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The Ink, the 4th Wall, and you
Let’s start from the beginning- with the Ink. Now, go back and look at the World Map for a moment. Off of the Edge of the World, past the ocean, there’s an endless expanse of universe. You can see gigantic tendrils of liquid being sucked from the universe and into the ocean. The truth of the matter is, the Ink that exists in Ink City is the essence of creation, sucked from the deepest expanses of the universe. It’s been drawn into Ink City since it’s conception, setting the stage for the existential rigamaroll that would take place.
The ink is beneath the surface of the oceans and ground, forever churning and moving out of sight. It’s only breach to the surface is through the InkWell fountain, but it can occasionally break through the ground in the forest, where there’s less of a barrier between the earth and the rivers of ink below.
The ink is used to create the base bodies that all characters come from. The Ink Monsters are essentially just blank slates in need of personalities and distinct appearances. When a character is plucked from their home world, they’re mixed with the ink and sent through the InkWell fountain, initially appearing as little more than an Ink Monster before solidifying as a complete character with a personality, unique physical appearance, and the memories of where ever they came from. But beneath the surface, their blood is still pumping with ink, and that base is still there.
Now then, onto the 4th Wall! The 4th Wall, in the physical sense, is a terrifyingly tall range of mountains surrounding the City and Forest, with near-vertical cliffs. To attempt climbing it’s surface is nearly impossible. Besides, the act of even touching the 4th Wall is dangerous. The higher and more intimidating it is in size, the more dangerous it is to come in contact with. If a character were to physically touch the 4th wall, they would suffer from a number of mental side-effects. But more on that in a moment...
The literal term for the “4th Wall”, in relation to entertainment and media, follows the imagery of a three-walled box set theatre. The 4th, invisible wall is the vantage point through which the audience watches.When the 4th wall is “broken”, it means that a character is speaking directly to the audience. We’ve all seen this used countless times before, especially in cartoons.
But in the case of Ink City, the 4th Wall is solid, and for a good reason. It’s not just an audience that stands watching from beyond Ink City. The 4th Wall is the barrier between the characters and their unique audience- the puppet masters of the story, and the ones currently in control of the characters. Acting as more than simply a pair of eyes watching a story unfold, they’re in control of everything that happens. They’re the “Greater Powers Beyond the 4th Wall” that command the Mayor and the creation of Ink City, and it is through their decisions that characters come and go through the ink.
To break the wall and discover this new, strange audience means that the character is realizing their actions are watched and controlled by an outside source. Their will is not their own, and never has been.
Long story short, it is you behind the 4th Wall.
When a character comes in contact with the 4th Wall, their mind is suddenly barraged with a flurry of mental images and a sudden epiphany- the puzzle pieces toward unravelling the truth of their existence. The side effects of touching the wall can be one or more of the following:
None of these symptoms are specifically required to happen, and you’re welcome to come up with you own side-effects for touching the 4th wall. It’s up to you!
Characters that are more meta and used to breaking the 4th Wall in their cartoons are less affected by coming in contact with it.
The ink is beneath the surface of the oceans and ground, forever churning and moving out of sight. It’s only breach to the surface is through the InkWell fountain, but it can occasionally break through the ground in the forest, where there’s less of a barrier between the earth and the rivers of ink below.
The ink is used to create the base bodies that all characters come from. The Ink Monsters are essentially just blank slates in need of personalities and distinct appearances. When a character is plucked from their home world, they’re mixed with the ink and sent through the InkWell fountain, initially appearing as little more than an Ink Monster before solidifying as a complete character with a personality, unique physical appearance, and the memories of where ever they came from. But beneath the surface, their blood is still pumping with ink, and that base is still there.
Now then, onto the 4th Wall! The 4th Wall, in the physical sense, is a terrifyingly tall range of mountains surrounding the City and Forest, with near-vertical cliffs. To attempt climbing it’s surface is nearly impossible. Besides, the act of even touching the 4th Wall is dangerous. The higher and more intimidating it is in size, the more dangerous it is to come in contact with. If a character were to physically touch the 4th wall, they would suffer from a number of mental side-effects. But more on that in a moment...
The literal term for the “4th Wall”, in relation to entertainment and media, follows the imagery of a three-walled box set theatre. The 4th, invisible wall is the vantage point through which the audience watches.When the 4th wall is “broken”, it means that a character is speaking directly to the audience. We’ve all seen this used countless times before, especially in cartoons.
But in the case of Ink City, the 4th Wall is solid, and for a good reason. It’s not just an audience that stands watching from beyond Ink City. The 4th Wall is the barrier between the characters and their unique audience- the puppet masters of the story, and the ones currently in control of the characters. Acting as more than simply a pair of eyes watching a story unfold, they’re in control of everything that happens. They’re the “Greater Powers Beyond the 4th Wall” that command the Mayor and the creation of Ink City, and it is through their decisions that characters come and go through the ink.
To break the wall and discover this new, strange audience means that the character is realizing their actions are watched and controlled by an outside source. Their will is not their own, and never has been.
Long story short, it is you behind the 4th Wall.
When a character comes in contact with the 4th Wall, their mind is suddenly barraged with a flurry of mental images and a sudden epiphany- the puzzle pieces toward unravelling the truth of their existence. The side effects of touching the wall can be one or more of the following:
- Some of their memories are suddenly being viewed from a different perspective- it’s not from the first-person view of their eyes, but they suddenly see everything as though they were watching from an outside source. Sometimes the memories even concentrate on other people entirely. What they’re seeing are the views from you, the audience, as you watched whatever canon material they were plucked from.
- A sudden number of names come to mind- none of them are familiar, but they seem very important... And even if you tried, you can’t forget them. These are the names that quickly roll through the credits.. the endless amount of people whose efforts all played a part in fully creating that character.
- Your name. This one comes through at a slightly more intense level than the credit names tend to, just because you’re currently in control of them.
- Mental images of the concept art and sketches leading up to their creation.. and quick clips of defining moments throughout their series that solidified their characterization. These ones tend to be random and confusing flashes, and they aren’t an instantaneous reaction, it happens slowly over time.
- In the case of AUs, they may suddenly be bombarded with memories of their alternate lives, the original versions that they’re based off of.
None of these symptoms are specifically required to happen, and you’re welcome to come up with you own side-effects for touching the 4th wall. It’s up to you!
Characters that are more meta and used to breaking the 4th Wall in their cartoons are less affected by coming in contact with it.