Why Sampo's Fourth Wall Break is Cool || Honkai: Star Rail Lore 

Aha is described in-universe, to 'never give you up, let you down, run around, or desert you.' I think we can safely assume that he can break the fourth wall.

This scene caught my attention so much since it’s so off putting to have a character just turn around and speak with the player, wether they are actually aware of the fact they’re in the game or if it’s just part of the performance. I really also want to know how much sampo knows about everything he’s so interesting (and I hate him for that, COME BACK AND GIVE US ANSWERS SAMPO)

Fun fact: Many Sampo haters converted to Sampo simps after this ONE cutscene. Trust me. I'm one of them lol.

One thing you missed - one of Stelle's dialogue options when you talk to March after the cutscene is "I dreamed about Sampo"

couple of things i hope Sampo will be 1. he is Elation/Aha Emanator 2. he just like DC's plastic man as in characterization, an incredibly powerful individual. he can be a real big threat to the story, but sticking to be comedic relief character.

I think the knowledge about the fact that it is a fictional universe exists in the universe. Just look at Silver Wolf. She has access to the coding of the build lol.

Isnt sampo part of a faction which lives for entertainment. Maybe its normal for them to have a audience watching you throughout the universe

Hey theres something very interesting about sampo on jarilo VI. If you teleport to the central Plaza waypoint in the administrative district and walk directly north up the stairs you will see Chavez (Enthusiastic Man). He talks about a group of people that were scammed by the “blue haired swindler”. If you ask how he was scammed he tells the trailblazer that he was sold a “parallel universe printer” and sampo tells him about parallel universes, aeons and parity anomaly. I think you should make an updated theory on sampo with this info and piece the puzzle that is sampo

Since you watched Central Finite Curve's video, you probably saw my comment on his video, so I won't repeat the exact same words here. Just going along with the discussion, when we the players are actually part of the world setting, that would make this scene completely diegetic right? Actually, if we ARE part of the in-game world, this wouldn't even be considered a 4th wall break, would it? It just means that Sampo, for whatever reason, knows of our kind in the in-game universe, and the speech might actually be directly intended for us. Continue on this line of thought, funny enough, this scene would have completely different meaning to two different types of players. 1. To players who are not aware of the lore of Honkaiverse, they don't know they are canonically a part of that world. In which case, Sampo's conversation can either be non-diegetic or diegetic 4th wall break. 2. To players who are aware of the lore of Honkaiverse, they can insert themselves into the story as per the world setting, and that 4th wall break scene becomes a completely normal conversation.

There are some people that think Sampo is a stelleron hunter, the "Sam" mentioned at one point. I dont see why he couldn't be both a masked fool and a stelleron hunter. Maybe he was hired as part of elios script? I just dont think they have to be mutually exclusive

Right before this dream, there is a callback to what Kafka says during the opening (the "all questions will be answered in the end" thing). When I first played through the story, I thought this scene was meant to answer questions and I was so damn confused when it didn't answer a single damn thing and just created more questions...

Sampo, yet another suspicious wind character who likes to mess with people XD Can't say this is going to be another pattern Hoyo likes to use in their games but still I find it funny. (There's only been two characters, so can't call it a pattern) Its weird to go over the game again because it really doesn't hit you that he's odd unless you really think about it. He has to be pretty strong to carry four unconscious people all the way to Natasha's clinic, and why bring Bronya? If he hadn't done that then it might have been pretty difficult for the HSR crew to convince people that Cocolia is suspicious. Either Sampo could actually be working for both the Masked Fools and the Stellaron Hunters, or Elio contacted him and convinced him that he would have fun if he went to Jarilo-VI, or on some level he has a similar ability to Elio, there are other possibilities but it would be pretty terrifying to think that a follower of a 4th wall breaking god can also predict the future. I don't think his character stories even reveal all that much.

Guesss who’s giggly little voice snuck into phantylia’s theme

This scene has to be my favorite in the whole game so far. It's funny and it raises so many questions both about Sampo and the world of Star Rail. Awesome video as always!

Hey, great video, just one question, did anyone else get the callback to Midsummers Night's Dream? Sampo, to me, hits more like Puck in this than anything else. He knows there is an 'audience' but doesn't really care about the "who are they" question insomuch as "do they like the show" question. You could extend the metaphor to Aha's two groups being similar to the Summer and Winter courts; but that might be a bit much until we know more about them.

Oh, I completely forgot about the original definition of "comedy" :D And now the fact that one of HSR trailers is called "Space Comedy" popped into my head. Also, could it be that Sampo was talking to Trailblazer specifically? We do get an option to tell March that we (Trailblazer) were dreaming of him. And in the museum event when we get that screen for the exhibition, the description alludes to that dream too, if I'm not mistaken.

