Zechnophobe said:
iDoom46 said:
Chell, on the other hand, is the only human GLaDOS ever has contact with, so it makes much more sense that she'd form an attachment to her, so it would probably make more sense for her to consider Chell her only friend. But, since the wording is so vague I'd bet we'd be here debating this until the end of time and still never get a definitive answer.
Vague, but she does say:
Goodbye my only friend
Oh, did you think I meant you?
That would be funny
if it weren't so sad
I mean, unless they are purposefully being pedantic, it seems she is referring to someone other than the listener of the song.
When is GladOS, a compulsive/pathological liar going by the first game, ever open with her feelings? It seems she's trying to distract from the fact that you *are* the friend she's talking about, she just doesn't want to admit she's befriended a human being ... which is, as she infers, pathetic and "would be funny if it weren't so sad".
I would posit that she wouldn't have let Chell go if Chell wasn't a friend. Otherwise, she would have continued her tests. I see "Want You Gone" as a kind of admission that GladOS sees Chell as a friend, yet also sees that they can't stay together. If they were to remain in the same place, the conflict between GladOS's need to test and Chell's need for freedom would clash indefinitely, as would the cycle of killing each other. Thus, the only way GladOS can protect her newly found friend is by letting her go. Going by the first game, GladOS isn't necessarily the kind of AI that keeps her promises ... so it's the only way to explain why she felt compelled to keep her promise to let Chell go. What else would prevent her from simply killing Chell and replacing her with the new testing robots she developed?
All other characters mentioned in the game can't be viewed as a friend. Cave Johnson was her creator. Caroline was the basis of her personality. Rat Man was a nuisance (if she was aware of him at all). Wheatly was that AI with moronic ideas that used to be connected to her.
Edit: I've been listening to the song over and over and I wanted to add the following.
"She was a lot like you.
(Maybe not quite as heavy).
Now little Caroline is in here too.
One day they woke me up -
So I could live forever.
It?s such a shame the same
will never happen to you."
She compares Chell to Caroline, the basis of her personality. I can only interpret that as a very big compliment. Of course, she has to throw in a small insult so as to not overload her "nice-ness circuit". But can anybody doubt what those last four lines mean? Caroline was used as the basis for GladOS so she could live forever. Now GladOS regrets that she can't do the same for Chell.
"You?ve got your
short sad
life left.
That?s what I?m counting on.
I?ll let you get right to it -
Now I only want you gone."
Because of Chell's limited lifespan, GladOS sets Chell free. Chell is supposed to make the best of what time she has left (compared to the eternity that faces GladOS). This feeling builds up into the fifth line, where she says she'll let Chell get right to it and that she wants Chell gone. She's rejecting Chell (however regretfully) so Chell can move on to something new and different, and maybe make the best of life in a mortal body.
"Well you have been replaced.
I don?t need anyone now.
When I delete you maybe
I?ll stop feeling so bad."
After everything I've mentioned above, I think these lines speak for themselves. Once Chell has left, GladOS can delete what memories and information she has about Chell, in order to forget the trepidation and pain she feels about losing and replacing her only friend.
