The Astonishing (Story and Concept analysis)

[SebastianPratesi]

A long agony, she should have bled out to death by the end 

Bathing in beautiful agony!

[erwinrafael]

A not so serious detail about the story... in a live, "real time" adaptation, the singer / actress portraying Faythe would have to pretend to be dying for more than 10 minutes. Faythe gets stabbed at the end of The Walking Shadow, then there's Gabriel despairing (My Last Farewell), Nafaryus and Arabelle arriving and despairing as well (Losing Faythe) and Gabriel saying he has lost his voice (Whispers in the Wind). That's 9:34 minutes, and only in the second half of Hymn of a Thousand Voices he brings her back to life.

A long agony, she should have bled out to death by the end 

Suspension of disbelief is part of theater. Heck, Juliet drank a potion that made people think she is really dead that Romeo took his life.

[BlobVanDam]

Depending on where she was stabbed, lingering for 10 minutes isn't at all ridiculous, at least according to the rules of Hollywood. With all of the singy-song, you wouldn't expect it to run in realtime anyway.

[Progmetty]

Last week it dawned on me that Daryus name was never mentioned on the album, all the other characters were.

[TH1RT3EN]

Yeah, Faythe managed to survive for ten minutes even though Daryus "unleashes a seemingly deadly strike sure enough to take Gabriel down permanently". Not only is he deaf now, but he was also in need of a good pair of glasses the whole time. Makes me wonder how the hell did he defeat Arhys so easily though

[fischermasamune]

Yeah, Faythe managed to survive for ten minutes even though Daryus "unleashes a seemingly deadly strike sure enough to take Gabriel down permanently". Not only is he deaf now, but he was also in need of a good pair of glasses the whole time. Makes me wonder how the hell did he defeat Arhys so easily though

The walking shadow had a hood, and he was told Gabriel was the only other person coming that night.
And even in real life it's very possible to survive for 10 minutes to a sword attack.

[Lax]

Yeah, Faythe managed to survive for ten minutes even though Daryus "unleashes a seemingly deadly strike sure enough to take Gabriel down permanently". Not only is he deaf now, but he was also in need of a good pair of glasses the whole time. Makes me wonder how the hell did he defeat Arhys so easily though

On a technical note, he discovers, mortified, that the shadow is Faythe before stabbing her (in the song at least).
So he's been like "FUUUUUUUUU *stab*" and not stabbing first He tried not to maybe.
Guess he didn't Teabag after that.

[SebastianPratesi]

Last week it dawned on me that Daryus name was never mentioned on the album, all the other characters were.

I never noticed either! Intentional, maybe?

[pcs90]

Doesn't the choir sing Daryus during The Path That Divides, before the fast part between him and Ahrys?

[MirrorMask]

Another thing about Daryus... in Lord Nafaryus it says "Our loyal son, my heir, your future king", and in A Life Left Behind he says "Did I fail to mention my honest intentions?"... come on JP, you're trying to hard to make us believe he's a good guy, you give away that he's a tool even before he starts to act like one 

[TH1RT3EN]

Yeah, Faythe managed to survive for ten minutes even though Daryus "unleashes a seemingly deadly strike sure enough to take Gabriel down permanently". Not only is he deaf now, but he was also in need of a good pair of glasses the whole time. Makes me wonder how the hell did he defeat Arhys so easily though

The walking shadow had a hood, and he was told Gabriel was the only other person coming that night.
And even in real life it's very possible to survive for 10 minutes to a sword attack.

Oh, I was actually talking about how (im)precise Daryus' attack was. He managed to kill Arhys very quickly in combat, but when Faythe is not even fighting back it takes over 10 minutes for her to die.

Yeah, Faythe managed to survive for ten minutes even though Daryus "unleashes a seemingly deadly strike sure enough to take Gabriel down permanently". Not only is he deaf now, but he was also in need of a good pair of glasses the whole time. Makes me wonder how the hell did he defeat Arhys so easily though

On a technical note, he discovers, mortified, that the shadow is Faythe before stabbing her (in the song at least).
So he's been like "FUUUUUUUUU *stab*" and not stabbing first He tried not to maybe.
Guess he didn't Teabag after that.

