THE MAGNUS ARCHIVES #83 - Drawing a Blank
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- Опубликовано: 28 сен 2024
- MAG083 - Case #0131910 - Chloe Ashburt
Statement regarding a new window display at Fanton’s department store.
The Magnus Archives tells the tale of an artist’s after hours activities at their part-time job, where the mannequins somehow refuse to stay in place.
Starring: The Archivist - Jonathan Sims; Georgie Barker - Sasha McKenna
Writer: Jonathan Sims
Director: Alexander J Newall
Editors: Alexander J Newall, Elizabeth Moffatt, Brock Winstead
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im one minute in and im already on the floor after jon's defensive "I COULD BE ON DRUGS!! >:(" like he be tiny
He actually is apparently small enough for it to be a notable descriptor
He's only 5'2 don't be mean :(
Please I'm 5'1 I feel his pain
@midnights2631 wait, is it canon? I thought it was a joke
@@midnights2631lol short (/j)
@marylii04 I have no idea but he is short
I know this delivery to Jon probably has a deeper meaning but I just can't shake off the mental image of Elias merrily slipping a statement into the mail like "kEeP oN tHe gOoD wOrk JoN"
I love this idea
This is beautiful.
i literally **just** drank some water when i read that and nearly spat it out from laughing so hard--
This made me cackle lmao
This is now my head-canon for how it got there, whatever deeper meaning there might be. XD
Jon: someone I care about
my brain: Martin
Cool pfp
Memes have been a corrupting influence for our society
Jon: I don't approve of those silly ghost hunting youtubers and podcasters
Jon: In other news, I have befriended all of them
That's so jon thing to do
John has a process for making friends, it varies but it generally follows this timeline
Step one:I ditest you and think you're a problem or bother. Step two: we have a mutual hate or at least dislike for one another. Step three: eventually we have some big "that's it" moment where we work out a lot of our emotional problems with eachother. And finally step four: ｡*ﾟ+friendship｡*ﾟ+
@@KateCantDraw lol excellent and accurate
@@KateCantDraw that sounds like every anime protagonist with every minor villain ever
@@davv6628 Jon is kinda a paragon of sorts
In all the Gertrude's recordings we've heard by far, she never calls herself "Head archivist of the MagNuS InsTiTutE"
She always goes by her name only.
...just like Jon does now.
* narrows eyes suspiciously *
Oh no
well jon got fired i think that's why he stopped 💀
Baby steps to become what you hated
As everyone likes to point out, Gertrude and Jon are not the same. Except in the ways that they are.
ok but now im kinda digging the idea that the mannequin actually liked chloe since she stuck around and drew them a lot,, i just want wholesome eldtritch horrors man
Me too
I thought that the mannequin might not have wanted her skin because she had dwarfism?
im so glad someone else has this head cannon
Wholesome/ friendly eldritch horrors do sort of make sense though!
Like, think about us and mice. If some people find a mouse in their house, they’ll trap and kill it. Other people will catch and release it. Some people keep mice as pets.
So the idea of one (or a few) eldritch nightmare things either being benign towards humans, or even going like “d’aww, they’re so dumb and squishy, I love them” makes sense, and I’m absolutely ready to be a nightmare creature’s pet.
@@RainWelsh Me too. Deffinitely !!
LMAO "What. I could be on drugs!" 😂😂😂 Jon sounding offended that someone thinks him incapable of doing something like that
He was so offended!! Oh Jon, you dork
I'm crying, he genuinely sounds like the kind of person who as a teen claimed that they did have a very real SO, but you wouldn't have known them bc they went to a different school.
He’s too much leaning towards incel
Jon is a big nerd, confirmed
He sounded like when my mom says "I'm not a prude" after I said I didn't think she'd find certain jokes funny
Jon: "Its not drugs!"
Also Jon: Basically acts like an addict for a good recording fix
Ha.. future..
The image of elias in a fake mustache dropping a statement in the letterbox and running away like a kid on halloween sent me.
Also, OF COURSE the nightmare mannequin obligatory episode crosses my circus phobia. Wonderful job, lads. 🥰
I now want a comic and animation of this
''I COULD be on drugs!''
Same defense I always used with my parents whenever I did something naughty.
Mom: *mad cause I forgot to get the chicken out of the fridge*
Me: "atleast is not METH MOM"
Step 1: listen to this statement.
Step 2: stay away from shops
Step 3: go to bed
Step 4: spend 4 hours staring in terror at my jacket hanging in the corner of my bedroom
Step 5: insomnia
I sympathize XD I've taken to sleeping with the light from my phone's screen on lol
ah, yes
the cycle of binging tma
@@shadowfire8063 Step 6: Get Michael to come and visit.
@@bonniecornelius3836 god your sentence is my life for the past 4 days.
