I feel like I now have enough information to say, the "AA is about the cycle of abuse theory" is whack.
He is simply a reactive person and many people behave the same way he does - if you're nice to him, he reciprocates and if you're unpleasant, he's snippy. He's very hurt when you break up with him, which again is a normal reaction. It has nothing to do with being scared of him and trying to please him so he doesn't lash out. The cycle of abuse dead horse by now doesn't come directly from AA's storyline but from the spawn one and then it's used as an explanation for why AA is behaving the way he is and used like a mantra, because people badly want him to be Cazador 2.0 so they can feel good about their own choice and have reasons to feel morally superior over those who play differently. Apparently wanting to allow your companions to make their own life choices without judging them and choosing what fits your Tav's personality and story is a bad way to play an RPG, haha.
I literally just saw a reel while scrolling Instagram that was a post-ascension conversation between UA and his partnered Tav. It's a lovely conversation, sure, he thanks her for saving him from himself, alright, I suppose I can buy that. I don't see how it invalidates that he's happy as AA. I firmly believe both can be true at the same time, that he would be able to find happiness without ascension, and with it. The path just looks different depending on which you choose. There are plenty of choices I've made that I think, if I had gone a different way, I could be happy, but I'm also happy with the path I chose.
But first, he said something like, "For a moment, all I saw was the power I wanted" and I thought, wym, for a moment? You've been talking about this for weeks, never wavering that this was what you wanted. And second, the poster had to add a line to the end of their description like, "Tell me again how ascension isn't perpetuating the cycle." Why do you have to throw shade at AA and his fans like that? Who does that serve? Do you need to do that in order to make yourself feel better about the storyline you chose? Why can't you just post your nice video and not try to tear down fans of another storyline while you're at it?
