This is actually *VERY* interesting. *Nothing* hurts cats. A hundred statements now and not a *single* one mentions a cat being hurt by the monsters. The only cat ownership mentioned is Major Tom who was brought in after the spiders first started with that dude. In Lovecraft's spoke of cats: "The cat is cryptic, and close to things which men cannot see" "Cats embody this attraction, while never pursuing horror to the point of becoming horrible themselves"
That character reveal was genius. The inclusion of the laugh in such a genuine, sweet way was such wonderful storytelling- pricking your ears enough to tell that you remember but not enough to be sure. Also could jon have one day where he's not beaten please
If anything it's about the consequences of frontier ethics? The whole dust bowl thing could have been easily avoided if farmers in the area didn't heavily exploit their land
can we talk for a second how absolutely heart wrenching hearing... real Michael's voice is? his laugh sounds so sweet and knowing what it had become now im in near tears
its sad because even though in this context hes innocent and sweet, the laugh still creeps me out because i associate it with.. the other version of him
I felt like I knew the voice and then I paused it and said : MICHAEL ?! Then gertrude said Michael and I was like, "Yeah, no shit, the bastard was human"
As disturbed as I am by what happened to Jon, I'm delighted (and kinda worried?) that it seems to be an unspoken tradition among archivists to hire the absolute dorkiest and most lovable assistants they manage to find.
I mean if you're going to become super UN-human, I'd imagine it might be nice to have someone very human around! And obviously jon didnt know he'd become inhuman before he took the job, but maybe the eye influences the next archivists choice to help w/ that! Or maybe I'm looking to deep into something light and fun, who knows tbh
It's a fun narrative trick, if you start out with a very sweet/excitable/happy character it makes their end/trauma/bitterness later that much more tragic
@@chancealbright6906 i always figured based on his love of spiders, if anyone claimed martin, other then the eye, it would be whatever the web/spider was
...I've seen ppl mention it do much, and this is the first time I've realized I've actually read that manga, holy dusty carcass of what used to be a cow.
@@brandonpeters9155 This is the worst thing anyone unspoiled could possibly see I hope you know that. the emotional whiplash in these words is beyond anything the series itself could hope to provide
@@jellifygirl Dude I watched that episode and just guessed. They seemed like simmilar characters from a writing perspective and frankly i didnt expect to be right (if i am? I stopped watching shortly after this. I felt like i knew too much. The wonder and fear was gone with a better understanding of what ws going on and i just wandered back to the SCP community.)
@@brandonpeters9155 Not reading this comment in case its an actual spoiler (I am a weak man) but just in case u are mad at me I wanna clarify the OG comment was a joke
This episode is SO packed. We got murdrerus storms, headass georgi, kidnapped john and my absloute favourite MICHAEL He laughs at 16:00 you are welcome
I need to stop reading these comments before listening. Whats gonna happen to John this time? Post note: Oh dear. Thats a mighty stange van ya got there
Look if you decide to dedicate your professional life to researching monsters and supernatural shit that may or may not exist you're not allowed to be THAT surprised when it turns out to be real and the people who dont work here we've met have already experienced the supernatural in some way, or also dedicated their lives to it in different ways ( like melanie who, before getting hired, ran a channel actively looking for ghosts)
OMG MICHAEL WHAT?!?!?! Is it the one we know now? I mean the same Michael who then became a monster or a NotMichael??? I honestly thought he sounded like a younger Jon but a lot more cheerful and awkward lol. OMG NO THEY KIDNAPPED MY BOY
No, I really, really, don't think he's "Not!Michael". Gertrude speculated the "not"-people were "an aspect of the Stranger". Michael is a part of the Spiral. Different faction. Plus, his voice stayed the same, and we've kind of established that the "not"-people don't try to replicate the appearance or voice of the original, and instead alter the evidence of their existence, and that this trick doesn't work on tapes. So, basically: same voice on tape = same Michael. It's way more likely, in my opinion that he became an "avatar" for the Spiral, sort of like Jon is slowly turning into the avatar for the Beholding.
