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I've seen some people saying that Muriel is annoying, shallow, one-dimensional, etc because of their sunshiney attitude. But those people are missing the point that Muriel isn't happy and sparkly because of a lack of depth as a character - it's actually evidence of how deeply abused and traumatized they are.

Look at the barely concealed sadness on their face when they refer to themself as "no one." Heaven treats them horribly, but they have to just smile and pretend it's fine. Because they're an angel, so what other choice do they have? They've been talked down to and told that they're unimportant for thousands of years. That they're beneath literally all of the other angels, just a 37th order scrivener, a nobody.

And so in order to cope with the horrific way that they're treated, they hide all of their emotions and trauma behind a cheerful mask. But if you look at how they act around the Archangels - how terrified they are to even approach Michael and Uriel, you can see how truly abused they are, and the pain and fear that they're hiding.

The other reason for their over-the-top cheerfulness is that they're so incredibly lonely. They've probably never had a friend - every couple hundred years someone comes and asks them a question, and that's it.

The poor thing has basically been kept in solitary confinement for thousands of years, of course they're going to be thrilled to speak to anyone at all, much less actually get to leave their desk and go to earth. Their sheer delight at everything on earth isn't just them being ditzy - it's the first time they've ever experienced anything other than the cold emptiness of heaven. The first time they've been allowed a tiny break from the horrible way that they're treated by the other angels.

Poor Muriel is so desperate for connection and validation that they're so excited to be needed, even after being called "the dim one" to their face. They hardly even reacted, it definitely wasn't their first time being called something like that.

All in all, Muriel is just like every single one of us who smiles through pain and loneliness and abuse, because we have no other choice. It doesn't mean that they're shallow and airheaded, or that they're any less traumatized than Crowley and Aziraphale. It means that they've learned that smiling is the only way to survive, because they're trapped in a heaven that feels like hell.

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not to be boring but i don't think aziraphale fell in love with crowley before the beginning and crowley in eden.

i think they fell in love in a very human way. slowly over the years, spending time together, sharing their experiences and realizing how alike they are in their differences. i think theirs is the "i cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look, or the words, which laid the foundation. it's too long ago. i was in the middle before i knew that i had begun" kind of love. (yes, quoting my beloved jane austen because i can).

"oh but the way aziraphale looked at him when they created the stars" 1. angel crowley would make god look twice. 2. presumably heaven has always been the same. a bunch of angels silently following orders. crowley was different, he was passionate about the creation. he loved it, cared about it and was willing to protect it. aziraphale saw that in him and found it beautiful in the same way that we do.

"but the way crowley looked at him when he told her he had given up his sword" crowley had just met an angel who dared to think for himself instead of following direct orders. of course he is impressed, of course he is deeply attracted to him. he sees in him someone who might be able to understand.

these two moments are crucial, yes, but (in my opinion) not because they instantly fell in love, but rather because they mark the beginning of something absolutely beautiful. something so great and unique that it defies definition. something ineffable, you may say.

[the-meta-tron]

Why was Aziraphale and Crowley's joint miracle so powerful?

They try to make it as tiny and insignificant as possible. A fraction of a miracle. And yet it turns out to be a massive one, with power enough to raise 25 people from the dead. A power that only the mightiest of the Archangels should have at their disposal.

Why?

Theory #1: It's love.

That one must be the most popular one. It just has to. Because that's what Good Omens are all about to many fans, myself included. Aziraphale and Crowley share a very special bond and hence when they join forces they create magic.

Theory #2: It's them

Let's not dismiss the simplest explanation - the miracle was powerful because the ones performing it were powerful. If you think it's too simple to be particularly interesting, think again.

There are many hints this season that Crowley used to be a big shot before the Fall. One of them is actually the miracle in question, or rather Crowley's words to Shax when she questions him about it.

But there are some things about Aziraphale that raise eyebrows too. Mainly, how he always seems to need Crowley's help to control a single person but then is suddenly puppeteering a room full of people.

I'm just saying, with a memory wipe canonized, everybody's identity is a potential mystery now.

Theory #3: It's a fusion

Renegade or not, Aziraphale is an angel and Crowley is a demon. Their powers are opposites and if applied at once would just cancel each other out. Like fire and water that represent them, right? Right?

Well, opposite is often just a synonym for complementary.

I think it's entirely possible it isn't just about Aziraphale and Crowley personally but simply about celestial and infernal power. I wouldn't be surprised that combined they can do things neither can separately.

Theory #4: It's Gabriel

This one is a bit underwhelming and I doubt it would be to many people's liking. But can we address the fact that the plume was kind of purple? Okay, it was more pinkish than Gabriel's trademark lilac-violet, but still. I think by holding hands our boys made Gabe not just an object of the miracle, but a participant too.

