Sparkle Theme Goes HARD! Drummer Reacts to Sparkle Trailer + Myriad Celestia

The Honkai Star Rail Sparkle trailer might be the best Hoyo character trailer ever... The OST for this Star Rail trailer matches the video perfectly, and the story telling and Sparkle lore bits are blowing my mind! I'm a drummer, and this is my reaction to the Sparkle trailer!
0:00 SPARKLE TRAILER INTRO
0:24 SPARKLE TRAILER REACTION
2:47 SPARKLE THEME ANALYSIS
7:51 SPARKLE MYRIAD CELESTIA REACTION
11:03 THE BEST HOYO TRAILER EVER??
Join our amazing Discord community and follow me on Twitter for personal engagement and behind the scenes sneak peaks!
Discord - / discord
Twitter - / thesamizard
Get the drip! Pick up your official Samizard merch right here - store.streamelements.com/sami...
Hook yourself up with code ZARD to save 10% off storewide with Elm City Coffee! www.elmcityroastery.com
Become a Member and join the ZARD STARS for exclusive posts, priority message replies, a plethora of gnarly emotes and loyalty badges! Oh, and you'll be getting a shout out in future videos!
/ @samizard
#hoyocreators #honkaistarrail #sparkle #penacony

[@Samizard]

Our Discord server is amazing, check it out! Drummer Reactions - kzbin.info/aero/PL3IfamSl36rhG3LgVwtPdS3lact7vvmM6 Discord - discord.gg/fzRUaAZBT8

[@OPGMitaki]

I've watched so many different people react to this trailer today. I've watched over 20 times easily. And I can for sure say that they went over the top with Sparkle. The lore, the visuals, the perspective of Sparkle. Everything was absolutely amazing. And I definitely cannot wait to learn more about her. I do have some theories for sure!

[@lily-_-]

What theories do you have for her?

[@MrShamus22]

What else do you do with a character that is highly inspired by Kurumi OTHER than going over the top? Psychopathic woman that shoots herself needs more than a gun muzzle on their cheek half the time

[@OkSear]

me too

[@OkSear]

Hoyoverse always puts extra effort into Archon trailers (it would be Aeons for HSR), Sparkle said "I am Elation", could Sparkle be... nvm, maybe im thinking something stupid

[@darknessknows1235]

@us22 tbf, she's inspired by a lot of characters other than Kurumi, Harley Quinn, Yuno, Ai, Junko enoshima, to name some

[@KyuubiDragon4]

So, something you missed about Sparkle's Myriad Celestia trailer (because you need subtitles on to see it) is that, before each of the "beloved mask" phases, the subtitles first read "Sparkle Premiere Performance", then "Sparkle Showing No. 99", then finally "Sparkle Showing No. 990", implying that "Sparkle" was initially a character being played by an actress, only for the actress to play her so much for so long that she eventually lost her sense of self to the role and went crazy. Of course, with that story being on display like a stage play at the end, with a bunch of other "plays" alongside it, that entire backstory should probably be taken with a grain of salt at best - it seems she prefers the Joker variety of backstory, i.e. Multiple Choice. If there IS any truth to the Myriad Celestia trailer, it's probably going to wind up being her equivalent of "fell in a vat of acid".

[@Samizard]

WHY WOULD THAT INFO BE HIDDEN BEHIND ENABLING CLOSED CAPTIONS???

[@Restryouis]

yesn't, she didn't go "crazy", she realized that everything was "a play within a play" remember, in the SU, Aha is the one to realize he's in a simulation, that's the power of the path of elation, to realize there's a world above, we only have 2 confirmed Masked Fools (not counting the one in the pokemon event), Sampoo and Sparkle, and those 2 are the only ones to ever break the 4th wall and directly address the player, they know they are in a game

[@KyuubiDragon4]

@@SamizardCouldn't tell you. Maybe it's something that is actually spoken but you have to listen really hard to hear it? Either way, just wanted to give you a heads up about it.

[@TrueWarriorJak]

@@Samizard I feel you can figure that out even without the captions it seems pretty obvious she was or pretending to be an actor from the visuals alone. All captions do is reinforce that idea.

[@shijou2867]

​@@Restryouisthis got me curious on silverwolf then...

[@sofialu226]

Your musical Analisys from the most recent trailer about "She and Aha getting an Agreement" sound cool, many of us belive she is an Elation emanator!

