Supportive Ghost Girl

BUT WHAT IS SUBTEXT AND IMPLICATION—WHY DOES IT MATTER?

Oxford dictionary describes subtext as “an underlying and often distinct theme in a piece of writing or conversation”, and implication “as the conclusion that can be drawn from something although it is not explicitly stated”. Both of these aren’t just significant when it comes to writing queer characters in a game that censors queer love, but also serves as the standard foundation of meaningful writing.

Leaving things for the audience to contemplate and consider is part of engaging critically in media. Why do you think there’s so many essays exploring the meaning behind games like ‘Mouthwashing’? Or ‘Bad Parenting’? The designs of those games is deliberately left for you to associate and interpret the story, while maintaining a very solid and consistent plot. This can be easily translated to Honkai Star Rail. The plot (or “lore”) of HSR centres the Astral Express and our journey through the cosmos as the Nameless. The actual “story” is what we experience within these universes and characters; but the way I interpret the story and the way you interpret it can be monumentally different.

The reason why this is so significant comes to censorship. Hoyoverse is a chinese company—they can get away with as much queer subtext and content possible SO LONG as it can be easily explainable as mere “friendship” to an audience that would never allow it otherwise. Therefore, trying to belittle any form of queer coding as “queerbait” or just “headcanon” belittles the genuine ways Hoyoverse challenges censorship to deliver queer narratives. It denies the existence of a richer and more inclusive storyline purely because you refuse to acknowledge romance in subtlety.

Subtext, then, is NOT a lesser form of representation, nor is it an “accident”. It is a deliberate narrative tool that allows queerness to exist even in spaces where it cannot be named aloud. To call it “bait” is to misunderstand how stories work, and how queerness has always had to work in literature, film, and games. HSR thrives on implication, on the layered meanings its characters carry, and on the freedom it gives players to see themselves reflected in those relationships (and to draw gay men kissing).

DOUBLE STANDARDS / QUEER BAITING / FANSERVICE

Things like implication, subtext and references seem to only be valid and "canon" to people when it centres straight/white people—for example; Candace apparently shouldn't be black because she's “just” a reference to a black woman but Nahida MUST be white because she's based off a pale goddess (no I will not let this comparison go); and that Phaidei is just pure “bromance” because we should let guys just be friends, but Phainon and Cyrene must be “canon love interests” because they’re “based off Apollo and Cyrene who are lovers in the mythology”.

These selective readings reveal how audiences are very much willing to take implication seriously—so long as it doesn’t challenge whiteness or heteronormativity.

Even so, I don’t think this should take away from just how important implication is when it comes to HSR. Chinese censorship laws are heavily strict when it comes to any form of BL (GL is oddly more lenient), so it’s extremely significant that Hoyoverse navigates these laws using something so subtle and effective. I mean. Come on. Queer coding and implication have been a thing in both real life AND queer literature since literal ancient times!

These are such well and truly intimate portions of queer culture and fiction, which is why I also utterly despise that people label anything subtly queer as mere queerbait or “fanservice” (for both straight women and the queer community). Characters being implied to be queer, is NOT the same as characters being actively shown to be intimate and bashful with same sex characters, where the game/anime etc turns around and gives them an opposite sex love interest and YES I’M TALKING ABOUT VANITAS NO CARTE I WILL NEVER FORGI—

Anyways, I would wholeheartedly agree with queer characters being bait if it wasn't for the fact that the characters in HSR aren't written as 2D stereotypes and tropes (sometimes…when they try their best). All of them have purpose and backstory relevant outside of their relationships: it's why they function as queer characters, and, whether consciously or not, you are reducing queer relationships and characters to mere marketing strategies, without even acknowledging that a characters’s orientation can be just as important and significant as their story role.

Phainon? The martyr, the saviour against doomsday, a man filled with so much ambition for everyone but himself who just wants to spend his days in his peaceful homeland—but, he also has a deep love and affection for Mydei. Mydei? The crown prince of a kingdom long gone, who doesn’t wish to repeat the past but doesn’t want to disappoint his people—but he also loves and respects Phainon. Castorice? A woman who longs for connection with her friends and loved ones despite her curse forcing her to stay barren in isolation, being used as an unwilling executioner throughout her life now finding peace in a sea of flowers—and, she also holds a lot of affection for the Trailblazer regardless of gender. These characters have impact and importance aside from any potential shipping. They are as much plot devices and story elements, as they are representation for queer characters.

Also another dumb take I’ve seen is people saying that “it’s not a romance game we shouldn’t make it about ships”—and to that I have to ask: “Have you ever engaged critically in any form of media or game before?” Because that’s…so stupid? The game also isn’t about how pretty Robin is but so much of the fandom talks about that…and also romance and love are quite prevalent themes within HSR itself (hellooo, are we forgetting the titans?) Maybe if we didn’t see love as merely “character x character” or AO3 tags, we’d start to respect it as genuine analysis.

QUEER READING OF HSR / DOOMED LOVE

One of my biggest gripes with fandoms lately, is our constant obsession with describing ship dynamics as “doomed love/romance”. Listen, it was funny at first because hahahaha yeah lesbians are always permitted to die in every single yuri….hahaha that black haired dude from alien stage hahaha oh my god can we stop reading fanfics and just think for once…

I’m sorry to break the news, but your favourite ship is more than likely not doomed. Just tragic.

A tragic love is where two characters fall in love, and one dies in battle or something—it’s sad, but the romance was always allowed to exist and flourish without fail. Doomed love, however, is where two characters’ love is impossible from the outset—whether because they’re star-crossed (i.e Romeo and Juliet), because the world refuses to accept them (classic queer coding), or because their roles in the narrative make it unsustainable.