Theory #5: It's the portal

That's another one that might feel disappointing, but it's something I've noticed and I'm excited about it.

Just look.

Episode 1: when Aziraphale and Crowley decide to do half a miracle each, Crowley asks Gabriel to sit on the chair which he puts on top of this light-coloured, very worn circular rug.

Episode 5: when the bookshop is under attack, Aziraphale decides to use the portal against demons. We can see it was covered with a completely different rug - a burgundy one - so probably a different spot, right? Aziraphale must own at least a dozen circular rugs.

However.

Episode 6: when Crowley cleans the bookshop, he covers the portal with the same light rug we saw in episode 1 in the miracle scene.

Normally I'd say that if we saw the burgundy rug removed from the portal, it means it was under the burgundy rug the entire time and it was Crowley who put another one over it afterwards. After all, Aziraphale doesn't exactly strike me as the redecorating type.

Except he decided to host a ball in the meantime and we saw him redecorate for that.

So when Crowley puts the light rug over the portal, it's very likely he is in fact putting things back to how they originally were.

What I'm saying is when Aziraphale and Crowley performed their miracle, Gabriel was sitting directly over the portal connecting the bookshop to Heaven. Sure, it was closed, but it still might have given the whole thing a boost.

Personally, I think it was the combination of all of the above.

What do you think?

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At this stage, Crowley having lost memories from before the Fall is a theory, not a given. There's some evidence for it but nothing like proof. It's fine to base analysis on the possibility but your argument will be much stronger if you acknowledge that it's an if. If Crowley lost his memories, then - whatever it is this implies or raises questions about.

Maybe I'm being too precious about What's Really Canon but we're only a few months into a hiatus that's going to last years, and I'm desperately hoping we can avoid fanon creep as much as possible. So I'm encouraging us, in all areas, to notice when we're accepting possibilities as givens. We can build theories on top of theories but it's really crucial that we acknowledge which parts are assumptions. Because each incorrect assumption that we rely on takes us further away from the truth. This is such a smart fandom and I love reading everyone's perspectives. I want us to keep all our avenues for speculation open, including the ones that go against dominant fandom readings.

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Aziraphale, he’s supposed to be holier than you, can you forgive him for that?

Warning: I’ll briefly mention the concept of religious trauma. If the subject triggers you, be careful.

I want to start my messy analysis addressing some comments that point out that Crowley doesn’t explicitly say “I love you” to Aziraphale and doesn’t even complete the sentence “and I would like to spend…”.

Let’s talk about Crowley.

I already wrote about Crowley here, here and here , trying to analyze his feelings in those infamous last 15 minutes (and I may have had a good cry in the process), so I don’t want to repeat myself too much.

Like some comments point out, Crowley doesn't explicitly say “I love you” to Aziraphale. I think the fear of rejection prevents him from speaking more clearly. He doesn't dare to say the word love. It’s too much. For me, and this is only my personal opinion, it’s precisely the way his voice breaks when he says "and I would like to spend..." that makes me understand how strong his feelings are. Stealing Jane Austen’s words, “if I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more”. I think Crowley is expressing his love with all of himself, his expressions, his body, his movements. He’s unguarded, vulnerable. I believe that his intentions are pretty clear and the proof is that most of the audience understands him: we see his heartbreak and feel for him… so why Aziraphale doesn’t, Aziraphale who knows him better than us? Why does he talk about "working", and be in charge and second in command and all that stuff?

Do I think Crowley handled the situation perfectly? Not at all. He did his best, poor soul, trying to manage his own deep, repressed emotions. But yes, he allows his own insecurities, his own trauma to overwhelm him and eventually he just leaves. He thinks he has misinterpreted all the signals, because deep down he doesn't believe to deserve love.

I don't think Crowley will wallow in his pain. Maybe for a while, but eventually he’ll figure it out. Things won’t stay unresolved.

Let’s talk about Aziraphale.

First of all, I don't believe in the coffee theory, body swap theory and who knows what else has been written. I understand that these theories are fun to elaborate and have a strong appeal, because they are comforting. We love Aziraphale and we don't want to think that he screwed everything up in the last scene, so we look for some sort of justification. I think, and maybe I'm totally wrong (who knows what Neil has in mind) that Aziraphale makes a choice. Don't get me wrong, the Metatron is a manipulative bitch (derogatory). Let’s think about this horrible line: “I see that you formed a de facto partnership with the demon Crowley. Now, if you wanted to work with him again, that... might be considered irregular”. The subtext isn't even that subtle here. The Metatron, worse than any demon, offers to Aziraphale the ultimate temptation. Things don't have to be difficult, they can be easy. Aziraphale and Crowley can be together, angels. Now, as an audience, we would like to tell the Metatron where he can stick his coffee and his offer: we know that this asshole is perfectly aware that Crowley will never accept and that the consequences will be dramatic.

