Annihilation 's "Shimmer" Genetic Mutations Explained

[@RoanokeGaming]

I regret to inform you, a 66 impala picture was posted instead of a 67. F's in the chat boys

[@B.t7274]

thanks

[@kingshadow8782]

Happy Friday

[@birdboris]

Giga chad

[@szymon_pa7421]

69

[@KrankyKaiju]

Shame on you, science man!

[@Drefsab]

That damn bear is one of the creepiest things I've ever seen in a movie. The fact that you can see a human skull merging with it, and it roars/screams in the dead woman's voice, was genuinely unsettling. Amazing design.

[@ChaoticDressler]

Looked like a leshen from the witcher.

[@J.W.Brogan]

She wasn't dead

[@stackflow343]

Reminds me of a monster from Made in Abyss that does this with dead adventurers. It mimics their calls for help to lure more prey.

[@stackflow343]

@@J.W.Brogan it was the first girl's voice the bear was using, who is dead

[@jimmymcgill2557]

@@J.W.Brogan of course she was dead it ripped her throat out...😂

[@DuskyPredator]

My understanding after watching was that it was an extra-dimensional entity that was trying to understand its surroundings, which it's mere act of trying to perceive what was around it would scramble those things on a genetic level, and it most actively did so by using mimicry. In the end to start to destroy itself, it might have actually reached an understanding that what it was doing was harmful.

[@carrops]

That concept is sad, horrific, and beautiful at the same time. A perfect entity realizes that our imperfections cause us harm in it's presence, so it sacrifices itself for our well being.

[@a.r.h9919]

Alien in the purest of senses

[@ryanhampson673]

That was my take on it, if it was intelligent it was trying to communicate but how do you communicate with something totally alien. I never took its actions as malicious, more of just consequences of its presence in our environment/universe/dimension, etc. Media always has aliens that are different but still kind of look like us. In reality it’s probably something beyond are ability to even comprehend.

[@a.r.h9919]

@@carrops I really think you are anthropomorphizing something so far away from a human point of view or morality

[@DuskyPredator]

@@ryanhampson673 It is like learning a language by repeating back what you hear and seeing what happens. It possibly reached a breakthrough upon realising human body/life that wants to be able to stay alive, is so threatened that it tried to make not alive. The concept we have of physical bodies and life, was probably so alien that it only understood it after being able to perceive like humans can. Maybe biblical view, it ate from the tree of knowledge, and only after doing so gained the knowledge of sin, and the concept of death.

[@LuckyRabbit234]

The book trilogy _Annihilation_ was loosely based on actually explains what the Shimmer is. It’s basically a living program composed of light energy that can affect matter around it. It was sent by extraterrestrials to remake Earth into a habitable environment for them. In order to do so, however, it first needed to break down the entire planet into a primordial soup so that it could be rebuilt, hence the “fracturing” in Area X. Thing is, the extraterrestrials that originally sent the Shimmer to Earth died out before it even arrived. One of the members of the organization tasked with researching the Shimmer learns this, then allows himself to be absorbed by the Shimmer. Because the Shimmer incorporates everything it absorbs into itself, including knowledge, it then realizes that its mission is now pointless and self-destructs. So, yeah, the film is right in a way. The Shimmer _isn’t_ like us. It doesn’t think, it doesn’t feel. It’s just a program, a tool, carrying out its intended function.

[@Narko_Marko]

This comment was more interesting than the whole movie.

[@bongchoof]

I strongly disagree and think the movie is more interesting without this context.@@Narko_Marko

[@Narko_Marko]

@@bongchoof it would be interesting if the movie slowly gave us answers on the alien but still left some things ambiguous. But the movie only gives us more questions without any answers, and many things dont make sense, especially human actions. Like, why do they go into the shimmer without a hazmat suit? The only thing of value this movie brought were the visuals but they are also just random ideas loosely connected with the justification "the shimmer changes everything"

[@King_of_the_noobs]

so the shimmer basically went "well shit guess ill die"

[@specialnewb9821]

That... isn't what wiki says happens in book 3, Acceptance. Where are you getting this?

[@brandonschmidt6635]

They explain in the books but not the movies, that the memory loss is because the psychologist hypnotized all of them to forget or go into autopilot mode when she says certain trigger words to help them manage the trauma of crossing the shimmer

[@xenosascended6733]

I loved that aspect of the book.

[@brandonschmidt6635]

Same, there was allot of stuff in the books I wished they had added into the movies that I think would have added allot to the story, especially the tunnel that mirrors the light house with the writing on the wall, a HUGE part of the book that was basically scrapped and just kind of ignored in the movie.

[@pozzyvibes6997]

​​@@brandonschmidt6635I believe I read that the director didn't want to "recreate" the book per se, he wanted to base a movie off his memory of when he read the book, and try to capture the feel it gave him. Though it might have been cool to see a proper adaptation I can't blame him for also wanting to have his own creation.

[@brandonschmidt6635]

@pozzyvibes6997 that makes sense, I mean really that is the best approach, everyone interprets a book differently, some stuff stands out to some, but others forget it even happened, you will never make everyone happy so you might as well just go off your own vision of the story

[@berserker5551]

That sounds kinda dumb honestly

[@TheJigma]

That bear has been lurking in the back of my unconscious mind for about 5 years now

[@RoanokeGaming]

It was disturbing AF

[@tylertucker8046]

I started watching it on a plane. The bear scene was when I became aware that there was children around me. I finished watching later.

[@TheAshHeritor]

Yeah, I really can't bear it.

[@arachbae4777]

@Roanoke Gaming I absolutely loved the bear scene and decided to turn it into a DnD monster for my friends! I thought it was super sick

[@Dead__Space]

I used it's voice clip for a horror DnD oneshot. My group saw the movie, and immediately "noped" when they realized it.

[@ventusthekey5187]

My favorite theory about the bear is that it's one of the mimics that lost it's original, like Cain. Its been wandering around the shimmer doing things it knows a bear would do, but doesn't fully understand why its doing it. Thats why it kills Shepard but doesn't eat her. It knew a bear should kill but doesn't understand why.

[@brentnesas6459]

😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅

[@arcjesse]

I don‘t think it’s a mimic, but rather just the original bear, but mutated. I believe there’s basically no difference between a mutated being and one that has been assimilated, but judging from the fact that we have only seen two beings being assimilated, I think it was rather just a mutant.

[@prplxdino]

Ik I'm hella late to be commenting on this, but with the mirror deer that run away from Lena we can actually see that one was white with flowers growing out of it's antlers and with no visible decay and the other one was like a marbled grey with no visible plant growths on the antlers and a decayed looking face. The way this ties into the bear is by my theory that the more "alive" bear was eaten by the decayed one due to the more decayed and aggressive animal being the original and the "perfect" copy being, well, a copy

[@arcjesse]

@@prplxdino It’s never too late to spit facts

[@calypso3316]

Three things: 1. Great video. 2. The "two soldiers" fused to the pool wall, is actually the one soldier with his intestines worming around, just completely overcome by the growth. 3. "Remember, pig and elephant DNA just won't mix" made my teenage self chuckle

[@tastyneck]

#2 thank you.

[@leociresi4292]

“You want snake intestines? Cause you’ll get snake intestines!”

[@Onewingerdraven]

Is 3. a south park reference ?

[@calypso3316]

@@Onewingerdraven Yep. There was an entire episode where they were attempting gene splicing and got a pig and an elephant to have sex in order to win a competition.

[@bradpaton3927]

​@@calypso3316*splice, not 'mix'.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

One more detail of how Lena was assimilated with her teammates in the Shimmer is Anya's tattoo suddenly appearing on her arm, and she doesn't acknowledge it until her interrogation.

[@bennygerow]

It wasn't very subtle.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

@@bennygerow "Subtle" is a poor choice of words yes, so I've edited my comment. However the subtlety of it is it doesn't appear until that moment of the film and she quietly realizes it's there.

