#that's the obvious part. the fun part is theorizing which one it would be.

[thesaintofnevergettingitright]

I’ve seen a few people in the TAD fandom talk about how good a TAD/Hozier collab would be, and here’s the thing. Y���all aren’t wrong! It would be absolutely incredible!

But if I may suggest a slightly more unhinged collab idea for your consideration:

The Amazing Devil and Mariana’s Trench

Hear me out! For some reason I haven’t been able to stop thinking about what it would sound like if Joey Batey and Joshua Ramsey were locked in a room and forced to write a song together. Cuz here’s the thing? I have no idea what that would sound like! But I do know that it would be life-changing and chaotic, and would completely destroy me emotionally, and would include an unnecessary number of classic lit references! And what more can you ask of a song?

Like! I am begging yall to listen to Echos of You and The Old Witch Sleep and the Good Man Grace side by side! Do the songs sound anything alike? Absolutely not! But that’s not what it’s about!

It’s about the strategic mid-song emotional/musical whiplash! It’s about simultaneously being haunted and doing the haunting! It’s about being aware that you’re not mentally healthy and reveling in it! It’s about 19th century poets! It’s about being monstrous! PLEASE listen to this shit!

Echos of You

The Old Witch Sleep and the Good Man Grace

Are you going to tell me that the line

“But the notes of an old refrain still ring louder everyday/ From a little to a manic, a cacophony, a frantic/ A relentless refrain is the only thing that remains”

doesn’t sound EXACTLY like some shit Joey Batey would write? Or that

“Where you see weakness, I see wit/ sometimes I fall to pieces just to see what bits of me don’t fit/”

and

“We’ll dance together, so close we’re sharing breath/ but now I’m leading doesn’t that just scare you to death,”

wouldn’t fit perfectly in an Edgar Allen Poe themed album?? Of course not, because you’d be blatantly incorrect!!!

Anyway, please listen to both of these songs/albums and help me manifest this.

[daisyswift3]

🍕

So several gaylors have been talking abt the Stephen Colbert interview Taylor did on April 13, 2021 and I believe I may have figured out how this interview fits into this giant puzzle. I think this entire interview is an easter egg and a metaphor for the rabbit hole they are trying to lead us down. The first thing I want to point out is the letters on the mood board that spell out Stephen's name. These letters look just like the fridge magnets in Gracie's Mess It Up mv which spell out a secret message "Hi (13, 31) Peter Pan - T." These magnets are toys that kids usually play with which fits with the Peter Pan theme. These magnets also show up in the Stay mv.

The second thing I want to point out is the emphasis on the "pizza." I believe that the pizza represents PR/bearding/lavender haze/showmanship/magic. Many of the anon messages have words starting with the letter P such as the 🎁, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿, and 🌋 messages (present, presence, pretence, patience, perseverance, etc) and pizza also starts with a P. The Feb 19 🎁 message said "PR, PR, PR, PUBLISH!" In the delicate mv there's Joe's Deli; this led to the common swiftie interpretation that "And baby, I get mystified by how this city screams your name" is referring to how in NYC there are tons of restaurants and shops that have "Joe" in their name such as Joe's Pizza.

(x)

(x)

There is also this insta post with Haim where they are all dressed in costumes while eating pizza. Taylor specifically says "mood board" in the caption which connects it to the Stephen Colbert interview. I believe this connects to the 11th 🎃 message about sheep in wolves' clothing and to the willow mv mad woman scene where everyone is conjuring something with magic while in masquerade masks.

Another indication that pizza = PR/bearding is that Taylor just recently went to a pizza place with 🏈 in NYC on Sept 6 (which could also be Taylor poking fun at the Joe’s Pizza thing). Many gaylors have speculated that Sabrina’s Please Please Please mv is a satire abt Taylor and 🏈’s relationship. Interestingly Sabrina and Barry walk through a pizza shop in the mv which could have been foreshadowing the Sept 6 stunt.

To add even more proof, around June 15 during one the Liverpool shows, Taylor randomly ordered pizza for her crew mid show. I think this was likely a hint at the big London stunt on June 23 where 🏈 was literally part of the showmanship.

(x)

Also, Gracie recently did a photoshoot with Who What Wear at the Bob Baker Marionette Theater in Los Angeles and had a P and 13 on her jacket. This likely connects to the ginger messages abt the theater and magic. The P on her jacket could stand for "puppet" in this case.

Going back to the Stephen Colbert interview, as I said before I believe the entire interview is a metaphor for this rabbit hole/mass coming out movement. The interview starts with Stephen theorizing that Hey Stephen is abt him and he lists all the pieces of evidence that led him to this conclusion (this is analogous to us kaylors/gaylors making theories abt Taylor's music). Taylor then proceeds to essentially gaslight him. She starts listing a ton of really specific details abt him that would indicate that Hey Stephen is in fact abt him (these details are analogous to the connections/easter eggs/queer signals) but then afterwards she comes up with a narrative to explain away all these things. To us, it's quite obvious that these things are too specific to just be a coincidence and that Taylor is lying to him the whole time. This is what TTPD is abt. Red herrings, magic, showmanship, and smoke and mirrors (or "pizza") that distract the audience from the man behind the curtain pulling the strings like a puppet master and from the true story being told in the "whispers and sighs" as ginger anon said.

[mistressarcane13]

The Development of Durgetash

Sorry this is really long but the implications of Durge and Gortash's relationship are just too fun not to think or write about.

I think an important thing to understand about Enver and Durge’s relationship and the way in which it would develop, is that they are both inherently lonely people. One killed any person who gave them warmth and love (whether they had any real say in the matter or not), and the other was someone who as been abandoned and betrayed repeatedly by people they trusted. Either way, Durge has only been able to experience the warmth of another through violence, and Enver has only ever been able to put trust in things of metal and gears.

They could not make a real human connection, and as sad as it is at the very least the Durge had a family who had once cared about them, however, Bhaal made it very clear that they would never have that all outside of what he could offer, and if they were to search for it outside of Bhaal or even stumble upon it, all it could ever end in is blood. Enver on the other hand had no foundation of trust with anyone from the beginning, his parents sold him. Then the entry of his youth was spent being abused, beat into submission. Where his developing mind could only ever come to one conclusion, you are only safe at the top, only safe when you are the person who can hand out all of the damage. While it doesn’t excuse anything either of them did, it does give you a way as to how they can internally justify all of their horrible actions.

But then apply all that to how the beginning of their partnership began, both probably intending to manipulate and betray each other at some point, at least in the very beginning. Then what is probably the most terrifying thing happens to both of them, they realize they care. Dare I say I think it takes them both a long time to realize this, both desperately telling themselves that “this was just a part of the plan” in an attempt to distract what has happened.

The one thing I am sure they had both promised themselves they would never do again. I do think Enver had an easier time coming to terms with this, especially after Bane also seems to take a liking to Durge. But there was most likely some catalase in which Durge had an amazing opportunity to kill or betray Enver and yet stubbornly stays by his side. However, Durge lives in constant terror. When will the urge take control, when will Bhaal demand Gortash’s head as a sacrifice? Why does every thought they have that lingers a little too long on Enver turn into a design of his death, and why has this begun to bug them. They had thought they had finally desensitized themselves to this, and yet here they were with this weight in their heart that made it hard to breathe. They haven’t experienced terror like this since the urges first started. And I think, unlike Enver, this fear never goes away. It’s obvious because of the letter but I think they learn how to manage it.