But I can see why Aziraphale thinks this is a solution. Azi has lived for 6000 years in an oppressive structure, fundamentally based on the concepts of sin, guilt, on the dichotomy between good and evil and on a black and white mentality. Free will is for humans, but immortal creatures are divided into the angel/demon binary system. Without heaven in the way, Aziraphale is healing, allowing himself to enjoy human pleasures, such as touching the thin dark duke’s chest, food (gluttony -> technically, a sin), a cozy home and comfortable clothes (sloth -> technically, a sin) and silly things like magic tricks. He can be also a little bitch (affectionate) sometimes. All of these things are part of Azi's personality and he deserves to be himself without any shame. He deserves to be free. It's not even a matter of deserving, he should have all of these things unconditionally. But none of the things that Azi enjoys would be allowed in heaven.

Aziraphale’s healing, but he’s not quite healed yet. Escaping an abusive environment is a difficult process, with inevitable fallouts. Aziraphale is clever and he’s learning, he has been learning all the time. Remember Elspeth and Wee Morag? At the end of the minisode, Azi understands that all the “poverty is a wonderful, ineffable thing” concept he had been indoctrinated into is bs. And Crowley is right there with him, helping him to understand. Even season2!Azi is different from season1!Azi, the one who said to Crowley: we’re an angel and and a demon, I’m holier than you by definition. He’s more relaxed, he trusts Crowley (unconditionally, I dare say).

But, cornered by Metatron's authority, he seems to fall back into his old patterns. The black and white mentality he was indoctrinated into. After all, Crowley has done many "good deeds", so he must be good... right? So, in the angel/demon binary system, good equals angel… right? Crowley shouldn't have fallen. He was so happy when he made his stars. He can be an angel again and have his suggestions box. They can be together. To help humanity. It’s the perfect solution, apparently. (Obviously the elephant in the room is that Crowley doesn’t want to be an angel, heaven is an abusive environment that has hurt him already: all of that leads to the heartbreaking line tell me you said no.

When Crowley starts his speech, he and Aziraphale are in two completely different places. Like… in a my exactly is not your exactly kind of way.

Azi is saying: look, I found a loophole, we can be together out in the open and doing good, as we have always done. It can be like the old times! Crowley is hearing: you’re not good enough, you must change back, you must become an angel and then you’ll be worthy.

Crowley is saying: we can stop pretending that we don't want what we want, we can be together and be ourselves, not an angel and a demon, but us. Azi is hearing: let’s be selfish and run away on alpha centauri, everything else can go to hell (or heaven, your choice).

Remember this scene?

Similar kind of misunderstanding, but this time is heartbreaking. I don’t believe that Azi wants Crowley to change a bit, and I don’t believe that Crowley is really able to run away without a care in the world. But these two idiots (affectionate) can’t communicate!

So, Azi, at least apparently, is regressing into his “you’re the bad guys” mentality, while he genuinely believes to have find a way to reconcile being an angel and his repressed feelings for Crowley. But it's only when Crowley begins to leave that Azi shifts the entire conversation to a more personal level. “Crowley, come back… I… I need you”. He starts to crumble.

He’s miserable. Crowley’s miserable. They’re crushed by their respective traumas and old patterns. They are both a confused vortex of repressed emotions, human emotions, and they don't know how to manage them. I think that we, as an audience, are driven to empathize more with one or with the other or with both at the same time, depending on what our personal experiences have been.

Then, the kiss. The kiss is abrupt, human and REAL. Aziraphale is shocked. This is nothing like the romance of a Jane Austen-esque ball. This isn’t something that can be ignored. Azi is experiencing his repressed emotions all at once. Anger (technically, a sin), fear… maybe desire (lust -> technically, a sin). So, definitely guilt. And, above all, confusion. He’s so, so human in this. But a “good” angel, a “proper” angel shouldn’t feel like that. So, as a coping mechanism, he seems to fall back even more into the old patterns, trying to grant the standard, angelic, divine forgiveness. Now, we can say that forgiveness is indeed an act of love, but looking at the scene… Aziraphale stutters, then spits out that I forgive you. What’s the object of his anger? Crowley? Himself? Hell, heaven, the entire system? All of the above? Again, Aziraphale is so human in his confusion. He tries to put himself together, when the Metratron walks in, but he isn’t convincing. He hesitates, before leaving, again and again. And we know why. We know that he’s heartbroken because he does love Crowley.

