Random Phantom of the Opera Stuff

LND Theory About Raoul

 I've been meaning to write down this one for a while, so I figured I should probably do it before I forget it.

 So, we know that in Love Never Dies, Raoul apparently believed Gustave was his son, and didn't about Christine and the Phantom. But in the book The Phantom of Manhattan by Frederick Forsyth, the book LND was partly based on, Raoul knew he wasn't the father of Christine's son. I don't remember now what happened to him, but it was something violent, and he wasn't able to have children. Therefore, he knew that the child wasn't his.

 Now, in LND, it's pretty obvious that Raoul is nothing like his old self. He's an alcoholic and a gambler, and not the nicest person, either. But it's never actually explained how he wound up like that.

 Here is my theory: I think it could be possible Raoul knew that there was a chance Gustave wasn't his. Maybe he knew Christine disappeared the night before the wedding, and he began to suspect something. It could be that he just had a gut feeling. Apparently, Gustave was very much like the Phantom musically and in the way he saw things, and was also apparently nothing like Raoul.

 That could have gotten to Raoul's head after a while, them living with that lie. It could have slowly driven him insane, and maybe drinking and gambling was a way out for him, a way for him to escape his problems.

 I know it must sound incredibly depressing, but we're also supposed to believe that Christine gave birth to the Phantom's son and got shot because Meg went crazy since the Phantom cared more about Christine more than her. So, I think anything's possible at this point.