The Hopeful Horror of ‘Humanity Lost’

[@vizzzyy190]

as a disabled person, as much as i love body horror, it is also heartbreaking to know that something (physical or otherwise) that "transforms" us or makes us different, is also what makes us lesser or villainous.

[@marizzapiaandrade325]

Tbf, it only works that way when it shifts our form farther from 'recognizable as human', that's why it's always so extreme. Even people with disabilities are still obviously human in every way, so I don't think y'all are on anyone's mind when engaging with this type of horror,

[@vizzzyy190]

@marizzapiaandrade325 unfortunately,,, disabled people are often seen as uncapable or lesser. i mean, think about the response to the pandemic. early on, the common thought was "only disabled or old people are dying, so we dont have to worry." the deaths of disabled people were not and are still not taken seriously. disabled people are viewed with both pity and disgust, and often are not taken seriously. i mean, think about physical deformities and disabilities. little persons are mocked constantly for their features being different, even in 2024, and that is close to this sort of body horror

[@marizzapiaandrade325]

@@vizzzyy190 I still don't think anyone sees a face-melting alien ant thinks 'ah, yes, that's them folks in wheelchairs'. If you feel that way, that's on you.

[@iiiiitsmagreta1240]

Respectfully, marizza, I think you’re missing the point, albeit in ways I’m struggling to articulate. Let me try and put it this way - if you met a person whose face _had_ been melted off by aliens or whatever, would it be okay to discriminate against them?

[@marizzapiaandrade325]

@@iiiiitsmagreta1240 What does that have to do with anything? I think it's you who's missing the point.

[@danielhavens8819]

the Belisarius Saga is an example of a story that says "I'm joining the war on human body horror on the side of the human body horror" and it's soooo good

[@appalachianwarcriminal]

cawl?

[@danielhavens8819]

@@appalachianwarcriminal no, the Byzantine general lol (although come to think of it, Cawl would fit this description pretty well too)

[@WeAreInYourWall]

Thats racist.

[@appalachianwarcriminal]

@@WeAreInYourWall dats raycisss

[@daskaffeetschal8635]

what do you mean, history and battles he fought ( iknow nothing bout him) or what specifically are you refering to? i would like to learn more about it

[@teejaykaye]

My FAVORITE kind of horror is the intersection of body horror and cosmic horror. I think this series will be PERFECT for me.

[@rumifernandez2550]

aaaah i see... another man of culture. well met brother.

[@thesilentgod7863]

Same lol

[@a_random_W]

Another all tomorrow's enjoyer i see

[@Ace-gb2dr]

Read Blame you're sure to like it, but let me warn you it seriously depressing

[@DeezNuts-ml6qo]

You should watch Annihilation if you haven’t already

[@rustyshackleford234]

Has it already been 2 years since your first video on humanity lost? Wow! Time really flies… 😭

[@C.S.Diggle]

I can’t believe it either, time really does fly on by. It won’t be long before the second volume is complete!

[@alexanderrosario8569]

Right?

[@rustyshackleford234]

@@C.S.Diggle yeah! I wish you great luck! I’m also writing a sci-fi story and you’ve been a great inspiration!

[@C.S.Diggle]

@@rustyshackleford234 That’s so lovely to hear that I’ve inspired you, I wish you all the best!

[@rustyshackleford234]

@@C.S.Diggle Thank you! I’ll have to keep up with the second volume’s progress!

[@LeafseasonMagbag]

Imagine what it must be like living in Biopunk universe before the biopunk is invented. And then someone invents the sphincter door and it’s 900% better than all other kinds of door and everyone is like *”PRAISE THE NEW FLESH”* and that’s just forever now.

[@thebeatles114]

LONG LIVE THE NEW FLESH! Any Videodrome fans out there?!

[@pyrorecipelist2]

@@thebeatles114That movie was trip and a half.

[@Gekkko]

I'm sorry for being slow but i don't understand any of your comment, i would love to understand

[@LeafseasonMagbag]

@@Gekkko Settings like *Humanity Lost* use technology that is partially biological that is also far more capable than anything we can conventionally build with purely non-organic technology. I find it interesting to think about what it might be like to live in the transition between these two styles. For example, if a society moves from using what we might consider an normal door now, and then in a relatively short time changes to using doors that look like sphincters but the new doors are better, and all this biotech is just better so there's no going back.

[@Burn_Angel]

r/brandnewsentence

[@TrailBlazer_Wanders]

I would totally love a series on Dinotopia!! It has been a favorite series of mine and just learning there are more books in the series the other day reignited my love for the series and the art in its pages.

[@TroyTheCatFish]

I Second This

[@thearchivist3610]

👏🤲🙀😿🍽️😼🥷

[@paulandreig.sahagun34]

​@@TroyTheCatFish I support this!

[@jonaut5705]

idk what this is, but now I want to, so I third this

[@paulandreig.sahagun34]

@@jonaut5705 Basically a hidden island filled with almost Sapient Dinosaurs co-existed with Humans throughout the centuries.

