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Homestuck is awebcomic written, illustrated, and animated byAndrew Hussie as part ofMS Paint Adventures (MSPA). The webcomic centers on a group of teenagers who unwittingly bring about the end of the world through the installation of abeta copy of an upcomingcomputer game.Homestuck features a complex story and a large cast of characters, starring the four children John Egbert, Rose Lalonde, Dave Strider and Jade Harley. Hussie created an alien species, called trolls, that have a unique culture.Homestuck characters were particularly popular tocosplay atanime conventions during the early 2010s.[1]
The first few acts ofHomestuck center around four 13-year-old children. Early pages ofHomestuck were experiments in "fan-sourced storytelling", where Hussie allowed readers ofHomestuck to name its characters and make story suggestions. The main characters ofHomestuck were all named by fans.[2] The four main characters are presented asInternet friends who have technically never met one another but interact through anonline chat application named PesterChum.[3][4]
In the fifth "act" ofHomestuck, Hussie introduced an alien species called "trolls", based onInternet trolls, who live on the planet of Alternia in another universe. While the first few acts ofHomestuck focused on a more realistic theme of what it is like for a group of kids to be friends on the Internet, the trolls took on more explicit representations of facets ofInternet culture.Homestuck aims to normalize and humanize internet cultures that are usually disfavored and rejected.[4]
Trolls chat with uniquetyping quirks, inserting clues concerning the speaker's identity in their chat patterns. Troll culture features a complex system of romance, featuring four "quadrants",[HS 1] that was specifically designed to encourageshipping amongHomestuck fans.[4] With few exceptions, all trolls fall on the hemospectrum, acaste system dictated by blood color and its corresponding attributes, including lifespan, powers, personality, and rarity. Each troll also has anastrological sign that carries their blood color and reflects their personality.[5]
John Egbert is the mainprotagonist ofHomestuck and the first character that is introduced. He is portrayed as a loyal "leader" of the group of kids, despite also being described as a "stereotypical mischief-making teen."[6] Jokingly described byblogger Subdee as a "shoujo heroine", John's character is notably fond of bad films and has a seemingly irrational revulsion to theBetty Crocker brand.[7] His weapon of choice is a hammer.
The first to enter the session, John spends much time communicating with the trolls, particularly Karkat, Terezi, and Vriska, who becomes his "patron troll." Under their guidance, he participates in the self-sustaining time loop that triggers his and his friend's births (through time travel and an in-universe science known as ecto-biology), achieves the god tier, and helps trigger the end game of his initial session by facilitating the delivery of "The Tumor". After he and Jade escape their initial session on a Prospitian Battleship, they travel for three years before arriving in the Alpha Kids' session. Once there, John mitigates the session's failure after he developsretcon powers, allowing him to literally retcon previous elements of the story, making key changes (most notably, preventing Vriska's death), eventually leading to the overall victory of the session, fighting and defeating Her Imperious Condescension in the final battle. After achieving this victory, the credits depict John slowly isolating himself from his friends as he gets older.
After the end of the original comic, a popular headcanon/fan theory arose that John would become atransgender woman under the name June. Hussie made the headcanon "real" when a fan ofHomestuck was granted "a single wish" by finding aToblerone hidden by Hussie.[8] The Silhouette of June has since appeared in Homestuck: Beyond Canon.
Rose Lalonde is portrayed as an "intellectual", both through her obsession withLovecraftian literature and through her organizing and planning the group's movement during the story. She tends to speak and write in a formal, overwrought manner which contrasts to her messy room. Aside from her interest inthe occult, the character also enjoysknitting and uses herknitting needles as her go-to weapons.[6] In the first acts of Homestuck's story, Rose also updates aGameFAQs walkthrough of Sburb.
After some difficulties in entering the medium due to a local storm and poor internet collection, Rose begins to play the game and interact with trolls, much like her fellow players, developing a particularly close relationship with Kanaya Maryam. However, she quickly grows disillusioned with the game and ignores her questline in favor of causing destruction. This eventually causes her to enter a "Grimdark" mode, in which she fights and is killed by Bec Noir. After John revives her as her dream self, she joins Dave on his suicide mission to destroy the green sun (inadvertently creating it instead) and ascends to the god tier.
