Girl, what HAPPENED in your AU?? what do you mean brain malware??
He used to be a blunt " straight fact " machine just like yours in the first computer era ... no emotions, just business smile and everything according to logic
(My AU teachers character & personality are according to their topic)
So when computer become more accessible... as a personal computer, he was programmed to care about his user which made the machine paradox ...a heartless machine need to love? (The first " bug " ...pun indeed because the full story is also about Shrignold)
He shift over time like how computer was used to calculate but now we use to communicate
He stayed with Warren because he is the concept of friendship and Colin as ...right now... is the concept of social media that need to human communication to survive
And Warren (The teacher of ep4 TV series " friendship ")... that brain worm (a bug) is ...struggle ... he got A LOT of problem and in the name of " personal computer " Colin need to help his user and personal computer usually get modifed according to the user preference... which is his brain / digital mind
If you know warren then you know he is like a malware (computer bug) and colin is an old computer so it easy to get infected by virus
So don't worry, the malware is warren and yes, you should be worry, the malware is warren
My au " Behind the Curtains " is about what happened when they are not performing their episode so they still grow (for the concept that can grow) behind the curtains ...which ..for Colin... is bad <3
Ps. I love your art style so much- wanna be friends? 🥺 *cough*
Or from the perspective of other Red Guy, he is far too expressive and tend to smile at inappropriate situations
Express emotions either ‘too little’ or ‘too much’ in terms of volume, very little in-between
Speaks very bluntly
Feels physically uncomfortable with bright colors
"Well, this isn't that fun, is it? can't make out where I am in the room like this. What if I'm standing in an embarrassing area?"
"I actually don't mind it. Kind of a nice break from all of those... garish colors"
Duck
Loves cataloging and organizing things as a recreational activity
Anthropomorphise inanimate objects (like ACTUALLY inanimate, not teachers)
"You have to jab it hard or it won't respect your choices!"
Has a hard time fitting in in ‘normative’ social groups
Odd sensory sensitivities
"You're supposed to say that the floor is too loud or the window is disrespecting you"
Yellow Guy
Relies on a heavy amount of social mimicry in unfamiliar social situations
"I'm making bits and parts, although sometimes I feel a bit like the bits and parts are, eh, making me."
Tends to understand metaphors and turns of phrases very literally
Which is actually a trait that he displays even in his hyper-intelligent ‘Charged’ mode
"Oh there he is, it's about time."
"Yeah, what have you been doing?"
"Um, okay, let me see... We were learning about electricity... I completed a crossword puzzle..."
Who is also very sensitive to sounds when two or more people are speaking at once
He also seems to have ‘clumsy’ motor functions in both ‘forms’
do you ever think about the tv in the dark that shows duck waving to the camera that's next to his headless body
BOY DO I EVER ANON!!!!!! buckle up because after all this time im making a long ramble again, particularly about one of the earliest theories i ever had!!!! keep in mind this is my personal opinion and view of the series BUT if you’re asking—
i think of this scene the same way i think of the scene in the love episode where he pauses and looks directly at the camera. (Looking for us to answer his question instead of red.)
or the scene in one of the tv intros where the camera swings and he desperately sways back and forth trying to stay in frame. (He knows someone is watching this and he needs to be in frame, he needs to get the same recognition the other two got.)
or the scene in the food episode where he physically pushes the camera down in an attempt to get the episode to stop. (He pushed it down coincidentally when he yelled “I don’t want to do this anymore!” implying he thinks the camera will end the song/episode— Implying he knows of its presence and what it entails. Note that they put him infront of a screen broadcasting the episode to him when he gets eaten by the can!!)
or the scene where he insists that red continues to guess because “the people” are dying to know what his extra dialogue would’ve been. (He specifically says “the people” are curious and not himself despite the demand not changing had he said himself.)
yes anon i constantly think about how duck is implied to see the cameras and know about the audience but accepts it as his way of life for one way or another. maybe because he doesn’t fully understand it. or maybe because he does understand but can’t do anything about it. or maybe because he keeps forgetting we’re there. or maybe because it’s just a running gag from becky and joe. or maybe because it’s a metaphor for his desperate plea for attention and love.