[@dumbass9049]

something i havent seen anybody (to my knowledge) talk about is that the custom logo popped up, but they still had the normal logo at the end, which to me strongly implies that sparkle gave us the illusion of the custom logo for some reason, which both completely breaks the 4th wall and fits her character

[@kyuven]

It's worth mentioning that in the JP dub, Sparkle/Hanabi/HuaHou speaks in third person (unsure of Chinese cuz...I don't speak Chinese). She never once stops saying "hanabi" and even says "Hanabi is Elation!" So I don't think it's Aha, but she might be an Emanator. Based on her myriad celestia, I think she was originally "Sparkle" and "Not Sparkle," but over time "Sparkle" corrupted "Not Sparkle" and "Not Sparkle" became "Sparkle" as well, so there are two "Sparkles" in her head but they're both "Sparkle" now and just argue and play games with each other. So she's *so* insane she drove her sanity insane.

[@adastra5295]

You're overthinking this. It's a common anime trope for girls. Clara does it too. And it works, because the general sentiment in the JP youtube comments is かわいい. English subs and dubs never have the third person because it sounds weird. In Chinese, she says "wuo" which is "I".

[@Mayank_MJ]

Im borrowing someone else's explanation from a different video, but this is an interesting theory. White mask sparkle = real sparkle before she became a masked fool Red Mask sparkle = Aha acting as sparkle and corrupting her Split Mask Sparkle = Sparkle after she basically became an emanator of elation here the gun used in Russian roulette by the two Sparkle (one in red mask one in white mask) has 6 barrels with 1 filled. And the "game" proceed as this: 1. The white mask shot first and she is safe and happy 2. The red mask uses the second round which was safe but she got sad that it didn't actually shoot, then did a third, and fourth shot yet she is still safe and then gave the gun to white mask sparkle. 3. The white mask Sparkle hesitate. Its 50-50 chance at this point, yet the red mask sparkle used white mask sparkle hand to shot herself and she is still safe. Now the only shot remaining is the real bullet, so White mask is guaranteed to die because of Red Mask's insanity. 4. The white mask shot herself with the last one. Her mask dropped and turned into half white and half red one which might suggest that the normal sparkle is gone and now a twisted emanator sparkle remains.

[@schildischott]

If you look closely there are fore masks ;) There is a fourth mask mask with a cirsle in the middle that is eather black or also red (hard to tell with all the effects in this shots. :)

[@bastil5856]

Adding to this, the monologue about her masks is just chilling. Starts out as a mask she can hide behind. Grows into a reflection of her real mood. Becomes a persona actively acting against who she actually is. "When I'm happy, you're screaming (in rage)." Because her happiness reduces her reliance on Elation. "When I'm angry, you're crying." Because anger works against Elation as a concept, theoretically? "When I'm sad, you're smiling." The most chilling part, because the persona/Aha is actively taking joy from her suffering.

[@ratoh1710]

Considering her in the Myriad Celestia talking about going off stage then talking directly to the audience, I think Aha told her the truth, that their world is just a game, and kinda broke her mind

[@nicolas._.2294]

​@@bastil5856omg😱🤯 You're so right this is so amazing

[@noiko4418]

Also it probably rig too, red mask did say a fool is to know when to act clueless, like she do then she shot herself at that moment she know she won.

[@idyotako]

I LOVE MY CRAZY UNHINGED QUEEN!

[@Marky-Mark1337]

She is normal in an unhinged universe

[@Li_Sorashi]

Amen brother

[@ynnaD2413]

I like ur theory on sparkles trailer and it makes sense. There are some inconsistencies but i think it still holds up pretty well.

[@RyushiroX]

Honestly I think you're spot on with your analysis, in that this trailer was the binding agreement between Aha and Sparkle. The music definitely lends to that theme and it's just so damn good! And if it was this crazy for Sparkle, can you imagine how unhinged it must have been for Sampo and the other fools?

[@Amirajhassani]

Sparkle’s trailer got me watching it on repeat ngl

[@MasterNick7412]

Niiice love your reactions and analysis keep it up!

[@mamasteponme4415]

Didn't expect us to deep dive on Sparkle lore while evaluating her theme xD pleasant surprise for sure! ♥

[@austinmartin612]

The way I see it, especially with the whole Persona gun reference, is that Sparkle is a persona she took on. Think multiple personality. She's Hanabi, but she's also Sparkle. I don't think she's possessed by Aha, I think she's unhinged, and unhinged done right. She does a great job channeling the Joker, specifically the Heath Ledger version(why so serious?), but I also get heavy Neo from RWBY vibes(normally calm, but her eyes, or in this case Hanabi's mask, changes and suddenly she's crazy/sadistic/maliciously playful), her smirk at the end of her trailer(first one in this video. red mask wearing Sparkle) also heavily reminds me of Neo.

