Board Thread:Metal Gear Solid V/@comment-153.96.144.4-20141009152903

Ok, I think we all agree that we've already had pretty much enough of that "Who's who?"-guessing game show, but since the facts, I've found on the statement presented above, are rather scattered and I haven't added my little mingle-mangle of thoughts on the topic yet, I thought why not give it a shot so: Skull Face is Ocelot - now let me go straight into the most elementary question of all which is the "WHY". The good old list format will sort my thoughts on this question pretty neatly, while of course you have the right to object, after I close with a second list of why I think that other prominent candidates are less likely to represent -- what I would undoubtedly nominate to be -- the most anticipated villain in the video game world these days - shall we?

1. Skull Face is described as a "ghost without a past", but if we look into his meagre biography and learn that he was born in Hungary, havily scared by fire and some other things, we actually shouldn't care about, if all we need to believe is that he doesn't have a past, his past reads like a real one - except of course if that past is a mere invention, illusional and in reality non-existent - then the attribute assigned to him would make much more sense. I would submit, his entire person is a mere invention marking him a ghost.

2. Skull Face is first shown as one of Cipher's henchmen, when it turns out, that he's not quite as good with Cipher shortly after. It indicates, that Skull Face is in fact moving the pieces in an infinitely greater plot - that would suit Ocelot, wouldn't it? Who - after all - would doubt Ocelot's ability to carry out brilliant plots after playing MGS 4? We've seen him working in disguise before to mislead others in MGS 3 against Volgin and in MGS 2 & 4 against the patriots, so why would he not use Skull Face as one?

3. Ocelot is Big Boss's greatest admirer, as seen in MGS 3 and in MGS 4 where his efforts did not only destroy Zero and the Patriots but also freed Big Boss from Zero's grasp. Skull Face makes not so big indications of being a "fan" of the same kind, but still he quotes Big Boss's exact words to Chico as can be heard on one of the torture recordings. "If he is indeed a fan, why would he destroy Mother Base" - one might ask, but then one also has to ask, why Ocelot repeatedly confronted Big Boss in MGS 3, despite his admiration - in MGS 3 it was pure joy and longing to measure with his great idol, but if Ocelot really is to be Skull Face, his motivation might be part of the intrigue against Cipher. Who else but Big Boss would be good enough to confront Cipher? What better way of fighting Cipher is there, if it's not steering Big Boss's undivided attention towards him? And if that requires destroying Mother Base, who thinks Ocelot would resile?

4. Skull Face is described as being and absolute expert in "interrogation" - sadistic, ruthless, efficient and as we all know, this despicable passion is shared with him by non other than Ocelot. Which one of them is better at it? Whoever it is, it would make the other one look pathetic, it's more likely, that they're both evenly talented, which feeds the assumption, that they're both one and the same person. It might even be the revealing aspect, if Ocelot really is Skull Face.

5. Skull Face wears a leather trenchcoat and pointed boots, both preferences of Ocelot. In one Scene of Ground Zeroes we can even see him wear an object at his side, that resembles a revolver.

6. The dogs bark at Skull Face, when they see him. I can't say for sure, they would bark at Ocelot, since Ocelot was never shown close to dogs in other MGS-games (at least not as far as I would remember), but it would sure feed the clichee, that dogs don't particularly like cats and an ocelot is a cat after all.

That's my thoughts on the question, now let's get to other potential candidates and why I think, they don't fit the role:

I. Volgin - unlikeley: Very popular guess out there, but not very likely, despite the fact, that he too does enjoy torturing. While Skull Face seems to have a very considerate and planning mind, Volgin was just a short-tempered zealot, who killed rather to early than too late. While torture was almost like a sexual joy for Volgin, for Ocelot and Skull Face it's more a combination of the pleasurable and the useful. And then just look at Skull Face - Volgin must have been on Atkins diet big time to fit into that body.

'''II. Hot Clodman:''' Plain and simple: No... no really: NO! I won't even discuss that.

'''III. The Sorrow''' - not very likely but not impossible either: Ok now this might be getting a little bit spiritual here, but hell, why not? There are some parallels after all and some good reasons to believe it. What if the story of Skull Face is not a myth, then he might really have been born in Hungary and heavily scared by a fire in his childhood. It doesn't neccessarily mean, that it's still the same person inhabiting that body. Skull Face might be the broken body that is the result of his biography, but inhabited by The Sorrow's spirit. Skull Face as the present person would then actually be a "ghost without a past". Skull Face even looks like someone who has been dead for a while, hell his face looks like a skull, right? The Sorrow would have any reason to try and fight Cipher, after seeing him destroy everything that his beloved "The Boss" stood for. And let's not forget that the Sorrow was always grinning, just as Skull Face is in a bizarre fashion.

Of course there's also enough reason to believe that the Sorrow can't be Skull Face. The Sorrow for instance was never known to be a sadist who enjoys torturing - on the contrary: He felt sorry for every life that was lost in combat. That's only one reason, but overall I think The Sorrow's personality just doesn't fit in Skull Face's deeds. That's why I think "unlikely but not impossible".

'''IV. The Father of Psycho Mantis''' - possibly: Okay we don't know much about the father of Psycho Mantis, all we know is that he hated his son and was set on fire by him - if that were to be the case, a lot of his background would have to be explained, since the biography of Mantis's father and Skull Face show some differences but hey: It would be a nice suprise any day and an entirely new character, just as predicted by some other sources.

That's it for me, tell me, what you think! :) 