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…so like, can we all just agree this part gave off will wood vibes

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Can we talk about this Dead Boy Detectives Article

So, Jamie Paul over at @bidotorg did a pretty cool thing. After being contacted by one of our very own and much loved (@asidian), he agreed to watch all 8 episodes of Dead Boy Detectives on Netflix and write a review and analysis of the show, specifically looking at the queerness and bi-coded presentations of it's characters (Charles Rowland, my friend, this means you!)

Y'all. What a thoughtful article this is. I'm going to highlight a few aspects of the it along with my own thoughts, but please read the article (linked below!) in it's entirety. It really is incredibly thoughtful with an excellent analysis, and it mentions our campaign specifically (!).

One of the most exciting aspects of this article, I'm not gonna lie, is the acknowledgement of how passionate Dead Boy Detectives fanbase is and how much blood, sweat, tears, fundraising, letter writing, and furious typing on various platforms are being poured into efforts to save this show:

"...when Netflix pulled the plug, the show’s fiercely loyal fans — mostly young queer viewers — sprang into action. Fans created the websites “Save Dead Boy Detectives” and “Save Queer Stories” and trended hashtags and stories including #RenewDeadBoyDetectives and #SaveDeadBoyDetectives across social media. They boosted the show’s lead actors to the top of the celebrity video platform Cameo, wrote heartfelt articles in mainstream outlets and student newspapers alike, and collected more than 20,000 signatures in a petition to renew the series. They even crowdfunded over $12,000 to successfully put up multiple billboards in Hollywood. It’s not every day an eight-episode television show inspires such an outpouring of love."

Jamie discuses the character growth, specifically, of our very favorite 80's punk ghost detective with a heart of gold: Charles Rowland. Notably, the writing and acting choices made during the season one's 8 episode arc that all indicate the direction creators would have likely taken Charles had they been given more time and subsequent seasons:

...But given the fact that Charles is bisexual in the comics, it seems clear that the series was setting up things to come in subsequent seasons, whether that meant a romance between the boys or simply on-screen confirmation of Charles’s bisexuality in some other way...Dead Boy Detectives is about two boys who are frozen in time, but who also undergo personal growth — the kind that requires multiple seasons to fully blossom. Had this show been allowed to run for at least two to three seasons, I would be truly shocked if we never saw Charles in a same-sex relationship with someone. It’s less that I didn’t like the fact that Charles’s bisexuality wasn’t made plain, and more that I’m disappointed that Netflix’s impatience stifled the development of what, I’d bet a large sum of money, would have turned out to be a colorful bi show.

For what it's worth, I completely agree with Jamie's take on Charles and the direction Steve had planned to take him. In Season 1, we see Edwin grapple with, and come to terms with, his own sexuality. We climb the emotional peaks of that staircase right along with Edwin as he confesses his love to Charles. You know. This scene:

This exchange allows Steve to explore the ubiquitous affair of falling for a best friend who maybe doesn't feel the same way. But knowing that throughout the series, Jayden Revri has almost cartoon-level heart eyes when he looks, ever so fondly, at Edwin, I also believe that the structure of it's first season means subsequent seasons would have explored, in Charles, "is this feeling for my best friend more than just affection, and what does that mean for me?" In this way, Steve is able to throw a wide net on common experiences we face navigating friendship and sexuality. If only Netflix had given him, and us, more time.

*shakes a damning fist at Netflix*

Anyway, back to Jamie, who concludes:

Simply as a show, it was entertaining, engrossing, atmospheric, and fun. Even as someone who isn’t a fan of the YA/teen genre, I enjoyed it. And, the show’s bi shortcoming is one that I believe would, with almost 100% certainty, have been resolved in a second season. It feels a little like assessing the life of someone who died too young, before realizing their full potential. Kind of like Edwin and Charles. Except, the boys weren’t ready to pass on, and neither were their fans. Hopefully, the Dead Boy Detectives can be brought back to life. Otherwise, we’ll all be left wondering what might have been.

Indeed, Jamie. Indeed.

And, in the meantime, we'll continue to fight. For Edwin, Charles, Niko, Crystal, and Jenny-all of whom ought to have the chance to explore this next chapter of their (after)lives. For the cast and creatives who poured their hearts into this little show. And for us, because we, too, deserve to have our stories told.

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kind of obsessed with the visuals in ep 7 and I wanted to draw Edwin's hell look, and then things spiraled and I ended up with this, oops xD

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In utter disbelief

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Some people say that there are no stupid questions, which is blatantly false. Of course there are stupid questions, and if you have one, you had better ask it, before you go and do make a stupider mistake. Stupid questions are more important than intelligent ones. I’m willing to bet more people die because of stupid mistakes than because of intelligent ones.

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Made an arcane fan animation hehe

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Btw “Jayce loved Viktor enough to give his life to save humanity with him” and “Jayce loved Mel with every part of himself, and saved the world for her future too” can absolutely coexist without people needing to tear the ships down.

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There are a couple posts going around about how Edwin would think “queer” means “odd”, but I went to a Christmas concert today and it caused me to realize that he would also have a different definition for the word gay.

So picture for me please Edwin seeing some festivities and delightedly exclaiming “Oh, how gay!” and the rest of the Agency just. Staring at him.

Bonus points if the festivities are a pride parade.

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Took some gouache to my petsitting gig and made this while watching mean girls. A+ use of time. I'm still learning this medium so the struggle was honestly fun 🤣

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Fun cool Gooseworx fact:

The characters can still get development after their "spotlight episodes." In fact, the whole concept of the spotlight episodes is kind of just a vague classification system, and you may never know what's gonna happen next!

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THEY, SAID, OW, TEENAGERS SCARE THE LIVIN SHIT OUTTA ME! THEY COULD CARE LESS AS LONG AS I WAS A BEE! SO DOCK IN YOUR NOSE! ILL STRIKE A VIOLIN POSE! MAYBE THEYLL LEAVE YOU ALONE BUT NOT ME