#but i have so much to say about nandor in this scene

[deliciousnecks]

Go on, Guillermo. I bonked this one on the head just for you.

[gideonisms]

I'm torn on whether I should watch s2 of the pirate show on one hand I am not really about those heartwarming middle aged guy ships on the other hand taika's arms still look great

[sbocconichilista]

"But just like Jordan said, it's about being the right fit. And maybe that's what we were. Or weren't."

(WWDITS S6EP4 SPOILERS)

I love this scene. I love seeing Guillermo proving himself at work not just in front of his colleagues, but also with the ones he knows (Nandor in this case), and that's so much more difficult.

Even though this isn't (and i'm gonna make a pretty much obvious statement here) about work. It's about them. It's about Nandor not being able to give Guillermo what he wants. It's about Guillermo not being able to give Nandor what he wants. It's about them not being able to completely commit to one another ("Nandor couldn't make me a vampire, and I can't make him a janitor"). And I know well this is a comedy, that it's not that deep, that this will probably end up in dust and mean nothing, but still I like to imagine that there's a subtle layer about this that suggests a change in the relationship between Nandor and Guillermo.

But that's not just me, is it? Guillermo knows it too. That this is gonna end being about them two and not just about work. He says it just before going to fire Nandor: "...just like Jordan said, it's about being the right fit. And maybe that's what we were. Or weren't." And when Nandor says he's proud of him, that Jordan is right for seeing all Guillermo's qualities, it's because now he aknowledges them too. Nandor knows how special Guillermo is, and for how much his pride wants him to prove himself as superior, as a Master, as a fierce warrior, he can't lie to himself anymore: Guillermo is better than him. And he made Nandor better too.

Guillermo keeps talking about work, that "we, as a company, have to let someone go", but he knows it's not just that. It's him who has to let Nandor go. He tried hard to protect Nandor's feelings and ego, and not just now: he has been Nandor's shield for so long. Now he has to reject him, to push him back. Now he's the sword who stabs him. And this time it's not about a stupid fight, it's not something that will end there and be gone in the next episode. This seems so much more solemn.

Although, this is not the end of it, it's just Guillermo stepping back. This time is Nandor who reaches for Guillermo's hand to shake it (and i mean he LITERALLY does it, no metaphor). Now it's him who has to do a step towards Guillermo.

(Honestly I have so much more to say about this specific scene, but I don't want this ending up being too long, so that's it for now)

[contact-guy]

go to sleep!!!

Never read them or knew much about them besides the basics. then eight months ago my spouse was like 'have you ever seen the Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes films? feel like you would like them', knowing my propensity for dynamics involving unhealthy devotion (see: frodo and sam; gideon and harrow; guillermo and nandor). At one point during the second film I lay down on the floor. at another point I had to pause it to do several laps of our house. needless to say I haven't been the same since. does my spouse regret this? impossible to say.

1 - loved LOVED drawing the moor in hound of the baskervilles! so moody. so much atmosphere. such a lack of straight lines.

2 - people are pretty great at noticing things but...Holmes is still kind of afraid to touch watson here c:

3 - I was making a list of canon scenes I wanted to draw and realized that like.....nearly every story had something. but I wasn't committed until I found myself drawing a conversation between Watson and Colonel Hayter in the Reigate Squires and was like 'oh no I've gone and given myself a narrative'

[darkshrimpemotions]

Light & Framing in WWDITS: Nandermo Edition

I really have to give props to whoever does the lighting and cinematography for What We Do In The Shadows. They took what could easily have been an excuse to cheap out on those things--the show's format as a half-hour comedy mockumentary--and said a resounding fuck that.

Every frame of this show is gorgeously and thoughtfully lit and shot and colored, and not just the big pivotal moments. Truly every shot. The sets and the costumes also do a lot of heavy lifting here, but still everything is framed so carefully and intentionally. And considering this show is at least 55% fucking improv? That is seriously impressive. I've seen big budget network cornerstone series take less care with their most pivotal moments than this show takes with like...any random moment (I know, I know, it's okay, I can say Game of Thrones).

Take this shot for example (thanks to @indashadows!):

Now bear in mind, this is ONE shot in ONE scene in an episode. An important scene, but not a long one. And yet in this scene, every single detail--from the actors' body language to the framing to the lighting to their fucking outfits--reinforces the underpinning context and subtext of the scene.

Look at Nandor. His posture is so open and vulnerable. He's facing directly toward Guillermo, looking slightly up at him actually instead of down at him like he usually would be. They're almost eye level but not quite. His face is fully lit, and his body is more in light than shadow, with the parts facing Guillermo lit and the parts facing away from him in deep shadow.

Nandor is being very open, honest, and vulnerable with Guillermo in this scene, probably more so than he's ever been before! All the pretense, the aloofness he usually hides behind is now shoved to the back. They're also on nearly equal footing compared to their usual situation, with Guillermo possibly having a slight upper hand due to how thrown everyone, including Nandor, is by the revelation that he's a vampire slayer.

(I know Nandor knew he killed Carol and the Baron, but given those were both accidents I think it's reasonable to say Nandor was still surprised about the slayer from a long line of notorious slayers aspect of the revelation.)

Another way to read this is that Nandor is at a disadvantage because of what he doesn't know in this scene, i.e. that Guillermo can leave any time he wants, that Guillermo has been listening to their conversations, and that Guillermo is using that information now to manipulate him. It's left somewhat up to interpretation whether Nandor actually knows any of this or not, so YMMV there. But the point stands that in either interpretation, Nandor is on his back foot here a bit and the framing and lighting of the scene reflects that.

Now contrast that with Guillermo. His posture is closed off, he's hunched in on himself. He's leaning toward Nandor, but he's not facing him or looking at him directly. His eyes are downcast. He's positioned a little above Nandor, but he's not acknowledging or reveling in that change of position in any way; in fact, he seems to be minimizing it with the way he's standing. Almost his entire body including his face is in shadow, with only the parts facing away from Nandor receiving any light.

