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i dunno so in another universe where dbda has a thousand seasons, i think the ending of the entire show would be the boys moving on. and i know -i know- that's scandalous, because we all agree that charles and edwin belong together, but. i mean.

edwin's essence is he wants to feel safe. he stays on earth because he wants to be safe from hell and death. charles' essence is that he wants to live. he stays on earth because he wants to, well, live - pretend he hasn't died. so, i feel like it makes sense that the natural conclusion to their character arcs would be moving on.

because they can't stay here forever. i know that it's nice to pretend, but like, some day the world will end. they can't stay on earth forever. they're ghosts, they're teenagers, they're stuck in this in between where nothing really belongs. and at some point, they have to grow up, they have to move on.

edwin and charles won't stay ghosts forever. they have to trust in the process of death that it will be ok and one day they will have to move on. we all do. they're not the exception.

but we don't have 20 seasons so i guess we'll never fuckin know will we

i know we all joke that cat king waited around for edwin to get out of hell and charles just went to pick his bestie up, but like, it makes sense. cuz, in the cat king's mind, edwin has literally bested every foe who comes up against him! edwin beat esther, beat the night nurse, beat him- edwin had literally left hell before. so of course the cat king thinks he can do it again. cat king has limitless faith in edwin's capabilities. however CHARLES is like, yes, he can probably get out of hell again, and, he shouldn't have to do it alone. and that's the major difference between the two of them, isn't it?

i dunno i think something that's interesting is, for all their thirty years of devoted friendship, edwin and charles hide a lot from each other. and i don't know if they really mean to, but they do. they have this comfortable, case-adventure-story job to escape to, and they just never leave. it doesn't get real, not really, not often. & then the cat king -someone different, someone new- comes along, and within, like, five minutes of screen time, has unraveled something inside of edwin. and i mean beyond the gay awakening, i mean this fundamental, all emotions repressed edwin. because with the cat king, edwin doesn't have to pretend because their relationship has no stakes. edwin doesn't really care what the cat king thinks, there's no stakes to losing him, whereas with charles, everything is horribly risky. and yet at the same time, edwin is fully aware that charles would never leave him, no matter what. and that contradicting dichotomy coexists in edwin's brain ping ponging back and forth with love for charles and fear that charles might leave, for distaste for the cat king and mutual honesty.

so we all know edwin was in hell and charles was abused by his father. both were in horrible, violent situations, and neither deserved it. but i think the way they do (and do not) talk about their experiences are very revealing.

because, edwin brings up hell every five minutes. he plays the trauma olympics like a pro. and he's comfortable doing that because he knows he didn't deserve it. but he never talks about the actual details of went on in hell, only that it was absolutely awful. because though he is incredibly open about the fact that he went through a traumatic situation, he is very closed about the details of that traumatic situation. this is likely because he was raised in the edwardian era, and, well, people were hardly open about the details in their emotions at that time. and i think the fact that edwin never really talks about it means he's likely never really processed it. in the case of the light leapers, he sees a babydoll head in the gift shop and turns it around while visibly afraid. he has these residual, lingering fears, and they are never addressed, because he never actually addresses them. he has either fooled everyone around him into thinking that by mentioning hell, he is processing it, or charles is just so determined to be peppy that edwin is able to flit around, solving cases, while no one ever questions the depths of the impact hell had on him.

now, charles, on the other hand? you have to pry the fact that charles is traumatized out of his cold dead mouth. he will jump through all sorts of hoops, wave away all sorts of questionable comments, because he doesn't know he didn't deserve it. having an abusive parent is different from something traumatic happening to you. edwin has full confidence throughout the entire show that he does not deserve hell, that it is a clerical error. but charles? the person who is supposed to love and protect him at all costs is hurting him. and we know that he was physically abusive, but like, we don't know the details of what else went down, coz charles never talks about it. & charles never talks about it, and i'm gonna take a gander that it's likely because he is embarrassed and ashamed because he thinks he did something to deserve it. AND because charles feels this pressure to balance out edwin always talking about his trauma. so between the guilt from thinking being abused was his fault, & the guilt of bringing the group's morale down, charles absolutely never discusses his trauma. and, most of the time, that's ok, coz he's able to jump around from adventure to adventure without ever having to process his death.

edwin copes with being alone in his trauma for years by talking about it all the time in a casual manner, as if it's not properly a big deal. he doesn't have too much guilt attached to ending up in hell -he understands it was not his fault- and subsequently, is comfortable being open about it's existence.

