#gabriel and Beelzebub even got together!! what the fuck!!

[bittersweet-mojo]

so good omens. hm. truly I dont know how to feel. this is the most well executed cash grab i think ive ever seen. like. oh for sure this season Should Not Exist. but neil and presumably a lot of other people looked at it and thought. well that could make a lot of money. and like, these are people who can write and make good tv, like its not bad! its just the most patiently obvious cash in i think ive ever seen. it’s a completely different show. its.. fine. its taking all the things the rabid fans said they wanted and just giving it to them. and like. theyre just gonna keep going you guys asked for a straight drama romance and your going to get it. theyve committed to it now. and theyve done everything right like, there’s nothing truly offensive about it. and for those mad about the cliffhanger guys this is pat and parcel for romance shows they want to make money theyre gonna milk it for all its worth. they cant just live happily ever after, if they did we wouldnt have a season 2 in the first place. truly the right thing to have done with the story was to just have them kiss at the end of season 1 and never touch it again. but now we have this. cool.

[melbatron5000]

Murder Board 2.0

Updated 9/18/24

Since I've figure a few things out, I need to re-do my Murder Board. New answers, new questions.

What I think I know:

Hints given out by NG are suspect at best. (I cannot blame him or anyone else on the cast or crew -- they spent A LOT of time and energy building this very meticulous puzzle game for us -- why would ANY of them give ANY of it away? That would ruin all the fun!)

Lots of the discontinuity of Season 2 can be explained by POV switches between characters. See here and here for more. I think the title/location cards are also probably POV Clues, that needs a closer look.

Crowley gave something to Aziraphale in his mouth when they kissed. It's the fly. Now, what else was in the fly besides Gabriel's memory? RECORDS. Incriminating records that are why the Metatron let Beelzebub and Gabriel go, but nailed Aziraphale. The Metatron knows Gabriel has those records, he doesn't know they got passed to Aziraphale.

Saraqael and Crowley and by proxy, Aziraphale are all working together. See here and here for more. That explains A. the tiny miracle blowing up into a 25 Lazarii miracle. It didn't. They had to cover for something else that did. B. Saraqael showing the archangels the book shop in 2019 in the spy hole. C. Crowley's spy turtle neck and where he went during Aziraphale's Job flashback. D. Why Saraqael helps him see the trial in Heaven. (Oh! Muriel's now in on it, too!)

Crowley's memory is fine, it's a red herring. It might mean something else, though. I think he is dissing Furfur, he is denying knowing Saraqael even after she gives him a reason to recognize her to hide that they are working together. He tells Jim he doesn't remember why they invented gravity, but that whole scene is from Aziraphale's perspective, so the conversation likely didn't actually go just like that.

Shax is on a mission besides Gabriel -- she's looking for whatever Aziraphale and Crowley are hiding. Gabriel is a side-mission.

The hand-washing comment from Crowley in the Resurrectionists minisode -- he tells DaVinci about helicopters in Good Omens the novel. It's just a thing he can do.

What is up with Maggie? Maggie's freaking Jesus 2.0. She's what Shax is looking for, and who Crowley, Aziraphale, and Saraqael are hiding. Also, where is God? God is busy being Maggie, that's where. That's why Crowley says "Oh God" before his speech in the final fifteen. He's bringing up what they're hiding, reminding Aziraphale that someone has to stay and keep an eye on Maggie. That's why he can't go. Now, how the FUCK did Jesus 2.0 wind up owning a record store she inherited from her family NEXT TO AN ANGEL?? (Ah, shit, now I'm doubting this one. Now I suspect it's Nina, and Maggie is Mary MAGdeline. Same questions still apply.)

SECRET SONGS??? Why are the songs secret?? I'm losing my mind, what is happening?? I think this is a message that A. Aziraphale and Crowley are okay, and B. We will absolutely be getting part 3 of 1941.

I still think the scenes might be out of order. Is it as simple as watching them in chronological order? Could be.

The Metatron is a naked man. i.e. he was originally HUMAN.

Aziraphale and Crowley are talking in subtext A LOT. Aziraphale's tells are easier to spot than Crowley's. He raises his eyebrows and does vocal bunny rabbit ears, says "um," and "ah." "Our Gabriel miracle," "The establishment in question," "Certainly on to something," "Haven't yet cracked the case." Crowley's tell seems to be being effusive. "Frozen peas," "You wouldn't be interested in love?" "Well, today is your lucky day!" "How do you know I didn't do it?"

We are missing the scenes that should mirror the Resurrectionists minisode. What we do have instead of mirrors to that are Crowley telling the demons they are out of order. He can tell time has been messed with.

There are two Crowleys. I think the head in the book shop is his way of keeping in touch while his twin is off doing things, and the red eyes are him, too. Now, why?? What do they need 2 Crowleys for?

What still needs answering:

The clocks jumping time. And why are the extras moving in double-time when we first arrive to Whickber street?

The weird hand in the 1941 photo.

Aziraphale's chair position being moved still doesn't make sense. Unless Crowley was talking to himself??

The extras behaving strangely.

Crowley's car being in the wrong spot on the road after Shax threatens him.

Weird sounds -- Aziraphale turns to look at a crashing sound when he returns from Edinburgh, to look at a car horn, the very loud clock in the final fifteen BUT ALSO when Jim says he will go out to the demons, nightingale singing when Crowley leaves in the FF.

I'm not sure that POV switches explain Crowley's sunglasses going from silver to black.

I don't know why Aziraphale went to Edinburgh, or why he stopped at the graveyard where Gabriel's statue is, or why he looked like he realized something important while he was there.

Why does Michael do the "nothing's in the box" thing with the matchbox? It's a petty specific action. Someone pointed out that Michael's nails look chewed and terrible, are we meant to stare at the matchbox while something else goes unnoticed? Well, duh. But what?

We most certainly did not get the whole scene where the Metatron is talking to Aziraphale. What else was said?

What did Crowley do during his ALL-NIGHT JAUNT in Heaven? Did he sneak around and steal something? Did he uncover something? Did they hurt him? I think he stole something.

What did Aziraphale do with his briefcase that he took to Edinburgh? We see it in the book shop from his POV, and Edinburgh is seen from Crowley's POV, so they both know it exists. And then it's gone.

Why does Gabriel prophecy with God's voice? IS it God's voice? It's a woman, is it Frances McDormand? It's hard to hear. When he remembers the beginning, I think it's God's voice. When he prophecies, it may be someone else. Frances McDormand has no credit in that episode.

Why the heck did Maggie and Nina go talk to Crowley while the Metatron was talking to Aziraphale? What they had to say wasn't important enough to leave Nina's shop during a rush, and I definitely don't think they derailed Crowley from what he needed to say to Aziraphale, though it might look at first as if they did. So what was that about? Were they trying to speak in husband-code to warn him about the Metatron?

When Shax stops Aziraphale for a ride, he says, "Oh, I really need to get to --" and then is cut off. He really needs to get to where? It's an easy assumption to think he means the book shop, or London. But is that all he means? Or was he on his way somewhere else? And if it was just the book shop, what does he mean he's late? Late for what?

When Crowley leaves Heaven, he tells Saraqael and Muriel to come, too. But in the elevator, Michael and Uriel are there! When the fuck did they show up??

Why does Beelzebub tell Shax to attack the bookstore? Aren't they worried about Gabriel being harmed? And they know Hell is understaffed. Maybe that's why they command it? Because they know Shax won't be able to get many demons?

What about the Masons? It's such a specific thing for the pub owner to bring up, what is the meaning of it? And Maggie has a Mason symbol on her necklace. Did the Masons carve the statue of Gabriel? When did they see him?

The only narration we hear in the entire season is Aziraphale in the Resurrectionist flashback. I believe this is to throw us off the POV character switches all season. But still, why do we only hear him narrate 1 flashback? I think he's reading the diary to himself in the present day. That would explain the end, "And that was the last I was to see of Crowley for some time." He JUST heard the story of the jukebox from Maggie. And Gabriel appearing at the pub -- same city that statue is in. Of course he thought of something important from that diary entry! Now, what did he notice?

Is the Book of Life a real threat? We hear two stories about it, that it's real and that its ability to erase beings was something to scare the cherubs with, this is inconclusive. Crowley gets nervous after Beelzebub talks to him, but I think he's pissed that Heaven and Hell have taken an interest in them again, especially since they're trying to hide Nina!Jesus.

