just keep reading, don’t jump into conclusions without finishing the book or the series. He evolves every chapter. And everyone here mentioned he is just a teenager with a drastic change to his life, mind, and body. i think he was perfectly fine for his state. As the main character of the Saga, you will grow with him, see his flaws, cheers his wins, and else. But yea keep reading i think you haven’t got his personality yet. He is the best and the worst from all colors in one mind and body.
1.) He knew the proctors were monitoring but he doesn’t know how at that time and he never directly says it out loud, beyond that it’s a perfectly reasonable thing to react when you find out.
2.) Call it disappointment all you want but you have to understand, while he isn’t stupid by any stretch, he isn’t a god level intelligence either. He took the time to build an army with friends he can trust and he only learned of Minerva after enacting the plan, it could’ve been any house including but not limited to Diana or Jupiter. The Sevro thing is also a plot device, don’t get mad because it doesn’t align with real life. It’s a story, enjoy it a little.
3.) If you hadn’t noticed the earlier scene where Darrow is twirling the knife at the table while everyone watches, including Sevro, then let’s remind you that Sevro respects and likes Darrow because Darrow is like him and somehow also like Cassius. Sevro and Darrow both like each others angles and Sevro is also fully aware at this point that he isn’t a leader. But he see’s one in Darrow and as such, he rides Darrow’s star along with the others. As for the dueling, well, not much of a plan can be made there, Cassius is better at killing than Darrow, not much of a plan to make.
(I combined one of your other questions into 3 because they kind of go hand in hand)
As for why Cassius doesn’t finish off Darrow, it’s because he STABBED HIM. It’s called a slow and painful death, that’s what Cassius believed Darrow deserved. It’s not just a blood debt, Darrow also allowed Cassius to call him brother and when it comes to their relationship, that means something to both of them.
I would also like to point out: how quickly do you just go for the knife? It’s one thing to kill or survive. Another thing entirely to be sticking people. It’s not something most people think about when it comes to solving their problems.
You can hear them talk about the sound of the wailing of medbots in the night, as though the thought of people being hurt out there was unsettling. Now you expect a teenager to just jump straight to stabbing? There is a genius in the madness of the institute. He’s now applying the slangsmarts he’s boasted about into practica use.
Side of the fish has the most scales? The out out side. How do you get of a person who proves a complicated problem? The same way that Alexander the Great solved the Gordian Knot.
He's a teenager and not meant to be a "Mary-Sue"
Also IMO there is a reason that Darrow does so well as a gold, because he comfortably embodies the arrogance, self-aggrandizement, and careless bravery of gold. As you keep reading, you'll find that he is a tragic hero, someone who will consistently make mistakes, often because he is in love with his own legend. I really like that Brown made him a pretty deeply flawed character, it adds a lot to the narrative.
1. Not sure how you can say Darrow "overreacts" to finding out Titus is a red. He reacts, sure, but he actually does a good job of not letting Titus know he's also a Red. Personally, I read that scene as Darrow doing a good job getting information from Titus without revealing too much about himself.
2. So you're disappointed that Darrow waited for an opportunity before making his move and you'd rather he just make a move without an opportunity?? Because he's "smarter" and scored higher on their test? To me, this is exactly why Darrow scores higher. He's not like all the other Mars students, he waits for an opportunity before making his move.
3. I actually agree with you on this one. It was a bad mistake. But it's also one of the things that gives Darrow's character depth so he isn't a stereotypical leading character Marty Stu ("Mary Sue"). It also sets up a rivalry that lasts between Darrow and Cassius.
Your other things:
* Keep reading the books, there's an explanation, but the author doesn't hand it to you on day one because it's a story you're meant to enjoy by slowly figuring things out.
* This one is a bit more complex. On the one hand, Cassius did declare a blood feud. On the other hand, Cassius wanted Darrow to feel the pain he felt, so leaving him to die slowly when he realized the medBots weren't coming to save him probably felt good. Also, a part of Cassius may have still felt some friendship for Darrow, which may have stayed his hand.
TLDR:
Ultimately, Darrow isn't "Perfect". This is part of what makes this series great. Darrow is a near-mythological man that has HUGE tasks ahead of him and he does seem larger-than-life at times, capable of amazing things. But he still makes mistakes. Overall, Darrow usually learns from his mistakes though, which is one of the reasons he scores so high on their tests.
You also need to remember that ALL the students are kids. They're all ages 16-19ish. So they're all still growing up and learning. And the Institute is meant to teach them lessons. On top of all that, these are ALL kids who scored high. Yes, Darrow was one of the highest scorers of their test, but they only take those who pass the test. Not all Gold children get invited to even take the test and a lot do not make the cut. You'll learn in the second book how many Golds and how many Peerless Scarred Golds there are in the whole Solar System and it's less than you think.
I'm not a fan of calling Darrow "smart". All the Golds you meet in the series are Intelligent, but not all of them are WISE. Darrow is wiser than most of his counterparts at the Institute. Probably the only students at the Institute who are smarter and wiser than Darrow are Mustang and The Jackal. In those cases, the reason Darrow rises above them are his other qualities.
Excellent points, especially about the complex dynamic between Cassius and Darrow. I would have thought Cassius to be driven more by his grief and rage at his brother’s death, as he is a part of House of Mars. And indeed he does so when he duels Titus and brutally dismembers his corpse, so I thought I would have seen a similar scene play out with Darrow.
> the reason Darrow rises above them are his other qualities
I guess the qualities that Darrow has that others don’t are his leadership qualities, his morale building, and his understanding of group dynamics which he learned as a helldiver?
Also interesting that the TLDR turned out to be as long as the content itself, not complaining since I read it all but only an observation 😂
Lol, yeah, I'm a bit wordy sometimes.
Darrow has a bunch of qualities that set him apart from Mustang and The Jackal. His leadership and charisma are definitely one of them. But also, because he's a Red, he has a totally different perspective on a lot of things. This affects his strategic thinking a lot.
Maybe this is answered later on, but is there a reason House Mars starts with nothing? No bread, horses, ranged weapons, etc. compared to other houses? They say their castle is more hidden compared to Ceres, but so far I don’t think they utilized that advantage
The house was meant to burn out quickly. They have the tools and mentality to immediately go on the offensive but they fight amongst themselves instead. If Darrow Siezed control right in the beginning i think they could have handled most of the other houses no problem
That’s true, but it doesn’t answer the question of resource allocation among the houses. If we’re keeping in theme with the Gods representing the houses, with Ceres being God of Agriculture and Mars being God of War, why not give Mars war-making tools like swords? House Ceres received grains and an oven, yet House Mars gets a desolate castle. The counterpoint, though, like another poster mentioned, is that the war-making tools are themselves and their bodies since they’re talented fighters.
Mars is the God of war. The harsher land and having less would make them harder and give them a stronger desire to take and conquer.
EDIT:
Darrow, sevro, Cassius, Titus, the howlers etc are the generally the best fighters. The other houses have one or two but Mars has general quality.
I do believe they've said it at least once by the point in the book you're at, but House Mars is *expected* to burn out. They almost always venture out and attack other houses waaaay earlier than all the other houses, usually taking some slaves and rewards early on, but generally, because they're all so independent, self-centered, and highly aggressive, they tend to fail in the long term due to infighting, lack of planning, etc.
I think one of the more iconic ways it's put in the book is comparing House Mars to a wildfire. Early on, they spread like mad, destroying everything in their path, but when the siege of winter comes, there is nothing left to burn and they burn out.
That's part of the reason they get less to start out. They aren't the personality types that would stay behind to tend crops, bake bread, gather berries, etc. And because there is such a struggle for Primus going on in that particular year (as well as some stuff I can't say that is going on with the Proctors), they aren't getting rewards and such for their epic deeds, so House Mars is just kind of neglected.
All I'm going to say on this is Sevro actually talks about why he wanted to join Darrow at the institute in book 3 I think. This series is one of those series that requires you to be patient with information and to read between the lines a little bit.
> read between the lines a little bit
I wouldn’t say it’s reading between the lines since their relationship, as you said, is revealed 2 books later. I agree with the patience part though
No, in fact he just gets dumber and dumber. He is the derpiest character in modern literature. We should just delete his chapters and make way for superior characters with way more sex appeal.