Guillermo is not being vulnerable, open, or honest with Nandor in this moment. Whether Nandor knows everything or not, Guillermo thinks he's playing Nandor here. He thinks he has information Nandor isn't privy to (the hole in the cage and the hidden cameras) and knows things Nandor doesn't know he knows (the conversations he's overheard). Guillermo is normally much more open and vulnerable with Nandor, which often results in him getting his feelings (at the very least) hurt. But this is one time when he's consciously choosing to push his care for Nandor to the backburner in order to take care of himself for once.

(I also have FEELINGS about light representing emotional honesty and vulnerability between these two characters in the show about vampires and what they do in the shadows. Maybe I'll scream about them later.)

And here's the real kicker: they are so in odds with their approach here, their usual roles in the relationship are being reversed in ways neither is fully comfortable with...and yet they're still on the same damn page.

They both have the same ultimate goal in this scene: to get Guillermo out of the cage and have the other vampires in the house accept him and stop insisting on killing him. They are both trying to take care of Guillermo in their own ways. And as the show often does, it underscores this in part via the similarities in their outfits (but that is a WHOLE other fucking massive meta-post currently sitting in my drafts).

[bugeater77]

Nandermo things u probably forgot about

not in any order(i wrote them whenever i remembered them)

(scroll down for images, the ones pictured are highlighted) - Nandor holding guillermo up to make him feel like he is flying multiple times (quite possibly nandermo hug)

During the simon the devious episode where nandor once again takes him flying, they hold hands (last image)

Nandor telling guillermo to stay by his side until he falls asleep in the curse episode, then going to grab his hand but stopping (5th Image)

"you'll probably have to take it in the waist and out the shoulders" - guillermo knowing Nandor's exact measurements

Nandor getting so frustrated while talking about the other vampires wanting to kill Guillermo that he kicks and destroys a box

"take a picture of me having fun and then send it to guillermo so he knows how much I do not miss him" - nandor

Guillermo DROPPING EVERYTHING ON THE GROUND when he hears about nandor's engagement

"it's not gonna last." -Guillermo SHIT EATING GRIN after realizing that gale and nandor are not gonna be together

Guillermo PUTTING HIS ARM AROUND NANDOR AFTER THE GAIL EPISODE he thought he had a chance :( (4th image)

Sean calling Guillermo Nandor's boyfriend and lazlo not questioning it not one bit

pulling guillermo back way before he was supposed to after trying to use him as bait for the sire

this was also while he was shaking his money maker if i might add

like the second he did it...

entire scene where Nandor tries to convince guillermo to come back from celeste

ENTIRE HOMOEROTIC FIGHT SCENE

might i mention that nandor obviously thinks guillermo fighting him is hot??!

Guillermo gripping nandor plushie after he leaves (3rd image)

Guillermo has silver lined seatbelts in his car, meaning he was planning to rescue nandor for a while

"traveling the whole world with my nand- master" - guillermo

ermmmmmm glitter portrait ?!!

Nandor wishing to be human the SAME AMOUNT that guillermo wishes to be a vampire, seeing him as an equal

"my furry little friend" - nandor

Marwa, who likes EVERYTHING nandor likes, kissing guillermo all over his face

The wwdits cast interview about nandermo, which to me feels like a deep extreme very canonization

Nandor's pure jealousy after finding out about guillermo becoming a vampire

Him waiting for SO LONG outside of panera bread

Going to guillermos house to look at his baby pictures

talking about his goth phase with his mom...

"if i'm lying, kill me now" - nandor

Nandor being so upset and holding guillermos body after thinking he was dead

Nandor grasping guillermos sweater

speaking out against the baron to keep guillermo safe, which if you watch season 1 again you'll see that he is TERRIFIED of the baron

so excited to talk about guillermo killing vampires.... wtf is wrong with u nandor but we're not gonna get into that

"I will fix"

PUTS ON GUILLERMOS CAPE

he is so excited to kill derek, not to turn guillermo human, but literally just to kill derek out of jealousy

Nandor's face while guillermo is talking about his love life(second image)

Guillermos face after Nandor turns Gail into a vampire (first image)

guillermo hammering the door as hard as possible to wake nandor for his super slumber.

duh nandor knowing every part of Guillermos thank you card

The entire last episode actually?

theres absolutely more but this is all i remember just from my brain

(new additions) In another cast interview, Kayvan Novak says “I think he’s coming to the realization that his type is Harvey Guillén flavored.” about nandors type

Nandor makes guillermo spin around in his wedding cape

Nandor says he got the idea of having a wedding ever since him and guillermo "watched the wedding planner on that rainy sunday together"

ok listen closely, the wedding planner is about a woman planning a wedding falling in love with the groom causing him to leave the bride

he did NOT CARE WHO HE WAS MARRYING. BUT HE KNEW HE WANTED GUILLERMO TO PLAN IT FROM DAY 1

[22degreehalo]

God I just keep thimking abt. The season 3 finale. And the Fight. And the Promise.

Because... yeah, Nandor's whole claim that the fight was a ~test~ to see if he was ~strong enough~ just reeks of bullshit. It comes out of nowhere and we have no reason to think Nandor especially feels in danger of anything at this point...? Like Guillermo has already saved them from the whole damn vampire council. What more could he even have to prove lol.

But if not that... why such a sudden change of heart? Is he just embarrassed he got beat and trying to regain his place of authority? But even by Nandor's standards that's such a HUGE leap for such a small thing. Turning Guillermo is the ONE THING he's never even properly contemplated doing up until this point. Also, if he weren't actually fully serious and solemn, there's no way he'd pull off that act. He'd ruin the moment in 2 seconds.

His comment after Guillermo leaves doesn't reveal much, either. Like, yes, he was caught off guard that Guillermo was fast, but is that all he has to say? There's definitely more to this scene, so that's an almost suspiciously obvious statement. Like it's not out-of-character, it's just... the viewer expects an explanation, but doesn't get it.

