The interviewer doesn't seem to like Gale or Wyll much. Their favorite scene of Wyll was just being able to sleep with Mizora which has nothing to do with him or his character, lol.
That's the vibe I got as well, Wyll needs more love too and his story is definitely suffering for it.
Hey, someone made me a Gale thread, so I don't have to seize other thread's to talk about Gale! =)
First of all, I don't think blowing himself up is his "real" ending, they write about that it feels like a "right" ending. And while I would never do this to Gale, I agree. Having him sacrifice himself in Act 3 is a very poetic ending. He got the orb as a failed labour of love but ultimately for selfish reasons. In Act 2 he is not prepared to sacrifice himself for his goddess - and it would have horrible consequences if he did. When he offers to blow himself up for the group/ Tav in Act 3, he does it so nobody has to loose their soul, the consequence of becoming a mindflayer. Motivated by his care for others he uses the curse of his own ambition to take out both the symbol of unbridled human ambition, the crown of Karsus, and the ultimate creature of domination, the Elderbrain. And he does it in a fairly humble manner. It is very poetic.
I also don't really like it because allowing him to blow himself up despite knowing that he still thinks the world would be better off without him, is kind of like making Astarion drink from Araj to get the potion. It allows them to play into their worst opinions of themselves.
Ha, I had to start one. It's my first time posting here so apologies if I get something wrong with the format. But what can I say, I'm a Gale girlie and honestly just had enough of people being dismissive of his character. I agree with others that he can be a bit much at times, but other characters can also talk my ear off (Wyll, Lae'zel, even Halsin) and I tend to skip over a lot of their dialogue.
I don't consider his ending where he sacrifices himself to be the right ending (not real whoops, misspoke there) either, which is why I was confused when that was said. It was a real surprise that a writer would even say that when there are so many ways this story can go. It kind of makes me feel like my playthrough where I saved him is pointless if that was "intended" to be his ending. They could've worded that a whole better, especially since this is an interview that fans would read.
I guess it all boils down to him becoming a joke and no one taking him or his story seriously. Part of the reason is articles like this where they feed into the bias, which is my initial problem.
There are just so many instances where Gale constantly gets demeaned though it's hard to keep track. I mean, if Larian can soften the female companions because a bunch of Reddit bros complained about how "icy" and "harsh" they were (I don't agree, I think women should have the right to be mean and not have to be softened to be more palatable for men), then they could also change the narrative around Gale at least with his companions and have them say AT LEAST one nice thing about him in banter/general conversations. This man needs a hug and for someone to tell him he's good enough. To call him annoying is a disservice to the complexity of his character and those who enjoy it.
I think much of Gale bashing comes from this stupid concept of talking badly about the character who is the direct "competition" of one's favourite. I don't know why, but apparently that's a thing and dear Astarion has some very enthusiastic fans - to put it mildly. Personally, I like them both and think that if you romance them with each other, you get the best story out of it.
I like to think most Astarion fans hate Gale so much because they see themselves in him and don't want to admit it. I can't tell you how many Astarion x Gale playthroughs I have currently where I explore their dynamic a bit more because they're so interesting together. You can either make them good, bad or have it where one of them ascends. It's a very interesting duo and it's a shame that Astarion fans are missing out on it.
