Game Theory: Handsome Jack, Monster or Misunderstood? (Borderlands 2/The Pre-Sequel!)

Special thanks to Ubisoft for partnering with us for this episode!
In honor of the Borderlands: Handsome Collection hitting shelves, allowing you to play Borderlands 2, the Pre-Sequel, and all associated DLC, we're analyzing Jack, the STAR of those games, to determine whether he's truly a monster or just a little misunderstood.
Check out the Handsome Collection for PS4 and XBoxOne
►► bit.ly/1GhgAkq
Thanks to 2K for making this video possible.
ESRB Rated Mature
Music:
Thanks to Bignic for letting me use his song "Blade Runner!"
Check it his work here ►► bignic.bandcamp.com/
Thumbnail Art:
Handsome Jack's Face courtesy of Princess Bloody Mary
princessbloodymary.deviantart....
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[@Spubl]

"Everyone thinks they're the hero of their own story" -Handsome Jack

[@BioshockChar]

You have no control who lives, who dies, who tells your story..

[@hazeltree7738]

@@BioshockChar Well if I shoot someone with a minigun I'm pretty sure I'll make them die.

[@abadprofilename8130]

My jokes aren't funny that’s gotta be the funniest thing I’ve read today lmao

[@hazeltree7738]

@@abadprofilename8130 Well I'm sorry for lying to you then.

[@abadprofilename8130]

My jokes aren't funny you are forgiven lol

[@gruffkibbles8995]

The pretzels line was not in the script the voice actor was eating when recording the line, I LOVE that fact

[@hazeltree7738]

That fits perfectly with the randomness of Handsome Jack 😂

[@yurcool7463]

I also heard him eating chips on the mission where you go save bloodwing

[@JudeBoi1313]

GruffKibbles89 Is there a source for that information?

[@duke.disparity]

@Draydin Bardon Same with Helen Peirce, she just happened to have something in common with her husband that day

[@plushluigi7417]

@Paul Martin don't you mean the worlds smallest violin

[@rinthesquare]

“The road to hell is paved with good intentions, right? And the one's you love litter the roadside.” -Handsome Jack

[@TheBluePhoenix008]

Feels bad man

[@blacktemplarbarachel3387]

Its sad cause it’s true

[@willzjohns556]

Did he say this ?🤔

[@bloltzmalone3514]

​@@willzjohns556 in Tales From the borderlands

[@fetch7312]

"Hyperion: We're not the bad guys in this one!"

[@PROTOBLUES90]

...... Yet....

[@Skolzul]

That was in borderlands 3

[@redpolscorp]

Actually breaking the 4th wall. :

[@donaldparker9073]

Yeah I love that line because of how it breaks the 4th wall sadly only players who played bl2 would get it newer players would not get it

[@cristescustefancosmin1844]

@@PROTOBLUES90 Ok so I completed a Borderlands Presequel run as claptrap and he is not that bad I Quite like that little guy Although I still hate the rest he's the only exception

[@sinister_cat2486]

"A classic case of child abuse." Yes mat, every abusive parent owns a buzzaxe.

[@sinister_cat2486]

@J Tech why thank you, glad to know I'm stupid.

[@nano3226]

Sinister_cat248 True but there’s one problem Like Mental And physically avoids by bats and hell crowbars are a weapon hammers and possible any weapon could be used even if someone doesn’t Own a buzz axe thou

[@sinister_cat2486]

@J Tech sorry for the late replies, but *beings

[@sinister_cat2486]

@@nano3226 1. Grammar, use it please! 2. It's a joke!

[@nano3226]

Sinister_cat248 sorry I take jokes a bit too seriously

[@raymalik5171]

I'm surprised he didn't mention Angel's death, that impacted Jack heavily as well

[@darkohunter5739]

"don't pick a fight with a man with nothing left to lose"

[@abadprofilename8130]

He was already kinda lost at that point though, but yeah it still definitely took a chunk out of whatever sanity he had left

[@i.d.p.dhandsomejack3914]

Ray Malik don't... talk.. about my... daughter...*strangles you*

[@Vyt3x]

Which he reacted to by assassinating Roland. And enslaving Lilith in his daughter's place.

[@abadprofilename8130]

Vyt3x we all grieve in different ways 🤷‍♀️

[@tenthant]

He's also voiced by a wholesome voice actor. My friend asked Dameon how he can laugh legitimately while voice acting and he says, "I'm not sure, usually I'm murdering someone when I'm doing a voice role." (Met him at a convention in Wyoming, totally worth the trip.)

[@phaneleox4020]

But the real question is, did he talk like jack at the convention?

[@michaelbecket4901]

1 more like until u reach 666......

[@michaelbecket4901]

@@phaneleox4020 dude his jack voice is his REAL voice

[@tracematson385]

Wait wait wait Wyoming has conventions? I've lived here my whole life and never knew that

[@KeizerSosebee]

Handsome jack, Cell…. Yeah it checks out.

[@Kaint808]

He charges me with a spoon, a frickin' spoon and I'm dying laughing right? So I scoop out his stupid little eyes and his kids are like "WAAAA" and he's bumping into stuff -Handsome Jack

[@kazuma8486]

the story always gets me

[@thomasfrench6689]

Jack is the embodiment of the phrase, "the path to hell is paved with good intentions"

[@PeacefulJem]

Thomas French Nice.

[@terro740]

The only reason jack isn't the hero is because he didn't win. to be honest, if i was jack i would have killed them all, or at the very least tried like he did.

[@LIAuNXeNON]

terrozer Legend well they do say that history is written by the victors

[@johnpachuca2615]

That is why he is the hero, because in real life, sometimes the bad guys win.

[@aniceman1]

Eyyy tales from the borderlands

[@nobodynowhereneveragain]

Also let's not forget Brick makes you kill nearly all his men for his own amusement.

[@torlakkarstad4251]

20 Hertz BEST men, even

[@spimber5517]

Torlak Kårstad mah I just let i Goliath kill all of them and took out the GOD-liath with my OP way under leveled shotgun

[@sarahditty3037]

He says not to feel bad for killing them because he doesn’t

[@donaldparker9073]

God I love brick he is the best

[@Skolzul]

20 Hertz he thinks your an recruit

[@GreebleClown]

“A misunderstood hero who just needed a little bit of love.” And a good therapist.

[@cristescustefancosmin1844]

*STRANGLING*

[@myplaylist7007]

Sorry kiddos but jack is not the hero.

[@cristescustefancosmin1844]

@@myplaylist7007 it depends why do you think that because you can't just say hes not good and leave it at that because yes he did his fare share of bad things but at the same time he did you his fare share of good deeds like saving Elpis and Pandora

[@myplaylist7007]

@@cristescustefancosmin1844 i play borderlands 2, borderlands pre sequel and tales from the borderlands and figured out he is the bad guy.

[@khavto4872]

@@myplaylist7007 Just cos u figured doesnt meant that its true

[@GamingbrosPlayhard]

If you pay attention to Jack’s voice after being betrayed by Lilith, Roland, and Moxxi in the Pre Sequel, you can really hear the emotionality in it when you think about everything he’s been through. It makes me personally feel really bad for him.

[@trevorhouff1173]

Everything would've been fine if Lilith didn't nuke the eye of Helios and falcon punch jack in the face.

[@jaredmedlin2661]

nah he was always fucked up that just sped up the process of him killing everyone and everything.

[@randomrandomrandommm3637]

Mr.Bossington in the pre sequel he did save the people in elpis though

[@SergeLapointe1984]

Trevor Houff Would you really have left such a powerful weapon in his care if you had a say in it ? Had he left the remnants of the Destroyer alone, Zarpedon wouldn't have had the means to destroy Elpis.

