u/Olivebranch99

*Disclaimer: Show and book spoilers.*

I didn't *dislike* the end credit we got, it was okay, I just felt like it was kind of pointless. It's just an extension of the scene we just got and it didn't really add much or make you excited for the next season (before you knew we weren't getting one). I just don't feel like it served any purpose cause everything they said in it, they had already said or implied before the episode ended. Just felt like a waste of a stinger.

Now in hindsight, given that it was cancelled, I'm sure there are a LOT of things I would've done differently if I had that future knowledge (future lol). However, even if I was writing the show and I obviously wouldn't know that, I still would've utilized an end credit stinger differently.

So I've thought long and hard about theoretically what I'd pick. There's one scene in the book that I would've loved. Last spoiler warning...

In the book, after Henry's death, a young Alba time travels to when her dad was still with Ingrid. A nice memory of theirs in a sea of bad ones. This was before Henry even met Clare and long before he knew he would have a daughter. The scene is cleverly from the perspective of Henry. The readers know who this child is but he does not. Ingrid, who we found out the day of her suicide actually loves kids and wanted to have her own, sweetly talks to her and offers her help. Alba declines, insisting that she's fine and that she's just looking for her dad, but is too early.

We got ONE brief glimpse of Alba at the start of the show. It was better than no Alba tease at all, but I always thought it was kind of weird the way it was done. It felt more like a form of fan service as opposed to a genuine scene that fit within the context of the show.

This scene from the book would be more of a clever tease that fans of the book and movie will get, while still inticing any newcommers to keep watching and know more. Another benefit of including this scene is to reinforce what future Henry said to Ingrid in episode 4. That they DID have some good times. The entire time we see them together in the show (and for the majority of the book) they're either fighting, or upset about something. We never once see them genuinely happy outside of this one scene. We just hear Henry talk about it. So a stinger like this would both be a way to put Ingrid's character to bed (assuming they weren't ever going to show her death), and to show a glimmer of hope in Henry's future having just learned of all the babies they're going to lose and being told by a future version of himself that as far as he knows it'll never happen for them.

The con side to this is that I can already see people arguing that this particular scene works better when it's after Henry's death in the story (for us the audience, obviously he's not "continuously dead"). However, you can make that argument for many scenes that were rearranged or reimagined. Sometimes changes can work regardless of what the book purist in you may be saying.

I'm sure there are many other scenes that would've worked better as a stinger in place of the one we got, that's just my first choice.

Sorry for the delay, I forgot.

Anyway, this is a short one so I'll keep it to a couple questions.

What did you think of the story?

It was cute, nothing much, just little happily ever after bookend. Kind of had an Up vibe. It was sweet, but something that could've been combined with another story.

What did you think of this series as a whole?

Serviceable. If you're a die hard Beauty and the Beast fan, it's a cute little collection of stories to satisfy that craving I suppose. They're don't offer anything of depth though or a real conflict they delve into. I feel like I really need a BOOK to tell a proper story with a well written romance and character arc. These would be cute for kids or preteens though. Simple and wholesome for that age range.

Let me know what you guys thought.

Next month's book is Masques by Ru Emerson.

This isn't a perfect theory, and I know there are some things in the film that conflict, but overall I think his symptoms fit this diagnosis pretty well.

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For one, while regular insomnia can be disruptive towards your life, it's pretty manageable and the worst of it is irritability, trouble concentrating or remembering things sometimes. As the doctor in the movie said, not fatal.

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However, there IS a fatal more severe form of insomnia Fatal Familial Insomnia.

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Basically you slowly lose your ability to sleep entirely over time, and the symptoms are as follows:

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Intense hallucinations, excessive sweating, heightened anxiety, and eventually dementia kicks in and you become unresponsive and pass away. This happens over the course of 1-2 years.

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Most of those things are very present in the Narrator and don't typically come with regular insomnia.

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While Tyler seems to represent an alternate personality, which is another disorder entirely (and may be possible), the film really plays up the hallucination angle. He's likely not another person inside him that child him created from a trauma (which is how real multiple personalities form), but rather a manifestation he created as an adult to carry out his subconscious desires. Likely the result of his brain beginning to deteriorate from this rare extreme form of insomnia.

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Now FFI is not treatable or curable and someone could make the argument that since the support groups at the start of the film offered him relief and sleep, that it may be more of a psychosematic problem at play.

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Maybe he did have a mind over matter moment where he found a sense of relief from his heightened anxiety and therefore was able to find some sleep for a short time (as he would just be starting to develop symptoms).

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However, despite having this new outlet through the club that shall not be named, Tyler reveals to him that he's actually not sleeping at all. He's up making soap and doing odd jobs. He just thinks he's been sleeping cause he blacks out and "Tyler" takes over so it feels like a sleep.

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Could he possibly have both? DID and FFI? Maybe, the way Tyler "takes over" is reflective of that, but I feel like a past trauma would've been mentioned if that was the case. As I've already mentioned, with how the Narrator sees Tyler and communicates with him is more indicitive of a hallucination.

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That would also explain why he began spiraling more and more out of control as the film goes on. As he's basically not sleeping at all, and "Tyler" has become so vivid that he's consuming the Narrator's life and identity, he's experiencing the later stages of this terrible disease.

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The main hole in the theory is the ending. FFI is, as the name suggests, fatal. Those with it who develop the symptoms will eventually get worse and pass away, while the Narrator seems to have "defeated" Tyler. I do think that's more symbolic of the Narrator confronting himself. So he could still be dying, but taking control of his psyche if that makes sense.

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Also it's inherited so you'd think he'd know about it, but since his father was not in his life, he could have died from it without the Narrator knowing, or simply be a carrier without presenting symptoms (or his mother for that matter).

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It usually shows up closer to 50 and the Narrator's 30, but there's no set age for this kind of thing.

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Anyway, I just thought of this and wanted to share, but feel free to tell me I'm being ridiculous.

Not the chute where you pull the lever, but actually pulling trash out of a can on Airship and Fungle (I think just them).

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Seriously. I get it out eventually but it always takes me way too long. I swipe and swipe (I'm mobile) and it doesn't want to lift. I usually wave the can itself around before the bag wants to come out.

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Is it supposed to be tricky since it's a simple task?

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Is it a mobile thing?

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Or am I just bad at it and don't have the right technique?