Furina's Mental Health Deep Dive / Why Furina is the Most Important Character in Genshin Impact

[@EisSocial]

YOO THANK YOU SM FOR WATCHING!! :D join us on Twitch.tv/EisSocial for more fun AND join our discord! : discord.gg/Z6z6aJWEz6 !!! LOVE Y'ALL BIG!!!💜💜💜💜

[@infinitykiyen6270]

Correction about Queen Maria. She didn't say the quote "Let them eat cake" This quote was made by a random princess way before Maria even born. Why this became her quote? Because it's from a random princess with no origin... Historian was VERY extremely biases over Maria that even after her death rumours still created infinitely... Yeah, even after her death she still get slander... It's one of those random case of similar to our society too. With random chat massage and the people "forge" that massage saying the victims lied. Maria suffer that like way ahead of us...

[@infinitykiyen6270]

Also, Queen Maria didn't actually show off how she uses her wealth too. This is also a bias by historian... The accountant of that time even clearly shows 99% of the budget went to the military... France was crazy at war with Britain. The subject saw Maria eating in Luxury despite it being just 1% of the nation budget? They got jealous and joke about how she devours the nation's budget... No she didn't... The military commander spent them all while she's did NOT know anything. She loves house riding, arts and music. She "hates all politics and war" Due to her hates she's ignorance to war completely... This is her true down flaw because she basically give complete freedom to the military supreme military to spend money without any budget caps... She didn't know she just accidentally give unlimited budget to her military commander just because she hates war... To combat this budget crisis the treasury advisor spends ton of money an equalance to our world as "market shocks" It would give him a lot of money if it's in "peaceful era" Sucks for him cause the military commander is a warmonger... Peace never came so all his invested stocks basically lost too... He has the right idea because it WOULD be stupid to continue the war! But the commander was that stupid! He should have declared a truce in war! He's ahead of his time... If he were in our era he would be as rich as Microsoft...

[@infinitykiyen6270]

So did Maria did anything at all that ruined France? Surprisingly her only sin is she "did nothing" Because she hates war and politics... Even all the luxury claim was false...

[@Menuki]

Had to edit this in….the ppl of Fontaine may not be celebrating he because they’re dealing with the reality that they’re sea slugs. I feel like there’s going to be a quest line addressing that. Perhaps someone who wanted to be an oceanid and not human. She was archon for 500 years, but she really didn’t do much in actual resolution of the plan. In the End, Neuvillette saved their lives. Focolar is a distinctly separate entity from Furina. The Archon are separate from their human host. There’s just a lot for the public’s to sort out….not to mention reconstruction No one is who they appear in Fontaine Spoiled brat Furina Neuvillette was supposed to be this high and mighty, arrogant, classists noble Wriosthly was supposed to be some hard nosed warden….

[@CrisAngeloCabalan]

e incident

[@AstroMarz_]

Fontaine has been taking a huge fucking dive into mental health and trauma, and I’m so fucking happy for it, it’s good to be heard and talked about.

[@khilafologi1866]

True. Like the newest event quest.

[@bella_daze3092]

I agree❤❤😭😭

[@muffinman_4]

YES. first we have lyney panicking over his siblings during the 4.1 archon quest, the frem event, and along with furina, there's also neuvillette's fear of losing the people he loves (carole and vautrin, his panic over focalors) I love fontaine and i have since I knew of its existence

[@fool4343]

fontaines main quest is what made me start playing. i watched my bf playing and he often spoke about references to esoteric old religions which also sounds pretty fun! im bitter about missing her banner though :•\

[@javelinmaster2]

​@khilafologi1866 oh yh that feels truck

[@N0vaWAVE]

Furina is such a relatable character to such a big part of the fanbase. From what I’ve seen, a majority of the fanbase is still in Highschool/college and are constantly struggling through their days with tasks that don’t seem related as part of the “bigger picture”. Furina experiences something similar through her 500 year cycle. Love her to death for being so relatable

[@Blossom_6655]

as a second year uni student I get her. sometimes I wonder when my assignments would come to an end. Or there are nights I wonder if I'm even trying hard enough.

[@N0vaWAVE]

⁠​⁠​⁠@@Blossom_6655exactly! I’m so glad hoyo wrote a character that many people find relatable and may find comfort in

[@Ren7397]

@@Blossom_6655 It's the same on the other side. I'm an autistic PhD student and every time I teach a class, I have to put on this facade of a somewhat respectable university prof. And there is always more homework to check, more messeges from students to respond to... And you never feel like you're trying hard enough

[@Blossom_6655]

@@Ren7397 Ah, I wish we could all give each other a hug. And some treats and talk about our stuff. I want to get tested for adhd but don't know how.

[@atriyakoller136]

@@Ren7397 I'm not a PhD student but I started teaching after a master's degree (I specialise in English as a foreign language and theoretical linguistics to an extent, nit teaching - at first). I also suspect I might be neurodivergent, because so many experiences throughout my life seem to fit much more into the experiences of other people with autism, ADHD or both. And I cannot agree more. I used to pull off 40 academic hours of classes a week at two workplaces but had to quit both jobs because now I can barely do 10 - with all the materials ready. And I'm mentally drained. And I relate to the episode of Furina crying in public from a breakdown so much, because I remember all the times I put on a happy face, actually managed to fool myself and make myself think I was happy only to break down on public transport on the way home. And then doing all the homework checking, messages, losing nights of sleep and weekends to all of that... I just relate to Furina so much that it overwhelms me. And I finally felt understood somehow when I did the Archon quest and her story quest. This experience of "what if I'm not doing enough, I'm already doing so much I'm unable to walk 10 minutes without a break, but I should probably be doing more...or should I?". Furina actually made it like a champ

[@insertnamehere1398]

I think the line that broke me was when she begged and screamed straight from her chest "PLEASE! I AM YOUR REAL ARCHON" amber istg you put your whole SOUL into that

[@sarethdarva]

It hit even harder once we found out that she wasn’t pleading out of ego but to save her people. To fail to convince them meant all of their deaths.

[@yabrofenko]

That emotion in her voice then resonated so hard. It was tugging on my heartstrings. Poor girl 😢

[@isegeese]

bro amber did SO WELL for her voice omfg

[@Gh.stKng.]

I was literally going emotional during the trial. It hurts to watch Furina break each minute.

[@berrynmint_]

i love it when her voice cracked, makes me feel like she's real

[@Pudding404]

The archons are all suffering characters, alot has happened well before the events in the game and it shows in each of their characters in their own ways. Furina though, even if she's a clone in Focalor's image, her preserved humanity, the way it shows is real in a genuine, horrifying way. No choice but to grit and bear. No way to cope, with no one to turn to. But then after, her rekindled spirit as she goes back to a "normal". She can live her own life, have a passion. Was a wonderful performance. Tragedy can be beautiful.

[@CinnamonPumpkin644]

"Archon" or not, Furina was able to keep Fontaine on tracks for 500 years without using any power. She'd always put her nation above herself, despite any desires to give up. Even if it was a role that she was given to act as, she fulfilled her position perfectly. I feel bad bc of the way it feels like she was somehow "forgotten" by others after the archon quest. At least Neuvilette will keep looking after her, she really needs to rest after everything.

[@andrewcalebgorospe2754]

tbf she had neuvillette carry the heavier lifting in terms of operations. nevertheless she underwent mental torture for 500yrs. no one can take that away from her.

[@rainvelt6311]

(SPOILER) At the very least, not everyone forgot about her. Iirc, Chlorinde is the first person who visited her in her home, helped her unpack all her things, and even invited her to a tea party. (In her profile iirc)

[@cydzerlight1383]

Im looking forward to her story 2 or events related to fontaine!

[@Gamer-df6if]

She should still be honored as an archon. What she did isn't regular-level sacrifice, it's Archon-level sacrifice. Even Raiden Ei agrees with this; as she said, "her willpower has indeed reached the level of a god".

[@diym0618]

She was not forgotten after the archon quest in fact the npc praise her still since they know what she has done for fontaine

[@Ali-cya]

In a way, Furina revealed to many, how people, who don't understand or have never experienced mental issues, see people with them. Everyone were quick to judge Furina for how terrible and obnoxious she was without knowing how she truly was underneath and that's how people who don't understand mental illnesses feel towards such people on a daily basis, they see them as useless, weak, pathetic, obnoxious, attention-seeking, weird or dumb. Because they can't understand they judge based on how they understand themselves and what they know about themselves is that they wouldn't do what those weird people do, it's all they can know and even explaining it or showing it doesn't really reach that understanding, much like explaining a cube in 4D space doesn't exactly allow a person to understand and see what 4D space looks like.