[@dafuk10]

also in bl2 you find recording of how he manipulates everything and everyone using angel to find the vault

[@trevorhouff1173]

***** oh yea, completely forgot he basically caused bl1 to happen

[@RockieRotten]

of course we're the villains, when fighting Nomads, their dialogue always consists of "Leave us alone!"

[@salvatoredali4384]

I don't know if that necessarily makes the vault hunters villians. Nomads aren't aren't exactly saints with their midget shields.

[@epica2428]

@@salvatoredali4384 but they got the villans on their shields

[@BayerKatres]

They start to shoot you for no reason if you approach

[@matttheradartechnician2342]

I heard that line once. Pretty much 99% of their lines is just “nice gear you got”

[@neowolf09]

@@matttheradartechnician2342 don't forget "I'll make a coat out of ya"

[@WEB-0813]

This actually has MUCH more evidence in the side quest in Borderlands 3(sorry couldn’t remember the name of side quest) anyway, in the side quest you see how much Jack cared for his daughter and his wife, he was worried that she was a siren because she would be at great risk; and when she got taken by some bandits, she accidentally activated a turret and killed Jack’s wife and the bandits. You can hear the horror and despair in Jack’s voice at seeing his dead wife. To make sure it doesn’t happen again, he has to loc angel up so she doesn’t get threatened, taken, or hurst anyone else. Jack at least tries to make it better by connecting her to the Hyperion New-U system, but absolute power corrupts absolutely, so she was then forced to charge the vault key and she was more of a prisoner than a girl who was trying to be protected by her father. So yeah, Jack actually has numerous reasons for being mad about family, he was beaten from his grandmother, he lost his wife to his daughter, and he went mad with power to try and fill that hole in his life. So...as MANY people have already said....this isn’t a theory, it’s just a fact.

[@simple-commentator-not-rea7345]

It's just too bad that BL3's story undermines pretty much EVERYTHING that happened in previous games

[@freelanceart1019]

@@simple-commentator-not-rea7345 Borderlands 3 tried to cater to Moe anime fans and Weaboos.

[@animysticamv4417]

@@simple-commentator-not-rea7345 3 tries to make it sympathetic there were log recordings in borderlands 2 that shows Jack forcefully locking her into the computer and was horrible to listen to I can respect everything about Jack except for what he did to his daughter angel was Horrible

[@timpo3738]

Plus Jacks role on the pre sequel

[@brookewilliams775]

The side quest was called Childhoods End

[@bigcazza5260]

tales shook me to my core with his ending, "please dont send me back there its not like they say, theres nothing there". literally gold a cold chill while sitting near a fire

[@thelordofthelostbraincells]

He is an a.l I wonder what would've happened if reese didn't crush the eye on the other timeline?

[@RedRosemary]

@@thelordofthelostbraincells it's canon that he didn't crush the eye 'handsome jackhammer'. Or crushing the ai had a 'backup' and connected to the nearest electricity.

[@bigcazza5260]

@@RedRosemary ??? handsome jackhammer is just an smg that reloads like an avenger (tediore smg) but without the travel

[@owyemen9367]

I mean if the book is called tales from the x that's kinda a guarantee

[@EchoTriux]

I don't think he saw himself die with that relic. At the end of Borderlands 2 he says something like "It wasn't supposed to end like this I am the goddamn hero". In the relic he never saw the vault hunter you play as, either. I think it just showed him what to do, not what would happen when he did it, Which is why he's so determined,he has no idea he'll die yet. Either way, Lillith's punch probably stopped some of the transfer of knowledge, so maybe he did see what WOULD happen but Lillith interrupted the part where the vault would show his death.

[@ezewong290]

***** Are you playing tales from the borderlands? Because technically... without any big spoilers, he .... isn't that dead. So he may have seen his death, but not the way he imagined it....

[@EchoTriux]

Eze Wong thats a very good point actually. However, he's in denial at the start of episode 2 "i cant be dead, the hero doesnt die"

[@ezewong290]

Yeah I remember that. I was thinking that maybe he didn't gain "complete" knowledge. Like that he actually died. Perhaps the vision he gains is only parts or pieces. So perhaps he "sees" himself as the hero. But the vision doesn't acknowledge that he is a hologram. Or something of that nature.

[@mastercheese3321]

Eze Wong "Perhaps the vision he gains is only parts or pieces" Well, the intro music for Episode 3 is titled "Pieces of People we love" so you could be right, unless that's just a coincidence

[@NameLast-ty6ye]

***** He didnt know he died in Tales From The Borderlands

[@GameTheory]

*These* ► *spam* ► *comments* ► *are* ► *the* ► *worst*

[@ryanhaley4385]

The Game Theorists​, you're awesome! I enjoy your videos, and hope you have a long-lasting career.

[@thecoalbucket2577]

trumoo aka TRUE MOO ~True Cow

[@user-pe6jv8xh9v]

2

[@datrocraftiansoldier]

Feel

[@datrocraftiansoldier]

The

[@ergosum5001]

Borderlands 3 actually bolsters this idea kind of quite a bit. SPOILERS: We find out he wasn't lying about Angel killing her mom. And the entire incident was incited by an attack by bandits. Bandits literally lead to the collapse of his entire family. It's no wonder he hates bandits enough to want to raze an entire planet of a bunch of rogue killers and replace it with a metropolis like Opportunity. Of course, he wanted to the dictator of the said metropolis, but that's neither here nor there. The Pre-Sequel does show that he's been essentially betrayed all his life in his attempt to just imbue a little order on Pandora, and save the lives of those on Elpis. Borderlands kind of went from just a story about mindless killing and adventure...to a story about how the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

[@donaldparker9073]

Yeah handsome jack is one of if not the best video game maybe even best villain ever seen in media not only because of how he talks to you through the entire game, is kinda funny but also because of how fleshed out of the character he is

[@guillermodelaobraperez9603]

Donald Parker in my opinion, he is the best video game villian, that for sure. Only Joker and Darth Vader could rank higher, but they are not video game original. Not the most iconic though, that would be Browser. Handsome Jack is also the funniest character in Borderlands, a hard contested title if you ask me. Tales from the Borderlands did the character justice.

[@joahpineapple3239]

Remember the whole reason for presequel was cuz Dahl knew about Jack's "research" of pandora and went to stop him from opening the pandoran vault

[@user-jf4lt4uk7u]

Close but so Wrong, The whole point of the Pre-Sequal Happend Because the Lost legion was sent to investigate The Gas leaks caused by “The crackening” which Happened Coincidentally After the Vault was Opened, Zarpadon Met the watcher who showed the legion Future events and decided to work together to Destroy the Moon, Which we now know is the Key to the Great Vault, which holds the destroyer of worlds a godlike Alien that swallows stars whole.

[@user-jf4lt4uk7u]

most likely the Relic showed the moment when lilith Activated the Key’s map, which if it weren’t for the activation of the map then the colypso’s wouldn’t have Opened the great vault Leading to lilith’s death, and now that the Planetary Phase inducer Which the eridians used to seal the destroyer is broken Nothing can stop the monster’s release should the moon touch the surface of Pandora.

[@angelusnielson7135]

And then we got the villains of Borderlands 3.. "Look we're millennials.. did we mention we're millennials? We're millennials, did we mention that?"

[@thelonelyduck7267]

I mean its hard to beat jack. Ava on the other hands tho, oof.

[@strebicux6174]

Really hard to top jack, but they didnt even come close. But with Ava, they didnt even try

[@kylevasser6388]

They lost the lead writer of Borderlands 2. This should not come as a surprise.

[@strebicux6174]

@@kylevasser6388 yeah he quit because gearbox does not value their VAs and story writers

[@chewee4ever811]

Just makes you hate millennials and liberals if you already didn’t hate them.

