User blog comment:The Milkman/Indoctrination: You're Doing It Wrong/@comment-2127388-20120624204818

I must really say that you did a good work with formulating this, you did a great work in this, but evidently you miss a few points, and not only about the theory.

First note, do you actually know that Reaper's "beam" is not a laser, but a stream of liquid metal? And the "explosion" is just a splash of liquid steel, uranium and tungsten. And based on this, in your last segment, you said there cant be a "cliffhanger" for us, but evidently this Harbinger's attack on Shepard is like you described, the beam shoots before you, and black screen, followed by something...

And as a supporter of BW, than explain me one thing. If the game ending presented by BW is true, how is possible that Shepard survives the attack of Reaper weapon, and especially why he ended up about 25 meters before teleport beam, when Shepard was hit by the beam about 200 meters away. The blast threw her by anti-physics laws against the source of force (the blast), right through the beam which pass through even cruisers? Normally, even if Shepard manages to dont directly get hit by the beam, by normal physics laws the "explosion" and blast would have to throw Shepard BACK, not FORWARD. This is the first thing the BW made wrong, Shepard is teleported.

Than, there is the fact that when Shepard wakes up, he/she is very close to the beam. We would assume somehow he managed to get there after the blast before, either by walking there, being dragged there, or thrown there. But than, why are behind him/her a trees from her dreams, when they werent there in the previous scene? Why is he/she invisible for others? Clearly someone with binoculars will have to notice the movement before the beam.

Than when you are teleported on Citadel, you are in straight line right to the "command console unit" of the station, without any other way. to go, nothing than one road. How is than possible that Anderson (also not noticed by others on Earth) gets before you when he came AFTER you. He had to meet Shepard on the way, wont he? And that Citadel has parts from Collector Ship/Base, we would assume its because of the all dead bodies there, but why are there parts from Shadow Broker's ship (the folding parts hall) right before the console, when they werent there before seen on Citadel, or even anything similar like that. How will you explain this?

And finally, the confrontation with Anderson and Illusive Man. If there is a straight one-way, did Illusive Man get there by the beam too? Or how? And when he shoots Anderson, and after his suicide/Shepard killing him, why is Shepard hit in the exact same place like Anderson? And than, when Hackett calls, why is he even calling? He must have been informed "no one survived the final charge on the teleport beam", so why he calls on Citadel for someone to do something with Crucible. Well, it is probably because the Citadel was opened, but than why Hackett calls specifically "Shepard"? How did he know it was him/her? Hmm? How will you explain that?

Anyway, the point of IT is not only to explain the few plot holes (and take the "few" part very soberly), and maybe you are right it dont ends the game, but it brings one thing which you dont know. Hope. If cliffhangers were that bad, why they were created? You are right that IT may be cliffhanger, but thats one of the points. For example, for me, when the IT is true and Shepard chooses the Destroy option, he breaks free from Reaper's attempts to indoctrinate him/her, and he/she wakes up on Earth, injured, but ready to continue the fight, and eventually challenge Harbinger. I am not sure if there is someone else who shares this belief, but it is something what brings FUN & HAPPINESS to my heart.

And you are wrong IT brings nothing to the end. The point of IT is, that the three choices on the end are actually a reverse of the narrative's perspective. More specifically, why is "Control Reapers" blue and "Destroy Reapers", when just a three minutes ago you were arguing controlling them was wrong? And why is at the "red bad choice" the only option to survive it? Why is the "blue good choice" a way how to get yourself killed? The IT explains this that, it is not "Shepard's perspective", but "Reapers' perspective". For them, "Destroy" option is wrong for them, and "Control" is good, because they will survive "in Shepard's mind".

To explain this, the IT is based on that Reapers were slowly, by millimeters, indoctrinating Shepard whenever they could. Shepard knew how indoctrination is proceeding, so she would be aware of it before Reapers would completely control her. The thing is similar with one thing which is natural, and that you dont notice small changes until its too late. The example is, take a frog and throw her into cup of warming water. Frog will immediately jump away. And than, take a frog, put her into normal water (cold, if you like), and than start heating the cup. Frog will stay, and gets killed. The same principle is here. When Reapers will be slowly indoctrinating Shepard, he/she will dont realize he/she is being indoctrinated, and when masterfully manipulated, will dont even realize it until being completely under control.

For the child, you are saying Reapers cant knew about the existence of this child, but than you dont know IT says the child was not USED by Reapers in the dreams, but that the child was CREATED by the Reapers. The thing is, why is Shepard the only one who sees the kid? When he/she sees the child in the vents, Anderson returns to the room. From the position he was there, he would have seen the child, so why he didn reacted to it at all? Or when the child was boarding the shuttle, why non of the soldiers didnt noticed him, or helped him to get on board?

And your saying that Saren wasnt speaking about a dreams, I dont remember either that Shepard was telling everyone about the nature of the dreams, only that he/she and them. Also, Saren and Shepard, given IT was correct, were two different cases. Saren came willingly to Reapers, but Shepard refused to do so. Why would Reapers give Saren nightmares, when he was doing what they told him, or required from him? its nonsense.

Back to the IT, the purpose of Shepard's bad dreams was, according to IT, to weaken Shepard's will, to bring fear, insecurity and despair. The will will not be as strong, and easier to manipulate. The child was only a embodiment of those he/she cant save, which plagues Shepard more than anything else.

Now to the "weird end". When Shepard wakes up after the hit of Reaper's weapon, by IT it is his/her subconsciousness, manipulated by Reapers to make Shepard see what they want to be seen. The appearance of the Citadel is formed to be combination of places Shepard visited. Than Anderson and TIM, they are embodiment of "destroying Reapers" (Anderson) and "controlling Reapers" (TIM), both were chosen as this, because in the RL (of ME), these two had this believe, so Shepard wont get suspicious.

And in the end, the final choice. The choices are in respect of "Paragon and Renegade view of the Reapers", not of Shepard. The "red bad Renegade" Destroy choice is bad for Reapers, because it means Crucible will be activated, and they will be destroyed. The "blue good Paragon" Control choice is, that they will survive, and Shepard will believe he controls them, but why does he have to die int he process? When you look on it, "Control" can be used vice versa, not only as "Shepard controls Reapers", but also as "Reapers controls Shepard". When Shepard chooses "Control", he will subdue to Indoctrination, and his mind will die, believing he saved the galaxy. And "green neutral" Synthesis is practically identical to Control. Shepard also dies, because he accepts Reapers, who are technically "synthesis of biologic and mechanic".

By this, it explains why the "Renegade option" is the only way to make Shepard survival possible. Which brings another question. If the ending is all correct, how can Shepard survive the fall of Citadel on Earth? Especially the entry to the atmosphere. And than why would Normandy run from the battle, and especially, how would a teammates which were with you during the final charge on teleport beam, be on board of Normandy? They pulled off from the biggest fight of the galaxy's history, board Normandy and than again run away? I can understand that in Destroy option, where EMS is low, but why in Control, or Synthesis? It doesnt make even a grain of sense.

While I disagree with your statements, I must applaud that you have actually said something against it, unlike BW. Not that they had explained each segment of the Indoctrination Theory to prove it wrong. No, the only thing they did is to claim "our ending is correct, and anything else is not true". Like a small kid. But, you also gave me another perspective on the ending, which I will consider.

And now, with the Extended Cut at the doorstep, I will wait, play, and see if it will give justice to the ending, or make it even bigger crap. Until than, I will not say it is horrible or wonderful, only after. But personally I fear that it will only get things worse.