[@carmenreeves2411]

I was like that initially too. I saw her as a brat, just meh as a character. But after all was revealed, I immediately realized she’s like me, and that like a normal person I fell for her facade. It was so well done that it was sad. I understand fully the situation and I relate to her a lot. What’s really sad and aggravating though is seeing how many posts are still made after the end of the archon quest that people still don’t understand the extent of her suffering and the trauma she went through. They still call her an obnoxious brat and a horrible excuse for an archon. Like bruh, obviously she was never the archon fully to begin with and now it’s Neuvillete who holds all the cards thanks to Focalors sacrificing herself. It’s one of the best quests in the game so far and the fact that people still mischaracterize the crap out of it makes me mad 😭😡

[@aperson6562]

Edit: Upon rereading my comment, I realize it may be insensitive and I have not been in such a situation myself so I may npt even be qualified to say such things. I will still leave my original comment just in case anyone can provide any insight into what it’s like to be in that situation While it is true that people shouldn’t judge based on what they see on the surface… alll you do see is the surface. Furina especially didn’t give any clue as to what was going on, and for a long time too. People’s tolerance has a limit too and that’s something you should keep in mind. Even Neuvillette, a person shown to be level headed throughout the entire quest got fed up with it at some point. This also highlights an important role the person facing the mental issue has. While in furina’s case, she literally couldn’t talk because of focalors plan, in real life, there will always be an opportunity to open up to someone about it. Nobody can read your mind and they’ll only know as much as you tell them, so keeping everything to yourself expecting someone to magically appear to relieve you of all your pent up emotions will not end well. And another thing, even after the quest, while I love furina now and can sympathize with what she had to go through for all those years, it doesn’t mean I suddenly like her bratty personality now. It’s important that we don’t encourage toxic behaviors that are associated with bad mental health. We can’t blame people for some attitudes they display as a result of their mental health, but that doesn’t mean we should act like their actions were good. In all, I’m not trying to attack the victim, don’t get me wrong, but I just find it weird seeing people saying those who found furina annoying at first were mean or something (not targeted at the original commenter)

[@Chancelot]

@@aperson6562we dont expect people to relieve us of our burdens. Not anymore. I, and many others, have become our burdens. An attempt to rip the mask of our faces will leave us with the misearable truth; “I have become nothing more than my mask. The skin and features that were supposed to be my face have melded into the cheap and ugly plastic i have worn all this time.” Furina is very strong. Im already dead haha

[@jelowo9877]

Very mentally ill here and I indeed never saw her as that, instead projecting on her that she was traumatized and was full of coping mechanisms. It feels hard to live in society where the people who are "functional" and "normal" often can't fathom just how vastly different it can feel inside someone else's brain. I just actually wouldn't judge any real person the way people memed on Furina

[@cupnoodles1234]

maybe it's because i played in cn, but furina to me has always been one of those burnt out college kids who's trying to keep it together but failing to. i never really got the brat jokes

[@VirgoOfHekate]

Another fun fact is that Marie Antoinette never actually said "let them eat cake". That was attributed to "an Austrian princess" and people just decided it was her, but in Reality it was recorded a few years before she was born

[@schwarzcarbuncle]

I was looking for this comment:))

[@Small_humon]

Yeah but the world likes to headcannon things

[@Chrysalid.]

Yeah! She definitely has a much worse reputation than she deserved. And France's finances were already poor, she wasn't the only noble/cause of revolution.

[@fairyd3ity967]

Thank you for that ! Really the misinformation on this subject is too much- it's really a typical arab telephone story

[@Jackson-nr2mw]

@@Chrysalid. ironically marie was one of the few nobles to do some charity work. Which definitely wasn't enough, but at least showed that she cared more than the other french nobles at the time.

[@gauravvikalp]

Bruh, Freminet’s Thelksie’s fantastical adventure is another storyline delving deep into mental health. It’s so wonderfully done!

[@Kekekekenn]

The way that event said and did so much in three short acts,... I loved it

[@amochikaay]

Well now I gotta play it! Lol

[@2triedforthis830]

No because I literally just finished that event and watched this video. (Tell me why I was crying when the mom hugged her son)

[@DumbestDumbFool]

@@2triedforthis830 for me it is because my mom passed away and it felt like the words were said by my mom.. gee, why am I crying now just writing about it haha. My love for my mother, is bigger than the distance between us..

[@atriyakoller136]

My y escapist self was like "okay, that's whenm my escapism in Genshin actually ends". But yeah, I liked how it was about mental health and also, if you finished it, there was an episode when the Traveler put on Freminet's helmet....oh boy did I cry

[@kazukimisaki2312]

My head cannon is furina's demo is her true personality when her mental is not a mess from being fried for 500 years and not have to pretend to be a pompous jerk She's energetic, loud, loving the attention but also cheerful, charismatic, funny and extroverted and also friendly and genuine with her art... she's a good person deep down there, even kinder than most genshin character I will argue, as we see her in her story quest when she helped a struggling theater troupe, for litterally nothing. No mora, no fame, she didn't even want her name to be credited or mentioned at all. Yet she forced herself to step out of her own comfort zone and to act again for their sake, not her's

[@x_12unknown10]

I suspect her story 2 will give her some recompense that allows her to have some more agency in her own life.

[@precisecalibre6986]

Roses and Muskets has all but proven your assertion to be true. And it's adorable how shy she can get when accepting adoration now.

[@daridon2483]

That's director furina for you. Such a lovable and selfless character. She's slowly regaining confidence in herself with each update, and hell* now with 4.7 she is now capable of defending herself, as when confronted with a stone golem devorator, even though she was clearly scared, she stood there and summoned her "guards" to fight back, instead of running away like she always did before when against a threat. She probably has a lot of combat potential that she hasn't yet realized, part of it coming from her one of a kind dragon vision. We must be proud for her.

[@ashleyandanime4815]

Honestly I believe that furina going onto the stage again wasn’t a boundary being ignored. But a fear being conquered, I believe that it was another step in her founding out who she really is, it helped her realize that she can be herself while acting on the stage as well

[@SandstormL]

THANK YOU, someone sees that!

[@JDP5127]

Indeed. I see it as her trying to shed Focalor, but mistakenly trying to cut out the bits of Furina that overlapped as well.

[@Unresolvedissues101]

True but paimon and traveler still are jerks tho.

[@marisstaff7019]

@@EdgeLie traveler saw what she went through, they should have already put together that she would be uncomfortable with it, and told paining to shut up when she was insensitive/ let her in on furinas baggage

[@samboi123]

It’s absolutely this. She even receives her own vision during one of the play’s scenes, in place of the prop vision Paimon had meant to give her in that scene

[@Blossom_6655]

Furina has had to put on a facade for 500 years. And that would be the equivalent of masking. She has had to shoulder a burden and could go to no one for help. when we have mental health problems we realize something is wrong but no one to turn too. She was the main lead in Foucalor's play to deceive Celestia. She could only cry on her shoulder.

[@nesbola9521]

her reinventing acting for herself was actually quite a hopeful message. like if you are traumatized by something doesn't mean you will or should just avoid it for the rest of your life. healing ang changing context of experience and going through it again without getting triggers is actually very freeing. i think biggest problem with sq is that we assume it takes place right after aq, then it works better as a follow-up quest somewhere in the future, when she actually got some room to breathe.

[@luminous3558]

Also paimon being paimon and the english dub getting terrible voice direction.

[@matakm8749]

I personally saw her story quest as overcoming her trauma. She managed to play the part of an Archon for 500 years. She was able to make a persona for herself on the spot in front of an audience during her first speech. She is truly talented when it comes to acting, which is the reason she was even able to make it so long, even through her suffering. to me, she got the vision for appearing in a performance despite her fears of what they would think of her, and rediscovering her passion and talent when it comes to different roles. now it is a bit of a rushed way to overcome such a huge event in her life, I would prefer it this arc was over two story quests (if she even gets a second story quest like all other archons, Neuvilette is more likely to get it), but i guess that's just because of constraints like Hoyo needing her to get her vision in story as soon as she's playable.

