#spacehunterceline

Some of you guys might already know this but it surprises me still that Caleb is my main while I was never attracted to a Caleb-type irl. So naturally I did some soul searching to understand why. What I'll talk about today is not the entirety of that "why", but possibly the most important part.

As the title suggests, it's about his possessiveness. Now, in real life I'm sure many LADies would agree that this isn't attractive and would probably label it as a red flag. However, it's so appealing in fiction. Why do we feel this way? A quick google search and you'll come across some interesting article discussing this phenomenon though not about Caleb specifically. I want to bring forth some of my own ideas and tie that to Caleb as a "morally grey" love interest.

In a nutshell, it's about PROTECTION and ACCEPTANCE.

1-The need for protection

Unfortunately, women overall are not protected under the structure we're living in. It doesn't have to be overt like someone coming at you with a knife. It could be covert like someone making weird comments about your body, crossing boundaries, and you have no safe space to talk about it.

With this, you live in a state of constant anxiety. Most of the time it's not dramatic but it runs quietly in the background. You're not really in danger but you're constantly prepared for it. You're hyper vigilant. You might not even be aware of it but it takes up a lot of mental energy.

One thing about protection that people often fail to understand is it's not always about making sure danger never happens, but it's also about IF it does, there will be repercussion. Justice, if you will. In reality, not a lot of women get to experience justice and protection in this way.

2-Outsourcing vigilance

So now Caleb comes in, and we know his possessiveness toward MC stems from his intense desire to protect her from harm. Can you see? He wants to eradicate danger before it even gets a chance to form itself. If anything were to happen, which it did, we saw how Caleb exacted revenge on those who harmed MC.

He scans the room, he notices the danger, he runs to shield you before you even realize what's going on. Now you get to rest. People misunderstand that for him wanting to "own" MC but that's not it. Caleb is not looking to overpower her or restrict her freedom, he's doing this to make sure she's safe. 

His methods can be extreme, but we as the player know the motive behind it, which is to provide MC with protection no matter what. It's not hard to see why many players find this dynamic to be cathartic. With Caleb, you know that you'll never have to justify your fear. Caleb is already holding space for you.

3-The containment of "danger"

Hiding her away, faking her d3ath so no one could find her and harm her. Is that extreme? Yes, but we as the player know that Caleb is this way due to layers upon layers of trauma AND he knows this AND he's trying to get better. So whatever morally grey fantasy has been created, there's an unspoken certainty that boundaries won't be crossed.

If there's any real danger from Caleb, it's targeted toward the people who want to harm MC. Caleb is outwardly aggressive when it comes to these threats but in his personal moments with MC, he's very controlled. So even he himself is aware of this containment.

You know he won't ever hurt you. It's in the text. You know he's incapable of actually putting you in danger. When he's being possessive, within context, you know it's not coming from a place of harm. Sometimes it the outward expression of neediness and his fear of abandonment, rather than an actual desire to dominate you.

4-It's all about you

If you have ever felt like you're constantly overlooked, never chosen, never heard or seen, the possessive boyfriend trope could be very appealing to you. You might have even internalized this being your fault, that there's something wrong with you (there isn't). The fantasy of having someone being this obsessed over you and not for any other reason than you being you is comforting, healing even.

Out of all the LIs, Caleb (in this timeline) grew up with MC. He's been with her for the longest. He knows everything about her, flaws and all. And he loves all of her. This is why their relationship is so interesting to me because in his last solo Indulgent Scheme, this theme also comes up but in reverse. He's always loved every part of her but now it's her turn to express that she loves every part of him. My heart ecstatically flutters

Closing

Let me end this by saying this is just my opinions based on my own experiences so I'm not saying everyone who mains Caleb feels this way. If you do and you resonate with what I wrote here, thanks for reading I know I always do the most when it comes to these things so I appreciate you stick around till the end.

Disclaimer: 1. Everything is my own personal opinions based on how I understand and interpret the character(s). 2. My analysis is meant for entertainment purposes only. 3. Do not repost without credit, thank you!