[@bennygerow]

@@_GeneralMechanics_ I liked how earlier in the movie Lena rubbed on it when she noticed it thinking it was a bruise

[@RyanLongArt]

@@_GeneralMechanics_ I think it's fair to call it subtle, nobody ever actually talks about it. I bet a lot of viewers didn't notice.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

@@bennygerow Reminds me of the movie "Dark Skies" and seeing the father constantly scratching behind his ear, until it's revealed that's where the Greys put their implant.

[@jakeking974]

To be fair, I would think, given how effective a shovel to the face works on both a regular gator AND a shark, the sharkagator would probably just explode.

[@merafirewing6591]

It's funny that a shovel can make a gator and a shark think twice.

[@sabbracadabra7083]

They should try shovel on shimmer\alien too, it should be effective)

[@AshSpots]

As a side thought regarding the Two people fungus'd to the walls, I think it's actually just one person, the person who got his intestines peeked at. That cut looks to have ended him, and the fungi looks to have grown vigorously enough to push the upper half of him upwards! Crazy stuff! Been looking forward to your take on the shimmer, and boy did you not disappoint!

[@aarons1811]

You are spot on. The dude has literally grown into the wall.

[@jeffumbach]

Yep that's the guy split in half, he's sitting in the same chair against the wall as in the video.

[@caseypittman9950]

It was supposed to resemble what cancer will do to a healthy cell, you know, expand and break

[@krlosz1996]

What if the fungal growth was the very yeasts in his intestines blending into his genes?

[@thatguy4305]

@@krlosz1996 thats fucked up and interesting. but they also stayed in an old pool, so maybe it was mold?

[@stinky6495]

The whole idea of the Shimmer is a lot like H.P. Lovecraft's "The Colour out of Space". Basically the same premise. Weird shimmering meteor crashes in a rural community and starts changing and melding everything and everyone.

[@kotyissocool]

My first thought too lol

[@luisgregoriopadilla9553]

I know It, I learn it from the Color of Madness DLC

[@Falstaff0809]

Yes! How could I have overlooked that!

[@ZephyrusAsmodeus]

Both are an intensive metaphor of the concept of self, while Lovecraft takes the concept into a more grandiose and obvious horror direction, Annihilation is instead a slow burning, creeping terror of facing yourself as you change over time, your trauma and self destruction, how you deal with all of those things, be taken off guard by it by force and surprise, and have no chance, like the character who was taken by the bear, snap and be broken by it, like the character who tied them up, embrace it and become one with your trauma, like the character that disappeared into the foliage, let it consume you, in mind and body in cancerous nihilism, like the character at the base of the lighthouse, or face your trauma head on, and become a new you, ready to move on having dealt with your change and your past, like the main character and her husband. Every character's end is spelled out by what trauma they're dealing with, cancer, a suddenly lost loved one, mirrored guilty infidelity, etc, all traumas that circle around again, like a snake eating its own tail, which the characters eventually wear on their arm in the form of an Oroborus tattoo. I think that's why so many people didn't really understand the movie, it used what appeared to be a sci-fi horror setting to tell a story that's a lot more symbolic and thoughtful rather than just scary, but idk, I thought it was really good.

[@VancePetrol]

​@@ZephyrusAsmodeus It's not that big of a shock that a lot of people didn't get (or were willing to admit to understand.. to themselves or others) a movie all about those aspects of human psychology we tend to struggle the most with, tho.

[@desmondsolomon2809]

This story was about the Shimmer's inability to reproduce. Sure it could alter life but not create it. All the women on the team did not have partners at home except the protagonist. I think initially the Shimmer chose her partner (who was in the first team of all men) to replicate and send back because it knew he had a mate once it copied him. Then it used his copy to draw her inside knowing she'd most likely head to the Shimmer to find a way to stop his illness. Once there, I think it altered her DNA and sent her back, so she and her partner (or shimmer copy) could create this new life based on the Shimmer's altered DNA. It burned itself down once it's mission was complete. I think if the military teams were men and women it would have achieved it's goal quicker.

[@armbones8519]

This is a really interesting concept. The main story is actually about self-destruction and the self-destructive nature of humanity but I do also like your concept.

[@AidenC.]

I just thought it was about aliens :(

[@nextcaesargaming5469]

Nuke it from orbit It's the only way to be sure

[@cloberlobster2276]

The main thing that goes against your entire theory is, why would it need a human to reproduce? There are plenty of animals within the shimmer that I could easily harbor, hell they're even plant DNA's that it can adorn onto itself and learn how turn hermaphroditic and self reproduce. You don't need specifically a human male in the human woman for any of that, there are plenty of animals with woumbs and genitals. But cool theory.

[@chrismsmalley2626]

Nice insight...

[@mannys9130]

The 2nd bear scene where they're in the house was my most recent "effective" shocking movie shakeup that I've experienced in a few years. Like, it genuinely chilled my spine when the bear came around the corner and I saw that it was all necrotic and deformed, but then it reallllllllly made my hair stand up when it screamed just like the woman. Idk why but that was genuine horror. I watched the movie 3-4 months ago and I STILL feel creeped out imagining it. 🤯 Loved this movie.

[@RyanLongArt]

I was really impressed by that, because horror's my favorite genre, I'm pretty desensitized to all of it, I love it but it's really hard for any of it to creep me out now because I just see the special effects. But that bear was a damn nightmare, really tense.

[@appalachiabrauchfrau]

I haven't been scared by media in years, the sound design of that scene made me bawl my eyes out. Very effective.

[@rarecandy3445]

i saw the movie in a really old theater, like concrete floors, walls, no sound proofing. yeah that scene was atrociously unsettling in there. had me on the edge of my seat

[@ryanhampson673]

Same man…I haven’t been creeped out by a movie monster since I was a kid but that bear just sat with me in some way. Totally chilling.

[@aflawedhuman2046]

That does it, I'm finally going to watch this movie now. It sounds so interesting. Any other good "creature feature" recommendations? Lol

[@gege2126]

Fun fact about intestines, they kinda “know” how they are supposed to sit in the body. So if doctors have to move them out the way, they just let the intestines shift back into place. I don’t know if that poor dudes guts got turned to worms, but I personally think that something they ate could’ve messed that up as it physically and genetically changed. Also, you’re idea to the ending is really cool and interesting… my first thought was that the double was trying to replicate the fire 😂

[@LogjammerDbaggagecling-qr5ds]

You know intestines aren't just loose in there, right? They're attached to the pelvic floor by a flap of tissue called the mesentery fold. They don't have to remember where they are any more than your arm does.

[@decafclown7038]

@@LogjammerDbaggagecling-qr5ds I didn’t know that! That’s pretty cool

[@TheAgent0060]

Oh nah. His intestines were MOVING.

[@nickl5658]

correct, intestines are not loose. However there are 100 million neurons in the gastrointestinal systems.. ie there are more neurons here than the spinal cord and peripheral nervous system combined. Ie the intestines is pretty much a second brain. What it does with so much brain power, we are not sure. It does contract on its own, send information back to the brain etc... but some feel the intestines is too brainy for such simple processes.

[@piraptor5677]

interesting thought on that, parasites such as certain worms tend to live in the intestines feeding on stuff going through our intestinal tract since the intestines is basically the second part of our digestive process drawing nutrients from the stuff our stomach acids break down before it becomes poop, maybe the guy had some stomach parasites that the shimmer melded with his intestines

[@KrankyKaiju]

The scene of the soldier's insides moving independently *inside* the guy still gives me the willies

[@RoanokeGaming]

its interesting seeing the differences between people, I was just fascinated haha

[@Biduck1776]

@Not RickRoll 🅥 its catroll

[@Nukefandango]

The way they all look at the camera as it happens sticks with me.

[@Eluderatnight]

Have you ever had bad sushi? Nothing to see here. Had it happen once.104*F fever, took icebath. Took a week to feel better.

[@maximkusanagi]

Finally. The first true male pregnancy.

