After Four long years of Spiralling down the Abyss
of Genshin Impact, Hoyoverse have finally decided to give us a new combat game mode that will
hopefully make the God of War herself proud… And once again, just like its counterpart and
predecessor, this new game mode finds itself in the Land of the Thousand Winds… Mondstadt.
Now, Imaginarium Theater, is certainly not what I expected from a new permanent combat event
right around the time of Natlan’s release… BUT… As usual, when Hoyoverse decides to subvert my
expectations, they tend to do it… In a good way… And this time… Oh boy… It isn’t just
“good”... It is GOOD good… They are giving us both the appetizers AND the soup,
because the Imaginarium Theater isn’t just related to the Hexenzirkel… It also happens
to be themed around one of Genshin’s oldest and most intriguing books… The Boar Princess.
However, is a single book really worth making an entire video about?... And on top of that,
why should you care about The Boar Princess? Well… Yes… To both… You should care, because “YOU”
like The Boar Princess… Even if you don’t, you DO… You just don’t know it yet… Let me tell you why.
Back in February 11th of 2023, Hoyoverse put out a splice art piece depicting the Traveler and
Paimon borrowing a bunch of books and taking them to read with Alhaitham on his birthday… The
books they borrowed include A Legend of Sword, Flowers for Princess Fischl, and Shogun Almighty:
Reborn as Raiden With Unlimited Power… But the main book of interest, namely the one Alhaitham
is reading, happens to be The Boar Princess. Now on its own, this wouldn’t be that big of a
deal… Until you realize that this is far from the only instance where The Traveler specifically
recommends this book to other people… For example, if you read the description of Ayaka’s Fontainian
Skin, there is a line about The Traveler asking her to read The Boar Princess… And look, there
are several other depictions of The Traveler talking about the book or asking someone else
to read it… So to avoid beating a dead horse, the point I am trying to get across is that The
Boar Princess is The Traveler’s favourite book. Naturally, seeing that Imaginarium
Theater is themed around it made me raise an eyebrow and go Hmmmmmmmm…
This is because Imaginarium Theater is clearly made by and heavily involved
with The Hexenzirkel while The Boar Princess is a Fairy Tale written by one of
the Witches of the Hexenzirkel, Andersdotter. As a matter of fact, in her old age, Andersdotter
specifically left The Boar Princess with the rest of the Witches to preserve it and pass
it down to the next generations… Strongly indicating that this book held a special
place in her heart for her to want its message to be seen by others after her death.
Yeah… Keep her in mind, we will come back to her later… But first, we should briefly go
through this book she wrote since… Well… The eternity of this video along with the upcoming
permanent game mode revolve around its story. The Boar Princess is a Children’s Fairy Tale
that consists of Seven, or potentially Eight, volumes… I say potentially Eight because during
the World Quest: Unfinish Comedy, Volume Eight of the Story will be temporarily present in Alvard’s
shop inside the Fortress of Meropide… However, neither can the volume be purchased nor do we
know what’s inside it… So for now, I will just run with the Seven Volumes we have access to.
The Fairy Tale opens up by describing a beautiful era in the distant past when every living being
in the world had its own kingdom… Mondstadt was a forest in that age, and in the forest was
the Boar Kingdom… The Anemo Archon, Barbatos, blessed the Boar King with the most beautiful
and kind-hearted daughter who always shared the juiciest and sweetest fruits with her subjects.
North of the Boar Kingdom there lay a vast Frozen Tundra, untouched by the playful breeze of
Barbados… And even the brave and strong Boar King could not venture into that icy land… Only
a single lonely Wolf Pup lived in that place. The Pup was a Carefree Child with Bright
Blue Eyes and Slick Gray Fur that hunted in the forest… Until one day he ran into
the Evil Squirrel Sorcerer Woobakwa! Of all the beings in the ancient world, none were
more evil than Woobakwa — not even the Demon Gods and Dragons could compare to his evilness!
Woobakwa despised everything nice, and swore to transform beauty into ugliness
and turn light into dark… The sight of the happy Wolf enraged the Evil Sorcerer, and
he decided to spike the Pup’s heart with the coldest ice so that he may never know hope again.
Thinking that he was edible, the Wolf Pup gobbled him up in his mouth, which angered Woobakwa even
more, making him utter the most foul words to ever come out of a squirrel’s mouth as he Cursed the
Wolf even more while sliding down his throat. The Curse turned the Pup into a bitter Wolf
and soon all his kin came to detest him… So, with his heart pierced by ice and no choice
left, the Wolf isolated himself in the blizzards of the north… Becoming the only
one to wander in the empty Frozen Tundra. Upon hearing of his tale, the Boar Princess’s
heart broke for the Wolf and so she asked her two most trusted companions, the Wise Fox and the
Old Turtle, how to help him… The two told her that only sincerity and fire could melt the ice in his
heart as no friendship can come without sacrifice. The clever princess knew immediately what had
to be done, and went on a journey to the Frozen Tundra while bringing two companions
along so that they may be the first to bear witness to her friendship with the Wolf.
