#tpn 028

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The Promised Neverland Text Posts {REN - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8} (Chapter 65 Bonus Scene | Chapter 172 | Chapter 27 | Chapter 28)

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Yes, hello, I love your blog, you're my only window into what the fandom is doing and I could always completely skip the manga and just stick to reading here. So, about your poll of popular theories, I saw something about the demon world being underwater, would you mind elaborating, please? It's for research. For a fanfic 👀

[The poll in question]

I'm always going to advocate for reading the manga, not just because of what happened with S2, but also to see all the gorgeous detailing Demizu puts into her work that's lost in the transition to TV animation, along with her playing with perspectives/proportions in relationship to power dynamics.

(Chapter 1 | S1 Episode 1)

But thank you! <3

My understanding was the theory of the demon world being underwater was introduced by @couldnt-think-of-a-better-name, who was mainly active during the series' heyday (February 2019-July 2019, between the releases of chapters 123-142 during the King of Paradise and Seven Walls arcs and when S1 premiered in Japanese and English).

• Main post about the theory • Secondary post about Lambda-7214 being a coordinate • Neat edit of chapter 7's, chapter 16's, and chapter 2's cover art • Volume 13 Special Edition mini-artbook art hinting at the trajectory of the series

I think it's interesting in how the Seven Walls search party traverses what we're presented with as the entire demon world to find clues about Cuvitidala and the Seven Walls, yet the largest body of water we see anyone interact with is a pond. Nothing close to an ocean that would present them with difficulties such as building a boat or buying one from demons.

(Chapter 60 | Volume 8 Title Page | Chapter 99 | Chapter 100 | Chapter 102)

Shirai also confirmed the elevator at Goldy Pond takes one to "a certain forest in Australia" (out of 458 forest communities).

(Mystic Code Book Chapter 3 Q&A)

While the stairs under Grace Field headquarters seem to land one somewhere on the east coast of the former United States of America.

(Chapter 178 | Chapter 179)

There's the imagery of the Statue of Liberty, leading me to believe the North American headquarters for the Ratri clan are located in (former?) New York City, but I don't know if I would necessarily say they wash up on the city's shores since Mike takes a jet out to meet them and the children aren't freezing in the November weather there. There's also the impracticality of after coming back from the demon world to transport goods or just traverse between the worlds you conspicuously land out in the open on the beach, so I believe it was the demon god's meddling that sent them to this beach, and the proper exit in one specific, singular location like the Goldy Pond one is somewhere else in the area. Two specific locations located in opposite hemispheres in our world, yet in the demon world you could potentially travel between the two passageways on foot in approximately a week based on the time it took the kids to reach the shelter at B06-32 (one day of initially wandering through the forest, five days traveling with Sonju and Mujika, and one day walking through the wasteland) and how long it took Yuugo, Emma, and Ray to reach Goldy Pond (four days) if it was a straight shot.

(Chapter 49 | Chapter 60)

It all leaves me very curious about how large the demon world is compared to the human world and how the demon god decided to split the two worlds up.

It's also interesting how despite all the water imagery in the series, we don't see any rain in the manga outside of the chapter 28 cover art (mentioned in the fourth post of that list):

But the anime chose to have a very light rain overlay during the second episode while not animating the ground or characters getting wet:

It rains in the light novels.

(TPN Light Novel 1: A Letter from Norman [June 2018] - "The Day Emma Cried")

(TPN Light Novel 4: Films of Memories [December 2020] - "Operation Stormy Night," originally published in Minerva Confidential Report Report Volume 1 that was packaged with the first volume of the Japanese S1 blu-ray in March 2019)

And we see the children playing in the snow in the past.

(Chapter 10 Bonus Scene)

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What do you think a REN wedding would be like?

I feel like there would be one! Possibly two!

REN enthusiasts have been blessed with some absolute gems of fanfics that I've adopted as my own personal canon on this topic, making me very fond of Emma learning about weddings from the books' in Grace Field's library and immediately thinking of course she and her two best friends should have one. They've been inseparable since she arrived at the house, and she can't imagine her days without either of them, so the only solution is for all three of them to marry each other.

I adore the way Ray's chapter of Between Your Fingers, Between the Lines by honeynpeaches opens when he's around six years old and Emma dropping flower crowns on the boys' heads, declaring they'll be wed that very day.

Everything about this little snapshot is perfect. Emma walking onto the scene framed in the imagery of a halo. Norman being an adorably smitten baby going on the fritz for the first few minutes of the entire conversation. Ray being an amalgam of emotions held together with a rubber band on the verge of snapping. His reaction to Emma's quick and casual defiance of whatever she deems arbitrary is a wonderful blend of comedic and heartbreaking. The pure frustration at her flippancy born out of a deep and endearing love that trumps his fear of the whatever consequences result from confronting Isabella.

But he sees how Emma and Norman smile, and he can’t deny them. He’s never been able to. Not really. Not when it matters most…He’d give anything for them, and he already knows it.

