not-so-hot take of the day is that many of the ppl in mdzs who hate wwx are in fact justified in their hatred bc his actions as yiling laozu did, in fact, impact very many people who even in the present timeline of mdzs probably still live with the consequences of his actions

JUST SAYING we as the audience Know wwx's motivations for his actions but 1: never once has wwx tried to JUSTIFY his actions/the consequences of them 2: wwx's actions HAVE DIRECTLY K/LLED MANY, MANY PPL, 3: those ppl inevitably had loved ones! ya know!

there were VERY many ppl who lost a loved one due to wwx's actions. whether or not wwx had a concrete motivation for acting that way, the end result ABSOLUTELY matters more than his motivations.. the motivation exists to make him a complex chara, not to excuse -

the consequences of his behavior since really, nothing can excuse something as big as being the reason that many MANY ppl in mdzs grieve for their loved ones. the 3k ppl k/lled at buyetian may be exaggerated, but it still happened and many ppl still died

so whether wwx's motivations are explanatory or not, they don't MATTER and wwx knows that!! also, those ppl do NOT know wwx's motivations and for them wwx is the yiling laozu who murdered their parent/sibling/child/relative/best friend and wwx? he KNOWS THAT.

like... in his present life, wwx can move on from his past life and recognize his mistakes and focus on the present, but many others CANNOT bc they have to live every day with the consequences of wwx's actions, which is also why wwx doesn't try to fight public perception of him

bc it wouldn't make any difference + he wouldn't ask others to think of him as someone better, he won't try to justify the results of his actions by saying "look, i had these motives!!" he'll accept responsibility for what he did

and even if all those ppl did know wwx's motives, that wouldn't mean they're obligated to change their view of him. knowing that ur father died bc yllz lost his sister & went mad doesn't change the fact that UR DAD IS STILL DEAD AND YLLZ IS ULTIMATELY THE ONE WHO DID IT.

nobody is obligated to stop hating wwx even if they know he had a reason. so while many portrayals of wwx are indeed unfair, and wwx himself doesn't take responsibility for anything he DIDN'T do, & the dangers public perception/mob mentality in mdzs is a big theme -

for the ppl affected by wwxs actions, that does Not matter! theyre valid in their hatred bc wwxs perspective is NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT EXISTS, the world of mdzs doesnt end with wwxs narrative. those opinions wont change whether wwx is portrayed as a murderer or a misunderstood man

because regardless of misunderstandings in the end he DID commit some pretty heinous stuff? like... man if somebody murdered my brother i would hate them for life and if they ended up being thought of as misunderstood i would DEFINITELY hate that since they MURDERED MY BROTHER

for SO MANY PPL, wwx is NOT a good man, first & foremost hes the reason for their loved one(s) death(s) and that's fine! "wwx is a good, just, kind, funny man who had good intentions and i love him" and "wwx deeply hurt very many ppl & their hatred for him is valid" can coexist

anyway please read these screenshots and really this whole chapter to get a sense of just what im trying to say and how wwx himself approaches that issue!! http://exiledrebelsscanlations.com/gdc-chapter-82/