Fridge Brilliance
- Drosselmeier and his nephew are natives of the city of Nuremberg. Why did the author choose Nuremberg? Perhaps the fact that it makes some of the world's best gingerbread has something to do with it!
Fridge Horror
- Nutcracker later referred to the sugar dolls Marie sacrificed to save him from the Mouse King as his own subjects. This means they were alive, which implies that they were Eaten Alive. Knowing what a monster the Mouse King was, it's safe to assume it wasn't swift and merciful, either.
- This being an ETA Hoffman story, there are lots to be found. Plenty of his stories feature harsh events that, rather than being dwelt on, just happen, after which the story moves on. It's up to you to think about just how gruesome some of these are:
- The Mouse King and his mice are clearly eating and clawing at the sweet subjects and the dolls in the battle. So, yes, they were left to die in agony.
- Also in the backstory, mouse traps aren't really nice ways to die, and regardless of if the nobles were slain all at once or if their mother had to watch them die one by one... it's still horrifying.
- Then let's talk about the nut. The other would-be-princes.. If they failed at being able to crack a nut and they had to summon a dentist, it pretty much means their teeth and/or jaws were pretty gnashed up.
- And then what about the off-screen battle? The Nutcracker's own words (varying on the translation) are usually akin to "he's bathed/swimming in his own blood."...Yeah. Again, disturbing.