[@justinhernandez9615]

You dont know how long I have waited for a cover of Annihilation. Its a really underated movie when it comes to horror. The premise is Bizarre and right up your field. Thank you for giving me something awesome to wake up to!

[@RoanokeGaming]

Absolutely! I hope you like it man!

[@jacobott3382]

I have also been thinking Roanoke should cover this movie Annihilation, it's very interesting to me the idea of an alien entity that just mutates and confused all of the DNA and atoms around it.

[@eddiehoplight2003]

I recently watched this movie, but I've come up with a theory about the nature of the alien, it was probably once a being of pure energy, but like jacobott was saying, it got all confused by DNA once it crash landed on earth

[@JL-to9vg]

I’ve been trying to remember the name of this movie for so many years-!! All I could come up with were vague memories that made me think: “acid trip”, and shimmer had too many random results 😂

[@grapefruitsimmons]

Its 100% overrated and not horror

[@SachoManMandyRavage]

I always assumed that the entity was intelligent and curious. All the changes that occurred were the entity experimenting with the building blocks it now found around it

[@leociresi4292]

And in the end it destroyed itself when it copied mankind

[@Narko_Marko]

@@leociresi4292 I just assumed it burned to death because it didnt understand what was going on.

[@leociresi4292]

@@Narko_Marko In other words, mankind started the destruction with flas grenade, and it simply mimicked the action

[@Narko_Marko]

@@leociresi4292 To me it seemed like all mutations that formed in the shimmer were extensions of the alien so when it burned up its little hole everything else melted as well.

[@leociresi4292]

@@Narko_Marko Nailed it!

[@JinKee]

40:30 the demenitia is in the books, but they also mention that entering the shimmer is a psychologically traumatic experience, and to do it successfully, the team lead hypnotizes the team and then ties a rope around their waist to lead them accross so only one team member has to remember the crossing.

[@masterzoroark6664]

Yep, but movie is far more different than the book, and as far as I know the hypnosis plot wasn't used in the movie. Both are still good things and I do hope more people got to read the book after

[@AveSicarius]

@@masterzoroark6664 The end of the movie is also a little less Lovecraftian, as is the actual Zone itself. The book's are completely insane in comparison to the film.

[@masterzoroark6664]

@@AveSicarius And I love it I like this horror of inability to explain a phenomenon as it realy makes you confront the fact that life is sometimes far more than just logic and answers

[@BLOODKINGbro]

There where books?

[@masterzoroark6664]

@@BLOODKINGbro Yep.. I think 3 of them,

[@colinayre2109]

At about 9:35 they mention the navigation trick. That’s a simplified version of the trick taught at Army SERE school, there’s slightly more to it, for example it only works in the northern hemisphere of the planet (due to the nature of shadows and your relative position to the sun in relation to earths surface) but given their location is in the northern hemisphere, yes that trick will work.

[@TheNinthGeneration1]

I wonder how it would work in the south, if it would be 10 and 12 or 6 and 4/8

[@FailableGamer]

​@TheNinthGeneration1 If I'm not mistaken, that should still work, except you would get the north direction. Or more general, it should roughly point you towards the part of the earth that's facing the closest to the sun, if you are far enough from that line, which can shift depending on the season, due to earths rotation being a bit "tipped" in relation to the sun. Otherwise known as the reason we even have seasons to begin with. Granted its just a rough estimate and may suffer some inaccuracies based on factors like clocks not always being perfectly in sync with when the sun rises or goes down or some bullshit like daylight savings time.

[@jimmymcgill2557]

i had a bit of a different theory, i thought it self destructed everything because as it took on Lena's DNA it began to absorb her thoughts and feelings, for example Lena wanting to find a way to stop the shimmer so the alien being which essentially now has the same goal stopped the shimmer by burning everything around it and self destructing...

[@TheNinthGeneration1]

That makes sense

[@Narko_Marko]

how many people disappeared? all of them were there to destroy the shimmer.

[@Silverserri]

The main thing I remember about this movie is: "These people exploded all over the walls, and that looks like fungi on the walls. Let's walk REAL CLOSE AND INHALE THE SPORES!" Genius, y'all.

[@Sue_Me_Too]

"You can see the Shimmer from the outside: the 1st guy (or more likely, the 2nd guy) would have been wearing a HAZMAT suit... with a hose to an air supply that's on THIS side... It's not like he can go that far, how'd they keep loosing people in there? Tie a rope to them or something!" Is what I thought, which is a shame because the movie makes no sense if you think about that.

[@SolidSnake240]

@@Sue_Me_Too They did in the book but it still didnt matter since the shimmer/area x scrambles your memories. Effectively taking days off of your life.

[@SolidSnake240]

The main chracters all were mentally unwell. Its not outright stated but implied through dialog and their actions. Ventress for example had cancer and felt she had nothing to lose which is why she went on the expedition in the first place.

[@Sue_Me_Too]

@@SolidSnake240 it can scramble all the memories it wants as long as the rope holds. What about a camera/sensor inside feeding data through a cable to the outside?

[@Sue_Me_Too]

@@SolidSnake240 I read the first book and nobody said "hey, let's tie a chicken to a stick and shove that into the daemonic Hell-dimension to see what happens" they just start sending people in there.

[@alex9x9]

I believe that the Shimmer refracts the forms it encounters to match the forms of adjacent lifeforms. The perfect example is the bear: the reason it sounds exactly like the unalived woman is because its throat perfectly copies her throat. If, by contact with her human genes, the Shimmer forced the bear to replicate a human organ (the throat) it would have been a freshly formed one and a generic soundlng one. Instead, the Shimmer somehow extrapolated the form from one living being and then imprinted it onto the next. Same thing with the human trees.

[@alex9x9]

To be fair, in my theory, the effect is even above the genetic. Yes, lifeforms get affected faster, but look at the crystal trees at the beach. They are basically the amalgamation of two forms: trees and sand (or glass). The Shimmer must have gathered the general form of a tree from the adjacent forest but started replicating it on the beach from the only available material around: sand. And not just simple sand because there would be no way to stack it like a tree. From the tiny sand particles, it gathered that they have a crystalline structure and used that general "form information" to imprint it on the larger structure. If it were just "simple" genetic recombination, those crystal trees would not exist.

[@rvanhees89]

They are all altered humans. In the book the DNA of the Fox, the moaning creature and all other creatures is human. They have also sent hundreds of expeditions into it

[@captnwinkle]

@@alex9x9 good point(s)

[@keef920]

The whole point of the movie was how self-destructive humans can be, and when the shimmer incorporated that trait it destroyed itself

[@culture4519]

@@keef920 creation comes after destruction when a Forrest grows too dense a fire will happen regardless of people then a new lush forest will grow in its stead nourished by the ashes, self destruction/-self creation?

[@koibutsu]

The fact she didn't mention that genetically they were not human anymore and were shimmers, is that now him and her are there own Adam and eve of a new garden. But are like a virus, mutating and changing hosts into things closer to a shimmer.

[@jeffumbach]

13:23 Roanoke that wasn't two guys, that's the guy from the video split in two by whatever was growing inside of him. Also surprised that you made no mention that the synchronized deer had flowers growing from their antlers.

[@infernaldaedra]

That guy is still alive too technically

[@drlolable]

came to say this too

[@GirlYouDontKnow-rx3lm]

@@infernaldaedra *shudders* That's terrifying to think about!

[@TopsyTriceratops]

I tend to come to your videos for explanation, but you admitting that sometimes things just can't be explained felt relieving to me. We don't know everything, even if we like to think we do. It's just really hard to admit for people of science. I liked this one, thank you sir.

[@hi5dude2]

That's def not true though. Everything can be explained. Just no guarantee that we will ever find the correct answer, but the answer exists. That's the difference between science and religion: science can science everything. Religion needs faith. This is why science will always win in the end and religion has to adapt and evolve to match it, not the other way around.

