Night Springs | Man in the Mirror (Analysis)
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- Опубликовано: 9 апр 2023
- Hello Everyone!
Night Springs is probably the longest running sub plot in the Remedy setting. A simple TV show that rose up and took on a life of its own. First appearing in Alan Wake, it has shown up in every subsequent game. A mysterious town where weird things happen. But the town sometimes is a real place.
What is the nature of this mysterious town? How do the events in the episodes eventually become real? At the end of the day, What is Night Springs really?
In today's episode breakdown we will be focusing on the episode, Man in the Mirror. We will discuss what happened and how it connects to the larger Remedyverse.
Night Springs | Man in the Mirror (Analysis)
Night Springs Introduction Video:
• Night Springs | Fictio...
Please feel free to have free discussion in the comments section below.
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These were always a highlight of the first game, a nice little break to catch your breath, and it's cool to see somebody actually dissecting them
We need more people talking about Remedy stuff I'm general. It's a wet dream for video essayists.
The line "i didnt like his face" reminded me of a thing i learned about in psychology class
Specifically the idea of the banality of evil, the idea that nobody does something to be an explicitely evil moustache twirling character tying maidens to train tracks. Rather everyone does what they do either through force or because they think they're in the right
A very specific murder case actually comes to mind in which a man killed his best friend out of nowhere, this wasnt an accident or because they got in a fight, it was a completely sober act of murder. When questioned why he did it all the man could reply with was "he [the friend] had just been kind of annoying for a few days"
My natural inclination was always that the doppelganger here represented a sort of shadow figure; the parts of the man that he found most repugnant. We tend to let them fester away and grow until they overtake us. It provoked the detective so badly because it wanted to drag out the same in him; seeing the worst in others often brings out the worst in ourselves. For the detective it tried to push him over the line from justice to vindictive punishment.
I personally find it much more chilling to imagine that rather than there being one boogeyman roaming around, each of us carries one in us that might come out at any time.
Ahhh! Cant talk yet. Keep your idea in mind about the detective and his desire for justice. Episode 4 of Millennium is called, 'The Judge'.
@@GamingUniversityUoG I'm watching as fast as I can. D:
The "Dark Reflection" is a pretty common architype. Often times it's just a way for a hero to confront things they've kept bottled up.
The idea of the evil doppelgänger makes me think about the functionality of the Dark Place. We obviously know the Mr. Scratch is some entity from the Dark Place that took on the form Alan offered at the end of the first game, but what if this isn’t the first time something like this happened. My impression, specifically, is about the Dark Alan we seem to see in the AWE visions sent to Jesse. Many people think that it’s Mr. Scratch, or some new version of him, but what if it’s the “Mr. Scratch” equivalent of another writer who entered the Dark Place and gave up their form, Thomas Zane? His double being out in the world could explain some of the confusion about Zane nowadays, namely the poet/filmmaker debate. Thomas Zane the poet wrote himself out of existence, leaving behind his double who claimed and changed his life.
I could obviously be completely off base here, but given the nature of the “I wrote you writing me” relationship between Wake and Zane, I’ve always been a fan of the idea of the two of them being deeply connected, potentially even as a cosmic doppelgänger situation (a la Beth Wilder and Jesse Faden, although obviously for very different reasons).
I think every night springs is easter eggs that the supernatural in the eps is happening in remedy real life universe
I've had a suspension for the man in the mirror for years, so seeing this video only makes this particular episode of Night Springs even more fascinating!
this is something i thought of while watching
could the Victorian mirror be a creation or after effect of one of Alan wakes escape attempts. we already know Alan was/is drawing ideas from previous works of his so he might of done something or used the basic idea to drive along the story but became permanently altered.
Supposedly that one was found near the turn of the century. Early 1900s. I'm hesitant to say EVERYTHING weird is Alan's fault in this setting.
@@GamingUniversityUoG I mean to be fair this also strong evidence that Alan can utilize Retro causality effectively potentially temporarily rewriting history
I love Night Springs, and i find it curious that is so hard to find content about it, art, theories and sometimes even the episodes on yb, but i got a non oficial T-Shirt. Also i couldnt stop thinking about the doppelganger concept in Twin Peaks. Great video!