[@GameTheory]

Let's put it on the table now. The FNAF Game Theory will be the next GT episode uploaded. Before that is a Smash History and DeadLock...then....FNAF. Let's end this ;)

[@Rocky-ki7zd]

YES IM FIRST REPLY AND FINALLY FNAF 3 U ARE AWESOMEEEE

[@alexgeorge8645]

Why are you bothering? The game is pretty self explanatory

[@communindigo4206]

The Game Theorists FNAF 3 IS A GAME!!!! -Theory of the Year

[@buddermantheamazing]

Alex George Because there's always something....

[@britishtorterra5893]

The Game Theorists YAY i loved deadlock i just love arguments...... that didnt sound right

[@josefstalin9678]

Handsome​ Jack's strategy: • kill guy • bring back to life • acquire profit

[@dagothargaming965]

if he has that New-U system then why does he need body doubles? He can just respawn.

[@vukhuu5743]

Dagothar Gaming it said u cant reproduce if u use the new u, jack has a daughter, so was roland, soooooo

[@dagothargaming965]

Vu Khuu oh right

[@NhBleker]

Josef Stalin except for Roland, Windhelm, and Nisha.

[@themonkeyshead7520]

Josef Stalin New u isn't cannon

[@HatKidPeck]

Tales from the Borderlands can play into this, as SOON as Handsome Jack thought Rhys was gonna betray him (if you play it like I did) He acts out in violence FOR NO GOOD REASON after being by his side the whole game (if you played it like I did)

[@BlazingInfernapemusicfanatic]

i mean it is an AI that was meant to try to replicate his likeliness

[@lowrider7474]

I just stopped playing tales from the borderlands right before rhys betrays jack

[@thelordofthelostbraincells]

It's crazy how that game is canon to b.L 3

[@thewanderingartists]

I'm all team Jack

[@zgama6511]

​@@BlazingInfernapemusicfanatic it's actually a copy of jacks brain it's talked about in its own side mission in the pre sequel

[@StellaMarisma]

I really don't think Jack saw his death in that vision, I think Lilith cut that part short when she punched the relic into his face. If he had seen his death, he might not have gone down such a dark path even after his scarring.

[@thelordofthelostbraincells]

THAT, ...... makes ALLOT of sense actually +5 points to you good HUMAN

[@rikusawada6113]

Or gone done an even darker one. He was all about the ends justifying the means by the point he became Handsome Jack, and if he thought that what he was going to do wasn't going to be enough he would likely have taken even more extreme measures to ensure it succeeded.

[@dinotalovic6188]

@@rikusawada6113 Well, he rather saw the death. He knew it was unstoppable and unavoidable, so he slowly became insane through all the pitfalls. He didn't care what he did, because he knew he was going to die. He just wanted to save the pandora, so he tried at least a partial purge. Let's not forget that he also approved the back door - artificial intelligence of himself, and if the canon is that Rhys kept Jack, he quite possibly saw his success in this eventually succeeding in carrying out a plan for Jack's army one day due to Rhyse's carelessness (Or maybe Rhyse's knowledge that Jack came up with a good solution?).

[@kazuma8486]

True, but Jack probably saw him SEVERELY wounded and trapped in that bubble during the Warrior battle. It could also be the reason why he was trying so hard to kill you in BL2 so it could be avoided.

[@tonyknight2860]

"You are the bandit and I AM THE GODDAMN HERO"I like that line.

[@muhithossain7312]

Tony Knight "This ain't no place for a hero"

[@sandblocks7637]

youre a manic youre a savage you are a bandit and i am the goddamn hero!

[@sandblocks7637]

GAH! what is your dumb buttface doing here?

[@sandblocks7637]

nu uh me and roland are going to kick your dumb butt into oblivion

[@vanguard616]

Tony Knight SHOOT ME IN THE FACE

[@markawesome916]

Honestly Claptrap is the most abused character in Borderlands, he's innocent and only has good intentions but he's just clumsy and ends up having everyone hating him in the end. And Pre-Sequel actually made his entire situation downright depressing since we see Jack shoot him in the DLC and we also see how all the Claptraps ended up dead in Borderlands 2.

[@granmastersword]

Yeah. Even worse, NOBODY in the Borderlands universe like Claptrap. Beside of clumsiness, the main reason they hate CL4P-TP units is that they talk too much and always try to be funny. Is not a big deal for us, but for many people it does...poor Claptrap, I wish I could hug him

[@HazardHillz]

Meme Crisis but he tried to start that clap trap revolution

[@granmastersword]

Kaiser Onceler, of the Republic of Thneedville He started for the good of his kind

[@vlorfus]

Well, if Tales From the Borderlands is canon (which I assume it is), then there is still 1 Claptrap left. There's a billboard you can scan advertising claptraps and upon doing so it says that there is one active unit left. Also you can actually meet him in game, though I won't spoil when and how.

[@jamesonmack5867]

#CL4P-TPDeservedBetter

[@TheSwolOne]

Vault hunters: *guess I’ll die* Jack: *well yes, but actually no*

[@The_Alpha_and_the_Omega0]

Well when you look back at this video with the release of borderlands 3, he actually did try save the world.

[@kalebsithnerd119]

Joseph: Hey remember when you killed me? That was pretty fun.

[@thelordofthelostbraincells]

He was the hero, but betrayal after betrayal broke him mentally and physically

[@The_Alpha_and_the_Omega0]

@@thelordofthelostbraincells true I find it ironic I get an reply almost an year later XD man this lockdown brings the most randomness in things like this

[@micalishis]

*Tales from the Borderlands spoiler* I think this theory is basically confirmed because in episode 4 of Tales from the Borderlands Rhys and Jack are talking and Jack asks you what you would do if you had the power he had and if you answer "make Pandora safe" then Jack responds with something like "that's what I tried to do". I mean, I don't know if Tales from the Borderlands is technically canon but it seems to confirm the main idea here.

[@Al-mondzho]

+Michael the Magician it better not be canon I want scooter dammit

[@raymanspy95]

+nick main It is canon, the people who made the first three games, worked on Tales from the Borderlands with TellTale. So it is 100% canon.

[@Goraka91]

Jack's a nice guy right up to when he wants to use you as a (literal) skin. In fact he finds you refusing to be a sack of flesh draped over him a betrayal by you, he can't see WHY someone would be opposed to the idea because in his eyes he's doing you a favour because he's that insane. He appears normal enough but what's under that ain't pretty, much like his mask.

[@cesarcastillo4271]

+Michael the Magician what does canon means?

[@micalishis]

cesar castillo Something being canon means it actually counts as being part of the story. If something is not canon then it didn't actually happen according to the official story. It's actually something that people like to rag on Mat about a lot. As good as many of his theories are some people like to call him out and just say that his theories aren't technically canon (as in even though they make sense they are not officially the truth).

[@itsjustsilver8172]

“You Are The Bandit, *AND I AM THE GODDAM HERO!!!* “

[@devora4809]

Warrior....KILL!!

[@otssseptic6916]

THE LAVAS RISING GET TO HIGH GROUND!!

[@neowolf09]

Finally, it's over...

[@sqareknight6977]

Will he die find out next time on bunkers and badasses

[@nikolaibelinski3433]

But yor the bad guy jack *wink*

[@lunalava4496]

"Welcome to Pandora, kiddos!" Ah, that line had me laughing for some reason before the train exploded-

[@milandemeulder5707]

You forgot the part where jack put someone in a battle robot when that person didn’t want to and when he enjoyed killing innocents multiple times and those were the pre-sequel

[@21472]

innocent? who?

[@esmesanchez1201]

Even if Jack was a hero or villain, he will remain to be one of my favorite characters. I do think he had better intentions but he didn't exactly plan them out correctly. I felt bad cause everyone has betrayed him besides his last girlfriend, Nisha, from what I remember she stood by his side. I wish the devs didn't kill off Nisha either, she was such a badass.