Frankly, the whole thing kinda bothered me. I just couldn't really get into his head about it. And that's such an important scene I really DID want to understand it. Nandor finally offered to actually turn Guillermo, and I didn't understand why!

But season 5 explains it.

He thought, finally, that Guillermo had what it takes to be a vampire.

That he could be vicious. That he could fight to the death, and kill. Not for the sake of protecting somebody else. But for his own sake.

He saw the killer in him, and he finally let himself believe that Guillermo would be able to live off the lives of innocent people and not break himself in two.

But Guillermo, as far as Nandor understood it, got cold feet. He realised that he didn't want to be a vampire and left him behind.

And even when Nandor realised later that that wasn't the case... for one, the moment's over. And for two, why didn't Guillermo seek him out? Why didn't Guillermo demand that Nandor uphold his half of the bargain? Where did that determined, vicious instinct go?

Godddd I'm trying to remember how it all went but is that why he provoked Guillermo so hard at the night market, too???? He wanted so badly to see that desperate and dangerous Guillermo again, like he might force it back out of him and reveal it is who he really is inside??????

[lord-of-the-ducks]

Ok, I'm not sure how to isolate clips from the episode, so bear with me while I verbally describe what I'm talking about, but I was rewatching s5e8 for the third time and noticed Yet Another thing that is making me go feral

So we have the scene directly after Guillermo accidentally sets the Baron on fire again, we cut back to Nadja, Nandor, Colin, and Dolly all on the couch. My brain is already broken from Nandor clinging on to that damn sweater, but that's not what I'm talking about.

Nadja is talking about the Baron hunting down Guillermo, and she very specifically avoids saying the word dead, before Colin spoils this by finishing her sentence for her.

And what I didn't notice until now was that Dolly immediately whispers at Colin to shut up, because Nandor is sitting right next to them craddling his sweater and insisting that Guillermo will be fine.

And yeah it's a really small thing, probably not worth making an entire post about it, but god, they all care about each other so much, and even though Colin can't seem to read the room, Nadja and Dolly know how upsetting this is for Nandor. I actually don't know if Dolly has really gotten the opportunity to show her affection for other members of the household besides maybe the beginning of s3e7 where she's reflecting on her time with the vampires before she runs away. But that was a specific montage, I don't think she's had a lot of small moments where she demonstrates that she also cares about her housemates

I dunno, I just didn't see anyone talking about this, which is fair because there was a LOT of stuff in this episode to digest, but I just fucking love these tiny little things that get peppered in

[inmyhorrorsera]

S5E8 "The Roast" thoughts:

Ok, I watched this episode three times and I'm still smiling. I love when you think and episode is gonna be about something because of its title and then surprise you when its all a misdirection (see also: Succession's "Connor's Wedding").

At first Laszlo's err… state intrigued me, love everyone projecting and imposing their own insecurities (Guillermo's secret, Nadja's hex) as a reason on why he is behaving like that. And of course it's a stupid reason 😭.

"And a flat pepsi for Guillermo". Oh Nandor, that's the worst thing you ever done to Guillermo, that's the worst thing you could do to anyone. And yes, I remember a certain S4 episode.

I screeched like a bird when Colin mentioned dreaming about being a baby under Laszlo's care, not only because I wanted this shit to happen since the past finale, but also I really thought the episode was going on that direction (and also bc its another W for my predictions).

Having said that, LOVED the nonchalance of Nadja and the others when they were like 'no, it wasn't a dream, that totally happened'.

I mentioned it in a separate post: they really had a Sweet Dee in IASIP moment when The Guide gave the roast idea, only to be ignored and then the same idea being stolen by a dude who is celebrated.

Seanie's poor brain it should be soup at this point, we don't know if he can hazily remember the event like it happened before.

What can I remember is his line after Nadja's roast because it was one of the biggest laughs for me: "Women CAN be funny!" I fucking loved it so much, it's the perfect condescending shit straight men say all the time, even when they're trying to be complementary to you they can't stop being garbage. It was a simple line but Anthony nailed the delivery and timing. Seriously, rewatch that part.

At first I was confused why all the jokes were so mid, but shortly I realized this episode wasn't about the roast at all, lol.

Just by watching screenshots of other users I noticed that in the scene of Nandor resting his head on Guillermo's shoulder there's a BIG flame between them. LMAO. There's no way that is unintentional.

Good for The Guide being the catalyst of Baron Afanas learning the truth. I was demanding more screen time for her lately, so having some incidence in the main plot goes on the plus column.

The other guests present at the roast being shocked at the knowledge of Guillermo killing vampires surprised me; I always assumed Guillermo being a familiar/slayer was a known fact in the vampire community after his very public massacre at the Théâtre des Vampires.

Fuck yeah when I realized this is a Doug Jones spotlight episode, I just fuckin ahgdjkaksdf, love him, perfect, no notes.

The Baron being terrifying!! Guillermo was seriously scared for the others and he barely tried to show off his Van Helsing abilities.

Nandor and Nadja begging the Baron to not hurt Guillermo!! 😭 Them being dragged while grabbing the cape!! 😭 They're spiritual siblings to me!! 😭😭

They really reminded me a little bro and sis begging their mom to not hit their beloved older brother with the chancla for talking back or something.

I fell for the two fake-outs with the sack lol I'm so gullible when it comes to vampires I guess.

NANDOR PAINFUL SOUNDS (MOANS???) WHEN HE BELIEVED HE WAS IN FRONT OF GUILLERMO'S INERT BODY. IT WAS SAD BUT ALSO A LITTLE HORNY!!!

"At least he died doing what he loved: beating off in the toolshed."

A wonderful small detail: After Laszlo opened fake Guillermo with the knife he cleaned his hands on The Guide's dress.

Idc if you think its dark, the whole 'Nandor will kill you and then kill himself' bit becoming a recurring joke it's peak writing.