That’s really interesting. I love how remedy connects everything even it’s past project are in the scheme
Awesome! We have a video lined up where we will address this topic. I recently threw the question out there on twitter about if Alan can make it past or out of the dark place without Mr. Scratch. My theory is more in line with the second you propose, but with some differences. There's the theory that majority of individuals deny that they are capable of doing (or even thinking about) things that maybe considered evil, wrong, immoral, etc. instead of accepting and learning how to coexist with this part of the self. If this is how Mr. Scratch came to be, one can argue that Alan cannot just abandon him, that he must be "whole" to move on, which means that he would have to accept the worst of himself (and anything it brings with it after years in the dark place) back into his psyche and hope that he is strong enough to deal with it- or perhaps it will be done against his will (what's left of it). In AWE Alan is in bad shape, can't remember who he is (completely relying on his notes) and is totally compromised, leaving himself vulnerable for the part of himself that's still "out there" to reinsert itself back into Alan's psyche and become the more dominant part of his personality. Why Mr. Scratch would want or need to do that is a separate topic. In Alan Wake he mentions (as our narrator) how he fantasized about different ways he could "torture" the kidnapper (among other things). In American Nightmare, we see Mr. Scratch carry out such acts, and frequently reminds Alan that they aren't all that dissimilar, especially in the mind. When I think of this episode of Night Springs, I think of what Mr. Scratch told Alan. He said that Alice is their wife, but soon will be only his. A LOT of questions come from our theories and we hope that our end product will sufficiently answer most of them. Really great work! Keep it up 🙂
Yesterday I completed a Quantum Break and in Port Donnelly Bridge level there was a TV with footage from castings for a potential narrator of Night Springs episodes. It was fun to watch, only one man, whose voice was matching with series in Alan Wake and Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, had been doing mistakes on purpose.
P.S: yeah, I remember writing a comment about boys watching Threshold Kids while men enjoy Night Springs...
Well, behold: gigachads worship Address Unknown.
Now this puts a SPRING in my Step.
Respect and keep up the epic work.
Same luckily I was aWAKE when it came out.
I could have just watched it later but I couldnt CONTROL myself :P
@@twitchswitchvideos I love this Channel these videos are cool and very ZANEY.
@Rodan Sorry I was late to reply I took a QUANTUM BREAK and took a nap because I was FAYDEN
Luckily I got a notification to let me know you CAULD(RON).
I hope nobody is finding these puns a PAYNE
@@twitchswitchvideos Better LAKE then never we should take these Puns to The MAX and your TIMING was fine plus i love your Puns they have a certain FLARE to them.
@@rodan9773 🤣
Love me some Night Springs, can’t wait for Alan Wake 2!
I'm counting the days until we get AW2!
@@GamingUniversityUoG we have been warned.. so many scratchings…too many scratches.
@@GamingUniversityUoG Wait, counting the days would mean you know the release date. What secret information has Remedy given you?!
I love that you liked Millennium I was a fan too, I'm making a Lance Henriksen type character to go along with my David Duchovny character in MOTW.
I wish we would get a sequel series but at this point I don't it will happen. Millennium is incredible!
just met your channel watching the video about where is dr darling and congrats, because there is a lot of channels like yours, with a guy talking about game theories but you are the first that goes straight to the point and not boring. loving your channel!
I appreciate it! I try to condense them down as much as I can. Bite sized lore chunks.
Came for discussions of the Remedyverse. Stayed for mentions of Millennium.
Millennium is top tier and no one has ever heard of it. So sad.
@@GamingUniversityUoG best two seasons of television.
I know what I said.
100% agree. I usually only watch 2 seasons of the show when I do a rewatch. @@gregorymaroda4860
Awesome research for this video, even exploring the context of Max Payne!
At this point we have to look at everything in this setting. Connections are everywhere.