I remember in an interview Jackson Wang said something about coming back to an empty home like the lights aren’t on, the kitchen is cold and that made him sad (I hope my memory’s on point) and all I could think about is Caleb alone in his Skyhaven home. The higher up you go the colder it gets, literally and metaphorically. Personally I’d love to go back to an empty home because I like living alone, but I can almost feel Caleb’s loneliness living in Skyhaven. 

People have talked at length about how empty and cold is it compared to other LIs’ homes. The aesthetic is probably closest to Zayne’s but Zayne’s house feels completely different. It shows the owner’s personality traits which he’s meticulous, organized and straightforward. Meanwhile Caleb’s place shows almost no personality, only the side of Caleb that he wants to portray, which is authoritative, cold, intimidating, which is how he HAS to be as a Colonel. This is not who Caleb really is.

More importantly, Caleb’s place does not look “lived-in”. It’s more like a museum than a real home. I saw somewhere that a lesser recognized sign of trauma is not decorating your personal spaces. Caleb’s house in Skyhaven was furnished, not decorated, at least not before he reunited with MC. Another thing I can relate to Caleb because I also struggle with decorating my own room & even my desk at work. “This is not where I belong so why bother?” aka “This isn’t my real home”. 

Whenever Caleb talks about home, he’s referring to his & MC’s old home in Bloomshore District. The district is described “as if time has stopped”, indicating Caleb’s struggle to move on from the past. That is why I sympathize with Caleb constantly reminding MC of their childhood. He’s not guilt-tripping her, the past is almost more real than present to him. That’s why he’s holding on for dear life. He’s traumatized. People don’t “just get over it” when it comes to trauma.

Loving someone like Caleb takes a lot of patience. You know he's trying. He knows he's trying. Trying alone is not enough. It takes time, probably a lot of time. And time on earth is limited, that's why Caleb is definitely not for everyone. He's so caring, he does everything for her, he's so hot. All of this is valid, if you like him for any of these reasons, I'm not shading you at all. I just want to say that love takes work too, they don't call it a "labour of love" for nothing ❤️

Disclaimer: 1. Everything is my own personal opinions based on how I understand and interpret the character(s). 2. My analysis is meant for entertainment purposes only. 3. Do not repost without credit, thank you!

I'm a person with many many interests, but I rarely ever join fandoms. I'm aware of the existence of certain communities but I never wanted to deal with the drama and there's always some sort of unnecessary drama going on, in every community. The benefits didn't trump the headache.

This has been the rule for me, but LADS is the only exception. I've been active in the LADS comm. ever since I started playing, mostly I was mingling on Threads, and then IG. For the most part, I do love the LADS comm. I've met plenty of smart, kind, beautiful and accomplished women in this fandom. I've been inspired and supported by them many times. 90% of my interactions with people here are positive.

However, it's been brought to my awareness (or I should say shoved in my face) that there are certain people who indeed are moving very weirdly, in a covert antagonistic way. The keyword here being covert because let's be real there are trolls everywhere. I stand to argue there are more trolls than decent people in the world overall, but that's another story.

Back to LADS, I'm here to tell you about this insane behavior because I want you to know there are individuals who are really unwell and not everyone who approaches you with a smile plastered on their face is coming in peace.

I'm a Caleb main. My 1st LI is Caleb. I love Caleb. I adore him. This much is clear. Take 1 look at any of my socials and you'd be able to tell immediately how I feel about this man. That is why I really got surprised pikachu when (some) people within LADS fandom:

reached out to me and wanted to be my friends despite they themselves hate Caleb.

pretended to respect my love for Caleb but constantly gave snide remarks about him to my face.

wrote me long a s s messages trying to "prove" to me why I shouldn't like or main him.

Now, it's not my business which LI they love or hate, main or don't main. But they have made it my problem when they kept making jabs about Caleb, again, to my face - A CALEB MAIN. Why do you feel the need to tell ME how much you don't care for him or don't like his character?

Caleb is a controversial character, Caleb mains have been attacked many times, this isn't news. Caleb haters have spewed all kinds of sludge at us, which is incredibly rude and punishable, but what I'm describing to you is different. It's not a direct ass*ult, it's a sneak attack.

