History Fridge / MetalGearSolid

* This troper was like thousands of others who got really, really annoyed with the [[YouFailBiologyForever Recessive And Dominant]] [[MotiveRant Genes Rant]] Liquid gives in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', until a bit of a replay and then some reading of [[Webcomic/TheLastDaysOfFoxhound a certain webcomic]] made this less of a wallbanger but some sheer brilliance. What's the best way to raise a {{Super Soldier}} that will do ''anything''? Fuck with his [[MindScrew mind]]. Tell him he's the [[CloningBlues child of the world's]] greatest soldier, but that he wasn't chosen to be a successor, because he's weaker, and that he was rejected in favor of [[CainAndAbel his brother]], do this to him all his life, while making him go through the most [[TheSpartanWay rigorous training in the world, courtesy of SAS]], and oh yea - tell him that he can't get a [[WellDoneSonGuy pat on the back by daddy]] because his brother killed him, and destroyed the WarriorHeaven that Daddy spent the latter part of his life constructing. The Dominant and Recessive Genes is just a way to drive Liquid off-rails, if he didn't [[BreakTheCutie break under the pressure]], he would be insanely devoted [[FreudianExcuse to proving everyone wrong]], he just a little nudge for how to do so. - {{Shini}}

[[AC: FridgeLogic]]
* Yes, another problem with the whole Gene issue. Not one about the whole Dominant/recessive argument, but rather a problem with the Genetic issue and [=FoxDie=]. [=FoxDie=] was programmed to target people with specific gene patterns. So why in the hell did Liquid think that because he would be safe if Snake didn't die? The whole problem between the Dominant/Recessive thing is that Liquid and Snake '''can't''' have the exact same genetic pattern, not unless they wanted a whole string of carbon copies in the first place, which was not what they were looking for. Sure, Naomi could, and [[{{Revenge}} would program]] the virus to kill Snake, but if a non-hostile party had programmed/injected the virus into Snake, there's no guarantee that FoxDie would kill both of them.
** Liquid thought he'd be safe because Liquid ''really'' doesn't understand genetics. According to Kojima, Liquid just plain doesn't know what he's talking about.

** It could also refer to [[spoiler: Solidus Snake, the third sibling, who Ocelot is working for throughout the first game]]

** It could also refer to [[spoiler Solidus Snake, the third sibling, who Ocelot is working for throughout the first game]]

* Psycho Mantis [[spoiler:is repulsed by the idea of sex because he's picked up on the thoughts of others for decades, and that's generally what people think about (as he states in the game). He's assuming Snake would want to have sex with Meryl, and as such is trying to deceive him. But why doesn't it work? Because Meryl said, in the bathroom, not even a full 5 minutes earlier, that she's had psychotherapy to destroy her interest in men. Psycho Mantis must have, somehow, not known this. Snake is clearly attracted to Meryl, but she said herself that she has no interest in him, or any man for that matter. When she suddenly pulls a heel face turn, begging for sex, he immediately realises just how strange it is, thus making him realise it's the work of Psycho Mantis. Had Meryl not mentioned it, he may not have reacted so quickly.]]

* Why does Snake not want to see a woman die in front of him? Answer: He saw Gustava Heffner from ''MetalGear2SolidSnake'' die in front of him by Metal Gear D, the canonical fourth Metal Gear. It's why he goes out of his way to see Meryl not die.

* This technically only applies to The Twin Snakes, although this was also mentioned in the Japanese script for Metal Gear Solid, as well. Anyways, Psycho Mantis's line of "It feels so... nostalgic" in regards to performing a good deed for Solid Snake and Meryl Silverburgh before dying seemed very confusing to some fans... until you remember that Psycho Mantis's mother died while giving birth to him, which meant he was referring to what his mother did for him before dying. Stated as such by Kojima here: http://muni_shinobu.webs.com/mgs/commentary2.html
** I know that it isn't the real reason, but the "feels good" and the "nostalgic feeling" set off a different bell for me. See Mantis constantly breaks the fourth wall, right? Well, what's stopping him from doing that while dying? To me, Mantis felt nostalgic in Twin Snakes because he already had done a good deed before: In the Playstation version.

** Even the Patriots have a narrative symbolism under the name Shadow Moses. The Patriots want to create a "promised land" too, and at one point desired Big Boss as their "Moses" who would have brought about that world. But they were forced to use Solid Snake, who himself is a "shadow of Big Boss" in order to execute that Moses. To some degree Solid Snake and Liquid Snake were designed from the very beginning to be "Shadows" of the real Moses (Big Boss), if the real one never worked out for them. In every sense of the word, the entire story of Metal Gear Solid 1 is cast under the shadow of Big Boss/Moses.

* A bit of fridge creepiness. Before the the Psycho Mantis fight in MGS, there are a couple of unsettling details. 1. The door at the end is closed. 2. Once Meryl becomes possessed, you notice that the first person view is.. third person - through a mask of sorts. That leads me to conclude that Psycho mantis is in that hallway, stalking you. It also points it out as when you enter the commander's room, the door waits for a second (perhaps someone's in the doorway?) until he comes inside. Creepy.

