Black Parade Studies

Gathering research data on discourse analysis in the fandom

[bubbles-on-the-tide-of-empire]

Lock the fuck in babe, we've got a mystery to solve!

[early-sunsets-lover]

Swarm Tour is a delusion to keep Gerard Compliant

During LLTBP we see outfits that are very similar to Swarm tour outfits, the most obvious one being the Secretary outfit, which is a 1:1 match

But we also have the nurse(s) and a few more under my ramblings

This theory revolves around the common belief that you can only dream (or maybe hallucinate?) things you've encountered in real life.

What if all the different outfits Gerard wears during Swarm are part of a hallucination they experience after the Sleep therapy. There are images of brain scans and literal brain surgery during this segment..

So who's to say Gerard didn't undergo special brain surgery to make them more susceptible to hallucinations during the red/blue therapy (this could also play into the personality switch during Blood)

Gerard is envisioning this grand come back tour, one where he gets to dress however they want and all the fans love it (this is also relevant to irl struggles Gerard had putting on a character for the sake of performance). And notably Gee is the only one that dressed up in these extravagant fits on this tour. Where is he getting these ideas from? Well, Draag of course

He is performing willingly for the dictatorship because he believes SWARM tour is the tour they're on. This is why he often acts less seriously than the others. The rest of the band is being forced to perform against their will, Gerard is having fun dancing on stage, while the other members try to protect them.

Some other less obvious potential connections below:

Quizzo/Gentleman Castle

Clown

Perhaps a Phantom?

Like Phantoms Forever??

And as a parting thought, what if...

B-stage is also part of the delusion?

[early-sunsets-lover]

WTTBP Foreshadowing LLTBP Lore

I think most of us have taken a look at this verse ever since the Phantom drop. However I think the next two lines also relate to the LLTBP story arc

This is not really a fully formed theory but me connecting dots and seeing where they go

The most obvious connection is the word phantom, if the phantom in this line is indeed a reference to Phantom, it seems our protagonist (Gerard) will leave us a Phantom. Curiously Gerard is the only one that's ever facing the screens when Phantom shows up on screen, Gerard makes a very pointed turn and Sylvia looks at him but is still facing the audience. I believe this is indicating that he's signaling the phantom to us, the audience, while still playing along with Sylvia and the regime

The next line "to lead you in the summer" during WTTBP Mexico N2, Gerard puts a finger up when they sing "summer", I have no idea if this was an intentional action or not (it does seem intentional), BUT it did remind me of how Gerard keeps saying I'm Not Okay is a summer hit

Now, INOK is notoriously the song that attracts outcasted youths, IE teenagers, do we see where I'm heading here? With inok's summer association, the "you" we are leading are outcasted teens. Summer could also be summer vacation, or maybe this summers tour

And before we get to the final line, I have to point out that there is a LOT of attention put toward making sure Gerard does the fist during WTTBP, Charlie is always guiding him, Gees always looking at their hands in confusion until they actually do the motion

And where else do we see this motion? During the Teenagers music vid

Now, Teenagers was always a bit out of place in this album, but it's also always been a song about propaganda and how susceptible teenagers are to violence through said propaganda, and that messaging is reinforced with the Gentleman's castle imagery during the 2026 tour (assuming PK is indeed what was used to brainwash Gerard). So I believe the "black parade fist" motion is meant to show that Gerard will be leading the outcasted youth (inok teenagers) to "join the black parade", the Draag black parade being a violent army.

BUT I think, while Gerard is still acting as the puppet/figurehead of this propaganda, they are secretly leaving us a Phantom that will help us, the audience, dismantle the system and save them from the cycle

[early-sunsets-lover]

The Timeline Technology is Failing and Will be its Own Downfall

Hey y'all, is anyone else just as confused as I am about all the new lore this leg of the tour?

Here's a theory I put together at 3 am while the Wembley jetlag still has me in its grasp.

There has been talk of hypercubes or tesseracts because of the Gemini Process Manual and the reappearance of this image in Florence. I've added a screenshot of a visualization of a tesseract for reference

A tesseract is essentially a 4 dimensional representation of a cube and they are often associated with parallel timelines, something that is heavily implied in this tour.

