It's so interesting to me that, unlike almost all other fromsoftware bosses, we don't end up killing Rennala. Also kind of adorable that Ranni protects her mother from us and tells us to just leave her alone.

lol, Ranni made a phantom version of her mother whose last words are "Ranni, my daughter, is such a genius, I love and support her so much, follow ur dreams bb" Iconic.

*Sees a statue of Radagon. "Ah, yes Marika." That's hilarious in more than one way.

To me, The freeze frame of Renala “looking like a crescent moon” reads more as an embryo, especially with the trimmings of her gown flowing up to the ceiling like an umbilical cord. Which I like as the queen of rebirth

Something important to remember: The "sweetings" AREN'T simply constructs of Rennala's magic. Those used to be scholars at Raya Lucaria who used Rennala's powers of rebirth (represented in-game as respeccing and remaking your character) one too many times, as in-universe each time it's used, you lose a little more of yourself until you regress into... those. All conveniently in Rennala's image.

In support of Rennala as not just a silking brokenhearted character, her words when you defeat her ; "Oh little Ranni, my dear daughter, weave thy night into being" and as you realize what Ranni's plan is, and that Rennala was not only aware of it but most likely an active part of it, paints the queen as a much more active part of the overarching story

The comedic timing on that "Oath sworn what?" 🤣

"Oathsworn WHAT?!" is the best phrase in this episode.

The running joke of the themesong when the giant ball runs down the path is hilarious and gets me every time

Truly one of the most gorgeous boss fights I've ever seen. And yes! You CAN learn all the spells she's using. It's up to you to figure out how

The most heart racing thing in the boss fight is whether or not he'd get to see her summon a motherfucking dragon

past Skyen: doggo and moon lady go together... future Skyen like a year later: Who do you think you are?

Probably my favorite boss designs analysis so far. Rennala taking the time to recover and restore herself to before she was broken resonates with me not just because it's a wonderfully hopeful interpretation of her story, it also elevates what I personally experienced when playing the game for the first time myself. Discovering the ability to rebirth myself with an in-world lore mechanic was the match that finally lit the very, very long fuse that was me questioning my gender identity, and ultimately led me to find not only myself, but a community of people I connect to and can share my experiences with. Rennala kickstarting that part of my life was definitely a highlight of 2022 for me among other things, that made it one of the happiest years that I've had in a long time. And now, with this analysis, I've been given another gift. Having gone though a pretty bad breakup years ago from a toxic relationship, there was a good while of feeling heavy and hopeless that I had to drag myself through the mud to recover from. I felt that with Rennala as she weakly crawled towards the amber egg. It just so happened that the process of returning to a place where I feel recovered and happy with myself again coincided with the release of Elden Ring, which was when I started exploring who I was. So not only did Rennala open the gates to me finally feeling like a Full Moon myself, her own story also represents the long, painful, but ultimately triumphant and cathartic return to form I experienced personally. Not only fully recovered, but even better than she was before being broken. I always love your episodes, but this one was quite special to me. Thank you for everything you do, Skyen.

"Oath-sworn what?" The Oath-Sworn What: *BONK*

With context of spoilers, there is something uplifting about knowing Rennala survives the events of the game.

Gideon: "You've met my cute little daughter! Despite how dainty and delicate she appears, Pookie's really quite good in battle, so-" Skyen looks at the mighty thews on Barbarian Warrior Nepheli: "???"

The big ball they throw at you on the stair case up to Moongrum and Rennala always being accompanied by the Indiana Jones theme will never not make me giggle. Such a wonderful running joke.

The context of her obsession with reincarnation hit me a bit different with the later revelations we get about Ranni herself. Also. Take a closer look at the statue of "Marika" in Rennala's study.

Rennala's design looks like she could portray the Queen of the Night in an all-Elden Ring performance of Mozart's 'The Magic Flute'. I can just imagine her belting out "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" at full volume while pressing a knife into the hand of Ranni and commanding her to... hold on... hold on _one... damn... second..._

I love the Boss Designs so much exactly because of episodes like this one. I found the obvious tragic reading in Renala, without really considering the waxing crescent moon angle. Skyen's insights are great for sparking deeper thought on these games.

I'd never thought of the concept that Rennala was rebirthing herself through the amber egg, but it makes so much sense. Considering the themes of some other character in game with rebirth, it's an angle that honestly makes more sense than her just being heartbroken. It never sat right with me that she was so broken by Radagon leaving her with how she's characterised in so many parts of the lore. She'd be hurt sure, but with how strong and determined she's supposed to be, it never quite added up for me.

