Indeed if the animators were thinking it's for a male audience they really need to do some research on the audience BG3 has gathered as most "Astarion Fans are female in real life" especially if you look into the streaming community it's the slightly goth ,cosplay orientated and modding crew primarily female wearing their elf ears and had a thing for vampires seeing this twisted relationship all of a sudden after banging in hundreds of hours to even get near act 3 It doesn't work the animation is jarring.
And then there are the people who just love RPGs and play "immersive" (in the case of Astarion romance, these are mostly women). Who were genuinely drawn to the character while playing the game naturally, playing without spoilers, and without even knowing anything about him beforehand. Who helped him ascended simply because he wants to and it really is his path, simply understanding Astarion and wanting only the best for him. Just sincere roleplay... Let's say, not tuning in specifically to the "evil" roleplay, but changing the alignment in the course of the game, naturally, as in life, because this game is realistic and the principles of "do good and you'll be happy" don't work, which, in general, I really liked. But it feels like the writers are only interested in those players who treat the game and the characters living in it as sex shop items, choosing based on "sexual preferences". Those who want to live in the game and see and create a deep and sincere story are not perceived as an audience.
Originally Posted by Ametris
As I mentioned earlier, it's not only the animations during the kiss and the facial expression in the epilogue but also questionable faces after the kisses (which you can see in the images - the circus location you can see in the background is intentional).
Yes, the circus is on point, unequivocally. When your Tav - the person who loved Astarion more than anything else in the world and wanted only one thing - that Astarion would never be hurt again in this world, and Astarion, who for the first time trusted someone, who for the first time started to smile sincerely next to this person, who was able to spread his wings, open up and become himself next to Tav - this mimicry is perfect for such a couple.