In whichever case it is, it’s not actually that surprising because all of the characters acknowledge the camera on occasion. they often have basic kids show dialogue which is meant to address the viewer (like asking obvious questions or pointing out/repeating things for the sake of the audience to follow along) Like in the love episode red makes the heart directed at us, and in jobs yellow talks directly to us in the bathroom, and in every intro they’re singing for us, and in frienship they tell us about the worms in their brain (which is why i didn’t include duck talking to us here, because it’s apart of the basic format.)
but that’s what im saying here!!!! duck does not follow the regular fourth-wall-break format!!! that’s why it’s so uncomfortable when he stops in the love episode to stare at us. or why he gets to interact with the camera so many times. there’s something about him, something he knows about the camera that the other two don’t. Although I think it’s kept vague on purpose, whether because becky and joe want it to be mysterious or because duck himself doesn’t want to draw too much attention and ruin the flow of things.
I’ve mentioned it before but im unsure if ive ever made a cohesive post about it because honestly im unsure of how i think of it, and i think people will run with it like how people used to think duck was some sort of genius evil mastermind whose fully aware of everything— i dont think hes THAT aware i just think he notices even if he cant fully grasp what hes noticing if that makes sense. if anything i see it more as a metaphor, especially the scene you asked about, because his head is literally replaced by a television viewing himself. his own mind is a prison of rules he has to follow in order to be a perfect star for an audience that may or may not be real. in an interview he’s described as having countless rules in his head, usually weaponized against others but also for himself. maybe we as the audience are used as a tool to highlight how duck views himself as if HE is the audience of his own life— but again there are instances where it seems to be more literal that that.
i think red notices the pattern and confusing nature of the teachers, duck notices the camera and viewers, and uncharged yellow notices (and can literally hear) lesley. charged yellow notices all of the above— but otherwise normally it’s split between the three.
This comes into my further point that big and bigger duck, despite being the “more advanced” and knowledgeable versions of duck, don’t acknowledge the camera. and personally i think it’s because the goal of the big/bigger boys is actually to ignore and cope with the house rather than to actually become smarter. They believe they’re smarter because they’re ignoring the things they can’t change, hence why red goes along with the songs and duck no longer acknowledges the camera. now yellow is the one to acknowledge everything on his own, because red and duck are too stubborn and cynical to FULLY speak up about the things they notice. maybe they’re scared of what might happen, or maybe they’ve tried and realized it’s useless to say anything, or maybe they just don’t trust each other enough to fully discuss this topic. i think it’s all three, and that’s why the main three are never going to figure shit out.
tldr i think duck absolutely knows about the cameras and the viewers and he just accepts it, and he doesnt tell the other two probably because he assumes they already know or because he doesn’t think their reactions would be worth it.
anyways I'm late to the fandom so maybe this is an incredibly popular interpretation and I'm doing the whole "has anybody ever thought of L and Light Yagami as a couple" thing BUT. I think a really cool interpretation of Duck's whole Deal is that he doesn't actually exist outside of Puppet Hell (which I do have supporting evidence for I just want to keep this post strictly about speculation). I shrimply think it would be neat to think about the Implications of him being essentially a fake person even moreso than the others. Just so this doesn't get insanely long I shall put my other miscellaneous trains of thought under the cut <3
Take my hand. Walk with me down doomed fluffybird lane. Red has been shown as the most dissatisfied with the trio's situation and the most eager to escape. This already puts him at odds with the relatively-content Duck who seems to find some comfort in the status quo. Imagine the fallout of finding out that Duck would never be able to come with him. What would he pick?
