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low-keygee · 5 months

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i am once again here to offer things about the thing 1982.

probably gonna be shorter bc i’m at work and don’t have much for this but i just needed it out of my brain.

at the very end of the movie when macready and childs are leant up against the barrels, they both share the sentiment of how tired they both are from the cold, the final showdown, the everything. i feel like macready letting on just how tired he is to childs was something of a last word, to let his vulnerabilities show.

in macready’s background he was a pilot in the vietnam war which was meant to explain why he was awake when the dogs were being attacked and why he tells the group after having been locked out that he’s a “real light sleeper”. so he obviously isn’t afraid to acknowledge what the war has done to him in that regard. but the end of the movie, plus this next scene show a bit of humanity for him.

when the drunken macready is recording the cassette for someone to find if/when they have been taken over/die/what have you. he talks about how the storm has been constant for two days and the long johns windows finds until he releases a small bit of what he’s feeling to the cassette.

“nobody.. nobody trusts anybody now. and we’re all very tired.”

he plays the tape back and starts speaking into it again, indicating he tapes over that line before saying “there’s nothing else i can do”.

macready’s insomnia really does seem to be a weak point for him. as much as everyone is aware of his poor sleeping habits, he doesn’t seem to want to admit just how tired he is. how powerless he feels in that regard.

in the defibrillator scene a while afterwards childs antagonizes mac with sleep (“you’re gonna have to sleep sometime macready”) which is where we get “i’m a real light sleeper” which then leads into a vague threat that mac never finishes (“and if anyone tries to wake me…”) which may mean the line prior is just meant to be taken more metaphoric (i think is the right word) than literal. like if childs tries to stir the outpost into taking out mac, mac will then do his dot dot dot.

then (i believe) the last mention is at the very end of the movie.

mac can hardly speak loud enough for childs to hear, his voice doesn’t hold the same command it has throughout the movie. he’s very much leaning against the barrels for support and is out of breath. he’s freezing, running on likely zero hours of sleep, after having faced off with the thing and sprinting out of the outpost before it blows. and he admits to childs as they both sit in the snow, knowing death will come soon for them both whether it be at the hands of the cold or the man before him, that he’s tired.

“if we’ve got any surprises for each other, i don’t think we’re in much shape to do anything about it”

“well.. what do we do?”

“why don’t we just.. wait here a little while. see what happens.”

mac finally lets on how tired he really is and lets himself sit and share a drink with childs before he dies in the snow.

i think his military past is important to talk about in this context as well. he was likely either taught or learned not to let on any weakness as a soldier as it would only earn him a knife in the back (hehe clark reference) and after leaving both the military and his previous job as a helicopter pilot to work at the outpost all he knew to do for his pain was to drown it in booze. he left to work at a research station where all he had to worry about was the weather and staying sober enough to take the chopper up. don’t think about macready being a war vet wanting peace of mind at a quiet research outpost in antarctica don’t think about it.

there’s been a few theories that childs was a thing and macready was testing him with a malatov cocktail but i think that they both died as men, and macready was able to rest knowing he’d served his outpost well.

idk if this was anything or if i’m reading too deep into mac’s 3 comments about sleep but his moment with the cassette and at the very end with childs always makes me so so sad and i needed to say the words out loud bc i heard a song that reminded me of mac 🫶

#the thing 1982 #the thing #horror #cosmic horror #rj maccready #the thing childs #jesus christ its 12:30am #headcanon #film theory #childs the thing #macready #this is long #sorry not sorry

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creepycassidy · 2 years

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weird request but I think you're the only person on tumblr who'd do it right

can you write a the thing rj macready x reader where you play a board game with him in the rec room except he's actually accurate to canon (I e. a huge alcoholic + can't handle losing) tysm

Yes, absolutely yes. I was so pleasantly surprised when I saw this in my inbox and so flattered that you thought I’d write him correctly!! It’s a little long, but I really had fun writing it. There are subtle hints at a relationship between reader and Mac, as well. I hope you enjoy :)

Game Night -

R.J. MacReady x Reader play a board game!!

Warnings: alcoholism, swearing, use of marijuana

Word count: 1.9k

Sundays at Outpost #31 had recently been dubbed as ‘game night’, and R.J. MacReady, in your humble opinion, was simultaneously the best and the worst person to be partnered up with for it. Earlier, Palmer and Childs had asked you if you wanted to join them for a game of poker with a list of chores on the line. The winner gets to sit on their ass all Monday morning while the others pick up the slack! As tempting as it had been, you’d already made up your mind.

Your hands skimmed over the well-loved edges of each board game as you tried to decide between what hadn’t already been picked over. Battleship, Sorry, Chess, and… Trouble. That was the one.

