Ingrid’s trailer has finally been released, and her appearance is both adorable and creepy at the same time. She has reality-bending powers and a link to the character avatar after they apparently touch her doll-like Monoid. One interesting thing about Ingrid’s trailer is that it’s explicitly set in an alternate version of Nayshall, where a spaceship appears at night every so often.
We will find out more about her as she’s revealed, but there’s one thing Street Fighter fans are already requesting: that she retcons Alex’s story. Everyone is upset about how Alex is married and has a child with someone he is blood-related to. Furthermore, they’re upset that he was raised more as a big brother for her, and Alex fans really hate what are essentially two step-siblings married to each other. Therefore, Ingrid must intervene and “purify” his story.
The social media reaction to Alex’s story has been rather amusing. However, my research helps me understand not just what is going on with the story, but also why they went with the incest angle. While differences in Japanese and American culture certainly have a lot to do with it, there’s something else no one is talking about: the fan reaction means they got it right.
You, the person reading this, are likely a member of the FGC and wondering why Capcom did what they did with Alex. Quite simply, they got you talking about it. Alex’s story has never been as dynamic as his moveset. Alex is essentially an American Ryu, a static character there to fill a role and nothing else. Both are main protagonists of their respective games, but the characters’ themselves only get truly interesting when another person is involved. Alex, Ryu, and Abel are these types of characters. Capcom created more interesting protagonists down the road with Rashid and Luke, each of whom can hold their own story (although I will still argue that Sakura needs to take over the series as the face of the franchise for a while). For Alex, though, it’s arguable that his story, while controversial, has never been better.
There’s more to it than just talking points, however, and this is the real point I want to make: Alex’s story has been predetermined in the lore of the game by Gill and the Illuminati. Ingrid can’t retcon Alex’s story because Gill will not allow her to. Alex’s incest baby must be born.
How do we know it’s the Illuminati? First of all, it’s obvious Gill’s influence is all over the game. From the Paradise billboard in Metro City to the blue and red flags of Suval’hal Arena in Nayshall, it’s clear Gill keeps a very watchful, if extremely subtle eye on the happenings of the avatar. Considering Gill also has something to do with Rashid’s canon, according to Rashid’s World Tour story, it needs to be pointed out that just because he isn’t in the game officially doesn’t mean he’s not there. This also needs to be pointed out when the argument that Alex does not mention Gill at all in his story, essentially calling him “just some guy”, is alluded to. Just because Alex doesn’t mention him doesn’t mean he isn’t playing a role behind the scenes. It just means Alex REALLY doesn’t want to talk about him.
Why would he want to? Gill hurt Tom in Street Fighter III, even though Tom told Alex he lost in a fair fight. Alex, being the impulsive, dour guy he is, went to smash Gill’s face in, and got his revenge in his own way. However, what is never revealed is why Tom fought Gill in the first place.
In the past, I’ve had my own theories. Seven years ago, I wrote “The Alex and Tom Hyper Bomb”, and even with its faults, it’s relevant to the story of Street Fighter 6. My theory in this one was that Tom was Illuminati and took orders from Kolin to kill Charlie Nash. Gill beat him up after he tried to confront Kolin, then took an interest in Alex after fighting him because of his genetics. In Udon’s comics, which I am a brand ambassador of and want you to read, this story is expanded on. Alex’s parents were in the Illuminati, making Alex a child of two Illuminati members. Considering Tom was and possibly still is Illuminati, this means Tom is making decisions for Alex for the greater good of the society. In other words, Tom was grooming Alex right from the start. https://manestreetblog.com/2019/02/20/the-alex-and-tom-hyper-bomb/
Now, let’s throw in an idea from an article I wrote a little over a year later, “The Street Fighter Code”. In this story, I wrote of the Fisher King mythos and how the Holy Grail was an active part of the story of Street Fighter. I wrote of two potential candidates for the Fisher King, the first and most obvious being Dorai. This left Chun-Li to be the Holy Grail of Street Fighter, and in fact, I still believe there’s still much the developers can do with her story besides her just being a teacher. The issue is that they don’t seem to want Chun-Li to do anything but be a mentor nowadays, and because the developers are stubborn and set in their ways, it seems they have no interest in Chun-Li being the Holy Grail of Street Fighter. https://manestreetblog.com/2020/11/17/the-street-fighter-code/
However, the other candidate for the Fisher King was Tom, and though I didn’t speak much about him then, there’s a lot to say now. Tom fits the Fisher King’s mythos with a leg injury and the need to protect something considered the Holy Grail. That would be his daughter, Patricia.
It’s all come full circle. Even though Tom and Patricia’s mom broke up and went their separate ways, Tom, being the Illuminati groomer he is, groomed his daughter to be the Holy Grail the Illuminati needed, a strikingly beautiful, blonde-haired, blue-eyed woman who also happens to be the daughter of an Illuminati follower.
Now it’s easier to understand why Tom wanted his daughter and stepson together so badly. Their genetics made them ideal for the Illuminati’s experimentations. For them to have a child would be a culmination of everything the Illuminati has been working for in their thousands of years of existence!
“Did they have to be blood-related, though?”, you ask with tears in your eyes, hoping something can be salvaged to keep Alex’s story somewhat less disheartening. Unfortunately for you, the answer is yes, because keeping it in the family has been how royal families have been doing it for generations, from the Plantagenets to the Habsburgs. If you’ve been following my blog, even the MATSUDAS seem to have traces of this in their family. https://manestreetblog.com/2021/06/04/theres-something-about-the-matsudas/
In other words, Gill will do everything in his power to make sure Alex and Patricia’s daughter of incest is born, for she will have the genetics that the Illuminati craves for experimentation and spiritual transcendence. Besides, with the Illuminati casting such a large net, wouldn’t it make sense they’re keeping an eye on that spaceship at night in Nayshall? If that has anything to do with Ingrid, and it probably does, they’re keeping their all-seeing eye on the Eternal Goddess as well.
Not even Ingrid can make this story disappear.
Street Fighter Game Lore Theories 