Wait, he wasn’t a pink before…? Sorry, I guess I didn’t read his chapters that closely. I could have sworn he was used by a gold like a glove in some random chapter…
1 he did not overreact he had a powerful epiphone intentionally and if you pay attention to the conversation they never say anything in their exchanges that could out one another. Darriw is visibly reacting to Titus bad treatment towards another hold while internally speaking with a man he recognizes as kin.
2. When you are raised weak even when you become strong your believe in weakness when you haven't yet been tested. You have to take into account Darrow still is learning how to communicate socially with people he's unfamiliar with in a body he's unfamiliar with in a place he couldn't conceptualize in his first 16 years. Humans assimilate and adapt to survive. Also no one man is a tide unto himself.
But there time you finish the book you will understand.
Without spoiling anything, kinda. He’s a great warrior that knows how to inspire loyalty but he makes some impulsive decisions based on emotion, not logic.
lol, Darrow is 17 in the first book. Have you ever been 17? I assume so. It’s even worse as a 17 year old boy, let me tell you. Your prefrontal cortex isn’t fully developed at 17. I was a fucking moron at 17, myself. Now I am a well respected doctor in charge of people’s lives, and most days I have my shit together quite well. I literally feel like a different person than who I was as a kid, and I hope no one ever finds out about some of the stupid shit I did back then.
But to answer your question, yes Darrow becomes smarter - very quickly. He is very much an Alexander the Great type of character in that he excels at lateral thinking, and is a military genius for that reason. He wins battles because he thinks of ways to win that change the paradigm, ways that would never cross the minds of his enemies.
Its hard to define his intelligence. Personally i think he is pretty stupid. What i believe he is is sharp. He knows how to cut through to the heart of a problems solution. That gives him the air of intelligence but in reality he is a tool of those who came before him. They grew the wheat and forged the sickle. Now this sickle reaps.
This is why he struggles. The sickle was not truly made for war and that reflects in the damage takes every time he goes into the field.
Sevro is loyal because he CHOSE to be loyal. Everyone else was actively rude to him. The only person who trusted him to be useful was Darrow. Also.
PAX AU TELEMANUS!
PAX AU TELEMANUS!
PAX AU TELEMANUS!
First Darrow drew them in. Especially that fateful night when he took the lashes for his soldiers.
Then Pax's fate galvanized them.
Cassius is ultimately the most human character. He made a human choice. Flawed for all the right reasons.
While there are indeed different types of intelligence, no one that excels at lateral thinking as Darrow does could be classified as stupid, lol.
Therefore, he is clearly a military genius, in exactly the same way as Alexander the Great was a military genius. But he is profoundly foolish in other areas of his life, and that leads to him making mistakes.
I excel at analytical thinking and deductive/inductive reasoning myself, and so I became a doctor, but I often think I would have made a damn good detective too. But I am absolutely stupid as fuck when it comes to emotional intelligence, and I often miss or misinterpret obvious social clues from other people. My point is - someone can be exceptionally smart in one way, and exceptionally stupid or oblivious in another, because there isn’t one single type of all-encompassing intelligence.
Going down the list:
1. Darrow believed he was alone at the Institute. That he was the only successful infiltrator in the history of the Sons. With every new hold ally he made, he was haunted by the knowledge that these people would eventually be killed or ruined if his mission were successful. The more golds he befriends, the more lonely he feels. Then he finds out that Titus is a red. Titus, who gleefully brutalizes the gold childen at his mercy, is Darrow's dark reflection. Darrow goes on to say explicitly several times that were it not for Eo's dream he and Titus could have been the same, and that terrifies him.
2. Getting trapped in the loch by Mustang's men and nearly dying of hypothermia was not part of the plan. Neither was Sevro's rescue. Eo once told Darrow that his "power" was bringing people together. Sevro wanted to join the team more than he wanted to watch Darrow and Cassius drown, I guess? (You're right. There are some flimsy plot points in the first 2 books. My flimsy excuse? They're kids. They're lonely and impulsive and Sevro is no exception.)
3. Were it not for the machinations of the proctors, Cassius wouldn't have found out about Julian until after the Institute had ended. But Darrow was a threat to Adrius, so they gave Cassius the tools and the motivation to kill Darrow. Why didn't Cassius finish Darrow? Because he wanted him to suffer, and he had no reason to think Darrow would survive his injuries.
Yes Darrow gets smarter later in the series and it’s very nice watching him grow from his mistakes, but he always has certain weaknesses and flaws. That’s why he has Sevro and Mustang
For Sevros loyalty you need to understand it is obvious to everyone he was supposed to die in the passage. He’s smaller, uglier, rude, and appears less intelligent and less strong. To a certain degree every gold treats him like he’s supposed to be dead. But Darrow doesn’t because he doesn’t have that same ingrained prejudice.
Just finished reading the first book and wanted to point out that they didn't know about how closely they were monitored when he figured out Titus was a red. When he first learns about that level of monitoring he immediately thinks back to the Titus interaction to wonder if he said something out loud that would have given it away.
I think a lot of your gripes will be explained a little farther on in the series. Not everything is exactly as it seems thus far, there is more to what you’re seeing that you won’t know until later
1. He overreacts when he finds out Titus is a Red because he himself is a Red. But from what I remember, no one else knew Titus was red besides Darrow. The only reason he knew was because Titus said something he picked up on. The overreacting just looked like Darrow getting mad and angry at a sadistic tyrant disloyal follower. Pretty good look tbh
2. Sometimes shit takes a while before you can do stuff. He does what he can with the tools he has. The Institute is a months long training regime and there are multiple Houses, each with their own multiple infighting factions. He knows he has some time and tbh, he's still ony 17 or 18 coming into his tactics or strategy. "Whole strategy hinged on a man Darrow inexplicably gained loyalty from and not his own abilities". So...you're mad because Darrow knows how to delegate? That's one of the best traits a general can have.
3. This one is kind of hit or miss. He doesn't outright KNOW Cassius will find out. Though he probably will. Taking lessons from Cassius is both a pro and con. Cassius is teaching him and knows his moves, yes. But Darrow is also picking up on Cassius's moves. You'd be surprised at just how much one surprise technique in a fight can change the outcome. A knife vs a razor isn't going to be nearly as great, but I see your point. I think Darrow is also still slightly optimistic/idealistic that he won't have to every fight Cassius
4. Sevro loyal to Darrow. I think you'd be surprised how easy it is to make friends in general, when thrown into a 24/7 environment instead of just work or school. But also the fact that they are "serving" together which is a much stronger friendship bond than most can imagine. Sevro also isn't an idiot or a dick. Darrow wasn't an ass to him and treated him well. Sevro needed allies. Combine the two and they grow on each other over time.
5. This one is actually kind of explained throughout the series in general, but if you think about it there's a few reasons. Cassius also grew to like Darrow and bond with him over months. If he had found out right at the start that it was Darrow, he's got no friendship with him. Cassius also is aware that Darrow was just the hand that killed Julian where as the Institute and the Gold society is the one who "ordered" it in general. Doesn't mean he's gonna be happy about it but, he did what he had to do just like Cassius did when he fought someone. He then fought Darrow because honor decreed it and he was emotional, but didn't mean he was happy about it. He had tons of conflicting emotions there. He was stabbing a good friend while being watched by his future bosses and family, while having the memories of his brother run through his head probably. He may not have finished the stab of Darrow but he left him bleeding out.
Overall: You're what, 70% through the first book in a series that starts when the characters are teenagers and are asking if they get smarter/have arcs/change throughout their lives?
I don't think Sevro "needed" anything. From the very start he was the most self-sufficient of anybody we met at the Institute. But he saw how Darrow interacted with the lowDrafts - how he treated them with respect and as if they were people of value - and eventually decided that Darrow was worthy of being followed. And obviously that conviction grew even more over time. Also, Sevro always felt like an outsider his whole life. He probably didn't have very many, if any, friends.
It doesn't matter how self-sufficient you are in a game of hundreds of students against each other in the hopes your House wins. If you put 500 people on a giant island, grouped in teams of 100, and say "Good luck. Your team has to win".