[@Tywil714]

Ikr but like he said "history is written by the victors" jack had noble goals but his truama from constant betrayls from people he cared about added with him losing and the vault hunters winning those noble goals he had were comdemed painting him as a villian from the poeple who are happy with the death and choas that is pandora i wish we could play in a alternate reality where we help jack win by killing the crimson raiders and the others and see what kind of world jack wanted

[@lag00n54]

MEh Heroes and Villains are just perspective anyway He in his own way see that he is the Hero and we the Players are the villains TBH we the players plays niether the Hero nor the villains we are just Mercenary/hired gun/Vault Hunter pretty much Anti-Heroes

[@RedRosemary]

I think Lilith is the villain. She felt uneasy after she found out jack wanted to kill bandits on Pandora with the eye. And attempted to kill jack because of it. Maybe Lilith is a bandit. No one normally does that. Lilith is responsible for so many deaths Now because now bandits are everywhere and is probably killing millions of people. That's all her fault.

[@Jacksonthehedgehog9]

@@lag00n54 honestly surprised Jack didn't just hire the vault hunters in 2 (maybe skip krieg for obvious reasons) and have them deal with anyone stopping him, while also ensuring Nisha was kept safe (her being the contact planetside and maybe joining them on occasion as the OG vault hunters do) Jack probably would have won if he did. I mean, he can get em to legit kill themselves for money even as their enemy.

[@michaelbecket4901]

The devs didint kill off nisha they mentioned CANONICALLY the VHs didint do ALL the sidequests leaving it open if they wanted to bring back nisha later on or not and since wilhelm was more robot than man at that point he could DEFINITELY make a return as an A.I robot as well FINALLY fulfilling his dream to become a giant death vacuum like claptrap

[@ramdarow4045]

Well the vault hunters aren't exactly good guys either. It's more like Anti-hero vs Anti-hero.

[@salamanderthebullfrog6586]

Ramdarow Crazy mass murderer vs crazy mass murderer

[@zpopcrazyfish2474]

Like guardians of the galaxy

[@hyperionman420]

No, It's more like anti-hero (mostly hero) vs lawless, bloodthirsty bandits. Call me bias, you know I'm right.

[@dr.laraaitken8373]

sorta

[@derpatron8889]

Handsome Jack the vault hunter usually is nice to random people they just kill bandits and things that kill you.

[@itspronouncedgif3906]

After playing borderlands 3 and meeting Ava, I definitely know now that Jack was in the right

[@minecrafterlucy2801]

4:29 "villains like you try to make your actions sound noble but admit it you only do this cuz u think it's fun" "I know what he was talking about at the usj but those... those are the eyes of a fanatic"

[@JaxAntilles]

You left out animal abuse. I will never forget what that bastard did to Bloodwing.

[@D4nk0_01]

Yeah, you are right :(

[@artorias7123]

And Brick's dog Dusty! ..

[@MrRightobobo]

you mean the blood hound of a bird that would attack people on it's masters' command. It was kind of a mercy to kill him.

[@JaxAntilles]

Robert Harrison I realize that, for all intents and purposes, it appears that you are trying to goad me into an argument, and presuming that is correct, I refuse to engage.

[@MrRightobobo]

Jax Antilles not at all man. Just wanted to put an opposing opinion out there. you don';t have to respond if you don't want to. But Bloodwing was killing innocent people who were simply trying to make a living in the army. Those people only killed bad people.

[@thingsareabouttogetgrusome5092]

9:20 the quote is Athena: “one day I received a job offer from a low level Hyperion programmer, come to the moon it said, hunt a vault, be a hero,” Lilith: “and what did you find” Athena: “violence, insanity, and a hero.”

[@thelordofthelostbraincells]

"YOU EITHER FOR THE HERO, OR YOU LIVE LONG ENOUGH TO BECOME THE VILLAIN"

[@thewanderingartists]

Jack is a goddamn hero !

[@Mirdehoo]

@@thelordofthelostbraincells i for the hero 🖐️😔

[@rawminz117]

I’m rewatching this 8 years later

[@wingjaigaming8240]

I just finished playing the pre-sequel and there is one more evidence Jack's grandma is abusive. During one side mission Jack said his grandmother drowned his cat when he was a kid because he didn't made his bed.

[@aaronpearson1744]

Let's not forget the Borderlands 2 Theme. This ain't no place for no heroes. This ain't no place for no better man.

[@kayoticwetwrk5843]

Aaron Pearson true

[@ICasinI]

Aaron Pearson it's called short time hero by the heavy. you're welcome.

[@bonetaffy544]

Bradley Anderson-smith change* short change hero :)

[@ICasinI]

Kaleb Allbrink Oh yeah 😂 I done a stupid

[@MrProtastic98]

Wow mind blown

[@G0die16]

The intro song says “this ain’t not place for no hero”

[@rbgyoungtreytv]

Ain't no place for the wicked

[@G0die16]

YoungTrey Official that’s the first game’s song, the second one has a better song

[@TotalNegan]

@@G0die16 EXCUUUUUUUUUSE ME?????!!!!!?????? "Better song"?!?!?!? You must be out of your damn mind 😂😂😂😂😂

[@the_s3th_lord502]

Short change hero by the heavy is the song

[@GregorioStyreco]

So many likes... And It's even wrong 😂

[@simonafuailetolo6172]

His life is sad, angel killed his wife, angel died, and his life was ruined by the vault hunter.

[@AlqhemyA]

Jack: i want you dead! Also jack: thank you for using the new u station vault hunter

[@Haedox]

I feel like Jack, like you said, just has trust issues. I honestly feel bad for the guy

[@legoarts97]

i think bradleynews11 is looking for you

[@Haedox]

***** ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[@friedpk37]

Double rainbow all the way!!!

[@prainlavos7364]

Handsome Jack reminds me of Master Chief...since you know...Cortana out of him and he going AWOL and brand as a traitor. I've read the books.

[@ShadeKazin]

Amongst it all though I see how Matpat's points are right, I still can't wrap my head around how it still justifies a lot of what he does. He does it, and feels no remorse for a lot of what he does. Even in the episodes as he's in someone's head he makes it clear he wants to kill him at the end of it. He is a tragic character, and he was essentially made into what he was by the Vault Hunters, but he still did a lot of the things willingly and well aware.

[@xeroow7488]

This is actually pretty sad. Jack was physically abused by someone he was told cares about him. And betrayed by all the people who he loved. All he wanted was peace.

[@liamfritz8290]

oh yeah also he wanted to rule over everything with an iron fist and was responsible for a horrible alien squid being released but shhhh

[@yikes3713]

Liam Fritz he really didn't thought idk where u got that info from but is inaccurate he wasn't responsible for a squid monster at any point and he never wanted to rule till evil , he just wanted to be a hero

[@tkhvu1236]

Psycho Ch4os he was responsible if you played bl 2 you will know jack was responsible to bl1 everything

[@liamfritz8290]

He was 100% responsible for the squid monster (aka guardian), he literally lured the vault hunters there using angel, that is a confirmed fact from the games

[@mrskundi8365]

1 2 3 4 okay break time is over back to work, quote from the manager of opportunity who was presumably taking orders from jack, he also had more than a few of his own workers shot for basically no reason, he also enslaved his own child and pumped her full of eridium to a point where she literally could not survive without it and he promises to brutally murder every man woman and child in sanctuary by ripping their lungs out. he is indeed quite the hero

[@SpaghettiTop]

Jack was a staple of my childhood. I'll never forget seeing his face at the end without the mask on.... Good times

[@kasiantheasian2016]

I know its 6 years since this came out but O.M.Goodness I love this theory so much, Plz do a revamp on this since Borderlands 3 has done alot more on Jacks, and Angels backstory that tie this up SO WELL with current borderlands events

[@hayldienthepsycho374]

Jack was always a hero to me. Before TPS I loved his character and he did have a point about the planet being plagued by psychos and deadly creatures, He was very charismatic and even though I've played every borderlands game to date over and over again I still find comic relief and joy out of his dialog and voice. His motives were pure in TPS, Though they became a little tainted over time they were still the same in the end, Bring peace, Even if it means killing scum like Lilith or Moxxi or my favourite vault hunter. Jacks always been a hero to me. R.i.p Jacky Boi He protecc He atacc He Handsome Jacc

[@dakotacross1519]

i feel he had some good ententions to an extent i guess locking up his daughter due to he probably didn't no what a siren was before and over time his mind broke bit by bit with the destruction of his life til their was nothing left and the vault hunters may have some less then favorable things bout them but they worked for the betterment of pandora and the lazer of helios might be the reason why they betrayed him cause they didn't no his motives during thier time with him and i see why they betrayed him they had first hand of the eye's lazer and jack didn't manipulate them cause they got paid to due work like common mercenaries and since when do most people "trust" some unknown person they just hired so he has some justification of the manipulation.

