What's REALLY going on between Armand and Daniel in Interview with the Vampire?

[@hannahland7863]

It was fun to see my fave ship featured in its own video! And I love your outfit 😉. Some of my fave little DM hints that you didn’t mention: Armand saying he “wouldn’t let [daniel] near his neck if he…” in season 1. Weird thing to say about someone who has never drunk your blood from your neck before! Armand needing to leave the room when Louis offers to turn Daniel in season 1 Armand mentioning blenders and looking so softly at Daniel when they’re alone in 2.3 (the blenders may be more of an inside joke for fans rather than an in universe memory but it’s clear what they’re hinting at) Armand being more concerned about what Daniel thinks of him than Louis in 2.6 This is more to do with Daniel’s turning, but when Louis mentions Madeleine being turned, he says she went willingly, the lamb smiling up at the wolf. The camera is on Daniel on “lamb” and Armand on “wolf”, hinting that Daniel may have been turned consensually and not out of spite. I think there are lots of reasons to think this actually- mainly that Louis is the one who acts out spite generally, and Armand acts out of fear and a desire to cling to love. I’m excited to see the reveal of how that actually went down. My favorite corollary to the past DM theory is that it explains why Daniel was able to get the upper hand on Armand. Armand may have been afraid to read Daniel’s mind in case he triggered the past memories resurfacing. Armand mentions that he was not good at seeing other people’s plans because he was “in love”. He’s talking about Paris and likely lying, bc he was quite aware of the coven’s plots against Louis and Claudia. But maybe there’s some truth to it when it actually comes to Daniel. This part is just speculation but it’s fun to think about!

[@mariamaynot]

yes! And Daniel thinking what Armand's blood tastes like...

[@mslaurondo]

There’s also the fact that after Daniel makes the comment about liking Alice in a purple dress because she was confident, Armand wears a purple shirt the next episode.

[@mariamaynot]

I did catch that! Wonder if that was on purpose... Carol Cutshall I have questions to you

[@rockyowls]

He wants that old man so bad

[@FreeBlendersFromAmazon]

And the old man is Armand😉

[@Mel-me9sw]

When people say they don't see DM in the show, I'm like??????? how?? From ep 1 I was like "Daniel really wants Rashid, huh?"

[@ciceroprofacto5307]

I'm basically convinced they're going this route. I hope we'll get Daniel having Devil's Minion flashbacks while interviewing Lestat. Maybe the maker-fledgling bond chips away at the alterations bit by bit so we get a drip feed of memories coming back. Maybe things Lestat's telling him don't jive with stories Daniel subconsciously knows because Armand's told him about Marius and Lestat's time in Paris with Gabrielle. Luke's line where Young Daniel's talking about how he's good at getting people to open up feels so much more important to the character of Armand who keeps tighter control over his history than Louis who's itching to tell his story. Yes that line applied in season 2 as well, but having a Devil's Minion backstory where Armand truly opened up to Daniel and came to fear/regret it enough to redact himself seems like the best way to get the Vampire Armand plot points into the story. By Armand-standards, in San Francisco, he was chomping at the bit to tell Daniel about himself, bringing up the slavers in Dehli within hours of meeting him. I don't see Armand getting his own standalone season to tell his story. Plus, it would make the Louis/Armand relationship in season 2 so much more tragic, Armand desperately clinging to it after giving Daniel up. I do wonder if, like you mentioned about Daniel's publisher, they might include Marius in the backstory- maybe to bring in the idea of fledglings always growing to hate their makers which was Armand's biggest hesitation in the book and could be a good reason Armand would've let Daniel go and erased himself. If they do that, having Pandora in the present QoTD plot would show a couple breaking that pattern by coming together again through multiple millennia. It would give the boys a reason to try again. I realize I basically wrote a fanfic in your comments, but I just wanted to say thanks for putting all of this together in one place and giving me a little more faith that they'll fully do these characters justice. I absolutely adore the show versions of them and I have so much hope they'll make something beautiful.

[@mariamaynot]

@@ciceroprofacto5307 thank you for the comment, all the points are great! On the topic of Marius, I've seen some people speculate that the memory erasure could've been Marius' work 😵‍💫 But that's another fanfic in the making!

[@hannahland7863]

@@ciceroprofacto5307 I really like the idea of us seeing some TVA flashbacks when Armand opens up to Daniel! (Either young or old)

[@ciceroprofacto5307]

@@mariamaynot Oh man, I kinda love that... I could see Armand being incapable of that level of memory manipulation or unable to bring himself to do it and asking Marius to do it for him. They could even sprinkle in hints that he doesn't really want to but Marius is pushing him because Daniel's a mess and he thinks it's best for Armand (or is trying to get Armand back for himself because Pandora's ditched him again). In TV shows they're always trying to up the stakes of the previous seasons "big bad". While season 3's going to have Akasha, she's functionally a plot antagonist who serves as a physical threat to everyone, but doesn't do a whole lot for character-dynamics like making Armand the antagonist in season 2 did. Making Marius start out as an antagonistic figure in Daniel/Armand's relationship could do that really well...

