Pinned
Why Edelgard's "Cute" Moments are Important
Something I see brought up repeatedly as a criticism of Edelgard/Crimson Flower is that Edelgard doesn't have an arc and/or is undermined by the writers adding scenes of her being cute to make her marketable as a "waifu". Both of these criticisms seem to stem from an inability to recognize Edelgard's arc for what it is and how those "cute" moments factor into it. Now, I'm not suggesting that Edelgard isn't intended to appeal to people who are attracted to women, of course she is, all the lords are intended to appeal to people of compatible orientations, but simply dismissing Edelgard "gap-moe waifu bait" is reductive and does as much of a disservice to her character and the themes of her route as dismissing Dimitri and Claude as "'troubled-but-I-can-fix-him'/Lovable Rogue husbando bait" would to theirs.
An essential component of Edelgard's character is that she has nobody to provide her with emotional support (Hubert is, by his own admission, not equipped for such a role) so she coped with her trauma and her need to make sacrifices for a better future by suppressing her feelings and adopting the persona of a haughty princess/ruthless emperor as a defense mechanism. She admits as much to Byleth in their A-Support:
Edelgard: I can't deny [I'm 'rather detached' too]. Ever since I underwent those... procedures, I've certainly distanced myself from the ordinary world.
The whole conceit of "The Edge of Dawn" is that Edelgard cherishes her academy days because they make her feel normal again and wishes they could last forever, but she still has to put up a false front because she is not innocent to the horrors of the world and feels compelled to correct them even at the cost of her own happiness.
If Byleth and the Black Eagles choose to side with her at the Holy Tomb she finally able to close the distance she had to maintain during the school year and start processing her emotions instead of simply shoving them aside. She tells Byleth in their B-Support how their influence has enabled her overcome her loneliness, step out from behind the mask, and be her true self again:
Edelgard: I want to thank you. Because of you, I feel I can walk my fated path without losing myself. If I were alone, I might have lost perspective and become a harsh leader with a heart of ice. But I'm not alone. With you by my side, I'm somehow free to be not only a leader but... simply Edelgard. Until now, no one has been able to surpass me— much less command me. I have always been seen as an untouchable princess or emperor. No one spoke to me as an equal or met my gaze without flinching.
That is what her "cute" moments represent. Unlike other routes, Crimson Flower features an Edelgard who didn't allow herself to be consumed by her mask and her mission. Instead of burying her true self she is able to open up again and start reconnecting with the normal girl she used to be. It's no coincidence that despite her insistence that "the Edelgard who shed tears died many years ago", the final scene of her route (closing narration and S-Support notwithstanding) ends with her openly weeping. Thanks to Byleth "the Edelgard who shed tears" came back to life.
