#echolo talk

[sparkleblaze]

i have to cut this because the dialogue is no longer relevant but i still think its pretty funny

[sparkleblaze]

@shadowsplice asked a question wrt Echolocation that really, really inspired me so uh. Quick Lore/Word Vomit Post lmao

#re: if you want him to be Made Of vs leaking water there's some symbolism you could utilize there #like if the water represents his depression do you view it more as something that Happens or a part of him? #because if it just is a Thing than the leaking-water idea kinda separates it from him as a person #but if it's baked into him than having his whole body become that water reinforces that it is him

so this made me think of how loonacy works in the canon of Echolo, which I don’t think I’ve thought about consciously before. I’ve mostly just thought about it in a ‘it just works, don’t worry about it’ kind of way?

in canon, loonacy is a disease that is just supposed to make you turn odd colors and make you a bit larger than you normally are. that’s all. but loonacy manifests differently in neurodivergent people, which the main characters of Echolocation are. loonacy, in neurodivergent people, will take the worst aspects of your illness and externalize it, alongside the color and size change.

And that’s sort of all it was, but looking at it from a symbolism perspective, it does offer some insight into the characters that doesn’t need to be said explicitly.

i forgot to mention this in Flare’s post but the whole ‘lava-out-of-the-ears’ thing and uncontrollable fire-breathing was supposed to be an externalization of their anxiety disorder. i really like your interpretation of Karoo’s loonacy form, so carrying that over to Flare’s, you would assume that their anxiety is something that is apart of them AND something that happens to them; something that they feel like they can control while also being something they’re a victim of. this fits really well for Flare’s character as, in the story, they’re constantly blaming themself and taking responsibility for things that, in reality, they couldn’t have controlled.

Karoo, alternatively, has spent years dealing and learning to cope with his depression, and thus feels very in control with it, and i suppose this would indeed manifest in him being made out of water in his loonacy form. his depression is ultimately a part of him, and he’s accepted a long time ago that that doesn’t have to be a bad thing for him

Forest and Paint are both interesting cases in their own right. Forest’s anger issues are something that is legitimately out of her control, as she hasn’t ever learned how to cope with them, but at the same time, her anger is really all she’s ever known; it’s an inextricable part of her. Paint, on the other hand, didn’t even know she had ADHD until she transformed into her loonacy form, so she would currently perceive her illness as something that happens to her, rather than accepting that it’s something that she is.

I suppose, as a character’s relationship with their mental illness evolves, so too would their loonacy form. 

i dunno, your questions inspired me to really think about the lore of Echolocation, so thank you for that! this was fun to finally write out... i should really start a lore blog for Echolocation lol