I think the idea that the dark doppelganger kills the original is interesting metaphorically, 'cause if you do just take the show as... a show, rather than something that has been or is being used to shape reality, it examines this idea we seem to have that the act of doing something so horrible changes you -- that in a sense, by killing another you also kill the person you were before you committed the act. It's why we tend to use words like "killer" and "murderer" almost as if they describe some species other than human.
Sometimes being shown something like that in such a literal way opens us up to question ourselves and ask -- is this thing we want to believe really a reflection of reality, or just a fantasy to convince ourselves that it could never be us? Could it perhaps be both? Or lie somewhere in the middle?
I'd be inclined to think that it's both, or, at least in this case, that if it is a fantasy it's probably one that's good for us. :)
How do you think Pat Maines radio show does connect to the larger Remedyverse? Is there something more to them?
I love your content, keep it up!
I see the Night Owl as being someone who keeps an eye on the town from a distance. People call in to him all throughout the night to talk about anything. He probably reports everything weird to the Night Springs group.
Also Pat is just a nice guy who won't turn anyone away because of the bizarre things he hears over the phone.@@GamingUniversityUoG
When I watch your vids I feel I like just stepped into…NightSprings.
Also Millennium is a hell of a callback I remember when it crossed over with the X-files
I'm still not happy with the Millennium crossover episode of Xfiles. It felt like a monster of the week rather than serious conclusion to Frank's story. But god I love this show.
Thanks for the content, always lovely to dive into remedy a little deeper. can't wait for more videos and Alan wake 2 coverage
Well, now I've started watching Millennium. The professor of this course is great, but the homework is pretty excessive.
Hell yes! I need someone to talk to about this show.
@@GamingUniversityUoG I should have known this entire video was actually just a stealth ad for Millennium. GU has sold out to Big Chris Carter.
You are amazing!!!!
Appreciate it dude!
Interesting topics. Great analysis! Thank you!
Glad you got a kick out of it! Thanks
Interesting... Amazing analysis
Great video... Thank you
Omg thank you for reminding us about Milinium!
I'm rewatching it now! On season2 when Lara Means shows up finally. My goal is to get that show popular again lol.
@@GamingUniversityUoG well its worked! I'm rewatching rn
Thanks for the video
Man the next Remedy and Bioshock game wait is killing me so hard.
Same!
thanks for the new video
You got it dude!
I can't wait to see what Address Unknown looks like in the Max Payne remake.
With the recent passing of James McCaffrey its hard to tell if remedy will move forward with the Max Payne remake, but if they do, they should definitely have Ilkka and Mathew play the main character of Address Unknown.
Best Night Springs episode.
Love it! Mo6at in line with the type of storytelling Alan does.
Just a helpful tip: you may want to link your patreon in your channel’s About page as well! I didn’t see it over there.
I'll definitely do that too. Dodnt even think about it
@@GamingUniversityUoG happy to help! I want to see your channel grow. Also, Max Derrat has been replaying control a ton. Might be time do another collaboration 😉
I hope you do a video concerning Alice, I personally do not believe she's dead and is probably making her way to Alan.
Interesting, I wasn't aware there was another TV series that takes place in universe
Millennium was a great show.
I'm rewatching it right now. Probably my 7th time through it. I love it!
In the Darkness, We Wake. In the Dark, people die so we may live. They are both you, and not you. Therefore, it is easy to catch us. All you have to do is catch You.
im surprised you didnt bring up the mirror man or whatever from control, the one who says every time your reflection looks through the mirror its a little bit greener
Hey, wanted to know your thoughts on Remedys new logo and the new direction they will take in the future.
I think the first round of new games will set the new tone. Working on so many projects has been cautious about writing differencee. But we'll have to wait and see.
Sorry if this isn't related to the video but Did you ever see the hidden Dylan video in the awe dlc?
I have seen it but havent dived too deep onto it yet
Hey @gaming University, are there any books you recommend to read that's kinda like Alan Wake or other Remedy projects? Or maybe just books you like?
Well House of Leaves is a big inspiration for some of the themes in Control and AW. So that's a good one.