ah dammit. I feel like Jon definitely heard a bit of Martin in Michael too, and Jesus, he does has cause enough to worry about everyone around him, and I'm sure Id have the same mindset as him in a situation way less extreme than his. Still, Georgie is right. Fearless angel on his shoulder
Michael sounded so awkward and dorky, makes me want to protecc but I know what he became ☹. I also don't like that OG Micheal reminded me a lot of Martin
Fucking hell I was so happy that someone FINALLY told John that staying alone was only going to make him worst and that they were all in the same boat, he could still talk to people, and these two cartoon clichés came here and took him WHY Will he ever be able to be in ONE episode WITHOUT getting punched/stabbed/burned/chocked by SOMEONE/SOMETHING
2 things 1. One, Gertrude's sudden voice change when she had to talk with her assistant, Michael. ... I think, her being chosen by the Ceaseless Watcher, made her somehow live longer? ... She really sounded very old when she replied to Michael... or... is it a fake voice? If so, why? 2. The Hunt, The Spiral, The Buried, new "factions", but are connected to the past episodes. ... The Hunt: MAG010 Vampire Killer, MAG031 First Hunt, MAG056 Children of the Night, etc. ... The Buried... Is this related to immortality? The "nameless" egyptian mummy from MAG064 Burial Rites? "Promising us that when the sky fell and became an eternity of mud, he would carve out a place for us in the heart of the forever buried. He would show us… the love of ‘Choke’." errr... So we have... The Stranger = Uncanny features The Buried = Immortality? The Hunt = Murderous intent? The Eye = Knowledge seeking? The Spiral = Insanity? Fractal sign stuff? The Desolation = Inflicting agony? The End = Hrrrrr. Can't recall when I first heard it.
i think the buried is first and foremost about earth and crushing/getting crushed - we had that guy near thames dig in too dip and get himself buried alive when the earth collapsed on him, we had the night train where the carts got progressively more and more pressured by the earth and now we had people whose lungs got buried by the dust storms. the mummy from burial rites could be the same kind of creature as the "reapers" from the episode where the guy cheated his way out of death while playing with one, if the person the mummy used to be got discovered as immortal after conning someone else into winning (the dice in the corner) it could be that it got buried alive in that pyramid by the people who noticed, there was even a line alluding to that at the end of the statement. the end from what i realized seems to be tied with "death" - mary keay says she serves it when talking to gertrude and we get scenes of her enjoying supernatural killing and the animal bones books, i also think she was the dead woman from georgie's statement (shaved head, ambulance, her son killed her and was on the run for it so i suppose she *was* dead for some amount of time).
One of the things that's interesting, looking back from after the end of season5, is seeing peoples theories of which factions where which + how they related to one another. :-) (Not gonna spoil it for those who are listening for the first time though.)
What literally scared me the most In this statement was the interaction between Gertrude and Michael: We have a sweet cinnamon role of an assistant trying to be helpful and being there for her while she acts thankfull but reserved at the same time, probably trying to keep him on distances. Somehow this relationship remembers me off another portrait relationship in the podcast.... can someone check on martin?
Like seriously? Like do the monsters coordinate this shit like...... Fuck know I'm just imagining the different monsters ACTUALLY coming up for a schedule w/ it like 'Ok Jane, what day do you think you can fit in you whole worm shebang? We need you as first act and well go after that.' 'Hmmmmm, I think I'm free friday, I can do it then?' 'Great!! Micheal when are you free, you're gonna kidnap a lady in front of him as the following act!!' 'I'm free whenever' 'Just do it sometime soon after Jane's whole thing then!'
Poor Michael! with the amount of foreshadowing with the whole “the assistances will always end up having an awful fate” thing, and with what happened to Sasha, I really REALLY hope nothing happens to others! even though I know it’s unlikely
Considering the parallels between Gertrude and her 3 assistants, and Jon with his (especially now we know one of each was changed or replaced by a creature),, I'm feeling very worried for Tim and Martin D:
Jeez i feel bad for jon, i mean, the guy had to deal with prentiss, his paranoia, getting stabbed by michael, discover that the real sasha is gone but is unable to tell anyone, get accused of murder, get strangled, get his hand burned by a murderous cultist, whatever michael kruws vertigo bs was, got threatened by a mannequin and now hes gotten kidnapped (i think)
Don’t forget Daisy cutting his throat (non-fatally) after the whole Michael Crew thing, and of course Mr Spider during his childhood. Jon needs a break. And a good hug. 😔
hm...first time listener here, theorizing in the comments. Jon seems to believe that the thing that calls itself Michael is some being that never was human, and just took the form and name of one of Gertrude's assistants for the purpose of, for lack of better word, fuckery. However, I'd have to guess that it is in fact that Michael and not just a creature taking his name and form (or well, a distorted version of his form), or at least it once was that Michael. My current theory on how the various people that become avatars work is that they each seem to have different degrees to which they keep their human identity, and i think that this has to do with at least three things - 1. the person themself, how willing they are to become a monster, 2. the entity they serve, and 3. how far along in their "transformation" into an avatar they are, how developed their powers are, etc. so carrying on into my current theory about Michael, i believe that he was once the human Michael that worked for Gertrude, but i believe he lost all humanity he had and became the "it" that he is now due to the entity he serves. i mean he serves the Spiral, right? and that's the one that pertains to madness, being unable to trust your own senses, right? makes sense to me that that entity would be the one to fully strip the person that it makes its avatar of any identity they ever had, making them into an "it". edit now that i've gone a few episodes further: well i was very wrong.
