#ts rant

She just like everyone else on this planet is deeply flawed and especially from the place of being a billionaire she is not without blame. In 2019 she made a huge deal about advocacy and standing up for people and yet when the BLM movent was big in 2020 she did nothing and now with the genocide happening in Gaza she says nothing. She has been seen and associated with many horrible people and it isn't right.

To be clear I am not calling her evil or without empathy but i am calling out her hypocrisy that so many fans choose to ignore.

I think it is wrong not just in a moral sense but also just in a 'do you actually respect her' sense because Midnights and ttpd shows her begging for us to see her as she is and how much fame and fans have harmed her because of this rose colored lens.

NEW RECOLORS COMING TO MY WEBSITE TONIGHT AND THIS WEEK!!!!

So, I just rewatched the “Embarrassing Phases” episode and I never realized just how much it pissed me off. Like holy shit! If anyone were to ask me why I hate Vigil so much, I would refer them to this episode.

First of, he’s such a big hypocrite in this episode. As a lot of Virgil critics pointed out before, in this episode Virgil breaks the rule established in “Making Some Changes” that claimed that no side would be changed if they didn’t want to be. He literally does it to most of them, the only one who somewhat allowed Virgil to change their costume was Patton. Also, Virgil is allowed to insult and make fun of the others but they can’t do the same to him.

Second of, he is SO rude to the other sides in this episode. He is rude towards Patton who is trying his hardest to adjust to the sudden change in their relationship. He shuts down Roman and literally reminds Roman of his failures in an Instance where he was being vulnerable (8:26-8:45). As for Logan, he really isn’t that mean to him except for the occasional annoyed looks he gave him. He even THROWS A STONE AT THOMAS!

Lastly, the blatant biasness for Virgil in this episode is almost painful. This episode shows just how Thomas and the Lightsides have to constantly walk on eggshells around Virgil. They can’t call him out on his hypocrisy, he’s allowed to insult Roman but Roman is flat out told he can’t insult Virgil anymore, and it shines a light to the fact that all of them have to change who they are for Virgil while Virgil is allowed to stay the same. All the Lightsides are forced to change themselves to accommodate Virgil and all they get in return are cruel remarks. Thomas even says so when he’s talking to Patton near the end (20:13-21:05) Even the end card shows the Virgil bias. Virgil tells Janus how he’s “grown” when in reality if anything, he’s gotten WORSE. They even allude to the fact that he’s might end up being strong enough to, as Janus said, “Get rid of us all”

About the whole Unsypathetic/bad/dark thing (because if feels that we forget it sometimes, me included of course): For example, Patton is Thomas heart. Now, since when does the heart knows what tf it is doing? everything about a decision made by our hearts is based on what we FEEL is right for us or those around us, it is not logic based, it is relative. Janus said so too, Patton may be misleading Thomas, but he’s not doing it on purpose, he is primarily emotions, he acts based on what he feels at that given moment. Sometimes we lose sight that all the sides are parts of a whole, they’re not someone apart from each other, they are concepts. Heart, Mind, Anxiety, Passion, Deceit, Intrusive Thoughts, all of them can be seem as abstract concepts.

My point is: considering one side unsympathetic, mean, ignorant, good or evil, black or white, better or worse than one another is somewhat...Pointless, because they lack in every other aspect other than what they are primarily meant to represent..

AND I did not mean it in a rude or judgy way, I just think is always good to remind ourselfs those things every once in a while.. I love you all, I love all the sides, I do get angry at them sometimes ( since they are characters) but is not okay to be mean towards one another in regards of their favorites or less favorite ones..

idk, like I said is just a rant..

Okay but if you’re going to look into the actual singular interaction, not Janus’s and Roman’s relationship/interactions overall, Roman could be seen as arguably “more in the wrong”.

If you analyse what he did, Janus was putting himself in a very vulnerable situation by revealing his name and removing his glove. It was an act that was supposed to represent him getting another step closer to being trusted completely by the others. If you look at Roman’s response, it’s very clear what he’s trying to do. He wants to separate himself from Janus. In one line from Rhythm Redux Roman literally sings “If our goals aligned with his what would that say?”. In Roman’s eyes (he was stressed, scared under pressure, you can see why this may be his first thought/defence considering his character) what better way of showing that you don’t agree/have goals that align with Janus’s than insulting him when he’s vulnerable? Roman probably didn’t think about how much it would hurt Janus. Roman has been trying so hard to be a better side and stop insulting the others and apologises profusely whenever he does. The only reason I think he would do this to Janus is if he was scared. He wants to distance himself from anything that is “evil”. Being “evil” is his biggest fear. In SvS he was scolded for agreeing with “evil” Deceit and now he wants to distance himself from that Roman. It’s hurting himself and the people around him. That doesn’t justify what he did, but it helps us understand why he did it.

Janus’s response is more understandable for many reasons. That insult would sting, especially when you’re in that vulnerable a position. Also, a big thing what Janus wants is to show character Thomas that he isn’t perfect and he shouldn’t force himself to meet those impossible standards. By responding in that way, he’s making it very clear to Roman that Thomas isn’t perfect like Roman wants so desperately to believe (a belief probably forced upon him by Patton/The Split). Yes it was very harsh but Roman does indeed need to be knocked down a peg or two when it comes to his beliefs about Thomas and Roman himself. It was a very harsh and painful insult, Janus knew that, Janus wanted it to hurt. He was so obviously incredibly hurt in that interaction and you can understand why he would lash out in such a way. Janus isn’t just Denial - he’s self preservation too. What he did is a very self preserving thing to do. Again, I don’t think it justifies the action but it does make his actions more understandable.