@deathbystar_eo on insta recently posted about this and it got me thinking

If anyone has seen the Cube horror series (a series I suspect Gerard is very familiar with) Cube: Hypercube is a great representation of how tesseracts are often displayed in media. In the film they start out like the other movies, in a basic cube trying to escape, but as the film, progresses alternate realities end up meshing with each other and the characters run into other versions of themselves, some older, some changed, some stuck in the timeline fuckery.

I think something similar is what is happening to our cast in Draag.

Now before I get to the evidence, I would like to point out a topic that I have not seen touched on yet.

Tesseracts, yes, are often used in MEDIA as a narrative device for parallel universe stories, but we also use the concept of tesseracts in TECHNOLOGY.

In computer networking there is a network topology called hypercube internetwork topology. We essentially use the model of a hypercube in a virtual setting to optimize data routing.

@neurogueeries on insta mentioned the eye at times is made up of a matrix-style string of Keposhka lettering, this recalls binary code to me.

A different theory I've had for a while is that the timeline stuff is related to Gerard's Umbrella Academy. Particularly the suitcase technology.

In MCR's official promos on insta, we see a character that is literally chained to a suitcase, which looks oddly similar to the one's used in Umbrella Academy.

In addition to this, both Secretary Gerard from Swarm tour and the LLTBP Secretary carry suitcases - which makes sense because they wear the exact same outfit (Swarm tour theory plug)

So.. What if the suitcase time travel technology uses a hypercube topology model in order optimize control over the Draag universe and all other timelines? This is why its the logo for the Gemini manual. Gemini aren't clones, they are different versions of the same person from alternate realities taken and placed in the timeline of Draag's choosing. (This could also explain the Gemini and Unkillables drumheads after Secretary Gerard's assumed death during Swarm and the 1:1 outfit between both secretaries)

And what if this technology is currently glitching/failing and we are now seeing the effects of the "lines getting crossed"?

We have seen multiple Killjoys references

And we are now seeing Swarm tour callbacks with no explanation or even acknowledgment

At Wembley night 3 we got double opera performers, double clowns (with double clown stabbing), and even double vampires.

Almost as if the parallel universes are colliding. Gerard even sobbed when Sylvia came out on N2 saying "Youre not supposed to be here".

And in Florence we were?? Back in the Moat?

But It seems our characters are visibly remorseful of their actions now.

Charlie goes to slap Gerard, but stops himself and looks at his hands in shock

Gerard is handed the dagger before the blood sequence but looks at it contemplatively and also seems remorseful before the stabbing.

The reconditioning isn't working anymore because the hypercube technology is failing (perhaps due to Phantom interference?). They are still performing the action's they've been conditioned to do, but they have more awareness of WHAT they are doing now.

They aren't back in the Moat because they are being punished, it's a glitch. The swarm era mask and skeleton outfit were also glitches, they're losing control of their technology, and by consequence they're losing control of their pawns.

This will cause the final downfall of the Draag empire and allow Gerard to "leave us a Phantom to lead us in the summer" and finally help them escape

Additional notes:

Hypercube topology routing is based off an XOR operation

Routing method for a hypercube network is referred to as E-Cube routing. The distance between two nodes in the network can be given by Hamming weight of (number of ones in) the XOR-operation between their respective binary labels

Which recalls the mystery M.O.R acronym during the missile sequence

Could MOR be the Moat branded version of this logic gate?

I didnt know how to fully fit this into the main theory, but I think the bstage is DEFINITELY connected to the lore now (orginal bstage theory 1 and 2) with the reappearance of the Emperor Wrath of the Tyrant shirt and the bstage skeleton onesie at Wembley N2.

But also, setlist wise, double vampires is not only ANOTHER Swarm reference, its a Bullets/DD duo. They also played Jack the Ripper, a song that hasn't been played since Bullets era, and Zero Percent, a DD song that's never been played before. They have a new version of Romance leading into Honey (also not played since DD era, another Bullets/DD reference). And with the Florence set, it seems like these rarely played live songs are entering the new rotation. Which feels like the bands way of saying ALL eras of our musical journey are intrinsically tied to each other (potential concept base for MCR5??)