technically the first statement to do that is the first vampire killer statement, he refers to "enjoying the hunt" but i dont know if jonny intentionally used that wording to refer to the entity or was it just supposed to be a phrase
First-time listener here I'm not sure if I want to hear more of pre-Distortion Micheal. On one hand, he's sweet, and I like him a lot; on the other, I'm gonna be even more sad knowing what he'd become Edit: welp, now I know, and I'm devastated
@Pariah502 you're in for a ride, my friend :') There are two characters in tma whose stories made me want to revenge them because what happened to them wasn't fair. One of them is Michael Shelley. Another one's story you're gonna learn in MAG 193. That's not to say I don't feel bad for everyone else, but these two are the most tragic for me :(
the magnus archives gives a feeling of exhaustion, finally laying down for sleep in your bed, but you didnt do your routine. you just came home, laid down and went to sleep. that sort of exhaustion of that hits you, but not fully since you have more to do. more that you know that you should do. but you dont.
soooo much happened in this episode i love it i REALLY want to know what happened to michael i mean he was clearly gertrude's assistant and then got turned into an avatar somehow but i want to know HOW hes so cool honestly i love that someone finally tells jon to talk to his friends, i mean hes already doing much better than last season maybe he can finally talk to people about things? would be nice lol the recorder really records in very fortunate moments huh
I wonder if Michael’s tolerance/helpful hints given to the archives so far is because he had worked there, and some part of him still feels a connection. I wonder why he fell to the stranger and not the eye
The talk about dust pneumonia and the dust bowl is so sad. You read about tragedies like that in history class, but it takes a good description like that to actually understand the tragedy
My theory from this episode and what we know so far: So, each entity is trying to do a ritual. And also the entities sometimes try to sabotage the other entities from doing their own ritual, so that they can do theirs first. Until now, Gertrude seems to be trying to stop the rituals of other entities, though I'm not sure yet if she does that because she's part of the Eye or for her own personal reasons. There is, indeed, an entity about buried alive, dirt etc and it's called Buried. Gertrude also mentions another entity who's name we haven't known until now, the Hunt. Now, we most likely heard about the Hunt in episodes like the one with the werewolf. I believe that also creatures with lots of teeth and limbs of razors and such are also very likely associated with the Hunt. I don't know what the "u.s." that Gertrude mentioned about the Hunt means. So, Michael, the now avatar of the spiral, used to be, not only a human, as I suspected lots of episodes ago, but he was also an assistant of Gertrude. He seems to not speak clearly, like he stutters, but we know that Michael as the avatar doesn't do that (or at least I don't remember such thing). Gertrude mentions a name that I don't recognize, though it could be just because my memory isn't the greatest. But, from what Gertrude says about him, I'm guessing that he's most likely someone either linked with/an avatar of the Vast or someone why survived the Vast (or the Loneliness instead of the Vast). As for what happened to John, seems like Nikola changed her mind quite some fast.. Next episode is the 100th of this series, so I'm expecting it to be a very interesting one.
She meant US as in the USA; she was saying that she suspected but wasn't totally convinced that the Hunt's ritual was going to happen in the US, but that either way it wasn't as pressing as the Buried's ritual
Bit late to comment, I'm late to the podcast. She mentioned Jan Kilbright, who was one of the astronauts from the Space Station comment? The author mentioned who funded the project and I think he listed the Lucas family (who is shady af but I can't put them right now) but also the Fairchild organisation? And that's connected to the sky and The Vast?
jon saying he'll be alright on his own then instantly getting kidnapped by evil clowns is the best summary of his character tbh
He's the embodiment of the "to be continued" meme
@@camiart_casual Jonathan Joesims
@@heresthadude1080 it's funny but stop
His life is a painful joke
And you had one of the best comments in this series hahahaha THIS
"If anything happened to you-or god forbid- the admiral..."
Nice to see he has his priorities in place
I was just about to comment on that!! Cats take priority
@@pianos4095 yep
Death has very strong opinions about those who harm cats.
This is actually *VERY* interesting.
*Nothing* hurts cats.
A hundred statements now and not a *single* one mentions a cat being hurt by the monsters.
The only cat ownership mentioned is Major Tom who was brought in after the spiders first started with that dude.
In Lovecraft's spoke of cats:
"The cat is cryptic, and close to things which men cannot see"
"Cats embody this attraction, while never pursuing horror to the point of becoming horrible themselves"
@@ishner hail bastet for that lmao
That character reveal was genius. The inclusion of the laugh in such a genuine, sweet way was such wonderful storytelling- pricking your ears enough to tell that you remember but not enough to be sure.
