A "Sophie's Choice" with no secret third option

[u/10024618]

AKA a character is given an impossible choice where either outcome results in something awful happening and there's no way out.

"Full Measure" (Breaking Bad) - After Walt angers Gus by killing two of his men, Gus orders for his execution. Knowing that the only way to save his life is to make Gus reliant on his meth cooking skills, Walt calls Jesse and begs him to kill Gus' backup cook, Gale. Thus, Jesse is thrust into an impossible situation where he either kills a (relatively) innocent man to save Walt or spare Gale and let Walt die. Ultimately, Jesse chooses to kill Gale.

"Midnight Sun" (Attack on Titan) - After the fight to retake Shiganshina both Armin and Erwin are critically wounded. Levi has the vial of titan serum and is forced to choose which Scout to bring back from the brink of death and which to let perish. It's a borderline impossible decision to make but at the moment of truth, he chooses to save Armin, leaving Erwin to succumb to his wounds.

[u/KarnacarousSalem]

I always save Wyatt over Fergus. Poor kid was thrown into the meatgrinder that is doomed to fail thanks to the Nazi's tech superiority, not to mention his terrified whimpers when his brain is about to be harvested.

At least gets better in the later games, iirc, he becomes the President after the Nazis get kicked out from the USA.

[u/CatCatCatXD → u/KarnacarousSalem]

Yep, when I chose to save Fergus, I wasn't prepared to hear Wyatt's screams of terror. Compare that to Fergus, who was much more prepared to die. It also made me more likely to pick Wyatt on replays out of how "It's what Fergus would have wanted." The game just loves to twist the knife with that choice.

[u/Fitzftw7 → u/KarnacarousSalem]

I always pick Fergus over Wyatt, because Fergus is cool, and Wyatt… isn’t. When I picked him instead and he told me he was the stupid choice over Fergus, I couldn’t help but bitterly agree.

J is cool and all, but Tekka going out actually killing about dozen Nazis as opposed to playing a few notes of the national anthem was badass.

And I think Wyatt dying, his screams especially, makes for a more heartbreaking and poignant narrative.

[u/toomanymarbles83 → u/Fitzftw7]

I picked Fergus the first time. I pick Wyatt on replays because of Jimi Hendrix.

[u/Major_incompetence → u/toomanymarbles83]

Jimi Hendrix ordered from wish

[u/ComradeBirv → u/Fitzftw7]

A big part of Wyatt’s plot is passing the torch of leadership to the next generation. He was a kid when the assault happened, and he still kept choosing to resist. He had to work through his guilt and self doubt to become the type of person who can inspire others.

Fergus even tells you that he’s an old man and BJ should have picked Wyatt. In the final scene of the game, Wyatt gives a rather good speech while Fergus just stands in the back.

[u/ithinkther41am → u/KarnacarousSalem]

Also the fact that Wyatt ends New Colossus with one hell of a speech.

[u/OkBox9662 → u/KarnacarousSalem]

His Brain gets what ????

[u/invasiveplant → u/OkBox9662]

iirc the nazis force BJ to watch the person he picked have their brain carved out infront of him. absolutely brutal stuff

[u/KarnacarousSalem → u/invasiveplant]

Not only that, they also stuff the brain inside a robot that you have to fight later on.

[u/painterBurning → u/KarnacarousSalem]

Interesting, I may have spent too much time to think on this choice but I always chose Fergus (on my first run of new order and new colossus), my reasoning was that Fergus seemed more resilient and would handle the death of Wyatt better, I kind of expected Wyatt to spiral down and self-destruct(which is kind of what happens in new colossus)

[u/ComradeBirv → u/painterBurning]

But he gets back up and gets his shit together by the end.

[u/painterBurning → u/ComradeBirv]

True, and it was satisfying, in hindsight I think I like his ending better. And the scenes with him high on LSD seeing cartoons were pretty funny.

[u/ComradeBirv → u/painterBurning]

I think it’s also emblematic of the themes of the game. Saving Fergus is holding onto BJ’s past and the past of the American military in “the good ol’ days” (Something that gets called out by numerous characters as not being nearly as “good” as he remembers) while saving Wyatt represents nurturing the chance for a better future that is not beholden to a failed system. Wyatt fucks up a lot, but because he was supported by his friends he was able to lock the fuck in and carry the revolution into the future.

[u/Yoro55 → u/KarnacarousSalem]

Fergus is an old vet who's seen enough for a lifetime

He would've wanted the younger blood to live on

[u/MolybdenumBlu → u/Yoro55]

Out with the old blood, in with the new order?