[@DeathScepter]

lets face it, most villains consider themselves the heroes of their own story

[@FerunaLutelou]

jack is a hero. A Hero of Justice.

[@JG-wp8qx]

No wonder your username has the word "physco". (Just Kidding)

[@hellishhybrid1839]

One of the biggest psychos on Pandora was Jack himself. He laughed about gouging a guys eyes out with a spoon in front of his kids. I derived immense pleasure from watching Jack die.

[@captainflamingoplayinggame4281]

So no one's gonna mention when Jack ejected those scientists out of the air-lock in the pre sequel

[@Herofromthesky]

Now I’m not gonna defend that, but wasn’t that after several betrayals? Didn’t he say he doesn’t know who he can trust? Idk it’s been a while.

[@ultimatestuff7111]

Yeah he had been betrayed like 2 or 3 times, he was paranoid and probably correct

[@velvetdraws3452]

the fact they made a villain that is making people argue about whether he is misunderstoof or not (im on him being a villain after the pre-sequel) is when you know you made a compelling villain for a game

[@greymaster8203]

Jack - I could've saved the planet! I could have actually restored order! Also Jack - Littering in the city of Opportunity is punishable by death, also complaining about the laws in Opportunity is seen as verbal littering.

[@itsybitsy3960]

Lets not forget the "Grinder Lottery"

[@l0sts0ul89]

I mean look what littering did to our planet, tons and tons of trash in the sea and landfills everywhere

[@runescapedreamer450]

Opportunity is an extremer version of singapore XD

[@ultimatestuff7111]

@@l0sts0ul89 exactly

[@HowdyHowdy_]

the only part i disagree with is the part of jack continuing on even after seeing his own death. Lilith destroyed the relic before jack saw his death, so he thought he saw him winning in the end, not dying. that is why he was so dumbfounded and angry at the end of BL2, because he didn't see himself die in his vision.

[@Aflay1]

I agree. He saw himself succeeding, not dying. He was deluded.

[@mylesfrost335]

Also where is angel in borderlands the pre sequel? She appears to still be the same age and linked up to some network like in bl2 mabye she is still in the hyperion network for her own safety "you didnt see what she did to her mother"

[@RoadRunnerdn]

Myles Frost She's still kept somewhere as she was in BL1

[@mylesfrost335]

I just wonder where Thanks for a bizzare teason i didn't think about bl1

[@pubeplucking463]

I think Jack saw it, but took a different approach when the Situation accorded, trying to prevent his death. He thought he did everything to avoid it, but in the end. He couldnt.

[@vexcine]

Did Jack ever call Pandora his home? I mean obviously it would be, but if he actually said it then when the song (Borderlands 2) says "no hero, to call home" it kinda hints at Jack being the hero even more.

[@supersmily5811]

If nothing else, Lilith is a villain of the story. She unnecessarily causes Handsome Jack to exist, when everything was just about to be fine and all the bad guys up to that point in The Pre-Sequel have ALREADY BEEN DEFEATED. The entire group was so close to being not only on the winning side, but the right one. And they gave it up because they saw Jack devolving from a Hero into a badass, and mistook it for him becoming an outright villain. Instead of interfering and getting Jack proper help to overcome his demons, they decide he needs to die and they end up losing The Relic of Knowledge and The Warrior for their efforts. Finally, instead of confronting that in the 3rd game, you're now playing ANOTHER group of randos caught in the cross-fire and forced to take Lilith's side due to the massive amount of bandits out for the heads of all The Crimson Raiders. I hope she's the final boss.

[@thatonerotom8999]

I mean... it's Borderlands, not everyone is perfect or ethical

[@RashFever26]

On Pandora, no one is an hero, no one is a villain. From Roland, to Jack, to YOU. Sometimes I feel sad for murdering those bandits... expecially Nomads. When you attack them, they will often scream "LEAVE US ALONE!". The most innocent people out there in Pandora are Shooty Mc.Face, and that Goliath you find in Sawtooth Cauldron, Ulysses. 😂

[@shadowfoxlorcogaming1533]

Thats why krieg and gaige are my favorite vault hunters mostly because this is what there life is now their lives went to hell and were forced into it hell gaige snuck onto the train and kreig just grabbed on to follow maya as he liked her

[@LesterRamos]

+Emiliano “Cappello di Paglia” Santori if you factor Tales, the most innocent person around would be Gortys. :3

[@davidwerling1991]

I personally ENJOY killing bandits. Does that make me bad

[@megwalker64]

engineers say "I almost finished my comic collection" when they die

[@johnnypt14]

+Emiliano Santori (Cappello di Paglia) Oh you feel sorry for the nomads? Guess it's alright that some strap 3 live midgets into their shields :P

[@bng4516]

In the tales form the borderland “Everyone is a hero in there eye.” -Handsome Jack Amazing answer

[@gorrazin7983]

"Everyone is the Hero of their own story" - Handsome Jack

[@danyosuna7276]

I came here right after ending Tales OTB and damn Jack's second dead was sad, I really loved his voice actor

[@kanrascinematicgaming8687]

It was sad. So now he is gone perminantly and don't exist.... just poof. No more jack... no redemption. No sympathy. Since in-game no one seems to take into account the abuse he's had. Even if it doesn't excuse him being such a dick but still. In the end he had to steal away rhys's body and attack rhys suicidally later and undo himself.. Actually I was half hoping he'd turn into handsome Rhys or something. Because it'd be a huge twist but ah well.

[@T8RR8R]

@@kanrascinematicgaming8687 We don't know that he wasn't uploaded elsewhere...

[@typhoon37351]

"You gotta go in the out hole while someones cranking the lever. Its not as sexy as it sounds, a LOT of people died down there." -Handsome Jack

[@deonrohr2469]

Came back to this video since matpat is retiring. This was the first video I saw of yours. 8 years ago I was 13. So happy for you and you family. You made a great and successful life and wish you the best going forward.