charles copes with being abused by his father by hiding it away and pretending it didn't happen, because he has so much guilt and complicated feelings about it that he is not able to talk about it in a casual matter, and he thinks that, if he did, he would be judged for it.

what we as a fandom are collectively not talking about is the fact that oscar wilde died the same year edwin was born. but like, eleven months later. which indicates three things to me, as a critical thinker

there is a limited amount of homosexuality in the world

upon edwin reaching eleven months old, he in took a surplus amount of this homosexual energy, making him the most homosexual baby in recorded history

in order to make up for this imbalance, oscar wilde had to die

i think i rest my case

there it goes - maisie peters

look the cat king is a softie. i have a headcannon that that corpse in front of his throne from episode 2? yeah that's a prop from spirit halloween. it was on sale, yeah, really high quality for the price. he just has it there to scare people.

i dunno i think the whole hell sequence would have been WAY more impactful if when charles got there and edwin's like "what the fuck are you doing here" charles just started singing "never gonna give you up"

like would that not have slapped

look i'm not a huge palaski girlie but it is palaski week and i've seen a lot of content already for the sickfic day, where crystal is ill & niko is taking care of her. and i simply must put out there: NIKO getting sick and crystal having to care for her.

cuz, let's be honest, crystal's never had to care for a sick person before. she was a rich bitch, she could hire someone else to do it or just didn't care at all. & now, suddenly, she does care about people, and one of them is sick, and she has to help, but has no idea how.

cue frantic crystal googling 'how to care for sick gf' 'how to help sick person' 'what to do when sick person throws up' 'how to get vomit stains out of carpet.' running between jenny, tragic mick, and edwin, trying to figure out how to use a thermometer. (jenny is the only one who knows, in case that wasn't obvious.) niko waking up when crystal isn't yet done cooking soup, crystal walks away to check on niko, and suddenly the house is on fire. crystal trying to tell a soothing bedtime story to niko but all she can remember is the plot to riverdale and a fucked up version of cinderella.

like let crystal be clueless but damn if she isn't trying her best. she WILL care for her sick girlfriend.... & at MOST 4-7 other casualties will occur during this time period

this thought came to me last night, very late. so edwin is 16 in the netflix version, yeah? & the comics, charles is a whole year older than edwin. well i headcannon that this age difference follows into the netflix adaptation, which means charles dies at seventeen.

and is that not horribly tragic? he died at age seventeen. judging by the fact that everyone was all in a lot of layers, when charles dies, so it's probably winter, yeah? which means that charles only had maybe five more months of school.

five months, and then he would be an adult. wouldn't ever have to see his dad again. could have been free. could have been gone. but, no, instead he dies. he was so, so close to escape and- he fuckin' dies. and isn't that just tragic?

but, no, it's not! it's not tragic! because then he meets this beautiful boy who smiles and says silly things and only says fuck when he's proper angry. it's not a tragedy because he is dead yeah but he's not alone anymore and he is still scared but he doesn't have to be and that's just a whole other level of beautiful, isn't it

edwin, charles & crystal get a case of a mysterious man in black attacking people. they think, yknow, vampire or something ("they said he had a cape, edwin, normal blokes don't wear capes"). when they find him, it turns out he's actually just a guy with a lot of money, a lot of free time, and an affinity for costumes. apparently he's a big name in the city, bruce wayne? crystal seemed excited to meet him, at least. she also kept going on about his butt and if it "matched," whatever that meant, but edwin chalked that up to crystal's normal weirdness. they dismiss the case and return back to the office, and crystal keeps talking of "cosplay" and "bat-people." edwin makes a note of it to look up later. charles names it "the case without a case" and they move on to the next one.

not that anyone cares but i think it's fascinating that in the comics, the boys' office is a treehouse. because they really, properly, are playing detective - it is a bit of a game to them. that's not to say they don't take it seriously, but, it is a game, fundamentally, they do it for enjoyment. but in the netflix adaptation, they're in a proper office, because they're not "pretending" to be detectives, they are detectives, and they're good at it. they take it seriously and they work in a serious detective office. but once they get to port townsend, they work in a ridiculously diy'd flat (the desk is an ironing board, charles is sitting on a ladder) because they're no longer in their strong suit. they no longer have the "home base advantage" where they generally know what they are doing. they are still making do with what they've got and they are still doing a bang up job but they are a bit off kilter. they are still detectives -because they have to be, because it's all they know, because they want to- but they don't have all their normal resources. their office reflects their competency, comfort, and their general attitude towards detectivework

guys there's a bloody ouija board in the office game closet

and i'm just like. the potential??