Yeah, that's what I try (or choose) to believe in as well

[ariich]

Last week it dawned on me that Daryus name was never mentioned on the album, all the other characters were.

Yeah I noticed that fairly early on. In fairness, though, Arhys' name is only mentioned by himself, and I think Xander is only ever called X?

[pcs90]

I think Xander is only ever called X?

Except for in A Tempting Offer and The Path That Divides.

[Enigmachine]

Last week it dawned on me that Daryus name was never mentioned on the album, all the other characters were.

Yeah I noticed that fairly early on. In fairness, though, Arhys' name is only mentioned by himself, and I think Xander is only ever called X?

Actually, X is called Xander in A Tempting Offer and The Path That Divides by Daryus and never called X (but his home is referred to 'Home of Arhys and X'). Arhys is also mentioned by Daryus in TRTR and by the Narrator in TPTD.

[Progmetty]

Yep, "And best of all, Xander will be free", only Daryus name is completely missing from the lyrics.

[ariich]

Ah yes, forgot those two occasions!

[rab7]

never called X

Actually, he's called X in "The Path That Divides"

Arhys was never aware
His son had followed him there
Confused and deathly afraid
X watched his hero be brave

[Ben_Jamin]

Okay, I am bringing this thread back to life because there is one very fascinating concept that not many are discussing about The Astonishing, which happens to be the one I enjoy the most about this album.

In this album, each main character faces what could be called "The Path That Divides". It's pretty interesting that every character is present at the time when Gabriel sings his song, which is when "The Path That Divides" concept is introduced in the chorus. From this moment on, they all start to walk that path towards having to make a choice that can either have a good or bad outcome. (Actually, the more I think about it, I think the concept develops in The Answer, with Gabriels' reason for choices is being considered the "chosen" one. He is facing his own path of division within himself, struggling to understand why he has this gift of music and why people are drawn to it's "healing" capabilities.)

It stars off with Gabriel making a connection with Faythe and seeing something within her that is attractive to him. This connection is felt by Faythe, as she feels something that she had only felt from her secret music player, nobody at all even knows she has this, not even Lord Nefaryus, Daryus, and Arabelle. She has to secretly go somewhere safe to connect with this feeling through the music player. That is until Gabriel begins playing his music and she hears his song. What spoke to Faythe and began her "Path of Division" was the chorus, "Find your strength in the sound of my voice, and you'll know which choice is right."

This moment also began Lord Nefaryus' path as he noticed this and this caused him to feel a sort of threat against his own daughter. So he gave The Ravenskill Militia a warning. During A New Beginning, this is when he is faced with the path, as it is revealed he was also moved by Gabriels' song and words. This is explained in the description from the website; "Not able to contest the wisdom of neither his wife nor his daughter, Nafaryus concedes, knowing that if he persists, he risks losing the princess forever and so agrees to the meeting. If Gabriel truly is 'The Chosen One' and can sway him as his beloved daughter says he can, then he will cease all plans of attack on Ravenskill and award him his freedom. If not, then he will accept Gabriel's surrender as promised, at which point it will be sure that she will never see him again."

Daryus' path is him choosing to make a threat to the Ravenskill militia leader, to gain his father's recognition and prove he can be the heir to the throne. He is one of the only characters that does make an instant decision on which side of the dividing path he wants to walk. His choice begins the path for Aryhs' which is choosing between his brother or his promise to his beloved wife.

The Road To Revolution is integral as it mentions what they are all striving for in their dividing path. If this were a movie, it would be the moment in the film where it shows each character in separate scene locations and what they are planning to do. Sort of like in a Disney movie where the villain or character sings about their dividing path, such as when Ariel sings "Part of Your World", or how the entire scene is done in Pocahontas when the song "Savages" is sung by both parties. (If you ask me, this album is more in lines with Pocahontas in concept)


(I'll continue in another post since this one is already getting a bit long)

[EPIC Outro]

If you ask me, The Road To Revolution undermines and weakens the story. While it is very enjoyable to listen to, it mostly exists to summarize what we already know.

