beyond measure

Everybody around me fucking dies! Chris, listen to me. Every time someone around you dies, it's because you're not listening to yourself! Your father told you to fight your brother, you did. Waller told you to kill Rick and you did. And you knew you shouldn't have gone to that other world. Don't tell me you thought, in your heart, that was the right thing to do. But when you are truly who you are, Chris Smith, what happens? Chris, what happens, man? Nothing.

As if the addiction epidemic facing the country isn’t bad enough, he also wants the alligators in the sewers to be junkies. You’re a moron. What the fuck does that have to do with alligators?

like alt!adrian was dead serious, not moving a muscle, trained on what he thought could be a potential enemy until he realized it was safe and became the adrian we all know and love. our adrian is also extremely competent on missions but silliness cuts its way through like humming during the Goff assassinations or the way he dove into the bush in this episode even. he's effective, we know, but the bad guys haven't won in his reality so he doesn't need this secrecy or levity to his personality when it comes to being vigilante.

chris going through the trauma he went through with keith dying ultimately led to him making several bad choices along the way but had more significant growth, becoming a more open minded, understanding person who fought against what his father believed despite wanting his validation more than anything.

and because at the end of the day chris is not this evil fascist, adrian idolized him and saw similarities in their morals. he leaned on chris as a partner in his fight for peace and justice, whereas alt!adrian sees chris as, he says, an arch nemesis.

i find it so interesting that in both universes chris is the reason adrian became vigilante, but for entirely different motivations. and because our chris is the way he is, adrian gets to be lighthearted and goofy, but he also misses out on probably a more structured, traditional approach to heroism. where our adrian had trafficked goods in his basement, alt!adrian created a workshop to support the mission of the sons of liberty.