Pesterquest - A Retrospective (Patreon)

Pesterquest! I've talked about it at large before, both in Patreon Posts and also on my blog, praise for the content, theories, ideas... But now the game has come and gone, finished the first of April, and while there's a promise for new content revolving around this experience and its ending, it may yet be a while until we hear again from our favorite Embodiment of Narrative Agency, and Thembo Friendsimp.

So until then, all we can do is look back to the content we already have, and appreciate the themes and topics this wonderful little game has touched upon and showcased. Because, you all know I've been an Optimist regarding the Epilogues and HS^2, about WhatPumpkin's Intent and the narrative they are weaving, but this?

This truly brings it to the next level. The Pesterquest Ending solidifies the positive intent of the Authors and good will towards the Fandom and the Content they make (things that seem to be extremely basic but SOMEHOW a lot of people still consider to not be there at all), while still dealing with the same Meta Concepts, talk about Narrative, and effect on the Characters that we've seen until now in HS^2 and beyond.

So let me stop rambling about what's to come, and actually get into the Meat of this essay- Or rather, the Candy of it. (Haa haa. Hee hee. Hoo hoo.)

From the very moment the game starts, from the very first few lines of the Dialog already, we knew what one of the main, core themes of this entire series would be. Trapped in Doc Scratch's apartment, forced to read through Homestuck, the MSPA Reader did it, reached the very last line of text in the Epilogues, and felt... Unsatisfied.

Through their time in Friendsim, but, particularly, later in Pesterquest, the MSPA Reader has developed as their own person, their own character separate from being merely an 'avatar' of the audience or a 'self-insert'. But despite this, just like how many characters in the Homestuck Canon reflect the Readership at various points, they are still inseparably tied to this concept, this idea. The MSPA Reader is an unsatisfied reader that said 'Fuck the Epilogues'. All the bullshit they went through, all the attachment built to the different characters in this story that was supposed to bring them a sense of understanding and completion of the things Doc Scratch had forced on them, culminating in the Epilogues, a Bridge Media that undoes so many of the hopeful tones at the end of the story, that puts characters through hell and back, and one that didn't have a continuation at the time MSPAR read through it.

As such, when MSPAR happens to coincidentally run into the House Juju for no discernible reason, when they fall into the plot of the story they have been reading, forgetting all about it once more with a fresh start? The stage is set and ready. An Unsatisfied Reader. A Group of Kids, Suffering, bound to a Fate that will lead them down a path of suffering and pain. An exploration of who these characters are, how they feel about the roles they've been cast into, about their interpersonal issues, their depth, their ups and downs.

From day one, Pesterquest has pushed the idea that, the 'canonical' stream of events these characters were meant to follow is a toxic and dangerous road that binds them and constricts them. We see the lives they lead, we see the mistakes they make, the relationships they have. We get new perspectives on their lives that weren't touched upon in Homestuck. Some people, after the Epilogues, feeling saddened by the treatment of some characters and the way the story treated them, felt disillusioned with the content that came before, like a nostalgic reminder that things were only going to get worse for them after a certain point. And that, is something Pesterquest tries to mend.

It shows us these characters once again, it lets us interact with them in a completely fresh light. It reminds us of the reasons why we care about these characters and love them in the first place. And through altering the Timeline, thanks to MSPAR's newly acquired Retcon Powers, we get to build a different world, a different setting, a different future for these Kids. Reuniting them and pairing them in ways they would've been unable to without the Game, without Playing and Suffering, giving them a chance, a headstart, a possibility, even for things to get better, for them, for everyone and everything.

Pesterquest is, as such, a love letter to one of Homestuck's biggest strengths and draws, its characters, relationships and interactions, and a Fandom Power Fantasy, of being able to change the events that have already gone down, bring back the characters that were shafted and give them a better shot. The reminder that the Epilogues aren't the only Homestuck content that exists, and there's a lot of good in the exploration of themes, topics, and developments with these characters we've learned to appreciate and root for.

This is the Duality of Pesterquest. On one hand, it's the story of the MSPAR, as their own Character, on their quest to remember who they are, and find a purpose, while taking care of these poor Kids they keep stumbling into. On the other, it's acknowledgement and empowerment for the Fandom, about the validity of rejecting the Epilogues, about the validity of making your own story out of these characters, pushing for a better fate for them, pushing for happiness, beyond the darkness of Canon.