But why? This is a rhetorical question, I assume these people are lonely and disturbed which we all get lonely sometimes but babes how is that my problem? I say this because it was my real time, real energy, real emotional labour that I had to use in dealing with these people and their deceptive behaviors.

With all the effort being put into hating Caleb, deceiving me and convincing me to change my mind, I wonder if these people realized they could've just poured into the LIs that they actually love and want to main. Or just go to sleep or something. And yes, I said people because this has happened more than once. All those times these people reached out to me first. I didn't know them beforehand.

For a while I didn't know if I should share this because there's always something negative going on in the fandom. I didn't want to "add" to that heaviness. But keeping it to myself isn't helpful, either. I'm curious to know if anyone else can relate to this.

These bizarre experiences did make me think about the way I put my content out there. Did these people feel comfortable approaching me because of how I write my analysis? How I share about my feelings? How I present myself in these spaces?

To tell you the truth I have dealt with people like this irl, especially in school. I knew then and I know now it had/has nothing to do with me and more to do with them. They need to process whatever problem within themselves but instead of doing that, they choose to externalize on a target, which happens to be me. I just didn't expect it to happen in a game, and about pixels.

I don't particularly have any conclusion to draw from this apart from this is WEIRD and I don't want to deal w this bs ever again. If you hate Caleb, do it on your own time, stop bringing it to me specifically, or to other Caleb mains who are just trying to enjoy the game in peace. It pains me to say this but you need to understand Caleb is not real. He's a fictional character. So please go outside, sit in the sun and touch grass, it's for your own good.

Recently, I was told that Xavier & Rafayel always rank last in the popularity polls. I can't really speak for Raf because I'm not his main, obviously I don't know that much about him to make a comment. But speaking as a Xavier girl, I honestly don't mind it.

In fact, I feel pretty indifferent towards it. The nature of any ranking is there's a spot for everyone so someone's bound to be at the bottom. However, a consistent result does say something about people's preferences and how Xavier is viewed as a character & love interest.

In the context of these rankings, I'm not at all surprised that Xavier occupies the undermost position. A lot of people mistake him for being generic and unremarkable in comparison to the other LIs. At first glance, I can see where they're coming from.

I should mention that I'm a little star so I don't ever feel this way about him. But as I try to put myself in the mind of the average LADS player, I can understand how some people would assume he's less interesting than the other LIs and so, they don't bother trying to figure him out, preferences aside.

In terms of looks, Sylus is soooo visually striking; Rafayel is the face of the game; Caleb is modeled after an iconic actor. And Zayne stood out among the OG 3 as the more masculine-looking LI.

(*) A note, whenever I say "masculine" or "feminine", I mean the conventional standards by which how most people/society at large define masculinity & femininity. All 5 LIs possess masculine AND feminine traits (and so do we - the players), which is what's so great about them.

Back to Xavier, his appearance has a healthy balance of feminine and masculine features. If we only consider the OG3, Xavier isn't as flamboyant as Raf but not as prudent as Zayne. On the LADS spectrum of gendered appeal, Xavier lands somewhere in the middle (which is so Libra of him...but I digress). So, instead of standing out, Xavier tends to blend in.

This understatement extends into his personality and mannerism as well, which can be described as minimal, subtle & elegant. A lot of people find him similar to Zayne in this way, which I can see the resemblance. But to me, while Zayne comes off restrained & haunted by self-control, Xavier's subtleness is more about distance & being untethered, just like a literal ⭐. You can see a star but only from afar, and you can't hold it. In a nutshell, Zayne's stillness is earthly while Xavier's is otherworldly.

As the game goes on and the relationships between the LIs & MC progress, I find that MC's bond with Xavier takes the longest to warm up. Sometimes it feels like taking 1 step forward & 2 steps back. Don't get me wrong, there's not a lack of iconic & loving Xavier-MC moments but there's also a fleeting quality to it. Just like air, it's unstable, non-solid.

You know how you can't see stars when the sun is out? Sometimes I feel that way about Xavier's connection to MC, at least in the beginning. She's trying to figure him out but he's constantly hiding, disappearing, sometimes literally. Before anyone says it's avoidant attachment, it's not, but I'll get into that another time. Maining Xavier requires patience, this is not a whirlwind kind of romance and it's definitely not loud. So again, instead of standing out, Xavier continues to blend in.