Rose, Dave, and the surviving trolls spend three years travelling to the Alpha kid's session, in which Rose begins a relationship with Kanaya and succumbs to alcoholism, rendering her largely useless when the kids arrive and contributing to the game's fail state. After John retcons the timeline, the new incarnation of Rose is no longer an alcoholic, having been deterred by Vriska, and is in a much better position to help her team, fighting and defeating Her Imperious Condescension in the final battle. The previous, pre-retcon version of Rose also gets proptotyped into Roxy's kernelsprite and survives as Jasprosesprite^2. In the credits, Rose and Kanaya are shown getting married and managing the brooding caverns.
Dave Strider is a boy "so cool he only appreciates things ironically." He copied this behavior from his older brother (also his biological father through ectobiology and his only guardian), who collects Smuppets (puppets) andkatanas on what Dave assumes is an ironic level.[9] Dave has been described as "smart-cynical", and is John's best friend. Surrounded by low-quality video games and junk food,[7] he wearsaviator sunglasses, obscuring his eyes entirely, and wields a katana during combat.[10]
After some difficulties entering the medium due to his brother's interference, Dave quickly assumes his role as the Knight of Time, time travelling throughout the session in order to make sure key events take place and secure huge amounts of resources in order to give their 24-hour session better odds (although due to his time travelling, from Dave's perspective, the session takes 72 hours). This is done in coordination with Terezi, who equally assists and annoys Dave as his patron troll. Dave eventually assists Jade with her duties of breeding the Genesis frog, but is killed by Bec Noir. After Jade revives him, he sets out on a suicide mission with Rose to destroy the green sun (inadvertently creating it instead) and ascends to the god tier.
Rose, Dave, and the surviving trolls spend three years travelling to the Alpha kids' session, and Dave begins a relationship with Terezi, which he ends once she enters a kismesissitude with Gamzee. During this time, he begins to realize that the relationship he had with his brother was abusive, and both looks forward to and dreads meeting his brother's alternate self in the alpha session. Dave begins to grow disillusioned with the idea of being a hero, and when confronted by Grimbark Jade in the new session, refuses to time travel. During the confrontation with Aranea, he dies trying to protect Jade. After John retcons the timeline, his relationship with Terezi is prevented, and he instead enters a relationship with Karkat. He contributes to the session's victory, defeating Union Jack alongside Dirk and Terezi. After their victory, he is depicted in the credits taking the rest of the kids 5,000 years into Earth C's future, where he rules over the Troll Kingdom with Karkat, Terezi, and Jade.
Dave is also the fictional creator of Hussie's spin-off webcomicSweet Bro and Hella Jeff, in-jokes of which are featured frequently inHomestuck.Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff are intentionally poorly made, featuring unsteady lines, liberal use of the spray paint tool, heavyJPEG artifacting, and the unpopular typefaceComic Sans.[9]
First shown on-screen duringHomestuck's third act,Shaenon Garrity describedJade Harley as "the mostrecalcitrant" of the four kids.[11] Jade Harley lives on a remote island together with her dog, Becquerel, who is the First Guardian of Earth (later merging with him). As she can see the future through her dreams, Jade was the one who encouraged the other three kids to play the fictional video game Sburb, and therefore set the plot in motion.[6] She often uses a hunting rifle in battle.