I wish I can say something more serious about Baron Afanas' sadness over how boring his life is now. But I just keep thinking that the way he talks about his homelife with The Sire and the Hellhound sounds exactly when a dude has a middle life crisis and suddenly he doesn't enjoy his marriage anymore. They're husbands!! And I loved how cunty he looked at the end all half-charred (see posted gif) Queen!

Now, the Nandermo of it all: What more can I say than incoherent screaming and foaming from the mouth? Episodes 8 are all about them again!! Nandor on the window looking all cliched melancholic heroine of a romance novel?? How relieved he was when he found him in the coffin??? Him still remembering Guillermo's card word for word???!! Knowing that this toxic dark sided devotion goes both ways???!!! Borrowing the words of Fleabag: THIS IS A LOVE STORY.

Seriously, I know all these soft Nandor moments are here so the heartbreak when he learns about Guillermo being turned it's even bigger. But still denying that there is a romantic undertone between these two it's just being purposely adamant at this point (i'm looking at you wwdits reddit). Even if nothing explicitly romantic happens on screen, just by watching these moments, I know, we know.

Now, go listen to the ending song again. You will not regret it.

[deer0skullz]

Does anyone else feel like Umbrella Academy, What We Do in the Shadows and Our Flag Means Death went down very similar paths or is that just me?

To preface, this is mostly based on how I felt as I watched the shows but also on some of the opinions I picked up from the fandoms.

Also, I’m not going to go back and rewatch all of these shows for the sake of a Tumblr post so I’m working from memory and if you feel like I’ve misremembered any of the plot/ characters let me know.

1. Started as well-received and highly acclaimed live-action fantasy shows with ensemble casts.

Based on my own opinions and what I remember from other fans, UA seasons 1-2 were fairly well received, as were WWDITS seasons 1-3/4 and OFMD season 1.

They’re all definitely different genres of fantasy but I’d say they still all fit under the label. And they obviously all have ensemble casts, with the Hargreeves in UA, the vampires (and Guillermo) in WWDITS and the pirates in OFMD. Even though the plots and characters can be quite different they all have similar vibes.

2. Noted for having open queer representation.

Klaus and Viktor in UA, pretty much the entire main cast of WWDITS, and multiple main characters in OFMD.

3. Tied to already established and respected creators.

UA is based on the comics written by Gerard Way who, of course, is also well known for My Chemical Romance. WWDITS is based on the film by Jermaine Clement and Taika Waititi, who are both executive producers of the show. Taika was also involved in OFMD as the actor for Blackbeard and as an executive producer. He has his name tied to many acclaimed films like Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Thor Ragnorok and Jojo Rabbit.

These are obviously not the only famous people tied to these projects but it’s just a sample of the talent involved in these shows. I feel like the fact that there was so much talent working on these shows makes my next point more interesting.

4. Experienced drops in quality and/ or introduced problematic elements that caused fans to lose interest or respect.

Again, this is opinion based and if you still liked the shows during these seasons then more power to you.

My overall feeling about all of these shows is that they lost a lot of the joy from their initial season(s) as they went on. Like, they just got significantly less fun to watch. But they also had more specific individual issues that I would like to get into.

I stopped watching UA during season 3 and don’t plan on watching season 4. I feel like a lot of people will already know what I might be referring to with this but yeah, the scene where Allison *did that* to Luther made me so sick. I feel like that season absolutely destroyed her character, and as I said, it just wasn’t anywhere near as fun as seasons 1 or 2.

WWDITS is probably the most successful of the three in my eyes but I could still apply the same argument about loss of enjoyment. The “Guillermo wants to be a vampire” plot line got very stale for me, especially with how they “resolved” (?) it. Saying “oh he’s a vampire now oh nevermind he doesn’t actually like being a vampire and also can’t be one anyway so everything’s back to normal” felt like such a waste of time for me. I know a lot of people also criticised the show for queerbaiting because of the Nandermo plot lines and teases. I wouldn’t necessarily call it queerbaiting but I would agree that the “will they, won’t they” is very played out at this point. Another big criticism I have of the later seasons is how Marwa was treated. The fact that she had no autonomy and was being forcibly changed mentally and physically to appeal to Nandor was treated as like, a running joke and I just found it kind of disturbing. Dark humour is pretty common throughout the show, but given how often her character appeared it felt a lot more, significant than throwaway jokes about drinking human blood. I feel like they could have done so much better with her character.

OFMD is probably the most egregious example of the 3. Season 2 was just not good. I’m not saying it was the worst thing I’ve ever watched but it was incredibly disappointing. The pacing was off, the characters were off, the dynamics were off. It was all just very off. The huge cliffhanger ending with Evil Blackbeard felt like it was resolved way too quickly and everything else in the season felt equally rushed. A lot of the character dynamics, but especially Ed and Stede, just felt wrong to me. From what I understand there were production issues or something so I’m not saying the writers just woke up one day and decided to be bad at their jobs but I can only really judge a show by what I saw on my screen, and what I saw was so far removed from the quality of season 1.

5. Finished on a sour note.

UA ended after 4 seasons, with the fourth being released on Netflix today. I haven’t seen anything that indicates whether this was the intended endpoint or whether it was cancelled. WWDITS will end after season 6 which comes out in October. Again, I can’t find anything indicating whether this was the intended endpoint. OFMD was cancelled just a few months after the release of season 2 in October 2023.

I can’t tell other fans how they should feel but for me I’m incredibly disappointed that 3 shows I really enjoyed saw a gradual (or not so gradual for OFMD) drop in quality that ultimately culminated in them just… ending.

Like I said, I have no interest in US season 4, but I am still somewhat hopeful for WWDITS. I would be really happy if they could bring it back to what it was.

Conclusion

I don’t know what the point of writing this was other than the fact that I’ve always associated these shows as having the same vibes and I feel like it’s interesting that they have a lot of similarities and went down similar paths. Also I just like yapping.