Blending in is the keyword that comes up a lot when I dive into Xavier's character. And I find it incredibly interesting because if you watch a lot of CN dramas, you must know about 微行 (wēixíng). It literally means to travel in disguise and in this context, it's often the Emperor/Empress or high-ranking officials who dress themselves as commoners and blend in with the people.

This is nothing like the cosplaying of the poor that Marie Antoinette did because wēixíng can be dangerous. Primarily, the goal of wēixíng is for these heads of state to examine the reality of life of their people. With this, they can see for themselves if they've done a good job ruling their country/region and ultimately use this knowledge to further solidify their political power.

From what I know, Xavier doesn't go on literal wēixíng with this specific purpose BUT he literally is a Royal Prince walking among us. Xavier clearly has an affinity for an ordinary life but what fascinates me is his objective is personal and free from ulterior motives, because of that, it's even more precious and pure.

This stems from Xavier's intense desire to not only examine but to live an ordinary life. We should not mistake this as him wanting to irresponsibly run away from royal duties, but it's caused by alienation, which is another theme that keeps resurfacing as I look deeper into his character.

Social alienation is a person's feeling of disconnection from their affiliated group, such as friends, family, or wider society. As a royal Prince, heir to the thrown, Xavier is revered but lonely. The life of a Prince is hardly normal. MC was likely the first ordinary person to approach him and wanted to be his friend, which is why she left such a strong impression on him. As a space traveller who's not originally from Earth, he's again an outsider here, this time on foreign soil. He never fits in anywhere despite earnestly wanting to.

Xavier is often lovingly called the slice-of-life Prince by little stars. Slice of life is my favorite genre but it can also come across as boring because there's often no plot. It's just about the little joys of the day-to-day. However, it's perfect for Xavier - the eternal traveller. To him, the simplicity is aspirational, grounding, and exciting even. It's also his way to feel closer to MC, who for the most part is a regular person living a regular life.

SO, up to this point, I've realized that the picture of Xavier that I'm trying to put together has become even more abstract. But it is authentic to his character because he's difficult to grasp in this way. He's a crown Prince, but not really. He's a colleague, but there's more. He's a classmate, a senpai, but he's hiding something. It can be confusing at times and confusion makes people uncomfortable.

The original title of this piece was "The simplification of Xavier Shen" because I was thinking about how Xavier only starts trending whenever he has spicy content coming out. As if his only desirable quality is being freaky. Otherwise, he's "boring" and "not that strong". But I decided to change it because I wanted to focus on what's underneath the surface, as a tribute to my fellow little stars, a lot of whom (like me) feel intensely drawn to Xavier despite not being able to explain why.

Like I said at the beginning, I can understand how certain people feel a certain way about Xavier, that's okay. But in case you're wondering if you're missing out on this character, which in all honesty I think you are, you can start here and enjoy getting lost in the vast universe that is Xavier Shen 🪐.

Disclaimers

1-Everything is my own opinions based on my own experiences. 2-My analysis is for entertainment purposes only. 3-Do not repost without credit.

I don’t think I’ll ever change my 1st main. I always say I love all 5 guys & I mean it but Caleb will always be no.1 for me. Not because he’s hot or cool or “crazy”. It’s bc of details like this. Caleb really dug a hole in my heart & made it his home. The hold this fictional man has on me is surreal. Sometimes I wake up from a dream & start to cry bc Caleb is not real. But also it’s exactly because he’s not real that I feel so strongly about him. Men like this don’t rlly exist, let’s be so fr…

⭐Edit 1: Okay apparently the actual kindles give us slightly different positions... Remember this post was made before the banner came out and based on the stick figures only ;)

(˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

New multibanner comes with new buzz & a creative campaign. Today let's do something different, something more fun and...spicy.

someone = me. I have chronic back pain :')

✨Remember✨ I love all 5 LIs. These are just my personal opinions as an ADULT with chronic back pain🥴. My content is just for fun! Hope u enjoyed! ♥️

I've been thinking a lot about my job & career lately and it struck me, Caleb's job as a Fleet Colonel likely brings him little to no enjoyment.

