Not Really Here?

Apparently this is a Good Omens blog

[doomedlemur]

Good Omens Fanfic Recs

I decided to write up and sort my fanfic recommendations and thoughts, mostly for my own benefit, as an organized list of my favorites for reference. But also, here it is in case anyone's interested.

Heads up, no post-season 2 fix-it fics on this list if that's what you're looking for. I've got mostly historical canon-compliance and AUs. A few post-season 1 canon-divergent.

Also, I'm a sucker for pining, but also headcanon these guys (gn) as demisexual virgins, so nearly all are ace-friendly except the long AUs.

Canon Compliant - short

In general I favor canon compliance and keeping in character. Part of what got me hooked on Good Omens fanfic was the immense breadth of history available to explore with these characters. Let's list in approximate chronological order!

Little Monkey in a Waistcoat (<1k) - Did you catch that line? Crowley spent much of the Battle for Heaven in monkey form!

A Letter from “Crawly” to Azirapil (<1k) - Fanfic in Cuneiform. Amazing.

see, how the most dangerous thing is to love (6.8k) - 1185 BC. Crawly and Aziraphale meet during the Trojan War as Achilles mourns Patroclus. Super well-researched and thought out with the Iliad! I'll be looking for more from this writer.

Cat's Charm & Serpent's Sorrow (<1k) - 942 BC. They come upon each other in a temple in Egypt.

Doves' Eyes (10.9k) - Something a little different. Slow, and introspective, with a few different time periods, from Ancient Greece to the Plagues in Egypt to Victorian England, but it's quite good.

Day 7: Alexandria (<1k) - Just a little saving of people and scrolls in the fire.

Ex Maria virgine (1.6k) - Gabriel at the annunciation! Pregnancy, how does that work??

The Bible Project (3.7k) - 1452. Crowley and Aziraphale meet Gutenberg!

that old common arbitrator, time (1.1k) - 1602. An epilogue of sorts for the Trojan War one, Crowley and Aziraphale critique Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida. Lots of fun references.

the stars are the same as ever (4.4k) - Vignettes about Crowley hanging out with astronomers in the 17th century.

Mean It (2k) - The origin of the Apology Dance. 1650, 1793, and 1941 all featured. Short and sweet, very believable. Just as flirty as I imagined.

Good Old-Fashioned Coffee Shop Date (1k) - 1750. Crowley goes to a coffeehouse to start an argument and guess who's also there!

well-versed in etiquette, extraordinarily nice (3k) - Jane Austen, mastermind of the 1810 Clerkenwell Diamond Robbery, brandy-smuggler, master spy, and wrote books too. Well-researched, with Austen-esque prose, and perfectly fills in the background for how Crowley remembers her.

Crossing Paths (3k) - Edinburgh, 1827. Showing how Crowley and Aziraphale crossed paths there, and dropping us off where the Resurrectionists minisode begins. Delightful.

Temporary Tattoo (9.8k) - Okay, this one's arguable on the canon compliance, it's kinda a crack-fic (and feels way more 19th century than 11th so I'm putting it here in the chronology) but I loved it. Crowley's snake tattoo wanders, and he can feel what it feels. (The sequel is also really sweet, though definitely canon divergent.)

I stretch out the time (and now I know why) (6k) - 1960's ineffable wives and what happened to make Aziraphale say Crowley goes too fast.

Visibilium omnium et invisibilium (5.8k) - 1969. Crowley's planning another heist! Really silly. Excellent.

Orchids and Tea (3k) - A shameless plug for my own fic. Meet the old lady downstairs who Crowley gives his "bad" plants to.

What You've Lost But Never Had (3k) - A sweet outsider POV with Maggie's closeted grandfather.

So You Need To Get Into A.Z. Fell & Co.; Now What? (A Guide For Unfortunate Bookworms) (1.8k) - Handy guide for interpreting the store hours, etc.

All of This is Completely Normal Here (6.8k) - Some pre-armageddon fun with Crowley and Aziraphale being interviewed at a police station. Crowley is a regular and they have bingo cards.