[@ShapeshifterOS]

This whole trailer is a one woman play that's why it's titled monodrama. Sparkle is just playing all characters represented by the different colored masks. The extras don't have masks. All are Sparkle.

[@ShapeshifterOS]

The Myriad Celestia trailer shows her progression from her first showing to her 99th and her 990th. First playing the role, then becoming the role, and finally being consumed by the role. Pretty sure Aha communicates through the masks somehow.

[@chearoth5093]

Is the characters "sparkle " that's she play is like what she's Now? I have my doubt on that as to me the character"sparkle " that's she play look like a cute mischievous girl instead of the sparkle now so even if she had the sparkle as her self now she shouldn't be like she is now

[@ShapeshifterOS]

@@chearoth5093 Please speak like a normal human being and use proper English. Learn how to punctuate properly.

[@Luxius.]

​@@chearoth5093 wait a minute, i'm lost on track half way trough of your comments.....

[@thesuperdak7224]

Some of the animation here reminds of some of the stranger animation you can find in Madoka Magika or Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei.

[@nilmerg]

People have said that the trippier animation is likely inspired by "MARENOL" & "Ka" (MARENOL is R18G iirc so caution if you look it up). The creators (LeaF & Optie) of those animations have gone out to say they don't mind if their works inspired Monodrama.

[@devnotes00]

It is strongly hinted that Aha is both in human form and a shapeshifter so it seems like both it and Sparkle (Hanabi) go well together. It'll be interesting on finding out why an Aeon is meddling in human affairs in Panecony of all places.

[@ToothpickSamurai]

For Aha it's probably as simple as pulling on over on Xipe, it's kinda what he does given he hid on the Astral express for months to see how long it took for Akivili to discover him and then blew up a train car when he got discovered.

[@everettjoseph6189]

​@@ToothpickSamuraiyeah i think the aeon itself really doesnt need any reason as long as they're having fun or someone else is having fun like i think aha's ideal by itself is already chaotic being that it can be interpreted in so many different ways case in point with sampo saying to sparkle at the end of her companion quest with black swan that sparkles elation is not something sampo can stand by meaning every follower of aha is pursuing their own elation Although i think sparkle herself is just a human who is using aha's powers i think she got more influence of their power because of how much she uses it like if we compare it again to sampo who is a masked fool and we know that their masks were given by aha so that they can use their powers and sampo as when we knew him never used any mask so thats why most of the time we were with him he always results to tricks and fighting is his prowess with knives and bombs not really using aha's powers

[@ArachisNPO]

I think Sparkle is an emanator of Aha, not the Aeon. But I could be wrong. It just feels like getting a playable Aeon this early is not likely. Although the game is almost a year old, so there is a possibility.

[@devnotes00]

@@ArachisNPO yeah I could see that. Maybe a piece of Aha or even an emissary but not the Aeon themselves

[@ResNullium]

When I first watched the trailer, first thought was: she went ham. Second thought: Samizard is gonna go ham (with the music)

[@scarletregen1265]

The ending scene is defnitly a refrence to the mad hatters tea party

[@nanachi659]

soooo good

[@tamajimaishida8533]

I was waiting for this. Great one yet again. Also it might be a bit late but when would you be doing Gaming demo reaction? Bc it's a banger too

[@Samizard]

Honestly, the Gaming demo has been requested so much I might have to just toss out a super late video for it haha

[@tamajimaishida8533]

@@Samizard Lol no worries. Sorry if I added oil to the fire

[@FlippingTheTable-t]

Good analysis of a great trailer

[@kierenm4810]

Another detail from the trailer: The mask that the three Sparkles are standing on is exactly a mask shown in the simulated universe Aha portrait. In the sparkle trailer it's purple instead of the red-orange that is on the portraits, which is an interesting color choice change. (Possible overthinking, Aha's mask being the "royal" color meaning his philosophy now rules Sparkle as well.) It being the only mask in the trailer that isn't Sparkle's is absolutely an intentional choice. It makes me think that Sparkle is at the very least and emanator of Aha if not one of the forms that Aha takes to cause chaos. Sparkle and Aha both have a very interesting break in their backstories as well. Sparkle breaks when she realizes that "all the world's a stage" so to speak. And she abandons separating reality from a performance. Aha breaks when he looks into existence and saw a cold, unfeeling void. Instead of falling into despair like IX, the nihility Aeon, Aha instead burst into laughter. There's so many parallels with the two of them it's amazing!

