General Symbolism in RE: Revengeance

[An Herb Sandwich]

Decided to bring this back from the old Biohaze (edit: twice over). What themes, motifs, and other literary symbolism do you see or find in Resident Evil?

I'll start this off with a post I made on Tumblr about RE5 and the contrast between Chris and Wesker in that game.


I was always struck by a particular part of Wesker’s rant during the final boss fight of 5.





And how it seems to call back to Chris’s opening monologue. Mostly because…Chris didn’t believe the world was worth saving or fighting for at the beginning of 5. At least he was in severe doubt about it.



Wesker also brings up how terrible the world is, how chaos and destruction reign, that because of it the world needs to be wiped clean of humanity to give it a fresh start.




Which coincides with Chris’ own thoughts on how the problems of the world keep getting worse and worse without end.



The story itself also makes significant note of this as well near the end of the novelization of 5 in its Kaitai Shinsho guidebook.



And the ironic thing is, is that because of Wesker’s actions throughout 5, Chris does conclude that the world is worth the pain and strife he and others go through. Because humanity deserves the chance to try and improve itself. That we aren’t beyond hope.

"
In the sky above the rising sun, Chris remembered the same question again.
---Is there any value in putting one's life at risk to protect this world?
There is, he thinks now.
The world with its civilization and six billion souls truly seemed to be heading for final destruction. There were wars around the world and countless problems that needed to be quickly resolved. Bioterrorism incidents would happen again and again. The flowers would eventually wilt and die.
But even so, Chris felt that the idea of killing the flower so a new one can be born, of killing the tree all the way to its roots, was a crazed idea. He felt that Wesker had followed extreme logic and become intoxicated by the great power to destroy the world using Umbrella's deadly assets." - BIO5 Kaitai Shinsho guidebook, Project Umbrella translation

"
However, Sheva was in the wings fighting out of a belief in good. Even while being taken to the realm of the yellow line, Jill had finally returned to him. Smiles returned by friends - there was value in winning, even if just for that. There was a reason for continuing the world they belonged to.
"Someday, the world may learn how to avoid destruction. Until then, I'll protect it again and again."
The heroes will close their eyes and rest in order to be ready for the next battle against evil..." - BIO5 Kaitai Shinsho guidebook, Project Umbrella translation


The difference and contrast was intentional, according to RE5′s writing team. Chris and Wesker were both supposed to represent the best and worst sides of humanity, thematically.

They both at the start viewed the world as potentially too far gone to waste effort on making it better as it was. Why bother when you get nothing but pain, trauma, and disappointment in trying to do so?

It’s also not a coincidence that Chris’ disillusionment and Wesker’s decline in sanity began on the same night.

The Spencer Estate incident.

But while Chris regained his hope and belief in the world through the events of 5, Wesker ultimately, adamantly, refused to believe there was any worth in humanity and society until the second he died.

"More and more I find myself wondering if it's all worth fighting for."

"For a future without fear..."

"Yeah, it's worth it." - Chris Redfield, end of RE5

TLDR: Resident Evil 5 is much more deep than people give it credit for.

 

[Yama]

Such an excellent thread @An Herb Sandwich, thank you for porting it over once more.

If I recall you also broke down the covers of the series. As a designer I remember especially appreciating that.

 

[Captain Redfield]

Glad to see you back. Always great to read these symbolism threads!

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Such an excellent thread @An Herb Sandwich, thank you for porting it over once more.

If I recall you also broke down the covers of the series. As a designer I remember especially appreciating that.

Here's the analysis on the cover art again.

Color theory extends beyond just the characters, the logos and game itself implements it in the setting and gameplay in some entries.


REV for example:




Has blue in its font and background. The blue obviously shows the connection with the ocean that T-Abyss and the Mediterranean Sea setting have. Dark Blue symbolizes the unknown depths of the ocean, introspective and thought-provoking. As well as melancholy and aloofness. The game itself shows a lot of blue in the setting, tying it to the feelings of dread and melancholy the victims of the Zenobia, Semiramis, and the Dido are suffering through being infected and succumbing to it. The aloofness and thought-provoking nature of dark blue also ties into REv's story's mystery and intrigue in the conspiracy plot.


REV2:



Revelations 2 uses red and grey as its major color schemes. The red symbolizes blood and violence the T-Phobos and Alex Wesker brings. This game was also especially gorier than the games prior until 7 came along, further displaying the savagery of the what has happened to the island. The grey ties itself to the amount of barb wire and the gritty industrial setting the game has. Grey has a monochrome and serious aesthetic on its own, that when combined with the red paints a bleak picture for the characters. Red also has a more positive connection as being the color of love and passion. This is shown in Barry's (who wears red) determination to find and save his daughter as well as apologize for his fault in the rift that has torn their relationship apart. This also spreads to the girl who becomes his new daughter Natalia in trying to protect her from Alex.

RE5:



5 greatly uses the color red-orange. Red-orange symbolizes warmth, wildness, and being uninhibited. The setting embodies this description from the unbearable heat of Africa, the rage and degeneration caused by the Plagas in the Majini, the Stairway to the Sun flower and its origins in creating the Progenitor virus, and in Uroboros itself with its bright orange weak points. And of course the climax uses all red-oranges in its volcano boss battle. It symbolizes the connection to the sun and fire and how it purifies evil. This evil is shown in the other colors it uses, black. Uroboros is made of black tentacles, and Wesker himself dresses in all black. This shows the darkness and evil of what the heroes are trying to fight against.


RE4:



The grey in 4 symbolizes how boring it is, no, the bleak, monochrome setting of Pueblo. Its sober, quiet, and basic. The industrial setting later on in the game as well as the mist and fog dispersed in the game. The grey also symbolizes the metal in the scythes that some of the parasites have. Brown also is liberally used, specifically in the village segment. Brown symbolizes groundedness and tradition. Earthy roots and reliability. This is supposed to symbolize the closeness of the village and their quaint lifestyle before Los Illuminados came. It could also still symbolize the closeness of the village due to them being connected by the plagas.


RE6:



6 uses purple and blue in its logo to symbolize the mystery and intrigue in its plot (or at least its supposed to). Purple represents intuition, contemplation, and enchantment. This is supposed to tie into Carla's machinations of subterfuge throughout the game. Purple is alos described to be transcendental, which ends up tying into Carla's plans of destroying the world through use of the C-Virus. Blue is used for the darkness of the atmosphere in the later parts with the world and lives at stake.


RE7:



7 uses earthy and neutral tones like sepia, tan, brown, grey, and black. Orange is also used in the logo. This is to show the more supposed "down to earth" attitude the game has with its setting in the rural country and farm estate. Like in 4, brown and grey here symbolize the traditional and homeliness of what was once the Baker homestead, but also further emphasizes the repeated darker themes of family. Black comes with the Mold, showing where the evil that dwells in the house lies and how it has corrupted the people around it.

 

[Yama]

@An Herb Sandwich Such a well done analysis on symbolism, really fond of this thanks for posting.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

RE6 makes great mention of Order and Chaos how either having the upper hand is bad. The side of Order is portrayed by Simmons and his Family, who scheme and connive to get even more power over the US and are willing to put innocent lives to the pyre if it will get them what they want. Which is them being able to maintain their version of balance.


