Jay Merrick (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cameraobscura) wrote2012-08-10 04:27 pm
cameraobscura) wrote2012-08-10 04:27 pm
Entry tags:
Shadowsphere: App
New Characters / New Members
If you're an original ES member who is bringing in a character you didn't play in ES, please use this option!
Your name: Heather/Het
Your age: 2...7... sob
Contact info:
Character name | Shadowsphere name: Jay | Noah
Character canon | Canon point: Marble Hornets | Season 3, post-Entry #61.5
Background:
Because the Marble Hornets canon is comprised of a few separate online sources, I'm going to link to a couple wiki entries that hopefully will make everything seem more cohesive.
The Entries provide a synopsis of all the entries on Jay's youtube account in the order he has uploaded them. The events jump around in time and can be difficult to piece together. This is due to the fact that some of the entries are found footage by Jay himself, in which he doesn't appear, but rather comments upon with text. He becomes a bigger player in the filmed plot around Entry #15 onward.
The Comprehensive Timeline lists all the events in chronological order, using sources of Jay's youtube entries, totheark's youtube entries, and Jay's twitter account.
I'm not providing a summary of the totheark entries, because they are more cryptic and barely comprehensible puzzles than anything narratively solid, and therefore can't be summarized coherently. However, the following should be known about totheark's importance to the story:
1. Totheark uses their videos to communicate with Jay, urging him toward some unknown goal ("You will lead us to the ark") through unfriendly means.
2. By "unfriendly means," I mean stalking Jay, hacking his youtube and twitter accounts, leaving important information in dangerous places for him to retrieve, and most recently, using clear threats. (i.e. Taking away an epileptic's medication and filming him having a seizure, adding the message, "Look what you have caused. Where could he have gone? You have one chance," and putting it on Jay's hacked channel. Talk about sending a message.)
3. Although they only have one youtube account, it is most likely that totheark is more than one person, as the Masked Man and the Hooded Man both seem to have been linked to the footage uploaded on the account. Also, two masked people can be seen attacking Alex in Entry #45. Their true identity and agenda is of yet unknown, but it should be noted that although totheark does not currently appear to be on the Operator's side, I don't think they should be mistaken for Jay's allies either, given their menacing behavior.
More information and speculation on totheark can be found here.
Personality: Jay's initial role in the story is to act as a chronicler about the events that happened to his friend and fellow film student Alex Kralie in the summer of 2006. At first, all we see of Jay are his onscreen notes about the strange incidents he finds while looking through raw footage of the shooting of Alex's student film, Marble Hornets. His writing appears straightforward and carries a sort of professional detachment, which is a tone that persists in his written commentary regardless of clear evidence to the contrary as he becomes a bigger part of the plot.
As time goes on and Jay spends more time filming and being filmed during his investigations, his personality beyond that of a documentarian begins to surface. He is somewhat introverted, and not very talkative even when pictured in group footage of the movie project, even before things started going wrong. When filming alone, he doesn't often narrate, preferring to add text after the fact. Most of his conversations with other characters have an awkward quality to them, and he is far less verbally articulate than he is when writing. He demonstrates bravery that crosses the line into stupidity on several occasions, as he's often so intent upon getting answers that he charges into potentially dangerous situations alone and usually armed only with his video camera. He is prone to bad decision-making like this. Other examples include not calling the police when he finds blood when exploring, nor to report several people he knows missing, and even pauses mid-flee from the Operator to steal Alex's house key on his way out. (After breaking into Alex's house trying to steal another of his tapes to begin with...) He never directly addresses why he goes about things the way he does. However, given the clear signs – which sometimes he does acknowledge – that he is not always thinking straight, it's easy to believe why he does it. Easy, but certainly worrisome.