[dearnandor]

604 SPOILERS

i don't write much around here anymore and maybe i'm just reading too much into things but wtf is this running joke between nandor and the guide i mean i think i'm one of the few here who kept defending the showrunner and the writers but, seriously? are we really gonna make nandor fall in love with the guide out of nowhere? in the last fucking season? so a relationship with six seasons of building and growing is a no-no but two characters that have like 0 scenes together are a big yes? is it supposed to be a joke? against nandermo shippers? i was totally fine with them not being canon-canon, and all those months with them (not the actors, i mean they don't write the show) saying they love and appreciate their fans but how am i supposed to not feel offended by this? am i a joke to you just because i love two characters and their story? and also, you know what is pissing me off? this is about the sleep hypnosis, right? we could literally have the same subplot with nadja, like two seasons of the guide trying so hard to bond with her lead to absolutely nothing? the queer show with queer characters but again it's a about another male/female couple. right. hope to be wrong (i don't think i am lol) but i'm a little pissed right now anyway

[cottoncandysprite]

I'm still thinking about the Freddie/Wellness Center parallels like. GOD. Strap in besties I told you I could write a whole thesis on these episodes

Their confrontations are framed almost the exact same, with Nandor and Guillermo on either side of the frame. The lighting also inverses each other (mostly teal light with orange on their faces in WC, mostly warm light with teal on their faces in Freddie). Even outside of the dialogue, the way the scenes are shot draw a direct parallel.

But then we get to what they're saying to each other. In both cases, one has crossed a boundary and inserted themselves in the other's life when they didn’t want them to. But while it's easier to defend Guillermo's actions than Nandor's because it's more obvious that he's doing it to protect Nandor (and Nandor's were arguably more fucked up), the situations are way more similar than we give them credit:

Neither Nandor or Guillermo knew the "danger" of the situations they inserted themselves into when they did

They both were acting selfishly under the impression of selflessness. Guillermo didn't know it was a cult, he just wanted Nandor back with him. Nandor obviously just wanted to be with Freddie, but didn't take the more "cruel" route as to not hurt Guillermo

On the other hand, both Nandor and Guillermo thought the other was taking away something/someone that made them "happy" and were rightfully standing up for themselves

Unfortunately, in both cases, they were wrong about what was actually best for them (the cult was a cult, and Freddie was an egotistical cheater) even if they were right in the moment

But even with how similar they are, a few differences stand out. In the Wellness Center, they are sitting side by side, and after a brief moment of tension, they're not looking each other in the eye. Nandor is looking at Guillermo, trying to get through to him, but Guillermo is looking away and likewise not listening. But in Freddie, they're staring directly at each other, and you can see that Guillermo is actually getting through to Nandor. It's a turning point, moreso than the WC scene. As much as we all hate Nandor for what he does, Nandor says sorry, but Guillermo never did.

Also, I mentioned the lighting earlier, but that shows a subtle shift too. While in WC the orange is on both of their faces, showing more equality in their arguments as both are somewhat in the right, in Freddie the teal lighting only reaches Guillermo, implying that he is more in the right than Nandor. Yes I know I'm probably reaching with this but come on

I love that this parallel exists, not just for the angst, but for the way it makes us reexamine Guillermo's motivations and actions in a moment where we were all rooting for him. He's not perfect, in many ways he's also very toxic. Not as much as Nandor, sure, and he ended up being right, but at least Nandor apologized instead of putting Guillermo in a cage. They're more similar than we sometimes want to think about, because as the human in the cast and the one with less power (on paper at least) in the relationship, we want to relate to him. We want to side with him when he and Nandor clash. But should we?

As well, Freddie as an episode recontextualizes Nandor's motivations. Yes, what he did was extremely dumb and cruel and he shouldn't have done it, but his thought process is so skewed that, from his POV, he was doing his best in the situation. And again, he apologized, genuinely, and worked to at least try and fix it for probably the first time in 14 years. The only other times we've seen him even somewhat listen and say sorry to Guillermo were when Guillermo left and he couldn't function without him, and then it was only to get him to come back to work. Freddie stuck with me because it looked like he actually meant it. He listened. He just fucked up so bad that Guillermo justifiably couldn't forgive him.

Anyway I could talk for hours about why Freddie is a great episode actually but also I don't like thinking about what happened to Marwa for too long and I have actual essays to write

[bottombaron]

theory #2 

Nandor was on the balcony the whole time.

So I'm not going to waste time trying to convince anyone that Nandor Knows. Basically you do or you don't. For me it could go either way. I don't think there's necessarily enough proof in the text that he knows, just that 1. The show writers are clever enough to not actively disprove it (they do this all the time with things, it's something I admire. wwdits loves nothing more than its red herrings) 2. Im 97.3% sure Kayvan Novak was playing Nandor, post The Baron being fried part 2 electric boogaloo, as knowing Guillermo is a vampire - and that he was never coming back after fleeing. Not to get into actor objectives, etc. here, but that doesn't have to be supported by the text or something he's been told to do. As an actor you basically come up with these choices on your own by your own interpretations and what you feel would be the most interesting choice. I know a lot of people who have theories and will point to an actor's choices as proof of something that probably isn't in the text of the scripts themselves and those choices don't really have as much connection to the intent of the author as you might think. Although, I personally find an actor's choices more compelling than what’s in the text, especially if it’s an interesting one that makes for a compelling emotional arc for the character.

tldr; my gut says that Kayvan is playing Nandor like he knows; at least in the last half of this episode. But even if he is, that doesn't necessarily make it canon. 