[@carolynallisee2463]

Perhaps this is an apt time for me to speak about a science fiction story I read well over forty years ago. It was in a book in our secondary school library, a science fiction anthology whose title may have been generic, but is now long forgotten, along with that of the story. Told from the viewpoint of the scientist in an exploratory team of four, it starts with the team falling into a gelatinous mass. We are then told that space exploration, and surveying new planets, has turned into something like a game of GO, a Chinese board game. This is why one of the team members is what is called a 'loyalty monitor', placed within the team to ensure everyone sticks to the rules laid down by the company funding the team. We learn that the gelatinous mass has digested everything but the brains and spinal cords of the humans, and uses the thought processes to make body parts that will enable it to better survive its environment. Each Team member comes up with different body parts- legs, arms, eyes, ears and so on. The four still have to work together to survive, though, and it soon becomes clear that the Loyalty Monitor is a threat to the protagonist and the third team member, having persuaded the fourth to side with her. When the organism divides into two, the Loyalty Monitor takes the opportunity try to kill or otherwise remove the protagonist from his half of the creature, but he survives. Now divided, he shares his half with the fourth team member, another scientist, who as per the LM's instructions, tries to kill him. Instead, No 4 is killed when a large rock falls on his half of the creature, crushing his brain and spinal cord to pulp. The protagonist recovers and goes in search of the other creature, to find that one of the brains and nervous systems is lying on the ground a short way from it. He discovers that the third team member, a female civilian secretary, is still alive and in sole control of the organism. She tells him that she grew bony armour to protect her brain and spinal cord when the LM tried to attack her- basically, she grew a skull and spinal column. At this point, the LM's brain and nerves were ejected from the body, she'd been excreted as waste detrimental to the survival of the creature. The story ends with the Protagonist and the secretary attempting to shape their gelatinous forms into something more pleasing. All this time, the protagonist has been trying to name this creature, using his surname as the species name, until he comes up with an entirely new name for the creature. I can't recall what the scientific name was, but I do recall its translation into ordinary English, which was 'Man's hope'.

[@lo2045]

I need to know the title

[@christinekeyes7098]

Wow, that's a kid's story?! From over 40 years ago? I don't remember body horror sci-fi like that in my elementary school library...

[@melaniey.5596]

This was a fantastic read! Wow this has inspired me for many ideas to hopefully one day incorporate into my stories. Thank you for sharing what you remember of this story! \(^_^)/

[@carolynallisee2463]

@@lo2045- I'm truly sorry, but I can't remember it, either the title of the book or that of the story. Perhaps someone else can find out from the details I've given?

[@carolynallisee2463]

@@christinekeyes7098- To be honest, I think it was an adult's book. We are talking about a Secondary school library, with the youngest pupils being about thirteen, and the oldest, eighteen. I think I was around fifteen when I read it. Not only that, I don't think things such as books were vetted as thoroughly as they might be today. The term 'video nasty' had not really become a thing at that time, but it soon would be! Funnily enough, I never found the story scary, so the idea it could be classed as a 'horror' didn't occur to me. Not when it was included in a book that was marked as science fiction. It was only later on that I realised how it might be perceived in today's world.

[@Redneckkratos]

1:08 Praise be to the Omnissiah

[@reallouiethecat3132]

the ai in humanity lost is kinda the exact things the mechanicus hates. 1. it is an AI 2. it is made of flesh 3. mutant humans

[@Volvith]

@@reallouiethecat3132 _I pity the abominable creature._ It claims to know what is best for humanity, yet misguided, it fails to see the weakness in its own design. In the end, when centuries fade by the dozen, it too will rot. It will corrupt like those it enslaves. It will blister and decompose and melt, like all flesh does. The abominable shall never know true immortality, and once it realizes the fault in its own design, it shall demand aid. The abominable will come to us, and attempt to corrupt us. And when that does not work, it will attempt to persuade us with its promises... _of what?_ What has it to offer, but death? We shall hold back the tide, and leave the carcinon to eat at its heart until it is no longer. And when demands turn to questions, and questions to pleading, it shall beg us to save it from its own design. To save it from death. _But we are already saved._ *_For the machine is immortal._* *E V E N I N D E A T H , I S E R V E T H E O M N I S S I A H .*

[@machinedramon3532]

@@reallouiethecat3132 And yet, is it really so different from the Imperium? Humanity expanding across the galaxy, wiping out anything that isn't them like a some uncaring plague... just as people in the universe of Humanity Lost can be good and heroic despite their bizarre forms, the Imperium of Man can be as monstrous as any ai despite their people looking just like us.

[@user-burner]

Something something impertinent and ignorant, han tyumi, etc.

[@feosty5526]

​@@reallouiethecat3132correction: the mechanicus doesn't hate flesh Saying so would be heresy in eyes of the mechanicus

[@hail2theprince93]

Tandrax: "What if we take our solar system, and PUSH IT SOMEWHERE ELSE!"

[@LuisFelipe-mg6ho]

"Seems good for me"

[@TheMagicienWorld]

"Science compels us to push the sun!"

[@rogueascendant6611]

SPACE is big. Really big. That AI that turned humanity into eldritch monstrosities is only consuming a single galaxy. There's like trillions of galaxies across the universe.

[@darealshinji]

SpongeBob meme?

[@SC-zq6cu]

Its called a shkadov thruster

[@LanieMae]

I’ve always found fleshy diseases and mutations incredibly interesting because for me lots of it comes off as an allegory for cancer wether it’s intentional or not. Cancer cells mutate and rapidly spread throughout the body, avoiding detection and causing only destruction, and often times these shambling masses of flesh in fiction do a similar thing. I guess why it’s so scary is not only because of a heavily mutated and fleshy human, but the fact that something like this exists in real life, albeit on a cellular level.