I think Azi needs to go back to heaven, he needs to figure the situation out by himself. And I believe he will succeed, in one way or another. (Tbh, I’d really like to see him lose his shit and dismantle the all system. One can dream.)

But can you imagine how unhappy he will be in an place such aseptic as heaven? How hungry will he be for a touch, when the last thing he experienced on Earth was Crowley?

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whenever i watch the end credits for ep 6 s2, all i could see was quiet anger being masked by the reminder of why he has to be strong. aziraphale is a very angry angel. perhaps truly the very first time that we've seen that contempt in the purest form.

and with good reason.

aziraphale has just discovered that all his feelings of love for crowley were VALID and POSSIBLE. they were all possible to be aired out, to mean something. this is anguish at the grief never before felt in this magnitude, never this fully understood. gone, in one sweep.

and now, all aziraphale has is a duty he wishes he didnt have. he's angry because he knows he cant run away and it hurts, it burns beyond understanding. he grieves it because when love was possible in all its directions, thats the moment he cant have it.

metatron did too well with his trap. now holds aziraphale hostage with the threat of the world ending, with the promise of a world where crowley is harmed.

and all you see is anger, that he has to be in this moment. not in his eden, not in the arms of his beloved. but here, a willing prisoner that now carries a duty.

i CANNOT WAIT to see that anger manifest to action. for aziraphale to lash out, to break — to let the dam break into a force. because truly, aziraphale has had enough of heaven, of what he has lost and what he is forced to gain.

and i cannot wait, to see him take charge of that anger and let those who deserve it to drown in that pent up dam to drown in the grievous waters. because this time, i dont think aziraphale can be good at forgiveness.

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@sassasafreeaction i saw your tags on this post and just had the sudden, violent need to talk about them

As someone with a bad case of CPTSD that comes with insane hypervigilance, Crowley's behaviour is not only incredibly familiar but also makes a lot of sense.

He is used to having to watch his back, not just in hell (where it's a matter of life and death/torture) but also on earth, while Aziraphale has a general sense of unease and the urge to be careful only when he thinks he is doing something potentially incriminating. So slipping into the role of protector was easy for Crowley, in his mind Aziraphale needs him to do it because he won't/isn't doing it.

Scenes like the ending of the Edinburgh flashback show us that Crowley is not being paranoid, it is based on actual traumatic experiences.

I imagine it is also the only way he can feel some relief when they're in public. Having the wall in your back, the person you care about in front of you, and the door and windows in your line of sight is calming and soothes that little anxious scratching inside your ribs, but even then it never fully disappears.

He has all his little quirks, like the twirls he does while walking, constantly craning his neck, even the sunglasses, which yes, they hide his eyes, but they also hide his gaze; people cannot see what he is looking at. I doubt he is aware of it, I certainly wasn't until someone pointed out that no matter where I am, I periodically check the entire room, physically moving my body and head to do a 360°, for example. Even when I pay attention to my behaviour, it's instinct, I do it because that's just what my brain thinks it needs to do to be safe (and it was truly needed at some point).

Hopefully, once they actually are safe, Crowley will be able to properly relax (and probably be super exhausted for months if not years), but some habits and a part of the hypervigilance will never go away.

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Theoretically, Supreme Archangel Aziraphale could make a difference in Heaven. He's smart and capable and not nearly as naive as he lets people think. With hard work, careful alliances or subtle underhand sabotage, he could change things.

In practice, though, he won't. It's a question of genre. Good Omens is a lot of things, but central to Aziraphale's arc, it is a love story. As a result, any progress that Aziraphale makes while working alone is going to be a false victory that falls apart under scrutiny, sets him back in the long run, or costs him too much. Before he can start achieving anything real, he has to go through the character growth necessary to start resolving his conflict with Crowley.

The same is true on Crowley's side, too. Whatever Crowley is up to, he's going to hit a wall that he can't climb without Aziraphale's help and before he can overcome it, he's going to have to work through the false beliefs that have so far held him back in that relationship.

This isn't really about who's right and who's wrong. It's about them being dual protagonists. They're equals in everything, including their role in driving the narrative, and they both have to grow and change or the story will feel unbalanced. And they're both going to be limited in what they can achieve alone, because they need each other, and they need to let themselves need each other. The point of their story is that they're stronger together. The story is going to show us that they're stronger together. And the best place to start is with what they can't do when they're apart.

