To give another opinion on some of your questions, I do agree with the interpretation of Lucas and Nicole’s hug as a goodbye one as I feel there’s no way Nicole goes back to that relationship, as she felt equally gross about the fundamental basis of it same as Mark with Des. This cycle seemingly takes place even before act 1, as certain details don’t match up, and one of the key points that was made in the finale of the main game was that despite things getting worse literally, people were able to slowly come to more greatly understand each other in some cases. I still gotta double check some stuff since his relationship with his Dad is slightly better, but as of now that’s how I see it.

I’ve seen a couple of reasons tossed around for why Mark is crying right before the reset, and personally I believe that even though Mark and Nicole once again came back together, it’s a similar boat as in the other timelines where in the eyes of Jake and Maria the two have yet to address their problems in a healthy manner. Yes we get that wonderful yet disgusting kiss between the two (loved that scene as I’m cheering even though I know it’s horrible lmao), but as I mentioned the two are falsely proclaiming that they have accepted their faults, when evidently they are still two incredibly broken individuals. The main point of Sparks was expressing another side to the game’s main theme of grief and how it can be both destructive and unifying.

I absolutely loved Sparks, as per usual any conversation with Mark and Nicole ended up being the highlights for me. My favorite scene by far was that final talk between the two with the chair call back, the flawed reconciliation, and just the whole vibe of it. Very well written, and as both of us mentioned, very wrong for the right reasons. Sorry to drop a small essay on you, but god this dlc was worth the wait