I just understood that why Jon like this job so much it's because he never feel like he read two time the same thing, and that's also in part why he was treating most of the story as fictional in season 1: beyond being a reassuring lie, he also was reading all this statement like a novel
The thing i like about this one is how much her being a little person doesn't factor into it at all and is merely mentioned at the end for clarity.
actually... not sure what u meant by that BUT there was that moment when she opened the door to the murder room and it was mentioned she couldn't reach the door's window
and i think her having dwarfism saved her in the end, the manequin didnt want her skin! good inclusivity and simultaneously a plot detail
There are so many hints, like when she mentions about doing the displays at the very beginning, that she can't reach for things. And the second time she talks about hating the gaggles of shoppers and their "pity".
I assumed she was in a wheelchair but I really like that they didn’t say it. It’s more realistic. Like, why would she clarify if the people she’s telling can clearly see her, you know?
Yea It makes sense to some of the points tho.
I was like what condition would name it hard to close up?
Fake pity? I presumed she was pretending to give pity but it wasn't worded that way
I just pressured it was a high window
Then at the end "oh yea that makes sense...anways my poor Jon are you ok my darling 😭"
Elias knows where he is, but it might be something more mysterious than that, like the statement simply showing up at Georgie's door without anyone actually delivering it. What's clear is that there's no escaping his fate; he *is* the Archivist and so he'll continue doing his job. The statements still find him and he can't bring himself to stop. He's being compelled by something bigger.
By the way, I instantly loved Georgie. You're good at making charming characters. Sh's a good person and exactly the kind of friend Jon needs with now.
head archivist for life, babey. wonder if that was in the contract
@@f_mva I believe it's "head archivist forever". Remember the undead figure in the buried Egyptian archive (or what was assumed by Gartude to be an archive)?
Who is Georgie? Like is she that person from that what's a ghost series? Think that she mentioned it. Or is she someone new?
@@davv6628 She is. She's also Jon's ex and pretty much his only friend. That's why he stayed at her home during the second season.
@@nanahuatli2144 ex?????
The only drug I'm on is KNOWLEDGE!!!!
YEAHHHH STAY IN SCHOOL KIDS 😎
It is SERIOUSLY ADDICTIVE!!!!!! I need HELP!!!!!!!!
*looks at the audience* "foreshadowing."
First time hearing Jon saying he cares about someone, curious to know who it is other than Georgie of course. Also nice to have Georgie around Jon really needs a friend right now.
@lila mansilla ahother hint; it ends with Blackwood
imagine gertrude, realizing that systematically disorganizing the archive could not prevent her assistants from dying. she and leitner were kindred spirits, of a sort, except leitner wasn't necessarily destined to die in the same way that she was. he reasoned that the archive is as dangerous and foolish as his library, although only for **some** of the same reasons. she agreed. together, they made a plan.
this is what I think happened with the information I have so far.
ooo I like your line of thinking! 💗
Now I wonder if the statements are basically very, very weak leitners if the seemingly disorganised shelving was to keep a balance
Spoilers
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Gertrude sacrificed her assistants systematically AFAIK. I have no sympathy for her. As did leitner by having them read his books.
here i was assuming jon just grabbed a couple of statements before fleeing from the police so he could keep recording them... i mean, he would though
Welp I'm listening to season 4 and this has aged... uh... interestingly
I was looking for a new job with as little human contact as possible. I came across a Librarian category, within it was Archivist--NOPE
Do it !!!!!
You refused a possible job because of a podcast? ^^
@@janelantestaverde2018 If I remember correctly it was also too distant and I'm not able to relocate
@@Gooberpotomous Ah, that sounds more reasonable :D Travel time to work and back home can take away so much time of the day. Might seem insignificant at first but it is quite relevant. Better to take something nearby or move closer, if possible.
Wouldn’t you like to have the Eye in your corner though?
As someone who has a fear of mannequins and puppets: this episode is not ok.
Were you ok later on?
I was terrified of mannequins as a kid and my dad would grab my wrist and make me touch them 🙃
20:46 What am I hearing. Jon, you admit to caring about somebody? Here it is, ladies, gents and other fabulous beings, the thing we've all both dreaded and yearned for: the Character Development (TM).
So it was Elias. Elias sent him the tape, right? That big fake b/tch is most likely the only person aside from Georgie herself, who knows where Jon is hiding.
What is his game though? Why does he - or the forces he's meddling with - need Jon? Whatever it is, I'm sure neither me, nor Jon himself will like it one bit.
Why did Elias tell Daisy to kill Jon immediately though? Because he is sure they won't find him? Bc even though he needs Jon, he can create another pawn for himself if push comes to shove? But what is the danger? Is he afraid (for a lack of better word) of what Jon might have heard from Leitner? But police can't stop him in a way that matters, so why?
This is intriguing.
Also: where is the 9th Doctor when you need him.
Magic omnipotent tape recorder powers? I hope so.
and more!
i saw a theory on tumblr that it's sasha's spirit trying to help out :') since you know, you can never *really* leave the institute
@@HyacinthoIgnis OR Gertrude's! :D
This episode shares the same universe as Doctor who's. And i really like that implication
I thought the same !
Wait what? Pls explain
@@namaschu9418 From what I remember episode 1 season 1 of Doctor Who featured an alien consciousness that wanted to invade Earth & took control over the mannequins so they would come alive and wreak havoc, basically. And the mannequins could also pose as a doppelganger for a real person!
