#he's not bad

[goblinfables]

I got the Hero's Aspect in Tears of the Kingdom and was so thrown off by the design I had to draw what I thought it was going to be to give my brain peace

[denwenai]

Why Crowley is genuinely good

(and not because of Aziraphale's influence)

There are inherently evil demons who enjoy doing bad stuff and take pride in their actions. This is not the case with Crowley, who I prefer to describe as a fallen angel rather than a demon. And I'm not saying this just because he used to be an angel; Beelzebub is a fallen angel too, but they're definitely a demon.

Crowley is a pretty neutral being. He might not be heavenly, but he's not evil. Has he done stuff? Probably. But there's some undeniable truth to it: all the good things he's done, he's done out of his own will. No one pushed, asked or expected him to (except Aziraphale, but only out of hope). On the other hand, all the bad things he's done, he's done either because of direct orders from his superiors (and we've seen him act reluctantly in these cases, like when he delivered baby Adam) or because of social pressure (demons are evil and he's a demon, so he's supposed to do bad stuff, that's why he usually takes credit of things humans do to look like he's doing his job). Either way, doing evil acts is a cover to live up to Hell's expectations.

Considering this is enough to understand why even though Crowley isn't a bad guy, he's still perceived as such and is even a renowned and highly respected demon in Hell (at least before Armaggedon't). But I'll still describe how this is evidenced and backed by what we've seen and inferred about Crowley. Plus, featuring some moments from S2 that got me screaming he's such a good guy during my first watch.

Part One: The fall

Crowley knew from the beginning he didn't quite fit in with the angels, but this wasn't problematic at first. He didn't care about good and evil or the ineffable plan; he only cared about creating a universe. He wasn't really driven by goodness; that's why he's a neutral being from the beginning. But everything started to drift apart when he got the news that his creations would be destroyed for no reason. Destroying the nebula after 6000 years made no sense to him, and questioning came naturally. This is where he becomes a problem; he starts asking questions and trying to suggest things instead of being diligent and obeying.

We don't know exactly why he fell; what did he say to make God angry enough to cast him out of Heaven. But we know, as both Crowley and Metatron previously stated, that he asked too many questions. And asking questions is not something of wicked nature, so Crowley didn't fall for being inherently evil. He was just curious, and the people in charge didn't like that.

And it's not like a fallen angel had a lot of options back then. It was only Heaven and Hell; you're either an angel or a demon. Crowley didn't pick to be in Hell because he wanted to; it was his only option for survival. I imagine Hell was eager to have another fallen angel -just like Lucifer himself- on their side. For Crowley, it felt like his questioning was acknowledged and approved; he was probably hurt and confused because he didn't think asking questions was wrong, but Heaven rejected him for doing so. And in Hell, he found a place where no one cared what he thought, so he stayed there. It doesn't mean he agreed with Hell's ways; just as he didn't fit in with the angels, he didn't fit in with the demons. He's always been on his own, but as Heaven turned its back on him, Hell didn't, and that was enough for him.

Our first conclusion: Crowley didn't fall for being evil; he fell for asking questions, not being obedient and having his own opinions. So he isn't inherently evil from the beginning. His nature is curious and inquisitive, not wicked.

Part Two: The diligence

Since Crowley didn't have the same views as Hell, he didn't fully agree with their ways, just like when he was in Heaven. The difference is now he knows what happens if he starts bothering his superiors with questions and suggestions. That's why he decides to agree with Hell to a certain point. He knows he's on his own (and has always been), but he won't let it show because it would lead to trouble. So the best option is to pretend to follow Hell's orders while doing the bare minimum. As we know, Hell only cares that things get done. They don't care how, and they -most of the time- don't even check. If it looks like it's been done, they're satisfied. Crowley takes this as an opportunity to pretend without actually doing the stuff he doesn't want to do, like killing goats just for God and Lucifer to prove a point.

