Okay so that was amazing??? I would say that the first part of Arc 5 rendered me speechless, but I actually have a LOT to say, so...[SPOILERS FOR OUR WONDERLAND ARCS 1-5 BELOW]
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To begin with, I absolutely loved that beginning sequence. The moment of everything just hitting Iggy like a trainwreck of emotions and trauma was well-needed, considering how long he and the rest of the friend group have gone through the loop (which I'm assuming has been more than 5 times). It also has a similar effect to the players, with the start of the arcs having a few differences but nothing too out of the ordinary considering what happens the arc before. But then Arc 5 just hits you with the whiplash that Iggy remembers EVERYTHING rather than just having a strong sense of deja vu and he's taking time to process it, barely even functioning because of how hard it hit him.
Following immediately after that, the tree story: it was a nice way to connect the whole loop thing back to where it all began, which was the big tree that held the wonderland that they were all introduced to as children. Despite the tree closing itself off from the friend group because they inevitably grew up, Saydie was the key to opening it back up again. And it seems like she has a pretty significant role in the story, the end of Arc 1 implying that Bucks killed her in order to open up the tree again and her quite literally being on the menu screen held by Iggy (I'm assuming).
Going to Genzou right after Iggy's whirlpool of emotions, I couldn't even choose the "mean" options directed towards him because of that. Well, that and mostly because of my Genzou bias. But even if I absolutely hated him because of what he has done to Orlam (which is perfectly reasonable, he HAS said and done some fucked up stuff to him), I think it would just be adding more negativity to the landfill of the emotional trauma both Iggy and Genzou were going through. And plus, Iggy KNOWS what Genzou feels like so I personally think it wouldn't make sense for him to be callous and unsympathetic towards Genzou. It's also interesting to note the awkwardness between them compared to the beginning of previous arcs, most probably because they both remember the emotions that Iggy went through when it came to Genzou: it started with simply enjoying his presence, then loving him, then HATING him, and then seeing him as a place of comfort when Gidget, who he focuses on while Genzou is left on the sidelines, won't give him that comfort. Not to mention the crush that Genzou had on Iggy for forever. Genzou pushing Iggy away when he was lying down in the bathtub seemed to be because of how it pained him to be in his presence: his opinion of Iggy would certainly be very jumbled by this point and he also seems terrified to have Iggy be even the slightest bit angry at him because of what happened in Arc 3's boat scene. It's nice to see them quickly become comfortable with each other again though.
Focusing on the doll, I wonder what's the role it'll have in the story. It's an object that always reappears in Iggy's dreams specifically, and it also appears a few times in the forest leading to Bucks's cabin. The fact that it says "Please kill me, Iggy" is strange because if this is truly supposed to represent Saydie (going by how Iggy says it looks like a certain someone before he's interrupted by Hunar knocking), wouldn't she already be killed by Bucks? She might not be as evidenced by the crying coming from Bucks's phone (and then the hell screaming ig), but I dunno what it's really supposed to mean. Maybe Bucks killing her in order to access the tree perpetuates the cycle, and Iggy needs to take Saydie himself and kill her so the friend group can confront the situation head on without the whole wonderland stuff. (Also it's kinda sad that Bucks and Saydie have arguably the most important roles in the story while Hunar is just left in the dust... Iggy also emphasizes all FIVE of them which excludes Hunar. And also Saydie but like she's a child.) While I'll cover Gidget's section entirely in another paragraph, I'll briefly cover the doll motif that they have going on: they strive to have their appearance stay the same, like a doll. It's always the same, meaning it's PERFECT. Furthermore, they quite literally have dolls of Iggy everywhere that can easily be replaced: they no longer focus on the REAL Iggy, but substitutes that fulfill the ache in their heart that lacks his love and it further emphasizes how much worse their obsession is in Arc 5. They also mention this to Iggy, telling him that he can be replaced... it shows the shift in their mindset, from wanting to fix him to just replacing him.
Regarding the beginning of Iggy and Genzou's entry into the fantasy world once more, it seems like everything's a mess: even more than it was before. It shows us a glimpse into how bad everything will be. Which seems to foreshadow that the deterioration of Gidget's and Orlam's mental state is AMPLIFIED in this loop.