So that's what Rennala looks like with a +2 weapon. I've literally never seen the Gravestone mechanic myself.

TB Skyen: "OMG what did she just summoned?!" Bloodhound knight: *giggles in dog*

At 21:15 the chat bubble says: “*exclaims in delayed terror in sexy fireman calendar”

I have a bit of a different take on Rennala. We know that the Great Rune of the Unborn is stored within the amber egg, not Rennala herself, and that without it rebirth leaves only a flawed, damaged copy of the original. When we find Rennala, we discover - as did those sorcerors of Raya Lucaria, who surely checked in on her once the news of the marriage ending spread - that she has been reduced to a flawed, damaged version of her past self. I think she didn't want to live a life without Radagon, and then the egg worked its magic.

skyen: "oathsworn what?" giant: BONK

Rennala "I'm just working on myself right now" Caria Honestly though, given the two exes, Rennala never once mentions Radagon but Godfrey *spoiler* * * * Godfrey does and explicitly states that he would hold her in his arms again So I think between them, shes over her ex, hes not

One of my personal favorite bosses I just love the moon imagery in the second phase and I love crushing the small children with my great stars in the first phase

I LOVEEE the soundtrack, but especially the first phase. Though it’s a “gimmicky” fight, it certainly left me with a lasting impression in its visuals and gameplay (yes, a chandelier DID fall on me looney toons style my first try lol) and also, the audio of hitting the sweetings, that glass-cracking sound is SO satisfying.. GO RENNALA!!

Not sure why we're all going woo but WOO!

It's such a great spectacle fight. One of my favorites in the game. Ironically i found this one rather hard but i was doing a full glintstone intelligence build. She resisted all my attacks lol.

It’ll be a minute but I’m excited for when you arrive at Rykard and Mt. Gelmir. It’s probably got my favorite aesthetic and designs among the while game

Gaaaaaah! I must not spoil, but goddamit do I hope he finds his way to some the most lore significant NPCs... There is so much to unpack and so many interesting things that can be completely missed. I just hope he goes northwest, if ya'll know what I mean...

23:31 This is, in fact, Radagon. He has nothing on top and the posture is different. Besides, Rennala is one of the only few bosses that has no Marika's effige to respawn closer to her room.

I’m so excited that this series is back. I was praying that Skyen would be able to see the dragon before he finished the fight

I love the passive aggressive comments from Editor Skyen.

I was wondering what new you would add to the analysis of Rennala, and I love your alternate take on her broken nature to be of slowly piecing herself together. While I do think we're supposed to see her as pathetic and broken, I like that we can infuse a bit of hope in there.

I freaking love the soft indiana jones music every time the nouler rolls by. 😂😂

comment just to notice that the wolf of radagon does have a magic attack where he does the casting, it is a comet spell that has a description of being a sign of mastery of glintstone sorcery

If you put together an episode like 7.5, which is just the many many (many) hours of random exploration without any boss analysis, I will watch it twice

I'd love to watch a character design of Elden Ring where you go through a bunch of side quests and maybe summonable characters

You were such a Chad!! Giving the final blow while a dragon was summoned Respect!

Moongrum always takes his toll

I still can't believe Zullie of all people said that Ranni didn't summon an illusion of Rennala... Like, it's so obvious that that's what happened?

One of the prettiest boss fights with all the blue laser blasts flying around.

Funny you use that clip of Gwyn in the end, because I've been reading up on Darren Aronofsky's _The Fountain_ in recent years, and I've started to believe that the "Link the Fire" ending is meant to represent the player escaping the cycle of death, rebirth, and suffering that Buddhism states is the nature of existence and offering your life force to nourish the natural world so that it may flourish. Not unlike your interpretation of Dark Souls 2's throne ending, come to think of it. On that note, you may want to look into Japanese Buddhism and Shintoism and other Japanese belief systems, because, well, FROMsoft is a Japanese company and a lot of their work is created through a distinct cultural lens. If nothing else, it'll pay dividends upon dividends once you hit Sekiro!

Really looking forward to seeing your take on Ranni who, minor spoilers, we will see more of over the course of the game if you follow certain sidequests that I hope you do.