So, moving to the meat of the theory, a small thing that got me thinking is - we don't see (or hear) Nandor for a very long time during Guillermo’s confession. We don't hear him crashing around in the background, comically trying to set up a platter of blood, no insert shots of a camera spying on him while Guillermo’s voice carries over in order to give an extra weight of guilt to the words confessing his betrayal…there’s nothing. Now, again, this isn't proof. I just find it unsettling whenever characters talk about someone and you can't see where the subject of their conversation is, and yet you know that they're close by. It’s such a classic set up for the ‘oh no they were right behind you all along’. (ngl I was certain that Nandor was going to be right behind The Guide the whole time because her blocking put her hiding most of the hall from view and that had my palms itchy with suspicion). Of course tho all these things could have perfectly innocent explanations for them. That's again a big strength of wwdits that gets often overlooked: They know the tropes and either lean so heavily on them to the point of absurdity or more commonly subvert them in some way. Wwdits isn’t a sitcom, it's a satire of a sitcom. They want you to be thinking “where is Nandor?” during this scene, subconsciously, in the back of your mind. Even if it does nothing more than just to fuck with us. 

A final third thing that tickled my spidey-sense is that we never see the full balcony after Nandor goes to fetch the drinks. Here is the shot set up right before, during (Nandor’s absence), and after:

Most of the set up here before Nandor leaves is in a wide shot that shows majority of the stairs and balcony. Which makes sense, it’s the best way to fit everyone, including Colin on the left of the stairs and Nadja on the right, into the same shot. But once Nandor walks down the hall that shot is replaced with mid shots and shot-reverse-shots between Guillermo and The Baron. Even at the ‘During’ point, where The Guide is speaking and we get the widest shot of the foyer - we only just barely reach over the middle of the balcony, and by then Guillermo had already confessed.

Right when Nandor comes back tho? We’re back to the wide shots that include the balcony. 

Now, the hardest part of such a simple theory was understanding the house layout better in order to know how/if Nandor could get to the balcony from the back of the hallway (and not the front staircase) without being seen, since all we know is that he heads down the hall when he announces he will go get a “carafe of blood”. Logically I thought that he would head to the kitchen.

Which then got me thinking…where the fuck is the kitchen??  

Sadly the floor plans released by the set designer aren't actually that helpful in answering this because it shows that kitchen on the first floor, the first door on the right. But we know that the first door on the right isn’t the kitchen due to the pilot and Go Flip Yourself episodes. The pilot shows a smaller, dimly lit area with different fixtures that is probably either a storage area or a restroom. In Go Flip Yourself, we know that the wall would have been taken out in order to extend Guillermo’s alcove into a proper room, which they wouldn’t have done if it was adjacent to the kitchen since they were ment to renovate that area too. Plus there was septic sewage seeping in under his floor which lends more to it being a first story bathroom (also because I don’t think that there is anywhere else to put a bathroom on the fist floor according the floor plans). The other doors on the left are Nandors room and the other room on that side probably leads to the basement since Guillermo exits that way from the cage he was held in season 3. On the other side we have one more door that I have no idea where it goes to but if I had to guess I would think it’s maybe Nadja’s and Laszlo’s room. Then there’s a little adjacent alcove/hallway at the very end. Here we have a lamp, a clock, and either a chair or a giant feather thing on one side. And on the other side there is a blue door.

And I only had to find all that out by rewatching several episodes and freeze-framing multiple times to the point of agony.

Making my best guess as to where the kitchen is: it’s probably at the very, very end of the hallway, past all the bedrooms and main hallway, to the blue door on the right side of the alcove. I figured this by the blue door having a similar door handle and that it opens in from the left instead of the right like all the others on the same floor. 

So. The most logical thought is that Nandor went into the kitchen in order to get the drinks, right? But how does this get him to the balcony? 

In the Local News episode, Guillermo makes towards down the hall with his dinner but Colin Robinson stops him and tells him not to go that way. Here we see Guillermo put his hand on the left stair banister to indicate that he is going to take the stairs up and head to the dining room on the second floor.

If Guillermo goes to the dining room from upstairs then we can make the leap that the dining room was the intended location to begin with when he was going down the hall. So - there must be a way to do that, right? In the little tag at the end of the episode Guillermo finishes his dinner and goes right instead of left like he did when he was running away from The Baron.

He then takes these little stone stairs to the first floor but right before that we have a small little peak of horizontal subway tile.

Which is the exact subway tile that we see in the kitchen.

So the kitchen connects to the staircase to the second floor in the hallway of the dining room. And, because we have just seen Guillermo run down that same hallway and take a left, crashing into the wooden frame and onto the first floor…

… if Nandor took those same stairs up, went down the hall, past the dining room, and took a left….he would be right on the balcony. 

Looking down on Guillermo's confession.

And, since nothing happens in wwdits without being filmed the next question would be: well ok but was it filmed? Because if it wasn’t filmed then it didn’t happen. You can’t have the reveal. Now wwdits doesn’t exactly play fair all the time with its film crew. There’s several times when a shot is impossible by virtue of it supposedly being filmed in real time. And really, that’s just going to happen. You can’t use a lot of film language already with how wwdits is filmed and making sure every shot is in accordance to roughly 4-5 in-universe apparently human people with no reshoots is impossible. But we have been a little bit more trained to think about the film crew this season, what with them actually participating more into what we’re shown - the set up of shots, hearing them ask questions and push Guillermo to talk about his turning with Derek, the crew that followed Guillermo to talk to his mother is actually pointed out to be two people, when his aunt asks them if they're hungry. From that we can also start thinking about how there are probably two people per plot (a plot and b plot), one for camera and another most likely a producer or sound guy. And we know that just about everyone is downstairs in this intervention, with the exception of Laszlo, who is catatonic and easily visible in the library on everyone’s right. So if just about everyone is in one place you would only need two people here. The other two would follow the ‘b’ plot: Nandor. But we don’t see anyone follow him down the hall. 

Well, again keeping in mind impossible shots happen all the time, I don’t think it’s a stretch to give a little weight to this shot here:

Right after Guillermo and The Baron part ways and Guillermo opens the door, frying the Baron for the second time, that shot is caught from the balcony, but it would have been ‘impossible’ considering none of the crew were seen going upstairs. Even if they had left with Nadja or Nandor when the camera had turned to close in on the The Baron and Guillermo’s conversation, both of them had gone down the hall on the first floor (most likely to their rooms) while The Guide went across, away from the stairs, probably to the library with Laszlo. So there would have been no reason for them to be upstairs if they were following the vampires like they’re supposed to.  