Of course, it can never be this easy, right? Sure, Pesterquest could've been simply that. The MSPAR going through the motions of befriending characters, showcasing them for the Fandom to fall in love with them all over, and then providing a low-stakes Happy Ending in a Retconned Timeline, where they're all allowed to be happy and have fun!

It wouldn't be Homestuck Content if not intricately interwoven and full of hardships, though, would it?

And therein lies another core theme of Pesterquest, the Meta Stuff. Friendsim dealt with messing with the Timeline, as orchestrated by Doc Scratch to satisfy whatever plans he's got for Joey. Using MSPAR as a pawn, orchestrating the game, there was a degree of Meta to it. But just like the divide between pre-Act 6 and post-Act 6 Homestuck, Pesterquest took it further. No longer messing with the Timeline, by causing all these alterations, what we're doing is breaking canon. We break continuity, we intentionally plant continuity errors through the comic. The structure of what was supposed to happen begins to crumble. Our actions have consequences for the structure of reality in the comic, because we're not simply a foreign agent altering things- The MSPA Reader is a character within the story, inserted into it through the Juju, and using a canonical power to alter the events that have already happened.

We find out, in the climax of the game, that we weren't making all of this happen in isolation. Following the actual canonical rules of the Juju, we were genuinely overwriting the story of Homestuck, we were erasing the Comic all along, and making Pesterquest the thing that 'canonically' happens, leading to the stability of canon crumbling. Without the Game, there wouldn't be Lord English. There would be no Universes. No Green Sun. There would be nothing of what came after, nor what came before. And that just cannot be, can it?

And so we go back to Canon and Suffering. Aysha herself, the Director of Pesterquest, greets us after this experimental narrative is done, and requests that we go back and fix everything. That we erase all the good things we've done, all the developments we've gone through. Making it all for naught, and forcing the Kids and Trolls to suffer through the game, to die and kill each other, and to end up in the Epilogues, the very thing the game set out to undo from the very beginning.

And from this scene, stems what I feel is the most important lesson that comes from Pesterquest, something that applies to the Epilogues, and to Homestuck^2, and exemplifies exactly what the Team is trying to do with the sequel, in the most positive of lights.

You see, one of the major fears people have regarding current Homestuck content, is that it focuses too much on the Meta, that it puts characters through Suffering for no other reason than to talk about Canon and Narrative stuff. And... Yeah it does focus on that, but honestly if at this point you don't like Metanarrative Fuckery, I don't know how you lasted THIS long following Homestuck.

That's the thing, though. Because Dirk tries to continue the story, and makes people suffer, because 'happy people don't get stories told about them', many assume this is the Team's intent and beliefs about canon, that they have to create conflict and make people suffer to keep things engaging, to extend the life of canon artificially. Alt Callie, too, in order to 'set things straight' ends up possessing people and shafting characters to the side. All for putting the Timeline back on rails and stopping Dirk. Even Aysha herself in the Pesterquest ending says it. These kids are meant to Suffer! Surely there is no hope!

And if that's the take you got from the content, you certainly have not been paying enough attention.

Dirk and Alt Callie, both of them are antagonists. Hell, even Aysha herself is presented as 'probably more dangerous than Ult Dirk' with an extremely constricting Narrative Presence when she appears. These are authorial figures. Aysha knows that canon HAS to happen, to continue the story they're telling. The Kids are, in fact, bound to the canon of the comic, and fated to go through SBURB and suffer. Dirk and Calliope have wrong ideas about how canon has to be, however conflict does spice up a story, and it's only through the creation of conflict that we're currently following a plot in HS^2.

The Narrators are the enemy in Homestuck, because they are detached from the consequences of what happens to the characters within the story. Just like the Breath Aspect deals with both the Plot and Detachment, so do Narrators have this same air. And considering the Narrators are, well, narrating Homestuck^2, many people believe this detachment and thinking is the word of god the WhatPumpkin Team is trying to convey. That they are detached, and want the characters to suffer to continue the story.

