On the endings of Mass Effect 3 (DLC Extended Cut)
So I have finished the entire Mass Effect series, closing out a romance with Tali, saving damn near everyone, and viewing all four endings for ME3. (Extended Cut)
And I have my own thoughts about them so I figured I'd share them here.
Ending 1: Shoot the Catalyst - this is, I think, the 'screw you' ending. I find that I am rather...amused by this one, though it did provoke an argument with ainyan about the 'beacons' that Liara T'soni left behind. This is, by the way, the 'everything continues as before' ending. In some ways, I like this ending best. It does give you the ability to continue the story in your own mind (or through the use of Fan Fiction) regarding the destruction of the universe. It IS the darkest ending, though it all depends on how you want to play it out - it IS possible that Shepard and the Normandy make their daring escape, though ultimately, the fleet is destroyed, as is the best, last hope for the galaxy in this cycle. How long it plays out, how long it is prolonged, is up to the viewer. But at the same time, this is the ending that basically says: "All that work you did gathering the massed fleets of the galaxy to fight the Reapers at Earth was a colossal waste of time and resources. Better luck next time, ass."
Ending 2: The so-called 'Blue' ending, or the 'Control' ending. I like this ending the least of all of them. On one hand, it could be argued, Shepard becomes like a god, protecting the people from the Reapers, though he himself is sacrificed to act as an eternal guardian over the galaxy. The trouble with this ending is Lord Actum's Dictum: "Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely." I like this one least because it makes this regular guy become a god, and what's to say he doesn't go mad and destroy everyone? It just gave me a squick feeling.
Ending 3: Called the 'Synthesis Ending' or the 'Green Ending'. I think this is probably next to last for me on the scale, it IS better than the 'Blue' Ending though not by much. My issue with this ending is that it forces the galaxy to accept becoming a fusion of synthetic and organic life. The geth, the Reapers, and EDI become more....human, for lack of a better term - indeed, EDI refers specifically in the epilogue to 'being alive'. It also forces the ENTIRE REST OF THE GALAXY to accept becoming partially synthetic - to having their DNA re-written. This seems to be BioWare's preferred ending as well, indeed, right at the end the game basically comes right out and says "THIS IS THE RIGHT CHOICE." My main issue is that it seems...naive to pick this choice. Ok, sure, as my wife said, there are a host of issues with forcibly rewritting the DNA of thousands of galactic citizens. But the other thing is that you get the idea with both the green and blue endings that you have brokered a lasting galatic peace, that even though there are BOUND to still be lingering issues and bad feelings, everyone accepts that the Reapers are good guys now, they help you rebuild everything they destroyed, and essentially become a part of the galaxy. There is no possible way that anyone might get upset, or loose it enough to start destroying your newfound allies? Even in the ending where the Reapers are controlled by you - it's ridiculous and naive to think everyone's gonna be Ok with it. "You destroyed my family! You burned my home, you turned my mom into an indoctrinated servant, and made my dad a husk! But it's Ok now, since you're controlled by Shepard or we're both organic."
If you believe that, lemme know, because I've got a lead on a lovely piece of property in Arizona that has a stunning view of the Pacific Ocean.
Ending 4: Called the 'Destroy' or 'Red' ending. This is the ending my Shepard chose, because ultimately, it offered the best result (at least, to how the universe played out in my decision making process). It had several unfortunate things happen - the death of a friend and an entire allied navy (if you believe that the energy sent from the Crucible could destroy ALL synthetic life). It is also the ending that has the most grounding in reality. The Reapers aren't true self-determining AI - they are shackled. The Geth and EDI are, in the game, the only sources of true, free-willed, individualistic AI - in a sense, EDI and the Geth are GREATER than whatever ultimate form of synthetic life that existed in previous cycles, including the Reapers themselves. Arguably, (and indeed, something that is mentioned right at the end is that Shepard is partly organic, which makes my next point all the more valid...) the energy released by the Crucible could've targeted only the mechanized 'platforms' in which those individuals resided, without damaging any that were 'stored' or located in something other than a mobile platform. Yes, that means that a character that comes up dead could have survived, since she says herself she's only controling the form, that her true conciousness is not inside of it. Similarly, any of Geth not in a mobile platform could, conceivably, have been spared...perhaps not if they were in the quarian environmental suits, but perhaps if they were in storage. If what the game information and codexes say about the geth is true, they're not an 'AI' as sci-fi has had in the past. They're all software. They could upload themselves from a mobile platform into a ship, then back again. So the argument might be that any geth programs in storage would've survived the ending, and it would be quite easy to make duplicates and new programs once they were reactivated.
As for the other missing link, my wife has argued (successfully, I've certainly come around to admit the possibility) that the effect of the 'destroy' ending might not mean the end of EDI either - it may have only targeted the part of her that seemed like an AI. Certainly, she herself was not 'inside' the Dr. Eva form - she even said she was housed in the AI Core room, and could control the body via link with the Normandy. Since the Normandy survived (and it could be argued that the crash on Sur'Kesh was due to EDI being knocked 'unconcious' when the Eva body was destroyed) it is logical to assume that EDI might have to, only given the damage to the ship, no one has a way to repair her currently.
This is just my feelings on the ending.
I know, it's been awhile, but typing this helped me make sense of the endings, and of THE ending for my Shepard :)