#solarthoughts

explain a lot abt his character. for one, his obsession with studying and burying himself into improving his talent. as a kid, it’s possible he placed pressure on himself to pull his weight (his relationship with his parents is evidently affectionate, so i don’t think they forced him into this), so he made sure to excel in school and eventually debate club not only for respect, but to secure the ideal future for himself and his parents. he may have known going into it that competitions had prize money on the line, and the club had the additional benefit of beefing up his college apps. getting into edens garden academy must’ve been a dream come true for the whole family, it’s likely he idolized the school growing up as a symbol of true success and prosperity (hence his bio mentioning there was never a doubt in his mind that he was destined to be the ultimate debater. an ultimate in his eyes was the best thing a young person could be)

another thought, his financial situation could be attributed to a number of things, but if it was due to his parents struggling to keep jobs, it would make sense why damon is so dead-set on defining people (including himself) based on the utility of their skills. he’s seen firsthand how cutthroat the job market can be, so upon initial meeting he either views his peers as inferior due to their less practical talents or as competition he refuses to back down to. he is obsessed with comparing himself to others! in his mind, people are their resume.

also, i wonder if the reason damon is described to be argumentative from an early age in his bio was due to teasing from other kids for being less well off? or possibly getting into spats with his parents under the stress? spats with extended family or other adults who ridiculed his parents? spats with a shitty landlord??? pure speculation, but these underdog scenarios would really showcase his desire to be respected

….

….

- my crack theories were wrong but yk what im SO GLAD this is better than i could ever imagine

- DAMON AND DIANA YOU ARE SO REAL TO ME. she stood up for him when nobody else would. he stood up for her when nobody else would. damon, someone so stoic and logical, was moved to question such a seemingly open and shut case at the sound of her tears, at the impact of her kindness (in the pathos route ) AH😭😭

- the difference between eva and damon…is that deep down damon slowly started to accept others kindness…while eva chose to deny it no matter how obvious it was that some people truly did care.

- i am a SUCKERRR for characters like diana so highly driven by empathy that it is simultaneously their greatest strength but also their weakness. she feels so deeply for *everyone* and it’s what causes her to keep her chin held high even after everything, but the sheer savior complex that’s starting to develop makes me worry for her

- DAMON DAMON oh my god the first time he let his guard down and trusted someone even after scolding everyone else for doing so it blew up in his face. seeing him with tears streaming down his face at the sight of eva’s death (looking almost unaware of the fact he is crying), just to revert to blank shock afterwards, and finally harden into frustration and distrust—oh my god. like i really have to applaud how accurately they captured the behavioral nuances of being emotionally stunted

- the daily life segment was so charmingly written, highly elevated my opinions on characters i previously felt neutral about—namely kai and desmond. they are both very dear to me now. also as much as i somewhat dislike using the term “tsundere” to describe emotionally complex characters…tsundere damon was so real this chapter, very funny to watch

- on this same note damon allowing toshiko’s nickname for him while shooting down the others…they are the siblings ever

- i just really like how these characters try their best to intelligently approach the killing game the way actual people would. when tragedy strikes, it’s all the more chilling knowing you would’ve tried problem solving the same way

while the biblical snake symbolism is obvious, i think lots of meaning can be derived from real world knowledge--in particular, the familiar image of a snake shedding its skin. snakes enter periods of heightened aggression when molting due to the sensitivity of their new skin, and i think this will be reflected by damon becoming much worse in the name of defending himself before he changes for the better. his initial distrustful mindset was proven right, the second he even *began* to trust someone it blew up in his face. while he was crying for a moment in the face of eva's death, this sorrow was quickly overrun by frustration and anger, particularly at diana's words.

additionally, while i'm not sure if exact genus/species of certain animals were intended or will become important to interpretation, i'd like to draw a connection between damon's snake symbol and a certain genus. from the green color and his american origins, i think he can be connected to opheodrys, a common genus of green snake from north america coming in two species of rough or smooth variety. these snakes are not commonly kept as pets due to their standoffish and defensive nature around humans, making them prone to biting. despite this, they're non-venomous and generally harmless. damon makes it clear when confronted that he does not intend to harm anyone. in fact, his monologues show he thinks much more about how he would respond if someone were to attack *him* instead, noting the physical advantage some of his classmates have (rough/smooth green snakes are very small). we can even tie these traits of non-venom back to the prologue trial, where he appeared very hostile despite genuinely thinking he was helping. and of course, a connection can also be made to damon's general personality of being outwardly cold when deep down he's just... a guy who gets easily embarrassed.

now onto diana! first off i was surprised she actually mentioned her animal and how it relates to her, i thought the motifs were going to be more of an unspoken thing. makes me wonder if any other characters will mention their animals. anyway, fun fact! chameleons don't change color to camouflage, they do it for thermoregulation and social signaling. for diana, i'm more concerned with social signaling, as chameleons can change into very bold displays of colors to communicate dominance, as paralleled by diana's bold display at the end of the first trial with the intention of rallying the others behind her. this could be a stretch, but diana's darker/bold color pallet could be a reference to the potential spectrum of colors that a chameleon would display under stress.

i find it funny though, that while diana says that she will adapt like a chameleon, keeping chameleons in captivity is notoriously hard due to their highly specific environmental requirements- be it temperature, humidity, or lighting, they're easy to accidentally kill. diana may claim with a brave face that she has the strength to fight this killing game no matter the struggle, yet someone with the stress sensitivity of a chameleon in a situation like this is doomed to buckle.