User blog comment:SomeoneYouUsedToKnow/SYUTK's V5E8 - Blake Sucks - Impressions/Recap/@comment-26397825-20171207042422/@comment-25936766-20171207230323

I've already responded regarding the Nocturnal Section and the "Thanks for the Invitation" parts, so I'll focus on the rest.

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1) I wouldn't call it an ass-pull - it doesn't actually come out of literally nowhere, and if that's what she was afraid of then Weiss's "the universe proved her right" line is at least not entirely bullshit - but it is kind of inconsistent for the reasons you mention.

Back in V1, the moment her race/terrorist past was revealed, she literally bolted out of the room like some "Abandon Thread" reaction. That's really the only time, prior to Adam beating her up, that Blake's shown anything resembling fear for real.

It was, as such, easy to see that as her "one fear", or at least "biggest fear" being her real race, or her past as a WF member, being discovered. Not specifically "her past catching up and hurting her friends".

And back in Vol.2, while it was true that Blake "tried to take on the WF alone" in a way, to the point of losing sleep and stubbornly keep the rest of the team at bay while at it, that could also reasonably be taken as Blake, well, taking it very personal given how she's practically been a member of the WF for almost her entire life, even before it turned violent.

So, thanks to Weiss not just-outright-saying that what Blake feared was her past catching up and hurting her friends, it's understandable if someone assumes that what Blake feared was "being discovered" instead, at least as a first thought.

2) Trifa...."kurdish"....no wonder it's so weird. Still cringe-worthy. Best consolation I can give is that I've heard worse names, like Sandalio (Sandal. Yes, Sandal), or Ng (Literally pronounced "N G").

As for the varicose veins.........where did you get that info? I looked up Varicose veins and all I got was, well, Varicose Veins. Nothing even slightly resembling her tattoos, or any sort of tattoo.

And even less resembling her hands that, like I said, look like she dumped them on a pile of ashes and dust.

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3) Those reasons remain the same. That much I can agree.

But the problem with the reveal is that, the way it's done undermines Ilia and gives her pettier reasons for opposing Blake that just make Ilia feel harder to take seriously.

Without the reveal, I could take Ilia as someone who experienced the more cruel sides of the Faunus Discrimination, even if she wasn't the victim. She fights for change but pacifism doesn't work, and her hate for Humans due to her backstory combined with Adam's methods actually achieving results, lead to Ilia resorting to extremism even if she doesn't love the idea.

.........But then the reveal comes, and I find it harder to take Ilia seriously because now she feels like a combination of Green-Eyed Monster and Love Makes You Dumb, someone who's jelly of Blake not showering her with love and thus is doing at least part of the things she does out of spite or resentment more than anything.