noneorother

[noneorother]

The case for (at least) two stories in GO season 2: Bildad

This chapter will be more enjoyable if you read the first post "The Kiss"! Another blatant instance of inconsistency and topic of much debate has been Bildad's wig(s). His hair seems to change all the time, and the headband is never quite the same. What if I told you that if you stop focusing on the hair, and count the stripes on his headbands, a clear picture emerges? Sounds insane right? Here's the entirety of episode 2, arranged by number of headband stripes Crowley has in each scene.

I'll put screenshots in case you don't want to rewatch those two sillies again for 4 minutes. But be real... who doesn't? A pretty clear pattern emerges when you arrange the scenes like this : more stripes = more intimacy and trust between Crowley & Aziraphale. For stripe 1, we only get the opening scene where Crowley "destroys Job's goats".

This scene could live on it's own in the story, theoretically. Aziraphale never interferes with Crowley as he destroys the children, because it's all hunky dory up in heaven. The very next scene we see Crowley questioning Job and Sitis, starting to doubt his job, and he's got two headbands and two stripes for most of the rest of his hijinks with Aziraphale.

Until the very end of the episode, where we are back to one headband, but two stripes. The hair is short again, and the headband is neat, and this stumped me for a long while. If you only count the number of headbands and hair length, this scene clearly belongs with the first, and story-wise, would make little sense. But taken with the other two-striped scenes, it paints the complete picture of the saving of Job's children together as a team. I've taken the three headband/stripe scenes out of order from the show and put them at the end. The only time Crowley has three headbands is when something deeply intimate is happening between Azirpahale and Crowley. The first instance is quite early on, for the whole of the reveal of Crowley's crows to goats pipeline.

Interestingly this is also where we get the cryptic line "I am not the angel you knew". Next is a little interlude inside of Crowley's "destruction" of Job's children, where Crowley admits to Aziraphale for the first time that they are "Temporarily not on different sides". It's also this part of the scene where we find out, surprisingly, that Job's children are unrepentant little shits, and Jemimah realizes that Crowley is actually, technically, a demon.

And now, after a brief break of two striped shenanigans, we return to three stripes Bildad in the basement, where he manages to tempt Aziraphale into admitting that heaven's morals are a little wacky, and into tasting food for the first time.

But this scene starts with Satan's great wind (LOL wow, a fart joke in between all the morality? Good Omens would never...), where Crowley curiously remarks "Hmm, they've started early". All of the cryptic & meta commentary dialogue is clearly happening inside the scenes where Crowley is wearing three headbands. Given that the three headbands portions of the story make little sense on their own, we could conclude that Job is a story retold three times, each consecutive time adding layers of context to the story, and quite literally, onto Bildad's head.

part 1 of this nonsense : The Kiss

next part : Heaven’s files.

This is going to have to be a multi-part series, but hey, almost no one is posting season 2 metas anymore so the people have to get their crack from somewhere. With thanks to everyone over in our @ineffable-detective-agency as usual.

[noneorother]

Oh no @embracing-the-ineffable, you've activated my specialist subject: Appropriateness and aesthetic meaning in graphic design.

Do I do a thesis level essay now or later 😂?

[noneorother]

A Nice & Accurate Good Omens Timeline

I'm back from the dead with a little side project! Friends over at @ineffable-detective-agency and I have compiled a handy dandy list with all the important Book Omens and Show Omens related dates. What makes this timeline nice and accurate? It has linked annotations! That's right, all blog posts and answers to asks ripe for the referencing. As well as little icons to demarcate Book timeline info from Show Timeline info. So if you've ever wondered what year the arrangement started in, or when Give me coffee or give me death took over Jon coffee, here's your answer! Good Omens Timeline

[noneorother]

The case for (at least) two stories in GO season 2: The Kiss

I've been sitting on this for a while, but I think the time has come to share it: there are three versions of the FF kiss.... *crickets*. I know I know, we've known it since Douglas and Rob both confirmed in weird ways last year that it was filmed three times. But I think I can prove that they put two/three different kisses into that one scene that broke all our hearts. The secret, like so many in Good Omens, is hidden in the costumes. Take a close look at Aziraphale's lapels during the whole scene. I've created a handy guide to point out what is changing and put it on-screen, bottom left.