* The name of the military base by itself has very interesting narrative symbolism. Moses was known in the Bible as the man chosen by God to free the Jewish people from their bondage by the Egyptians, and led them across the Red Sea after it was split in two by one of God's miracles. He is revered as one of the greatest leaders of the Jews in their entire history, and the one that led them into the promised land that is now Jerusalem. The term Shadow Moses then takes on an interesting meaning when applied to two notable figures in the Metal Gear universe:

* This troper was like thousands of others who got really, really annoyed with the [[YouFailBiologyForever Recessive And Dominant]] [[MotiveRant Genes Rant]] Liquid gives in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', until a bit of a replay and then some reading of [[TheLastDaysOfFoxhound a certain webcomic]] made this less of a wallbanger but some sheer brilliance. What's the best way to raise a {{Super Soldier}} that will do ''anything''? Fuck with his [[MindScrew mind]]. Tell him he's the [[CloningBlues child of the world's]] greatest soldier, but that he wasn't chosen to be a successor, because he's weaker, and that he was rejected in favor of [[CainAndAbel his brother]], do this to him all his life, while making him go through the most [[TheSpartanWay rigorous training in the world, courtesy of SAS]], and oh yea - tell him that he can't get a [[WellDoneSonGuy pat on the back by daddy]] because his brother killed him, and destroyed the WarriorHeaven that Daddy spent the latter part of his life constructing. The Dominant and Recessive Genes is just a way to drive Liquid off-rails, if he didn't [[BreakTheCutie break under the pressure]], he would be insanely devoted [[FreudianExcuse to proving everyone wrong]], he just a little nudge for how to do so. - {{Shini}}

* Why does Snake not want to see a woman die in front of him? Answer: He saw Gustava Heffner from ''MetalGear2SolidSnake'' die in front of him by Metal Gear D, the canonical fourth Metal Gear. It's why he goes out of his why to see not Meryl die.

* This troper was like thousands of others who got really, really annoyed with the [[YouFailBiologyForever Recessive And Dominant]] [[MotiveRant Genes Rant]] Liquid gives in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', until a bit of a replay and then some reading of [[TheLastDaysOfFoxhound a certain webcomic]] made this less of a wallbanger but some sheer brilliance. What's the best way to raise a {{Super Soldier}} that will do ''anything''? Fuck with his [[MindScrew mind]]. Tell him he's the [[CloningBlues child of the world's]] [[BadAss greatest soldier]], but that he wasn't chosen to be a successor, because he's weaker, and that he was rejected in favor of [[CainAndAbel his brother]], do this to him all his life, while making him go through the most [[TheSpartanWay rigorous training in the world, courtesy of SAS]], and oh yea - tell him that he can't get a [[WellDoneSonGuy pat on the back by daddy]] because his brother killed him, and destroyed the WarriorHeaven that Daddy spent the latter part of his life constructing. The Dominant and Recessive Genes is just a way to drive Liquid off-rails, if he didn't [[BreakTheCutie break under the pressure]], he would be insanely devoted [[FreudianExcuse to proving everyone wrong]], he just a little nudge for how to do so. - {{Shini}}

* Why does Snake not want to see a woman die in front of him? Answer: He saw Gustava Heffner from ''MetalGear2SolidSnake'' die in front of him by Metal Gear D, the canonical third Metal Gear. It's why he goes out of his why to see not Meryl die.

* At one point, Revolver Ocelot mentions being impressed by Snake's skills, and says something to the effect of "Just what I'd expect from someone with the same code name as the boss." The first time you play the game, it's obvious that "the boss" refers to Liquid Snake, who Ocelot was working for at the time. Then comes ''MetalGearSolid3'', where we learn that Big Boss (who Solid Snake is cloned from) once went by the codename "Naked Snake"... and that Ocelot knew him during this time. Maybe it was intentional, maybe not.

* This technically only applies to The Twin Snakes, although this was also mentioned in the Japanese script for Metal Gear Solid, as well. Anyways, Psycho Mantis's line of "It feels so... nostalgic" in regards to performing a good deed for Solid Snake and Meryl Silverburgh before dying seemed very confusing to some fans... until you remember that Psycho Mantis's mother died while giving birth to him, which meant he was referring to what his mother did for him before dying.
** Not to be bursting bubbles, but the line "It feels so... nostalgic" was actually in the Japanese version of the original game, and it refers to something from VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake. The line was changed to "kinda... nice." for the US localization because that game never was released here.
*** Actually, Hideo Kojima stated in the director's commentary for Metal Gear Solid that Mantis's line was actually in reference to his mother's last moments being used to give birth to him. Read it here: http://muni_shinobu.webs.com/mgs/commentary2.html
*** I know that it isn't the real reason, but the "feels good" and the "nostalgic feeling" set off a different bell for me. See Mantis constantly breaks the fourth wall, right? Well, what's stopping him from doing that while dying? To me, Mantis felt nostalgic in Twin Snakes because he already had done a good deed before: In the Playstation version.

** Well, actually, there are plenty of reasons he could have been bribed. It could be that they ''didn't'' have to bribe him, but he took it because they were offering (ie. simple greed). Or maybe the bribe wasn't about Metal Gear specifically but about allowing ARMSTech to be the company who built it, or to ignore their financial troubles. That is assuming he was bribed at all- bribes were definitely going around, but that does not mean that he was one of the people collecting them. For all we know, the whole thing was Anderson's idea in the first place.

*** MGS 2 gets even more mind screwy when you consider not only the actual plot being a deconstruction but also an allegory to the player-character relationship. The Patriots plotted perfectly to get Raiden to do what they wanted him to. Even though you're trying to help Raiden, you're controlling to make the plot fit while looking at him from a 3rd person view. Guess what that means? I must fight The Patriots! [[FanFic/DoomRepercussionsOfEvil No player, you ARE The Patriots.]]
**** I see it as the opposite. In [=MGS3=], The Boss' tragedy, and indeed a recurring theme throughout the series, is the Patriots manipulating soldiers to do what they want them to do. Just like the player is 'manipulated' into doing what the game wants you to do. Similarly, the trend of the player-character being mocked for blindly following orders can be seen as a Take That to the player doing whatever the game tells them to do.

** That's exactly what's happening, yeah. The 'third person' view you mentioned is Mantis's view, which is exactly what happens if you use first person during the boss fight.