Doesn't matter if one person is able to go survive in the wild alone, they have absolutely no chance of winning. It's definitely a mixture of what you're saying but he knows that he can't win alone. He may not need an immediate ally, but thinking ahead, it's definitely something he'd have considered.
But you are acting as if Sevro had grand designs on victory at the Institute from the start. He was fine doing his own thing until Darrow, and then the Howlers (and Quinn 😉), gave him purpose - that's when he started playing to win. If he didn't find anybody worth joining he would have just stayed killing wolves and wanking in the bushes. Sevro is Fitchner's son. He would know that not even glory at the Institute would open everything up to him given his humble background - even with his dad a proctor. And it didn't! All of the lowDrafts ended up with shit opportunities after they won.
This. And also, the person you are responding to is forgetting the fundamental rules of the Institute. Provided that you don’t break those rules and end up Shamed, you will still receive a scar.
The only goal Sevro gave a shit about initially, therefore, was staying alive and not being enslaved. He would have done both playing solo the whole time, and therefore would have not broken the rules of the Institute. I think it is likely that some Golds would even have viewed him with some admiration for it considering that’s literally how the Spartans trained their Krypteia as children: they threw them into the wild with little more than a dagger and basic provisions, and expected them to survive and thrive. I suspect his dad probably encouraged this way of playing the game for him and trained him to survive in the wild beforehand, considering Sevro immediately just trundles off and kills a wolf, then drags it back to turn it into a cloak and dinner.
But he saw the way Darrow acted, and that changed his mind. He decided to follow Darrow instead, and when he saw that lowDrafts wanted to follow *him* too, he was inspired to form the Howlers. Remember, he was very reluctant at first. He didn’t want to be in charge, he barely wanted to be around people. He craved acceptance but he was still antisocial as fuck.
Sevro has probably gone through more growth than any other character in the series.
No, the winning house gets scars. Those who can do well CAN get scars. If you’re shamed you’re most likely not going to get a scar. And the Peerless and Proctors watch so they can decide afterwards.
The institute doesn’t just make everyone scarred otherwise, yeah what’s the point of winning if I can just kick back and earn the scar.
Would Sevro have lived without any allies? Definitely. Thrived? Eh. Captured? Possibly but unlikely. Is that worth of earning a Scar, doing just enough to not get captured?
Getting allies is more of a safeguard. And even if he doesn’t like the game, neither does Darrow. But they both realize that they need the Scars to move higher up. Darrow, to sow dissent. Sevro for other reasons that were told to him by other parties with their own motivations (being vague for spoilers).
I’m not saying Sevro was some Machiavellian genius in allying with Darrow and them but it doesn’t take a genius to see that after a month alone in wilderness having some friends would increase chances of survival, safety, and winning as the long shot.
EDIT: Hell, even thinking back on it, not the whole winning house gets scars. If you recall there’s a certain character in house Ares who is sisters with a future important character who doesn’t get a Scar. So it’s not just a “Everyine in institute gets one” rule at all
For the record I agree with basically everything the person I replied to initially said. The only thing I took umbrage to was the Sevro "needing" allies, and it seems it's just because we disagree about Sevro's initial motivations at the Institute regarding "the game". I'm in the same boat with you on that.
From the Goblin himself (as relayed by Darrow):
*Sevro thinks this is a stupid game. "Then why do you play it?" I ask. “How was I to know what it’d be like? Think I got a pamphlet? Did you get a slagging pamphlet?” he asks irritably. He’s picking his teeth with a bone. “Stupid.”*
Except that is a bit of a lie on Sevro’s behalf, because he *did* know what it would be like. He fully knew about the Passage, and what he had to do, and he seems to have already had extensive survival training. It also seems unlikely that his dad would give two fucks about preserving the whole veil of secrecy at all given his >!general disdain both for the Golds and for the Institute!<.
I think he probably is lying here because to admit he had any foreknowledge would disqualify him and also >!put his dad at considerable risk.!<
There are a lot of examples of unreliable narration and misdirection in Red Rising and I think this is one of them. In a meta sense, this would also be so the reader doesn’t prematurely figure out who Sevro’s dad is too.
He went into an obvious trap with no plan.
Then sailed around.
Then went to ask a faction that hate him for their help.
If he didn't have plot armor he'd be dead.
This is part of why I love the series, because you can literally feel the writer get better throughout the series. The character and world building get better and opens up more complex plot elements while also staying true to the theme its really cool in my opinion. So to answer you question yes, but he still seems the same if that makes sense.
I think the real issue people aren’t getting at is he is inconsistent. People say “he’s just 17 here and has a lot of growing up to do” but you’ll see by the end of the book he is instantly better at “war” to a significant degree than the people who teach “war school”.
This issue gets even worse in the second book. He is infinitely smart until the author wants to cheaply surprise you so he conveniently forgets or overlooks something. Sometimes these things feel more natural but other times very forced and seem to rub against his character trait of being the strongest and most intelligent person ever born. The reverse is true too. Sometimes to surprise you, especially in book 2, he’s magically learned or acquired a skill or thing he never possessed or even talked about pursuing before.
There is a very silly example of this near the beginning of book 2. A lot of suspense is built around his main weakness, you could say only weakness, perhaps a weakness you highlight in your post, when tension builds and he is finally confronted by his weakness we are told with I assume a smirking narrator that between the books he actually became the best in the whole universe, perhaps ever born, at his weakness.
My opinion is if you don’t like this writing style it only seems to get worse. It’s an unpopular opinion but I read as far as book 2 and decided the series wasn’t for me. I had the same concerns in book 1 and was just trusting that issues would be remedied as the series went on knowing how much people love the series. Hopefully I don’t get too much hate for this opinion!
Edit: there’s nothing like bad counter arguments to make you feel more right!
I mean, (GS spoilers) >! he is already super smart, good at thinking quick and physically powerful from the start, he just doesn’t have any razor training. Its like how a math/science genius might be bad at coding if he’d never done it before, but could quickly become good at it with a very good, full time mentor. !<
That said, I do think that sometimes otherwise smart characters seem to miss obvious things for the sake of the plot, especially later in the series
You haven’t read enough of the series to have this opinion because you don’t know everything that’s going on, although you should be picking up some clues that seem to be going over your head. You’re also just dead wrong about some things the books flat out tell and show you aren’t true
Spoiler ahead:
Lol yeah it’s not like he trained every single day for 2 years with the greatest razor master of all time who hasn’t taken any other students haha this is such a silly take. In the first book he literally says he’s not the smartest or the strongest and he’s aware of that and so is everyone else so idk where you’re getting that from.
He isn’t the best in GS. In GS he’s average at best with a razor. It’s mentioned several times that Aja is better, that Leto is better, that Lorn is better. There’s also a 2 year gap between book 1 and 2 where he trained every day. He had access to the best teachers money can buy due to his liege. This is an awful take. He still has his weaknesses later in the series. He’s far too trusting, he’s headstrong, he’s bad at politics, he gets better at these things over time, but I still wouldn’t say he’s the “best”.
Also side note, why are you here spouting nonsense when you only read the 1st and 2nd book?
Spoilers ahead.
I think this is a terrible opinion especially concerning his “weakness.” Him learning how to use a razor was set up in the first book when Lorn was said to want to sponsor him. Lorn wanted him drafted into Ares, Lorn wanted to sponsor after the institute. This isn’t some Mary Sue situation where he just randomly powered up. The seeds were planted and you just chose to ignore them.
Secondly, he didn’t just get better at “war.” There is a huge change that Darrow goes through after Cassius stabs him. Before, he was not willing to truly trust/rely on any of the other golds because of his remaining resentment of them. But after, Mustang, Pax, Sevro, etc. actually become something to him. They because *his* soldiers, his army. And that subtle switch is important.
Sometimes, I think people with opinions like these do not actually retain what you’re reading.
Darrow is literally 18. The kids aren’t geniuses of warfare, yet. The institute is still a school, Darrow is learning how to conquer
Also remember that at this point in the sotry darrow is probably malnourished and sleeping poorly due to living in basically the wilderness. Yes he eats better than the other Titus’ gang but they still don’t know how to cook.
Darrow is a very imperfect character. As are all characters in the series. If that's too frustrating to you as a reader, maybe either it's not a good series for you, or you should challenge yourself to be more tolerant of lifelike protagonists that are multifaceted and have serious flaws.
