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Entry tags:
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Character Name: Crow
Canon: Fragile Dreams: Farewell, Ruins of the Moon
Canon Point: After parting ways with Seto at the Lunar Hill Fun Land.
Background/History: wiki post about crow, all events in the game through seto's perspective, but he is the protagonist so that's all that's covered.
Personality:
" Don't act like we're friends. Don't act like you know me. Listen up! I'm the one who's gonna be asking the questions around here, you just answer. Is that clear?"
He's the fabled chase sequence initiator. He's the one hour of frustration in a game of relative ease. He calls you a moron. He calls you a lamebrain. There's more things going on in his outfit than can even be described (he's got a kettle strapped to his waist for heaven's sake). It's for these reasons that it takes a kind heart, strong will, and endless patience to deal with first meetings that involve Crow, though the fact that the Earth in Fragile Dreams is desolate and full of anything but people probably helps. People or no people, however, Crow is the type of person who can be a bit unbearable at first -- quick to get into your face, blunt, almost unfaltering in his meanness. His first encounter with Seto, the protagonist of the story, is a collection of fancy flips and forceful questions, all with an undertone of arrogance and confidence. He taunts Seto, calling him a typical human when he states his desire to find survivors, takes Seto's sleeve and shakes his arms without asking, as if observing some kind of strange new invention, and finishes the rather one-sided aggression with a quick steal of Seto's most treasured item. What follows is a drawn-out game of Catch the Crow, filled with insults, taunts and urges to hurry up directed towards the increasingly desperate boy. Crow is without a doubt rude and uninterested in the concept of making a good first impression, showcasing an honesty both brutal and earnest. His method of play and enjoyment is akin to a playground bully, with his opponent being "so dumb you probably couldn't even catch a cold", or so he says. As Seto suffers through the quest (more like torture) that Crow sets out for him, he finds a little interesting fact about the seemingly self-assured boy through a book called "Pirate Isle".
From reading the book, Seto discovers that most of Crow's rude and jumpy speeches are near identical to the lines spoken by the rude Pirate Boy in the book. The story itself ends with a friendship struck between two children--the mean boy and the receiver of the antagonistic behaviour--implying an ending that Crow himself wants with Seto, given his emulation of the Pirate. This is realized when Seto finally catches up to Crow. After a what-would-be fatal fall from a Ferris Wheel on Crow's part that ends in nothing but tears from Seto and a proud proclamation that he's never cried before from the uninjured thief, both boys simply laugh off the day's events. The scenes after show a Crow beyond a pillaging, rude boy; he apologizes to Seto, concedes his own defeat, shares his story, and even calls Seto a friend. He demonstrates the less aggravating side of his honesty: at his core, he's a simple, (almost) carefree boy with the single purpose of finding clues to fill in the gaps in his memory. His antagonism ends here, and he seals Seto and his friendship with a kiss and a skull ring. He shrugs off Seto's surprised reaction, stating he read that friends gave each other kisses (and gifts) in books, and that if that was Seto's first kiss it only meant Crow was his best friend. To say Crow is shy or one to feel abashed over mistakes is the farthest thing from the truth, and that very event seals the deal. What happens, happens, and Crow is the person to twist things in strange, unpredictable directions. Perhaps this spontaneity roots from the literary worlds he's delved in.
Being an amnesiac with little to call his own, Crow quite obviously bases most of his behaviors on books he's read. While Crow himself is truly, in some respects, every bit the pirate in Pirate Isle in his fearlessness, energy, and straightforward nature--there are some parts of him that he simply just lifted from the book because books holds most of what he's ever known. His initial acts of antagonism are a display of caution towards people he doesn't know. He's a teenager of natural curiosity, from his picketing of other's shiny objects (a crow must crow, you know) to a determined quest to find out his own past with only a single photo as a lead. He apologizes, but he doesn't lament. He teases. He's playful to the point of annoyance sometimes, mostly in fits of boredom and impatience. He's very much a caricature of traits one might see in the hero lead of a typical schoolboy tale, which is a rather neat contrast to our actual lead Seto. Still, however, Crow should not be limited simply to that cover, for there's more to him than just that.