So many promo posters show Aziraphale, Crowley, and Jimbriel together, or symbols of them. Three feathers: two white, one black. Tea cup, cocoa mug, wine glass. The three of them. Not with Beelzebub, not with Muriel, the three of them. And all three of them have been Jesus-coded in some small way. No one else. Those three. What. Why. Are they the sacrifice required to bring about the new world? Why not Beez, then?

The whole collection of Maggie's album's from the Amazon X-ray are great, big CLUES.

A post that I didn't reblog pointed out that the record Aziraphale is listening to when Garbriel shows up is neither Shostakovich nor 21 minutes long. That seems important, but I'm not sure how. (The record is opposite when Crowley gives Aziraphale the fly containing records -- the actual symphony is, according to the original blog, one written by a rebel in contempt of his government. Do the records have to do with the rebellion and fall?)

What the heck does Furfur mean by "little monkey in the waistcoat?" How does that sound like Crowley?

Why does Furfur change the subject when Aziraphale asks where Gabriel and Beelzebub would like to go?

Why does Mrs. H say "for God's sake" two times in a row? No one says that on this show without a meaning.

Shax notices Crowley going to Heaven and makes an epiphany face.

Why is the end credit music for the ball French cafe music? French must be important. And the end credit music for The Hitchhiker is old timey and scratchy, then skips and becomes the same song in a newer, clearer style. Because they repeat the bullet catch trick in the modern day, perhaps?

I thought I heard that Crowley and Aziraphale are in the fly in the opening sequence, but nope. So why are they in a cave?

Why are there multiple elevators and multiple mountains in the opening sequence??? What the hell does that mean?? And multiple Edens?? All right, what's up??

I count at least two times Aziraphale glances right at the camera, probably more. Who is he looking at? Us? Is he looking at Crowley?Why??

When Aziraphale arrives back from Edinburgh, he asks how "everything is with -- mm." Crowley says "he was sleeping, I heard him singing." I don't think they mean Gabriel. At the cafe, Crowley says when Gabriel smites you, you've been smitten. Aziraphale says he isn't "you know who any longer." Again, I don't think he means Gabriel. Who are they hiding?

Repeating themes: (I am just realizing that these aren't just themes, they are all Clues!)

Beverages of all kinds -- tea for Aziraphale, wine or whiskey for Crowley, cocoa for Jim. Oh, and LAUDANUM. And coffee!

Time -- lots of clocks/mentions of time. Everyone notices the ticking clock during the Final Fifteen, but it's ticking loud when the demons attack the ball, too. Also, why is the first scene of Whickber street shown at high-speed? Is time sped up? Or something else?

Love/partnership/togetherness being stronger than separateness

Memories/forgetting/remembering

Payment -- money comes up in both the Resurrectionists minisode and the Flesh Eating Nazi Zombies minisode, but no one pays for anything in present. There is bartering, but no money. Both times money is brought up, it's Crowley using Aziraphale's money, and both times, it's to buy a life. It's funny, but I feel like there's a point to it.

Rising from the dead -- Job's kids (even though they weren't actually dead), bodies used for science, Nazi zombies, the Second Coming. I think this is all just hinting around Jesus -- sure, hinting around Jesus, who we were expecting to show up in Season 3, but she's already here. The hints indicate that she is already on Earth, not going to show up next season.

Unreliable narrators. Because we are seeing the whole show from various characters' points of view. Because of that, we can only see what they know, expect, believe, or understand, but also what they want us to see. We need to take the whole second season with a grain of salt.

Death in general -- but 8a., I'm a dirty pagan, why didn't I make this connection sooner, death always leads to REBIRTH, change, something totally new and 8b. there are tarot cards in the magic shop, and even if you're not a dirty pagan, the Death tarot card means transition, something must die before a new thing can be born. Hmm.

Morality and what is "good" and what is right

Recognition and identity and hiding one's identity. Ah! Probably at least partly because Maggie someone? is Jesus. How would you recognize them? (I think it's Nina now.)

Licenses, permits, permissions, rules, proof, evidence, what's allowed. All of the minisodes mention this, and it all gets mentioned again over and over. Because Heaven and Hell do have rules they have to follow. Which drives home my theory that Gabriel stole some very incriminating records from Heaven when he left, Crowley got hold of them and gave them to Aziraphale during the kiss, and now Aziraphale is going to nail them.

Colors. Lots of colors!! Job's kids are dressed in the colors of Nina, Maggie, and Aziraphale's shops. Jesus on the Resurrectionist Pub sign is in blue and red, blue and red crop up a lot in extra's clothing, as do yellow and red, Crowley colors. The Ladies of Camelot are in red and blue. Aziraphale says Earth will be a blue-green planet, Nina's shop is blue-green.

Horses. Horse statue, horse wine label, people saying "dark horse." The four horsemen again? I feel like they already had their ride, so what the hell? I think it's because season 2 is an echo of season 1, I THINK -- I have to check -- that horses appear or get mentioned when the horsemen have corresponding scenes in season 1.

Numbers. A lot of numbers get said. Does it matter, or am I overthinking?

Repeating words and phrases:

Technically

Properly

Isn't it just?

Too late

Funny old world

Not as such

Made for each other

EVERYWHERE

Obviously

Two shakes of a lamb's tail

Dark horse

What are you/am I? As opposed to WHO. Aziraphale asks in the Land of Uz, and Crowley asks Gabriel.

Are you sure? Quite sure.

The Marvelous Mr. Fell is described as marvelous in his mysterosity, Shax says the demons have dangerosity.

Mrs. H in 1941 says "for God's sake" twice in quick succession.

Schtum

Every day

Hints:

Powell and Pressburg films

The Crow Road

Catch 22

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents, Terry Pratchett in general

Jane Austin

Book Good Omens

Season 1 Good Omens

The titles of episodes, minisodes, places, etc. 7a. The Arrival: a book and a movie, though the book seems far more relevant. And lovely. The Clue: a movie. Companion to Owls: a line from a Bible story. I Know Where I'm Going: a movie. The Resurrectionists: two novels, each called The Resurrectionist, singular. Both look unhinged. The Hitchhiker: a Twilight Zone episode. Nazi Zombie Flesheaters: Literally no other reference. ?? Nazi Zombies do appear in a LOT of movies, comics, and video games, usually as a dark joke. The Ball: a video game. Irrelevant? It's a puzzle-based game, so maybe not. Every Day: a song AND a movie. Some themes repeat here: Puzzle games, being re-directed from one's path to find true love, death and being brought back to life in a gruesome and unpleasant way.

Objects that get a close-up/centering:

Starmaker's nebula book -- Nebula 231,080

Shax's compact mirror

Maggie's note

Shostakovich record

Tomatoes

The box

The Bentley

Eccles cakes

The bell

Head statue

The book Jim drops

Jukebox

Gabgriel's statue

Laudanum bottle

Phones in Edinburgh episode

"Very closed" sign

Broken whiskey bottles in 1941

Hourglass in Hell

Furfur's camera

Bullet catch in the magic shop

Instruction booklet for bullet catch gets 3 close ups -- because the bullet catch trick is that important, or because it happens 3 times? Both, I think.

Puppets

Dancers' silhouettes

Mr. Fell sign

The actual bullet

Angelic beings book

Photo evidence

Shax's shoes

"Surrender the angle" brick

[lenaellsi]

i've mentioned this before and it's a Hot Take maybe but. i don't think it's fair at all to characterize crowley's "you and me, what do you say?" speech from s2 as being equivalent to "fuck the earth run away with me to the stars right now" a la season 1

i guess i can see why it might come off that way, with gabriel and beelzebub having just left and crowley drawing the comparison to them, but a lot of people have sort of extrapolated from that this dichotomy where suddenly aziraphale is the one who cares about saving the world and crowley only cares about himself and aziraphale. and while i think crowley certainly prioritizes their mutual safety and is more likely to get spooked when faced with threats from heaven (i wonder why) crowley also loves earth?? he talks about it all the time.

the last time there was an apocalypse, crowley was the one who proposed saving the world, and he had to talk aziraphale into it. and like...he was planning breakfast at the ritz, wasn't he? he didn't want to leave. obviously "you can't leave this bookshop" meant "you can't leave me," but it also LITTLE bit meant the bookshop, and earth.

the circumstances of s1 were very different than the end of s2. crowley only wanted to run in s1 when 1) the end was about 4 hours away, 2) from his POV he and aziraphale had no idea where the antichrist was, so they wouldn't be able to stop anything even if they did stay to die with the humans, 3) aziraphale was about to Talk To Heaven the same way crowley tried to before the Fall, 4) demons were actively pursuing him for purposes of torture and annihilation. and in the end, he STILL stayed.

idk. if we're going to give aziraphale the benefit of the doubt for the Many Things he said in that convo, then i think we can afford to give crowley the benefit of the doubt that "we need to get away from them" and "go off together" might mean something more along the lines of "please don't go back to heaven, stay with me, it can be the two of us against them all." THAT was what crowley's emotional arc this season was leading to, with the flashbacks and his big revelation in ep 5, the same way aziraphale's was leading to leaving. every single one of the flashbacks had crowley choosing to help someone else at great personal risk--why would that lead to the conclusion that he actually wants to leave without trying to help? (of course, he did want to abandon gabriel. but I don't think that was even a little bit irrational after aziraphale's failed execution. walking away from the heavenly host who has done nothing but hurt both of them is not the same as walking away from earth. it's still a problem--ignoring heaven and hell will not, ultimately, fix anything--but again, it's not the same as abandoning humanity on a whim.)

