“ | Hello, Charlotte! | ” |
Seth is the Puppeteer of Charlotte Wiltshire and a supporting character throughout the Hello Charlotte main episodes. He is meant to be the avatar of the player. Seth's name is later devoured and claimed by Umbrella Man, resulting in his seemingly permanent anonymity until Scarlett Eyler redefines him in Episode 3.
Personality
Much of Seth's personality is determined by the player, but the defined aspects of his personality are that he cares deeply for Charlotte and does not like violence. According to C, Seth-type puppeteers are the wisest among their kind.
Background
Seth was delegated to Charlotte presumably by Umbrella Man when Charlotte was ten years old and has been guiding her ever since. It is unusual that Seth was assigned to Charlotte, since according to C, girls are usually assigned Eve or Lilith type puppeteers. It is implied several times throughout the series that it is possible for more than one Seth to exist, and that there's an entire race of Puppeteers fitting into four distinct archetypes; this Seth is the only one to have a presence in any of the titles, however. Though it is revealed that Seth himself isn't real, as the real puppeteer was the player. any personality he has that isn't determined by the player was given to him by charlotte.
Abilities
In addition to the ability to control his current Puppet, Seth can "rewind time", which are actually the save slots that the player creates as they play. Episode 1 addresses that Seth is able to create these Rewind Points as well as monitor and communicate with his puppet via a control console. Seth (and the player) also temporarily loses the ability to save at will during the majority of Episode 1, while they are in the TV World. When necessary, Seth can attach his strings to another character in the False Realm to directly control them when Charlotte is unavailable.
Role in the Plot
General
As a resident of the True Realm, Seth does not partake in the events of any of the episodes personally; instead, he influences Charlotte and ensures that she behaves. He is depicted in Charlotte's Book of Truth in Episodes 1 and 2.
HC1
Seth is introduced in the first episode and provides guidance to Charlotte. He speaks with and responds to Charlotte several times throughout. In the TV World, an event resulting in Felix's murder and Charlotte's suicide forced Seth, with Umbrella Man's assistance, to take measures to circumvent their fates. It is first demonstrated here that Seth is able to assume control of anyone he needs to in the absence of his Puppet, with or without their knowledge. After Charlotte and Felix safely return to their home, Seth is last seen sending Charlotte off to bed and wishing her a good night.
HC2
Seth is no longer as vocal as he was previously, but continues to carry out his duties as Charlotte's Puppeteer. Seth will make very critical decisions for Charlotte at two key points in this game that can result in very different outcomes. After the White Ending, he is confronted and blamed by Umbrella Man for Charlotte's inevitable doom. The two once again make arrangements to avoid Charlotte's sad fate, this time at the cost of Seth's very identity; from then on, he is dubbed "Anonymous" by Umbrella Man, and is referred to only as "Puppeteer".
HC3
Episode 0
The now-anonymous Puppeteer is guided by Umbrella Man through two stories: one intended to educate him as to the origins of The House, and the other revealing the link between Scarlett Eyler and his Charlotte. His presence having been "purged" by UM, it is presumed at first that no one is aware of the Puppeteer's existence. It is later revealed, however, that Q84 and even Scarlett are well aware of him. Q84 attempted to undermine him as much as possible, thus he was noticeably never assigned any tasks in Episode 0. Scarlett, having been subtly manipulated, forcefully Linqed with Q84 a handful of times, using the fact that Q84 is currently his puppet to show the two of them her own memories of her previous life with Charles in the True Realm.
Episode 3
During the second half of HC3, Childhood's End, the Puppeteer is then taken by Umbrella Man to V19's story. In the wake of an onslaught caused by the now-monstrous V19, he meets the sole survivor of the genocide, Scarlett Eyler, who immediately acknowledges him and begs for his help. Shortly thereafter, Scarlett presents him with an option between two names: Seth and Lilith, which determines what he'll be called from then on. Scarlett gave the Puppeteer tasks as necessary in this story, just like his original Charlotte did, as they sought V19 through multiple floors of The House. In the finale, Umbrella Man gives the Puppeteer the option to go through with their deal or refuse, which determines the game's ultimate outcome.
Is He Real?
In Episodes 2, 3, and even Delirium, Seth is said to be a figment of Charlotte's imagination, perpetuated by Umbrella Man. During the Epilogue of HC2, Umbrella Man calls Seth Charlotte's imaginary friend, and states that every word Seth uttered was given to him by her. Should the player choose to allow it, he then "erases" him from existence by devouring his name, which effectively killed any chance of Charlotte directly remembering and interacting with him. Immediately upon starting a new game in Delirium, an overshadowed Charlotte (UM?) mocks Seth and then proceeds to state that within that alternate timeline, the idea of "a kind, understanding parent figure never occurred to Charlotte"; this was also directly preceded by the declaration: "Here, there's no such thing as "Seth"." Lastly, it's worth noting that the True Realm seen in HC3 has no puppeteers or gods. However, while the series does occasionally leave the question of Seth's existence up in the air, characters other than Charlotte have been perceptive, most notably none other than Umbrella Man. Among them being:
- Felix, for a brief time in the TV World.
- Scarlett Eyler, who reaches out to him in desperation.
- Q84, who passively subverts his influence over her.
- Possibly V19, although she never directly mentions or speaks to him.
- C, who introduces the 4 types of Puppeteers to Charlotte.
- The Oracle, both Frei in HC2 and the Parasite in HC3
Episode 1 contradicts all of this, as Seth is not only very real here, he responds vocally to what's unfolding fairly often (at least compared to the subsequent entries). Where in the later titles, Umbrella Man acts as though Seth is about as "imaginary" as the alien tenants with whom Charlotte shared her home, optional backstory in HC1 unambiguously show Umbrella Man coming to Charlotte on one of her birthdays specifically to inform her she was assigned a Puppeteer. One can also come to a fairly safe conclusion that Umbrella Man himself may have delegated Seth, as he later gives Seth a negative evaluation following the deaths of both Charlotte and Felix at the hands of Freya. In essence, Seth actively intervenes with the flow of events (he negotiates twice with Umbrella Man to drastically change outcomes), interacts with, and is noticed by a handful of False Realm characters who are not Charlotte while the games simultaneously try to imply that he may not actually be real after all.
Trivia
- To prevent himself from getting bored while Charlotte sleeps, Seth installs far too many apps on his control console for his own good. He prefers rhyme games.[2]
- According to Charlotte, Seth likes to say "No objections allowed!"
- According to Charlotte, Seth is against violence.
- He might not be fond of weapons, as when Felix gives Charlotte some Medical Scissors, Charlotte fears that Seth will make her throw them away at the first opportunity.
- According to Charlotte, Seth gets grumpy when Charlotte is late to class.
- According to C, it is unusual that Seth is Charlotte's Puppeteer, since girls are usually assigned Eve or Lilith type Puppeteers.
- Episode 3 visually demonstrates several times that Seth's perception of the False Realm is strictly influenced by that of his current puppet, a concept that has persisted throughout HC1 and 2.
- Episode 3 gives the player the choice to name the Puppeteer either Seth or Lilith. This can be perceived as an opportunity for the then-anonymous Seth to reclaim his name after Umbrella Man consumed it.
- However, he is still simply called "Puppeteer" in the post-game bonus room after the True Ending of HC3, calling the legitimacy of this option into question. Since Scarlett Eyler gives the Puppeteer his new name, it might be that she wanted a name to refer to him by, rather than calling hi "Puppeteer".
Gallery
Please visit Seth/Gallery to view the Gallery.
Dialogue
Please visit Seth/Dialogue to view the Dialogue.