II2 Episode 15: Truth or Flare

-Apparently the script was written years in advance. Just when I was complaining about how the narrative downplayed Baseball’s actions, this episode… Actually addressed it? It even briefly brings up the fact that Knife’s actions in season 1 were arguably worse than what Balloon ever did there, and how Nickel would enable this type of behavior. The cherry on top is that Baseball acknowledged his mistakes and accepted his elimination. I can finally be at peace….
-I’m glad that they clarified what Knife meant when he said Suitcase should “make her presence known”, but they still never really addressed the fact that Knife scolded Suitcase when she DID just that.
-That said, Suitcase and Knife were DEFINITELY the best finalists we could have had. I have mixed thoughts on Knife, but I’d rather have him over Baseball and Light bulb. I’m hoping that Suitcase wins, given what she’s been through, it makes the most sense.
-II isn’t really the best at conveying it’s ideas well, and the theme of “the game is a hostile environment that encourages a cycle of abuse and pain in order to proceed” is one of them. It’s great in concept, the show just has never been the best at communicating it in a manner that was consistent. Marshmallow’s the best aspect of this as it emphasized how the game was ruining her life… For the others it just wasn’t really there or never brought up when it should. This episode seems to rectify the themes of the last episode to imply that the contestants are stressed out, but they are torn about the state of the game and just want to move on rather than tackling it”. Did it succeed? Well… I’m not sure just yet. I need some time to think about it… I do wonder if this will continue well into the final episode, even when Suitcase and Knife(the two characters who the narrative often depicts as being in the right) have made themselves clear… At least hold Mephone4 accountable!!!!!! Yes, his childhood sucked, but that doesn’t change the fact that he made a game with an environment to continue the cycle to the point where it has traumatized at least 4 people. We now have TWO SONGS about this. The extra emphasis on Mephone4 and the show’s cruelty feels reassuring buuut… I’m not getting my hopes up. :/
-Again, II has never been the best when trying to convey the intentions of it’s story or even the characters, but I thought Taco’s song was fine. It shows she’s dead set on tearing the show apart after seeing what the others been through, coupled with her own pain that she refuses to admit to. The visuals and symbolism helped serve it pretty well.
-Wait, if Taco made it so only she can teleport with Mepad, how did Mepad do so when telling Mephone4 to revive her? Was she just bluffing?? Just something I noticed.
-Oh and Light bulb got out. Honestly, besides the stuff with Paintbrush I don’t have much of an opinion on her. I am relieved that the show didn’t make her win just because she’s one of the faces of the show.
-That said… Uhhhh… So III is canon…? Apparently the reason why it had to finish is for timeline purposes but… Honestly, I feel the references that are there could have been easily removed or replaced and nothing of value would be lost. It’s already evident to the contestants that Mephone4 is running from his past. And I feel given how the scene in ARS panned out, they would have written Paintbrush to be much more amiable towards Lightbulb anyway. Next episode is obviously going to be focused on Cobs… Whatever they had in mind, I don’t think it worked?????????????

Again.. I don’t really have much to say about this episode at the moment. At least I wasn’t bored to death???

Both the Taco + MePad and Suitcase + Knife duo dynamic things surprised us, especially the former, but we don't really mind it? It makes sense, and that's what matters to us. Really loved the interactions between Taco and the rest, and eachother... Lots of little and big things added to their respective arcs. Especially Suitcase, she deserves the win, but perrrrrharpsss we're a lil' biased, aha... And wehope taco gets a happy ending, she really deserves a safe environment to deal with how II (the game) has made her feel/be. The song was easily the highlight of the episode for us, and a certified semi-frequent relisten candidate. Not sure how to feel about III being canonized, though. Would've preferred it not to, actually. Even if there are a few things abt it we enjoy, it just feels odd both tonally and for the characters, but what do we know.