[@kh-victoria]

The evening just got better. The number of times I had to pause this video and just breathe… Thank you for mentioning blue ceilings and mail keys and martinis. I was waiting for such video (not necessarily from you but just in general) and still somehow was not ready. Great outfit btw 🔥

[@mariamaynot]

@@kh-victoria I just had to pour all this knowledge out, it was eating me from the inside lol. And thanks for noticing the outfit 😏

[@Gremlinito]

Okay, first of all: THAT OUTFIT!!! 😍😉 Fantastic breakdown of thee ship of all time, both in the books (one of my favourite chapters, if not my absolute fave, in the entire VC) and in the show. There were a few super interesting details I'd missed, especially that Trinity Gate-esque blue sky ceiling??? 😮Honestly they could go with any storyline in the show and i'd be okay with it, as long as DM is there in some form or another. I trust Papa Rolin's twisted mind will deliver, no matter what. Also the Eric/Assad/LBF chemistry is just too good to not make the most of it.

[@Blanka9]

Thank you for this video! If they don't fully develop their romance in season 3 at least I hope we can see a little bit of it flourishing ✨

[@lesliepulliam]

I'm obsessed with everything IWTV, and the way you broke down this video and 'possibilities' I'm here for it! It would be so AMC-ish for Daniel to have been living in Armand's apartment all this time especially since Louis told 'the boy' that he was into real estate during their first meeting. Bottom Line, I immediately subscribed to your channel and will be viewing your past videos! I love how the book is different from the movie and the series has so many twists and layers from the books! Thank you for the deep dives!

[@mariamaynot]

thank you for watching! I also enjoy the differences immensely, they give so much food for thought and fuel for speculation!

[@astertataricus.]

omg a devil’s minion video blessing my recommended?? watching immediately

[@Atomic0range]

This is great! Love the depth you go into without going full tinfoil hat. And great choice of video title and intro. Makes it clear what you’re going to discuss for those of us in the loop without spoiling anything for the show-only folks.

[@mariamaynot]

@@Atomic0range thank you! Tried to keep myself in check because the allure of tin hatting is ever-present 😄

[@vento_nei_capelli]

после прочтения главы и пересмотра первого сезона после второго, начинаешь видеть все эти мелочи. спасибо что собрали все теории вместе! мне нравятся все варианты, но думаю сценаристы придумают что-то неожиданное, а они могут 😆 костюм для видео шик 😜

[@thegrynne]

I see your costuming decisions and I applaud you for it.

[@thegrynne]

One more script/acting clue I think was in 2x06, when Armand seems more intent on defending his actions to Daniel than to Louis, his actual partner. "Why did I owe YOU my shame? Why did I owe you my one act of cowardice?" Why would he care what Daniel thought of him?

[@mariamaynot]

😏😇

[@mariamaynot]

@@thegrynne yes, that one, too, felt like Armand being unreasonably sensitive to Daniel's opinion of him, which is... hm...

[@booksgurrsandpurrs]

Ah! Thank you for putting this segment together. In The Vampire Lestat we learn that not only was Theatre of Vampires used as a hub for vamps trafficking in & out, but so were bars. I wonder if that is another aspect of why Armand knows how to make drinks so well?

[@mariamaynot]

oh! haven't made this connection 🧐

[@Isidore-o2k]

I have to write this somewhere there is another clue that the Devil's Mnion happened. " was it raining Louis ?" This sentence asked several times by Daniel, echoing a conversation between Daniel and Armand. Daniel asked Armand about historical movies, if he could pinpoint errors. Armand answered he couldn't. He had a perfect memory, he could tell him if it was raining on a particuliar day in Paris, but he he couldn't make a synthesis of an era. It is interesting to note that Daniel asks precisely if it was raining and that Louis wasn't sure. Other point : Armand can't see anachronism in movies, so the memories he puts in people's minds are also full of anachronism.

[@marianavase8805]

I can't wait for the third season 😆! A very interesting video.

[@mariamaynot]

🤝 and thank you!

[@elsagillsten]

I think it’s funny how in the show both Armand and Daniel technically would have cheated on someone during the 70’s and 80’s (Armand on Louis and Daniel on Alice)

[@mariamaynot]

made for each other! but fr...😶

[@katherineelmore9919]

Honestly I was getting so annoyed at how certain the truthers have been and it almost made me get like... anti-hype? But seeing it all together- I mean, for two seasons we've had a "Daniel's memory is spotty and when it comes back Armand is there" subplot, which almost makes me 100% a truther myself (even though I try not to get invested in any theory! So hard!) If they announce a title or if a title card pops up and it's even an obscure quote from that chapter, this fandom is crashing the entire internet.

[@mariamaynot]

@@katherineelmore9919 honestly I'm not a real truther because I'm not ready to die at this hill, and I'm open to anything the show eventually decides to do - but it's so fun to connect the dots, I almost forgot what it felt like!

[@avogrid296]

Ahh, I've been needing someone to pull all these crumbs together into a delicious DM cookie! Great job!!

