#twst dub

(Saying all this before my main argument because I can’t fit it anywhere)

The anime cut the part where Riddle goes crazy wondering if Trey’s magic is stronger cuz it would deny all his suffering to hone his magic capabilities I AM CRYING STOP CUTTING THINGS NECESSARY FOR RIDDLE AND ADDING UNNEEDED FLASHBACKS

Also why is there Riddle monologue in TREY’s flashback????

Riddle’s dub actor is so amazing in this episode I especially LOVE when he asks if Trey would betray him too

They spent the animation budget on the phantom instead of Riddle’s Madoka Magic transformation 

(OK now onto Mama Rosehearts)

If there’s any dub-only reading this, please either watch the game chapter 1-25 or the Japanese version of Riddle’s backstory in ep7 just so we’re all on the same page, thank you!

1. Brief Mama Rosehearts introduction

The whole point of Mama Rosehearts is her hypocrisy. It’s the irony created by her misguided belief that she knows what’s best for Riddle while also making him suffer. 

The fandom has a tendency to demonize Mama Rosehearts. This is not to justify what she has done, but the interpretation that she micromanages Riddle’s every move because “she doesn’t love him” is just wrong. 

Yes, maybe she wanted to raise Riddle “correctly” just so he can become her ideal child. No, making your child a trophy is not a healthy mindset. However, she also cared deeply about Riddle’s health and achievements. She wanted Riddle to be healthy so much that she micromanages the nutrients in his birthday cake. She would never say “What is the matter with you!?” and blame Riddle because in her mind, Riddle is the perfect child that she raised, she would blame the other kids for leading him astray way before saying it’s Riddle’s problem because then she would be admitting her own mistakes. 

You cannot deny that her arrogance makes her believe in Riddle’s absolute obedience. 

You cannot deny that, while her ways are misguided and problematic, she loves Riddle. 

2. Mama Rosehearts’ dub voice

Her dub voice started as overly sugary and protective, which is great. But when she reprimanded Riddle, she had this guttural, screechy, screaming kind of voice. And I’m  here wondering why NO ONE on the directing team bothered to give the poor dub actress a note on what the original voice sounded like or how she’s supposed to sound like Mother Gothel when she’s calm and not when she explodes at Rapunzel. 

This leads to 2 problems. 

First, it diminishes the threat she poses to us as an audience. She’s supposed to be a landmine, not a grenade. She’s scary because you don’t know when or how she would explode. If someone is screaming gutturally at you every time they speak, you get used to it very quickly and start thinking that they are all bark and no bite. But if the scene keeps pushing a character whose anger seems to be slowing building, you would be scared every second fearing the eventual explosion. 

Second, it changes her character and removes all of her care and hypocrisy. The entire point of Mama Rosehearts' character is that she believes what she does is best for Riddle without realizing the harm she’s causing. She would not shout at Riddle like she does in the dub because, in Mother Gothel’s words, she wouldn't want to make herself sound like “the bad guy”. In the strawberry tart scene, she started with a line that translates to “How could you even suggest that?”, but she is actually more concerned with nagging Riddle to never eat unhealthy foods that could hinder his studies more than the fact that Riddle is suggesting it. 

In the second scene, there are some translation issues. Riddle shirked his studies and ate a strawberry tart, but she pins all the blame of it on Trey and Chenya leading him astray. She would never admit Riddle was to blame, because she would also be admitting she herself wasn’t the perfect mother. However, the translation “what is the matter with you!?” implies that she blames Riddle (in Japanese, this line was smth like “how could this happen?!”). The translation could still work if the voice actress made it sound like she was paranoid or anxious about Riddle disobeying her (aka. about her own imperfection as a mother), which is not how it sounded in the dub. In the dub, she was screaming at Riddle, 100% blaming him and the “was it those two who led you astray?” sounded like an afterthought. 

In short, Mama Rosehearts’ threat and hypocrisy is best portrayed when she sounds like she believes she knows what’s best for Riddle. The audience needs the space to work out that even though she believes her love is true, her actions had caused much distress for Riddle. If she’s guttural and screaming every word, how do we hear the irony? 

3. The Riddle vs Ace debate is now unfair

I remember the one thing that surprised me so much I got hooked on Twst 5 years ago was the library scene when Ace said Riddle’s problem is his own problem, not his mom’s. The game story did a wonderful job on baiting us to sympathize with Riddle through Trey’s perspective, only to surprise us with Ace saying the most correct words in this entire Heartslabyul book. 

The main thesis of Twst book 1 is that Riddle’s actions are his own responsibility. His past can provide an explanation, but it cannot lead to forgiveness. 

We, and Ace, can sympathize with Riddle. But we, through Ace, also understand that not everyone can forgive Riddle’s actions just because he had a sad past. This is something that holds true for real life, and holds true for Mama Rosehearts as well — just because you think you’re justified doesn’t mean you’re actually right. 

I am a huge Riddle fan and I’ve loved him for 5 years. But regardless of whose side I’m on, to bring out the main thesis, the game/anime must give the audience a fair share of supporting arguments for both sides of the Riddle vs Ace debate before Riddle’s overblot ends so we can make our own judgements. We are supposed to hear ABOUT Riddle’s circumstances, not feel his pain. 

And what did the anime do?? 

They showed child Riddle AND Mama Rosehearts BEFORE Riddle actually attempted murder and overblotted. 

I was already on the fence when we got child Riddle in flashbacks several times until last week because the portrayal is too sympathetic. EVERYONE would sympathize with Riddle if child Riddle is that cute. Ace is literally arguing at the wall while everyone stares at those adorable blue eyes. 

But in episode 7 they showed Mama Rosehearts?? And not just any Mama Rosehearts, but THE Mama Rosehearts who banned a child from spending time with his only friends??? 

We were never supposed to see child Riddle or Mama Rosehearts before Riddle’s overblot because the story needs us to, like Ace, judge 17-year-old Riddle for who he is, not who he was. The anime is not showing the supporting arguments fairly, it’s actively arguing against Ace. Showing Mama Rosehearts before Riddle’s overblot is like a dog showing you puppy eyes before biting you. You will perceive their goodness before their badness. You will perceive Ace’s arguments as unfair or too harsh before Riddle has time to show you how he’s willing to attack people because he’s too stubborn to be proven wrong. The game is saying “Ace has a point, but Riddle has a reason for being so tyrannical too. Ace pushed Riddle too far, but Riddle reacted too extremely.” The anime is saying “Ace has a point, but look at child Riddle can you really blame him?? Ace pushed Riddle too far, but look what happened when Riddle disobeyed can you really blame him??” 

I’m someone who knows the story and even I felt like Ace wasn’t very convincing in episode 7. 

The anime isn’t a fair debate anymore, it’s bashing Ace in favor of Riddle. 

It’s leading to more misunderstandings about Mama Rosehearts’ specific kind of hypocrisy. 

It’s not giving enough weight to Riddle’s actions, which means his eventual healing and earning forgiveness will mean so much less.