" Well then, I guess that makes me your number one buddy. Best friends, right? "
See, although Crow is one of rocky starts, the first meeting is most likely the hardest one. An in-game reflection recalls Crow as "fearless, mean... yet kind," which is an apt description in both traits and order. Where one might first see the fearless, mean, brash Crow who stole your insert prized possession here, there is the later loyal, friendly and kind Crow who declares, quite unabashed, that you are his friend. While he doesn't melt into a puddle of gush (his affections are communicated still through mischievous teases), his straightforward nature makes his bold statements of friendship seem wholly sincere, which they are. A friend to Crow is a friend for a long, long time. Childhood books that taught him adventures also taught him The Power of Friendship™, and like hell he's going to betray those values by not giving it 100%. He's the reassuring friend, the one who says it's gonna be okay. The one who starts partings with "Of course we'll meet again, we're friends" (another line ripped from Pirate Isle) with pure belief. Crow's fearless nature isn't only for balancing on roller coaster tracks when he's making off with your precious thing, okay.
Now, Crow's friendly insides aren't the only thing that distinguish him from the boy heroes he emulates. Actually, it might be more accurate to say that Crow's insides, quite literally, are different from the boy heroes he emulates. Crow, despite all his human emotion, is actually not human. Well, of course. The guy makes bunny hops all over the place, has cat slit eyes, and makes falling from a Ferris Wheel look like some kind of inflatable castle bounce. While the scene of this reveal (Crow's final scene) takes place after his canon point, it's important to note that some of the things here emphasize some of his former traits. When Seto's inability to change a battery (again) means he's left to watch as Crow begins running out of power, Crow is the one to reassure the boy as he cries. There are some mentions of the uncertainty that Crow himself feels at being artificial ("I'm not even alive. I can't be your friend"). These are the only moments we see where Crow feels some form of negativity towards his situation, though Seto quickly convinces him otherwise. From there, the rest of the scene doesn't linger on Crow being scared about shutting down--Crow simply thanks Seto, once again proclaims their friendship, and urges his best friend not to cry in an almost playful kind of way. At the very end, Crow holds on to the value of his friend, and expresses his gratitude. He isn't only the rude pirate in Pirate Isle who taunts, teases and makes you cry. He is someone who really values the people he comes to care for. He's eccentric, yes, but never truly malicious. He's mischievous. He makes some social mistakes. He doesn't... really get it, sometimes, how he's supposed to act, but he goes on anyway. All in all, he's pretty human.
All of that is almost enough to forgive him for the one hour you spent chasing him in the dark! Maybe.
Abilities/Powers: As a robot, Crow has, presumably, above-average strength and durability when compared with humans. He demonstrates an impressive array of acrobatics in the few scenes he's in, leaping to high heights and cartwheeling here and there around Seto. He's suffered a high fall from a ferris wheel to the ground without a single scratch on himself, and no sign of injury. In fact, he laughs it all off and gets up almost immediately. There are various robots seen in Fragile Dreams that actually fight the player and can deal a fair amount of damage, but Crow himself is never really seen fighting. He's a bit of a slippery guy, so he's more prone to dodging than actually punching. Besides that, there isn't anything particularly remarkable about him.
It should be noted however that Crow runs on a limited power supply. He can run out of energy, and he slowly begins shutting down with his vision becoming blank at first, then his voice becoming robotic and repeated, until he finally just ceases to be. Also notable: while Crow does seem to have very genuine feelings and understanding of emotion (at least, in the way that a small child might. it's not so much other people's emotions), he can't cry, and probably doesn't require anything like eating or resting either. Besides that, there isn't anything of particular to note otherwise. He seems pretty normal human.
Items/Weapons:
1.) An old, sepia photograph of Crow and a scientist.
2.) His... interesting clothes. That thing.
3.) A copy of "Pirate Isle", though it's all wiped of writing.
Sample Entry: [ take care, those of you who are wont to half-listening when you walk around haven. you see, there's an obnoxious looking boy balancing on some debris. he's looking at a blank book in his hands like it's personally insulted him, much like his outfit is personally insulting you! those colors.
anyway, it's not like he knows that. he doesn't even notice anyone's presence, engrossed as he is in the blankest of... blank pages. ]
That's stupid. Sure, looks like it. [ rotating it 90 degrees. ] Feels like it... [ another 90. ] But there's no way it is. Seriously, what's the point of dragging me along with a couple of blank pages anyway? What a drag. Here I thought there'd at least be something to pass the time in a place like this.