Chaos is represented by Carla and her Neo-Umbrella, who destroy and terrorize people due to a vendetta and a twisted sense of "getting even". They are the main force of enemies in the game, destroying things, driving the plot, and disrupting the main characters lives (specifically Chris and Jake's). She'd rather burn the whole world down if it means it ruins Simmons. And they're all about disrupting balance, particularly the balance that the Family are trying to uphold.


But the true balance between Chaos and Order is actually represented by the group of protagonists in the game. They want to maintain order, but not to the extent of controlling and scheming like the Family. They also are willing to go against the "authority" (Leon, Helena, Hunnigan, Ada, Sherry, and Jake) in order to do what's right to save people. Instead of rebelling and destroying for destruction's sake. Chris in particular is in the end able to bury his grudge towards (Ada, who's actually Carla) for the greater good and not compromise himself or his ethics in the process. While Carla in contrast, is so enraged and wrapped up in vengeance that she never tries to get help against Simmons and ultimately destroys herself.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Something struck me about three of the main villainesses of Resident Evil, Alexia Ashford, Alex Wesker, and Carla Radames. They all have a symbolic theme with bugs that ties into their characters and story.



Alexia, the first female villain in the series has an obvious obsession with ants. Ants are what she founds as the basis to her ultimate goal, refers to herself as a "Queen ant" and Alfred as a "Soldier ant", and makes as the basis of her own virus, T-Veronica. Ant themes are found everywhere in CV, from the various BOWs in the Antarctic base to the key items used to solve puzzles. Alexia's ultimate goal centers around infecting everyone with T-V and forcing them all to serve her as their queen, creating, fundamentally, a worldwide ant colony.


However, she also shares symbolism with the dragonfly. This is hinted at early on in the childhood tape of her and Alfred feeding a helpless dragonfly to their pet ant colony. It's repeated with the object puzzle to open the study room and the central room before the final Alexia boss fight. funnily enough with what I mentioned the process to make the objects is reversed between eachother. This fully culminates in her final transformation, which superficially resembles the form of a dragonfly.


Alexia, in essence, has become the dragonfly in the video and is brought down by Chris. Who she regarded as just a "mere ant" meant to obey her. Just like in the home video.



Alex Wesker is more subtly connected to her insect of choice, a cockroach. Alex makes repeated mention of her love for Franz Kafka's works, specifically "The Metamorphosis". This plays a part in the title of her final boss form, "The Final Metamorphosis". "The Metamorphosis" centers around a man inexplicably turned into a roach like monster and how it ruins his life. Alex states herself how she feels tied to Gregor's feelings and predicament in the story and how she will not end up like him at the end of the book.


But ultimately she does end up like a Gregor, a monster living in the shadows away from everyone, twisted into a hideous form that she despises. A roach also has the known ability to survive such things as its head being cut off and other things such as radiation. This connected to both Alex (through her mind transfer plan), and her brother Albert (through his own ability to survive injuries that would kill him). The later of which Sergei Vladmir had actually compared to a "little black roach" himself. The Kodoku Virus (made by Alex) also gets its name form the ancient ritual involving the mutual destruction of various reptiles and insects.



Carla Radames ties into butterflies and spiders (spiders are not actually insects but roll with me here). The C-Virus' main gimmick involves transforming it's hosts into weird bug humans through adapting to injury. The Chrysalid, what the developers term as "the main mascot BOW" of 6 involves an infected transforming into a chrysalis, that pops out a new mutated creature. This, shows a connection to the butterfly's natural growth as a caterpillar goes into a cocoon state and emerges as a butterfly. Making this even more clear is the first few moments of the Prelude of 6, where you see the camera focus on a Chrysalis about to hatch.


Further more, the butterfly connection also ties into Carla's connection with Ada Wong (who's trademark is a red butterfly), along with her backstory of being turned into an Ada clone through the C-Virus by becoming a Chrysalid. Spiders tie into Carla through her various machinations that tie together all 4 campaigns, like a web of a spider. This is shown in the title screen and logo for 6 prominently, as well as Ada's campaign menu (which shows the silhouette of a spider).



Marguerite Baker is the newest addition to this trend. She isn't specifically tied to a certain insect like the others and has a more general vibe through its symbolism. Her connection to this theme is inspired by the eusocial hive structure that certain insects have (i.e. wasps, bees, & termites). This reflects her story and character's emphasis on family and bonds and the ties to motherhood. The latter is made very much clear through her mutation of a hive nest that spawns enemies sprouting out of where her womb and vagina would be.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

These are all videos thegamingmuse from Youtube made on symbolism in RE if anyone wants to see videos on this topic.

^On the above link, I have a few comments on this.
I don't completely agree with her takes on the differences between Chris and Jill's stories in Remake. Chris does have emotional scenes during his game, fewer than Jill's, but they are there. Such as his reactions to breaking the news to Rebecca about Richard's death, Reacting in surprise and shock at Enrico turning his gun on him thinking he's the traitor, and the various scenes he has with Rebecca.


Also, I disagree with her statement on Re2make being better at portraying their characters better. Claire and Leon feel more dumbed down in Remake 2 than their originals with Leon being more guilable and yes-manish in following orders given to him by people he's either never met or has only met one or two times. And Claire feels like they've given her the generic "strong female character" treatment by having her yell a bunch of unfitting swear words to make things fell more gritty and "mature" and acts like an action hero more that Chris in RE1 ever did, leaping right into a fight with an 18 foot monstrosity she'd just seen mutate and crush and throw his own wife around like a ragdoll. Seriously, is this supposed to be RE2 Claire? Or Rev2 or CV Claire?


I do, however, agree with her stance about Wesker being much more important in Chris' story than Jill's, and it's something you see carried forward throughout the series as Chris and Wesker's animosity is far more embellished on and visible than Wesker's stated hatred of Jill. Even though we know he does hate Jill, the games don't really have her and him face each other one on one to really let that shine unlike with Chris and Wesker (which is another reason why I want Jill to come back and have her time with Wesker as his thrall embellished on).

 

[dvader]

Wow fantastic reads. RE5 is the best story of the series for me, great analysis of it.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Name Meanings in RE:


Chris Redfield

The name "Chris " is the shortened form of "Christopher" (originating from the Greek name Khristopheros), which means "To bear Christ". Early Christians in particular liked to use this name to metaphorically state how they have Christ in their hearts.


Now in Chris Redfield's case, since's he's not a religious character, this could align more with having a strong belief or faith in something. This fits with Chris in his deep seated duty and cause to fighting bioweapons and seeking justice. His strong, uncompromising nature in regards to his moral code extends to his past as well in the Air Force, which is what got him kicked out, as you know.


The name "Redfield" comes from the American rifle company Redfield, a well respected name in the American hunting circle known for making high quality rifle scopes and which still makes them to this day.



Here's an Amazon listing for one of their products.


Obviously, this ties into Chris and his skill at marksmanship, stated repeatedly throughout the series as being one of the best.