@@sandrax221b omg yes, I remember
Time to call the doctor and tell them the autons are at it again.
I’m still catching up to this series and I’m listening to this video now. I’ve always been frustrated and even annoyed with Jon keeping his friends at arms reach, despite having understandable reasons. Clearly the ramifications of not trusting his crew bit him so hard in the ass that he realizes that he needs friends. However, clearly it’s too late and his obsessive behavior damaged most of his relationships (even with Martin).
I’m glad that he is finally doing his best to make his life better and having that change of heart from his colder and pragmatic attitude. Hopefully, his relationship with Georgie pans out well and that he and Martin get together because goddamnit, I want that to happen.
My theory from this episode and what we know so far:
Definitely the stranger entity. And it's also the same entity that is also in the circus episode. As I've said before, I believe that the entities are drawn to people that are either very afraid of the things that the entities represent or very fond of them. Like, for example, the loneliness entity is drawn to both people who love being alone and also people who are scared to be alone. In this episode, I think because of the resemblance of the mannequin and the whole window display to the circus episode, and maybe because of this witness's time and effort in drawing the mannequin which probably resulted in appreciation of the mannequin, I think the stranger entity was drawn to it and got "linked" to it, if that makes any sense. Like, it somehow possessed it.
The reason why it targeted Lana was probably because, this time, there were two people at the end of the shift. In the previous nights, only one person was present for closing, so when the stranger entity was calling for them, the ones working there were spooked because they were supposed to be the only ones there, which explains them being jumpy the next day. But, that night, there were two people, so the stranger entity called Lana in that storage room using some other victim's voice, and when she was killed, it started removing her skin and used her voice to call the witness there as well. Since the witness had already called the police, the stranger entity had to flee, leaving the corpse there. I'm assuming it left without killing the witness because there are some set rules about each entity, and for the stranger entity the rule is that only the ones who follow it in the dark are fair game for it. So, everyone who doesn't go to it, they cannot be killed by it at that moment.
As for John, I believe that Elias left this statement there. After all, he is a part of the eye entity, so he knows where John is, and since we've seen already a number of other entities being in war with the eye and John is also a part of the eye, I believe that if it was some other entity leaving that statement there, they wouldn't warn him through this statement but, instead, they would have just hunt Georgie or someone else he cares about, or maybe even John himself. That being said, I don't thing it was much of a warning, but more like the eye needs these statements to be read so, even though Elias said Daisy to kill John is she sees him, at the same time he needs John to keep recording the statements for the eye.
one of my favorite things about this Podcast is that it's Shakespirian in that you know that the person makes it alive because they need to make the account. and we are kinda getting this with John because we know that his tapes will reenter the Archive/Institute but we don't know *how* and that little bit of question and suspense.
we don't know if this gets cleaned up and he gets his job back, or if he gets killed/locked up and his tapes are taken back to the Institute as company property.
"I've got work to do" Winchester Style?
squeee 😊
me: wow they havent touched on mannequins yet. lucky me
this episode: hi
Why are half the recommended videos I got for this episode from churches in England. 😹 Does youtube think this show is some kind of British Cult🤣
Reminds me of the mannequin creature from Silent Hill: Revelations
Spoilers for the rest of season 3
omg did Nikola just notice that this random person had made a display similar to her vibe, and decide to go for it? Because that would be extremely on brand. They even made an outfit just for her! I love Nikola so much.
“What?? I could be on drugs!” 😂
Not the Dr. Who mannequins 💀
- puppet
- circus?
- unknown?
Yes
Marking off the list!
= nikola orsinov 👁👄👁
@@mxxnlight111 who? what episodes has she been in?
Holy shit I just realised WE'RE the eye
Boy was I not correct.
@@MarktheCrawler no, we are! spoilers
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though in universe we are not the eye, the meta narrative always justifies why we are able to listen to the statements and story as they are. its like three separate stories on top of each other, the statement, the overarching story, and the meta narrative with us, the audience
"We look around
And change our pose
We are showroom dummies
We are showroom dummies"
1:28 Georgie: (audible incredulous glance)
Little Archivist needs a snack!
Hmm… I wonder what happened during that small time skip after the Mannequin creature said “Shh”, since she proceeds to say “the next thing I remember”, signifying that she doesn’t know what happened after she heard it say that. But there is no mention of her saying she passed out or ran away etc. Which means she either isn’t mentioning something or this thing did something to her memory or just her in general, or I could just be looking too deep into something small XD. But regardless it was something I couldn’t help but notice…
Local Mannequin has finally had enough of being a display for clothes and accessories 🙌
Iis jon staying away from the archives because he thinks he's fired and the police or after them, or did elias *actually* fire him. Elias got daisy to cover up the murder last episode so I would think the police are off everyones tails now, so maybe he just isn't aware of that? elias didn't seem to want to lose jon before for whatever reason so i'd be surprised if he actually fired jon
Running away is different from being fired.
