Chapter Tower of God Chapter 88 Discussion/89 Predictions

[Dacomp89]

I don't really buy into that.

I think it's pluasable that the Zahard family could be in some way responsible for Baam being shut in a cave. But I don't think that would even come close to explaining Baam's new personality and motives.

Baam, as he was presented in part 1, was never really angry about his existence in that cave. It may have been terrible but that was the only world he knew. If nothing else being locked into that cave allowed him to meet Lahal and I doubt he regrets that even with all that's happened. So to derive a personal vengeance motive from that would seem pretty weak to me. Even if they killed his family or something, what's the point of a avenging a family you never even knew? That just doesn't carry much narrative weight in my opinion.

Something that I think would make more sense, given his personality and mindset, would be if he decided to blame what happened with Lahel on the tower itself. Like thinking the tower somehow corrupted her and as the Zahards kind of make the rules perhaps he thinks destroying them would be the first step to changing the nature of the tower.

Unfortunately, there are problems with that too. Namely that Baam is personally friends with several Zahards and the idea of the Baam from part 1 turning on his friends is absurd. I mean, if he was just after the king; then that would make sense, but he isn't. He explicitly said that his purpose in life is killing Zahards and their kin. And that just makes no sense to me given what I know about Baam.

And none of this would explain his ruthless attitude toward other climbers. They are NOT necessarily friends of Zahard. Baam should know this because he knows Anak a person who is driven by vengeance for her mother against the Zahards.

At the very end of Part 1, Hwa Ryun says she will tell Baam why it is Lahel betrayed him. Even if Baam doesn't regret being locked up for so long, he could certainly be angry at the circumstances that led to his only friend stabbing him in the back. He didn't look particularly ok with being betrayed at the end of Part 1.

We know that Baam's prison is somehow connected to Zahard. Lahel finding him down there was pretty obviously not a coincidence, since she wouldn't let him come up with her. We also know from her conversation with Headon that Lahel is a "loathsome, dirty, and dreadful" person. She says that Baam took everything from her and that she is afraid of him, yet she also seemed to care for him in some way.

It is clear that there is a great deal of backstory behind Lahel and Baam that we are unaware of, and that Baam was unaware of it as well until Hwa Ryun told him. Unless it was Baam's mere existence that somehow ruined Lahel's life, it's possible he had some sort of previous life. Whatever it is, it's clear that the reign of Zahard caused the current situation; whether by ruining Baam's life by sealing him in that cave to begin with, or by instigating Lahel to first befriend him and then betray him. Either of those seem like valid reasons for his vendetta. Baam is able to break the laws of the tower, anything concerning him would have to be very serious.

As for the way Baam is currently treating his climbers, it seems like he just wants to climb the tower as quickly as possible. He doesn't want to draw the others into his situation either. I'll agree it is a bit ambiguous so far, I don't think even he knows exactly what he wants to do yet. Baam doesn't know the story of Anak's mother, she told Androssi only.

 

[shaheer]

As for the way Baam is currently treating his climbers, it seems like he just wants to climb the tower as quickly as possible. He doesn't want to draw the others into his situation either. I'll agree it is a bit ambiguous so far, I don't think even he knows exactly what he wants to do yet. Baam doesn't know the story of Anak's mother, she told Androssi only.

Ya i agree Baam is climbing the tower all by himself and dun want any company. Think he is more like independent now and feels that any sort of aid will come with a betrayal or sth, so he doesnt want to attend any ones desire to be his team mate
of course he was under FUG so he is quite lethal when he means that he doesnt need a team mate.
But its obvious that it will not be the case

 

[Jammin]

At the very end of Part 1, Hwa Ryun says she will tell Baam why it is Lahel betrayed him. Even if Baam doesn't regret being locked up for so long, he could certainly be angry at the circumstances that led to his only friend stabbing him in the back. He didn't look particularly ok with being betrayed at the end of Part 1.

Even when he was betrayed his reaction wasn't anger. He wasn't like "THAT BITCH!" which, as a reader, was my reaction.

He was sad and confused. That was his reaction to being betrayed by the person in the world he loved and trusted most. So that's what the very idea that this "I'm going to kill'em all "thing just doesn't hold water to me; at least not as a personal thing. For him to say that his life's purpose is to kill them all the Baam I'm familiar with would need to feel that is the right thing to do; not just for his own sake, but for everybody.

I mean, just look at his eyes when he says that he "lives to kill Zahard's and their kin". I didn't even see a hint of anger there; making it very hard to buy into the personal vengeance theories.

We know that Baam's prison is somehow connected to Zahard. Lahel finding him down there was pretty obviously not a coincidence, since she wouldn't let him come up with her. We also know from her conversation with Headon that Lahel is a "loathsome, dirty, and dreadful" person. She says that Baam took everything from her and that she is afraid of him, yet she also seemed to care for him in some way.

Do we know reallly that?

I'm mean it's perfectly plausible that the Zahard's could be responsible for Baam's imprisonment but, as far as I'm aware, it's equally as plausible that they had nothing to do with it. Just because an unfortunate child is sealed in a cave doesn't mean the Zahards had to have put him there.

