YMMV / Opal

• Alternate Character Interpretation:
  • When Claire's father sings "They turned me down, now I live my nightmare", does he mean he was turned down by society for his appearance and so is stuck trying to fix himself, or was he turned down for plastic surgery to fix his appearance and so is attempting to do it himself?
    • Some commenters theorize that Claire's father's obsession with his appearance is in part due to him trying to cover bruises and other marks from the Domestic Abuse Claire's mother is implied to direct toward him (bruises which may be the origin behind his Nightmare Face) . The line about being turned down is also thought about being turned down by police who didn't believe him.
  • The description on the official YouTube upload states that Opal specifically wanted to investigate the crying coming from the window, and she looks distressed whenever she hears it. This implies that, before she realizes her previous family was made up and the abusive family is her own, she sincerely wanted to help whoever was crying.
  • Is Opal silent because she's scared of her surroundings, or because she is neglected by her abusive family to the point of being non-verbal? Opal's family being patient and supportive of her implies this is just normal for her, while Claire's grandfather being confused over her not talking implies she has talked in the past.
• Awesome Music: It's made by Jack Stauber, so of course it would have some good songs. While "Easy to Breathe" is frequently cited as the standout track, "Mirror Man" has found some success on Tiktok afterwards.
• Diagnosed by the Audience: Reading between the lines, you could gather that Claire, due to the profound neglect and abuse, is developing Dissociative Identity Disorder, given she fantasizes herself as Opal with an entirely different, happier life. She also tends to make dissociative figures, as she starts her fantasy by locking herself in the attic and goes below the billboard before returning to her house.
• Funny Moments:
  • Opal isn't exactly a funny short, but in the opening you can see the mom's wine spill on a novel called "Serial Killer Lover" written by Amy Vibrator.
  • The fact that Opal's Grandpa only says "Hi Opal!" in the same tone of voice every time can be this for first time watchers. Not so much for people that have watched it more than once.
  • Opal's little dance with the burger can make these same watchers crack a little smile, as it comes out of nowhere. Or so it seems...
• Jerkass Woobie: Though any of the adults can qualify from different viewers' perspectives due to how miserable they are, Claire's father in particular tends to elicit the most sympathy from viewers, if the YouTube comments are anything to go by. Despite his shallow egotism and neglect of Claire, past rejection, insecurities, and obsessing about one's looks to the point it becomes self-destructive are things that many find themselves relating to throughout his song.
• Memetic Mutation: The scene of Opal dancing at the beginning has become a popular GIF in the Jack Stauber fandom.
• Realism-Induced Horror: Perhaps the most frightening thing about the short isn't the twisted, uncomfortable visuals, but its subject matter: a little girl experiencing familial neglect so traumatic that her only hope to escape is make-believe. The fact the story ends with this no closer to being resolved only makes things even more morbidly depressing.
• Rewatch Bonus: The entire short is recontextualized after you find out that "Opal" is actually Claire.
• Spiritual Successor:
  • The whole short can be seen as a darker and more compressed version of Coraline. Both are stop motion stories about a girl living with a neglectful family and trying to escape to a family that loves them. However, while Coraline ultimately sees her Parents as People and realizes the fake family is even worse; Claire's family is entirely dysfunctional, and the happy ending she wants is all in her head.
    • They both even have a father figure who sings about how great everything is, but when you actually stop to listen to the two song's lyrics, you realize that the song is a cry for help and a warning to the child.
  • The short can also be seen as an animated Shutter Island. Both have a protagonist who comes to a forsaken place to investigate, only to realize that the whole story was a therapy to get out of their delusions, that the person they were looking for were themselves, and that the alternate identities they took were a way to cope with this horrible revelation.
• Ugly Cute: Opal has a bizarre bug-eyed face, and frequently has her face crumpled into bizarre expressions, but she's still weirdly adorable despite this.
• The Woobie: Opal spends the entire short scared out of her wits as she breaks into the home of a dysfunctional, horrifying family to console the person crying in the attic, only to realize she is the one crying in the attic, and that this abusive family is her own.