#i know michael sheen is only in one season and he plays one of the most horrific characters ever

[katierosefun]

,,,,,,,is there anything more embarrassing than watching the entire filmography of an actor you have a crush on

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

“I know, I know.” That’s Michael Sheen‘s response to how much the end of Good Omens Season 2 hurt. But the good news is that we know there will be more: The Prime Video series is ending with the third season, set to film in 2025.

When TV Insider recently spoke with Sheen, there wasn’t much he could say about what’s to come. “It’s still in development, but obviously I’m very excited to work with David again, and I love that character,” he shared. “I’m very excited about it.”

...

“One of the extraordinary things about being a part of [Good Omens] is the audience, the fans, the fandom of it. You have to take it very seriously because people get really affected by it,” Sheen added. “And seeing how people reacted to the end of Season 2 was extraordinary. So yeah, I hope, and I’m sure, that Season 3 will be a satisfying experience for everyone.”

...

So far, only Sheen and Tennant have been confirmed for Season 3, so when TV Insider caught up with Jon Hamm, who plays Gabriel, in May 2024, we had to ask if he could return. “I don’t know. I hope so. I hope he’s happy somewhere with his life, so to speak, in the universe. I think that there might be something happening, but I don’t want to get too far out over my skis and I don’t want to spoil anything,” he said.

[thatlgbtqfandom]

I've watched a few interviews with the cast and crew of Good Omens and can I just say that, as someone who was a BBC's Sherlock fan back when it was still airing, it makes me so incredibly happy to finally have a show that not only doesn't queerbait (yes, the bar is in hell), but where the actors seem genuinely happy with and open about the queer direction the show is going in, and where they don't shame the fans for also being happy about this development. I just watched an interview with Michael Sheen where he, almost unprompted, brought up fanfiction and said that he thinks that it's a shame that people used to be weird about fanfiction because he thinks it's amazing and shows a love for the show. And... as someone who kind of still gets upset whenever I'm reminded of certain interviews and panels with the cast and crew of Sherlock (if you were in the fandom I'm sure you know which ones I'm talking about), this unabashed celebration of queer joy from the cast and crew of a big show like this is just something I could never have imagined as a young, queer fan!

I get that there are different circumstances, Sherlock fans could definitely be a lot sometimes, and maybe it's cruel of me to compare shows like this. But I genuinely believe that Sherlock did some actual damage to my (and many others') trust in media and in creators. It's one of the main reasons I absolutely didn't believe Our Flag Means Death would do what it did even when I was seeing it play out before my very eyes. It's why I didn't believe Crowley and Aziraphale would ever even come close to actually expressing their feelings for one another despite all of the queer subtext in season 1 and despite the cast and crew calling it a love story. Maybe all of this even added to my suspicions that they weren't going to follow through because we've all been let down time and time again.

And I'm not trying to pin the fault of queerbaiting solely on Sherlock and the team behind it - I am aware that there were many other big shows and movies that also queerbaited at the time. But out of all of those shows, I mainly watched Sherlock and it, along with the interviews with the cast and crew, were my main points of reference for what to expect regarding queer representation in (especially mainstream) media at the time. Which is why I'm mainly using Sherlock as an example of this unfortunate trend.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that with all of these shows now subverting our very, very low expectations for what kind of space queer characters and queer stories are allowed to occupy in (especially mainstream) media, I feel like my teenage self is starting to heal just a bit. But, both back then and in hindsight, I'm also completely baffled that a few shows in the late 2000s and early 2010s were able to get away with the shit they were pulling and completely ruin young, queer fans' trust in both creators and in their own media literacy.

[fellthemarvelous]

This is just an idea that keeps rattling around in my head. If anyone else has a unique perspective to add to this, feel free to do so.

Is season three setting us up for Grand Duke of Hell Crowley?

Aziraphale has taken up the position of Supreme Archangel vacated by Gabriel.

And in the first episode we see Beelzebub throwing offers at Crowley just to get their hands on Gabriel (although at that point we don't understand why). Beelzebub even tells him that he can be a Duke of Hell.

It's not a position that Crowley wants, but is that what makes him the right choice for said position?

Heaven and Hell are both equally terrible, but Hell has never been anything other than what it was set up to be. Crowley wants nothing to do with it. He's never played by Hell's rules. It's a place of evil. Crowley doesn't have the capacity for the kind of evil Hell is looking for. He loves humanity just as much as Aziraphale does.

And Aziraphale, for all his misgivings about what Heaven is, is not actually blind to how corrupt it is. He chooses to go back because he is adamant that he can make a difference. He thought he would be able to make that difference with Crowley by his side, but Crowley can never and will never return to Heaven (unless it's to break in and cause problems).

But Hell needs to change as well. Hell is just as desperate as Heaven is to go to war and destroy the Earth and all of humanity.

And if Crowley takes up the mantle of Grand Duke of Hell, that would put him at odds with Aziraphale (and Heaven but we know he doesn't care about that part), but he and Aziraphale have spent the past 6,000 years together and can find a way for Heaven and Hell to meet in the middle and discover their own shades of gray. They have the power to bring about change at the top and the bottom.

Which is probably why the Metatron wanted to separate them in the first place. Together they are incredibly powerful. But the Metatron's greatest achievement at the end of season two might end up being the mistake that causes his downfall during season three.

Because no matter how explosive their break-up was, they still love each other, and they will always find their way back to each other.

And perhaps the systems will remain the same even when all is said and done, but they can shake things up for both sides and make them see that they too have the option of free will. They can have everything the humans have, but they have to see that it's possible.

And the only ones who can show them this path are Aziraphale and Crowley.

But in order for things to change, Crowley and Aziraphale will have to stand on opposite sides before joining together to help save humanity. And maybe they will have a small army of angels and demons who choose to follow them because what Crowley and Aziraphale have is so much more enticing than an eternity of working in miserable conditions and planning another war that involves the destruction of humanity.

And maybe that's how the Ineffable Plan is fulfilled. Maybe Aziraphale and Crowley are the keys to pulling it off. Maybe God and Satan paired them up for their own amusement, but also to see if it was possible for demons and angels to ultimately accept humanity and realize that they actually have the ability to make their own choices as well.

I don't know. I have so many ideas about where season three might take us. I'm not sure how I feel about this one because season two gave us so many possibilities for how this will ultimately end.

That particular moment in 2x1 has me wondering if Crowley will reluctantly agree to become Grand Duke of Hell.

It also doesn't help that Michael Sheen referred to Crowley as the thin dark Duke. I'm way too obsessed with this show.

I just really love my Ineffable Idiot Husbands.

[inhonoredglory]

Hey, I reaaally love all your meta analysis, especially the one on Aziraphale's morality. You truely have a wonderful writing style! And you expressed the feelings I had about the S2 finale I couldn't put into words and had me in tears again. I never really believed in the coffee theory (although a part of me hoped for it since it would be way less painful). But there is one thing I can't wrap my head around. The coffee theory is partly supported by the final scene of Aziraphale in the elevator and his creepy smile. Even when he looks forward to his new position and is convinced he does the right thing, I can't believe he wouldn't smile like that (and Michael Sheen is to talented for it being am accident). He still lost his soulmate Crowley, he still had to give up the life he loved so dearly and we know how much he struggled with that in the first place talking to Metatron. So why this smile, which aside from that, really did not look like him? I fear, that his memories were wiped out in this elevator. But since you have so a great understanding of Aziraphale's character, I would like to know your theories about that? Thanks a lot!!

(In response to my meta on why Aziraphale had to go to Heaven)

Thank you so much for your kind words, @sabotage-on-mercury (truly means the world to me). Honestly, the creepy smile was one part of the ending I couldn't quite put my finger on either, until someone pointed out on a Twitter response to my meta:

The reason why its scary is bc azi is becoming properly angry at the system and is 101% determined to set things right (Source)

In season 1, Aziraphale was determined not to kill anyone to stop the Apocalypse. He wouldn't even tell Crowley where the Antichrist was, because Crowley's only solution was to kill him.

And because Crowley consistently didn't have any ideas ("not one single better idea??"), Aziraphale took it on himself to pursue the only option left––to ask God to intervene and stop both Heaven and Hell from destroying Earth. Therefore, Aziraphale had to keep the integrity of his angel status by distancing himself from Crowley, while the world was still in danger.

Despite this dedication avoid bloodshed, when God didn't have an answer, Aziraphale went against one of his core beliefs to help save the world. He was willing to murder a child.

For Aziraphale, that takes guts. And (seeing how he reacted at the end of the Job minisode), I wonder that if he had killed Adam Young, Aziraphale would have checked himself into Hell.

Going to Heaven for Aziraphale is ultimately a conscious choice, one that he is clearly afraid of. We see him constantly steeling himself again the Metatron in the end, covering his fear and hurt from losing Crowley with a placid smile and a flippant attitude. He's wearing so many masks, to Crowley, to himself, to the Metatron...

All season we've seen him playing roles (detective, magician, doctor, landlord). But the final role is warrior. Going up that elevator, we first see Aziraphale's eyes searching, worried, panicking, but unable to show it because he's not in a safe space. He swallows, blinks, he's breathing hard (you can see his entire shoulders rise and fall).