The Disposables (7.5k) - Arguably canon divergent. Surprisingly heartwarming. Eric the Disposable Demon is buds with the Usher.

When You're Through With Life and All Hope is Lost (Friends Will Be Friends) (<1k) - COVID-era ficlet post-Lockdown minisode.

The Last Four Years (11.7k) - Perfectly fills in the gap between the seasons with all the feelings and poor communication that brought us here, from the Ritz to Aziraphale's phone call.

Pointless (1.5k) - An exploration of Crowley as he is at the beginning of season 2, anxious and depressed about the pointlessness of it all.

Been Together Long? (1.2k) - It's so common for fics to depict Crowley as knowingly in love but hiding his feelings for 6000 years. But I don't think he's self-aware enough for that, and I really do believe that was an Oh moment with Nina on the street. This fic is an excellent insight into what he was thinking there.

The Afternoon Lecture (<1k) - A cute little outsider POV fic, set sometime in the Happily Ever After probably.

The Slings and Arrows of Angelic Archery (<1k) - Guess which historical/legendary figure Crowley was! Sadly just a little modern-day conversation about it rather than the actual thing. (I'm writing it though, stay tuned! 👀)

A Narrow Escape to the Country (10.7k) - This one is so fun! Crowley and Aziraphale are guests on a house-hunting TV show. (Established relationship with innuendo, but all sexy times are off-camera.)

My Roommate from Hell (5.7k) - Warlock ends up college roommates with Adam, and yeah, Warlock's upbringing made him kinda weird.

But the greatest of these is love (2.1k) - Lovely/sweet/silly garden fluff for the happily ever after.

Canon Divergent - long

Divergent in that these were written before season 2 came out, so branch off from after season 1.

Demonology and the Tri-Phasic Model of Trauma: An Integrative Approach (99k) - This one is recommended a lot I know, but deservedly so. This was the first GO fanfic I read, as I idly looked to see what had the most kudos. And then I couldn't put it down.

Instructions Not Included (68k) - Plot heavy but excellent. I loved the writing style of this one; it's so evocative with its metaphors, but without being flowery. Sadly left a few unanswered questions since the sequel was abandoned, but it's still well worth reading. Very realistic progression of feelings between Crowley and Aziraphale (intimacy without sexuality).

The Sandford Flower Show (E) (46k) - This was a bit of a painful read with flashbacks to ancient Egypt, but it's very good. Many feels. (Higher sex-drive than I generally prefer for canonverse, so note that E rating.)

dearly departed (29k) - Some time after the not-pocalypse, Crowley gets discorporated, and hijinks ensue. This was SO cleverly written, the characters feel right on point. It has all the feelings fans crave, but remembers how silly the source material is. Sexual innuendo etc. but nothing explicit is shown.

Canon Divergent - short

Slow (9.3k) - Adam assumed Crowley and Aziraphale were married and restored the bookshop with a marriage certificate on the wall. Miscommunication and sweetness ensues.

Human AUs - long (modern day)

It took me a while to warm up to the idea of reading AUs, since the immortal natures and powers of Crowley and Aziraphale are so integral to their characters (also I personally don't seek out fanfics for the smut and the highly rec'd ones are nearly always Explicit). But after seeing Slow Show in particular recommended so often, I finally gave it a go. Yes, the human versions of the characters are always different in varying ways, but I've found it really fascinating to see the different ways characters, scenes, and lines get reinterpreted in AUs and have now read way more of them than I expected to.

Slow Show (E) (95k) - I have never in my life read anything (fanfic or otherwise) as emotionally intense as Slow Show. This fic is all lust and angst and I physically felt the agony of it for days while I read. While other fics are also explicit, this is the most mature and "adult" feeling with its themes. Yes this fic is recommended a lot, but its reputation is well earned. However, that said, I wouldn't say it's my favorite.

Old Vines (E) (189k) - Excellent slow burn. This one really captures the aspect of them both being anxious/frustrated under contractual obligations, wishing they could be freer to do their own thing. Truly gratuitous descriptions of all aspects of wine, from growth, production, tasting, and quantity consumed. I learned a lot. Was also actually really inspired by Aziraphale's journey in this.

