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Jing 1 Jackie Jing English 1B 18 January 2019 Netflix’s Bird Box: Monster Theories Explained1

Bird Box really left us in the dark when it came to its monsters. Are they wraiths, specters, hallucinations, or something more sinister? While there are some details that are clearly established about the creatures, by the end of the movie, we still really weren’t sure what they were. But we have some ideas, digging deeper into the theories brought up by Charlie (the supermarket employee, who was writing an “End of the World” novel) and some conjectures from Reddit. We have a couple leads to go on about what these monsters antagonizing Earth actually are. Right after the chaos breaks out in Detroit, Charlie tells the group of survivors what he thinks they’re experiencing, calling it “The End Game” and saying humanity has been judged. Arguably, his best theories on what the monsters actually are, look to world religion and mythology involving demons or spirit creatures that “take on a form of your worst fears or your deepest sadness or greatest loss” (Bier). He specifically cites four different theories that seem plausible: Aka Manah from Zoroastrianism, Huli Jing from Chinese Folklore, the Celtic legend Puca and Surgat from Christian occult beliefs. Of these theories, the most likely to actually be monsters in this movie is Aka Manah from Zoroastrianism. Zoroastrianism was a religion formed thousands of years ago in the Middle East following Angra Mainyu, who is like the Devil (known as Destructive Spirit). Angra Mainyu has a demonic servant, Aka Manah, on a mission to seduce the prophet Zoroaster from

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Jing 2 following Ahura Mazda, the sagacious and virtuous creator of the universe. Angra Mainyu also has other evil daevas that could potentially be the evil force taking over Earth -- like Azi Dahaka, who according to ancient texts, wreaks havoc across the world, after humans become lost and amoral. This theory from Charlie is plausible. Many believe that our modern times are plagued with immorality and that a mass judgment is looming. This could all be Angra Mainyu siccing his miscreant on the human world at the right time. The victim is seduced by Aka Manah, then forced into evil doings (suicide or coercion). Aka Manah roughly translates to “Mind Made Evil”. The Bird Box monsters are doing just that, getting into the populace’s heads, pushing them towards suicide (or to serve him). In the movie, we actually hear the manipulation of this monster in Malorie and the children’s thoughts. The other three ideas seem to be big stretches for Bird Box. Huli Jing is a mythological fox spirit from Chinese culture described as an immortal, celestial being, but other than being portrayed as having nine tails like one of the images Gary draws, the Huli Jing and the Bird Box monsters really don’t have much in common. The Puca from Celtic mythology also seems unlikely: one historian recorded that they were “wicked-minded, black-looking, bad things, that would come in the form of wild colts, with chains hanging about them.” Probably not our monsters. And as for the Surgat, we couldn’t find much about these creatures at all, despite Charlie describing them as making “pregnant women encounter unborn children as other creatures such as lobsters or spiders.” (If anything, that sounds more in line with the original vision for the Bird Box monsters, as described by Bergholtz). We never really see how the creatures look, but Gary does draw several images of them. One drawing looks almost like the head of an octopus with slits for eyes. Gary’s sketches also

Jing 3 show multiple legs, tentacles or tails? We counted nine of them. Bird Box Creature Designer Andy Bergholtz also posted mockups to his Instagram of what the creatures were originally supposed to look like (at least for Malorie). Bergholtz added that each victim saw a different fatal vision, and this demonic baby creature (with a CGI body added later) would have appeared in a cut nightmare scene for Malorie. The most popular theories on Reddit point out that the Bird Box creatures are an amalgamation of all of these ideas -- ideas that are not new to the sci-fi community. Many Bird Box viewers have made comparisons to H.P. Lovecraft’s mythology, specifically the Cthulu. These creatures definitely look similar to Cthulu, who is described as part octopus, part dragon, winged, anthropomorphic, powerful, gigantic extraterrestrials, that can allegedly drive one to madness if you look at it. But, as many Reddit users point out, if Bird Box’s monsters are so powerful, can’t they blow a blanket away? Go through a door? Reddit user Moguri40k explains: Lovecraftian creatures have a one-way physical interaction with our physical dimension. They can see, but physical barriers are almost impossible for them to move through. That is why there are such strong air distortions whenever they move nearby. (Reddit) The Cthulu theory is a strong one. The mere sight of the Cthulu drives one mad. In Bird Box, people see the monster and they go insane. The “fatal vision” is supposed to be different for each victim, the Cthulu and the Bird Box monster cause a severe mental reaction. And Gary is not a victim that commits suicide, he is a servant of the Bird Box monster. Perhaps he’s able to see his master’s actual form or get visions of his master, thus the sketches that look so Cthulu-esque. Charlie really said it best: “Different names, but the same thing. The End of Us” (Bier)....