TL;DR I don't think it's a fair reading to say that crowley's proposed solution to The Heaven And Hell Problem is "fuck humanity, let's give up." i think he was proposing working together against heaven and hell with the option of an exit strategy if everything went wrong, which is what he ALWAYS tries to do. (see: arrangement + holy water.) his need for an escape route and his tendency to prepare for the worst is something that is definitely hindering him in, for example, his relationship with aziraphale, but it also makes sense. because, you know. the last time he tried doing anything about heaven he got his wings lit on fire. so.

[qqueenofhades]

Your tags on the Dreamling/Good Omens cross over have me frothing at the mouth and I just need you to know that if you were to write that “Crowley stumbles into the New Inn” fic, I would be highly supportive of your life choices

The place isn't otherwise busy. It's edging into the lull period of late afternoon, when the day drinkers have shuffled out and the evening drinkers aren't quite off work, when there are only a few tourists taking snaps for the 'gram and the bartenders are out back for a cigarette break by the bins. Hob is sitting at his usual table, confronted with a pile of papers, a brewing catastrophe about the autumn schedule that for some reason he is expected to sort out, three passive-aggressive emails from Philippa about the prospect of him becoming Head of School next year (not on your fucking immortal life, mate) and other mundane academic crises, when the door flies open and a bloke at the end of his rope staggers in.

Thing is, Hob knows this particular bloke, at least by casual sight. He's been in from time to time, has a drink, stares at the wall, looks moody, and goes out again, either to a vintage Bentley filled with houseplants or just the streets of Poplar. Hob has made friendly conversation with him a time or two, knows that his name is Anthony Crowley and he lives in Soho, and he has a husband/boyfriend/life partner of some description who often drives him bonkers (join the club? Though the Stranger isn't even really that). But from the look on Anthony Crowley's face, as much as can be discerned from beneath his ever-present black sunglasses (not really a fashion item one otherwise needs in London), this is a five-alarm fire, and Hob gets up in some concern. "Hey. Mate. Everything -- ?"

Crowley stumbles past him without answering, which is probably only what Hob deserves. He reaches the bar, and since the bartenders are still on fag break and nobody else seems around to do it, Hob scuttles around the back. "Get you something?"

"Beer. Whiskey. Drink. I don't care." Anthony digs in his wallet and flings the first assortment of bills he can find at Hob, which is far more than it costs for a drink even in this terminally overpriced city. "Make it strong. Want to forget my own fucking name."

"Right. Got it." Hob only worked the bar when the New Inn was first opened and they were still hiring staff, but he hasn't forgotten. He selects a Scottish whiskey, neat, and pours it into the bottom of a tumbler, sliding it across the bar. Anthony throws it back without even seeming to breathe and shoves the glass in search of another, and Hob frowns. "Oy. Take it easy."

Crowley mutters something about that being the last thing he intends to do, thanks, and Hob's curiosity, the one thing that has often propelled him through the centuries, gets the better of him. "Not my place," he says cautiously. "But is everything, y'know? All right at home? Your, uh, partner, is he -- "

The effect of this utterance is not dissimilar to waving a red flag in front of a bull. Crowley rears back, looks for a moment like he's going to bolt, and is only prevented by Hob strategically shoving the refilled whisky glass into his hand. He tosses it down the hatch without turning a hair, wipes his mouth raggedly with the back of his hand, and with that, and no further prompting, launches into an absolutely nutty jeremiad. Something about Heaven and Hell, something about Aziraphale (that's his partner's name, yes) being a stubborn angelic idiot who's going to get himself killed, something about people named Gabriel (also an angel?) and Beelzebub (also a demon -- wait, demon?) running off together and he just thought -- he thought -- like a bloody fool he thought they could -- but no. Nooooooooo.

"Er," Hob says at the end, blinking hard. "Sorry, I don't quite follow."

"Course you don't." Crowley heaves a heavy sigh. "Even though you're not an ordinary human, I suppose it's just too...." He searches for a word, slurs a little on the end (maybe that whisky, of which he has just chugged the third glass, is having an effect on him after all), and enunciates with bitter, drunk precision. "Ineffable."

"Wait. What?"

"You're Robert Gadling." Crowley tips his head like an owl, trying to size Hob up in his progressively more lubricated state, and his dark glasses slide to the end of his nose, revealing lucent golden eyes beneath. "The special one. The immortal one. Right?"

Hob opens his mouth. Hob shuts his mouth. He realizes vaguely that it's quite possible Crowley has not, in fact, been talking in convoluted celestial metaphors the whole time. "How did you...?"

"I know your boyfriend," Crowley snaps. "Bit bloody full of himself too, isn't he? He and Az -- Azz-- Aziraphale probably sit around having secret societies for technology-hating, stuck-up, idiotic, holier-than-thou, utter total fucking prigs who can't use their words and constantly deny their feelings, eh?"

"My boyf -- " All at once, Hob feels as if a grand piano has been dropped on his head from a great height, like something out of an old cartoon. Yes, things with the Stranger are going well-if-you-squint, ever since their last meeting here: the idiot actually turned up, he apologized, he smiled, they had a long conversation, there were definite sparks. Considering the last, er, six hundred years or so of dismal precedent, that's a low bar, but still. "Afraid," Hob says at last, "he and I -- well, we aren't exactly like that, but -- "

Crowley keeps staring at him like he desperately wants Hob to sit him down and give him a clinic in how to get with the fussy, standoffish, excessively rules-bound immortal being he has been, evidently, also bloody pining after for Christ only knows how long. "Why not?"

"Ah." Good question. Hob isn't sure. "It's complicated."

"Complicated." Crowley stares moodily at the mirrored bar. "Sure. Yeah. Six thousand bloody years of complicated."

"Did you say six thousand -- ?"

"Yeah." Crowley holds out the glass again. "More."

Hob's mouth is still open. He's going to say something, but he doesn't know what. Six thousand years? God's wounds. He and the Stranger, at their piddly six hundred, are practically fucking married.

(He gets Anthony Crowley another drink, on the house. Can't help but feel that the poor bastard deserves it.)

[actual-changeling]

Do you think Crowley would be more emotionally open without Aziraphale? I’ve never thought about it, but I’ve just read the tags of your last ask and now I’m really interested

Short answer? Yes, absolutely.

Long answer? Also yes, but it's complicated. <- past me was correct, this got very long, my apologies.

What-if scenarios are always part canonical evidence/part subjective interpretation, because the only Crowley we know is the one who spent six thousand years orbiting Aziraphale.

Still, there was a pre-Aziraphale him, up until Job I presume, which is when they started being lonely together, and we do see what they were like!

The Starmaker is his 'before', the being he was before the doubt, the war, the fall. Before hell and the garden and Aziraphale. She is the blueprint the Crowley we know is built on. In the short time we have with her, she's incredibly emotive—with both positive and negative emotions—and her body language is soft, almost fluid.

Showing emotions is simply a natural part of being a person, and what exactly that looks like obviously varies; but this angel has never been punished for doing so. There are no consequences, it's safe to exist however she wants (though not much longer).

After this, we get Crawley what I assume is more or less a short amount of time after the fall. Everyone got settled in hell, and once the institution was functional, they now needed to actually have humans running around on earth. Otherwise there are no souls to torture.

Even here, Crawley is still open, still smiling, still soft, although a bit more covert in their body language. She laughs and—this is the important part—questions God right on there on the walls of Eden.

Even after falling for asking question, she does not stop, not for one moment. Despite the trauma they undoubtedly must have gone through, Crawley sees an angel, slithers up to him, and strikes up a conversation, trusting that he will not hurt them.

