Spiders, their senses, and Angel Dust implications
I already screamed to @xxqueenofdragonsxx about this but figured I’d put it out there because I was doing research and I can’t stop thinking about it.
While we don’t know how canon it is to the show, this does have some implications for fanfics and is fun to consider.
Spiders don’t have ears. Or noses. Or tongues.
People have already made jokes about Angel’s lack of a nose, but it tracks with that fact. We also don’t see his ears, although we have seen his tongue (which, given he isn’t an actual spider there can be some allowances made.) Yes, he doesn’t have pedipalps to act as a substitution for his nose/tongue, but that isn’t the only place they can smell/taste things.
It’s their legs/feet(?). Their legs and bodies have sensory hair cells that allows them to detect vibrations in the air, as well as changes in electrical fields (which… Vox and Alastor implications? Can Angel sense them.) Humans hear via sensory hair cells too, but those are concentrated in the cochlea of the inner ear and surrounded by the outer/middle ear system (eardrum, etc.) Spiders don’t have that. They also have chemoreceptors that can smell and taste things.
Now, as someone who didn’t know much about spiders it’s cool to think about in terms of a character with some spider-like characteristics. But then I thought about this other aspect of Angel
His clothing
More specifically his constant usage of gloves/long sleeves/boots. We know he hates his spider feet, and yeah, the usage of gloves and his blazer can be to fit his style, but it’s also fun to think that maybe him wearing them is an active attempt to reduce sensory input? He’d still get some vibration input because the fabric won’t block everything, but it won’t be as direct. But since spider sensory organs aren’t localized like humans are, this could essentially be the equivalent of wearing a headphones. (Also do you really want to taste every single thing you touch?)
Which brings me to the second order of business: when he DOESNT wear his gloves. We do see him have to be bare for the camera, and if you consider him wearing clothes as a way of sensory modulation, he could essentially be forced to get all that input. Sensory overload would already be so ways in a place with so many sounds, lights, smells, etc. but imagine if you also have to do that when not used to such a level of exposure?
In humans there’s a condition called hyperacusis, which is basically a reduced pain and discomfort threshold to sounds. Some everyday ones can cause pain. Some neurodivergent people also have sensory sensitivities like that, in both cases sometimes headphones can help to reduce input.
The thing is though, if you constantly wear them you’re reducing your own threshold. It’s not recommended for people with hyperacusis to wear earplugs all the time because it makes them even more sensitive when not wearing them.
So, if you apply the same principle here, there is even more reason to consider the idea Angel would have some level of overstimulation just from not having his clothes on, combine that with the work environment, what he has to do, and the emotional turmoil of it all and that just makes it worse.
Which… with me anyways I’ve found when I’m too overloaded my brain tends to nope out and dissociate. So that could be what happens to Angel as well.
Then, there is one time outside of the studio we see him with uncovered arms and that’s the battle at the hotel.
Here, he’s wearing gloves but his arms are exposed. So it could be said that he’s allowing himself access to more input while also not overwhelming himself. He still has a buffer with the gloves on, but he also has heightened awareness for things around him.
Again, the amount of this actually being applicable in canon is hard to say. Sense we don’t know how spidery Angel really is (since again, he does have a tongue) and what level of research went into that aspect of their character designs. But I think it’s a fun thing to consider.
So uhhh… yeah. Totally normal about this all as someone who totally isn’t interested in audiology, hyperfixating on hazbin hotel, and neurodivergent myself.
(Update: there is now a fic)
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I think part of what makes heartstopper so good is because it’s written as a backstory.
Alice already had nick and Charlie as an established loving supportive couple written as background characters in tori spring’s story (solitaire)
This isn’t a story of will they won’t they or even a dramatic story of getting together. We already know they end up together. And we know they stay together happily. Instead, Heartstopper is an exploration of how this couple built their strong and beautiful relationship starting from when they met. Alice has said that the “getting together” part of relationship stories is the least interesting part in their opinion.
And I think that mentality is what makes the story so rich and meaningful. It’s the story of how a healthy long term relationship is built over time and how it grows.
I love Nick and Charlie’s story. And I hope it can model a healthy relationship to young people out there who-like I did- subconsciously learn a lot by watching tv and movies.
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i had a strange dream in which Vasco and Machete were both a) in a modern day gang and b) were based on real people that you, the artist, personally knew. Someone made a trivia post about your blog saying “Y’know how all 12 of the high ranking gang members in that canis albus webcomic wear necklaces with a die hanging from them? (Both Vasco and Machete had four sided dice btw) This is actually based on a real thing that the real people who are in the gang it’s based on wear.”
then someone reblogged it with “I didn’t believe this until I learned that Machete’s real life counterpart is the one that designed all of them, and has spares of them all for safe keeping. Supposedly, his most unique password is the one that protects the safe that the spares are in, which, in turn, is based on the canis albus blog!”
idk if or how you’d even interpret this as a drawing, but i kinda just wanted to let you know that i dreamt about your pups
.
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