About AJ and why his acting is NORMAL.
I saw a lot of people saying he is Carver's son, he is a psycho that deserve to die, he is a little shit worst than ben and people hoping him do be eaten alive by walkers and etc...
People don't understand that he is not a normal kid raised with others
1-AJ bites Ruby/hits Marlon- For years since his birth he was with Only with Clem, meaning that if something was behind him, if not Clem, was a monster. He couldn't take the chance for a (cool non-violent) reaction while a something is touching him in the back is touching him.
2-AJ took the diary of someone else- He was on the run all his live. (except few month of the new frontier) All is left of book are nothing but old memories of the old world. Clem started teaching AJ Privacy and people's requests only when they saw the couple in the train station. Before that, everything was ok to look and read.
3-AJ steal toy from Tenn- Well 75% of us as little kid at least onece had took a toy from someone without asking. AJ know that there is no store to buy toy like when we asked mommy for a new toy. So the only option for him to get a toy he like is stealing it for sometimes to play with.
4-AJ shooting ++++++- AJ was raised to kill all threat calling it monsters. (surely by Clem) There was a huge thunder, a dog bigger than him barking it's head off, everyone screaming, ++++++ was willing to kill ++++ few times, Fist 2 days he ever was in a community with Clem (except one ending in season 2) What do you expect him to do? Staying calm like no big deal is happening?
5 -And other stuff- Manners is something he never had to do. How can he just be eating with a spoon if he never really had?... Sleeping under the bed is a normal thing for him to survive since sleep is where you are the most vulnerable. Talking with others... well... the real discuss he had was with Clem and a mother-son type of discuss is NOTHING like 2 person that just met.
YOU CAN NOT LIKE HIM! This is not my point. It's just to says that his actions are normal and Clem must switch from survive in the wild to live in a community.
Comments
I really don't like him, I get his behavior to a degree is justified by his circumstance, but that doesn't change the insffurrable annoyance he's become in this group.
There's little to nothing endearing about him, He's constantly causing problems, he has little self control and regardless of what we try to teach him, he ends up making things severely worse.
Honestly the group is well within reason from their perspective to wanting AJ and Clementine gone. Within only a few days, AJ has been an absolute pain to deal with and now he just murdered their leader and right after recklessly threatening Marlon.
But there's no reason to kill Marlon! He dropped the gun! He said I'm done! Are you saying AJ doesn't understand what that means? Well he does! It would only make sense if he killed Marlon whilst he was being agressive towards Clem! After the gun was dropped, AJ was dead set on eliminating him because fuck life. The kid himself wanted to kill Marlon since that wasn't an option for Clem.
tbh AJ is a little annoying. I can understand why he read the diary though. It was sitting right there and he was curious about it (most kids are like that). Asaim should have been a little nicer about it.
Im too nice to tell him to read it did assim say anything embarrassing about us? Maybe that's why he reacted
The reason he did it is because there were barely any people in his childhood and Clem raised him to take things, as any survivor would do in an apocalypse. He doesn't understand the exception with people.
Aj did grow up in a zombie apocalypse and he's still just a child plus marlon was being threatened towards clem and marlon pushed him. Marlon set aj off and he paid a price for it. His life.
I was gonna call out this post for stating the obvious but damn, do people seriously not understand why AJ acts the way he does? Also, my god, people are quick to judge AJ. He's not supposed to be a little angel like Clem was, there's a whole parallel to season 1 here to be found. Growing up in a toxic environment like the apocalypse has its effect on you, man. I'm guessing it'll be up to us to teach AJ not just how to survive but how to act. I fucking love AJ despite his (major) faults and will not be abandoning him any time soon.
I agree. People forget that at the stage of development AJ is at (at about age 6) there's only Good and Evil. Don't believe me, there is this dude called Kohlberg that has a whole theory on it that says exactlty this. You can see it when AJ complains in the shack at the start of the game that there aren't many people left and if you as Clem choose the option 'Careful what you wish,' you imply that there are many bad people out there. AJ says "But we are good." You see it, Good vs Bad. Nothing in between, no shades of grey as it should be at the stage of development he is currently at.