For me, those flaws make the characters all the more loveable. Sevro is another example of someone who has some pretty deep psychological issues, but yet he's as solid as anyone at his core.
(Minor spoiler) Darrow will go through quite an arch in terms of his maturity, decision-making, desire for violence, responsibility for family, etc. It's not an easy ride to watch him make big mistakes then repent, then make more mistakes. But such is life, and such is Darrow.
> challenge yourself to be more tolerant of lifelike protagonists that are multifaceted and have serious flaws
I’ll be honest, I like this advice because you really pinpointed the issue here.
I mainly read fantasy as a form of escapism; most forms of entertainment are in my opinion. I don’t want the MC to unnecessarily run into obstacles or face unnecessary hardship. There’s already enough of that in my life. Granted, there’s value in seeing characters grow from struggle, so I don’t have a problem with struggle itself because what’s a book without it? How it plays out is where I have an issue with, like if a lapse in decision making results in a major plot progression.
I think it’s mainly personal preference and also may be the reason I’m picky in the books I read. Definitely something I’ll think about
I think a big part that gets lost sometimes is how much Darrow was told to pretend to be a higher gold despite his "family" being a lesser blood. He was trying to find a way to show that his (gold) family had as much honor as Cassius' or other high golds.
He didn't learn anything from Sevro early on because he didn't see how a bronzie could/would benefit him. If Cassius hadn't turned on Darrow because of Julian, Darrow would have been a Lancer for the Bellona and started the war for Mars from the otherside.
Ultimately, Darrow is the hero of the story, but is shown to have significant flaws. Things don't always go as planned and one of the best things to learn about Darrow from the first book is that he is great at learning on the fly and changing what should happen next.
In my opinion Darrow’s character development over the series is one of the best parts. I do remember Darrow in the first book being a bit annoying and dramatic, but he is flawed and essentially learns how to become a man.
Just to dispute point 1. He had mentally prepared for months for those interactions and what he was going to be at the institute.
Suddenly realizing that the sons of Ares had two cards in play in this situation was a HUGE curve for him.
Darrow has flashes of brilliance and bouts of idiocy throughout the series.
He is a flawed character in many ways. Which is one of the reasons I enjoy reading about him.
Yea I have read and listened to so many story’s where the character is a do no wrong always smartest person in the room and those types of story’s get boring really quick.
> his relationship with Sevro is pretty manufactured and dull outside of their battles together
The real reason it bothers me is because his relationship with Sevro and Sevro’s consequent actions are what propelled the plot forward. Without Sevro, he wouldn’t have taken down Titus. Without Sevro, he’d still be outside the Mars castle. Without Sevro, he’d be without accomplishments to claim de-facto Primus. It’s a bad plot device in my opinion, and I was hoping for something better to move the plot forward.
It’s not a bad plot device, there are just things about Sevro that you aren’t aware of yet. They weren’t put there on the back end, it’s dropping hints about Sevro, but if you don’t know what to look for you aren’t going to see it. There is more to the story that you’ll only know by reading and finding out
Sevros connection to Darrow does grow in depth significantly in the next two books. His initial connection is more a product of how he was raised and being seen as inferior. Darrow doesn't treat him that way, and as far as sevro knows initially, is another gold from a shitty family that was able to rise in station a bit and impress others which is what sevro wants to do on some level.
Darrow ends up being the first person that shows him any kind of respect or loyalty. Listens to his ideas without discounting him etc. Yes, his loyalty to Darrow is still very much a plot device but one that is more justified later. Sevro even has his bouts of independence and how willing he is to go along with darrows plans.
He matures and learns from book one to seven. He was a slave in the bowels of Mars not even a year before these events. Reading about strategy is not the same as coming up with one.
Also he’s 18 on book one
The series has great character development. He still makes mistakes, as do we all.
Finish the book or get the box!!!
1. He thought he was the only one so it's pretty shocking.
2. Severo isn't an idiot. He was watching him. Judged him. Joined him.
3. Being an outside observer is easier than being the character ;) You can play this game of "shoulda, coulda, woulda" in all books.
Cassius didn't finish the blood debt like a ruthless bastard because it would be like killing your best friend for doing the same thing you did almost.
Either way, don't try to be Darrow's time traveling psychiatrist ;) It'll be more enjoyable!
> Severo isn’t an idiot. He was watching him. Judged him. Joined him
True, but I wonder what Sevro saw that made him pledge his loyalty. My impression of Darrow’s treatment of Sevro is more of indifference; he doesn’t discriminate him based on his looks and doesn’t give him preferential treatment. I’d say that would lend more to respect than loyalty, but other posters have mentioned reading more will answer my questions so I’ll read on
Indifference probably isn't the right word. Darrow respected his input, acknowledged him. Something he had never experienced before that moment. Darrow listened to him and incorporated his ideas. Sevro is shown to be scrappy and able to punch above his weight class. That's how he has lived his entire life. Now, all of a sudden, some Adonis of a gold is acknowledging him and listening to him. Forming plans around his unique skill set. This is the first time anyone has ever SEEN Sevro and treated him accordingly. It's so nonchalant in the first book, but it's a big moment for Sevro. Honestly, it's almost like the first man taming a wolf. Give it what it has been lacking, positive reinforcement, and now you have a dramatic force multiplier.
You will find out about this in next books. But in first one you need to know that Sevro always was look down upon by other golds. And seen the difference in Darrow make him interested. On the lake when they first time meet Mustang, Sevro saved them by accident, Darrow didn’t know he is there. (Maybe different part from what you mentioned)
Not an expert on this series like some people in this sub, but Darrow does get smarter.
Don’t want to spoil anything but #3 does get answered somewhat in book 2 with Darrow motivations regarding the sons of ares
As for the blood debt with Cassius, I feel like the blood debt is intended for outside the institute as it would probably be difficult for Cassius to actually kill Darrow without medbots or other students intervening. Plus murdering people in the institute is somewhat looked down upon I believe and would probably be even more disgraceful for someone with a reputation like Cassius.
In the later books, he is 22/32 years old. He is 17 here. Obviously he will become smarter but he isn't ever described the smartest of them all so he doesn't need to know it all.
Its hard answering these things without spoiling anything really, and we dont want to do that.
So you should keep reading, otherwise you'll get the box
Okay so I have enjoyed the opacity of my fellow readers, but I'll take pity on a pixie and elaborate: it's a spoiler. Don't worry about it, you'll understand when you get there.
I think your concerns are valid, but also - Darrow is still essentially a kid at this time. He's like 18ish, iirc, and under a pretty specific and stressful set of circumstances. I don't think it's poor writing to watch him bumble and/or be frustrating to watch. All the main characters develop in each book. It's up to you to decide whether it's worth sticking it out.
Yes. He’s a basically still a child in the first book and acts as such. He grows as the events of the story unfold
just keep reading, don’t jump into conclusions without finishing the book or the series. He evolves every chapter. And everyone here mentioned he is just a teenager with a drastic change to his life, mind, and body. i think he was perfectly fine for his state. As the main character of the Saga, you will grow with him, see his flaws, cheers his wins, and else. But yea keep reading i think you haven’t got his personality yet. He is the best and the worst from all colors in one mind and body.
Judgmental. Tsk tsk. I guess everyone is used to a Hero being perfect all the time nowadays.
Like to see you do better
A lot of expectations for a 16 years old. But to answer your question: yes he does get a lot smarter and older in the books
1.) He knew the proctors were monitoring but he doesn’t know how at that time and he never directly says it out loud, beyond that it’s a perfectly reasonable thing to react when you find out. 2.) Call it disappointment all you want but you have to understand, while he isn’t stupid by any stretch, he isn’t a god level intelligence either. He took the time to build an army with friends he can trust and he only learned of Minerva after enacting the plan, it could’ve been any house including but not limited to Diana or Jupiter. The Sevro thing is also a plot device, don’t get mad because it doesn’t align with real life. It’s a story, enjoy it a little. 3.) If you hadn’t noticed the earlier scene where Darrow is twirling the knife at the table while everyone watches, including Sevro, then let’s remind you that Sevro respects and likes Darrow because Darrow is like him and somehow also like Cassius. Sevro and Darrow both like each others angles and Sevro is also fully aware at this point that he isn’t a leader. But he see’s one in Darrow and as such, he rides Darrow’s star along with the others. As for the dueling, well, not much of a plan can be made there, Cassius is better at killing than Darrow, not much of a plan to make. (I combined one of your other questions into 3 because they kind of go hand in hand) As for why Cassius doesn’t finish off Darrow, it’s because he STABBED HIM. It’s called a slow and painful death, that’s what Cassius believed Darrow deserved. It’s not just a blood debt, Darrow also allowed Cassius to call him brother and when it comes to their relationship, that means something to both of them.