Additionally, despite being a horror series protagonist, Jay is not very acclimatized to violence. He is appalled when Alex unmasks Tim and tries to bludgeon him with a block of cement. He doesn't want to subject his viewers to violence either, deliberately cutting footage of Alex beating a stranger to death before uploading it. He also seems to have a decent moral center beneath the bouts of irrationale behavior. He is drawn to help Alex when he first discovers his friend is still alive and later acts chivalrous toward Jessica, despite not knowing her very well. He states that no matter what happens to himself, he will make sure she gets out unharmed. Sadly, he doesn't make good on this promise, which seems to affect him later when Tim accuses Jay of making everything worse with his investigation.
Jay is more open about his personal situation on his twitter feed. Here we really see evidence that his physical and mental state is not as sound as the detached tone of his videos seems to imply. He has reported symptoms such as paranoia, trouble sleeping, nightmares, pounding headaches and disorientation. He has felt physically ill enough to see a doctor, although says the doctor cannot find anything wrong. These twitter reports are reflected in certain entries by the presence of a violent cough, and sometimes he appears on screen with exaggerated dark circles under his eyes. Memory loss is another factor, as he has woken up in strange places with no recollection of getting there. He also once thinks he has forgotten his own youtube channel password in the past. (Although it is revealed that totheark has hacked the account, Jay's instinct is to blame his own mind and not the presence of an intruder.) All these symptoms have also been displayed by other characters, suggesting they have all been affected in some unknown way by exposure to the Operator.
Jay occasionally corresponds with people following the story via twitter, discussing the possible meaning of his findings and replying to messages of concern to say he's okay. He changes his location frequently to shake his pursuers but usually checks in with his audience before doing so. Over the last three years, the documentation process has become far more than an investigative project: with no access to family or friends, it is, literally, all he has left. When Tim discovers Jay's youtube channel, he confronts Jay about this very thing, stating that there is something very wrong with him if his first instinct is to film everything, even when Alex pulls a gun on him. Tim says, "You show up, pointing a camera in my face, bringing back old memories like it couldn't possibly have any effect on anybody else. And you're not even trying to fix any of this. All you do is point your camera at every little thing that happens. How does that help anybody?" Jay's response is, "In case something happens. I want people to know—" Although Tim cuts him off (and calls him a psychopath, strong words), it's clear that Jay has been using his own investigation as a crutch while his life and the life of everyone around him deteriorates. He seems to realize this at least to some degree, stating in subsequent entries that he has no choice but to carry on alone and, most recently, try to help Tim after all the trouble Jay has caused him.
Powers and abilities:
Jay is 10000% human with no special powers. He has demonstrated no proficiency with weapons by charging into dangerous situations unarmed or with a pocket knife he promptly loses. He's also not a very good liar and his attempts at fabricating stories are often met with skepticism or outright hostile disbelief.
...So what can he do?
Having been a film student, documentation and narration are his strong points. Although much of his camerawork can be chaotic due to agitated emotional states, his editing and summarization of the facts, no matter how fantastical, strive to be clear and informative. His grammar and spelling are always excellent. Determination can probably also be counted as a strength, because despite supernatural horror and a dwindling mental stability, Jay remains steadfast about seeing this journey through to the end.
This is pretty much the most useless powers and abilities section I have ever written akjrgjkrn
Birth dream:
Typed words flash across your periphery.
YOU WILL LEAD US TO THE ARK
But the ark isn't an ark, it's a tree. Grown so tall, overtaking all the forests and the oceans and blotting out the sun. Everything is high contrast and pulsates in time with a distorted audio. It could be slowed down music. There are secrets in the branches and everyone is a liar, but how is that any different from how it's been for years?
It's a tree in a fishbowl and the glass
S H A T T E R S
Are you filming this?
Are you running?
The masked and the unmasked alike hide in the shadows and there are bodies hanging from tree branches. Stretched out like a Salvador Dali painting, limbs like limp noodles and heads crooked to the side, white and faceless. What did Alex say about the trees? Sacred ground. Everything grew so fast until they started burning the trees. Now everything is on fire and you can't breathe, you can only plunge forward, alone.
WHERE IS THE ARK ?
WHO ARE YOU ?
ARE YOU REAL ?