Ok but what IF Duck WAS able to escape by some miracle? The other ones have families and others like them (even if those relationships might not be the best), but Duck doesn't have anyone or anything. What do you do when there was never a life for you to go back to?
Pick your poison. Is duck aware of his constructed existence? Does he live in ignorance beyond the feeling deep in his gut that trying to attain anything More is capital-w Wrong? If he is aware, has he always been? If not, what opened his eyes?
The Death episode is extra fun with this reading imo, especially with the whole 'real' vs. 'fake' duck ending ambiguity. (Does it really matter who's who if neither were real in the first place?)
If Duck is part of the simulation, what purpose does he serve? Is his drive to keep the Three Of Them together part of his programming? (Was the end of Food his punishment for trying to break out of his assigned role?)
On a slightly sillier note, was he ever a teacher himself? (<- a concept I find utterly hilarious tbh. demoted to torturee for his crime of being annoying)
Is he replacing somebody "real?" (there's three of them, after all) If so, who? Is it someone we know? Someone we don't? What happened to that other 'other one?'
Anyways I stand by the fact that yellow guy is my favorite but I am fascinated by duck. this bad boy can fit so many Implications into him.
so many people misunderstand red’s intentions in transport. he is not some secret genius that holds the answers to escaping, because he isn’t one. he’s terrified and at his wits end. he knows deep down that there is no escape so he pretends to drive a car that is self driving. he pretends to be in control because in his mind it’s the only thing he can do. its painfully mirrors how self awareness and pattern recognition when you’re mentally ill gets you absolutely no where without any real help. its a curse not a blessing. red is forced into a seat of awareness. awareness of something he knows nothing about, something he never wanted to know anything about. he never asked for this. truthfully he doesn’t know what he wants, nor does he know who he is and that’s ultimately what ruins him. he’s tired of feeling everything and nothing at the same time, so he runs. not necessarily physically but mentally. transport is a physical representation of red’s mental state. he isn’t constantly trying to escape the house, he’s trying to escape his own mind and circumstance without ever actually going anywhere. he knows fully well that what he’s doing will get him no where, as it always does but he needs to feel in control of something, anything. a part of him deep down truly believes that in doing this, real change may be made this time so he latches onto the idea of a community. he is running from the problem rather than facing it head on. transport is red wanting to break free from the chains that he perceives to be binding him, the problem being that he’s pulling on the wrong chains.
he spends the episode in a panicked frenzy, getting absolutely no where because ultimately red knows nothing. he doesn’t even know who he is. red lacks a sense of self, all three of them do, hence why he acts the way he does in jobs, and in family. he spends the series desperately trying to find a solution to that problem, trying to be anyone else, anywhere else. red thinks about himself first and foremost, not that he doesn’t care for duck and yellow, but because he associates them with the house, with his misery. as much as he cares for them, he can’t help but harbor resentment towards them. red fails to recognize that they likely feel similarly, because they do things so differently from himself. how could they possibly understand? he fixates solely on how trapped and powerless all this makes him feel. so when he begins to drive, he knows that he’s pretending to drive a corpse that’s going no where. he lies to his friends claiming that he’s doing it for all of them, when in reality he’s doing it for him. red tells himself that maybe just maybe there is a reality where he can live a life of his choosing, one where duck and yellow might also be there but one where he can live in a house of his own, have his own space. to be in control of something. deep down red knows that duck and yellow will always be there, partially because he cares for them but mainly because he has no choice. there was never a choice to begin with. red knows this much, and that is as far as his knowledge goes. the three of them will always be together, no matter what, but not in the way he wants them to be.
thinking about the dhmis episode “Family” again, and once again feeling CRUSHED by the fact that the three of them couldn’t find a sense of belonging with their biological families, but found it with each other.
duck doesn’t seem to have any family. when red guy and yellow guy (temporarily) leave him, he is all alone, and he never mentions having any relatives (see: “Everybody’s talking ‘bout their family/but my family is made of just me”). perhaps his lack of a bio family is the reason he is so determined to create a family for himself. though it takes red guy and yellow guy until the end of the episode to fully come around to the idea of the three of them being a family, duck thinks of them as one from the beginning.
