>>1201171
>>1201059
>chapters 41/42 were close to as good as 31/32
>just report my old reply
For close to a year, we’ve been on a goose chase with Levi, where SKK has spent a considerable amount of patience and effort to form an alliance with her and gain her trust. Throughout the chapters, he’s gone easy on her, understanding she was dealing with personal trauma, and even ignored and forgave the fact that she stabbed him. Through all his attempts to talk with her, Levi’s walls were slowly being chipped away. SKK even acknowledges that he thinks the alliance will happen soon since his efforts were bearing fruit (chapter 40); Levi wanted to talk, and SKK could see that. The goose chase was slowly showing progress since Levi knew they were good people.
The important part of a satisfying conclusion in an RPG is that this effort should pay off at the end, and that is what we’ve been waiting for: the payoff for all this effort.
Nobody is saying SKK should fix every issue in the series, but this is one he should have played a major part in after all the time he spent trying to connect with Levi. What I personally wanted to see is a moment where SKK’s efforts would result in her unloading all her feelings in the open, in front of everyone, a moment where she explodes and reveals why she doesn’t want to talk. Once SKK got through to her and brought her to this point, that’s when he should have taken her hand and told her he believes she wouldn’t betray him. That’s not saying this convinces Levi or resolves her trauma, but it’s at that moment, after SKK broke through Levi’s armor (his efforts pay off), that Siren should have come in to deal the finishing blow.
The bread and butter of this game is still Nikke x Commander interactions, and the current resolution has completely invalidated SKK’s attempts to connect with Levi, making his efforts redundant and pointless for the last six chapters; SKK could have just locked her up on Site 01 and waited for Siren to fix her. He didn’t get through to Levi. He didn’t gain her trust. His efforts didn’t pay off. He just left the job to Siren and decided to deal with something else. Now, you’re simply reaping the efforts of something Siren could have done from the start, and that feels like a punch in the gut after all that time. And then, to top it all off, you barely even talk with Levi or the Four Beasts. It's Rapi who continuously interacts with them.
Compare this conclusion to 31/32, where (you) played such a huge role in Cinderella's rescue. If it weren't for (you) trusting Grave to revive a heretic, Cinderella would have never been saved. If (you) hadn't held off Behemoth by yourself, Grave would have never been able to hide Cinderella in that crystal, fooling Behemoth, and if you hadn't convinced Grave not to kill Cinderella, she would have never been rescued. Your efforts felt rewarding, so being called her Prince Charming felt justified and earned. The payoff is there after trying hard to befriend Grave and gain her trust.
Anyone defending Levi's conclusion is a professional shit eater. There are more issues like I named earlier, but this one was a really bad fucking resolution.