But as he goes up, his expression steels. He's quite literally putting on a mask (to himself): a vengeful, hardened expression of pure anger and rage (to drown out the fear and uncertainty he so clearly still has).

Michael Sheen conveying contained anger in both Good Omens and Masters of Sex (gif by @julielilac)

Cuz this isn't just him scrambling to kill a kid, this is him walking calmly and knowingly into sacrificing everything he loves most (Crowley, the bookshop, his entire life on earth) to create a world that will always be safe for him and Crowley and humanity for the rest of time. Where he would have to go up against the most powerful angels, the Metatron, and God Themself to change things. He can't be the kind, sweet angel he was on Earth. That won't cut it in Heaven if he wants to make a difference in any real way.

He wanted to do it with Crowley, with the love and support and strength of his demon. But without him, Aziraphale has to channel something else to keep his resolve afloat.

Something he had when he was a warrior, fighting on the front lines of a battle between Heaven and Hell, when he very likely led a platoon into divine fields of bloodshed before the earth was born. When he was an avenging angel.

I haven’t done this since the Great War.

It was a time and an identity he had chosen to leave behind, because it wasn't the kind of angel he was anymore ("I'm not fighting in any war!"). In this context, you can read Aziraphale's passionate unwillingness to take a life (his pacifism) directly into his past experience as a warrior. It is often the veterans of terrible wars who are the most earnest advocates for peace. (And especially in Britain and Europe, where the violence of the world wars is still such a powerful and painful national memory.)

As he goes up the elevator, he's breathing so hard we can hear it mirrored in the soundtrack, and he is so hyperfocused on steeling himself that he doesn't even care that the Metatron is watching him. He doesn't rest until he's psyched himself into that warrior mindset necessary to carry out this mission entirely by himself, to be both the moral advocate and the uncompromising leader of angels who had intimidated him his entire life. To demand respect and to talk to the very face of God and tell Them they are Wrong.

(Please read this Neil-approved meta for further thoughts on God and Aziraphale.)

That creepy smile is clearly not there because Aziraphale is happy to fall into a toxic parent's false love. There's no comfort or wistful nostalgia in that face. There's no "it'll be so much nicer" in that smile. It's not a happy smile. It's an I'm-gonna-fuck-shit-up smile.

Because it's a warrior's smile before they go into battle, before they put on that armor and, for a while, become something they're not in the name of some greater good. He's fucking furious and it's downright frightening.

Because I have no doubt that the angel Aziraphale we get in Season 3 is the angel Aziraphale who can say this:

He's not there yet in the TV show. But this bravery, this anger, this flaming rage is how it starts.

Or as he's described in the book when Aziraphale mysteriously does away with the local mafia:

Just because you’re an angel doesn’t mean you have to be a fool.

[ingravinoveritas]

The people that keep saying not to ship Michael and David together in real life because of their relationships to Georgia and Anna are also the same ones who keep begging to have the two girls appear in the next season of GO as a couple because of Anna’s little joke of making out with Georgia. Seriously people saw that tweet of hers and immediately decided to ship them together and call them the “ineffable wives” but Michael and David have come out with soooo much more adorable moments of the love and joy they have for each other and everyone starts saying that it’s disrespectful to ship them when their “married” to females in real life 🤷‍♀️ I mean…. The hypocrisy is astounding and disturbing on levels I can’t even comprehend. The fact that Georgia, who is known to search her and David’s name on Twitter and answers back to anyone that tags or even mentions her didn’t even acknowledge Anna’s tweet says sooooooo much about this “best friend dynamic duo”. The fact that Anna is resorting to jokes about kissing another woman just for attention also…. WHEW. If this isn’t the biggest cry for attention I don’t know what is. And the fact that people feed into her attempts also and are petitioning for them to kiss and show up in GO!

Lord. I've seen so much talk about casting female actresses in regard to fem-presenting Aziraphale/Crowley over the past week, and while it is disappointing, I am not at all surprised. The first inkling I had was upon seeing the reactions when a behind the scenes photo of Crowley as Bildad the Shuhite was posted just before the release of GO 2:

It seems that a lot of folks were expecting/hoping for fem!Crowley, as we saw in Golgotha in season 1 (on the right), and when that turned out not to be the case, the reaction was to call Bildad!Crowley ugly, to say that he should shave, and other comments essentially making fun of this particular look. Obviously, much of this could have (and likely was) made in jest, but the overall consensus was clear: You can't be feminine with a beard.

(Which...I'd like to see someone tell that to Michael Sheen, because yes, the fuck you can...)

So from the outset, I was already bothered by what seemed like the hypocrisy of on the one hand celebrating a show where the characters are genderfluid/nonbinary by definition, and then on the other hand getting upset when one character doesn't fit into a prescribed, conventional idea of femininity.

When Neil subsequently mentioned that there had been a storyline for female-presenting Aziraphale and Crowley in the 1960s, it was dismaying (but again, not surprising) to see these same fans casting female actresses in the roles. Never mind that you already had David playing female!Crowley and Nanny Ashtoreth in season 1. Never mind that both Michael and David have played...well, "drag" doesn't seem like exactly the right word, but they've played women, and brilliantly subverted gender roles in their own ways. There is no reason to think that they couldn't do a fabulous job as fem!presenting Aziraphale and Crowley, except that (again) some fans seem to have a specific idea of femininity that they think does not or cannot apply to Michael and David.

Which then brings us to the apparent clamoring for Anna and Georgia as female Aziraphale and Crowley, which has again left me scratching my head. In all of the tweets and hubbub, I have not seen one person say why they think Anna and Georgia would do a good job in said roles--like, "Oh, Georgia was so good as [insert role]" or "I loved Anna as [insert role]"--only that they would be "so amazing." This leads me to think that the only reason these fans want Anna and Georgia in the roles is because they are Michael and David's partners. They are assuming that Georgia and Anna actually care about Good Omens, and that this is somehow a guarantee of the same deep understanding of the characters and their connection, despite there being no evidence of such a correlation.

What it also seems to indicate is that these folks are not thinking of what is best for the characters, either, or indeed if playing female!Aziraphale and Crowley is something Anna or Georgia would even want to do. Neil recently said that Georgia turned down a role in GO 2 supposedly because the character was older than her and she didn't feel it was appropriate. If this is the case, why would Georgia want to play the role of a middle-aged character? Because that is what Aziraphale and Crowley are--ageless celestial beings, yes, but beings who have chosen to present as middle-aged. That is a key part of who they are, so to have the female versions of them played by younger actresses makes no sense and seems downright disrespectful.

There is also what you said, about Anna's tweet from a little over a week ago. Georgia could have absolutely responded to or acknowledged it by now, as she has responded to several other tweets since then...but she hasn't. Not a reply, not even a 'like.' And I agree with you that that seems to speak volumes, and that it would probably be a good idea if people looked beyond the Staged-driven narrative of "Georgia and Anna are BFFs" to see how Georgia actually seems to feel about her.

(And to echo another thing you said, I will never understand how it is somehow completely fine for fans to ship Georgia and Anna/want to see them make out despite neither of them showing that level of affection toward each other or having any visible chemistry, yet not okay to ship Michael and David who do have that chemistry and have been making their feelings for each other very obvious for the last several years...)

So yes, those are my thoughts on the whole female Aziraphale/Crowley fancasting situation. I just hope that if we do get them as fem!presenting in season 3, that it is Michael and David, because there is no way any other two actors could give us what we got with Aziraphale and Crowley the way Michael and David did. I guess we'll see what happens...

[azfellesquire]

Season two isn’t (fully) real, it’s a peaceful, fragile existence

The more I rewatch the show and read different theories, the more convinced I get that S2 is some sort of elaborate dream sequence or a distraction or memory alteration attempt (Neil’s chaotic angsty ineffable husbands fanfic?). But not all of it.

(This gets kind of rambly so if you want my true hook, scroll down to the Michael Sheen Staged gif.)

Let me make this perfectly clear on the outset: I don’t think all of it is a dream, and I certainly don’t think the final 15/kiss is or is going to be discounted (and not only because there would be literal riots in the street, because there absolutely would be, but also I’m putting trust in Neil and the team wholeheartedly). I think that could actually be the domino that brings them out of it. I read somewhere recently something along the lines of “something loved can never be truly forgotten” and I think that fits my theory perfectly. I’m also making no claims (yet) as to what I think is real and what I think is “enhanced”.

Also I apparently am either too far deep or cannot work the tumblr search function with any modicum of usefulness, so please link me to the posts I’m alluding to if you think it’s the right one. I will edit them in and sincerely apologize to the brilliant minds that exist outside the confines of the search function.

Now, On with the show:

You can be in charge of the biscuits

Maggie and Nina: Look, I get that recasts happen, they change the actor playing the character because of scheduling conflicts, etc. But to cast the actor/actress that is immediately recognizable from a prior interaction (whether with the characters or the audience) is not something you see. FFS Maggie DIED in S1, and Nina was pivotal (maybe too strong a word, but enough to be memorable surely) to the storyline. It’s like someone said “Hey, they’ll work, bring em in, no I don’t care that they were in S1. It’ll be a test of how well our facade is working. If they (A&C) notice, then the gig is up and we’ll know it.”