Down to the more minute gestures of Norman moving to calm Ray after he's calmed himself down in a familiar, reassuring rhythm

(Chapter 28 Bonus Comic about Chapter 14's flashback)

with the gentle placement of his hand over the other boy's, and Emma taking his other hand to move close to her heart to subconsciously convey how much it would mean to her to be able to reify their bond through such a ceremony, even if it's only pretend.

For how their play wedding goes, I love what @carnivorouswillgraham does in w.a.m.s. that I've already gushed about here

But aaah do I love the idea of the music box Emma received from Isabella as her gift being the musical accompaniment to their ceremony.

(Mystic Code Book Chapter 1 Q&A)

In addition to them just all being adorable little babies enjoying the chance to recreate such an important ceremony between all three of them, even if just pretend.

Baby Ray going through an existential crisis but still trying to be present for his bffs/soon-to-be spouses and genuinely finding some solace in these moments with them that will solidify his resolve to confront Isabella in just a few days.

Just continue to fucking gut me.

For adulthood, I'm half and half of whether they'd have one, but if they do and Emma regains her memories, I imagine it playing out very similar to how it does in @salsae's to have and to hold, which I've gushed about a bit already here.

All of their friends and family gathered together at one of their homes or whichever quiet venue could accommodate such a large gathering, some of their siblings walking them down the aisle as Nat plays the piano, Emma in relaxed summer attire befitting or her kind and free spirit, incorporating the paper cups as part of the vows and the galaxying braining of turning it into a REN thing rather than solely an NE one, the trio taking turns crying out of joy (because ofc they can't all cry at the same time), Ray somehow getting roped into catering his own fucking wedding…it all comes together in such a beautifully brilliant way that I can't really think of anything to be altered except Alex walking Emma down the aisle.

If Emma doesn't regain her memories, I'd still imagine something similar playing out with it being a lowkey event in someone's backyard, but there's less chance of Ray prioritizing getting NE together separate from him (for a while) because in his mind they're forever classified as a matching set that he's not a part of

(2020 Exhibition Interview)

And more of a chance of them officially getting together as a trio to start off due to both the search for Emma leading Norman and Ray to grow closer in her absence (while holding off on progressing further in a relationship until reunited with their third) and then all three of them navigating her memory loss.

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This is another unintentional funny line because Norman is like “I clocked your dumbass the second Krone showed up” to sort of rub in how could Ray ever even think to betray them. As if he wouldn’t notice.

And for the most part, he keeps his cool about it during the two weeks prior to confronting Ray.

But when he lets the mask slip the tiniest bit—

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(Mystic Code Book Q&A Chapters 1 & 7)

Thinking about these questions in relationship to panels like these

(Chapter 28)

and how utterly gross Ray must have felt when fragments of headquarters flashed in his mind where he was paraded around by sisters to demons as 81194 after they would specifically come to check on 73584's offspring and muse he was progressing as was expected of her progeny.

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@istgd-2 aaay nice choice 😎👍 the first four volumes were pretty faithfully adapted in the first series of the anime (chapter 5 is the only one that was majorly scrapped due to time), so if money’s a concern, you can skip them and won’t miss too much.

Chapter 38 in volume five is where the first series leaves off, so if you start collecting from that point you’ll already have one of the major chapters of focus for Isabella (chapter 37, shown in episode 12 of the anime), but with the addition of the inner monologues providing further insight into her character. This is one of the major points of contention with the anime adaption, and why I think buying the first four volumes are worth it, not only for her, but also the five oldest children at Grace Field. We’re also shown more visuals from Ray’s past (such as in chapter 28 of his time at headquarters).

I will also advocate for reading the first story of the second light novel, Moms' Song of Remembrance (published January 2019, has no official English translation). In "The Starry Night and Leslie's List," Isabella remembers helping Leslie with a list of goals he set out to accomplish before leaving Grace Field two days before he’s shipped out. It’s book-ended by segments set on January 15, 2046, where Isabella briefly chats with Phil, reflects on her relationship with Ray, and finds new purpose now that her children have proven she was wrong about escape being impossible. Invaluable for anyone looking for more official Isabella-related content. I've posted some excerpts of it here, here, here, here, and here (spoilers for the entire series).

I also have a brief overview post of most of the stories in all four of the light novels if you're interested.

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how do you think that the numbers/brands are put on the children?

It must be a tattoo, not a mark like humans marked cattle on earth (like burning the numbers in the skin with burning iron). Because THAT'S would kill a baby for sure (but it seems to be the case at Lambda for the oldest kids? :/).

So it's probably more a tattoo. But even so young babies, it's still a lot. Especially that it's not a little tattoo, and it's on the neck for Grace Field kids, on the chest (near of the heart) for Great Valley or Glory Bell kids. It's very fragile zones, especially for a baby.

