argh NO the feelings of listening to Make A Man Out Of You for the millionth time and having it sink in that Shang goes through ALL the emotions as he sings it and he gets his own little character arc
like it's a montage of Mulan coming into her own for the very first time and the soldiers learning to work together with their strengths-
and it's also Shang, singing the song, singing his parts SEPPERATE from the chorus, drowning them out-
him the captain, alone at the top, leading and guiding, determined to prove himself and be out there on the field to help his father- him starting out so full of CONFIDENCE and conviction yes he WILL make a man out of you! (somehow) sharing his idea of what a man is: BALANCE. Tranquil and on fire. it's finding your center, you place inside yourself
but then the soldiers all sing and they're begging for their lives under his training, hopeless, the mood isn't we're in this together it's i am going to die die die die hey lets throw rocks at ping- ping is even worse than the rest of us we all hate ping
Shang's sings again and there's desperation now, heed my every order and you MIGHT survive-
he's not hoping to train the best army ever anymore, he's scared he'll lead people to their death because he Cant Train Them right, he's running out of time to get them ready,
And this is the moment he tells Ping / Mulan to go home. his darkest hour in the song, him giving up, him admitting HE'S failed
how could i ever make a man out of you? Not, how could YOU ever be a man- how could /I/ ever make you one! Maybe Ping could be a great soldier, but Shang can't teach it
(am i reaching? maybe. i dont care)
He blames himself. A bad teacher, he thinks. but he will not send someone who can't fight into a war just to die
Ping would've just been the first one he sent home, im sure
Mulan CAN'T go home though, for her HERSELF she can't do it- her father is safe now and she has a way out but no No NO, she climbs the pole to reach the arrow as the song climbs with her,
Shang's voice tenses with this sort of desperate hope and wonder as he hits the last note, as she throws down the arrow, as he looks up and sees-
she got there using both weights, using BALANCE. His teachings-
but he didn't teach Ping that
shang sings with the chorus
the instruments drop away and it's just voices, Shang in lead yes, but the soldiers are with him now. or maybe it's him finally being with them?
Mulan's example brought them together. Her, Ping's success, wasn't just a victory for new recruits- it was the moment SHANG saw he could be a good teacher, a good captain
he gave Mulan room to try herself, he showed her basics, cared more about Ping's safety than his own ego- told Ping go home, -I- can't teach you. I have failed. He left the door open for Ping to teach himself
remember the chorus? "Be a man" -it's a CHORUS it's NEVER sung alone
(like shang has been singing)
A man isn't singular. He isn't separate. Isn't alone.
He is the moment the whole camp looks up and CHEERS to see the weakest one of them make it to the top
a man is that last shot, all of them together, moving as one
their center isn't something they hold inside themselves. None of them start winning until they turn their focus outward and find their center in the people around them- they come into their own when they see ANYONE even PING can be a man
and Shang needed to see that too
that shot of him running with soldiers and Ping at lead is the visual version of that last chorus line
he started out wanting to make men out of these guys, he ended up learning to be one of the men himself instead
and i think ive fried my brain