Dead Boy Detectives (2024) / YMMV

Actor Shipping: Co-stars George Rexstrew (Edwin Payne) and Jayden Revri (Charles Rowland) have been shipped by some parts of the fanbase on sites like Tumblr and Instagram thanks to their strong on-screen chemistry, the jokes they make regarding their characters' relationship, the photos and videos that have been spread about them after the premiere of the series, and how remarkable their friendship is in interviews.
Alternate Character Interpretation:
- Why is Edwin's human disguise a woman? Is this just the way the costumes work and he can't change it at will? For investigative reasons, since it is easier to interrogate a suspect if there are two people of different sexes? Or is it due to Edwin's internalized homophobia that makes him feel or wish he had been born a woman? In-Universe, Niko asks Edwin why his human disguise is a woman but she receives no answer.
- Was Niko always a Cloudcuckoolander, or did the possession and eventual exorcism left her a little more colorful in the brain? We don't see much of her personality before the incident, but she seemed to be much more shy, reserved and serious. Jenny, however, didn't comment a single thing after Niko is Locked into Strangeness and she displays a much more different personality that we saw from her before, implying that it was probably the possession that changed her personality from an extrovert and talkative cheerful person into a depressed, reserved shut-in.
- The Cat King gets this a lot:
  - Is he only interested in Edwin because of his good looks or is it because the boy is different from the other ghosts? Did he end up developing sincere feelings for Edwin because he resisted his charms, as he spied on him he liked his dedicated personality and stability he seems to project, or because he saw himself reflected in some aspects with him? Edwin thinks it is the latter but the king does not affirm or deny it.
  - When did the Cat King find out that Edwin escaped from Hell? Was he able to sense that Edwin's afterlife is the Hell? Did the cats he sent to spy on Edwin tell him the truth? Or did he know at the moment that the bracelet he placed on Edwin to trap him in the city disappeared when the boy was dragged to that Hell?
  - How did the Cat King know about Esther's past? The beginning of episode 7 hints that the two have known each other for a long time: Were they allies or something more? Did she tell him about her past in a way to seek an alliance or to threaten him so that he wouldn't get in her way? Or did he simply send cats to spy on the witch out of fear that she was a danger to him and eventually discovered Esther's story?
- After reuniting with Simon in Hell, Despair of the Endless pulls Edwin into her realm where she remarks how Edwin was planning on gloating to Simon over his damnation, assuring that she will "call on [him] if ever [she] needs [him]" before sending him back. This results in Edwin giving Simon a pep-talk that ends with Death taking him out of Hell. Was Despair just stating facts, or was she trying to help, encouraging Edwin not to completely give in to her and keep fighting despite their hopeless situation? Did she do this out of pity for them, or was she accruing a favor from Edwin for a boon she intended on collecting in the next season?
- The final shot of the season is the lucky charm that Tragic Mick gave to Niko before she and Crystal went to Esther's house to save Edwin and Charles. Is a amulet magical so it could possibly bring Niko Back from the Dead or is it a common lucky charm? Did Mick give the amulet to Niko solely out of gratitude for her kindness or did he give her the amulet knowing that the item could somehow save Niko if Esther killed her?
Awesome Ego: Edwin might act sarcastic and bossy quite a lot, but that's because he really shows that he deserves to act that way. Not only did he stay sane through decades of unimaginable torture in Hell until he was finally able to escape single-handedly, he is also smart enough to have a great deal of knowledge about supernatural things which makes him the brains behind the titular detective agency.
Catharsis Factor:
- Bet you never thought you'd be happy to see two deceased teenagers being dragged to Hell and another suffering in place for centuries. But boy oh boy, did the characters deserve it.
- After Esther has committed a variety of murders on innocent girls in her eternal life and is an antagonistic force looming over our heroes' heads, it is enormously satisfying when Lilith shows up to drag her away to her well-deserved place in Hell. The audience desperately needed that anger relief after she murdered Niko.