[@lolhellogod6892]

Yeah, I kinda understand it. But the rushing seriously undercuts whatever they were talking about mental illness. Especially the fact that she was revealed to be part of the play, especially when we have no idea whether the people of fountain understand what she went through. Also the absence of any visible apology from anyone, like the traveler literally exposed her to one of her major traumas. Needed or not that deserves an apology, they really fumbled her in that aspect. Like yeah it's cool to see someone dealing with this type of stuff why is the world that surrounds her garbo tho?

[@lolhellogod6892]

Just to reference the video "Its taking away her agency when the whole problem was the fact that she had no agency"

[@wilburforce8046]

@@lolhellogod6892they also still haven’t talked about how corrupt Fontaine is lol. Furina’s story and the oceanid twist doesn’t change how shitty the system is. Meropide especially is horrible concentration camp propaganda.

[@thegreenflowers3807]

@@wilburforce8046Wait can you explain what exactly you mean with „concentration camp propaganda“? Like those from the second ww?

[@wilburforce8046]

@@thegreenflowers3807 Fontaines laws are ass and send innocent people into exile essentially. Once they are down there they are away from the law and are at the mercy of those who control it. Good thing wrio is nice right. Just like the commercials Germany used to advertise their camps lol. But anyway the actually fucked part is the idea that people who spend time there don’t want to leave afterwards. That the time they spent there was actually meaningful and fun, and that carrying out a full sentence is just whatever for the traveler. Why we even stay there after our mission is complete is utterly stupid. Why a kid can even be there PERIOD like in caterpillar’s quest is nonsensical at best. Basically Hoyo’s writing a CC like environment to be just kind of…neat and healthy. A place people want to stay in cause “it’s not that bad”. China btw has real CC’s. The FoM could have very well been a generic evil prison and it has all the telltale signs of one, but with this weird hoyo seal of approval on it constantly screaming “it’s not that bad bro”.

[@RI.KA_17]

Even before act 5 I knew that there was something more to Furina, that the egotistical and confident attitude she had was a mask she was putting on for her people. I obviously didn’t the full extent of why she was acting this way until later, but even then it bothered me that so many people seemed to take her at face value and write her off as annoying. This archon quest was amazing and I’m glad so many people now appreciate Furina and her character

[@atriyakoller136]

I was like "she's annoying and her behaviour is annoying, but she's actually interesting and I wonder why", instead of just writing her off. Maybe the first time I saw her I did, but then I was like "wait a minute" all the time haha. And in act 5 I realised that she was the most relatable character for me in the entirety of the game. Pulled her and even fished for the pipe sword. She's in my top 3 archons now, that's for sure. I was pretty neutral at first but as soon as I did the quests and everything I almost fell in love 😂😂😂

[@Bunn77]

It was painfully obvious she was just acting and I knew that once the new archon quest dropped people would do a 180° and be like, "omg she's actually amazing!" It was predictable honestly.

[@gergyta9211]

same, actually right before the trial i made a theory that the archon part of her was trapped somehow, so i wasnt completely off course 🤣

[@illmentaly]

I wouldn't say shes the most important lore wise but shes differently the best written character till now.

[@Autchoiiy]

And we still have natlan and snezhnaya imagine how much more “impact” they would do (see what I did there)

[@amochikaay]

I don’t think they mean most important character lore wise, I think they’re saying most important character mental health representation wise

[@illmentaly]

@@Autchoiiy lol

[@illmentaly]

@@amochikaay true.

[@arendaria]

Actually she might be among the most important lore-wise. Focalors (and the Hydro archon before her) accomplished something huge with Furina's help. She rebelled against Celestia completely. Not only did she create her own people without their approval, but she tricked Celestia and saved them from being reverted back to their original form. AND even more than that, she completely destroyed the throne of the Hydro Archon forever and gave their stolen power back to the Hydro dragon. This is HUGE. There has to be some sort of repercussion for it when they realize what she's done. It also shows something very important, Celestia can be tricked and defeated. Keep in mind how they absolutely destroyed Khaenri'ah, an extremely advanced powerful nation from what we can tell. She did the forbidden and then won against them at their own game. Even though most of the other Archons have shrugged off their connection with Celestia, this is the first time we've seen someone crack through their system. She might actually be one of the most important characters in the game.

[@jj6148]

I saw some people not understand why what she went through was a painful experience, and I realized that some people either don't know what it's like to have to wear a mask or they have one so deep on themselves, they're desensitized to it.

[@corporalregicide5248]

it's not even that she just has to wear a mask she has to wear a mask and NEVER let it slip, not even once, not even a second or everyone she knows will die

[@shrek069]

well thats me i still dont get why everyone is dramatizing her.. wouldnt pretending to be so proud and 'selfish' just raise your ego? when i brag about accomplishing something to my friends i feel rather proud and confident than depressed??? idk like im imagining myself in that situation when im just a normal person like her and i think id rather try to blend in the role to accomplish it well? i get the whole mask thing of course. but its 500 years. come on. after maybe 100 years she shouldve at least realised its not gonna be short and try to live fully into it than just letting it settle as just a public mask because surely itll end soon... hope no one finds this hateful but rather really REALLY confused

[@ultradeduct]

genuine answer! a lot of it has to do with masking, and the realness of her bravado. furina's "selfish" behaviors were constructed to make her seem elevated in a god-like way, even though other archons aren't so stuffy (which makes sense because she's just a human and was going off her idea as a human of what a god (someone w power above her understanding)) would and "should" act like. that was just the core of her façade, and actually only remained because the people (with probably a similar idea of how gods ought to be) jeered her for being humble and optimistic at first in her speech, so she was led to believe that was what they wanted out of her. it was never for her, unfortunately, and most importantly it was disingenuous. furina doesn't think that highly of herself, and even now the moments she has of perceived ego are likely remnants from trying to let go of the act considering when faced with recognition during fontanalia she was against being in the photo or being acknowledged in any particular way outside a group of people who already knew what she went through. a lot of furina's actions are consistent with the consequences of long-term masking, and i say that as an autistic person who masked for well over a decade, and saw what it did to my mind. it causes you to not know who you are anymore if your real self never gets let out, and you begin to wonder what parts of you are real or constructed. because furina went through this for 500 years, the general thought about her suffering is taking those side effects and multiplying them times fifty. i personally can't imagine the mental damage after seeing what just a decade did to my ability to perceive myself. she suffered because it wasn't real, and she was forcing herself to become someone she wasn't while watching her real self and any purpose outside focalors' plan she may have ever found were she freed earlier slip through her fingers. furina's life was never her own from the moment she was formed by focalors, and she watched in real time as she became nothing but a cog in the machine, any personal hopes or dreams or desire for interpersonal connection squashed by the weight of doom. it's hard to gauge how messed up her mind must be after all that, and it sounds like hell to me having masked for a long time. i hope this makes sense and clears our perspective up!

[@KaagKagamine5]

I'd like to say something about her story quest, it's unfortunate the weird translation/voice direction hurt the story about her. In her demo Furina is presented as Fontaine's most beloved actress, her updated drip marketing paints her as this great figure people continued adoring long after her passing, a one of a kind talent. And she loves the opera, she lives for it even. Her story is one about staying away from an activity she loves, it's her learning that yes, being the spotlight hurts her but there's a way for her to still partake in it not as the actor, but as the director. At the end of the archon quest she leaves the opera believing her greatest play had failed, thinking that her people hate her, that people like Neuvillette look down on her for her faults. But her story quest through the little oceanid play teaches her that her love is corresponded, like traveler said there are people that are willing to share her burden and they don't care if doing so would doom their nation. She takes the spotlight in the end not because of duty but because of love, she loves her people and wants their stories to be known if she sometimes has to be the actor then so be it, that story is being completed no matter what. And she still struggles, she doesn't feel worthy of recognition but she's still given it. Both in the form of the troupe thanking her for her directing and Neuvillette giving her a vision as a reward for her hard work, to remind her that her 500 years of suffering are being acknowledged, that her people are grateful for all she did. Opera is something that makes her happy, that's the one fact about Furina all fontanians and traveler know well, with the story quest she learns whether she was to return to the opera as an actor or director she'll still be loved

[@leserb9228]

I am glad someone though about it in a similar way i did! Most opinions i saw was "She HAD to do it, It was her Duty to go on stage again!"