Jade's introduction to the story involves a number of misdirections and pattern breaks relative to the other kids, including revelations that she has already been awake as her dream self, her dream self controls a robot body who acts in Jade's place during certain moments of the story, her grandfather is deceased and taxidermized despite Jade referring to him in the present tense, and her dog, Becquerel, is actually an all-powerful "first guardian" of Earth. Her entry to the medium involves prototyping Becquerel, transforming Jack Noir into Bec Noir and causing him to become a threat to the session. Her kernelsprite is later prototyped with her deceased dream self, resulting in Jadesprite, who Jade is disgusted by due to her weepy demeanor and inaction. Jade performs her duty breeding the Genesis Frog, but is murdered by the Courtyard Droll. Due to the loyalty he has acquired from Becquerel's prototyping, Bec Noir brings Jade to her quest bed, where she achieves the God Tier as the Witch of Space, merging with her dreamself and also gaining the powers of a first guardian. She uses these powers to shrink the four planets of the session, place herself and John on a Prospitian Battleship, and launch themselves to the new session.
During the three years of travel, Jade dates and breaks up with Davesprite. Upon her arrival, she meets Jake, who she had only communicated with via letters, but is quickly taken over by Her Imperious Condescension, transforming her into "Grimbark Jade," antagonizing her friends under mind control. In the altercation between Her Imperious Condescension and Aranea, she is killed by a falling tower. Dave attempts to revive her by bringing her to Jane, but Bec Noir and Peregrine Mendicant, prototyped with Becquerel, are protective over her body, and kill Dave. In the new retconned timeline, with the alternate versions of John and Davesprite killed (in order to be replaced by new versions), Jade was alone during her trip to the new session. Vriska, alive in the retcon, puts Jade to sleep before she can become a threat as her Grimbark self. In the final battle, Jade attempts to mediate between Bec Noir and Peregrine Mendicant. After their victory, she is depicted ruling over the Troll Kingdom with Karkat, Terezi, and Dave.
Jane Crocker is the heiress to theBetty Crocker fortune,[HS 2] and she is the symbolic leader of the four alpha kids.[HS 3] She wields a weapon similar to a pitchfork that vacillates between a pronged or spoon-like head depending on the Betty Crocker branding at the time. Her genetic son is, due to the "Paradox Clone" phenomenon, actually her grandfather and an alternate version of John Egbert, whose sister was Jake English's grandmother, Jade.[HS 4] Jane is particularly close to her fellow Alpha Kids, as well as the cherub Calliope.
After her introduction in Act 6, Jane is the first of her team to enter The Medium, and due to the fact that none of the Alpha Kids prototype their kernelsprites before entry, finds it in an unwinnable state. After helping her fellow players enter, the group spends half a year largely inactive, waiting for the Beta Kids to arrive. During this period of time, Dirk and Jake begin to date, much to Jane's frustration, as she pines for Jake. On her sixteenth birthday, natural circumstances as well as the lollipop juju cause Jane and her team to blow up and embarrass themselves in front of one another, causing the team to become fractured as they each achieve the god tier (Jane acquiring the title of Maid of Life).
Upon the arrival of the Beta Kids and trolls, Her Imperious Condescension takes control of Jade using her Crockercorp Tiara, turning her into Crockercorp Jane and against her friends and teammates. Jane attempts to pressure Jake, Karkat, and Kanaya into furthering the goals of Her Imperious Condescension, but is eventually killed in the altercation with Aranea. After John resets the timeline with his retcon abilities, this is averted, and Jane instead gets to finally meet Calliope. As the Maid of Life, she assists in the final battle, reviving her teammates as needed. After the battle is won, Jane rules the Human Kingdom with John, her father, and Nannasprite, an alternate version of herself.
One of the last two humans on a future post-apocalyptic Earth (along withDirk Strider),Roxy Lalonde lives by herself and is known to frequently drink.[HS 5] Roxy is particularly close to her fellow Alpha Kids, as well as the cherub Calliope.
After her introduction in Act 6, Roxy attempts to enter The Medium, but is killed by the Red Miles mid-entry. Dirk's plan accounted for this, and he revives her, kicking off a series of events to ensure the full group's entry. Due to the game being in an unwinnable state, Roxy and her fellow players spend half a year largely inactive, although Roxy uses this time to overcome her alcoholism. On Jane's birthday, after a fight with Jane, she is eventually tracked down by the tricksters, who turn her into a trickster as well, causing her to return to her drinks. After the incident, she achieves the god tier along with the rest of her team, acquiring the title of Rogue of Void.
