#Theory 1

[insanebreadloaf]

Rip lamp. You will be missed

this is my little piece of fanart of chapter 10’s final scene from @qoldenskies’s amazing fic Clipped wings

GO READ IT. GO READ THE CANARY CONTINUITY. BEWARE: it’s REALLY GOOD BUT HEAVY. ANGST ALL THE WAY

[istumpysk]

OPERATION ICEBERG: THE TIER LIST

TIER LIST OVERVIEW:

Guaranteed: These theories have been explicitly confirmed by George R. R. Martin or other authoritative sources.

Near-Certainty: These theories lack official confirmation but are so heavily supported by the text and/or external hints that they're almost certainly true.

Strong Contender: These theories have a lot of textual support, but there are still some elements of uncertainty.

Possible: These theories could be true, but additional evidence is needed, as different interpretations or errors are possible.

Under Consideration: These theories haven't garnered strong or extensive evidence, but they're worthy of discussion.

50/50: These theories are complete toss-ups.

Low Probability: While not impossible, these theories are unlikely based on the current evidence.

Long Shot: These theories are largely speculative, based more on wishful thinking or obscure hints than on solid evidence.

Debunked: These theories have been directly contradicted by the text, George R. R. Martin, or other authoritative sources.

A Joke: These theories are an absolute joke; anyone who believes them is a fool.

Fanfiction: These "theories" are nothing short of delusional fan-crafted fantasies, embarrassingly disconnected from any shred of textual reality.

Alright fam, group project.

For each major theory, I'll present the evidence, and then you all can vote on whether it's correctly placed on the tier list. While I'm open to making changes, know that I have the final say, should you all lose your minds, or should the dumb side of the fandom find the poll.

Let's begin.

THEORY:

Stannis burns Shireen

TIER:

Guaranteed

EVIDENCE:

GEORGE R. R. MARTIN: It wasn't easy for me. I didn't want to give away my books. It's not easy to talk about the end of my books. Every character has a different end. I told them who would be on the Iron Throne, and I told them some big twists like Hodor and "hold the door," and Stannis's decision to burn his daughter. We didn't get to everybody by any means. Especially the minor characters, who may have very different endings. - Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon: Game of Thrones and the Official Untold Story of the Epic Series

x

Showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss tell EW those conversations included "three holy sh– moments" in particular.

The first: Stannis Barathon sacrificing his daughter Shireen — which was shown during the show's fifth season. - Entertainment Weekly

x

Question: Hello James. From what you know, how much of the show's ending for the major characters (Jon, Dany, Arya, Tyrion, Bran, Sansa) aligns with what George is planning?

James Hibberd: The fabled three big things GRRM told Dan and Dave that they used in the back seasons were Hodor's death (and origin story), Stannis burning Shireen and "who ends up on the Iron Throne." The only thing I can say aside from that is there will be some rather big differences. - James Hibberd's Reddit Ask Me Anything

Also, let's not forget, this is the same man who used blood magic to murder his own brother and had to be stopped from doing the same to his nephew. Bit of a theme here.

VOTE:

NEXT THEORY:

Asha's pregnant

[catmask]

hey guys when you say something is for the johto starters can you include me in that as well? the johto starters and tepig if it's not too much trouble thanks guys

[the-lemonaut]

Just wanted to revisit this moment. Still remember going apeshit over it

Toby really went "what if i made a character whose true self is only implied for most of the game and yet still make the players love the hell out of them" and fucking did it

Anyway, please don't repost this to other platforms or subscribe for fanart (I'll probably make like one more DR post and be done with it), thank you 🤝

[chloesimaginationthings]

Cassidy loves to scare the FNAF night guards..

[wyxxiee]

can i say something reaaaal crazy rn?

let me tell you something… LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING!!!

edit: It could be either Eve or Roo, I’m betting my sanity on this one 🤣

read my other theory: here !!

EDIT : okayyy, i know i haven’t been answering my inbox (my apologies, i’m really busy rn🥲) but might i just add about the concern about the eyes! PLS READ:)!!

[fallofcyber]

Okay absolutely off the wall Doctor Who theory time.

They are trapped inside a television show. An outrageous claim I know buuuut I do have a fair bit of evidence. First something kinda unsubstantial, the sonic screwdriver literally looks like a TV remote, and in the episode the Doctor hit the Mute button.