[@KaagKagamine5]

I hope that in her second SQ she gets a bigger apartment or tells us about more dishes she's been learning to cook 🥺

[@leserb9228]

@@KaagKagamine5 same, she deserves it all

[@havilar3095]

@@KaagKagamine5 she can now cook spaghetti

[@acorn861]

one correction, nuevellette didnt give her a vision, archons dont give visions, dunno how this is still a misconception, it was debunked in the main quest literally 2 years ago in inazuma

[@malvoleus]

The introduction to Furina left me cold & determined not to waste my wishes, I didn't care how strong she was as her character grated so much, but after the 4.2 Archon quest... Basically that was me 12 years ago, after masking for 30 years (totally unaware that I was) it was torn away & I crashed & have been rebuilding ever since. Needless to say, guess who has a level 90 Furina roaming my little slice of Teyvat.

[@fl00fydragon]

I have never before resonated with a video game character as much as with Furina. I struggle with gender dysphoria and unfortunately I have not been able to transition in the timeframe I'd like. This resulted in me having to slog through university and putting up a mask for years. It's no surprise that this resulted in chronic depression and anxiety. I have literally experienced the scene where Furina had to smile as she cried firsthand. She is an incredible character and the writers have done an extreme service to people who struggle everywhere in silence by showing out in the open how it feels.

[@usuariohonestocualquiera4]

Trans guy here, that's exactly my experience with Furina too. She resonated so much with me, I loved her since 4.0 till her story quest. My favorite character of all time

[@sundalosketch4769]

21:06 I can understand the confusion and the easy to misunderstand part with her storyquest here, but I think I could give a different perspective on what Hoyo was trying to tell with this arc of Furina's 'rebirth'. I'm an artist, I love to create, I love to imagine and write stories and consume stories etc. But when it becomes taxing it can feel like the most awful thing in the world and I would wish to never have to draw again; I'd would go into long periods of either burnout, procrastination or hiatus from all of it. It's during those times I feel closest to my lowest points, because I still love to make art, I just hate it during those stressful times when it's for someone else, when it's on a deadline or just not 100% how I want it to be. It's as Neuvillette says in her story quest and Furina in her Vision voiceline. She always loved to act and perform and be on stage, she just hated it when she was not performing as herself. The play she put on for 500 years was a front both on and off stage, she had to act non-stop towards a deadline that seemed to stretch forever with no end in sight. The one time she gets her break from all of it, she goes into hiatus mode; pulling herself away from it because internally, she might've feared it would drag her back to a role mirroring what she lived through already, had she went to start a show again. This kind of experience also happens with real performers who suffer through abusive environments related to their craft, like Opera; (shout out to MarcoMeatball he describes this better than I could.) people whose passions are their job can still fall into bad experiences that would make them believe they want nothing to do with what they once loved. It's not until that spark is reignited by something that somebody can realize and relax, that they can still do what they love and consume what they love so long as they're careful not to allow themselves to be dragged back into toxic environments/experiences again. This is another reason I resonate with her story quest, despite knowing where the plot was going ahead of time and the few insensitive moments in it.

[@sundalosketch4769]

Had I watched a lil longer I would've noticed you p much said my points already lmao sorry, ik it seems like a very "but still, why tho?" moment I relate heavily to it as a creative who makes being creative my whole being for all my life since it's what im good at and rolled with since forever so- It seemed very fitting to latch onto it considering the circumstances.

[@artsysparks]

once again i find you in youtube comments lmao XD

[@sundalosketch4769]

@@artsysparks Gasp a wild encounter! *cue pokemon battle theme*

[@artsysparks]

@@sundalosketch4769lmaoooooo

[@wathonsmt]

i loved her girlfailureness so much when i first started the archon quest. but her story is genuinely so sad and so unimaginably painful, and lonely and i found myself drawing parallels to mental health isssues too. thank you so much for the vid e!

[@PrinceOfKings55]

I always enjoyed Furina. Characters like her, Yoimiya, and Hu Tao always strike me as characters that have a deeper and more complex side to them, where it's implied for the two latter I'm glad they really went in with Furina, it shoot her up to one of my favourite characters.

[@troddenleper8915]

Just think of how the hilichurls felt. Furina was a human burdened with nigh immortality. Her torment lasting for 500 years. This gives us a glimpse of hilichurls' torment.

[@PatriciaKerri]

weren't the hilichurls the lucky ones who had their minds sealed away when their bodies were cursed? it's the pure-blooded khaenriahns that are most similar to her

[@hana_anah9036]

​@@PatriciaKerriI wonder if Dain will talk about Furina the next time we see him. If he does, I wonder if he'll respect her for playing the acting part

[@fancymustache3793]

Furina does love to act and for the record after like the first couple of minutes literaly nobody tried forcing her onto the stage. She made that decision herself and for AGAIN the record that was the last time she would be going on stage to act. These days shes an advisor for operas like she originally was for the majority of the story quest. She only decided to substitute for the final part because she really wanted the troupe's opera to be amazing in their last performance. Besides that everybody on fontaine except those that were at the scene dont know what furina went through at all not an inkling of understanding had been made for the public (possibly to avoid celestia being like "Nope didnt count" and throw another disaster at them) so she could have seen this as a way of telling the people her suffering and the sacrifice she had made to save them. She got her vision because not only did she sacrifice herself for the troupe she had been helping for their last performance, she had sacrificed herself for the entirety of fontaine. Her justice/moral code is the theme of self sacrifice. The sacrifice of the few for the betterment of the many. Nuevilette was also the one who had granted her the vision because well she fucking deserved it and hes a chad like that. After that sacrifice of the boundries she had set for herself she went back to respecting those same boundries and now is simply an advisor for operas never to act again.

[@gala5277]

a little headcanon of mine: Furina is diabetic. In her demo as she is sitting on the scene she says "Blood sugar replanished" which meant she had lower blood sureg some time ago most likely duo to rehearses. I just think its really adorable small deatail

[@yuval7721]

catradora pfp spotted omg :D

[@Haferkoko]

I'm so glad others are noticing the insensitivity and f*ck up in her story quest writing on breaking her boundaries she so clearly set multiple times.

[@spiderdude2099]

Not even noticing you’re crying is a sign of EXTREME emotional trauma. To be so sad for so long it becomes commonplace is really really bad…

[@anxia-tea5846]

furina is such a good example of masking your mental health and how far it can go

[@SalaD__FrienD]

I interpreted that in Furina's quest she gets her vision as a final goodbye to acting as someone else, and is ready to move on to what she likes, the quest doesn't specifically says she will keep acting and such, it leaves it open, who knows maybe next time she will have her own restaurant as a chef :)

[@massivenut3282]

She literally expresses that she wants to return to to the stage at the end of the quest.

[@entropy8634]

@@massivenut3282 As a form of self-expression rather than suppression

[@daridon2483]

Turns out she did stay in the perfoming arts, but now as a director instead of an actress

[@MiloRaglan]

As a Navy Vet who has been struggling with PTSD on top of my autism, I hated Furina at first. But as she started to stutter and struggle I started to see something in her. After 4.2 she become my favorite character in the game, if not currently my favorite character in all media. There was something about her story that even now makes it hard not to tear up every single time I think about it. After listening to your metaphor analysis, it really struck me. Even if her character is not indented to directly represent a certain mental illness, like you said, it no doubt does represent certain aspects of mental illness well. I can't watch her sitting on her bed at the end of the day without shaking. But then on the flip side, seeing her smug, happy smile during her burst animation gives me a kind of joy I can not describe. I want her to be truly, genuinely, happy. Like I want to be. The only thing I will say about her vision... I was a photographer in the Navy. I was not one before I joined, but I grew to love photography. Unfortunately the stress of doing it under pressure and documentation of certain events ruined it for me. It was three years out that I first picked up a camera again, the idea of taking photos again terrified me. It wasn't until my company needed a photographer for an event and provided the camera that I stepped up and am now regularly looking for a good deal on a DSLR. She could very well love performing and only be shielding herself from it due to negative associations. Do I think her being pushed into is good? No. But they have a narrative they need to move along, and I think this was their way of showing that is was in fact a passion she had, or grew to have, as Furina the human. Something like that, an self-defining activity that was thrust upon you, can feel like a cage, but it can also become a home. Both abusive and welcoming. Its... complicated. But I will tell you, when I took those pictures of the event for my company, I immediately told everyone in my family and any friend that would listen. I felt like I had earned a vision. I could go on forever about this, but at that point I should probably just make my own video. But great video, first of yours I have seen but I am already digging through your channel for more.