Once they get past that, this is where their friendship really blooms. Two evil nerds, geeking out all the time. Gortash can go on for hours, days, months about his inventions, and there is Durge who hasn’t had a conversation verging this close to normal in so long that they just sit there, happy. Asking questions, and seeing how smart Durge is canon-wise, most likely offer suggestions and theorizing how certain mechanics work. Then there is Durge who has had to turn violence into a craft for survival and likely some form of sanity. Who can probably go on for just as long about anatomy, decay, how every weapon, acid, fire, and anything of the like affects the flesh.

Then somewhere along the line, where they worked together out of convenience, they are now the other persons go to for anything. They are asking each other for advice in contexts where it doesn’t necessarily make sense. And there scheming turns into just conversations of the future. They don’t even notice how casual they have gotten with one another until I’m sure Orin or Sceletius points it out to Durge.

If we apply all this to Durgtash, it does make their prospective relationship the most grueling slowburn anyone as ever seen, in theory.

I don’t think either of them notice at first their feeling for one another. I think they are both pretty emotionally constipated. However, I think Gortash realizes first, I think he distrusts not only everyone around him but also his own feelings to realize something is off. Where as Durge (this I guess depends on how you characterize your own personal durge, but for now I’m talking about og and my own Durge.) I believe has numbed themselves so emotionally it is not going to hit them. Or at least not until Enver suggests something stupid and they fight. Durge has a knife to Enver’s throat (which I don’t imagine is a rare event) and for once they aren’t immediately consumed of thoughts of spilling his blood right there. No, the knife is there to stop Enver from doing something stupid, because Durge is WORRIED. The realization hits like a brick, and Durge in way out of character backs off and leaves. Hoping to stuff the realization back in the box where it could be stored in the back of their mind, but it’s too late. Now all they can think about is how Bhaal will torture them both by having them kill Enver.

This obviously leads to tension, so much tension, that neither of them will address or acknowledge. Both are worried about offending their gods, and at the end of the day, this is the first person either of them have been able to truly care about in who knows how long. Not only could they ruin that, but also the plan that they have been working away at for presumably years now.

I think it only builds of course, the closer they get the more small touches they exchange. Never too close though, never too many. Just enough for minds to slip to other places, only for a second. Though they would never actually… right? They get drunk together just to have a reason, have an excuse for certain behaviors, never taking it too far but minds always wonder.

I honestly don’t think anything would happen for a long while, not until some catalyst. Whether it be a bad injury or a victory, adrenaline takes over, and they kiss. Heat of the moment they will tell themselves and each other. However, the Pandora's box is open now. I think it still takes them a moment to break, anywhere from a day to a week, both too horribly stubborn for their own good. Until the conversation lulls to a stop, and the tension alone at this point would turn anyone mad, and the delusions they have been trying to sell themselves finally snap. No one knows who kissed the other first, who first started ripping at clothes, at this point who cares. It is a passion with teeth and claws, there is blood on their teeth and under their nails. In that moment all their sins mix, gluttony, greed, pride, and lust as they almost try to consume one another, like they are trying to meddle together. As if metal and flesh could ever truly mix.

And I think for a time after, these two horrible messed up people find peace in one another, maybe even true happiness as their plans come to fruition. Enver Gortash, a man who breathed life into metal gave it a heart, and Durge, the person who left cold bodies in their wake by taking last breaths and heartbeats.

They were going to rule the world together, and then Orin happened.

[productofaritual]

So we all know and love genloss and whatever little details we can find. And I found another detail. No idea if it's intended or just a random oversight because who tf would think of this, but alas.

(You guessed it, it's my once in a full moon ramble so the rest is under cut)

So we can all see this clock in the kitchen where a part of episode 1 takes place. The thing is, if you look at the time this clock is showing, you'll realize that it isn't a time a clock can actually show.

Now it's pretty easy to tell which hand is the hour and which is the minute, but it doesn't matter because both are still nonexistent. If we go with the obvious:

The hour hand seems to be between 12 and one, but way closer to 1. The minute hand however is at 20. If the hour hand was in a correct spot, it would be way closer to 12, but it isn't. That's not a time that can show up on a clock.

Okay, stylistic choices, the minute hand is actually the shorter one. Weird but whatever. In this case, the hour hand would be at exactly four, maybe a bit in before. But the minute hand is about 4/5 minutes after a full hour, which doesn't line up again. And once again, that is not. A time. That can show up on a clock.

Personally I called this one "Nonexistent clock" and I will be lurking in the depths to see if anything comes of it. Probably not but it's fun to theorize

[apollosgiftofprophecy]

i love thinking about apollos anatolian origins 😵‍💫

It stews in the back of my head too :3

There was this really good podcast on Spotify I found about Ancient Greece, and I listened to his Apollo episode first (because I honestly can't stomach the ones who paint him as 'terrible assaulter'/'epitome of the patriarchy'. Can't stand it. Seriously, there was this so-called 'feminist' mythology podcast i found and I Noped out of there as fast as I could - she didn't even mention Eros's involvement in the Daphne myth! She immediately went 'Apollo: the man who doesn't know the meaning of No' and I was like I'M OUTTA HERE.)

(It's very hard to find good Apollo content out there when you have educated yourself on what he's actually like :( )

(At least you immediately know those people didn't do their research shrug)

Thankfully, this one had a really good, really in-depth discussion about Apollo; his origins, his domains, his myths, ect!

COMPLETELY FREE OF BIAS TOO! HE JUST GIVES YOU THE FACTS, THE SYMBOLISM OF THE MYTHS, HOW THE CULTURE INFLUENCED THEM, ECT!

On my first (and only rn) listen I was like "damn i need to take notes on this sometime" that's how in-depth it is!

Here's the episode link if anybody is interested, btw!

What's cool is that he said that before Apollo came along, oracles and the like weren't as common in Greece - they existed, because Gaea was a thing - however, when he was imported in (possibly also with Leto! She has Anatolian origins too!), oracles became more of a thing as Apollo's popularity skyrocketed!

If you look at the number of Oracles Apollo had, you'd also notice that a lot of them are in Anatolia (Turkey today)!. Didyma, Miletus, Claros, ect ect! I think this just adds to the theory that Apollo's main origins come from Anatolia! When he moved to Greece, oracles came with him!

Which is so cool because in my drafts I currently have a picture of a webchart I made of Apollo's (many) domains, and I narrowed down the ones I think are his Big Ones - and Prophecy is one of them.

Very cool that Prophecy has always been part of him <3

Also, Apollo has many cities he is the patron of in Anatolia - Troy is obvious, but the island of Tenedos was his too (his son Tenes founded the city there), and he was the patron of Miletus (the city where he met Branchus btw for my Branchus fans out there)!

And going to Leto real quick, her migration from Anatolia religion to Greece's is probably represented in the Hymn to Apollo! Sometimes myths about wandering from place to place were meant to symbolize the importation of a god (Aphrodite floating ashore of Cythera, for example), and Leto...well, she was doing a lot more than the typical wandering in the hymn, but it still fits!

Some versions say she was guided to Delos by wolves from Hyperborea, others say Boreas helped her escape Python, still others claim a rooster was present when she finally was able to give birth and thus became her sacred animal (also she apparently gave birth to Apollo as a wolf? I don't quite remember which version says that but it's something I've heard XD).

Also Delos was very self-conscious about Apollo being born on it because it was afraid he would judge it for not being up to typical island standards XD

Moving to Apaliunas now! He's a Hittite god, but I haven't been able to find out of what :( The main piece of evidence we have of his relation with Apollo is Troy - Apaliunas was the god of Wilusa, who has been found out to be another name for Troy! There was a treaty signed between Wilusa and another city, and the representative of Wilusa's name was commonly translated to "Of Ilios" - and Ilios was another name for Illium, aka Troy.