Also why in the world is the owner of a coffee shop offering Eccles cakes to calm down, when camomile tea is right there? (Resists the urge to go off on a tangent on how Eccles cakes were used to celebrate the “Eccles wakes” at the feast of St. Mary (yes that Mary) and how that ties into the second coming plot.) Do Eccles cakes count as biscuits? Ugh another thought for another day I suppose.

It has come to my attention during writing that Shax is the same actress as Madame Tracy. I have less of an affront to this knowledge since I’m 2 months deep and countless rewatches in and only just noticed. But I’m going to pop it in this header anyway. Are you really trying to tell me that a show that apparently has demon entrances happening precisely on the 6s really didn’t think these choices out very deliberately? (Edit 3: https://www.tumblr.com/noneorother/735823422626709504/the-secret-timeline-inside-of-good-omens-season-2 JFC why can I never find the blogs when I want to insert them? It was a breakdown about how all of the demon entrances happen at a 00:00 that ends in a 6.)

Yours very faithfully, Maggie

Text to mail disconnect: There’s been a theory pop up (at the time one writing this at least (edit 2: https://www.tumblr.com/azariah-z-fell/743434274903048192/it-is-extra-weird-because-it-is-on-the-record) that Maggie actually texted Aziraphale her request to talk, and it was magically translated into a physical form, and the spelling error (that so many people are shouting DEMON at) was just an autocorrect typo. But, surely Maggie would know he doesn’t text if she knew him for several years at least. We’ve never seen either of our boys text, only call. Seems like someone doesn’t know how phones work, but wanted to get the message received? See also: currency, below.

You ever think, what’s the point?

Numerous people have pointed out the same obvious background people. There are theories about the guy in the Hawaiian shirt being the second coming or something similar. I wonder if it’s some sort of play on a badly executed attempt to make Wickber Street seem “normal” in an alternate reality, an elaborate distraction, but they have to keep using the same character models because their imagination is just slightly better than Shadwells’ (Oh gfdi how did I miss Mrs. sandwich right there). I’m not saying we haven’t done a “oh oops silly me I forgot something” but that isn’t usually done in the middle of a sidewalk. When Aziraphale is initially talking to Jim with the blanket, there’s a guy just chugging his arms outside the window, not walking. Another one in E3 when Shax show up outside the shop, a guy in an orange sweatshirt passes in the background, then passes again, and not close enough in time/area to just be the continuation of the walk. Especially in the early episodes, there are veritable conveyer belts of people, straight lines, no trying to pass, etc. I’m trying to look at the background in S1 and while there are still tons of people, the background is… livelier. People passing, shoving past, actually going places.

“I’m looking at the statue of Gabriel.” “Oh, good job?”

Aziraphale basically learns fuck-all when he makes the trip to Edinburgh. Granted, I do believe most of that was to make the Bentley “our car”, but so many things are out of character. The no drink, the over-the-top “investigation” (as awkward as he is, Aziraphale knows how to act more normally than that with humans), the background on the drive up there…

All the others were taken (random collective thoughts)

Somehow ALL the businesses on the street are different from Season 1?

A normal person would have moved out of the rain instead of just lolling there letting raid splatter their glasses, yeah? (As a person with glasses I can confirm).

“We have all the hosts of hell searching for him” cue Crowley looking around like then why the fuck are there still demons around me?

The cross disappearing from the Gabriel statue between shots.

“I’m a bit out of miracles” and “that’s not how miracles work” from the guy who got written up for too many frivolous miracles.

I have here a sixpence and a farthing There’s always money in the banana stand

The lack of (accurate?) paid transactions seems like whoever is pulling the strings has no concept of earthly money and how it’s supposed to work, just that it exists. Crowley and Aziraphale talk bluntly about poverty and know that money is needed and used in current society (“Give her the money, Angel”, Rome, Globe Theatre, 1941 magic shop, etc.). Could be a “let’s not get lost in the trivialities” thing but it does strike me as odd. Caveat: Aziraphale forgiving the rent doesn’t quite fit, but cost of the record is obscenely low.

But this does give me hope about the 3rd 1941 flashback, because they were using money accurately there, which hopefully means the flashbacks and memories aren’t being altered, just “present day”.

We’re real people

One of the overarching themes in Season 2 (and S1 now I think of it) is “stop interfering in the lives of other people”. Maggie and Nina, Job, Elspeth, the entire dance party, Warlock, the book of prophecy. It would be a shame if someone were to make sure I failed to be messing about in their own lives.

I had brothers, you don’t scare me

Something happened just before Maggie told them to “Come in here and say that to my face.” Another demonic turn potential here, but also kind of like someone’s saying “FFS get on with the plot”.

The book of love has music in it

This post https://www.tumblr.com/noneorother/731977308306636800/all-the-music-you-didnt-hear-the-good-omens (finally, one I can find!) popped up, and there’s another one that purports to have noticed that there’s music lines missing from the opening sequence (edit 1: Found it!: https://www.tumblr.com/dadesu/726651737165938688/anyone-noticed-the-missing-half-bar-in-good-omens ). Possibly Clueing us in that there’s something that’s missing elsewhere (I mean obviously, that’s the whole point of this season, is it not?).

So where do we go from here?

As much as I’d love to say “Alright so the kiss breaks the spell whoever was put over them because of ✨the power of love✨, the ruse will be revealed, and they’re not talking because they don’t have to”

I don’t know, my thoughts are just the overarching patterns I’ve noticed over many, many rewatches and probably reading a few too many magic trick theories and/or fanfics. I don’t intentionally make my theory posts open-ended, but in the end that’s the fun of it. Nothing has to be mutually exclusive (yes I’m referencing my “Is Crowley already the new Supreme Archangel” post, I think I’m allowed that much). I’m happy to be proven wrong, and probably will be.

Lots of things are wrong right now

But I will leave you with one parting thought: Crowley knows. He knows there’s furniture missing. (That’s why he keeps just tossing things everywhere, because he know it doesn’t matter.)

And he. Does not. Care. For it.

How many theories that I myself hate can I dig into?

I’m a demon, I lied:

[thealogie]

The duo for MS and DT to play so I completely lose my shit is lord Vetinari (DT) and his loyal Drumknott (MS). I don't understand why people aren't clamoring in the streets for it to happen, it'd be their THE Pratchett duo, with well written, nuanced, expanded and homoerotically enhanced roles it would eclipse GO. That's it, I took it off my chest, I thought it for so long I HAD to share with MS-DT Central. And on another note, why I actually started writing this, I just heard from my British friend's dad who works in theatre that he worked with Michael Sheen on a couple of things including Hamlet. He heard me saying I'm going to see Nye and dropped this bomb. He's mixed on MS though, lol. Says he's one of the most brilliant stage actors he's worked with, but also that "he's not a team-player, he's always the star". He meant it mostly acting-wise and in the sense of whose artistic opinion should count, I gathered, not in the "hot chocolate in the dressing room or I'm leaving" sense, but I visibly deflated and he felt responsible lol. So then he told me that while he never worked with DT he only heard the best things, and he's sure DT's company improves MS in that sense, like, daily lol. Then it turned out he watched and loved Staged, all 3 seasons but doesn't know what Good Omens is. It was a rollercoaster of a conversation as you can see.

First of all great MS/DT casting.

Second of all, no you don’t understand. We already know this about MS. The only negative thing I’ve ever heard about him is that he gives acting notes to the other people in the cast during plays. You must try to enjoy this fact about him because when he’s not in actor mode he’s the nicest man alive and wants everyone to like him so so much. When he’s in actor mode he’s a crazy little control freak who KNOWS he’s one of the greatest stage actors alive and thinks he’s responsible for the whole play (he is). David Tennant cannot fix this and we shouldn’t want him to because it’s hilarious actually.

[embracing-the-ineffable]

Good Omens season 2 ending and Crowley's (probable) Time Stop

When it comes to the Good Omens season 2 ending, I'm firmly on Team Time Stop, which is to say that I think Crowley has this spectacularly useful skill for moments of extreme duress, when there's intense pressure and huge stakes and no time to think or privacy to talk. He used that power to great effect towards the end of season 1 when he and Aziraphale stepped out of time in the middle of the panic of Armageddon to take some deep breaths and help Adam prepare to confront His Father.

So, in the emotionally fraught bookshop scene at the end of season 2, when Aziraphale is acting strange and trying to communicate something unspoken and urgent, and they're each full of strong emotions and feeling like there's no time to listen to one another or process what's happening, and there's no privacy (hello, Metatron and Muriel at the window), and maybe they're splitting up for who knows how long to take on very dangerous tasks, and they're angry and hurt and frustrated with one another, and they both have SO MUCH they want to say, how could Crowley NOT use his power to stop time so they can breathe, talk, think, and plan?!