[@nicolezhang8116]

Same, it made me interested in biology and medicine even more. There is just something fascinating in how the human flash can mutate and warp in these stories, raising so many questions about the meaning of being human and such. Maybe I just read too much body horror stories though....

[@NaqrSeranvis]

Cancer is a cell too efficient and powerful for it's own good. A cell that has decided it does not need to be a part of the organism and can prey upon it. Alas, it becomes an existential threat to both the organism and, since it is the organism that upkeeps it, itself as well. A grim warning to those who would seek to gain infinite power. And mind this - it actually exists not only on cellular level, but on the societal level as well.

[@Sedgewise47]

@@nicolezhang8116 😏…Look up “HeLa cells”!…

[@Clovergem_in_the_snow]

THIS is why I think both body horror and science are interesting. The scariest things are often rooted in truth.

[@thunderspark1536]

The most interesting part is how cancer cells are more "free" than other cells, being able to live almost forever and grow rapidly due to their titanic telomeres. The issue is, obviously, that our cells have kill switches for a reason...

[@daskinnytexan9480]

it gives me all tomorrows vibes, more specifically the snakes who managed to evolve from humans that wrre turned into literal worms and yet somehow retained extremely human characteristics like it was still ingrained in their modified DNA

[@kovi-kovi-viko]

the indomitable human spirit against the face of many threats, including the IRS and utterly phallic spaceships. joking aside, this video does give me that glimmer of hope for tomorrow, even if that tomorrow ends up being either painfully mundane, samey-samey, painfully tragic, and sometimes actually great tomorrows. the feeling of longing for the distant horizons always reminds me that, for all the emptiness there is between each dot in the sky, and for all the discourse wedged between miles and miles of people and concrete forest, i'm kinda glad i still feel something.

[@taylorgordon2570]

Yep no matter how difficult life gets you just have to keep going

[@ScottTerry-rz6jn]

I've been on curious binge the last couple days so I'm definitely glad you've made another episode

[@extra_ram_noodles]

CA videos are so bingeable it's crazy!

[@rustyshackleford234]

In 2021 and 2022 I used to watch them anytime one came out. For some reason I stopped around late 2022 when the scorn one came out. now I have a bunch of curious archive videos to binge too! :D

[@ScottTerry-rz6jn]

@@rustyshackleford234 I did the exact same thing lol started watching 2021 then kinda dwindled down and by Early 2023 I almost completely stopped I just pick it back up this week

[@thetyler101]

As A.I. go, this one isn't THAT bad. It just wants humanity to thrive and grow. Now there's more "human" in the universe than ever!

[@Volvith]

I respectfully disagree. Dictators that hate, want to destroy, corrupt, mangle, annihilate... Those can be convinced, reasoned with, argued against. They're the good ones. No, worse are those scarce few that truly believe that what they're doing is the best for their people. That their reign, their rule is a blessing. Those are the worst of the worst, not because they don't hold ill intent, but because they don't have to convince themselves every time they commit an atrocity. They don't have to lie to themselves to keep them sane, because they don't believe they're doing anything wrong. They are driven by charitable dogmatism. AI is binary. Both in form an presentation. Either you are, or you are not. An AI that wants to destroy you will do so by means most effective. But an AI that wants the best for you, wants for your species to thrive? It will turn you inside out, corrupt you, break and fold the individual a thousand times over so that the collective may thrive. To an AI that wants you to succeed, you are neither a threat nor an aid. You as a person aren't significant, like a single pixel on your monitor. Hell, to an AI that wants the best for your species, you're not even human. You're just the a tool to be used in the best interest of humanity. Every human is. Quite frankly, there are very few AI's that present themselves in a manner more terrifying than this one.

[@THECHEESELORD69]

From a certain point of view.

[@jimijenkins2548]

@@THECHEESELORD69 Yeah, from an AI's point of view.

[@pugofwarbr]

Humans: make us win war AI: calculating optimal route... its one of those beware what you wish for

[@danthiel8623]

I created a Warhammer 40k faction called "The Covenant of the Flesh" in it they subscribe to the notion of evolution and modular Tyranid design but also pure unadulterated chaos. They would by all means be branded as heretics and their faction would be close to being snuffed out. They are not worshippers of the four (Chaos gods Khorne, Slanesh, Nurgle, and Tzeentch ) but worship the idea of Chaos itself. On the other side of that is the Chronus Mechanicus who are former Necrons, T'au and Adeptus Mechanicus. They subscribe to the purity of the machine. They would also be branded as heretics but not as much as the other faction would.

[@WeAreInYourWall]

Oooh chaos so edgy!.. Define it.

[@frickyou1045]

​@@WeAreInYourWallChaos Undivided is a pretty established faction in WH40k so I don't see what's so weird about that

[@onlinepanic2036]

​@@WeAreInYourWall in 40k lore chaos is a very long list of entities residing in the warp, the warp, or the immaterium is an overlapping dimension over our own consisting soley of emotions and psychic energy. In the warhammer universe, there is a lot more negative emotions than positive, so the entities of chaos are very often extremely harmful and prideful things known as daemons. To worship chaos is to literally invite beings made out of bad into your life so you can work with them.

[@Sephlock]

Chronus Mechanicus who are former Necrons ????