[@dexterkronos]

I believe her vision was more granted over her wish to listen and aid people in telling their stories. ("But from now on, I want to spend my time learning real stories about real people, and how they touch the lives of others around them. | I want to watch them blossom and wither, see them refined on the page, retold on the stage, and remembered long into the future") [Source: Her story quest, near the absolute end] So her vision seems to be granted by that desire, not by stepping on the stage into acting again. The lead couldnt perform, their tale was about to go unheard, and she couldn’t let that happen. It is the perfect ambition, the perfect wish. I'm so glad to share this desire with her.

[@slimely9758]

furina and nahida are definitely two of the most important characters and gods. furina literally sacrificed her life to save everyone, and nahida took care of her citizens despite being treated so terribly. she even took care of the children while being kept in a prison. I love them both sm

[@exo_eve7575]

The way i feel about how she got her vision is i think it was implied that she did love the stage but was scared of how the public would act if she went back alongside how she felt about acting as the archonfor those 500 yrs. Her one love during those centuries was those plays and musicals , her hobby voiceline is about musicals. so she deserves to have that passion rekindled. Also i took her quest and demo as her transitioning from an actor on the stage to the director of her own play that is her life ( and maybe actual plays too).

[@MrTripleM3]

I personally wanted Furina's personal story to end on her choosing to be a director. So I am very happy that the most recent event did this. Having her be a actress again feels wrong.

[@thomasraines1396]

Her story quest ends with her reaching the conclusion that she wants to be involved in the stage again but not from an acting perspective.

[@ducksummoner980]

Furina has, by far, my favourite character development we've seen from the playable characters. To see her mask slowly fall apart during each act of the Archon Quest was genuinely heartbreaking. Her hopelessness, helplessness, and 500 years of mental anguish was incredibly well-portrayed.

[@Deiwulf]

Meanwhile peeps irl actually living alone their whole life for whatever reasons, acting so they don't disappoint or make parents worry and keeping absolute minimum connection so nothing ever slips up: big deal.

[@MiyaoMeow588]

An aspect of Furina receiving her vision some people overlook is the fact that Neuvillete is the one giving out Hydro Visions now. And him giving her a vision is far more meaningful than if it weren't. Because him giving her a vision is an acknowledgement of her indomitable spirit, admiration of her character, and respect that she is willing to pick up the pieces and move on. It's not out of any kind of pity. He's known her for 500 years. Which is something I've noticed that the Fandom is missing the point on. Infantalizing Furina, and treating her like she's just a victim to be coddled, is a disgrace to her and her efforts. That's why I appreciate her story Quest. Because it doesn't do that. Acting may be related to Furina's trauma, but it's also the thing that she can most take pride in, the quality she likes most about herself. If it wasn't for her acting, Fontaine wouldn't be standing. So seeing her with people that likewise value that quality, and giving her a chance to act on her own terms, as opposed to her being forced to, is a great way to showcase her emotional growth. Besides which, the Traveler and Paimon really aren't that pushy when it comes to getting her to join the troupe. They ask her twice to join, and then they ask her if she knows anyone else. Once she puts her foot down, they give up and drop the issue completely. Afterwards, Furina, completely of her own volition, follows them back. (And I dont understand the beef with Paimon. As is usual, most of Paimon's supposed maliciousness is just her having not much of a filter or messy attempts to lighten the mood) Besides which, many people in Fontaine still have a lot of respect for her as a celebrity (which really isn't any different from how they've always seen her)

[@cobblegen1204]

Aren’t visions given out directly by Celestia? In the Inazuma archon quest, Raiden had no idea that electro visions stopped appearing in Teyvat, which implies that she was not the one giving them out.

[@MiyaoMeow588]

​@cobblegen1204 Neuvilette's Vision story confirms that visions do come from Archons, it's just not something they're consciously doing. It's more of an automatic process

[@cobblegen1204]

@@MiyaoMeow588 If it's not being done consciously, can you really meaningfully say that they're giving them out? It still sounds like a principle beyond the control of archons even if it is connected to them. Since the office of archon is transferrable and possible to destroy, as we see in the archon quest, it seems reasonable to conclude that celestial influence is more important than the individual will of the archons.

[@arendaria]

I felt the same about her story quest. The way they kept not taking her boundary seriously didn't sit well with me. I think it would have been better if they'd simply respected it from the start and then Furina came to her own realization about her love for theater in her own time. I get that's what they were trying to convey, that realization that she did genuinely enjoy theater was significant because it meant she was starting to find her true interests. But I also agree, I wish it hadn't been tied in with something that had been traumatic for her. I feel like that realization should probably have taken years of healing first rather than a few weeks or however long the story quest was meant to last. Baking definitely would have been a better alternative, and still fitting for her character.

[@winterdragon2004]

Personally I saw it as something different. Sometimes when you reach those depressive lows, it can feel like your trapped, that your stuck in your limited mindspace. You know you cant stay like this but you cant bring yourself to take any steps towards getting out of it. In times like these, sometimes the best thing is to have a support figure to drag you kicking and screaming where you yourself are too scared to go. Furina loves acting and theater, but in her current headspace she would have never rediscovered that passion without some situation forcing her hand. Respecting boundaries are important, but if you leave them to handle things alone, nothing will change.

[@olgayafei]

Furina is such a relatable character, i feel so much like her but not in the masking my sadness and having this big happy personality while masking, for me its the opposite, masking this big energetic personality and covering it up with a quiet one, i love her so much ajhgdhjkjhbhedfggdk

[@TheBillsWereTooHigh]

I have anxiety and depression so most of Furina's persona is relatable to me. Sure, I'm not a ruler (I'm quite unpopular to be fair) but I feel pressured all the time to say the perfect thing to the point I always end up planning several answers in my head whenever I get asked anything and then I have to question if they'll react negatively to it or not so in the end by the time I'm done overthinking everyone has long since moved on from said subject.

[@hamakazeKC]

I love Furina, she is such a real character. She is, in my opinion, the best character they have ever written and as a result she is the only 5 star I have ever pulled constellations for and gotten her signature weapon. Also I don't think I ever wanted to knock Pimon out of the sky more in my entire time playing Genshin Impact than during Furina's story quest.

[@CarlosAnglada]

Paimon was utterly detestable

[@lcs.1094]

there might be a crucial mistake in 21:50 , what troubles Furina is not ACTING itself being good or bad, but the freedom to CHOOSE when to act and how to act. This has been made clear in her personal story and the 4.3 filming event (sparkle in hsr had similar discussion but shallower) Through the la vaugelette quest she realized what it means to act for most people, they have story to record and ideas to express, and that's artistic freedom most people struggling their whole life to find. Furina chose to become a film director later on for that reason, she wants to use her own experiences to help those people finding their freedom, and in the process, also find her own. La vaugelette is a key moment that shaped furina to become the furina we know today, she finally became the "human" focalours hope for, with freedom of choice and socialize in the human culture. Otherwise she will simply be a tired veteran constantly escaping PTSD, and that is not freedom.

[@yuki2320]

It's official: Furina is now one of Hoyoverse's well-written characters, alongside Kiana Kaslana from Honkai.

[@pigking7879]

Am I the one who love Furina from the start? I am a theatre kid I LOVE her spectacle, her ego, her "performance", her everything!

[@SIVINGGKBP114]

Tbh I wasn't focusing on the entire vid I was memorised by that body pillow❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@yoimiya5630]

As someone who has suffered with severe depression, I relate to Furina on such a deep level. Her backstory is genuinely heartbreaking, and seeing not only in game characters, but also some members of the fandom STILL ridicule her makes me upset

[@jasonkelic1202]

This is why I say Furina deserves all the hugs and kisses in the world because she's the embodiment of "damned if I do damned if I don't" like just the struggle of wanting to talk to someone but knowing if it'd be okay. I have severe depression so seeing Furina go through that loneliness. To feel so alone that you could scream but no one would hear you and not being able to talk to anyone. It sucks and it can be really damaging and learning to undo that much mental agony would take it's toll on anyone.

[@danganronper6278]

It would be so easy to 'fix' Furina's quest: "The teather dude asks if Furina could perform, Traveler says they'll try but it's most likely she'll refuse. Furina refuses and they understand, once they return the actress notices Furina sticking her head behind the balcony, she admits she's worried about the trupe and once she hears the director's story, decides to help them." Done!