Now, this is where subjective interpretation comes in, because we have no information of what the fall was actually like. They got punished for asking question, for rebelling, for trying to change the system—but in my opinion, they never got punished for having emotions.

In the modern day, angels are terrified of making mistakes or asking question, but they are still emotive, they physically express their feelings. Some are more intense in their expressions, others subdued, but from Muriel all the way to Gabriel, they talk about emotions, they show emotions, and that in of itself is not a crime.

Hell is just as—if not more—emotional than heaven. Just remember Hastur when Ligur was melting and then later during the trial, or Beelzebub when ze summons Crowley in the first episode.

Yes, they communicate in code a lot, but only when it comes to very specific kinds of information and interactions, not when someone is going insane over the blaring alarm.

Why does all of this matter?

Because it proves that the level of emotional suppression Crowley and particularly Aziraphale have reached is not taught by either heaven or hell.

Instead, just like Aziraphale's claims that 'heaven is watching', it is a rule system instated by himself for himself, and by extension for Crowley; he set the requirements for interaction and forced Crowley to meet them if he wanted to be around him.

We don't see Crowley laugh the way he did as Bildad or the Starmaker anymore, we never see him carefree or joyous or sad. I mean for fuck's sake, he HIDES behind his glasses, a physical manifestation of the repression he's caught in.

Humans wouldn't notice his eyes in the same way the police doesn't notice them at the convent in Tadfield. The glasses show up during Job, and we know Crowley already had a plan to go against orders, so glasses it is. However, he doesn't wear them during the crucifixion, which comes after Job. Crowley tells us she spent a lot of time with Jesus, so you'd expect her to be wearing them, but she isn't—whatever her relationship with Jesus was, she seemed to trust him a lot, and Aziraphale wasn't around.

Aziraphale is the one who demands silence, who never wants to talk about anything he himself hasn't approved as a 'safe' topic, he and his fucking forgiveness whenever Crowley questions God, calling him a demon and pushing him away whenever he openly shows affection towards Aziraphale.

So yeah, of course Crowley cannot regulate his emotions and has no idea how to express himself now, Aziraphale has shoved a gag down his throat for six thousand bloody years and still wants it to stay in place. Our closed-off Crowley would not exist without Aziraphale's continuous presence in his life, and that is a hill I am more than willing to die on.

Crowley is getting his heart broken in the worst, most violent way imaginable both times. But now? His face is stone and steel, one third of it hidden away behind black-out glasses. No tears, no words, no desperation, no flying hands or fluidly moving body.

This is the kind of person you become when someone else forces you to make yourself small, when emotions are punished and affection withheld until you act the way they want. It's horrible, it's unhealthy, and it destroys parts of yourself that you will never get back, no matter how hard you try.

So, in conclusion, yes, without Aziraphale's influence, Crowley would be softer, more open, and we would still see remnants of the Starmaker in him—but we don't.

[hey-must-be-a-devilbetween-us]

you guys don't understand how much I need for Crowley to survive in large part because people other than Aziraphale start actively caring for him,

I need Muriel to get an inventory of books about depression and break ups and they're like ooooh that's what's happening, starts looking up cures on Aziraphales old Amstrad and starts miracle-ing Crowley warm sweaters and ice-cream and hallmark movies and not knowing what to say to make it better but they're there.

I need Beelzebub and Gabriel to visit separately at first to check up on him cause they're grateful for what he and Aziraphale did but they don't want to hurt him with their happiness, until eventually Crowley tells them all grumpily its fine if they come together next time and they all go for walks and play boardgames.

I need Maggie and Nina to come over to just listen to music and let him cry it out and they probably starting crying too and drink wine (Maggie drinks tea😊) and even gasp talk about stuff other than Aziraphale, for hours.

maybe even the Them come around sometimes too, maybe Newt and Anathema got a letter from Agnes with big ol' script on the front saying 'DO NOT BURN' with clear instructions to not worry this isn't a prophecy Anathema just pop in and bring some cheer to thee Angel's bookstore and the Them ask to come along and they all become pretty close. (Somehow they bring Warlock too idk maybe they all go to the same school haha)

I need Aziraphale to come back and after everything is settled he is glowing with gratitude for everyone who was there for Crowley when he couldn't be.

I need for all of them to turn around and say 'hey we're here for you too, ya know?' because they can tell being in heaven separated from Crowley was just as bad if not worse because of how alone Aziraphale was, he didn't have a bunch of lovely humans and outcast angels and demons and anti-christ's and kids and witches to rally around him.

I need all of them to have a real big ol' party in the shop where everyone is being their totally authentic, joyful selves as Aziraphales thank you and he just starts crying he's so grateful because he looks at Crowley smiling and dancing and laughing with his very own friends that discovered what he did so long ago, how fucking amazing Crowley is.

He just can't imagine what would have happened if he had been down here all alone.

And Crowley hugs him and kisses his head and he starts crying because he's imagining what it was like for Aziraphale up there all alone, and its chilling.

Aziraphale just laughs tearfully and says, "I didn't feel alone, I was watching over all of you the entire time."

Crowley smiles back with tears to match, "Never again angel, no more watching over, you stay right here."

[eefaevie]

✨ my official good omens s3 prediction post ✨

which accidentally I guess comes with a side-order of analysis and a soupçon of meta because I can’t shut up

The quote "The plans for Armageddon are going wrong. Only Crowley and Aziraphale working together can hope to put it right. And they aren’t talking." is intentionally misleading.

I think with Aziraphale gone, Crowley is going to become Grand Duke of Hell. He’s hurt, he’s tired, he’s got nothing to lose anymore. He’s also a bit of a dramatic petty bitch (affectionate), and after suffering what he considers the ultimate betrayal from Aziraphale, he wants to hit him where it would hurt equally by joining the “bad guys” fully. Crowley thinks of himself as unforgivable, and since (in his mind) Aziraphale refuses to “see” him for who he really is, he’s going to force him to by acting out like this (beside the fact that we know that this isn’t actually who Crowley is, but he’s injured and lashing out, even if it hurts himself, too.)

So, that quote. The plans for armageddon are going wrong. as in heaven can’t get it to start. And the only way they CAN get it to start is to get the Grand Duke of Hell and the Supreme Archangel to work together, which they are refusing to do. Think about all those meetings between Gabriel and Beelzebub — those definitely didn’t start off as dates, they were business meetings. And so Aziraphale and Crowley REFUSE to speak to each other (with MAXIMUM pettiness and passive aggressive comedy) because they’re both mad at each other for their mutual miscommunication, but also because they KNOW that if they do work together they’ll end up fucking it up somehow (and actually set the second coming back on track, which they obviously don’t want). The one thing that is a common thread through Good Omens is that Aziraphale and Crowley are actually kind of useless at their jobs, and they usually end up accomplishing the opposite of whatever it is they are supposed to do. Aziraphale is still in the grip of heaven, and can be manipulated — while Crowley is probably still terrified of Satan, and now that he’s kind of recklessly agreed to such a big promotion, that’s now his immediate superior.

(So really, if you’re useless at your job, and consistently do everything wrong, and you’re trying to stop a massive project — the best place to be would probably be in charge of that project, no?)

So anyways, cue Muriel being used for the most immature go-betweens (“Muriel, dear, please tell the Grand Duke that I won’t be able to make our dinner reservation this evening because he is a lying snake.” “Muriel, tell the Supreme Arseangel that I never made the reservation anyways and his holiestness was presumptuous to assume so.” etc etc)

I’m also betting that the Metatron orchestrated his offer to Aziraphale very intentionally, because he knows that they’re each other’s most precious thing, and he knew that raising Crowley would be the best possible offer to get Aziraphale to agree, but also, he knew that Crowley himself would never agree to it. Which left Aziraphale in a tricky position. He’s still too afraid of heaven to back out, and by separating him from Crowley, the Metatron thinks he has succeeded in both eliminating the biggest threat to the second coming (the earth’s only professional apocalypse-thwarters with extremely powerful joint miracles) and planted (what he believes to be) a huge pushover of an angel in the seat of power — essentially a puppet for the Metatron’s commands.

(I’m not even going to get into the alleged threat of the book of life at this point, but that’s it own big bag of worms)

Problem is, the Metatron severely underestimated how much these two are idiots, how far they’re willing to go for love (or how far they’ll go when they believe their love has been scorned), and again, I cannot stress this enough — how much they’re both idiots.