(Fun fact: The son Apollo had with Ourea was named Ileus, after Troy! They are but a footnote in mythology but I made them Important in my Troy fic XD)

Plus, Apaliunas's name was connected to the Hittite reflex of Apeljōn, which scholars have theorized to be an early form of Apollo's name - remember Apollon? :D

Apollo also has connections to various other deities - the Italian Etruscan god Apulu (Aplu), the Celtic god Grannus, his Egyptian equivalent is Horus and his Phoenician one is Resheph! He's also been identified with Baldur from Norse mythology.

Apollo be wearing that trenchcoat, and he is wearing it well XD

[lucystark12]

songs that should be used in season 5 and why by lucy

1- smalltown boy by bronski beat

obvious first draft pick here. genius. it's so mike wheeler coded it makes me want to die. for this song, i'd either like to see it used in a very very dramatic physical fight scene with vecna ala running up that hill or playing very faintly in the background of an important scene like the fight at rink-o-mania. i think the song sounds just eerie enough that it could work in that context but the instrumental is just so badass fight scene coded.

2- operator by jim croce

hopper canonically listens to jim croce!! you don't mess around with jim!! this song has been loved by my family since decades before i was born. it's such a sad but beautiful song and really gives almost a lettergate situation of one side of byler trying to reach the other during the months they spend apart between season 3 and season 4 and if they did use it i would lose my shit.

3- alone by heart

people are theorizing in favor of this song being a part of the season 4 soundtrack and i mean it when i say that if i heard that opening piano of alone i would die. it would be the end of my life. i used to listen to this song on my ipod as an eight year old. it's always been one of my favorites. i don't really know how they would use it and i almost feel like the sound of it doesn't fit in with a lot of the other music in the show in regards to that 80s music sound, but i would die if they did.

4- africa by toto

AFRICA PLEASE COME BACK BABY I MISS YOU!! another song that's easily in my top ten favorite songs of all time, i think this would be such a cute callback to season 1 and would be the equivalent of hedwig dying as far as childhood-ending-events for me because it would just be such a beautiful full circle moment. i would scream.

5- summer of 69 by bryan adams

if we get to see anything taking place during summer (which, problematically, i kind of hope we don't) i need this playing on every radio in town. it just gives such it 2017 stranger things season three in a way that would break (and fill) my heart in such a beautiful way for the last stranger summer. i also think that if this was the song we decided to make viral from the new season's soundtrack that we'd all have a lot of fun.

6- take me home tonight by eddie money

i love the intro to this song like no other. it's tense and weird like the into to sunglasses at night which was used in season 1 in such a perfect way that also reminds me of the vibe of the show. a little tense and scary sounding, but at the heart (or chorus) of it a fun show about positive and beautiful characters.

7- heroes by david bowie

duh.

8- CRAZY TRAIN BY OZZY OSBOURNE!!!!!!!!

DUFFERS. MASTER OF PUPPETS AND NO CRAZY TRAIN? i fuck with crazy train like no other. i'm fully convinced that if i listened to that song on repeat for a few hours it would inspire the willpower in me to climb all of mt. everest in a day. it's such a perfect song for a show like this. i can picture nancy shooting something to crazy train in the background. somebody is frantically running around too. i think they should have just used this instead of master of puppets because the guitar in crazy train is way better (sorry not sorry) but it's never to late to right your wrongs, duffers!

[theravenmuse]

Theorizing time! Crowley was Lucifer!

I’m going to preface this by saying I’m 50/50 on this theory, but it’s fun so we’re gonna talk about it. 

Now Lucifer and Satan are not necessarily the same person in the Bible. We also know for a fact that Satan and Lucifer aren’t the same entity in Good Omens. (Neil has said this but I’m too lazy to track down the ask.) BUT  in Paradise Lost, which I see as a big influence on Good Omens, Satan is the fallen angel Lucifer. Now Crowley is not Satan. We know this for certain as we get interactions between them via the Bentley in S1E1 and at the airbase in S1E6. But in this theory, the lines have been muddled and Crowely is the fallen Lucifer while Satan is someone else. No idea who. That’s not important.

Evidence Part 1: Biblical stories attributed to Lucifer/Satan that Crowley is now known to be responsible for. 

Now all of these are technically attributed to Satan, not to Lucifer. See opening note about muddled lines.

The original sin 

Job’s trials

The temptation of Christ

Evidence Part 2: Crowley’s former status in Heaven

Crowley can access a file that is only available to “Throne, Dominion, or above.” Now, the angelic hierarchy in GO is twisted up so much I hardly know what to make of that, but it definitely means high up. 

Then, shortly after this revelation, we get the Metatron saying this: “For one prince of Heaven to be cast out into the outer darkness makes a good story. For it to happen twice, makes it look like there is an institutional problem.” 

Are the two connected? Not necessarily, but the proximity of them indicates to me that they might be.

Evidence Part 3: Crowley’s power

When Shax mentions (in episode 2) the accidentally super powerful miracle that Crowley and Aziraphale co-created, she calls it one that “only the mightiest of Archangel’s could have performed.” Crowley responds to her query with, “how do you know I didn’t do it?” Now, is he talking out of his ass? Who knows. He does tend to do that a lot.

What we do know is that Crowley can stop time and create pocket dimensions. Something we don’t know of anyone else being capable of. He does this most notably by creating a pocket dimension in the climax of S1 to give him and Aziraphale time to talk to Adam, but he also freezes the executioner in 1793 and Mr. Dalrymple in 1827. The latter is especially notable because Aziraphale requests that he do it instead of simply doing it himself. Now this could just be Aziraphale goading Crowley into doing things for him again, but I’m inclined to believe this is something Crowley can do that Aziraphale can’t. Aziraphale is pretty high up by angel standards.

And then obviously there’s the star making in the opening of season 2. Or, more accurately, the star factory making, which is even better in my opinion.

Evidence Part 4: “Let there be light”

Ah, that gorgeous opening scene where Crolwey creates M16, the Eagle Nebula, which contains the gorgeous Pillars of Creation. He uses that classic line, “let there be light,” to set it all off. Lucifer is known as “the light bringer.”

Then we get a call back to that opening scene in episode 5 with Gabriel and the lamp. Being mentioned a second time means to me that there’s something intentional there. 

Evidence Part 5: Gabriel’s triggered memory may be a bit more specific than Crowley would like to admit.

“I remember when the morning stars sang together, and all the angels of God shouted for joy.”

Lucifer is also known as “the morning star”

Crowley deflects and says it’s what God told Job. He’s absolutely right, but I don’t think Gabriel picking it out was random. I think it’s because he’s looking right at the morning star (or perhaps one of several, since God says morning stars, plural?)

Now this is probably the weakest bit of evidence out of the bunch, BUT, it’s what tipped me off to this theory in the first place.

Now the cons. 

The most obvious is that Satan is typically fallen Lucifer and Crowley is most certainly not Satan.

Crowley also mentions Lucifer by name once in season 1, in the drunk scene after the bookshop fire. Granted, he’s starting on his third bottle of Talisker, so that may be enough for him to start talking in the third person, but it’s still odd.

Like I said, I’m not sold on this theory, but we’ve got at least three years of clowning to do so why not have fun with it?

[minunwithacannon]

You know this is the exact sort of nonsense Toby is probably making fun of, but...

In the Autumn 24 newsletter, there's an interview where Sans makes the most basic of all jokes, but then all the Undertale Characters start making complex theories about it... until it comes full circle to 7 8 9. And then they make more complex theories about negative numbers.

Odds are, it's just supposed to make fun of people like me who read too much into everything.... but I can think of a way the joke can be read as a metaphor.

