#˗ˋ ☀️ . . . ⌜headcanons.⌟ ❛ 𝙳𝙾𝙲𝚃𝙾𝚁'𝚂 𝙻𝙾𝙶 ﹟ ﹖﹖﹖ ❜ ˎ˗

[dogddays]

❝ 𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 . . . 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐮 . . . [ dr. sawyer ]

[ spoilers for ch. 3 ! ]

DogDay's   voice   actor   is   shared   with   that   of   Dr.   Sawyer,   the   doctor   responsible   for   the   Bigger   Bodies   Project.   And   while   I   was   shocked   to   find   out   that   they   were   the   same   and   not   shared   with   Rich   from   another   tape   in   Chapter   3,   I   must   say   I   do   enjoy   the   idea   of   it   if   not   only   for   the   angst   !

DogDay   notes   how   their   voices   sound   similar   if   he   hears   the   VHS,   but   only   to   himself   and   it   feels   like   a   slug   to   the   gut.   He   struggles   a   lot   with   the   questions   he   has   for   himself   after   that   --   if   this   is   what   he   always   was,   or   if   he   was   that   man   --   that   monster   --   who   did   all   of   these   terrible,   cruel   things   to   people.   Only   to   be   fed   to   the   very   machine   he   made.

Needless   to   say,   it   messes   with   his   head   a   bit.   DogDay   has   no   memory   or   remaining   pieces   of   Dr.   Sawyers   life   if   he   was   him   . . .   but   does   that   mean   anything   when   no   one   else   can   seem   to   remember   either?   And   if   he   was   him,   does   that   mean   he   deserved   all   he   suffered?   Perhaps   he   was   never   even   good   at   all,   just   a   broken   toy   masquerading   as   a   good   dog.

The   internal   conflict   is   a   bit   inspired   by   Nick   Valentine,   and   that   goodness   he   wants   to   do   is   something   he   calls   his.   No   matter   who's   mind   and   matter   is   in   his   stitched   up   body,   that   good   he   did   is   something   that   cannot   be   taken   away   from   him   and   he   finds   solace   in   that.

In   the   end,   as   it   stands   at   least,   there's   true   explanation.   No   outright   confirmation   of   it,   and   therefore   all   he   can   do   is   wonder.   Wonder   if   these   thoughts   are   his   or   not.   Strung   between   the   extremes   of   a   mad   scientists   brain   and   a   company   that   doesn't   care,   he   grapples   with   what   it   means   to   be   anything   at   all.

But   if   he   had   to   choose,   he   would   like   to   be   kind.

Dr.   Sawyer   always   remains   as   a   shadow   in   his   mind   though   --   not   as   a   real   entity   or   even   a   spirit,   but   as   someone   --   something   ---   he's   haunted   by.   A collection of best guess ideas of who he may have been. Something   he   can't   quite   escape   and   can't   quite   put   to   rest,   always   wondering   if   some   cruelty   he   did   unintentionally   is   some   subconscious   version   of   him   unrelenting   and   persisting   after   the   transformation.

He   will   never   know   what   Doctor   Sawyer   looks   like,   but   flickering   images   of   what   he   could   have   looked   like   stay   stuck   in   his   mind.   So   too   does   that   voice,   the   voice   that   never   fit   the   cardboard   cutouts   and   promo   material,   the   voice   he   speaks   with.

The   voice   that   played   on   that   VHS   tape.

Personally,   I'd   like   to   leave   it   more   as   a   what-if   possibility   on   this   blog   as   I   feel   its   more   impactful   if   he   can   never   know.   Having   to   make   peace   with   not   knowing   and   carrying   on   anyways,   growing   beyond   the   shadow   of   that   past   --   of   who   and   what   he   endured   before.

With   choosing   everyday   to   wake   up   and   define   himself,   to   define   what   it   means   to   be   DogDay   through   his   actions.   Regardless   of   the   rest   of   it.

Because   sometimes   it's   not   about   knowing   everything,   sometimes   it's   about   making   your   peace   and   letting   it   go   and   moving   beyond   it   --   growing   beyond   it.

[dogddays]

❝ 𝐰𝐞'𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 ! . . . [ the cardboard cutouts ]

So   the   cardboard   cutouts   are   intriguing,   and   something   I've   been   toying   with   as   a   concept.   My   current   idea   is   that   while   the   body   may   have   perished --   the   spirit,   or   whatever's   left   of   it,   flees   to   a   limbo   type   place   where   they   take   on   the   roles   of   those   characters   and   behave   as   they   do   in   the   cartoon.

