YOU. WILL BE. LIKE. US
Lewis Lovhaug has shown us plenty of creepy things on Atop the Fourth Wall, but he really stretches his imagination here with some of the creepiest images and sound bites he can muster!Spoilers are unmarked for Nightmare Fuel pages.
In General
- The series is written to play into two fears, which also play into each other.
- The cold. People love to play in the snow and feel the crisp air, but that's only when it isn't threatening to freeze them to death. The monster utilizes snow to a dangerously effective degree, chilling people to the bone and making them sluggish, tripping them up with slippery terrain, using the accumulated weight of snow to trap people into enclosed spaces or simply burst into their shelter, even creating concentrated blizzards that obscure one's view and freeze them even faster. But the creature takes it one step beyond by being able to sculpt it to imitate the shape of people, even perfectly mimicking a human face. That person you see in the distance, whom you thought might be able to help you? No, a creature ready to assimilate your flesh.
- Our reliance on TV and similar tech. The monster is attracted to UHF signals and can even control them, meaning anyone with so much as a tape recorder can be tracked by the monster. Considering how many homes have a television, radio or something else similar, the colony of bacteria can find virtually anyone if they have something turned on. What's worse is that it can use the data it steals to sound human, luring in victims to their death.
- Either one is dangerous, but used together, the monster is a killing machine. With how much humans rely on TV and radio for information in times of crisis, or even entertainment to relieve the stress of dangerous storms, not many would turn off their electronics during a violent blizzard. This allows the creature to both trap and track its prey at the same time.
- The sheer power of the snow bacteria monster in general is also worth pointing out. Just like how The Entity was capable of devouring universes, a process we saw in detail on Atop the Fourth Wall, the snow bacteria has a myriad of abilities: It can manipulate and create snow, transmit themselves through UHF signals on top of manipulating them, and possesses an evolving intelligence that also enables them to mimic voices. These powers don't just make the bacteria a killing machine, it makes it a full-blown juggernaut that destroyed all of Fawn Circle in a mere three days. And if The Stinger at the end is of any indication, even the snow melting only provides a temporary reprieve from its wrath, as by next December it has reappeared in another town to do the same thing all over again.
- It's worth pointing out that while some parts of the tapes are videos or have some form of graphic, others are audio-only (Specifically Segments Five, Seven, Nine, Eleven, and Twelve). These videos in particular rely heavily on Nothing Is Scarier, owing to an inability to actually see what's going on, leaving it to the viewer's imagination and what visuals were already presented to craft the image of what is happening, which just makes them a bit more frightening.
- Adding to the Nothing Is Scarier part, how exactly the victims are killed are somewhat implied, but not fully shown. We know it's gory, and disturbingly quick in how all the flesh is stripped, leaving nothing but bloody skeletons and some dismembered parts, and that the snowmen achieve it by opening their white void mouths, causing a louder buzzing sound that could match the screams of an entire room packed with people, but that's all we really get.
- The cover art, which features a bloody skeleton with one eye intact, surrounded by Carl's tape recorder (in fact, it may very well be Carl's corpse we see), a TV with the K83FC logo on the screen, and a sales paper for Sid's.
Segment One - End of Broadcast Day
- In between the "Star Spangled Banner" outro are strange scenes peppered in between the normal history of America - a wrecked car, bloodied snow, body parts...
- Just before the video ends, we're shown a scientist begging for help as another, this one in a bloodied shirt, screams hysterically that something is going to kill them when a burst of snow busts down a doorway and we're cut away back to the end of the outro.
- Near the end of the outro, a strange and malicious-sounding buzzing can be heard. While “The Star-Spangled Banner” masks it at first, the song eventually finishes- yet the buzzing continues...
Segment Two - Police Investigation of Scott's Manor
- The video footage of Scott's Manor is unnervingly frightening, a ravaged and deserted home with shattered windows and tossed around furniture all covered in snow. When all the people stop talking, the silence is filled by the sounds of the howling wind, adding further tension and creepiness to the atmosphere.
Segment Three - City Council Meeting 1
- Things seem normal at first, but when Mayor Daniels calls for the rep from the University of Minnesota, we get an odd message popping up on the corner: THEY ARE WITH US NOW. When Darren Frederick speaks up for K83FC, we get another message: WE FEAST UPON HIS WORK. When Councilman Brillings talks about Sherriff Douglas needing to speak with the manor, we get one last message: THEY HAVE EMBRACED US... AND SO WILL YOU.
