#bc Wayne is doing the right thing based on the evidence he has

[acowardinmordor]

WAIT.

It's Starcourt. not vecna. It's Starcourt.

Steve and Eddie became low key friends in the winter of 84/85, got to be actual friends slowly, over the course of the semester. Wayne spent that time watching how his kid sits around kicking his feet and daydreaming with hearts in his eyes about a boy that'll deck him if he ever notices how Eddie feels. He watches his boy fail, again, while the Harrington kid graduates. Never liked him, never trusted him.

Eddie spends most of June hanging out at the mall, bothering Steve and Robin, and eating free ice cream. He knows that Steve is straight, but, he looks at certain of the kids Steve takes care of, at his friendship with Eddie, at how easily he gets along with Robin, and is pretty sure that Steve won't be a dick about it. If he finds out. When, more like, since Eddie doesn't broadcast it, but he doesn't keep it a real secret.

So they're friends, close friends, even though Eddie knows Wayne doesn't like him.

Then Steve's best friend comes back from camp, and Eddie is a nosy little shit, so obviously he gets involved with possibly spying on russians at a secret base. And he loves adventure, so obviously he goes with them and gets stuck in the elevator.

And Eddie's very best skill is his ability to pull attention onto himself, and away from others. So after Steve takes a hit or two, Eddie does what he does best, and gets beat to shit. Concussion that Steve is freaking out about before they get drugged.

Bathroom chat sees Steve talking vaguely about someone he likes. Robin comes out. Eddie comes out to take the focus off of her, and Steve, who was talking about Eddie, doesn't know what to say. It was supposed to be impossible, so he never had to think about what it really meant that he liked Eddie. But if Eddie isn't straight then... Robin figures it out, but before the three have time for more than mild queer panicking, Dustin's back, and they're in motion again.

Eddie takes another big hit during the fight, knocked unconscious. Safe. Survives it all because he hit the ground in a safer corner, but has a second concussion in the space of a few hours. On top of mystery drugs. They get him to the hospital along with the others that are injured, and Steve calls the trailer to let Wayne know.

Now, as far as Wayne knows, his boy didn't come home two days ago, and now he's getting a call from the boy that he knows his son has a crush on, to let him know that Eddie is in the hospital, beaten unconscious. And when he gets there, Harrington won't give him real answers about what happened. Cause a fire at a mall doesn't make Eddie vanish for days, and it damn well doesn't beat his face in.

And, yeah, shits fucked, so Steve sits on the floor outside of Eddie's room because he was genuinely worried that Wayne was gonna throw a punch. It's not like he can just say that they were fighting Russians who were trying to open a portal to another universe so they could find monsters to win the cold war. It'll be okay once Eddie wakes up. Bc then Eddie will insist on seeing Steve so they can finish that conversation they cut off, and Steve can explain that its okay if Eddie doesn't like him, that he still wants to be friends.

Instead. Two concussions.

Eddie wakes up and he doesn't remember much of anything past January of 85. He knows Steve isn't a complete dick, but they weren't friends then. Friendly acquaintances. That's it. And why would Eddie think to ask if the guy he knows from school is waiting in the hall for him?

Eventually, when the doctors have swarmed in and out a few times, Wayne appears and tells him that Eddie doesn't remember, so it's gonna be Wayne's choice on if Steve comes in. Wayne, who is sure that Eddie tried for something, and got beat for it. Yeah, maybe Harrington felt bad enough afterwards to get him to the hospital, but that doesn't undo the rest.

Steve's not allowed in, and Robin is the one to catch him when he falls. They talk, and Steve has the time now to explain it all to Robs. And look, yes, he wants Eddie back. He wasn't lying before, he's fine with it only being friendship, that's more than enough, but he wants his friend back.

Except, even if Steve was allowed close enough to talk to Eds, which he definitely isn't, Eddie getting all the memories back means that he'd be involved with the upside down stuff, and have the same nightmares the rest of them have. So. Maybe it's kinder not to?

While Eddie is sitting in his trailer, trying to figure out why the hell he has a shirt from the school's basketball team in his laundry. And why he has a half filled character sheet for an obvious beginner named Hair the Barbarian. And why he keeps hiding those pieces, and a dozen more beside, from the uncle he has always trusted with everything.

---

I don't like to write the fic, I like to write the world build for it, and then stop right before what should BE the start of the fic.

But. It's not the boys that do the work and solve it and get them back together. It's not dustin and the boys either. It's Wayne.

Hey. Eddie Memory loss AU where Steve and Eddie were friends all year bc of Hellfire but Wayne never really trusted the guy, despite Eddie saying he should bc he can see how his kid is in a constant state of hearteyes and Wayne remembers the way Richard Harrington was in school. So when Eddie wakes up with no idea why Harrington is in the room after Vecna, Wayne uses it as a way to keep Steve out.