We could say he's a trickster, making both Hell and Heaven believe that he's doing all this stuff so no one bothers him because he's meeting the expectations. Heaven won't want him back because he's proving them right: he was a pain in the ass, always asking questions and wanting to go his own way. Hell perceives him as a proficient demon responsible for so much evil on Earth, so he's off their radar because they don't ask many questions. They couldn't care less what demons think as long as they're not being subversive. And Crowley learnt not to give suggestions or ask too much, so he's the perfect demon.

Our second conclusion: Crowley didn't turn evil after the fall. He kept being curious and inquisitive, having his own opinions, with the difference that he learnt to keep them to himself. We could even say he pretends to be evil, doing the bare minimum to avoid suspicion but avoiding stuff he disagrees with.

Part Three: The evidence

Ok, this is the fun bit. I always saw Crowley as a good but misunderstood character, but S2 is filled with moments where this is evident. And why, you ask? Mainly because there are situations where a naturally evil character would not do the things he does. In other words: when the most effortless choice (not doing anything) was coincidentally what someone evil would do, he'd do something else. He could not do anything, and it'd be on character for a demon, but he actively chose to do something (because he wanted it) when he didn't need to. So he's not just being passively good; he's actively choosing to do something good.

These are some moments I'd like to recall, in order of appearance on S2:

Telling the spies at the park that they shouldn't feed bread to the ducks because it's not good for them. He didn't need to, but he cares about the ducks (and all animals in general, we'll get to it again later). I consider his love for animals worth mentioning because it feels like most angels don't care about animals or humans that much. They're collateral damage, a piece in the big game. But he does!!!

When Nina and Maggie are locked down in the coffee shop, they stop him on his way to the bookshop. He realizes he made the power go down. He could've easily left them there because he was in a hurry (Beelzebub just told him that anyone helping Gabriel would be at risk), and they didn't even know it was his fault. They weren't expecting him to fix his error; they were looking for help. And, well, he's a demon after all. He should be glad to get two humans into this kind of misfortune. But he didn't even stop to think. He fixed it and even apologized (when he didn't need to because, as I said, they didn't know it was his fault).

This one is obvious (and kinda biased because it involves Aziraphale, and he'd do anything for him), but Crowley deciding to help Gabriel? He's the one who said they had to protect him from everyone, even humanity.

When Crowley turned Job's goats into crows so they would go unnoticed while looking like he killed them. He even made sure to sound so cold-blooded when talking about it with Aziraphale, only for it to be revealed that he hid them. This was particularly risky because God and Hell required him to do this. He just didn't give a fuck and protected the goats because he wanted to. This is some good guy behaviour right here. Also a bit anarchist, but this is not the point now.

Another obvious one, but he protected the kids too. And this was even riskier not because they were more recognizable than goats, but because now Aziraphale -an angel!!- knew what he was doing. But he didn't care because he knew Aziraphale would understand him. After all, that's how he started: questioning God's plan.

Crowley was pretending to turn the kids into geckos because they annoyed him, but that was his plan all along to hide them until they could come back safely. Then, when Jemimah asks to be turned into a blue gecko he's like "oh but you're not bothering me yet" but after she asked again he turned her. Would an evil demon do that? Definitely not.

When Aziraphale expresses how worried and guilty he feels about lying, Crowley tells him he won't say anything about what happened. Nothing has to change. I wouldn't mention what he does for Aziraphale because he loves him, so he goes out of his way to do good stuff for him. But at this point, they weren't that close, and another demon in his situation would've easily talked about Aziraphale's lie so he'd get in trouble with Heaven. But he chose to protect Aziraphale, even if he gained nothing from it. Even knowing that Aziraphale was a bit like him and that they could be together if Aziraphale fell too. Because neither is demon material and because Crowley felt lonely.

The whole Elspeth situation. It was so unlikely for a demon to act like that Hell noticed and -as we can assume- punished him. And it's not only about stopping her suicide and giving her money and advice to start a new life. He spent the whole time trying to convince Aziraphale that she was doing it because she had no choice, that she wasn't a bad person. Also, this is a little detail but the fact that he offered Elspeth to carry the barrel for her multiple times. It was so unnecessary but he did it anyway.