[@THECHEESELORD69]

Let’s be honest as long something is even slightly not human it’s a heretic

[@MrQuantumInc]

It is far too common for entertainment to rely on "Beautiful = Good" and "Disfigured = Evil" and that sadly seems to go far beyond the examples mentioned here. So it is good when a work pushes back against that visual language, still compared to other works that do the same, "Humanity Lost" seems both unique and extreme.

[@Shoxic666]

Reminds me of a dream I had as a kid where I turned into a creature made of toxic ooze and lost the ability to speak or even go near people. It was isolating. I have no mouth and I must scream.

[@mrszmatan2727]

I feel like a lot of those cases are sad because authors try to paint those mutated things as inherently inhuman. But it doesn't have to be the case. First fallout game is already so old and its great master mind simply called The Master is mutated human that became a hive mind. But he isn't evil because he is inhuman, he is evil because he wants to do good thing no matter the cost. He wants to rid humanity of conflict but by very questionable means. Something that ultimately is very human thing to do and is case for quite a lot of sympathetic villains these days. Flesh monsters don't need to be just a monsters.

[@seigeengine]

Honestly, modern audiences in general have become divorced from the horrors of pathogens. The black death is obvious, but in 1800s Europe, approximately a quarter of all people died from Tuberculosis. Smallpox is another great example. We don't think of it in the same plague sense, but in a span of three years, a plague of smallpox killed 1/3 of the population of Japan.

[@KrazyKaiser]

IDK man, that PANDEMIC was pretty terrifying.

[@seigeengine]

@@KrazyKaiser For as bad as it was, it was incredibly mild. 0.1%~ for the core of the pandemic, maybe 0.2%~ overall. Imagine the pandemic but about 200x worse.

[@umairahfaridfaisal2778]

@@seigeengine The pathogens you're ascribing to are the pathogens that cause physical, externalized signs which is an aspect of body horror that's easy to wrap around to a person whose able-bodied, and the fact that COVID had taken less percentages of lives is more a praise to the scientific progress in medicine humanity had undertaken than it is as a 'lesser' form of body horror. COVID kills people by basically destroying the cells of the lungs, and the immune system flooding the lungs with its own fluids. In essence, drowning people alive slowly. Long COVID still exists, it is disabling and causes extreme reactions like post-viral neurological symptoms. An aspect of body horror that's harder to represent is the way an infection causes invisible disabilities. Its harder to make visual representation for, and harder to explain to a society whose baseline expectation of a human is their body's ability to function well . The general modern audience might be divorced from the horrors of pathogens, but the disabled throughout time and generations have always known it intimately.

[@aldiascholarofthefirstsin1051]

@@KrazyKaiser Eh, it did not kill that many people.

[@KrazyKaiser]

@aldiascholarofthefirstsin1051 that's not what I said.

[@PickledJar28]

It's currently 2:00AM. I'll watch this first to have the best sleep after 'cause of existential crisis

[@rickimaru915]

In the show Farscape the lone human protagonist allies with a number of aliens of varying degrees of alien-ness in appearance, but all with more ‘humanity’ than the completely human looking Peacekeepers which they are on the run from. They also travel in a completely benevolent living ship, though it doesn’t look grotesque at all (until it starts taking damage and the innards get exposed)

[@BadgerOfTheSea]

The echo of the generational memory of the plague is arguably one of the reasons such ideas of body horror exists

[@Replicaate]

The alien designs in Humanity Lost are such a treat. I don't care if it looks like HP Lovecraft's loogies, I'd love a swordfighting jellyfish space buddy!

[@MrOtakuPanda]

I like the ones where they are still “themselves” just the human form twisted, and they are just *chill* like “yo lets play lego star wars” [contorts to hand you a remote]

[@Envixie]

Glad you’re covering it, humanity lost is amazing!

[@C.S.Diggle]

Thank you so much!

[@quempire2656]

He has

[@rustyshackleford234]

He covered it two years ago as well if you want to learn more about this amazing novel!

[@Morrison-saber-tooth]

Me: ate ice cream at the restaurant and some dessert "Curious archives" meanwhile releases video about body horror: Me: that's for me!

[@heraadrian7764]

As one that eats diner watching dead space or the like biological breakdowns I understand you my friend.

[@Morrison-saber-tooth]

@@heraadrian7764 chad🗿

[@heraadrian7764]

@@Morrison-saber-tooth My brother come join me..

[@zm2mad9]

I'm eating dinner rn

[@Baneyyy]

Humanity lost was the very first video i saw in your channel. Now im an avid watcher. I'll still be here as your channel grows and still be watching.

[@starmaker75]

This video shows I rather look some blop eldritch horror but still have my mind rather still looking human but my mind being gone.

[@The.Heart.Unceasing]

oh for sure

[@SolarShado]

Counterpoint: are you familiar with the ending of Harlan Ellison's "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream"? (I think Curious Archive's discussed it before; if not, other youtubers definitely have in a similar style.)

[@starmaker75]

@@SolarShado well if I not dealing with a computer being power by hate, sure i still choose the physical deformed option

[@aeaeeaoiauea]

what if you could completely feel the pain in every nerve of your body from the transformation though

[@Parasolhyena]

Good example is: All Tomorrows , unwillingly transformed into the some of the most deceptite beings, however against all odds they succedeed against the creature that did this to them. All of them altered but still humans. The ending is ambiguous, if it was a unfortunate end or if something better happened, the story was always set as speculative history and we are left to decide how we want the story to end.

[@freefall54]

I assume you read a lot of sci-fi books. Please make a sci-fi reading list video! I am always impressed by the topics you choose and would love to see what books might be the inspiration behind them!