The one part that I feel weakens the story is when Lord Nafaryus admits that he has no true intentions of listening to Gabriel - he still plans to destroy him. The problem is, in the previous song, A New Beginning, there is a glimmer of hope that Nafaryus will actually give Gabriel a chance. This glimmer of hope makes the behind the scenes machinations of Daryus feel so much more dangerous - there is a real chance for peace, albeit precarious, and this one asshole is going to ruin it.

With Nafaryus revealing he has no intention of listening to Gabriel, the story is robbed of this interesting dynamic. Instead we just have two villains piling on.

[Ben_Jamin]

There is still a glimmer of hope, that is due to Nefaryus still having a connection with music like Faythe. His ego is too big to admit it. For me, this is why he considers meeting with Gabriel to just be a waste of time. Yet, Gabriel and Faythe are keeping that faith and hope the meeting at Heaven's Cove will change his mind, regardless if Nefaryus is adamant that it won't. The "glimmer of hope" is Nefaryus even agreeing to meet up at Heaven's Cove with Faythe and Gabriel.

It's best explained with Faythe's line in The Road to Revolution:
"He only sees what he desires to see
It took a while but finally he agreed
Though everything did not turn out as planned
If love's a risk, it's worth a chance"

In the end, it wasn't Faythe or Gabriel who changed Nefaryus' mind. It was the actions of Daryus that caused Nefaryus to believe in the powers of the chosen one, Gabriel. As Nefaryus was now losing his only daughter (his biggest fear). The fear of losing Faythe is why he felt threatened by Gabriel and gave him reason to want him to surrender, bow, and kneel before Lord Nefaryus.

Daryus' intent was to gain his fathers honor. He did the things he did only for that reason. The consequences of his path were not beneficial to him. The more he continued down this path, the more detrimental things happened. It culminated in him unknowingly harming his sister, making his intent to gain his fathers honor now in shambles.

Daryus and Arhys at this moment learned:
"There's a price for liberation
When you stand for your beliefs"

So to me, this song does not weaken the story at all. This is why it's titled The Road to Revolution as each of these characters sort of foreshadow what will occur at Heaven's Cove. This is the pivotal moment where they all accept the path they have chosen. I did say that Daryus had already picked the path he wanted to walk, this occurs in A Life Left Behind.

[EPIC Outro]

You present a very strong argument. I do like the song, I just wish that one line had not been in there.

Also, assuming Nafaryus is a surname... Does that mean his son's full name is Daryus Nafaryus?

[Ben_Jamin]

Having that line in the song, for me, is just reinforcing how difficult of task it'll be for Faythe and Gabriel to convince Nafaryus to not capture Gabriel.

It reminds me of a scene where the villain is sitting on his throne doing his big speech, talking to himself alone in his chambers, or in the Disney realm where the villain talks to his comedy sidekick. Nafaryus is saying things like, "Change my mind? (laughs) Fools! It's just going to be a waste of time anyways." While swirling his wine around in his glass. 

Also, assuming Nafaryus is a surname... Does that mean his son's full name is Daryus Nafaryus?

I don't really see the Lord title being before a surname here. As the synopsis on the website doesn't refer to Nafaryus' father as Lord Nafaryus I. If Daryus gains control of the throne, I would expect his title to be Lord Daryus.

[ZirconBlue]

You present a very strong argument. I do like the song, I just wish that one line had not been in there.

Also, assuming Nafaryus is a surname... Does that mean his son's full name is Daryus Nafaryus?

In the novelization, Nefaryus is not a surname, and it wasn't his birth name.  It was a name he chose.

[Evermind]

Also, assuming Nafaryus is a surname... Does that mean his son's full name is Daryus Nafaryus?

That's hilarious.

[bosk1]

Yeah, his real name is Rudy.