- While The Night Nurse was doing her job, considering she raped Charles' mind making him relive the most traumatic moments of his life and had no qualms about separating Charles and Edwin, it is incredibly funny that The Principal demotes her to manager and babysitter of the Dead Boy Detectives.
Complete Monster: Esther Finch is a hilariously melodramatic and immortal Vain Sorceress who got her start with magic by murdering her cheating husband and his paramour. A consummate Child Hater, Esther has maintained her youthful looks over the centuries by sacrificing "generations" of young girls to her magical snake, and begins a petty quest for revenge when the titular detectives save her latest victim. Initially releasing an elemental spirit that threatens to condemn every ghost in Port Townsend to oblivion, Esther then elects to lock up Charles until he goes insane while putting Edwin through unceasing torture, siphoning enough power from his pain that she can become god of the town and "take [children] in broad daylight." Esther's years of gleeful evil stomp out any sympathy afforded by her husband's betrayal, and she laughs off a nearly successful attempt to redeem her while nonchalantly killing the boys' quirky friend, Niko.
Draco in Leather Pants: The Cat King became one of the most popular characters from his introduction. He is a Depraved Homosexual who becomes obsessed with Edwin by trapping him in Port Townsend and offering to free him if he has sex with him, something the boy understandably refuses. However, there are those who easily forgive his actions and interpret him as someone with a Hidden Heart of Gold or think that he is a good alternative love interest for Edwin because he developed sincere feelings for him in the end. While the latter is true, the way he shows his interest in Edwin is not at all desirable for a relationship.
Evil Is Cool:
- The Cat King quickly gained the attention of fans for good reasons. He is a charismatic Anti-Villain, with a wide variety of powers, unapologetic sex appeal and a Manipulative Bastard who beneath his relaxed personality takes advantage of every opportunity he has to use the information he has about others to his advantage.
- The Night Nurse can qualify despite not truly being evil. After all, she is a trans-dimensional being determined to send Edwin and Charles where they belong in the afterlife by any means necessary, from using Mind Rape to escaping a sea monster's stomach in order to accomplish her mission.
Foe Yay Shipping:
- Edwin's interactions with the Cat King generate great tension between the two, providing a cat and mouse spectacle. At his first meeting, the king becomes fascinated by Edwin and throughout the series he shows his attraction to him in inappropriate and stalker-y ways. It helps that Edwin is also seduced several times by the Cat King and says goodbye to him with a kiss on the cheek.
- The hateful interactions between the Cat King and Esther in episode 7 can easily be seen as a case of ex-lovers who are bitter now. The king makes a flirtatious comment while Esther tries to hang him and seconds later she calls him "Baby King" before taking one of his nine lives.
He Really Can Act:
- George Rexstrew is a relatively new actor compared to the other more experienced cast members, but despite his inexperience many fans and critics agree the actor gives an incredible job with his performance as Edwin Payne. Not only is he able to play his comically serious character and make it the funniest character on the show, but he also displays some surprisingly good dramatic chops, the most notable examples being the Trauma Conga Line his character goes through in the final episodes.
- Jenn Lyon has not had many opportunities to show off her acting skills due she has only been associated with minor or very little-known roles in projects that do not have any supernatural content. However in this series she has earned a fair amount of praise for her performance as the powerful Wicked Witch Esther Finch, impressed that she was able to turn the Big Bad into a despicable but fun and memorable antagonist.
Hollywood Homely: Somehow Charles Rowland treated as an awkward and unattractive loser to the Pretty Boy Edwin Payne, two characters become instantly interested in Edwin when they meet him while Crystal has a hard time accepting Charles as a love interest. This despite the fact Charles is played by the good looking Jayden Revri and combined with his sweet personality made fans quickly fall in love with Charles.
Jerks Are Worse Than Villains:
- Esther is a Vain Sorceress who has committed a variety of unspeakable crimes just to stay young, but she is such a Laughably Evil villain that it's hard not to enjoy watching her on screen no matter what she does. On the other hand, David the Demon is even way more despised and hated than Esther, not because he has no qualms about killing people, but because of how realistic his abuse towards his ex-girlfriend is.