Second: the key art for the penultimate episode "The Legend of Ruby Sunday" features a TV set

Third: The sheer amount of fourth wall breaks in the past four episodes trumps what we've seen in the whole of the revival.

Fourth: At the end of "The Devil's Cord" a music number saying there's "Always a twist", and an actress that has been popping up all over this new era is 'Susan Twist'. She keeps popping up, because 'There's Always a Twist'.

Fifth: The Doctor mentions that he thought the music was "Non-diegetic", meaning he could hear the music in the scene and assumed it was just part of the show, until Ruby mentioned she could hear it. Implying that whenever we hear the Non-diegetic music in the show so can the Doctor.

Thank you for listening to my absolute crackpot theory.

[ughhhdavid]

[liliumsdoe]

I'm obsessed with the way the background in this frame makes it look as if Aziraphale has wings of fire—on consacrated ground, no less — while he realises he cannot deny his feeling for Crowley any longer.

am I delusional? yes sssir !!!

[sockiepuppetry]

The dark lore of transformers animated

[higuysetc]

Okay I haven’t seen anyone actually talk about this scene from S1E2 as Byler evidence but I think it’s so telling and honestly insane

In this scene, El asks the boys what a “friend” is and they explain it to her. They tell her and it’s wholesome. Then Lucas performs a spit swear with Dustin and it’s funny. This conversation was just leading up to a funny bit between the two! Right?

Wrong. Oh my god, WRONG.

I was like actually kicking myself when I realised I missed this detail not just on the first watch but on the second as well.

(I should have put a trigger warning in earlier but I didn’t so I’m editing it in now- TW for: homophobia, attempted suicide, bullying, reference to the AIDS crisis)

“Friend?”

“Yeah, friend: Will?”

El doesn’t understand what a friend is so Lucas gives the example of Will.

“What… is friend?”

“Is she serious?”

Dustin shrugs

“Um… A friend is someone—”

“—Is someone that you’d do anything for”

Lucas specifically referred to Will in his example of a friend. When El asks him to expand on their bond, he struggles to elaborate and seems exasperated with her questions. Dustin isn’t much better. He doesn’t seem to care much for answering her and they both chalk it up to the weirdo being weird.

Before Lucas can even begin his clumsy explanation, Mike jumps in with

“—Is someone that you’d do anything for”

Which is. Wow. He says it so simply, so bluntly, so instantly and he looks overjoyed at the opportunity to talk about his loyalty to not just Will specifically but also the rest of his friends.

And, bless him, he’s literally bouncing on the spot when he says it. This scene is adorable but it’s also kind of heartbreaking, especially when you take into account when Mike tried to end his life at Sattler Quarry to save Dustin’s baby teeth.

He would literally do anything for his friends. This isn’t hyperbole, this is Mike being excited to show El, his new friend, that he’s loyal and protective. He’s not exaggerating when he’s saying he would do anything because friends don’t lie.

And the rest of his friends know this. When Mike is about to jump, Dustin begs him not to because he knows Mike and he knows just how important loyalty and being a protector to his friends is to him.

But the way he says this:

“Someone you would do anything for” It’s like he’s beaming with pride for his friends. He’s ecstatic at the idea of calling them his friends and being able to be there for them, to protect them, and is proud of them for just being themselves.

Obviously, this could include the entire party, especially with how it relates to Dustin and Mike ‘protecting him’ at Sattler Quarry.

But the fact that Dustin immediately follows this up with:

“You lend them your cool stuff like comic books and trading cards”

Okay so maybe we are still talking specifically about Will. In the first episode, Will and Dustin race and Will, the snarky little shit (affectionate), declares that Dustin owes him a comic. This is. This is a pretty blatant reference to Will and Dustin’s friendship.

What he says is also a lot tamer than Mike’s declaration of undying loyalty which reflects Dustin and Will’s friendship vs Mike and Will’s status as besties for the resties. Quite literally.

Besties for the resties.

We should also take into account the fact that Mike most likely didn’t just jump off the cliff only to save Dustin’s baby teeth after seeing the person he would do anything for’s limp body being pulled out of the water. He would do anything for them both.

But the fact that in some sick alternate universe Will Byers was found dead in the quarry and 12-year-old Mike’s body was found there days later should be enough evidence to be honest.

And if El hadn’t have found Mike and Dustin when she did, this would have been their reality. And Mike knew this was an almost certainty, unaware that he would be saved, and he jumped anyways.