“Mac. We’re playing Trouble. Trouble in the bubble.” You laughed, setting the board game down on the table between the two of you as you took silent note of the fact that he’d already settled in with a large drink. You shot him a warm smile.

MacReady stretched out his limbs, cracking his joints with a low groan. “About time…” He teased, sitting up in his seat to get a better look at the game in front of him.

Not chess, huh? Well, fuckin’ shit.

“So… why this?” He questioned, subtle disappointment coating his words.

You shook your head and took your seat across from him to start setting up the game. “Because it’s my turn to pick. You got to choose last week and we played chess, remember?” Glancing up at him, you started to place the brightly colored gaming pieces in their spots. “I have dibs on green.”

Mac gave you a defeated shrug.

“Yeah, well… y’know what? You’re just afraid to lose again. That’s what I think.” He laughed, slugging back an indulgent drink before gathering up the red pieces.

His statement couldn’t have been further from the truth, in fact, you had never really understood how Mac got so worked up over these sorts of things. Silly, but in the annoying yet endearing kind of way. You laughed as well, shaking your head in amusement as you rolled your eyes at his petulance.

“Sure,” You countered, motioning towards the board with a nod. “But do you plan on starting? That way we can see who’s actually afraid of losing.”

“MacReady. Don’t be an ass.” A lightly scolding voice came from the left, pulling your attention away from the board to see Garry passing by with two cups of steaming coffee in hand, one of them no doubt for the doc, and a smile on his lips. Between the warm, fuzzy feelings blooming in your chest and the look on the pilot’s face, you erupted into a fit of giggles.

“My thoughts exactly, thank you, Garry!” You wheezed out, blinking back the tears that the laughter had brought to the corners of your eyes.

Mac huffed as he threw up the middle finger in the older man’s direction. “Sure. thanks, Garry.” With the corners of his lips curled up into a subtle smile, he then slammed his hand down onto the plastic bubble in the center of the board.

…and rolled a six, right off the bat.

“Alright, I’m already winning.” He smirked, and then pressed his palm against it again. This time he rolled a five. Grabbing up his whiskey, MacReady took a celebratory sip.

The game went on like this for a few minutes more, with the pilot rolling steady fives and sixes and you creeping up close behind him with twos and fours. The sounds of the other men’s howling laughter and bickering roared in the background, drowned out by your concentration on the board in front of you. By the time all of the pieces were moved out of home and the game was creeping up on a winner, Mac was already drunk, although it came as no surprise to you. Three of his pieces, along with three of your own were in the finish line now, with only three spots separating the man from a win. “Just-“ He paused, bringing a hand up to his mouth to let out a burp as he sat back in his chair, spreading his legs out in a confident sprawl. “Just like I said.”

“Alright, Mac.” You chuckled, eyeing your last green pawn. You were only five moves away from a win, two behind Mac’s own. Taking in a breath, you pressed your hand down onto the bubble and released it with a pop.

A perfect five.

You placed your last piece into the finish line with a satisfied smile, a stark contrast to the look on Mac’s face as you met his eyes.

The look of confidence fell from his smile, warping into one of disbelief and frustration.

“What— what the fuck.” Mac sat up rigidly, gawking down at the board game in pure, pissed-off astonishment. He’d lost. “You cheated, huh?”

You pressed your lips together to fight back an amused smile. “Oh, yeah. Now you know my deepest, darkest secret, Mac. I have to cheat at Trouble to win against you.”

MacReady looked thoroughly unamused as he crossed his arms over his chest tightly.

“Mac… Do you really think I would cheat at a board game?” You sighed, trying your best to console him. “Why would I even do that?”

“Well, hell if I know, Y/N!” The pilot barked as he threw his hands up into the air. “Maybe ‘cause you’ve got something to prove.”

You pinched the bridge of your nose as you felt an oncoming headache creep its way in. Laughing softly, you shook your head at the thought that you would need to prove anything to Mac, let alone that you could win at a stupid board game.

“I didn’t cheat. I just got lucky… that’s all it is.” Your lips curled into a frown at the displeased look on Mac’s face.

Mac stood up from his seat and snatched up the bone-dry glass of J&B. “Okay, whatever. Fine. Fine! This god damn game is stupid anyway.” He grumbled.

“…You need to stop getting so frustrated about these things and snapping at me.” You replied, feeling about as ignorant as they come for letting this upset you. You knew this would happen before you’d even started.

“I’m-“ The pilot scratched his beard, running a hand back through his mussed hair. “I’m not snapping at you,” he snapped. “I’m annoyed with this damn game.”