[the-meta-tron]

the classic character inversion trope in Crowley and Aziraphale is that the demon is the nice one and the angel is the mean one. neither of them is actually stupid, but they are canonically incompetent at their jobs. this is not necessarily a bad thing, for us, considering what the job is. Crowley fails by caring about others above orders and Aziraphale fails by not following strict orders because he actually cares enough to question them.

this is also not good for them because they are creatures who are expected to obey. even Crowley, who by virtue of being a demon means he disobeyed god, is expected to stick to a narrow path of behavior and values in service of hell. angels are expected to be obedient to god, but only an asshole obeys rules without caring how following them affects others. this is why the higher ups are so horrible. Aziraphale hasn't remained an angel for 6000 years without being able to at least play by those rules well enough, so this is one of the reasons he is the mean one of the two.

now, what this means on a practical level is that neither of them is actually free. Aziraphale has explained several times that the only ones who properly get to choose are humans. that's what free will entails, and angels and demons do not have free will. Crowley and Aziraphale figured out a plan to stay away from heaven and hell for a while at the end of season 1 out of need. they had gone completely rogue against their respective higher ups, both for selfish and selfless reasons, and they knew punishment was inevitable because they did the one thing they could never do: they made heaven and hell look bad. so, short of destroying themselves or finding a long-term solution (like dismantling heaven/hell, idk what any of this looks like), there is no escape for them, down the line.

for Crowley, what this means is that they must stay away from this mess as much as they can. this is what he did from day 1. he knows he can't change the way the universe is arranged, so he thinks what they need to do is to keep to themselves and stay as safe and free as possible. for Aziraphale, what this means is that whatever time they have together is finite, and their safety is never guaranteed. he also understands he can't change the way the universe is arranged, so he is willing to sacrifice freedom for safety if the position allows him to at least have some control of the terms in which they are free and safe.

there is also an interest on Aziraphale's part to stop the destruction of the world (the world where Crowley and he have built a life in, the world that allowed them to interact and fall in love with each other). from season 1 (and the book) we know Aziraphale first tried all the means at his disposal to stop armageddon before going straight to disobedience. he tried to fix the problem through logic. he still believed he could, somehow, change heaven's minds. he thought - regardless of Crowley clearly explaining it was futile - that he could even change god's mind. he thought all he needed was the time and the space to explain.

one thing I feel people often overlook about Aziraphale is that he is canonically intelligent. I suppose there might be a case here to argue that he is high intelligence while Crowley is high wisdom, but that is a little beside the point. what is more important to me is that the book goes on to be explicit that angels are not particularly more intelligent than humans. angels simply have longer lives, more access to resources, and can gather knowledge humans never could in their restrained mortal existence. whenever Aziraphale is stupid, he is stupid the way intelligent humans are often stupid. Crowley told him so in season 1, when he wondered how someone as clever as Aziraphale could be so daft about their situation.

Aziraphale STILL operates with the idea there must be a way to play along with the rules that will lessen all the maladies of the ineffable plan. after all, he's been doing it for 6000 years to survive (overlooking the fact that at the very end, he won the argument with a technicality Crowley first pointed out to him, and armaggedon was stopped because a child loved his family and friends over divine power).

this also makes Aziraphale very mean, because he dismisses what Crowley tells him he knows, through experience, can't be done. Aziraphale thinks his alternatives are falling - which would be horrible - or, more likely, being destroyed - which would also be horrible. the only way he has, in his mind, to survive this is to be able to change the higher up's mind, just as he intended in season 1, or, when the opportunity is presented, to be a higher up himself, to have more sway in the decision making process.

we know, and Crowley knows, that this will not work out as he hopes it will. but he still feels like he has to try. stupid in a very human way, you could say, because by desperately seizing the only alternative he sees to save Crowley and the world, Aziraphale pushed Crowley away (and lost his most treasured worldly possessions). Crowley, who has been on both teams, understands far too well playing along with the rules will not yield the results any of them want. if you look like a duck and act like a duck and sound like a duck, you're just contributing to whatever heaven or hell wanted in the first place. Crowley has already been punished for asking questions and thus doesn't fear being rejected or unloved by moral institutions, he already experienced the worst consequences sans obliteration. he understands freedom is the only way they'll get to enjoy their lives and each other, but both disagree on a fundamental level how much freedom they can obtain and what that means for them in connection to the wider world.

as usual the answer will probably be a third secret option neither of them has considered yet, and my opinion is it will probably be attained or devised by humans, just like in the first book. maybe aided by Crowley and Aziraphale in the funniest and most indirect ways. but I feel like this is why their story together is so compelling: love is such a powerful force it dares divine creatures to challenge not just the preconceptions of who they are supposed to be, but the very creator of the universe, if necessary, in order to be free to express that love. there is no holier war than the one you fight to be yourself, and I'm personally very excited to see where it goes for them.