This your fault @pearynice

[magstorrn]

rating the artilleryman actors from jeff wayne’s musical version of the war of the worlds*

*from the perspective of someone who’s never seen the show live but, in my defence, has sought out just about every illegally filmed snippet on youtube and I've seen both official recordings many times. some of these are based on a single recording tho so take my words w/ a grain of salt. im also not going to get everyone because for a number of the actors there’s not enough evidence to go off

david essex

summary: the man the myth the legend. there are only a couple photos of him during recording sessions but he was clearly having the time of his life, and his hoarse voice and cockney accent bring an edge to the character that’s often absent (also means his own background is closest to that of the character). obviously they didn’t kick start the stage show until about 30 years after he recorded for the role but sometimes i daydream about an actual theatre production of twotw in the 70s bc holy shit, he was already doing evita when he recorded for twotw and had starred in godspell by this time and he wouldve been absolutely magnificent. 

he’s also like the only actor im aware of that properly belts the ‘it’s going to have to start’ line and it just. sounds so good. he’s also the only artilleryman actor that imo sounds good in act 1 and like someone who’s genuinely witnessed a traumatic event and is still reeling in shock. he brings this kind of manic earnest with him in brave new world and it enhances the song 100% bc he’s so completely convinced things will work out

iconic moment: the way he yells ‘just’ after the whispered section in the middle of brave new world. chef’s kiss

rating: 10/10 im biased as all hell

alexis james

summary: the true mystery of this man is that he looks so old and so young at the same time (put it down to the incredibly fake weird sideburns and the receding hairline) and that he didn’t seem to do any more work in this vein post-2006. deserves credit for being the first stage show actor in the role, running around for 12 minutes straight pretending to use a massive pencil compass and digging at the stage, and for pulling things off pretty damn well. the almost surgical slit at the knee of his pants irritates me and im glad they didnt do it again

iconic moment: singing the entirety of brave new world with a pseudo american accent for no reason at all. im 99% sure he’s english

rating: 7/10

jason donovan

summary: the day that jason moved from the artilleryman role to the parson role was the finest day of his life as well as mine. he’s absolutely outstanding as nathaniel but tbh i think in the artilleryman role he’s just... bad (and doesnt have NEARLY enough fake blood everywhere). a lot of the lines sound like theyre cut short or like he can’t quite hit the note he’s aiming for, and there’s times when he just sounds completely off, or barks his lines for no reason. like alexis james he was part of the pre-new gen era so he has like two props and he has to pretend to use these for over ten minutes and i salute him for that. speaking of salutes i love how he randomly embellishes some of his lines with a salute

iconic moment: *high pitched australian accent* iT’S You. the MAn from mayBury HILL

rating: 4/10

ricky wilson

summary: ricky wilson was the first artilleryman for the new gen era which was iconic enough in itself, but then he also gave us the black eye, goggles, waxed moustache, the glass of water trick, rolled up sleeves, and so much more. also the tragic victim of the bottle of whiskey line, but he salvages it by just swigging from the bottle right then and there. act 1 RW kinda has the vibe of a man who’s just unexpectedly watched his football team of preference lose badly rather than witnessed a massacre, but by act 2 he sounds like he just came up with a plan to save civilisation at 3am while blind drunk and he’s going to tell you about it whether you like it or not. also pioneered the trend of stripping his coat at the start of the song. he definitely sounds better in the visual recording than on the album as he barely sounds like himself on the latter (why is he like the only actor from the stage show that’s also on the album?? ill always wonder). even then though he seems very jittery and nervous and like he’s trying to overcompensate by being super energetic and the way he basically screams all his lines gets annoying after long enough

that said his swagger and confidence are completely unbeatable and while i wouldnt trust him as far as i can throw him, he deserves a spot in the artilleryman hall of fame, although im still unsure to this day whether he’s using the spade correctly

iconic moment: *hip thrust* WALLOP

rating: 9/10

shayne ward

summary: again this is based on like a single recording but he can SING and i wish he showed off more than he does. he also sounds properly panicky/shaky in the first act which i always appreciate since he’s been Through It and a lot of performances don’t get that across. he’s giving it his all/aiming to give the best performance he can and it shows! he also has a ton of bruises/so much fake blood everywhere and his shirt’s in tatters and it’s great. the high notes sound fantastic also

iconic moment: stripping off the coat about ten minutes before any other artilleryman actor im aware of, and yeeting it off the stage

rating: 8/10

adam garcia

summary: i would say that bc he’s australian i have no choice but to stan but ive already been rly mean to jason donovan so that doesnt stand up anymore. anyway i basically regard adam garcia as the spiritual successor to david essex - similar sound, similar vibes, similar musical theatre background, similar genuine earnest with that edge of manic desperation and oncoming insanity. his facial expressions and gestures and pure enthusiasm throughout BNW are my favourite thing, and he maintains more of a long-sleeved pirate vibe as opposed to the ricky wilson rolled up sleeve vibe. unlike ricky wilson i also think he might’ve actually used a spade before

he also does so so much running around, and has more props than ever - the chair, the blackboard, the goggles, the gun, the spade, but at least he’s kept busy for the long instrumental sections, although i think it’s awful he gets cut off at the end of his song by life begins again while he just like, keeps digging? his singing is rly consistent and really quality, although i think he unfortunately sounds pretty bad in act 1. the whole losing his mind thing in act 2 salvages it tho

iconic moment: *obvious david essex impression* holidees 

rating: 9/10

honourable mentions to daniel bedingfield (can’t find a recording anywhere), michael falzon (i can’t find a full recording of him), and taron egerton (doesnt get to sing in the audio drama but his character is clearly gay)