When did it happen? Right after Crowley says "no nightingales" seems like the most likely time. I think Michael Sheen responds to "no nightingales" by doing something with his face - his expression and his jaw - that reflects something extra but unknown to us has just happened. It might only be that "no nightingales" has extra meaning to them that we don't know about yet, but I do think a time stop here is very likely.

Still not sure? Here's what convinced me that a time stop was likely: First, there's all the symmetry, or repetition, between seasons 1 and 2. From small things like ducks and "have a gold star", to big things like magic and the 1941 minisode and Aziracrow sheltering one another with their wings and holding hands with someone who is between them. Gifs of some parallels are here, thanks to @mizgnomer. It seems very possible that Crowley stopped time again as another kind of symmetry/repetition.

And if you need more? The movie poster for Stairway to Heaven features in the s2 opening credits and in Maggie's store, and that movie uses a lot of time stopping so characters can talk, out of the moment.

And the promo "poster" for season 2 features the main bookshop clock, prominently watching over Aziraphale and Crowley.

And there's this: the "Life After Death" leitmotif plays in s1 ("we're on our own side", moments before they swap appearances), and again in s2 ("I don't think you understand what I'm offering you" … moments before a body swap? Or maybe a time stop.) That conversation, "I don't think you understand / I understand a whole lot better than you" could have been the catalyst for Crowley to realize they need to TALK and have time to LISTEN. Maybe Crowley finally tells Aziraphale what he learned in heaven, and maybe Aziraphale tells Crowley the truth about his conversation with The Metatron. And then they will both actually understand more than they did before...

And, one final Clue: the TWO clocks in the bookshop, which both display the SAME "continuity error" during the Aziracrow conversation and kiss, where 15 minutes seems to pass unaccounted for. Maybe it's an in-universe character's continuity error, and not an accident of the production team.

Details for the two clocks including screenshots, and info about Stairway to Heaven as it relates to GO, are here in the reblog comments.

(And there are lots of other interesting links to support this and other theories in my collection of Clues and metas.)

So while there's some question about what happened when they stopped time (more on that in a bit), I'm definitely on Team Time Stop as part of the ending of season 2!

[denimbex1986]

'The actor and Baftas host answers your questions about facial hair, Doctor Who, Scrooge McDuck – and growing up as the son of a minister

How do you face the challenge of being this year’s Bafta host? practicalpanic I don’t currently feel particularly challenged because everything’s written down for me and I don’t have to worry about winning – or not winning – an award. If it was the first night of a play, I’d be curled up in a corner in the foetal position. But the fact that it’s not my day job certainly feels liberating. Who knows why they asked me; I must have been pretty far down the list. Expectations are pretty much zero. I don’t have anything to prove. Will I be phoning [previous Bafa hosts] Jonathan Ross and Stephen Fry for advice? I might do. But I’m travelling in blissful ignorance at the moment.

What’s your sideburn policy? They appear to be sized in direct proportion to your characters’ confidence. DrHugbine That’s a very interesting observation, which I don’t think has any truth behind it, but it’s making me wonder …

Here are some examples … Fright Night’s Peter Vincent – long and bushy, confident vampire killer. The Doctor in Doctor Who – long and pointy, charismatic and charming. Broadchurch’s DI Alec Hardy – beard, no sideburns, introverted and suspicious. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’s Barty Crouch Jr – no beard, no sideburns, complex and a traitor. Good Omens’ Anthony Crowley – ginger, no sideburns, stylish but tempted Eve in the garden of Eden as a snake so a bit of a bad egg generally. TopTramp I don’t think you’re going to write a doctoral thesis based on that evidence. It’s very thin evidence, at most. I grew sideburns for Doctor Who because, back then, I was worried I was a bit young for it and I thought they slightly aged me. Which, of course, I then had to recreate recently when I’m almost certainly too old for it. I guess increasingly I am unshaven, in which case you don’t really have to worry about sideburns because they’re part of something else. Whatever length my sideburns are on the night of the Baftas has no reflection on how I’m treating the Baftas.

As a vicar with young kids, I wondered what influence being a son of the manse has had upon your work? RevdAl It’s hard to know, because you only know the influences you had specifically from your parents because they’re your parents – it’s hard to unpick. It certainly wasn’t a childhood filled with religious dogma or any kind of restrictions. It was more a moral guidebook.

What was it like kissing Michael Sheen [in season two of Good Omens]? And who enjoyed it more? carnies18 Who enjoyed it the most? Presumably Michael was thrilled. How could he not be? But it was another day at work. The most difficult bit was other people’s awkwardness. We thought it was quite fun, so it was fine. He’d brushed his teeth.

Would you accept a knighthood just to fuel an excellent argument with Sheen in the next series of Staged? Shirls Because he sent his OBE back? That predisposes the fact that anything that’s talked about in Staged is based on real life. We are in our own houses, acting opposite people we spend our life with. But that’s pretty much the extent of the reality of Staged.

Which is best – playing a detective, a murderer or a murder victim? JonnyMorris1973 Well, one of them solves the crimes. One of them commits the crimes. And the other one has a crime done to them. It probably depends which character the writer is most fond of and therefore the most fun to play. It’s not really in the gift of the actor, so much as in the gift of the scriptwriter. I think I’ve only played one detective, haven’t I? What’s my favourite way I’ve been murdered? Oh my goodness. I was shot in The Last September. I get murdered on stage every night in Macbeth, although that’s a spoiler. I sort of died in Doctor Who when I got shot by a galvanic beam in a radiation chamber that filled my body with more radiation I could cope with.

Am I as geeky as the Doctor who fans? Yes. As a Doctor Who fan myself of old, I can very much can plug into that. I don’t think I ever got in trouble at school. That is one of those stories that’s ended up on Wikipedia. I wrote an essay on Doctor Who, which some unpleasant newspaper found and printed. But I didn’t get in trouble for it. I think I got quite a good mark for it.

Who would win in a fight between Crowley, The Doctor and Scrooge McDuck? AlistairDionysus Probably Scrooge McDuck. He seems to be able to survive just about everything. He’s far more resilient than Crowley or The Doctor, who seem to end up staring destruction in the face. Scrooge McDuck, nothing seems to trouble him.

You have a lovely singing voice! Would you like to do a musical? Beatrice_Tate, gaityr, laibarra622 and Luigii I make a nice curry, but I’m not going to open a restaurant. Would I do the Masked Singer? I love The Masked Singer. Nothing has excited my eight-year-old daughter more than when everyone thought Ricky Wilson from the Kaiser Chiefs was me, week after week. You can imagine how disappointed she was when it turned out I wasn’t.

If you were a cheese, what kind would you be? BrianBraddock I’ve got very into paneer curries. Paneer is neither hard nor soft, so I’ll say that because it makes me sound like I’ve really thought about it.

What’s the last item you snatched from a set? NataliaBCN I’m just going back through things I might have pocketed. Maybe this is the upbringing we talked of earlier. I’m very bad with nicking things. I’m plagued with guilt. The last time they released a new sonic screwdriver toy, someone gave me one but I gave it away because I’m so full of generosity, but now I slightly regret it.

Your portrayal of serial killer Dennis Nilsen [in ITV’s Des] was truly terrifying. How do you prepare for a role like that? YorkshireExPat With someone such as Dennis Nilsen, there is quite a lot of material that’s been written about him. There’s video evidence of him. So you immerse yourself as much you can, then join a line between that and the version of the character that’s in the script, because, ultimately, that’s the version you have to portray. One thing we were very careful to do on Des was to not make it from his point of view. I don’t think you can ask an audience to sympathise or understand someone like Nilsen. It’s the story of how he got away with all these things, then was caught. Hopefully the audience is left thinking: how can someone who is just another member of the human race be committing these extraordinary acts and the rest of us not notice or understand?

If you could regenerate as anyone else for the day, who would you choose? TopTramp My wife, just to see how annoying I really am so I could be properly objective and understand her pain.'

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

David Tennant at This Morning show with Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary talking about Good Omens Season 2, 11.07.2023 :) ❤

DO: And David joins us now. I mean, this looks like a great show.

David: Oh, yeah.

DO: So, I mean, It's pure Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, isn't it?

David: It is, yeah.

DO: The whole thing. So tell us, so if people haven't seen the first series and they want to go back, set the whole scene.

David: So I'm Hell's representative on Earth, Michael Sheen is Heaven's representative on Earth, put there to do the biding of our respective Head Offices. But we found out that if we became mates and sort of helped each other out, it kind of cut out the workload, cancelled each other out. So we're best mates. But in Series One we end up having to avert the apocalypse, which we managed to do, but as a result of that, we get cut off. So we're now living on Earth as independent individuals.

AH: So do you still need each other, then?

David: We still need each other. We've only got each other now because we don't have Heaven and Hell anymore.

DO: Because you both love earth so much, you both like.

David: Oh, we much prefer living on Earth because Heaven's a bit stuffy and Hell's awful.

DO: So you conspire to thwart the Armageddon. Exactly.