Jill Valentine

The name "Jill", to make a long story short, is a changed and twisted name originating from the name "Julius". This name was associated with the ancient Roman emperor Julius Caesar, where it gained popularity through the centuries.


"Valentine" also comes from Roman origins from the name "Valentinus" which comes from the word "Valens" which means "strong,'vigorous, and healthy" in Latin. This ties into Jill's list of immunities from the various viruses (T,T-Abyss, and Uroboros being the chief ones). She was also able to fight off against the P30 in her system and not completely give into despair at Wesker's captivity/torture, highlighting the "strength" bit. Saint Valentine of the Roman Catholic Church is the patron saint of engaged couples, love, happy marriages, beekeepers, against fainting, plague, and epilepsy and was a 3rd century martyr. Jill essentially makes herself a martyr for Chris when she saves him by throwing herself at Wesker sending them both to their apparent deaths. And the plague thing speaks for itself.


Claire Redfield

"Claire" means "bright" and "famous" and is the French form of Clara. This is connected to Claire Redfield with how she "shines" and "brightens" those around her who depend on her for protection. This can also apply to her attitude when it comes to saving people by being a helper and protector in Terrasave.


"Redfield", as stated before with Chris, ties into her skill with firearms and weapons despite being a civilian.


Leon Kennedy

The name "Leon" is a derivative of "Leo" and means "lion". This shows how Leon is "lion-hearted" and makes it his life's mission to defend and help people, which drew him into the police business even before all this started. As I had mentioned in my post about the various insignias in RE, Leon's namesake is also the mascot of his organisation, the DSO.

The name "Kennedy" comes from an Old Irish byname "Cennetig", which means "armored head" or "misshapen head". This surname is particularly famous for being the last name of beloved former president John F. Kennedy. This could tie into Leon's own connections to the US government and Presidency.


Albert Wesker

"Albert" means "noble" and "bright" and comes from the Germanic name Adalbert. It was common among German royalty during medieval times. This connection to royalty was transferred to English royalty through the centuries, with its most famous bearer being Prince Albert who repopularized it in England. This connects to Albert Wesker in how he always gives off a "cool" and "high class" image along with later viewing himself as a god among humanity.


Edit; courtesy of a reblog from Tumblr: For "Wesker”: Recorded in several spelling forms from the relatively popular Wishart and Wisker or Whisker, to more remote forms including Wishkar, Wiskar, Wesker, Whiscard, and Wysard, this is an English surname. … It derives from the words ‘viscr’, meaning wise, which became 'wisc’ in Norman French, with the addition of ’(h)ard’ meaning brave or bold.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Color Meanings with Characters in Biohazard: Part 1



Color has had a deep history with RE through symbology from the very start. This is most obvious through the characters and how they use color in their designs. I'll start with each color and their attached characters.


Red



"The color red is a warm and positive color associated with our most physical needs and our will to survive. It exudes a strong and powerful masculine energy.

Red is energizing. It excites the emotions and motivates us to take action.


It signifies a pioneering spirit and leadership qualities, promoting ambition and determination.


It is also strong-willed and can give confidence to those who are shy or lacking in will power.


Being the color of physical movement, the color red awakens our physical life force.


It is the color of sexuality and can stimulate deeper and more intimate passions in us, such as love and sex on the positive side or revenge and anger on the negative." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


The characters who wear red the most are: Ada Wong, Claire Redfield (knock on wood), Barry Burton, and Helena Harper.



Ada symbolizes the dangerous, sex appeal aspect of red. Through her "femme fatale" archetype, and outfit design, she exudes sex appeal to Leon Kennedy or anyone else she decides to make her mark. This coupled with her job as a spy and trafficker of bioweapons, makes her dangerous to trust for Leon He can never truly know whether Ada's working with him or against him.


The romance attribute gets involved in their relationship, along with love mixed with sensuality. The later is hinted explicitly in Damnation along with their other encounters. Ada's preferred shade of red highlights this aspect:


" Crimson: has a little blue in it. It indicates a determination to succeed but without upsetting anyone else. It emits sensuality rather than sexuality. " - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Ada wears red prominently in RE6, contrasting with Leon and Carla's blue in that game. Ironically, Ada's use of red goes against the general attributes of impulsiveness and rage when compared to Leon (who is more outgoing) and Carla's instability.


This relationship and juxtaposition has been carried over with Leon and Ada story throughout the series. Ada, symbolizing passion and danger and Leon, symbolizing trust and safety.



Claire wears two colors throughout the series, pink and red. We're touching on the red part here. Claire's use of red shows off the action and courage of the color.


The strong willedness and determination is displayed a lot in her appearances in Code Veronica, Revelations 2, Heavenly Island, and presumably Re2make. Those games, and her portrayals in them, connect with Claire's prominent actions of heroism and survival compared to her outings in Degeneration and RE2 '98 (who touch on a different aspect with pink). The violent, war side of red comes out with how Claire mows down various enemies and monsters, shown in the end of Rev2, the intro to CV, and her actions during HI.


Surprisingly, Claire portrays the leadership attributes of red rather well in HI, with how she leads the group of survivor to relative safety and with how she commands her subordinates Inez and Marilou.



Barry portrays the masculine side of red. Through his love of big guns and bad jokes, Barry is full of vivaciousness. The loving side of red is displayed through Barry's continuously stated love for his family and friends. This is a big part of his character, that he does care about them.


The anger and rage attribute could be shown in how he blew up at Moira for putting herself and her sister in danger during the gun incident. The particular shade of red (burgundy) he wears in Rev2 is important.


" Burgundy: a dark purplish red, it is more sophisticated and serious and less energetic than true red. It indicates controlled power, determined ambition and dignified action and is often favored by the wealthy." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


This description fits Barry to a tee in Rev2, where he rushes on a solo mission to find his daughter and to finally make up and apologize so that they can fix their relationship.



Helena Harper is very, very, mad in RE6. She had to see her sister mutate and die right in front of her, was used as a scapegoat by her own employer to commit treason against her country, and now is a wanted criminal. Aggression, and assertiveness fit Helena like a glove.


The violence and warlike attributes of red very much match Helena's attitude, but most especially during the later half of 6. She is fully set on killing Simmons or at least arresting him for his actions. This violent attitude is also apart of her backstory, as she assaulted the boyfriend of her sister when it came out she was being abused by him. She was also know to be very short tempered in general, which reflected poorly on herself and workplace.


This color choice contrasts with Leon's blue, which showcases his calmer demeanor in comparison.


Pink



" The color pink represents compassion, nurturing and love. It relates to unconditional love and understanding, and the giving and receiving of nurturing.



Pink is intuitive and insightful, showing tenderness and kindness with its empathy and sensitivity.

In color psychology, pink is a sign of hope. It is a positive color inspiring warm and comforting feelings, a sense that everything will be okay.

Pink calms and reassures our emotional energies, alleviating feelings of anger, aggression, resentment, abandonment and neglect. Studies have confirmed that exposure to large amounts of pink can have a calming effect on the nerves and create physical weakness in people. Violent and aggressive prisoners have been successfully calmed by placing them in a pink room for a specified amount of time. Exposure for too long can have the opposite effect.