And how does that look? In a conservative small town where no major crime ever happens, the adults spread rumours of a 12-year-old Will Byers being hate crimed for being gay after going missing instead of having any compassion towards him or his family because of this child’s supposed sexuality. His body is found not long after he goes missing and within days, the boy he was rumoured to be so close with jumps in after him and dies.

And let’s be honest, Will most likely didn’t get this much shit for his alleged queerness because he liked art or was quieter than most. He may have gotten picked on at school but for his parents to pick up on this? Lonnie was a bastard which is standard I guess. Common knowledge. Like the quarry meaning certain death thing. We knew that. Maybe he just gave him a hard time because he didn’t like baseball (Insert coded heart-to-heart with Jonathan and Will destroying Castle Byers with a baseball bat because he thought his feelings towards Mike were childish).

But for Joyce to bring this up to Hop instead of omitting both slurs and just leaving it at “he’s a sensitive kid” or just her most relentless “find him”s? For her to avoid the question when Hop asks whether or not Will is gay? Huh.

Most probably, he was really- suspiciously- close with a male friend. A male best friend. A little too close and a little too affectionate and for a little longer than is normal for boys to be so close with each other. Maybe this best friend even thinks that befriending Will was “the best thing he’s ever done”.

Mike was willing to die. That’s not fucking normal.

His best friend went missing and bear in mind Mike had little to no evidence that Will was alive at this point. He was presumed dead. Mike was 12 years old when he tried to kill himself. You can’t just chalk this up to trying to save Dustin’s baby teeth.

“You make that jump from this height, that water turns into cement. Hits you like a ton of bricks, break every damn bone in your body.” -Hopper

Mike understood that he was going to die. Outside the fact that it’s common sense and probably common knowledge in a small town, where he’s probably been warned by parents and teachers not to play too close to the quarry, it’s basic physics. He’s a physics nerd. He knew that he would die and he still went through with it.

The fact that they emphasise just how brutal Mike’s end would have been by having Hopper stand there and explain in graphic detail what would happen if someone fell over the edge? And then they send the point home further by having Mike weigh his options for a good while before making the decision to ignore Dustin’s pleas and ,I don’t know, any will that he has left to live? Is insane. No pun intended.

I don’t think I will ever get over the quarry scene. Mike jumps off to ‘save’ Dustin and possibly to join Will, out of love and out of loyalty, but also out of lonliness. Fucking insane. Especially with how that would have looked in a conservative town during the AIDS crisis, if El hadn’t interfered. And how Dustin must have felt after he begged Mike to stay alive for him and saw Mike actively ignore him and try to sacrifice himself to save him.

So yeah. Mike would do anything for them both, to a concerning degree.

But back to S1E2, El asked what a friend was. Lucas hesitated. Mike excitedly said some deep shit. Dustin followed up with something more lighthearted but still painful (lowkey imagining how he must’ve felt after failing to get Will home safe, and then later get Mike not to jump) and—

“—And they never break a promise”

Mike when I catch you Mike.

What promise could Mike be referencing here? Friends don’t lie, perhaps? Yes. That. That’s like the only option at this point, I fear.

And we’re back to Mike specifically describing his relationship with Will. How do I figure this? It’s established right off the bat.

S1E1- Will chucks the die somewhere and he rolls lower than thirteen. Lucas tells him it doesn’t count if Mike doesn’t see it. Lucas is willing to lie. Lucas is willing to break the promise. Mike is specifically referring to his relationship to Will here.

���It was a seven.”

“Huh?”

“The roll: it was a seven. The Demogorgon. It got me. See you tomorrow.”

Will dgaf about winning the campaign if it means lying to Mike. He would never break his promise. (Do not bring up the Season 4 painting right now istg this is pre-the-puberty-amplifying-internalised-homophobia-thing (and also I could go on a whole rant about what Will meant by “ripping of the band aid” there so lmk if you guys would be interested in that))

Immediately, within the first eight minutes of the first episode of the first season of Stranger Things, it is established that Mike and Will do not fucking lie to each other no matter what and they have a bond much stronger with each other than with the other two boys.

What did Will say again?

✅ The roll was a seven.

✅ The demogorgon got him.

❌ He will see Mike the next day.

Oh. Okay. That’s not like. Blatant foreshadowing or anything. This might be a reach but I feel like the fact that Will never lies to Mike but told him that he would see him tomorrow, then went missing, may have amplified Mike’s desire to find him faster or at least served as a way to communicate to the audience that Mike and Will hold their promises dearly and if Will says he’ll see Mike tomorrow, Mike will do everything in his power to see him as soon as possible and this is made further tragic by his attempt to join him at the bottom of the quarry.