David: We thwart the Armageddon. That's fine. But Series Two begins when the angel Gabriel, Jon Hamm, who you just saw there, shows up at Aziraphale, Michael Sheen's bookshop, naked with no memory, holding a cardboard box. So suddenly we're locked into the politics of Heaven and Hell again. We don't know what's going on. We've got a mystery to solve. Why is the angel Gabriel here? The angel Gabriel tried to kill us both at the end of the last series, so we've got to...

DO: But now he's kind of got amnesia and...

David: Yes. So he becomes like our weird child, in this sort of weird sort of eternal marriage that Michael and I are locked in.

DO: So many shows now use a book as their base and then they do really well and you can see the company and the writers go, better come up some new ideas, I suppose. So the book's obviously Terry Pratchett and then Neil Gaiman, correct?

David: That's right. They wrote that together years and years and years ago. Much beloved. And that's what the first series was. But Neil and Terry had always talked about possibilities of this sequel that they never got around to making. Terry's no longer with us. But when the possibility came up, Neil thought, well, listen, I've got some ideas. Let's spin it forward. Let's see if we can tell the story we were always going to tell. So we get to come back.

AH: Should we have a little sneak look at the new series? Let's have a look. So good. Did you ever think it was going to be this successful? Did you even know that you were going to go into a second series

David: Oh, no, not at all. No. There was only one novel, so we just thought we were coming together to do that. And I didn't realise how beloved this book was. I first read a script. But it means a lot to a lot of people.

AH: And the look of you is so striking. Did you have any input into that? A bit, yeah, we sort of all found it together, myself and makeup and costume and Neil Gaiman, who ran the show. So, yeah, we kind of arrived... in the book he's a bit more - because obviously the book was sort of early ninetues, so he was a bit more sharp-suited and a bit more Wolf of Wall Street. So we've kind of had to find the kind of modern equivalent of that.

DO: Is he... obviously you're playing a demon. Has he got any humanity in him or is he purely self-centered?

David: Well, he's not a very good demon. He's good at sort of the snarl and the swagger and pretending that he's terribly cynical, but actually his problem is that he's a bit too...  there’s a bit too much heart, really.

DO: He's alright

David: Yeah, yeah.

DO: Must be wonderful playing a baddie.

David: Oh, it's great fun, but he's not a baddie, is not really a baddie.

DO: Yeah, yeah.

David: And just like Aziraphale angel is not always as goody goody as he likes it, so they meet very beautifully in the middle.

DO: You and Michael Sheen. I mean, you've worked together a fair bit, don't you. I loved Staged. That was such fun.

David: Yeah!

AH: Have you ever not worked together?

David: Now we only work together.

AH: All the time.

David: Yeah. I mean, He's not sitting on this sofa, but he is backstage. We can't be apart.

DO: He's speaking in his ear right now.

David: Exactly, yeah.

AH: But you are... you have got a genuine friendship. You're growing old together gracefully.

David: We're growing old together?!

AH: You look good for it, I'm not going to lie. What's the secret, babe?

David: A lot of makeup. It's very thick.

AH: We've got to talk about the fact that you are returning to Doctor Who.

David: Ah, yes.

AH: I can't believe this. And can you tell us anything at all?

David: I mean, beyond that I'm doing it? I think...

AH: No.

David: Really. Because that's the fun of it, isn't it? Hopefully tt was a bit of a surprise when I showed up. When Jodie Whittaker regenerated into me.

AH: We were shocked.

David: It was a bit of a surprise, so we wanted to sort of keep some shocks, but Catherine Tate's back, so it's a bit like 15 years never happened, to be honest.

DO: Know about it for a while. Like... did Russell T get in touch and say...

David: Yeah, it sort of gradually kind of evolved as an idea and we thought maybe they'd let us do a one off for old time's sake. And then suddenly it became a bit more than that and we were back for a bit of a run.

AH: So how many episodes did you get to do?

David: We did three.

AH: Wow. That's incredible. What's it like to be back? Did he just slot straight back in?

David: I mean, sort of. It felt weirdly familiar. Yeah. And you think, 'Oh, will I still able to run as fast? Can I still kind of...?' But it was like we'd never been away. It was joyous. Yeah.

DO: And could we talk about your son? Because is your son in Good Omens with you?

David: Ty's in... has a part in Episode Two of Good Omens.

AH: Is he?

DO: And I loved him in House of the Dragon.

David: I know. He's very good. He's very good.

DO: What a relief.

David: There he is. I know, what a relief. Exactly. No, I mean...

AH: Imagine if he was bad.

David: Imagine if he was rubbish. How would we tell him? Sit down, listen...I know it's sort of the family business, but maybe joinery? So... no, he's really good. And he's annoyingly good looking. You know, he's just got it all. So it's lovely and great to get to work together. Brilliant.

[invisibleicewands]

Michael Sheen on ‘Good Omens’ Season 2 & Reacting to the Show’s Cult Following

With a career spanning the last thirty years, there are a number of things that audiences might recognize Michael Sheen from — maybe Masters of Sex, or Frost/Nixon, or, if you’re of a certain age, the Twilight saga. But many recognize him as part of one of Prime Video’s most beloved series, a show that garnered itself not only a cult following but also what many deemed impossible: a story beyond the ending of the book it’s been adapted from.

This month, Sheen co-leads the highly anticipated second season of Good Omens, adapted from the novel by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. In the series, he plays the goody-two-shoes angel Aziraphale, one of many lovable characters and a lover of tea, antique books, and classical music. Formerly under service to Heaven, he’s since been cast out by the other do-gooders after preventing the apocalypse with the help of his good friend, the demon Crowley (David Tennant). How that counts as an infraction, we aren’t sure, but now he’s found himself in the midst of another crisis — figuring out just why the archangel Gabriel (Jon Hamm) has shown up in front of his quaint little bookshop in London’s SoHo, and why he can’t remember a single thing about himself. Not an easy task, surely, but one Sheen plays to perfection as the anxious angel who only ever wants to do the right thing. (A challenge, when your best friend’s a demon formerly employed by Hell.)

Collider was excited to sit down with Sheen to discuss Aziraphale’s journey in Season 2, and what it was like collaborating with Neil Gaiman to create a story beyond the end of the original novel. During this interview, we also discussed what it’s been like for him to work with David Tennant on both Good Omens and Staged, where they play fictionalized versions of themselves, and how playing Aziraphale compares to voicing Lucifer in Audible’s version of The Sandman.

COLLIDER: Obviously, when you were making the first season of this show, you had the book to work off of, you had a characterization to work off of, but because this season is an all-new thing that Neil Gaiman has written, did you get to work with him at all to develop what Aziraphale was doing this season, or was it all dependent on what he wrote?

MICHAEL SHEEN: Yes, I think when we were doing the first season, Neil always talked about the idea that he and Terry [Pratchett] had talked quite a bit about future storylines and that they had worked out quite a lot of it, actually. They just never got around to writing it down in a book. So there was quite a lot of material already in his head. One of the wonderful things about this, as well, working on this project, has been how much myself and David have been able to collaborate with Neil on the characters and inhabit them and bring them to life, and developing the relationship between them and the storylines. So it’s felt very collaborative, but then, of course, Neil is very good at making it feel collaborative even when he knows exactly what he wants.

Speaking of that relationship between Crowley and Aziraphale, you are obviously quite close with David Tennant. You work with him not only on this but also on Staged. What's it like getting to put that friendship dynamic to use on those shows, especially since Staged is something that's so completely different from Good Omens?

SHEEN: It's just wonderful, really. You know, often you work with actors that perhaps you have very good chemistry with on-screen or on stage, but maybe off-stage, off-screen there's not a particular spark. It's fine, but there's nothing particularly special about your relationship on stage or on-screen. Then other times, there are people you get along with really, really well, but maybe there isn't necessarily that amazing chemistry on-screen or on stage. So it's very rare that you have both. I think with us, we've just sort of discovered that that is the case, or it seems to be that people feel like we have good chemistry together when we're working. And we just have a lovely time together in between working as well, so it's such a pleasure to be able to do that, and to be able to work on projects like Good Omens and Staged with the characters that we play in those. It's just a real joy, so, you know, long may it continue.

Personally, I love the relationship between Aziraphale and Crowley, and the show has had such a massive fan response. How much are you aware of that, and what do you hope fans take away from this season as opposed to the first one?

SHEEN: Oh, I'm very much aware of it. Yeah, it's one of the most enjoyable aspects of working on this, to see how much the audience and in particular Good Omen fans just give to the project. It does feel like a fulfilled kind of creative collaboration with the fans as well. There's so much talent when people come to writing fanfiction or artwork, or just discussing ideas or things that have sort of been born out of it. I mean, there are all kinds of amazing groups who fundraise now for charities and do all kinds of incredible things. There are conventions and all sorts. I love that, and I love seeing how people have made friends, really close friends, through their connection to this and these characters in this story, and how communities have been created, and how much people are helping each other. I see all that online and I hear about it. It feels very in the spirit of the story, you know, it feels very in keeping with what it's all about. I think that's a big part of why Neil and I and the rest of us have all really opened ourselves to that fan community, because I think it feels like a very living part of the story.