ARE YOU
NOAH ?
comefindus
we'rewaiting
How did you hear about us? Returning member here!
If you're an original ES member who is bringing in a character you didn't play in ES, please use this option!
Your name: Heather/Het
Your age: 2...7... sob
Contact info:
Character name | Shadowsphere name: Jay | Noah
Character canon | Canon point: Marble Hornets | Season 3, post-Entry #61.5
Background:
Because the Marble Hornets canon is comprised of a few separate online sources, I'm going to link to a couple wiki entries that hopefully will make everything seem more cohesive.
The Entries provide a synopsis of all the entries on Jay's youtube account in the order he has uploaded them. The events jump around in time and can be difficult to piece together. This is due to the fact that some of the entries are found footage by Jay himself, in which he doesn't appear, but rather comments upon with text. He becomes a bigger player in the filmed plot around Entry #15 onward.
The Comprehensive Timeline lists all the events in chronological order, using sources of Jay's youtube entries, totheark's youtube entries, and Jay's twitter account.
I'm not providing a summary of the totheark entries, because they are more cryptic and barely comprehensible puzzles than anything narratively solid, and therefore can't be summarized coherently. However, the following should be known about totheark's importance to the story:
1. Totheark uses their videos to communicate with Jay, urging him toward some unknown goal ("You will lead us to the ark") through unfriendly means.
2. By "unfriendly means," I mean stalking Jay, hacking his youtube and twitter accounts, leaving important information in dangerous places for him to retrieve, and most recently, using clear threats. (i.e. Taking away an epileptic's medication and filming him having a seizure, adding the message, "Look what you have caused. Where could he have gone? You have one chance," and putting it on Jay's hacked channel. Talk about sending a message.)
3. Although they only have one youtube account, it is most likely that totheark is more than one person, as the Masked Man and the Hooded Man both seem to have been linked to the footage uploaded on the account. Also, two masked people can be seen attacking Alex in Entry #45. Their true identity and agenda is of yet unknown, but it should be noted that although totheark does not currently appear to be on the Operator's side, I don't think they should be mistaken for Jay's allies either, given their menacing behavior.
More information and speculation on totheark can be found here.
Personality: Jay's initial role in the story is to act as a chronicler about the events that happened to his friend and fellow film student Alex Kralie in the summer of 2006. At first, all we see of Jay are his onscreen notes about the strange incidents he finds while looking through raw footage of the shooting of Alex's student film, Marble Hornets. His writing appears straightforward and carries a sort of professional detachment, which is a tone that persists in his written commentary regardless of clear evidence to the contrary as he becomes a bigger part of the plot.
As time goes on and Jay spends more time filming and being filmed during his investigations, his personality beyond that of a documentarian begins to surface. He is somewhat introverted, and not very talkative even when pictured in group footage of the movie project, even before things started going wrong. When filming alone, he doesn't often narrate, preferring to add text after the fact. Most of his conversations with other characters have an awkward quality to them, and he is far less verbally articulate than he is when writing. He demonstrates bravery that crosses the line into stupidity on several occasions, as he's often so intent upon getting answers that he charges into potentially dangerous situations alone and usually armed only with his video camera. He is prone to bad decision-making like this. Other examples include not calling the police when he finds blood when exploring, nor to report several people he knows missing, and even pauses mid-flee from the Operator to steal Alex's house key on his way out. (After breaking into Alex's house trying to steal another of his tapes to begin with...) He never directly addresses why he goes about things the way he does. However, given the clear signs – which sometimes he does acknowledge – that he is not always thinking straight, it's easy to believe why he does it. Easy, but certainly worrisome.
Additionally, despite being a horror series protagonist, Jay is not very acclimatized to violence. He is appalled when Alex unmasks Tim and tries to bludgeon him with a block of cement. He doesn't want to subject his viewers to violence either, deliberately cutting footage of Alex beating a stranger to death before uploading it. He also seems to have a decent moral center beneath the bouts of irrationale behavior. He is drawn to help Alex when he first discovers his friend is still alive and later acts chivalrous toward Jessica, despite not knowing her very well. He states that no matter what happens to himself, he will make sure she gets out unharmed. Sadly, he doesn't make good on this promise, which seems to affect him later when Tim accuses Jay of making everything worse with his investigation.