[@CommanderMcDuff]

To me Jack is a hero, and it’s not easily seen because as Jack said “Everyone’s the hero of their own story”. I don’t think I’m my mind being a hero necessarily means to be benevolent, merciful, and overall well rounded. Granted Jack does some horrible things as well but really look at it indepthly. But I will admit Jack is not entirely a Savior either. He’s more like an anti-hero. He does the wrong things for the right reasons. Pretty much everyone Jack has ever cared about betrayed him somehow. It’s unfortunate actually. Jack was just trying to do the right thing the right way for awhile. But hell let’s be honest. If everyone you cared about all of the sudden got up and betrayed you in such a condense manner would you be so easy to deal with or hell even overall good? Probably not. Jack did lose his mind after awhile, but his plans were still in good intentions. If you guys looked up the lore of Borderlands before you’ll know Pandora actually used to be beautiful, and peaceful. But just like anything good after while it will diminish. Bandits, outlaws, drugs, mutated animals, robots, gangsters absolutely infested the once beautiful planet. Jack wanted to use the warrior to bring an apocalypse to Pandora and rebuild it in his image. He didint want Bandits roaming pretty much every single part of the planet left and right. But that also means you the player. All the characters you play as are NOT good guys persay either. You just so happen to be part of what Jack hates most, and you also happen to be getting in his way consistently. It is just natural for him to go after you. But with all the people Jack has personally killed or ordered to have killed. Everyone of them for the most part did something to deserve it. Like his grandma. She used to beat him and abuse him when he was a kid. Honestly I’m sure his childhood didint help his shaping into what he later becomes. Now a big part about his daughter. Yes this can be seen in both ways just as equal. Yes what he did to his daughter pretty much keeping her captive and using her siren powers for the benefit of his plan. But it was necessary. Angel couldn’t control herself entirely. She was also still a kid, she didint see his plan in its most underlying way. She didint think what it was ultimately for. He was just wanting to kill an entire planet for nothing. No that just isint reasonable. Even if he was a total bad guy. When Angel killed her mom Jack knew she couldn’t be out in her own terms. He knew she was capable of some horrible things, to people who may not deserve it. Or even a danger to herself. Jack protected her from herself as well. Before I finish I will once again admit Jack is not entirely pure obviously. He is a bad guy to an extent. But I wouldn’t call him a straight up villain. I’m sure that there is points that could contradict my view, but ultimately I agree with his plan and I understand why he is the way he is. A lot of it is not so simple to see. Some is explicitly said, and other example are not said at all. You just see how it pieces together and makes sense. But on my end note. Jack was not a villain. But a flawed hero. P.S. this is not to say the vault hunters are evil. They are just on the other side of the story. Heroes in their own eyes for their own cause. But they are more for wealth and fortune, than planetary prosperity. R.I.P. Jack. One of the best Characters ever made for a video game.

[@BR4IN1N4J4R]

Handsome Jack's motives in 5 words: "The Ends Justify the Means"

[@nayrzabear4443]

It doesn't matter if he's the hero or villain because in the end eh will always be "perfect".

[@mookiemorjax]

+ryan Pseudomortal Who's that? Butt Stallion?

[@nayrzabear4443]

mookiemorjax Im referencing the fact that Dameon Clarke (Handsome jack's voice actor) is also the current voice actor for Cell since DBZ kai.

[@mookiemorjax]

ryan Pseudomortal Missed that reference altogether! I still think Butt Stallion is pretty perfect ;D

[@lotohooman8512]

+ryan Pseudomortal everyone is the hero of their own story -handsome jack

[@doobles9253]

If that was a DBZ joke, I salute you sir, well played

[@daniel.h7010]

Handsome jack is a monster only because he lost so much

[@thegamingpigeon8709]

Daniel .h He's a monster for what he did to bloodwing

[@aceofspade1066]

Daniel .h I agree

[@SergeLapointe1984]

He deserved it. That was one of my favorite moment in TPS :p

[@spideryuncle5505]

He only enslaved Angel because he mentioned that she did something to her mother and he had to constrain Angels power and also the eridiam that's jacks pumping into Angel is also what's keeping her alive

[@OskarProkop]

This was my favourite game theory, love you MatPat 😔

[@guichabanaano27]

I always thought that he might have been misunderstood. Poor Jack got betrayed by everyone and that made him one of the best and most memorable villains in video game history.

[@brianstryker4536]

Well this is kinda redundant since the entire point of Handsome jack in 2 and Pre-Sequel was that fact that his entire story is a gray area. Yes he a megalomaniac in charge of the company, but because said company fired him for nothing. Yes he wanted to kill all of pandora, but Pandora openly loved murder, thieving, chaos in general. It's classic who's telling the story. "When the Legend becomes fact, print the legend."

[@j-hackhammer6078]

well the narrator of the entire stuff is actually Marcus Kincaid so i'd love to pay for that idea but.... no refunds ;)

[@klutz3955]

Awesome quote! Thanks for that!

[@captain_saus]

"Ain't no rest for the wicked" and "no place for a hero" summed up what pandora always was to me

[@flyingninjafish1558]

Brian Stryker - No his story in 2 was that of a clear villain with little in the way of redeeming features (morally I mean. He’s got a ton of good features from a video game character standpoint). Pre sequel was to show his rise to power and just how he got so murder happy.

[@flyingninjafish1558]

Brian Stryker - Also, Tassiter fired him because he was under the impression that Jack had allowed the station to be taken over by a hostile force that was planning on using their station to kill many many people, and that Jack’s plan involved a 10 year old boy helping them. Does that inspire confidence in your employee to you? No. I think that if Jack has explained his plan properly Tassiter might have even given his approval, but Jack screwed the pooch on that one. How did Pickle even listen in on that conversation anywho?

[@bryanegelhoffsanimationtec257]

I agree with you Mat. Hell, the people who are the closest to being heroes are killed or changed into terrible people. We've been over Jack, but I have a few more examples. Like Roland. In B2, he may not be the smartest, but he does wish to help people by offering them a place in sanctuary, and looking after Tiny Tina. Hell, the only reason he helped Lilith betray Jack is because of what Jack did to those doctor's in the pre-sequel. And look at him, in his quest to stop Jack, he was killed by him. Or Scooter, who just wants to run his business, but gives his life for Rhys and the gang in Tales from the Borderlands. Or even Kreig the psycho! A guy who was driven insane by Pandora, but does have good intentions when helping the Vault Hunters. So, in short, the best people in this series, who just want to help people, are either killed, or driven insane.

[@vanessaliles1061]

Actually Roland claims he does not LIKE what jack did to the doctors, but agrees with the morality of it. And jack gave good reasoning for killing them sooo 😕

[@therealtomtitan7827]

Bryan Egelhoff's Animation Tech Nation I completely agree with you.Who would say that Handsome Jack is the bad guy,because he was abused as a child,betrayed by coworkers,his ex, Moxxi.And hell Lilith his"alli."

[@onedropmtg6038]

It wasn’t Pandora that drove Krieg insane, it was jack injecting him with slag.

[@hermit7244]

@@onedropmtg6038 well jack was already driven insane at that point so his actions are excusable for what drove krieg insane

[@onedropmtg6038]

noah supitang Because mental illness makes torture excusable.

[@lemong1443]

This was the video that got me into the awesome world of Borderlands, thanks MatPat..

[@denfragile5731]

jack does have paranoid thoughts, he killed every scientist on the thought that one could’ve been a traitor

[@John-Stark]

I blame the Merriff for that...

[@brettbeckwith6588]

Whenever you play any dark souls game "You either die a mage, or livenlong enough to become a knight"

[@passingsunlight7017]

debatable. I still hold the tenets of making strength faith builds, even after trying pure knights.

[@randyrandalman8234]

More like "You start off a mage, realize it makes early game incredibly difficult, then restart the game as a knight". But once you git gud, the game becomes fairly easy and it doesn't really matter what you play as. Even the broken sword hilt can be viable.

[@unknownlight390]

Or you rage quit and never return.

[@connorcountryman4178]

i'v heard that before i don't remember where but you did not make that up

[@ikasuki1]

@@randyrandalman8234 DS 1 as a mage is OP though...

[@blackadder5346]

Wait scooping out a guys eyes and then watching him bump into walls? That actually does sound funny.

[@ewu..]

It's funny for the first five minutes, but then it just a gets sad...

[@deffdefying4803]

Morbid, yes, but funny

[@Volkswagen_will]

7:50 That was Just the Voice Actor, Not What Handsome Jack Was Acually doing, (:

[@madmouse1016]

Imagine if someone had helped him get over his trauma- I mean it wouldn't have been as interesting of a story, but he would've been a better person in the end

[@ns-rc4na-142]

Let's just say, Borderlands is by far one the most incredible games .