#good omens #good omens season 1 #good omens season 2 #good omens meta #good omens theory #good omens spoilers #aziraphale #crowley #ineffable husbands

[the-meta-tron]

I don’t think you can talk about Aziraphale without bringing up the influence of religious trauma on him and his history of decisions while on Earth. In my opinion the flashbacks in s2 show Aziraphale’s realization that complicated situations are more often than not shades of grey and not good or bad, something that I think becomes more clear to people as they break away from their religious upbringing.

The Job minisode showed that he was capable of going against god and heaven when what they were asking was obviously bad and morally wrong.

The Resurrectionists episode showed how Aziraphale’s staunch views about good versus evil could create terrible outcomes. It also shows that he is willing to learn and grow and change his views.

And the 1941 minisode showed Aziraphale actively protecting him and Crowley and their relationship, both because they were working on their own side and seeing things in shades of grey, but also in a more subtle way, their blossoming romance which is inherently queer.

I think S2 highlights how religious trauma specifically can create situations where even the best person might make poor decisions. And the flashbacks show how Aziraphale grew and changed over the course of his time on earth to see beyond what heaven taught as right and wrong.

#good omens #good omens season 2 #good omens meta #good omens theory #good omens spoilers #aziraphale #crowley #ineffable husbands #the job episode #the grave episode #the nazi zombie episode

[the-meta-tron]

I Can Make A Difference

My thoughts on the theme for Day 2 of the Nice and Accurate Prophecies event!

See my meta here about Aziraphale's elevator grin and why I completely believe he has a Plan (always with the capital letter).

If I'm being honest, I don't know what I believe his Plan is. But, what I do want to talk about is his character and what I think he's going to bring to Heaven.

I firmly believe that the Metatron only cared about separating Crowley and Aziraphale because he was scared of their combined power.

I mean, these two already stopped Armageddon once when they teamed up. Now they are performing 25 Lazari miracles when miracles are usually measured in centilazari or millilazari. Neil even says it's mostly millilazari, which is 1/1000 of a single lazari. Their combined power is insane and they weren't even trying. So, of course they must be separated.

And the easiest way to do this? Take the easily manipulated one and bring him back to Heaven, of course. Who cares that he's in a position of power? All it takes to get him to agree to anything you want is a little bit of mirrored speech patterns, support for his favorite activity of ingesting human substances, and some flattery. He couldn't be more easily controlled, right? RIGHT?

But, what the Metatron didn't know, couldn't possibly have known, is that Aziraphale is the angel with an overdeveloped sense of right and wrong and the backbone to stand up for it at all costs.

And he's not going to be as easy to get rid of as Gabriel was, because the problem (for the Metatron) with Aziraphale is that he's not going to tell Heaven, "No," And make it easy for them to fire him. That's what Gabriel did, and it was immediate demotion. But Aziraphale? He's going to talk about it, he's going to ask questions about it, or even flat out lie about it, and he's going to make them doubt their own plans. Probably not the Metatron, but all the other angels? Absolutely.

Want to know how I know?

He's been standing up to people, lying, and convincing them to do things he wants them to for literal millennia.

The Heaven v. Hell fight could've just continued right along, but in comes Aziraphale, asking questions about if it's the Great Plan or the Ineffable Plan, and suddenly no one knows for sure and the whole thing falls apart.

He convinces Crowley with little more than a look to make Hamlet a success.

He stands up to the archangels in the Job minisode, and when that doesn't work, he fakes it with his bestie, and outright lies to seal the deal.

He's going up to Heaven and he's going to make those idiots do the right thing regardless of how they feel about it, and he's going to do it in a way that makes them think it was their idea in the first place.

The Metatron may be a master manipulator, but two can play that game. And my money is on Aziraphale.

#good omens #good omens season 2 #good omens meta #good omens theory #good omens spoilers #aziraphale #crowley #ineffable husbands #the miracle #the metatron

[the-meta-tron]

Job, God, and fairness

In a Companion to Owls, there is a lot of talk about what Job has done to deserve the bad things happening to him. When Aziraphale first discovers Crowley's permit, he says that this can't be, because Job is a good and righteous man. When he goes to Muriel in Heaven to investigate, he asks "What did he do"?

Job? Nothing. Job's the nicest man in the world.

Even Crowley focuses on the "blameless" children of "blameless" Job and his "blameless" goats.

And of course, Job himself believes that he must have done something to deserve God's wrath.

And how sunk in sin must I be not only to deserve all this, but not even to know why.