Unless, they were already upstairs to begin with. 

Conclusion:

So we have the opportunity and means for both part of the camera crew and Nandor to have been up on the balcony while Guillermo confessed:

A part of the crew, probably stuck upstairs after Guillermo had run away from The Baron, stayed up there for any number of various reasons. Damage to their equipment, resetting equipment, etc. but either way, they’re not necessary to film the gang downstairs since they are all together at the moment. 

Nandor, going down the hall, to the very end, and then to the right puts him into the kitchen. From there he either can’t find a platter, cups, blood, becomes curious, who the hell knows, and decides to go upstairs using the tiny stone staircase hidden there. (maybe he is looking for a fancy platter to put the drinks on and they would be all upstairs in the dining room since they were just hosting a party). 

Maybe hearing his name or anything else to spark his curiosity he walks down the hall and towards the balcony that Guillermo was just running down a few minutes earlier. There he watches Guillermo talk about being turned by Derek. 

The other half of the crew that were left upstairs get lucky enough to catch it on tape and then lucky again to get a perfect shot of The Baron being fried for a second time when that happens later. 

Nandor returns to the group with his platter of drinks, knowing that Guillermo went behind his back to be turned by Derek. No one but the crew knows he was ever up there.

And that is how (I think) Nandor was on the balcony the whole time.

[nellie-elizabeth]

What We Do in the Shadows: The Railroad (6x04)

Sean Rinaldi, how I love you.

Cons:

There's this little moment at the start where it seems like Nandor is crushing on the Guide? Now, I'm always complaining that they don't know what to do with the Guide character, and this episode is no exception... so maybe this could be funny or interesting? Maybe it's just a continuation from the hypnosis. It just seems kind of random and uninspired to me, though. Honestly, that goes for Jerry as well - he's here at the start of the episode to continue the whole "taking over America" plan, but it doesn't really go much of anywhere and this character hasn't really had much to do since his introduction in the first episode of the season. I guess we'll see if it all pays off!

Pros:

I thought the main plot and the subplot of this episode were both very strong overall!

Let's start with Colin and Lazlo teaming up to try and trick their neighbor and good pal Sean. This was the most fun I've had with a Lazlo and Colin match-up in a long while. I loved that they both took their responsibility to do the right thing by Sean so seriously, even if Colin was mostly going along with Lazlo's shenanigans. It's definitely a go big or go home situation, with them renting out an office space and hiring a bunch of actors to maintain their lie that they work for the railroad. The funniest part is Sean's inconsistent stupidity. His mental issues come from the over-hypnotizing that Lazlo has subjected him to over the years. So he's stupid enough not to know how to work the elevator, and not to notice that the man conducting his interview is a Frankenstein's monster, but he's smart enough to actually give a really great interview for this job that doesn't exist. That dichotomy is so fun. And Lazlo going on about how stupid he is, and then saying "he's my friend, I can't let him down" got a big laugh out of me.

Nadja is the bridge between this plot thread and the other one, and there's a fun scene where she dupes the finance bros into coming down to the fake railroad office to try and make a sale, and even though the lie is immediately apparent, they still end up thinking the property might be worth snatching up, so Nadja gets some further kudos with the Cannon crowd!

Of course, my favorite material is with Guillermo working his new job. His relationship with Jordan, his new boss, is taking on some master-familiar vibes. Guillermo helps Jordan down from his perch when he makes a speech, very like how he might have helped his master Nandor in and out of his coffin. He nearly slips up and calls him "master," and he is willing to take all manner of berating and abuse, all for the promise of advancement down the road, and the small crumbs of praise thrown his way. There's actually a rather complex character thing going on here with Guillermo. Because while he finally has excised himself from the unhealthy dynamic he had with his old boss, he's now falling right back into old patterns. And said old boss, or bosses if you include Nadja, are meanwhile right there actually working to support him. Nandor is willing to humble himself, and he actually says he's proud of Guillermo, and seems completely sincere in wanting him to be happy. There's no secret ploy from Nandor to get Guillermo fired so he'll come back to his old position. He seems genuinely pleased for his friend, if quietly heartbroken. 

And that's all compounded by the very tender and rather sad scene where Guillermo finally has to fire Nandor, after trying to avoid the task several times. Nandor doesn't turn on Guillermo, doesn't say anything nasty, but shakes his hand and quietly leaves. He tries to take it on the chin even when the camera crew are asking him about the situation. He does have a bit of a breakdown and throw a box down the hall, storming away from the cameras, but it all feels very... grounded and truly emotional, not a heightened and comedic reaction like you might have expected.

There's still a lot of comedy to be mined from the Guillermo and Nandor plot, such as Nandor's ridiculous janitorial tasks, such as mopping computer screens and throwing files away in the trash. Or Nadja's indignation about Guillermo's attitude now that he's making real strides in the workplace, forgetting that Nadja helped make it happen for him. Or Guillermo trying to justify the evils of capitalism by saying it's a net positive for the consumer to get a cheaper product, and a great working opportunity for children overseas. Yikes!

So yeah, this was probably the strongest episode of the season thus far. I'll be excited to see where Guillermo's plot goes from here. I have the sinking feeling that the season will end with Guillermo finally excising himself fully from the lives of the vampires, moving forward with his life while the vampires are stuck in the same old same old. We'll see if that's the direction they take it!

9/10

[sweetest-omens]

okay it’s been discussed a million times but I would like to talk AGAIN about the blocking/body language in the 0401 best man scene [wwdits] [long post]

okay first up, we open on nandor drying guillermo’s hair:

this comes directly after nandor jumping into the water after him to save his life with no hesitation. and then THIS. a complete 180 in their dynamic. right out of the gate all of the erosion of boundaries that was paced so gently in season 3 are completely shattered. but look at the body language!! nandor is still very physically distant. he dries guillermo’s hair with the tips of his fingers and then dumps the towel over his head.

next, we get a bouncy, tentative “how are we feeling?” from nandor

this is so funny to me because he’s standing there doing his little nervous hands, hovering close but still maintaining distance.

