Cute fantrolls at their very best! note
Wake Up is a Web Comic by "big chalupa". It is a fanwork of Homestuck, and features ten original trolls who we follow in their daily life. Of course, this is going to be fine... right?
Sporting a nice artstyle, the story has a large following ever since the story started, and generally focuses on the characters pictured above, and the society they live in. Namely, how much of a Crapsack World it is, and this focus shows, with the first act dedicated to the introductions of the characters and explaining for most of them just what makes them utterly appalling.
It's better than it sounds.
The second act comes after a large twist, and so shall not be described here for fear of spoiling it. This act is ongoing.
Wake Up provides examples of:
- Aerith and Bob: All other trolls have, eh, normal troll names, while Silver...still fits into the six-letter sheme, but is still not very standard for a troll name.
- Arc Words: The word "dream" and dreams themselves, especially Silver's (who take over part of the plot at seemingly random), are constantly present. Even the title refers to them indirectly. It's appropriate for a world only existing in a dream, and the title is begging them to escape this world.
- Ambiguously Evil: Jojoio. How much of it is genuine is anyone's guess as of now.
- Ambiguously Affably Evil: Jojoio may be a Lord of Doom, but at least he created (if he did is unknown but it is highly likely) a world where everyone is living their normal lives without a memory of Sgrub.
- Ambiguous Situation: Since the first big twist.
- Awful Truth: Cast, the dead character you're looking for all the time is yourself.
- Big Bad Wannabe: Silver is a real big fan of the Condesce. Holy shit.
- Bizarrchitecture: Most buildings as usual, but a field of flowers is just too peaceful for Alternia.
- Brainwashing for the Greater Good: Everyone sucked into Jojoio's afterlife is brainwashed into living their ideal life. For everyone except Jojoio himself, the first part of the story is a big game of make-believe so that the heroes don't notice anything's up with the villains, and vice-versa. Jojoio even got them to put in lenses to hide their Prophet Eyes. Later on, he uses this power again
to make everyone relive their memories. - Brought Down to Normal: Everyone, in the fake Alternia world.
- Cerebus Syndrome: It starts out Lighter and Softer than Homestuck started, then quickly delves back into the dark and Mind Screw themes that Homestuck was known for.
- Covers Always Lie: The cover of Act 2 is 'not portraying like they actually are'. As is the cover pictured above.
- More generally speaking, everything is designed to fool the reader. Because at the start it isn't revealed that everyone is dead, the promotional material does the same - portraying them as if they were alive. The nice art style is meant to draw readers in and keep the atmosphere pretty before it all tumbles down the way. Even the unusual title is given an explanation immediately after by entering a Dream Intro - which is a second, lesser meaning about how you can explain the title, actually. The tagline above also plays along. Lampshaded in a Discord comment:
Your art does a beautiful job of deceiving people, letting them think Wake Up is fluff from beginning to end. - Crapsaccharine World: Well...depends on how much of a Sugar Bowl you'd call Alternia. But the story still seems to take place on this planet, but not going in depth into its inhabitant's...things like its source material did. It is to note, however, where it takes place is not the real Alternia, but in a Lotus-Eater Machine instead. The only reason why it's so oddly peaceful in comparason to canon Alternia, is because Jojoio made it that way.
- Darker and Edgier: The most fanventures start with introducing each character who end up playing The Game, like Homestuck did.
Many people think this is a turn-off now. And despite the sugary first part, the story shows itself to be even darker than the source material. - Deconstruction: It is building up to that. It deconstructs a lot of the elements that the fanbase tends to focus on, such as memes and the slice-of-life aspects of Homestuck.
- In Homestuck, it is often that two characters that don't get along at the start (Karkat and Terezi; Meenah and Vriska) become friends or, in Karkat and Terezi's case, even lovers. In here, there are also two characters that blatantly do not get along - Blaiek and Osvalo. But this time, there is no subtext...
- Didn't See That Coming: Including readers◊. The entire thing is in an afterlife.
- Dream Intro: Hence the title. Or is it?
- End of an Era: Jojoio snapping Blaiek and Osvalo's horns is the point that the relatively peaceful air of the adventure has come to an end.
- And that is the moment everything goes to hell.
- Everyone Lives: Except for Jojoio, who sports Prophet Eyes, implying he's dead. About that...
- Fake Action Prologue
- Fake Memories: Everyone except Jojoio has them.
- Leitmotif: Here is a list of them.
- Lotus-Eater Machine: A big part of the thing takes place in Jojoio's afterlife. The cover art for Act 2◊ even shows them locked in shards with happy and bright colors while Jojoio is behind them in reality, completely with dark and mushy colors to drive the point home.
- In Medias Res
- Mood Whiplash: Starts off light, happy and fluffy, but, enter the first major twist...
- More than Mind Control: The things Kronia does to people. She apparently thinks she's saving them.
- Non-Indicative Title: The name of the book Silver advises Kronot has 'a short biography' in its title, yet it would take ages to get through.
- Platonic Cave
- Prophet Eyes: Jojoio. It's a first sign not everything's alright.
- Later, everyone is revealed to have these.
- Offscreen Afterlife: None of the deceased characters remember what it's like to be dead. This is likely due to Jojoio's machination in the new world. Though it's not like said characters talk about the afterlife prior to that anyway.
- The Reveal: The entire thing takes place in Jojoio's afterlife, with primarily brainwashed characters sucked into it.
- Wham Shot: This shot of Jojoio revealing his God Tier robes. Also goes along with a Wham Line:Jojoio: We've got some business. You are all dead. You're in my afterlife. I am your Lord of Doom. Any questions?