[ and, with that, he's throwing that blank book riiiight in the direction of whoever's closest, unknowingly. he follows it's path with his head (which probably straight to whoever's head, really), and there's the slightest hint of some kind of emotion on his face... perhaps regret! he's hit someone, after all. ]
--Hey, you! That thing that just hit you. [ and here he's cartwheeling off of his Pride Rock™. as soon as he's finished standing on two feet, he'll be gesturing straight to the book with a finger. ] Pass it here. It's mine, you know, 'cause of that thing they say... Finders Keepers. Losers...
[ a pause. then, he simply continues, as if he hadn't just cut off at all: ]
Well, anyway, that's even if it's boring! So, come on then!
[ sure looks like he doesn't feel bad at all. ]
Sample Entry Two:
An ominous landscape. There's ruins and relics at every turn, little trinkets underneath the debris. He's good at finding those kinds of things--experience, after all--but he admits there isn't much to do with "Baked Beans" (yawn), "Spam" (he does think it looks pretty gross. it'd probably be good to put on someone's shoes), and the rest of whatever it is he digs up on any given day. Crow, without a doubt, spends "any given day" kicking at cans and idly picking things up as he scavenges, then throwing them back. There's no skull rings, nothing of note, and the only thing that ever really shines are the cans when he bothers to clean them. Which, admittedly, he doesn't.
Yeah, he knows. Haven, all safe here, yadayada. For a world that's so supposedly different from everyone else's, this one's way in line with what Crow's used to. Maybe less cats, more people, and less shiny things, but it's about the same. And it's not like he hates it, but he doesn't like it, either. For all the talk of new worlds and adventures that he heard, he'd always expected more. Pirates, of any sort? No. It was all the same stuff, basically, with a couple more things added in... but also some things taken away.
Then again... maybe not. When he really thinks about it, it's really not the same. There were people--more... humans, and more. Seto'd probably be crying like a baby right about now, he figures. All that time wandering around looking for everyone, anyone, and in the end all it took was being dragged to middle of who-knows-where. He'd be out there taking in anything he could, while Crow himself just idly watched and butt in when the interest was there. His eyes go towards their persons--things lacking in the environment could be found on people, after all it's how he met Seto--but he's made no moves yet.
Crow's thrown another can away, moving to stand on his hands and observe the closest person nearby. He's made no moves, yes, and Haven's gotten to the point where there simply wasn't anything to do, and it isn't as if he'd get anywhere close to the place he was looking for here, so...
"Hey! What're you doing over there, huh?"
... He'd simply have to make his own fun, wouldn't he?
Canon: Fragile Dreams: Farewell, Ruins of the Moon
Canon Point: After parting ways with Seto at the Lunar Hill Fun Land.
Background/History: wiki post about crow, all events in the game through seto's perspective, but he is the protagonist so that's all that's covered.
Personality:
He's the fabled chase sequence initiator. He's the one hour of frustration in a game of relative ease. He calls you a moron. He calls you a lamebrain. There's more things going on in his outfit than can even be described (he's got a kettle strapped to his waist for heaven's sake). It's for these reasons that it takes a kind heart, strong will, and endless patience to deal with first meetings that involve Crow, though the fact that the Earth in Fragile Dreams is desolate and full of anything but people probably helps. People or no people, however, Crow is the type of person who can be a bit unbearable at first -- quick to get into your face, blunt, almost unfaltering in his meanness. His first encounter with Seto, the protagonist of the story, is a collection of fancy flips and forceful questions, all with an undertone of arrogance and confidence. He taunts Seto, calling him a typical human when he states his desire to find survivors, takes Seto's sleeve and shakes his arms without asking, as if observing some kind of strange new invention, and finishes the rather one-sided aggression with a quick steal of Seto's most treasured item. What follows is a drawn-out game of Catch the Crow, filled with insults, taunts and urges to hurry up directed towards the increasingly desperate boy. Crow is without a doubt rude and uninterested in the concept of making a good first impression, showcasing an honesty both brutal and earnest. His method of play and enjoyment is akin to a playground bully, with his opponent being "so dumb you probably couldn't even catch a cold", or so he says. As Seto suffers through the quest (more like torture) that Crow sets out for him, he finds a little interesting fact about the seemingly self-assured boy through a book called "Pirate Isle".
