Originally Posted by
Echo419
At the end of WOTLK a lot of you think Ner'Zhul died and that Arthas overpowered him in their mind battles or whatever. That's caca. Ner'Zhul is alive and well and here's why I think so:
It seems the general consensus among the forums is that the ending ICC cinematic was disappointing, anti-climactic, and lacking a true purpose. I won't lie, at first glance I thought that too, but through watching the video enough times, and analyzing it extensively, I would like to share my thoughts on the subject. I will break down the video into significant parts, and elaborate on them:
First: King Terenas Menthil II. Okay, understandable. First Uther appeared, now Arthas' own father. There to say I told you so. But it's not really his father. In the Halls of Reflection, Uther's ghost presents to us this BRAND NEW and UNHEARD OF fact...That there must ALWAYS BE A LICH KING. Okay, dead-man's trigger. Clever Blizz. But that wasn't the purpose. NER'ZHUL. The grand warlock. The cunning orc who out smarted the entirety of the Burning Legion. The driving force behind Arthas' corruption into the Lich King. He made Uther appear to us. He gave us the idea of a new Lich King. Why? Arthas was turning against him. He was weak. His corruption had been lengthy, and he was still in society throughout it all. He wasn't broken well enough. And he had turned. Ner'zhul knew he must get rid of his conduit, and he also knew he'd need another. So here comes the idea: Tell the future King Slayers that they must find another soul to be damned to be the "Jailer of the Damned". Now it's Terenas. Listen closely. He has a double voice. Hmmm...Someone else had a double voice this entire expansion. Ner'zhul summoned this ghost, and used it to further lure Tiron into believing he must find a new Lich King, that the rule should not and could not be destroyed. That the cycle cannot (or is it really must not?) end.
Second: Tirion Fordring holding the helm of the Lich King. Now it may seem logical, even righteous and selfless for him to want to take the "burden" of being the Lich King. But listen carefully to his tone, and especially his word choice. "The weight of such a burden...it MUST be mine." Must. Seems like an okay word, maybe a bit strong, but we'll let it slide. But he emphasizes it so much. It's a inflection which makes us believe he craves it. And to reinforce this, it shows his reflection in the helm. But two of them. This is to communicate to us that our champion of the Light is, in fact, being corrupted just by holding the crown. Subtle, but nonetheless there.
Third: Fiery, ugly, forceful Bolvar Fordragon. He is riddled with subtle queues as to what is really going on. First, his voice. Even while his "normal" form, he has a double voice, the second being subtle, but there. Perhaps Ner'zhul again? Yes. Where Ner'zhul failed with the corruption of Arthas, he would not fail with this Paladin of the Light. He broke Bolvar DIRECTLY. He made sure that there would be no vestige of whom he used to be left. He had him purged by the Dragon's Flame. Why? So he would be stronger than Arthas. Immune to even more powers that might be stacked against him: the great Aspects.
A major thing that implies to us that Bolvar is not the same (despite his overwhelming contempt in his voice) is that he says "the world of the living can no longer comfort me". He wants Tirion to believe he understands his fate, but really, he has known his fate, and he knows he is not meant to be anything other than the Lich King. Another intriguing case of word choice; instead of asking Tirion to give him the helm, Bolvar says "place the crown upon my head". Okay, why not put it on himself? Because, kings NEVER put on their own crown when being inducted into kingship. And guess what? This is Bolvar's induction into kingship. He demands Tiron give place the crown upon his head, getting even more forceful. Why? Because if he doesn't get this crown..well then his motives become known. And as he states, the crown is his. His "last act of service" (as Bolvar) isn't really a service to the people of Azeroth.
During the kinging process, Bolvar tells Tirion he MUST be forgotten, claiming its for the good of the people. But what if it's a cover, what if he needs time to rebuild the kingdom of the damned? To raise more armies? To use his new powers as the Lich King? All an elaborate (and well crafted) cover.
Fourth: Bolvar, the new Lich King. MAJOR voice change. The second voice is noticeable. It's no longer being hidden. He tells Tirion to say that the Lich King AND Bolvar died there. Because Bolvar is dead. No longer is the benevolent, righteous, strong herald of the Light in existence. He has been corrupted into Ner'zhul's champion, into the perfect Lich King.
And at the end, the biggest part of the WHOLE ENTIRE CINEMATIC. "Leave this place and never return". Cool ending line. But listen. Where is Bolvar's voice? Who's voice is that? Is that...and orc?
Ner'zhul has achieved complete control over a new conduit. His power is complete once more.
P.S: Ner'zHul could res a whole raid to kill arthas, ghost of Terenas prolly couldn't, he wasn't even a Paladin in life or anything.
Well done Blizzard.
Did you actually get here after reading all that? Con-gra-tu-fucking-lations, you are not part of the retarded TLDR MOMMY I NEED A TLDR generation. To conclude, Ner'Zhul is alive, and when he learns of Gul'Dan being on Azeroth as well as the Legion, who are responsible for him being trapped in an ice cube in the first place, he will probably wreck all their shit with his undead army in revenge, then probably flee the planet.
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