During the kiss, we're very deliberately shown Crowley pulling Aziraphale by his Bottom Lapels only. There are three shots to really hammer the concept home, and after he lets go, we see those lapels curled under as Crowley leaves.

But what happens as soon as Crowley has left? We get this closeup shot:

Where they clearly wanted his Top Lapels tucked under. I say this with a lot of confidence because throughout the two seasons, Sheen's jacket lapels are steamed between takes so they lay flat. So they want us to pick up on the small differences here (just like Crowley's tartan collar in S1) as a hint that something is wonky. And it isn't just that David might have grabbed his collar wrong in another take. As soon as the Metatron enters the bookshop, now:

For (most of) the rest of the scene he's got one of each! The change happens when Aziraphale turns away and either fixes his collar, or we maybe have changed perspective? I can't tell if Aziraphale is doing it intentionally in that moment or not, because for the other two times it happens (after Crowley leaves, and when Aziraphale looks out the window) it seems to just happen on it's own. It's a powerful moment, because lapels are the primary markers of allegiances in the universe of the show; Aziraphale is quite literally picking sides and his heart is showing on his sleeve lapel in this moment. You can read more about what that means here The reason I suspect that clothing is trying to show us multiple versions or even just perspectives of the same thing happening in-universe: it's actually happen at multiple points throughout this season, not just in the kiss.

Next up : Bildad's wardrobe shenanigans. This is going to have to be a multi-part series, but hey, almost no one is posting season 2 metas anymore so the people have to get their crack from somewhere. With thanks to everyone over in our @ineffable-detective-agency as usual.

[noneorother]

I request tiny snek Crowley! Shenanigans need to be had by tiny snek!

I see to few tiny sneks on here.

[noneorother]

Tiny Omens!

[noneorother]

this is the best take I’ve read so far. Bravo

Crowley's "oh" moment wasn't him realizing that he's in love

Okay so we've all talked about the scene where Nina asks Crowley if Aziraphale is his "bit on the side" or whatever and Crowley has that visable fanfiction "oh" moment on his face afterwards. And I know a lot of people think it must have been Crowley realizing that he was in love with Aziraphale, but that's never sat right with me. Crowley is emotionally repressed and oblivious, sure, but he's been down bad for that angel since the beginning. I just can't believe he didn't know it the whole time. That can't have been what he was reacting to. Hell, just the nervous swallow he does at the beginning of that conversation implies that he knows exactly what Nina is about to ask him, meaning he at least already has that idea in his head.

I think what he was reacting to was Nina's last comment, "other people's love lives always seem so much more straightforward than our own" (I'm quoting from memory but I got the gist of it).

Crowley has been in love for a long time by this point. He's also, for that entire time, understood that nothing can be done about it. Up until Armageddon failed, there was no universe where Crowley and Aziraphale could safely be together, and Crowley cares too much about Aziraphale to truly risk his safety (although he does have his selfish moments--that need to know that Aziraphale cares for him too, that he's not completely alone in this partnership). Nothing could change, so there was no point in doing anything about it.

In the few years post Armageddon, though, it seems like QUITE a bit has changed for the two of them. Remember, these are two immortal beings...a few years is milliseconds to them. But in those milliseconds, it seems like Crowley has become a regular establishment in the bookshop, glasses off and all. Aziraphale felt comfortable enough with him to ask to borrow the Bentley, Crowley's prized possession and his literal home. They've gotten COMFY in a very short amount of time, objectively, and I'm sure it felt like big change to Crowley, who knows better than to ask for things he doesn't think he can have.

But Nina's comment. "Other people's love lives always seem so much more straightforward than our own". A direct parallel to exactly how Crowley has been thinking about her and Maggie this whole time--two people who just need a push (romantic awning, anyone?) and everything else would fall into place. Easy. Uncomplicated.

Crowley's "oh" moment isn't that he's in love with Aziraphale. It's that maybe being in love with Aziraphale doesn't have to be complicated.

Other people's love lives DO seem more straightforward than Crowley's own. But if Nina feels that way about him, as sure as he is about her and Maggie...could it be that easy? Could he have that with his angel? I don't think at this point that Crowley has any doubt about whether or not Aziraphale feels something for him (whatever that something may be in Crowley's mind), but after all...Aziraphale asked him to slow down. So he's been taking it slow. Hanging around more. Leaning into his space. Soaking up every second of Az's smiles like a dying man, content with whatever he's given.