Jay is more open about his personal situation on his twitter feed. Here we really see evidence that his physical and mental state is not as sound as the detached tone of his videos seems to imply. He has reported symptoms such as paranoia, trouble sleeping, nightmares, pounding headaches and disorientation. He has felt physically ill enough to see a doctor, although says the doctor cannot find anything wrong. These twitter reports are reflected in certain entries by the presence of a violent cough, and sometimes he appears on screen with exaggerated dark circles under his eyes. Memory loss is another factor, as he has woken up in strange places with no recollection of getting there. He also once thinks he has forgotten his own youtube channel password in the past. (Although it is revealed that totheark has hacked the account, Jay's instinct is to blame his own mind and not the presence of an intruder.) All these symptoms have also been displayed by other characters, suggesting they have all been affected in some unknown way by exposure to the Operator.
Jay occasionally corresponds with people following the story via twitter, discussing the possible meaning of his findings and replying to messages of concern to say he's okay. He changes his location frequently to shake his pursuers but usually checks in with his audience before doing so. Over the last three years, the documentation process has become far more than an investigative project: with no access to family or friends, it is, literally, all he has left. When Tim discovers Jay's youtube channel, he confronts Jay about this very thing, stating that there is something very wrong with him if his first instinct is to film everything, even when Alex pulls a gun on him. Tim says, "You show up, pointing a camera in my face, bringing back old memories like it couldn't possibly have any effect on anybody else. And you're not even trying to fix any of this. All you do is point your camera at every little thing that happens. How does that help anybody?" Jay's response is, "In case something happens. I want people to know—" Although Tim cuts him off (and calls him a psychopath, strong words), it's clear that Jay has been using his own investigation as a crutch while his life and the life of everyone around him deteriorates. He seems to realize this at least to some degree, stating in subsequent entries that he has no choice but to carry on alone and, most recently, try to help Tim after all the trouble Jay has caused him.
Powers and abilities:
Jay is 10000% human with no special powers. He has demonstrated no proficiency with weapons by charging into dangerous situations unarmed or with a pocket knife he promptly loses. He's also not a very good liar and his attempts at fabricating stories are often met with skepticism or outright hostile disbelief.
...So what can he do?
Having been a film student, documentation and narration are his strong points. Although much of his camerawork can be chaotic due to agitated emotional states, his editing and summarization of the facts, no matter how fantastical, strive to be clear and informative. His grammar and spelling are always excellent. Determination can probably also be counted as a strength, because despite supernatural horror and a dwindling mental stability, Jay remains steadfast about seeing this journey through to the end.
This is pretty much the most useless powers and abilities section I have ever written akjrgjkrn
Birth dream:
Typed words flash across your periphery.
YOU WILL LEAD US TO THE ARK
But the ark isn't an ark, it's a tree. Grown so tall, overtaking all the forests and the oceans and blotting out the sun. Everything is high contrast and pulsates in time with a distorted audio. It could be slowed down music. There are secrets in the branches and everyone is a liar, but how is that any different from how it's been for years?
It's a tree in a fishbowl and the glass
S H A T T E R S
Are you running?
The masked and the unmasked alike hide in the shadows and there are bodies hanging from tree branches. Stretched out like a Salvador Dali painting, limbs like limp noodles and heads crooked to the side, white and faceless. What did Alex say about the trees? Sacred ground. Everything grew so fast until they started burning the trees. Now everything is on fire and you can't breathe, you can only plunge forward, alone.
WHERE IS THE ARK ?
WHO ARE YOU ?
ARE YOU REAL ?
ARE YOU
NOAH ?
comefindus
we'rewaiting
How did you hear about us? Returning member here!