Maybe a reach. I’m confident about everything else though so who gaf. Let a girl have fun.

“—Especially when there’s spit.”

“Spit?”

“A spit swear means—Puh—you never break your word. Its a bond”

Comic relief for all the devastated re-watchers, classic. This scene definitely wasn’t intended to be sad but I’m a sap, I fear. Plus the absurdity of Lucas’ spit swear and how seriously he talks about it contrasts how bubbly Mike is when he talks about promises when he is the one who holds loyalty so dearly that he is willing to give up his life for it.

Oh my god, I’ve just had a thunker of a thought. It’s. Oh my god. I’ve had a revelation. But it’s 5 am and I’ve been trying to put my thoughts into words for like a good couple of hours now so. It’s to do with the spit swear thing and how it relates to Mike’s asexual treatment of El until Will’s disappearance. Oh my god. Stay with me. It sounds like such a reach and it may well be but I genuinely unironically think I’m onto something here. Especially with how comedically Lucas’ bits are played out compared to Mike’s. Holy shit. Aaand it’s nearly 6 am. Well. I’ll edit this for basic grammar mistakes later, it's fine.

Okay, I’m gonna end this part here so just let me know if you guys want a part 2 and I’ll tag some lucky individuals in it maybe.

Also let me know if colour coding the characters’ names was too jarring or something? I feel like it helped me get through writing this monstrosity but low-key idk how the rest of everyone will feel sooo just lmk :)

Edit: Drafting up Part 2 rn if you want a tag then just reblog this post

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Heartbreaking: Gamers give Ralsei the "Little German Boy voice" in Chapter 1, and have to commit to the bit for the rest of the series.

[overdramaticbaddie]

Boutta rant abt my blorbo sooo spoiler warning for new Deltarune chaptersss

So.

Berdly.

We got almost NOTHING about him from the new chapters, but I think he deserves to be discussed in light of the new information.

First things first, I don't think enough people talk about the obvious parallels between him and Susie.

Both have spent a lot of time antagonizing Kris, Both sided with the "Villian" in the dark world, and used it to fulfill various fantasies of theirs (susie getting to beat up everyone there, berdly trynna build "smarttopia" or whatever) Both experienced significant character development in the dark world (unfortunately, berdly immediately backtracked as soon as he "woke up") Both cope with feelings of inadequacy by lashing out at others and trying to make themselves seem "bigger" and "cooler" than they actually are (Susie through physical intimidation and Berdly through manipulation and self-aggrandizing behavior) Both have strangely protective tendancies???? Both feel like side characters in their own story. Both are unpopular with peers and authority figures Not to mention, their weapons are EXTREMELY SIMILAR WTF

And also, something I find really interesting,

Neither of them are a part of "the three heroes" of the prophecy.

LONG-ASS PROPHECY INTERPRETATION TANGENT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BERDLY:

The part of the prophecy where the three "heroes" are mentioned, when put in order, reads as follows:

"The first hero. The cage, with human soul and parts.

The second hero, the girl with hope crossed on her heart.

The third hero, the prince, alone in deepest dark.

And last ,was the girl. At last, was the girl."

While it may seem that Susie would be the second hero, especially with how she is associated with hope in chapter 4, the image that goes with that line appears to be a girl in robes, holding a sword (possibly the sword made from the thorn ring) implies noelle may have actually been the one intended to be the second hero.

The way the image of the girl holding the sword is also used with "love finds the girl", with some of these images including a small SOUL in the chest of the girl pictured. This correlates to how, in the weird route, we seem to have implanted a piece of our SOUL, and thus our control, into her. As well as the implications of "love" finding her, suggesting that the second hero will have violence thrust upon her, which happens to Noelle in the weird route.

That, plus the fact that Kris wanted to be partnered with noelle in the group project, that Susie only ended up in the dark world by pure coincidence, further suggests that Noelle was the second hero intended by the prophecy.

Also, the image that goes with the "At last was the girl" line, looks exactly like "Rude Buster", one of Susie's attacks, which she uses to defeat the titan along with Gerson at the end of chapter 4.

