#smear

so here’s what I think (this is all speculation so don’t @ me)

KEONS: I’ve always been convinced that Keons represents Death, or a fear of death. which is why he’s “nice”, because death itself isn’t malicious. it just is. so Keons smear feels cold and numbing, and you lose all ability to move.

NICO: Nico is shame. I’ll scream it to the rooftops, NICO REPRESENTS SHAME. the parts of ourselves we hide. so his smear feels like everything you hate about yourself hitting you like a semi-truck.

LISTO: Listo is hard, because to me (she’s a she in my fic) she represents apathy, so how would you experience that in a smear? suddenly not caring, forgetting what made you wanna rebel in the first place, maybe couples with lethargy?

ANDRE: Andre is compulsion and addiction. and repeat. his smear feels like withdrawal.

SACARVER: I couldn’t find a word to describe this phenomenon, but loving something means suffering for it. you know the thought of “if you really cared about winning your track meet, you’d run until you break your legs”. or “keep drawing and don’t stop to eat because if you let anything distract you don’t actually love drawing”. it’s a hard thing to describe, but when love or passion becomes obsession and destructive. “love is pain”, so Sacarver’s smear feels painful. the worst pain you’ve ever felt in your life.

VETOMO: Vetomo is a creep. he represents people who take advantage of people who are vulnerable because of their mental health issues. put it bluntly he rapes his own citizens. his smear feels like overdosing on ketamine: dissociation, overstimulation, and lack of coordination. he uses his smear to subdue his victims.

REISDRO: Reisdro represents religious doubt/existential dread. basically anytime you think “what’s my purpose? do I even matter?” his smear feels like the most crippling, terrible dread you’ve ever felt in your life.

LISDEN: Lisden is anxiety. I mainly think this because of the Josh clip that would play before Polarize in the Blurryface era. his smear feels like a panic attack.

NILLS: I wholeheartedly believe Nills represents depression and suicidal ideation. I’ve only described two smears in my fic and his is one, which I drew from my own experience with depression. his smear feels like nothing. every emotion — good or bad — you’ve ever felt is ripped away and you genuinely feel NOTHING. a character gets smeared by Nills and the effects linger to the point where the only time she FEELS is when it’s physical pain.

#27 Flame