red guy finds his biological family, who he seems to have never met before, and at first he is very excited. however, ultimately he doesn’t fit in with them, and they end up rejecting him (kicking him out of the family portrait) for being different from them.
we are shown that yellow guy thinks of his dad as his family at the beginning of the episode, but by the end realizes his dad is a monster. he is initially excited to see his dad, thinking that he came to save him, but quickly realizes this is not the case when his dad quite literally pushes him away and focuses on the food(/creepy family) instead of his son. i see this “pushing away” as both literal and metaphorical, as this series has a history of using similar visual metaphors. after this, yellow guy chooses to leave his dad, realizing that his dad isn’t a good guy and he can’t change him.
despite all this, the three of them are able to open the family pack of chuddle dollops by the end of the episode. not duck all by himself, not red guy and his extended family, not yellow guy and his dad. the three of them, together, are shown to be a real family, more than any of the characters they happen to be related to.
What I like about Yellow Guy is that he isn't "stupid" by any means of the word, despite what Duck, Red Guy or the average viewer might think. He talks slow, he can be forgetful, and sometimes his words don't come out right, but he's consistently shows social and emotional awareness that the other two often lack, even without the batteries.
Yellow Guy is inquisitive, observant, and very empathetic. His brain friends, despite being based on basic concepts, have complex speech and thought. They know exactly what to say to Warren to make him feel comfortable. They compliment him, call him an eagle, and gently help him connect the wifi, which end up making the teacher feel *too* welcomed.
Unless pushed to the extreme, Yellow Guy has emotional maturity that the other two lack. Even behind the mirror as his "slower" self, he asks if he's "gone wrong", essentially pondering on whether he should be happier being able to think with better clarity, or being palatable to the ones he cares about. Or, if he should even care in the frist place, since they aren't controlling him in any sense of the word.
Yellow Guy is the only person who manages to understand the social atmosphere at work, fitting in without effort after mere minutes. He is the only person who thought of saving Duck, despite Red Guy knowing full well that he was still "alive" beneath the ground. He is the only one who knew how to turn on the car, while Red Guy struggled to figure it out. Moments like these showcase a greater depth in Yellow Guy.
Heck, it's possible that Yellow Guy might've obtained batteries/the book in the past, only to willingly disregard them when the pain of reality became too much to bare. Ignorance is bliss, especially when you live in an inescapable nightmare. Even if you seemingly have all the answers, there is always somebody else controlling you.
And, at the end of the day, Yellow Guy wants to please the people most important to him: Duck and Red Guy.
u know thinking about it a little i think the red guy design and its creepy-cuteness did a lot to like, establish the strange tone of dhmis before anything even happened.
like he is like. that stock puppet show species of “generic fuzzy monster” but the Way that type is executed in the design is like. ok it’s the generic monster-type but it’s also a faceless human-shaped thing with eyes in the wrong place. it’s not like, BLATANTLY creepy—it’s still a silly guy made of brightly colored fabric and yarn who has mitts for hands—but the subtle creepiness catches you out just a bit.
it’s a slight uncanniness i think. not too much but just enough. the others are fully puppets so you’re like oh ok but this thing is like. a guy? but not a guy. the “overgrown hair” look of his head, the clear human shape and movements, and his normal person voice all create this “a little too close to human” feeling. but then you see where the eyes are and you’re like. ok this is definitely not human. it’s just something kind of shaped like one
like the red guy design is something like, a crayon drawing of a hazy idea of what a human looks like. a blurry distortion of a someone. and i think that helps a lot in setting the dreamlike tone of dhmis while still being cute enough that it doesn’t break the tonal balance
(+ it goes well with the stuff decided later about how the other red guys basically act like vague caricatures of what “normal people” (normal adults?) are like)