Alright, laying out the full pun.

5 6 7. 7 8 9.

Five sics Seven. Seven ate Nine.

Five, Seven and Nine are nouns. Sics and Ate are actions. Let's start with Nine, it's what the Newsletter is all about after all. Given the context of the rest of the newsletter, there is an obvious candidate for Nine.

Chara.

The letter at the bottom of the newsletter confirms that Chara's favorite number is 9. All the 9s from Chara destroying the world. If one was making a metaphor about the Undertale cast using numbers, 9 would be an obvious choice for Chara.

What about Seven? Well the obvious thought that comes to mind when you say Seven in regards to Undertale would be the seven human SOULs. There are two characters whose primary goal in Undertale is to collect the seven human SOULs. Asgore and Flowey, with everyone else wanting to collect them wanting to give them to Asgore. Of the two however, only one can be said have "ate Nine."

Asriel, the one who took Chara's SOUL. Adding on to that, Papyrus is weirdly defensive about Seven. We know that Papyrus thinks highly of Flowey, starting the Flowey Fan Club in multiple reset timelines. While Flowey is a villain by the time we meet him, Asriel taking Chara's SOUL to free everyone would meet the definition of "misled anti-hero", about as well as Asgore at any rate.

Which leaves Five? Is there someone represented by 5? Well, not a person and not five exactly. But there is something that people theorize is represented by 55.

Noelle's HP when wearing the Thorn Ring decreases until it reaches 55. It's been theorized plenty this is because 55 is LV in Roman numerals. Five then, would represent love. Perhaps in its double meanings.

So the full meaning of 5 6 7, 7 8 9 would be... Love compelled Asriel to take Chara's SOUL.

Does this tell us anything new then? ....Probably not. It's just a retelling of Undertale's backstory. I wonder if the negative numbers tell us anything. Probably not, I mean, negative nine would need to be opposite of what nine means. With the newsletter being clear that 9 means "As strong as possible", negative 9 would have to mean as weak as possible. And if seven meant killing for a greater purpose, then negative seven would mean not killing under any circumstances. But that's silly right?

Uhh.... well... If Seven means killing for a greater purpose, then Papyrus, someone who doesn't kill ever, fits the opposite of Seven. Even in a Genocide Route, Papyrus will never kill us. Even though, in that case, he probably should.

If Nine means being as strong as possible, so strong nothing can hurt you, then "the easiest enemy" would represent the opposite of Nine. Being as vulnerable as possible... but finding strength in that weakness.

This part sounds like it's making fun of Papyrus Knight Theory... but Sans's dialogue is a pretty good summary of Papyrus's role in Undertale. He's introduced as someone who wants to hunt humans, ostensibly something bad and detrimental to us... but he's pretty quickly shown to be a helpful and kind soul. Whether something similar will happen in Deltarune, too soon to tell.

But what the heck would negative ate mean? If ate means taking a SOUL, then negative ate would be... giving a SOUL?

Okay, that's it. Theory's cancelled. I'm leaving. Goodbye. Shut the door on your way out.

[head-empty-just-sigma]

hhhhhhmhmmhmmnnnnmmh Buddy Daddies is making me Think Thoughts and Feel Feelings

but i’m not gonna be doing any analyzing of the show or plot itself since 1. i know absolutely nothing about Japanese family/culture/norms/society in general and there’s plenty of amazing posts that talk about that already and 2. the show doesn’t really keep things hidden like a series like bsd does, so there’s not much to theorize about. so i’m not going to go searching for things that don’t exist in the story

however, what i am going to do is over analyze and look for things that probably don’t exist in the songs in the OP and the ED of the anime. yep. my brainrot is that bad

listen episode 7 did something to me okay

i think both songs symbolize Rei and Kazuki in their own ways, especially the OP since i think it encompasses both of them from the first to second verse of the song. the ED is where it really gets interesting, since for now it only really symbolizes one of them

🔺spoiler warning for episodes 1, 3, 6 and 7 and also basically the entire premise of both Kazuki and Rei's characters lol🔻

also long post warning. like, really really long post. i pulled out all the stops in my analyzing for this thing

The opening - SHOCK! by Ayase

fun fact Ayase is the vocaloid producer for the duo YOASOBI

So for this song I’m taking both the translated lyrics provided by Crunchyroll subtitles and the translation on the Miraikyun website I found while digging for reliable translation sources (I found… almost none for this song tbh). But I’ll include screenshots from the OP mostly for the first verse of the song that’s actually used for the opening of the anime.

So at first this song came off as lighthearted to me because the music itself is pretty upbeat and pop-ish, and while yes it is both of those things, the lyrics definitely tell another story of their own. The overarching theme is essentially the contemplation of what love is and what it means, and how the person singing isn’t able to understand love when they see it. They also don’t know what’s going on in another person’s head (who is potentially experiencing said love that the singer doesn’t understand). Immediately this makes me think of Rei’s character, in a couple of ways.

In his character PV it explicitly says that he’s someone who “doesn’t know love”, specifically using the character 愛 (ai) which is used for a more general type of love (could be family or other long-term relationships) and doesn’t necessarily have romantic connotations. This is a perfect example of how Rei, as a person, doesn’t understand the concept of “love” in general. It’s foreign to him, and it’s pretty obvious after episode 3 that he wasn’t raised as a normal child by his parents, he was raised to be a hitman by his father who wanted Rei to only refer to him as his “boss”. I don’t think I need to explain how much that would mess up someone’s perception of love in any sense of the word, and the anime actually does it for us by showing Rei as unfit for taking on a proper parental role in the makeshift family in the first few episodes. Hell, even in the beginning of episode 7 he seemed more like another kid in the house instead of Miri’s caretaker. He’s not used to being responsible for another human being, and it shows, but it’s because he genuinely has no idea about any of it since he doesn’t have any parental figure to base his standard of being a ‘parent’ off of. Kazuki is arguably the same in that regard, but he’s much more mature as a parent compared to Rei because he knows what it’s like to not have any parents or caretakers at all, and he wants to make sure Miri has good parental figures in her life so she doesn’t go through the same thing.

The lyrics in the first half of the song and the lyrics in the chorus can absolutely be used to symbolize Rei’s character here.

Rei does want to be a part of the family here, we solidified that in ep3 when he declared that he was Miri’s Papa. That was a key piece of character development for him, since before this we don’t see them interacting during the episodes as much as Kazuki and Miri do. So the lyrics about ‘wanting love’ is symbolic of him admitting to wanting to be a part of the family. The part about the city being ‘madly in love and excited’ is just how he sees things, since he was taught to never smile or really express any emotions for that matter, so everyone else is automatically more expressive than him. He stays home a lot to play video games nonstop and chain smokes through all-nighters when Kazuki isn’t there, and he also tries to go home before ultimately being dragged outside by Kazuki. The next few lines could symbolize how Miri entering his life turned everything he was used to upside down, and his perception of life is slowly being torn down by Miri as he learns what it means to love and be loved in a parental way. The chorus just further drives in the fact that he truly has no idea what ‘love’ is, literally saying ‘How the heck should I know?’, but also that he doesn’t entirely understand Kazuki and why he’s so adamant on being a good parent. The ‘I don’t know what’s going on in your head’ line is perfectly fitting for ep6 when Rei was questioning a lot of the things coming out of Kazuki’s mouth (same. ‘our genes’ bro what). He’s also dragged through shenanigans time and time again by Kazuki and despite his complaining, he goes along with it anyway. The line about being unfairly friendly could be towards Miri or Kazuki, since sunshine Miri accepted Rei as he is and she loves her Papa no matter how emotionally dead he is, but also because Kazuki is probably the only real friend Rei has (which is something I’m sure will be explored in a future episode. Hopefully). The last one is directed at Miri, since Miri is also able to drag Rei into playing with her and doing other things despite his reluctance (just look at ep3). However, he still very much acts like an irresponsible child and more like Miri's sibling that Kazuki also has to take care of, so he has a long way to go before he's any sort of model parent…

Kazuki on the other hand is 100% symbolized in the second verse of the song.