[@glassofwater281]

Amen.

[@talentlessasian330]

Amen.

[@phucthiennguyen3299]

Or the most boring game for some people, including me... Oh boy..

[@glassofwater281]

Lil Thiện then why are you here?

[@phucthiennguyen3299]

I love lores in games. But liking the game? That's a different story. i have to say, Borderlands' world and story is better than the game itself in my opinion. The game is repetitive and lack of exploration, the infinite spawning mechanic kinda make me tired after quests and quests shooting restlessly. Personaly, i also hate doing something over and over again so farming in BL didn't work for me.

[@jumanjicostco3248]

It IS the whole theme of the game really. Anthony Burch has mentioned a lot in interviews about how BL2 tackles the "ambiguity of good and evil" The game constantly puts it out there how the player and Jack are no different. There are a lot moments in the game where they poke fun at this, for example... *(Spoiler Alert)* During the story mission in Sawtooth Cauldron, Brick will say this line during a fight right after you've killed the bandit leader of the area: *"Why won't these guys quit? You've already killed their boss, idiots"* It's a "right back a'cha~" moment, because it mirrors how Jack have also killed the leader of the C.Raiders, and yet the Raiders still kept on fighting. This theme keeps going until the end of the game. So this episode is more of a review than a theory :) because these games has done a lot to make the player feel some empathy for the guy.

[@glassofwater281]

Cassie Barns I noticed Brick’s line about a month ago. Been playing for years and only recently thought about it.

[@blehh_mae]

or maybe its gearbox or 2k's sense of humour, theyre joking about most games because in them when u kill the boss,theres still enemies in the area and they respawn back,

[@JB-ku7uz]

**Presequel Spoiler** that's interesting because Jack says a similar thing in the Pre-sequel after you've killed Zarpedon. He says "Why are these assholes still fighting? Their leader's history."

[@huuweee]

It's interesting to see how far interpretations can lead away from the core. If you pay full attention, he mention the same idiot thing about his own members after you killed a lot of slabs for your initiation. Then you go 2 missions later up that copter place and he blames them for the very same reason. I'm pretty sure that this is the whole pun. Besides that, the c. raiders actually have a leader (at least for the first.. say 80%?... of the Story.

[@huuweee]

@@JB-ku7uz look my comment above, it's an simply running gag.

[@tobywood9156]

thanks matpat, this was one of the few causes of my obsession with this game and jack which made my life spiral, as its hard to function when all you wanna do is play the same game. not even my friends wanna play or hear about it cause its all i do. its been six years please i wanna get over this game

[@Brick_Eater_]

Like, imagine if the kids from the Goonies grew up and got thrown into a *_b l e n d e r_*

[@Kasmorder]

Came here because it was recommended and figured I'd catch up on the Borderlands story. Saw the symptoms for BPD, felt it resonate WAY too much, set up a therapy appointment. Finally getting the help I need and ending the disruptive and self-destructive tendencies I've had for years. Thanks Game Theory?

[@neowolf09]

At least you can afford therapy... I'm gonna go raid Uranus for some pearlies now... Heh..

[@spimber5517]

Kasmorder “so how did you know you had BPD?” “Oh I watched a theory on a sociopath and related to the symptoms” “Ooookay then” Good for you for getting uelp

[@bongosmcdongos4190]

Congratulations person!

[@forgiveme6017]

For once I feel like this is a genuine comment. I constantly find self pitying people who try and make people feel sorry for them. Whereas you seem genuine and honest. Thank you for your honesty

[@ondreagooch2872]

I personally think this comment is fake

[@jumanjicostco3248]

I think that's the main theme of the game, that "Everyone thinks they're the hero, but they're not". I love how Borderlands 2 constantly reminds you that you and Jack are no different from one another and that both of you aren't that far from them psychos and bandits either. Kudos to Anthony Burch for creating such solid characters

[@meemnaan3108]

Everybody wants to be the hero of their own story.

[@mum1160]

Cassie Barns in borderlands 2 you PLAY AS A PSYHO

[@bryanegelhoffsanimationtec257]

A certain scene in Borderlands 3 helps prove this theory even more!

[@Isaac_646]

I gotta say the funniest thing ever is the line "hey how's your da- God these pretzels suck, anyway how's your day?"

[@acytaliptic9648]

Lilith messes up a lot of things including jack’s mind Good job Lilith ya done screwed up

[@CrazyChemistPL]

Cannot agree. You tend to look in depth at Jack while not looking in depth at those who oppose him. And even looking in depth at Jack you mysteriously miss or overlook some quite important details. Let me state the most important fact - there is no clear hero in Borderlans - just shades of grey. What is Jack's original goal in coming to Pandora, and later hiring his Vault Hunters in the Pre-Sequel? He learned about the Vault and he wanted to harness its power. He is power hungry and looks out for himeslf. Granted, during Pre-Sequel his goal switches to saving Elpis and its inhabitants, but it was just the immediate, intermediate goal, a step in the master plan of opening the Elpis' Vault. What about the Borderlands 2 then? What is Jack's goal in that game? Open the Vault of The Warrior, take control of it and use it to "forcibly civilize" Pandora. You likened Borderlands game to a western, so let me continue with that analogy. Doesn't what Jack intends to do to Pandora seems a bit alike to what American settlers did to Native Americans during expansion to the (Wild) West which lead to near destruction of the culture and extermination of the people? Is such thing morally acceptable? You will say that Pandora is a violent, savage place full of dangerous lunatics... but is it really? Well, it obviously is but at the same time it is quite a stable environment in the grand scheme of things. Various gangs mostly keep to themselves, often even coexisting with each other, and while heated border battles certainly happen, it is not like more civilized communities (New Haven, Sanctuary) cannot thrive and prosper... at least until Jack notices them. He then attacks them. Besides, don't you think that what Helena Pierce and later Roland's/Lilith's Crimson Riders are doing is also civilizing Pandora, but in a much milder and acceptable manner? There is also their attitude towards the Vaults and their contents. They don't try to control whtaever they find inside them, instead electing to destroy it, understanding that noone should ever have so much power. Jack on the other hand intends to make whatever he finds his, in order to strenghten his power - like I said, he is power hungry. Also, I don't think Jack saw his death. If yes, why continue with his plan if he knows it will give what he is after to his enemies? To sum up - I don't think Jack should ever be called a hero. What I will give you, though, is that he starts the Pre-Sequel as a, at least to a degree, good guy with clearly good intentions. He even is a good team player which is something unbelieveable for the, by then, Handsome Jack.But remember, there is a good chance he has his daughter already enslaved by that point (granted, there is much ambiguity about Angel history). Events of the Pre-Sequel, the constant betrayals and the way he is treated by his boss start to take their toll on him, until finally on Helios, betrayed at the moment of his triumph by people he never gave any reason to betray him, he snaps and goes past redemption. This is the moment the final trace of good in Jack dies... but he cannot really be blamed for it, can he? Nonetheless, by the time of Borderlands 2, Jack IS a villain. So, what about Lilith. She certainly is very emotional person with tendency to shifting blame to others. At first her betrayal of Jack and his Vault Hunters may seem like a very foul play... but is it? She wintessed Jack kill innocent (?) scientist just because one of them might've been a mole. Realizing what Jack's is capable of, she felt appalled that she had her hand in that by allying with him. But she shifted the blame to Jack and his employees. That is how she justified their attempt not only on Jack but on his Vault Hunters as well. When it comes to the part of her scarring Jack's face, I don't think that was her goal. All she wanted was to stop the information transfer. Maybe she thought she killed Jack, maybe not, but I don't think that was her goal at the moment. And finally, the firing squad. Why does Lilith give the order to fire? Like I said, emotional and with a tendency to shift blame to others. Lilith just lost Roland, someone she loved, at the hands of Jack and she cannot come to terms with the fact she possibly had a hand in it, by coming to the Core against Roland's warnings, so she shifts the blame to anyone she can in any way connect to Jack - Athena, who happened to work for him when he was still not foregone, so she orders her execution. But after being stopped by the Guardian and having time to think it through, Lilith ends up honestly apologizing Athena (in the Claptrap DLC ending). As for Roland, he is obviously not happy with their plan and feels sorry to Jack's Vault Hunters. Moxxi... I'm not sure, she is cold and calculated.... and being Jack's girlfriend, she may know something about him players do not. Yeah, again I've produced giant wall of text that noone will ever read :)