As for the way Baam is currently treating his climbers, it seems like he just wants to climb the tower as quickly as possible. He doesn't want to draw the others into his situation either. I'll agree it is a bit ambiguous so far, I don't think even he knows exactly what he wants to do yet. Baam doesn't know the story of Anak's mother, she told Androssi only.

That's a good point about Anak. Androssi might have kept that story to herself.

Still though, if he knew his comrades from before at all he would know that they aren't exactly good little soldiers for Zahard. They were all climbing the tower for their own reasons. And he would have to know that wouldn't he?

Now it's possible he wants to keep from dragging people into his problems, that would be very like him, but he has been coldly and ruthlessly eliminating those around him beyond what would be necessary for the sake of practicality; and in doing so he has actually been drawing attention to himself. I really don't understand that.

 

[Uriel]

...A cave with Zahard symbol on it.

Just saying.

 

[Jammin]

...A cave with Zahard symbol on it.

Just saying.

Is there? I don't remember that, but if there was one that links the Zahards to the cave. Not to Baam.

We don't know that the Zahards put him in that cave or if they even have a connection to Baam. For all we know he could be completely unrelated to them, aside from his new-found determination to kill them. I think we all "suspect" he's connected to the Zahards in one way or another but we don't "know" that, and that's my point.

Just saying

 

[shaheer]

Is there? I don't remember that, but if there was one that links the Zahards to the cave. Not to Baam.

We don't know that the Zahards put him in that cave or if they even have a connection to Baam. For all we know he could be completely unrelated to them, aside from his new-found determination to kill them.

yes there was the zahard symbol in the cave he was in
as for we dont know hell we dont know what happened to him in the last 5 years to shape him like this
baam wasnt a warmonger he must have gone through a lot including the betrayal from rachel to be like this
Give him the benefit of the doubt for once instead of i dun see Y baam is like this , for heavens the last 5 years is not revealed yet to see it in the first place. I am not saying that we should condone his new found killing thirst but like you said we dont know zahard had anything to do with Baam being ostracized we dont know the full extent to what he went through in the last 5 yrs either.
Saying that i think its perfectly acceptable to have baam as he is now.To be honest i was more pissed with let every one pass than i want to go up i dun care abt the rest kind a guy
as for him making every one fail, you ve seen his stats if he wanted he didnt need to wait till there were so many thus harder to kill, i dont know but there Might be more than what meets the eye here.
we still are scratching the second season answers lies ahead.
just throwing my 2 pence

 

[Uriel]

If the cave is linked, then He's linked. Your point has no bases (there) since we know that the cave is to Baam what Homeland is to every Hero in every story.

 

[Jammin]

yes there was the zahard symbol in the cave he was in
as for we dont know hell we dont know what happened to him in the last 5 years to shape him like this
baam wasnt a warmonger he must have gone through a lot including the betrayal from rachel to be like this
Give him the benefit of the doubt for once instead of i dun see Y baam is like this , for heavens the last 5 years is not revealed yet to see it in the first place. I am not saying that we should condone his new found killing thirst but like you said we dont know zahard had anything to do with Baam being ostracized we dont know the full extent to what he went through in the last 5 yrs either.
Saying that i think its perfectly acceptable to have baam as he is now.To be honest i was more pissed with let every one pass than i want to go up i dun care abt the rest kind a guy
as for him making every one fail, you ve seen his stats if he wanted he didnt need to wait till there were so many thus harder to kill, i dont know but there Might be more than what meets the eye here.
we still are scratching the second season answers lies ahead.
just throwing my 2 pence

What happened in the last 5 years is definitely going to be quite a tale.

I'm assuming there is more than meets they eye here because no matter what happened over the course of the 5 years the series has to reconcile "who Baam is" with "who Baam was", which is going to happen somehow or other. I just don't think it's going to be anything as ordinary as personal vengeance because I think that would be one of the hardest things to reconcile with "who Baam was".

If the cave is linked, then He's linked. Your point has no bases (there) since we know that the cave is to Baam what Homeland is to every Hero in every story.

Oh really? Off the top of my head I can come up with two plausable hypothetical scenarios in which Baam's inprisonment is not connected to the Zahards(at least not in the way we think)

• That cave was a tomb for Zahards and Baam was sealed in there by FUG or some other 3rd party.
  
• That cave was created by the creators of the tower along with several like it to contain certain irregular beings. The king of Zahard originated from one just like Baam before he took control of the tower and decided to make the mark his signate.

You see? The only thing we can "know" is connected to Zahard is the cave the rest is all just theory. While I think believing the Zahards are responsible for Baam's imprisonment is a perfectly reasonable assumption, that's really all it is at this point an assumption.

 

[Uriel]

Even if He was there put for a third party, the cave is enough reason to build hate against zahard once told the lie, truth or whatever reason.
The symbol is there, whatever the reason. The symbol later is known as Zahard family. Every lie or every truth about it will build hate with ease.

So yes, your point is still invalid to me.

 

[thornofcarrion]

Could it be that FUG revealed something really dark and sinister about Zahard. The cave and Baam were also meant to be a part or even play a part. I am still holding my position, Baam wont change unless there is something that required him to change. I am not doubting his conviction.