it was the season of luscious, it was the season of bristly

I: prologue dante

prologue dante is basically the best source we've got on this, because, yknow, this pretty much is preclock dante. we do not get much time with this dante, but a few things are on display here:

they're an arrogant bastard

"just wait till i get the [aspect]... you'll be no match for...!!!" (presumably saying aspect here.) this is anime villain talk. god what a nerd

2. they're quicker to swear than current dante

in the prologue they have THIS wonderful classic line that lives in my head forever, but then after that dante becomes our classic shuckaroonies fella who swears very rarely

(if you aren't familiar with this line, it was added to the game when the prologue through canto 2 got updated translations in late 2025. the wiki has all the new scripts!)

3. the serpent gang seem to think dante would be fixated on their scheme breaking the city's taboos.

this kinda implies dante was head aligned, or at least would've used the head to rat them out, jia mu style... very little to go on, though.

II: the aspect

preclock dante was EXTREMELY fixated on engraving their aspect, whatever the hell that means, so much so that that urgency has carried over to current dante even without any memory of why.

^ in order: prologue, canto 1 start, mid canto 4

this one's pretty clearly apparent and also we don't know much about it so i will leave it at that

III: something of a bigwig

^ canto 3 after siegfried

dante used to be someone important and notable, with competence, leadership skills, and a higher position of power. this is perhaps the most important thing about their pregame character to me.

^ canto 1 during sinner fight (they were a competent leader! unfortunately poor canto 1 dante is an amnesiac wet cat getting pelted by tomato)

they were notable enough for the serpent gang to remark on how much of an occasion it was to kill them. (this further fuels the idea that they may have been part of the head, or at least high up in a wing)

they were notable enough that there were stories about their genius, which hohenheim apparently heard. (?!?!) (^ THIS IS THE OBSCURE THING I MEANT AT THE START. this is battle narration exclusive to the envy peccatula stage of regular checkup. absolutely INSANE place to dante loredrop)

however, for all that notoriety, no one ever seems to recognize them or even give a second glance. understandable because... well, yknow, no face. i wouldn't be surprised if the only reason hohenheim and vergilius know their former identity is because they're privy to some of limbus company's records.

of course with this status thing, you then have to then think about what it means to be 'a bigwig' in the city. you don't get a position of power or fame through benevolence and activism, you do it through ruthless politics, manipulation, and cutting down people in your way.

^ canto 4, before brazen bull

as a final nail in the coffin, this loaded line from faust implies that the old dante was not at all the kind of person who'd step in to a situation where civilians are in danger.

which is all in stark comparison to current dante, who we've known to be thoughtful and hopeful and kind. i can only imagine what finding out about that juxtaposition themself is going to be like.

IV: the blue man group

dante is inextricably tied to the blue star gang, and god, there sure is . well. there's some goddamn thing going on there.

^ canto 4 end

they had talked to demian, and by extent maybe knew (or knew of) the others as well. which isn't very surprising considering having a star is also dante's Thing, but it is nice to get direct confirmation.

^ canto 4 end. this is likely about dante's star... preclock dante wtf were you trying to DO...

^ in order: canto 7 end, canto 7 end again, canto 6 end

when some dialogues from the blue star gang refer to dante as a "fallen nebulae" or "fallen from the skies", this becomes even more interesting, especially because demian kind of calls himself a star. so... was dante one of this group, and then left? would that leaving be due to their amnesia, or was it a decision before that? did dante leave the blue polycule because of realizing they are aroace and like red better? we will simply never know

V: miscellaneous memories

ummmmm ok i was gonna make this a nice misc section of things dante remembers to close this off but there's actually only like one of those that doesn't fit in any of the other categories LOL

^ mid canto 3. they have a history with the christmas song kromer plays, and not a particularly good one.