Or Be Nice (E) (151k) - I wasn't sure I'd like this one at first, but I'm glad I went for it. It's more a character study than a drama. Well done progression from enemies to lovers, and some of the very best conversational dynamics (if a bit of ngk overuse). This one highlights the petty/mischievous sides of Crowley and Aziraphale that are rarely found in fanfics, and the execution is delightful. Loved Anathema in this also.

stalwart sun, wily moon (370k) - (What, a non-explicit long AU??) This fic is amazing. Yes, long, it could use some editing to cut back a tad tbh, but still, amazing. Heist AU with an intriguing plot and life or death stakes. Characters and side characters all really well done, incorporates everything from the botched baby swap to the Great Plan and more. Amazing. Really. Only fic I've bought a physical printing of.

Talk about the weather (81k) - (Technically not explicit but yeah no they have sex.) Weatherman/stormchaser AU. They have an Arrangement. The premise of this one was weird for me because I headcanon Crowley as disliking the rain, but it's good. Not the typical characterizations you see in fics, which was really refreshing. Finally! Someone who remembers Aziraphale is kind of a bastard who doesn't say what he means, and someone who lets Crowley be happy and confident instead of a nervous wreck!

on the same page (E) (117k) - They're both writers. A very good execution of your classic fake marriage. Some lush metaphorical prose. Excellent characterizations on our pair, and the setup preceded by 6 years of intense yearning was just perfect. I do wish the side characters had gotten more fleshed out.

Married at First Sight (146k) - This premise is so silly (though then again the TV show does really exist), but it's actually really well done. The feels nearly made me cry.

And so beguile thy sorrow (48k) - Aziraphale is a librarian and Crowley is "that patron." The premise may not sound very unique, but it's excellent. Really clever. Nice slow burn. This fic remembers they are not well adjusted, and leaves a lot unsaid, which I kinda like. Highly recommended, particularly if you like fics that mirror season 1 story beats.

Find the Light (E) (97k) - Headmaster/Rock star AU. This one has a dynamic that I have been dying to see: that they know they are loved by the other, but can't speak or act on it for Reasons, while at the same time being unable to stay away from each other. Pining without uncertainty or loneliness. Love it. Really, they're too sweet and communicative to truly be in character, but it's a beautiful fic. (Written post s2 so we get Muriel and Nina, and Metatron is the villain instead of Gabriel.)

Human AUs - long (historical)

On Espionage and Prophecy (E) (133k) - Take the first season 1941 flashback and make it a novel-length human AU. Aziraphale's a bookseller and Crowley's a spy working with him to double-cross the double-crossing Nazis. I will say the plot contrivance sometimes requires a bit of suspension of disbelief, but that's okay, it's fun and has some great pining.

Half Agony, Half Hope (E) (31k) - Regency era AU, but it's not all Jane Austen fantasy-land. We've got some real history lessons here, highlighting the political struggles of the time. This one's on the short side, but doesn't really feel like it; time passes behind the scenes, so the relationship doesn't feel rushed. Overall it's excellent and really deserves more love.

Human AUs - short

On the Ethics of Asking Your Professor on a Date (7.4k) - I kinda wish this one was a bit better with the showing vs. telling in places, but I still found it really charming.

Postcards From Paris (12k) - Crowley starts receiving postcards from an A.Z.F. meant for the previous tenant, and after awhile gets a chance to write back. Very sweet.

Oh, Lord, Heal This Love (7.3k) - "Looking for someone to take to couples therapy and see how long it takes the therapist to notice we don't know each other." Very funny and also really sweet.

Miscellaneous AUs - short

Lit (12.7k) - Technically canon-divergent from the book? Crowley takes a university course on literature and surprise! The book they’re discussing is Good Omens. Crack treated seriously. It works really well actually!

air conditioned, love unconditional (8.8k) - AU where Aziraphale is a ceiling fan and Crowley is an air conditioning unit. Look, it's adorable, okay? (though the ending is kinda silly)

Speaking in Code (8.9k) - Cute queer Outsider POV. Aziraphale and Crowley become college professors in their retirement. Arguably canon compliant, but I'm calling it an AU since I don't really see it happening. A+ for the accurate gender treatment on Aziraphale.