- The Cat King and The Night Nurse are antagonistic forces to the detective agency but combined with them having redeeming qualities and being so entertaining or interesting makes it impossible for fans to truly hate them. In contrast are the human characters of episode 5, Brad and Hunter were so horrible that they ruined the lives of two good-hearted girls (driving one of them to suicide) and Maxine is a stalker obsessed with Jenny who ultimately tries to kill her. It is no surprise to anyone that the three are condemned to Hell.
Just Here for Godzilla:
- A good portion of fans, especially shippers, have ended up watching the series purely for the relationship between Edwin and Charles. Even those who dislike the show or were otherwise indifferent to it have admitted that their dynamic of it is the best aspect of the story.
- Viewers weren't interested in The Dead Boy Detectives watching the series to see the connections the show has to The Sandman (2022). In particular, the first episode is one of the most talked about thanks to the appearance of Death again played by Kirby Howell-Baptiste. It goes even double later in the series after a surprise appearance by non other than the embodiment of depression itself, Despair.
Launcher of a Thousand Ships: Edwin Payne quickly started being shipped with various characters from the show. The most popular ship is his with partner Charles Rowland, but he is also shipped with The Cat King, Monty, Simon and Niko Sasaki. It certainly helps that three of the aforementioned characters are canonically in love with Edwin but he doesn't end up with anyone in the end.
Love to Hate:
- Esther Finch is a Faux Affably Evil villain with ruthless ambition, savage bloodlust, psychologically abusive towards Monty, obsession with staying young, and hunger for power. But she's also more cunning than she seems, she's a powerful witch, her pride and brazenness, with the combination of Jenn Lyon's entertaining and unhinged performance, solidified her for fans' instant approval.
- Litty and Kingham are a duo of tiny foul-mouthed dandelion sprites who suck the life out of people and after being defeated are instantly despised by the main cast for being huge jerks, but as unpleasant as they are they are also so ridiculously vulgar and insolent that fans find them very fun to watch.
Memetic Mutation:
- Dead Gay Detectives.^Explanation
- Everyone crushes Edwin.^Explanation
- The Animal Kisser.^Explanation
Moe:
- Niko has a cute appearance, soft voice, sweet personality, huge heart and insatiable curiosity. Giving inside and outside the universe, the girl has won the hearts of many.
- Monty has an endearing and awkward personality thanks to his passion for astrology and crush on Edwin. With all the suffering he endures, it makes you want to give the poor guy a hug.
Narm:
- Edwin's flashback to his sacrifice in 1916 can be a little hard to take seriously due to the sudden Aspect Ratio Switch and that the demon that kills him apologizes for the inconvenience beforehand.
- Niko's death is clearly tragic moment, but then comes a montage of our main group looking at her empty room and most of the shots are of yaoi mangas of all things.
Narm Charm: The scene where Edwin makes an Anguished Declaration of Love to Charles should be a little ridiculous moment since he's in his pajamas covered in blood and stopped to talk while they're both on the stairs of Hell about to escape from the place, but since Edwin is at his most vulnerable state, all the trauma he's been forced to relive, what both of them have been through, and the sheer catharsis in finally hearing Edwin say those words makes it the most emotionally powerful moment of the show.
Older Than They Think: This isn't the first work to depict Edwin and Charles as teenagers rather than kids as in the comics, the honor goes to the detectives' first live-action appearance from the Doom Patrol (2019) episode, "Dead Patrol". This continuity also adapts from that episode the fact that Edwin is gay and is in love with Charles.