[@anuspotatus2153]

+CrazyChemistPL Don't worry. I read it. :)

[@rebellionguard]

I read it too and I completely agree with everything. Jack had initial plans to get into the vault in Elpis. He had no idea what it was, but he WAS going to use it after observing the power of the first vault that was opened and actually having installed the Destroyer's freaking eye on the station as a weapon. One of the reasons zarpedon attacked helios was to stop jack and hopefully anyone from obtaining the vaults secrets because the knowledge from the vault told her and The Watcher accompanied her. Jack didn't know about zarpedon's motives so he defended the station because he was not as corrupt yet and actually valued human life as he had not taken one yet. I don't think Angel was enslaved yet though although evidence on that is not too solid, but he had no reason to up to that point until he received the visions from the vault and then he knew sirens could power vault keys.

[@anuspotatus2153]

rebellionguard angel wasn't enslaved yet. He didn't know about the second vault on pandora until the end of the Pre-Sequel.

[@rebellionguard]

+A Communist Gingerbreadman That's what I'm saying, but Echoes on BL2 are a bit conflicting on that though. Hopefully that could be addressed in the telltale version.

[@mookiemorjax]

+CrazyChemistPL This is a giant wall of text that I have read.

[@johnconley1586]

you need to do a theory on zero and who or what he is

[@aniota1648]

YES! ❤

[@bohemiantoe3924]

Older game theory is such a different vibr

[@joshlewis5065]

Borderlands 3 hype

[@Akek]

wut

[@letsdroneon501]

Lazy Weeb yup borderlands 3 is coming out

[@SourChicken1856]

We don't want hype. If you are really a BL fan, you don't want it. You know one of the problems of why TPS! Was Bad? The hype. You want to BL 3 be a bad game? No? Then don't hype.

[@suh3219]

Claptrap12 Tps wasn't THAT bad. It just lacked content and bosses unlike the much more stronger competition (BL 1, 2). They did need more time to make it better and on level with the others.

[@SourChicken1856]

Suhayb Hussain Yes, because of the hype. I mean, if you want a game that makes you say "It is worth it", don't hype.

[@tywarriorguygames7954]

To be honest this story seems light hearted but its actually very sad because of all the betrayal

[@rileyjfosbre6383]

“Don’t be a handsome Jack” Sorry, can’t hear you over the sound of all my MONEY!!!

[@0c3an.c4t]

I love it when your editing team warps faces into smiles and frowney faces

[@MrBooMbsotic]

Who is worse? The guy who wanted to save Elpis and Pandora, betrayed by literally everybody except like 2 people, or the Siren who wants you to kill an innocent child?..

[@corabeka7687]

Inncoent Child? Can you refresh my memory?

[@flyingninjafish1558]

He means Angel, despite the fact that she is clearly at least a young woman by the time of Borderlands 2 who due to her father demanding she charge the Vault key for his own ambitions, gets forced to consume eridium or else she dies, all while trapped in a single room underground with no one for her asides from her insane father.

[@corabeka7687]

@@flyingninjafish1558 Oh, but when does Lilith say she wanted you to kill Angel?

[@flyingninjafish1558]

{ Corabeka } - Well It’s never really stated that she wants you to kill her, it’s more that in order to get the Vault key you have to destroy the eridium injectors keeping Angel alive which would lower the barrier around her and the key. Lilith and Roland make the desicion to go ahead with it despite not wanting to kill Angel. And they didn’t know they would have too until they were in the room.

[@corabeka7687]

@@flyingninjafish1558 Oh, Alright thanks :-)

[@AirahsELL]

Jack was a well intentioned guy who went way off the deep end and still thought he was doing the right thing. He actually did have a point in that Pandora was a wretched hive of scum and villainy but that doesn't justify his efforts to basically destroy the planet.

[@miniman649]

he doesn't desire to destroy the planet, only kill the mass load of bandits, murdereds, cannibals and freaks on the planet. Hell one of the guys we get the option to play, the gunzerker, is a cannibal, which is written on a bounty from Hyperion.

[@cleonardo97]

But you're not in any way justified in punching women (patricia) or killing villagers!

[@PenguinODoom]

Wyren Smith - Punch that bitch, so what he punches dudes, no reason not to punch a girl. It's called equality XD But yeah just punching anyone is bad... or killing

[@MNfrostbite]

Borderlands 2 makes no real attempt to paint the playable vault hunters as heroes. Most of them are just as messed up as Jack. I always considered my motivation to be more revenge for jack trying to kill you more so than trying to save the world.

[@thushararohiniamarakon5470]

Sirrockyqo

[@ahoy_m8y]

I still say jack is a monster solely for the fact that he spooned a man's eyes out in front of his family and laughed about it 👀👀👀

[@boopygo3799]

i've been replaying borderlands 2 a lot lately and rewatching this video brings me so much nostalgia

[@SlippinBimmy]

villain or not handsome jack is my favourite game character of all time

[@lucioiva7146]

I don't know if you know this but randy (guy who made borderlands) actually saw this video and claimed it to be almost entirely accurate. So good job Matt

[@Samkonia4728]

Rhys killing digital jack in tales from the borderlands is so brutal and my favorite scene in gaming ever

[@charitibriosi9718]

0:56 SQUARESPACE WASN'T EVEN ADVERTISING BACK THEN! AT LEAST I DON'T THINK!

[@adamcracknell9885]

I HAVE THE SHINIEST MEAT BICYCLE!

[@mediscout]

strip the flesh

[@coreylane3069]

Conductor of the poop train

[@TheDarkSlayer415]

TURN AROUND PRETTY LADY!!!

[@colehanson3082]

I AM THE CODUCTOR OF THE POOP TRAIN!

[@zach6126]

WHERE IS MY GODDAMNED SALT!

[@peelerrr]

MattPatt, Is Cranky Kong actually Donkey Kong from the past and is present Donkey Kong actually Donkey Kong JR from the past

[@DaGaingBros]

Cranky kong is the original donkey kong and donkey kong jr. Is the new donkey kong

[@alexjames4507]

Kranky Kong is the original DK from the '81 game "Donkey Kong". The main Donkey Kong in all the games is Donkey Kong Jr., just older. Diddy Kong is DK Jr's son.

[@peelerrr]

Alex James but its also a theory. Nintendo never said it was true

[@alexjames4507]

Really? Huh.

[@peelerrr]

Alex James thats what EgoRaptor has been saying.

[@haleywaldo2380]

I was waiting for you to do one of these

[@luckyyydayyy1540]

I wish MatPat would do more borderlands theories because he's like amazingly smary

[@TweekMorgan4dictator]

So is Borderlands, for that matter.

[@ChrisMorray]

" I'm not crazy, my reality is just different from yours. " -Cheshire Cat.

[@elijah8games]

Made my day XD

[@elizabethj1167]

gamingchrizie "I reject your reality and substitute my own." - Adam Savage

[@orangejoey1459]

"I decided to not be scared and lose all my hopes in humanity" Keishan Or something along those lines XD

[@ThanksIhateyoutoo]

I'm guessing the cheshire cat from an Alice in wonderland parody of some sort, because in the books (yes both of them) he says "we're all mad here".

[@adambrien896]

ADURRR -Justin Bieber