So it must be put when they are enough old to survive it and enough soon for them to have forgotten it (and not being hurt anymore) when the day of being send to a orphenage happens.

It probably means that Ray remembers it then. Except if they put the babies to sleep for doing it. Probably because having a baby who screams, moves and cry for all the procedure must he hard to do.

So maye around 7/8 months old? and until then they have bracelets with their number + the number on the cradle.

With how infants are little wiggle worms, tattooing without using anesthesia is unfathomable to me, even if they somehow made the process painless (a small mercy for Ray with his memory).

(Chapter 28)

It's kind of hard to gauge, but assuming this is shortly before he's handed off to Isabella, it doesn't look like his skin is irritated here, so seven to eight months sounds plausible.

What's more concerning is the recovery period because you can't tell a baby not to scratch at an itchy, painful mark on their neck, and by that age they have enough control of their motor functions to sink their nails into it.

But they could cover their hands with mittens, and with this being a fantastical series featuring demons set in the near future with advanced technology, it's not a stretch to imagine they've made every aspect of this process painless, or they created some medication that was safe to give babies for a month so they wouldn't deal with excess stress by forcing them to live with that irritation for weeks on end (it's not good for the brain), either at that age or before they're regularly sitting up unaided.

Also tangential link to my post on the presence of their tattoos and brands in the epilogue chapter and beyond (because while the babies are almost certainly knocked out for tattooing, we don't know if Norman and the rest of the Lambda gang were knocked out for their Lambda tattoos/brands. We can always hope, though. 🥲)

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Hey if the GF kids + GP team were watching horror movies (the oldest because no horror movies for the youngest kiddos or they will not sleep because some horror movie ARE terrifying) What movie would scare the most at every child/teen?

Like i can see Emma being scared of IT, whatever which version, especially the first scene (you know what i mean, right?) for exemple.

Ayshe would be probably scared by White Dog or Cujo :/ but not scared by the movie but scared and sad because of the poor dog (who is a victim in both movies, infected by rabies in one and trained to attack in another). she would speak for the first time to Norman to ask him do find her an appointment to vaccinate her dogs (because it's real dogs, not demoniac dogs or it would be hard for her to feed them in the human world. I doubt that people would be happy to see their beloved pet dog "vanish" (and be eaten).

Barbara would play "the cool sister who isn't afraid" but would be afraid by Scream (for exemple and would be clingy to Cislo/Norman/Vincent's arm for all the movie XD

Have you other ideas? =)

Feel this comes down to semantics because I don't think they'd find mainstream horror scary but more so unsettling? Besides like a well-earned jump scare getting the best of them that's immediately, viscerally frightening and might result in a comedic reaction they tease each other over.

But given everything they confronted in the demon world—both the direct, palpable terror of almost being eaten alive by the grotesque

(Chapter 117)

to the existential horror of realizing everything you've come to understand about yourself and that your very humanity and the humanity of all the people you care about is systemically devalued in such a cold, detached, clinical way—

(Chapter 28)

it doesn't seem like it would result in an immediate bubbling up of palpable terror for them with both the barrier of the screen and their understanding of horror media and media in general often being used to communicate an idea between a creator and their audience (e.g., the possession scenes in Talk to Me being used to symbolically convey the silent brutality of drug addiction, the existential dread presented by pregnancy and STDs in It Follows, etc.). But the important thing with a lot of these pieces is that while horrific violence might be perpetrated, there's still an underlying upholding of human life as inherently valuable and something to be protected, so they can have fun with it and appreciate the works for what they are.

What I believe would be a sticking point for them would be abject, wanton cruelty with no purpose. So like, torture porn, purposefully edgy works that revel in the audacity of boundaries pushed and the shock value of the obscene, exploitation films. Hostel, Funny Games, A Serbian Film, 120 Days of Sodom, etc., I can't imagine them growing up and being fans of this subgenre after everything they experienced.

So I wouldn't say Emma is scared of King's It, but would perhaps be unsettled by a cosmic malevolent force preying on children for no purpose other than personal gratification, and how that serves as a metaphor for the underlying fear of stranger danger present in the 1980s in the US. The specifics might be inaccurate based on statistics (child abduction more often being committed by someone a child knows), but it's the possibility of harm being done by fellow human beings and that one can't immediately combat it with physical retaliation like they did in the demon world due to optics and laws in this world that could lead her to dislike it for her own personal entertainment.

I feel like works that involve medical horror could be triggering for Barbara, or scenes where there's gratuitous focus on flesh being violently bludgeoned into viscera mush with how it might bring back the smells of when she'd enact that on demons.

And I haven't seen Cujo or White Dog, but it does sound like something Ayshe would find disquieting with how she considers her dogs family. Same thing with The Thing, though the dogs being killed and impersonated don't last the whole film. None of these would compare to Cannibal Holocaust, though; I don't think she could watch a movie knowing animals were killed on set for the sole purpose of entertaining people. It would be too upsetting (and why I haven't watched it).