More questions.
What is the resetting of Links supposed to represent thematically? I can see it as a mild interpersonal conflict or a discovery that makes you realize that you don’t understand a character as well as you thought, but I thought it to be a bit odd that your ability to work together diminishes as you get to understand each other better. ((Mechanically, I understand that it’s a useful way to keep character relationships (again, on a mechanical level) in flux.))
I imagine after a few sessions of play it’s not unlikely that the team will have fairly strong links to each other. It seems like the moves that let you substitute a stat for Links when helping are most useful (1) when a team is new (or members are replaced) and (2) in smoothing out the bumpiness that comes when Links reset. Is that the gist of it, or are there some other fundamental circumstances that I’ve missed?
It takes quite a few sessions realistically since you only raise 1 link at the end of each mission.
But I would say they thematically represent learning about each other, and the resetting is when you have a break through and because of your relationship learn something new about yourself because of them.
It resets because having had that discovery your relationship with them isn’t really heavily on your mind any more until the link builds up again.
If you want the links to be even more thematically meaningful you could consider borrowing the threads from Monster Hearts or the Influence from Masks
(those would also dramatically change the dynamic of what the relationships mean).
Meguey Baker explored this mechanic over on the +1 forward podcast a while back. gauntlet-rpg.com – Apocalypse World (2nd Edition)
I always think of this from the perspective of a TV show where characters relationships are far more in flux than normal relationships (IME).
An example that I just watched would be Daredevil S2 when Matt flakes on his best and oldest friend and his friend has to reevaluate their relationship.