From reading the book, Seto discovers that most of Crow's rude and jumpy speeches are near identical to the lines spoken by the rude Pirate Boy in the book. The story itself ends with a friendship struck between two children--the mean boy and the receiver of the antagonistic behaviour--implying an ending that Crow himself wants with Seto, given his emulation of the Pirate. This is realized when Seto finally catches up to Crow. After a what-would-be fatal fall from a Ferris Wheel on Crow's part that ends in nothing but tears from Seto and a proud proclamation that he's never cried before from the uninjured thief, both boys simply laugh off the day's events. The scenes after show a Crow beyond a pillaging, rude boy; he apologizes to Seto, concedes his own defeat, shares his story, and even calls Seto a friend. He demonstrates the less aggravating side of his honesty: at his core, he's a simple, (almost) carefree boy with the single purpose of finding clues to fill in the gaps in his memory. His antagonism ends here, and he seals Seto and his friendship with a kiss and a skull ring. He shrugs off Seto's surprised reaction, stating he read that friends gave each other kisses (and gifts) in books, and that if that was Seto's first kiss it only meant Crow was his best friend. To say Crow is shy or one to feel abashed over mistakes is the farthest thing from the truth, and that very event seals the deal. What happens, happens, and Crow is the person to twist things in strange, unpredictable directions. Perhaps this spontaneity roots from the literary worlds he's delved in.
Being an amnesiac with little to call his own, Crow quite obviously bases most of his behaviors on books he's read. While Crow himself is truly, in some respects, every bit the pirate in Pirate Isle in his fearlessness, energy, and straightforward nature--there are some parts of him that he simply just lifted from the book because books holds most of what he's ever known. His initial acts of antagonism are a display of caution towards people he doesn't know. He's a teenager of natural curiosity, from his picketing of other's shiny objects (a crow must crow, you know) to a determined quest to find out his own past with only a single photo as a lead. He apologizes, but he doesn't lament. He teases. He's playful to the point of annoyance sometimes, mostly in fits of boredom and impatience. He's very much a caricature of traits one might see in the hero lead of a typical schoolboy tale, which is a rather neat contrast to our actual lead Seto. Still, however, Crow should not be limited simply to that cover, for there's more to him than just that.
See, although Crow is one of rocky starts, the first meeting is most likely the hardest one. An in-game reflection recalls Crow as "fearless, mean... yet kind," which is an apt description in both traits and order. Where one might first see the fearless, mean, brash Crow who stole your insert prized possession here, there is the later loyal, friendly and kind Crow who declares, quite unabashed, that you are his friend. While he doesn't melt into a puddle of gush (his affections are communicated still through mischievous teases), his straightforward nature makes his bold statements of friendship seem wholly sincere, which they are. A friend to Crow is a friend for a long, long time. Childhood books that taught him adventures also taught him The Power of Friendship™, and like hell he's going to betray those values by not giving it 100%. He's the reassuring friend, the one who says it's gonna be okay. The one who starts partings with "Of course we'll meet again, we're friends" (another line ripped from Pirate Isle) with pure belief. Crow's fearless nature isn't only for balancing on roller coaster tracks when he's making off with your precious thing, okay.
Now, Crow's friendly insides aren't the only thing that distinguish him from the boy heroes he emulates. Actually, it might be more accurate to say that Crow's insides, quite literally, are different from the boy heroes he emulates. Crow, despite all his human emotion, is actually not human. Well, of course. The guy makes bunny hops all over the place, has cat slit eyes, and makes falling from a Ferris Wheel look like some kind of inflatable castle bounce. While the scene of this reveal (Crow's final scene) takes place after his canon point, it's important to note that some of the things here emphasize some of his former traits. When Seto's inability to change a battery (again) means he's left to watch as Crow begins running out of power, Crow is the one to reassure the boy as he cries. There are some mentions of the uncertainty that Crow himself feels at being artificial ("I'm not even alive. I can't be your friend"). These are the only moments we see where Crow feels some form of negativity towards his situation, though Seto quickly convinces him otherwise. From there, the rest of the scene doesn't linger on Crow being scared about shutting down--Crow simply thanks Seto, once again proclaims their friendship, and urges his best friend not to cry in an almost playful kind of way. At the very end, Crow holds on to the value of his friend, and expresses his gratitude. He isn't only the rude pirate in Pirate Isle who taunts, teases and makes you cry. He is someone who really values the people he comes to care for. He's eccentric, yes, but never truly malicious. He's mischievous. He makes some social mistakes. He doesn't... really get it, sometimes, how he's supposed to act, but he goes on anyway. All in all, he's pretty human.
All of that is almost enough to forgive him for the one hour you spent chasing him in the dark! Maybe.