Crowley accepting the position of Grand Duke seems out of character, until you realize it absolutely is not. (The same thing goes for Aziraphale accepting the position of Supreme Archangel, btw.) With everything else happening, it’s going to be effectively Crowley’s only option — Aziraphale is gone, the second coming is coming, and there’s a convenient little vacancy at the top of Hell’s hierarchy. He’ll take it because he’s upset and hurt by Aziraphale, but he’ll also take it because he’s angry, and it’s the only way he can possibly have any impact on what happens next.

I’d go so far as to say that Crowley loves Earth primarily because he loves Aziraphale, and Aziraphale loves Earth. Crowley is always the one to suggest running away when the going gets tough, because his top priority is always Aziraphale’s safety. If the Earth ends up a casualty, well, boohoo, at least he’s got his Angel with him. Now, though, he’s got no Aziraphale — so what’s the point in sticking to Earth? Remember how he pretty much immediately gave up on stopping the apocalypse when he thought Aziraphale was dead? Yeah. (In fact, he probably realizes very quickly that if he wants any hope of having Aziraphale back and sharing their lives together — this time for real — he has to take drastic measures to make sure Earth and humanity survives. He’s an optimist, and he’s also selfish.)

So, surprise, Metatron! You just took these two will-they-won’t-they eternal virgins and made them business partners. Which is an issue.

Because remember, for one supreme archangel to fall in love with the grand duke of hell during dubious business meetings makes a good story. For it to happen twice makes it look like there is some kind of… institutional problem.

We’ve taken the “workplace” in “workplace comedy” and dialled it up to 12. Now it’s not two salarymen from rival companies just kinda begrudgingly doing what they’re told until they don’t, it’s two high-ranking executives from rival companies who’ve decided they’re in love with each other, they’re done with this shit, and they’re taking the whole industry down from the inside.

Never forget that Good Omens is, at its core, a comedy. I believe we will get the romantic south down ending, for sure, but the path to get there is going to be a farce. They’re not talking — perhaps only in the business sense — so who knows the hijinks and shenanigans and making out they’re going to make everyone around them put up with this season. Aziraphale orchestrated an entire Jane Austen ball for Crowley before they’d even touched mouths. They’re going to be insufferable and I’m praying for Muriel’s sanity.

Finally, the final element of my prediction: Jesus will be there, probably. Maybe even Adam, too! Maybe it’ll even be lost celestial baby pt. 2: electric boogaloo. (as you can see my priorities are mostly regarding what happens with Aziraphale and Crowley lmao)

(and also, you know that dinky little half miracle they pulled together for jimbo? They were a couple of nobodies then. Imagine a full-powered joint miracle between a Supreme Archangel and a Grand Duke?)

(…Imagine a full-powered joint miracle between two supreme archangels and two grand dukes? 👀 ok ok who knows but also I’m not convinced we’ve seen the last of beez and gabe)

ok bye ❤️

[good-omens-classic]

I just watched all 6 episodes of season 2 in a row and I am having a very hard verbalizing the way I'm feeling.

I am speechless, and not in a good way.

For five and a half episodes, I was on board. I didn't expect to like this, but despite myself I found myself laughing and getting emotional and getting invested in the story, in a way I haven't been since first reading Good Omens and falling in love with it all those years ago. Nearly a decade ago at this point. I had problems with season 1 and the way the fandom changed, but that felt mostly natural and just like differences of opinion and interpretation.

The ending of season 2 feels actively malicious. Especially coming from someone who couldn't stop touting over and over on Twitter about what a nice queer love story this is.

Everything wasn't perfect--but it was...nice. It was something. It was engaging and I was starting to feel excited again, not like I'm going to start writing fanfiction again excited but at the very least I'm thinking, I can enjoy watching people enjoy this from the sidelines.

And then the second half of the last episode came. And Aziraphale wants to go back to Heaven to lead the angels. Not only is that a completely nonsensical thing for Metatron to invite him to do, but Aziraphale's entire character is that he's happy on Earth. He's happy on Earth with Crowley. OF COURSE CROWLEY REFUSED TO GO BACK TO HEAVEN. The entire fucking point is they belong ON EARTH, together, with the humans. Our own side, their own side, the humans' being neither good nor evil but full of potential and power and them learning they can be that way too.

That's the point. That's always been the point. NEIL GAIMAN KNOWS THAT'S THE POINT. Aziraphale was clearly very unhappy with this decision, and hesitant. The show made it VERY clear he was unhappy and unsure after Crowley gave him a reminder of what they were supposed to be about...and he just went anyway.

And he did this right as Crowley declares his love and FUCKING KISSES HIM. In this, supposedly the cutest best queer love story. Nobody can even say "Well they just don't have that kind of relationship, they don't need to say I love you or kiss or hold hands" anymore because THEY LITERALLY DID KISS. And then IMMEDIATELY said goodbye to each other.

Tragedy is not just about making the audience unhappy. Tragedy is making the audience ache because of something sad and unavoidable, of knowing the characters could be happy in a better world. Good omens has always been about building that world, to me. I thought maybe they were going to go in that direction, with Aziraphale and Crowley building a non-apocalypse, at peace world on Earth together, with Aziraphale's newfound authority to teach all the angels and demons the benefits of humanity. That is, in my mind, the culmination of the themes of the original story, and the one I thought season 1 mostly got right except for some stumbling blocks. But this... This feels like a slap in the face.

The tragedy here is not that Aziraphale and Crowley can't be together, but that the writers....that Neil Gaiman threw away everything in the original story, everything from season 1, Hell, everything from earlier in season 2, about Aziraphale's character development and the most important themes of the story. And for what? Who finds this ending narratively satisfying, let alone is happy with it?

I was enjoying this. Maybe it was just because so much time has passed since season 1 that I've been able to more effectively separate the versions and think of them as different stories, and just enjoy them for what they are separately, or maybe it's because there was no other version of this story for me to silently constantly compare it to, but I was enjoying this...a lot more than I enjoyed season 1. I thought it was cute, I thought Gabriel and Beelzebub deciding to basically do WHAT CROWLEY AND AZIRAPHALE SHOULD HAVE DONE and make a "third side" was a great extension of the themes of the story, and all the Aziraphale and Crowley flashbacks set it up so perfectly for Aziraphale to realize at the end: The problem IS systemic, and Heaven isn't the "good guys." and Aziraphale clearly realizes this! And yet he doesn't act on it. If the last half an hour had just been Aziraphale going "I don't want to lead Heaven actually, I belong here on Earth if you want to come to me on how to run things the Earth way," and then he skips off holding Crowley's hand. To me that would be not only the happiest AND most narratively neat, wrapped up conclusion for season 2, but also THE ENTIRE FUCKING POINT OF THE ENTIRE FRANCHISE. and ALL the character development s2 had been setting up in the first five fucking episodes.

It just all got thrown in the garbage.

I'm tired. This could have been such a good, good story, and I was prepared to be disappointed, but nothing could have prepared me for this. When the clip of Aziraphale and Crowley kissing got leaked, I was bracing myself for it to be some sort of like....joke, or dream sequence that didn't actually happen. I was not prepared for THIS.

Someone please convince me it wasn't this bad. Someone please spin it in a way I hadn't thought of before that makes it make sense. Someone please disagree with me and explain why.

[loracarol]

Ugh so the thing that is still bugging me

and maybe I'm over thinking it - I definitely could be -

is that Aziraphale has no idea why Gabriel was actually threatened/in trouble

and if the Ineffable Bureaucracy flashback was only for the audience, aka Aziraphale et al didn't hear about it, then he has no idea that Gabriel's punishment was more about the war / lack thereof then the romance

So from his POV, he's just found out that The Archangel Fucking Gabriel (1) fell in love with a demon (2) was punished for it

And the only way to get out of this punishment/for them to be together was for Gabriel and Beelzebub to leave Earth completely

So what does that mean about Aziraphale and Crowley? I mean, Gabriel was The Head Angel. He was The One In Charge, and even he can be punished? Even he can be threatened?

Maybe Crowley and Aziraphale would be safe if they left Earth, but Aziraphale doesn't want that. He wants both Crowley and Earth. And maybe if Crowley became an Angel again they could be together safely. And maybe if Aziraphale fixes Heaven they can be together safely.

Maybe it'll be enough. Someday.

I just.

I feel like there has got to be something about that discrepancy, right? Maybe I'm just reading into it to much, but the way that Aziraphale just Does Not Know About The War Thing has me going feral. It's got to mean something, right?