Also could jon have one day where he's not beaten please
Bruh. This episode wasn't about The Buried or The Spiral, it's about The Sad
The Big Sad
Bro it's hardly supernatural man's just lives in the south
If anything it's about the consequences of frontier ethics? The whole dust bowl thing could have been easily avoided if farmers in the area didn't heavily exploit their land
A new entity: The **intense sobbing**
I know right? This man can't have nothing smh. Poor Jon. Poor Micheal 😢
John: I should move out, I’ll be fine, I just don’t want to put you or the Admiral in danger 😔
Also John: *immediately gets kidnapped*
_"I had to change all the lightbulbs"_ Georgie clearly has her priorities in check
That makes me laugh so hard
Jon: WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU??
Georgie: Jon did you call me? :D
I honestly love this part 😂
can we talk for a second how absolutely heart wrenching hearing... real Michael's voice is? his laugh sounds so sweet and knowing what it had become now im in near tears
its sad because even though in this context hes innocent and sweet, the laugh still creeps me out because i associate it with.. the other version of him
Yup
He sounds like Martin... :((
@@raebaer8580 OH GOSH.... NONO NO NO... JUST NOT OUR SWEET BOI MARTIN
I LOVE HIM..
man they just can’t let jon relax for one second
James To be fair, he’s the kind of person who’s more relaxed when he’s tense. A moment of true comfort might make him lose molecular cohesion.
Yeah😞
"if something happened to you, or god forbid *the admiral* "
HES TALKING ABOUT THE CAT
Priorities.
I would do the same
😂
He’s a cat person confirmed
LMFAO
16:27
okay so i heard the laugh and i was like “wait i recognise that”
and then she said michael
what h a p p e n e d to him
Probably something similar to what happened to Jane Prentiss.
i listened to the entire interaction and then i paused it and then i was like..... oh.. OH !!!! OH HOLY SHIT.
I felt like I knew the voice and then I paused it and said : MICHAEL ?!
Then gertrude said Michael and I was like, "Yeah, no shit, the bastard was human"
Holy shit!
*Evil laughter*
At a time, they who are called avatars were all once called human.
As disturbed as I am by what happened to Jon, I'm delighted (and kinda worried?) that it seems to be an unspoken tradition among archivists to hire the absolute dorkiest and most lovable assistants they manage to find.
I mean if you're going to become super UN-human, I'd imagine it might be nice to have someone very human around! And obviously jon didnt know he'd become inhuman before he took the job, but maybe the eye influences the next archivists choice to help w/ that! Or maybe I'm looking to deep into something light and fun, who knows tbh
that is honestly so pure though, canon or not
@@pianos4095 Doesn't seem like that worked out too well for Gertrude, seeing Michael's state now.
It's a fun narrative trick, if you start out with a very sweet/excitable/happy character it makes their end/trauma/bitterness later that much more tragic
Nice guys get picked first, but at what cost.
Michael reminds me of Martin
Martin better not turn out the same way Michael did >:c
Yeah!! (Though honestly I do wonder what a micheal like martin would be like)
That would be really cool to get Michael and Martin to have a real conversation other than "Should I or should I not kill you?"
spiral! Martin is a great au
@@chancealbright6906 i always figured based on his love of spiders, if anyone claimed martin, other then the eye, it would be whatever the web/spider was
@@aquagirl555 oh god I hadn't thought of that
i am in love with michael's laugh. also, give jon a break already.
gertrude: "spiral"
me: *cries in junji ito*
According to Jon, Uzumaki was an influence for certain aspects of the podcast
@@waylonsmith1832 that makes so much sense
Lol the “spiral” triggered me so much 😂
...I've seen ppl mention it do much, and this is the first time I've realized I've actually read that manga, holy dusty carcass of what used to be a cow.
As soon as I heard the spiral was an entity , Uzumaki was the first thing I thought about, and it makes a lot of sense it’s was an inspiration
I love how once we heard Micheal laugh we immediately knew
Huh
@@KAY-zu2jjthe laugh of gurturdes asiatent is the same as the distorded Michael that stabed Jon
Honestly I didn’t until I read the comments 😅
We know Gertrude had three assistants, all of whom met bad ends. Now we know what happened to one of them.
We dont know what happened, just the result of what happened
Pre-everything Michael is so cute... Such a shame this is a horror show and a tragedy.
Martin of yester year.
@@brandonpeters9155 dear God please don't be foreshadowing, I'm BEGGING you.