Like a spiral sea unending (1.1k) - Crowley is a black hole, Aziraphale is a giant star. They're drawn to each other like gravity (pun intended).

[agottamndelight]

Hah, I wonder when Death came for the Satanic Nuns, Sister Mary asked for Coffee instead.

Thus, Nina woke up one day with a shop and some of the most Obnoxious White People doing White People Bullshit she keeps getting pulled into.

[child-of-ineffable-divorce]

Alright yeah I’ll add this into my personal canon

[the-oxrib-and-oyster]

My longstanding theory about Nina and Maggie is that somehow, when Crowley and Aziraphale both performed miracles upon Nina in Tadfield, the conversation they had influenced reality later. Nina mentions, when handing infant Adam over, that she wonders if he will remember her, later. What if he does? What if, when making up the world as he believes it should be, he remembers her-- and Maggie?

Aziraphale says "you must have had records" and Nina, hypnotized, responds "yes, we were very good at keeping records". Keeping. What does Maggie's record shop notoriously not do? Sell records. She is the record-keeper.

The nuns' records at Tadfield were destroyed in a (hell-made) fire. When the world is remade to Adam's preference at the end of S1, he restores the records and puts them back. He just puts them back .. slightly differently. It's an 11 yo child's understanding of records, tucked back into reality safely, placed right back into a space that had been destroyed by a fire.

Aziraphale's bookshop.

Nina not having a job at the nunnery except to provide refreshments-- carries over too.

Anyway.

There's so much detail and love in those damned seasons. I'm genuinely so furious that now I'll never know.

[crowleysgirl56]

This is such a great headcanon and something I hadn’t considered before!

Plus it has legs. In the end of the book when it’s wrapping Warlock and Greasy Johnson’s stories it does mention “you never forget the first friends you ever made”.

Also, OP’s post would make an exception short one shot with Death that is so incredible Pratchett. I can see that scene playing out like all the type of interactions Death has in Discworld.

[tartan-thermos]

Listen, we all laugh at how much mileage Aziraphale is gonna get out of his kinky ‘captive princess’ fantasies once he and Crowley get it together, and we are completely right and correct to do so. But we’ve all been sleeping on the other half of that equation. Because Aziraphale’s the one who’s been setting up these, “Oh no, I am dramatically imperiled (and/or mildly inconvenienced); where oh where is the dashing and devilishly handsome knight who will save me?” scenarios for centuries - but Crowley’s the one who’s been turning up unfailingly, again and again and again.

Because Crowley? Crowley wants to be the hero. Crowley wants to be James Bond. He wants it so badly it hurts, bullet-hole windscreen transfers and all. Crowley’s deep, dark fantasy is that he can be good - but also a little bit bad. The rogue agent, the wild card, the one who doesn’t follow the rules, and doesn’t much truck with listening to his superiors. Crowley’s deep, dark fantasy is one in which he gets it right; in which he does the right thing at the right time, and has the right witty comeback in the right situation, and instead of being punished, he saves the day and wins the heart of the genderless celestial being of his choice. Crowley’s deep, dark fantasy is one in which he is never not in control of his situation; one in which he bounces back easily and stylishly from all manner of fights and challenges and adversity; where he faces nothing he cannot overcome with the right combination of wit, ballsiness, and a little Hollywood luck. Crowley’s deep, dark fantasy, the one he can never, ever admit out loud, is one where the world is simple and uncomplicated in the way nothing in real life is simple and uncomplicated; a world in which the good end happily, the bad unhappily, the baddies are dispatched in PG-13 fashion, and none of it needs to be questioned or second-guessed at all.

Crowley’s deep, dark fantasy is one in which there is nothing so dastardly, nothing so terrible or fearsome, that it cannot be solved by a guy in a flash suit arriving in the nick of time with a fancy car, and a complicated watch, and a pen that can write underwater.

[dalliancekay]

Aziraphale or Crowley kinnie?