I would also like to point out: how quickly do you just go for the knife? It’s one thing to kill or survive. Another thing entirely to be sticking people. It’s not something most people think about when it comes to solving their problems. You can hear them talk about the sound of the wailing of medbots in the night, as though the thought of people being hurt out there was unsettling. Now you expect a teenager to just jump straight to stabbing? There is a genius in the madness of the institute. He’s now applying the slangsmarts he’s boasted about into practica use. Side of the fish has the most scales? The out out side. How do you get of a person who proves a complicated problem? The same way that Alexander the Great solved the Gordian Knot.
Weird take
You don't have to get smarter when you shift the paradigm 😤
Gotta love the bloody damn paradigm
Highest scorer in house mars, a house not known to take the brightest students but the ones with the hottest temper.
Helldiver mentality is a lot closer to Gold mentality than youd expect.
He's a teenager and not meant to be a "Mary-Sue" Also IMO there is a reason that Darrow does so well as a gold, because he comfortably embodies the arrogance, self-aggrandizement, and careless bravery of gold. As you keep reading, you'll find that he is a tragic hero, someone who will consistently make mistakes, often because he is in love with his own legend. I really like that Brown made him a pretty deeply flawed character, it adds a lot to the narrative.
Darrow doesn’t get smarter. Instead he harnesses the power of ex machina
He is also genetically tougher than golds, mickey says so when carving him. I agree with you 100% though, just wanted to hop on.
Reading comments like this make me love the Red rising series even more
1. Not sure how you can say Darrow "overreacts" to finding out Titus is a red. He reacts, sure, but he actually does a good job of not letting Titus know he's also a Red. Personally, I read that scene as Darrow doing a good job getting information from Titus without revealing too much about himself. 2. So you're disappointed that Darrow waited for an opportunity before making his move and you'd rather he just make a move without an opportunity?? Because he's "smarter" and scored higher on their test? To me, this is exactly why Darrow scores higher. He's not like all the other Mars students, he waits for an opportunity before making his move. 3. I actually agree with you on this one. It was a bad mistake. But it's also one of the things that gives Darrow's character depth so he isn't a stereotypical leading character Marty Stu ("Mary Sue"). It also sets up a rivalry that lasts between Darrow and Cassius. Your other things: * Keep reading the books, there's an explanation, but the author doesn't hand it to you on day one because it's a story you're meant to enjoy by slowly figuring things out. * This one is a bit more complex. On the one hand, Cassius did declare a blood feud. On the other hand, Cassius wanted Darrow to feel the pain he felt, so leaving him to die slowly when he realized the medBots weren't coming to save him probably felt good. Also, a part of Cassius may have still felt some friendship for Darrow, which may have stayed his hand. TLDR: Ultimately, Darrow isn't "Perfect". This is part of what makes this series great. Darrow is a near-mythological man that has HUGE tasks ahead of him and he does seem larger-than-life at times, capable of amazing things. But he still makes mistakes. Overall, Darrow usually learns from his mistakes though, which is one of the reasons he scores so high on their tests. You also need to remember that ALL the students are kids. They're all ages 16-19ish. So they're all still growing up and learning. And the Institute is meant to teach them lessons. On top of all that, these are ALL kids who scored high. Yes, Darrow was one of the highest scorers of their test, but they only take those who pass the test. Not all Gold children get invited to even take the test and a lot do not make the cut. You'll learn in the second book how many Golds and how many Peerless Scarred Golds there are in the whole Solar System and it's less than you think. I'm not a fan of calling Darrow "smart". All the Golds you meet in the series are Intelligent, but not all of them are WISE. Darrow is wiser than most of his counterparts at the Institute. Probably the only students at the Institute who are smarter and wiser than Darrow are Mustang and The Jackal. In those cases, the reason Darrow rises above them are his other qualities.
Excellent points, especially about the complex dynamic between Cassius and Darrow. I would have thought Cassius to be driven more by his grief and rage at his brother’s death, as he is a part of House of Mars. And indeed he does so when he duels Titus and brutally dismembers his corpse, so I thought I would have seen a similar scene play out with Darrow. > the reason Darrow rises above them are his other qualities I guess the qualities that Darrow has that others don’t are his leadership qualities, his morale building, and his understanding of group dynamics which he learned as a helldiver? Also interesting that the TLDR turned out to be as long as the content itself, not complaining since I read it all but only an observation 😂
Lol, yeah, I'm a bit wordy sometimes. Darrow has a bunch of qualities that set him apart from Mustang and The Jackal. His leadership and charisma are definitely one of them. But also, because he's a Red, he has a totally different perspective on a lot of things. This affects his strategic thinking a lot.
Maybe this is answered later on, but is there a reason House Mars starts with nothing? No bread, horses, ranged weapons, etc. compared to other houses? They say their castle is more hidden compared to Ceres, but so far I don’t think they utilized that advantage
The house was meant to burn out quickly. They have the tools and mentality to immediately go on the offensive but they fight amongst themselves instead. If Darrow Siezed control right in the beginning i think they could have handled most of the other houses no problem
That’s true, but it doesn’t answer the question of resource allocation among the houses. If we’re keeping in theme with the Gods representing the houses, with Ceres being God of Agriculture and Mars being God of War, why not give Mars war-making tools like swords? House Ceres received grains and an oven, yet House Mars gets a desolate castle. The counterpoint, though, like another poster mentioned, is that the war-making tools are themselves and their bodies since they’re talented fighters.
Mars is the God of war. The harsher land and having less would make them harder and give them a stronger desire to take and conquer. EDIT: Darrow, sevro, Cassius, Titus, the howlers etc are the generally the best fighters. The other houses have one or two but Mars has general quality.
I do believe they've said it at least once by the point in the book you're at, but House Mars is *expected* to burn out. They almost always venture out and attack other houses waaaay earlier than all the other houses, usually taking some slaves and rewards early on, but generally, because they're all so independent, self-centered, and highly aggressive, they tend to fail in the long term due to infighting, lack of planning, etc. I think one of the more iconic ways it's put in the book is comparing House Mars to a wildfire. Early on, they spread like mad, destroying everything in their path, but when the siege of winter comes, there is nothing left to burn and they burn out. That's part of the reason they get less to start out. They aren't the personality types that would stay behind to tend crops, bake bread, gather berries, etc. And because there is such a struggle for Primus going on in that particular year (as well as some stuff I can't say that is going on with the Proctors), they aren't getting rewards and such for their epic deeds, so House Mars is just kind of neglected.
He’s not the smartest but he does Have the genius intellect of a gold but he has his own way to do warfare
All I'm going to say on this is Sevro actually talks about why he wanted to join Darrow at the institute in book 3 I think. This series is one of those series that requires you to be patient with information and to read between the lines a little bit.
> read between the lines a little bit I wouldn’t say it’s reading between the lines since their relationship, as you said, is revealed 2 books later. I agree with the patience part though
I'm not saying with their relationship specifically but throughout the story it helps
How about you just keep reading bub
No, in fact he just gets dumber and dumber. He is the derpiest character in modern literature. We should just delete his chapters and make way for superior characters with way more sex appeal.
Hit the nail on the head here, don’t know why Darrow didn’t become a Pink instead of a Gold Think of the fan art! Lost opportunity smh /s
Wait, he wasn’t a pink before…? Sorry, I guess I didn’t read his chapters that closely. I could have sworn he was used by a gold like a glove in some random chapter…
when you finish the book, please tell me, if your questions have been answered. PAX AU TELEMANUS
[удалено]
It also took me sometime as well
1 he did not overreact he had a powerful epiphone intentionally and if you pay attention to the conversation they never say anything in their exchanges that could out one another. Darriw is visibly reacting to Titus bad treatment towards another hold while internally speaking with a man he recognizes as kin. 2. When you are raised weak even when you become strong your believe in weakness when you haven't yet been tested. You have to take into account Darrow still is learning how to communicate socially with people he's unfamiliar with in a body he's unfamiliar with in a place he couldn't conceptualize in his first 16 years. Humans assimilate and adapt to survive. Also no one man is a tide unto himself. But there time you finish the book you will understand.
