It's going to take a little bit more reflection (*pause for effect*) for Beauty to accept Beast for who is he, not who he was or might have been. Can't make it too easy for the pair of them.
Well, I was hoping for this honestly. Honestly feel more bad for Beast than Beauty here though.
I felt like it would have been too shallow of a reason for her to love him just because of a reflection. To truly love him and get to know him I believe more interaction and possibly investigation into each other's hearts is absolutely necessary at this point.
My patience for the next page will truly be tested.
I honestly feel bad for both of them at this point.
Poor Beauty is probably really confused and even a little scared at her feelings for Beast. The reflections could serve as proof that he truly was human, but at the same time he's her jailer and not telling her everything, and what he is telling her is a bit frightening (Beast, just dropping the fact you LITERALLY HAVE NO HEART with no context is a bit much, don't you think?)
And on the other hand Beast can only say so much, along with his own feelings on the situation and it's presumed hopeless. Context would have been nice, but he probably can't go much farther then he already has. (the reflection now only showing the Beast could perhaps be connected to his own despair? perhaps he can only be viewed as human when he's feeling love/deep adoration/positive feels??)
(the part that's breaking my heart is that earlier in this chapter he mentions how he's ashamed of parts of his past and how he's afraid it will risk what little relationship they have. and he was right)
Personally, I don't feel sorry for either of them. I'm sorry, I love this series. But Poor Communication Kills is a horrible trope to put into your work and it always feels like a cheap way to bring in drama...
So it isn't your favorite trope. Personally I think this was foreshadowed nicely and was inevitable considering that a major and vital plot point is that Beast has been well trained not to speak of the abuse he's suffered and he's only guessing at what the castle wants - and if he guesses wrong, it punishes him.
Meanwhile Beauty is only guessing at what's going on, and when she's wrong, she does not have the experience to think like an abused person so she hits on the next plausible theory which flips her already uncertain feelings into a sense of betrayal. In addition, it's been clearly shown that she's caught Beast's habit of reticience - perhaps she senses that it's dangerous to speak of certain things, but she doesn't know what or why.
Two people in a bad situation, one with a shock collar that he doesn't know when or why it will go off, the other who's just spent a lot of time trying to figure out what's going on from the wrong angle, and who has heard from childhood that evil monsters are the only people who do this sort of thing.
In conclusion, this scene serves the plot and characters, and is not included for the sake of fulfilling a trope and yanking readers around.
I hate Poor Communication Kills with a fiery vengeance when it's naked, but here it's clothed in compulsions and complications of the Beast's contract. (As Paula explains so well above). I'll admit I'm withholding judgment a bit - if I don't start seeing some good-faith attempts to communicate in the aftermath, this will be retroactively annoying too - but this comic has been pretty awesome about Beauty trying to keep the lines of communication open and the Beast responding, so I have faith that it'll continue to show characters trying (if failing) to meet. And a solid attempt at solid communication is all most of us can manage anyway.
Yeah, it's a bad trope. Particularly when deployed between two characters who have made good strides in communication. Like Kirala, I'm waiting to see how this plays out before passing judgment... We've seen this used before (the dinner table outburst) and resolved in short order, so I'm hoping this works similarly.
I could also call it The Misunderstanding, which is not a TVTropes term. It doesn't matter what you call it, it's still a pretty cheap thing to throw into your medium.
I just don't see how this sort of thing would happen. People tend to talk and communicate. Here, Beauty is jumping to conclusions (seeing Beast as someone he likely isn't, instead projecting on him) and then feels all hurt, because her premature conclusion turns out to be wrong. I can't feel sorry for her.
Beast, on the other hand, doesn't even seem to try to communicate better. Sure, he's stuck in the contract on how much he can reveal, but I don't think he has really attempted his limits that well. Again, can't feel sorry for him, because he's barely tried to do anything.
Some people have a very hard time talking and communicating, though. I am frustrated by it too, but as someone who has problems with communicating properly at times, I understand how it can happen. That in no way makes it okay, but it is plausible.
I have problems talking with people, not just because I'm an introvert, but because of other issues like autism. I still know how to tell someone, "Stop! Explain properly." because sometimes, you need more words to make something understandable.
Out of everything that breaks my heart on this page (Beauty running off, Beast's face crumpling, and his subsequent weeping in the last panel) you know what the worst thing is?