[@yin-yangbrandon7852]

@@hi5dude2 I guess that it's true that curiosity killed the cat then

[@robertlaidlaw4592]

@@hi5dude2 ok explain the begining of the universe, how are we about, this isn't a science vs religion argument, this is just a no we cant explain everything, or atleast we are so far from any kind of tangable explanation that the answer at this point is basicly immpossible, you dont even have to go as far as that, theres organisums and phanominons in nature we arnt even close to understanding, despite all our technolagy and samples and evidence about sed organisums, so thats all to say, no i dont always expect a concreate explanation, because thaings can be compleatly elusive, out of our ability to concieve by posibly a 1000 more years of technalogical growth. we dont even understand how most fungi work and we use them for so much.

[@kiyoshi3313]

@Robert Laidlaw Their whole point is that there is an explanation, we just aren't capable of getting the answer or the explanation at this point in time. Whether it's due to technological capabilities or resources we don't have or even our capacity to understand. There's an answer, we simply just don't have it.

[@qoopertrooper]

It's not hard to admit for true people of science. The true point of science is learning as we go, admitting you don't know or are wrong is the first step to learning something. But I completely agree.

[@KP-vy9ro]

I'm so damn happy to finally have someone else who is trained as a EMT Basic or more that knows what should be going down in the back of the ambulance or even how first arrivers on scene of any type go about the process. Just for that alone was refreshing and then I appreciate the depth of breakdown. Now subscribed and can't wait for more from you dude

[@weewoo8108]

This film really left me wanting more, the croc, the weird deer, what ended up happening to the team members, and that spooky ass bear made me want to see what more of the flora and fauna would have looked like as they continued to be further exposed to the shimmer. As it was you could still tell what they were originally, how far would it have gone, would more things have merged together, would completely new stuff even be born? The bear ending up merged with aspects of Shepherd and sounding like her was the gem of the movie for me and left all sorts of questions, was it 100% bear just with her voice or was her consciousness somehow now in there in some way like an unwilling passenger? How did the merge/change in the bear even happen? Did the parts the bear eat become one with it or was it just from contact? How many other things might be in this bear? I definitely feel like this universe has a lot they could delve into in future if they wanted to.

[@carlweaselbear534]

This comment made me think of how I remember this movie really differently. Like there were more scenes with the husband and Lena being more mutated at the end.

[@GoldenRiderAtreyu]

The bear ate her vocal chords & they merged with it.

[@weewoo8108]

@@GoldenRiderAtreyu It does, but the bear also starts to grow a human skull on one side of its face, almost sharing an eye socket with it - it didn't eat shepherds head, so it's interesting that it would develop *more* than what it consumed and why, making me wonder how much of her is in there.

[@ultmateragnarok8376]

A continuation documenting various happenings in the Shimmer, the different things which formed there whether they encountered a person or not, would be great. It's been there for years, after all, even if time seems shorter within it - potentially only because of memory loss - so of course it's going to have a lot of things happen over that amount of time. Now, for the bear. There's multiple human skulls incorporated into the bear, and Shepard's isn't among them. One is a human jaw inside its mouth, functioning as basically a second set of teeth and also likely the lips and whatnot needed to vocalize human words, and another is the prominent one merged at its eye socket on the side of the bear's own skull. Shepard's body is entirely intact in terms of the skull, when her body is found - meaning that bear was already like that. It has, presumably, absorbed multiple people from the military team given they were watching the fences for (what is assumed to be) it, and has likely been becoming more and more human as it does so. I see three possibilities for how it does what it does, and each is terrifying in its own way: -The bear has some modicum of human brain structure developed within it, allowing it to understand and process human languages and thus imitate human calls for help to lure in prey. -The bear remembers the calls its previous victims made before, and while some went unanswered others did not, so it utilizes its physiology to mimic said calls. -The bear has a partial human consciousness, either integrated into it, or grown directly from it in replica of, its prey which is trapped either as a secondary consciousness _to_ the animal mind of the bear, or trapped in the mindset of the bear, and is in pain due to the various physical changes the entity has gone through, causing it to call for help and inadvertently draw in more victims to either join it or simply be killed. All of these are haunting to think about, but the last one particularly is to me - being trapped in a body like that, where people are terrified to see you and don't even know you're there because of the independent actions of the body you're within. Able to call for help, but unable to receive it beyond the body hunting down those seeking to. It screams in pain when it's shot, in the movie, after all.

[@coledibiase5971]

Reminds me of in StarCraft. The Zergs home planet is basically a world where this giant alien creature lays the eggs of "base" creature's, and as the grow the consume each other and take the trait's of everything they eat. So if a slug catch's and eats a lizard, it will almost instantly grown legs. Really cool concept.

[@matthewpehrson2378]

"I hate cheating, its disgusting." OUR BRO IS SPITIN FACTS.

[@hidoradaikaiju4205]

I hate when cheating/affairs are thrown into movies/shows with no affect or relevance on the story. I view it as a lazy way of adding drama that may not even be needed. I didn’t finish this movie. I got kind of bored with it, so I don’t know if her cheating became relevant. But I have seen movies/shows where they throw it in there and then it NEVER comes back. I also hate it when the person being cheated with is a sibling or “best friend” and the MC just forgives that person and acts it never happened, but completely vilifies the cheater.

[@prodbyALCATRAZ]

@@hidoradaikaiju4205 Her cheating in this film is relevant so it gets a pass in my book.

[@chromenewt]

People are complicated. I don't hate cheating itself. I don't approve, but sometimes people are with the wrong person and without knowing any better people settle. People are right for each other in different stages of their lives and then outgrow or grow apart from each other, and happiness is a rare commodity. I do however think that trying to justify cheating by attributing blame is wrong, that I agree with. I was with one person but I'm live with another, and she wasn't ready for any kind of relationship but still wanted me around. I would have split with my partner for the woman I loved if she'd just give it a shot, to which she said no but we behaved like a couple when together. Long story short I made the painful decision to cut ties with who I loved and stay with my partner at the time, but I'm my head the damage was done. I made a moral choice that on paper was the more correct one but I couldn't face the guilt, so we ended up splitting about 6 months later. I think cheating is wrong if it's a "cake and eat it" situation. If it was something that happened spur of the moment then some contemplation needs to happen about why it happened and what the best thing is going forward. Folks can't help those pesky hormones kicking in and most aren't used to having to deny them when they're that strong.

[@gameof.football]

How about break up and divorce? 😅😂 Be single and do whatever hearts desires 🎉

[@thelettucescreams2494]

With the scene of the guy with moving insides, i always thought it was maybe a tapeworm or other parasite the guy brought in with him that ended up mutating and taking over the body before killing the host and escaping with its new genetic structure. Loved the scientific analysis as always Roanoke!

[@kaden-sd6vb]

That's even more horrifying Yet morbidly fascinating

[@Crystlstarrlight]

Becoming a person shaped tree with purple blossoms doesn't seem so bad until you realize death bear demon is in the same forest.

[@x.cytilinsk8940]

WORD

[@kyleellis1825]

Des the tree have plant fiber or muscle fiber under the bark?

[@darrelsam419]

It shouldn't be so bad if you have plant biology mixed in with human biology I guess? The bear won't be interested in you.

[@iangraydaniel]

@@darrelsam419 it’ll eat ur nuts and berries lol

[@darrelsam419]

@@iangraydaniel That's a good point, and that's even more horrifying.

[@alexmullins1765]

Roanoke your releases bring me unbridled joy because I love how you put your work in biology (I'm pretty sure you specialized in pathology but y'know, semantics) into explaining these rationally instead of shrugging and making something up! As one Georgian to another, good job!

[@RoanokeGaming]

Ayy thanks my man! I always hated the trope of "This is just the way it is" and its like "Yes, but WHY is it that way?" Im glad people enjoy that aspect as well!

[@grahamdavies8986]

@@RoanokeGaming thanks to your videos I have learned more from these movies and games, some of them very cheesy, than I ever thought I would. It is also very cool to learn that some of the concepts in this media is not as crazy or removed from reality as I thought it was.