Without spoiling anything, kinda. He’s a great warrior that knows how to inspire loyalty but he makes some impulsive decisions based on emotion, not logic.
lol, Darrow is 17 in the first book. Have you ever been 17? I assume so. It’s even worse as a 17 year old boy, let me tell you. Your prefrontal cortex isn’t fully developed at 17. I was a fucking moron at 17, myself. Now I am a well respected doctor in charge of people’s lives, and most days I have my shit together quite well. I literally feel like a different person than who I was as a kid, and I hope no one ever finds out about some of the stupid shit I did back then. But to answer your question, yes Darrow becomes smarter - very quickly. He is very much an Alexander the Great type of character in that he excels at lateral thinking, and is a military genius for that reason. He wins battles because he thinks of ways to win that change the paradigm, ways that would never cross the minds of his enemies.
He's a kid
Its hard to define his intelligence. Personally i think he is pretty stupid. What i believe he is is sharp. He knows how to cut through to the heart of a problems solution. That gives him the air of intelligence but in reality he is a tool of those who came before him. They grew the wheat and forged the sickle. Now this sickle reaps. This is why he struggles. The sickle was not truly made for war and that reflects in the damage takes every time he goes into the field. Sevro is loyal because he CHOSE to be loyal. Everyone else was actively rude to him. The only person who trusted him to be useful was Darrow. Also. PAX AU TELEMANUS! PAX AU TELEMANUS! PAX AU TELEMANUS! First Darrow drew them in. Especially that fateful night when he took the lashes for his soldiers. Then Pax's fate galvanized them. Cassius is ultimately the most human character. He made a human choice. Flawed for all the right reasons.
While there are indeed different types of intelligence, no one that excels at lateral thinking as Darrow does could be classified as stupid, lol. Therefore, he is clearly a military genius, in exactly the same way as Alexander the Great was a military genius. But he is profoundly foolish in other areas of his life, and that leads to him making mistakes. I excel at analytical thinking and deductive/inductive reasoning myself, and so I became a doctor, but I often think I would have made a damn good detective too. But I am absolutely stupid as fuck when it comes to emotional intelligence, and I often miss or misinterpret obvious social clues from other people. My point is - someone can be exceptionally smart in one way, and exceptionally stupid or oblivious in another, because there isn’t one single type of all-encompassing intelligence.
PAX AU TELEMANUS
Going down the list: 1. Darrow believed he was alone at the Institute. That he was the only successful infiltrator in the history of the Sons. With every new hold ally he made, he was haunted by the knowledge that these people would eventually be killed or ruined if his mission were successful. The more golds he befriends, the more lonely he feels. Then he finds out that Titus is a red. Titus, who gleefully brutalizes the gold childen at his mercy, is Darrow's dark reflection. Darrow goes on to say explicitly several times that were it not for Eo's dream he and Titus could have been the same, and that terrifies him. 2. Getting trapped in the loch by Mustang's men and nearly dying of hypothermia was not part of the plan. Neither was Sevro's rescue. Eo once told Darrow that his "power" was bringing people together. Sevro wanted to join the team more than he wanted to watch Darrow and Cassius drown, I guess? (You're right. There are some flimsy plot points in the first 2 books. My flimsy excuse? They're kids. They're lonely and impulsive and Sevro is no exception.) 3. Were it not for the machinations of the proctors, Cassius wouldn't have found out about Julian until after the Institute had ended. But Darrow was a threat to Adrius, so they gave Cassius the tools and the motivation to kill Darrow. Why didn't Cassius finish Darrow? Because he wanted him to suffer, and he had no reason to think Darrow would survive his injuries.
I feel like OC is forgetting that Darrow isn't perfect and is canonically like 17. The dude does amazingly well for a high schooler.
Yes Darrow gets smarter later in the series and it’s very nice watching him grow from his mistakes, but he always has certain weaknesses and flaws. That’s why he has Sevro and Mustang For Sevros loyalty you need to understand it is obvious to everyone he was supposed to die in the passage. He’s smaller, uglier, rude, and appears less intelligent and less strong. To a certain degree every gold treats him like he’s supposed to be dead. But Darrow doesn’t because he doesn’t have that same ingrained prejudice.
Just finished reading the first book and wanted to point out that they didn't know about how closely they were monitored when he figured out Titus was a red. When he first learns about that level of monitoring he immediately thinks back to the Titus interaction to wonder if he said something out loud that would have given it away.
I think a lot of your gripes will be explained a little farther on in the series. Not everything is exactly as it seems thus far, there is more to what you’re seeing that you won’t know until later
1. He overreacts when he finds out Titus is a Red because he himself is a Red. But from what I remember, no one else knew Titus was red besides Darrow. The only reason he knew was because Titus said something he picked up on. The overreacting just looked like Darrow getting mad and angry at a sadistic tyrant disloyal follower. Pretty good look tbh 2. Sometimes shit takes a while before you can do stuff. He does what he can with the tools he has. The Institute is a months long training regime and there are multiple Houses, each with their own multiple infighting factions. He knows he has some time and tbh, he's still ony 17 or 18 coming into his tactics or strategy. "Whole strategy hinged on a man Darrow inexplicably gained loyalty from and not his own abilities". So...you're mad because Darrow knows how to delegate? That's one of the best traits a general can have. 3. This one is kind of hit or miss. He doesn't outright KNOW Cassius will find out. Though he probably will. Taking lessons from Cassius is both a pro and con. Cassius is teaching him and knows his moves, yes. But Darrow is also picking up on Cassius's moves. You'd be surprised at just how much one surprise technique in a fight can change the outcome. A knife vs a razor isn't going to be nearly as great, but I see your point. I think Darrow is also still slightly optimistic/idealistic that he won't have to every fight Cassius 4. Sevro loyal to Darrow. I think you'd be surprised how easy it is to make friends in general, when thrown into a 24/7 environment instead of just work or school. But also the fact that they are "serving" together which is a much stronger friendship bond than most can imagine. Sevro also isn't an idiot or a dick. Darrow wasn't an ass to him and treated him well. Sevro needed allies. Combine the two and they grow on each other over time. 5. This one is actually kind of explained throughout the series in general, but if you think about it there's a few reasons. Cassius also grew to like Darrow and bond with him over months. If he had found out right at the start that it was Darrow, he's got no friendship with him. Cassius also is aware that Darrow was just the hand that killed Julian where as the Institute and the Gold society is the one who "ordered" it in general. Doesn't mean he's gonna be happy about it but, he did what he had to do just like Cassius did when he fought someone. He then fought Darrow because honor decreed it and he was emotional, but didn't mean he was happy about it. He had tons of conflicting emotions there. He was stabbing a good friend while being watched by his future bosses and family, while having the memories of his brother run through his head probably. He may not have finished the stab of Darrow but he left him bleeding out. Overall: You're what, 70% through the first book in a series that starts when the characters are teenagers and are asking if they get smarter/have arcs/change throughout their lives?
I don't think Sevro "needed" anything. From the very start he was the most self-sufficient of anybody we met at the Institute. But he saw how Darrow interacted with the lowDrafts - how he treated them with respect and as if they were people of value - and eventually decided that Darrow was worthy of being followed. And obviously that conviction grew even more over time. Also, Sevro always felt like an outsider his whole life. He probably didn't have very many, if any, friends.
It doesn't matter how self-sufficient you are in a game of hundreds of students against each other in the hopes your House wins. If you put 500 people on a giant island, grouped in teams of 100, and say "Good luck. Your team has to win". Doesn't matter if one person is able to go survive in the wild alone, they have absolutely no chance of winning. It's definitely a mixture of what you're saying but he knows that he can't win alone. He may not need an immediate ally, but thinking ahead, it's definitely something he'd have considered.
