hi this the old /theatrics, pw: theatrics

Sunday infodump :3
OK! so. basically. gopher groomed sunday to be a martyr. it’s heavily implied that sunday has OCD, he’s described with having severe compulsions (and iirc it’s directly stated he has ocd in the russian version? might be wrong).

OCD is heavily influenced by anxiety and looking at the story of the charmony dove, sunday doesnt know what to do with the dove , but Gopher’s story makes sunday easily change his choice and agree to caging it. sunday has always been susceptible to gopher’s influence. uncertainty is a often big factor in anxiety and sunday being insecure abt his choice cpuld also be what may cause the anxiety .

sunday’s anxieties is why gopher targeted him specifically, gopher took advantage of and exploited sunday’s anxiety, using it to instill his ideals into sunday . this is also why robin was never targeted by gopher, bc she’s confident and has a strong will, so there was never anything for gopher to exploit. however, gopher did weaponize sunday’s bond with robin . he used robin’s injury to instill the ideas that the harmony is wrong and that the order is what can truly protect robin and everyone else .

alongside sunday being groomed and mentally abused, i believe that he may have been physically abused in a way as well. the piercings in sunday’s wings could just be an innocent design choice. however, sunday has many ties to christianity and it’s commonly believed that piercings are a sin. i believe that sunday’s piercings could be an indicator of some sort of punishment.

sunday has a notebook that you can find near the stage for his boss fight, and it’s full of religious teachings of The Order. the description of the book says “The corners of this notebook have turned yellow, and most of the content has been stained by rust-like stains, rendering it illegible.” Dried blood can often appear to be rust colored. the stains, i believe, could be bloodstains from his wings being pierced . like. maybe sunday was punished and had his wings pierced, then went to read his journal and the blood dripped onto it. idk but the dreammaster was clearly involved .

idk if i mentioned this but sunday was often exposed to the idea of being alone by gopher, and it seems that gopher was trying to mentally isolate him esp bc of gopher using sunday’s ocd and his bond with robin against him .
sunday’s time as a priest and being exposed to sinners preaching retribution and regret is what also enabled sunday’s mindset and condescending love and view on humanity caused by gopher. that humanity is flawed, weak, and has to be protected / saved . he was groomed to be a martyr, and believes that he wants to sacrifice himself and be the one carrying the burden on his shoulders and should be suffering, while everyone is forced into an eternal sleep yet in a forever happy dream, even at the cost of humanity’s freedom. sunday’s intentions were always pure, and he believed that his reasoning is what justified his plan . he wanted nothing more than to protect humanity from hardships caused by how corrupt society is . he is not a villain at all and genuinely just wants to see everyone happy and safe . it’s just that he went about it the wrong way; the way that he believed was right.

also sunday has a lot of biblical references .. The Book of Genesis is referenced in his boss fight attacks & his dialogue (iirc)
the seventh day is the rest day after God created earth
it’s stated directly by sunday that he wants every day to be sunday, that the entire week should be seven rest days . he wants society to be eternally safe n happy
“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” (Genesis 2:1-3)
the dreammaster’s name is literally Gopher Wood, and gopher wood is what was used to build Noah’s ark during the great flood
“And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch.” (Genesis 6:13-14)

I feel like hyv also inspired sunday and robin after Genesis 8:6-12 . Robin being the dove, maybe? sunday being the raven
“At the end of forty days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made and sent forth a raven. It went to and fro until the waters were dried up from the earth. Then he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground. But the dove found no place to set her foot, and she returned to him to the ark, for the waters were still on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her and brought her into the ark with him. He waited another seven days, and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark. And the dove came back to him in the evening, and behold, in her mouth was a freshly plucked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth. Then he waited another seven days and sent forth the dove, and she did not return to him anymore.”
robin was always the more strong willed and she was always the “free bird” out of them , gopher let her be free so she’d eventually leave
i could be reaching though

Sunday’s lightcone means a LOT to me,

Here we can see that he’s crying while his past self falls into his palm. I feel that he’s mourning his past self, who he once was before he failed at his goal.

In his lightcone description, lore is revealed !

Those delusions and fallacies have been shattered. He wanted to be the sun of the whole world, yet he fell from the sky.

"Now, do you feel what pain is?"
Another voice in his heart spoke thus.
"Yes. And that is what I deserve to feel."
He fell into dust and answered himself with his heavy footsteps.

He walked on the earth and once again beheld the agony that covers the mortal realm like a never-ending font.
He stepped over the thorns that blocked the road and listened to the calls of humanity. He experienced anguish, through which he obtained tranquility.

"Falling was originally just another name for flying."

And on this eighth day, he granted himself "departure."

As we can see, he is stuck within his guilt and his ideals, he is full of self loathing and feels that he deserves this pain that he’s been through.

”He walked on the earth and once again beheld the agony that covers the mortal realm like a never-ending font.”

he used his experiences to grow and change as a person, he listened to what he was told, that hardships are necessary for humanity to thrive, and that allowed him to grow. he became (somewhat) free of the ideals that held him back (since recovery isnt quick)

”He experienced anguish, through which he obtained tranquility.”