Segment Four - Late Night Movie
- When the video switches from the movie to the woman, it seems innocent enough, with the woman enjoying the snow and even telling her boyfriend that she accepted his proposal. But, then she wanders into a roped off area and she's hit with a wave of cold that she claims felt like 80 below. And then, we see them: the Snowlems themselves. They may be unassuming, crudely built snowmen, but the radio signals pick up into a creepy howl and they chase the woman, where she tries to run and falls over a bloody corpse. The last we see of her is her lifeless, bloodied hand slowly dropping from a chain link fence.
- This is followed by the first bit of sentence mixing, urging Alan to join her in the cold.
- As we get to the credits for the movie, we see the credit for "The Thing" change from James Arness to "???"
Segment Five - Audio Interview with Darcy Milbanks
- As Carl Denby interviews Darcy Milbanks again over the disappearance of her brother Steven, he reveals that he found a car matching the description given to him by Darcy, but with missing plates. Even more, upon trying to report this to the police, he found no one there. No receptionist, no other officers, not even their cars.
- Near the end, the recording fuzzes out at the strange radio signal heard during certain moments, suggesting the monsters can alter recordings.
Segment Six - Sid's Electronic Boutique Commercial
- As the worker complains about how pointless Sid is doing things concerning security, he hears a mysterious voice calling out "Hey, can you help me with this?". His desire to help whoever is calling out to him causes him to walk through the snowed out parking lot and into a field where another snowman is standing... and the man is struck down from behind, with the voice chanting "Thanks for the help, bud."
Segment Seven - Audio Recording of Carl Denby
- What Carl finds at Scott's Manor is haunting - multiple police cars and unmarked cars staying outside, meaning that the police were all dragged to the Manor... and were all killed, if the description of spent revolvers and torn, bloodied clothing is of any indication.
- During Carl's investigation, he passes up information about certain bacteria that grows exponentially in the snow...
- Also during this time, he finds more human remains, describing what seems to be a bloodied skeleton. On the plus-side, the audio-only nature of the recording means we don't have to see it...
- Carl discovers the scientist from Segment One and, to their horror, his legs are missing. He begs Carl to leave him and to warn everyone when it seems Steven Milbanks appears. Thankfully, Carl realizes something is off and escapes before the monster kills him, the scientist's last words being to tell everyone "THEY'RE IN THE SNOW! THEY'RE IN THE DAMN SNOW!"
Segment Eight - City Council Meeting 2
- We barely get off the ground when the monsters bring up their first message as Mayor Daniels talks: "WE KNOW YOU WELL". When Melinda Norbeck, the Creative Director for K83FC, speaks up, a second message pops up: "YOU WILL NEVER BE ALONE AGAIN"; when she mentions that Darren was unable to show up, the message appears angled and enlarged on front of the screen, complete with the haunting radio screeching. When Councilman Billings questions why the station can't seem to stop the hijackings, the blue bar extends out, covering his face with another message: "THESE WALLS YOU ERECT CANNOT HOLD WE WILL CREEP IN."
- Segment Six? It was aired on TV. People in Fawn Circle watched that man die.
- We find out that, despite Channel 83's best efforts, not only can the signal be overridden, but the video tapes can be overwritten, too.
- As the video reaches the end, the power goes out. Despite no picture, we get one last message: "NO ESCAPE" in red letters.
Segment Nine - Recovered Mini-Cassettes 1
- We finally learn the origins of these monsters - they're a strange bacteria that was picked up and taken to Scott's Manor for scientific examination, one that took months to finally get as they became evolved enough to speak intelligently.
- Near the end, Denby notices a scraping sound, and says that he will move to another room. Then, out of nowhere, the window breaks, and the video ends there. Thankfully, we learn later on in Segment Twelve that it was just a branch being blown around in the storm and not the monsters.
Segment Ten - Medicine Lake Campgrounds Infomercial
- The overall feel of the infomercial itself is tense and unsettling as a calm string instrument plays over various scenes of horror with terrifying messages popping up.
- When offering things to do at the campgrounds, it goes from innocent activities to suggesting to find Stephen Milbanks, the desolate car now revealing itself to be his, to a chilling sight of blood covered snow and a wooden stump with the words "Bleed" in red written under it.
