#Harold Gloom

[2333am]

i was watching a homura edit on tt and it reminded me of harold

[blueoctobass]

Lemon kids shenanigans ! Very normal shenanigans with no organ trafficking

[sugarl1n]

[skelefreak-artemis]

Gloomverse my Beloved 🩷

I'm rereading and hyperfixating on Gloomverse right now...

and let's just say I'm on a gloomverse art spree gah! 😩

So here's some recent peices I've made/ am working on cuz it's literally taking over my brain:

(alt bg)

:)

[offscreen-gloomverse-probably]

Harold: Can't you just go all Anime on them?

Wallis: Those are plot driven powers, I don't know how to activate them!

[prompt-verse]

Round 1: Clermont VS Harold

Propaganda:

Clermont gets to keep her hook, Harold does not get to keep his lollipop because it's magic

[blackhair-redeyes-tournament]

Bracket 1 Round 2

[shmell0]

Eng: I read Gloomverse a few days ago and I really liked it

rus: Я прочитала Gloomverse несколько дней назад и мне очень понравилось

[gloomverseidiot]

[pussyeater8000]

Gloomverse and Poem Panic! from the ddlc soundtrack have the exact same vibe I can't explain it you just have to trust me

[emergefromthenoise]

Violent delights and violent ends – a tragic lovers' tale.

All the world's a stage... Indeed, so the whole theatre becomes exactly that: from the rooftop (a distant and isolated Mantua), to the backstage corridors and fire escapes standing in for meandering streets of Verona or foyer turning into Capulet's house's halls. Use it all. And at the same time focus on the word: darkness engulfing the stage where vulnerable characters bare their desires. Micro expressions on display as cameras follow the actors around. Lights. Camera. A story of love and hate. A tragedy weaved by fate. Timeless tale.

Some raised the alarm as the casting revealed Francesca Amewudah-Rivers as Juliet, claiming it wasn't true to Shakespeare's spirit. Well, I, for one, am glad that it wasn't. Not that I have anything against men in tights, but that would be a different play entirely. Also may I remind everyone we would be subjected to some pre-teen, prepubescent males with their falsetto trying to nail Juliet's voice timbre. And Nurse's too. But then we would have been deprived of seeing such brilliant performances from Francesca and Freema [Agyeman] which would be simply a travesty. And all in a name of staying true to the original text (may I add also well known fact – Shakespeare's not so secret and nice tendency to “borrow” from other's work thus him being not so original himself).

Even though my first reaction to Freema being cast as a Nurse was: she's too young! Because in my head this character is this elderly matron rather than witty and lively Nanny. But that's the beauty of theatre and interpretation: anything goes! And oh, boy how it worked!

Francesca's Juliet is so youthful, gentle, so full of passion. One's heart sinks seeing her heart's woes. Tom's Romeo has boyish charm, rage and love so bound together it boils. His Romeo is impulsive, emotional, he brings laughter and choked silence as one observes his character being played by fate. Let's not forget Juliet is the driving force. She's “yes” or “no”, black or white, ultimatum giving kind of girl. And Romeo? Well, he's both romantic (grand gestures much?) and... well, he's a fuckboy (how fast Rosalind is in his rearview mirror, huh?). But then he's Juliet's fuckboy and heaven is not on their side.

Maybe I'm a cynic when I look at this great romance and frown and childish overreactions and hyperboles. But these two [Francesca and Tom], they're so gentle and pure, so deep, that one quickly invests in their budding feelings and looks upon them with softness knowing too well what's glooming over. The tragic face of star crossed lovers.

But these two aren't the only ones shining bright on that stage. Mercutio always has been one of my favourite characters – flamboyant, fast with words and weapons, mad or is he? Harold Perrineau made such an impact with his Mercutio [in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo+Juliet], even though not on stage, there was no other version of this character for me. But I dare to say Joshua-Alexander Williams comes real close or maybe even matches the performance. Which is incredible considering it's his professional debut. Exuberant, cheeky sidekick, cursed... and cursing the feuding families. Seemingly insane with his flowery talk turns out to be the voice of reason and prophecy in the end.