Okay, back to Genzou again. Of course, comfort and security is taken into account when Iggy thinks about him; those are reoccurring themes in Arc 2. Genzou's always there to reassure Iggy and close to him for the purpose of protecting him from any of the dangers that they encounter. But Iggy wants to repay him for all he's done. I mean, Genzou literally took an axe to the head for him. Not only that, he feels extremely guilty because he thinks he ruined Genzou's life but of course he didn't. Which ties back to Arc 1, which primarily focuses on Iggy. He feels RESPONSIBLE for everything, and so HE has to FIX everything. Obviously he is not, and it's not his duty to save everyone from their problems. But he also feels like this is what he has to do so he can stay friends with everyone, in order to maintain that camaraderie that he cherishes so much. Iggy CAN provide assistance and guide people to the right path when needed, but he shouldn't take things into his own hands and try to repair everything. It's relieving to see Genzou reassure Iggy that it's not up to him because he hasn't ruined anyone's life. (I also noticed when Iggy pointed out that Genzou wrestled a giant tentacle for him, it's a callback to how Genzou pointed out that Iggy tried to defeat an armored rabbit with a rake for him, which I think is really cute.)
And then... Gidget. Very complex situation. The external manifestation of their desires have changed dramatically in this loop: no longer focusing on sex appeal & emphasizing their body, but rather focusing on maintaining a PERFECT image of themself. Everything is pristine and spotless. Gidget rejects everything that would make them imperfect, which are emotions, nourishment, and so forth. But despite claiming that they've moved on from Iggy because he was holding them back, there are blatant signs that their statement is false. The Iggy dolls, the mentions of having sex with them, still being that hyperfeminine woman that seemingly everyone around them WANTED them to be. It exemplifies how their desires from past arcs still remain the same, just increased to an even more severe degree. All of it introduces the issue of Iggy feeling the need to FIX them... to "find the real Gidget." Considering how Gidget tried to fix him in the previous 4 arcs, why would flipping the situation around be any different? It also lies with his ultimate responsibility in their circumstances: sure, he might have contributed a LITTLE to the problem, but the full blame doesn't lie with him. It was everyone who upheld those expectations for them, ESPECIALLY their mom. I think the apology to Gidget was very much needed, considering how he basically cut contact with everyone around him after a while and didn't bother to talk to anyone. I personally would be FURIOUS if I centered my whole life around conforming to the expectations of a person that I really cared about and after years of not talking to me ever, they suddenly reappear in my life and tell me that this isn't the real me. Well no shit!!! But this isn't meant to place the blame entirely on Iggy like I mentioned earlier: it would be helpful if Gidget ever communicated their discomfort when they started dressing hyperfemininely; it would also be helpful if no one ever tried to be the gender police when it came to them either. Essentially, it's everyone's fault and not just the fault of one person.
Transitioning (hehe) to the spider cave, it was definitely an experience to say the least. It makes me wonder why it was spiders specifically, though I can see a connection. Spiders are viewed as ugly, gross, and they're monsters in the eyes of most people. And yet, they also fulfilled one of the primary "desires" that Gidget had: to start a family. They embrace being spider-like, even with that stigma around spiders. It can be compared to them desiring to present more androgynously in spite of what others around them say... akin to what they really want, but not there yet. Cecil also constantly tells them that they don't seem happy as they are, and also CECIL WOOOOOOO!!!! Though I don't think it was a matter of realizing what their true desires were, it was more like ACCEPTING what those desires were. Gives a reason for why Cecil is imprisoned in the dungeon below, in order to keep hiding from what they really want because it'll be a hard and egregious life for them if they fulfill those desires. But when they finally kill Cecil, someone who truly cared about them and wanted them to be happy, they finally break. They grieve for him, and then they start destroying the perfect image they tried so hard to keep up. I'm so sad that Cecil reappeared and then died so quickly, but WOOOOO THEY/THEM PRONOUNS FOR GIDGET!!!! I'm so happy to see them have an appearance they want, in spite of the horrible and unspeakable things they've done to Iggy. My non-binary identity and my asexuality makes these feelings conflicting 💀
I'm excited to see how the rest of the arc pans out!!! Geez, I really did write an essay, so I'll leave you with this short concluding message. I wish you luck with continuing Arc 5 🫶