[milkyetoile]

after this great post by @thesherrinfordfacility about Crowley and Aziraphale’s domestic, it got me thinking about the beautiful contrast between the relationships shown in season 2. it was such a great juxtaposition, a chiaroscuro in writing that seriously left me in awe and ruin, not just from what happened but for how the relationships were laid out in writing.

so here’s an essay on the romance in S2, written by your local arospec lesbian

Gabriel/Beelzebub

essentially, I think this was the “ideal” romance. two beings who were in high positions on opposite sides, having secret meetings to complain about their sides and then falling in love to Buddy Holly’s Everyday…there was an understanding at every meeting that they probably wouldn’t have reasons to meet anymore after they agreed, but they kept meeting anyway. they fell in love in the process until Gabriel placed his memories in the fly that Beelzebub gave him, after getting in trouble for not wanting to continue with armageddon't. and when the whole mystery was solved, they immediately agreed that they just wanted to be together and they did do that. they go off to Alpha Centauri to live happily ever after and both Heaven and Hell will probably leave them alone (probably).

I say it’s ideal because it’s like a movie or book romance. two people meet, get to know each other and fall in love, then conflict!! but once it’s resolved, they get together with a sappy ending. to be clear, I have 0 complaints with this, I’ve shipped them since s1 and they were cute in s2…but I also love how it was set up like the kind of romance both Aziraphale and Crowley were visualizing previously.

Nina/Maggie

this relationship was more realistic and healthier. Nina was in a horrible relationship with an emotionally manipulative partner (kinda parallel to Aziraphale’s experience with Heaven) and Maggie’s a disaster lesbian smitten with her. Maggie tries to make a move on Nina then finds out that Nina already has a partner, then Nina’s partner breaks up with her. then our two favorite idiots try to meddle and matchmake her with Maggie for the sake of the ruse. things go pear-shaped with them getting involved because Maggie wanted to help Aziraphale. but once everything’s done, Maggie and Nina actually talk about things and agreed not to start a relationship because Nina wanted to heal first after her breakup. and they agreed that after that, if Maggie was still interested (which she swore she would be), then they would try.

it was more realistic because they’re humans like us. part of what makes humans such pivotal parts of the story is that we have shorter lifespans that result in an “urgency” in comparison to the non-humans. striving for success, loving people–being on essentially a time limit motivates us to be a lot more direct and straightforward when the situation calls for it. humans have to grow to get what they want. and so, Maggie and Nina, as mature adults, decide to communicate properly and it ends with them not being together yet but having an understanding and being on the same page–a better foundation for romance than what Aziraphale and Crowley imagined for them.

Aziraphale/Crowley

this is the complicated, messy relationship with a generous heaping of unhealthy codependency and unresolved trauma. the slowest of burns, 6,000 years of knowing each other, and yet neither of them really talk. they’ve made some progress since armaggenah. they’ve both been more open in comparison to S1, they have been trying. but 6,000 years of dealing with their individual trauma plus being on opposite sides and needing layers of subterfuge and denial to even have a semblance of friendship…on top of that were the events of arma-fucking-geddon and the aftermath (which included COVID among other things, mind you)–4 or 5 years in comparison is nothing. they were just adjusting and getting comfortable in the new status quo…cranking up the engine, so to say. throughout s2, they both made assumptions about each other. they both clearly talk about wanting to be together but they had different ideas of how that would look like. they were on the same page for a mere sentence then ended up on different books altogether, so to say.

anyway, I’m losing my point bc it’s 5 am here and I’m finally getting sleepy…but it took them a time limit of the apocawhoops for their relationship to progress significantly. and another catastrophe plus a literal intervention from Maggie and Nina for further progress. then, when they’re finally completely honest about what they want between the two of them, it’s when they have two opposing ideas. and those said ideas tie back to their individual trauma and fundamental parts of their characters…honestly, as much as I’d love for them to end up together, they need time apart to grow, Heaven’s interference notwithstanding (looking at you, Metatron). ironically, Aziraphale says, “nothing lasts forever” yet their idea of forever is much longer than humans’ and that resulted in stagnation.

truthfully, I think this was also quite realistic. some relationships don’t work out due to various factors. you could find the person you’d be most compatible with in the world and still end up separating if you’re not emotionally ready. love is incredibly complicated and messy.

Final thoughts:

the ending of this season fucking hurts but honestly, I loved it. I personally love these kinds of stories. and the direction of those final scenes was just…*chef’s kiss*

I’ve rewatched that last scene with them at least 5 times already. am I a masochist? probably lol but seeing their minute expressions really digs in the knife more and I love it.

special mention to Michael Sheen’s acting during and after the kiss, like make it hurt more, why don’t you??

I really loved the juxtaposition and parallels between these relationships. beautifully done, I wish I could write like that. I didn’t think I could respect the phenomenal writers more but here we are.

if you need me, I will be spending the next few days rewatching S2 and reading and possibly writing fanfiction. we'll see.

[ohno-myfeefees]

Good omens 2

Finally got around to watching good omens season 2 and just jotting down my thoughts.

I like the ending, aziraphale has always been very holier than thou and he thinks heaven is the best and god is the best so it makes sense that when given a chance to go back to heaven and make someone he likes his little nepo pet he will take it.

Also when Crowley points out that he was offered to come back to hell and he said no, aziraphale goes “well obviously you said no, you’re the bad guys”, as if the angels of heaven didn’t attempt to start Armageddon, kill all of Job’s children, and erase him from existence more than once (saved both times by bad guy Crowley mind you)

I like that when Jim said “I love you” to aziraphale, aziraphale didn’t say it back.

I feel like Crowley kissed aziraphale not cause he cared much about kissing or anything but he thinks that’s what you (or humans) do to show how much you love someone. “One fabulous kiss and we’re good”

I disliked Nina and Maggie, they were off putting together and boring and had no chemistry. But at the same time I also think that was the point. Maggie had a weird stalkerish schoolgirl crush on Nina who was in a terrible and abusive relationship that finally ended and she just wanted to live her life. Any scene with them induced cringe and just dragged on and on. Two heavenly beings decided to then try to forcefully pair them together. It makes sense that the ship doesn’t sail and I’m glad it didn’t and I hope it never does.

People complaining about how grumpy and cold and unlikable Nina is but she’s constantly being hounded by a stalker that she has no attraction to. If I was in her shoes I’d be as dismissive and rude as possible in hopes they leave me alone. Especially if you’re a woman, you should understand how insufferable Maggie is being and she doesn’t get a pass just because she is also a woman/attracted to women.

“I hAvE bRotHerS” stfu Maggie

I hate that Nina called Maggie “angel”, it’s so cheap.

Still hate his royal smugness Gabriel, especially since he got his memories back. Him being Jim for a season didn’t change my feelings and I think Gabriel and beelzebub’s relationship was weird with not much chemistry either.

I like Muriel, she is cute and innocent and naive. I feel like she is the cinnamon roll that most fanfic writers seem to imagine aziraphale to be.

Shax was only a good character at the start. Once she started getting her solo moment in hell and commandeering an army she got boring fast. Her initial relationship with Crowley was compelling as she took over his old position but her character was not consistent.

Archangel Michael’s incompetence and ignorance of anything human is pretty funny this season. I enjoyed seeing more of the angel bureaucracy fleshed out.

Beelzebub was pretty meh this season, too cutesy and not enough deadpan “why is everyone I work with an idiot” and “I don’t give a fuck” attitude.

Wtf was furfur even there for

Fav scene was the Nina “how’s your naked man… friend” and Muriel’s visit to the bookshop for the first time.

I found Crowley being able to access Gabriel’s file interesting especially knowing the clearance level needed and I hope they do something with it.

Just because I didn’t like some of the side characters from season 2 doesn’t mean I miss the side characters for season 1. Anathema, whatshisface unlucky glasses guy, racist abusive Shadwell, and “the them” were all also meh. They worked with the story but I didn’t actually like them or their characters.

Muriel is the best side character ever created aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

The season overall was hit or miss, the writing wasn’t very tight, and I found some of the characters very boring and cringey and a lot of the story and characters lack subtlety.

[inconveniently-discorporated]

Okay I'm about to don the tinfoil hat, guys.

Guys, I keep thinking about this season and the end, and I feel like I can't believe everything played out as it seems.

Spoilers ahead.

So.

So like.

You just expect me to believe that after making this big show about how Aziraphale is a traitor and how Crowley is a traitor and blah blah blah The Great Plan and everything and Gabriel being a murderous, power-hungry little bastard, he and Beelzebub just sorta went, "You know what? Nevermind."

And at the end when he gets everything back, that's... That's just sorta it? "Wherever Beelzebub is, that's my Heaven. 😍"

And then they just run away together and everyone's just like, "IDK I guess we'll just erase Aziraphale from the book of life? 🤷‍♀️" Like why erase Aziraphale for helping Gabriel and not Gabriel who is the one who actually abandoned his duties and ran away?