In the whole scene with Marlon AJ keeps getting confirmation that Marlon is indeed a Bad Dude (he locked Clem in the basement, he killed Brody, he was going to give Clem and him to raiders). Put that with the fact that he is not wired like a normal kid because he was born in the Apocalypse and his gun is like an extension of himself, he took action. He killed "the bad dude." The fact that he's not a psychopath is obvious because of how confused he looks after he shoots. The fact that he shot isn't proof that he's Carver's kid, he just doesn't know at his age that people aren't just good or bad.
tl;dr: AJ is not evil or crazy. At his age there is only Good and Bad. He wasn't taught about the shades of grey yet, and the scene established Marlon as Bad. Chuck that with him being a child born in the Apocalypse and you get Marlon's brains splattered on the ground.
"I was pretty good before everything happened. Alot had changed since then"
Since when a kid doesn't cause problem in a new environement. Plus they all understand that AJ is not a teen like them but a kid so giving him time is normal. Their reaction at the end can be different tho
He needs to be thrown into an incubator alive
Just because there is an explanation doesnt excuse Aj's behaviour, he needs to learn how to behave around other people, shooting unarmed members of the group and his other behaviour cant continue
.....
I like AJ and i don't think his actions were inplausible for the reasons you stated.
Him shooting you know who is also not a reason for me to hate him, but to care for his state of mind. I mean, Clementine may not have killed someone in bad blood in S1, but she did lie about the walkie-talkie and got Lee and friends in danger. It's obviously not a fair comparison, but kids do shit like this.
Clementine lied, because that's what kids do in a normal world. AJ pulled the trigger, because that's what they've been told to do, especially if you were born into this broken world.
AJs social skills are not non-existent. They just don't exist on a level that characters, who were NOT born into the apocalypse, could possibly understand. This is why i love the way he's been written. He plays with his gun, like it's a toy, but he doesn't recognized firefighters or policemans. How can you possibly expect him to be fully aware of everything in every situation at any given time?
Not to the excessive degree of AJ where he bit a girl who had been taking care of him. Justified or not, AJ just does not have a likeable personality or much to like. He's good by himself, but horrible in a group setting. Also shooting an unarmed person who had surrender has no excuse for AJ who should have known better.
Exactly.
Maybe he'll hatch into something better?
Thats the point
Dude, he looks nothing like Carver. He looks like fat lazy Alvin Sr.
This just about sums it up & is coming from someone who wants to like AJ.
None said he had to be an angel and I didn't expect him to, but at least some degree of a likeable personality which by and large AJ does not. Your point of teaching AJ would be valid if it showed during this episode. I tried to teach AJ to be rational and civil yet he shoots Marlon all the same regardless. Yes he has minor showings of things we say, however when it counts that just gets disregarded.
I think AJ's actions at the end of the episode is somewhat on Clementine, to be honest.
AJ was taught to shoot monsters dead with no questions asked, but I don't think I remember seeing Clementine also teach AJ on how to identify a hostile human being and a surrendering one.
Clementine also (I presume) taught AJ on how to use a gun. Giving a child a gun and teaching him how to kill is a big, big, responsibility on her part.
The problem is,and this has already been mentioned in other threads,that he doesnt listen to Clem,she repeatedly tells him during the episode that what hes doin its not ok but he still does it anyway because he doesnt give a shit
,im also pretty sure that clem did teach him not to kill and bite people before S4 started
AJ's fucked up in his current state. I'm guessing the incident at the end of episode 1 will be a wake up call to Clem. Calm down, guy, there's plenty left of the season.
One thing I keep thinking about in regards to AJ Killing Marlon, is that In a court of Law, Clem would be held accountable for AJ's actions. She is his guardian and it's on her for not teaching AJ why killing Able is necessary and killing Marlon was not. I understand why Clem has not prioritized teaching him these differences, they live in a kill or be killed world. But once they decided to stay in someone else's home safe behind their walls, she should have taken the gun privileges away from him. It's understandable why the kid can't differentiate between the two situations. But Clem not thinking ahead and realizing how dangerous AJ really is is all on her.
Honestly I've liked AJ since I've saw him in the trailer. I like that he's not a whiny little shithead (like Gabe who we don't talk about but I despise with a burning passion) and doesn't get on my nerves. I like that if push comes to shove he could most likely defend himself without my help. I like that he is skilled with a gun. The fact that he bit that girl and took Tenn's toy didn't annoy me like other people in this sub is because... when I was his age I was a troublemaker too lol. I certainly never bit someone but my mom told me I used to play with other kid's toys at the playground but I would refuse to share my own with them haha. Kids be like that sometimes.
And of couse executing an unarmed man at gunpoint can't be excused even though there is an explanation to it, but I've slid into the role of his guardian. When he makes a mistake it's my duty to discipline him as well as it's my duty to protect him.
