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I’ve been wanting to share this thought I’ve had for a while. It’s not a headcanon or theory because I know it could never be canon, but it’s a concept that’s gripped my heart and I feel the need to share it
Gravity Falls is, at its core, all about family and making sacrifices for your loved ones. It’s written in such a tender way, giving Dipper and Mabel the spotlight, making the kids our heroes.
Stan, at the beginning, is often the butt of the joke. He starts off as a flanderized, curmudgeon stereotype with a laundry list of outlandish flaws. Despite all this, he’s entertaining. He makes us laugh, and he’s set up as this jaded contrast to the wide-eyed innocence of the twins.
But as we get to know him, we find out he’s a very sensitive man, who had big dreams at a young age. He grew up drawing cartoons wanting to make comics. Stan, at his heart, is a storyteller.
The question I’d like everyone to consider is this:
Doesn’t Gravity Falls feel like a story told by a goofy Great Uncle to entertain his niece and nephew?
It may be Alex Hirsch’s spirit running through the show, but Gravity Falls feels like a tale spun by Stanley Pines himself.
While we know this isn’t true, I’d like to at least have people consider this perspective, and maybe try to make conclusions as to why the story feels this way (to me at least!).
Gravity Falls’s themes of being family-centric, toeing the line of adult content, and being the wacky comedy it is truly feels like a story written from Stan’s heart.
His perspective on himself, the kids, and the world around him affects everything about the show.
His own flaws being so magnified and made fun of, it feels like he wrote himself in a self deprecating way, because he understands that he doesn’t give the best first impressions. He’s also willing to entertain the kids even if it means putting himself down.
And being the sweet, family-oriented man he is, he has nothing but love and admiration for his great niece and nephew. Dipper is incredibly smart and gifted, and through the story proves his bravery and becomes a more confident person. To me, it shows the greatness that Stan sees in him.
Mabel being the colorful heart of the show is exactly how Stan sees her— an inspiration to us all. She’s adorable, funny, and naturally courageous. Her writing feels so much like an affectionate homage to a man’s beloved great niece.
The world they’re set in as a whole… being overtaken by inexplicable and silly monsters that seem to be spat out of a creative mind that just puts things together. The Plaidypus… the Gremloblin who’s insecure about turning into his own father… the Manotaurs… all of these seem like a comedic spin on cryptology by a man who really couldn’t care less about actual science and logic.
And lastly, Bill… who embodies all the traits that Stan struggles with but decided to be evil instead of good. He’s a liar, impulsive, a gambler, and he cheats his way through the multiverse. His upbringing mirrors Stan: a strained relationship with him family from the beginning and then eventually he makes the biggest mistake of his life that ruins everything he once knew as home. Thinking of the story through the lens of Stan being the writer/storyteller, it only makes sense that he would use the villain as a device to represent the darkness in himself, who he defeats in the end because of his love for his family.
Y’all PLEASE lmk if this sounds insane or if I’m actually on to something 😅
Unpopular opinion but I absolutely hate the headcanon that Stan did xxx work because it feels like a HUUUUGE stretch from the edible flour thing. Also it was a gag. It just feels like people itching to find ways to humiliate Stan and draw art of him in compromising ways
It’s why Stan as a symbol of familial love means so much to me. A flawed character, brought up in an unloving environment, in the end showed the greatest display of love. He never gave up on his family, not once. Excuse me while I go cry about him for the 85th time…
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