Don't Be Stupid

When I was a kid, Friday night was video rental night. My mom had one rule: no “stupid movies.” Instead, we watched Poltergeist or Pet Sematary. I was nine. It was terrifying. I loved it.

After the credits rolled, my mom would cut the lights and chase us to our rooms. It wasn’t cruel, it bonded us in a way that talking about the plot of a movie can't. Horror, oddly enough, brought us closer.

Looking back, those movies taught me something. Silly stories are fun (and have their place), but sometimes what sticks with you is the unease, the tension, the fear. Darkness has weight. And sometimes, a story needs that weight, especially in worlds full of heroes protecting a retrofuturistic city. What did they do to get where they are? Who did they step on? What deals were made?

Because not every story should be about the heroes. Sometimes it’s about the shadows they cast, and the people trying to survive in their world, coping with and making sense of their very existence. Sometimes more interesting stories can be found in the periphery.