The two of you stayed silent for a moment, your eyes locked with Mac’s as you gave him a look of disapproval. To make matters worse, suddenly the card games weren’t good enough anymore… you’d caught the attention of Palmer who was watching this all go down from the comfort of the couch.

“What?” MacReady asked pointedly upon realizing you weren’t planning on saying anything.

“You are snapping at me.” you answered calmly.

Mac clenched his jaw and exhaled through his nose.

“I’m going to bed… and getting drunker.”

You sighed deeply. “Okay. Goodnight…” You watched as he gathered up his coat for the trek up the pilot’s shack. “Sweet dreams, Mac. I love you.”

After a brief pause, you heard his faint reply as he slipped out the door and into the freezing tundra. “Yeah… love you too. Goodnight.”

Palmer sprawled out on the couch as he lit up what you swore was his third blunt in the last hour. You assumed it was some sort of celebration, seeing as he’d won the aforementioned game of poker. “Shittt. You really pissed off ol’ Macaroni, man.” He cackled, to which you only responded with a silent shake of your head as you packed up the rest of the game.

—

In the morning, the outpost was relatively dead other than the sounds of Childs getting a head start on Palmer’s chores on top of his own. The cold tile chilled your feet even through the socks you’d put on last night.

You exhaled through your nose and did what you could to muster up a warm smile when you were met with Mac in the kitchen, who was already rummaging through the fridge for a beer. “Jesus, are we out or what?” He murmured.

“…Hey.” You breathed out, silently hoping that today would be a better day.

Pausing his search for an ice cold beer, MacReady popped his head out from the chill to turn around and face you. “Morning, Y/N.” He cleared his throat, doing a quick brush back through his hair with his fingers.

The silence seemed to grow even thicker as you stared at one another, searching your brains for the right thing to say.

“Do you…” you started slowly as you crossed your arms across your chest. “Do you wanna talk about what happened last night?”

The pilot groaned, squeezing his eyes shut in a grimace. “You wanna admit that you cheated?”

“Mac.” You sighed. Silly as it may be, you felt like you were on the verge of tears. “I didn’t cheat. I just got lucky.” You said once again.

“I’d bet that’s why you wanted to play that game instead of chess.” He countered.

You brought your palm to your forehead in frustration as you moved to pick at the bacon and hash browns that Nauls had cooked up for breakfast. “Alright… how about we just leave it for now?” You conceded, popping a strip or two into your mouth.

The soft sound of skates against tile caught your attention and you looked up.

“Tastin’ alright?” Nauls beamed as he nimbly moved around the kitchen to collect what he needed to start up a pot of coffee.

You nodded. “Yeah, mmhmm. Really good. As always, Nauls. Thank you.”

Leaning against the counter, the younger man looked towards the pilot. “Mac? You ate?” He questioned with a frown.

MacReady barely glanced up from his resumed dig through the fridge to acknowledge the younger man’s presence.

Nauls shot you a puzzled look.

“Mac’s just in a bad mood.” You explained with a weary smile, causing MacReady to shoot up from the fridge with a beer finally in hand.

“Well, you cheated.” He griped.

Nauls eyes went wide as he looked between the two of you.

“Not- oh, god.” You exhaled sharply. “At a board game, Mac! A board game.” You corrected quickly, turning back towards Nauls with a miserable look on your face. “…and I didn’t cheat!”

Nauls nodded slowly. “Okay, I see how it is. Mac doesn’t like to lose.” He agreed knowingly. “I’ll tell you what, I’m gonna go…” The cook chuckled. “I’ll just, y’know, make this when you guys are done.” He sat the coffee pot back down onto the counter and turned, skating backwards out the way he’d come.

You turned towards Mac once again, who was now taking slow sips of his beer. You quirked a brow. “Isn’t it too early for that?” You teased, hoping to lighten the mood some.

The pilot only huffed in response.

“Okay. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Mac. Can’t we let this go?” You let out a shaky sigh, your bottom lip trembling slightly. “We can play chess next time, and you’ll win because you always win and-“

“Fine.” Mac agreed, nodding. “Sorry. I’m sorry.”

You stared at him dumbfounded, your mouth hanging open slightly. Sorry? Mac was sorry?

“Okay…yeah.” You swallowed, wetting your dry throat. “Can I… can I have a hug?” Your hands hung at your sides awkwardly, only coming up to wrap around the pilot when you felt a warm arm around your shoulder, pulling you into him comfortably. You let out a satisfied sigh as you let your eyes go shut.

“Okay.”

#the thing 1982 #kurt russell the thing #rj macready the thing #rj maccready #rj macready x reader #x reader #creepykim #anon request #the thing #nauls the thing #Palmer the thing #Kurt Russell #Childs the thing #keith david

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