[@mariamaynot]

thank you!

[@lamirandanomegusta711]

A bit far-fetched but this could be another possible crumb - Daniel asking "Was it raining, Louis?" more than once in s1. From our favourite chapter in QotD: ...Finally, after a year and a half of this madness, Daniel began to question Armand. What had it really been like in those days in Venice? Look at this film, set in the eighteenth century, tell me what is wrong. But Armand was remarkably unresponsive. "I cannot tell you those things because I have no experience of them. You see, I have so little ability to synthesize knowledge; I deal in the immediate with a cool intensity. What was it like in Paris? Ask me if it rained on the night of Saturday, June 5, 1793. Perhaps I could tell you I that."...

[@alexandretorres5087]

It is not Armand that you should be worried about, it is the other...

[@mariamaynot]

right? what did he mean by that what did he MEAN

[@alexandretorres5087]

My big beef with the series is that they establish that Louis can read minds (he could not, or would not in the books). So, how Daniel can keep any secret from him? And then it gets worse with Armand being a master in mortal mind reading. Anne rice took the care of creating characters trained on mind block to keep secrets from vampires. That is the thing that makes such theories hard to accept.

[@mariamaynot]

but if Daniel doesn't remember... he doesn't need to keep it secret? or do you mean in the past? I'm a bit confused

[@mariamaynot]

but as how to Armand couldn't read Daniel's plotting of the script reveal, that's another question...

[@yourneighborhoodfujoshi]

You answered your own question: Armand erased Daniel’s mind to avoid Louis being able to read him. Louis can read him but there’s not much he can read if Daniel has certain memories blocked or suppressed.

[@dianelatka5037]

I have a feeling that Armand wanted Daniel to remember.

[@owlsnotes020]

Thank you! I remember I was on the first season and second book, when I found out that Devil's Minion exists. And I thought that it should be toxic and full of huge power imbalance, abuse and gaslighting. And I've been thinking like: why are you people like them so much?? Then I read The chapter and was like: uh... That's why... 😂 Guess who loves them now. And I haven't noticed the keys and Roman Weiss, that's very interesting. I do wait for Daniel to meet Marius. It should be such a mess. Based on Armand's story in season 2, amc Marius gives me vibes of... a complicated character, let's say that (I don't really like him in the books too, honestly)

[@mariamaynot]

me too! I started reading the books after s1, and when the Armand reveal happened and saw everyone theorizing, I was quite lost 😅 I wonder, though, if the show actually decides to go the Daniel/Marius route... it would be... complicated to say the least, but I feel like this older version of Daniel just wouldn't realistically put up with Marius' shit lol

[@damarislopez773]

i ship both versions... i mean, Assad has tooooooooooooooon of chemistry with eric and luke.

[@mariamaynot]

I feel like he has chemistry with everyone!

[@rachelstechman5959]

I gotta say, I hope they don't go down the Devil's Minion route on the show. I liked it in the book, but having aged Daniel up, I just don't think it works anymore without a LOT of retconning. And there's only so many times the show can use the "your memories were wiped and it was all made up" trick before it's gonna feel real stale. Personally, I found it so refreshing in the show to have one character who isn't fascinated by Armand, and calls him out on his shit. But your theory is all plausible, so guess we'll have to wait until the next season!

[@susantorre4609]

the theory i have is the two wives clearly armand and marius the two kids arent going to be biological kids could be sybelle and benji

[@mariamaynot]

🤯

[@yourneighborhoodfujoshi]

I think this might be the case honestly. It would be a great plot twist if they make Daniel live his nightmare of being in a soap opera situation; remember the Roberto/soap opera act? What if the act is foreshadowing?

[@mlandry491]

but he has a closet full of childrens things.. we see this when he pulls out the tape player... the items could be planted perhaps

[@lamirandanomegusta711]

Daniel is a public figure, his enemies would've ruined his reputation ages ago if he'd gone on about biological children that never existed. Wives and kids are real, but certain memories are mixed up and were actually with someone else. The charade of imaginary families is just too complicated to uphold, people around Daniel would've needed to be mindtricked as well.

[@yourneighborhoodfujoshi]

@@susantorre4609 At most, I think of Daniel’s kids one might become Sybelle. She’s a young woman. Benji’s a boy. That is to say, your theory is not likely.

[@tdali8347]

"I'm kissing everyone responsible on the mouth." 💋👍

[@2ndround415]

I’ve never clicked so fast 💨

[@mlandry491]

i want to know... who is kathryn mitchell? and why is louis able to whack armand in the end when armand is clearly stronger than him? and why is he calling armand the name rashid so softly? why?

[@mariamaynot]

re: kathryn mitchell - I think it was just an alphabetical list of names, and Daniel was looking for his own - "Molloy" would've been right after hers. But we know... we know he's in the "paramours" folder, not "victims" 😄

[@mlandry491]

@mariamaynot ahh makes sense! unless shes wife number 2? paramours... victims.. consumate... drain... 6 of one half dozen of the other.. lol