The color pink puts people in touch with the nurturing side of themselves, through either the need to receive or the need to give, nurturing and TLC (tender loving care!). Be aware of this if you have a friend who constantly wears pink as it may indicate a need for acceptance, support and unconditional love!" - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


The characters who wear pink throughout the series are: Claire Redfield, Helena Harper, and Moira Burton.



Claire portrays the nurturing and loving aspect of pink. When she wore pink in RE2 '98 and Degeneration, her mothering nature was the most on display. Claire is one of the most outwardly kind and caring characters in the cast, so this is fitting with the color.


Pink is considered a color of hope, of something positive over the horizon. Claire, while wearing pink, in RE2 was a symbol of hope for Sherry as she fought to keep her safe. Claire also stood as a protector for Rani during the Harvardville Incident, defending her from the zombie hordes single-handedly.


The pink she wears during Degeneration has a detail to her character:


" Fuchsia: A blend of deep pink and blue, fuchsia inspires confidence, assurance and maturity, a more responsible and controlled nurturing and love. "- empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


This shows how she has matured from 1998 into a more responsible person, who's more in control and confident about her lifestyle.


The effects of pink in regards to alleviating feelings of neglect and abandonment are particularly on display during Claire's story with her relationship in Sherry. This continues even to RE6, with its files detailing how Claire became basically a second mother for Sherry during the years of imprisonment after Raccoon City.



Helena wears pink during the first part of RE6, where she's most concerned about finding and rescuing her sister. The loving part of pink comes in here as a part of Helena's love and care for her family. Helena cares strongly for Deborah, as it is what drives her to go along with Simmons' plans despite it being wrong and against everything she stood for. Helena's tint of pink also provides some insight.


" Orchid: This is an unusual lavender-pink and relates to the unconventional and the individual doing his or her own thing. It is the non conformist." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Helena established herself as the "black sheep" and "problem child" of the CIA through her cowboy attitude and wrathful tendencies. Which ostracized her from the other agents. This never seemed to bother her however, up until Simmons came with his "offer".



Moira wears a magenta pink as an accent to her outfit in Rev2. The loving side of pink is tempered by her negative feelings for her father. She still loves him, but due to her trauma and residual anger she keeps it down. Until the events of Rev2 happen and she realizes how much her father must care about her in kind.

Magenta's meaning is greatly tied into Moira's character arc in Rev2.


"The color magenta is one of universal harmony and emotional balance. It is spiritual yet practical, encouraging common sense and a balanced outlook on life.

This is a color that helps to create harmony and balance in every aspect of life; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.


A combination of red and violet, magenta contains the passion, power and energy of red, restrained by the introspection and quiet energy of violet.


Magenta influences our whole personal and spiritual development. It strengthens our intuition and psychic ability while assisting us to rise above the everyday dramas of our daily life to experience a greater level of awareness and knowledge.


...This color is an instrument of change and transformation; it helps to release old emotional patterns that prevent personal and spiritual development and aids us in moving forward.


Magenta is uplifting to our spirits during times of unhappiness, anger or frustration." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com

This is all tied to how Moira overcomes her trauma to save Claire and herself later during the six month time skip. Through this adversity and change, she becomes a better person and reconnects with her family in a new way than before. Magenta also is symbolic of the non-conventional attitudes and non conformity. This fits with Moira's rebellious demeanor during the game towards both Barry, the situation, and the Overseer/Alex Wesker.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Different insignia symbolism in RE:




The Silver Dagger emblem has a wolf as its mascot. Wolves symbolize teamwork and social hierarchy.

Further more, they symbolize guardianship, loyalty, companionship, and spirit. They say when you see wolves spring up in your life, they are a sign that you are feeling threatened and have a lack of trust in others or yourself. It means you need to trust your own intuition. This is connected to Leon's arc in Vendetta as he grapples with a lack of faith in his mission to fight bioterrorism. Chris, with Silver Dagger, come into his life and are able to convince him to not give up and to regain trust and faith in his actions and mission. The dagger in Silver Dagger also signifies the covert quick operations of SD, since they are supposed to handle incidents faster than the normal teams.




The DSO has a lion as its mascot. Lions symbolize leadership, courage, and strength. The President wants to show how strong the US is in combating bioterrorism through the DSO and the lion portrays this. Lions also have a social hierarchy like wolves, however, lions defer to the power of a central male lion as opposed to wolves who have two leaders. This is symbolic of how the DSO follows orders directly from the President himself. Lions are supposed to be signs of impending danger to you, acting as foreboding warnings. Lions also are signs of you needing to assume personal power and strength. Which Helena does by seeking revenge on Simmons for what he has done and later joins the DSO herself. This is helped by Leon, who works under the banner of the DSO. Coincidentally, Leon's name means lion and also means kingliness, grandeur, and courage.



The Edonian Army has a spider as it symbol. The spider is a symbol of mystery, power, and growth. The spider stresses interconnectedness in weaving its webs and reminds others of how important their choices are. This is connected to Jake's debate on how he should go about helping the rest of the world through his antibodies. The spider also exists to help guide others in achieving balance in your life and ties itself to those who are the maker of their own destiny. This is heavily tied into Jake and his connection to his father Albert and striving to separate himself from his legacy by fighting bioterrorism on his own terms as a vigilante mercenary.



Ouroboros is a long time symbol of eternity and creation from destruction. This is obviously a big part of Albert Wesker's plot in 5 to remake the world as he sees fit. Ouroboros is also a snake, which has connections with rebirth, longevity, transformation, and healing. This is connected to Wesker through his character and plot important transformation into a superhuman. The very scenario that details his actual reawakening is even called "Rebirth". Wesker himself also has slitted pupils in his eyes, further drawing the connections to snakes closer. Snakes are traditionally tied to medicine, as Aesclepius, the god of medicine's tool was a caduceus which was intertwined with twin snakes. This connects to Wesker's background with Umbrella and his own virus making. Of course, snakes are also connected to deceit, vengefulness, and vindictiveness, particularly with venomous snakes.



Angels are often tied to protection and safety, hence the term "Guardian Angel". This is connected to both Chris and Claire Redfield, who both share this insignia on their jackets. Claire gets safety from knowing she has a shared piece of her brother, due to their similar tastes in music and jackets. This sense of safety is transferred to Sherry when Claire gives her her vest, saying it will protect her from now on. This is connected again into Claire's story arc of trying to protect Sherry from danger in RE2, thereby becoming her "guardian angel"in the process. Chris, similarly, is Rebecca's "guardian angel" in RE1 by constantly having her back and saving her when she is in danger.



Claire gets a new symbol in Code Veronica, the Valkyrie. Valkyries are mythical creatures responsible for transporting fallen warriors souls to Valhalla after dying in glorious combat. This is connected to Claire specifically in this game through her relationship to Steve. Steve falls in battle by saving Claire from Alexia and himself, prompting Alexia to kill him. Claire is there to comfort him as he dies, symbolically guiding him to the afterlife after dying bravely.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Color Meanings with Characters in Biohazard: Part 2

Orange


"The color orange radiates warmth and happiness, combining the physical energy and stimulation of red with the cheerfulness of yellow.