On the way, the three ran into an Ancient Spirit, a Seelie, with great magical power that offered
to guide them toward the Wolf in exchange for sapping their Energy… To which the Boar Princess
immediately agreed, heeding no concern about what her two companions had to say on the matter.
And so, the Spirit Turned into an Ice Stream that carried the group over the mountain
and storm right into the Wolf Pup. The Wolf greeted them with a howl, stating that
he hadn’t had lunch yet… Which caused the Boar Princess to shed warm tears of sorrow that began
melting a little of the ice in the Wolf’s Heart. The Princess told the Pup that she would
sacrifice everything to satiate his hunger… Which the Wolf did not believe… Until
she offered him the flesh to her very two companions… The Wise Fox and the Old Turtle.
Quickly, the Boar Princess and the Wolf Pup pinned the Wise Fox to the ground as they devoured his
body, painting the white snow with crimson red. They then went to gather some moss and mushrooms
and enjoyed themselves a tasty Turtle Soup. The flesh of their companions was
so delicious, that the Pup finally felt the delight of sharing food and making
friends… His frozen heart melted completely, and he shed tears of joy as he and the Princess
returned merrily to their home hand in hand. OK, let us first address the most obvious
characteristic of The Boar Princess… The Fairy Tale is a Fable that tackles the Sin of Gluttony…
And I am not just talking about the ending of the story… The theme of Gluttony is hinted at
ever since the first volume where it is first masked by abundance as shown in this line which
states that “the Boar Princess gave the juiciest and sweetest fruits to her subjects every day.
From sweet and sour berries, to crisp apples, to delicious tree mushrooms, the Boar Princess always
shared her delicacies first with her friends.” At first, this sounds like generosity, the
Princess sharing and caring with her people… But as the story progresses, this generosity devolves
into a gluttonous betrayal of trust… Even further along halfway through the story when the Wolf Pup
comes across the Evil Squirrel Sorcerer Woobakwa, he eats the latter without a second thought.
And Woobakwa being described as a creature so evil… More Evil than the Demons and Dragons,
is supposed to paint him as something that is spoiled, something that is bad… And the
Wolf eating this bad thing while disregarding what ramifications it might have on his
health is the very epitome of gluttony. What the Wolf did is no different from what
someone does when they eat processed fast foods that are rich in trans fats and unhealthy
preservatives such as Butylated Hydroxyanisole, Sodium Benzoate, Butylated Hydroxytoluene… Which…
In case you don’t know what those mean, in simple English they translate to “Higher Risk of Cancer”.
Especially Sodium Benzoate by the way, since it reacts with ascorbic acid, that’s
Vitamin C, in your body to produce Benzene, which is a well-known Carcinogen… And these things
are found in almost all fast foods as they are used to preserve fats in meant and whatnot.
And that is showcased in the story… Eating something just because it tastes good, without
taking into consideration if it is bad for your health… Even the book’s title can be interpreted
as a smart reference to this… It’s called The Boar Princess… Where Boars are essentially just Wild
Pigs, and the term Pig is commonly used as an insult to someone who is especially greedy or
gluttonous… They’re usually called “Fat Pigs” or something along those lines… Although
to be honest, I’ve heard that term being directed more toward politicians than anything.
At any rate, there are other smaller instances of the theme of Gluttony playing a role in
the story… Such as the Seelie draining the energy of the Princess, the Fox, and the Turtle
to take them to the other side of the Mountain, and as you know Food is Energy… But
look, this is starting to now get into the nitty-gritty and I don’t want to do that.
The highlight point of the story is of course when the Boar Princess turns her kindness and
abundance into depravity when she decides to feed the Wolf’s gluttony by sharing with him
the flesh of her two most loyal friends… Which is clearly portrayed as her reinforcing his Sin to
become his friend rather than saving him from it. Nonetheless, an allegory for the Sin of Gluttony
is far from the only interpretation that can be made for this book… In fact, the only
reason I focus on it so much is because, at the end of the day, this is The Traveler’s
favourite book and in a game where the Traveler keeps calling Paimon “Emergency Food”
while Paimon herself is a character that really likes food and flaunts about having two
stomachs in one of her voice lines… I pretty much HAD to include the concept of Gluttony.
