Talk:Samantha Nishimura/@comment-2038153-20180318205130/@comment-2038153-20180428225453

First off thank you for being so respectful and polite in your response and know that I do respect your opinion on the matter. However, the one problem I have with this is that Jonah is still around instead of Sam so if the series is trying to have Lara put her past behind her then why does Lara, and to a lesser extent the writers, keep him around.

One of my issues with Jonah is that he is the most inconstant character in the series and has no real arc. He goes from a lovable teddy bear in human from to someone who is more cynical and rude to his one and only friend only for him to suddenly change, within the same game, back to his usual teddy bear self. One of the reasons I love Sam so much is that she has more of a arc, yes she was terrified of the horrors of Yamatai but as shown she grew to be more confident and brave, mocking her captures or in the case of Himiko, fighting back and freeing herself.

Sam at the end of Choice and Sacrifice is a far cry from the Sam we met in the first game and the best part is, it doesn't feel forced like what we get with Jonah. Not counting the novel, as even the writers of the series have gone on record saying they haven't read and don't plan to, while Sam does get captured a few times compare how she acts with Mathias in contrast to how she acts with Matsu in the first arc and later with Himiko in Choice and Sacrifice. Before she was clearly, and understandably, terrified and just wanted to go home but when she found herself captured again she had a very different reaction.

With Matsu Sam mocked him and laughed in his face, telling him that Lara was coming for her and that his days were numbed while with Himiko, when she was finally able to fight against her control, calmly told her that she would no longer allow herself to be controlled.

While Sam might be called "weaker" then Lara in the first game please note that Lara was just as terrified as Sam was during the first day on Yamatai, confused and just wanting to go home, no different then Sam. But later Lara went from terrified young woman to action survivor, yelling at her enemies to bring it on which is exactly what Sam did in the comics.

But here's the real issue with Sam being written out which a direct consequence to how she was written. The issue isn't that the writers did a poor job at writing her out of the series, it's that they did to good of a job in writing her. Simone, Pratchett and Tamaki did such a good job at fleshing out Sam's character that she became just as well rounded as Lara to the point that there were certain things that she would no longer do because it didn't fit her character.

And here's where Rise comes in. When Rise was approaching it was decided that only Jonah would be returning while Sam would be, in Pratchett's own words, parked for Rise's story. However, after everything Lara had done for Sam, and all of Sam's character development her just leaving Lara on her own accord would no longer work as it would be like Spock betraying Kirk after everything he did for him in The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home. So it was decided that Himiko had gotten a piece of her soul in Sam, which was set up in the first issue of the comics, (like I said none of the writers read TTTI so the fact that Himiko had succeeded in getting her soul into Sam was never addressed as was the method that could be used to subdue her).

Then it was decided that Sam would be freed of Himiko and while Lara was the one who would get what was needed to remove Himiko it was also decided that Sam would be the one who ultimately defeated her. But now that was taken care of and the fact that Lara fought for Sam's very soul and Sam was willing to kill herself to make sure that Himiko would never hurt Lara, Sam leaving Lara of her own free will was now even less likely then it was before. So again Sam was forced out of the series with her getting no real say in the matter.

Which brings be back to Jonah. In issue two of Survivor's Crusade Jonah finally got fed up with Lara's obsession with Trinity, her lying to him and her seeking out people to kill in revenge and no longer in self defense and told her to give up or he would end their friendship. Obviously that isn't sticking as Jonah is once again confirmed to be in Shadow even though he had a rather final farewell in Crusade. When I first read this I was completely convinced that Jonah was leaving the series and to be honest I was okay with that as it was a pretty good exit for him that fit what little character he has. The reason I dislike Sam's departure is that it has always been something that was force on her and Lara as neither choose it because it wouldn't fit their characters.

But what really bugs me, in addition to this being something that was forced on Sam, is that the developers refusal to answer whether or not she will be back for the past five years. While I love Sam and want her back I did enjoy Rise on it's own as it was fun story that was capable of standing on its own and while I missed Sam we did get Nadia who was pretty much Sam with a different name. But what gets to me is that fake article that said that Sam, and Reyes, would be returning which got me really exited only for Carmilla Luddington to say that it was false. Now this being false isn't what bugs me as I like that Luddington came forward to say that this wasn't the case, (unless she was lying) but rather that the developers refusal to say if Sam will be back one way or the other. Regardless of whether she is returning or not I wish they would just give a straight answer instead of jerking us around.

If Sam is going to return, then say she' going to return, if she's not going to return then say she isn't going to return. I want the former and would be disappointed with the latter but it's better then not knowing one way or the other.

And it's not like she's been forgotten about as she was mentioned in passing in the resent interview at the film festival with Luddington specifically referring to her absence as something that is hurting Lara. What's more, and this is also something Luddington said, Lara's obsession with hunting down Trinity and trying to avenge her father is something that she sees as self-destructive and that part of her journey is her rediscovering that passion and joy she had before she arrived on Yamatai.

One point I have to strongly disagree on is that Lara needs to let go of her old life to make sure that she can life as the Tomb Raider. I can't agree with that and I can think of one such character that many said the same thing about who broke away from that Trope entirely. Batman is often called a lone wolf against the darkness of that plagues Gotham City but a closer examination proves that this is not in anyway shape or form true as Batman does have people in his life. He has no more then 4 sons, 3 of which are adopted and one is of his blood. He has a father figure in Alfred who remains at his side to this day and was actually reccond as being there longer then Robin, (in truth Robin came before Alfred and Alfred himself originally met Bruce as just someone who was looking for work and stumbled on him being Batman). Most recently Batman has also proposed to Selina Kyle who excepted and by all accounts it seems that DC is going to go through with this and Batman will being marrying Catwoman. And he has a best friend in Superman. And every attempt to make Batman the lone wolf again have all failed because these other character have become so fleshed out in their own right that them leaving Batman just doesn't work.

And as this very wiki shows Sam has become more then what she was intended to be. She has become stronger through the trails put before her, she has faced cults, wild animals and demigods as much as Lara has and she has always been the one who has come out on top. So if Batman can have friends and family in his life then why can't Sam join Lara in her adventures when she has proven time and again that she is more then capable of keeping pace with Lara.

But that is just my opinion and I am looking forward to Shadow either way and, as far as I know, Sam isn't appearing in this one, at least as far as the main games as there are still DLC's to consider. :)