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Any thoughts on Floyd? I personally think he’s a lot more of a 3 dimensional character than the NRC students think he is! He’s ironically seen as the scariest out of the Octavinelle trio but in certain scenes like in Chapter 3 of the Anthology comic where he tries to reassure Riddle that he’s still a good person despite what he did while overblotted or in his dorm vignette where he makes trades with things clearly holding less value than what he currently has just because the other person seems to need it he seems much more thoughtful and kind. He can be a nice person but he always says he’s only doing it because he’s bored almost making it seem like he has a fear of showing kindness with others. Sorry for the ramble I just think he’s interesting personality wise
hii anon!! and oF COURSE I DO HE'S MY LITTLE SCRUNKLY MY DENTINHO DE TUBARÃO MY BELOVED BLORBO!!!
I agree anon, he definetly is! may I add to your examples: Floyd's labwear vignette, in which he helps Ace and Deuce to master the color changing spell! (it's very cute so if you haven't seen it yet, I suggest you take a look at it!)
NO NEED TO APOLOGIZE I LOVE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS!!! feel free to send an ask anytime and ramble as much as you want!
since you asked for my thoughts, here they come:
same fair warning as the Idia post: this is my opinion and it might not be 100% right, anyone is allowed to disagree!
anon, you're so right, Floyd is such an interesting character! all of Octavinelle are, which is why I get the impression they have the most content in fandom, alongside other popular choices like Leona and Malleus. now get ready, because I have MANY thoughts on him and you just gave me the opportunity to ramble about them in a silver plater.
I think the thing with Octavinelle is that they are very complex, so naturally their interesting personalities and dynamics attract a lot of fandom attention, myself included! although this complexity also can lead to some misunderstandings and many different interpretations.
going along with your line of thought, I think he's the least scary of the trio, depending on how you view it. Azul seems to agree, as in Beans Day he comments how Jade is the scarier twin, since you never know what he's thinking, while Floyd makes his thoughts clear as day (or something along this lines). I personally agree with this, Floyd is very honest with his intentions, if he wants to hurt someone he'll just outright say it and threaten them, giving plenty of body signals. Jade and Azul are not like that at all, making them more dangerous due to never knowing what angle they are planning or what's going on in their minds.
I can see why the students think he's so scary tho! Floyd's squeezes can hurt quite a lot depending on how he does them, I think in chapter 3 a student even passes out because of it? not only that, but his constant mood swings and unpredictability are also very nerve racking and unsettling, as I think I'd have a hard time trying to deal with someone like this in real life, especially as I appreciate some predictability in order to know how to act around people without stepping over any boundaries, so I feel I'd be walking on eggshells around him lol
of course, he isn't all scary! he looks like it even when he's on his happier moods because of his pre-existing reputation and his loudness and lack of personal space, so people don't try to get close to him and actually see his other sides. I feel he'd be a fun friend to have around, because he's always up to something, and since I love physical affection I wouldn't mind much his hugs. (as long as they aren't his deathly squeezes. I like to keep my lungs intact thank you very much.)
another thing about him is that besides his more scary side, he can be quite cute! his laugh is seriously serotonin inducing, he likes to play around and to dance and to experiment new colorful clothes and to have a good time! he's not an "uwu innocent baby", but he's not a "crazy maniac bastard" either. Floyd can be scary when he wants to and he can be cute when he wants to.
I really like his dorm uniform vignette, I think it's a good example of his nature! he gets things because he wanted to at the time, and that's all there is to it. I don't think he had a personal kind motive behind his trades, just that he wasn't using one thing and if he could trade it for another, then why not? tho it's very interesting how at the end, he did it all to get what Azul wanted (at least inicially, he kinda forgot about it halfway through)
Floyd is, at my point of view, very free, as he doesn't care much about other people's opinions about him or about his grades or about his unique magic or anything really, as long as he's having a good time at the moment. The only thing he's tied to are his own whims, as only Floyd could ever stop himself. I feel like he does things sometimes because he's bored, yes, but sometimes simply because he felt like doing it at the time, so he did. (sometimes I wish I could think like him honestly, it would save me a lot of headache!)
he can definetely be a nice person! like all students at NRC, while they have a tendency to be assholes most of the time, every single one of them can be nice and good! I do like your interpretation of him being afraid of showing vulnerability, such as kindness, something others can easily exploit and he'd know very well about it, since both under the sea and at NRC people take advantage of each other at the drop of a hat. I've seen people think that this boredoom and extreme mood swings of his are masks so he doesn't have to do things he doesn't want. if he wants to escape a situation, he'll say he's bored and leave, simple like that. if he wants to help someone, he'll say he was bored and didn't have anything better to do. I can definetly see it!
in my point of view, I think he genuinely does have his mood swings, one time he'll be super excited about something and in the next he just... won't. I don't think they are without a motive tho, there's always something that triggers it, like if things get repetitive or don't go the way he wanted them to. a way to put him in a especially bad mood would be to try to control him, that's when he's definetly not going to do anything he's asked of. just leave him be and do things on his own way and he'll comply (if he feels like it).
he's most definetly capable of being thoughtful and kind, as Floyd is not dumb at all, he understands other people's emotions and how he affects them very well. hell, he even takes pleasure in scaring them sometimes, so obviously he's very aware. tho he won't just come and do something out of the kindness of his heart, he can do things because he wanted to help or to have something to do. he could just disobey Azul's every comand at any time, but he doesn't, and that shows how far his respect for him goes. he doesn't bend himself over every single wish of Azul's either, oftentimes just not showing up to work or doing his job in a lackluster manner. it all depends on how he's feeling really.
TL;DR: Floyd is such an interesting and multifaceted character! he's much more than the scary image the NRC students have of him and can show many different sides, depending on his mood! he's my little weirdo meow meow, thank you anon for sharing your thoughts with me!
Extra: here are some links for Floyd content you might like! his character fact sheet, that shows a lot of curiosities about him, this analysis Raven has made some time ago, that I agree a lot on (as you can see), and this youtube video that I LOVE it's my little serotonin machine!