I will die on this hill because there’s literally no counter argument after ep7, where we are explicitly shown that Kazuki is clinging on to his past to his own detriment. He’s scared of changing because he’s scared of forgetting Yuzuko if he’s fulfilled by something else (his family). He also calls himself pathetic in ep7, connecting the line about laughing ‘at my pitiful self’. This part of the song truly captures how Kazuki feels on the inside for the first 6 episode and the majority of ep7. The chorus could be a bit different in regards to 'it's not fair that you're so friendly', since that could be directed at Karin because she wants Kazuki to be able to move on and be happy with what he has since she believes that that's what Yuzuko would've wanted.

The ending lyrics symbolize that changing and looking towards the unpredictable future is okay, but oh my god did the ending hit like a freight train after episode 7. Just. Just holy emotional damage. Oh. My god.

The ending - My Plan by DURDN

I was able to find a translation that was basically the same as the Crunchyroll one on Genius Lyrics to reference the second verse yipee but I also included screenshots from the ED itself of course

I cannot get over how impactful this song became as the ED, especially at the end of episode 7. It’s basically an entire episode dedicated to Kazuki’s backstory, which we were shown glimpses of back in ep1 for crying out loud. And oh my lord it did not disappoint, that’s for sure. Emotional damage for everyone. So much character development in one single episode. I just--it's just great. That's all I can say.

I love this image and it lives in my head rent free. Sleeping Rei is always 10/10

The song has a theme of accepting the future and that things are going to change, but that it’s okay because there will always be something consistent there, like a home to come back to every day. It also has a lot of references to love, like the 'I softly whisper a lullaby' and 'let's try to share our love together', which is symbolic of Kazuki as a father. It doesn't really have any romantic connotations at all, it's just wholesomeness. Plus 'I chased after you as you ran barefoot' is reminiscent of the few seconds in the OP where we actually see Kazuki running past other people going the opposite direction, and then following behind Miri with Rei at his side.

Also episode 7 really brings out the last 5 lines, from 'and it'll shine down on our sadness' to 'when the future is unpredictable'. That scene where Karin told Kazuki that he should move on and be happy with what he has because that's what Yukuzo would've wanted, and then the rain stops so the sun can come out and shines on Kazuki's new outlook on the future and accepting change... It's so fucking beautiful and symbolic. Not to mention it's taking place where he and Yuzuko first met, where she was his proverbial ray of hope when he was wounded in the rain, now the rain stops and Kazuki is able to see hope in his future with his new family. I just cannot express how impressive that is from a storytelling standpoint, and it's all literally just using the changing of the weather.

Also the line of 'maybe one day, you'll surpass me' could be referencing how Kazuki wants Miri to be able to have the things he never did: a family, stability, and that familial love. Kazuki is painfully self-aware that he became a hitman (and a malewife) because he grew up with no parents and had to fend for himself his whole life. He wants to make sure Miri never has to go through any of that, and have more opportunities that he never did when she gets older.

The ending song doesn't really fit Rei as a character, even in the part not used in the ED. The second verse is still very much relating to Kazuki and Miri's interactions day-to-day and him enjoying raising Miri, and knowing he'll be endeared by everything she does no matter how old she gets (like any other parent, I assume. idk I'm a Rei kinnie). But we know that Miri is changing Rei slowly, from ep3 when he begins to see what being a Papa means to ep7 when he learns that sometimes taking care of another human being can make you feel powerless in the face of a 'crisis'. Most other times we only really see him being a real parent to Miri when he's dragged into it by Kazuki, but ep7 showed him going from irresponsible second child of the household to going to Kyu-chan in a panic because Miri is sick and he has no idea what to do as a parent. Hopefully we get to see this built upon further in the coming episodes, even if we don't get to explore his backstory as much as we have Kazuki's this season.

[justbagworm]

I Have A Thought About Chess

In chess, both sides have the same pieces - the King, Queen, two Bishops, two Rooks, two Knights, and eight Pawns. The King and Queen are next to each other in the middle back, the Bishops flanking them, the Knights next to the Bishops, and the Rooks on the corners, with the Pawns on the front lines. Additionally, in chess the white side always moves first.

Now, before someone says 'the curtains are just blue,' I am AWARE that there is no real philosophy behind the placement of certain pieces on a chessboard, this is FOR FUN! (Also, 'the curtains are just blue' is actually a phrase taken out of context from a larger work, and when you use that phrase to demerit discussion of implied themes, you're using it the opposite of the way the larger work was intended.)

That said, my brain looks at a chessboard and immediately thinks that chess is a representation of conflict between two warring theocratic states that are actually schismic branches of the same religion.

HEAR ME OUT!

I mentioned the positioning of the pieces on a chessboard up top. Harkening back to all of six seconds ago, we know that the most important pieces are the King and Queen, which are the titles awarded to the rulers of a monarchy. Thus, the two sides in chess are two separate kingdoms.

Relevant to this, Bishops are directly adjacent to the King and Queen pieces. This puts them in a position of advisory. When combined with the fact that they are called Bishops rather than Advisors or even Generals, this choice hints to me that the kingdoms in chess take major cues from the religious bodies within them. The Bishops have the ears of the King and Queen, and thus can steer the choices of the nation in a way which fits their religious views. Hence, these kingdoms are theocracies.

Now, that establishes that the two kingdoms in chess are both theocracies. Why would I posit that they are actually part of the same original religion, though? Well, that's simple. Both the white and black pieces have the exact same hierarchy, as well as identical designs!

Now, obviously the real reason for this is a need for uniformity in gameplay, so no one gets confused. It does lend an interesting skew to my theorizing, though, because in order to have the exact same structure of government throughout, they would either have to come from the same origins, or one would have to be significantly younger and be copying its governmental structure from the older kingdom. Given that both kingdoms have equal military powers, I find it unlikely that one is that much younger than the other.

Hence, I posit that both kingdoms split off from a larger religious body due to ideological differences, forming groups that follow roughly the same tenets, but with enough radical differences to incite war. It's possible that one kingdom actually represents the original religion, and the other represents a fragment, but again I feel that their equal military power makes this unlikely.

To emphasize my point about splinter religions, I will mention the Catholic Church. The original Catholic Church is probably dead, and if not it's essentially lying in a gutter somewhere, wheezing. Yes, the institution of the Catholic Church still exists, as the continuation of the Papacy will prove, but it has fundamentally shifted away from many of the values it originally proclaimed. This new Catholic Church is still a powerful religious entity, but I honestly doubt that anyone alive today still follows exactly the same kind of Catholicism as the Knights Templar.

In any case, both the Catholic Church at its inception and the Catholic Church today share one thing in common; a propensity for shedding more splinters than a log mill. To name just a few: Roman Catholicism, Christianity, the Baptist Church, Born Again Christianity, and Evangelism. Every single one of those religions has some latent tie to Catholicism, some more obvious than others, and yet they frequently clash in terms of ideology and practices. If they each existed in a theocratic kingdom trying to assert themselves as the one true religion, then outsiders would be easily able to find practices and hierarchies that mimic each other.

In terms of chess, I think the similarities of the two sides are very much an exaggerated version of this, but then again Evangelicals and Baptists both have pastors, so...