@@brandonpeters9155 This is the worst thing anyone unspoiled could possibly see I hope you know that. the emotional whiplash in these words is beyond anything the series itself could hope to provide
@@jellifygirl Dude I watched that episode and just guessed. They seemed like simmilar characters from a writing perspective and frankly i didnt expect to be right (if i am? I stopped watching shortly after this. I felt like i knew too much. The wonder and fear was gone with a better understanding of what ws going on and i just wandered back to the SCP community.)
@@brandonpeters9155 Not reading this comment in case its an actual spoiler (I am a weak man) but just in case u are mad at me I wanna clarify the OG comment was a joke
Drinking game: Take a shot everytime something bad happens to Jon
You want alcohol poisoning? Because that's how you get alcohol poisoning.
2 episodes later: *in a coma*
Feels a little symbolic that this is at 81 likes, considering how bad for Jon ep. 81 is
So just…chug?
How to get plastered in redord time: this
Assistant: walks in Me: ok cool
Assistant: laughs Me: ok cool
Assistant: does the little "aah" after he laughs
Me: WAIT A MINUTE MICHAEL WHAT
This episode is SO packed. We got murdrerus storms, headass georgi, kidnapped john and my absloute favourite MICHAEL
He laughs at 16:00 you are welcome
Bless
Thanks
I need to stop reading these comments before listening. Whats gonna happen to John this time? Post note: Oh dear. Thats a mighty stange van ya got there
Same problem XD
what is it about spoilers that you like ?
same though 😭😭
i keep getting spoiled and it’s no one’s fault but mine
I am honestly surprised at how well everyone besides the original employees of the Institute are taking the existence of monsters
Look if you decide to dedicate your professional life to researching monsters and supernatural shit that may or may not exist you're not allowed to be THAT surprised when it turns out to be real and the people who dont work here we've met have already experienced the supernatural in some way, or also dedicated their lives to it in different ways ( like melanie who, before getting hired, ran a channel actively looking for ghosts)
OMG MICHAEL WHAT?!?!?! Is it the one we know now? I mean the same Michael who then became a monster or a NotMichael??? I honestly thought he sounded like a younger Jon but a lot more cheerful and awkward lol.
OMG NO THEY KIDNAPPED MY BOY
I dont think he is a not Michel
No, I really, really, don't think he's "Not!Michael". Gertrude speculated the "not"-people were "an aspect of the Stranger". Michael is a part of the Spiral. Different faction. Plus, his voice stayed the same, and we've kind of established that the "not"-people don't try to replicate the appearance or voice of the original, and instead alter the evidence of their existence, and that this trick doesn't work on tapes. So, basically: same voice on tape = same Michael.
It's way more likely, in my opinion that he became an "avatar" for the Spiral, sort of like Jon is slowly turning into the avatar for the Beholding.
He kinda sounded like Martin and now I'm worried 🥺
I thought it was a young Jon too until he laughed… then she called him Michael and my heart ached a little 😢
NOT THE ADMIRAL, ANYONE BUT THE ADMIRAL
Spoilers but this is for anyone worried about the Admiral
The admiral survives to the end, and he's happy and safe.
I guess another one bite the dust
Yes. Just yes.
Duh duh duh duuh another one bites the dust
oh my god
ah dammit. I feel like Jon definitely heard a bit of Martin in Michael too, and Jesus, he does has cause enough to worry about everyone around him, and I'm sure Id have the same mindset as him in a situation way less extreme than his. Still, Georgie is right. Fearless angel on his shoulder
Awwww Michael! Human Michael seems so sweet!!
Yea :)
"don't be a stranger" had me crying and laughing at the same time
old michael sounds like a mix of tim (before the shitshows) and martin
(and oh my god I love his laugh so much)
I know you commented this a year ago, but I have to say YES I absolutely agree
@@breadstick8623And I know you commented this a year ago but I also def have to agree
@@cupcaketv5673i know you commented this six months ago but i have to tell you i admire your courage to leave a new comment among all these old ones
@@B_Bunny_ Haha, is it so courageous?
@@cupcaketv5673 jokes, jokes. Just finally saw a more recent comment
As soon as I heard Michael's voice, I just started bawling.
every time Gertrude pronounces Boise as "boys" I take psychic damage
Mood
Boys city
my thoughts exactly haha i physically tightened each time
This is our revenge after the "calliope" thing
SHE WAS SAYING BOISE???
jon: ill be alright on my own *steps outside the door and immediately gets kidnapped*
Michael sounded so awkward and dorky, makes me want to protecc but I know what he became ☹. I also don't like that OG Micheal reminded me a lot of Martin
take a shot every time jon lets out a deep sigh
Take a shot every time someone says never.
Take a shot every time Jon is in pain
Well, you guys just want to end up badly wasted
Ouch, my liver.
