Hi! I'm stopping by because, after months, I finally reread the second version of one of my IE WIPs. And? And I realized how much your SIYH influenced my characterization of Fei (and the others too, but I noticed it right away with him).
Honestly, it's wonderful to see how you develop the characters in SIYH; you do them justice, considering that in CS, there was practically no character development. CS's Raimon has deeply traumatized players facing traumatic situations, and it's really refreshing to see that you recognize the psychological impact of the events/their personal backgrounds. It's truly inspiring! Thanks!
Obligatory asdfghjkl, I'm really happy to hear that, I'm not even sure what to say. I love my Fei so much, he differs quite a bit from his canon characterization, so I'm always just really touched to see that people like him a lot, too. He's definitely the most notable in this department, haha. I'm curious about your WIP, now! Do tell me more!
Mhmm, yeah. I mean, there is some development, but it's hard to really notice outside of the arcs where a specific character is relevant, because the cast is big and the number of episodes is finite, so they can't really focus too much on the characters interacting with each other or showcasing that growth. And often while a change has supposedly occurred, the behavior pre- and post-development doesn't seem to differ too much. Like Kirino, the example that always comes first to my mind, whose arc had a lot to do with Shindou and their relationship, but rather than leading to a clearly needed change between them, post-France they're acting pretty much the same. Like, sure, Kirino seems to have grown more confident (at least compared to the beginning of his arc), which is good, but that arc depicted an actual conflict between him and Shindou that doesn't really lead to anything. I suppose you could say the characters develop, but the relationships/interactions don't really change that much between them, so it feels like nothing happened, actually. Ironically in the season about the bonds between people.
Anyway, sorry for the ramble! ;w; Once again, I'm really happy to hear all of this and really, do share the AU! Also, that psychological aspect is one of my fav parts, so I'm also super happy to hear you like the way I go about it! <3
Thank you for this ask! <3