[@Rhodynit]

"That's a Pretty Shot..."

[@khan_k]

I get massive infected mushroom vibes from the end drop.

[@ArachisNPO]

I think Sparkle is an emanator of Aha, not the Aeon. But I could be wrong. It just feels like getting a playable Aeon this early is not likely. Although the game is almost a year old, so there is a possibility.

[@JessieMCC123]

I realised when the mask is split, it's the real Sparkle, and when it's fake Sparkle, it's different. But that might be wrong.

[@mistplayz3306]

4:53 @Samizard to me it sounds like morphine in FL studio

[@nothmm8582]

You know Aha The Elation is insane when Sparkle looks normal in front of him XD.

[@dhanapiereza5012]

So, lookwise, she is a lil bit like hu tao. But inside, she is Vill-v. Combained those 2 ( or perhaps 9 ? Vill-v has 8 personalities after all), and mayhem is created.

[@poppypollen4362]

She's like Jinx, but sane, which makes her much scarier. Elation, my ass. If there was an aeon of terror, she'd be the emanator.

[@palko7179]

There is only one reason Aha does not appear in the Sparkle trailer, and it’s in the title: Monodrama. This story only has one character and one conflict. No posession. No villains. No Astral Express. Just Sparkle.

[@asd-951]

Surely convincing assumption. Yet here’s A suggestion from a CN player: “Just keep in mind that all dramas casted by sparkle can be and should be FAKE. And that, is where ELATION emerges.”

[@yharnamiyhill787]

It'd be crazy if she is like Kiara Sessoyin where instead of being possessed by a demon, she (human) possessed it. In the case with Sparkles, she possessed the mask, and that's her true nature. In other words, she is batsh^t crazy 😅

[@igorzharenikov1812]

7:19 probably

[@Vallllaaaaarrrrriiiiieeeeee]

I’m so sad I didn’t get a notification 😔

[@Samizard]

I can't believe you've done this

[@Vallllaaaaarrrrriiiiieeeeee]

@@Samizard forgive me Mr samizard…

[@Uyhn26]

9:37 CAUGHT 4K XD

[@Samizard]

lol lissen... I know how this looks but I swear that was a reaction to the music

[@Uyhn26]

@@Samizard XDDD Ok I believe you!

[@theriolu1693able]

I’ve heard the music is called Psytrance.

[@entityglitch8429]

Some people think that Sparkle is controlled by Aha, but I think that all of The Masked Fools act similarly to Sparkle

[@xavierlynch1088]

They don't. The path of elation itself is very fluid. Sampos elation (what gives him joy) is not what gives sparkle joy. Infact Sampo says he doesn't understand sparkles elation

[@potatoking5602]

Sparkle is amazing but i personally wont pull her, i have 30 pity with ensured banner character and acheron is coming soon, i cant wait to hear what they do for acherons trailer too

[@ArpTakao696]

reminds me of kurumi from date a live

[@Samizard]

I have red hair and a beard, how could I possibly remind you of her?

[@ArpTakao696]

@@Samizard lmao i mean sparkles

[@shijou2867]

Brother, me thinks already, she emanator of aha frfr

[@braddl9442]

The trailer and her other character video show that the entertainment industry eventually made her not know who she actually was, and she realized that the world was nothing but a stage that the players were watching. So why stay on the sage, might as well perform out in the wider world if its all just a show. All Followers of AHA seem to have mentally broken down at some point. And they could see past the 4th wall. Or in like Sampo talk directly to the players.

[@Twigggggy]

she is posessed by an aeon

[@Samizard]

Me when

[@KudaGeatsune3821]

Harmony & dischord go hand in hand like Sanity & insanity Everyone is a balance of things This girl not so much

[@user-bb7fi7nh1d]

I don't think the red mask is Aha because at the end the red mask remains static just like the other fake Sparkles

[@xavierlynch1088]

I think it is aha or a manifestation of his power. And interestingly enough the red mask is what gets shot too implying red mask was also a faker.

[@bloodyriver2650]

We don't know much about her at all he have theories that she is an emanator. But something is clearly wrong with her.

[@clementmariette7059]

I think white mask isn't "Sparkle", but rather "Hanabi" (the one "under the veil"). Sparkle is the split mask, Sparkle is Hanabi's body after Aha came by.

[@maltorramus2997]

Kind of sad that she ended up being Harmony..... kind of boring... she should have been Elation!!!

[@DeRedBaronCT]

Would have been funny if they did release an elation path for characters to go along with her release

[@Erra66]

you'd do a better job if you dropped the drummer and "music analysis" part