- When offering houses, the third one is shown as "The Embrace", a rundown shack offering "No Windows, No Doors, Collapsed Roof, No Heat, Silence, No Escape". This is followed by the music holding on one note and distorting as the pictures and wording disappear and are replaced by more bloodied snow. When it returns, we're shown Scott's Manor, labeled "Our Old Home", offering "Education, Patience, Adapting, A Start, Language, Opportunity"
- This is all capped off by a picture of a bloodstained skeleton and ribcage in the snow, the words "Our New Home" appearing and covering the screen as the familiar screech returns.
- On the note of the skeleton here, there's a very likely possibility that this was the skeleton Denby saw in his investigation during Segment Seven, meaning that in the end, we did have to see it and good lord, if only we didn't...
- The infomercial ends with a red-shifted Medicine Lake Campgrounds logo with the distorted song playing with the message "THE RED WILL BECOME WHITE" with the copyright message now reading "YOU WILL BE LIKE US"
Segment Eleven - City Council Meeting 3
- The situation at the City Council building is dire as there's no way to escape the building as the snow has covered up everything, both the buildings and cars.
- Then Deputy Blair shows up and reveals that the cops are indeed dead, murdered by the snow creatures and he panickly begs them to board up the doors. Then "Steven" appears and Darcy is relieved... until he asks "Hey, can you help me with this?" and kills everyone.
- The Compilation movie removes Deputy Blair's Narm-tastic "Look at his arms! It's made of snow!" line, leaving a few extra seconds of nothing but the infamous buzz before Darcy speaks up, adding to the terror.
Segment Twelve - Recovered Mini-Cassettes 2
- We now know how the creatures can alter video tapes and cassettes as they influence ultra high frequency and magnetic media. Dr. Chandra believes they can use this for food.
- The organism reveals a frightening curiosity - they want to know about Chandra's life, thoughts and blood.
- On the second tape, Dr. Chandra is becoming increasingly worried about the organism as it seems to be transmitting itself through UHF frequencies and the snow. Even more frightening is that it asks a frightening question: "What is God?"
- The final tape reveals that Chandra got an answer to that question: "It is we." And despite his warnings, his colleague Dr. Simmons refuses to believe they're any sort of threat at all. At least until it talks to Dr. Chandra one last time: "DR. CHANDRA. YOU WILL BE LIKE US." and the containment doors open...
- Denby decides Screw This, I'm Outta Here and seems relieved that Darcy is here... until she just doesn't move and utter "Thanks for the help, bud."
Segment Thirteen - Winter Warning
- In the middle of the warning, the image of the weather radar is replaced with various blowing snow pictures, a fire truck stuck in the snow, Scott's Manor and the bloody skeleton. This is followed by the creatures physically breaking into the studio, killing the weatherman, and replacing him with a duplicate in the middle of the broadcast."Weatherman": We're sorry to interrupt. / We're sorry to interrupt. / Leave / your current location. / Step / outside. / We will return you to / the / snow. / The storm / is / shelter. / The storm / is / home. / Step / outside. / Tonight, / the storm / is / coming / for / you. [drops the act and switches to text-to-speech voice] YOU. WILL BE. LIKE. US.
Segment Fourteen - Video Recording of Carl Denby
- Carl's attempt to escape proves futile as he wanders the snow-covered town aimlessly, the sound of tornado sirens echoing through the night air... and then he runs into one of the snow creatures bearing his face, declaring he will be like them as its mouth opens wide and murders him. Said snow creature provides the page image.
- The buildup emphasizes the terror. For almost two minutes, Carl is just walking around in the snow. About a minute in, even amidst the sirens, the distinct buzzing of the snow creatures is faintly heard, indicating they are nearby. Eventually, Carl stops and looks up and around. The next time the picture refocuses, we see the snowman with Carl's face, clearly having gotten close while Carl was not looking at ground level. It quickly opens its eyes and repeats its "YOU. WILL. BE. LIKE. US" mantra, but deeper, slower, and spookier than how it was heard in Segment Twelve, before it opens its mouth, with the increased buzzing heard in Segment Eleven. Carl's frantic cluster S-bomb is the last thing we hear of him...
Segment Fifteen - Epilogue
- The epilogue seems to suggest that the beings were unable to escape when Fawn Circle was destroyed and the snow melted, but we see another station's lineup the following December, which changes to their frightening messages, revealing they're still here.
- As stated above, the bacteria were practically unstoppable. The melting of the snow, and certainly not the heat of the Minnesotan summer, ultimately did nothing to these creatures. They may have lain dormant for the rest of the year, but they survived to reemerge in another town the following December. Nothing will stop them...nothing...