As the Beta Kids and trolls enter the session, Roxy is captured by Grimbark Jade, who attempts to force her to create a Matriorb (an object which can be used to revive the troll race, which Her Imperious Condescension wants to rule over her people again) via her Rogue of Void of powers. Roxy at first only succeeds in creating perfectly generic objects, but hones her power. During the skirmish with Aranea, Roxy attempts to save Rose, but Rose perishes from the battle shortly afterward. After John acquires his retcon powers, she joins him in entering the retconned timeline, causing the Roxy from that timeline to pre-emptively perish. In this new timeline, she connects with Jade, Calliope, and Rose. She fights in the final battle, landing the final blow on Her Imperious Condescension and avenging her mother (post-Scratch Rose). In the credits, she rules over the Carapacian Kingdom with Calliope, Rose, and Kanaya.
Dirk Strider is the brother toDave Strider who shares a similar affinity for irony.[HS 6] At a young age, he made a digital copy of his brain that became his self-aware chat auto-responder. His older brother, another version of Dave, created a media empire surrounding Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff; the movie starsDonald Glover as "Geromy."[HS 7] Dirk considers the film series to switch between "surrealist slapstick and inexplicable boxoffice dynamite, to veiled, near-subliminal protest pieces" and frequently pranked audiences in manners such as selling films that did not exist.
Considering himself a "puppeteer" of sorts, Dirk does much to facilitate not only his friend's entries into The Medium, but also inserts himself into their lives in other ways, such as sending Jake a robotic version of himself to spar with, in an odd courtship ritual. This tendency to divide himself between multiple "splinters" (Robo-Dirk, Brain Ghost Dirk, his Auto-responder) is a reoccurring motif of his character. This entry into the medium culminates in a pre-planned scenario where Jake English must kiss him in order to revive him, kicking off a relationship between the two. By Jane's 16th birthday, Jake has grown weary of this relationship, and Dirk pre-emptively breaks up with Jake during the trickster arc (keeping his own personality despite becoming a trickster as well). Shortly after, Dirk achieves the God Tier, becoming the Prince of Heart.
Shortly after the Beta Kids and Trolls enter their session, Grimbark Jade teleports Dirk far away, causing him to miss out on the events of Aranea and Her Imperious Condescension's battle, in which most players die. In his grief, Dirk allows himself to become corrupted by the artifacts present in the story, and fades away. After John retcons the timeline, this fate is avoided, and Dirk instead spends time bonding with Dave, the two of them discussing Dirk's abusive alternate self, the nature of splinters, and sexuality. He contributes to the session's victory, defeating Union Jack alongside Dave and Terezi. After their victory, he is depicted in the credits ruling over the Consort Kingdom with Jake.
Similar toJade Harley,Jake English lives alone on an island.[HS 8] He is a fan of action movies and speaks in an antiquated fashion. English's surname comes from the villain Lord English. His grandmother took the surname to spite her abusive mother, who was afraid of Lord English.[HS 9] He was in a romantic relationship with Dirk for a few months, however due to Jake's introversion, the two broke up. Jake later regrets his avoidant behaviour, and the two returned to being on good terms after some time. Jake also has an imaginary version of Dirk that haunts him, known as Brain Ghost Dirk.