I DON'T KNOW, I'M JUST SAYING IT ALL SEEMS A LITTLE BIT SHOWY, IS ALL.

Like the whole magic act and the art of misdirection is a REALLY big part of the season, and I'm just SAYING that Aziraphale began the season with his husband and his bookshop, and now he's got neither, and he's being escorted WILLINGLY back to Heaven.

By the angel (is the Metatron an angel or is he something else?) who called Muriel "THE DIM ONE" (which by the way I'm really mad about but that's a post for later) and then within a few minutes was patting them on the head telling them what a good angel they were for reading books now here why don't you come along and bring this independent sanctuary back under Heaven's control. (DON'T THINK I DIDN'T NOTICE THAT SWITCH, METATRON.)

And, maybe, sell a bunch of books (knowledge, power, agency) while you're at it because Muriel probably doesn't even know you're not actually supposed to SELL the books.

The Second Coming is coming, and you've got Aziraphale and Crowley out here doing supreme-archangel-level miracles together. Crowley is powerful enough to access top secret materials. Aziraphale is clever enough to thwart the apocalypse.

And by the end of the season, you've absolutely gutted this powerful free agent who is on nobody's side -- hey maybe now he'll swallow some holy water and be out of everyone's hair -- and you've eliminated the bookshop as a holding ground and you've brought Aziraphale back under Heaven's control.

I'm not saying the WHOLE THING was set up, but... What if the whole thing was set up?! Orchestrated to win Aziraphale's trust back over, and push Crowley so far away he becomes a non-threat? Maybe even easier to eliminate??? Maybe easier for both of them to be eliminated????

Like you're telling me that there just happened to be a neat little folder that Crowley could access, and they just let him see all of it? Because why not? And it just conveniently happened to have all of the things that Gabriel did that somehow no one knew anything about, even though it was all in this folder?

And you're telling me that the archangels who WERE IN A MEETING WITH THE METATRON just SOMEHOW didn't recognize him at all, when Crowley -- who famously "doesn't remember" people (whether that's true or not idk) is the only one who recognizes him???

I'M JUST SAYING, THE LAST EPISODE WAS FUCKING WEIRD OKAY? It was a little too "🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️ oh well I guess this is what happened 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️" for my taste.

I cannot believe we have to wait two years at minimum for more of this but I guess that's a lot of time to deconstruct what's going on here, eh??

[maryholdenofthevalley]

I don't really think we wouls see Aziraphale in season 3 to think "oh dear, I made a wrong decision", because he was not.

Sure, the way he approach it and break the news to Crowley was all over the place and turned into a real mess, but I can't think of any possibility of Aziraphale turning Metatron's offer down or running away after experience the Archangel position because Heaven is not what he thinks, since he already knows. He doesn't need to hear what they said in Gabriel trial to know this, he already got punched in the stomach by Metatron and pinned against the wall by Uriel threatening him, hearing Metatron said "the point is not to avoid war, but to win it". He knows what Heaven wants, what Metatron wants.

And what kind of angel is Aziraphale to run away from all that? The angel that went directly to God to report bad behavior colleagues? The angel held up a little sword, expect to fight against Sa-fucking-tan? The angel that, despite facing his former boss who kidnapped and tried to kill him and had witness another Archangel brought holy water down to Hell to kill his friend, still choose to hiding him and investigate to prevent the "terrible thing" that would happen to the jerk boss if he let him be.

“The more reason why we should stay away from him when that terrible thing happen! Go off together!”

Crowley always choose to avoid the problem. Aziraphale always choose to face the problem head on. He's not naive. He knew the power Heaven has over the Book of Life at the end of ep 6 and what would happen to them, to Aziraphale, to his Crowley, if they keep running away but would never escape the grasp of one single book in Heaven? What better choice could it be to be personal close to the book, being the first and second on heaven, and no one would dare to touch them, just like how Beelzebub and Gabriel ran off while singing their song together in front of everybody's eyes and no one dare to stop them?

Aziraphale wasn't as naive as thinking he can only fix Heaven. He can fix Heaven AND make sure Crowley is safe beside him, no longer "the foul fiend" that anyone of his own kind can just splash a little bit of holy water and there would be no trace of him left.

Why do you guys think Aziraphale wants to change Crowley? He never pressure Crowley into doing anything good, but always "I know and I saw the good in you". Never "Can you turn back and be the good angel you used to be", but "Look me in the eyes and say you want to kill them". He trust Crowley the Demon. He probably even think he's too good to be a demon, that's why there should be no change in Crowley but his status, a better and safer one.

(There is no disagreement over how wrong they think they understand each other, though. That was very bad. Aziraphale thought Crowley would want security inside the bee hive and Crowley thought Aziraphale would choose the hive over him. I've never dread the Misunderstanding and Miscommunication that bad, please season 3 at least let them talk a little bit. I have been on the wet floor for a month now.)

[love-has-a-way-ofgrowingbackward]

look guys there's something weird as HELL going on with aziraphale. all three minisodes we saw gave us an insight on how his brain works and his beliefs and everything and how it leads to him making the choices he's made. right.

crowley said something weird has been going on before the attack and we know he has a sixth sense for these things but WHAT IS IT.

i think i REALLY REALLY THINK there's going to be flashbacks to season 2 scenes in s3 and we'll get context and ohhh moments. like.

1. at the mystic shop crowley puts his cap on a snake. maybe just a sneaky nod to how he was wearing a cap but maybe something more?

2. i think the way metatron says "how predictable" and when he says "are you going to take it" so deliberately. they're huge huge clues i think. i feel like the metabitch knows something i dont which pisses me off.

3. i dont understand why the job scene was shot a little different to other ones and also why crowley and aziraphale sounded so different from the scene chronologically before and after that we see in s1. except maybe the seaside bit the whole thing was. definitely odd. and its also mentioned again and again and again. biggest question i have and also one of the biggest foreshadowing in the show is the job quote from the matchbox. what is that WHY IS THAT.

will we realise parts of the job scene were fake or left out and see in s3 how the line was relevant.

4. WHAT does metatron want from aziraphale sooo badly that he went to the trouble of going through his entire earth file and carefully construct manipulation plans a through to z to convince aziraphale to come up.

unless he was unnerved that they together blocked gabriel from him and left him in the dark while actively trying not to do something powerful and he wants armageddon 2 so he can destroy earth because he's the bad guy. and he cant even feasibly start on that as long as aziraphale and crowley are together/friends/as long as, metaphorically, the bookshop is theirs.

(the bookshop wasn't 'theirs' by the time crowley left i think. they'd sort of mentally given up on that which is why at the end muriel could enter without permission i think. if the south downs thing ends up being canon then maybe the bookshop will be destroyed for real because otherwise at the end they would end up at the bookshop)

5. look one of the most terrible thing in the whole ep6 was aziraphale not paying any attention to crowley in the beginning of the confession. he's really really flustered and there's a heartwrenching theme of him staring out of the window. he's absolutely terrified of the metatron seeing them and half his mind is on him.

aaaaaghhhh losing my fucking mind. you could almost hear the quote about the straightforward love life when crowley looks at nina and maggie. that feels like a conclusion kind of? like a really happy ending just like beelzebub and gabriel had. they're both good and loved. which is why i dont feel like we'll be seeing them majorly again... maybe we will i hope we will but idk. there's.

season 2 was soft gentle romantic definitely but it was also a sherlock holmes level of mystery. except we're at the start of the story when holmes doesn't get all the facts to solve the mystery.

also random not plot related questions.

why does the sandwich woman blink so much in the seamstress scene and why does aziraphale blink so little during the last lift scene. these probably dont mean anything other than the womans mascara got in her eye or something

how does the bentley play classical music which doesnt change for aziraphale but doesn't do that for crowley? is it love i hope its love

why does aziraphale's face do something odd when he leaves crowley to talk to nina ep5? or am i reading too much into it? he was very forthcoming with the rest but with nina he was sort of quiet (?) and reserved and went away looking uncomfortable.

why did aziraphale want so badly to drive crowleys car? was it meaningful or connecting to him? i know a lot of people say the dont hesitate to ask me any questions about love scene was aziraphale giving crowley horny eyes but i thought he seemed itching and really eager to get the keys? why does he want them sooo desperately. i don't fully understand their relationship which makes me WANT TO. what happens to a person when they spend six thousand years with their only friend and companion being a hereditary enemy, watching every single thing they do?

also why was he willing to give away a book and bribe out a book for the meeting? seems overboard for someone who doesn't really seem to think about heaven checking on nina and maggie. i think tbh it had less to do with heaven's suspicions than aziraphale being the kind of person who would love an excuse to host a night of dancing and food and love (mood) and he even got to participate by dancing with the demon he loves instead of just watching! (though i suspect he really likes that as well). hmmmmmmmmmmmm.

guys the brain rot has set in someone tell me im not imagining things

[absolutebozo]

Season 2, episode 6. Where it all goes to shit. But only in the last 20 ish minutes.

