AuthorNCS: Our new Patreon, tinomartino, went out of their way to write a very nice speculation post on the story. They don't feel like making a forum or Tv Tropes account so they told me to just post it here.
I like the ego boost so please excuse me.
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Recently I have been thinking about the appearance and symbolism of the Team Dipper's members' Shadow Selves.
Shadow Sucy: she looks like an eleven-year-old Sucy, and is much more open than her Real Self about her feelings and desires; at the moment, we don't know much about her past, other than that she lived in an orphanage overflowing with children who couldn't stand her, and that she hated them back, and that she had a strong relationship with Ramzan, her guardian. At one point, Sucy decided to live on her own, between the ages of 11 and 12, exploring the world in search of poisons to sell to the highest bidder, but I guess all that loneliness and constant dangers soured her further; by the age of 12, she began to believe that she didn't need friendship, even though deep down she secretly longed for it.
Shadow Diana: She looks like a six-year-old Diana, and this represents the innocence and wonder that Diana, at that age, felt when she saw Shiny Chariot's show. Shortly thereafter however, Diana found herself dealing with the mysterious loss of her magical powers, the death of her mother, the wickedness of her aunt, and the taunts of her peers about her love of Chariot magic, which led Diana to denigrate the performer to keep up appearances, and to focus exclusively in the study, thus giving up her childhood, and causing her Shadow Self to become corrupted, and become what Diana fears most: a corrupt and evil version of her noble-spirit ancestor Beatrix, who looks eerily like her aunt.
Shadow Chariot: She looks like Shiny Chariot at 18, at the height of her career as a performer. She obviously was very happy when her performances brought joy and happiness to the audience, but over time she lost their interest, and was later deceived by Croix, unknowingly stealing the magical potential of her audience during her show in Japan; then her appeal in her last shows was practically meager, and in her anger and discomfort, she inadvertently damaged the Moon and lost the Shiny Rod. She has since become a meek and regretful woman, a pitiful image compared to the sunny and lively self of 10 years earlier.
Shadow Amanda: She looks like an 11-year-old Amanda, the age when her beloved grandmother was still alive and by her side, and was free to have fun and explore the world with her. However, her grandma died ignored by the rest of her family, except Amanda, who found herself entangled in the power games of the O'Neill family, trying in every way not to be their puppet, but at the same time becoming a cynical, opportunistic and selfish girl, masking at the same time, with bold and defiant behavior, her frustration and sadness.
Put simply: their Shadow Selves' appearance represents the last moment they were truly happy and/or hopeful, before falling victim to cynicism and/or depression.
Accepting their Shadow Selves and earning their Personas also means recovering that lost innocence and living more peacefully and happily.
-tinomartino
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