What I am actually interested in are the story’s roots in Norse Mythology…
You see, Norse Mythology is a more than significant contributor
in the formation of Genshin Impact’s Cosmology… And Andersdotter’s book does
not shy away from featuring these themes. The opening volume of The Boar Princess starts by
establishing an Ancient World where every animal had a Kingdom and the protagonist’s Kingdom is
the abundant Boar Forest… This is very similar to the opening chapter of one of Mr. Nine’s
books, The Legend of the Shattered Halberd, which states that “In ancient times
when Axis Mundi was unobstructed, there were nine realms, each a world of its own.” Both Andersdotter's and Mr. Nine’s books
talk about an Ancient World Order closely resembling the Nordic World Tree, Yggdrasil,
which connects the Nine Realms… And in The Boar Princess, the Frozen Tundra would be the
equivalent of either Niflheim or Helheim… I am personally leaning more towards Nifelheim
since it is also an empty frozen realm. Similarly, the Boar Kingdom can be either
Midgard, the Realm of the Humans, or Asgard, the Realm of the Gods… Now with this one, you
can make a good argument for both, however, I would ultimately say it’s Midgard.
In this context, the Wolf Pup, having his heart spiked with ice and living in
isolation in the Frozen Tundra while displaying gluttonous characteristics… Has a lot in common
with the infamous son of Loki, the Wolf Fenrir, who is destined to devour the All-Father
Odin at the end of the World in Ragnarök. As for the Evil Squirrel Sorcerer Woobakwa…
Well… That one is almost certainly Ratatoskr, the Squirrel that runs across the World Tree
Yggdrasil, carrying messages between the Nameless Eagle perched atop the Tree and the
Base Serpent Níðhöggr residing at the roots. And here’s what I find interesting… Although
the Eagle on top of Yggdrasil has no name that was preserved in history… There happens
to be a Hawk that stands between the Eyes of the Nameless Eagle, and that
Hawk is none other than Vedrfolnir. And his position, between the Eyes of the Eagle
above Yggdrasil…Serves to cement Vedrfolnir’s status as a Visionary in Teyvat… He is someone
that metaphorically exists ABOVE Irminsul… And that implies the ability to bypass its
influence… To “See” through its countless lies. And if Vedrfolnir is at the top of Irminsul, then
it would be logically consistent for the Base Serpent Níðhöggr to be his brother, Dainsleif…
Especially when we consider the following: Dain’s constellation is Ouroboros, which is
an Ancient Egyptian Symbol depicting either a Serpent OR a Dragon eating its own tail… And
Níðhöggr in Norse Mythology is also either a Base Serpent or a Dragon depending on the myth.
With that being said, I personally still think that Dainsleif is more likely to be
the World Serpent, Jörmungandr who is destined to fight Thor in Ragnarök… Also…
Jörmungandr is very much associated with the symbol of Ouroboros, more so than Níðhöggr.
But Serpents, Eagles, Dragons, and Hawks aside I still want to comment on Ratatoskr…
Or… Well, I should say Woobakwa, in Genshin. What’s interesting is that Woobakwa is said to be
more Evil than the Demons and Dragons… Assuming the Demons here are the Demon Gods… That statement
should distinguish Woobakwa as neither a God nor a Dragon… But what would he be then?
It’s actually not that complicated, since it’s in his title… Woobakwa is a Sorcerer,
and that should directly translate to either a Wizard or a Witch in Genshin parlance… But when
it comes to Which Witch he is… Honestly, I am not sure… It might be Rhinedottir… It might be
someone else… I won’t stick to any specific name because I personally don’t really know much about
what the Boar Princess actually means in Genshin. Like sure, there is this whole theme of gluttony
and eating your friends… And the Traveler calls Paimon Emergency Food… But when it comes to
the Boar Princess herself… For the first time ever I genuinely do not know who this character
is supposed to represent… NOT because I don’t understand it, but rather because there are so
many characters in Genshin that would fit the criteria, and I am not sure which one to pick.
For example, here are SOME of the characters that come to mind as candidates for the Boar
Princess…With emphasis on the word “Some”... We have Asmoday, the Sustainer of Heavenly… The Abyss
Sibling… Pierro… The Traveler… Bronya, that’s the Tsaritsa… Istaroth… Or even Paimon herself.
Alternatively, the Boar Princess could also be another depiction of Princess Fischl from Mr.
Nine’s book, Flowers for Princess Fischl… Because aside from the fact that the cover of The Boar
Princess is a Flower, remember when I said earlier that the opening chapter of Andersdotter’s Fairy
Tale has a lot in common with that of Mr. Nine’s other book, The Legend of the Shattered Halberd?
Well, according to Mr. Nine himself, the Celestial Emperor’s daughter in The Legend of the Shattered
Halberd is also a depiction of Princess Fischl. Yeah… I think you kinda get the idea.
Nonetheless… Out of the characters I mentioned, there is one that I am leaning toward just a
teeny tiny bit more… And that’s Bronya… Also, whenever I say Bronya, that means The Tsaritsa
unless specified otherwise… Just because we don’t know what her Demon name in Genshin will be yet.