Somebody posed an interesting question on twitter so I am asking you too. Pick the husband you like/identify with/admire/etc just a bit more and tell me if you liked or disliked the finale.

I understand both these things are complicated but work with me here.

Pick one please:

Aziraphale kinnie - Dislike Finale

Aziraphale kinnie - Like Finale

Crowley kinnie - Dislike Finale

Crowley kinnie - Like Finale

Voting ended onJun 3

Explain in the comments if you feel like it.

Please share if you find the question interesting. Thank you!

[catstronaut-one]

"Wud he be harder to get rid of than, say, a demon?" asked Shadwell, who had begun to brighten.

"Not much more," said Aziraphale, who had never done other to get rid of demons than to hint to them very strongly that he, Aziraphale, had some work to be getting on with, and wasn't it getting late? And Crowley had always got the hint.

- Good omens

[duckromancer]

for some reason i am coping with S3 by drawing my headcanons of the Them and also warlock

this all connects to a happy ending for the good omens universe in my mind, in some way. because humans being humans is important. im quite fond of adam and jesus duo driving the large chunk of the plot as well

[doomedlemur]

How is this the same character? 🤨

[komorezuki]

All this bullshit surrounding the Book of Life is so terrible and ruins all discussions of character motivation and development simply because we see so many inconsistencies.

In s2, while it's a theoretical threat, everything is fine. One simple rule: you're erased—your entire existence disappears from reality, along with all memory of you. In s3, after Metatron and Sandalphon are erased, everyone talks about them as if nothing happened, as if they were killed or disappeared, and they still remember them. But then at the Eternal Flame (what the fuck is that anyway), we meet Michael who claims to be the only one who remembers the erased ones and any possible timelines. After azicrow's return to the bookshop, they remember the existence of humans (how did they even survive, simply being in a location with an intact page?), but the humans themselves are gone, just as the books they wrote are gone, while all the handicrafts that were also created by humans exist. Why do Azikrow remember humans and want everything for them if humanity has been erased? If they remember the Book of Life, why didn't they at least start by deactivating it? Who is Satan in it, and why wasn't he deleted along with Heaven and Hell? This all makes absolutely NO sense, just a bunch of contradictory plot twists, and that's one of the reasons I can't accept the ending as plausible.

[doomedlemur]

There are many reasons to reject Season 3 as canon and this is one of them. There is nothing internally consistent about its own primary plot device.

[doomedlemur]

It sucks but it makes sense.

I've seen it cited that this was the ending Terry Pratchett had planned, the one that they had brainstormed when considering a sequel to the original book. And whether that meant Crowley and Aziraphale specifically being the ones to sacrifice themselves, I don't know, but I would believe that the end was indeed intended to be a complete reboot of the universe, to be without God, angels, or demons "messing it about," as Adam would say.

Because the thing is, while Crowley and Aziraphale may be why we love Good Omens, their romance was never supposed to be the point, and free will in the Good Omens universe is not as free as you think.

Adam, you may say, already saved the world, thereby preserving free will. A reboot was unnecessary.

But did he? Wasn't it?

The thing about Adam, is that crucially, it's not that he saved the world, it's that he didn't destroy it. Now, he talked about how Heaven and Hell should stop messing with people, but he didn't actually do anything about it. He refused the call. Refused to destroy the world, and refused to make any rules about it either. All the problems with the world were still there.

So, free will:

For the most part, sure, humans in Good Omens have free will. They are free to make whatever choices in their life they wish, for good or bad.

But... only while they're alive. Once a human dies, they're shipped off to Heaven or Hell, then subject to the whims of whatever occult being is assigned to determine their fate. We mostly don't know what that looks like, but we do know they could for instance get turned into a fly, being eaten and digested by a spider, over and over again for the rest of eternity.

Does that really sound like free will to you?

And before you think about saying yes: no actually, they don't always have free will while alive. There are all these angels and demons messing around with them!

Remember Hastur and Ligur bragging about the impure thoughts they put into people's heads? Even Crowley and Aziraphale, retired from official duties and who should really know better, mess with people and the world around them all the time. And I'm not even talking about Maggie and Nina.