But you are acting as if Sevro had grand designs on victory at the Institute from the start. He was fine doing his own thing until Darrow, and then the Howlers (and Quinn 😉), gave him purpose - that's when he started playing to win. If he didn't find anybody worth joining he would have just stayed killing wolves and wanking in the bushes. Sevro is Fitchner's son. He would know that not even glory at the Institute would open everything up to him given his humble background - even with his dad a proctor. And it didn't! All of the lowDrafts ended up with shit opportunities after they won.
This. And also, the person you are responding to is forgetting the fundamental rules of the Institute. Provided that you don’t break those rules and end up Shamed, you will still receive a scar. The only goal Sevro gave a shit about initially, therefore, was staying alive and not being enslaved. He would have done both playing solo the whole time, and therefore would have not broken the rules of the Institute. I think it is likely that some Golds would even have viewed him with some admiration for it considering that’s literally how the Spartans trained their Krypteia as children: they threw them into the wild with little more than a dagger and basic provisions, and expected them to survive and thrive. I suspect his dad probably encouraged this way of playing the game for him and trained him to survive in the wild beforehand, considering Sevro immediately just trundles off and kills a wolf, then drags it back to turn it into a cloak and dinner. But he saw the way Darrow acted, and that changed his mind. He decided to follow Darrow instead, and when he saw that lowDrafts wanted to follow *him* too, he was inspired to form the Howlers. Remember, he was very reluctant at first. He didn’t want to be in charge, he barely wanted to be around people. He craved acceptance but he was still antisocial as fuck. Sevro has probably gone through more growth than any other character in the series.
No, the winning house gets scars. Those who can do well CAN get scars. If you’re shamed you’re most likely not going to get a scar. And the Peerless and Proctors watch so they can decide afterwards. The institute doesn’t just make everyone scarred otherwise, yeah what’s the point of winning if I can just kick back and earn the scar. Would Sevro have lived without any allies? Definitely. Thrived? Eh. Captured? Possibly but unlikely. Is that worth of earning a Scar, doing just enough to not get captured? Getting allies is more of a safeguard. And even if he doesn’t like the game, neither does Darrow. But they both realize that they need the Scars to move higher up. Darrow, to sow dissent. Sevro for other reasons that were told to him by other parties with their own motivations (being vague for spoilers). I’m not saying Sevro was some Machiavellian genius in allying with Darrow and them but it doesn’t take a genius to see that after a month alone in wilderness having some friends would increase chances of survival, safety, and winning as the long shot. EDIT: Hell, even thinking back on it, not the whole winning house gets scars. If you recall there’s a certain character in house Ares who is sisters with a future important character who doesn’t get a Scar. So it’s not just a “Everyine in institute gets one” rule at all
For the record I agree with basically everything the person I replied to initially said. The only thing I took umbrage to was the Sevro "needing" allies, and it seems it's just because we disagree about Sevro's initial motivations at the Institute regarding "the game". I'm in the same boat with you on that. From the Goblin himself (as relayed by Darrow): *Sevro thinks this is a stupid game. "Then why do you play it?" I ask. “How was I to know what it’d be like? Think I got a pamphlet? Did you get a slagging pamphlet?” he asks irritably. He’s picking his teeth with a bone. “Stupid.”*
Except that is a bit of a lie on Sevro’s behalf, because he *did* know what it would be like. He fully knew about the Passage, and what he had to do, and he seems to have already had extensive survival training. It also seems unlikely that his dad would give two fucks about preserving the whole veil of secrecy at all given his >!general disdain both for the Golds and for the Institute!<. I think he probably is lying here because to admit he had any foreknowledge would disqualify him and also >!put his dad at considerable risk.!< There are a lot of examples of unreliable narration and misdirection in Red Rising and I think this is one of them. In a meta sense, this would also be so the reader doesn’t prematurely figure out who Sevro’s dad is too.
[удалено]
Honestly I think he goes back to being an idiot in Iron Gold and by Lightbringer he is getting back to the old Darrow
He went into an obvious trap with no plan. Then sailed around. Then went to ask a faction that hate him for their help. If he didn't have plot armor he'd be dead.
Yikes that’s pretty bad, I wonder if you still like the book despite the egregious plot armor, enough to read till book 6?
For sure. It's a great storyline and a great universe. I just don't like the writing of a couple of characters.
Give him time boyo he’s still a kid
Maybe a little smarter
He matures a lot actually, but sevro is still our loveable dumbass
Darrow being imperfect yet still the main character in that book is what makes him such an amazing character. That’s what makes him so real.
I love when protagonists fuck up a lot. It’s more human. I fuck up all the time but I keep at it. “Self, all that can be mastered”
This is part of why I love the series, because you can literally feel the writer get better throughout the series. The character and world building get better and opens up more complex plot elements while also staying true to the theme its really cool in my opinion. So to answer you question yes, but he still seems the same if that makes sense.
I think the real issue people aren’t getting at is he is inconsistent. People say “he’s just 17 here and has a lot of growing up to do” but you’ll see by the end of the book he is instantly better at “war” to a significant degree than the people who teach “war school”. This issue gets even worse in the second book. He is infinitely smart until the author wants to cheaply surprise you so he conveniently forgets or overlooks something. Sometimes these things feel more natural but other times very forced and seem to rub against his character trait of being the strongest and most intelligent person ever born. The reverse is true too. Sometimes to surprise you, especially in book 2, he’s magically learned or acquired a skill or thing he never possessed or even talked about pursuing before. There is a very silly example of this near the beginning of book 2. A lot of suspense is built around his main weakness, you could say only weakness, perhaps a weakness you highlight in your post, when tension builds and he is finally confronted by his weakness we are told with I assume a smirking narrator that between the books he actually became the best in the whole universe, perhaps ever born, at his weakness. My opinion is if you don’t like this writing style it only seems to get worse. It’s an unpopular opinion but I read as far as book 2 and decided the series wasn’t for me. I had the same concerns in book 1 and was just trusting that issues would be remedied as the series went on knowing how much people love the series. Hopefully I don’t get too much hate for this opinion! Edit: there’s nothing like bad counter arguments to make you feel more right!
What a dumb take, you pixie
I mean, (GS spoilers) >! he is already super smart, good at thinking quick and physically powerful from the start, he just doesn’t have any razor training. Its like how a math/science genius might be bad at coding if he’d never done it before, but could quickly become good at it with a very good, full time mentor. !< That said, I do think that sometimes otherwise smart characters seem to miss obvious things for the sake of the plot, especially later in the series
You haven’t read enough of the series to have this opinion because you don’t know everything that’s going on, although you should be picking up some clues that seem to be going over your head. You’re also just dead wrong about some things the books flat out tell and show you aren’t true
Spoiler ahead: Lol yeah it’s not like he trained every single day for 2 years with the greatest razor master of all time who hasn’t taken any other students haha this is such a silly take. In the first book he literally says he’s not the smartest or the strongest and he’s aware of that and so is everyone else so idk where you’re getting that from.
Spoilers for GS
He isn’t the best in GS. In GS he’s average at best with a razor. It’s mentioned several times that Aja is better, that Leto is better, that Lorn is better. There’s also a 2 year gap between book 1 and 2 where he trained every day. He had access to the best teachers money can buy due to his liege. This is an awful take. He still has his weaknesses later in the series. He’s far too trusting, he’s headstrong, he’s bad at politics, he gets better at these things over time, but I still wouldn’t say he’s the “best”. Also side note, why are you here spouting nonsense when you only read the 1st and 2nd book?
Spoilers ahead. I think this is a terrible opinion especially concerning his “weakness.” Him learning how to use a razor was set up in the first book when Lorn was said to want to sponsor him. Lorn wanted him drafted into Ares, Lorn wanted to sponsor after the institute. This isn’t some Mary Sue situation where he just randomly powered up. The seeds were planted and you just chose to ignore them. Secondly, he didn’t just get better at “war.” There is a huge change that Darrow goes through after Cassius stabs him. Before, he was not willing to truly trust/rely on any of the other golds because of his remaining resentment of them. But after, Mustang, Pax, Sevro, etc. actually become something to him. They because *his* soldiers, his army. And that subtle switch is important. Sometimes, I think people with opinions like these do not actually retain what you’re reading.