Fucking hell I was so happy that someone FINALLY told John that staying alone was only going to make him worst and that they were all in the same boat, he could still talk to people, and these two cartoon clichés came here and took him WHY
Will he ever be able to be in ONE episode WITHOUT getting punched/stabbed/burned/chocked by SOMEONE/SOMETHING
I need more pre distortion Michael... but I also need more Michael in general honestly
2 things
1. One, Gertrude's sudden voice change when she had to talk with her assistant, Michael.
... I think, her being chosen by the Ceaseless Watcher, made her somehow live longer?
... She really sounded very old when she replied to Michael... or... is it a fake voice? If so, why?
2. The Hunt, The Spiral, The Buried, new "factions", but are connected to the past episodes.
... The Hunt: MAG010 Vampire Killer, MAG031 First Hunt, MAG056 Children of the Night, etc.
... The Buried... Is this related to immortality? The "nameless" egyptian mummy from MAG064 Burial Rites?
"Promising us that when the sky fell and became an eternity of mud, he would carve out a place for us in the heart of the forever buried. He would show us… the love of ‘Choke’."
errr...
So we have...
The Stranger = Uncanny features
The Buried = Immortality?
The Hunt = Murderous intent?
The Eye = Knowledge seeking?
The Spiral = Insanity? Fractal sign stuff?
The Desolation = Inflicting agony?
The End = Hrrrrr. Can't recall when I first heard it.
i think the buried is first and foremost about earth and crushing/getting crushed - we had that guy near thames dig in too dip and get himself buried alive when the earth collapsed on him, we had the night train where the carts got progressively more and more pressured by the earth and now we had people whose lungs got buried by the dust storms.
the mummy from burial rites could be the same kind of creature as the "reapers" from the episode where the guy cheated his way out of death while playing with one, if the person the mummy used to be got discovered as immortal after conning someone else into winning (the dice in the corner) it could be that it got buried alive in that pyramid by the people who noticed, there was even a line alluding to that at the end of the statement.
the end from what i realized seems to be tied with "death" - mary keay says she serves it when talking to gertrude and we get scenes of her enjoying supernatural killing and the animal bones books, i also think she was the dead woman from georgie's statement (shaved head, ambulance, her son killed her and was on the run for it so i suppose she *was* dead for some amount of time).
Oh, she's totally pretending to be weaker than she actually is. Gertrude was made of moxie
One of the things that's interesting, looking back from after the end of season5, is seeing peoples theories of which factions where which + how they related to one another. :-)
(Not gonna spoil it for those who are listening for the first time though.)
the end is death i think
Now we don't have time to unpack all of that
I nearly choked when I heard her say “Micheal”.
at this point whenever i hear certain names i just go !!! like that meme of leo dicaprio pointing
What literally scared me the most In this statement was the interaction between Gertrude and Michael:
We have a sweet cinnamon role of an assistant trying to be helpful and being there for her while she acts thankfull but reserved at the same time, probably trying to keep him on distances.
Somehow this relationship remembers me off another portrait relationship in the podcast.... can someone check on martin?
LMAO THEY CANT GIVE JON A BREAK CAN THEY
Like seriously? Like do the monsters coordinate this shit like......
Fuck know I'm just imagining the different monsters ACTUALLY coming up for a schedule w/ it like
'Ok Jane, what day do you think you can fit in you whole worm shebang? We need you as first act and well go after that.'
'Hmmmmm, I think I'm free friday, I can do it then?'
'Great!! Micheal when are you free, you're gonna kidnap a lady in front of him as the following act!!'
'I'm free whenever'
'Just do it sometime soon after Jane's whole thing then!'
@@pianos4095 holy shit that's actually hilarious, thank you
"I had to change all my lightbulbs!"
Georgie is a treasure.
Gertrude: describes a new entity that buries people alive, reveals Michael was her assistant
Me: ⭐️✨BOYS CITY✨⭐️
(it's pronounced boy-see/ boy-zee)
no, the Boise in Boise City, OK actually is pronounced Boys
it's weird
jon never asked for any of this can someone just give him a Hug
Martin is trying his best to do just that
Aww original Michael sounds like a very pleasant fellow. I can't wait to hear how this plays out
Poor Michael! with the amount of foreshadowing with the whole “the assistances will always end up having an awful fate” thing, and with what happened to Sasha, I really REALLY hope nothing happens to others! even though I know it’s unlikely
Jon's been Jonnapped!!!
People who kidnap Jons without a h in their name
Bro. A lot of stuff. Here. But. The astronaut??? From before??? She knew about that???
Jon, minutes away from being kidnapped : I think things might be getting better :)
MICHAEL!! I thought I recognised that laugh!!!
the scariest part of this episode is the description of dust pneumonia tbh. big yikes
also: YES georgie, QUEEN! come thru!!!
