Shazba, you know I love you but I think you're being willfully obtuse here. The problem isn't needing multiple saves; I've got oodles of saves. The problem is that I don't believe any of them will let me make the choices I actually care about.
You quip that the other girls won't be kicked to the wayside just because Zoey shows up but I'm not so sure. Yes, the other girls will definitely have screen time, but I'm not here to rack up lewd scenes; I'm here for the story and the romance. Both of those need not just screen time, they need progression. Zoey, as presented thus far, feels like regression.
BaDIK is a soap opera, so drama is inevitable. And the MC does have his own personality, so some of the drama is going to flow from that. I accept both of those points. But as long as I'm allowed to make choices for the MC, I expect those choices to mean something. If I choose to pursue Maya and Josy to the exclusion of all others, I don't just want the MC to fool around with them when he has an empty spot in his schedule. I want him to prioritize them. That's where DPC dropped the ball in Season 2, and where I'm afraid he's going to do it again in Season 3.
Remember, it was DPC who amped up the 'crossroads' to 11 in Episode 8. The MC supposedly realized that showing undiscussed affection to multiple girls was unfair and either committed to a single relationship, or to making it clear that he *wasn't* interested in a relationship at this time. I was willing to chalk the MC's histrionics over the Maya/Josy crisis in Episode 4 up to him being a young, horny kid. But now we've been explicitly told that he's matured, so I expect him to handle both his relationship and any adversity differently in Season 3. DPC called the tune and he needs to pay the piper.
Just to be clear, that doesn't mean Zoey can't return or that the MC can't have complicated feelings towards her. It's fine for her to create additional drama... *as long as it flows from my choices*. That's the key. DPC can't just assume direct control and make drama happen simply because it looks good on paper. Not after he forced us into a supposedly heartfelt choice. New drama needs to flow from the new situation, otherwise the impact of both the choice and the drama is negated.
Which brings us back to Zoey. Again, the MC supposedly just committed himself to either a single relationship, or to avoiding a relationship until he was ready to take it seriously. If that decision is to have any meaning, the MC can't just abandon it the first time a 'new' girl has some chemistry with him. If an MC who committed to one of the main girls doesn't prioritize her/them over Zoey, he obviously wasn't taking the choice seriously in the first place.
Sure, he has a history with Zoey. But as the Interlude shows, that history was extremely shallow. Even his lame discussion with Bella about elephants (except, you know, the really, really obvious one) was more significant than drawing Zoey's Z-Chord. Zoey will always be special to him, but she's not in some privileged position relative to the other unchosen girls. Asserting otherwise won't amp up the drama, it will deflate it.
Now, there are ways to add Zoey to the mix that don't run afoul of the crossroads. Unfortunately, they require that Zoey's impact vary considerably based on our choices. In an Others run, for example, Zoey would be a reason for him to rethink his decision; we could get some drama out of the MC deciding whether playing the field is worth blowing his one shot to patch things up with her. In a M/J or Bella run, Zoey could be a problem not because the MC wants to reunite but because he can't explain his secret relationship to her; how far will he go to protect that secret? In a Sage or Jill run, on the other hand, the drama would be limited to letting Zoey down easily.
If DPC is willing and able to tailor Zoey's role in that manner, I'll be happy to admit I was wrong to panic over the Interlude. But I hope you'll forgive me if I'm not optimistic based on what we've seen so far. Giving Zoey her own Interlude doesn't suggest she's going to be a minor player in Season 3. And having an MC who didn't fuck Jade still hide in the Burke's bathroom doesn't suggest DPC has learned not to force the drama.
Everything I see suggests that Season 3 will be to all the LIs what Season 2 was for M/J: a long digression that ultimately leaves us making the same choice all over again at the end rather than developing that choice. Sure, Season 4 will probably be different when we finally get there, but that's a long way off. So yeah, I remain worried about Zoey and frankly, I think you should be, too.
tl;dr:
I'm not worried Zoey is going to steal the other LIs' lewd scenes, I'm worried she's going to steal the focus that should be theirs in the wake of the crossroads. And no number of saves can help against that unless DPC is willing to dial down Zoey based on our actions. I'm not holding my breath.
I'd say the MC and Zoey were legitimate best friends, but that their friendship was rather shallow. That's hardly unrealistic, but as I just beat into the ground, it doesn't leave Zoey well positioned in the wake of the crossroads.