I have said it once, I'll say it again. Protective Crowley, Protective Crowley. Bro went to heaven, as a demon, so he could save Aziraphale. If that's not love, I don't know what else is. Also, if I'm correct, most demons are angels who have fallen, including Crowley. Why have none of them up until now tried to get into heaven. I guess like Crowley said, bee mentality. But could you not overwhelm them? Or, like Crowley did, find a naive angel to escort them in. Crowley did it for good reason, but how have other demons not thought to lie and take advantage of the gullible angels? Not that I want them to but, strikes me as odd that no one ever tried as far as I'm aware.

I also love how just, clueless Muriel is. Speaking of them, is their name supposed to be a combination of Micheal and Uriel? Or am I the only one who gets that impression.

To be completely, the fact that angels have halos had completely escaped my mind the whole time until Aziraphale took his out as a desperate measure. And, to still be completely honest, it's dumb as fuck that Aziraphale almost got in trouble for defending his bookshop. I know it's because he was harboring Gabriel, but also, Gabriel did try to give himself up a couple of times.

More protective Crowley. More protective Crowley. Preventing his angel from getting into trouble for essentially declaring war with Hell.

I've said this before, but I'll say. It. Again. It is so unfair and fucking stupid that Gabriel and Beelzebub got to be together and away from heaven and hell. They were both much higher in their respective bureaucracies than Aziraphale and Crowley and they get to be together. They had about 5 years to fall in love, and get to be together. It's not like Aziraphale and Crowley have been pining for 78 and 6,000 years respectively, are lower in their bureaucracies, and have been friends for more than 6,000 years ago. No, not at all.

They even had their own song for them and their relationship since season 1. Then Gabriel and Beelzebub suddenly get their own song in episode 6 and that trumps Aziraphale and Crowley's song. "A Nightingale In Berkeley Square" was a much better song to couple match in my petty opinion anyway.

The way Aziraphale grabbed Crowley's shoulder when Gabriel and Beelzebub let the cat out of the bag. And in my opinion, Aziraphale seemed distracted when Crowley started taking control of the situation again. I can physically no longer. The way Crowley smiles when he sees Aziraphale handle himself and regain order in the bookshop when everyone was arguing. Aziraphale's longing looks when Crowley talks about Alpha Centauri. The way Aziraphale looks at Crowley period. Like he's happy with Crowley. Cause he is at the moment. The way Aziraphale looks back at Crowley if he could walk with The Metatron, as if asking if it was ok. The way Crowley was planning them time already. The way we know Maggie and Nina will be together eventually and that they are parallels for Aziraphale and Crowley. This is absolutely me holding onto any sliver of hope I can get.

I know a lot of people have analyzed the kiss and said that Aziraphale kissed back and was basically enjoying the kiss. And you know what, this is another sliver of hope that I'm holding onto. And honestly, in my opinion, I think that Aziraphale really didn't want to go. Like, he didn't suggest himself for the job, he didn't want to go to heaven, he kept making excuses. But ultimately, he hoped he could change heaven for the better and he and Crowley won't be hounded by heaven nor hell if they're high up on the bureaucracy.

Hnng. The way Aziraphale pressed his fingers to his lips after the kiss. The way he turned around when he heard the door open, hoping that it was Aziraphale. These fools love each other so much that they ended up hurting each other and themselves, not that they'd care if they hurt themselves when they hurt the other.

And the, "Listen, do you hear that? That's the point. No nightingales" line broke me. Cause the bird is from the song that represents them and their love. The song, "A Nightingale in Berkeley Square," also ended season 1 off. Cinematic and literal masterpiece. That's what this show is.

The way Aziraphale hesitates to leave. He clearly doesn't want to leave, like I said before, but now he has even more reason. And omg, when Crowley's Bentley began to play "Nightingale In Berkeley Square." A lot of people have said this and I agree, Crowley was expecting an entirely different response from Aziraphale. He had planned a date at the Ritz and even had music set up for the ride. Also. Also also also. I can't be the only one who watched the whole credits just in case of an Easter egg.

If you need me, I'll be crying and feeling extremely empty cause this show is great and we have to wait and see for season 3. Which might come out in 2026. Key word is might. There's a lot of factors at play. But in the mean time, I've ordered the book. It should be here in August 30th.

[pcptpf]

A small rant as a religiously traumatized individual regarding Good Omens

TW: Talks of religion, trauma, manipulation, all that good stuff I guess

**********************************

So I honestly just finished good omens s2 a couple days ago. And obviously the brain rot set in. I'm so in love with all of the characters and think they're just lovely. There is one thing that bothers me though and it's the reaction of Aziraphel's exit of this season.

I see a lot of people being pissed at him and rightfully so they've been a dick but Aziraphels also a very very traumatized angel.

We got tidbits of the abuse they endured by the hands of many of the angels. With the nice touch of being told to "shut up and die" by someone he looked up to. This was of course witnessed by Crowley who I think realized in that moment just how bad it's been for their angel up in heaven.

Now onto the trauma bits. I have my own personal experiences with religion and it's not great. I was born into a religion and was forced all my life to serve in it. Told I didn't have a choice and shouldn't want anything else. I was told that as long as I lived under my parents roof I had no choice but to serve.

I wasn't allowed to have outside friends and definitely not hang out with them. I wasn't allowed to be seen with certain people as it would spoil my family's reputation. I was told that eventually all my wordly friends would die so I shouldn't get too attached to them.

So when I saw this very deeply traumatized angel I was like lol me too. One thing about religious trauma and trauma in general is that it never leaves you. When someone spends years and years telling you that you're nothing without the religion. The only people who truly love you are here. They don't give a shit about you but we do. They're all just going to be destroyed one day. They're not good people. It kinda gets set inside of you embedded in you if you will.

So no matter what Aziraphel is going to think this about himself. I've only experienced this for 18 years as Aziraphel has had this happening to him for much much longer. He has been beat down and told to stay there as it's the only thing they should be doing.

Let's talk the authority problems too. If you notice in the scene where Gabriel and Beelzebub are running away together and talking about their love Aziraphel looks so excited. They grab Crowley's shoulder as in saying"that could be us." This is all absolutely shattered the moment metatron opens that door. Everything Aziraphel might've been thinking about fell away the moment he saw the one person he's been looking to be seen by for his entire existence.

Aziraphel spent so long being beat down and oh god here comes fucking Metatron with his stupid coffee. Metatron told Aziraphel everything he knew he wanted to hear. Told Aziraphel everything they wanted to hear. That they were the perfect angel for the job and oh he even thought of them immediately.

The straw that broke the camels back was Metatron telling Azi that they could bring Crowley along. To Azi this was astronomical. They were told for so long (as toxic religious people often say) "stay away from Crowley she's a demon" "demons are horrible nasty people they're awful" and for Metatron the direct messenger to God to be telling Azi he could bring his favorite person to heaven. This was their breaking point.

Also the subtle jabs at Gabriel that were thrown in there too just to spice it up a bit. Metatron knew exactly what he needed to say to get into Aziraphels mind.

Crowley knew the extent of what would happen to Aziraphel and they were terrified for them. But Aziraphel was so sure that ohh yes they've done awful things but now they're changing I mean look Gabriel is leaving so everything can change between us too.

Aziraphel is seeing it as "oh it's finally changing I don't have to choose anymore we can be together and be angels we dont have to pick sides anymore because this side is welcoming us with open arms” when in reality they're not.

To others it may seem like an obvious decision “oh they’ve been so horrible to him” “they’re such toxic people why would Aziraphel want to be with them” but this isn’t how Aziraphel sees it at all. It is so hard to walk away from something after you’ve been told for so long that if you walk away you’re a horrible person and you’re losing everything. Aziraphels choices were always either “Choose Crowley and be an outcast or choose us and be up in heaven and be “good” and “faithful”” and for those choices to be combined into one is all Aziraphel ever wanted. It’s not an obvious choice to him it’s the only choice he thinks will keep him from losing everything that ever actually mattered.