[@Killbauer]

This is one of the best lovecraftian/cosmic horror movies I've seen in a long time and that damn bear has lived rent free in my mind ever since.

[@sabbracadabra7083]

Yeah, despite frustration brought by inconsistance of film's logic and batshit crazy actions of southern reach, I like how alien's depiction. I bilieve that alien either gone through convergent evolution to mankind, or complitely different and incomprehensive to us. Still in sence of interracting with incomprehencive aliens I prefer roadside picknic

[@gmork1090]

@@sabbracadabra7083 It was more or less a viral process that is supposed to mush everything together and break it down. That way it can be more easily terraformed by the aliens that created and sent it on the meteor.

[@retroreaper3676]

One thing I noticed you haven't mentioned, or maybe I just missed it, but the bruise on Lena's arm turned into the tattoo on the Thorason's arm and even appeared on the same arm in the same exact location.

[@pl1guru]

To me, Annhilation is a modern retelling of "The Colour Out Of Space," it has a very similar premise and does a very similar thing to the life around it. Only the book and the movie go into a bit more detail than H.P. Lovecraft did. :)

[@caseypittman9950]

It's more like the theme of self-destruction via cancer, The Shimmer is pretty much Earth's cancer and life is affected the same way cancer cells affect other cells.

[@gabriellecollier8127]

Did you know Lovecraft had dyscalculia? It's like dyslexia except numbers cannot be processed. People can have dyscalculia but have no problem reading. Roanoke, EXPLAIN THIS PLEASE!!!

[@Gilberto90]

I was literally going to say this - is probably a more intelligible way of telling the story than trying to somehow portray a 'colour' that we don't know the existence of.

[@vee-bee-a]

Felt more like what would happen if the Colour got discovered by humanity in modern times.

[@NexionSE]

@@Gilberto90 that is what they see as the shimmering a color that the brain can not understand but knows is a color.

[@kikidevine694]

I always thought that the doppelganger at the end of the film knew that her original had mutated to the point where she could take The Shimmer to the outside world, which is why the original shimmer self destructed. Like a mother spider which shelters her young in her body until they hatch and eat her. The main protagonist has taken in enough mutations, without being destroyed by them, to go out and spread it more efficiently than the original. The fact that her eyes are the same as her husband's doppelganger suggested (to me) that they would go on to produce some sort of offspring so The Shimmer is free to spread

[@hunner_gunner_3488]

Honestly after reading many of the comments I really think you hit it on the head here at least for what the movie is going for having the eyes show the final shimmer really drives it home I also think that’s the point of showing us her cells in the microscope all of her cells turn into the shimmer which would mean she is basically the same thing as the full energy shimmer but even better because it can stay together better

[@chasecarter7421]

If both of them are “infected” and could hypothetically have offspring, that kind of reminds me of Resident Evil’s Ethan and Mia Winters, with how both are infected by the Mold and their child, Rose, is like a super-mold-person

[@extofer]

This was my thought as well. And it makes sense at the end of the film when you see her eyes changed. She is no longer who she was before. And she will pass that to any babies she has in the future - essentially eventually causing the annihilation of the human race as we know it.

[@moogotony8579]

I've read that a surprising amount of fish can hybridize with eachother that are very distantly related, such as the sturdlefish made from sturgeon and paddlefish hybridization. I know this isn't nearly as drastic as what's exhibited in the movie, but it's worth looking into for an interesting read.

[@kyleellis1825]

Liberals and republicans can theoretically breed. Why not a shark and a falcon?

[@Cuntypostaldude]

@@kyleellis1825 wh-

[@kyleellis1825]

@Higgs Bonbon It's a joke.

[@Cuntypostaldude]

@@kyleellis1825 its a weird garbage boomer joke

[@kyleellis1825]

@@Cuntypostaldude Just a weird garbage zoomer sense of humour.

[@mcweasly9583]

Always wondered how the Shimmer from Annihilation worked, always exceptional content from a professional scientific source. Glad to see that you did this nightmare of a movie. :D

[@RoanokeGaming]

ayyy thanks for the compliment brother! I hope you enjoy it!

[@mcweasly9583]

Always enjoyable content, hope the KZbin overlords agree... but from the channel growth, I'm sure you'll continue to do great. 1 million coming up soon, im sure👍🏻

[@r3altalangodfrey39]

@@RoanokeGaming DAMN, got to call off work to watch this one. Hey, Roanoke when you saying, "starting with the feet, don't say feet"...it's disrespectful. Feet, is such an ugly word. Say, "Sexiness" instead. Mama Susan won't mind. Mama Susan, won't mind at all.

[@mutantmaster1]

If i remember correctly, fungi do make up a small amount of our gut flora, so if the one guy got his intestinal genes scrambled, he could be splayed like that because one part of his new genome coded for fungi, and their mycelium network spreading out for nutrients, and the human part that codes for 15-ish feet of tubing, hence the great height. He also did have some emergency surgery preformed around his middle, so that could be what lead to the bisection of the leg segement and torso segment, with near fungal bloom lumps

[@sabbracadabra7083]

Oh boy, I wonder what nail fungus can do then)

[@firstnamelastname6216]

By God, I think you've nailed it! Good freakin' guess man!! 👍

[@mvw9078]

Annihilation is one of my favorite movies of all time. I feel like it flies under a lot of people's radars, but it's actually a really solid film. The concepts are interesting, the storytelling is ominous and cryptic. It just all flows in such a fascinating way. Such a good modern instance of cosmic horror. It doesn't rely on jump-scares, and instead leans hard into the confusing and dreadful. Plus the bear with the woman's voice is one of the best, most terrifying monsters I've ever seen in my opinion. It seems so simple, maybe not that scary to begin with - until you think about it too much.

[@Backinblackbunny009]

The studio didn't have any faith in the movie and didn't invest anything in advertising for it. Portman had to use her own money just to get it distributed

[@AveSicarius]

I just wish they'd stuck to the book's narrative a little more. There's much more detail in their expedition (like being hypnotized by the team leader because the crossing is so traumatic and only the TL remembers it), in what they find (there's an inverse lighthouse for one), and what's happening within the Shimmer itself. The following books also build on this as well.

[@thesnagglewolf]

I'm with you. I think this film is a masterpiece.

[@captnwinkle]

You need to watch more movies...

[@-chippedstars-2889]

I felt so bad for Radock, she was terrified of the shimmer and probably the least experienced with combat or traumatic experiences.

[@SayaFrakture]

For the direction with the watch bit, it is a modification of sundial directional positioning. it gives a VERY BASIC directional compass that can be off by up to 10 degrees so it is only useful for the four polar directions and your ability to keep yourself in a straight line. Basics of it is that you point your hour hand to the sun and the halfway point between that and 12 is "rudimentary south". It can give you an okay enough idea in an emergency but always ALWAYS have a compass, a back up compass kept in a VERY HARD case, always analog compass and know the various ways to make your own compass so carry a strong small magnet in a far apart section of your person from either compass.

[@avidityrar]

Bro, this channel is truly one of the best on YT right now. Not only is your content actually good and seemingly based in at least some knowledge added to which your delivery is fantastic. Honestly you make things that are normally as boring as a wet nutsack, into thrilling as a great pair of funbags so you deserve a damned medal for doing this! Keep it up bruh!

[@teafox8]

You know when I first watched Annihilation, I thought Dr. Ventress lost her eyes when she was in the Source area. The shadows covered her eyes so well that I was expecting another light source to appear and reveal the smooth skin where her eyes were supposed to be

[@TricaudaeStudio]

You know, I really appreciate the Dead Space clips when you are talking about the channel. Dead Space is just a absolute favourite of mine! Respect.

[@wotansbeserkr9198]

Not many things in horror type movies get me. Reagan spider walking down the stairs in the exorcist held that title until I saw that goddamn bear. I think it was the combination of them being helplessly tied up and the "help me" rasping from it as it's like right in their faces. But that one almost had me looking over my shoulder when I was out for walks at night.

