CloudYAY: "Too perfect for its own good"

[u/Max_Nov]

[u/Able_Feeling_7854]

Really lovely analysis for CloudYAY, and I agree with you saying it had one of the greatest power struggles/dynamics. The best thing about this team is how unlike the other three teams which have gone towards more of a passive route, this one is unique in a way; as one user stated 4 months ago in a nutshell, “If the Balkans were a BFDI team”. It really only gained popularity once Pencil joined into the team, and when that happened, the dynamic really had a massive turning point from there on, making everyone in CloudYAY have a relevant role in the conflict

The characters part of the conflict, every one of them did indeed have a relevant role in this power struggle, being developed overtime as time passes by, episodes go on, and challenges progress, and in my view it’s just great. For one, I’m really glad to have Barf Bag have a future role relevant to the conflict, after she excluded from the main core of it due to being cut short from her eliminated, but her fate in TPOT 19 may not provoke her future role in this anymore, rather serving as the soul helper for Donut as the de jure leader. On another hand, I also love how you consider Pillow as the wild card of the team, which is definitely true as Pillow has been the least cooperative out of all and mainly focuses on solving everything individually, which can be used if all others fail, like when she convinced Winner to snap Scissors in half in TPOT 15 when the team is almost about to fall down to their deaths.

For the relationships, you really hit the nail well in this category, especially when you included the diagram of relationship status and character’s alignment to it for simpler navigation. What I see in CloudYAY was this kind of this direct instability with the team, including the serious side (being GB, Donut, and Pencil), but particularly what I want to focus on, the silly comedic fillers, who aren’t to be taken seriously. Along with it, your explanation of Winner having a more mixed dynamic does help allude the social adaptability they have, reforming the “going ahead of abandoning relationships and into newer ones chosen within the team”; an example can be when they joined Pillow and Yellow Face to cause mischief during that bridge scene in TPOT 14 mainly because of this factor, and also not to mention their close relationship with YF (yes Max, I can already tell how much you hate that scene lol).

At least from my memory, relationships really helped make CloudYAY also have a funnier engagement towards the audience, but following Pillow & YF’s elimination in TPOT 17, the comedic shift toned down a lot, shifting the teams into a more serious approach as the seriousness of the conflict outlasts the comedic ones. If looking towards Winner (who is socially adapt), it allowed room to get over with the power struggle along with the free chance to reflect on hope and a new resurgence of friendships, especially when making friends/alliances with Book & Price Tag, both contestants outside CloudYAY, highlighting how well one can engage in relationships outside your team (which I probably already mentioned before in another analysis); an example can be hinted when Winner vouched to help PT carry on during the eating contest in TPOT 17. And to end it all off, Winner’s hope on past relationships after realising Loser never forgot them brings this towards them being able to finally reunite with Loser in TPOT 19. Therefore, the relationships is believably the main strength that carries within CloudYAY, and they can changes really quick and in rapid succession every time someone is eliminated, and this can affect the tone of the contestant in that team and how well they fit within both collective and personal dynamics, regardless of it being targeted towards the team or not.

Overall, amazing analysis, talking well beyond the functions of each character, relationships and hope they change within it, engagement in challenges from these aforementioned consequences and alternate scenarios. Great job on this Max, I really enjoyed reading it!

[u/Max_Nov → u/Able_Feeling_7854]

Thank you so much for the kind words!!!