Tim mentioned that he doesn't think Elias _can_ fire Jon. Just like Jon couldn't fire Tim, and Tim can't quit.
im currently an art student looking for a part time job so this was uhm... something
This episode is brilliant
A vida do artista vivendo em sociedade moderna buscando o mínimo de felicidade é lindo
I already miss Jon saying: Supplemental!
no using a quill isnt inafiscent it has a lofi charm to it
The one dislike is from the mannequin.
SHEEEE'S HEEEERREE
2:52 Statement Begins
jon with a fat blunt...mmm..naw
FINALLY A STATEMENT WITH MY BIRTHDAY LETS GOOOOO not pleased its a stranger one but LETS GOOOOOOO
the fact that hes being chased by the police and still takes the time and effort to voice act his heart out makes me so happy lmao i love this man
Theater kids.
you do know it is not real?
If he's doing it willingly that is... with every episode I'm become more and more sure that this is more a a possession-like thing than a willing act...
didnt they say the archive was inhabtated by the eye?? my theory is that the eye somehow possesses The Archivist or something, this became cemented for me when elias read out daisy's statement in the exact same writing style as all of hte other statements.. and jsut seemed to know it
@@kiwifortnight you do know we're talking about the characters as they exist inside the podcast universe, right? why would you jump to the conclusion they think it's real lmao
Every time Jon doesn't say "head archivist" in the intro I die a little ;-;
oh same ;-;
it hurts ;~;
yepppp
He's just Jon ;-;
The papier maché lion makes me thinks of the "unfinished" tiger in the circus episode
That episode also talked about two tall men finishing each others sentences with a funny accent.
Not to mention the circus ring master and the off-white delivery van the two cockney delivery men from breecon and hope delivery
dont forget in the taxidermy episode there was a tiger taxidermized (if thats a word) in the front window
@@waitingwarrior4203 a tiger that almost looked like a lion!
And the shop display was circus themed!!
I'm half expecting Georgie to walk in on Jon hiding in a closet tying string between quotes from statements
🤣😹
Pepe Sylvia!
Help he’s literally just been through being nearly devoured by a horrific tsunami of worms, been nearly killed by a creature that replaced one of his friends, had his entire world view shattered by an old man that was the indirect cause of his childhood trauma, and been witness to the gruesome murder of said old man, but he’s still sitting in his friend’s flat recording more statements 😭😭😭
classic jon
Cope mechanisms are Not kicking in
the more episodes pass the more i get protective of jon. if something happens to him in the finale im going to cry;;
me too jon needs more love
then cry ouo
@@minimight4649 i finished s4 at this point but people sure love spoiling shit for 1st time watchers in tma comment sections huh
@@HyacinthoIgnis im also a first time listener.... i JUST started this podcast like two months ago but it's not that deep dude
@@minimight4649 even if it aint that deep, i expect people to have a little more common courtesy ro new listeners
I’d gotten into the habit of saying “audio recording my Jonathan sims, head archivist of the Magnus institute, London” along with him at the start of every episode and hearing the little pause and “former, head archivist” now just hurts ever so much more
I’m also used to saying it with him! It was silly, but I hate how this episode disrupted the usual intro :( I just hope Jon will be okay
John: someone from the institute has delivered me a statement, they know where I am. It could be a hint or a warning
Some hours before: Elias passing the door with a package "have to deliver statements to my archivist he needs his distractions otherwise he'll go crazy"
Elias really was like 'I know you're wanted to murder but do your fucking work'
I fully support Georgie
Mood
Genuinely, who is Georgie?
@@valdamirlebanon4508 It's been mentioned a couple times, one of them in Melanie's first statement, that Jon has a friend in Ghost Hunt UK's rival ghosthunting podcast, "What the Ghost?". I think Melanie brings her up again int he train episode, and now we finally get to know her.
@@nanahuatli2144 thank you! I've been trying to figure out who she is for a while. So thank you.
“I /could/ be a drugs!” He’s so offebded
georgie: "look i know you can get a little obsessive about stuff"
me: its called a hyperfixation ma'am
Guess Jon couldn't stay away from his guilty pleasure of voice acting while reading statements.
Jon really was offended that he would never be assumed to be on drugs
nobody talks about how sweet john and georgies interactions are sobs. they obviously have soft spots for eachother, georgie taking care of john despite how much of a mess he is and john not being his usual grumpy and annoyed self around her. platonic soulmates honestly !!
i totally and absolutely miss the "END SUPPLEMENT" T-T
Chloe before the Murder: so relatable.
Chloe after the Murder: 100% relatable.
[CLICK]
GEORGIE
Sure, I just - Why?
ARCHIVIST
I just do. It’s, it’s my job. I record them.
GEORGIE
The job you just lost.
ARCHIVIST
Uh… yes.
GEORGIE
That one you lost so badly it somehow cost you all your stuff?
ARCHIVIST
Well, it’s not quite that simple.
GEORGIE
Well, how am I to know?
ARCHIVIST
Look, Georgie, it’s not… You don’t need to worry. I mean, I’m not, I’m not on drugs or anything.
[GEORGIE LAUGHS DISBELIEVINGLY]
What?
…
I could be on drugs!