But no one deserves to have all their worldly goods destroyed and their children killed. If Job was like, lukewarm on god and kind of a dick, he still wouldn't deserve what happens to him.

I feel like a big part of why Aziraphale helps Job, risking everything, risking damnation, is because he feels what's happening is not fair. (not the only part. But a big part).

And yet unfairness is practically the guiding light of the Heaven/Hell moral system! It cloaks itself in fairness (do good, go to heaven, do bad, go to hell). But as we see in the Edinburgh episode, it is not as simple as that. We don't all start out with the same set of options and even the moral choices that seem black and white are often shades of grey. So how can eternal damnation or eternal reward ever be fair?

And even if they could be (they can't), how could temptations or blessings be a fair part of the system? Some humans get tempted and other don't, so the ones who don't get tempted just...have an easier time being good? What's that about?

The celestials created an unfair system, and then they interfere with the humans in it to make it even more unfair. And then they try to apocalypse it.

Welcome to my ted talk about how season three MUST end with the overthrow of the entire Heaven and Hell system. Yes, I've said this before. Yes, I will probably say this again.

#good omens #good omens season 2 #good omens meta #good omens theory #good omens spoilers #aziraphale #crowley #job #the job episode #muriel #good omens season 3 predictions #good omens season 3 speculation

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Angel Pinky Rings

I'm going to get strangely obsessed with finger jewelry for a moment.

Please do not ask Neil Gaiman to confirm or deny.

Before the Beginning, Aziraphale doesn't have a ring:

...then after the Beginning, he does:

...which he wears continuously for the rest of the story:

Archangel Michael

doesn't have a ring in Book of Job:

and then they do:

Uriel does:

...even Saraqael does:

...and Sandolphon:

...but not the Supreme Archangel

not in Book of Job:

and neither before Armageddidn't:

nor after:

...and not the 37th Order Scrivener:

Originally I thought the rings might denote rank, but Gabriel not having a ring throws a wrench in that.

Left vs. Right

Every angel that wears a ring wears it on their left hand (everyone except Saraqael wears it on their pinky, who wears it on their ring finger) except for Aziraphale, who consistently wears his pinky ring on his right hand. Furthermore, the style of each ring appears to be unique; we don't usually get a very good look at them (or at least I don't, I have kind of crappy hardware) but the differing styles seem to be meaningful to the individual. Putting it on the left may indicate that it has a negative connotation; the fact that Aziraphale's ring is on the right sets him apart.

Protecting the Ring

Additionally, all the angels that have rings, when they fold their hands, tend to cover up their ring-bearing hand, almost protectively:

Semi-Rational Theory

The rings are vessels of memory: they are only worn by angels who have transgressed against God's will, and are worn forever after as a symbol of the covenant made between the Creator and the Servant. They dump the memories of their transgressions into the ring so that their minds are made clean, but carry the mark of their prior sin with them for the rest of time. Much like a rainbow, it serves as a promise that the transgressor will never transgress again. The angels protect it because, consciously or not, they know that this ring contains a part of themselves, and it is both precious and shameful.

Absolutely Irrational Theory

Aziraphale wears his ring on his right hand because it doesn't fit on his left. That's because it's not actually his ring; it is Angel!Crowley's, and he is keeping it safe for them. Crowley and/or Aziraphale might not even know anymore that that is what it is, but by some pact between them made before the Fall, it is in Aziraphale's stewardship to keep safe until such time as Crowley can safely have his memories restored.

Again: Please do not ask Neil Gaiman to confirm or deny.

EDIT: MAGGIE HAS A PINKIE RING

This bish is sus AF

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To read more of my original content on erasure theory:

Jimbriel, Satan, the Book of Life, and what it means for Crowley

The Erasure of Human!Metatron

Baraqiel and Azazel

or, my first and my most popular post to date:

A Nightingale Sang in 1941

#good omens #good omens meta #good omens theory #good omens season 1 #good omens season 2 #aziraphale #michael #gabriel #saraquel #sandalphon #uriel #muriel #maggie #angels #heaven

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for the love of fuck

Crowley and Aziraphale did not switch bodies at the end of season 2. Neil Gaiman is not a hack who recycles plot twists.

It’s more significant than a PLOT TWIST.

Aziraphale hasn’t been drugged, or puppetted or whatever; he’s lived his ENTIRE LIFE brainwashed. You don’t have to drug someone who is still brainwashed. I have deep roots in evangelicalism; trust me, I know how easy good little angels are to control (because I WAS ONE).

If I see one more explanation of the ending that involves “look at this body language from Aziraphale obviously he’s not himself and here’s my plot-twist explanation” I’m gonna explode.