He allowed his pain to become contentment, he used his experiences to grant himself tranquility and peace (assuming this happens when he joins the astral express)

"Falling was originally just another name for flying." And on this eighth day, he granted himself "departure."

RHIS IS SO AUAUUGHH!!!!! This likely represents him departing Penacony, or even leaving behind his duties as the (former) Oak Family head. Or even leaving behind Gopher Wood and the teachings that held him down…… i cride i love sunday he means so much to me

"There's always a paradise that needs to be built. That vow is like the sun in the sky — perhaps I'll melt and fall before reaching it... But some hardships I must endure."

The dream of the Order has dissipated, yet there are still those who will not give up on their original intent.

— The traveler whose wings were clipped... whereto shall his footsteps lead?

HIS WINGS!!! WERE LITERALLU CLIPPED!!! also “Perhaps I’ll melt and fall before reaching…” a reference to Icarus . It seems he’s reluctant to give up on his goal, to keep everyone safe even if it’s at the cost of his own happiness. It’s hard to unlearn something when it’s all you’ve known growing up, so Sunday is understandably hesitant to give up something that he felt his whole purpose was for. he literally just wanted to keep everyone safe ☹️

I think the astral express is perfect for sunday …. i always see people complain ab him joining the astral express but like. it’s a healthy and safe environment for him to process & heal from his trauma . he’d have a support system and he’d have so much room to heal due to how caring & kind the express is . they have a lot of freedom and it’s a great place for him to be able to forge his own path n spread his wings & grow as a person . i think he’s going to gain his express ticket on the next planet .. and i rlly hope he does IM SO EXCITED !!! there’ll probsbly be a very major event that’ll have him prove himself & get his express ticket ^o^ he does have the passion and the will of the trailblaze, its even seen in his voicelines . he’d fit in so well 😭😭 he’d be another member for their lil found family . ik people wanted stellaron hunter sunday but the astral express is SO much better for him as a person….

thinking about child sunday
he used to be so energetic and full of life. he had a mischievous spirit and did things such as attempting to fly with his ear wings, eating a pudding tart out of spite to get payback at his old music teacher, helping robin sneakily eat ice cream, and making outrageous rules for the park he was supposed to manage. but then, that was all ripped away from him at the hands of gopher wood’s abuse. despite that, he still has that childish spirit deep inside of him, and it can be seen with wonweek. he was forced to mature and grow up too fast, and likely had to push down his childishness since he now had a “purpose.”

i hope we get to see more of sunday’s progress and healing, the astral express is a perfect fit for him. they are a safe support system. and I hope that we get to see family dynamics between sunday and the express, we’ve already seen some between him and welt. welt telling sunday straight to his face “you are one of my trailblazing goals” …

i think what i love a lot about the dynamic between sunday and the express is that even before he changed, the express acknowledged his true nature; a gentle and noble soul who only wanted the best for everyone. they acknowledged that while still holding him accountable for his problems. for example , dan heng’s voiceline during the boss fight. “you have a noble soul, don’t be shackled by the past.” and now, sunday has a character voiceline where he says “don’t be shackled by the past.” i like to think that he took those words to heart. dan heng probably somewhat understood as well, considering his past in the xianzhou luofu .

sunday has always been a kind and gentle person, and that never changed about him. his experiences shaped him into the person he is now. he may have been manipulative, but his kindness and his gentleness never changed or went away. it simply got pushed down. but now, he is trying his best to change, and the express is going to be an amazing support system for him to heal and grow.

i dont think people recognize his religious trauma enough, i feel that how he acts in penacony and the things he’s gone through opens up so many opportunities for like. angst with the express. or just really Sad headcanons. correction . people recognize his trauma but i dont think people recognize HOW it’d affect him and his interactions with people even after the events of penacony
gopher wood’s influence wouldn’t just randomly go away. i think gopher still haunts sunday . gopher wood’s teachings still had an impact on sunday, and it wouldnt just go away that fast … that’s why i think the express is wonderful for sunday. he needs therapy but even then the express is a much healthier environment ! the express isnt perfect, but it’s a much better environment than the one he’s used to. he has people that care, and he’s not forced to keep them an arm’s length away. of course, robin cared so very dearly for him, but she’s said before that he doesnt confide in her. there’s order/control in the express, but it’s so much healthier and not suffocating sunday like it did when he resided in penacony. control and order isnt bad, but it’s how it’s enforced . sunday’s need for control/order was so bad because of gopher wood’s teachings. sunday had a very condescending way of seeing humanity and failed to recognize that free will & harships/pain are essential for society to thrive and grow. he had many good intentions but failed to recognize that his way of seeing humanity was flawed

i also see a lot of angst regarding sunday’s clipped wings but clipped wings grow back, don’t they? so what. i personally believe to have happened is just. gopher wood being a dick and clipping sunday’s wings each time they regrew. i think it makes for really good symbolism. sunday’s clipped wings regrowing during his time on the express & symbolizing his growth and healing as a person.