To be fair, the flashbacks do seem like an Episode 5 revelation
Apart from say the Alone ending, Kenny/Jane/Edith's deaths all seem like something major that would be revealed to us by Clementine to Javier in the finale. I mean think about it, you're killing off major or semi-major characters in the third season premiere and hastily at that. Not to mention the scene was kind of out of nowhere too. No logical reason for Clem to remember that out of the blue. It would be really simple to switch those flashbacks to episode 5 and replace it with something smaller in the time slot. Leave everything in mystique while episode 5 gives a longer and more logical final scene for those character. Not just three minutes and bye. Man, it kind of reminds me of Mass Effect 3 before Bioware extended the endings...
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Do you mean that we'd also get flashbacks of them in the episodes leading up to the finale? Maybe of them surviving and chatting with Clementine?
I'd say that'd be up to Telltale. I think it's tough for what they're planning with this season but I think it's only fair that maybe we get one or two more interactions throughout 3 to 5. Then Episode 5 could be the reveal of their fates. Call me crazy but even then I think the deaths should be determinant of your choices. At this point it's probably too much effort to pull this off but it's really simple to do in hindsight.
That would've been cool! It was way too early to say goodbye to either of them, and having different deaths for each depending on your choices would've given it a lot of replay value, too. They probably could've kept the main story with Javier if they wanted to, and use this as a "mini-game" of sorts where you're trying to solve the mystery of what happened to Kenny, Jane and AJ.
You can't see it, but I just let out a huge sigh xD Oh, what could've been...
From your avatar I'm guessing you are a Jane fan? I personally went with Kenny but I even feel like you guys deserved more time with Jane. At this point I am doubtful Telltale will do anything about it and they'll probably take the reaction as just simple grief but I do think it's more than that. I think people would accept the deaths more if the scenes were longer and a large part of the story.
I know...What could've been is right. But I must say overall I love season 3 way more than season 2 already. The flashbacks just feel like that part of a steak you just can't chew for me. The steak is delicious and it's been a joy to eat, but you're still left with that part we inevitably just want to throw away. I think the stories within the flashbacks could be great but we need something more substantial. The idea of Jane committing suicide is deep and dark but way too rushed. Kenny dying in a car accident to save Clementine and AJ could be great. He goes out a hero but it was way too rushed. Hell, the attack on Wellington could've been amazing and we could've had 400 Days character cameos in there depending on your choices and they might've added to the bloodshed. But again, way too rushed. Had they added just ten more minutes to the flashbacks and possibly a hub, we could've spent some legitimate time with them. But alas...
Yeah, I'm open to both of them though. Kenny deserved more time, too. I mean, I loved how he was teaching her how to drive and everything, but to lose him in almost an instant was rough. And yeah - for me at least, it wasn't the fact that they died that was the problem, but the way they handled it left a lot to be desired. Their deaths were supposed to shape Clementine into the person she is during season 3, but for some reason it just isn't sitting right with me. It was almost like they wanted us to forget that either of them were a part of the game to begin with.
Man, you're making me hungry! Mmmm... steak xD They really should've taken their time to flesh it out and give a more convincing depiction of what got them to that point. As in, maybe have Jane talking to Clementine about what she found out, and getting a proper goodbye or even having Clem convince her that she still has people who care about her well being. With Kenny, maybe it could've been how the two of them survived together for a year or two (since AJ looks a little older in there), and how their friendship and trust developed over that period of time.
Ugh, we needed a hub sooooo badly! Finding out some more about their past or what they think about certain situations would've added even more depth to the cast, but... yeah.
You're exactly right, bro or sis whichever you are lol. I'm hoping she lets down her wall of strength and reveals the pain she is hiding to Javier and that's when we start to hear some of the ways it shaped her and the pain it caused her. As of now, we feel no impact. Telltale claims we've not seen the full scope yet so I'm kind of hoping the first two episodes are shorter than the rest since it was a two-part premiere.
Would it be a little too far of me to say Jane should've asked Clementine to kill her when she is far into the pregnancy because she doesn't want to bring the child into this world and you would more or less get the option to shoot her or refuse?
Lol I'm a bro xD Yeah, they definitely need to make some room for Clem to reach out to somebody instead of keeping it all bottled within herself. Javier would be in a decent position to do it, since he (depending on your choices) seems to be one of the first people in a long time that she could possibly trust and respect. What she was saying about not being able to rely on anyone at their word in episode 2 pretty much confirms it. That's one of the things I'm excited about for Javier as the protagonist - he's got a lot of potential to have a big impact in the story, and if anyone's possibly able to get her to open up, it'd be him. Not a lot of other options now since almost all of the people she cared about are gone.
Oh boy, we're getting into some dark territory now xD But to answer that... I think they might've been able to pull that off, if they gave enough buildup to her depressed state and reminded us that she's close to falling off the edge. Asking a little girl to do that would still be a messed up thing to do, but in this instance, I think she'd understand. Depending on your choices though, I think those two options could go in a couple different ways. If you say yes, it could either make Jane "grateful" for understanding that she can't bring a child into this world, and you'd be giving her the merciful end she wants. However, if you didn't treat her that well or you guys just didn't get along, Jane could see it as Clem just giving up on her (and vice versa, incidentally).
For refusing, it could be similar. Jane could get pissed at you because she thinks you're just being a jerk who wants to see her suffer, and either leave or just end up killing herself anyways. Or, and this is my personal favourite, she could realize that Clem's refusing because she cares about her and doesn't want to be left alone again, especially so soon after Kenny dying. That could lead to this whole other dialogue where it becomes sort of your job to get Jane to a doctor (or use the other... "less pleasant" alternative...) at another community, stumble upon the New Frontier, and either have Jane get shot or taken away with AJ, thus fueling the whole stone-cold Clementine angle we've been getting so far.
Coming in, I assumed (read: hoped) that we'd play flashbacks as Clementine where we viewed multiple events that correlated to your ending. Each would be a piece of Clementine's journey, and show how our decision of where to stay or who to stay with shaped Clementine. The revelation of how things fell apart would have been discovered much later in the season.
Instead, it seems like they pushed everything aside that didn't go along with the alone ending, and built Clementine around that fence. I forsaw the alone ending Clem as becoming more cold and hardened, and less apt to trust others. She would still very much be a weary child with a heart, but more hardened and bitter as a result of the events that occured at the climax of season 2, her journey on her lonesome, and the entirety of the apocalypse. By killing Kenny and Jane and quickly destroying Wellington, Clementine seems to be geared for that same path. I hope we see more subtle differences in our individual Clementines depending on our endings, but I'm kind of concerned. Of course the world would change her, but I felt it would be less pronounced in the company of others. Having the last people in her life taken away would do such a thing, but I don't know. Seeing more of our ending and allowing more time for development would have made me not hate how things turned out with the flashbacks.
I feel like it would have been better to open up an episode with Clem having a flashback and waking up. Then throughout the episode you figure out what actually happened when it came to Kenny/Jane/Wellington/Alone.
Take for example how they handles Michonne and Batman. Especially, with Batman when it basically had Bruce figuring out who shot his parents. The way they did that was really cool and I thought they they could have had a transition like that into a flashback for Clem. I think ACG might have said it in his review when he said it felt like this game was predated Batman. Just seems like a lot of stuff that made those games something to be excited about when it came to the future of TTG's. Just kinda thrown away for a very simplistic approach that can be very underwhelming.