Everyone in Amphoreus suffers a doomed NARRATIVE. That’s purely because of the plot behind Amphoreus as a cyclical experiment.

Another crucial part of doomed romance is that the characters must actually love each other. There has to be evidence of affection, intimacy, or genuine care that gives weight to the “doom.” Without that foundation, it isn’t romance — it’s just tragedy, or even just antagonism..

Sorry (not really) Aglnx shippers but I have to shit on you—Aglaea and Anaxa aren’t doomed. Like not even one bit.

The story repeatedly tells and shows you their deep antagonism and hatred toward each other. Anaxa goes out of his way to dehumanise and ostracise Aglaea and has on multiple occasions called her “a monster”. Meanwhile Aglaea brushes him off, reluctantly pushing aside her differences with him to protect the home she loves. These characters fundamentally don’t work as “doomed love” because they quite simply, don’t like each other. The only time these two characters are shown interacting is when we (the players) go through that one timeline. The others? The story isolates them and completely separates them—and that I’m not even mentioning to reiterate their hate for each other, I’m saying that because it’s relevant to what must consist in a doomed relationship. They’re supposed to return to each other constantly, but be paused by fate—and that’s just not the case for these two.

Phainon and Mydei, however, are intrinsically linked. Aside from the fact Mydei is clearly based off Alexander the Great, “It’s a date, Mydeimos”, that horny bath scene, Mydei giving Phainon a RING, them being consistently pushed as equals in every way, Mydei (despite being gruff) trying his best to think of the best things to say to Phainon while he’s at his wits end….yeah ok I’ll stop. Aside from all of that—Mydei and Phainon develop a deep trust and affection for each other in every single timeline. SO MUCH SO!!! That in one of the many many cycles, while facing Phainon—Mydei notes that Phainon isn’t acting like himself.

Phainon and Mydei are forced to love each other all over again, before they are then forced into a battle to the death. It’s something so deliberate yet subtle that it enrages me that more people are twirling their hair at the scene of Phainon taking the TB around his hometown…fine I’ll stop being salty (maybe).

Additionally, these two characters are constantly allowed to be vulnerable next to each other—once again, to the point where Mydei fully knows when Phainon is putting up a brave front. In every card, framing of scenes etc, Mydei has his back facing Phainon. You know, the one place he has a weakness. Phainon constantly is behind him. Protecting him.

In all honesty, I lost all of my screenshots for Cerysilens so this is purely off the top of my head but—Cerysilens is not much different to Phaidei in the sense of their doomed dynamic. Hysilens is Cerydra’s most trusted protector, a woman who she saved from m depths of despair and provided comfort despite herself. Cerydra, while being the tyrannical ruler who dedicates her life to what she sees as righteous bloodshed, holds Hysilens in a high regard. But even this affection is not enough to stop the inevitable betrayal.

As she repeats, Cerydra is Hysilen’s light. Her hope in a place where she was desolate. To have that spat back at you by the woman you protected and cherished is so heartbreakingly beautiful and painful, I’m honestly surprise not more people love their dynamic. A ruler and her knight, bound by fate to betray the other, yet it weighs heavy in both their hearts to watch their loved one suffer.

examples of hinting of hyv hinting at cerysilens

they’re basically just this v

FANDOM / CRITICISM / ERASURE OF QUEER READINGS

Just a short section for me to honestly get out my frustrations with how the fandom (specifically new gens) treat shipping and fandom culture in general.

We have turned fandoms into something way too hostile for queer individuals. You can freely talk about straight ships no matter what (please don’t listen to people who will try and convince you they’re under attack, you’re not being oppressed for liking a male x female ship)—but as soon as you talk about anything to do with a mlm/wlw pairing, you’re “reducing the character to their sexuality”. Which I think is complete trash. My sexuality is a part of my identity and character, it’s something so intimate and personal to most people in fact.

I don’t understand this insistence that any conversation surrounding a character’s romantic relationships or sexuality ruins them because they have a deeper story or lore when talking about how pretty or attractive a character is also has nothing to do with story…but is still widely accepted.

The way the HSR fandom specifically treats lesbians is also so crazy to me. We aren’t allowed literally anything without the corny “erm she has two hands” and “why can’t we just kiss” people come to play lgbt monk. Lesbian characters should be allowed to just like women without you erasing our reputation by making them bisexual ONLY because you want to ship them with a man. That is literally THE worst way to improve bisexual visibility. Kindly, Elysia was never bisexual or pansexual. Her love for the world was platonic—otherwise it would be completely inappropriate…because we’d be implying she loves children…yeah. Aside from that, she also exclusively shows romantic love and affection toward women. There’s no reading in between lines that aren’t there—the reason why I feel like that’s important to mention is because it’s literally the same thing with characters like Cyrene. She has a deep love and connection to humanity and Amphoreus. She’s not whimsically entranced by Phainon or the TB…she wants to save her family.

Also Phairene shippers, if I catch one more post replacing the literal child version of Cyrene with ELYSIA of all characters because you know the ship is weird but refuse to acknowledge it I’m going to pull the trigger. Respectfully of course.

WHY DOES THIS ALL EVEN MATTER?

This matters mainly because subtext, implication and coding are the very foundation of queer fandoms. Did you know that the creator of Madoka Magica said it isn’t supposed to be romantic? And how it’s deemed as one of the most popular yuri? So much so that Madoka is the prime symbol for yuri? Our interpretations of these characters and the way we consume media matters.

And just another for fun—Achilles and Patroclus! How many people believe these two were romantically involved? Maybe you believe they are one of the most purest and powerful representations of queer love in old literature? That’s still all implied and technically up for interpretation—but you’re less likely to find someone that doesn’t think they’re homosexual than you are to find a pig flying.

We as a fandom have quite the intimate role in keeping these queer readings alive.