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I recently had a conversation with a friend about the aspects of Pandora hearts that appeal very strongly to us so I hope I can explain it here in this thread as to why I love this series. Especially as it pertains to Oz and Jack
So one of the strongest aspects about Pandora hearts is obviously its cast and what makes this cast unique in particular is how interconnected their experiences, arguably the most prominent theme in Pandora hearts is existentialism/trying to find your own identity
point to almost any character in the series and you’ll see they struggle with this to one extent or another. The massive disorientation usually stems from conflicting emotions about one’s role in a society they are born into or are currently living in
this is especially notable in our main protagonist Oz as his battle to find his purpose in the world and being able to confront it head on is something that solidly places him in a story like this, and quite frankly makes him the perfect protagonist
I couldn’t envision a better character to perfectly embody these themes. Oz mirrors the struggles that every character goes through he’s able to most easily have a rapport with the entire cast because his insecurities and flaws are heavily palpable
and having been thrown into the abyss and being inextricably tied to Jack’s existence the very cause of the tragedy of Sablier
it would only make sense to have someone like Oz to establish dynamics with characters like Gil, Alice, Break, Echo, Oscar, Eliot, etc. who then had their own effects on other members of the cast (I.e Gil and Echo’s effect on Vincent), who have been victimized and swindled
which makes Oz’s presence in Pandora hearts to be everlasting because every action he takes will inevitably have an effect, which further contributes to his unforthcoming but visible nihilism.
This serves as a perfect foil to our main antagonist Jack, who himself has lived a life of aimlessness and hell. Having being bastardized and victimized himself Jack has never really had a purpose in life hence his clingyness to Lacie,
he regarded lacie as his will, his primary reason for living and when Lacie disappears...so does his will to live. This causes Jack to spiral out of control, isolate himself, and hurt the ones around him like Glen who legitimately loved and cared about him.
Jack as far as he’s concerned is just a meandering body with no purpose just a shell a husk a nobody, no different than an inanimate object....just like Oz, who is quite literally an in animate object.
Jack’s insecurity causes him to project his frustration onto Oz multiple times. Lacie and Jack being symbolic of Oz’s relationship with Alice. Oz’s admiration of Alice keeps him moving forward much like how Lacie also kept Jack moving forward
however the difference is, where Oz is able to eventually find a purpose despite being an object, Jack cannot.....
Jack is a man with nothing to lose, and when you take a person who has absolutely nothing to lose, the actions they can take could be downright psychopathic in the eyes of everyone else but to jack it’s him lashing out due to his inability to find who he is
However as we see...Jack finally is able to find himself as a person, even through his tumultuous actions of almost unilaterally being the cause of the sorrow of the entirety of the cast...Jack still somehow is able to face himself...
one could argue had jack not been mistreated throughout his entire life the tragedy of Sablier may have never happened so maybe it being unilaterally jack’s fault isn’t the correct term to use, because as I said before... everything in this series is intersectional.
Pandora hearts offers a positive yet nuanced message that no matter who you are or where you come from your ability to change is contingent upon not only yourself...
...but your relationship with those you are close to, and although they’ll be trips ahead it’s up to you to be brave enough to grow past that and become stronger as a result...unlike Jack. Thanks for reading
Fuck I forgot to add a disclaimer for it being massive spoilers lmfao