Yes, I know. Nobody dreams of labour and you could argue maybe the other LIs would like to work some other kind of job too. BUT to some extent, they like the job they're currently doing. They find enjoyment & satisfaction from it.

Rafayel is an artist. For him, it's more than a job, it's a form of self expression that brings him catharsis.

Zayne is a doctor. Doctors save and heal, that's meaningful & rewarding in and of itself. We've seen Zayne in his elements many times and he seems to truly enjoy this line of work where he finds meaning in saving lives and caring for other people.

Xavier is currently a Hunter, like MC. Even though I don't think Xavier takes pleasure in his work the way Zayne & Rafayel do theirs. Honestly I don't think he cares what job he does but I'll dive into that in his own analysis. Anyway, seeing that he's worked similar jobs before, it's fair to say he doesn't dislike it.

Sylus is at the end of the day, a businessman. I don't know any business-person who hates their job because it's a very autonomous  kind of career. Business-people are in this line of work because they want to.

That takes us back to Caleb. He's a Fleet Colonel. Yes, he's very hot in his uniform & I'm sure he excels at the job like he does at almost anything else. But he doesn't enjoy it. He has no friends in Skyhaven where he lives and works. He has no work-friend apart from Liam which calling Liam a work-friend is a massive stretch.

In the cafe, you'll hear Caleb say things like "The Fleet is a bunch of hyenas", or "There are no friends in Skyhaven, only subordinates". Every time Caleb talks about his work or the Fleet, tension shows on his face. He switches to Colonel mode, which okay I also find it hot, but the reality of such a job is beyond intense. What kind of pleasure could be derived from that?

Militaristic organizations are highly demanding & extremely political. These kinds of environment are seniority-based. So, for someone like Caleb, who's managed to put himself in a leadership position at such a young age, he sticks out like a sore thumb. Many want him dead. His introduction was literally an assassination attempt. And let's not forget what kind of danger awaits him in the Deepspace Tunnel. Every time he goes on a mission, there's a chance he might not come back alive.

It would be a completely different story if Caleb chose to be a Fleet Colonel because he's power-hungry or wants the status. But that's not why he joined the Fleet. Caleb is doing this to protect MC. The details of his plan are unknown but let's be real it's only because of MC. Other than that, I doubt this job brings Caleb any satisfaction. 

If you're a working adult and you don't like your job or you work a high-stress environment, I think you can relate to how corrosive this experience is to your physical and mental health. The result of Caleb's mental evaluation came at no surprise. And this is just one among many other calamities that he has to deal with.

I know every time I write about Caleb it's rarely sunshine and rainbows. I don't want to paint him as a "depressing" character. He has other sides to him as well, softer sides, more loving & cheerful. Pipsqueaks know this very well. But I want you to understand why he is the way he is.

Caleb is a controversial character. I know people who hate him have already made up their minds so I'm not writing for them. I'm writing for myself and for the people who are curious about Caleb even if you don't main him or don't find him attractive. If you look closely, you might even see something new about yourself, like I did.

Disclaimer

1. Everything is my own personal opinions based on how I understand and interpret the character(s). 2. My analysis is meant for entertainment purposes only. 3. Do not repost without credit, thank you!

Hi cute bugs, here's a throwback to my 1st LADS special project which was made in October 2025! To this day it's still one of my proudest works. I hope you'll enjoy! 🐞

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

Figure skating is another passion of mine & I got this idea after watching the 2025 Grand Prix de France. The personality of each LI is so distinctive that I just couldn't help but be inspired & refer to them while enjoying my favorite sport. 

Disclaimer

1-I am a novice fan & not a skater myself so my opinions are not professional. It's based on how I perceive each skater's style & essence. It's mostly about how their presence on ice makes me feel and how I relate that to each LI rather than techniques.

2-This is NOT about how the skaters' appearance is/is not similar to the LIs' so pls refrain from criticizing their looks.

3-Please DO NOT repost without credit ty.