[@Dramn_]

It could help that it was also a "normal" thing like a bear... maybe

[@tristanbuckner1170]

Really cool to see this movie finally covered. The book it was based on is my favorite of all time. Even got to get writing advice from the author, but the series, movie included, as a whole are wildly underrated. Here’s to hoping Roanoke brings a bit more recognition to it!

[@BangsDaDrum]

A similar metaphoric I've heard for this movie is akin to the video game Dead Space. The Marker from it, much like the meteorite, sends out a carrier wave that effects organisms neural pathways (Depression, Dementia, Insanity) and then when a threshold is reached, reconstitutes DNA in its own image. Its not a perfect comparison but one I find fascinating.

[@gmork1090]

According to the books that is precisely it. Break everything down and make it malleable so the alien critters that created and sent the virus can come and easily terraform the planet.

[@juuzousuzuya8334]

Roanoke should do a cover on "Velocipastor". It's a fever dream of a movie, but it's got dinosaurs and ninjas. What else could you want?

[@texasforever6950]

Not really his wheelhouse man, but it's an amazing film, I agree.

[@aprendergast4420]

He should do llamageddon

[@ObsidionshadowX]

Omfg, I saw that recently.. totally a fever dream, he should cover it just for the gags.

[@captainremington5109]

I could want the Ninjas to be dead. But that's the Pirate's Life.

[@Dr._Heinz_Doofenshmirtz]

birdemic too

[@azazelsiad3601]

You should talk about the crucible of life from Elden Ring, it has A LOT of similarities to the shimmer. Much like it the Crucible doesn’t differentiate between life so it was all conglomerated during its age. You get beast men with tails, horns, and wings. Some are capable of breathing fire. And while it can be viewed with some positive light, the Crucible is more like its name sake, it was a trial by fire for life. Sure it’s more fantastical than something scientific like this but the similarities are there.

[@EM-bz1rn]

Haha, extra points for if you can take a stab at the science on how the two fingers could possibly be roots of the Erdtree AND tv antenna boi’s for a Lovecraftian presence that take part of the very logic of reality in the Lands Between. Oh, and how unalloyed gold can stave off the influence of the Flame of Chaos but only when residing in a place beyond time. 🌝

[@azazelsiad3601]

@@EM-bz1rn unalloyed gold doesn’t just affect the Frenzied Flame. It staves off the influence of ALL outer gods even Rot it’s just that you have to be in Farum Azula to removed the flame from you though it’s curious why that’s the case. Hence why it was created. Miquella in an effort to heal his sister created it and funnily enough it was way more effective than he figured it would be. The fingers on the other hand are exactly as you described them. Antenna bois. They aren’t roots as the placing of some of the fingers wouldn’t make sense for them to be roots for instance the Moonlight Alter is nowhere near the base of the Erdtree. Though that is an interesting theory.

[@Lemontarts01]

Its not really similar. The shimmer refracts everything and whilst it does seem to blend together it is absolutely not like the cruicible. The crucible is the entire universe in one cup bassically. No individum and no differences. Then marika came allong and changed things. The shimmer is nowhere near that. Also theres no biology to be explained there. Its all supernatural

[@Psymon1471]

Shimmer was a pretty good cosmic horror tbs, quite Lovecraftian towards the end. Also, very much like a couple different SCP entities combined. Like the bear using a human voice like SCP-939; SCP-610's genetic amalgamation of everything within the area; SCP-1009's expanding sphere of influence that is alien in nature and full of "impossible" flora and fauna; even a slight reference to SCP-682 with the crocodile/shark creature.

[@sabbracadabra7083]

They have some similarities, and it's interesting to theorize whether one was inspired by the other, or it's an example of convergent evolution in media, since both the SCP project and Annihilation are themed around of sense of incomprehensibility.

[@DreadNought0255]

My theory on WHAT the Shimmer Entity is that it is a glitched Von-Neuman Probe. It's designed to either absorb and integrate the biomater of it's destination to make it easier to communicate with local life or it's designed to terraform the destination, possibly as a sort of "seeding ship" where rather then setting the planet up for colonists, it grows the colonists on-site. Something happened to it that made it go haywire. Or it's working as intended and by the logic of whatever xenos scum made it.

[@AdaTheWatcher]

That's actually an extremely interesting theory,

[@SolidSnake240]

Its definitely a terraforming device of some sort. The books give better insight into what the shimmer actually is as well.

[@itsyaboidaniel2919]

I think the main problem with the theory put forward is that the effects are so inconsistent. You'd expect all of the group members to start having the same traits due to being in the same environment. Plus, we saw the plants growing out of Radeck at an impossibly fast rate, and only her. The lack of killer trees is also a sign that each organism is a unique case. Plus, the "trees" made out of seemingly flammable glass, and seemingly an exact copy of Lena's house, goes against it being specifically genetic. We can label some of the effects that the Shimmer had, but we simply do not know the mechanism in which it operates. It's most likely some sort of information field that takes all available information in the environment, including genetic and psychological information, and expresses it through available objects. This is likely why it blocked radio signals, why some of the team members were going insane, and the variety of animals seen in the Shimmer. Some information was processed successfully, while other information could not be processed, by different individuals. I think it may also be the case, as another commenter DuskyPredator said, that the entity trying to understand its environment is what caused the Shimmer. This attempt at understanding lead to the information field that isolated information, which is why no one left the Shimmer except for the clone of Kane, which the Shimmer entity would have already understood, and Lena after the entity destroyed itself, removing the barrier to exit. Still a very interesting video to see how the effects of the Shimmer would be broken down in reality, but some things are just meant to not be fully understood.

[@thedude6058]

i'm gonna disagree with your objection about the plants. since the growth would be exponential, rather than linear, it basically wouldn't show until minutes before completely replacing her. in addition, plants would not mutate in this way because they have no cells that move throughout their body, just sugar water with nutrients. any shimmer mutations would be localized, as we see in the movie. with the theory as roanoke proposed it, shimmer would only move in one direction in cases like hair, finger nails, and horns, and that's exactly what we see, with the (absolutely beautiful) flower deer not turning into a plant like radeck, because its fur and antlers don't carry anything back into the rest of its body. as for the house, I'd say that it was created via recreation of kane's memories, as other commentors have explained that in the original book series the shimmer "energy network" takes in memories from those which it consumes or comes in contact with, and it's definitely possible for a set of microorganisms to build a structure that looks like a house. if they took it apart i'd bet they'd find something like a skeleton built out of lignin, instead of standard framing and insulation.

[@itsyaboidaniel2919]

@@thedude6058 The rate of growth is still unseen in anything on Earth. Plus, only Raddick suffered from the plants growing from her, and none of the other team members. With the plants mutating slowly, that should be less of an issue if they're mutating sufficiently, like with animal cells and circulatory systems, and with the deer, the antlers not carrying anything back to the body doesn't change much, as their whole bodies would've changed. The house could've been made from Kane's memories, or Lena's, or both, but the most likely option is simply coincidence, as some houses just have the same blueprints. Although the interior being the same is very coincidental, or it is also a creation of the Shimmer, which I think would be fun to see on a time-lapse of a house assembling itself.

[@grahamdavies8986]

I loved the addition of you adding your thought process into the script. In part because it made a longer video, which I love, but also because it was cool to see how you go from thought to thought. I definitely wouldn't mind that being added into more scripts in the future where it would be a good addition.

[@brittneydawn2429]

Can’t imagine intentionally missing your recap of the movie. They’re so fun!

[@dillonoickle5841]

i watch the recap 100% of the time and like 50% plus i listen to the science lol

[@colesonfox6544]

His recaps can be pretty boring to be honest

[@saintlyvalor7855]

It would be even more horrifying if that woman fused with the bear was still fully conscious and aware of her fused state.