[@danganronper6278]

And in the end, she gains her vision because she performs how she truly feels

[@giantgrog]

I'm sure there are people who relate to Furina apart from myself. As an autistic, for years I'd pretended to be someone I wasn’t, a "normal" person, and ultimately, the mask stuck to me, making me more and more miserable. Pretending to be someone you're not is painful. My actions were never altrustic, and I hurt many people by pushing them away. It was solely for others not to see how lonely and hurt I was. However, Furina's lore might apply to the bigger issue, and all people mask themselves to some extent. Most of us are unaccepting, we mock those who don't fit it to feel better about ourselves. And because we want to be a part of a group, we hide in plain sight.

[@ryz_vik]

Furina is now added to my roster of "literally me" characters. I drive. I'm interlinked. I'm batman. I'm Napoleon. And most recently, I'm a schizophrenic, traumatized short lady with a double personality.

[@SSJKamui]

On topic of boundary setting.. I struggle with mental illness and I see it both ways. There are some boundaries which got crossed , but this was better for me. Some of my boundaries in the past were extremely stupid. (For example "When I was at a certain street in my neighbor town, I learned my mom got cancer. I will never visit that street again".) On other times, my boundaries got crossed which really just did harm to me. In the story, I think it was rather harmless. Furina was not forced or bullied into stuff she refused to do. But people negotiated with her. And I think, yes. there is a freedom to say no. But there is always also a freedom to ask.

[@miniaphroditeart_]

this video hit me so incredibly hard, i feel like i’ve been hit by a truck. hearing that you, someone i idolise, goes through the same kind of shit that i do makes me feel so much more.. normal, i guess? you’re an awesome creator ily

[@sumsumplays]

nahida is a fantastic comparison, they both went through extremely similar things to a extent as they both was isolated to a extent in one way or another. BUT nahida had escapism in dreams ect i love how it seems that they’re almost like parallels to eachother and different coping mechanisms. They both had a element of imposters syndrome but nahida felt sad about that while furina took over and made her insecurities and used it to fuel her act.

[@andralupu5014]

The fact that you can make so many history comparisons is SO respectable

[@angelprinz]

A thing that hit hard for me was when the knave told paimon and traveler to eat cake because they've worked so hard while leaving furina out of it, and tbh If I would've been furina i would've cried on the spot, I've been in that situation before and it's not fun. Some people forget that while others have an easier time doing things, while others don't. While people were making fun of furina after getting roasted by the knave she just sat there the same way I did when I get insulted or yelled at for being lazy or having a lack of response in certain situations.

[@strawberygamer6503]

Exactly, and I'm desperate for what the Knave now thinks of Furina after it all went down

[@yigitylmaz3609]

It was a nice video, however for 19:57 she said in one of her voice-overs that complicated dishes reminds her the dishes she ate as an "archon" so we can say that macaroni is her comfort food. Also her excuse for eating macaroni everyday is not that bad because she uses different sauces everytime made me chuckle because this exact same excuse is also used by lot of university students who can't cook in my country, don't know for other countries though. 20:46 also can be seen as her "challenging against trauma" moment, rather than just a forcing act. Well, if we look at from mental illness glasses we know that sometimes people with mental problems or traumas needs to overcome their problems. And no, nobody forced her to do anything. Traveler, paimon and neuvillette just suggested her to get out of her comfort zone a bit since it was *months after* the archon quest lore-wise. So her joining the performance can be seen as her overcoming her trauma of those 500 years and fears about the people hating her for not being an archon(trust me, I looked at every single npc after the performance and not a single one said anything negative about her, even the melusine at the opera building's door says that she wants furina to come there often). Basically her vision was given for her courage and compassion for both theatre/opera and her people.

[@thomasraines1396]

Exactly I saw her quest as her realizing that she can’t stay cooped up forever and that she still has that passion for the stage life, it’s just not for acting anymore but rather directing. But one thing I’ve noticed is the Genshin fandom has a tendency to do is look at things from a purely emotional perspective. Take for example what happened when Lyney confronted Wriothesley, people absolutely despise The Duke and fawn over Lyney and his siblings.

[@ryu.shk4]

Tbh, that might be really headcannon-ic? ig? however, I tried to grasp why the scene with Furina receiving a vision doesn’t hurt me as much, as a description of her finally doing something different, only to been put back and applauded, despite how truly painful it was, should’ve. And that answer for me is interpreting the scene more emotionally, than metaphorically. I want to think that the vision, she was given is not “okay, continue that” but more of a “thank you. It was only you who was able to do it”. Having in mind that it is Neuvilette who gives her the vision, and in the story quest he seems understanding of her situation, I hope it was what they were going for. She deserved this vision EVEN before all of this, but her efforts were left unnoticed. So this one thematical return to the theatre is sending her back to the times she did it every day. She did act, and she acted good. She doesn’t have to anymore - she proved everything

[@hydroarchonfaker]

As an autistic woman who's chronically I'll seeing Furina made me sob. I absolutely adore her. The was she stims, masks, even after ending her time as the hydro archon around others she's still masking. You can see that true self when her voice is softer and calmer. I loved her from day one. Early on I saw myself in Furina, and every update proved that more for me. I love her so much.

[@figloalds]

I love Furina's character so much, she's my new favorite character in the game and probably will always be

[@adricsoti3719]

i adored Furina from the beggining,,and she turned out to be like me i love her so much, this was a great video

[@cardnacn6704]

Other than the mental illness and the mirror of Marie Antoinette representation, I think Furina also represent the struggle of creators. Furina suffering from acting for 500 years can also represent the exhaustion many entertainment creators (like musicians, movie directors, artists or even youtubers) experience through out their career. Yes, she loves acting but having to do that thing with little to rest is suffering. It can cause physical and mental damage on you. The example that I can think of is Eiichiro Oda, the author of One Piece manga, he has been writing One Piece since 1997. He releases his manga chapter weekly and his daily schedule before 2013 is 21 hours of work + 4 hours of sleep with short break for eating and toilet. This caused physical toll on his body that he got hospitalized a few times. Despite some insensitive dialogues and how pushy it seems, I see her SQ as the way to 1. Regain her love as a stage performer. 2. Break from her lockdown and see the world in the POV she never seen before. 3. Finally have someone to talk and let everything that had been inside her out. 4. Not become a hikikomori. Another thing that I noticed about her SQ is the timing between you finish Act V and starting her SQ can affect how you view this SQ. 1. If you play her SQ immediately or a few days after act V or you make a headcanon that this would within a few days act V, It would make Traveler and Paimon looks very bad bc she didn't have much time to rest and they drag her into the spotlight again. 2. If you play her SQ a few weeks after act V or you make a headcanon that this would many weeks or at least a month after act V, It would look better bc she has been shut-in for a while. She needs to touch some grass. Still, this doesn't excuse Paimon's insensitiveness in some dialogues.

[@thomasraines1396]

From what I’ve heard apparently that’s a fault of the English dub where Paimon comes off as more bitchy. I always saw it like that: Furina was basically becoming a shut in and needed that “push” to get her to go out again and it ultimately worked out as she realized she wanted to travel and even wanted to be involved in the stage but in a more backseat approach in the form of directing.

[@honestlyboringperson]

What is most disturbing for me, is that Furina uses the Teen Model. This implies that Furina started this act when she was the age that someone would be hanging out with their friends, going to high school, and tests being their highest worries. She on the other hand, was stuck in a body that didn’t fit her age for 500 years and put up a grandiose act for all of Fontaine to see. To witness again and again, trials with possibly very gruesome crimes.

[@PedroHenrique-fz3jc]

About her story quest, I think it's nice but personally I would prefer if she found a purpose and got her vision in the position of directing plays instead. Think about it, she put such a harsh boundary on herself because of the trauma, but by doing so she also gave up something that she seem to actually enjoy - acting in musicals that have a beggining and an end to it. Acting (besides the role in the Focalors plan) is something she chose to do with the little agency she had at the time. She wasn't required to do that to be an archon. Her coming back as director of a troupe, not being the center of attention but instead being the main person behind the scenes directing the actors and story, would be a perfect way for her to find purpose again in what she loved to do without actually breaking the boundary she set for herself. And wouldn't feel like her agency got taken away, but rather she found a purpose for herself

[@unlimited_void]

I think furina getting her vision while acting is a good decision, tbh. The troupe's story of losing their director to the serial disappearances case touched furina's heart so much that she was willing to overstep her boundary she had previously set. On top of that, the story of the little oceanid musical parallels furina's own story (sacrificing herself for the good of the people) and that likely resonated with her which further impacted her decision. After she got her vision, she made the decision that although she didn't want to be on stage anymore, she would still want to help direct performances, similar to what Focalors did, but this time it would be to help others tell their stories and pursue their dreams. I think furina playing the lead role in the little oceanid was her "reclaiming" acting from her trauma, as her vision character story says her heart was "filled once again" by the performance. Since visions are "gifts" to people with powerful ambitions or desires, I think this moment fulfilled that criteria very well, and it symbolizes Furina overcoming that aspect of her past and pursuing her passion despite all the pain associated with it that she went through in the past.

