Magus don't read this post yet, I have completed Rin1 and am going to talk about that
Well, the rest of common didn’t really give me much more thoughts regarding characters. Furthermore, Rin1 didn’t really have much of an emotional payoff, although it is interesting, curious even, that both the good end and the bad end (which I read on @Karifean’s urging) end with Riki falling unconscious. However, I do have some thoughts regarding theorycrafting and what I said previously about hoping my prediction would be wrong. I’ll start with the latter.
Now at this point, I have the feeling that my initial prediction is close to the truth, partly due to Magus’ findings on potential foreshadowing for that. However I said that I was hoping I was wrong. I want to further explain why. You see, like I said, I had this thought before I even started Little Busters!. As such, to me it felt like I was lead into this train of thought by outside information and not by the novel itself, even though I know that all they said is really available from the start, minus perhaps this secret being some really big deal. (Oh, and you can’t convince me otherwise simply because there is a spoiler channel on discord for LB. That channel wouldn’t be needed if it were something that didn’t turn everything upside down, so to speak) So basically, to me it felt as though I was spoiled on Little Busters, as though I was spoiled on this supposed Magnum Opus by Key, and that by those very veterans that wanted all of us newbies to get a fresh and untainted impression.
Now to the second part, further theorizing. If we assume that this is indeed both a dream and a memory of Riki, basically one huge flashback in dreamform, then the things that I was weirded out by like Rin actually sprouting cat ears or Kud turning half-dog aren’t that big of a deal, since it is a dream in that case. Realism can take a backseat. Even the very first minigame points toward that, with Kengo and Masato overshooting and throwing Rin higher than the schoolbuilding, as normally she shouldn’t be able to survive that, or at least shouldn’t get away unscathed. Now with this assumption of a dream established, I can furthermore expect unreliabe narration, as well as some plot points that would normally be unrelated to be the reality seeping in, as we’re basically assuming that Riki is dreaming as a form of escapism or coping mechanism to traumatic event X. And this is where I’m introducing my crazy theory to you. First, two screenshots:
This group we’re hearing about, only if you’re on the path for the good end by the way, really reminded me of our Little Busters. So what if that’s our traumatic event, that Riki is pushing away here as having happened to someone else, and that Riki and Rin are actually the two students that survived? This is further supported by the opening that Magus already analyzed, as Riki and Rin were marked in a different color, therefore informing the reader that they are special.
Now, the main counterpoint to this theory is the mere existence of Kud Wafter, after all, a sequel with a different girl wouldn’t be possible if said girl is actually dead. However, that’s meta evidence, so I’m choosing to ignore it for the time being.
(Also I will edit this post to get rid of the details box once Magus has finished common and Rin1 as well)
I generally think I’m pretty good at figuring out characters, so let’s give Riki a look.