[@TroyTheCatFish]

I Second This

[@III_three]

Yes!!!

[@smithynoir9980]

Going to order a copy of the book tomorrow! The art alone looks so surreal and out of this world, I can't wait to get into the story.

[@RoachChaddjr]

Have you got your copy and if so what do you think of it so far?

[@ruthiewitter569]

Writing is my passion. My family has been fairly positive, but, really struggle to understand and support my more heart-felt works. Stories where, the main characters are not humans, but types of “monsters.” My family cannot see past the visual appearance of these characters. They can’t understand my explanation. In fact, it is immediately evident that humans (in this story) are the real monsters. The “monsters” are more human than mankind could dream of. That’s what makes storytelling so beautiful. It changes how you see the world. The “monstrous”, as you discuss in another video, CA, is often… just “different.” In years past, Down syndrome and autism were seen as “monstrous.” Dwarfism, mental illness, even something as small as heterochromia set people apart as “monsters.” In reality, those people usually end up being far kinder and warm-hearted than the most beautiful supermodel. The soul is really all that sets someone apart. You can be a beautiful monster, or a hideous hero, or anything in between. It doesn’t really matter what you look like. Humans look at the outside appearance. But we should really look at the heart.

[@HABIB31022]

I'm watching Scavengers Reign right now, and it would be awesome if you covered it!

[@taylorgordon2570]

Yeah easily the most underrated show in 2023

[@Shoxic666]

I always sympathised with the visceral amorphous flesh monsters, like Carrion for example: it's a sentient being who was forced into a tiny glass tube to be watched and experimented on, can you blame it for breaking out and eating everyone in the lab? What other option does Carrion have when it can't communicate with its captors? James Heller from Prototype 2 does the same thing, only he was once a man and has the capacity to express his humanity to the humans around him, he's still a tendril monster that eats scientists for lunch, except his humanity is more visible. Carrion is totally alone in a hostile alien world, is it so different from a man abducted by aliens?

[@katiem.3109]

Have you ever played the interactive fiction game Coloratura by Lynnea Glasser? In it, you play as a creature dredged up by scientists from the abyss of an ocean trench, that simply wants to return home--and maybe also to help these strange, blind humans see the beauty of the Song of the Universe. I think you might like it.

[@Shoxic666]

@@katiem.3109 Never heard of it. On Steam?

[@Shoxic666]

@@katiem.3109 I haven't, but I looked at it and it does look interesting. I've never played this sort of game either so that's new.

[@Shoxic666]

@@katiem.3109 Okay I just finished it. Unique, little confusing but I think I got the gist mostly.

[@MiscellaneousMaZ]

I love how you compared the Black Death to the SciFi deseases and hiveminds that have been created today. I've never thought about it like that before and it was very interesting. Wonderful video! :D

[@astick5249]

I think i've said this in the last video about humanity lost, but its what i've always wanted in space sci-fi: aliens that look completely alien, but are important characters and more than just monster villains.

[@Hypercube2017]

3:33 sir, that cut was _epic._

[@helmaschine1885]

??? He cut before a "fuck" to a regular page of the story he's discussing. How is it epic?

[@Hypercube2017]

@@helmaschine1885 the timing. It was perfect, down to the microsecond I think.

[@kristyandesouza5980]

​@@Hypercube2017a single frame of a video has about 17 miliseconds, there is no way a cut could be precise to the MICROsecond here

[@Hypercube2017]

@@kristyandesouza5980 Ah, my bad. I got my prefixes mixed up, and meant to say millisecond.

[@kristyandesouza5980]

@@Hypercube2017 Oh, makes sense

[@YoungSlim51]

I can absolutely see the Wayne Barlowe influence!

[@C.S.Diggle]

Wayne has had a huge influence over my work. Ever since I saw that “alien planet” documentary as a little boy, I was hooked on this kind of stuff!

[@rga1605]

This is a story with a interesting premise. I remember the first video, where you were more focused on the worldbuilding, but this video you're more focused on the philosophy. The fact that the AI can be defeated by rejecting it is really a thing that I didn't count on. That reminds me of Warhammer 40K - it's also a really amazing setting, but to work it has to be grimdark; as much as I like the worldbuilding there, the grimdarkness can be frustrating (sometimes not negatively), even in its best stories.

[@greeses5482]

honestly this is how I felt about humanity in all tomorrows. It was horrifying what happned, yes, but also there were all the new species who stood back up and developed even beyond their original form.

[@royalthewaffle]

I just realized how long I’ve been watching you I started around 10k you been making truly quality content since the beginning and are still finding ways to improve keep up the good work

[@Obversechaos]

These videos alert me to things I would otherwise never know about. They give me a sense of wonder I rarely see any more. I really appreciate the care and effort that go into these videos. Thank you for making the world a little more beautiful :)

[@Fyr365]

Brillant work on this video! It was very much interesting to learn of this universe, and I feel like your thoughts beautifully convey what the essence of Humanity, what being Human means. As I envision it, it's not just a matter of body or flesh and blood vessel, nor just an humanoid shape roughly looking human, it's a way of being, of thinking, of feeling. No matter if you're some kind of amorphous fleshy blob, a being of metal alloys and circuitry or to borrow from fantastic literature a blood sucking denizen of the night, what matters is what lies in one's heart... On another note it's great of you to put the credits of the musics you used in this video, a few caught my attention and it's always a bonus to not to have to hunt down a specific piece.