LONG-ASS PROPHECY INTERPRETATION TANGENT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BERDLY IS OVER, NOW I WILL CONTINUE TO TALK ABT THE PROPHECY JUST WITH BERDLY NOW

Now that that's out of the way, I wanna talk about how the prophecy deals with Berdly, which I find FASCINATING.

If you're confused because you don't remember seeing anything at all relating to Berdly in the prophecy in Chapter 4, you're 100% right on the FUCKING MONEY.

He's

NOT

FUCKING

IN THERE

He's never mentioned ONCE, despite the prophecy discussing many characters and events that go beyond the main "three heroes" thing,

whether it's King's defeat, Queen's "chariots", Tenna being sliced up, Lancer saying Toothpaste boy, Asgore in asylum, fuckign JOCKINGTON GROWING A BEARD, the prophecy is littered with references to things that happen all over previous chapters.

But, the thing is, NONE of those things would have been changed if Berdly wasn't in the game.

As far as the prophecy is concerned,

Berdly doesn't exist.

This wouldn't seem too important if it weren't for the fact that he is DIRECTLY INVOLVED in the ONLY game-changing decision SO FAR.

Without him, there is no weird route.

Sure, you can choose to cancel it several times afterward, but the thing is, that's the only time you shift the route of the game. After that, you can only either double down or backtrack, not forge any new paths.

It's strange that someone who functions as the marker between to distinct paths wouldn't be mentioned in the prophecy.

So, here's a little theory of mine:

I think Berdly's the big sleeper character in Deltarune.

Think about it,

out of the main 5, (the lighteners and ralsei,) he's the one we know LEAST about. Sure, they all have mysteries attached to them, but that's part of the reason they're THERE.

Berdly so far has nothing going for him storywise besides him being an annoying fuckwad who gets his shit absolutely wrecked in the weird route.

I genuinely don't believe Toby Fox would make such a unique character who fits the themes of the game perfectly just to eat shit in an alternative route and be forgotten.

I think players are SUPPOSSED to forget him, SUPPOSED to just be like ugh it's that fuckin bird that I hate and move on.

ESPECIALLY since he gets so little screentime in the new chapters, I think Toby is lulling us into a false sense of berdly-less security, letting us think he's served his purpose in the plot.

(and Ik this is probably hard to believe, since if ur reading this ur probably in the corner of the fandom that LOVES berdly, but most Deltarune players do tend to totally dismiss him)

I think Tony Forks is gonna hit us with a berdly-shaped truck in SPECIFICALLY chapter 5, since the weird route only affects ONE THING in the light world outside of Kris and Noelle's sanity.

Berdly being at the festival.

ISTG SOMETHING'S GONNA HAPPEN WITH HIM

but yea, berdly is 100% a sleeper in the plot.

Also kerdly is canon.

[hawkinsbnbg]

Eddie can't believe he's seeing Steve Harrington in a gay bar of all the places. Sure, he heard rumors about a certain jock becoming friends with the band geek Robin Buckley (whom he already clocked as a friend of Dorothy), but he didn't expect it to be true.

Here in the safe space for queer people in Indianapolis, Steve is sitting by the bar—wearing his little pink crop top and skin tight Levi's—and laughing heartily at something Buckley is saying. And Eddie wants.

Anyway, this is his chance. Years of ogling watching Steve finally pays off now. As smoothly as possible, he slides into the stool beside Steve, catches his attention, and starts whispering to him. It's not a conversation intended for impressionable ears, after all.

"I happen to know the best places to hide bodies."

Steve blinks owlishly at him, caught off guard that Eddie knows about his secret.

"What?"

"Don't worry, princess." Eddie grabs Steve's hand and presses a kiss to the back of it, making him blush prettily. "Your secrets will forever be safe with me. I'm just here to let you know that you're not alone."

"... Who are you again?"

Steve looks cute when he's baffled, so Eddie can't be blamed for responding him with a wink.

"The name is Eddie. But you can also call me Daddy."

Steve rolls his eyes, huffing.

"You're so weird, man."

In the end, Eddie successfully introduced himself to his crush and went home with Steve's phone number safely tucked in his pocket. Before he left, however, he heard Buckley hiss something to Steve that almost sounded like:

"Girl, stop. That weirdo is not your Prince Charming."

"Well," Steve said. "I could be Juliet."

And the hopeless romantic in Eddie's heart swooned.

[pen--pun]

UPDATED VERSION WITH ALL EVIDENCE!

Just thought I'd update the old version with new proof people have told me