (like against Heathertail) - he is so superhuman(cat?) and above everyone that their morals don't apply! He tells himself he desperately wishes he could be like the rest, that he could work with others humbly as an equal, but of course all of his tragedy is in his own mind and he doesn't actually have to sacrifice anything. And it doesn't help that his mentor figures, the authorities that would normally keep a cat grounded, respectively hate him and will always hate him, no matter what he does (Ashfur) and support his twisted mindset and are manipulatively encouraging him to keep thinking that way (Tigerstar and Hawkfrost). And then when Dovewing comes along, he pressures her into making her life revolve around her powers because he thinks that's the model of sacrifice that everyone in the prophecy should follow, and lashes out against her just wanting to be happy and live a normal life because he sees that as the exact sort of self-pitying for what's really a gift that he hates in himself, while failing to recognize that he's still self-pitying, he's just concocted a fantasy world to justify it.