Orange relates to 'gut reaction' or our gut instincts, as opposed to the physical reaction of red or the mental reaction of yellow.


Orange offers emotional strength in difficult times. It helps us to bounce back from disappointments and despair, assisting in recovery from grief.


The color psychology of orange is optimistic and uplifting, rejuvenating our spirit. In fact orange is so optimistic and uplifting that we should all find ways to use it in our everyday life, even if it is just an orange colored pen that we use.


Orange brings spontaneity and a positive outlook on life and is a great color to use during tough economic times, keeping us motivated and helping us to look on the bright side of life." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


There's very few characters in RE that wear or are connected to the color orange. Probably due to orange's positive and bright connections not mixing well with Biohazard's somber horror and high energetic action.


There's at least three characters who do wear orange prominently though. Richard Aiken, Parker Luciani, and Ricardo Irving.



Richard's character centers around being a nice guy, with his descriptions being, "positive, sweet guy", who, despite his relatively young age, is "surprisingly cool-headed and calm under pressure". He was also described as "always greeting new STARS members warmly" as well.


This is tied into orange's warm and welcoming aesthetic, Richard has a positive attitude and his willingness to help others (Rebecca especially), connects with orange brightening people who see it's day. Offering emotional strength and bouncing back from disappointments is connected with both Richard's backstory of trying to atone for not being there for his sister as well as how he jumps into the line of fire time and again for his teammates. "Gut instinct" ties into this as well. Coincidentally, orange is also the color of communication, and Richard is the one who gives Chris his radio.



Parker is very similar to Richard when it comes to orange's meanings. He remains positive throughout Revelations and even serves as comic relief for Jill's story, serving as the lighter one next to Jill's straight man. He is also described and shown to be warm to his comrades, his friendly nature connected to orange and its ties to encouraging friendship and communication.



Irving fits extremely well Dark Orange's meaning in RE5 and in his character. He also fits regular orange's description of having a sunny disposition and postitive outlook.


"Dark Orange: Dark orange indicates over-confidence and over-ambition. It tries too hard to prove its worth and to boost its self-esteem, but when it fails, which is often, it develops a chip on its shoulder. It is the color of the opportunist, taking selfish advantage of every situation." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Irving selfishly takes advantage of Kijuju's residents to line his pockets by trafficking BOWs. And overall being an opportunist above all things, even working as a co-hort to two people who want to destroy the world, knowledge he is well aware of. His over confidence screw him over and when he takes the plaga he fails and ultimately dies, connecting with dark orange's description on tryng too hard.



Albert Wesker's main color is black, however there is much symbolism in his final transformation at the end of 5 with its bright orange pustules.


" Burnt Orange: This color emits a negative vibration indicating pride, tension and aggressive self-assertion.


Dark Orange: Dark orange indicates over-confidence and over-ambition. It tries too hard to prove its worth and to boost its self-esteem, but when it fails, which is often, it develops a chip on its shoulder. It is the color of the opportunist, taking selfish advantage of every situation." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Pride, tension, over-confidence and over-ambition. Being an opportunist, and taking selfish advantage of a situation. These all fit Wesker in spades, even more so his boss fight's theme in the volcano (which is saturated in these orange tones) is named "Deep Ambition". Wesker infecting himself with Uroboros connects with Dark Orange's attempts at boosting self esteem and failing, symbolizing Wesker's desperation in trying to achieve a form that will finally kill Chris and Sheva after having failed to do so previously.

Further notes: As previously stated with colors and their titles, RE5 has a strong connection to orange. However, The Artbook of RE5 also sheds light on the symbolism of orange and Chris Redfield in the game.


"We had a different logo at first. It had a long jagged crack in the ground... we had already decided that the colour scheme would be sunlight yellow & sunlight orange... The sun represents light, but also fire... these colours are very symbolic and act as a metaphor for the main character... Chris still carries a glimmer of hope, of light. That's what we were trying to convey with our choice of colours." Resident Evil 5 Producer Jun Takeuchi (The Art Of Resident Evil 5)"


So the color orange correlates to hope for Chris in regaining his belief in his cause and hope for finding Jill.

Yellow



"The color yellow relates to acquired knowledge. It is the color which resonates with the left or logic side of the brain stimulating our mental faculties and creating mental agility and perception.

Being the lightest hue of the spectrum, the color psychology of yellow is uplifting and illuminating, offering hope, happiness, cheerfulness and fun.


In the meaning of colors, yellow inspires original thought and inquisitiveness.


Yellow helps with decision making as it relates to clarity of thought and ideas, although it can often be impulsive. Yellow helps us focus, study and recall information, useful during exam time.


The color yellow can be anxiety producing as it is fast moving and can cause us to feel agitated.


Yellow has a tendency to make you more mentally analytical and critical - this includes being self critical as well as critical of others.


Yellow is non-emotional, coming from the head rather than the heart. Yellow depends on itself, preferring to not get emotionally involved.


Yellow is related to the ego and our sense of self worth, to how we feel about ourselves and how we are perceived by others." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Yellow is probably the least used color in RE. Once again, probably due to its brightness and positive connotations.


As such, there's only four characters that really use and symbolize yellow. Brad Vickers, Jack Baker, Lott Klein, and Lucas Baker.



Brad's use of yellow symbolizes the more negative side of yellow. The side associated with cowardice and anxiety. This is obvious through his timid and cowardly personality. Dark yellow explains the traits of this negativity.


" Dark Yellow: The darker shades of yellow indicate an inclination toward depression and melancholy, lack of love and low self-worth. Dark yellow relates to the constant complainer and the cynic." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Brad is melancholy and depressed in both his appearances in the series, and is generally described to be a complainer and cynic within the team.



Jack's use of yellow is a more dark, ironic twist on the positive aspects of yellow. Jack's cheery, upbeat dissonance with his violent actions goes with yellow's sunny enthusiasm and happiness. Jack continuously is rather cordial speaking with Ethan despite his many attempts to kill him, making the scenes with him eerie. Dark yellow's ties to melancholy also suit Jack near the end of the main game, as he wallows in sorrow over the death of his wife and begs Ethan to free him and his family in the (ugh) mindscape.



Lucas wears primarily dark blue, but also wears accents of yellow. The yellow symbolizes, much like his father, the dissonance of his happy demeanor with his sadistic actions. However, Yellow's cerebral connections tie into Lucas and his engineering skills. Yellow symbolizes new ideas and analytical thought. Lucas is capable of making elaborate, functioning traps and mechanisms with the scraps at his disposal.


" The color yellow loves a challenge, particularly a mental challenge." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


This supports Lucas' love of games, even though he doesn't play fair.



" Lemon Yellow: Lemon yellow promotes self-reliance and a need for an orderly life. This yellow increases our sensitivity to criticism." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Lott Klein is forced to be self reliant after the outbreak on Sheena Island and was already fairly independent even before then. His trust issues throughout the game connects with Lemon Yellow's sensitivity to criticism and anxiety tied to general yellow.