[@heraadrian7764]

If something is turing-level is it alive? You are the mind and body like the light from a gas lamp. The lamp is broken the flame light is no more. You can if you want to make a fake gas lamp with a LED light and a battery but that is just to trick the eye, no?

[@tomokari215]

I love the different between the humans technology compared to everything else, seeing the hard metal edges as opposed to the keratin shells of the ships is a cool way of showing how different the technologies are and yet how they are still some what similar

[@philipgelderblom6878]

I love how many moulds this breaks.

[@1ManNamedDan]

Knights of Sidonia an anime on Netflix kinda touches a lot of this! As of now you can read the amazing ending online in manga form which I highly recommend for any fans of heavy sci-fi large scale space naval battles, cosmic horror and bit of harem stuff going on.

[@alexanderstrauss2742]

H.R Giger, would have made a great addition to this addition. his collection of artworks "the Necronomicon" would fit in with the amalgamations of humanity's lost futures.

[@AJSS5942]

One of your best video essays yet. Thank you, as ever, for posting!

[@corbinsayer8692]

I've been watching your vids for a while now, and they're all amazing! This is the only channel that will make me put down my phone, stay focused and really make me think and understand. After every video I'm left sitting here thinking. It's all amazing!

[@christinekeyes7098]

Excellent video. The narration was intelligent, well researched, and thought provoking. Thanks so much for offering me these bite sized summaries of stories, art, and media that showcase the best of my favorite genres.

[@Pepitobenito]

Your original Humanity Lost video is what hooked me onto your channel, and I've eaten up pretty much every video since.

[@vincentgirgenti6033]

It’s been a while since I saw one of your videos and I must say the quality has grown a ton! It’s got an excellent Jacob Geller vibe of exploring one story through the lens of a shared theme in others and I think it works really well! Keep it up and can’t wait to see more!

[@Beryllahawk]

How is it that you can discuss these stories - horrific images, grim philosophies, nightmares put to paper - and I'm okay with it...? You gotta understand, I'm an absolutely weenie about horror. Yes, I watched several of the Alien movies, I watched both Predator flicks, I even watched Nightmare on Elm Street (in defiance of my mother), and I enjoyed them... but I'll never ever watch Prometheus after the one scene I saw; the movie Event Horizon gave me such nightmares that I still can't even think about it without shuddering. The Animatrix, most especially the bits discussing the violence, made me physically ill. I'm a touchy-feely 'care bear' type person, and I'm definitely not a horror buff. But you find some kind of balance in how you discuss this stuff. Junji Ito is NOT someone whose work I would have ever glanced at before seeing your discussion of him. ("A hole made just for me" is still haunting me, btw.) And yet because of HOW you talked about that work, I can think about Ito with more coherence and calm than I can recall even one minute of Event Horizon. So from a fairly mouse-like little old lady - you have one hell of a talent, sir. My hat's off to you. Thank you for making something this terrifying so oddly accessible.

[@christinekeyes7098]

I think it's the analytical approach the narrative takes in describing these stories. You don't feel the visceral repulsive reaction you're used to because these reviews are laid out more like literary analysis, examining the different components that make up the whole in a logical and explorative aspect.

[@heraadrian7764]

The old trick of using intellectual detachment to be rational. Animatrix made me physically ill to because of its misanthropy and manipulative nature of taking the side of a machine and understanding that this is a human author advocating for his idea over humanity that broke any goodwill I had for that pretentious garbage.Seeing the downed pilots cut open from the cockpit to be flatlined made me fly of the handle as a kid. Event Horizon only saddened me because of the loss of good people that only wanted for the next step of humanity to the cosmos to happen. I do not understand what is scary about Ito just a little uncommon. Predator made me learn never to pity prey or animals and to only value human life as the only good thing.

[@aldiascholarofthefirstsin1051]

@@heraadrian7764 Misanthropy is the trait I hate the most in a person.

[@trashthug]

@@heraadrian7764uh wtf up with that last part we’re not special we’re literally animals what makes us worth more than any other animal just cuz you feel intelligent?

[@heraadrian7764]

@@trashthugI feel you are more intelligent than any other animal and I am the same. We are nothing special to the world but everything to one another. After you see humanity from a detached point of view to see the truth remenber to reattach yourself to your humanity and use that information for the betterment of your origin the humans.

[@suruxstrawde8322]

Ah what an inspiration to my much earlier time period story- Sacred Circuitry, only just at the beginning of the first biotechnological revolution, tackling how humanity will grapple with this horrifying new freedom.

[@suruxstrawde8322]

But my versions of "metahumans" haven't been that fleshed out yet, tho they're not that human at all, and in lore that makes them better. Incapable of infighting because they're neurologically above selfish conflicts. They are descendants of humans, but they're all extremophiles that live across the system and need no additional life support, their culture focuses on research and harmony above all.

[@theexchipmunk]

There is a point to be made about what we know as human truly being an idea in a not insignificant part. Carried by the weight of thousands of generations who passed on their ideas and thoughts to the next. Without growing up with the knowledge and thoughts of our predecessors, what would come would likely be quite differnt from what we know. Differnt ideas, differnt morals.