[@Irshadan]

Just a little thing about Marie-Antoinette, speaking as a french who heavily reseached French Revolution in my studies, she wasn't sentenced to death for being out of touch but for pleading to her family (the rulers of the Austrian Empire) to send troups to France in order to crush the revolution (her letters were found and intercepted), although the royal couple had sworn to be on the side of the nation against external foes. So she was tried and sentenced to death for betrayal, and nothing else. That said, it's true that she was the victim of a huge smear campaign, both from revolutionaries, who criticized her opulent lifestyle and her links to foreign dynasties, and from conservative royalists, who blamed her influence for the faults and bad decisions of her husband. As often in history, things are not black or white. Marie-Antoinette certainly was not the malicious and luxurious queen that was depicted for a long time, nor was she just a sweet and naive girl as she is nowadays presented. But she was a woman, in a relative position of power, in a troubled time who tried to make the best decisions for herself. Unfortunatly for her, these decisions cost her dearly.

[@Ume_Plum_Candy]

I was looking for this comment! Marie was much more fitting as a ruler than her husband since she was the one who was planning out he Austrian invasion, she was politically ambitious, strategic (by faking a surrender), and intelligent, which actually adds a lot to her character. And the revolution was made possible not by the people simply hating on her, but by the fact that the French monarchy itself was a rotten system.

[@Suited_Nat]

To preface: I am going to edit this comment after I fully watch the video. Just from the intro, I know it will be interesting. Though I do want to mention, I never really saw Furina as a “bratty” character, even in 4.0. And I never saw her as stupid either. Imo, the best way I can relate how I feel is by mentioning other character favorites of mine. Characters like Gojo and Dazai, both very heavily mask their actual emotions or inner thoughts. That’s why when I saw Furina being extra, I took it as her playing a mask. This is why I feel that my own play through of the archon quest hit hardest for me when we got to see Furina masking. Those 500 years being acted out like a play, made me cry. And as person who deals with a lot constant mental disorders (depression and anxiety), the masking makes a lot of sense. So the scenes of Furina convincing herself that she’s okay, or that it “won’t be long until things get better,” or her constant hopelessness about the future struck me in the heart. One thing I will say that frustrates me, is how traveler even after the archon quest, still dismisses her trauma. We even saw paimon make a comment about Furina fearing about the waters rising again. In my opinion, I find it very difficult to like traveler currently with how they treat Furina, though I know it’s completely out of bias of Furina on my part. I can only hope the second story quest for Furina will make traveler actually respect her more.

[@Suited_Nat]

Ngl, looking at this comment later, I completely still agree. It pisses me off how everyone laughed at Furina, and was then forced back into a position that was her literal torture for 500 years. All with paimon and traveler laughing at her, belittling her, and in the guns and roses event, paimon made fun of her very real anxiety over Fontaine flooding again.

[@paulomalley3211]

there’s one part about the original scene that I thought was genius. When she makes her speech and you’re guiding her you are given the option to do the same thing and be humble but now you know the context of what is at stake and what will happen. It’s a tiny detail but it really fastens the bond between you and the reasoning behind her choices and persona.

[@kuroechann]

No need to call me out for being a furina kin in the first minute of the video

[@hannanirina1529]

Finally finished the archon quest yesterday. ( Trying to understand the greater Honkaiverse through all 3 games is a grindy task) Once the "a look into Furina's mind stage play" happened, I could relate SO HARD. Feeling the need to mask in order to discipline myself . HER mask has been on for so long. You can just feel her cracking as the long years passed.

[@sortileges5474]

I think her getting a Vision makes perfect sense. From one of your previous videos, you mentioned getting a Vision means "getting marked" by Celestia; as she gets back on stage, back in the spotlight, right after Fontaine and her was supposed to get punished was Celestia saying "we see you now"

[@sortileges5474]

Also she is best girl second to Keqing fr. Definitely not biased.

[@avyay9818]

I think, after reading Neuvillette’s character stories, He probably gave it to her, because of the little claws and it seems as he’s the one granting visions now. But otherwise yeah, it’s like his mark k of recognition and kind of his apology.

[@usmansiddiqui1384]

I actually like the decision of the writers to have Furina act again at the end. You can tell that it’s actually her passion. But the magic of a passion fades when you have to do it for work. Seeing her rediscover her passion and be rewarded for it felt nice. I also don’t see Furina’s condition as a sort of trauma. Everyone has to deal with the hand they’re dealt with in life. This means going out of your comfort zone and tackling life even if that means doing something that your mental illness doesn’t make easy. What always comes to my mind is that Furina now has a limited life span. She spent 500 years working and now has less than 100 to enjoy her retirement. Because of how long she’s already lived, it’ll pass by in the blink of an eye. I think Paimon pushing her forwards towards the end there was a message to her that she should enjoy the time she has left with her head held high, doing things she loves with the people she loves, rather than locking herself away eating macaroni all day.

[@Archangel657]

Thanos: "Maybe I've treated you too harshly..." sums up my entire reversal on my views of Furina.

[@Ixyywr]

The way she just sits down and accepts her fate is such a sad scene. She suffered so much that she just doesn't care anymore

[@ananovoagonzalez7217]

If you think of the video in witch you said that the visions are vigilance devices then it makes sense, because Celestia wanted to keep it’s eye in furina. Sorry for the bad English

[@islannnnnnnndndddndnd]

HOLY SHIT SHE IS THE maria antonieta

[@sofibiebervergara]

I liked the way she got her vision ❤ it has this analogy that not every in her past had to be a bad thing, u lear to find peace in those situations

[@CreatrixTiara]

I do appreciate that Furina takes control of her artistic choices in the end and decides she's going to be a director instead. Yeah the Vision coming during acting was weird, but she didn't go "well ok fine ill act". She did genuinely enjoy helping the troupe as a director - aomeone who *directs*, but in a more genuine way than as a Fake Archon.

[@thegoat2739]

Damn, this video made me cry, I feel everything about Furina so intensely. In my case I always liked the character, from the beginning I noticed those signs that told you that something didn't fit about her, that there was something more, I knew that everything was a great act, and maybe it was because I saw myself reflected in her, That when I played the 4.2 quest, it touched a nerve very deep inside me, all the pain she suffered I felt so internally, I knew she was a complex character, but I didn't expect them to develop her so well. She really feels human, that duality that characterizes her, and mainly her strength, I think, in my eyes, seeing how someone (although fictional) can endure so much pain, and still not give up, still continue to stand up, even though If she was destroyed, she would not allow herself to weaken her will, one that was pure and honorable, even if she did not receive something in return, only the salvation of her people who would never thank her, moves my heart. And although her situation is quite extreme, as you explained in the video, she is a character with whom you can easily identify, where you can find your person reflected in one way or another, and that makes you feel welcomed, like If I told you that you were not the only one, acting, pretending, trying to put on the best face, so as not to be a nuisance to others, because in your head they could hate you, you don't want them to see your misery, you don't want them to make fun of you,nor that they see you with pity without even understanding you, so you pretend, you pretend that everything is fine, or that what happens to you is not really that bad, even though you are tearing yourself apart inside, perhaps the most painful part, It's when you try to help other people, be a safe space in which they can unburden themselves. You try to be present, but no one is there for you, you sit on your bed, and cry alone, or hold back your tears in front of others, because they are also suffering in their own way, they don't have to care about your pain, so, You try not to be a bother. I don't think I've ever felt so connected to a character in my life, or at least in a long time, for that and much more, Furina is my favorite character.