" Golden Yellow: This yellow is the color of the loner with an intense curiosity and interest in investigating the finer details of its interests. Golden yellow is sensitive to criticism." - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Lott is considered an inquisitive and loner kid, having to fend for himself and his sister. His "investigating fine details" is what kicks off Survivor's whole plot as he is the one to figure out Ark being a spy and alerting Vincent Goldman. Yellow's positive traits can also fit with how his character grows to trust Ark and realize how evil Umbrella is along with how his previous thoughts of genetic superiority were wrong.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Color Meanings in Biohazard: Part 3

Green



“The color green relates to balance and harmony. From a color psychology perspective, it is the great balancer of the heart and the emotions, creating equilibrium between the head and the heart. From a meaning of colors perspective, green is also the color of growth, the color of spring, of renewal and rebirth. It renews and restores depleted energy. It is the sanctuary away from the stresses of modern living, restoring us back to a sense of well being. This is why there is so much of this relaxing color on the earth, and why we need to keep it that way.


Green is an emotionally positive color, giving us the ability to love and nurture ourselves and others unconditionally. A natural peacemaker, it must avoid the tendency to become a martyr.


It loves to observe, and therefore relates to the counselor, the good listener, the social worker. It loves to contribute to society. It is the charity worker, the good parent and the helpful neighbor.Being a combination of yellow and blue, green encompasses the mental clarity and optimism of yellow with the emotional calm and insight of blue, inspiring hope and a generosity of spirit not available from other colors.

This is a color that has a strong sense of right or wrong, inviting good judgment. It sees both sides of the equation, weighs them up, and then usually takes the moral stand in making appropriate decisions. On the negative side, it can be judgmental and over-cautious.


This color relates to stability and endurance, giving us persistence and the strength to cope with adversity.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com

Green is a very much used color in Resident Evil, present in the background and through use of healing items like herbs and first aid sprays and characters.
As you could probably guess, the characters who use green the most are; Chris Redfield and Rebecca Chambers.



Chris Redfield has always worn green throughout the series, even form the beginning. Green is a great balancer reflects hope and renewal. This relates to Chris as a heroic character that is frequently described as being an inspiration to others, especially his subordinates in the BSAA and to his family such as Claire.

As quoted above, green also has a sense of right and wrong, which heavily ties into Chris character. Chris has always stuck by his morals and ethics, even at the cost of his own career, and sees those who do evil and commit crimes as deserving of punishment and justice. You could also say this thinking is too black and white and too judgmental, correlating to green’s negative attributes.


Chris’ shade of green closely resembles olive green, whose meanings are this;


“Olive green: Although the traditional color for peace, ‘offering an olive branch’, the color olive suggests deceit and treachery, blaming others for its problems. However there is also a strength of character with it that can overcome adversity to develop an understanding and caring of the feelings of others.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com

Stability and endurance go hand in hand with describing Chris, as he is shown to be a very determined character and continues to believe and fight even when others would find something insurmountable or impossible. As is shown by his persistence in bringing Umbrella’s crimes to the surface, his quest to kill/capture Wesker, and his pursuit and rescue of Claire and Jill in CV and 5.

This persistence also ties into green through the various plants on Earth, as even in the most barren and dry places, if you see green you know there’s something living and prospering.

Chris’ ties to green also connect with Jill’s ties to blue to form the main colors of the Earth, which symbolize harmony and the support of life, which correlate to their vow to protect the planet from bioterror together with the BSAA. Whose symbol also happens to be a globe.




Rebecca’s use of green shows obvious connections to its meaning as a healing color. Green is a nurturing and rejuvenating color that revitalizes the mind and senses. This ties into Rebecca and her role as a medic and her part of working to make vaccines to combat the various viruses.


Green is also said to be a diplomatic color, showing both sides of an argument and maintaining balance. This connects with her part in Vendetta, where her setting Leon and Chris straight gets them both back on track to fight Arias and his plans.


However, green, particularly pale greens, is a color relating to inexperience and immaturity. This aspect is shown during her STARS days as the rookie on the team, along with her unsuredeness and caution throughout most of that time.


Blue



“This color is one of trust, responsibility, honesty and loyalty. It is sincere, reserved and quiet, and doesn’t like to make a fuss or draw attention. It hates confrontation, and likes to do things in its own way. From a color psychology perspective, blue is reliable and responsible.


This color exhibits an inner security and confidence.


You can rely on it to take control and do the right thing in difficult times.
It has a need for order and direction in its life, including its living and work spaces.


This is a color that seeks peace and tranquility above everything else, promoting both physical and mental relaxation.


Blue is the helper, the rescuer, the friend in need. It’s success is defined by the quality and quantity of its relationships. It is a giver, not a taker. It likes to build strong trusting relationships and becomes deeply hurt if that trust is betrayed.

Change is difficult for blue. It is inflexible and when faced with a new or different idea, it considers it, analyzes it, thinks it over slowly and then tries to make it fit its own acceptable version of reality.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Many characters use blue in their wardrobe, and along with it, showcase the aspects of blue. These characters being; Jill Valentine, Leon Kennedy, Carla Radames, Sherry Birkin, and Albert Wesker.




Jill Valentine has always worn blue since her introduction. Blue, in the case of Jill, emphasizes the loyalty and dependability of blue. Jill’s loyalty to her cause and to her friends has always been a major part of her character. With her trusty lockpicking and skills, she’s has been repeatedly said to back up and get her comrades out of sticky situations.


Devotion is another related trait of both blue and Jill, through her always standing be what she believes in, no matter how strange and what might appear to question it. As said above, blue is the color of the rescuer and friend and relies on trust. And Jill rushes to the defense of the weak in the games and mangas, shown when she protected Anna the orphan in Prelude and her immediate jump to action when Chris and Jessica went missing in Revelations.
Jill’s blues tend to vary in shade and hue, but they usually fit under this color of blue;


“Azure Blue:A color of true contentment, azure inspires determination and ambition to achieve great things, a sense of purpose in striving for goals.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com

Blue’s negative involve aloofness, being unforgiving, and self-righteous. Which could be seen as Jill’s negative traits as well, as Jill suffers no fools and shows no pity to those who snubbed her and the other STARS survivors when they spoke the truth about the Mansion Incident and Umbrella. Nor does she nearly offer any pity towards the various bioterrorists she fights, with the notable exception of Jack Norman at the end of his boss fight.

Blue has close ties to water and this ties to Jill’s last main role game of Revelations. Which focused heavily on the sea and water. Water and its connections to giving and supporting life in conjunction with plants goes back to her relationship with Chris. As stated before, the both of them form a balance of harmony and the support of life on Earth through their use of green and blue.




Leon Kennedy is unique in that he uses more color combinations than any other character in the series. One of those colors is blue, and its one of the main ones associated with him, as it is the color that made of his first design. I will talk about his other colors at a future date.


Leon, like Jill, uses blue’s symbology with loyalty and reliability. Along with being a rescuer and protector of the weak. Leon in fact, joined the police force to begin with to help the people of Raccoon after hearing of the attacks and horrific cases happening there. Leon’s honest and caring nature has been shown throughout the games and is connected to blue’s traits. Devotion also plays a part in his character, as he is so devoted to the cause of anti bioterrorism, he cofounded the DSO and has spent the majority of his life fighting against it.

