Palimpsest is a horror fiction podcast created by Jamieson Ridenhour and Hayley Henninger. Each standalone season, written by Ridenhour and principally performed by Henninger, tells a story that centering on the themes of what haunts us personally and the unreliability of memory.
Season one, which ran from October 31st 2017 to March 6th 2018, tells the story of Anneliese, a young woman who has just moved into a small apartment. Reeling from a bad breakup and still troubled by the death of her older sister Claire some ten years earlier, Anneliese hopes that the quaint old building and its quirky tenants will be provide her the atmosphere she needs in order to recover. To this end, she begins recording a series of journal entries on her phone to organize her thoughts and to perhaps share with someone later. But as she does so, things begin to happen that lead Anneliese to believe that all is not right with the house and possibly not with herself either.
Season two premiered on September 4th 2018. It centers on Ellen, a young woman in the 19th or early 20th century who runs away from her mother's business
This work contains examples of the following tropes:
- Arc Words: The word "Palimpsest" appears in both seasons so far, defining the unreliability at the core of the story.
- Unreliable Narrator: Since the central theme of the series is the unreliability of individual memories, a central part of the drama for the audience is figuring out just when this trope is in effect and to what degree.
- Aerith and Bob: Anneliese and Claire.
- An Aesop: According to
Word of God, Claire's death is intended as a statement about gun violence in America. - Angry Guard Dog: Mrs. Aikman's massive dog, Baskerville. Not only does he really hate Anneliese, but he's a threat to pretty much everything around him. Even Mrs. Aikman admits she's helpless to stop him as he rips up a carcass. But this is because she and the dog are both ghosts and the carcass she's watching him destroy is that of her own son, whom he attacked and killed.
- Angsty Surviving Twin: Although not twins in the biological sense, Anneliese and Claire shared that deep a bond, with Anneliese describing her older sister as her other half. To say that Anneliese has been severely screwed up by Claire's untimely passing is putting it very mildly.
- Berserk Button: Anneliese really doesn't like guns. When her suitor Alex - who doesn't know this about her - innocently suggests that she acquire one for home defense, she throws a tantrum that tears their relationship apart.
- Bittersweet Ending: Anneliese helps Mrs. Aikman's and Thomas's spirits reconcile and move on and she herself gets to reconcile with Claire. But then Claire's spirit doesn't leave, and it's implied that Anneliese is reverting to her unstable state in which she relies on her sister's ghost for everything.
- Delicate and Sickly: Claire spent the last year of her life in the hospital before passing away. As it turned out, though, it was Anneliese who spent a year hospitalized while her parents and doctors tried to cure her of the delusion that Claire was still alive; Claire having actually died years earlier as a result of Anneliese playing with a loaded firearm.
- Driven to Suicide: Mrs. Aikman after seven years of knowing she was responsible - even if only indirectly - for the death of her son.
- Footprints of Muck: Anneliese eventually begins seeing a child's bloody footprints when ghosts are nearby. These footprints are actually her own from when she stepped in Claire's blood after shooting her.
- Glamour Failure: The ghosts look normal most of the time, but their horrific death wounds occasionally appear for a few seconds when it is relevant to what they're saying or doing.
- Hell Is That Noise: Anneliese is increasingly plagued by the sounds of Baskerville barking and Thomas playing at all hours of the day and night as the hauntings intensify.
- Magnetic Medium: The undead seem to have an affinity for Anneliese.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: The podcast seems to be a ghost story at first. But it's equally likely that it's not and it could all be in Anneliese's head.
- Through the Eyes of Madness: It is never really clear how real any of what Anneliese is seeing is. Not only does no one else interact with the ghosts but her, but there is no way to know if the Aikmans ever actually existed or if the box that tells her their story is part of her delusion as well. Even the ghostly voice and Baskerville's barking on the recordings could be something she faked to add credence to her stories.
- Wham Line: "I know that we're okay. I know we'll be happy here." The way that it is said and the context that it is said in are utterly chilling, and the final words to the story.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Anneliese wonders this with regard to Baskerville since his fate is not mentioned in the information she is able to find. Neither she nor the audience finds out.
- Confessional: The framing device for the season. Ellen seems to be relating her tale to a priest.
- Free-Range Children: Ellen frequently runs away after quarreling with her adoptive mother. Her mother never bothers to go looking for her since she's confident Ellen will always eventually wander back home.
- Wretched Hive: The unnamed coastal 19th century American city in which the story takes place. Life for the underclass there seems to be as hard as in any depiction of the era.