I was introduced to this series first in its Bloodborne incarnation, and have been massively enjoying it ever since. Thank you, Skyen, for making such an entertaining, surprisingly funny series at times due to the nature of games’ occasional sporadicness, as well as your own lovely humor. Thank you as well for offering your enlightening insight into the environment, culture, behavior and actions of the characters that are these games and their inhabitants. If nothing else, I and many others highly appreciate you.

algorythm boost! also loved that oathsworn bonk xD

Your editing is probaly my favorite of everyone I watch on youtube. The Indiana Jones music faintly fading in and out as the giant ball rolls passed is cracking me up. I'm glad you're doing boss designs again! I caught up on this series today, and I'm looking forward to the future videos cuz I don't watch any boodborne content from anyone else, so I don't really know anything about Elden Ring yet

At 4:50, I love how you see the two flames before you realize that they're on a candelabra. It gives a fleeting impression of a beast with glowing eyes rising out of the darkness.

Alright your panic after she tried to summon a dragon was hilarious lol

The fact that this series isn't finished is a travesty. I understand burnout and limited time but i want to hear your takes on these bosses so bad lol

So glad we got to see the dragon

What an empowering perspective. Rennala was in fact broken by Radagon’s betrayal at some point, yet she retrieves into herself to heal and mend her broken heart on her own. To once again be born anew in the splendor of the full moon.

I'd heard people mention Renalla a lot, but I didn't know what her deal was. I really liked getting your insight on this.

I must say i love the restorative take on Rennala, especially since it got me thinking. There is a third interpretation i think. Of someone who, while trying to heal, has clung to something that will never allow them to heal. Rennala is using the egg as a crutch, leaning on the idea of rebirth as a means to become the powerhouse she was, when in reality she eill never be that person again. Healing, afer all, isnt returning to a time before the wound, its adapting to life with the scars.

Absolute banger, i hadnt even rhought to think of the full moon queen in any way but tragic! I really do love the way you always nanage to make me see something in a brand new way, despite multiple playthroughs

I’m a simple guy. I see a new Skyen video and I click on it. This is what makes me happy. More please, dear sir.

Always love the episodes that discuss multiple readings

I've Loved all of boss design series so far and that was curious how I would feel about the elden ring series, considering I beat it awhile ago. And yet, as always, you still manage to offer brand new insight that I'd never considered before. I absolutely love your idea of a waxing crescent Queen Rennala.

Well I just wanted to say I found your channel through one of your bloodborn shorts and Im so glad I did! you're making it so entertaining to watch games that I didn't even know existed I can't help but binge watch them all haha... Thank you very much

The little gags like the Indiana Jones theme are one of the reasons I adore your content so much. Just *chefs kiss*

I just wanted to add, that the statue in Renala's room is not Marika, it's Radagon. Otherwise I'm loving this series and can't wait for the next part

For the record; I'd love to see just a cut of the side quests and adventuring as a break between episodes. Can't wait!

Just giving the alogrythm a boost

18:57 Rennala: “Come,Oath-sworn giant.” Skyen:…Oath sworn WHAT? Giant: *bonk intensifies*

So glad you're continuing this series! I love your commentary on these games.

Love the imagery for this boss, thanks for another great video!

YES, the elden ring vids are back! I love them so much and how incredibly talented you are at picking up on every singe subtle detail, please keep doing these videos they are GREAT. Cant wait for radabeast and some of the others!

Oh i LOVE your analysis of games and design, they always feel so rich and full!!! I always sit and go "ooooh shit oh i see it now... DAMN" and its just so refreshing to literally hear the wheels turning in your head as you walk around the world and visualize and make comparisons... Gah I just really love your work! Thank you for sharing your splendid talent and for always having such good takes!

"DRAGON?!?!?!?!" 🤣🤣🤣

I'm really grateful to you for you making this, as much as I love Elden ring, the idea that Rennala is nothing more than a women used up and cast aside by Ratagon, when she clearly was one of the biggest powerhouses of the lands between, really rubs me the wrong way, I couldn't deny the evidence but it felt Wrong and unfair to her, so having you give alternate read, that presents her as powerful but Healing from a wound, Of learning of newfound power and biding her time, is gratifying. It also makes some later ideas of what Marika and Ratagon are doing make more sense in my opinion, if you ever get to that confusing statue reveal thing (the Ratagon Statue that the Tortoise Pope mentioned). Regardless Thank you so much! I'm always a fan of the way you anyslysis things and this episode was a real treat!