Leon’s calm nature juxtaposed to Helena during their campaign in 6. And surface level his use of blue also juxtaposed to Ada and her red. Blue is a frequent color used to contrast and compliment brighter, warmer colors like red. With Ada, this relationship is more ironic, as he is the more outgoing and outspoken one compared to Ada’s ever composed demeanor.


Blue’s negatives involve being too predictable and depression. These tie into Leon’s character, specifically in Vendetta and his other outings. Being too predictable connects to him getting the rug pulled out from under him in 2 with Ada manipulating him to further her goals. This also happens later on in the series as well with their interactions. And Leon ends up very depressed and going through a mid life crisis essentially during Vendetta. This depression even goes far back to after 2, where he even contemplated suicide but stopped after reminding himself of Sherry.

Leon usually wears dark blue;

“ Dark Blue: Dark blue is the color of conservatism and responsibility. Although it appears to be cool, calm and collected, it is the color of the non-emotional worrier with repressed feelings, the pessimist and the hypocrite. Dark blue can be compassionate but has trouble showing it as its emotions run deep. Dark blue is a serious masculine color representing knowledge, power, and integrity, and is used quite often in the corporate world.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com




Carla uses blue to contrast against Ada. This symbolism however is ironic as Carla is the unstable one out of the two and eventually declines into madness. Blue’s negatives are ironic as well, involving deceit, emotional instability, too conservative and unchanging, untrustworthiness, unfaithfulness and manipulation. The later ties into her relationship with Simmons and how she used him to create Neo-Umbrella to destroy the world. The being resistant to change is also ironic, given her whole goal was to change the fate of the planet by throwing it into chaos.


“ Dark Blue: Dark blue is the color of conservatism and responsibility. Although it appears to be cool, calm and collected, it is the color of the non-emotional worrier with repressed feelings, the pessimist and the hypocrite. Dark blue can be compassionate but has trouble showing it as its emotions run deep. Dark blue is a serious masculine color representing knowledge, power, and integrity, and is used quite often in the corporate world.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com



Sherry’s color of blue is pale blue. Pale blue’s usage her is ironic given its meaning;


“ Pale Blue: Pale blue inspires creativity and the freedom to break free.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com


Sherry has spent her whole life basically trapped. Before Raccoon, she was trapped in a monotonous family life with neglectful parents who preferred their work over spending time with her. And afterwards she was physically trapped, used as a bargaining chip for Leon’s compliance and as a lab rat to study the G-Virus and its effects as a prisoner of the US government. And even further still, also ends up a prisoner for half a year in China. She does, in a way, break free, by becoming an agent to fight for people like herself who have been victimized by bioterror. Once again fitting into blue’s meanings of protection and dependability. Blue is idealistic as is Sherry and her view of the world despite what has happened to her.



Wesker’s use of blue ties into the spoken about negatives of blue. Of untrustworthiness, manipulation, and being deceitful and spiteful. As well as unforgiving. All of this fits Wesker. One thing to note is how he uses dark blue along with dark blue being a color of authority. Fitting for him to wear this color most prominently during his guise as STARS captain.


“ Dark Blue: Dark blue is the color of conservatism and responsibility. Although it appears to be cool, calm and collected, it is the color of the non-emotional worrier with repressed feelings, the pessimist and the hypocrite. Dark blue can be compassionate but has trouble showing it as its emotions run deep. Dark blue is a serious masculine color representing knowledge, power, and integrity, and is used quite often in the corporate world.” - empower-yourself-through-color-psychology.com

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Related to my green and blue post, this tumblr analysis on Chris and Jill's color symbolism greatly inspired me and also played a part in inspiring me to make this series on color symbolism in the first place.

https://jillvalenthyme.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F141580743961

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Symbolism, Biohazard, and Final Fantasy

This might be a little random but there is a point to this. In a little known game called Biohazard Clan Master, there was a crossover with Final Fantasy where several main characters of RE got to dress up as classes from FF. There is symbolism involved here, as you’ll soon see.




Chris is portrayed as a Knight. And the reasons for this are aptly explained via the Final Fantasy wiki’s musings on this.

“ This is likely in correlation with being a S.T.A.R.S. Team member, how he was one of the first to witness the effects of the viral bioweapons Umbrella created, and being one of the signature characters of Resident Evil, was the first to actively lead the cause against the use of viral bioweapons entirely, including undercover espionage, being one of the major founders of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, and consistently engaging in official anti-bioweapons and anti-terrorism duties on the field into the future.”

This matches Chris’s talents of using both weapons and martial combat to fight as well as fitting with his character of being heroic like a knight in shining armor.

This also fits in conjunction with Wesker’s assigning as a Dark Knight. Now, you might be wondering why Chris is a simple Knight instead of a Paladin, the Dark Knight’s counterpoint. While it would be cool as hell imagining Chris as a paladin smiting zombies and casting mass revive on fallen comrades using holy magic, this makes sense with how Chris and Wesker are in canon. Chris isn’t completely equal to Wesker in strength. Wesker has an advantage over Chris due to his powers. But like how the Knight is a step below a Paladin, Chris is the closest a human can get to superhuman without actually being infected/augmented with viruses.

It also makes sense since Knights are also capable of using low level White Magic spells, which do super effective damage towards undead creatures.



Wesker is a Dark Knight, and the reason is explained once again through the FF wiki.

“ This is likely in correlation to Albert’s juxtaposition to Chris Redfield as an agent of Umbrella Corporation, and his constant and successful use of the experimental and dangerous super viruses created by Umbrella to empower him; one such virus that further draws simile to the "dark power” the Dark Knight wields is that of his most potent and signature creation of the Ouroboros Virus.“

Wesker is fitting as a Dark Knight, besides the obvious dark connotations, due to being able to rely on the "dark” powers of the virus that grants him his strength. Knights are strong physical combatants as well as using magic, which fits with Wesker's fighting ability. Dark Knights are also capable of using small amounts of Black Magic which includes necromantic spells. Which are right up Wesker’s alley.



At first, I thought them assigning Jill the White Mage job was simply for fanservice. And that’s still most likely the reason. I thought she’d be better suited as another fighter or a thief (due to trap-solving and lock picking). But after reading FF wiki’s interpretation, I’m actually more on board with it.

“ This is likely in correlation with due being the more signature character of Resident Evil, this further highlights her dedicated career to eradicate the use of viral bioweapons entirely. Alternately, her direct exposure to the T-Virus in the events of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, evokes similarity to the affliction of Rosa Joanna Farrell, the first characterized White Mage, under Desert Fever.”

White Magic, as stated before, is also very efficient against zombies and undead. So it makes sense for Jill to have a lot of it, aside from the connections of her infection by the T-virus and Rosa’s affliction. Plus, her and Chris together would make up the standard fighter and mage combo, which is highly effective.



Ada’s a Black Mage in BCM and the reasons why are explained by FF wiki.

