Big post, I know, but it's about Chelsee, so it has to be big, right? 
In the past I've been negative about her because it took her soooo long to fall for Tex (and I was sooo jealous). But now I'm a bit older and I understand better. Chelsee is the best. In fact, she's everything. She's Tex's ultimate goal.
Both Tex Murphy the series and the man are modeled on film noir; it's a genre throwback for both him and us. Tex became a detective in the first place dreaming film noir fantasies, and during the course of Overseer, those fantasies collapse into dust, almost breaking him. His trademark coat and hat are symbols, representing both his genre gumshoe role in shorthand, as well as his emotional state. That they were given to him by his ex-wife Sylvia is symbolic also, his experiences with her and her case turning him into the jaded, broken (but likeable) man we meet in UAKM.
His pursuit of Chelsee slowly makes him a man again. Women in film noir tend to be of the femme fatale type. But Chelsee isn't like that, and doesn't fit into the genre of the game. In a way, she is more "real" than anything else in Tex's world, and through knowing her, he is discovering his true self and becoming more "real." Tex became more detailed and developed as a character starting with UAKM, and Chelsee plays a huge part in that. In Pandora, Chelsee is actually his prize (or not) at the end of the game. (Discovered friggin' aliens? Not good enough, you clown!)
Tex and Chelsee's relationship develops in a realistic way compared to other pop fiction, occurring in stages rather than instantaneously and quickly, with Tex's failed relationship with Sylvia, (as well as his optional liaison with Regan) shown to us as a direct contrast. The juxtaposition of these is probably to convey a moral message. However, I think it is also for challenging genre conventions about how romances play out in films versus how real, healthy relationships happen. (good gosh Aaron's a great writer!)
Chelsee is very independent, and does not bend easily to Tex despite his handsome face and charm. But she's not cold, she's being smart. As much as we love Tex, he's a bum (at first, anyway)! Trying to pull himself out of the gutter, get cases, and make money-- what's it all for? It's for her. Tex needs Chelsee, in a big way. She allows him to have an identity as a character that is not within the gumshoe role, and to see that his being is not defined by his career; What he does is not necessarily who he is.
And at the very end of Overseer, Tex's personal and professional life, his two selves, merge when Chelsee is pulled into his own dark noir world. What now? I hope to one day see who he really is.
So... does any of that make sense?
What else do we know about this amazing woman?
In the past I've been negative about her because it took her soooo long to fall for Tex (and I was sooo jealous). But now I'm a bit older and I understand better. Chelsee is the best. In fact, she's everything. She's Tex's ultimate goal.
Both Tex Murphy the series and the man are modeled on film noir; it's a genre throwback for both him and us. Tex became a detective in the first place dreaming film noir fantasies, and during the course of Overseer, those fantasies collapse into dust, almost breaking him. His trademark coat and hat are symbols, representing both his genre gumshoe role in shorthand, as well as his emotional state. That they were given to him by his ex-wife Sylvia is symbolic also, his experiences with her and her case turning him into the jaded, broken (but likeable) man we meet in UAKM.
His pursuit of Chelsee slowly makes him a man again. Women in film noir tend to be of the femme fatale type. But Chelsee isn't like that, and doesn't fit into the genre of the game. In a way, she is more "real" than anything else in Tex's world, and through knowing her, he is discovering his true self and becoming more "real." Tex became more detailed and developed as a character starting with UAKM, and Chelsee plays a huge part in that. In Pandora, Chelsee is actually his prize (or not) at the end of the game. (Discovered friggin' aliens? Not good enough, you clown!)
Tex and Chelsee's relationship develops in a realistic way compared to other pop fiction, occurring in stages rather than instantaneously and quickly, with Tex's failed relationship with Sylvia, (as well as his optional liaison with Regan) shown to us as a direct contrast. The juxtaposition of these is probably to convey a moral message. However, I think it is also for challenging genre conventions about how romances play out in films versus how real, healthy relationships happen. (good gosh Aaron's a great writer!)
Chelsee is very independent, and does not bend easily to Tex despite his handsome face and charm. But she's not cold, she's being smart. As much as we love Tex, he's a bum (at first, anyway)! Trying to pull himself out of the gutter, get cases, and make money-- what's it all for? It's for her. Tex needs Chelsee, in a big way. She allows him to have an identity as a character that is not within the gumshoe role, and to see that his being is not defined by his career; What he does is not necessarily who he is.
And at the very end of Overseer, Tex's personal and professional life, his two selves, merge when Chelsee is pulled into his own dark noir world. What now? I hope to one day see who he really is.
So... does any of that make sense?
What else do we know about this amazing woman?
Hmm... now that could represent her purpose to Tex: to control him through discipline! Yes, that's why it's the best possible ending for Pandora, because it's Tex's greatest fantasy to be dominated and tamed by this strong woman, making him better, and more civilized.plumgas wrote:she likes using a whip
...I'm just analyzing by the seat of my pants now