Told as a powerfulpsychic with an ability to speak with the dead,Aradia Megido is responsible for recovering the code for Sgrub, the troll version of Sburb, from some ruins. She is a burgundy-blood: the lowest ranking blood color on the hemospectrum with the shortest lifespan of all trolls, but also the most likely to have psychic powers. One night, before entering Sgrub, an incident occurs involving Vriska Serket, Terezi Pyrope, Tavros Nitram and a violent cycle of revenge which kills her lusus (caretaker). Eventually it is revealed that this also killed Aradia, turning her into a ghost and causing her to lose interest in everything she enjoyed prior, includingarchaeology and focus instead on acquiring and playing Sgrub. Her typing quirk consists of all lowercases, and replacing each "o" with the number zero (0)[HS 10] At Vriska's suggestion, Equius Zahhak creates a robot body for Aradia which she inhabits for a large part of the comic.[HS 11] After her robot body explodes, she is one of the only two trolls to reach god-tier (along with Vriska Serket).[HS 12] Her astrological sign isAries.[HS 13][HS 14]
Tavros Nitram is a bronze-blood who deals with self-esteem issues throughout his character arc. He is shy and unassertive, and struggles with standing up for himself, especially to Vriska Serket.[HS 15] He is shown to have an interest in fairy tales and fantasy stories, notably Pupa Pan, the Alternian equivalent ofPeter Pan,[HS 16] and also has the ability to commune with animals. He uses a wheelchair after an encounter with Vriska, whose romantic intentions towards him are indecipherable, left him paralyzed, but he later gets robotic legs from Equius (although Vriska kills him directly afterwards). His astrological sign isTaurus.[HS 17] Tavros' ancestral figure, Rufioh, was inspired by the character Rufio from the 1991 filmHook.Dante Basco, who played Rufio inHook, started readingHomestuck because his character made an appearance in it, and he later stated that Tavros is his favoriteHomestuck character because of his relation to Rufio. Tavros's typing quirk is alternating caps, as in "I am Tavros Nitram" would become "i AM tAVROS nITRAM"[12]
Sollux Captor is acomputer programmer whose personality is associated with ideas ofduality and bifurcation. Sollux is a gold-blood, a caste known for great psychic power. He is the one who programs Sgrub (the troll version of Sburb) from the code Aradia Megido found. Sollux has the ability to talk to the recently deceased, who inform him that Alternia will be annihilated. He also claims that he is destined to go blind before dying,[HS 18] a claim which later proves to be partially true. Sollux speaks with a severe lisp, and his typing quirk reflects this. He frequently calls his friends by two-letter abbreviations of their names (e.g. Karkat becomes KK, Terezi becomes TZ, etc.).[HS 18][HS 19] His introduction mirrors Dave Strider's and his astrological sign isGemini. His typing quirk is all lowercase, doubling all i's and replacing each S with the number two (2). "I am Sollux Captor" would become "ii am 2ollux captor"[HS 20]
Karkat Vantas is thede facto leader of the trolls' group, and his introduction in Act 5 mirrors that of John Egbert at the start of the webcomic. He is quick to anger, loud, and often rude, but has a strong sense of justice, and is good at heart. His blood color is candy-red, which is considered a mutant color outside the hemospectrum, giving him an unshakable fear of persecution, causing him to be self-conscious, and leading him to use a dull gray as his signature accent color as not to reveal his true blood color. His astrological sign isCancer. The name Karkat is a reference to "Karkata", the name of Cancer in the Hindu zodiac, whileVantas is the name of a prostate cancer drug. His typing quirk is just SPEAKING WITH ALL CAPS WITHOUT EXCEPTION.
