#weeb rambles

Ralph's POV

Ralph has a desperate need to feel appreciated, he wants respect from the Nicelanders but doesn't receive it because he is the game's 'bad guy'. This is what fuels the movies plot forward as Ralph describes to his therapy group what his life is outside his game. In the beginning of the film, while not outwardly stated, Ralph doesn't really like the Nicelanders to begin with and their dislike or fear of him makes him want to show them he is more than just a bad guy. He even states this in the movie - "Maybe I wouldn't be feeling this way if things were different after work." - Everyone has a part to play in the arcade, sticking to programming, which is their version of working. After work, the Nicelanders don't have to be assholes to him but they still are. Why?

Nicelanders POV

They are classist, more on that later. The Nicelanders appear to be afraid of Ralph, except Gene who seems to have more of a bitter disliking of him mixed in with a little fear. I don't blame them, he is responsible for wrecking their homes every time the players put in a quarter. At the same time, I do blame them. It is straight up Ralph's job to wreck the building and it's not like he's doing it because he wants to, he's doing it because if he didn't, their game would be unplugged which is later shown in the movie anyway. Though, it seems to be a common theme with bad guys. Almost every game asset in GCS is afraid of Ralph and one whispers 'Bad guy incoming' as they move or run away. What started this chain, I wonder? It couldn't have been Turbo, he wasn't a bad guy. In fact, I'm more geared towards that he was the character the player controls as a version of Turbotime was released by Disney as apart of an iOS package (As stated in the wiki) where you play as Turbo. So, it does appear to be classism. Ralph is less fortunate, has to live in the garbage, and has to frame himself as the villain to keep the game running. Meanwhile, Felix and the Nicelanders live in a huge apartment, the Nicelanders assist the main hero (Felix), and Felix fixes their houses for them and cleans up Ralph's mess. The Nicelanders don't get to know Ralph, even after the 30 years with him, and thinks he's going to wreck everything just for fun even though he's never experienced happiness in doing so. He even enters the apartment, having breaking nothing on his way to the party, rings the doorbell so he doesn't break the door, and doesn't react with anger when they shut him out the first time. He talks to Felix like he doesn't know what day it is, worried about the fireworks and Felix, who now feels guilty and uncomfortable that he has to come to terms with the fact that Ralph wasn't invited to a party for their shared game. Ralph manipulates Felix just a bit in order to get access to the party, playing into the charming hero and genuine kind guy Felix tries to be despite his flaws. Mary's cake is blatant, very obvious. She didn't have to make Ralph look evil or put him on the cake at all but she does. Ralph is a little bit of a dick here, taking apart her cake and eventually smashing it after Gene ticks him off. To Gene and the other Nicelanders, he's just proven himself to be the bad guy again. As the next morning comes and a quarter is fed to the machine, Ralph is nowhere to be found. It slowly comes to them that without Ralph, their game can't function. The Nicelanders go into a full on panic as Ralph's absence grows more apparent. He's gone and even with Felix attempting to rationalize, they have no idea where he's gone. Until Q*bert utters the name of the ghost of the arcade. Ralph's gone Turbo.

Outside Sources (King Candy, Felix, Calhoun, Vanellope)

As Ralph crashes into Sugar Rush, he meets Vanellope. She is annoying to him but isn't being really mean. Ralph tries to deceive her which fails and she even warns him (albeit not very well) about the double stripe candy cane branch. Unlike Felix and King Candy, she goes straight to calling him 'Ralph' instead of his full name. She isn't reminding him of his core purpose but talking to him like he's a human being. Even though she does steal from him. Later in the film, she and Ralph realize how similar their lives are which brings Vanellope to value him as a good friend who she can relate to right up until he breaks her cart in which she actually does call him a 'bad guy' but she has an actual reason to, unlike the others mentioned.

King Candy, being the bastard impersonator he is (i hate him put him in a meat grinder <3), is afraid and wary when he reveals Ralph under the hardened candy shell. Obviously, he's following along with everyone else as he frames himself at a higher standard than Ralph. He knows of Ralph's 'bad guy' status (since, yknow..) and refers to him as such when Ralph talks about winning a medal - "Bad guys don't win medals." - Then goes on to mention himself like a true hypocrite. Later in the conversation, he no longer harbors the wariness but plans to kick him out and refers to him by his full name again, rendering him to the guy who wrecks things again. Felix, despite knowing Ralph for 30 YEARS, he knows nothing about him. Felix, living with the Nicelanders, and being a hero/main mechanic in the game, he is unknowingly classist. Felix has never bothered to really know Ralph beyond his wrecking persona. He knows he can be a nice guy but is still uncomfortable around him which I think is partly the Nicelanders fault. Calhoun. We can forgive some of her actions as she was just plugged in recently and battles with her PTSD, making her rough around the edges. She refers to Ralph as 'Wreck-It Joker' or just 'Wreck-It' in reference to the destruction that seems to follow him. She dislikes him for a time due to his recklessness and failure to stick to his program and seems to have a new level of dislike for him once she learns about Turbo. Even near the end of the movie, she thinks he's thick-headed and an idiot for letting the Cybugs invade Sugar Rush. After his sacrifice, she does seem to have gained respect for him because he found a solution to a problem she thought was impossible to solve. GCS (Game Central Station). It is never mentioned and seems to be an unspoken rule that 'bad guys' in video games are bad guys after the arcade is closed too. I'm assuming this is due to the fact that most of the villains tend to hold their standards after work. Say Bowser or Dr. Robotnik (Eggman). Or maybe it was a misunderstanding, maybe a rumor. We don't really get an explanation for this.

My personal opinion

The Nicelanders suck. Up until the end of the movie, they blame Ralph for all that went wrong and while Ralph plays a heavy part in what happens, so did THEY! The Nicelanders (Including Felix) don't need to be as rude as they are after hours and they finally realize at the end that Ralph really isn't a bad guy but it's more of a role he plays for the game. They can agree with societal norms all they want and be afraid of him but back to an earlier point, he never shows happiness in wrecking the building. He treats it like it's another monday at work and it pretty much is. The Nicelanders redeem themselves at the end, being nice and rectifying their rude behavior. So, they sucked, but they got better. Beginning Nicelanders - SUCK, Ending Nicelanders - Yeah they're ok now.

The BIGGER picture