His reflection isn't a man anymore. It's the Beast.
Which makes my question on the previous page even more relevant: what was Beauty seeing when she broke down??? Did the man vanish, and is that what was the last straw?
I see the water's reflections as revealing truth, but as the onlooker wishes to see it. "But truth is truth no matter what!" some say. Eh.
There's a parable out there of two men who look at a hat. One swears it's red, the other swears it's blue. They nearly come to blows over it until it's discovered that it's only each -side- that is either red or blue. I think this lake is doing that to Beast. Beauty wants to see his humanity so she's rewarded with a vision of his humanity. Beast feels like a total monster so he only sees a monster/beast. It doesn't mean one or the other isn't true, it's just perspective and what the viewer is believing.
Lots of comments with different opinions. This page was posted less than 2 days ago! It's very interesting to see how people can react to one scene. Congratulations Megan. You created a fantastic webcomic.
Haven't you noticed the most vital point here? Now Beast's reflex shows his actual body, not his human self.
I think that it's because of his insistence that all that he was now was the Beast. When he was with Beauty, he forgot of himself, that's why she could see him as a human - his true him, the part he thought that was dead.
Beauty is right, but Beast, as many men, is though- headed (sorry guys, but most men I met in my life were like this, especially the ones in my family. The "I won't listen to you" type)
Actually, I don't think that the poor communication is misplaced at all. It seems to me that even though people can make great strides in open communication, if one has a history of bullying, shaming, betrayl,or disappointment, a person can easily misinterpret or misconstrue another's emotions or intentions. In Beauty's case she has a history in the village of being bullied and she didn't communicate that with her sisters and they in turn scolded her. We saw in the beginning panels that Beauty tends to keep her opinions to herself with her family in order to maintain peace. While this can be noble it can also be stressful and toxic. She saw in the pond reflection the results of her leaving not letting her family know her intentions.
In the instance of Beast, I don't believe that he has good communication skills when it comes to his own emotions due to his history. He can speak elegantly to describe facts; contracts of magic, what he does in the castle, how the castle works, how magic works, but his own true thoughts, nope. That often leaves him with that heart "echo" that he's clutched his chest for. Clearly, when he speaks freely it pains him.
So, when you fear shaming, or disharmony or even physical pain when being open to others, why would you try. Would that cause you confusion and just the wish to run away from the matter.( please excuse any spelling errors. I'm quickly respondin to this via phone. The text is so tiiiny!)
NOOOOO!!!
Gosh dang it Beauty! How's Beast supposed to jump back from this when you're not even giving him the chance to prove his statements aren't absolutely terrifying?!
*sigh*
Poor Beast. I bet this is really hurting him. "Heartless" or not, he's still got feelings of his own, Beauty.
I personally am now believing that he actually still does have his heart. But the contract either makes it impossible for him or others to hear it beating, or the heart itself does make sounds, but it's dulled to the point that you'd have to be very very keen of hearing to notice it. Like a bat or a dolphin. Or another animal that uses echolocation.
Eh, hearts being physically removed from chests = fairy tale trope; silenced hearts, not so much. Cursed immortality thereby is also a fairy tale trope. I'm pretty sure his heart is in fact bargained away at the moment - though like the Tin Man, he may find that one doesn't need to have a literal heart to have a figurative one. And he'll get it back after the curse.
Well, Leandra B. above broadly hinted at it, the selkie wife said it outright and I responded on the same topic, Greymuse mused about the significance, Helena exclaimed about it... I'd say no, no, you're not the only one. Though it is a very long comment thread with a lot going on.
I do wonder if the pain in his chest is from his heart trying to come back and finding its place full of thorns. If the terms were put in such a way that he could have his heart back if he broke the contract, but he wouldn't survive it.
What freaks me out, right here, is how the Beast grabs her arm. He's not doing it roughly at all, but this and his attempt to touch her face--to return them to the intimacy of before--is not okay. Beauty is clearly frightened, doesn't want to be near him, and doesn't want to be touched by him. He shouldn't be behaving like this and Beauty will probably--and should--call him out for it on the next page.
These last several pages have seen some major overhauls since the first time they were posted! Several points have been clarified and I think the pacing has improved, giving this scene the weight it deserves.