How do you think Aziraphale has changed between where we leave him at the end of Season 1 and the beginning of Season 2? Is there anything unusual that we can expect from him this season?

SHEEN: Well, I think he's in a quite odd position for him because, on the one hand, he's got a lot of the things that he's always wanted. He's always wanted to just be left alone and live in his bookshop, and drink tea and listen to music, and read books and go to the theater, and eat nice meals and drink nice wine, and be with the being that he loves being with the most. But on the other hand, he's also someone who feels very anxious about not being part of the company, you know, being out on his own and sort of independent. It’s quite a challenge for him. It’s that thing about “be careful what you wish for.” He got what he wished for, but he still feels a bit off-kilter, I think, and then this unexpected guest arrives and turns the world upside down for him again.

But one of the things that we wanted to explore with Aziraphale in this series is perhaps finding something a little steelier underneath the apparent soft surface, that maybe there's something else going on under there. So we see that kind of come out as the story goes on, as well.

In addition to playing Aziraphale, you also did the voice for Lucifer in The Sandman audio series, which is obviously also a Neil Gaiman joint. So what's the difference between playing an angel and playing a demon?

SHEEN: Well, of course, Lucifer is an angel, was once a fallen angel. My first experience of Neil’s work was The Sandman. That was what I first read when I was still a teenager in the late ‘80s, and it just absolutely blew my mind and opened me up to all kinds of things and started a journey [with] Neil’s work, but also all the people that Neil kind of points you towards through his work as well. It opened so many doors for me. So to be able to then be a part of The Sandman world, as well, to play such an iconic character, it was and is, because we're still doing it, just a bit of a dream come true.

I have one last question for you, and it's a little bit of a silly one. One of the most iconic parts of Good Omens is Crowley's Bentley, which is cursed to play nothing but Queen songs forever and ever. I would love to know what you think Aziraphale’s favorite Queen song is.

SHEEN: Well, I think he likes the more operatic ones. So he probably…I think he likes “Bohemian Rhapsody.” All those nifty chorus bits. He’d love that. So yes, probably “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

[amanda-melly]

My Good Omens Season 3 fan project

I spent most of my day fleshing out "my 3rd season of good omens" and I have to say I'm pretty damn proud of it. It's structured in 6 episodes and all.

I don't know if I'll have the time and patience to type everything. I wrote it on a notebook. I'd actually prefer to make a podcast or maybe a video narrating everything, but I guess people prefer to go to AO3 or something like that...

Some "spoilers" of my headcanon:

* hilarious scene of Crowley doing confession in a cathedral in Oxford to get a chance to talk to the priest (Crowley wears a full body raincoat and extra padded boots).

* Aziraphale starts the story overseeing the 7 angels practice playing their trumpets (they need to be ready for when the 7th seal is broken) as part of the insufferably useless corporate routine the metatron imposed on him. Another one is supervising incense production. Lots of incence in the book of revelation.

* there's a crown court hearing/ trial taking place at Oxford (that's a real thing and real name, I didn't make it up) that moves the plot forward. There are 12 jurors as a reference to the 12 apostles (that's the real number of jurors for these cases). The trial at Oxford triggers flashbacks to Crowley's trial. Back in Crowley's trial, Aziraphale tries to testify in his favor but the heads of Heaven, especially the metatron, subvert everything he says to make Crowley (Starmaker back then) look guilty. An angel - none other than Pre-Fall Dagon - comes in as accusation witness, Crowley says hey, you rebelled too! And dagon says they were a special spy infiltrated under superior orders and all their actions will be pardoned in exchange for them testifying. Dagon's testimony seals Crowley's destiny, and later, once all the rebels have been sentenced, Heaven sentences Dagon to hell anyway claiming the deal was invalid because of some ridiculous technicality. Season 1 was a chase story, season 2 was a mystery story, season 3 is a trial story (not exclusively, of course, but it's important. The whole theme of the second coming is Christ judging everyone, one by one. There's no escaping the "judgement" theme here) (I'm a lawyer so I'm pretty confident to approach this theme).

* did you know that Milton Keynes was designated as a new town in 1967? Do you know what else happened in 1967 in season 1? And do you know that both Crowley and Aziraphale took credit for Milton Keynes to their respective head offices, in the book? Put 2+2 together and we get an amazing flashback including Aziraphale and Crowley's first ever dinner at the Ritz! (for reasons I already explained in another post, no, they don't kiss before the s2 scene, so hold your horses).

* possibly a flashback of Aziraphale and Crowley during the wars of religion in Wales that serves to showcase some of their conversations trying to understand Christ's message and why humans misanderstand him so much. It's included for a number of reasons: we need to have something in Wales for Michael Sheen (now that David Tennant got to do his Scottish accent!) plus they really should talk about how ironic and tragic it is that so many people have killed each other over religious differences concerning Christ's message of peace and love among all persons and all peoples. Including the commandment of not killing each other. Seems to have gone right past people somehow. (this flashback also helps to give us some lighthearted Aziracrow early on, because Aziraphale and Crowley only really hit it off again by the end of episode 3 and only really get back together in episode 4).

* a new human character named Abel J. Ryuss has an important role as well. His full name is Abel James Ryuss. We get some 4 ou 5 new human characters that are important to the plot.

* Crowley kind of calls attention on a new human prophet and "outs" him as a prophet by accident and the dude ends up becoming a famous influencer - aka the modern equivalent of a prophet.

* the story begins with 4 out of 7 of the apocalypse seals already broken (aka the 4 riders of the apocalypse). When the 5th seal breaks, the dead arise. When the 6th seal breaks, in episode 5, Gabriel and Beelzebub return. But they're foreshadowed in episode 4 by the appearance of a blue bird with a fly flying around it in a tree in the background.

* the trio of angels: Michael, Uriel and Saraquiel each makes very different choices and have very different endings. One is irrelevant, one is killed and one ends up as the supreme archangel.

* heaven has at least 3 different factions with different agendas working to their own ends simultaneously. Hell has 2.

* catastrophical destruction followed by huge battle.

* In the end Gabriel and Beelzebub become consultants.

* careful with those to claim to speak for God.

* a marriage at south downs - and it's not Crowley and Aziraphale's! It's another couple we love. Aziraphale and Crowley needed a reason to go to south downs in the first place. Then they can take a walk and stumble upon a lovely cottage that just happens to be for sale.

[freyalorelei]

Okay, now that I've had a day to stew in The Spoiler:

(Commentary on The Spoiler. Clicketh not to remain unspoiled.)

First let's get the speculation out of the way: It's a real kiss with genuine romantic intent. If it were a dream, or a cut scene, or other characters in disguise, Gaiman wouldn't be so apoplectic over the reveal. Honestly, he could have played this smoother by saying that we don't know the context, or that while it was an unfortunate leak he has no further comment--but after decades of "are-they-aren't-they" he's justifiably upset over it escaping this way, and what's done is done.

(That said, he should probably have an official internet social media person to filter his presence, at least for work projects, to keep from sharing emotionally charged statements.)

In my opinion it only took one very influential fan: Michael Sheen.

After Gaiman's wobbly history on A/C, sliding from "they're just friends" to "make your own headcanon but leave me out of it" to "fine it's a romance I guess," it seems that fen finally ground him down and he capitulated to the 'shippers after decades of controversy.

We know that Sheen's been a fan of the book since it was first published and that he's 'shipped A/C from the very beginning. We also know that he's a persuasive, intelligent, charismatic person. I think he just played a besotted angel so well, and spoke so eloquently about Aziraphale's feelings for Crowley, that he influenced the direction of the character and convinced Gaiman to write a canon physical romance into the second season.

(Not speculating on Sheen's sexuality here, as I've seen WAY too many people do, but, like, also...you think he'd turn down a chance to make out with David Tennant? Pfft.)

The unfortunate timing of the Writer's Strike has left the cast and crew unable to promote their own highly anticipated, beloved product, so I'm curious to see whether, if the strike ends before the show airs, they will be interviewed over this uncontestable confirmation of Ineffable Husbands.

Also, interestingly enough, the 2021 filming of Season Two means that this (presumably) scripted kiss predates the unforeseen queer representation in Our Flag Means Death, so...good for them?

[shipaholic]

Episode 2: “The Clue” / “A Companion To Owls”

Good Omens 2 Episode 2 liveblog! Beware spoilers!!

- Crowley is such a troll in this opening scene. I've come around on the beard/glasses combo. He looks like a wisecracking talking Disney goat.

---

- Jon Hamm’s impression of Buddy Holly is amazing. “Ah-hey, ah-hey-hey” yes give me those weird, grandpa-like hiccups.

---

- I can hear a fly during the zoom in on sleeping Crowley in the Bentley... does Beez have one spy in the bookshop and one on Crowley at all times?

- Hmmm, Shax tells Crowley right away about Heaven detecting the miracle. That could be evidence for my Beelzebub theory, I guess...? Beez wants Crowley kept informed about the danger, so that he’ll continue to keep Gabriel safe, but they get to keep up plausible deniability with Shax and the other demons that they’re only threatening Crowley.