The staging is stripped back, functional, raw in it's simplicity, but not dull. Focus is on the actors and the text. Blaring music and flashing lights prevent the audience from being too comfortable in their seat – it's a tragedy after all.

'Romeo and Juliet', a tale as old as overplayed. Yet, always attracting both actors ready to add their version to the pile and crowds eager to see lovers' tragic fate onstage (and/or on screen).

Shakespeare's plays always were the entertainment for the masses, even the tragedies have characters being bigger or smaller 'comic relief'. In 'Romeo and Juliet' it would be surely the Nurse, but thanks to Freema's brilliance this character is so much more than crazy old lady. The wit is her weapon of choice, true, but the emotions and layers that spill out thanks to Freema shine a new light on this character.

It takes a special kind of talent to breathe a new life into the text and a play as a whole (and the assemble did a marvellous job at it!), especially one so well-known, played so many times that people think they have seen it all. But Jamie Lloyd has carved a reputation for himself and his innovative and bold approach (and vivisection) is doing only favours to dusty classics. It is an unmissable event.

---

William Shakespeare's ROMEO & JULIET.

Dir.: Jamie Lloyd

Cast: Tom Holland, Francesca Amewudah-Rivers, Freema Agyeman, Michael Balogun, Tomiwa Edun, Mia Jerome, Daniel Quinn-Toye, Ray Sesay, Nima Taleghani, Joshua-Alexander Williams, Callum Heinrich, Kody Mortimer

In Duke of York's Theatre, London from 13 May to 3 August 2024

[Photo from Duke of York's Theatre]

[gloomverse-theories]

Bait and Switch

In most of our theories, we rely on the assumption that Amadeus Gloom (aka Mooching Hobo aka the Dark Overlord) is the same person as the dark figure that Rylie sees in her dreams and who (seemingly) murder Prisma and her Colors friends.

But what if... it was not the case?

We do not know much about Amadeus’s past, besides the fact that he is an only child according to the printed version’s bonus chapter. We know he has a sketchy past, impressive shadow (and candy) powers, and that he was somehow part of what happened in the ruins. Since he’s called the dark overlord by the lemon kids, we all concluded that he and the shadowy figure from Rylie’s dream were the same person.

However, Yellow never finished her sentence, did she? Was she calling for Ama-deus? Or perhaps Ama-ryllis? We do not know! There’s still the theory that those two are one and the same, going by different names at different times. 

But a more interesting possibility is that she was calling for Amaryllis, and that the actual Amadeus was the child she carried in her arms.

Unthinkable? Well let me change your mind! 

Light and Dark

In most myths as well as popular thinking, Light and Dark are two sides of the same coin. One can not exist without the other, they depend on one another. They’re similar yet they’re opposed. This duality is often portrayed as Light and Dark being linked, with their embodiment being related to one another or having some kind of counterpart. From how much she’s glowing, to her white and gold attire, it’s kind of obvious that Prisma is the Light one. Alright, who is the Dark one if not Amadeus the Dark Overlord? 

It’s Rylie. 

Yeah you read that right.

Light and Dark are Linked. Prisma and Rylie are linked. They look like each other, but they’re two distinct individuals. 

After all, Rylie has had many “dark” foreshadowing. She has (had) the look too! Black hair, eyes that appear either black or red, powerful and mysterious magic, and a dream that keeps going back to that one moment where the Shadow Figure does something to Prisma....

Not only that, but her dreams can only be from the “perspective” of the shadow Mancer. Prisma gets eeby deebied before the end and Yellow arrives late. No one is witness to the whole event, except the perpetrator. 