All that because of *dust storms in Oklahoma.* I hope this finally convinces people of how monstrously stupid the idea of going to _Mars_ really is.
*inhale*
John, next time somebody comes up to you asking "Are you Johnithan Sims" d o n t s a y y e s
You know that certain people want you dead!!!
I didn't know it was possible to love Michael even more
Considering the parallels between Gertrude and her 3 assistants, and Jon with his (especially now we know one of each was changed or replaced by a creature),, I'm feeling very worried for Tim and Martin D:
"A horrible mannequin thing turned up. I had to change all my light bulbs."
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MY BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!
I really need to stop reading the comments before the episodes. Whats gonna happen to Jon this time?
Me constantly during this series, Jon just gets more and more shit to deal with as it goes on
Oh no I love how original Michaels laugh sounds qwq
Jeez i feel bad for jon, i mean, the guy had to deal with prentiss, his paranoia, getting stabbed by michael, discover that the real sasha is gone but is unable to tell anyone, get accused of murder, get strangled, get his hand burned by a murderous cultist, whatever michael kruws vertigo bs was, got threatened by a mannequin and now hes gotten kidnapped (i think)
Don’t forget Daisy cutting his throat (non-fatally) after the whole Michael Crew thing, and of course Mr Spider during his childhood.
Jon needs a break. And a good hug. 😔
im drawing jon as i listen to the episodes and i keep having to add new scars/injuries to my drawings ;-;
Petition for Jon to stop being kidnapped
Things I didn't expect this episode:
Michael = baby
I love how the moment assistant Michael enters Gertrude's like *stereotypical granny voice activate*
I swear Georgie’s the most sane one in the whole deal
The real Michael sounded so sweet, his laughter still give me the shivers though.
CAN JON PLEASE GET A BREAK!?!
I love that he prioritised the cat
The way he called Admiral “The Admiral”
He loves and respects that cat so much 🩷😭
Everyone could use a friend like Georgie. Maybe not the "lacks fear" bit, but the rest is something wonderful.
how to predict the plot in future episodes: find a reasonable opposite to jon's conclusions
speaking of jon Its Calm Down Time, buddy
WAIT DID JON JUST GET FUCKING KIDNAPPED
not that I'm surprised
GAH! the avatar of the spiral!!!
So Micheal was once human, I say that because when not Sasha talks on tape it statics a little but his audio was normal
hm...first time listener here, theorizing in the comments. Jon seems to believe that the thing that calls itself Michael is some being that never was human, and just took the form and name of one of Gertrude's assistants for the purpose of, for lack of better word, fuckery. However, I'd have to guess that it is in fact that Michael and not just a creature taking his name and form (or well, a distorted version of his form), or at least it once was that Michael. My current theory on how the various people that become avatars work is that they each seem to have different degrees to which they keep their human identity, and i think that this has to do with at least three things - 1. the person themself, how willing they are to become a monster, 2. the entity they serve, and 3. how far along in their "transformation" into an avatar they are, how developed their powers are, etc. so carrying on into my current theory about Michael, i believe that he was once the human Michael that worked for Gertrude, but i believe he lost all humanity he had and became the "it" that he is now due to the entity he serves. i mean he serves the Spiral, right? and that's the one that pertains to madness, being unable to trust your own senses, right? makes sense to me that that entity would be the one to fully strip the person that it makes its avatar of any identity they ever had, making them into an "it".
edit now that i've gone a few episodes further: well i was very wrong.
Damn I liked that
18:44 Jon is a master at losing it.
So cool how it's the same laugh and in one context it's adorkable and in another its terrifying.
Gertrude: "Curly blond hair"
Me: *heavy breathing*
Micheal was an archive assistant? How'd he get claimed by something else?
Being tied to they eye doesn't stop you from being a part of other factions, especially if it comes later
This confirms my theory of the sky entity being the opposite of the ground entity!!
The ground thing is called the Buried.
gertrude mentions the spiral then micheal appears at her door
I think this is the first statement where The Hunt is mentioned by name? Is that right?
technically the first statement to do that is the first vampire killer statement, he refers to "enjoying the hunt" but i dont know if jonny intentionally used that wording to refer to the entity or was it just supposed to be a phrase
There was also when elias outright acknowledged that daisy was being influenced by the hunt when he hired her a few episodes back
Im glad to see jon had his mind straight with the Admiral but UH OH JON OH NO
i am getting *REAL* tired of hearing jon in PAIN and yes i GET that's the genre I'm listening to but *STILL*
Jon in pain is a new genre
I made this choice, and I stay with this choice, but I do not like this one bit :( jon deserves better
"Oh, i didn't know Martin was Gertrude's assistant"
"Wait, he sounds off, that's not Ma...OH NO WHAT THE FUCK IS MICHAEL DOING THERE!"
