Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has some of the most exhausting yet rewarding gameplay mechanics and fights. Players will encounter many notable enemies, some of the most ridiculous, such as the Grosse Tete, and others of the most painful, like the Paintress fight that deals critical emotional damage directly to the player.
The Expeditions were formed with the goal to eliminate the Paintress, but they didn't have much information on the Continent and the Paintress herself. As they continued with the Expeditions every year, they got closer and closer to finally facing the one seemingly inflicting the Gommage. However, only Maelle and the rest of Expedition 33 really got to face off with the Paintress.
Initially, the people of Lumiere believe that the giant white-haired lady who changes the number on the Monolith every year is the Paintress herself. However, that isn't really the case as we encounter the real one as Expedition 33 reaches the top of the Monolith after going through the Tainted versions of the places we've been through (starting from the Meadows up until Lumiere).
This is pretty symbolic as it shows how much the players have already been through from Act I to nearing the end of Act II, when finally we face the real Paintress herself, who seems to be similar to the Curator. She looked like she was made of metal with hints of gold, yet hollow inside, with gray petals seeping out of her. She seemed to be speaking in riddles as Verso and the rest of the Expedition met her.
As the Paintress knew that the Expedition would try to take her down, she fought back and told them that she wouldn't let them take the canvas away from her. The first two phases were tolerable. I found it easier compared to Renoir's battle, but this is subjective. However, I didn't expect the last phase at all.
It was peculiar that the Paintress' health bar didn't completely go to zero when the cutscene started. The giant fell, and the Paintress seemed so weak on the ground. Verso said, "No, we're not done yet," and the last phase starts. The Paintress' fight resumes, with her HP almost gone. The background music becomes mellow and emotional, and then it hits.
The Paintress's "attacks" don't deal damage to the Expedition, but directly to the players instead. Her actions were protecting an Expeditioner, which puts a shield on them, and healing a random member. It definitely dealt critical emotional damage to me, as I had a hard time attacking her, possibly due to her being weak and seemingly helpless.
While relief took over since the team finally defeated the Paintress after so many years and thousands of Expeditioners losing their life, I was still stricken with grief due to the heaviness of the final Paintress scene with Verso and Maelle. This becomes especially heavy once you continue through the Epilogue and finally have a better grasp on what's actually happening.
Stick with Gfinityesports.com: the best site for Clair Obscur Expedition 33 coverage.