Pyramid head is the faceless face of the Silent Hill franchise. The series is among the most beloved in the horror genre, and the silent, lumbering executioner has a lot to do with its fame. First appearing in Silent Hill 2, Pyramid Head has become a connection between the different games in the series. With its freaky design and terrifying in-game aura, Pyramid Head has become iconic not only among fans of the series but fans of the horror genre overall.
Pyramid Head essentially serves as the main antagonist of Silent Hill 2. According to series lore, the town of Silent Hill has the ability to give life to a person's innermost thoughts. The game's protagonist, James Sunderland, is the only person who can see Pyramid Head. This means Pyramid Head is James' own nightmare, created by Silent Hill. In James' mind, he deserves to be punished for the death of his wife, which is why Pyramid Head looks like an executioner: He is meant to punish James for his wrong doings and absolve him of his guilt. This has lead many to believe that James' face may be hiding underneath Pyramid Head's mask, but that remains only a theory.
There's a lot the Silent Hill games leave unknown about Pyramid Head, but, luckily for fans of the series, artist Masahiro Ito has an active Twitter presence. Ito was one of the artists who worked on Silent Hill 2 and the creator of Pyramid Head. Ito occasionally posts early sketches for Pyramid Head and other iconic Silent Hill characters. A fan recently commented on one of Ito's posts from several years ago, and the artist revealed an interesting detail about the iconic character's weapon.
Silent Hill: Pyramid Head's Backwards Knife Is Actually Half A Pair Of Scissors
Ito has drawn Pyramid Head holding its Great Knife many different ways, but Twitter user @samwisegameboy was specifically curious as to why the character holds the knife backwards in Silent Hill 2. In a quote tweet, Ito revealed Pyramid Head's Great Knife is actually one side of a pair of scissors, meant to be the other half of James' Great Knife. Ito wanted to use this revelation as a way of hinting that Pyramid Head is actually the other half of James. The two knives could come together to make a pair of scissors, just as Pyramid Head and James come together to make a complete James. It's not entirely clear in Ito's tweet, but it appears he meant to make James' half somehow distinct from Pyramid Head's or to have the two halves unite at some point, but he didn't have time to do so.
Taking a closer look at Pyramid Head's Great Knife, it's easy to see the blade is indeed just half a pair of scissors. Although the outer, curved edge appears sharpened, the inner edge could be sharp, as well, and the knife features the bolt that would've held the scissors together with the other blade. This confirms Pyramid Head is more than James' own creation, being a part of James himself. Considering James could wield the Great Knife, using it against Pyramid Head now seems even more like a metaphor for James struggling to fully understand his guilt. He's using the same weapon as his other half, which goes to show he's just fighting himself in Silent Hill 2.
It's disappointing to see Ito wasn't able to fully implement his vision into Silent Hill 2, but it's also interesting to see new information come out about a game that released nearly two decades ago. The idea that Pyramid Head's knife is actually a pair of scissors that further connects him to James is fascinating, and hopefully it can be revisited if there's ever a Silent Hill 2 remastered edition.
Source: Masahiro Ito/Twitter