Guy who doesn’t shut up about William Wisp: hey isn’t it crazy how big of a difference PD Williams guilt and morality complexes makes to the character. Like UPP William clearly isn’t griping with “I’m an inherently evil person and I have to do absolutely everything i can so that the people I love never find out” like PD William is. Looking over UPP with the context that William will die someday soon and that he’ll have to leave everyone behind for their own safety (thinking about what the wisps could have attracted is terrifying by the way . motions to all of upp it can get Worse Than This) makes all of William’s “this was bound to happen” about Dakota and “do you trust me” to Vyncent feel kind of like he’s seeing less of his best friends with insane strength and reflexes and training and weapons, and instead the regular average kids from Deadwood. Norah, who he pushed too far constantly, Lui, whose worries he disregarded for the sake of the mystery, Isaac, who constantly got put first in line for the life threatening danger. All of them lost family, their health, sanity. And by all means, after all they went through together, William just… left. UPP William doesn’t have the guilt that comes from “abandoning” his friends in hopes of saving them, he doesn’t have the motivation to examine and overthink the effect he has on his loved ones (PD William Still does this btw, by lying to Dakota, Tide and putting practically zero energy into keeping contact with his family).
UPP William doesn’t yet have a reason to hate himself, to view himself as the thing keeping everyone else from becoming better, dragging them down. (in a tone fitting a guy who is normal about William Wisp) Isn’t that sooo cool and awesome