IN DEFENSE OF D.VA’S ANIMATED SHORT // ANALYSIS
i’ve only seen twitch chat debating this, and i know that twitch chat is barely anything to go by, but i’m imagining the fandom isn’t too happy about the short as well because:
“ how does this move the lore forward? ”
maybe - it’s not meant to. to me, shooting star was a look and exploration into d.va’s personality and character, as well as the circumstances she lives in. it delves deep into the themes of stardom/reality + duality of character, as well as guilt and isolation.
i’d like to first emphasise that there are two sides to her. we have “hana”, the girl whom we see repairing her mech, and struggling with the weight of the world. we also have “d.va”, the perfect ideal of a celebrity who’s so fawned over by the media. she juggles these two sides a fair bit in the short. with that outta the way, let’s go.
in the holovid d.va’s meka squadmate is watching (is his name tae-hyun? i’m going with tae-hyun), we can see her advertisements and her face used as publicity material. it’s all over busan, all over buildings. her brand name is plastered all over products, like the instant noodles and energy drink they’re consuming. goes to show the level of d.va’s popularity.
the team working on this short were incredibly clever when working on the start of it. we see many frames that directly contrast with what the host is saying:
“ she and the meka squad took a few hits, but they pulled off another victory. ”
said squad is shown severely in need of maintenance and repair - that’s not “a few hits”. they were beaten up harshly by the omnics.
“ now, d.va is celebrating with some hard-earned glitz and glamour. ”
she isn’t. she’s repairing her mech after the aforementioned battle. very much not-classy, don’t you think? (strange why people would assume that she’s out partying.)
“ she’s out spending the night at the hottest spots in the city - eating the finest food, and hanging out with other superstars. ”
she’s in meka hq (i’m assuming? maybe it’s a hangar for the mechs, strange for it to be located over the sea), tending to her mech, eating doritos, and chilling with her dudebro tae-hyun. hardly glitzy.
“ and authorities confirm, she emerged without a scratch. she’s currently enjoying some time off to enjoy her victory. ”
at the end of the short, hana is shown pretty beat-up - there’s a cut on her face and her leg’s in a cast. she’s not taking a break, either - she’s still working on repairing her mech. lies. in the words of Best Boi tae-hyun: “oh, man. this time off is greaaat, isn’t it?”
why do all these contrasts matter?
they show how removed hana is from the life of “glitz and glamour”, and closer to the side of her that’s more personal and real - the person she is with tae-hyun. i guess this is how it’s like for most superstars too - they have a life outside of the stardom they’re thrust into and that side people are familiar about them having. this short shows d.va at her most raw, stripped of the arrogance that she gives people on the battlefield, that superior façade. it’s even shown by her lines in-game:
“is this easy mode?” “are you even trying?” “hehe, gg!”
she doesn’t say any of those in this short.
there is a clear separation between her two personas, “hana” and “d.va”. notice how only tae-hyun addresses her by “hana” - he represents the real, non-idealised side of her - and how the media calls her “d.va” - representing the façade she puts on for her fandom and the media.
i’m sorry if you forgot you were reading a defense of the animated short.
PART TWO - GUILT AND ISOLATION
“ you beat [the omnics]. they won’t be back for months. you need a break! ”
this line from tae-hyun is immediately followed by a flashback. hana recalls her squadmates struggling to fight off the omnics (i’m gonna assume and say it was the mentioned battle in the holovid), and how one of her squadmates shouted out “i’m hit!” in the recollection, d.va reacts immediately, horrified and shocked. she snaps back to reality, and says that she can’t take a break.
“ the enemy is adapting, and growing stronger. the rest of the squad, the country … they’re all counting on me. if i make a mistake and the [omnics] get through us … we lose. everything. ”
hana has taken this responsibility to protect whatever she can, her squad and her country. we also can infer that she’s voluntarily taken the weight of the world on her shoulders - tae-hyun insists as she climbs into the mech, “stop putting it all on yourself! it’s okay to ask for help.”
i’m gonna assume that she’s doing this out of guilt. she separates herself from her squadmates because she is guilty, and works in isolation to fight. she doesn’t want anyone else to be hurt, especially because of her/her negligence, so she takes it upon herself to singlehandedly defend her country. maybe there’s a reason behind this guilt, maybe an older squadmate got injured/killed by her own actions. we’ll need more lore, but i’m putting up the possibility.
“ get to cover, and wait for reinforcements! ”
“ they won’t get here in time! ”
again, this goes to show how far hana will take on the fight herself. she doesn’t want to involve any more people than she should - she’ll shoulder it all herself if she can keep the rest safe. but —
“ … tae-hyun. i … i need your help. ”
the framing of the shot before she says this line is great. we see the city in the background and the omnic in the foreground. the framing illustrates her current circumstance and the impending doom if she doesn’t kill the omnic, which she can’t in her mech’s condition. hana is reminded of what she fights for, and that with her mech breaking down, she needs help. she needs someone to rely on. enter tae-hyun, aka BEST BOI, HELL YEAH.
(extra!) PART THREE - THE OVERUSE OF THE RACING METAPHOR
“ it’s like how we used to stay up late and work on your hoverbike. “
“ heh - you mean the one you wrecked? “
“ really - you’re still mad about that? we won the race! “
“ yeah! and you almost killed yourself! “
“ yeah! the reactor! we can overload it! just like the hoverbike! “
“ trust me, tae-hyun … i’ll see you at the finish line. “
their continuous reference to their hoverbike and hana’s repeated use of the metaphor of life as a race really shows (a) their history and friendship together and (b) hana’s insistence on winning as well as her view on life - that it’s really just a race. a game, if you will. these lines show personality, and it’s pretty nice that the team stuck them in.
SUMMARY AND OVERALL THOUGHTS
in short (heh.), shooting star isn’t necessarily an addition onto lore. to me, it was an exploration of her history, her motivations, and her character. you shouldn’t judge it too harshly because all other shorts were lore additions - shooting star is a newer take on adding onto the fabric that is the overwatch universe, and i find it lovely.
in addition, in the korean fan festival livestream on twitch, a representative explained that they wanted to show hana/d.va in a different light - they wanted to show the girl “with the weight of the world on her shoulders”. their intention truly came through.
they really outdid themselves with this short, both the themes and the aesthetic quality. i mean, would you look at the animations and the graphics????? beautiful.
d.va in a ponytail??? hell yes.
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