Nepeta Leijon is an olive-blood, considered the "middle class" of the hemospectrum. She lives in a cave with her lusus, and is known for role-playing and acting like a cat. She embodies an interest in bothfurries andshipping, a combination Hussie described as "for the sake of efficiency."[4] She is Equius Zahhak's moirail, or pacifying platonic soulmate, and she has a flush-crush on Karkat Vantas. Her astrological sign isLeo.[HS 21] The name Nepeta is a reference to the Genus name for the plant Catnip. The name Leijon is remarkably similar to the word for lion in languages such as Finnish and Swedish. Her typing quirk is starting all texts with :33<, and making cat wordplay whenever possible. "I am Nepeta Leijon" becomes ":33< I am Nepurrta Leijon"
Kanaya Maryam is a jade-blood. She has a great interest in fashion, and is thematically strongly influenced by theVirgin Mary, taking on a motherly role towards the other trolls, particularly Karkat Vantas. Over the course of the story, she eventually becomes a so-called "rainbow drinker", or vampire. Kanaya's romantic relationship with Rose Lalonde is one of the most popularcanon same-sex relationships in the webcomic, commonly referred to as "Rosemary."[13] Her astrological sign isVirgo.[HS 22] Hussie has stated that Kanaya islesbian, but duebisexuality being the norm, this goes unnoticed in troll culture, or is considered asexual fetish. The name Kanaya is a reference to "Kanya," the name of Virgo in theHindu zodiac. Maryam is a reference to the Arabic form ofMary. Her typing quirk is capitalizing every first letter of every word With No Seen Exception "I am Kanaya Maryam" would be "I Am Kanaya Maryam"
Terezi Pyrope is the troll who guides Dave Strider through the earlier acts ofHomestuck. She is blind (due to the same incident involving Vriska Serket that left Tavros Nitram paralyzed) and able to visualize the world through her sense of smell and taste. She is teal-blooded, portrayed as an avidrole-player and has a strong sense of justice.[6][HS 23] Her astrological sign isLibra. The name Terezi is a reference to theAlbanian wordTerezi, meaning "Justice." Terezi was the first of threeHomestuck characters to be introduced inNamco Bandai'sdating simulatorNamco High, of which Andrew Hussie was the creative director.[14] Terezi speaks in leetspeak, or "I am Terezi Pyrope" would be "1 4M T3R3Z1 PYROP3"
Vriska Serket is cerulean-blooded and takes the role of anantihero inHomestuck.[13] Being raised by a giant spider, Vriska uses a spider-themed typing quirk and aspires to be apirate. Her weapon is a set of eight legendaryeight-sided dice, which, depending on what they roll, can cause either devastating or worthless attacks. Her character is described as "ruthless, manipulative [and] powerful", and was considered among the "most hardcore"eyepatch-wearing fictional characters byThe Mary Sue.[15] In the alpha timeline, she is one of two trolls (along with Aradia Megido) to reach god-tier. Her astrological sign isScorpio.
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Equius Zahhak is an indigo-blooded robotics expert with an unnatural amount of strength.[HS 24] Despite his thorough belief in the hemospectrum, he has a borderline fetishistic adoration for Aradia Megido, who is of the lowest caste.[HS 25] He is Nepeta Leijon's moirail, a companion who is seen as a platonic soulmate and helps pacify their more aggressive tendencies.[HS 26] His astrological sign isSagittarius.
Gamzee Makara is a purple-blooded troll with strong ties to his religious faith, referred to as the "Cult of the Mirthful Messiahs," which he eventually brings about the creation and realization of through time travel. This religion is similar to that of thejuggalo: he has an obsession withFaygo and believes firmly in miracles and the coming of theDark Carnival.[6] He is often high on Sopor Slime or possessed by other forces. He is good friends with Karkat Vantas and Tavros Nitram and asks Tavros out once, but the page cuts off before Tavros could give a definitive answer. His astrological sign isCapricorn.[HS 27]
Eridan Ampora is shown as an aristocrat with a genocidal superiority complex. He claims he has a strong desire to kill all land-dwelling trolls and had commissioned adoomsday device from Vriska Serket to that effect, but he never acts on any of this. He was broken up with by his moirail Feferi Peixes which later led to him becoming so enraged that he killed both her and Kanaya Maryam (who tried to stop him), as well as blinding and almost killing Sollux Captor. He is a violet-blood, making him part of the two castes that make up the sea-dwellers, a sub-race of trolls "distinct from the commoners by mutation and habitat", as it is put during his introduction. His astrological sign isAquarius.[HS 28]