They do it casually ('have a change of heart Misty, go see your dad'), without thinking ('move, I want to sit there'), and sometimes without even meaning to.

Look at Whickber Street. When Aziraphale is the primary occult being in residence, the atmosphere of the entire block is absurdly cheery and quaint, a bubble out of time. Then when the area is left to the unconscious influence of a depressed demon sleeping in the alley, everything falls into cartoonish ruin. Every human around them is subject to their moods, whether they realize it or not.

These may be fairly small or subtle things, but it's still a violation.

So yeah, hard disagree on the free will front. True free will could not exist for humans while gods, angels, and demons were still around. To be honest, a reboot of the universe removing these powers was the only real solution.

But what about angels and demons?

Aren't they beings with free will? Why don't they deserve to exist in the new universe?

And here's where it gets really messy.

Because the Good Omens we see in the television show is really quite different from the original book in some subtle, but significant ways.

In the book, Crowley and Aziraphale have a bit less free will than we tend to assume. They each have ingrained impulses to good or evil that they have to consciously resist acting upon.

It's less obvious in Aziraphale's case:

"Aziraphale couldn't resist an opportunity to do good." As a turn of phrase it's easy to gloss by, but it's meant literally.

See a few pages later:

When Crowley starts drowning a duck toward the beginning of the book, he says he was forgetting himself. That is, he was forgetting to resist his demonic impulses.

Angels and demons are not human. That was kind of the book's whole point.

And the book is what the envisioned sequel was based on.

The problem:

Before we got a sequel to the book, Sir Terry Pratchett passed away, and then we got the television series in 2019.

And it was great! It adapted the story faithfully while bringing new depth, development, and brilliant performances to enrich fan favorite characters Crowley and Aziraphale.

And that, of course, is the problem.

(Now, this isn't to say that they weren't great characters with a great dynamic before then. People have seen and shipped the Ineffable Husbands for decades. But you can't deny how the fandom exploded with the TV show, and how much more emotional investment was instilled into them.)

The show humanized them, and shifted the focus of the story away from pure religious satire in order to highlight their relationship.

And this is why it sucks.

What we ended up with was an ending conceived for a setting where the humor and philosophy of it was more important than the characters, where angels and demons were mere game pieces, and freedom for humans from God's meddling was what really mattered.

But that's not the setting the TV series gave us.

And why it especially sucks for fans.

We are here because we love Crowley and Aziraphale. They were the ultimate comfort characters. Immortal beings who had always, and would always love each other. It was accepted as canon that they would get their happily ever after.

So to see their future dissolve into dust... it was devastating.

I don't believe in soulmates (or souls for that matter). The very concept is counter to the premise of a universe free of divine meddling. Asa and Anthony... it's just not the same.

(I have more to say about Crowley and Aziraphale in human AUs, but this is so long already. I will leave that for another post.)

How to look at it now:

As an adaptation created after the death of one its writers, the Good Omens TV show was always a step removed from the work's original intent, and season 2 took even more steps away.

Doubtless, it would have been better if season 3 had been given more time and budget to work with, but it would ultimately have been just as removed from the source. Just as much of a mess, as it attempted to tie a half-formed conclusion onto a work it wasn't meant for.

The sequel to Good Omens was never written.

Anything in the TV show is only as canon as you want it to be.

[doomedlemur]

I was going back to the book for something else, and happened to land on a page talking about free will.

So, to add, more about how angels and demons in the book do not have free will like humans do:

Aziraphale says "the whole point was that when a human was good or bad it was because they wanted to be. Whereas people like Crowley and, of course, himself, were set in their ways right from the start."

ETA: Also found the bit where Crowley says Aziraphale will not only be watching The Sound of Music for eternity, but he'll enjoy it, because he won't have a choice.

They really did a number on us, making these characters more human in the TV show.

[ruiketajiebajin]

[doomedlemur]

I wish the first scene made any sense.

Crowley snuck up and threatened Aziraphale.

But... why?

What was he doing there? He was already hidden before that, why expose himself? He certainly wasn't expecting any help.