First-time listener here
I'm not sure if I want to hear more of pre-Distortion Micheal. On one hand, he's sweet, and I like him a lot; on the other, I'm gonna be even more sad knowing what he'd become
Edit: welp, now I know, and I'm devastated
first time listener here... oh gods...
@Pariah502 you're in for a ride, my friend :')
There are two characters in tma whose stories made me want to revenge them because what happened to them wasn't fair. One of them is Michael Shelley. Another one's story you're gonna learn in MAG 193. That's not to say I don't feel bad for everyone else, but these two are the most tragic for me :(
the magnus archives gives a feeling of exhaustion, finally laying down for sleep in your bed, but you didnt do your routine. you just came home, laid down and went to sleep. that sort of exhaustion of that hits you, but not fully since you have more to do. more that you know that you should do. but you dont.
NOOO!! MY BABY! MY BOY!! *MY BABY BOY!!!!!!* D':
soooo much happened in this episode i love it
i REALLY want to know what happened to michael i mean he was clearly gertrude's assistant and then got turned into an avatar somehow but i want to know HOW hes so cool honestly
i love that someone finally tells jon to talk to his friends, i mean hes already doing much better than last season maybe he can finally talk to people about things? would be nice lol
the recorder really records in very fortunate moments huh
Rip Michael
I wonder if Michael’s tolerance/helpful hints given to the archives so far is because he had worked there, and some part of him still feels a connection. I wonder why he fell to the stranger and not the eye
lmao peeking at the comments before the end made me assume i was gonna get the shit scared out of me lmao. still, noooo jonn
Also when was it mentioned that Gerard worked with the Institute??
Oh.... oooohhhh.........
hearing jon and georgies conversation here knowing how the podcast ends is gonna make me start sobbing fr
I swear, Michael is definitely off cackling somewhere when john screams "what the hell are you?!".
He even stammers like Martin
My kokoro is brokoro
How do I unlearn this sadness
Yo was Michael the original Martin?
Time to daydream and head canon! This is gonna hurt.
The talk about dust pneumonia and the dust bowl is so sad. You read about tragedies like that in history class, but it takes a good description like that to actually understand the tragedy
the magnus archives, where everyone has their priorities straight
georgie and her lightbulbs, and jon and the admiral
Ok, I love Micheal Shelley so much, even distortion Micheal!!! My spirally distortion boy :)))
My theory from this episode and what we know so far:
So, each entity is trying to do a ritual. And also the entities sometimes try to sabotage the other entities from doing their own ritual, so that they can do theirs first. Until now, Gertrude seems to be trying to stop the rituals of other entities, though I'm not sure yet if she does that because she's part of the Eye or for her own personal reasons.
There is, indeed, an entity about buried alive, dirt etc and it's called Buried.
Gertrude also mentions another entity who's name we haven't known until now, the Hunt. Now, we most likely heard about the Hunt in episodes like the one with the werewolf. I believe that also creatures with lots of teeth and limbs of razors and such are also very likely associated with the Hunt. I don't know what the "u.s." that Gertrude mentioned about the Hunt means.
So, Michael, the now avatar of the spiral, used to be, not only a human, as I suspected lots of episodes ago, but he was also an assistant of Gertrude. He seems to not speak clearly, like he stutters, but we know that Michael as the avatar doesn't do that (or at least I don't remember such thing).
Gertrude mentions a name that I don't recognize, though it could be just because my memory isn't the greatest. But, from what Gertrude says about him, I'm guessing that he's most likely someone either linked with/an avatar of the Vast or someone why survived the Vast (or the Loneliness instead of the Vast).
As for what happened to John, seems like Nikola changed her mind quite some fast.. Next episode is the 100th of this series, so I'm expecting it to be a very interesting one.
She meant US as in the USA; she was saying that she suspected but wasn't totally convinced that the Hunt's ritual was going to happen in the US, but that either way it wasn't as pressing as the Buried's ritual
Bit late to comment, I'm late to the podcast. She mentioned Jan Kilbright, who was one of the astronauts from the Space Station comment? The author mentioned who funded the project and I think he listed the Lucas family (who is shady af but I can't put them right now) but also the Fairchild organisation? And that's connected to the sky and The Vast?
I was looking at the cast list and saw yet ANOTHER Michael and was about to despair at how many there are until I listened.
can someone P L E A S E give jon a break
Exactly what I'm asking for, thank you
Ha no❤
Jon stops getting hurt every other episode challenge
I love the historical elements of this show so much
Gertrude knew about the guy isolated in space!?!?!?!?!?!!?!!?!