I’d have to disagree. This is just my opinion, but I’ve noticed that even though the author claims to be against romance-related asks, they still tend to talk a lot about Stevie ( who also is the only one who can have a crush on MC ) and occasionally Zima. The asks about Stevie are always long, and full of praise, and the author often jumps in to defend her. But when it comes to Angel, the responses are brief and noticeably less enthusiastic.
Also, Scapegoated is the goat amazing, though it’s worth mentioning that you don’t really play the "band" aspect in depth. There are a few moments where you get to play guitar, sing, or write songs about real-life artists. Like The Golden Rose, the MC is clearly the heart of the story. There’s a lot of attention given to personalizing her. Yes, she’s gender-locked, but that’s tied directly to the narrative: she’s accused of dating one of the guys, which the fans think led to the band’s breakup. And she will have to face all this backlash alone and while in her new acting job.
I know the author rewrote the scene involving the vote about Seven becoming a background singer, since a lot of players didn’t like being forced into the “bad guy” role. I don’t remember if not voting him out was an option in the original version, but I understand that it’s important to give Seven a reason to resent the MC. Still, the conflict feels a bit forced. Even if you didn’t vote him out, he still accuses the MC of not doing enough to keep him in the band which is fair, to some extent. I just wish there had been an option in the flashback to push back against the band and fight for him to stay as a lead singer. Then again, maybe that would’ve lessened the intensity of his grudge. It’s a valid emotional reaction—feeling sidelined or betrayed by their partner/bff—even if technically he wasn’t kicked out, just shifted to a secondary role. Still, it ends up feeling like he was pushed out entirely. I guess seeing where the story is going, it looks like we’re only going to be confronting the band now.
For now, but it depends on whether you overlook her constant need to stay in the MC’s orbit, and the way she seems to feel entitled to know everything about them. According to the author, this is only the beginning of her arc—so that dynamic is likely to intensify as the story progresses. Maybe this is just my impression or a bit of a stretch, but Stevie reminds me of how Avina relates to Seven.
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What is it about?
I avoid the author's Tumblr so I have no idea what they are talking there. But does it matter? Writers have the right to have preferences when it comes to their characters - the point is these preferences do not have a negative impact on the story.
