And I'm not sure if I should feel bad for that part about being beaten by that one guy, because it really felt like a cheap emotional grab.
I don't think the author wants you too feel too bad for the mimic, given what they did immediately after that backstory. Rather I think it shows it's species doesn't know much, or anything, about humanity by the time they first take human form. Her/his first experience with a human was an abuser obsessed with movies. And now the mimic thinks nothing of hurting others while obsessing over acting out it's own movie.
Even a mimic as articulate as Mr. N is still operating off a mimic logic. I think that's the point of the backstory. You can say "monsters don't operate off the same logic as humans", but this chapter shows how one type of monster develops and what it takes from its experiences.
last edited at Apr 2, 2026 6:06PM