I’m gonna skip over the little water bit because it covers a lot of the same bases. devotion through acts of service, role reversal, blah blah blah. but I do want to point out that all of nandor’s devotional gestures are functionally useless (hair still wait, water full of god knows what etc.) but they serve literally only to reassure guillermo that they are an on equal(ish) footing.

okay after that we get the “will you be my best man at my wedding” ft this beautiful baby boy facial expression:

and then:

they are standing... so close. guillermo puts himself in nandor’s personal space by standing up on “you’re getting married!!” but then nandor comes into his personal space with a saucy little “dont be jealous”. I couldn’t quite capture nandor’s mirco-expression after guillermo says “I’m not” but it is RIDICULOUS. a split second of bitchy sulky baby that he very quickly covers up.

anyway. HUG DODGE

sure, nandor refusing guillermo’s physical affection is a gag throughout the series. but usually nandor calls it out verbally. this, he just avoids, and then...

straight across the room to give the camera this look. I know it doesn’t look like much here but it is a distinct, sheepish(?) glance to the camera, and then he looks away. he deliberately has his back to guillermo to hide a series of small flickers in his facial expression. [also just really noticing how beautiful his outfit is here *cher voice* can we get a little commotion for the dress?]

and then he reveals his reason for wanting to get married: he’s been lonely. now, I know this has also been a theme through the series, nandor being unlucky in love. but a marriage within the month is a big step. what’s changed? guillermo being absent in his life, that’s what! what’s going to fill the guillermo-shaped hole in his life? oh, a romantic partner! a wife! good thinking, nandor!

the thing is, I don’t think either of them have the will or the words to discuss the massive shift in their dynamic. they are trying frantically to express it, but failing at every turn (this is why the closer they get, the more physical fights they have). but I really, really want to talk about the way their emotional connection manifests in the blocking for this scene:

HELLO! the closeness of the best man declaration with them literally inches apart, followed by the chasm of emotional distance that nandor creates with the absent wife. and its actually guillermo that rounds to the other side of the coffin. I mean, guillermo is very vulnerable in this scene. he’s in nothing but a little robe, and dishevilled and nandor has just saved his life. but this is the only time he seeks protection for himself in the form of a physical barrier between them. (also it being a coffin, and the unfulfilled promise of vampirism that is the true barrier between them).

I know this has all been said a hundred times before. but I rewatched this scene and was struck by how big the emotions are and how they affect both characters physically. also I apologise endlessly for my shitty little screenshots idk how to gif. BUT please go back and rewatch the scene for all of nandor’s heartwrenching microexpressions. there’s one that the camera barely catches when he’s got his back to guillermo and it drives me insane let me see his whole FACE. anyway <3

[rel312]

What I loved about WWDITS S5 Episode 8 (SPOILERS!!!):

Laszlo just staring off into space (I want to say b/c of baby Colin but the way this show is it’ll probably be something stupid)

Nandor trying to get Laszlo’s attention by asking questions because he knows it gets him going

“I am in such a good place” are you Nandor?

BABY COLIN?!?!?!! He’s remembering!!!

Literally everybody in the house thinking it’s about them

“We are down to, like, only 16 fucks a week” “we are down to just three”

They all care so much about Laszlo they’re trying to get his attention

“Guillermo, you spend a lot of your life being very miserable and sad, do you have any ideas?”

Everybody ignoring The Guide and liking when Colin Robinson says her idea

LESLIE????

“We gathered all the people that love you into this one room, and then when we saw all the empty chairs we decided to drag some randos in off the street to fill them”

Guillermo trying not to laugh at Nandor’s joke

The room being silent when Nandor mentions The Guide

And that he doesn’t even say anything about her

“We practically finish each other’s handjobs”

“We’ll be right back after this” cuts to commercial break

“Women can be funny”

Colin Robinson trying to drain everybody at the roast

The Guide telling the Baron Guillermo’s vampire killing tendencies

“Wampires”

“Sean is cool, he’s a good time, I take that one back”

Sean patting Guillermo’s back

Nandor and Nadja literally being dragged on the ground for trying to protect Guillermo

“Don’t film this” they’re so upset

Guillermo climbing to hide

“Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if we ended up dying” “are you okay?” “Yeah, I’ve just been going through a lot lately”

The way they all believe the Baron when it’s so obviously a trick

Colin Robinson pretending to be the Baron

Nandor’s double take when he realizes the Baron actually wants to kill Guillermo and cutting in to distract them

Nandor being so lost with Guillermo not able to do things for him

Guillermo telling the Baron

Nandor being so happy the Baron won’t kill Guillermo

Nandor not wanting to let the Baron alone with Guillermo

Guillermo accidentally frying the Baron again

Nandor not wanting to believe Guillermo will die

“He has always been loyal to me” Nandor nooooo he’s so convinced

Laszlo finally coming out to say something

“At least he died doing what he loved, beating off in the toolshed”

That’s a fake body right?

Nandor crying over Guillermo

“He was not just a familiar, he was my bodyguard, he was the best man at my wedding, he was my friend” his voice cracks!

Oh my god it’s Blinky

Nandor being so distressed at Laszlo seemingly cutting up Guillermo’s body

“It is I who have gone soft”

Nandor sadly looking out the window thinking of Guillermo

Nandor being so happy Guillermo is okay and then making sure he’s the real one

Nandor wearing his hair half up half down for formal occasions

“To be a vampire is my dream, but to be your familiar will be my honor”

Nandor mouthing along with the words

Nandor being so soft in that scene with Guillermo

I just noticed Nadja’s green hair

The Baron raising the mutants

Laszlo just sitting to figure out how to organize his books