Abilities/Powers: As a robot, Crow has, presumably, above-average strength and durability when compared with humans. He demonstrates an impressive array of acrobatics in the few scenes he's in, leaping to high heights and cartwheeling here and there around Seto. He's suffered a high fall from a ferris wheel to the ground without a single scratch on himself, and no sign of injury. In fact, he laughs it all off and gets up almost immediately. There are various robots seen in Fragile Dreams that actually fight the player and can deal a fair amount of damage, but Crow himself is never really seen fighting. He's a bit of a slippery guy, so he's more prone to dodging than actually punching. Besides that, there isn't anything particularly remarkable about him.
It should be noted however that Crow runs on a limited power supply. He can run out of energy, and he slowly begins shutting down with his vision becoming blank at first, then his voice becoming robotic and repeated, until he finally just ceases to be. Also notable: while Crow does seem to have very genuine feelings and understanding of emotion (at least, in the way that a small child might. it's not so much other people's emotions), he can't cry, and probably doesn't require anything like eating or resting either. Besides that, there isn't anything of particular to note otherwise. He seems pretty normal human.
Items/Weapons:
1.) An old, sepia photograph of Crow and a scientist.
2.) His... interesting clothes. That thing.
3.) A copy of "Pirate Isle", though it's all wiped of writing.
Sample Entry: [ take care, those of you who are wont to half-listening when you walk around haven. you see, there's an obnoxious looking boy balancing on some debris. he's looking at a blank book in his hands like it's personally insulted him, much like his outfit is personally insulting you! those colors.
anyway, it's not like he knows that. he doesn't even notice anyone's presence, engrossed as he is in the blankest of... blank pages. ]
That's stupid. Sure, looks like it. [ rotating it 90 degrees. ] Feels like it... [ another 90. ] But there's no way it is. Seriously, what's the point of dragging me along with a couple of blank pages anyway? What a drag. Here I thought there'd at least be something to pass the time in a place like this.
[ and, with that, he's throwing that blank book riiiight in the direction of whoever's closest, unknowingly. he follows it's path with his head (which probably straight to whoever's head, really), and there's the slightest hint of some kind of emotion on his face... perhaps regret! he's hit someone, after all. ]
--Hey, you! That thing that just hit you. [ and here he's cartwheeling off of his Pride Rock™. as soon as he's finished standing on two feet, he'll be gesturing straight to the book with a finger. ] Pass it here. It's mine, you know, 'cause of that thing they say... Finders Keepers. Losers...
[ a pause. then, he simply continues, as if he hadn't just cut off at all: ]
Well, anyway, that's even if it's boring! So, come on then!
[ sure looks like he doesn't feel bad at all. ]
Sample Entry Two:
An ominous landscape. There's ruins and relics at every turn, little trinkets underneath the debris. He's good at finding those kinds of things--experience, after all--but he admits there isn't much to do with "Baked Beans" (yawn), "Spam" (he does think it looks pretty gross. it'd probably be good to put on someone's shoes), and the rest of whatever it is he digs up on any given day. Crow, without a doubt, spends "any given day" kicking at cans and idly picking things up as he scavenges, then throwing them back. There's no skull rings, nothing of note, and the only thing that ever really shines are the cans when he bothers to clean them. Which, admittedly, he doesn't.
Yeah, he knows. Haven, all safe here, yadayada. For a world that's so supposedly different from everyone else's, this one's way in line with what Crow's used to. Maybe less cats, more people, and less shiny things, but it's about the same. And it's not like he hates it, but he doesn't like it, either. For all the talk of new worlds and adventures that he heard, he'd always expected more. Pirates, of any sort? No. It was all the same stuff, basically, with a couple more things added in... but also some things taken away.
Then again... maybe not. When he really thinks about it, it's really not the same. There were people--more... humans, and more. Seto'd probably be crying like a baby right about now, he figures. All that time wandering around looking for everyone, anyone, and in the end all it took was being dragged to middle of who-knows-where. He'd be out there taking in anything he could, while Crow himself just idly watched and butt in when the interest was there. His eyes go towards their persons--things lacking in the environment could be found on people, after all it's how he met Seto--but he's made no moves yet.
Crow's thrown another can away, moving to stand on his hands and observe the closest person nearby. He's made no moves, yes, and Haven's gotten to the point where there simply wasn't anything to do, and it isn't as if he'd get anywhere close to the place he was looking for here, so...
"Hey! What're you doing over there, huh?"
... He'd simply have to make his own fun, wouldn't he?