That’s obviously only concerning that particular situation, not even taking into account the manipulation Roman experienced at the hands of Janus which could influence why lashed out so much - and if you think of that, Janus is probably frustrated at Roman on some levels. Roman’s ignoring his purpose, something Janus explicitly says he disagrees with and Roman also made Thomas go the callback - which Janus obviously didn’t want. There’s obviously going to be some pent up frustration and hurt there.

So Roman starts the song to try and diffuse the tension between him and Logan. 

Patton jumps in and turns this into a song about expressing your feelings. Which, I mean is a good sentiment, but I feel kinda iffy about it. I don’t think that was the direction Roman was taking it. 

Then Patton does his lil verse. Then Virgil has his part. We just had their arcs so those were just a basic summary of those. 

Then it’s the Thomas and Logan argument. Both essentially accuse the other of not honest with themselves about something. Logan says that Thomas is dancing around the problem at hand with puppets and a song and unnecessary stuff when Logan believes that he has the answer. Thomas says that Logan isn’t being honest with himself about his emotions and his anger issues. Unfortunately, this is essentially the last we’ll hear from Logan [in the song] because he was right. Thomas is essentially ignoring him that episode. Logan doesn’t get to voice his opinion, so it makes sense that he’s frustrated about it. Sure, Thomas is also right about Logan ignoring his emotions, but it’s not really his place to force Logan to open up. [Which I think is the point Real-Thomas is trying to get across and I absolutely applaud that]

Then Virgil interrupts and I think their whole little speech to Logan is sweet, but misses the point. They don’t really reassure him that he isn’t a joke, you know, his biggest insecurity at this point. Instead, they tell him that a life without jokes is incomplete. Which only validates his fear about being a joke. They’re saying not to be afraid of it but he can’t really. At least not this way. 

And then the part that bugs me the most comes next. Roman asks if he can “contribute to this weird, vent-ey song!” If you remember, Roman started the song. It bugs me that he now feels like he’s jumping in. I feel like [this is speculation here, I don’t really have evidence and I’m not saying this is definitely the case] his insecurity about his own talents and capability sort of made him forget that he started the song in the first place. That it was his idea. Instead, he ,at that moment, attributed it immediately as the others’ idea.

The next part is pretty sweet as the others reassure him that his fears are not real. You know, the thing they should’ve done to Logan. That slight bit of anger aside, it is a sweet moment where we see the others acknowledge his insecurity and do their best to cheer him up. Which seems to [temporarily] have worked. 

And then the song ends. 

Roman has been cheered up. 

Thomas has been reassured. 

Patton and Virgil are happy to have helped. 

And Logan... got ignored. He wasn’t brought up again. The other four are celebrating what a success this song was without acknowledging the fact that Logan never got his true conclusion in this song. Which just solidifies his point. 

Roman’s insecurity is brought up and temporarily addressed, but I feel like Virgil, Patton, and (character) Thomas assume it’s solved. As someone who’s struggled with major insecurity [as a lot of us have], I know that it isn’t solved that easily. If my insecurity was fixed the moment someone reassured me about my worth, I would’ve cured it many years ago. But it isn’t that easy. It’s a lot of work. 

We see time and time again Roman’s insecurity popping up again without being addressed. Here’s a brief list of instances: 

In SVS: 

*Roman is teleported to the witness stand*

[Deceit]: Your name is Roman, correct?

[Roman]: The one and lonely! What? Freudian slip…

[Deceit]: (shrieking with laughter) I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself. Oh, you know I love you.

[Roman]: Oh, haha... Yeah, totally… um...

[Deceit]: [...]  and you want that stuff that makes you happy, right?!

[Patton]: Do I!

[Roman]: Do I. [he says with the saddest face imaginable] 

Plus the fact that Deceit can manipulate him so much with just compliments. 

In DWIT: These are a little more subtle.

[Virgil]: Are you… good?

[Roman]: Mm, I don't know.

[Patton]: Aww, are you hurt at all?

[Roman]: *sighs* My head's fine. More than anything, I feel like I was struck by a… realization. Like Einstein, with the apple.

AND THEN LOGAN JUST MOVES ONTO HOW THOMAS IS DOING. I get that his main concern is of his host, but Roman never gets to talk about his problem and none of the sides even considers how Roman is feeling other than physically. 

Plus there’s this line:

[Roman]: *sighs* Yeah. It's a little like looking into a funhouse mirror, but instead of a giant head, or, like, long legs and a tiny torso, ... it shows you... everything you don't wanna be.

AND BOY HOWDY DO I HAVE THEORIES ABOUT WHAT THIS MEANS. They “fix” their problem with Remus by ignoring him. Like how Roman is being ignored. In the past couple of episodes, while Virgil, Patton, Logan and Thomas are debating serious topics, Roman primarily served as comedic relief and a source of fantastic one-liners. His feelings and his opinion and his function as a side didn’t really come into play. He could be feeling like how the others see Remus, a loud, attention-seeking source of unwanted ideas and opinions. Perhaps this has to do with his realization from earlier?