concept keeper

At first, I was off put by the characterisation of the Cat in the upcoming 2026 film trailers - what I loved about the original portrayal of the cat in the specials and books is that while he's wacky and nonsensical, he was also confident with a find of easy finesse to him. He held all the cards and even when playing around, you get the feeling nothing is happening outwith his control. The more bumbling, underdog-esq character we see in the trailers felt a little more generic to me. The Cat was always the teacher, not the taught; others were learning lessons from him, not him having the arc.

Buuut I came round to the idea that this is Cat before he became the guy we see in the specials; before he became a professional in inspiring and guiding. The more I thought about the 'Institute for the Institution of Imagination and Inspiration' the more I liked it...and the idea of it having a 'counterpart' in the form of the Suess baddies, who act to bring cynicism, materialism, and cruelty in the world. A first meeting between this new Cat and a Grinch who lives to spread misery in the modern world is a fun idea.

A long time ago I came across an art piece of 'see no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil' with the most infamous Dr Suess antagonists, and while I can't find it again, it inspired the idea of these green and mean gents becoming 'friends'.

Lately, an au of sorts has been brewing in my head. I did like playing with the narrative prompt that Howard resembles Samantha in some way, even if it's just the art style making it more likely that it's a coincidence. Howard's mother also resembles him greatly, if the apparition at the bottom of the staircase is correct - she also had black unruly hair.

Folks in the fandom mention a dev 'liking' a comment about the resemblance, but apart from that, we don't know what the connection may be if there is one.

But this little plot bunny goes like this: Howard's mother and Samantha were sisters. Howard's mother cut off contact with her sister, refusing any help financially, because she found out what she was doing. She never even told her about her son, and Samantha knows her sister passed away, but not why or how.

When Howard is rejected and blows up at Philip, instead of languishing, he finds himself taken under the wind by a grouchy old inventor that most of the scientific community ignore due to eerie rumors. While Morose is praised, and is actually a villain, this man is ostracised, when in fact he's more or less a harmless hermit. Howard goes to work for him, and all seems well.

Until Howard begins getting sick. In this timeline, Thomas discovers the cult etchings much sooner, and Samantha is still alive and tutoring Angelique at this time. Using some vague ritual, Morose is able to 'miraculously' cure Samantha, seemingly with little cost.

The staff on the island rejoice! All's right in the world, if you don't count the poor volunteers still being turned into beast-men. Philip notices Howard's letters growing sparse then stopping, believing at first (or telling himself) that his old pal is just being petulant still. But he has a terrible feeling in his gut.

It's also clear that Samantha suffered from a long-term illness, that hindered her and her husband's attempts to have biological children. Only in the end did she accept not just her own mortality, but humanity's fragility and the depth of the pain she'd committed, and tried to steer her husband away from it. Morose may have gone truly off the rails when she died, but these two? Already monsters.