[clerksdagger]

the arrows the arrows the arrows the arrows THE ARROWS

[pandorashallcloset]

THE HELL??

[blackparadeisdead]

Anyone have any theories about image below or more images from recent lltbp events, id appreciate it

[closetedgoblin]

I'm jumping and making the assumption this is the skeleton mask guy from the Danger Days promo, so I'm thinking they're extracting "history", since we saw him pulling out and looking over the records. That would make PHANTOM the group that's responsible for learning about history and taking it to the dictator to decide what the people actually get to know, since most fascist dictators heavily censor the past and history to keep their people complacent. And we already know Danger Days is overlapping with LLTBP since the LATAM leg had BL/Ind imagery, so I don't think it's too far fetched.

[gerardwayjigglephysics]

"how will you ever love yourself?" 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍⚧️

[t3a-gh0st]

"you got the job baby. i just wanted to say that."

Everything reminds me of her

[knivesdemo]

jacket switch

[nyxinspace]

Want a deep dive into My Chemical Romance tour lore?!

Need to give your friend who hasn't been following LLTBP a short overview to get them up to speed in a hurry?

Can't remember which props were used on which dates?

The Ministry of Records has just what you need!

(some pages still under construction)

TMOR: @crimewizards @sigynpenniman @ill-serve-it-in-draag @astheswarmitcalls @days-fade @waydownn @nyxinspace

[sparrow-in-boots]

has anyone else made the wheat and clown connections to the "bread and circus" concept? please someone tell me anyone else made the wheat and clown connections to the "bread and circus" concept.

[sparrow-in-boots]

wheat is the main export and product of Draag. wheat is the fundamental ingredient for bread, one of the quintessential creations of many human civilizations. "milled with broken fists", a workforce that has been defanged and dulled into nothing but labor. a mindless ouroboros that makes the food that sustains it to make more food. eat to be eaten, kill to be killed.

clowns as the core of the show. the jester who speaks truth to power yet in utter service to it. clowns as the very face of vaudeville and circus entertainment, in time with an album that is all mocking, cheeky, and sincere. "yes we make jokes". "all “jokes” must be cleared by the Ministry of Distractions". insert laugh track here.

empty calories. hollow entertainment. unspoken jokes. monoculture fields.

[gerardwayspostnutclarity]

the birthday card had a dog on it

[infectiouspiss]

Cartlon Boofle Birthday Card, Tesco, £2.25

[sosaysdean]

evelyn evelyn

[yourlocalhaemogoblin]

idk if this is relevant but just so you know- on wembley n1 just as Gee pulled out the note that she threw into the audience (that said ‘slap him’) she was rambling and just repeating ‘the birthday party’ a few times. And now tonight on wembley n3 its her character’s birthday and she briefly sung happy bday at one point-

[xbabyn0th1ngx]

okay so knowing what we know now after the first few shows and the wembly shows of this leg what’s our theories???? what do we think the lore implications are of 2 clowns? one being the secretary? do we think this run of shows is between the reconditioning and time period of the first american shows? (that’s my bet)

[frankieroscurlygirlroutine]

FYI for those not familiar with commedia dell'arte tropes... the clerk clown is a Pierrot and the secretary clown would probably be considered either a Pierrette (considering the identical costuming, this seems likely) or a Colombina. Colombina would be portrayed as Pierrot's love interest and either have a colorful costume (like the Harlequin character) or a black and white costume. she's considered the mistress of Harlequin and a "tricky maid" type.

Pierrot and Pierrette characters are "sad clown" characters. Pierrot pines for Colombina. Both of these trope character traits seem to be incorrect for our Pierrot clown but his costuming is unmistakable. Unmasked, white painted face, a loose white blouse with large buttons and wide legged white pants.

The Pierrot character has been developed over time from Commedia Dell'arte tropes to now represent disillusioned, disenfranchised folks. Perhaps his killing of the Most Exalted Vocalist is representing what the common people want for the good of Draag? But that would not explain why the Grand Immortal Dictator is pleased with this result.

much to think about with all of this playing around. I know it has meaning but what is it all

gerard i need to be in your designer brain now