Thus, I have outlined why I think chess is actually a metaphor for conflict between splinter religions. However, I would like to take it one step further. I think I can hazard a guess as to why these two particular splinters clash so badly in the first place!

It all has to do with the second thing I mentioned at the start - in chess, white always goes first. Some people believe that white going first establishes them as the protagonists of the game, but I would posit the opposite - I view the white kingdom in chess as the invading forces of a radical splinter religion, invading the relatively pacifistic black kingdom. I would guess that the white kingdom is operating under some kind of manifest destiny clause, while the black kingdom practices non-aggression. The black kingdom will move to defend itself, but not to provoke the white kingdom.

This, I feel, is similar to the motivation which drove westward expansion in the United States - hence why I used the phrase 'manifest destiny'. This belief that the white kingdom is destined and ordained to spread into the territory of the black kingdom may very well be the ideological belief which led the founders of the white kingdom to break away from their original religious body. In fact, this belief surfacing within that body may have created enough unrest that the black kingdom broke away to form a diametrically opposed kingdom based on relative pacifism and defense, thus creating the incisive conflict that drives chess as a game. That, however, is speculation.

Thus, my master-class on 'how to read far too deeply into a board game that doesn't even have characters' has come to an end, and I will repeat: I KNOW that the curtains are just blue, but I do this FOR FUN!

[colorfuldream]

It's crazy that even now people still are mitigated on Frye like they literally have her everything to be a fan favorite?? Girlie is an amalgam of the best traits of the previous idols but people got stuck on her forehead

Droopy but big eyes, nice body, fun and bubbly personality with the hints of a more feisty/harsh temper along with being cunning whenever she's being a bandit, kicks ass, overall loving person and very silly, cool boss fight... And she still has some sassy comebacks to round her up

The difference between her popularity and the others' is crazy, they gave her everything to win everyone over. Genuinely if they hadn't given her such a big forehead as they had planned, she'd be a fan favorite or a string contestant. Even her beta designs have a stronger feel than Shiver's who got a more mellow vibe (side note but it did fit her wanting to be edgy and cool along with her being into fashion! They haven't shown it yet but the early designs, particularly the punk-ish one, did. Her being able to create a desired image of herself through her style would have been a great detail!)

Another thing is how Frye's flaws are underplayed, a bit like Big Man's, and just played as her being silly, cute, and a bit feisty. Shiver's are obvious. She's greedy, jealous, petty, passive aggressive but still quick to anger, and prone to violence. Her personality is properly displayed at all times, though personally I think we should see more of it as Deep Cut are supposed to be villains and not as prim and proper as the other idols, and her flaws are a big part of it. The same goes for Big Man.

So even when Frye is the least obviously flawed of the three and the closest to a regular idol, she's the least popular. Her Splatfest options are often the "obvious" ones (either to her character or to the question).

The devs really, reaaaally tried to make her liked and they miserably failed. Yes, they can't force it but by trying so hard, they set her up for failure. You know why people love Shiver? Because she's flawed, bitchy at times, boasting when she wins, lying to make her team more popular. When she said who she would be without Deep Cuts in the dialogue instrument Splatfest, it was believable. Ofc same with Big Man. Yeah, with everything we know about them, I can believe that she would be a loner and getting into fights and that he would stay far away from the spotlight.

But with Frye? Nope. I don't buy that she'd hop from band to band, from project to project. The only thing that makes it work is that she's bubbly. We don't know enough about her to imagine how she could be and how she normally acts. At most, her look when she was in school hints that she was popular/outgoing but nothing more.

All Frye gets is hints. She hints that she also gets into fights herself and possibly with Shiver, though Shiver has a need to prove herself and do it alone, but she doesn't get caught. She was said to not have been good at stealing at first, which in itself hints that Shiver taught her and was good at a young age (worrying, she doesn't seem to have a good childhood!), but now she's hinted at being the better of the three. She can use the smoke bombs, she's actually threatening, she wants to fight and doesn't goof around (even if she gets distracted before the rematch but by then you aren't enemies). She's greedy, less than Shiver and possibly not because she wants money (Shiver is highly implied to want money for the sake of it and not (just?) because they donate it (and are constantly broke)), she's resentful and petty, she's quick to anger but hides it for a while. This last thing? Implied. We get hints that she puts on a persona, possibly amplifying certain traits, to be more idol-like. She slips up sometimes but nothing bad. One could theorize that she started it when she was young, putting on an innocent and sweet persona to cover her misdeeds and that it made her well-liked/not as isolated as the other two, but it has little to no proof to justify it. One could theorize she's not the most emotionally stable person but apart from Marina's statement in Side Order and how quickly she gets angry there isn't much to back it up.

Frye is thus flat. Information about her is too scarce and too vague to properly build her up as a character. Not to mention that her flip-flopping on things like her hatred of Inkopolis. It makes her inconsistent, which is a problem that applies to the entire group but not to this extent, instead of nuanced. She doesn't have to be as obvious as Shiver but my God just give us details and let her flaws shine through. Deep Cut barely having any development impacts her the most, in my opinion. At least it's obvious that Shiver's silliness doesn't show in the Anarchy Splatcast because it's a more controlled environment, she doesn't want to appear cool in the same way, and she's more natural (though still a try-hard) and it's obvious that Big Man's not just a softie but also a coward and doesn't think of warning/communicating with his friends and frequently goes behind their backs. We get to see just enough of them to have an idea of who they are while Frye is just... Silly hot-headed woman who's cute but gets into (dance) fights. Her biggest accomplishments are her picking fights with OTH with Shiver on her tail.

It isn't helped with the news dialogue: what do we learn about her? She likes food. She has a big family that she adores (which took a LONG time to be talked about, the dialogues were so dry at the beginning!) and, while this is realistic, it makes up for most of her lines. What about her friends? Pearl, for example, had a devastating line about having a best friend... While Marina thought she was her best friend, implying that Pearl is HER best friend but SHE isn't. That's such a nice tidbit of information! We get similar details about Shiver and Big Man: Shiver doesn't have any other friends, never has, and it's stated a few times; Big Man is open to other people but shy, and a bit afraid because Shiver is possessive and one could argue that so is Frye, but he sometimes tries to reach out and succeeds (yay Big Man and Mariana friendship!). But we don't get squat about Frye. Does she have a lot of friends? Acquaintances? Has she narrowed her circle to Deep Cut and family? Since she gets angry easily and they're all competitive but somehow not for Splatfests (except Shiver who gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss to victory), are her friends an exception or is she keeping it in? Can't we have a line along the lines of "you're lucky it's you" while the other two rag on her choice (or when one of them boasts about something) or something like "Splatfests are about having fun and partying!" to show that she doesn't care about results? We do have a small hint that she sees them as parties (and it makes sense with her being influenced by Indian culture and Splatfests in Splatsville having religious connotations). Just a little quip to get more information out. The Splatfest dialogue is so dry, I get that they don't care and there's no stakes for them but jeez, please come to another conclusion that "yay all three options are nice" and "let's do them all!"

Deep Cut has a lot of information about them repeated but not a lot of additions. With the end drawing near, I really hope the next few events drop some information about them before they inevitably get pushed aside for the new idols (or OTH again. Please Nintendo, give us a Deep Cut DLC. I don't care if it doesn't make sense for them not to be in the Splatslands, give us ANYTHING)

Side note, they keep switching which yellow Frye is even in things that use her 3D model. I get that the main 2D art is more orange-y/less bright because it was made before and then there's an orange hue on the concert image but why is the Anarchy Splatcast segment in the latest concert has her colors be different?? It's a lot more pleasant to the eyes. I get they (originally) meant for her to be on the same side of the color wheel as Marie and Marina but gosh they could have done something to make her less bright. Their refusal to use her canon colors just goes to show that it wasn't the best choice,,

[cf56]

My thoughts on episode 5

SPOILERS for season 3, episode 5 of the Animaniacs reboot.