There's 3 episodes left, and I doubt AJ will undergo that much of a social change. And I doubt that the group will even be accepting of him even if he is. Granted I could be absolutely wrong.
Meh, even if he won't I'll still love him. I guess that's just because I like imperfect characters with big personality flaws. I still think AJ is trying his best.
Aj shooting Marlon after Marlon threatened Clementine and blamed her for Brody's dead. And even said that he was gonna give Aj and Clementine to the raiders while acting crazy and waving a gun around.
With this in mind, people are saying things like: 'I'M GONNA KILL AJ HE IS A LITTLE SHIT. HE MURDERED MARLON. Wtf?
I mean a busted one. Bolts flying everywhere, turned up to the max. Either that or bring back Ben from the dead and let him do something, throw him into a water tank and seal the hatch, drop him into a bit of walkers, lock him in a furnace or the classic: tickle torture. I have a very vivid imagination
Did you mean incinerator?
No. I genuinely meant the thing where you warm stuff up in... but like I said... a death trap rigged with broken glass, torn wires and stuff
Well at least in my game he dropped the gun and surrendered long before AJ shot him so...
Didn't you you die of cancer in Saw III?
Now I need to watch saw 3 to figure out what’s going on, and I’ll have to watch the previous 2 because I don’t start a series half way through. Stupid Alvin jr breaking my trust though. Little man is not right in the head... coming from me... ?
There's like eleven Saw movies
I disabled him
Insert MegaLUL here
I don’t know what game you were playing. Throughout the episode AJ does most of the things Clem tells him to do.
At the beginning of the episode when Clem says “Inside a new place we find a way out/ check the windows/ find a place to hide.” AJ will remember this and later in the episode when they enter their room AJ will scan for the things Clem had previously told him.
If Clem tells him whether or not he is allowed to curse, he will listen and it will effect whether or not he curses throughout the episode.
If Clem tells him to respect Aasim’s privacy, he will.
When AJ asks for advice before he apologizes to Ruby he will adhere to whatever advice Clem gives him.
If you chose to go hunting, when Louis, Clem, and AJ investigate the shack, AJ will take note of whether or not Clem kicked the door open or if she opened it slowly later copying whatever Clem did as they enter their room later that night.
Even at the end when he shoots Marlon, he is still adhering to Clem’s advice from the beginning of the episode. He did in fact, aim for the head/ didn’t hesitate/ save the last bullet for himself.
The lesson he doesn’t really pick up on is if Clem spares Abel and allows him to steal the food they had just worked so hard to obtain. AJ is still a very young kid and if you expect absolutely every lesson you gave him to immediately sink in, you are delusional.
If Clem allowed Abel to steal a portion of the food in AJ’s eyes Clem gave away a good junk of the reward that Clem, AJ, Louis, and Violet had just risked their lives to obtain and he sees Abel as an undealt with threat should he come back. If Clem attacked Abel, AJ sees it as Clem was protecting him, herself, and the reward for risking their lives, he is too young and doesn’t have a firm enough concept of morality to understand the difference between attacking a person who was an active threat vs a person who has stood down.
AJ has a very different concept of reality and morality than basically everyone. He doesn’t understand complex moral situations. His whole life has basically been him and Clem against the world. In his experience whenever something or someone comes up behind him, that thing is a threat and the only way to survive is to attack and get away. For as long as AJ can remember whenever there is a threat you kill it, preferably as fast as possible. At the end of the episode the way AJ saw it, Marlon was a threat to Clementine and himself and if spared there was the chance that he would come back to hurt them later.
I don’t agree with what AJ did at the end of the episode but when you consider his upbringing his actions are understandable. If given the chance I will probably take away AJ’s gun because he needs to be educated about these complex moral situations and learn the difference between an active threat and a person who has stood down.
I guess you don't get it either. The reason he bit her is because there were barely any people in his childhood and Clem raised him to take things, as any survivor would do in an apocalypse. He doesn't understand the exception with people. You get the reason why he did it but for the wrong reasons. AJ isn't a normal person. He's an apocalypse person.
I get it man, I do. I was trying to ilustrate for people who see AJ as an "annoying kid who dosent listen to Clem," that even if that was true (which is not, because AJ is a kid born in the apocalypse with a different mindset than normal) kids do that sometimes. They don't want to share toys and burp at dinner and I don't see why people are so annoyed by that.