Portmanteau Couple Name:
- Paynland: Edwin/Charles
- Catwin: Edwin/Cat King (Thomas)
- Crystiko: Crystal/Niko
- Cryland: Crystal/Charles
- Monpayne: Monty/Edwin
- Paynsaki: Edwin/Niko
- Moncat: Monty/Cat King (Thomas)
- Simwin: Simon/Edwin
Preemptive Shipping: Since the announcement that The Dead Boy Detectives would get their own series, the fans leapt to shipping Edwin and Charles. This did not change as promotional content for the series was revealed that showed the depth of the two ghost boys' bond. It helped that their real life actors, George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri, shared videos of fairly intimate interactions between each other on instagram. After the show's release, Edwin and Charles became one of the favorite couples in The Sandman Universe.
Questionable Casting: Like its spin-off series, the casting for the titular detective agency has been criticized by comic book fans who expected the characters to resemble their comic book counterparts.
Ship Mates: Due to the popularity of Edwin/Charles, fans often ship Crystal/Niko as a way to avoid Die for Our Ship for Crystal. While those who like Crystal/Charles will pair Edwin with The Cat King or Monty.
They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot:
- Like in the comics, Edwin can use magic by reading books with spells so some expected a growth in his magical powers as he is a teenager in this continuity instead of a kid. Instead, he only uses the spell to free a World War 1 ghost in the first minutes of the series.
- A fair amount of people were disappointed that Charles and Niko don't have meaningful interactions since they are both very important to Edwin. In particular it would have been interesting to see Charles reflecting on Edwin's close bond with Niko, similar to how Edwin reflects on Charles's relationship with Crystal.
Unexpected Character:
- Let's be honest, how many people expected The Dead Boy Detectives to get their own show?
- While the appearance of another character The Sandman (2022) was expected after it was announced that Death would appear, it's safe to say that no one expected this character to be the Despair of the Endless.
Unintentionally Unsympathetic: The audience is supposed to sympathise with Crystal for all the problems she faces due to the demon that has tormented her and encourage in her mission to recover her memories. Unfortunately many fans don't feel sympathetic to her plight due her of centering around her personal goals rather than trying to accommodate to others, being inconsiderate of Charles's romantic feelings even though he was never being anything other than patient with her, often withholding important information until most are forced to discover it, and her reckless actions that endanger the lives of the defenseless Jenny and Niko.
Wangst: While Crystal is still a tragic character since her ex-boyfriend stalks her and most of her memories are stolen a good portion of viewers find it difficult to tolerate the ridiculous amount of times that she laments her situation, especially when compared to the much worse stories of other characters. This caused that after a while when Crystal's problems are mentioned one tends to start thinking "Ah shit, here we go again..."
The Woobie:
- In the past, Edwin attended a boarding school where he suffered abuse for being different until finally his bullies offered him as a sacrifice in a ritual that dragged Edwin to Hell where he endured all kinds of torture for ''73 years'' until he was finally able to escape. Currently, his situation is no better: he struggle to accept his sexuality and crush for Charles (fearing that this could destroy their friendship), he is betrayed by someone he considered a friend, he is dragged to Hell for the second time after fighting for years not to return, he is captured and tortured by Esther just to appease her fingers of power, and watches helplessly as Niko (with whom Edwin had a close bond) is murdered. It makes you want to jump into the TV and give Edwin a hug.
- Before the series it is mentioned that Niko had a Friendless Background and a strained relationship with her mother that only worsened after the death of her father a little less than a year ago. In her first appearance she is almost murdered by a supernatural possession, feels useless when she believes she cannot help her friends on their missions, she renounces love after Maxine tried to kill Jenny (something for which she is indirectly responsible) and is forced to make a Heroic Sacrifice for Crystal while trying to save Edwin.
- While he is Esther's crow familiar, Monty is subjected to a painful Forced Transformation into a human young man so that the witch can use him as bait against the Dead Boy Detectives Agency. When he experiences human emotions is psychologically abused by his mistress so that he does not interfere with her plans, develops real feelings for Edwin who rejects him for Charles, is forced to betray the trust of those who saw him as a friend and in the end is turned back into a crow without the possibility of reconciliation with Edwin.

YMMV / Dead Boy Detectives (2024)

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