Yes, we're still doing this. This episode contains Teeniacs, the one I've been obsessing over for months, theorizing about, posting screenshots, answering asks. Did it live up to expectations?

...what do you think? While it turned out to mostly be a funky screenshot collection, and possibly trailer bait, I'm not going to let my extremely overinflated expectations and current ravaged emotional state trick me into saying this segment was bad. It was pretty good for what it was.

The one thing I'm legitimately disappointed about is that we didn't actually get Teen Dot. I wanted to see an aged-up Warner, even if for just a few seconds in a joke segment. Turns out they were the same age and the perspective of the animation was playing tricks on us. Well, maybe alternate Dot was a little taller. Not anything drastic, though.

We did still get to see an alternately aged Dot.

We've already seen baby Dot multiple times in the past, though, so it's not as exciting.

I liked the way Yakko said "bro" and acted as Wakko's wingman.

I enjoyed seeing this, especially how excited he sounded to say it:

Does this mean Yakko is 15 now? Maybe we really do have an aged-up Warner in this segment.

I thought the brief vampire transitions were cool to see.

Teeniacs.

The most disappointing part of this segment for me was how it was a minute and a half long, and then we got no Warners for the rest of the episode.

I don't have much to say about Starbox and Cindy. What could I say? Cindy is proven to be a malicious little monster who hurts Starbox on purpose. I can respect it.

The main thing to talk about in this episode is obviously Groundmouse Day. It is officially confirmed that Pinky is not, in fact, the genius. Right, guys?

I liked how this episode focused on the obvious fact that Brain's schemes are mostly thwarted by stupid little twists of fate, and if he could just have a few redos, pretty much every single one of them would work. It's always super satisfying to me when a cartoon character who has been failing to do something for an entire show finally breaks through and does it, such as Brain successfully taking over the world.

I enjoyed Brain getting one over on the surfer dude and being unapologetically pleased when the guy is emotionally affected by it. He deserved that one.

Edit: Oh, and I liked the furry joke.

So yeah, not going to lie, there wasn't much here for me in this episode. It felt like filler, especially because the main plot of the episode isn't even resolved in this episode. Almost wish they would just have done a full Pinky and the Brain episode focusing entirely on Groundmouse Day.

Also, shout out to this person for being entirely correct.

I really don't know how to rank this one. None of it was bad. None of it blew my socks off. There were some fun sights in Teeniacs, but that was about it for me. I can't really judge Groundmouse Day yet because the rest is in the next episode. It could really go above any of the episodes except episode 3 and below any of them as well. I'm just going to go off of which ones I would rather rewatch, which means this episode will be ranked last. If I was a huge Pinky and the Brain fan, it would be different for sure.

My current ranking of season 3 episodes:

Episode 3

Episode 4

Episode 2

Episode 1

Episode 5

I encourage you to add to the discussion of this episode if you want, but don't say anything about any of the episodes that come after. Thanks for sticking with me.

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[miiilowo]

I still think abt purple man animatronic and the old razzbowski, dawko + 8 bitryan theories. They were bad (some good) but nostalgic /pos /aff

What is ur favorite hoax or mistaken character (ex: would be salvage)

OHHHH MY GOD. FANTASTIC FUCKING QUESTION

im not sure i really have a FAVORITE? sparky the dog is an obvious pick, and eternally part of my brain. the purple guy animatronic is objectively funny. OR OR OR actually i think the weirdest one is when people, for some reason, thought that the living tombstone was like......in on the lore?? i remember when its been so long came out, people were theorizing about how the mom of a dead kid was the puppet because of it. like, purely because of that song. its between that one, PURPLE GUY = PHONE GUY!?!??!?!?!? and people thinking 'pink guy' was a separate character from who we now know to be william afton

i really miss fnaf having hoaxes or mass misunderstandings like that, thats just.. not something that happens anymore. the game used to feel so mysterious and weird, like anything and everything could be hiding in it, which bred that perfect enviornment for weird hoaxes. now of course we know scott had no idea what he was doing but it was fun at the time

[greatwyrmgold]

I still haven't found/made time to watch the Spiderverse movies, but a lot of people had fun speculating about how Skitter might look as a spiderperson, so I decided to look up a list of Canon Events to figure out what Wildbow characters fit them best. According to the wiki, known Canon Events not associated with any specific character are:

Becoming an orphan or losing at least one parent or one loved one.

Being bitten by a radioactive spider or gaining spider-powers by another means.

Causing (directly or indirectly) the death of a loved one (ie., Ben Parker) early in their superhero career.

The death of a police captain close to them (ie., George Stacy).

Becoming bonded to a symbiote.

Separating from the symbiote, which becomes Venom.

The symbiote and spider-power stuff are Marvel gunk that's about equally sane to slap on any non-Marvel character, which leaves us with losing at least one parental figure, causing the death of a loved one, and the death of a police captain they care about.

The police captain thing is obviously going to be a problem if we take it literally, since the only named police captain/chief/etc across all of Wildbow's works is Laird. With that caveat in mind, let's get to theorizing!

Spider-Worm

Alright, hear me out: Spider-Bitch. Obviously, Rachel was taken from her mom at a young age, and we have no idea what happened to her dad. Close enough. And she felt guilt over her part in Rollo's death, so that could count. And as for the police captain stand-in...her last adoptive mother was a hell of a disciplinarian?

Alright, clearly we need to start with the "police captain" thing if we want that to be anything. IIRC, closest thing to a police captain who dies in Worm is the PRT captain who Coil shot before getting a vial. If Piggot liked him enough, that would qualify handily. And we know basically nothing about her life before Ellisburg, so sure, maybe she's an orphan and accidentally shot her aunt in a fight with a Master or something.

PRT Directors Calvert and Tagg are also kinda police-chief-y, but not great choices because they're both assholes with no friends. Maaaybe the Undersiders count as close to Coil, for a twisted version of the Canon Events? It's probably a good angle to take for Spider-Taylor, but not very strong on its own.

If we broaden the "police captain" to include leaders of superhero teams...well, surprisingly few of them die in Brockton Bay. Excluding bit-parts like Bastion, I think it's basically just Aegis and Alexandria? Alexandria doesn't have many friends, the ones she does have don't have any loved ones whose deaths they caused, and the ones who you could maybe argue something in there for would make boring spider-people. Oh wow, Contessa has her PtV and webs? What now?

Which leaves Aegis. The most obvious potential spider-people to care about his death would be his fellow Wards. The Brockton Bay Wards who are not known to have two living parents are Clockblocker, Shadow Stalker, and Aegis himself. Shadow Stalker is unlikely to care much about people she killed early in her superhero career unless it's, like, her little sister or something, and Clockblocker's confirmed parent is dying of cancer, so I'd say he fits better.

Bonus: Clockblocker is the most likely Brockton Bay resident to embrace Spidey's quippiness.

Spider-Pale

Lucy. She has a dead parent, there are plenty of people whose deaths she (and Avery and Verona) been unable to stop which weigh on them, and you could make a pretty compelling argument that John was the Kennet council's equivalent of a police captain.

It wouldn't surprise me if there was a side character who fit better, but Lucy is a main character and she fits better than most characters I'll be mentioning today.

Spider-Ward

The fun thing about Ward is that it's set after the apocalypse. Basically anyone without two parents confirmed alive could qualify if they get along with police officers and/or senior heroes.