is it magical? did they get it as payment for a case? did charles get it thinking it would be good fun & then it's actually cursed? did edwin get it not realizing it was just a board game? did it start out a normal board game but a spell gone wrong cursed it? guys the POTENTIAL

apparently there's a singular game of scrabble admits all of the clue games and i can only imagine this means that charles bought it, thinking it would be good fun, and then edwin kept busting out words from the turn of the century (collywobbles, forenoon, wisenheimer) and charles kept trying to use slang and being called out on it, and the game ended in their first and only fight. words were said which cannot be taken back & they have agreed never to play scrabble again.

...but, after crystal comes back to london, they realize she's even worse vocab than charles, and charles thinks he might not lose, so he suggests they play.

by the end, edwin tries to leave the agency after finding out that words spelling changes over time and they have to adhere to the modern spellings, crystal tries to leave the agency after finding out that words rarely leave the dictionary so even edwin's stupid ass words count, and charles tries to leave the agency to get away all this bullshit yelling about american spellings vs british spellings

so i know literally *nothing* about cluedo. i didn't even know it was called cluedo prior to watching dbda, i thought it was called clue, coz of the film. so i've not much to add to the conversation about it in dbda EXCEPT that i think when the film came out, charles was still alive, and he saw the version in cinema where ms scarlet did it. and he's telling edwin about it, years later, and edwin's like let's go see it then. and they get the ending where ms peacock did it. and edwin is like "you must have misremembered" and charles goes on a thirty-seven hour long fixation, destroying every aspect of his sanity. edwin eventually drags him out of it, but it haunts charles. and one day, after port townsend, clue is brought up, and crystal mentions the multiple endings and how genius that was for marketing - and charles freaks the hell out, because, oh my god, of course, why didn't he think of that, it has multiple endings. they all proceed to rewatch a copy featuring all the endings, and decide which one they prefer the best (edwin favors ms scarlet as the killer, since he always plays her; crystal likes ms peakcock because she thinks the undercover fbi agent is a fun twist; and charles loves the 'everyone did it' bit because it's the only ending he hadn't seen and he thinks it's proper hilarious)

EVERYONE STOP OK I just rewatched dead patrol and i totally fucking forgot they have a lantern too.

so for the uninitiated, when edwin, charles & larry (a very sad mummy) are going through a ghost road to get to the afterlife, edwin is walking ahead & holding the lantern. because edwin is confident and knows what he's doing and the other two are "doing the mature adult thing" and joking to deflect their fears

to get to the entrance of the afterlife, edwin has to relive some of his memories from hell. he's standing in a dark forest with charles & larry (a very sad mummy), and edwin is holding a lantern. he gives it to charles, goes through his forced flashback, then takes the lantern back. he is vulnerable and he trusts charles to hold it and be strong while he cannot

and then they put the lantern away. they are on the banks of the lake to the afterlife. larry and edwin are talking and larry basically asks if edwin is gay and in love with charles. edwin is vulerable and scared and does not have a light. charles, who died via drowning, is scared to cross the water and pacing and vulnerable and he doesn't have the light either

something something the light is each other's vulnerability and bravery in every universe because some dumb homoerotic metaphor for undying devotion

kinda cute that in dead patrol, edwin is fully aware of charles' denial of trauma, and allows it, cuz that's how charles copes. kinda cute how in netflix, edwin is fully oblivious to charles' trauma, and when he finds out, tries to help him but does not know how. kinda cute how in the comics they're 12 and not horribly traumatized because they're 12.

i dunno man! maybe it's just "i don't need charles to protect me" "i'd do it anyways, won't i?" and "there's no one else i'd go to hell for"

maybe it's just "she has damage" "shut it, edwin" and "so, you'll be leaving then?" "oi!"

maybe it's just "if we simply killed her, this wouldn't be an issue anymore" and "if she had died last night, i would have no problem with her staying"

maybe it's just "guess you're a lot alike, really" and "well, that sounds a lot like you, doesn't it?"