[@sharondornhoff7563]

Whether it's a woman fused into a bear or a bear mutated to *think* it's a woman, it's still horrific.

[@bradleythomas3]

I dont know if you've seen it, but the sturddlefish is an accidental hybrid of a sturgeon and a paddle fish, who's last common ancestor was over 180 million years ago. I'm not sure of the leading theory to why it was possible, I've seen it claimed it's because they are still quite similar due to their slower evolution, but it's an interesting concept that some distantly related species can make hybrids. Maybe the gatorshark is possible, we just need to give them some mood music!

[@noc1080]

I was actually searching for a video from you on this a couple weeks ago after watching it. I was interested in your take on the bear and thought “surely he’s done this”. Really Glad you finally got to it and hope you keep up the great content!

[@AdamTehranchiYT]

My personal take was that the meteor had a lifeform on it that created a kind of cocoon made of, whatever force fields are made of, that acted like it did because it wasn't in it's natural environment, like a flatworm that has a super complicated life cycle suddenly becoming pathogenic. Which is why it was destroyed after the job was done. Although in nature it would have been discarded or eaten. Out of universe it was probably the color out of space without the problematic parts of HP Lovecraft. Liked the movie and your review 👍🏻👍🏻

[@thedude6058]

"problematic parts of HP Lovecraft" man i have no idea what you're talking about. ...and what's this about a cat?

[@sirrhosis4638]

I hope you can cover Shin Godzilla. Would be pretty interesting to hear your thoughts on a rapidly evolving lizard that just wants to die.

[@Broomer52]

I’m not even sure if Shin is a Lizard. It’s earliest form looked almost like an Eel. However I felt bad for it despite all the destruction it was causing because the screaming, flailing and profuse bleeding at times gave the impression that it was in pain and panicking. Even it’s atomic breath and lasers seemed like something it was doing on accident like it was breathing atomic smoke and was chocking on it at the same time before it turned into a powerful laser it could barely handle. The it’s body was constantly evolving and changing to protect itself but it never seemed on purpose. Sort of like how in The Thing the individual cells worked together until a threat came to it and the cells would retreat in different directions to get away resulting in random flailing shapeshifting. The cells of Shin seemed working to improve the body against the bodies will and anything to make itself stronger despite the clear pain it put on the body itself.

[@TheManCalledDrHorse]

Hey, that's another film about a metaphor that people completely missed because cool monster.

[@GreaterGrievobeast55]

@@TheManCalledDrHorsewhatever meaning you think was missed it's certainly not from a lack of trying on the audiences part. All sorts of shin Godzillas fans are quick to bring up the political messages allegories and analyze specific scenes.

[@darrelsam419]

I'm so happy you're covering this movie. :D The biology and mutations in the movie absolutely fascinated me even though it still confused me. I love your theory about how the Shimmer causes genetic material from different living creatures to combine.

[@j_g_t6091]

I love your videos. I appreciate you commenting on things you like/dislike in addition to the analysis. Idk its almost like listening to a friend talk about something rather than a dissertation

[@forgiv]

Annihilation was one of those female led movies that did most things right and didn't try to make the girls seem better than the boys by bringing the boys down. It also does a great job of making the girls people instead of perfect beings with no flaws. The Descent was another one of those movies.

[@DustoVonSusto]

So true, there's nothing wrong with a film having a cast of majority women, if the fact that they're women isn't significant to the story. They're just characters that happen to be female, wish some movies understood this

[@forgiv]

@@DustoVonSusto I especially like the way this movie did it. They were like, "Well we noticed that the only thing all the people we sent so far had in common is that they're men so we're gonna try sending women and see what happens" which is a pretty realistic approach. Add on to that the fact that the women really ended up having almost exactly the same outcome as the men (with the actual protagonist being the only difference, which is true of all stories). It's actually a pretty "feminist" movie in that it gives the same opportunities to both men and women and then concludes with the idea that the sex didn't actually matter at all and the ultimate truth is that humanity > aliens. Which I'm always on board with.

[@neonlightcabasag4043]

@@forgiv Agreed but sadly hollywood has an excess of third-rate feminists who more than anything else demean a woman's own strengths. Really they should just write people/characters/individuals because gender more often than not doesn't matter in a subject's circumstances.

[@BadAtGaming3484]

I forgot the descent was an all female cast, that was a really good movie.

[@captnwinkle]

The Descent sucked. And laughable "critics" said it was the next Alien jajajajajaja

[@bishkit]

Finally! This has been the movie I've been hoping you'd cover, thank you so much

[@RoanokeGaming]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@dionphonizedwing]

i think it’s cool to mention that the ‘two’ deer lena sees are not perfect mimics of each other; one is pure white with blossoming antlers, and the other is a mottled dirty white with dead antlers. a dying, decayed echo of the living deer. the bear reflects this too, with its bony skull face. just more symbolism- the house is also decayed and abandoned, a reflection of the real house. was an interesting movie for sure

[@GusMortis]

I love the knowledge you have and the possible explanations of how these kind of plot devices could be real. More then that, I love when your knowledge tells us how useless a stand in extra playing a paramedic is.

[@DrowsyScientist]

18:49 Agreed! I tend to get weird looks when I express my feelings on it though, so I have stopped. It's nice to hear someone out there feels the same way! Also, f yeah, love your vids. I got hooked once you did the Bioshock one. Glad you are gaining traction.

[@alexanderdede6354]

Wow, this was a very interesting video and well put together. I only have a BS in biology where I focused more on molecular genetics... What you were able to do was amazing. From exploring Hox genes, horizontal gene transfer in bacteria, restriction enzymes, enzymatic activity, etc... You really did a wonderful job. It, at least to me, made sense... And it was conceivable that this is what would go down within the shimmer... You have certainly earned another subscriber! Thanks!

[@ryanmahaffie329]

Since you seem to be so interested in the film adaptation, I suggest you read the book(s) by Jeff Vandermeer. Area-X is the name for the collection, and while the movie veers REALLY heavily from the novel, it's still somehow both a faithful, and faithless rework. Jeff's ridiculously good and weird, and knows exactly how to get you to raise questions. Like a modern Lovecraft, but nix the xenophobia and replace it with environmentalism. Borne was good too, love me some giant sentient plants fighting kaiju bears.

[@captnwinkle]

So from one stupid idea to another one

[@SirPerfectful]

@@captnwinkle Why is taking care of the environment a stupid idea?

[@Sue_Me_Too]

"Xenophobia" is precisely why I couldn't become immersed in the movie. People who think like me exist, and the first thing I thought was "Suffer Not the Alien to Live" There's a space alien usurping United States Territory.... and NOBODY tried shooting a cruise missile at it, or parking a battleship off the coast and using the big guns, or flying an airplane over it and dropping a bomb (or dropping paratroopers for that matter)? Don't even get me started on the idiocy of sending multiple teams in on foot AND NOT TYING A F*CKING ROPE TO ONE OF THEM!

[@ScorchtheHawk]

That is a shockingly good way to describe Jeff

[@Jonesiee8675]

Man I love the explanations you have, especially when you implement ideals that are outside of our comprehension and religion. Keep up the good work man!

[@domomitsune5920]

That bear is a most disturbing thing I've seen in years. I still terrified of that creature. The fact it can scream in the voice of its victims, still gets me to this day.

[@Zombraiined]

As you said, the movie is extremely up for interpretation, but my takeaway varies heavily right at the end. I believe that the Lina that leaves the Shimmer is one of the clones, like Kane. The joint eye shimmer at the end is to show us that they are both those chromatic creatures of the shimmer, not that they are the originals that are forever changed. The Lina in the interviews and with Kane afterwards is extremely different in behavior than the "real" Lina, just as the returned Kane was extremely inhuman, having no understanding of what it was to be human in more than shape. I also believe that the shimmer creatures intend to, in some way, replace humanity with the chromatic recreations through more traditional biological means, after in some way absorbing the fact that the gigantic Shimmering bubble would not go unaddressed for much longer.