- Poor Shax. Crowley’s bullying her.

- LOL are all the other demons afraid of driving at high speeds? (See: Hastur.) All he had to do to get rid of Shax was rev the engine.

---

- I like Maggie, but she’s a little clingy with Aziraphale. You’d think the euphoria of having 8 months of overdue rent forgiven would have lasted longer than 24 hours. On the other hand, her encyclopaedic knowledge of music history is really cool.

- Aziraphale conducting every time he sings Everyday is the cutest thing ever.

---

- Crowley orders Talisker! I assume John Finnemore insisted.

- OMG, Mr. Brown is holding a newspaper with THEE headline in it about the Nebraska woman who taught her duck to play the accordion.

- “Get humans wet, and staring into each others’ eyes. Vavoom.” I. I don’t think Crowley knows where babies come from either.

- THAT JANE AUSTEN LORE. AND CROWLEY DISAPPROVES?? SHE SOUNDS AWESOME

---

- Aziraphale is so hesitant when he says he doesn’t think God wants to kill Job’s children, and so utterly certain when he says he knows Crowley doesn’t want to. He already has more faith in Crowley’s mercy than God’s. 😭

- THE UNBELIEVABLE LEVELS OF SASS

- OK Ty Tennant is very funny

- Both the older kids treating Aziraphale like a waiter is hilarious actually, as is Jemima wanting to be a blue lizard and Crowley obliging

- I’ve been jossed a bunch already this season, but the biggest shock to my system by far is Crowley tempting Aziraphale into enjoying human food. I genuinely assumed Aziraphale has been nibbling on whatever was around to nibble on since he was first deployed on Earth. It took him a millennia and a half to try barbeque?? Poor deprived bb

- Whoever wrote that post about Aziraphale discovering honey and tearing into a beehive like an especially feral Winnie The Pooh, I hope they’re patting themself on the back right now.

- I am more into the sight of Michael Sheen falling onto an entire ox corpse like a starving werewolf than I am comfortable with, but fine, I guess this is who I am now.

- ALL I’M SAYING IS, Crowley and Aziraphale’s first kiss had better go EXACTLY like this.

---

- I’m here for hungover Crowley wobbling across the sand.

- I suspect this minisode is difficult to follow for any viewers who didn’t swot up on the Book of Job a fortnight or so ago, like I assume we all did.

- Michael is the only angel in this scene who possesses more than a single braincell, but they’re all clearly thick as can be. The only people thicker than them are Job and Ennon, who are somehow even worse at lying than Aziraphale and Crowley.

- Crowley has such immense fucking panache this entire episode. I do love him and his terrible beard.

---

- That little tongue in cheek thing Aziraphale does on “investigation” - he cannot get any cuter now. it’s literally impossible. please.

- Crowley slapped his hand omg

---

- Oh god, the conversation on the bench... Aziraphale is in actual tears, and Crowley is so wry and gentle and reassuring, even while delivering words that are, taken on their own, a stark form of comfort. He’s just a calm presence while Aziraphale experiences shrimp emotions on the other side of the bench. I can’t even speak about Aziraphale, honestly, but I’ll give it a shot... he is so brave and scared 😭😭😭 Hell?? He really thought he belonged in Hell? Crowley was absolutely right to gently laugh at a notion that ridiculous (and awful) (and then again, Crowley also used to be a sweet little curly-headed bunny of an angel, and look at the unspeakable thing that happened to him). There’s that little moment where Crowley says he’s not going to tell anyone, and asks Aziraphale if he’s going to tell anyone, and Aziraphale gives this little ashamed headshake, like he’s realising for the first time that he’s not, he’s willing to lie (by omission) about this too. And then he glances at the sky, as if verifying that God isn’t going to send down a thunderbolt, and realises that he’s actually safe. There aren’t going to be any consequences; he’s going to get away with it. And that’s almost worse, the idea that he doesn’t live in a world with clearly defined rules, and he truly can’t predict what God thinks, or what she is going to do. She spoke directly to Job, but she’s a closed book to Aziraphale.

---

- The ending credits are on fire so far this season.

---

Right, um, next up, an episode I haven’t already seen. asdhkagsd.

[what-gs-watching]

"And I can guarantee you, it will be a night to remember."

Okay. I’m getting my wit’s about me. Sort of.  It’s a process. But it’s also probably why I’m about to go all Charlie from It’s Always Sunny with his crazy conspiracy board (seriously though, this took me three days to write) about Good Omens episode 4. Because y’all, it’s the 1941 episode. And there’s sooo much going on. Pivotal, heart wrenching shit. 

The most important of the ‘present’ stuff happens in the opener, of course. Aziraphale is driving back from his fun little romp in Edinburgh when he sees a hitchhiker on the road, but he’s resolute in not stopping, he’s trying to get home to Crowley. Only after he sees the hitcher a few times and almost hits them does he relent, and guess who climbs in the car - Shax. 

She knows who he is, she starts talking about the Bentley and wondering why it had never been upgraded. She wants information from Az, she insists that Crowley is hiding Gabriel and we all know he’s not a good liar, but he does his best. At one point she says she’s confused as to why Crowley would risk destruction for Aziraphale, she says “you don’t seem his type at all.”

Michael Sheen, sweet sweet Michael Sheen and his mastery of facial expressions, just tips Aziraphale’s eyebrows, just a bit, just perfectly so. You can hear him thinking ‘giiiiiirl you don’t know shiiiiit’ and. I. love it.

She also says “I remember 80, 90 years ago hearing that you and Crowley were an item, didn’t believe it then….” and she’s trying to mess with his mind. He again tells her that Crowley isn’t with Gabriel and he doesn’t know where Gabriel is. She asks him to let her out in the middle of nowhere, says he’s already told her where Gabriel really is, and when he gets all huffy asking how he’d done that, she says “You didn’t, you have now.”

Truth be told, I am not a huge fan of Shax. She’s the one pushing this entire situation, I mean sure Beezlebub says she wants to find Gabriel but Shax is a bootlicker and she’s ratcheting the entire thing up to 11. In an extremely annoying, fumbling way. Always so fumbling.

Whatever, though,  it’s fine. We need to dig into the past. 

Of course we all remember the 1941 scene in the first season. And, if we’re clocking our timeline right, 1941 is the first time (that we know of) that Aziraphale and Crowley see each other after their dustup in the 1860’s. When Crowley asked for holy water. And Aziraphale outright refused, not wanting to provide a suicide pill. When Azirphale said they were ‘fraternizing’ and Crowley was incredulous about it, an argument ending with both of them insisting they didn’t actually need the other one.

So like 80-ish years in between, right? But then Crowley literally hot-steps into a church because Aziraphale is playing spy games that he doesn’t understand.

My theory? After their little tiff, Crowley realized pretty quickly he’d gone too far (too fast) with Aziraphale, my dude doesn’t have anyone else to fraternize with, let’s face it, and he missed Az. I have to assume he’s had low-level Aziraphale detection since they met (alright, maybe it’s not so low-level, I’m sure it’s jacked up as fucking high as it can GO), so he just had to bide his time and wait for sweet little Az to get into one of his rescuing situations, because he so loves being rescued, and it would allow Crowley to apologize in his own way. You know, instead of actually explaining why he needs the holy water in the first place. 

Baby girl had to have had a plan in mind, because the entire story after the church burning? Hard ‘doting boyfriend’ vibes. He was gonna make Aziraphale want to be friends again. The internet seems to think that when Crowley saved Aziraphale’s books from the bomb, that’s when he realized he was in love with a demon, and that could be - and if it was, the rest of the night absolutely solidifies it, with the way Crowley comes for him. All of the heart eyes, all of the squealing.

So, they escape from the church. And then we see the three German idiots in hell, being processed by Furfur, who, it had been established prior, wanted to get out of his shit desk job and into something better. Fucking Shax of course, tells him to be on the lookout for any good information and to bring it to her, she’ll help him out. She’s the worst.

The Germans of course say they don’t belong there, their plans were cocked up by someone named Crowley and his friend and Furfur puts it all together. So he tells them they can go back to earth and be free of hell’s grip if they help him find proof that Crowley and Az are working together. After our favorite two have driven off, we see the Germans reanimating, and eating a drifter’s brain for good measure.

In the Bentley, (everytime I hear Crowley say “lift home?” in the scene before all nonchalant, my brain breaks a little) Aziraphale is still gripping his books and he tells Crowley he did a very nice thing and then says “there must be something I can do for you in return…” and I enjoy the implications y’all have assigned to this little exchange. We all love suggestive, dark horse Aziraphale.

It blows (haha I’m sorry) past Crowley though, and he takes them to a theater in the West End so he can deliver some bootleg booze, which of course turns out to have been shattered in the bomb drop. The theater owner is livid about it, and distraught over losing her magician for the night and immediately Aziraphale offers his services in ‘prestidigitation’. Because of course he thinks he’s a magician. That’s so Aziraphale.