So semantics out of the way, my argument for Bronya comes from the fact that right at the
start of the game’s story, as the Traveler and Paimon are approaching Mondstadt, they come
across these three NPCs right here… Parsley, Rosemary, and their son… Sage.
Now the names of these three are a direct reference to an old English ballad called
Scarborough Fair… Which one of its lyrics read: “Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Then she shall be a true lover of mine.” The ballad is essentially a song about two former
lovers who ask one another to perform a series of impossible tasks to prove their true love… And
this is important because in Genshin, the parents of Sage… Parsley and Rosemary… are originally
from Snezhnaya… And back in their youth when they lived in Snezhnaya the two would cosplay as
the Wolf Pup and the Boar Princess respectively. And the Cryo Archon’s Aspect
should be “Love”... Now we don’t know for certain, but it most likely is Love.
So if the God of Snezhnaya is the God of Love… While Parsley and Rosemary who live in Mondstadt
but hail from Snehnaya used to cosplay the Wolf Pup and the Boar Princess while being named after
a poem that talks about two lovers asking of each other impossible tasks… Then it kinda makes
sense for Bronya to be The Boar Princess. After all, don’t forget that in the
story, the Boar Princess was willing to do anything to feed the Wolf Pup’s hungry
belly… And to prove to him her sincerity, SHE DID the impossible… She shared with him
the flesh of her two most trusted companions. But there is one huge problem with what
I am saying… The Boar Princess did all of what she did for the sake of melting the
ice in the Wolf Pup’s frozen heart… However, considering that Bronya is the Cryo Archon… It
sounds completely counterintuitive to assume that she would want to melt ice… She is the God
of Ice at the end of the day… It makes more sense for her to make ice and not melt it… Right?
Eh… Kinda… But not really… Because once you dig just a bit deeper, you will quickly
realize that this is not the case. You see the description of the Shivada Jade
Gemstone, which directly quotes the Cryo Archon, reads as follows: "Sorry... to also
have you shoulder the grievances of the world. Since you could endure my bitter
cold, you must have the desire to burn? Then, burn away the old world for me."
So Bronya’s goal is to initiate Ragnarök… To Burn away the Old World to Dust… And
for that, she will need Loki’s Son, Fenrir, to devour the King of the Gods, Odin, right?
Huh… As of the time of the recording of this video, Sigewinne has just been officially
released in Genshin… And she is quite cool since she is a Melusine… But… Do you
know who my favourite Melusine is? It’s Canotila… And the reason I like Canotila so
much is because if you do her quest about the Book of Revealing… She has a line where she calls the
Traveler a Monster… A Terrible Monster that can devour the whole World… In a SINGLE… BITE… …
OK… Hold on, we’re not done yet, this video still has a little bit more to go…
While it’s certainly not out of the realm of possibility, considering that the
Traveler has been likened to a Beast and a Calamity multiple times across the story
and game… I am not very confident in the Traveler actually being the counterpart to
the Wolf Pup from Andersdotter’s Fairy Tale… I just wanted to have a Dramatic
Moment in the video, that’s all. At any rate… I have one final thing that I want
to mention about Andersdotter herself… Her name is very likely derived from the Danish author
Hans Christian Andersen, who just like her, was well known for his Fairy Tales.
Andersen is a patronymic, a fatherly ancestral name, that means "Son of
Anders”... So if Andersen is the Son of Anders, then Andersdotter is the female equivalent
of that… The “Daughter of Anders”... And she wrote a story about a Wolf Pup from the Land
of Winds, who got his heart pierced by Ice. Now in Mondstadt, we have a Wolf… Who is a Wind
God that can also manipulate the Element of Cryo… And his name is Andrius… Which sounds
and reads very very very similar to Anders. Do you see it? Ha? Ha?
Andruis… Anders… Andersdotter! Yeah, I am not going anywhere with this,
I think this is just an internal joke by the developers and I wanted to point it
out… I am sure it would make Cyno proud. And Rius brings us to the end of this
video… Holy shit that was so bad… As I mentioned earlier, my primary goal in this
video was to highlight and elaborate on the general concepts and themes that are interwoven
into The Boar Princess… And remember… There are a number of reasonable interpretations that you can
apply to this story, especially when it comes to the Princess and the Wolf… So what I said in this
video doesn’t have to be absolute law… Regardless, I still hope you learned a thing or two from it.
Anyway, I have a number of exciting projects that I am preparing before Natlan comes out, and I
can’t wait for you all to see them… So as always, massive thanks to everyone who
supports this channel on Patreon, and thank you for watching this video.
For now, I’ve been My Name For Now, and I will see you… Hopefully in a
few days, as long as I don’t get busy.