Feferi Peixes is a sea-dweller like Eridan Ampora, as well as his former moirail. Feferi is the heir apparent for Alternian rulership, which puts her at risk from Her Imperious Condescension, the Empress of Alternia, who would make an attempt on her life if it weren't for her lusus' protection.[HS 29] She is fuchsia-blooded, the highest ranking blood caste, being that of royalty, but is shown to be much more passive than other high bloods, wanting to coddle low bloods rather than "cull" them. Her astrological sign isPisces.[HS 29]
Other characters featured inHomestuck include the nearly-all-powerful antagonist Lord English,[16] and a pair of "diametrically opposed twins living inside the same body" named Calliope and Caliborn. Andrew Hussie alsoinserted himself intoHomestuck's story as a character, where he offers detailed summaries and ends up in "bizarre in-world encounters."[2] AfterRyan North asked why "MS Paint Adventures" doesn't follow the adventures of a "Ms. Paint", Hussie included a minor Carapacian character toHomestuck with that name.[17]
Late in the webcomic, Hussie introduced Davepetasprite^2, a fusion of the characters Davesprite (an apparitional alternate timeline version of Dave Strider) and Nepeta Leijon. The character is notable for having a short-lived crisis regarding theirgender identity, due to the differing genders of the sprite's two constituent characters. This trait led to most of the fandom defining the character asnon-binary.[13]
Occasionally, the webcomic has featured real-life celebrities as characters, such as the rap duo theInsane Clown Posse, restauranteur and television hostGuy Fieri, and formerPresident of the United StatesBarack Obama. Direct references to celebrities in the form of an important prop have also been included throughout the story, including allusions to bothNicolas Cage andBen Stiller in the form of the stuffed bunny featured in the Cage movieCon Air, and Dave Strider's signature pair ofaviator sunglasses, acclaimed to have been worn by Stiller in the movieStarsky & Hutch.
According to Lilian Min ofThe Atlantic,Homestuck's greatest strength is Andrew Hussie's "gift for character-building", and that the characters are unique and "strangely relatable".[2] Elliott Dunstan ofMonkeys Fighting Robots said, "the sheer number of characters and possible interactions can get overwhelming", and that each fan ends up with a favorite cast member.[18] The characters ofHomestuck are particularly popular among cosplayers,[19] with cosplay events such as San Diegostuck being held forHomestuck cosplay specifically.[20]
Mary Kinney ofNew York University wrote thatHomestuck, which is heavily stylized as anadventure game, features an "implied character" as theplayer. This "nebulous" actor changes theHomestuck world. For example, on the first page of the webcomic, the player is prompted to enter the protagonist's name. After clicking to go to the following page, the reader's sense of control dissipates as they are not actually allowed to enter a name. The relationship between the player and the reader of the story fluctuates from page to page, and theplayer character may switch from avatar to avatar. In this way, the reader experiencesHomestuck's narrative through the experiences of various characters.[3]
In an interview withThe Daily Dot,Homestuck guest artist Shelby Cragg praised Hussie's webcomic for its 50:50 gender ratio and large number of well-written female characters.[21] Creatrix Tiara ofAutostraddle noted that Hussie was highly successful with creating a diverseLGBT cast, by writing the characters in a "realistic, non-fetishistic manner." A large number of LGBT readers have claimed to have been strongly affected by the representation of diverse sexualities and gender identities in the webcomic.[13]
Characters frequently die within the plot ofHomestuck, which Andrew Hussie described as a necessity of a story with such a large cast. Though Hussie used death as "the line between relevance and irrelevance", characters generally remain relevant in some way in the story, as there exist various video game-style constructs that allow a character to be revived.[22] Rebecca Peterson ofThe Martlet described how "characters are gleefully killed off, brought back, and killed again" in a manner that makes it difficult to follow which characters are still alive. Characters may even have multiple versions of themselves active in the story simultaneously, both dead and alive.[23] In an interview withBig Shiny Robot, Hussie said the following on this topic:
[Homestuck] seems to combine all the meaningless deaths of a trial-and-error game journey with the way death is treated dramatically in other media, where unlike [the] obliviousMario, the characters are aware and afraid of the many deaths they must experience before finally winning the game.
— Andrew Hussie[22]
Death is presented as a "leveling up step" for the characters inHomestuck, it being the only way for characters to gain God Tier powers. According toAutostraddle, many characters reach a greater importanceafter their death, as they can contribute to the story as ghosts or helper sprites. Some readers of the webcomic see this implementation of death as a subversion of the "bury your gays" trope.[13]
Homestuck
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