Was it just a way to get a weapon?

But again... why? The battle was over. What exactly was his plan here?

[doomedlemur]

On the plus side, if you didn't like the Good Omens finale, it being a rushed low-budget affair written by men who didn't really care about doing it justice makes it that much easier to dismiss as canon.

[mrghostrat]

your hair is winter fire, january embers

[thedeepmiracleperfection]

Rewatching season 1 and rereading passages from the book makes me laugh because it's so obvious that this is a completely different world with completely different characters. The tone shift is insane.

On a related note, now that I've had time to sit on it, there's an absurd part of me that's kind of glad the ending was so wacky and out of left field.

The story was never meant to continue past season 1, everything else was bonus. Season 2 and 3 were entirely without Terry's involvement. I know that apparently the ending was something he came up with or wanted according to his estate, but he wasn't here to execute it, and the person who came up with the ideas with him also couldn't be involved (for very different reasons). And even the people entrusted with it were forced to strip it of its meat and give us the bare bones. What we've gotten is a cliff notes version of a game of telephone where each listener was slightly deaf.

And I can't exactly complain about that, because without the series, we wouldn't have some of the most funny and beautiful moments. We wouldn't have the historical flashbacks from S1E3 cold open or season 2, which frankly form the foundation of their relationship. We wouldn't have the bandstand or Crowley drunk in the pub or Bildad the Shuite and "I'm a demon I lied" or "you said trust me" or "Our car" or the bookshop dance or the wall slam or Muriel or Crowley refusing to sell books or Jesus or whickber street or Aziraphale doing the crossword or "why make me complete only to take it away" or "Do something or I'll never talk to you again" or "You can stay at my place if you like" or even the freaking body swap!

There is genuinely so much to love about the series, and I'll always be grateful for what it was, but at the end of the day, it's all fanfiction. No part of the show is any more or less canon because from the very beginning it was a fanfiction of itself. At the end of the day, all 3 seasons are a patchwork of ideas put together 30+ years after the fact and missing half of the brains behind the original content. Beautiful gorgeous ideas they were, but just a few people's ideas of what the story should be.

I'll sum up my thoughts by egregiously plagiarizing a post from tinaalsgirl.bsky.social:

"The book is the sacred timeline

Season 1 was a branch

Season 2 was a branch, the final 15 was another branch

Season 3 was another branch, and the final final 15 was another another branch"

I'm just a fan who goes along with canon as far as I can. It's up to everyone to determine for themselves how far they can go. Seeing how silly and absurd this last installment was reminded me of this. Had it been done better, I might have had a harder time remembering that each path the show runners took was simply a path. If they're "alive in every universe" as so many are eager to say, then they're alive in *their* universe, the one that really mattered.

I can respect the people involved for trying to tell a story, fall in love with their ideas, and also know in my heart that there was a better story to tell.

Like others on here have said, it's ours now. They had their time, they had their chance to tell their version. But it's ours now, it's always been ours.

[777razielh]

[tsilvy]

GO 3 SPOILERS

to be absolutely clear, this doesn't change anything

the way i see it, when canon contradicts itself it's up to the viewer to decide what parts to keep. i'd say we're almost forced to make that choice, seeing the state of things

continuity was broken long before s3 came out. s2 did contradict s1, s3 contradicts both

and let's not forget s1 is also its own show, finished, self-contained. its ending was meant to be final, conclusive. it's okay to take whatever parts in s2 and s3 do still work and accept that other parts just can't fit

so to all those grieving: i won't go anywhere. many of us won't go anywhere. crowley and aziraphale haven't gone anywhere. it takes more than that. it takes better writing than that. IT TAKES MORE THAN THAT.

it's okay, and makes sense, to only consider season 1 canon. it's okay, and makes sense, to only embrace the elements of s2 and s3 that are true to the story and its themes and its characters

let this ending not make sense. let yourselves find the one that does.

we know how this ends. we always knew.

[vanyamire]

A touch of divinity

my gift for @ pedernalesfalls for fandom trumps hate <3 this was so fun to paint!