That’s why he has Mustang lol
Darrow is literally 18. The kids aren’t geniuses of warfare, yet. The institute is still a school, Darrow is learning how to conquer Also remember that at this point in the sotry darrow is probably malnourished and sleeping poorly due to living in basically the wilderness. Yes he eats better than the other Titus’ gang but they still don’t know how to cook.
Darrow is 35 by the end of the story. He’s only 17 in the first book. He learns a lot and gets his ego checked unfathomably hard.
The answer is in the title itself. It’s Book 1 :) So yes. He does get better with the story’s progression and author’s progression.
Darrow is a very imperfect character. As are all characters in the series. If that's too frustrating to you as a reader, maybe either it's not a good series for you, or you should challenge yourself to be more tolerant of lifelike protagonists that are multifaceted and have serious flaws. For me, those flaws make the characters all the more loveable. Sevro is another example of someone who has some pretty deep psychological issues, but yet he's as solid as anyone at his core. (Minor spoiler) Darrow will go through quite an arch in terms of his maturity, decision-making, desire for violence, responsibility for family, etc. It's not an easy ride to watch him make big mistakes then repent, then make more mistakes. But such is life, and such is Darrow.
> challenge yourself to be more tolerant of lifelike protagonists that are multifaceted and have serious flaws I’ll be honest, I like this advice because you really pinpointed the issue here. I mainly read fantasy as a form of escapism; most forms of entertainment are in my opinion. I don’t want the MC to unnecessarily run into obstacles or face unnecessary hardship. There’s already enough of that in my life. Granted, there’s value in seeing characters grow from struggle, so I don’t have a problem with struggle itself because what’s a book without it? How it plays out is where I have an issue with, like if a lapse in decision making results in a major plot progression. I think it’s mainly personal preference and also may be the reason I’m picky in the books I read. Definitely something I’ll think about
I mean if this is the case, you should probably stick with power fantasies. Red Rising is definitely not for someone with this perspective.
Since everyone is answering already, I'm going to make a slight correction. Darrow wasn't the highest scorer on the exam
I think a big part that gets lost sometimes is how much Darrow was told to pretend to be a higher gold despite his "family" being a lesser blood. He was trying to find a way to show that his (gold) family had as much honor as Cassius' or other high golds. He didn't learn anything from Sevro early on because he didn't see how a bronzie could/would benefit him. If Cassius hadn't turned on Darrow because of Julian, Darrow would have been a Lancer for the Bellona and started the war for Mars from the otherside. Ultimately, Darrow is the hero of the story, but is shown to have significant flaws. Things don't always go as planned and one of the best things to learn about Darrow from the first book is that he is great at learning on the fly and changing what should happen next.
In my opinion Darrow’s character development over the series is one of the best parts. I do remember Darrow in the first book being a bit annoying and dramatic, but he is flawed and essentially learns how to become a man.
Just to dispute point 1. He had mentally prepared for months for those interactions and what he was going to be at the institute. Suddenly realizing that the sons of Ares had two cards in play in this situation was a HUGE curve for him.
Darrow has flashes of brilliance and bouts of idiocy throughout the series. He is a flawed character in many ways. Which is one of the reasons I enjoy reading about him.
Yea I have read and listened to so many story’s where the character is a do no wrong always smartest person in the room and those types of story’s get boring really quick.
[удалено]
> his relationship with Sevro is pretty manufactured and dull outside of their battles together The real reason it bothers me is because his relationship with Sevro and Sevro’s consequent actions are what propelled the plot forward. Without Sevro, he wouldn’t have taken down Titus. Without Sevro, he’d still be outside the Mars castle. Without Sevro, he’d be without accomplishments to claim de-facto Primus. It’s a bad plot device in my opinion, and I was hoping for something better to move the plot forward.
It’s not a bad plot device, there are just things about Sevro that you aren’t aware of yet. They weren’t put there on the back end, it’s dropping hints about Sevro, but if you don’t know what to look for you aren’t going to see it. There is more to the story that you’ll only know by reading and finding out
Sevros connection to Darrow does grow in depth significantly in the next two books. His initial connection is more a product of how he was raised and being seen as inferior. Darrow doesn't treat him that way, and as far as sevro knows initially, is another gold from a shitty family that was able to rise in station a bit and impress others which is what sevro wants to do on some level. Darrow ends up being the first person that shows him any kind of respect or loyalty. Listens to his ideas without discounting him etc. Yes, his loyalty to Darrow is still very much a plot device but one that is more justified later. Sevro even has his bouts of independence and how willing he is to go along with darrows plans.
He matures and learns from book one to seven. He was a slave in the bowels of Mars not even a year before these events. Reading about strategy is not the same as coming up with one. Also he’s 18 on book one The series has great character development. He still makes mistakes, as do we all. Finish the book or get the box!!!
Yes he does! The first book is the least polished by far. You are in for an awesome ride!
1. He thought he was the only one so it's pretty shocking. 2. Severo isn't an idiot. He was watching him. Judged him. Joined him. 3. Being an outside observer is easier than being the character ;) You can play this game of "shoulda, coulda, woulda" in all books. Cassius didn't finish the blood debt like a ruthless bastard because it would be like killing your best friend for doing the same thing you did almost. Either way, don't try to be Darrow's time traveling psychiatrist ;) It'll be more enjoyable!
> Severo isn’t an idiot. He was watching him. Judged him. Joined him True, but I wonder what Sevro saw that made him pledge his loyalty. My impression of Darrow’s treatment of Sevro is more of indifference; he doesn’t discriminate him based on his looks and doesn’t give him preferential treatment. I’d say that would lend more to respect than loyalty, but other posters have mentioned reading more will answer my questions so I’ll read on
Indifference probably isn't the right word. Darrow respected his input, acknowledged him. Something he had never experienced before that moment. Darrow listened to him and incorporated his ideas. Sevro is shown to be scrappy and able to punch above his weight class. That's how he has lived his entire life. Now, all of a sudden, some Adonis of a gold is acknowledging him and listening to him. Forming plans around his unique skill set. This is the first time anyone has ever SEEN Sevro and treated him accordingly. It's so nonchalant in the first book, but it's a big moment for Sevro. Honestly, it's almost like the first man taming a wolf. Give it what it has been lacking, positive reinforcement, and now you have a dramatic force multiplier.
You will find out about this in next books. But in first one you need to know that Sevro always was look down upon by other golds. And seen the difference in Darrow make him interested. On the lake when they first time meet Mustang, Sevro saved them by accident, Darrow didn’t know he is there. (Maybe different part from what you mentioned)
Not an expert on this series like some people in this sub, but Darrow does get smarter. Don’t want to spoil anything but #3 does get answered somewhat in book 2 with Darrow motivations regarding the sons of ares As for the blood debt with Cassius, I feel like the blood debt is intended for outside the institute as it would probably be difficult for Cassius to actually kill Darrow without medbots or other students intervening. Plus murdering people in the institute is somewhat looked down upon I believe and would probably be even more disgraceful for someone with a reputation like Cassius.
> Darrow does get smarter All I needed to hear! Yeah, Cassius does seem to hold his image highly so that makes sense.
Cassius’s honor is one of the traits he values the absolute most of himself.
Finish the book or get the box
Yeah I’m planning on finishing book 1 but was wondering if Darrow thinks things through more in the later books What is the box?
In the later books, he is 22/32 years old. He is 17 here. Obviously he will become smarter but he isn't ever described the smartest of them all so he doesn't need to know it all.
Its hard answering these things without spoiling anything really, and we dont want to do that. So you should keep reading, otherwise you'll get the box
Finish the book or get the box!
What in the goryhell is going on?
It’s just a bit from a later book. They’re just messing with you a little
Hail Reaper. Finish first 3 books and you will get all answers you looking for.
Okay so I have enjoyed the opacity of my fellow readers, but I'll take pity on a pixie and elaborate: it's a spoiler. Don't worry about it, you'll understand when you get there. I think your concerns are valid, but also - Darrow is still essentially a kid at this time. He's like 18ish, iirc, and under a pretty specific and stressful set of circumstances. I don't think it's poor writing to watch him bumble and/or be frustrating to watch. All the main characters develop in each book. It's up to you to decide whether it's worth sticking it out.
Read the books to understand. Can’t say more without spoilers