[@Yui2Aku]

I really wanted to give Furina a bit hug after the Archon Quest. I had a good feeling she was acting a bit from first Fontaine quest, you know, that one gut feeling you get sometimes. Since you were so open about your mental health, I want to give you a salute for being so brave to sharing this and actually not caring about how some people think about you sharing this... unless you were and I'm sorry about assuming this. I hope you have a good one and make sure to take good care of yourself :)

[@Freddles780]

As a day one furina enthusiast it makes me happy to see others starting to see why my wife is the greatest

[@namiki9474]

One thing that broke my heart, was the scene that played as Neuviette gave the guilty verdict (before the death sentence) Furina was in the void and she saw Nev, she tried to reach towards him, as a way to beg for him to stop, to see her hurt and stop tearing her act apart. But he turned and walked away. She looks to Us, the traveler and paimon, seemingly going to reach to them too, but they also turn and walk away. This is two (or three) people who have told Furina to tell the truth, and she still didn’t. These are the two opportunities she had to spill, and she had a sliver of hope that their willingness to listen meant they actually cared a little: probably the only time in those 500 years she’s experienced that. But they turn away, they react to her act with anger instead of trying to understand why. And when Nev finishes the line, declares her guilty, her heart shatters into glass pieces, broken and unable to be put back together. And all she can do is sit, and disappear. The people, even those closest to her, reacted to her lie with anger and resentment. They never asked “why?” They just judged and walked away. They even LEFT HER on her throne CRYING for a while before the Oratrice started to do the execution. They wrote her off, she wasn’t important. Even to Nev, and the traveler, she was just a liar. And this is what it’s like to struggle with mental illness. If you speak, you risk being shunned and judged, but if you chose to hide it and you get caught, it’s always “how dare you lie to me I thought you cared?” “How dare you lie you are a horrible person” Truly, you can never live without judgement when you are mentally ill in the world, nothing is ever enough, but my god am I proud of Furina for making it through. Everyone Involved in that trial needs to apologize or at least ACKNOWLEDGE her heroism. She deserves the world.

[@ranposfluffyhair]

furina is me. it’s not even a joke, everything she’s gone through I’ve gone through (the 500 years suffering as archon def not the same but very similar)

[@Stachelbeeerchen]

Wait... People making fun of characters first appearance!? Impossible! That's a perfect representation of how dangerous stereotyping others is based on first impressions.

[@tonkababic9826]

Furina also feels like she was inspired by many child stares and pop stars in away .

[@Chickenandrice485]

LETS GOO!!! IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS!!!!

[@LeOddster]

UGH E!!!!!!!! Another banger!!!!! I'm glad we got your point of view! As I am a person who loves silly goofy characters like Furina, but I 100% understand Furina's Irritability, especially in EN, BUT the EN language has the most range and acting perfection throughout the story. Amber Lee Connors does SUCH a good job and her screeching voice echoes in my mind when Furina gets upset. UGH I'll be eating good watching this during work today!! Great work GAYMER!!!!

[@shadow4380]

When I first met Furina, to say I disliked her would be an understatement. She embodied all the traits I hate, which reminded me of people who have caused me pain in the past. When I played the last act of Fontaine, I cried a ton. One of the reasons for it being that I could feel Furina's pain of bottling things up. She is such a well written character and I adore her.

[@BellameeAce]

As someone who spent their entire life masking, Furina has become my favorite character in anything, ever. Everything in this video is peak and absolutely validating to hear. (Also I was wondering what Alhaitham was doing there the entire video until you pointed it out lmao, I know you secretly have a soft spot for him don't hide it)

[@NexusVFD]

I saw Furina gaining her vision when she was singing as Neuvillette acknowledging her wish to be able to enjoy something she loved without it feeling like was tied to her past. I saw the boundary she set as a reactive thing mainly because Ive done that. I no longer have that boundary myself cos I SHOULD be allowed to enjoy those things.

[@thomasraines1396]

I saw the end of the quest as her realizing that isolating herself like she was wrong and she still enjoyed the stage life.

[@ChimeraGames]

The way you've been so consistently putting out amazing content needs to be studied you're the Content archon frfr

[@mrmastaofdesasta6994]

I actually liked the way she got her vision. A common theme with hydro visions seems to be self sacrifice and a sense of justice. Giving up everything for what they believe in. And Furina gave up even her conviction to never act again, for what she truly believed in: Serving her (former) subjects.

[@harunah.7763]

I loved her since the first encounter, something about her reminded me of Venti -my favourite archon- and I became so curious to know about her, what was the duality she had all over her design about. Fontaine as a whole had this Mondstad nostalgia over it- since the place of reference isn't that far apart.

[@kkpaaw8549]

No u so right for this! I never realzied but she reminds me so much of Venti and Fontaine gives me that nostalgia feeling Mondstadt gives. Guess thats why she became my sec fav archon (behind Venti of course)

[@Sora-the-yo-yo-master]

omg love the makeup its so cute also its so mad like one of my top 10 characters came from genshin they really stepped up the writing like damn

[@kafkapilled]

my favorite youtuber covering my favorite character let’s goooo!! ❤

[@Rui-mika-001]

E: doing her best to explain and analyse furina's writing. Me: stares at the alhaitham body pillow in the back instead

[@orionshi4009]

Thank you SO MUCH for making me feel so seen. I felt Furina's story so dear to me, and it's all because her whole existence to me is a metaphore to what was being autistic for me, masking for years in order to fit society and ending up with a whole mixed bag of trauma and mental illness as a consequence. I felt a bit crazy for pining my autism/neurodivergence on her, but this video made me feel so seen and understood. Furina and Wanderer are both too close to me, too special to me.

[@Bornofhatebecamelove]

I'm someone with depression, and since I was little, my father was abusive. He was a pedo, and I knew it, but I never wanted to accept it. He did weird things to my best friend, who i considered another sister and my sister, he forced me to hide away all his abuse on me and all the weird things he did, he even told us what to say to certain questions like a script, as I grew up, I gained an illness that came from the abuse, it's called trombopenia, it makes my body very weak to everything, and I barely survived every day, I was tired bc I didn't have energy or my weak body couldn't get me through, I started pulling my hair to cope, I felt so alone, no one I could talk about this, because if I did, he would know and everything would be over, one day someone confronted me saying my dad was a pedo, and I didn't want to agree, I just stayed in place crying, then I puked, my silence was enough yo understand and in just days the rumor had started flowing, and one day the police came for my father, and I was finally free, but people after knowing what I've gone through pushed me to be ok, and I went insane, later I was diagnosed with depression adhd old and tourette, my mother apologized to me for no seeing it sooner (she was divorced she never knew bc I never told her) and now I'm trying to find happiness in the arts. So I really relate to furina very much 💙

[@Minandreas213]

I liked her story quest and think it actually made a lot of sense. I think I have a slightly different read on Furina from yours. Furina's act wasn't as elaborate as people are interpreting it to have been. If it was really 100% all a front there's no way she could have held out for 500 years. She truly does love the stage. The problem was, she could never ever do anything BUT that, and the secret she was hiding totally isolated her from everyone nonstop. She was having to hold up an act, and doing it for 500 years while harboring a secret as massive as "I'm not really a god" would drive anyone mad. But my main point is, Furina likes the stage. She's an actress at heart. That's the only explanation for her being able to hold that up for 500 years without completely losing her mind. Her trauma came from how extreme her circumstances were, and how isolated she was. Given that context, her story quest is about her recovering from her trauma. I think there is an implied time jump at the start of that quest. Nobody seems to know where Furina is or what she's been up to since the incident. And we find out she's been shut up in her house making macaroni. She's going through depression. After single mindedly pursing 1 thing for 500 years it makes sense that as soon as the strings are cut she doesn't know what to do with herself. The only purpose in her life has finally been fulfilled and she's got NO frame of reference for finding a new one. Before she became "The hydro Archon" she didn't even exist! She just poofed into being and was immediately given her mission. It's finally complete. Now what? She sets that boundary of not acting, and that makes sense. She's identified "acting" as the source of her trauma. But it's made clear to us that she's a really really good actor. Everyone thinks she's amazing. And I would assume when she was acting in plays and operas over that 500 years she was playing all kinds of different roles. Being a good actor wasn't part of her Hydro Archon act. It's who she is. She's an actor at heart and really likes it. She followed the traveler to listen in on the commission after declining because deep down, she's interested! She still likes the stage. That whole quest was her finding herself, and realizing that the stage is still where she belongs. Only now she gets to step off of it when she wants to. She doesn't have to be alone and isolated. She can have true friends. It's when she stops running from the stage and embraces it that she gains her vision, because that really is where her heart is.

[@missinglegs]

One thing I love, is that the first scene in Furina's story is described as "In front of the mirror" in the scene screen, it's the only time it's anything other than the opera, even tho the other scenes don't really take place in the opera, because it's the only time she hasn't felt like she's in the opera