He/Him 🇬🇧🏳️🌈 Enthusiast in general science, physics, herpetology, vexillology & Rubik's cubes. I love ASOUE, Invincible, BBC Ghosts, Marvel & Star Wars.
Fandom: A Series of Unfortunate Events (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationship: Uncle Monty | Dr. Montgomery Montgomery/Gustav Sebald
Characters: Uncle Monty | Dr. Montgomery Montgomery, Gustav Sebald, Jacquelyn Scieszka, Jacques Snicket, Kit Snicket, Olivia Caliban
A long fic following Monty and Gustav's life as they move in together in Michigan after Monty finishes his PhD. Set in a modern AU, in which other ASOUE characters are present as their friends. VFD is a book club.
The greater 'meaning' of the story is the exploration of life through the lens of being neurodivergent person, though this is done by just going through the motions of life with Monty and Gustav.
Here is my "Great Rubik's Cube Document" that is a history of all major cubing brands (Gan/MoYu/QiYi etc.) and all of their releases over time. Still a WIP as there are 100s but I have already documented a huge amount.
I note down the model name, month/year of production and any different variants + special editions.
For sources I use cube shops, the internet archive, cubing forums, YouTube reviews and more.
Example Section for the MoYu AoLong versions:
AoLong
-MoYu AoLong (Black/ White) May 2014
-MoYu AoLong V2 (Black/ White/ Primary/ Stickerless/ S Pink/ S Dark) Jul 2014
Special Editions: Transparent Jul 2014 Transparent Green May 2017
Plastic Change
-MoYu AoLong GT (Black/ White/ Primary) Nov 2015
Special Editions: Blue/Pink/Teal/Grey/Brown Nov 2015
-MoYu Super AoLong (Matte/ UV) Oct 2025
-MoYu Mini Aolong (Black/ White/ Stickerless/ S Pink) Jun 2014
I did an unreasonable amount of research to determine what species certain snakes in Monty's collection could be in real life. This is primarily following show canon since it had the most accessible information.
1) Mamba du Mal
In the show, there is a frame in which Monty's travel journal lists the Latin name of the snake as Dendroaspis polyepsis- aka the Black Mamba. This means that the mamba du mal would be the name for the Black Mamba in the ASOUE universe. Mamba du Mal translates to "Mamba of Evil", which is fitting given it's highly venomous.
Going by book canon, this complicates things. According to the books, the snake is both highly venomous and a constrictor- a rare combination. No mambas fit this description, so it would have to be another species. The closest I could find in appearance to the book variant is the Speckled Brown Snake (Pseudonaja guttata).¹
Book Extract:
2) The Incredibly Deadly Viper (IDV)
This was very difficult. The main specifications that I went by were being a very large and docile constrictor. The IDV is non-venomous and must actually be a boa or python, not a viper. The name is most definitely a misnomer indeed.
There are numerous very large species of boas and pythons, but most aren't suitable to be kept in captivity. In addition, it would have to be a rare species, as Monty was apparently the first to discover it.
Going solely by appearance, Ink could be a Reticulated Python. They aren't especially rare though, and were first described in 1801. ²
I think the snake that best fits Ink would be a very rare subspecies of Boa imperator- The Pearl Island Boa (Boa imperator sabogae). Boa imperator's are very frequently kept in captivity and respond well to handling. Females can get very large, much more so than males, which means that Ink is probably a girl. ³
As for the black colour, Ink could be a melanistic variant of the species.
3) Androgynous Cobra
Very little information about this snake is ever given, except that it is, of course, a cobra and also likes being in Monty's sock drawer. This means it probably likes hiding and/or burrowing.
Using this information, I think it could be a Burrowing Cobra (Naja multifasciata). It's rare and there isn't much research about it, but it probably likes burrowing and hiding in leaves. Or socks, in Monty's case. ⁴
4) Virginian Wolfsnake
This one is rather dubious. There are many species of Wolfsnake, though none of them are native to Virginia. All of them are in the genus Lycodon.
There is a species called the Yellow-Banded Big Tooth Snake (Lycodon flavozonatus) that was discovered in 1928 by a herpetologist named Clifford Hillhouse Pope. He was American and went to the University of Virginia, according to his Wikipedia page. That's the most interesting link I could find between Virginia and wolfsnakes.
5) Irascible Python
The word "irascible" means easily angered, the only given behaviour trait of this snake. Pythons generally aren't very dangerous, with only 5 being listed in the "List of Injurious Wildlife". ⁵
Of these, only 2 species have had documented attacks on humans- the Reticulated Python and the Central African Rock Python (Python sebae).⁶ The Reticulated Python, as described above, is a very famous species of snake, being the longest in the world. For this reason, I chose the second species as the closest match.
In Summary:
Mamba du Mal → Black Mamba (Dendroaspis polyepsis)
Incredibly Deadly Viper → Pearl Island Boa (Boa imperator sabogae)
Virginian Wolfsnake → Yellow-Banded Big Tooth Snake (Lycodon flavozonatus)
Irascible Python → Central African Rock Python (Python sebae)
References:
¹ Shine, R.; Schwaner, T. (1985). "Prey Constriction by Venomous Snakes: A Review, and New Data on Australian Species". Copeia. 1985
² McDiarmid, R. W. [in French]; Campbell, J. A.; Touré, T. A. (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington: Herpetologists' League
⁴ Boulenger, G.A. 1904. Descriptions of two new Elapine snakes from the Congo. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (7) 14: 14
⁵ U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service "Summary of Species Currently Listed as Injurious Wildlife under (18 U.S.C. 42) Lacey Act" https://www.fws.gov/page/summary-of-species-currently-listed-as-injurious-wildlife
⁶ Branch, W. R.; Hacke, W. D. (1980). "A fatal attack on a young boy by an African rock python Python sebae". Journal of Herpetology
