re: vriska, i think all of these quote unquote "retreads" all sort of give a very complex and layered look at vriska as a character. and i don't think (vriska) ever really felt like she was acknowledging her problems, it felt like she was more ignoring it. it doesn't feel like retreading ground to me, it feels like acknowledging the past in a way thats very poignant and compelling.

re: "I can't picture anything in my mind that would comfort me about that narrative", i think the discomfort is kind of part of the point. not all stories are meant to be comforting, and to say they are feels limiting on what art you're allowed to make. sometimes art thay exists that's upsetting and unpleasant to read, and you just have to live with it.

re: yiffy, i think rose being involved with yiffanys existence is EXTREMELY relevant. in recent hsbc updates we see that rose seemingly still has access to her future sight despite her claims to the contrary, and while this is just speculation, i believe its extremely likely that rose was aware of what dirk was doing and that the existence of yiffy was a deliberate move by rose to act as a sort of weapon against everything dirk stands for and believes in. and i think it makes sense that rose, who believes she is going to die, would make a harmful and self destructive choice that she "knows kanaya will forgive her" for (unclear what she meant by that, but we will see), for the purpose of furthering a grander agenda.

also her name is just funny. like its a funny thing to name a fictional character, and i think the common insistence i see where people to try and compare naming a fictional character a silly thing to real world abuse is troubling to say the least.

and like, i get not liking the epilogues, but saying the epilogues prioritized meta themes over character development feels like a complete misrepresentation of the story as a whole. sure the meta themes are there and they're important, but the epilogues and hsbc are SO character focused, and everything i see about them makes me feel that it will continue down that track, especially considering homestuck is a completed narrative whereas hsbc is ongoing.