But Pesterquest shows us otherwise, because there is something more powerful than this narrative, detached force. It's the MSPA Reader. It's us, the Fandom. A Fan. That cares about these characters, that wants to see them flourish, and that every step, pushes back against what these figures of 'authority' tell them.

Ult Dirk says how things 'have to go', that his way of being is necessary, and MSPAR immediately knows how full of bullshit he is, and how full of conflict he is. Aysha, says that Canon must be set straight, that everything you did was just a side-story that will be erased, and you call her out on it, you know it's not right, that it's unfair, that it's stupid.

And so, it is stupid.

Because the MSPAR has the control. They are the protagonist of the story, and they have Retcon Powers. They have the ability to alter the story and change things to suit their needs. They, too, have become a Narrative Entity within the canon of the story, but rather than this detachment, what they have built through the many hardships they've experienced in this journey, is bonds. Bonds to the characters, a love for what they represent, for who they are.

And so, MSPAR sets Canon straight. The Mail is back in the box. The story is back on rails. But before everything can collapse? They take the Timeline, and seal it away. They lock it from the stream of Canon, and make its own, separate thing. Retconned. Alive and well.

Just like a Fanon would create their own Reality through Fanfiction and Headcanons, the MSPAR becomes the protector of this story they've created. Canon must exist. Without canon, you don't have the basis from which the Fandom can draw inspiration. Without a story in the first place, a Fandom of such a story cannot exist. But while Canon is hard and set in stone, why does it have to be, beyond canon? Why do you have to adhere yourself to a narrative that makes characters you love suffer? The Authors, the Creators, the Narrators, they are the ones that hold the baton, and guide where Canon moves next. But us, the Fans, are the spirit of the content, the ones whose passion for it keep it running.

It is important to remember that. The story we're currently getting, HS^2, the Epilogues, the Authors have put characters through a lot and made a lot of bad things happen. But it doesn't mean it has to stay that way. Because the current Team working on Homestuck aren't just Authorial Figures. They're also fans of the story.

Just like you and I.

In a story about narrative unfairness, many have assumed that the narration represents them and their ideals, that they are detached, and uncaring for these characters we love. But Pesterquest tells us otherwise. They are fans. They understand the fear of bad things happening to characters we love. They understand the frustration when things don't go our way. With HS^2 having just started, it wasn't as obvious, but with Pesterquest having ended?

The Fans having the power isn't just a buzzword to make the Team sound good. We are what drives the story, our willingness to engage with out, wanting to see the characters we like come out on top. They are aware of this. Conflict, bad things, are going to keep happening. But, this Conflict is not something that should happen. It is not a dejected view of fate, of things going wrong, and inescapability. The characters are going to fight back. The Narrators are going to fall.

And thanks to Pesterquest, we have precedent for it. A Timeline, beyond all this suffering and pain. Protected by an embodiment of the Fandom, isolated from the stream of Canon. Where the Kids can grow up differently, be given a different chance, at improvement, at life. The characters within, we've gotten to know all over again, we've seen their potential for good, we know, even when things turn for the worst in Canon, or Beyond Canon, that there is still value and potential in them, and that is worth exploring and following, too. Many disliked the Epilogues, too, because despite being 'not canon', as the only Timeline that was 'valid' and Canon-compliant, they took these words as empty ones. But we have a precedent now, a Timeline that doesn't have to follow canon, that can follow other routes, and provide a divergent story to that of the Epilogues.

The current Team at WhatPumpkin are, to reiterate once more, fans of the content. They like the characters, they like writing for it. Stories are unfair, and characters suffer, but they do so, so that they may come up on top in the end, overcome hardship, and be happy.

And I can wait for HS^2 to continue going this way, reassert the value of these characters, and undo the pain that came from the Epilogues, into a more hopeful narrative, of struggle, help, and redemption.

So, long-short? Pesterquest is the perfect project that embodies exactly the kind of narrative the current Writers seek, that showcases their values and love for the content and characters and Fans without being muddled by Ult Dirk or Calliope, and that exemplifies a mixture of Metanarrative stuff to explore interesting ideas, without putting in jeopardy the happiness of the characters.

And I can't wait to see what is next, in both the Locked Timeline, and the HS^2 Content to come.