Like obviously he’s “not himself” there; because he’s pretending to belong to Heaven. Even pretending to himself. Pretending to be confident in his choice. Pretending he doesn’t want to run sobbing into Crowley’s arms. But not because he has been drugged or switched bodies or anything with a cheap, quick explanation. It’s because he is a complex being with millennia of emotional trauma and religious indoctrination, who is fighting his nature to try and “belong.” Because his own pride and inability to question deep-seated beliefs is tainting his judgment and overshadowing the love he desperately wants and is not “allowed” to have.

A “twist” would cheapen this crucial character decision which casts a sharp light onto character motivation and Aziraphale’s intentional neglect of missing knowledge. He has always walked around with his fingers in his ears. Season 3, he’s gonna have to pull them out.

Aziraphale and Crowley can’t be together until they conquer their black-and-white thinking patterns and learn to set boundaries and communicate with one another.

Aziraphale leaving with Heaven is just one example of poor boundaries and singular thinking.

#good omens #good omens meta #good omens theory #good omens season 2 #good omens spoilers #aziraphale #crowley #ineffable husbands #ineffable divorce #good omens season 3 predictions #good omens season 3 speculation

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Nightingales in literature can symbolize so much, which is why I think 'A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square' isn't just Crowley & Aziraphale's song. It's repeatedly presented to us in little easter eggs or outright such as Crowley telling Aziraphale that there are no nightingales singing. This of course is a reference to the song at the end of the novel, they dined together at the Ritz and a Nightingale sang for the first time in Berkeley Square.

Nightingales symbolize love, their song is described as 'The Voice of God' In folklore, it is seen as a messenger between the divine and the human world, which means Nightingales connect Aziraphale and Crowley in a very significant way, two divine beings on earth falling in love. We can take this to mean that "No Nightingales" is Crowley telling Aziraphale that he's cutting off their connection if he goes to heaven.

In the Bible it represents a faithfulness to God, the Nightingale singing is a sign of hope during times of despair.

So, "You hear that?" ... "I don't hear anything." "That's the point. No Nightingales."

No hope.

#good omens #good omens season 2 #good omens spoilers #good omens theory #good omens meta #aziraphale #crowley #ineffable husbands #ineffable divorce #no nightingales

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what i hate most about the dynamic aziraphale and crowley have is the way people somehow always seem to interpret it as crowley loving him more than aziraphale loves him back. and it's sooo frustrating because yes crowley is more open and honest about how he feels but aziraphale shows it, reeks of it. literally one of the things that fuel his internal conflict is that he cares for and trusts and loves crowley so much that for the first time something actually rivals his devotion to heaven, so much that he agrees to the fucking arrangement because he trusts crowley more, so much that he doesn't even know where to put it or what to do with it or how to admit to it

every single time he "chooses heaven" it's because he's allowed himself to sink too deeply into this love and that's what springs the catholic guilt into action. the final scene isn't even aziraphale choosing heaven over crowley, but him saying i can make heaven good enough for you, and he's so fucking happy because he thinks he's finally found a loophole, and when crowley says no he literally thinks he's the one being rejected. quite literally the entire show is aziraphale trying to find a way around it and explain it away and make excuses but my brother in christ he loves him so much he can't even bear to face the magnitude of it

#good omens #good omens season 1 #good omens season 2 #good omens meta #crowley #aziraphale #ineffable husbands #good omens spoilers

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we talk a lot about how terrified and angry crowley was when heaven tried to execute aziraphale via hellfire and gabriel told him to shut his mouth and die already, and how aziraphale seemed to be having the time of his life in the holy water bathtub down in hell, asking for rubber ducks and making michael miracle him a towel. we know that crowley was traumatized by the whole appearance-swapping experience by how he reacts to gabriel in the bookshop. and while i wholeheartedly agree with everyone's thoughts about crowley, i'm wondering if we haven't gotten it a bit wrong on az's end. we know that aziraphale tends to shove things under the rug when he's nervous or afraid. he puts on a brave face and tries his best to soldier on through whatever difficulty he's facing (see the whole bit with the metatron at the end of S2). don't let them see your fear. but we also know (per neil) that when crowley's irises go full yellow it's a sign of extreme stress. and throughout the bathtub scene, aziraphale-crowley's eyes are blown wide to yellow. i feel like aziraphale was much more terrified (for both himself and crowley) during this scene than he let on during his later recounting of the events to crowley in the park. just something to consider.

(the nose scrunch clearly says 'i'm fine, this is fine' to all but the most attuned observer)

#good omens #good omens meta #good omens season 1 #aziraphale #crowley #ineffable husbands #good omens season 2 #good omens spoilers