Was Lady Trieu Evil?

Published December 17, 2019 · Updated July 6, 2022

Dear Shat Crew,

Overall I was happy with the finale. Upon my first viewing I felt disappointed, but it really wasn’t fair because my expectations were sky high. On one hand I was disappointed the millennium clock was nothing more than a way to transfer doctor Manhattan’s powers, but my assumption it was something much more than that came from places like reddit, where people came up with these ridiculous empathy bomb ideas. Upon second viewing I’m glad there was no empathy bomb, or something similar. That wouldn’t have worked visually. Would white people all of a sudden start crying and walking up to minorities sobbingly apologizing. That doesn’t work on screen, so I’m cool with that.

Next-
Can people stop trying to discern what Doc Manhattan is and how he works. It’s like trying to explain algebra to a cockroach. He’s a higher being and we don’t have the faculties to grasp how he experiences time, we just have a vague idea he’s somehow able to see every moment of his life, unless kryptonite, ahem, I mean Tachians and lithium are involved. By the way, has Lithium ever been mentioned in any Watchmen Lore as being able to be used this way. I haven’t re-read the entire comic in a while, or the entire Before Watchmen series, and the recent Doomsday Clock Series. Just curious if anyone knows if the show is pulling from something or if the Lithium came from one of the comics. Who knows, maybe it’s been theorized that Tachians, if they exist, have some relationship with Lithium, I have no clue, but maybe you guys do?

and finally-
My biggest problem with the finale was Lady Trieu. Again let me say I enjoyed it overall, I just can’t help but be critical of something I’m overly passionate about. Maybe I missed something but other than looking and sounding villainous, did she really do anything that bad. She killed a bunch of high ranking members of Cyclops, and she Killed Doctor Manhattan. Cyclops was evil, and her revenge on Manhattan I believe was justified.

I’m not sure but I believe Bian’s Dreams were described as her being an old Lady, but when we see Trieu’s mother in Karnak she looks to be in her 30’s at the oldest and it’s after the war, so we can assume the dream/memory is also from after the war since she’s an old lady, if I’m remembering correctly. This tells us the violence and unrest in villages continued long after VVM day, and Lady Trieu probably saw and experienced it as a child. Is she not entitled to justice the same as Will Reeves?

I’m not going to argue that Trieu would have been a great God like figure, but other than Adrian proclaiming she must be stopped at all costs, I don’t see a lot of evidence to back it up, it just felt uneven. I understand Lady Trieu is supposed to be evil, but can someone explain to me why? And did she deserve to die just for her ambitions? The only argument that made somewhat sense was that anyone looking to obtain the powers of a god needs to be stopped at all costs, but we can say the same thing about Angela eating the egg. She’s literally attempting to obtain the powers of a god, should she not be stopped at all costs as well? I’m honestly not trying to make an argument, I’m legitimately looking for answers because I feel like I missed something with Trieu. Your insight is appreciated.

Sorry, one last gripe. Adrian practically begs Manhattan to send him to Europa. Manhattan explains what he did on Europa and asks him if he would like to be sent there. Adrian doesn’t say, sure but can we figure an escape plan if I get bored, can I leave a note for my illegitimate daughter . If doctor Manhattan asks you if you want to be teleported you should be prepared to be teleported right that fucking moment. I feel like the writers came up with this cool idea of Adrian being trapped on Europa with annoying clones first and then had to figure out how he got there.

Thanks for all the pods

Kalmon from Minnesota

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