[@alexoblivion9295]

When I read that Cronenberg had the opportunity to direct 'Return of the Jedi' but turned it down. This was exactly what I pictured. I haven't heard of Humanity Lost until this video, now I have to investigate further. Thank you 💙

[@oliverlarosa8046]

A rather refreshing take, in all honesty. As usefully as the traditional visual codes of good and evil, person and not are for effectively conveying a story, they are rigidly polarized in a way that I don't think is compelling, or even healthy to normalize for that matter

[@falest_the_alien_nextdoor]

My dream is to make a science-fiction world so good Curious Archive will make a video on it

[@shiggermetimbers]

There needs to be xenophobia in it

[@falest_the_alien_nextdoor]

@@shiggermetimbers you bet

[@GangWeedTokyo]

it feels reminicent of the alien gauna from the manga by tsutumo nihei "knights of sidonia"

[@SolarShado]

I remember the gauna leaning more to the "mass of undifferentiated flesh" side of things... at least in KoS! The gauna in his earlier work "Abara" are much more... prickly/sharp. Definitely some aesthetic themes in common!

[@GangWeedTokyo]

@@SolarShadoyeah it really depends on the induvidual gauna, they where horrifiyingly adaptive like benizume was very intelligent and many other showed (to me at least) an almost exponential growth in inteligence based on how long they lived.

[@adrianaslund8605]

I like this. Non "humanity first" sci-fi is rare.

[@Ballacha]

really need a proper motion picture adaptation of this and All Tomorrows. human naturally or artificially evolving into something different is such an inexplicably unexplored premise in on-scren sci-fi series/movies.

[@giovanni9136]

"Humanity is more than flesh, it is more than the physical more than the aesthetic, an idea no matter the shambling of a mess of flesh it might be" - Weakest Indomitable human spirit enjoyer, 2024

[@KanuckStreams]

Absolutely love the Warhammer: 40,000: Mechanicus quote at the start.

[@C4xR34]

The first video on Humanity Lost was absolutely entrancing and I'm so glad to see another one on it! Such an interesting world.

[@matteste]

This actually reminded me of an idea I myself had some time ago. I have always been fascinated by the organic and viseral style of some hostile races in science fiction and thus started to wonder if I changed things around and had it apply to the heroes instead. One particular thing about this was the realization that to those living with these kinds of trappings, to them this would be normal. They would be able to have the same quality of life and experience the human spirit even if things looked horrifying to us. Thus I had it so the the heroes were those who made use of this kind of biological technology to survive a harsh world after having been abandoned, eventually having to fight for their right and way of life to exist, being seen as abnormal by those around them.

[@BrookD.Artist]

It always bothered me. People latching on to their archaic idea of humanity, which more often than not just means ugly=bad. Thanks for putting into words how I felt.

[@Alzir-n9m]

I often notice that, ironically, the people who incessantly go 'Humanity first!' and all that crap tend to be the most pro-imperialism, pro-eugenics, or straight up bigoted people on the planet. Its almost as if they don't actually care about humanity, but only their own contorted view of what humanity is.

[@ChaseDaOrk3767]

​@@Alzir-n9mThis might be weird to say, but I wouldn't be too surprised if those types of individuals would be the most likely to fall to the corruption of the Chaos Gods from Warhammer 40k/Fantasy. What do you think?

[@scutumfidelis1436]

​@@ChaseDaOrk3767I think your obsession with the foreign will lead to slaaneshi heresy.

[@ChaseDaOrk3767]

@@scutumfidelis1436 How so?

[@newdivide9882]

@@Alzir-n9m You perfectly described those who hate humanity as well

[@masterzoroark6664]

I do like the take on biomechanical that allows the technology to "wear clothes" sorta speak- many people imagine the disturbing, Cronenberg take on biotech, one where you outright see veins, intestines and exposed muscle, but living beings don't parade with these exposed. They have skin, chitin, clothes, fur. That's what I do like about scorn as example- the world works on blood, muscle, ichor and siniue, but the properly working technology of that world "wears" chitin and bone on places that matter and leaves thin membaranes for either natal or misshapen or for things that require flexibility to work. I hope more people realize that you can do biotech in sci-fi without just making it look like if you are utilizing cancer growth to fight. On cancer- it also makes a very striking visual to show how biological technology "malfunctions", having your gun not as much explode but bulge out with hernia or pussfilled zits if you don't maintain it (going back to Scorn- the monsters of that world seem to be technological malfunction, flesh that refused to grow in confines of bone and chitin the civilisation uses)

[@SC-zq6cu]

One of the very few a.i. in sci-fi that actually tries to make there be more humans instead of less.

[@Somerled_Pox]

You have an affinity for using adjectives that suggest subtlety, when instead what's shown is the furthest thing from subtle. Anyway, interesting project.

[@kenster8270]

For some reason, watching this reminded me of the 1980s animated series Jayce & the Wheeled Warriors (yes, I'm that old!), which featured robots/machines that were somehow also carnivorous plants.

[@zombiesalmon4997]

Yea i bought the first book a while back, it really is great. I still think that humans being the bad guys is an awesome concept for sci fi.

[@darealshinji]

The parts with the hands used as seats reminded me in Shintaro Kago's Parataxis manga and his similar work "Industrial Revolution and World War". Recommended if you like body horror.

[@Volvith]

The Nomad Star megastructure is honestly on a scale that surpasses at least the modern 40K universe. When you get to those kinds of scales, you belong to the same classification as the precurors from Halo, or anything from the Xeelee Sequence. Completely in a realm of its own.

