What are your theories as to why Beatrix's propaganda worked better on Sora's parents than on literally any other Imperian citizen?
My theory is that Emperor Levo wasn't a very good emperor either, and that Sora's parents had to deal with him and held a higher level of disdain for him than most Imperians did, which would make Beatrix already more favorable than not, making Sora's parents' trust easy to gain. Then, Beatrix, with her lies, propaganda, brainwashing, and manipulation cemented it in their minds. Living like this for so long would only fuel their love for Beatrix's seemingly better rule, while a reasonably acquired "this is so much better than before" mindset would fuel their disdain for Levo's previous rule, which in turn, fuels their love and loyalty towards Beatrix's rule, something they didn't realize was a lie this whole time. Beatrix's framing of Zeatrix falsely showed that even though Levo wasn't good, Beatrix would still serve justice to anyone, even family. Telling them that Beatrix was evil with proof that honestly could have been faked with the level of technology of their world, and especially Imperium, is asking them to reframe their entire mindset in a matter of moments. The reason they are unable to do this would tie into whatever their specific problems with Emperor Levo were, because if Levo had wronged them, Beatrix's rule had to be nothing but justice in their minds, which isn't entirely logical, but it makes sense given that every other Imperian also believed Beatrix's lies, albeit not as deeply as they did. Then coming to accept that they were wrongdoers after being deceived by a higher power and after being wronged and justice never being served to them? Practically impossible.
My evidence for this theory is how Levo acted and what his problems truly were, and also what traits he had. We didn't see him on screen for long, but it's surprising how easy it is to put the pieces together. Levo was anti-outsider and xenophobic because he believed Imperium was the greatest civilization due to its technological advancements. This kind of nationalism creeped into every part of his life, turning into straight-up arrogance, which would naturally make him feel he was better than all Imperians simply because he ruled over them, a position he didn't earn, but was born into as a the head of a monarchy. We can see he clearly rejected Ras not only because the dragons willingly shared energy with Imperium, but because he couldn't bear the prospect of being instructed, advised, or seen as equal with someone he considered to be an inherently lesser being than himself. He neglected his own daughter, Beatrix, and fueled her rage until the point where she had the idea to kill him. (not justifying Beatrix's actions, just explaining) This kind of arrogance could not have possibly been restricted in any manner, as Levo was the sole, supreme leader of Imperium, able to enforce his will upon anyone in Imperium. If his own daughters weren't free of his arrogance, how could Sora's parents have been?
Levo's arrogant nature would almost certainly result in actions done for personal gain and not the for the well-being of the people of Imperium. If anyone spoke out against him or criticized him in any way, Levo's arrogance would only make him use his power as Emperor to suppress them, criminalizing any form of political dissent. This, by nature of the concept of political dissent, would mean the rights of free speech and freedom of the press (in basic terms, free speech in the form of news media) are also stripped away. People would obviously have been jailed due to any form of criticism. While Levo did not banish people nor torture dragons like Beatrix, he was still a propagator of totalitarianism and dictatorial at heart, though it was not as loud. He obviously didn't need to hurt or jail many people because most of his problems were simply bad traits like arrogance or things like xenophobia, which I feel most Imperians would agree with. Also, his power was legitimate, and he never had to stage a coup to get it or frame anyone, so there would be no one to force in order to validate his authority. His dictatorial nature would be practically silent to most of Imperium.
The specifics are hard to guess, and I can only speculate what the events at any level of detail higher than what I have already spoken of really were.
In simpler words, my theory is that Sora's parents had some deeper problem with Levo, whether it be a form of criticism they participated in that got them punished, or something they did that was a "crime" by Imperian standards but completely fine morally, or something of that nature, something punishable in Imperium that they shouldn't have been punished for, and was petty and stupid. This would make Beatrix more favorable, and the lies would cement it in their minds. Now, after Beatrix is exposed as a dictator, Sora's parents are being told to accept that they did wrong after being wronged, that they were supporting someone evil after that person had technically alleviated the harm of an evil from them. This logic is obviously just the clear idea at a first glance, and it may seem slightly arrogant and self-serving, but it is logical nonetheless. Besides, brainwashing has proved to significantly lower someone's ability to understand the reasons behind their own actions, leading to the fact that after all this, Sora's parents don't have the ability to fully understand what they did wrong, and they don't even have the ability to fully understand the problems that led them to do those wrong things. They don't understand their actions nor their trauma. Just because Beatrix is gone doesn't mean that Sora's parents automatically lose all their brainwashing effects.
Senator Percival should probably look into getting rehabilitation for people like these instead of just punishment, because dear Lord some of these Imperians are brainwashed so bad. Just living under his just rule wouldn't solve those problems, because removing the thing that's brainwashing someone won't undo the brainwashing that has been done. Percival is a teenager, and he is absolutely capable of leading, something beyond anyone's wildest expectations, but he needs to stop thinking about the Loyalists as just criminals and also victims in their own sense. None of those who are culpable in this entire ordeal have to entirely be an aggressor. Sora is entirely a victim, but Sora's parents could have had problems of their own, Dr. LaRow seems to feel lost without serving Beatrix, The Loyalists could all just be really mentally instable people who need help, and Beatrix herself was still a victim to her father neglection and favoritism of Zeatrix. No one who is more than 0% in the wrong has to be 100% in the wrong.
Even Dr. LaRow with her smarts wasn't safe. Though I feel she won't side with Beatrix much anymore, she seems to know when Beatrix should back down. LaRow seems to really only serve Beatrix because it gives her power as well.
Now this doesn't mean Sora's parents are intending to reconnect automatically, maybe the time they take away from Beatrix's rule and the Loyalists will open their eyes while they're still serving Beatrix. Who knows? This is mostly "wishful thinking and plausibility with evidence" so let me know what you think about it, and give me your theories too.
EDIT: LOL i just noticed i'm being downvoted, i wanna know how many people actually read this entire thing and how many people read like 2 sentences and just said "this guy thinks emotional abuse is okay"