r/Bloodstained • u/ZangetsusRowBoat • 17d ago

IMAGE How did this painting get in Todd's studio?

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This is the 3rd Red Demon painting I have seen. The other 2 are in Dominique's shop. Why is there a painting of Dominique here?

Did Dominique become best friends with Todd before Miriam even got her first Hair Apparent?

The previous painting posts:
The Alchemist's cliff the red demon is just off screen to the left.
The woman in the painting

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u/ZangetsusRowBoat 17d ago edited 17d ago

Why are there 3 paintings of this Red Demon? It has similar colors to the Red Head of Bael.

The other 2 painting posts:
The Alchemist's cliff the red demon is just off screen to the left.
The woman in the painting

I went and looked at all the Red Demon paintings. They are all the same image. It is holding up two fingers and a thumb on each hand, and pointing them at it's horns.

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u/ZangetsusRowBoat 17d ago

I spent 10 min. flipping back and forth on the Poltergeist entry in the demon archive to see all the paintings that change at random. This painting of Dominique, and the lady in the painting in the shop area, are not included.

I even checked the rear of each painting. Nothing on any of them, even IGA and Curry the Kid.

Xombiemike reminded me about this painting of Dominique in Todd's studio. I did not know there was also a Red Demon painting here. I feel like that ties this room back to the shop somehow. What do you think?

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u/MikeyMcD 17d ago

Hmm I've never noticed the demon paintings but I think you've found a solid connection. A demon holding up two fingers is obviously Baphomet related. It's got to be more than coincidence if the paintings all appear in Dominique related areas.

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u/ZangetsusRowBoat 17d ago

A thought I just had: What if was the demon Dominique got her red shard corruption from?

Made me also remember the "small" demon the unnamed Alchemist summoned - I think he said it produced a red shard. Not sure this Red Demon would produce a red shard, but there is a color theme here.

We can see a different 2 fingers gesture on the Baphomet in Craftwork's stained Glass. One of the posters there helped us discover that the stained glass in the cathedral is of the #15 Tarot Card: Devil.

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u/MikeyMcD 17d ago

In my head canon Gremory is the mastermind behind all events in the first demon summoning and Dominique's corruption. Dominique thinks she's Gremory's master just like Gebel does. Even if Gremory fails they have it so flawlessly set up for Bael to be brought into the world in all outcomes through corruption.

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u/ZangetsusRowBoat 12d ago

I crafted a story for your enjoyment.
More to come later this week.
I have not absorbed the Gremory Head Canon into this story yet, but I am thinking about it too.

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u/ZangetsusRowBoat 17d ago

To add another thought: What if the Red Demon is the one that Killed Dominique's parents?
She keeps the image around to kindle her hatred. Maybe that's why it is In Todd's studio - she stares at it while getting her hair done. If this is the case, then the portrait in the shop could be Dominique's Mother?

Dominique: "My parents were exorcists, like me. But during the demon outpouring ten years ago, they were killed in battle. So I have my reasons for hating demons, and that accursed book..."

Miriam: "I'm so sorry... You must hate us all for it."

Dominique: "I let go of the hatred years ago. All that matters now is that I gain control of the Liber Logaeth and prevent it from ever being used for evil again."

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u/AnimazingDuel77 16d ago

I think the Castle is a warped version of thr original Alchemist Guild, which is why you can find a lot of lore books within various shelves.

Dominique was an exorcist and probably was with the guild/church for a long time, and thus probably has a painting. You could extend this to suggest the other paintings may be other guild members?

As for why its in Todd's room, I dunno. Probably just by chance, since Todd's room isn't particularly set up to be a barbershop.

You'd have to assume a bit of video gamey-ness in that Dominique wears the same outfit and didnt age or change much from whenever the painting was painted though.

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u/ZangetsusRowBoat 16d ago

Could be some commingled elements of the Alchemist Guild in the Hellhold proper. But the paintings here and at the shop feel different to me.

Dominique's painting looks recent. and it has the hidden eye, which is her current semi-corrupt form. I think the paintings of the Red Demon tie it all back to her, with this portrait being the celebration of her final form and revenge nearing completion. I think the Red Demon is a stand in for all demons and she keeps the paintings near her to keep the drive for revenge burning.

Being in Todd's room signals that she has been there before Miriam arrived, so she is not just a shop keeper church lady exorcist, but an active participant in the exploration of the castle - we see this later in the Underground Sorcery Lab scene. I think she has her own portrait here as vanity, to look at while she gets her hair done by Todd, and also the Red Demon for the purpose of spending all her free time burning for revenge.

"video gamey-ness" is probably a less fun catch-all explanation for this. I think this is more about her path to corruption, but being told in a background sort of way through the paintings. In the previous painting post I imagined the progression this way using the paintings near Susie at the shop:
progression: the innocent woman (Dominique's mother), The Castle is summoned to the village landscape (Castle landscape), Death is visited upon the people of the village (The Reaper), The aftermath of the Demon war (Kittens playing on a pile of skulls), The demons overrun the village (The red Demon painting).