Actually. Y’know what? Less about my personal grievances with the characters, more about the internal inconsistencies of the world building and lore.
The Archivist can compel people to tell the truth regardless of if they want to… but the statements that feed and empower them can have unreliable narrators.
Georgie was unaffected by the apocalypse due to her loss of fear… but Jon was able to compel her to tell him a truth and feed from her statement?
Martin had a domain and was able to hide in the Lonely, but he never had to feed on anyone to strengthen these abilities.
I just. Don’t get it. Can someone explain?
I’m sorry if this was more of a rhetorical question, but I’m gonna answer (what I think) if this is a genuine question.
(Sorry this is so long)
Hey! Never apologize for answering potentially rhetorical questions! It’s not a crime and usually the other person is being an asshole so you taking it seriously only emphasizes their asshole behaviour!
To that end, yes! I did concede that, with regards to the compelling of statements, that unreliable narrators happen as a result of said narrators either believing their statements to be true or wanting them to be true. I was, quite frankly, not being charitable at that moment. Still aren’t, to be honest, but I’m trying.
It’s hard to conceptualize my actual feelings on ‘dream logic’ vis a vis the Fears so I will just leave it at… it feels lazy. A way to be allowed to not have to keep track of past plot points. Lets not forget the mess of a timeline Jonny gets pissy about anyone calling him out for.
Per Georgie being compelled and giving a statement, I will concede that her live statement could be considered among the written statements. That would make sense! I just personally don’t see it as such. We do not have any indication that Jon’s 'dreams’ (read: nightmares) include those! For that matter, were that the case, wouldn’t she be trapped in that moment in the same way as she was in her dream during the apocalypse? Further to the point, why would the Eye trap her in Jon’s dream if it weren’t to continue to wring fear out of her? Why would it trap ANY of them, were that not the case? Taking Jess Tyrell’s statement into account, its clear that’s the whole point. Unless we’re intended to believe that, prior to Jon’s death and becoming, none of the statement givers he saw in his nightmares were as haunted as those he fed from afterwards. Which would make sense, considering their lack of reaction or questioning of him! But does not take into account him actively needing to feed his patron in order to develop the abilities he does, which (in a rare act of consistency) we are told is only through him reading and taking statements. Something we have to ignore when it comes to the other archival workers reading the statements, because that would only raise further questions as to the actual cause and effect of becoming and I am already on a wild tangent.
Briefly, to address the Martin situation, those assumptions aren’t refuted within the podcast, and I cannot accept them as truth. They are excellent head canons, but they are just that. Head canons. Jon’s isolation could just as easily be a result of Peter FUCKING Lukas’s influence. More so, even, considering his experience using the Lonely spanned decades while Martin’s only just started.
In the case of Jon potentially already having powers from the moment he accepted the title of Head Archivist, that’s very possible! Definitely retroactive intention! Or possibly just the intention! Not to mention, Melanie did have the bullet in her for a lengthy period of time! I don’t recall where I stated her abilities by season 4 didn’t make sense. Only with how sudden and easily Martin was able to utilize the Lonely to both erase his presence from Georgie’s memory and become invisible. Though, I will concede that could be a result of the six months time skip. He was already being isolated due to working with Peter FUCKING Lukas before Basira and Jon’s corpse even got back from the Unknowing, as far as I recall.
I don’t agree that it wasn’t saying Avatars aren’t real. Jon, verbatim, says as much, at a time period we’re supposed to believe him as all knowing and all powerful. While rambling nonsense about Smirke and the others calling them that, when it was Georgie that coined the term. Georgie who said the word that would be how we classify those being used by and using the Fears as fuel to sow… fear. Why wouldn’t he be telling the truth? And I am sorry, but that’s just how I see it. I do like how you perceive it, though, as anyone that can elicit more fear than they themselves generate is a “watcher” and those that can’t are “watched”. That perspective, at least, makes sense.
Thanks for this discussion! I enjoyed it! I hope it didn’t step on your toes or upset you.