Lovecraft and Stephen King are referenced over and over so they will have similar styles too.
@@GamingUniversityUoG Thanks for the reply! I've already read House of Leaves and a couple Stephen King books. I guess its time to explore some Lovecraft :)
If i may ask in a different way, are there any books you personally recommend that's not necessarily similar to Alan Wake/Control?
What did the flamingo say? closed captioning didn't catch it
"mirrors are more fun than television" it is spoken with backwards speech with is what makes it sound weird
@@GamingUniversityUoG Thank you
Can you do the same for address unknown frlom Max Payne 2?
I have a lot of Max Payne projects on hold right now. Since Remedy is remaking both games from the ground up I want to see what happens with it all before moving forward on them. But yes I plan to check those out too.
3:52 What background music is it.
Alan Wake OST - Bright Falls Light & Power
I'm not sure the Victorian Mirror produced Essej im pretty sure the Hiss used the mirror to make a perfect more powerfull copy of Jesse to use as an avatar. Yeah the mirror leads to a mirror dimension however i remember reading the the mirror doesn't always reflect everything as it is in the real world. Plus The difference between Mr Scrach and Essej is that Essej literally speaks in reverse ( infact everyone speaks in reverse when they go inside the mirror from our point of and vice-versa). The place is literally a backwards dimension
The biggest reason for it is because the ranger who went inside reported seeing something similar. This was long before the Hiss arrived.
@@GamingUniversityUoG I don't remember whether he went on his own or with a team cuz then if he went in alone then that would mean that the mirror reflects everything except you when your on the real world side of it, only when you go in it does it reveal the actual backwards you. If he went in with a team then there's probably an actual entity that takes the forms of you and only speaks backwards and it's influence on the dimension itself thus force's everyone else in the dimension to speak in reverse from the real world perspective... oh my god I just had an idea, if the mirror dimension is a backwards one than that would mean the from the perspective of the mirror wouldn't the hiss be the good thing in its world? For example if you take what Essej is saying and rewind it she never says any hiss chants or nothing just some random stuff. It would make alot of sense for the Hiss to be what Polaris is in the real world and Polaris to be the Invasion from the Mirror's perspective and from Essej's this would make the entire boss more important since from her perspective she saving everyone from us. Maybe if Jesse where to try to speak to Essej then maybe she would speaking the hiss chant probably backwards too. (Or a Polaris chant like when was in that dream ) maybe we just killed there savior and doomed that world to an evil Polaris ( or maybe I just like the Hiss too damn much)
@@GamingUniversityUoG also could imagine how OP you'd be I'd you had the hiss's powers that would be kinda cool (interdimensional control over a specifically special form of matter, people, entities and artifacts both normal and abnormal along with immortality since your resonance based).
I know im late to this, but I looked at this and Mr S@$!%^&# as ... Let me say it like this. I sort of doubt the Dark Place is inherently Evil, nor the creatures it creates. I don't think places and things like Dark Place, Hiss, Polaris, whatever else fit into mortal concepts of good and evil. I think the reason for them Acting evil is two fold. (Yes I understand
1. Its a literary construct. If you write an enemy who you want the readers to perceive as actually the enemy, you make them act evil. Its simple and draws on very basic monkey brain stuff to make the reader not like the enemy much.
On the other hand you have the "good guy" mentor or power in the story be good and helpful.
2. If an Intelegent or even simi-intelegent entity wants to achieve its goals as efficiently as possible, and that entity is acting through human hosts, the most useful way to use those humans is by flaring the evil inside each of us. Or what we would call evil. The darkest urges pushed to the front without filter . That creates a primal creature that is easy to direct with simple illusion. It turns off the rational part of the brain and engages a monkey brain witch is easily guided and pushed where you need it to be.
Basically, evil might just be confused for efficient. This is assuming that the dark presence and whatever controls MR S@#)($# has to play by the same rules as Alan. They cant directly control, they have to incept the idea, nudge the psyche , and set them lose to do what you want. IF the dark place can just puppet things directly that sorta blows my idea out of the water.