Board Thread:Speculation House/@comment-35941743-20190304195312/@comment-39854843-20190722042437

What I've noticed is that virtually every defense that the Cinder apologists conjure up is entirely based in conjecture. First, they'll tell you that she's only evil because of her 'traumatic backstory'. Um, I hate to burst your bubble, but there's literally no evidence of anything traumatic in Cinder's past. It's equally likely that she had a pampered origin. She could basically be the female anime version of Kevin Khatchadourian for all we know (deepest apologies to everyone who didn't get that reference, but I had to use it because it's just too perfect). Then they'll tell you that the supposed trauma excuses her of her crimes. Which, of course, makes no sense when you consider the fact that people with trauma generally don't go out into the world and become serial killing terrorists. It's not an ordinary response, and more importantly it's not a socially acceptable response. If a bully at school beats you up, and you decide to escalate the situation by bringing in a gun and blowing his head off, you're the villain of that story. The bullying doesn't give you a license to kill, nor should it.

Then they'll start flipping the script and suggesting that the heroes, not Cinder, are the real antagonists, and that Cinder is just experiencing some vague PTSD-type rage associated with her tortured past (which again, is not supported by any kind of evidence). Take this, for instance:

The Devil&#039;s Advocate WP wrote: Jaune really pissed her off by striking a blow against her and so she lashed out against the person in the room able to fight at that moment that he clearly cared most about in the group to spite him.

She doesn't want to feel powerless or weak ever again and, therefore, gets extremely pissed at anyone who makes her feel that way. It isn't about enjoying killing, but getting revenge on people who injured her and made her feel powerless. Where the Cinder apologists see vulnerability and victimhood, you know what I see? I see a narcissist whose massive ego took a hit when the weakling, Jaune, landed a blow on her. And that compelled her to commit murder on a stunned opponent for the express purpose of inflicting pain on the weakling who had to audacity to scratch her ugly face while she was in the process of bombing an institution of public education.

It comes back to this concept of, 'Cinder is only acting in self defense'. Here's the thing with self defense. It has limits. For instance, you don't get to claim self defense in the following situations:

-When you're shooting up a school.

-When you're attempting to blow up a school.

-When you're ambushing a group of people with the express intention of murdering them all.

-When you're a wanted fugitive, facing crimes that include terrorism, attempted genocide, and multiple counts of murder in the first degree.

So yeah, Cinder doesn't get to claim self defense, she doesn't get to play the victim, and she sure as hell doesn't get the reprieve of a redemption arc. Not now, and not ever. Period.

I honestly just hope that she dies soon (and in a graphic, gruesome, and painful way), so that this show can move on to a more worthy antagonist (one with an actual personality, some much needed charisma, and some real character motivation). I also want it to happen so that the Cinder fanboys will finally, at long last, shut the hell up and retreat to the depths of the earth from whence they came.

And that's all I have to say for today. G'night, lads.