Homesuck: Vriska Rising

[Amake]

"D8B" pretty much sums it up, well said Karkat.

Now if we're to compare horribleness, the way I see it Eridan started out as an entitled, condescending, demanding prick and then turned out to be a murdering asshole all along not to mention literally the antithesis of hope. Vriska, and this is just my observation, is compelled to hurt people, including herself, even though she doesn't want to. She needs help, and an understanding and patient attitude combined with a wealth of therapists probably could help her, whereas Eridan needs a hard smack and possibly a magic wand jammed in his shame globes.

[PCD]

To be perfectly honest, I'm actually starting to feel relieved that there's someone besides Vriska doing terrible awful things that make me want to punch them. It's a nice refresher, aside from the part where it's awful and terrible.

If Hussie now reveals that Eridan's being manipul8ed, well, then.

[POS Industries]

No, this is pretty much all completely counter to Vriska's plan: Kill Jack herself and gloat to all the other trolls about it. Also killing Kanaya is one of those definitive things that Vriska wouldn't be behind. Eridan is the random variable that nobody saw coming.

And I'm honestly not even remotely sure how, but I have this sneaking suspicion that it's Rose that takes him down. The foreshadowing seems to point to it, and my best guess is that he's the analogous Skipper Plumbthroat to the horrorterrors' Squiddles. My best guess hasn't a clue how or why he gets to the outer ring, but the guy's wielding some pretty powerful white science at the moment so I wouldn't put anything past him.

[Fifthfiend]

Originally Posted by Invisible Queen

Now if we're to compare horribleness, the way I see it Eridan started out as an entitled, condescending, demanding prick and then turned out to be a murdering asshole all along not to mention literally the antithesis of hope. Vriska, and this is just my observation, is compelled to hurt people, including herself, even though she doesn't want to. She needs help, and an understanding and patient attitude combined with a wealth of therapists probably could help her, whereas Eridan needs a hard smack and possibly a magic wand jammed in his shame globes.

That pretty much works only if you arbitrarily take an incredibly charitable and conciliatory view towards one murderous asshole with massive psychological issues and not the other.

I mean it's okay that Vriska was an entitled, condescending, demanding prick, because she couldn't help it? Eridan couldn't possibly benefit from help and understanding and an army of therapists for the flaws and deluded views that are fairly plainly beyond his own control? Come on.

[Archbio]

That pretty much works only if you arbitrarily take an conciliatory view towards one murderous asshole with massive psychological issues and not the other.

Wasn't that what Deadwood was all about?

[Fifthfiend]

Nah, Deadwood was about how Al Swearingen wouldn't actually murder a guy in front of his own son, while Hearst will murder the son and then, in private, probably like... eat him, or something.

Basically both are awful but one actually does more awful things than the other, it's not like Al is a special snowflake because we see his wacky rants to the dead indian's head.

[Archbio]

I was thinking more of Cy Tolliver. Most of the time, he's not any worse than Swearingen, isn't he? It's just why he does (in both the long run and in the immediate sense) what he does that makes him such a more antipathic figure. I'm not saying that the character pairs have a lot of parallels (they don't)... it's just a vague example.

Edit: So yes, basically this is a shit comparison (I'm going to have to offer a burnt offering to Deadwood in penance for mentioning it in this thread.)

[Amake]

Originally Posted by Fifthfiend

I mean it's okay that Vriska was an entitled, condescending, demanding prick, because she couldn't help it? Eridan couldn't possibly benefit from help and understanding and an army of therapists for the flaws and deluded views that are fairly plainly beyond his own control? Come on.

I don't see her being any of those things. Well, maybe condescending to those who doesn't know things she does, which seems to be because she doesn't understand any other way to communicate. While Eridan condescends to everyone who he thinks is worth less than him because they're born that way.

And no, therapy can't help with that. He'd have to admit that thinking he's better than everyone else currently alive, and not because of anything he can do but because of the color of his blood, is a problem to be able to accept help and I doubt even Robbie Williams could manage that mIRaCle. Heck, even Feferi told him, apparently over and over, that the caste system was bullshit which if be believed in the caste system must mean it is bullshit. If flawed logic is a psychological dysfunction, I'm afraid it's not one that I can sympathize with as much as compulsive behavior.

[Fifthfiend]

Again, there's really no way to write one of these character's behavior off as compulsive but not the other's. If anything Eridan's behavior is the more apparently compulsive and not understood since as it's been shown he really just doesn't comprehend how much of an asshole he is, whereas Vriska's behavior is pretty much all consistent with being an utterly calculating and manipulating physical and psychological abuser, up to and including her dubious expressions of remorse and concilation whenever one of the targets of her abuse won't act the way she wants. In fact Vriska saying she can't help acting the way she does is itself self-refuting since she demonstrably can help it, just not, oddly enough, in any instance where failing to help it facilitates her feelings of power over her victims.

[Amake]

Yeah I might of course be readingprojecting my own experiencesneuroses into the story. I think I mentioned that initially.

But Eridan not knowing he's an asshole is a poor excuse, since it's his decision not to deign to listen to anyone who might tell him what he's doing wrong. His unwillingness to learn things is probably what really pisses me off about him.