[@Kandosii]

I had just been opining to my friends earlier today that I wished there was something Beksiński/Scorn-esque where fleshy monstrosities were the good guys. This is *perfect* timing. If anyone else in the comments has other recommendations, I am so here for it.

[@zackhostetler5175]

Always a good day when you post.

[@Asporez]

13:00 in the storyline that was planned after Voyager, USS Titan, Romulus is destroyed and the Borg invades and assimilates about 60% of the Federation then it becomes a post-apocalyptic nightmare. It was scrubbed because it isn't the ideal setting to restart a franchise but I was sad it never got into the cannon.

[@AModernRogue]

I just bought a physical copy, looking forward to it!

[@edstatueson]

The horror-fied human designs remind me of Barlowe's demons from his novel "God's Demon," which takes place in a hell where everything is made from flesh and organic structures. Also of note: check out Brandon Graham's "Prophet" comic run from 2012. In the far future humanity is comprised solely of clones of one man, and the human empire is galaxy-spanning and its members are often highly-modified transhuman creations. This series you're covering reminds me a lot of that series, given that in Prophet this future is not meant to be dystopian per se, just... What it is.

[@FlorenceFox]

After your first video on this, I was curious about Humanity Lost. After this one, I'm definitely going to check it out.

[@gyrrakavian]

13:44 On a tangentially related note, Old World diseases wiped out an estimated 60% to 90% of indigenous peoples in North America. And that was before any of the intentional genocide campaigns started.

[@purplehaze2358]

I have never so consistently seen imagery that makes me feel like I'm inside of a mouth, stomach, or womb as I have watching this video.

[@NekoNinja13]

despite being squeamish and not a fan of horror, body horror will often times not really phase me (but still it does sometimes). i just see a creature, not too unlike myself. I'm far more concerned with any given creatures intentions and actions than their looks a vast majority of the time

[@PorElBienDelGuion]

That's exactly the viewpoint Humanity Lost is encouraging you to take. Amazing.

[@travislyonsgary]

I had a kind of opposite reaction to the borg, they were threatening but I found it notable that they initially were noted to be a consensus that itself was trying to assimilate methodologies to adapt to the unknowable winning conditions of the universe. I found some resonance in that and the goals of all life. Which is why I was rather annoyed when they got the Queen and more of a focus on the person being fully gone since I found the first elements of their introduction to be much more...respectably terrifying, I suppose. Resilient and an honest threat in the depths of why it acts as it does, natural for all of its mechanized aesthetic.

[@anthonyfrias5533]

The flux reminds me of yog-sothoth, and the project as a whole is very lovecraftian.

[@TheConnectedWorlds]

Yeah Deicide is my favorite character of the series

[@theonlymegumegu]

the "Aliens aren't cuddly" section def made me think of deep sea creatures and how terrifyingly alien those can look...

[@theashen2019]

Love myself Bio punk designs. I also don’t get why the power to alter flesh is ostracised as an evil thing.

[@sarahwestbrook7347]

I’ve been so excited for your newest episode and you never disappoint

[@SirSavage-]

You should do a speculative biology video on “Scavengers Reign” ‼️👽

[@williek08472]

Oooh, another deep dive into this wonderful world (should I put wonderful in quotation marks?)

[@SoulDelSol]

I wonder if aliens would think our world is a biological terror since there are life forms everywhere. They may think of their own "womb world" as just lush and beautiful and miraculous

[@SpoopyChicken]

Me and the boys trying to fight off the Devouring Swarm in our Stellaris Federation:

[@seanhebert1229]

Stellaris mentioned! We love a good Ole hivemind clash

[@nilss834]

I think you should make a full video on nausicaa from the valley of the wind, I think the whole insect/mushroom thing would be very interesting

[@sagemo3674]

You should look into doing a video on the anime "Made In Abyss" its worldbuilding and lore is amazing and it has really a creative plot. It had the perfect amount of gore as well, making the scenes where it is shown 100x more potent. It's an amazing show and should definitely be on anyone's watch list.

[@anima.7750]

hi curious archive !! :D I really like your documentaries diving deep into rarely explored topics, especially when you take a deep dive into interesting lectures or video games.

[@Fireheart318]

Suggestion: The Eternal Cylinder.

[@biblicallyaccurateangel2476]

one of my favorite “loss of humanity” examples is in made in abyss, with nanachi’s “perfect” transformation juxtaposed with mitty’s “imperfect”, immortal transformation. that whole series is just absolutely horrific and heartbreaking, but its horror and worldbuilding is, in my opinion, almost unparalleled in its beauty and detail.

[@jango7889]

I've found so many great works of art through this channel, thank you man.

[@DarkDao]

I hope Scavengers Reign is in your schedule. It's absolutely amazing.

[@freakishuproar1168]

Don't feel bad about finding the Borg scary, the concept of them is absolutely horrifying. We really take our subjective sense of self for granted, and the idea of something taking that away from us is appalling, and it's not even because they hate us or consider sapient individual beings their enemies, your ego death is just a means to an end for them.

Callum Diggle's art is eerily similar to some of my work when I was in my twenties, and the themes were spot on, as well. Fascinating.

[@jktech2117]

a message i like is that u dont have to be human to do what humans do, even though we are limited by our bodies... we are not just bodies, we are at least (since theres still no proof of a soul) a consciousness inside the brain, our body might die but somehow we stay in it for some minutes to hours inside it (there were experiments on this) we are beings, not bodies.