“ This is likely in correlation with how Ada was the "femme fatale” of series, including being the most well equipped character with unique and useful gadgets to aid her in her infiltration missions, and how her actions behind the scenes also serendipitously affected events to be in favor of the protagonists.“

Black Mage are the premier glass canons who do damage but cannot take hits, which fits with Ada’s strongsuit of being one of the most agile and fastest members of the whole cast of RE. Along with fitting Ada’s "dark” and shifty alignment in whether she’s truly on the Protags side or not compounded with the idea of “black magic”.



Leon is a Dragoon, a knight class specializing in lances and aerial attacks. As explained by the wiki’s views on the subject.

“ This is likely in correlation with Leon rather being a S.T.A.R.S. Team member, he is but of a more general duty officer of the Raccoon Police Department, and to how his first day of his career essentially sent him into the heart of Raccoon City’s zombie outbreak. Arguably, this may also likely be an in-joke to how one of the threats encountered in his first mission was being chased by a giant mutated alligator.”

The Dragoon’s more agility based skillset also fits with Leon’s abilities, with him being more speed based and focusing on attacks like kicks compared to Chris who uses more straight forward punches and attacks. Dragoon’s focus on long ranged attacks via their spear also matches Leon’s reliance on guns as well over CQC.



And last but not least, we have Claire as a Summoner. In the wiki’s words.

“ This is likely in correlation with how in most of her appearances, her games show that she has the most direct support on her missions, such as with the character scenario trading "zapping” system and teaming up consistently during her campaigns.“

This also fits with Claire’s stories relying on connections with people. Specifically emotional connections that support them and help them grow better. It also ties into her caring nature with others like Sherry, Rani, Moira, Steve, Chris, and Leon. Summoners strike a balance between Black and White Mages in being able to use spells from both, which fits Claire in being in the middle between pure good, morally upright Jill and shady, pragmatic Ada.

 

[Captain Redfield]

Keep these coming Herb! Clan Master seems interesting in its own way.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

The Meaning of the Sunrise in RE



Ah, the sunrise. A long lasting trope in Resident Evil, where the heroes fly/ride/walk off into the sunrise at the end of the game. Most would assume it’s simply just a tradition that has been carried over through nearly all the games like killing the final boss with some RPG-esque weapon. But there’s something deeper to this, as I’m about to show.

The sun is responsible for life on the planet, providing sunlight for plants to feed from which herbivores consume which predators and omnivores feed from. Without the sun we’d die very fast. As such, the sun as been a very revered symbol in mankind’s cultures across the world. The sunrise symbolizes new beginnings and hope, even rebirth, after the darkness and “death” of the night. Exemplified by the phrase “It’s always darkest just before the dawn.”



The “rebirth” part shown explicitly shown in 0 with Billy being set free to avoid being executed for a crime he didn’t commit.

The sunrise in various endings of RE coincides with the hopeful optimism the heroes have at the end of the game, basking in relief at being alive after such an experience. Even showing determination to prevent such evil from happening again as well (RE2 ‘98 and RE3).





“It’s up to us to take out Umbrella!”



“That’s it! Umbrella’s going down!”

The ending with RE3 is special in that along with showing the hope and new beginnings of the main characters, it’s also accompanied by the “death” and end of the “night’ that is the destruction of Raccoon City.



In Umbrella’s End, the sunrise means Jill and Chris’ long struggle with Umbrella is over, the dark, cold night prior symbolizing Umbrella and its ilk throughout the years.



UC: Wesker’s ending sunrise means the dawning of his new vision and focus for the world after Umbrella.

The sunrise can also mean negative things in the case of the end of Dark Legacy. While also still symbolizing the end of Umbrella, it also symbolizes the new beginning of Wesker’s prominence in the void caused by Umbrella’s collapse and in the story.



7; Ethan’s monologue explains how the sunrise means the new beginning of his and Mia’s relationship after the ordeal they’ve faced.



RE2 '19; The sunrise means the new beginning of Sherry’s new life with Claire and Leon.

This also coincides with the end of character development in the story, as the main protagonist has gotten through the mental block that has been plaguing them throughout the story. This example is best shown in RE5, and Rev 2’s endings. (also to some extent RE4, if you read the novel that is).



Rev2; The sunrise here symbolizes the reunification of Barry and Moira and the mending of their relationship, along with the new beginnings of adding Natalia into their family.













5; This sunrise symbolizes the restoration of Chris’ faith in humanity as well as the final closing of the book on Umbrella and its legacy (ala Wesker’s death)

The sunrise and its symbolism is at its finest in 5, as the sun and sunlight is a major theme prominently shown throughout the game.











Even the more somber ending of Chris’s campaign in RE6 ends on a sunrise.



RE6’s sunrise symbolizes Chris’ renewed "faith” in staying the BSAA to honor Piers’ sacrifice. This is capped off by Piers’ death along with Haos during the night.



In summary, sunrises in RE mean new beginnings, hope, and rebirth in both causes and self with the characters, and symbolize the conquering of death and fear throughout the game.

 

[Yama]

One of my favorite posts yet in regards to sunrises in the series. Always noticed and enjoyed those scenes greatly. You could literally feel the relief.

 

[An Herb Sandwich]

Different Insignia Symbolism in RE; 2



The stars in the eponymous STARS logo stand for achievement, inspiration, and authority. Stars as symbols have stood as symbols of guidance and fame at having gained recognition for something, see the Hollywood Stars of Fame. Those in STARS were generally picked out due to being experts or standout examples in their respective fields (genius Rebecca, Delta Team trainee Jill, expert pilot Chris and so on), further adding to the five pointed star’s prestigious meanings. This fits with the STARS teams dual roles of being both a primary part of Raccoon’s efforts to open the new millennia and for Umbrella for using them as peak subjects for their best experiments. The blue making up the logo means loyalty and dependence while the yellow means optimism and energy.



The umbrella of the Umbrella Corporation’s logo means protection from the elements, as that is the purpose of an umbrella. This of course ties into Umbrella’s front of being a benevolent pharmaceutical company by providing goods to the public. creating a shelter and convenience from bothersome and potentially dangerous things like cold,rain, and the sun like a real umbrella. Deeper, it also has a double meaning of how Umbrella actually was a front the whole time for Spencer’s true goal of fulfilling his ambitions of creating superhumans. Hiding this fact from even the highest members of the company itself. The colors red and white symbolize the blood and violence of it’s viruses and hidden nature along with health and drama (red). The white portrays the supposed innocence of the Umbrella as well as its sterile, clinical view of using everything a means to an end.



The globe making up the BSAA’s logo symbolizes the group’s goal of protecting the world from bioterrorism. The BSAA, unlike the DSO and similar orgs, is public and is beholden to no country’s politics and MO’s. This emphasizes the collective, unified nature, as expressed by the symbol of the globe. The olive branch above it is respective of the traditional meanings of peace. This symbol also fits its controlling organisation, the UN which also has a logo with a globe. The green and blue together symbolize harmony and loyalty along with dependability and freedom, which also lines up with the color symbology of the BSAA’s two main operatives Chris and Jill. Another thing tying the BSAA’s logo to the duo is how it is also a celestial body (a planet) like the STARS’ logo (stars).