The Motive(s)

With this theory, I’m also uncovering a motive for the dark figure. If Prisma and them are linked, possibly siblings or even twins, the motive can be jealousy, resentment even. Prisma was by all standards the golden child. Powerful, beloved, and offered to lead a country! She’s clad in golds and nice fabrics, while “Ama” is in rags and bandages. Kept in the shadows. It would feel unfair. What would you want then, to set things "right"?

It also adds a nice parallel of blood family feud (Prisma and "Ama") vs found family friendship (Rylie and Wallis + Harold) if they are related. 

This also explains Why Yellow wants Rylie dead! She may look like Prisma, but she isn’t. She’s her “murderer”. Yellow wants revenge! Maybe she believes it will bring back Prisma? After all, she seems trapped in Rylie’s psyche.

Speaking of, why is Prisma so nice to Rylie if what I said is true? Well that’s easy: Rylie is not her past, she’s not that dark figure. She grew up like a normal kid, perhaps under Prisma’s watch, and she just wants to live her life. Like Purple isn’t Violet, Rylie isn’t that dark figure, even if they share characteristics.

What about Amadeus?

I’ve covered who the dark figure is, if not Amadeus. That’s great, but where does Amadeus fit in then? In Midnight, he seemed to recognise the place and he swore that it would “never happen again”.

It’s a popular belief that a murderer will come back to the scene of the crime, and that’s exactly what Amadeus does in this chapter. His demeanor in this whole scene can be read as someone wracked with guilt and regrets coming back to the place of their biggest mistake, BUT it can also be read as the victim coming back to where they lost everything. He looks sad, almost nostalgic, but he’s trembling. He’s afraid. This is a place of trauma for him, no matter how you read it.

Another point is that Petunia is in the know. I’m not one to judge relationships, but it would be a pretty big deal breaker for anyone to find out your hubbie has been involved in mass murder. And left your family because he was haunted by his past. Granted, Petunia is more wild than she appears, but I still think Amadeus would need a really really solid reason for why he did what he did.

Currently, we have no clue. No obvious motives. No signs that Prisma deserved her fate. Her recent appearance shows her as a lovely person and a concerned friend, not someone rotten from the inside that needed to be stopped for the greater good. 

So, is it more believable that Amadeus is indeed akin to a serial murderer, or that he was one of the victims? 

Finally, Amadeus is an only child. That’s mentioned despite barely being relevant, so I call Chekhov’s gun on that! Yellow had One child. The emphasis on the baby is strong, but we don’t know what its deal is. We don’t even know if it survived after that day. So, what if that baby was Amadeus? They even have matching skin color! 

The Flaw

Finally, I would like to bring up the one thing that breaks this whole theory: Pi.

We learn from him that the hair and eye color of people with ecoversian lineage tend to be green. If Amadeus is really Yellow’s kid, then he would have at least been born with green hair and eyes. Petunia’s eyes are green. Both Harold and Wallis have blue eyes. My theory crumbles on that point because of PI. 

TL;DR:

Instead of Amadeus being the one to off Prisma, it's someone else. Rylie takes after them and after Prisma. Amadeus has done nothing wrong, no murders, and is as much a victim as Prisma is, because he was Yellow's child. Yellow wants revenge, and she can get it by killing Rylie.

This is probably one of my most out there theory, but the idea is still fun! Tell me what you think!

[blueoctobass]

GV Artfight is over!

With over 9,000 points, it's Team Cake that claimed the win!

But team candy really gave it their all, as you can see in the graph :D

[sugarl1n]

why dis 🍭 look so mad 😭😭😭

This is an art trend on twitter 👀

[offscreen-gloomverse-probably]

Assistant: If you put 'violently' in front of anything to describe your action, it becomes funnier

Seaweed: Violently swims

Harold: Violently sleeps

Petunia: Violently gardens

Hobo: Violently eats candies

Wallis: Violently commits arson and treason

Purple: Violently worries about the previous statement