GEORGIE
Sure. I just… I know that you get obsessive about stuff, and this right here, I… I’m guessing someone dragged you into something weird, you got hooked in and then it all went wrong.
ARCHIVIST
I mean, that is almost exactly what happened.
GEORGIE
So what you need now is… distance.
ARCHIVIST
You’re right. You’re right. I just… I need to record it.
GEORGIE
No, you don’t. This [paper rustles] is not going to help. It’s part of the problem, isn’t it? Look me in the eyes and tell me that it’s not part of the cult or whatever the hell it was that left you homeless.
…
[Sigh] Come on. What’s it been, four days?
ARCHIVIST
Yeah.
[Softer] Yeah.
GEORGIE
It drops through the letter box and you spend four days… like this. It’s not - It isn’t right, John. You don’t sleep…
ARCHIVIST
I’ve been investigating.
GEORGIE
Hmm.
ARCHIVIST
Please, Georgie, I just need… I need to record it. That’s all. Then it’s done.
GEORGIE
…
Fine. Fine… But you have got to deal with whatever this is.
ARCHIVIST
I will. I, I promise.
GEORGIE
Okay. And just so you know: not keen on your weird stalkers knowing my address. Not keen on that.
ARCHIVIST
Right.
[DOOR CLOSES]
Right.
[CLEARS THROAT]
Statement of Chloe Ashburt, regarding a new window display at Fanton’s department store in Hammersmith. Original statement given 19th October 2013. Audio recording by Jonathan Sims, Hea -
Audio recording by Jonathan Sims.
Statement begins.
ARCHIVIST (STATEMENT)
Working in a large department store can be kind of strange. I’ve had jobs in a couple over the last few years, and talked to people who’ve worked in others, and they all seem to operate slightly differently.
Some treat every department almost as a separate business, with its own dedicated team, some move their workforce around regularly, so they don’t get too comfortable. A few operate almost entirely by leasing out spaces to specific companies, like the individual perfume or makeup counters, so you have an array of small, isolated teams on their little island of product.
I personally prefer the second sort, as it gives me an opportunity to work with a lot of different people and products, and I have a tendency to get… bored if everything gets too samey for too long.
So Fanton’s worked pretty well for me, at least at first. I mean, it’s not like customer service is my passion; the public is a moaning, dreadful bunch, but it was only a part-time job to put me through art school, and my colleagues were mostly a decent lot.
What I did enjoy, and what I tried to be involved in every time it came up, were the displays. I was mainly studying illustration, but I’d always had an interest in design more generally, so when the seasons turned and we changed up the displays in the windows and on the shop floor, I always made a point to try and be on the team helping to set them up. My line manager, Lana, knew this and generally let me do so.
I’m not sure I actually sped things up, to be honest. I’m a bit of perfectionist, and between posing and dressing the mannequins and setting up the props, I think I probably delayed the whole process more than a bit, but everyone was very patient with me as I directed them on how I thought they should assemble the bits I couldn’t easily reach.
I sometimes wonder whether, if I’d left this display alone, or even let Lana do it, things might have turned out differently, but in the end it is what it is, and I’m just going to have to live with it.
This was about a month ago, just as we were starting to put out the autumn displays. These are always my favourites because, aside from the obvious duffel coats and Hallowe’en stuff, the slightly more… unexpected or avant-garde displays tended to be up over the autumn.
The theme for this particular one was ‘Nights at the Circus’. There were acrobat mannequins in hoops, a rather well-made paper maché lion and the centrepiece: a mannequin set up like a ringmistress, dressed in some of the more theatrical clothes that Fanton’s was selling that season.
Topped with a bright red top hat and clutching a whip, it created rather a striking effect; I spent longer than I should have trying to get it absolutely perfect. When it was done, though, I knew it had been worth it. The shiny blank face stared out from below the vivid red, and the hand clutched the whip at such an angle it seemed as though the smooth plastic flesh might leap to life any second with a crack.
There was one other reason I quite enjoyed working at Fanton’s, and that was it gave me ample opportunity to practise my figure drawing. Because of my classes I tended to end up working the later shifts, and Lana would usually let me stay past closing time, where I would spend hours drawing and redrawing each static figure - the different poses and costumes and displays gave me fantastic practise. It was almost meditative. I’ll always be grateful to Lana for letting my do that - a lot of the higher-ups were kind of arseholes about it, hiding behind faux-concern that “my condition made closing up on my own potentially dangerous”, but Lana, to her credit, ignored them and we never had an issue. Well, not that sort of issue, at least.
So obviously, once the ‘Nights at the Circus’ display went up, I spent several evenings drawing and redrawing it, copying every curve of the almost featureless face, the line of the limbs, the poise of the feet, over and over until I got it right. So when I came in one day to find that the ringmistress mannequin had been replaced, I knew instantly. It was wearing the same clothes, certainly, and was posed the same way, but I could see the difference.
If I hadn’t known it in such detail, I never would have noticed. Certainly no-one else mentioned it, and when I asked Lana if there’d been a change, she just gave me a blank look. I was sure, though. The arms were just a little bit longer, the neck ever-so-slightly twisted,and the face, where before there had just been the faintest hint of a nose and a slight smile, was almost completely blank, save for a small patch of broken plastic near its forehead.