He made up some random rules to ensure the humans were safe and far from the battleground when it started. For the other demons, it was just collateral damage. He even walked them out himself. And gave him advice on how to get home safely.

Part Four: The perceptions

We know how Heaven and Hell perceive Crowley, I already talked about it. But let's see how other people see him.

I said I won't mention any Aziraphale situations, but I'd like to point out that Aziraphale knows that Crowley is not mean. He notices (and loves) these things he does. He says it better than I do:

Aziraphale: I knew you would come through for me. You always do. Crowley: Well, you said trust me. Aziraphale: And you did. You could've walked away. If you were truly as evil as you like to paint yourself, you would’ve done that.

He KNOWS Crowley is just pretending to be a proper demon. At first, I thought it was him being delusional/hopeful/in denial. But then I noticed I spent the whole season thinking the same way. Maybe we're both delusional, but I know Crowley is a good guy. And Aziraphale knows as well, but this time, he talked about it. He summarized all I've been talking about: you say you're so evil, but someone that evil wouldn't do the things you do. But he's not pushing him; he's just letting him know that he's aware, that he understands and sees him for who he really is. And most importantly, he doesn't have to keep a facade when he's around.

When it comes to humans, most of them probably see him as a mysterious guy. Some, like Nina or Mrs Sandwich, would say he's good. After all, he's been good to them. But the conversation Crowley had with Mrs Sandwich brings me to my next point: how he sees himself, and how he thinks he's perceived.

Mrs Sandwich: Thank you. You're really nice. Crowley: Don't thank me. And I'm not. Nobody would believe you anyway.

Everyone got stuck with the "and I'm not" bit, and I don't blame you. But what he says next is very important because it means:

He knows he's not evil. If he were evil, he would leave it at "I'm not". But that last bit was unnecessary. It sounds like: "Even if I were (I am), they would not believe it (they don't see it)". But he doesn't sound frustrated about it; it's as if he were saying: "Don't waste your time pointing it out because no one else will see it". And this brings me to the next point.

He's been trying to be perceived as such because it's what everyone expects. "Nobody" refers to Heaven and Hell, and they wouldn't believe it because they assumed from the beginning that he was evil; that's how demons are supposed to be. And he's made sure to act (or pretend to) in a way that reinforces that thought.

Crowley is well aware of his nature. He knows he's not good or evil. He's just Crowley. But he also knows how everyone sees him, and he knows he needs to be perceived as such to avoid bringing attention to himself. And it's easier for him once Aziraphale lets him know he sees him for who he truly is. He's the only one he cares about anyway.

[archive-dew]

babes I'm going to start crying. pls stop mischaracterizing aziraphale. stop saying you want to punch him or you hate him or whatever. crowley is going to be so upset at you :( and I'm going to cry.

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

[samioli]

I think I forgot to show tumblr this but it's been over a year since Phoenix Wright appeared on my crashed laptop screen

[mantareidraws]

Giving battinson the big birb hug he so desperately needs 🫂

[myszkaa]

Sometimes dunmeshi fanart looks like this

[fuhosh-i]

“Where’s the pathetic element?” Exactly Tom Hardy. Exactly.

(x)

[bakedbeanchan]

random fire nation diplomat #492 will never understand the complex and fucked up relationship between the water siblings like I do 🙄

[hansoeii]

look at you, you're gorgeous!

[rival-ado]

could have been worse

[thebeloathed]

I love flirty Stan that becomes a flustered mess the second it's reciprocated

[euthanizedthatdog]

HOW DOES THIS IMAGE MAKE YOU FEEL?

~*~Squelch~*~

3. Jealous

[chloesimaginationthings]

You know Henry’s final speech went hard in FNAF

[jelly-fish-wishes]

I'm ignoring the part of the internet who is going "Oh no" at this.

BUT OMG BOWSER YOU HOPELESS ROMANTIC. YOU LOVE PEACH NO MATTER WHAT SHE TURNS INTO BAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Bowser really is the type to love you if you became a worm lol

[asweetprologue]

this is so devastating. laois should have just shot him with a gun