I know it's been 7 months since you made this but.... Sampo also interacts with Jarilo in a weird way, as in... Sampo doesn't leave footprints in the snow, while every other character does. I do appreciate your deep dive, it was very interesting to listen! I personally really like Sampo being involved in many things throughout the stories, even after Jarilo, on the Xianzhou we had a note from him, and now, 2.0 trailers, have been heavily imbued with Sampo presence. so yeah, thanks for the great listen, I appreciate!

Sampo is actually on the path of elation an is responsible for making all the references

sampo and pinkie pie are both good ec xamples of breaking the fourth wall done right when a show or whatever does it too much it gets old pretty fast

This scene is just constantly on my mind and is also the reason why sampo is my favorite character right now I am really excited to see more of sampo in the future

Trailblazer comedically breaks the 4th wall several times. "They didn't even give me an option to say no." "Well for one, I can't jump." Those examples both come to mind. As for Sampo, I feel like he's the Emanator of Elation. Rating gun can't rate Sampo, nor can it rate Jing Yuan(Emanator of the Hunt). While it CAN rate Herta, it's only rating her Doll form, not her actual form(Emanator of Erudition). This also makes me thing March is an Emanator since it can't rate her as well; my guess would be Remembrance(she literally takes pictures of everything so as to catalogue it and never forget, something forced on her by the removal of her memories, likely at the "hands" of Fuli the Remembrance, other option is she could be the fallen Idrila the Beauty, she takes pictures of all the beauty in each thing). The last person it can't rate is Luocha, likely the unwilling Emanator of Abundance. Another point to be made is this may not be the first go through of the universe, as it's speculated that this version of events is a do over, one where the Trailblazer is present to make a new path through time.(Evidence the Trailblazer is in Akivili or it's Emanator is as simple as if you choose not to board the Astral Express you basically get an unceremonious "Game Over" and the history where universe ended repeats itself)

Your theory at the end reminds me of a certain character in Guilty Gear Strive, "Happy Chaos". Aha and Happy Chaos might have the same mindset. Happy Chaos lives for the thrill and believes that a good story has to have a good villain in which he plays the part. This means that Aha and his followers want the same thing, they want a good story and know what part they should play to make that story good. For me Elation is the most interesting path. We've already seen what some of them can do, Sampo fucking with you with a bomb while you are in Loufu. Zhongshan (if that's her "real" name) who just created chaos at a group just for the laughs. So excited to actually know more of them! For characters, I mainly like Nihility but for the Aeons, Aha is on the top and next is IX.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Classic example.

This is such a good vid! Keep it up man.

we know damping is apart of the masked fools as he talks about the tavern which is the hq of masked fools

A theory that i like is that because Sampo broke the 4th wall, he is the emenator of elation, since Aha, the aeon of elation also broke the 4th wall the first time we meet him in the simulated universe.

I'VE BEEN WAITING SINCE THE STREAM 🎉

WOOOOO YEAAAA WHALEMILK VIDEO (love it watching it now

The Sampo cutscene is really weird. Since you were focusing on the 4th wall break so maybe you missed it or kept aside on purpose But Sampo says something that's really feels not exactly out of place but it feels more out of place Because sampo says "i didn't think the crew of the Astral express would be more fun then i thought" At first i was thinking Alon the line of how did he know about that sibce cannonicaly on screen atleast we have only talked about outer spce and fhe express with Gepard and Cocolia (qnd maybe also Seele and Bronia but I'm not sure about that) at the time and in all those times he was nowhere near us so how did he know but after giving it some more thought it is possible that it happened offscreen or something But then you notice what he says " "i didn't think the crew of the Astral express would be more fun then i thought" meaning that he was aware of the Expeeses arrival in the world and coincidentally enough we first mert him a few couples pf meters away from our landing location

I'm convinced he's either some kind of avatar of Aha (kind of like Zhongli, 'Aha Incognito') or at the least an Emanator.

If he doesn't break the fourth wall, why did he know where to face to directly look into the camera?

Just wondering if you have seen the Sampo music video that was played on Hoyofair 2024, on New Years Eve called 'Funny Bone'? After watching your video and explanations of Sampo, the music video made a lot more sense. The video gives some Sampo lore....as it shows a young Sampo morphing into the Sampo we know, but with a much more 'warrior' side to him....along with his connection to the Masked Fools. And, the music in the video is very cool too. You should check out Funny Bone........and I love to hear your comments on it.

It gives me major mama from ai the somnium files vibes

Great video

If sampo's power is to change the narrative on a whim he reminds me of the comedian sorcerer who can manipulate reality with his imagination. Which would be a cool concept if a little unnerving if it goes down the unreality direction.

Why did Kafka's "A Dramatic Irony" trailer start playing after your video? That felt ...off

Sheogorath took on a new form

Thank you for explaining of what 4th wall is for 5 fucking hours straight. I came here for this and not for Sampo theories for sure