Sometime after I had left the previous night, someone must have snuck in, undressed and removed the mannequin already there, and put the clothes on this new one before replacing it in the exact same position. It didn’t make any sense.
I thought about trying to bring more attention to it, but nothing had been stolen, and the changes were so small that, even if I could convince them, what were they going to do about it? So I kept quiet. I was working in the soft furnishings department that week, and the mannequin was down in Womenswear, so I didn’t see it that much. Even so, any time I had an excuse to go past it, I made sure I did. There was something about this new one, something in the way it didn’t quite fit with all the other figures on display, the way it held the whip in cruel, sharp fingers. And the way its head never moved, but somehow I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was watching me right back.
Disconcerting as it was, there wasn’t really anything I could do about it, and after a few days I was starting to get used to the replacement. I had almost convinced myself I was overreacting, if not actually mistaken, when I was called in to Lana’s office, just as I got into work.
Her expression was stern, and she told me to close the door behind me when I came in. She asked me if I’d stayed late the night before, after closing time, and I told her yes I had. I started to talk about what I’d been drawing, but she held up her hand to stop me. She asked if I had done anything other than that, whether I had tried out “any other artistic pursuits”. I was confused and told her as much, and she asked me if I’d seen anyone else there last night and I said no I hadn’t. Then she asked if I’d messed with any of the displays and once again I said no.
She sighed, and I couldn’t tell whether it was in relief or exasperation, but she opened her desk drawer and retrieved some printouts. They were photos of one of the autumn displays. I had noticed on the way it, when I’d gone past that particular window, which had previously been showing off raincoats, I believe, it had been empty. In the picture, however, it was not.
The raincoat mannequin had, it seemed, been… disassembled, then rebuilt into a tangled bunch of limbs and joints. The torso was upside down and the two arms jutted out from the front and back of the pelvis, bending up to hold the mannequin’s head aloft. It had been dressed in an assortment of lurid red and purple shirts from our pyjama range, and someone had clearly stolen some paints from the craft department and daubed a colourful, smiling face on top of the blank space that had previously been there. They had finished it with a red pompom crudely glued onto the top of the head. The effect was alarming and put me in mind of a clown.
I looked up to see Lana’s eyes staring into me, acutely scrutinizing my reaction. The confusion and mild horror on my face seemed to put her a little bit at ease, but she was still a long way from relaxed. I told her it wasn’t me, that I had no idea who would have done it or why, that I definitely didn’t see or hear anything out of the ordinary, all the standard excuses. She nodded, though it was clear nothing I said was really helping the situation. Finally, I asked about CCTV, and she shook her head. There hadn’t been any focused on the vandalised display, and whoever had done it had clearly known enough about the camera placements to avoid them. Another reason, apparently, they suspected it was done by someone who worked there.
We went back and forth for about ten minutes, until at last she said she believed me, and wouldn’t pursue disciplinary action, but without any other credible explanation there was no way she could keep letting me stay behind alone. Not least because, technically, she shouldn’t even have been doing it in the first place. I was upset, of course, but I also realised I was getting off comparatively lightly, so I didn’t make a fuss.
The next couple of weeks were difficult. Drawing the displays in the shop had helped me centre myself, gave me some positive associations with the place. Without it, Fanton’s was just where I worked. And more importantly, somewhere I constantly had to deal with the public, all their rudeness and stupidity and fake pity. To be honest, I was finding it harder and harder to keep my patience.
There was something else, though. Without being able to rely on me to close up, Lana had assigned it on a rota to the others in our team. Nobody really wanted the job, and a few of them moaned to me privately, but they didn’t exactly have a say in the matter. But as the days went by I noticed that some of my colleagues were getting nervous, jumping at little noises and glancing over their shoulder. It always seemed to be the person who’d been closing up the night before. And through it all that ringmistress stood there, malicious and unmoving, brandishing her whip ready to strike.
Finally it happened. Last Wednesday, Lana couldn’t find anyone else to do the last shift, Jan had a doctor’s appointment, Liam had a family emergency… you get the idea. Lana was going to have to do it herself. I’d been working very hard over the days prior to get back in her good graces, and I managed to convince her to let me do the last shift with her, and stick around to do some drawing while she locked up, promising that I’d be out of the door as soon as she was. She reluctantly agreed.
So Wednesday rolled around, and the day went very much as normal, maybe a bit quieter than usual, but not so you’d notice. There was a slight… something in the air though, an anticipation. I thought at the time it was me, since I’d decided to use this opportunity to try and exorcise some of the feelings of unease and finally draw the mannequin that was making me so uncomfortable. But now I don’t think I had anything to do with it at all.
Everything was closed up, everyone else had left. It was just me and Lana. And she was making the final checks to lock up. I ran to the changing rooms and grabbed the small bag from my locker that contained my pencils, inks and paper, and then hurried back and over to the womenswear department. I couldn’t hear Lana anywhere, which is strange as she usually provided something of a running commentary, but I didn’t really notice.