[@yannaedc5934]

Happy to see you covered this movie, I love it so much the mystery. The intestines and flower people were the scariest scenes for me.

[@leociresi4292]

Mine was the grotesque grizzly bear that mimicked Shepherd’s cries of agony

[@ryanhampson673]

Saw this in the theater and DUUDE, the bear growling with the screaming voice creeped me TF out..Haven’t had a movie “monster” have an effect on me since I was a kid. Who ever did the sound design…Bruh you nailed it.

[@lordwintertown8284]

Damn I kinda wish I saw it at the theaters as geez that seems great especially with the surround sounds of the speakers plus side it ain't watching it at 3am in a storm heh...

[@RenzDavis]

Been killing it with the content on gaming and Tales. Been listening to both channels hardcore. 10/10 watching again and again.

[@dawning5285]

Finally 👀 The time has come *a dusty mental preparation button for the explanation about the shimmered bear switches to ON*

[@RoanokeGaming]

Gonna get heavy lol

[@dawning5285]

@@RoanokeGaming 🐻

[@dawning5285]

@kurtisconnershorts ?

[@Wombattlr]

@@dawning5285 bot

[@Biduck1776]

@@Wombattlr its cat bot

[@ThereminElectro]

You have VERY quickly become my favorite youtube channel. The value of your comedy, and your knowledge is just absolutely incomparable. Thank you for all this golden content

[@spencerwilkie4218]

I am not at all a car guy but hearing you talk about it with so much passion, makes me pretty happy

[@itshananahbanana]

Thank you for doing this. I'm actually making a game that was inspired by some of the creepy stuff for Annihilation, and having someone such as yourself dissect it in the way you have is a tremendous help!!! And is also super cool hahaha.

[@Willinillyt_Blogs]

I really don't understand how this channel doesn't have more views. All of the videos are entertaining, and they're always so well done and not drawn out. Rlly deserves more attention

[@vexmyth0clast]

You are probably the best channel to watch when it comes to story and break downs of these virus’ and mutations in games and tv. I think I’ve watched like every episode I can’t get enough of this stuff when I’m bored at work.

[@SolarPunk80]

Awesome video as always! Speaking of real life horror, thanks to your content on “The Last of us,” and unexpectedly as a plot twist in a western series, I discovered how horrifying syphilis had been, like disfiguring similarly to that fungus!

[@Guccibear100]

If you like the movie I strongly suggest the books, at least the first one. They're very different, but really enjoyable in thier own way.

[@sagebaca2013]

Hey Roanoke, I had a suggestion for April Fool's Day. I think it'd be funny to do a scientific breakdown of the ravenous sheep and the Weresheep from the ridiculous horror film Black Sheep 🐑

[@Blasted2Oblivion]

That movie was the best fever dream movie ever.

[@sagebaca2013]

@@Blasted2Oblivion it's stupid in every way but hands down entertaining and hilarious

[@ubergamer18]

Hey just want to say thanks for all the hard work you put into the vids. Always great content. I love the scientific overview you bring to these movies and games. So thanks and God bless.

[@HydoSkills]

I've been watching a couple of these video's. Realy cool Roanoke uses entertainment like films and games to explain very deep scientific things

[@18videowatcher41]

You had a good point in the intro, and it reminded me of a saying I once heard or read: “Without order nothing can exist, but without chaos nothing can evolve.” Unfortunately I don’t remember when or where I read/heard it, so I don’t know who to attribute it to.

[@jedstanaland2897]

The watch method will give you a general idea of north if your in the north and south in the south. Another thing is that you need to measure approximately halfway between the hour and minute hands and you need to confirm that measurement by waiting a minute or two then retaking it. Also this movie is like a good interpretation of color out of space.

[@bradleypalmer6314]

That's rather weird. i was taught Hold horizontal and flat on your palm - Northern hemisphere = point hour hand towards the sun and find the midpoint between hour hand and 12⁰clock - Southern hemisphere = point 12⁰clock towards sun and find midpoint between 12⁰clock and hour hand

[@jedstanaland2897]

@@bradleypalmer6314 you don't hold the watch flat you need to line it up with the sun and it will give you the direction towards south or north depending upon what hemisphere you are in and it needs you to reconfirm the process at least once in addition to you absolutely needing to consider that if you don't know what hemisphere you are in its useless to determine an accurate direction and the next thing is that if you are looking for an accurate heading your not going to get it you will only get a general idea about what direction is north or south. There are other problems like if you can't see the sun it's useless and maybe the moon however there are some other things that you also must be certain of and that is your zone for how close to the poles you are because it gets more difficult and less accurate the closer to the poles you are. Most of the time you can however use it as long as your watch isn't broken.

[@Psyrens]

Roanoke, first of all your content is awesome and I hope youre having a good day Also; this thumbnail is great. With the color scheme and font, it SO looks like the cover art for a borderlands DLC lol

[@daniell1483]

I loved Annihilation and thought this channel would NEVER cover it because so much was left undefined, unexplained, etc., but I am very glad to be proven wrong. The best part for me was the speculation on how, to some degree, this Shimmer effect can shift things between states of matter to energy and back, helping to explain the doppelgänger at the end. That scene mirroring the two's movements left a really strong impression on me personally, so understanding that thing's nature a bit better now feels really awesome.

[@21baron]

I've always thought the 'gator was mixed with a snapping turtle - the circular pattern resembles it a lot more than those of a shark.

[@jeffumbach]

Reminds me of the throat of a Loggerhead Turtle, lined with spines to aid in swallowing the jellyfish that they eat.

[@socialdichotomy]

The Southern Reach series is one I consider a must read for any fan of cosmic horror. An aside: I originally started watching this channel one night after drinking due to it being the same name as my home town… ahh when drunk thoughts bring you to kick ass content! East Georgia here, keep up the great work!

[@toonnoon19]

The shimmer is the prism from that Pink Floyd album cover. Cells go in, get split 6 ways from sunday and come out with arainbow of functions. What happens is also influenced by how you feel: The guy with eels for intestines was probably losing himself to nervousness, panicking over if he really has the guts to make it through. Finger lady saw them move because she was feeling change. Flower girl turned into one because it looked like a pretty way to give up and i cant explain funguy. The doctor and the protag made it so far because they had purpose keeping them together until they saw the thing. It makes sense that foreign dna going either way would wreak more havoc on the organisms and i can base this off how the deer looked pretty similar. They're unlikely to contact blood or a creature outside their species for that matter. Yea I'm certain. Its a prism from space that splits light and matter, unalive and unfeeling. All it does is mitosis. Interaction with humans caused it to pick up destruction as a fun thing to do with its shiny new skinsuit and killed itself--perhaps inadvertently. But it's 'offspring' live on.

[@DakotaofRaptors]

Tool and Pink Floyd have a lot of similarities

[@SylvesterAshcroft88]

This film was so damn good, so glad you're finally covering this film, your channel is awesome, keep up the great content! :D

[@AngDevigne]

You have been keeping me hyped for my medical neuroscience course and I can't thank you enough for that.

[@theartisticspartan4488]

I’ve always found this movie really interesting, what with the splicing and intersecting of different genomes and species. I’m really glad to see you cover it! It was a tad bit hard to follow, but that’s just because my education in Biology is rudimentary, not college level. Lol

[@lucasvallet4487]

I feel like the shimmer was inspired "The Colour Out of Space" from Lovecraft, the basic of the story is fairly similar (weird alien colour who was on a crashed meteorite make things go weird)

[@ColbyRicker]

Alex Garland is one of my favorite film makers. His biblical allegory is used so well

[@QueenOfOwls]

I was thinking yesterday i really wanted roanoke to cover this movie, literally just thought it, this is good.

[@RoanokeGaming]

I hope I do it justice!

[@Cecona]

I really enjoy your scientific take on these sci-fi biologies, it’s very intriguing to hear how these things could be possible and also pointing out when things aren’t realistic like the ambulance ride lol.