Rain is probably the best choice. He's wracked by guilt for killing people during the mall fire, he's raised by his aunt and uncle, and he has so many powers that adding weak precognition and wall-climbing and stuff wouldn't seem out of place. The only problem is the police chief equivalent, but one of the Fallen officers can probably qualify.

Spider-Twig

...I can't think of any authorities who aren't either mad scientists or literal nobility. I guess you could pick an experiment, but I don't remember any who both die, have meaningful relationships with other people, and have the seniority to substitute for a police captain.

Spider-Pact

Laid is a police chief and he dies. Pick a Behaim, any Behaim. Chrono-Spider.

Conclusion

If you want to make Spider-Skitter, I don't think that's a bad idea. But there are plenty of other alternatives, from Bitch to Clockblocker to Precipice. And that's neat.

[infintyonhigh]

I am and will continue to be your resident Gaylor follower, popping up at an album release, hi!👋🏻 Here with a scroll as they did in ye olden days lmao

Yeah tons of people are upset at the album prologue, many of them have received hate and threats online, getting doxxed and outed on top of that. Funnily enough they receive those threats from people that only want to see Taylor married off with kids and the whole picket fence spiel. Which is kinda funny. In an ironic way.

Anyway, I just wanted to say, there are shitty fans on both the Swiftie and the Gaylor side. You have one side trying to figure out when she lost her virginity and to whom, and another trying to figure out if one of the dance moves she does on stage is her subconsciously moving her hand in the same way you'd finger someone. So it's obvious that theorizing like that would make her uncomfortable. And those are just surface level, I'm not even gonna try going deeper and explaining every mental gymnastics moves each group makes to come to those conclusions.

You also have infighting inside each of those groups, which is just like, ridiculous? It feels just like the L and G attacking the B in LGBTQ+, like, c'mon?

My point being, this is just a regular release cycle ever since Taylor decided to become the sheriff of Pride Trailer Town back in 2019, with bi flag colored hair and all (it's called You Need to Calm Down lmao), after she liked a +18 wlw gif on this very platform, talked about "dating him or dating her" in an interview, saying "Gay pride makes me, me" and talking about decorating her girlfriend's apartment because she was too busy to do so herself. Just a small collection off the top of my head that's kinda difficult to misinterpret, and there is tons more, without ever going into lyric analysis and the sheer amount of queer flagging, but I digress.

The goal of this long-ass ask isn't really to defend, because I've seen first hand how many shitty people are there on each side. I know it's really fun to make fun of them, I've done it myself, even though I consider myself to be a part of this group of people. I straight up made crack pairings and figured out ways to connect lyrics to those pairings to show how silly some theories sound. But I'll reiterate, only one group has seen its members doxxed and outed which put these kids (yes many of them are kids) in very dangerous situations as it wasn't safe for them to be out. And that's something I'll always hold over the head of regular Swifties, because it's a life threatening act that members of the group have done. Meanwhile their strongest "ammo" is secret Kaylor baby (I strongly don't recommend THAT rabbit hole) which has very socially negative ideas interwoven in the theory, depending on who's your source of info, but has never physically put anyone in harms way.

Sorry for putting this block of text in your ask, it's been a long release day and while it's super easy for me because I'm in a way, a closeted Gaylor and remain anonymous online, some of my friends that received threats and insults today don't have my privilege. Lastly, whoever reads this, please do not fall down the rabbit hole of the monetized Gaylor theories if you ever do decide to look into it. They pretty much take old (and some new) theories people spent time putting together (because it's a really fun time) and put those behind a paywall. Also they don't have "sources", just give it a minute and think, who would provide information to a literal random fan? On tumblr of all places?

Ty for coming to my ted talk, it's now for me to get some shut eye! <3

Einstein was wrong, rpf isnt fine

[alicethemasked]

17/18 - Shadow/spirits

The Killer smiled as she followed her prey, she had been tracking this one for weeks, not that he knew, if there was one thing the killer did right it was stalking, this one was unimpressive in general, real robot wake up, work, fall asleep honestly killing him might be a mercy for him. So when he deviated from his schedule the Killer knew that it was time, the soon to be victim had called in sick to his job and then went on a walk in the woods, something that he’s never done while she was watching him, it was almost like he was asking to be killed.

The forest in question was dark, so it was easy to hide in the shadows, looking for the right time to strike. The killer's smile just kept widening as she got closer and closer, still hidden of course, her knife out, readying a strike, she always found the knife the best weapon, more personal in a way, anything else takes the joy out of it, don’t get her started on guns, sure they were effective but gods were they boring and cold, no style no finesse just shooting someone and your gone, she doesn’t like it.

Closer and closer the Killer crept until she jumped, clean cut on the prays throat, she’d done this before after all, and then her signature three horizontal slashes on the abdomen, it didn’t really mean anything but she enjoyed reading through forums trying to theorize what they meant, true crime spaces were fascinating to her, so I guess if there was any meaning it was that, the first time it had been on accident, she wasn’t seasoned I mean you don’t just kill someone perfectly the first time, but apparently it had looked purposeful enough to people so she lent into it.

She is willing to admit that being covered like this is fascinating, if only people stopped assuming she was a dude then things would perfect, though it made linking the murders back to her less likely it’s still fun, but she can’t exactly say “hey I’m a woman” that’s how you make a mistake that leads to you being caught and she has made sure to not be obvious, she people watches to find her victims making sure to not have a pattern, though that in itself might be a pattern but she digresses, another clean kill. 

The Killer smiles to herself as she slinks back into the shadows, time to head back home, not right away, probably stop at a motel or two, just in case, you can never be too careful. Now came her least favorite part, she doesn’t think it’s guilt, as it’s just an intense feeling of being watched, this usually happens for a up to a few hours to days after she takes a life, it’s more frustrating than grating on her conscience, if she even has one to begin with, she isn’t sure, sure she wouldn’t hurt like animals, that icks her out but she doesn’t really feel any real guilt after killing, unless that’s really what that watching feeling is? Though the Killer feels like she would know if she felt guilty wouldn’t she? 

She checked into a motel in some small town that was like two hours away from the crime scene. She had thankfully parked her car far away, even if that meant an extra hour of walking, but relying on the adrenaline rush that happened after each kill really helped.

The feeling of being watched was stronger than usual, it was frustrating, she felt like she was being filmed or something, like someone or something was inspecting her thoroughly and intimately which she was not a fan of. She looked around a small bit of paranoia starting to build up, had someone actually seen her this time? Was she actually being tailed this time? Or had she been watched from the beginning and whoever was stalking her like she stalked her was finally deciding to reveal themselves. Ok, the Killer thought to herself, it’s nothing to be worried about.

The room seemed darker than the usual motel room to her, like the shadows of darkness were itching closer to her covering more of the room than usual, that made no sense, oh no was she finally losing it completely? She hoped not, she decided that the best thing to do was just lie down and fall asleep.

After like 20 minutes she gave up and opened her eyes again, sleeping seemed to not be in the cards tonight, was she actually feeling guilty? Was she being tell-tale heart-ed? She looked around and noticed something, the room was bitched black except, there were pairs of… white circles? On the walls, almost looking like ghost eyes, like white soulless voids in the darkness, oh she had finally fully lost it.

She stood there staring to the void and the void seemingly stared back, this was uncanny and uncomfortable, for some reason the Killer started feeling like she was being comforted, she could swear that she felt gentle hands caress her in a parental like way, the eyes combined into one giant pair and a glowing mouth appeared under them, twisting up to a smile. For some reason the Killer felt like whatever this smile was, it was offering her a home, a place to stay and with a smile of her own the Killer accepted it.