But,   there's   a   catch,   it's   not   a   perfect   imitation   or   block   from   reality.   As   every   now   and   then   things   go   wrong   and   it   becomes   aware   to   those   there   that   this   isn't   real   and   something   is   wrong.

While   DogDay   does   get   to   be   back   with   all   his   "friends",   there   are   glimpses   of   things   that   don't   fit.   DogDay   often   has   the   "plotline"   and   "setting"   of   the   cartoon   storyline   he's   in,   interrupted   by   visions   of   Poppy's   Angel   standing   offscreen   in   a   way   with   a   face   he   can't   quite   recall.

They   never   say   anything,   but   it's   always   enough   to   distract   him   from   the   actual   "distraction"   --   For   a   while,   this   continues   and   the   critters   seem   to   never   outright   acknowledge   it,   brushing   it   off   with   an   unconvincing   laugh   and   saying   that   he   must   be   tired.   However,   later   on   down   the   line,   I   think   DogDay   eventually   rocks   the   boat   by   questioning   it.   Breaking   free   from   the   characterization   that's   meant   to   be   an   escape   by   poking   holes   in   their   delusion.

" where's   catnap? "   " why   don't   I   remember   the   time   between   then   and   now? "   " where   are   we?! "   " how   did   we   ever   GET   HERE?! "

it's   only   then   that   the   others   sort   of   admit   that   they   know,   they   see   what   he   sees,   they   see   their   own   things   too.   they   know   none   of   this   is   real   but   it's   an   escape.   they   then   argue   that   they   knew   he   would   do   this,   that   he   wouldn't   just   go   along   with   it.

Through   the   bickering,   DogDay   becomes   disillusioned   and   basically   gets   thrown   out   of   that   limbo.   Which   could   mean   he   passes   on,   repossess   his   "corpse"   or   attaches   his   soul   to   the   player   unintentionally.

all   of   this   is   to   say,   the   cutouts   don't   hold   his   soul   --   so   much   as   its   a   conduit   that   calls   to   him   or   whatever   he   is   now   &   lets   him   speak   through   it in some way,   albeit   through   the   hazy   lens   of   delusion   after   another   death.

which   is   why   what   he   says   would   be   different   if   you   save   him.   The   :

" go!   go!   as   far   as   you   can!" " why are you . . . just standing there? " " you   can't   be   here,   you   can't   stay "

and   subsequent   screaming   aren't   there   originally   and   are   only   added   and   altered   afterwards.

[dogddays]

❝ 𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘢𝘺 . . . [ habits ]

Like   the   others,   DogDay   is   capable   of   ingesting   food   and   drink!   albeit   something   he   doesn't   partake   in   for   a   while   as   a   direct   result   of   the   trauma   endured.

By   the   way   he   speaks   about   it  

" We   tried   to   stop   it,   the   Prototype's   control . . . "  

and   the   cutouts   of   the   other   Smiling   Critter's   --   specifically   PickyPiggy   --   it   insinuates   to   me   that   the   control   is   something   felt   by   all   the   Playtime   Co.   experiments.   Perhaps   as   a   direct   result   of   things   from   the   prototype   being   used   in   those   entities.

It's   unclear   on   why   DogDay   didn't   turn   but   some   of   his   friends   did,   though   I   do   think   he   does   worry   that   the   overarching   control   is   something   he'll   have   to   fight   off   again   and   fail.   Despite   being   strong   than   it   last   time,   the   lingering   paranoia   that   he   might   hurt   his   friends   frightens   him.

I   digress!   The   hunger   induced   decent   to   madness   as   a   result   of   the   Prototype's   control   leading   to   some   of   friends   killing   and   eating   his   other   friends   while   they're   still   alive,   really   messed   him   up.   As   it   would   anyone.

Eventually,   he   feels   comfortable   enough   to   eat   but   doesn't   over   indulge   in   it   as   he's   nervous   it   may   spark   something   more   malicious   in   him   like   it   did   the   others.

DogDay   also   most   certainly   needs   a   bath   once   he's   out   of   the   facility.   Covered   in   grime,   dirt,   gore,   blood   and   God   knows   what   else   has   definitely   made   him   smell   stale   and   his   fur   dark.   It   brightens   up   a   lot   once   he's   washed   up,   but   it   doesn't   completely   wash   out.

Like   a   reminder   of   all   he's   been   through,   I   think   DogDay   sporting   the   survival   scars   of   his   escape   is   something   imperative   to   display   his   growth   as   a   character   and   leaves   the   door   open   to   a   lot   of   interesting   design   choices   for   verses   in   the   future !

eventually, he gets to try that cream cheese flan and he savors the entire thing in tears. because whatever happened, whoever he was before, the goodness he did in this life is his & no one can take that from him. he got to survive long enough to finally live !