Then I rounded the corner of one of the aisles and stopped dead: the mannequin was gone. The pedestal where the ‘Nights at the Circus’ display had stood was empty, save for a torn pile of paper maché and the headless figure of a plastic acrobat.
I stood there, my mouth hanging open, as I tried to figure out what was going on. Had Lana done this? Was this all some elaborate ploy to frame me for… something, vandalism? That didn’t make any sense. The store around me was still and silent, and it felt as if all I could do was wait for something to happen. And sure enough, after a minute or two, I heard Lana’s voice calling to me.
Except it didn’t sound quite right. There was a strangled, hoarse quality to it, like the words were being pushed out against her will. I was terrified of what I would see when I reached her, but my only other option was to run, and if she was in trouble, I’d never forgive myself. I pulled out my phone and pressed 999, my thumb hovering over the call button as I approached the storeroom where Lana’s voice was coming from. The door’s small window was too high, so I just had to push it open. It was so heavy against my shaking hands.
The room was dark on the other side. I reached up to turn on the lights, but the switch flipped uselessly back and forth. The light from the door illuminated a few boxes of leggings, but I couldn’t bring myself to go any further in. Just beyond the light from the door I could see a figure, tall and thin. It could have been Lana, but I wasn’t sure.
At least until it began to move. Its steps were jerky and stiff, arms snapping out and back as it moved towards me step by step. I felt my own limbs seize up at the sight, and my phone slipped uselessly from my hand. The faceless figure loomed over me, and when it bent down, the finger it placed upon my lips was cold, hard plastic.
“Shhhhh…” it said. Though it had no mouth to form the sound.
The next thing I remember is the police. I must have pressed dial before I dropped my phone. They found what was left of Lana further into the storeroom. I was questioned for a while, but much to the dismay of tabloid headlines everywhere, it became clear quite quickly that there was no way I could have done it. The CCTV showed me almost constantly during the period Lana would have been killed, and the only blood on me was a single, neat line across my lip.
Of course, that’s not to say the police believed my version of events either. They are currently working on the theory that a killer had been stalking the store for a while, and finally chose that night to strike, but they didn’t expect me to still be there, and fled when it was clear I’d called the police. But I know. I remember. Sometimes I wake up in the night, and I can taste the blood and plastic of that stiff and lifeless hand.
Statement ends.
ARCHIVIST
As I have discovered in the few days since this statement arrived, it is far harder to conduct a thorough investigation without the resources of the Institute or the… expertise of my assistants. I have located a few stories about the death of Lana Billings, found… strangled and partially skinned in the storage of Fanton’s department store, but the rather lurid newspaper coverage is as much as I could find, and it gives no further information of use.
Well, that’s not quite true. The Express illustrates their story with a picture of the service entrance to Fanton’s, the entrance the killer is assumed to have used to access the storeroom. I do not know whether this picture was taken before or after the crime, or whether it’s a stock photo, but I cannot help but notice, parked just at the edge, is an off-white delivery van. The resolution is not high enough to make out the name on the side, but I’m not sure I need to.
I’ve had little luck in tracking down Ms. Ashburt herself. I managed to find a legal transcript from 2011 regarding a wrongful dismissal case she brought against a previous employer, the firing she claimed as being motivated by her dwarfism, but none of the parties involved had any up-to-date information on her. Something of a dead end.
There are some connections here, though what they might mean I… I just don’t know. Circuses, skin, things just a few degrees off from human. The mannequin, I would assume, has some connection to this ‘Stranger’ being. The same one we’ve… had such problems with already.
Breekon and Hope… might also be connected to it. I recall they made a delivery to a taxidermy shop in a previous statement, I think, which brings us back to skin. Not to mention more than one witness has described them as… as uncanny, not quite seeming like real people. Until I am more certain of the identities of the other powers out there, I am going to assume Breekon and Hope are at least working with, if not part of, the Stranger.
Of course, the biggest mystery to this statement is who sent it to me. And why? There’s no return address and, something I’m glad Georgie didn’t spot, no postmark. Which means it was delivered by hand. Does someone from the Institute know where I am, or is it someone else?
And why this statement? It links in with a lot of what I’m already looking into, but if there are any revelations in it, I can’t find them. Or is it a warning? Emphasising that if I simply wait and see what happens, if I don’t act on what I know, then someone I care about may pay the price. If that’s the case, then I think… message received. Hiding won’t bring any answers, and it won’t stop whatever’s going on. I’m going to keep looking into where this statement came from, but it wasn’t sent in vain. [Sigh] I’ve got work to do.
Recording ends.
Thankies!:D
You're welcomies!
Petra Iván thank you bro (:
These stories are all so amazing! I'm actually much further along now, but I had to leave a comment on this one in particular because recently, I was walking to my unit in the building I've lived in for 7 years, and passed a door to a storage room that I'd never noticed because it was always locked. Only this time it was open, and just inside the door were two mannequins. It made me think immediately of this story, and how so much of the horror is from the ordinary taking a turn to the creepy when something is just... not quite right.
And I still don't know what those mannequins were doing in the storage room.
Anyway, fantastic story!