But Nina. She thinks they're together already. No doubt in her mind. She thinks it's so straightforward, that of COURSE they're together, two people who look at each other with that much love in their eyes must be, right? And I think that "oh" is Crowley's realization that maybe it IS straightforward. After all, they're them, right? No more Heaven, no more Hell, no actual reason they couldn't just...be together. In that moment, Crowley isn't realizing that he's in love with Aziraphale. He's known he's in love for a very long time. No, that moment was him realizing that, maybe, he can stop pretending not to be, that maybe all they have to do is stop pretending they aren't everything to each other. Does he need to slow down if there's no danger to avoid?

When Nina and Maggie confront him at the end, encourage him to confess...objectively, I don't think Crowley as a character would agree to anything nearly that vulnerable without a LOT more convincing. But he does agree. And you could argue that it's because of Gabe and Beez, sure, but when has Crowley ever used other angels and demons as reasoning behind his choices? No, consistently, Crowley has followed humans every time. Gabe and Beez are nothing but conveniently timed examples. I think that even without G and B running off together, Nina and Maggie could've convinced him after nothing but this "oh" conversation with Nina.

When Crowley is choking out his confession in the final 15 of episode 6, so desperate to make Aziraphale understand...he says "we're a pair, a group, a group of the two of us, and we've spent our existence pretending that we aren't". That's the point he's trying to get across. They can stop pretending, they can stop pretending, please, god, stay here Aziraphale and don't make him keep pretending.

Please, Aziraphale, he's saying. Don't go back. I only just realized that it doesn't have to be complicated. He realized that, maybe, finally, he was allowed.

Oh, he thought, out there on the sidewalk with Nina, there's nothing left but me stopping me from being happy.

Oh, he thought, while Nina and Maggie urged him to communicate, the couple that so perfectly mirrored his own wants, I could tell him how I feel.

Oh, he thought, as Aziraphale looked at him with excited eyes and explained that he wanted them both to go back to Heaven, that Crowley could become an angel again, that they could go right back to working for the very thing that had been keeping them apart for thousands of years. Oh, oh god. I thought it was over. I thought we were free. I thought that, finally, maybe, it could be easy. Maybe we can stop pretending.

And he kissed him. Because fuck, just like with Nina and Maggie, he thought it could finally be easy, but then communicating didn't work and nothing was easy and all he had left was one fabulous kiss and vavoom and he was desperate and off script and so, so scared and then he was alone in the Bentley, driving away from the bookshop, completely alone.

Maybe Crowley should've kept pretending. It would've hurt less.

[noneorother]

you can fly away with me tonight 🪽🌌

8 hour yaoi drawing sesh on da plane

[noneorother]

thoughts and prayers for this person. 😅

I JUST started the first episode of season 2 and I'M ALREADY SO UNWELL

CROWLEY AND AZIRAPHALE CREATING A GALAXY TOGETHER??? CROWLEY PUTTING HIS WING OVER AZIRAPHALE LIKE IN THE FIRST EPISODE BUT REVERSED??? THE "my god, you're gorgeous" BIT AND AZIRAPHALE LOOKING OVER THINKING HE SAID IT TO HIM???

[noneorother]

Started working on this one about a year ago when I finally got around to watching Good Omens but somehow I only finished it now…oops

[noneorother]

That's my job.

— Freddie Mercury

[noneorother]

“You mean, like a sudden rainstorm forces them together beneath a canopy

they look into each other’s eyes

and realize they were made for each other.”

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Here’s a revamp of a piece I drew about a year ago, now fully rendered and refreshed! It’s a spin-off of Pierre Aguste Cott’s The Storm that I thought fit the ineffables perfectly :)

[noneorother]

Just going to leave this here as a little reminder of what used to also happen, historically speaking, when « her body, my choice » was last in vogue.

[noneorother]

"It doesn't have to be like this. We could have it so much better"

Calligraffiti in Chicago, Illinois

[noneorother]

Janey Godley unfortunately passed away this morning from cancer. She’s known online for a variety of things, but protesting Trump’s visit to his Scottish golf course with this sign is probably the most important one.

[noneorother]

Michael Sheen you have some explaining to do

(I don't think anyone understands how plain silly this makes me feel)

[noneorother]

Beez saved Gabriel from Heaven with The Fly...

...while Aziraphale saved Crowley from Hell with...

...The Flyer.