Ready Player One Read-Through: Chapter 36

Content warning: sexism.



Leftover note: I can't believe this only now just occurred to me, but in chapter 33, how does Helen feel about seeing Wade for the first time? Is he what she expected? The reader is given no insight into her reaction to Wade's appearance. Not in dialogue, not in a raised eyebrow, nothing. It goes to show how very little Cline actually cared about her character - to him, she is the "twist" character. She's female, black, and a lesbian: that's the perceived twist about her. That is not how progress works, Cline. You don't get to pat yourself on the back for your diverse representation when there is nothing to your single, multiple-minorities-for-the-price-of-one character as a person in her own right. That it took me this long to realize all of this, it shows my own privilege, and lackluster efforts in noticing problematic content when it comes to works by male authors. Make an effort, and put yourself in the shoes of characters who don't look like you, Cline. Tokenism doesn't count as positive rep.



The Sixers had blown up the area surrounding the Third Gate. Everything is a wasteland, like after a nuclear explosion, and every avatar around is dead. The Sixers' Catalyst Chekhov's Gun waaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy back in chapter 21 has finally been used!

Everything is destroyed - except for the Third Gate.

And Wade's avatar.

Yep, for as it turns out, that coin that he won waaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy back in chapter 22, when he played Pac-Man, was an extra life!

Deus ex machina! No, it's the deus ex machina to end all deus ex machinas!

His luck is an endless cheat code.

I am actually reading a book where playing a game of Pac-Man saves a life.

Wade is seriously the only gunter ever - out of thousands - to have founded the Pac-Man game on Archaide and play a perfect game. He's so special, isn't he?

He just forgot about the coin and the Pac-Man episode - fifteen chapters ago - until now. This is not the fun kind of stupid; it's just stupid.

So Gary Stu  - the only avatar left alive in pretty much the entire OASIS sector - is fine, except he has no more armour and inventory. He is back to square one. But he's not alone - for Morrow/Og logs Samantha//Art3mis, Helen/Aech, and Akihide/Shoto into Wade's audio and video feeds, from the real world.


"Where are you?" I asked the empty air.
"I'm dead, like everyone else," Aech said. "Everyone but you."
"Then how can I hear you?"
"Og patched all of us into your audio and video feeds," she said. "So we can see what you see and hear what you hear.
"Oh," I said.
"Is that alright with you, Parzival?" I heard Og ask. "If it isn't, just say so."
I thought about it for a moment. "No, it's fine with me," I said. (Page 345)


Now, it is Wade who has no privacy from the others - others whose personal, private files he had unhesitantly read without their permission. The irony is lost on Cline.

Also, because Helen/Aech sounds like a woman now, he refers to her by female gender pronouns from now on. He still calls her Aech, though. He is a simpleton, isn't he?

I hope Helen will create a new avatar that is female, and a POC. Sadly, no such thing occurs in the actual book. She has no character arc. It is all about the white boy Wade, and her literal purpose is to serve him; to help him achieve his goal.

What a progressive book Ready Player One is.

Morrow/Og speaks to Wade, too, but only for one line. Welp, he was no help.

After everyone says once again how lucky Wade is - he's pretty much become Jesus at this point, what with the resurrection metaphor and all - he tries to reach the Third Gate, which is suspended very high above him. More Sixers will be on their way, with their own copies of the Crystal Key, and will be able to enter the Gate no problem. The stakes would have seemed high this time, and shown Wade to be in a very tricky situation... if there weren't artifacts lying around the area. Like in a bloody video game!

Any one of the items left over by the dead avatars could help our lucky protag. He can't use Ultraman, at least, because the Beta Capsule is a one-day-use item.

He uses Art3mis's Black Chuck Taylor All Stars sneakers to reach the Gate. He's fine, as usual.

But before he gets on with it, he gives not one, but two hero speeches:


"I just wanted to say that I know how the three of you must feel right now. It isn't fair, the way this has played out. We should all be entering the gate together. So before I go in, I want you guys to know something. If I reach the egg, I'm going to split the prize money equally among the four of us." (Page 348)


His friends don't believe that he could ever do anything so selfless (I can't blame them). After Wade assures them that he needs their help to win the egg regardless - and when Art3mis dares him to put his promise "in writing" - he gives his second speech, for a live broadcast on his YouTube channel (he let's us know he has over two million viewers from around the world now, gotta love his modesty):


"Greetings," I said. "This is Wade Watts, also known as Parzival. I want to let the whole world know that if and when I find Halliday's Easter Egg, I hereby vow to split my winnings equally with Art3mis, Aech, and Shoto. Cross my heart and hope to die. Gunter's honor. Pinky swear. All of that crap. If I'm lying, I should be forever branded as a gutless Sixer-fellating punk." (Page 349)


Oh, that honorable, noble Wade.

He's still a bastard.

A white male hero, like in every '80s movie. Like in every movie.

I can see why this was optioned for a film.


As I finished the broadcast, I heard Art3mis say, "Dude, are you nuts? I was kidding!"
"Oh," I said. "Right. I knew that." (Page 349)


Yeah, can you get on with it, already? Why haven't the Sixers shown up yet?

Oh, right, Wade is a Gary Stu in God Mode and his luck is neverending. And the story loves him too much for any inconvenience, challenge or conflict to happen to him. Gotcha.

Sweet, modest cheerleader Art3mis. Who demands absolutely nothing from a guy. Who never says what she means. Not to Wade, whom she does love for reasons never given in the book. She's a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, who only exists for the male lead's desires - she doesn't need a reason to like him!

Arty has no life, nor a solid personality of her own. She isn't even referred to by her real name, Samantha, even though Wade knows it, from peeking into her file six chapters ago.

He flies into the star-filled Third Gate. End of chapter 36.

Wait... so the Gate will open for anyone after three Crystal Keys had already been used on it? Even if only one avatar were to go in? So it's not that Sixers with copies of the Key could enter, as well? All of them could? Thus increasing their chances of winning?

See, glitches, loopholes, digital holes, and plot holes - Halliday didn't consider everything. From what we've seen throughout the book, he didn't consider much of anything.

Greatest, smartest nerd in the world, my arse.