Chapter 31 Family Ties Part 2

[Ray]

I agree that we should all be more civil in dealing with matters of disagreement. If someone makes an unpopular or confusing comment very little is gained by the overkill of ridicule or satire. A better response would be to first determine if everyone is discussing same points and from what perspective. If all else fails, just agree to disagree or wait and see how the story unfolds.

Perhaps we can better judge Scratch's character by examining how she fits into the story-telling, or narrative, structure. By now, most of us have concluded that the story is told from the perspectives of the protagonists from the Tower. Sometimes the story is told from journal entries and other times we witness the story from a third person perspective limited to the heroes' experiences. Our view of Scratch will be limited by the heroes' interactions with Scratch. Keep in mind that she makes rare appearances in the story, and when she is present, she is usually seen by the main characters as a menace from one extreme to another. There have been few instances that would allow us to see her with any depth as those more personal sides of her would not be seen while she is taunting or tormenting Michael, Angel, Saul, Burt and the others. There have been instances when we can hear glimpses of humanity (Not necessarily compassion) in her voice, such as calling out John's name after he is shot, asking Angel if it is OK to pick up her brother's body, comforting a dying Angel or asking Lizzy if she's been sick at the Car dealership. We all can see how her tragic past can leave her scarred, especially when the story of the rape is spelled out for us. But, this is an audio drama and actors must show us things with their voices if the dialogue is vague or not explicit. Listen to how she sounds when Saul is listening to her and Latch outside the clothing store in Chapter 6 part 2 starting around 16 minutes. She says that she is 'not a waste', she is 'useful.'

She murdered their radio operator in cold blood after he "confessed" to falling asleep on duty. (well, I guess crippled so the zombies would get him, but essentially murdered him) She also had Kalani's daughter murdered, in cold blood (and a kid no less), in place of Lizzie on that golf course. An act Durai had no hand in, and she hid the fact that they were there at the Tower attacking it from him. Lizzie essentially confirmed this, she's a licensed shrink after all. John also lamented about her past behavior in beating someone severely that worked at a convenience store simply for staring at her scar. There's no reason to believe she has an ounce of compassion, and isn't clinically psychotic. She is written into the story in that capacity, and she's filling that role amazingly well. Jenna is a fantastic actor, but Scratch is anything but sane and compassionate, we've heard enough evidence to prove otherwise with 100% certainty. The story may be skewed in the eyes of the "good guys", but there's been more than enough interaction between her and thos not in the tower to tell us that she's no saint, and will kill, maim, destroy, and abuse to get her way. By projecting her warped and insane "family values" on others shows she has no grip on reality, and no sense of right and wrong. Her past life probably caused this psychosis, but that doesn't mean it's okay to act that way towards others. She's a convicted felon who spent time in solitary, how can anyone believe she's got any decency in her after finding that out, and her continued behavior afterwards.

Still doesn't matter, it's an inanimate object, and not the only thing he has to remind him of her, he has actual memories. I do understand the connection, and I do think he would react, but it was too much for me and when I listened I thought scratch overplayed it, the bit that followed was very good though, it was just that short section that I didnt feel sat right. Of course, others will disagree, which is fine.

I can see where you are coming from, but I have possessions that would be considered junk to other people that are worth more than ten times their weight in any precious metal. I would be gutted to lose them. Hell, of all the momentos I have from my time in the Marines, I'd trade all of it for a simple patch. Not because it's especially nice, it's not worth any money, but because it holds value to me because of the people that wore the same patch as me. They were my brothers, and not having that specific patch eats at me every day because I have looked through literally everything I own and I can't find it.

Sometimes memories aren't enough, sometimes it only feels real when you have a physical object to remind you of the people and experiences. The world has literally ended, he was left for dead in a bathroom, and the only person that saved him is dead for all he knows. He wasn't cool with the Tower guys at first, but they were really his only family. Now he's surrounded by people that will willingly beat him, cut him, and starve him to death just to get information from him that will allow them to kill the only family he has left. It may be an inanimate object to you and others, but I can see his pain.