21:06 Trogdor, Burninator of the Full Moon

It may have taken two years off your overall lifespan, but that was a spectacular finish to that fight!

I played Elden Ring before but kinda dropped it for a good while as I focused on other games that grabbed my attention. This series not only made me want to go back and start from scratch, but also try to be more attentive and actually piece things together whereas my previous playthrough was just... exploring and killing without much thought. I'm enjoying this second playthrough a lot more and it's definitely thanks to you, dood. It's also funny to see where our theories and hypothesis align and how we interpret certain things differently. PS: something I learned the hard way, armor is for drip, pump that vitality stat if you don't wanna get oneshot later on. Also, smithing stones can be made available at the Twin Husks' shop (an infinite amount of them), but I'll let you find out how to do that. Just dropping my two cents there, keep up the great analysis, my dood.

This has got me so excited for the rest of the series!

I absolutely love this more hopeful/positive view of Rennala’s character. She’s over that hoe Radagon, she’s just working on herself for now 😊 Given this theory, well. You’ll really like her kids, probably lol.

Ah Moongrum. I hope the "weakness" section on at least one of the wikis includes elevators.

Yes, you can learn all the sorceries Rennala uses against you! That's true of almost every spell enemy mages will wield.

Oh you're gonna LOVE 2 of her kids with that theory at the end.

KEEP UP THE HARD WORK SKYEN! I love this series

So awesome to see the series back - keep it going 😁

I watched this live and coming back to it I still find the way the tbskyen goes about his analysis to be the truly one of the only analysis channels that actually get to the heart of what these games are. Like yes I'll go on wiki's and put Vaati on to listen to while I draw but it feels like people take the "facts" someone else has said and just sit with them instead of asking themselves "what do I think it means?" I've never truly given Rennala the thought she deserves and I think that seeing her as frail and broken is a... Disservice. It's like saying Miquella is frail and broken because he's in a stasis. Rennala, who has the REBIRTH RUIN of PERFECT REBIRTH, is only creating short lived failed clones of herself out of the bodies of scholars when she can easily remake you without flaw when provided with the materials? It doesn't seem right to me. As well as the way Ranni talks about her sweet slumber like she's in power saving mode or something. Something else is going on with her. That being said I do think her looking like a frail and doting mother to her sweetings isn't to be ignored either. She clearly is obsessive over them and it would also be a disservice to ignore that to simplify and yas queen her. If I had like two more braincells and a knack for writing paragraphs that weren't stilted I'd take a whack at my own analysis but all I think when I see her is "oh god I forgot the beam attack AH-" and feel an echo of shame at how long it took me to beat her. I'm not ...Good.

"THIS is the Rennala who led the carian knights to battle against the golden order. The QUEEN who's power was so formidable that the only thing the golden order could do to passify her was to have Radagon BEG for her forgiveness" Damn that goes hard af Skyen

The big stone carrying the Indiana Jones with it is just *chef's kiss*

That panicked DRAGON was gold

So happy to see these again! It’s my favorite kind of content on the platform :)

I just recently found your channel (I first saw your shorts telling me about Pokemon designs) and I do hope that you'll continue this series. I really liked your series on DS2 because it was my favorite of the Dark Souls games, ironically because of "dude in armor." Telling things about a character based on what they wear, rather than what mythology or body part they look like, is interesting to me because humans can wear things, but I doubt I'll find a human looks like _literally Satan_ ever.

So glad that these are "back" :D cant wait for more. But no pressure, I will be here no matter how long it takes.

a fun boss and wonderful video to watch, thanks Skyen!

Superb new episode, glad to see the wagon still a'rolling.

17:05 - Simpsons jokes will always be perfect. :D

The lower part of Rennala's hat looks a bit like a Byzantine crown, and I enjoy that.

Very good episode, glad you're getting back in the groove! (And good luck with that 12 h footage of just exploring) ❤

Wishing the best of lucks, creativity and rest for the next episodes!! This was a really great one and it is really good to being back at the Boss Designs

I love these videos so much, they take me right back to the feeling of first playing ER

Great video and I love your two readings of rennala

Oh, I like the optimistic reading you offer a lot. Further material may make the situation less ambiguous and lean toward one reading or another, but I hope that reading is right. I hope the word "rich" has meaning, and that Rennala is healing and growing from her tragedy.

The "bonk" kills me every time, loving the videos!