#jetsam

To begin with, I think comparing Savanaclaw and Scarabia is a false equivalency. Kalim and Jamil's dynamic works because they are intentionally written as a duo that contrasts one another. Kalim is extroverted, Jamil is more reserved. Kalim is obscenely wealthy, Jamil is humbler. Kalim is honest and kind, Jamil is shady and sarcastic. Kalim is helpless, Jamil is forced to help. Kalim is beloved, Jamil wants to be understood. Kalim is assumed to be exceptional by default, Jamil has to maintain mediocrity. It creates tension, breeds resentment, and that eventually boils over into a full-on conflict.

But what were to happen if Savanaclaw was only a duo of Leona and Ruggie? We wouldn't get much tension there because Ruggie generally goes along with whatever Leona tells him to do. They are both okay with using underhanded tactics to get what they want. They're also very jaded about the world and how it works. Jack is vital to have as the missing source of tension and innocence. He's not just there to parrot Ruggie's feelings when Leona throws in the towel. Jack is the moral compass that Savanaclaw lacks and needs. Jack is bright-eyed and hopeful, still believing in the good in the world when his upperclassman have already decided that they can only survive if they get their hands dirty. He is the contrast that leads to conflict and, later on, becomes the underclassmen Ruggie and Leona can playfully gang up on and tease.

Without Jack, Savanaclaw becomes another Diasomnia, another echo chamber where the masses only serve to enable and reinforce the strong leader—both their best tendencies, and their worst. They would agree with Leona’s worldview unquestionably and excuse behaviors like skirting the rules because they personally benefit from it. Jack is the only one to call Leona out and holding him accountable for his actions. That is what helps lead to change, like how Ace and Deuce calling out Riddle instead of bending the knee to his demands improved Heartslabyul in the long run. This friction is needed to cause problems so that we can eventually come to the start of a solution.

Another issue with the Savanaclaw-Scarabia comparison is that these two books have very different themes, both tied to their respective books' OBs. Jamil wants to be seen, to have the freedom to go where he wishes and do what he wants, to not be tied down to serving Kalim for the rest of his and his entire bloodline's existence. He projects his hatred for the system and traditions he was born into onto Kalim, who is a convenient symbol and emotional punching bag for him. This all continues to feed into their toxic codependency.

What about Leona? Well, he seeks validation via leading others to greatness. But... that bravado's a front. In actuality, Leona is deeply insecure about whether or not he's able to achieve this. That's the irony, you see. His entire dorm looks up to him and looks to him to guide them, but Leona himself doesn't seem to believe in the version of himself that the rest of Savanaclaw sees. Sure, this message is conveyed with a single named main cast character (Ruggie), whom Leona pulled out of poverty and assists all the time with tutoring, money, and granting hand-me-downs--but this message is amplified further with the addition of a third member. How so? Well, unlike Ruggie, Jack has a more realized arc of feeling betrayed but then still choosing to follow Leona in spite of that betrayal. It's a testament to Leona genuinely earning his followers' loyalty, even though this is an incident that weighs heavy on Jack's mind, seeing as it was the subject of his dream in book 7. Were it only Ruggie, it might be written off by fans as "just a fluke". But two in the same dorm? That's a kingdom (or, if you prefer the term, pack) steadily growing. There is power in numbers.

I'm not going to fault you for preferring certain dynamics over others (we all have our favorites). I get that it's frustrating to want something, only for Twst to not grant it. However, with Twst's cast being as expansive as it is and with how the main story is structured, it's not possible for the devs to grant a ton of screentime for even duos like Leona and Ruggie, who are very dorm leader and vice dorm leader-like in their roles. Relationships such as these are more freely explored in vignettes and sometimes events, so I think those would be your best bet.

I don't find much merit in the point that Jack doesn't belong just because he doesn't have a clear Disney counterpart. While many Twst characters do have obvious inspirations, they're never 1:1 and often borrow ideas from multiple Disney characters. For example, Jade is twisted from Jetsam, yet he also has Ariel's love and curiosity for the surface world. Ace is twisted from an ace of hearts card soldier, but he's also the one tos tand up to Riddle like Alice did to the QoH. There's also plenty of characters in the main cast with no clear singular inspiration: Ortho (Cerberus, Pinocchio, etc.), Lilia (Three Good Fairies, bat from Maleficent's curse, Maleicent's minions, etc.), and, of course, Jack (I've heard arguments for wolves from Frozen/Beauty and the Beast, the Big Bad Wolf, and more).

All that being said, I'm not a fan of the implications this ask is giving off 💦 I realize that we may find it difficult to accurately express our thoughts and feelings, but this ask didn't give me the impression of communication troubles. It gives me the impression that Jack is being viewed as a nuisance and an unnecessary obstacle to Ruggie and Leona's relationship rather than someone who enhances and augments Savanaclaw. According to the ask, Jack is “[just happening] to exist there and [acting] like he is ‘a part of the gang’, implying he’s not actually a part of the gang. It suggests that Jack is simultaneously empty space and detracts attention away from Ruggie and Leona.

I don’t think you need to enjoy Jack or even agree that Jack is important to the narrative, but I do think it’s a bit much to “despise [… his] very existence” and then equate it to me saying I dislike him for things like his design and personality not clicking with me. I don’t think the two are equivalent. There’s… a deeper feeling being expressed in this ask, and it goes far beyond my own.

I think you must have some level of self-awareness of this as well. After all, you share at the end of your ask that you’re concerned your thoughts might be “being too mean”. In my opinion, this is being mean. A particular tone is conveyed long before we even hit the line about despising the character. It comes through in implying Jack isn’t a part of the gang, in the near-patronizing babytalk dialogue comparison with Scarabia, and the prioritization of other characters (specifically paired with the suggestion that Jack is just in the way or “interfering”). Time and time again, Jack is talked about as if he’s like an annoying gnat that won't go away or a third wheel intentionally inserting himself between Ruggie and Leona’s dynamic.

I ask of you to think about your own favorite Twst characters. Now think about how you would feel if someone came up to you and said all of the previous points, how you would feel if someone talked down to your best boys. It would still hurt, even if they never directly insulted you, the individual, for liking said character, right? I’d imagine that Jack fans may be feeling the same way upon reading this ask.