Time to call the Doctor and tell him the Autons are at it again.
Are you ok???
This is wholly unrelated, but I really do like how TMA includes queer and disabled characters. It's not much, but the fact that this story's protagonist is a little person (Something I'm sure most of us put together before Jon spelled it out, but we love TMA making sure they give us definitive representation)
How do you not have a bigger platform??? 😳😳😳
Same!
If Elias hadn't just intimated that he knew exactly where to drop statements for Jon to compulsively read for the Eye, I'd be FREAKED about this.
Jon (defensively):"What? I could be on drugs!"
poor mannequin just wanted a nice skin jacket
A trope didn’t realize I loved so much is when a character says “I have work to do” in one way or another, they always make it sound so badass somehow
should I dislike Elias because I don't XD
I want to and I should, but I can't
@@namaschu9418 he's just too good a character hahah
He’s like the middle point between Jon and Gertrude
That Mannequin skinned her? Jfc
You can take the archivist out of the archive, but not the archive out of the archivist!
Spoiler:
Assuming you finished the series....
You hit on the _entire_ plot of the series!
"What? I could be on drugs!" Lmao this got me so good. Really helped lighten the mood after binge watching the last several super dark episodes.
Unrelated: If I were a billionaire, I would hire some super team of mercenaries. Their mission would be to put a very big whale in the middle of a suburban street at night without anyone noticing and without leaving any trace. Technologies would probably have to be invented. But it would all be worth it.
Like...a dead whale?
@@amphibiland7315 Yes. Extremely hard thing to do. How to even get a whale corpse without leaving a trace? Maybe own a couple personal, private aquariums in relative secrecy?
I’m still catching up to this series and I’m listening to this video now.
I’ve always been frustrated and even annoyed with Jon keeping his friends at arms reach, despite having understandable reasons. Clearly it bit him so hard in the ass that he realizes that he needs friends. However, clearly it’s too late and his obsessive behavior damaged most of his relationships (even with Martin).
I’m glad that he is finally doing his best to make his life better and having that change of heart from his colder and pragmatic attitude.
I was listening to this episode as I was doing a figure/gesture drawing class and I don’t know just thought it was a cool coincidence
I was doodling some weird creepy monster things I'm my sketch book, as I have for the entire time of listening to this podcast XD
I really relate to Chloe obsession for the displaying ! Of course you have to pay attention to every detail for it to be perfect o/
Let‘s not forget about the two guys who dragged Yuri away from the not-so-natural lion at the circus
Elias just taking care of his precious archivist... *wheeze*
Now, Jon is starting to resemble Gertrude's intros
i don’t remember who the stranger is
The entity that the Not!s are apart of.
@@DrMDHyde i think you may of missed a joke
The "shhhhhhh* is creepy and amazing
Mannequin't believe she died....
i feel like elias sent the statement. he wants to keep jon/is hoping jon will return and he seems to know where jon is at all times, or at least have access to his head enough to have picked up on lightner being in the institute
CRY KAUGHING AT JON BEING OFFENDED AT THE IDEA THAT PEOPLE DONT THINK HES THE TYOE OF PERSON TOBBE ON DRUGS
I HATE mannequins. I HATE them. Why is this one of the only statements that really got to me, you may ask?? Well, the answer is simple, my friend. Mannequins are creepy as SHIT. TMA really doesn’t freak me out all that bad. The episodes with the worms and bugs bothered me because that kind of crap hits a deep nerve. But mannequins???? Oh H E L L NAH...
Jon needs therapy :( We need therapy too.
K so while I agree with Jon that the taxidermy is prolly related to the Stranger (and maybe the Anglerfish as a whole?), I wouldn't say skin is the factor. For example, I think Mary Keay's book and whatever is going on with John Haan are connected, as well as the meat monster from "The Man Upstairs" and the entity responsible for the trash bags. Mary Keay was supposedly killed and partially skinned, yet we see her alive, full skin. The cuts from Haan's knife were as if they'd never happened, actually duplicating the severed fingers. This phenomenon explains Mary's skin, the bag of identical teeth, and the mystery of where Toby Carlisle kept getting all of his meat. I don't know exactly how Tom Haan fits into it, but definitely somewhere
Also if Breekon and Hope are allied with the stranger, what's the deal with the coffin? It seems unrelated.
@@ryanmoran8787 breekon and hope are just delivery men. The coffin is from the to close i cannot breath
Leitner did say that bones alone isnt its own thing and instead you should think if its about death, the physical meatiness or something else. I assume same goes for skin
Gods this is getting so good I literally can't stop listening to it
Yes, they've finally got my second fear. The two things I feel uneasy about are the ocean and mannequins...
Chloe being and artsy perfectionist is so relatable, she's basically me
Jon may not be on drugs, but he's acting like a junkie here.
I have this strange feeling that Elias wants to mentor Jon in the ways of the Unknowing, but I'm not sure about that yet. Just a thought
"Time to fly the nest"
Elias is 100%... perhaps not mentoring but pushing forward Jon on their lovecraftian path
Oh hey I'm an illustration student listening to this while I work on stuff 😂