Back at the bookshop Az is aflutter at this opportunity and Crowley thanks him for getting him off the hook, to which Az replies a little hesitantly “that’s what friends are for.” Clearly he’s also feeling bad about their last interaction and he’s trying to make up for that, and the church rescue all at the same time. But I have to assume he’s terrible at magic and I think Crowley does too but again, he’s all in on being a doting boyfriend. Both of them are working so hard to get back to a good balance with each other.

Crowley sits and lets Az practice some close-up tricks on him and he does a terrible American accent pretending to be an audience member. He encourages Aziraphale so delicately while suggesting he needs some bigger, better tricks for the show. He isn’t mocking him, he isn’t condescending, just supportive. When Crowley says they should buy a trick and Aziraphale insists the shop is for professionals only, the way he says “You, my Nefertiti fooling fellow, are about to perform on the West End Stage. If that doesn't make you a professional conjurer, I don't know what does” is loving, with only the slightest tinge of amusement. 

At the magic shop, the two poke around, while being followed by German zombies, and Crowley picks up a trick that the shop owner opens, covering them both in confetti. There’s a meme out there with this gif that just says :excited demon noises: and that’s exactly it. He’s so tickled the entire time. 

Meanwhile, the shop owner tries to suggest amateur tricks to Az but he’s not having it and his eyes fall on something called the ‘bullet catch’ which requires a rifle, and as we find out, a trusted confidant with a steady hand that Aziraphale has to really trust because a handful of people have died attempting it. 

So he pulls Crowley aside after saying “I’ve got the perfect man for the job” and he swears he’ll do all the tricky bits, all Crowley has to do is fire the gun. He’s so excited and sure of himself and he assumes Crowley has plenty of experience with firearms and Crowley agrees to do it, sticks his hand out for a shake but Aziraphale grabs it with both hands and glows and wiggles and shakes vigorously. It’s another fun little adventure for Aziraphale.

They get a little manual that’s supposed to explain the trick and off they go to the show because who needs to know how to actually do it, they’ve got miracles. They’ll be fine. 

The zombies follow of course, and take up in the back of the theater and then summon Furfur. Aziraphale’s magician name is “Fell the Marvelous” and they give him a ridiculous intro and he slinks onto the stage and he’s so nervous, it’s sweet. Az is really all in on the human experience - he took magic lessons and he wants to be so good at it that he just dives in without really thinking it through. 

He asks for a volunteer from the audience, indicating he needs a marksman, and all the hands go up except for Crowley, which is very on brand. He’s sweet boyfriend right now, but he’s nervous and yet, up to the stage he goes. Of course, in the background, Furfur has activated a miracle blocker so when Aziraphale tries to warm up the crowd by turning a turnip into an inkwell, it doesn’t work. He tries a few times, Crowley tries from the wings, and he realizes what’s happening. Kid pulls out the manual from his coat and frantically flips through it. They’re in actual danger. Ya know, like they do.

When he joins Aziraphale on the stage they both confirm their miracles aren’t working, but Az knows they need to plough ahead with the trick. He tells Crowley to load the gun and he looks a little unsure and confirms he hasn’t actually fired a gun, “not as such”. 

Meanwhile, as they pass the gun between themselves, Furfur takes a polaroid. 

The anxiety between them is palpable. Az instructs him that he’ll need to fire on Aziraphale’s signal. They stare each other down. Crowley aims at him clumsily, he’s supposed to aim for his mouth but shoot past his ear. Neither one of them bothered to learn the trick at all, whatsoever. And they’re in it. 

Aziraphale seems to mouth something. There’s a post out there from Neil Gaiman confirming the sweet summer child said “trust me”. 

So, he gives the signal. And in my mind Crowley maybe shuts his eyes a little bit and just goes for it. And it works, no one gets shots and Aziraphale pulls a bullet out of his mouth and the crowd goes wild. Furfur is disappointed, but it doesn’t matter, he got what he needed. 

Afterward, they’re in a dressing room and Az is absolutely tickled pink, he’s floating around with a boa and he asks Crowley if it really went well and he gets the affirmation that he needs. Az needs encouragement, all of the time, and it’s always all the better coming from Crowley. 

But their celebration is interrupted by Furfur, ready to have his own little moment. He introduces himself to Az and says he knows Crowley but Crowley truly seems not to recognize him whatsoever (which is the first time this happens in the season, but isn’t the last. Crowley has cobwebs y’all, and I know we are all curious as to where they came from). 

The point, he says, is that Crowley is in violation of the infernal code because he’s cavorting with an angel. He pulls out a little booklet that educates demons on angels of earth, open to Az’s page. The way he butchers Aziaphale’s name is wonderful, and gives Az the opportunity to correct him in a perfectly stern and authoritative way.

(Side note: if you blow up the page you can see that Az is classified as dangerous, and it says that if anyone runs into him, they shouldn’t approach and instead contact Crowley immediately. Boy has been protecting that sweet little angel's head for so long. But to be fair, he is potentially dangerous, guardian of the eastern gate, and all.)

Crowley tries to pass the whole thing off as coincidence but Furfur has the instruction manual for the trick, citing needing a “trusted stooge and confidant.” He tells them not to try anything funny because of the miracle blocker, and then he says to Crowley, “Shall we?”

The demon is unaffected though, he says “we shan’t” and he lays himself right out on the couch he’s been sitting on, covering his face with his hat. They don’t know about the photo of course, but each of them get a look at it and Furfur says Crowley can expect a legion to come for him in the morning, he should enjoy his last night on earth.

He then tells the zombies they’re free to go, but surprise! They’re gonna need to stay zombies. Hell’s deals are always trash. Don’t forget that, kids. 

Next thing we know, Furfur is back down, ready to show off his proof and get his promotion. Shax is looking on, interested, but when the envelope is opened, it’s just a flier for the girlie show, polaroid nowhere to be found. Our heroes have pulled one over on him. 

Back at the bookshop, Crowley is impressed with Aziraphale’s skills. He tries to recreate how he recovered the photo and swapped it, but of course he can’t. It worked when it mattered, and that’s all that matters. 

And then Aziraphale goes for it, he says “I knew you’d come through for me. You always do” and he’s using a quieter tone and it’s more of an acknowledgement of their relationship than Crowley’s gotten in a long time, maybe ever.  Crowley just says “well, you said trust me” and Aziraphale’s voice goes up a little bit and he says “and you did.” 

That’s the entire Arrangement, gang. They trust in each other that both will protect the fragile, whatever it is that they’ve forged, from everything. It’s not about helping out with the odd temptation or blessing, it’s about the fact that the only thing they have is each other. Which is why Aziraphale refused the holy water, and also why Crowley asked for it. 

True to his nature, Aziraphale insists that if Crowley was as evil as he says he was, he would have walked away from the trick, from the situation, but the demon says that you can’t just see things in black and white, you need to blur the edges. And Aziraphale actually agrees, he says there could be something said for shades of gray. Light gray, of course. And they just smile at each other.

SO my question is, all of this is lovely, right? They’re back to the two of them, whatever that might be, everything mostly worked out and Crowley thinks he’s successfully navigated their last fight and so does Az. Aziraphale is even starting to admit that maybe he could step out of the confines he’s trapped in (sometimes). 

But the next thing we know (from a timeline standpoint) is Aziraphale delivering a thermos full of holy water 20 some-odd years later and desperately saying “You go too fast for me, Crowley.” 

That poor angel spent twenty years thinking about 1941 and he’s got to be feeling guilty. Maybe he realized what the holy water could really be used for - after all, his love for human pageantry almost got Crowley dragged back to hell. Again. Like his need to do the holy thing had done in 1827. And his newfound interest in shades of gray could make everything even more dangerous. Especially with the way Crowley had treated him that night, the books and the trick and he never even tried to deny the compliments Az showered him with, and Aziraphale’s own feelings. 

So maybe it does make sense after all. Doting boyfriend was too much for him. I imagine him purposely avoiding Crowley at all costs through those years, until he could work up the nerve to deliver that thermos. He stepped out of his box ever so slightly and it almost ripped his only friend from him. All of the mini-sodes in this season are really about Aziraphale trying to get to gray (Crowley getting him there, so slowly, so patiently) and he does, and then it’s horrible somehow.

Do I now kind of want an entire season about the years between 1941 and 1967? Yes, obviously.

The point is, Aziraphale is still in his goddamn box throughout the season even though he’s more accepting of doting boyfriend as a general concept, and they’re still not fucking talking about any of it. Because that’s the Arrangement, and doing so would definitely skew more toward the dark shades Crowley prefers. 6,000 fucking years and the shade is still agonizingly light. It’s too light and y’all really need to find the correct hue and fast.

Because in the present, Shax gets authority to amass as many demons as possible, and attack the bookshop, that asshole. 

And Aziraphale returns home and Crowley thrusts a box of plants at him and coos to the Bentley about missing him and he asks how it went and Az unconvincingly says nothing weird happened at all but they aren’t hearing each other, they never ever hear each other properly.

 But, Crowley’s awning of a new age has failed, and so it’s Aziraphale’s turn to mess with human emotions that he doesn’t (quite) understand. Whickber Street Shopkeepers Association monthly meeting, here we come.