maybe it's just "you know boys can like like each other, right?" and "it is normal, now" and "it's not 1916 anymore" and "it's not 1916, you know"

maybe it's just charles' baseball bat and charles' cricket bat

maybe it's just larry & edwin chatting about queerness on a beach, and niko & edwin chatting about queerness on a beach

maybe it's just charles throwing a smoke bomb at the afterlife demon, and charles throwing a moltov cocktail at an afterlife demon

maybe it's just the lantern passed on in moments of strength and light and love

maybe it's just the FUCKING PARALLELS between dead patrol and the netflix adaptation that make me FERAL

look obviously edwin's arc was realizing it's ok to like boys & that he's in love with charles, and getting over the whole internalized homophobia. because that's what he needs to do! & he did it in six episodes, like an absolute icon

but as someone who headcannons charles as bi, i gotta say, honestly, i think he'd have a harder time accepting it than edwin did.

cuz, you gotta understand, edwin- he's already been through the worst thing he could possibly go to. he went to hell. twice. he died a virgin sacrifice and was sent to hell for seventy years. there is no greater torture for him to experience. it literally can't get worse.

but, charles, on the other hand? charles lived his entire life scared of what could happen. scared his dad might get too rough. scared his friends might go too far. scared this might be all he gets. and then he fucking dies. and like. he's still scared. he's still rushing into things too quickly, still kissing girls without thinking, still sixteen and scared of what could happen.

charles goes through his afterlife scared of what could be. scared he and edwin might get split up, scared edwin might get hurt, scared he can't help someone, scared edwin might leave him. edwin goes through his entire afterlife with the knowledge that he can survive anything and it can't get worse than it's already been

so yeah, i think that charles rowland -victim of child abuse, raised during the aids crisis, bisexual- might have a bit of a tough time accepting that he likes girls and boys. because, things could get worse for him. there's no "fuck it i might as well confess" because charles has always lived in a state of "i could lose this all in seconds i have to stay safe"

the heart of edwin's character is that he wants to feel safe but the heart of charles' character is that he never does

i dunno sometimes i wonder why charles protects edwin. because, obviously, of course, it's because charles loves edwin. but it's also very instinctual. i wonder, is it because charles learnt to protect his mother? to distract or dive in front of the threat (father) and take the attention away from her? because charles knows now that nothing worse can happen to him, that he is already dead, that edwin has been through so much pain and charles can take it, he will be ok. if charles learnt when he was tiny that if he does not stand between his loved ones and danger, his loved ones will get hurt and they will be in pain and it will be his fault because he had the power to do something and he didn't and he's six and he's sixteen and every time he sees the night nurse he thinks of his father first and a person second

what we really missed out on in season two was crystal calling charles' bag-of-tricks a ludicrously capacious bag and asking if he has a lunch pail in it

sometimes i wonder if in episode two the reason why charles picked up the vase even though it could have been dangerous was because, thusfar, in his afterlife, nothing all that bad had happened. like, when he was living, he got the shit beat out of him - from his dad, from his mates, from everyone. and like, now he's dead, and he doesn't feel pain all that often, and he can hardly die again. the worst thing that can happen to charles is death taking him - something which a dandelion shrine does not have the power to do. charles had to live his entire life not being impulsive because he might die, because his actions had Actual Real Repercussions on his own safety. so, now that he's dead, of bloody course he's acting recklessly! because he can. because he can, and it will still be safe, and the worst thing that can happen is temporary pain.

and then, you know, his best mate gets dragged to hell, again, and he can't stop it, and crystal is sad, and he can't stop it, and the devlins are killed over and over and over and over and he still can't stop it and he can never stop it and niko dies and he can't stop it and maybe there are still bad things that can happen maybe he does still have things to loose

"oh, you're gonna traverse this mortal plain for eternity in search of a higher purpose? what, are you gonna suck a dick while you're at it?"

i think danny motta would thrive on tumblr, actually

watch his new video about dbda here!

so both danny motta and joseph fisher have posted new videos about dbda. danny's is a lovely reaction to the first episode. he's super funny and it's really just such a good time (i especially loved his reaction to the sequence in the underground - "if there's time after this demon, do you guys mind checking out what the fuck was up with those clowns" "no clown has EVER sought out another with good intentions" "there is NO WAY your name is crystal palace, what are you, a prostitute?"). joseph's is a larger video essay about the downfall of netflix, and i've linked the specific section where he talks about shows being canceled. he's super insightful and i just gotta shout out the bit where he says "netflix prioritizes having a large volume of content, even if that means the content they are making is unfinished." i highly recommend watching the whole video, he's very articulate and brings up a lot of good points.

anyway i just wanted to give a little shoutout to both of those videos!! i really enjoyed watching them!